Volume I: River City Tune Chapter 36: Ruling with an Iron Hand

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Li Ling’s brows lifted slightly. At last, he remembered why Xu Fei had seemed familiar. On the day the money had been repaid, Xu Fei had been among the men under Zhuang Qiang sitting on the first floor of the Fragrant Drunkenness Tavern. That proved Xu Fei had been telling the truth: he had indeed come at Zhuang Qiang’s command.

“He told you to set this place on fire—and intended to burn me alive with it, didn’t he?”

“I... I...” Xu Fei stammered, but after glancing at the blade, he nodded honestly. “Master Zhuang said that once this place was burned down, the authorities would naturally conclude that you had accidentally set fire to the records inside, and that you had failed to escape in time.”

“Hmph. What a scheme. Was this truly Zhuang Qiang’s idea? How could a street thug have the nerve to attempt something so bold?” Li Ling pressed further.

By now, Xu Fei had accepted his fate. After hesitating, he replied, “Naturally... naturally, Master Zhuang had made the necessary arrangements as well.”

“Then I don’t understand. Why are they so determined to plot against me and put me to death? I don’t recall ever offending them.”

“This...” Xu Fei lowered his gaze and said in a small voice, “I really don’t know. I was only carrying out orders. I wouldn’t dare ask questions.”

Li Ling suddenly laughed and withdrew the knife. “Do you think I’m going to believe that?”

“I—I’m telling the truth...”

“Is that so? Say it again.”

As he spoke, Li Ling abruptly lowered the knife and pressed it menacingly between the other man’s legs, right over the most vital spot, as though he were about to cut down. Xu Fei was so terrified that his soul nearly fled his body. He screamed at once, “Don’t... wait! I’ll talk, I’ll talk! It really was Master Zhuang who told Young Master Zhuang to arrange this. Then he mentioned you, saying that you had to be... be dealt with...”

“Why? I have no grudge against the Zhuang family. Why would they try to harm me like this?” Li Ling demanded again, applying a little more pressure.

Xu Fei was nearly frightened to tears. A chill seemed to rise between his legs, yet he had no ability to dodge. The only thing he could do was speak faster. “It was Zhang Fen! Zhang Fen begged Young Master Zhuang to move against your family...”

“Zhang Fen? Who is that?”

Li Ling was taken aback. Neither his own memories nor those of the original owner contained any real impression of such a person.

“He’s the elder brother of Young Master Zhuang’s most favored concubine. He once held the rank of licentiate, but somehow lost it later. After that, he could only depend on Young Master Zhuang for his livelihood. Still, the young master trusts and values him greatly.”

When Xu Fei spoke of Zhang Fen, his voice was filled with deep envy. If he had a beautiful sister whom Young Master Zhuang took a fancy to, he was certain he would be valued far more than that useless fellow.

“So, in the end, was it Master Zhuang who wanted this place burned down, or Young Master Zhuang?”

“It was Master Zhuang. Young Master Zhuang merely wanted to use the opportunity to get rid of you.”

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Li Ling nodded in understanding. Only then did he remove the knife from beneath the man’s legs, whereupon he noticed that Xu Fei’s crotch was somewhat damp and reeked of urine. The man had truly been frightened into wetting himself.

Li Ling showed little reaction, however. His mind was already rapidly sorting through the situation.

It should have happened like this:

Zhuang Qiang had only decided to frame him because of Zhang Fen, which explained the home invasion and robbery several months ago. The purpose, naturally, had been to ensure that Li Ling could not repay the debt, allowing Zhuang Qiang to take both him and his younger sister as servants and torment them at will. But Li Ling had solved the debt problem, causing Zhuang Qiang’s original plan to collapse completely. He had been forced to seek another opportunity.

Clearly, Zhuang Qiang had not intended to involve Zhuang Hong at first. It was only when Zhuang Hong planned to burn down the archive building and asked Zhuang Qiang to find someone to carry it out that Zhuang Qiang took advantage of the situation and pushed Li Ling into this deadly predicament.

With that, everything fell into place. Only two questions remained. First, why did Zhang Fen hate him so much that he wanted to take both Li Ling’s life and his sister’s? Second, why did Zhuang Hong want to burn down the archive building?

Xu Fei could provide no answers to either question. Even when Li Ling once more raised the knife, Xu Fei only insisted that he did not know. From the look of him, he was not pretending.

Li Ling finally lowered the blade. “You’ve confessed everything now. What do you think Zhuang Qiang will do to you if he finds out? And then there’s Zhuang Hong. I imagine he’s even harder to deal with.”

Xu Fei now realized the danger he was in. His face was filled with terror. “I... I was forced. You forced me to tell you all of this.”

“But you still betrayed those brothers and revealed all these deadly secrets to me.” Li Ling smiled faintly. “So now you’re on my side. If you want to stay alive, you’ll have to cooperate with me and help me deal with them. I’ll make the accusation, and you’ll testify. At daybreak, we’ll expose everything at the county office and see whether they can still cover the sky with one hand!”

Li Ling knew very well how dangerous his situation was, and how powerful his enemies were by comparison. Even if he escaped this calamity, what about the next one? And the one after that?

If he wanted to protect himself, there was only one way: take the initiative. The best defense was an attack.

