Heyin County, inside the county office.
Sima Ban sat on the left, his gaze brimming with mockery as he looked at Yin Damu.
Yin Damu sat in the seat of honor, his expression grim.
"So, Commandant, you failed to capture the wanted criminal Wang Yuan? And you couldn't rescue County Magistrate Guo either?"
Sima Ban asked.
Yin Damu said solemnly, "They fled on the very day of the uprising. They took no money or valuables and forced no civilians to accompany them. There were only twenty-odd of them, fleeing into the deep mountains on swift horses and light boats... By the time we fought our way here, even the rioters didn't know their exact whereabouts. They only knew they'd entered Wangwu Mountain... The troops I command are all Hu Cavalry. Was I supposed to lead cavalry into the mountains to search?"
Sima Ban hastily explained, "Please don't be angry, Commandant Yin. I wasn't questioning you. I only wanted to know how the fighting went."
"Then how many enemies did you kill or capture along the way?"
"We encountered no rebels along the way, only civilians who had suffered their depredations. We killed or captured none."
"What??"
Sima Ban's expression instantly darkened.
Sima Ban was not at all surprised that Yin Damu had failed to capture Wang Yuan and the others.
Wang Yuan and his men were simply too cunning. On the day of the uprising, after burning, killing, and looting to make their names known, they had left their followers behind to continue ravaging the county town and attacking the surrounding areas, while Wang Yuan himself led his trusted aides out of Heyin.
They had even distributed all the money and grain they had looted, taking nothing with them.
This was unlike any other band of thieves that had risen