But "suppressing martial prowess through civil authority" had been the Wu Dynasty's national policy for a century. Though it had not gone so far as to "honor scholars and despise warriors," it was inevitable that scholars would be valued more highly than warriors.
Thus, most people of this era still believed that studying was the highest pursuit.
"Anyway, I'm not cut out for studying. I think martial arts suit me."
Wu Shuangren said it quite naturally.
Liao Yu was so exasperated he laughed. "You have to start practicing martial arts when you're young. You're starting halfway through life, boy. You'll never amount to much!"
Wu Shuangren said, "It's not like I can pass the exams and earn an official rank by studying, either. I might as well master martial arts and hone my skills, then take over from you someday, Uncle Liao."
"..."
Liao Yu did indeed hope that Wu Shuangren could take over from him someday, but he needed real ability to hold that position.
"All right, you can come with me tonight, but I have one condition."
"Go ahead, Uncle Liao."
"You must stay by my side. No more acting on your own and running around everywhere like you did last night!"
"I promise I absolutely won't run around. Wherever you tell me to go, Uncle Liao, that's where I'll go!"
Wu Shuangren thumped his chest as he made the promise.
Liao Yu said, "Go write the requisition slip, then collect your equipment from the storehouse."
"Yes!" Wu Shuangren said.
He turned and left excitedly.
At nine that night, stars glittered across the night sky.
"Uncle Liao, the equipment's been handed out, and everyone..."
Wu Shuangren walked into Liao Yu's room and saw Wu Dongrong sitting in a chair like an iron tower, his face dark.
Wu Shuangren stepped forward, feeling inexplicably guilty.
Wu Dongrong glared at him fiercely. "Speak! Who taught you martial arts? When did you start learning?"
Wu Shuangren pressed his lips together and said nothing.
He could talk things over with Liao Yu, but he always felt awkward facing his father.
"Looks like you're asking for a beating, boy!"
Wu Dongrong's temper flared. He sprang to his feet, ready to hit him.
"Old Wu!"
Liao Yu grabbed him. "Didn't we agree to talk to the boy properly?"
"Just look at him!"
Wu Dongrong pointed at Wu Shuangren.
"..."
Wu Shuangren still said nothing.
Liao Yu glanced at him, then turned to Wu Dongrong. "Who doesn't have a secret or two? In any case, the person who taught him martial arts didn't mean him any harm. If the boy doesn't want to talk, let it go."
"Did that person teach you an internal cultivation technique?"
Wu Dongrong asked, his expression grave.
Wu Shuangren shook his head.
Only then did Wu Dongrong breathe a sigh of relief. "I won't ask about anything else, but you mustn't go learning just any internal cultivation technique. If something goes wrong, it could cost you your life!"
Wu Shuangren nodded. "Got it," he muttered.
Wu Dongrong went on, "Without an internal cultivation technique, no matter how good your saber skills are, you can fight seventh-rank martial artists at best. You'll be in real danger if you run into anyone at the sixth rank or above. Don't think you're so formidable."
"Aren't you only seventh rank yourself..."
Wu Shuangren muttered under his breath.
"What did you say?!"
Wu Dongrong wanted to hit him again, but Liao Yu stopped him.
Liao Yu said, "Shuangren does have a point. We can't protect him forever. If he really is going to take over from me someday, it wouldn't hurt for him to temper himself and earn some merit now."
After seeing Wu Shuangren's saber skills, he had changed his mind.
Wu Dongrong snorted and pointed to a full set of brown leather armor on the table. "Put this on!" he said stiffly.
Without a word, Wu Shuangren went over and put on the armor.
He found that this set was thicker and more complete than the leather armor issued from the county yamen's storehouse.
The yamen's leather armor consisted only of a cuirass, while this set had not only a cuirass but also guards for the shoulders and upper arms, and an armored skirt to protect the lower body.
He had never worn armor before and didn't quite know how to put it on, so Wu Dongrong came over and helped him.
Once it was on, Wu Shuangren found that the armor was clearly too large for him.
He looked at Wu Dongrong. "Is this armor yours?"
Wu Dongrong grunted in assent.
Wu Shuangren froze.
His father had scolded him harshly, yet he had still prepared equipment for him in advance.
A father like this...
Liao Yu smiled. "Your father wore this armor when he served in the frontier army. When we left the army, we were only allowed to take our bows, arrows, and sabers with us, not our armor. But your father couldn't bear to part with it, so he went out of his way to ask someone for help and spent a good deal of silver to bring it with him. He intended to make it a family heirloom."
Wu Shuangren looked at Wu Dongrong. "If I wear this, what will you wear?"
Wu Dongrong snapped, "I told you to wear it, so wear it. Your old man doesn't need you worrying about him!"
Wu Shuangren pressed his lips together and said no more.
Liao Yu came over to smooth things out. "All right, let's get ready to leave. I prepared two sets of the county yamen's leather armor for your father. Worn one over the other, they'll offer decent protection too."
The three walked out of the room. The constabulary courtyard was brightly lit.