Xu Fei, however, possessed neither Li Ling’s courage nor his determination. He recoiled repeatedly at those words. “No! I have an elderly mother above me and younger siblings below me. If Young Master Zhuang and Master Zhuang learn that I’ve turned against them, my entire family will be killed at once. I won’t cooperate with you!”

“That’s not for you to decide. Do you think you still have a choice?”

Li Ling gave a cold laugh and was just about to put more pressure on him when a sudden uproar arose in the distance, shattering the stillness of the long night.

As the approaching noise grew louder, Li Ling’s heart jolted. He instantly knew that something was wrong. He had still underestimated Zhuang Hong’s influence and methods.

In the space of a brief stunned moment, the footsteps outside became unmistakable. A group of men had surrounded the little tower. Then someone cried out in alarm, “This place has been splashed with cooking oil! Constable Lin, someone is trying to burn down the county office!”

“Everyone inside, come out! I am Lin Lie, chief constable of this county. Your plot has already been discovered, and you are surrounded!”

The stern, resonant voice carried an intimidating force.

At the sound of the name Lin Lie, Xu Fei trembled violently. His face grew three shades paler.

“Come out at once, or we’ll storm the place!”

Amid the repeated shouts, footsteps advanced straight toward them, as though the men truly intended to break down the door.

Li Ling sighed and went forward to open it. The once-empty courtyard was now filled with more than a dozen constables and clerks, armed with chains, iron rulers, and steel blades. Five or six torches whipped in the wind, illuminating the area before the tower as bright as day.

Li Ling remained composed. Raising both hands, he said, “Gentlemen, there’s been a misunderstanding. I’m a civilian serving here on official duty. My name is Li—”

Before he could finish introducing himself, several constables pounced on him and slammed him to the ground. An iron ruler struck viciously against his lower back. Pain tore a groan from him, leaving him unable to speak.

“You wretched criminal! You actually dared to set fire to the county office? You deserve to die!”

With an angry shout, one of them raised his weapon and brought it down toward Li Ling’s head.

The weapon tore through the air with a howling sound. If it struck him squarely, Li Ling would lose half his life even if it did not kill him outright.

At that moment, terrified and unable to evade, Li Ling heard the same stern voice ring out again.

“Wait!”

A sharp clang followed as someone intercepted the weapon descending toward him.

Pinned face-down against the ground, Li Ling could not see what was happening above, but he could clearly sense how dangerous that blow had been. The two weapons had passed no more than ten centimeters from the back of his head.

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“Chief...”

“He said he was a civilian serving here on official duty. Don’t injure people recklessly!”

As Lin Lie spoke, he pushed the men aside and hauled Li Ling to his feet. Only then did Li Ling get a clear look at the county chief constable.

The man had a dark red complexion, thick brows, and a broad mouth. His neatly trimmed beard showed every individual strand. Most striking of all were his bright, penetrating eyes, which seemed capable of seeing through everything and inspired fear in those who met them.

Lin Lie was studying Li Ling at the same time. The young man had regular features and handsome, well-defined brows and eyes. He looked nothing like some petty thief or lowlife. Even when meeting Lin Lie’s gaze, he showed not the slightest hint of guilt or unease.

“You say you’re a civilian serving here. What was your name again?”

Li Ling hissed softly in pain. The blow to his lower back hurt so badly that he still could not straighten himself, but he answered, “This humble one is Li Ling. Greetings, Constable Lin.”

“What’s the meaning of all that cooking oil outside? Were you planning to set the place on fire?”

“I’ve been wronged, Constable Lin! How could I possibly dare do such a thing? A criminal was ordered by Zhuang Hong to burn this place down and kill me along with it. I happened to discover him and subdued him. If you don’t believe me, Constable Lin, you can go inside and look. The criminal is still tied up in there.”

This was not how Li Ling had hoped matters would unfold. He had originally intended to beat the drum and plead his case at dawn, making the affair as public as possible. He had not expected to be forced into explaining everything to these county officers, whose loyalties and backgrounds he knew nothing about.

But now he had no better choice. He could only gamble that this upright-looking Constable Lin would truly be willing to uphold justice for him.

Lin Lie’s expression suddenly changed.

Someone beside him immediately shouted, “You filthy criminal! How dare you slander Fourth Master after being caught red-handed trying to set a fire? You’re courting death!”

As he spoke, another man moved to teach Li Ling a lesson, but Lin Lie waved him away. Seizing the opportunity, Li Ling shouted, “Whether I’m lying or not, you need only go inside and bring him out for questioning. Everything I’ve said came from his own confession!”

“Bring out the man inside!”

After a brief hesitation, Lin Lie gave the order.

At once, several men rushed into the building. A moment later, several muffled grunts sounded, and Xu Fei was dragged out like a broken sack. His face was covered in blood, and he had apparently already lost consciousness.

“Chief, this is his accomplice. He tried to ambush us just now, so I knocked him out. I don’t think this fellow is honest either. We should take him back for a thorough interrogation!”

The moment he heard this, Li Ling’s heart sank to the bottom.

He had anticipated that Zhuang Hong’s influence in the county office would be so great that exposing him might prove impossible. But he had never imagined that Zhuang Hong’s power could reach such a point—that without even appearing in person, the constables under him were already scrambling to shield him and distort right and wrong so shamelessly.

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