Chapter 2270: Chapter 2245: Origins (March Monthly Ticket Bonus 10)
"Half a year ago, news of smallpox spread in Xiazhou, causing unrest everywhere. He wanted to make a comeback, but the leader of the caravan he followed didn’t want to capture cities, only rob travelers for money."
It’s hard to say whether Erge was too ambitious or that the bandit chief’s aspirations were too low; anyway, their paths diverged.
The bandit chief disliked Erge and wanted to marginalize him as the second-in-command, whereas Erge was more ruthless, intending to replace the chief and quietly recruited men.
Unfortunately, the third-in-command was absolutely loyal to the chief, and most bandits in the lair still considered the chief generous enough. Therefore, few were willing to switch allegiance to Erge.
"Estimating his chances as low, and knowing Jin Kui’an had quite a few troops, he sent a message asking Jin Kui’an to help him, promising to give him seventy percent of the treasure from Bajue."
"Then they came?" Bai Shan glanced at them and asked, "Why are they fixated on us?"
Junior General Meng stared at him and asked, "You don’t know? Their men confessed that the treasure hidden in a coffin was taken. Liangzhou’s governor used it for military expenses, and no matter how skilled they are, it’s impossible to snatch it from the army. But I heard besides Governor Duan, there was another group involved in suppressing the bandits and found the treasure, so they got a lot of gold and jewels."
Junior General Meng intensely said to Bai Shan, "I heard that group was you guys."
Bai Shan: "...Oh, the treasure hidden in the coffin."
He replied indifferently, "Just some gold and silver; we’re not so materialistic. Where did these rumors originate?"
Hearing his response, Junior General Meng was taken aback, "You guys didn’t take any?"
Bai Shan slightly frowned, "They say I took some?"
Though he didn’t explicitly deny it, Junior General Meng instinctively believed he didn’t take any, frowning slightly, "Could it be Liangzhou’s army framing you?"
Bai Shan earnestly replied, "Governor Duan isn’t that type of person; maybe it was spread by someone below? Or..."
Bai Shan turned to look at the bewildered Erge, squinting his eyes, "Or he had someone deceived?"
Junior General Meng’s gaze toward Bai Shan immediately shifted, sympathetically saying, "If it’s true, you’re quite unfortunate, not much better than Jin Kui’an."
Bai Shan: ...Thank you for the invitation, they aren’t at all unfortunate.
Erge, bound at the hands and feet, also heard this conversation, shaking his head in disbelief.
Having just awoken, Jin Kui’an, hearing this dialogue, felt despair. If Bai Shan and his group hadn’t taken any gold and jewels, then what was all their trouble for?
As Jin Kui’an stirred, everyone’s attention turned to him. Junior General Meng felt a sharp pain in his abdominal wound, clutching his stomach, he told Assistant General Nie, "Be cautious of him; this person is quite ferocious."
Assistant General Nie was well aware, knowing he couldn’t defeat him.
Thankfully, he was tied extra securely, using the most rope starting from his shoulders down to his heels, so he could only roll around in the sand at most.
Jin Kui’an struggled a bit, finding that the ropes tightened when moved, so he lay still on the ground.
Assistant General Nie approached and poked him, asking, "Do you have anything to say?"
Jin Kui’an’s eyes swept over these remaining soldiers, letting out a cold laugh, "You’re celebrating too early; it’s uncertain who will be the first to die."
Assistant General Nie snorted displeased, "You are now at our mercy."
Jin Kui’an laughed repeatedly, coldly.
Seeing this, Bai Shan felt uneasy. Such behavior seemed not like empty threats. He turned to ask Junior General Meng, "Has their bandit lair been thoroughly cleaned out?"
Jin Kui’an, having missed earlier parts, widened his eyes slightly and turned his head trying to see Junior General Meng, but could only catch a glimpse of Bai Shan’s half-body, unable to see the person in front of him.
Seeing him like this, Bai Shan kindly reached out, grabbed the collar at Jin Kui’an’s neck, and pulled him forward to see Junior General Meng.
Only then did Jin Kui’an see the one speaking with Bai Shan earlier, angrily saying, "Brat, so it’s you!"
Junior General Meng snorted coldly, "Even if you curse me, you’re still a defeated foe."
Jin Kui’an laughed coldly, "Who’s the defeated foe? If you hadn’t used your numbers against the few..."
"You started by using numbers against the few as well," Assistant General Nie interrupted, laughing coldly, "You’re one to talk about many against few!"
Bai Shan also laughed, saying, "Winning is what matters."
He slightly lowered his head, scrutinizing Jin Kui’an’s expression, deliberatingly saying, "Aren’t you the biggest bandit in this area? Now that you’re defeated, those once forced to depend on you must be celebrating."
Jin Kui’an only laughed coldly, without speaking, exuding confidence.
Initially, Erge wanted to speak, but recalling the humiliations by Jin Kui’an during the journey, he withheld his words.
Forget it, why save such a person?
Bai Shan carefully observed his expression while glancing sideways at Erge, instantly realizing that Jin Kui’an truly had confidence.
He pondered, then went looking for Zhi Ren, "Master, is the biggest bandit around here the one who set up the blockade? Are there any other forces that can counter them, or even surpass them?"
Zhi Ren thought for a moment and said, "The village chief mentioned they are the most powerful, so they occupied their houses and drove them out. Now, the entire small town is theirs."
He said, "Though the small town doesn’t compare to the old Loulan city, it’s not tiny. The fact that they could occupy it shows their strength. If there was another force nearby as strong as theirs, it wouldn’t allow them to dominate the town."
Upon hearing this, Bai Shan became more certain, "Is it foreign?"
His heart beat rapidly, and he couldn’t help but ask, "Isn’t Tubo quite far from here?"
Zhi Ren’s heart skipped a beat, whispering, "Not very far, and the Anxi army is currently limited in strength, possibly unable to cover this area..."
Clearly, he also realized Bai Shan’s implicit meaning.
Bai Shan stood there for a moment, then went to Assistant General Nie and Junior General Meng, "We cannot linger here; we must rush to Gaochang immediately."
Junior General Meng’s escort brought a box for him to lean on, and as he reclined against it to rest, he yawned and said, "Only if we can leave; with our casualties, we can’t abandon these remaining troops."
"But don’t worry; we won’t stay long. We’ll leave after another day tomorrow."
Bai Shan gave him a glance, then turned to Jin Kui’an, gazing down into his eyes, "You collaborated with Tubo. Is Tubo going to attack Anxi?"