There were thirty-three people in the courtyard. With Liao Yu, Wu Dongrong, and Wu Shuangren, that made thirty-six in all.
Though more people had volunteered, Liao Yu had made a selection. He distributed the twenty sets of leather armor he had requisitioned to the twenty people with the best martial skills, and gave the ten heavy bows to ten people who knew how to use them.
"Let's go. We're leaving the city."
Liao Yu gave the order without hesitation.
The group walked out of the county yamen. It was already the second watch; there were no pedestrians left on the streets, and the shops had all closed.
They lit no torches, instead walking by moonlight to the county city's gate.
A crowd had already gathered there, their shadowy figures numbering at least fifty.
Their leader also wore a full set of leather armor and carried an iron spear. A scar between his brows made him look as though he had three eyes.
"Head Constable Liao, Jail Warden Wu."
The man stepped forward to greet them.
"Militia Commander Mo."
Liao Yu and Wu Dongrong returned the greeting.
Thus, Wu Shuangren learned that the man who looked as though he had three eyes was Mo Zhengshang, commander of the local militia and one of Bo County's three publicly recognized experts.
He was a member of the Mo Family, and tonight he would lead the militia under his command to work with the constabulary.
From his predecessor's memories, Wu Shuangren knew that local militias had only appeared in recent years.
Though he had not read much history, he had at least read a few high-level historical webnovels. He knew that the appearance of such local militias often meant a dynasty had reached its final days!
The imperial court allowed powerful local families to openly organize their own armed forces to maintain local order and keep the peace.
That was the local militia.
The Mo Family was the greatest local power in Bo County, so Mo Zhengshang was the militia commander.
"Sorry to trouble you all tonight."
Mo Zhengshang said.
Liao Yu replied, "You're too polite, Commander Mo. The bandits' leader is Peng Tianlang, and he's a thorny opponent. We'll have to count on you to slay the enemy when the time comes."
A chilling killing intent appeared in Mo Zhengshang's eyes. "No problem."
"Let's go. We're leaving the city."
Liao Yu called out.
Under cover of night, the group filed out of the county city.
10 The Mountain God Temple
At night in this era, as long as clouds did not obscure the moon, one could see the road clearly even without a torch.
Nearly a hundred people left the county city without carrying torches, relying on the moonlight as they took the official road outside the city.
Both Liao Yu and Mo Zhengshang sent people with keen eyesight and good skills ahead to scout the way.
Wu Shuangren stayed beside Liao Yu and Wu Dongrong, walking in the middle of the group.
He had already learned the details of tonight's operation from Liao Yu-
They were going to capture the bandits who had broken into the city the previous night. There had been eighteen in all: two had died on the spot, one had been captured alive, and fifteen remained.
The bandits did not know that one of their accomplices had been captured alive. The authorities had immediately announced that three bandits had been killed on the spot.
That gave them a chance to catch the bandits off guard.
"But if they're cautious enough, they might have changed hideouts. We could come away empty-handed tonight."
Liao Yu said to Wu Shuangren.
Of course, Wu Shuangren did not want to come away empty-handed. He could hardly wait to fight!
South of Bo County, the mountains were densely forested.
A mountain god temple stood halfway up a mountainside.
The temple had long since fallen into ruin. The mountain god statue had lost its head, and nearly all its paint had peeled away. Layer upon layer of cobwebs stretched between the beams and pillars, coated with years of dust. Thick, damp, rotting hay and dead leaves covered the floor.
A dozen or so rugged figures sat or lay scattered about the temple hall, their weapons tossed carelessly within reach. A small campfire burned in the center, crackling and spitting sparks from time to time.
A man sat beside the campfire, leaning against the base of the headless mountain god statue.
He was around forty, with a rough, dark, ruddy face. A deep scar ran diagonally across his left cheek from the base of his ear to the corner of his mouth, like a dead, stiff centipede.
His name was Peng Tianlang, a name he had given himself. In his early years, he had been an escort at the Changwei Escort Agency in the city of Yi Province. After getting into trouble and killing an official, he had taken several fellow escorts who had also gotten into trouble and turned bandit.
For more than twenty years, he had lived through bloody storms, his accomplices changing one batch after another. The name Peng Tianlang had gradually become a fixture on the Yi Province authorities' wanted list.
The number of desperadoes under Peng Tianlang had always remained at seventeen. Including him, the little group had eighteen members in all.
It never grew or shrank; only when one died did they recruit a replacement.
Because they were strong, ruthless, and sufficiently united, Peng Tianlang's gang had made something of a name for itself in southwestern Yi Province.
This time, they had taken a job to kill someone in Bo County.
They had thought success would be as easy as grabbing something within reach, but the Mo Family had unexpectedly had quite a few skilled fighters. In the end, they had failed their mission and lost three brothers.
"Boss, are we still taking this job?"
Someone asked.
Peng Tianlang did not answer immediately. He reached out, picked up a thin, half-charred stick by his feet, and slowly rolled it between his fingers. The scar on his cheek looked even more sinister in the flickering firelight.
"The Mo Family is already on guard. It won't be easy to make another move, and I'm afraid we won't get the rest of the silver."