Chapter 246: The Autumn Levy (Part 11)

“Why wouldn’t I want revenge!” Gou Chengxuan had originally been terrified of the ‘Kunzei.’ He had returned to the county only to lie low, using the “darkness under the lamp” to quietly gather news of his father and see if there was a chance to retrieve the iron chest that Gou Er had sunk in the well. As long as he had the treasure in that chest, it wouldn’t be too late to flee far away. Now, incited by the Lai brothers, his resentment began to fester. He had once been a powerful figure in the county, calling the wind and rain. Now, he was a beggar, unable to return home, living a precarious existence. At this thought, his heart filled with hatred.

Revenge had to be achieved through his own strength. Gou Chengxuan had accompanied his father to Guangzhou to lobby, and although the matter had not been successful, he had gained much experience. He knew that relying on the court was a daydream—the officials would not bother with matters in Lingao unless they became uncontrollable.

Gou Chengxuan had grown up with his father and uncle, and the Gou family estate had harbored many desperadoes from the martial world. He knew a great deal about the ways of the underworld and understood that causing trouble under the ‘Kunzei’s’ nose was a fool’s errand. He could only hide for now and wait for an opportunity. To this end, he and the Lai brothers had been hiding in this remote Fubo Temple. He had a little silver from his mother’s family, and with his rudimentary martial arts skills, he had managed to subdue the other beggars who rested there. They now followed his orders completely—of course, they didn’t know who he was. Unwittingly, he had formed a beggar’s gang in the county town.

Gou Chengxuan was very cautious. He rarely even went to the East Gate Market, only moving about in the county town. The ‘Kunzei’ rarely came here, and when they did, it was in small numbers, making them stand out in a crowd and easy to spot and avoid. He only used the opportunity of begging along the streets with the Lai brothers to gather news of the county.

In the past few days, he had learned about most of the transmigrator group’s various measures in the county. Gou Chengxuan knew that this group of Australians had great ambitions, likely even treasonous ones, which made him secretly overjoyed. If it were just a simple case of dog-eat-dog, his family’s fate would be a great injustice—of course, in others’ eyes, it would be just deserts. But the ‘Kunzei’ were clearly preparing to rebel. In three or five years, the court would inevitably come to suppress them! When the heavenly troops arrived, he would be rewarded for his assistance, and his time to turn the tables would come!

Recently, the news of the transmigrator group collecting taxes through Chen Minggang had also reached his ears. From the doormen and cooks of the large households, he had learned of the widespread dissatisfaction among them. This unusual development made Gou Chengxuan feel that an opportunity had come. He ordered his men to go to the county school to gather news—he himself was a scholar and knew that intellectuals were always the most passionate about current affairs.

After careful consideration, Gou Chengxuan decided to plant a spy in the county school. Coincidentally, Wang Ci had recently come into a lot of money and was planning to hire a few more janitors for the school. Lai Xiao, being young and his reputation not as bad as his brother’s, and putting on a pitiful act, managed to get the job. Thus, Gou Chengxuan was fully aware of Huang Bingkun’s activities in the county school.

Adhering to the principle that the enemy of my enemy is my friend, Gou Chengxuan believed he could win over Huang Bingkun. He had thought about this idea for a whole night. The Huang father and son were a large household in the county with a blood feud against the ‘Kunzei.’ The grudge of having their son and brother killed—he believed the Huang father and son would never forget it. Although the Gou and Huang families had not been on good terms in the past, they had never fought a real battle.

“Young Master, isn’t this too risky? What if that Huang boy sells you out…” the Lai brothers advised. Lai Da offered to go and talk to Huang Bingkun himself.

“It’s fine! Your status is too low; Huang Bingkun will have a hard time trusting you. I must go myself,” Gou Chengxuan said with great confidence. “Don’t worry! Not only does the Huang family have a blood feud with the ‘Kunzei,’ but they were also the most active in fighting them! Liu Dalin only provided the strategy; the Huang family fought on the front lines. For this reason alone, the Huang family and the ‘Kunzei’ must be irreconcilable. At most, he will ignore me; he will absolutely not sell me out.”

Watching Huang Bingkun walk away, a smile appeared on Gou Chengxuan’s lips. When it came to reading people, he was a hundred times better than this well-bred son of a scholar-gentry family. In that instant, he had already seen the panic and hesitation in Huang Bingkun’s heart… There was a chance!

He quickly got up and ducked into another alley—one could never be too careful. Gou Chengxuan walked around a few more deserted streets and alleys, and after waiting for an hour and seeing nothing unusual, he returned to the Fubo Temple.

This Fubo Temple had been built during the Hongwu era of the Great Ming. It had not been small in its day, with three courtyards. Now, only the main hall of the second courtyard and the buildings of the last courtyard were relatively intact; the rest had long since collapsed into rubble. The surrounding walls were dilapidated, with holes everywhere. The courtyard was overgrown with weeds. Even during the day, no one passed through here; it was extremely deserted. It was a good hiding place.

