Chương 534: The Embroidered Uniform Guard in Action

Wang An looked in the direction he pointed and saw a cloud of dust rising in the distance. Fifty Imperial Guards and eight hundred soldiers were rushing toward the fortified village, a dark mass of them.

He sneered and shouted, "Archers, prepare! When they get close, shoot them all! Don't let a single one escape!"

But the next second, the smile on his face froze.

The soldiers parted to the sides, revealing a large, dark cannon behind them, its muzzle pointing directly at the gate of the fortified village.

The iron cannon barrel gleamed coldly in the sunlight, like a giant eye.

The artillerymen skillfully loaded gunpowder and shells, aiming at the gate of the fortified village.

The movements were fluid and graceful, clearly indicating that the person had practiced.

"ignition!"

"Boom—!"

A deafening roar shook the earth, and everyone's ears rang.

The shells whistled through the air and struck the gate squarely.

The solid wood gate, covered in iron and used for decades, was instantly shattered into pieces. Wood chips and scraps of iron flew dozens of feet away, leaving craters on the ground.

The "suicide squad" on the wall were completely terrified. Their bows and arrows fell to the ground with a "clatter," and some of them collapsed to the ground because their legs gave way.

One timid servant was so frightened that he wet his pants, collapsed on the ground trembling, his crotch soaked, muttering "God."

"Good heavens! What is that thing?! It's amazing! Is the Thunder God angry?"

"Run! This wall can't stop that thing! Run!"

"I don't want to die! They forced me here! I have a wife and children at home!"

The three thousand people instantly erupted into chaos, throwing down their weapons and turning to run into the courtyard, trampling each other, crying and screaming, creating utter pandemonium.

Some people climbed the wall, some crawled through dog holes, and some jumped down from the arrow tower.

Wang An wielded his sword and cut down two fleeing men, but he couldn't stop them at all. Instead, he was pushed around by the crowd and almost fell off the arrow tower, even losing his hat.

Before the second shot could be fired, the Imperial Guards had already stormed through the gate.

The Embroidered Spring Blade was drawn, its cold light flashing, and several guards who still wanted to put up a stubborn resistance instantly fell into a pool of blood, screaming a few times before falling silent.

The remaining men all knelt down with a thud, raising their hands and shouting, "We surrender! We surrender! We were forced into this by Wang An! We didn't do it willingly!"

Wang An watched as the Imperial Guards rushed into the courtyard. He plopped down on the arrow tower, his face ashen. The wine cup in his hand fell to the ground and shattered, spilling wine everywhere.

Li Hu, a commander of the Imperial Guard, stepped forward on the broken pieces of wood, took out an iron chain, and snapped it around the man's neck. He said coldly:

"Wang An, you are guilty of multiple crimes: possessing military armor, plotting a rebellion, and oppressing the people. Come with us. Do you have anything else to say?"

"I... I refuse to accept this!" Wang An roared, his voice hoarse.

"My Wang family is a prominent clan in Yingchuan, with eight generations of tradition. You can't treat me like this! My grandfather donated money to the imperial court!"

Li Hu scoffed, his eyes filled with disdain: "Noble families? His Majesty said that in the Han Dynasty, there are no noble families, only law-abiding citizens and criminals. Take them away!"

...

Wu County, Shenjia Wharf.

The head of the family, Shen Shan, was directing his servants to load things onto the ship, working up a sweat.

More than a dozen large ships were moored at the dock, piled up like small mountains, carrying gold, silver and jewelry, silk and satin, grain and cloth, and even family mahogany furniture, ivory toilets, and pet parrots and mynahs. It was a chaotic and lively scene.

"Hurry, hurry! It'll be too late if we wait any longer!" Shen Shan stamped his feet anxiously, his voice hoarse from shouting.

"The Embroidered Uniform Guard is almost at Wu County! We have to leave tonight! We'll go down the Yangtze River to the sea, hide in Yizhou for three to five years, and come back when things calm down! As long as we're alive, we can always make a comeback!"