Gou Chengxuan and Lai Da occupied the last courtyard. He was now the head of the “beggar’s gang,” so it was not strange to have a beggar serving him. The other five or six beggars lived in the front courtyard. Gou Chengxuan symbolically collected a small share from them, but in reality, he often provided for them in exchange for them running errands for him. But for now, he didn’t dare to have them do any real business for him.

Just as he returned, he saw Lai Xiao had come back. He was cleaned up and waiting for him in the room.

“Young Master!” Lai Xiao called out when he saw him return.

“Don’t call me Young Master, are you trying to get me killed!” Gou Chengxuan’s face darkened.

“Yes, yes, I forgot again, Chief Chen!” Gou Chengxuan had given himself the name “Chen Ji,” a pun on the phrase “remembering hatred.” He quickly reported to Gou Chengxuan about Huang Bingkun’s failed attempt to rally the scholars to write a petition.

“…Apart from that fool Li Xiaopeng, none of the sour scholars were willing to step forward.”

“Good,” Gou Chengxuan thought. In that case, the chances of the friendless Huang Bingkun joining forces with him had greatly increased. He then told Lai Xiao about his actions that day.

“What a coincidence that he hit a wall today,” Gou Chengxuan said with satisfaction. “Heaven is truly helping me!”

“One can never be too careful,” Lai Xiao suggested. “Young Master, do you think we should prepare a few more places to hide, so we can slip away if there’s any trouble…”

“Hmm, I’ve thought about that, but I can’t think of any better places for now.”

There were not many people in Lingao city, and there were many empty houses. They were either “official shrines” or various “official houses” built in earlier years that had now fallen into disrepair. However, most of these houses had collapsed and were uninhabitable.

“There are many empty barracks in the small training ground at the north gate,” Lai Xiao said. “I went to take a look, and a few of them are still habitable. There are many rooms there, like a maze. And it’s close to your—Chief Chen’s—home. Maybe you’ll have a chance to go back and see…”

Gou Chengxuan knew there were large empty barracks near the blocked north city gate. It was indeed a good hiding place, but precisely because it was close to his home, he avoided it—who knew if the ‘Kunzei’ had placed spies nearby? Besides, now that he had the idea of seeking revenge, the thought of retrieving the treasure had faded a lot.

However, he hadn’t told the Lai brothers about the treasure in the well; he had to guard against them getting ideas.

“That place won’t work. There might be spies watching. Coming and going frequently will attract attention,” Gou Chengxuan shook his head.

“The Chastity Courtyard is also an option.”

The Chastity Courtyard was a place for widows who had vowed to remain chaste. This kind of semi-official, semi-private facility had long been unsustainable in a sparsely populated and financially strapped small county, and the buildings were also in ruins.

“Alright,” he nodded. “Tonight, I’ll have your brother go there and prepare. We should also have three burrows like a cunning rabbit.”

As they were talking, Lai Da also returned. He had been sent on a special mission to the city gate to check the heads and notices. Gou Chengxuan didn’t dare to inquire about the bandit suppression in the city and had only been listening to gossip. He hadn’t heard about the deaths of Hu Lan’yan or his father, which relieved him somewhat. Hearing that there were heads of executed bandits and notices at the city gate, he had instructed Lai Da to investigate—Lai Da could read a few characters—to see if those two names were on them.

“I’ve already checked,” Lai Da said. “The heads are all rotten, it’s impossible to tell who they are. The names on the notices do not include Hu Lan’yan or the master’s name! They are probably safe.”

“That’s for the best!” Gou Chengxuan breathed a sigh of relief. “Hu Lan’yan’s mountain fortress is probably still there!”

“Then I’ll go and investigate!” Lai Da volunteered.

“Good, it would be good for you to find out the situation,” Gou Chengxuan thought. If he could get in touch with his father through this, he would have more outside help.

“Young Master—” Lai Da stammered. “There’s one more thing.”

“Say it.”

“I saw another notice. It says, it says,” Lai Da swallowed, “that your scholar title has been revoked…”

Gou Chengxuan’s face instantly turned deathly pale. He was stunned for a moment. Lai Xiao quickly supported him. “Young Master!”

“It’s nothing!” Gou Chengxuan blinked and waved his hand, but he couldn’t help but sit down. This blow was too great for him. The scholar title was the most useful skin he had. It was because of this skin that the Gou family could stand on equal footing with the gentry in the county—otherwise, they would always be just local tyrants. Because of this skin, wherever he went, officials and gentry had to treat him with some courtesy.

Now, his skin had been stripped away! From now on, he would be a “commoner” who had to kowtow to the county magistrate and could have his pants taken off and be beaten on the buttocks for a single wrong word! The blow was so great it almost made him collapse. Lai Xiao saw his face changing color, turning pale, and breaking out in a cold sweat. He knew it was a fit of anger and quickly took out some “Zhuge’s Marching Powder” from his side and blew it into his nose. After a while, Gou Chengxuan finally recovered.

“Young Master, don’t get angry. It’s already happened—” Lai Da was about to console him. Gou Chengxuan said weakly, “Don’t say any more. In my current state, what difference does it make whether I have a title or not!”