His concubine, holding a jewelry box, said sweetly, "Master, with so much stuff, won't the ship sink? There are thirty catties of gold and silver in this jewelry box."

"It won't sink!" Shen Shan said, patting his chest so hard it made a loud thud.

"My ship is the best of the best, it can carry thousands of shi of cargo! When we get to Yizhou, we'll still be local tyrants, much better than being humiliated by the Embroidered Uniform Guard here! And nobody will care about us there!"

Half an hour later, more than a dozen large ships slowly sailed away from the dock, heading east along the Yangtze River, their sails billowing, sailing smoothly with the wind and current.

Shen Shan stood at the bow of the boat, watching the city recede into the distance, humming a little tune with a smug grin, his legs crossed, sipping his tea.

"Hmph, no matter how powerful the Embroidered Uniform Guard is, can they control the sea? By the time they find out I've escaped, it'll be too late! I'll be sunbathing in Ryukyu by then!"

But no sooner had he finished speaking than he heard the sound of horns in the distance...

"Woo-woo-woo-woo," a low and drawn-out sound.

Suddenly, dozens of tall warships appeared on the river, their sails embroidered with large Chinese characters for "Han," fluttering in the wind.

The cannons at the bow of the ship were pointed at them with a dark, menacing look, their muzzles gleaming coldly in the sunlight.

They were more than twice as fast as their merchant ships, cutting through the waves and quickly surrounding them, forming an impenetrable encirclement.

Gan Ning stood at the bow of the main ship, holding a tin megaphone and shouting, his voice echoing across the river:

"Shen Shan! You are surrounded by the Han Navy! Stop your ships and surrender immediately! Otherwise, we will open fire! I will count to ten, ten, nine, eight..."

Shen Shan was so frightened that his legs went weak and he almost fell into the river, but his concubine grabbed him and pulled him back.

He never expected that the imperial navy would be waiting for him at the mouth of the Yangtze River! Their information network was incredibly efficient!

"Quick! Turn around! Drive back!" Shen Shan shouted hoarsely, frantically giving instructions.

But it was too late.

The navy's warships had already approached, and the soldiers, armed with muskets, jumped onto the Shen family's merchant ship from the side of the ship, their movements as swift as monkeys.

"Don't move! Everyone squat down! Hands behind your heads!"

The servants dared not resist at all, and obediently squatted on the deck, their hands covering their heads, like a flock of frightened quails.

Gan Ning boarded the ship, looked at all the things on board, and couldn't help but laugh. He picked up an ivory toilet and looked at it: "Shen Shan, are you planning to immigrate with your whole family? You've even brought Hu Zi along. You've really thought things through."

Shen Shan lowered his head, his face flushed red, unable to utter a single word, like a caught thief.

The soldiers boarded the ship and searched it. They found fifty-six boxes of gold and silver jewelry, as well as countless antiques, paintings, and silks, which filled the cabin.

A soldier opened a box and found it full of clothes belonging to Shen Shan's concubines—colorful and patterned, including undergarments. He couldn't help but exclaim, "Good heavens! This one concubine's clothes are enough for our entire battalion to wear for three years. How much did this cost?"

...

Qufu, the Confucius Mansion.

As descendants of Confucius, the Kong family has been operating in Qingzhou for over a thousand years, with deep-rooted influence and disciples and former officials all over the world.

The head of the family, Kong Wan, completely disregarded the imperial court's order to suppress the rebellion.

"I am a twentieth-generation descendant of Confucius. Who dares to touch me?" Kong Wan sat in the main hall, speaking to his men with his legs crossed and a disdainful expression.

"When Liu Bang became emperor, he worshipped Confucius; emperors throughout history have bestowed official titles and ranks upon our Confucius family. How dare Liu Ce, an emperor who rose from humble beginnings, touch our Confucius family? Isn't he afraid of offending all the scholars in the land?"