Chapter 189 Official Silver

Enraged, the burly man pointed his knife at Lin Changning, but was stopped by another person beside him. The other person whispered something in the burly man's ear, and the burly man calmed down.

After thinking for a while, he offered his price.

"Does our knowledge of a hidden stash of government silver by corrupt officials count as leverage?"

Lin Changning's eyes lit up, but he was unsure if the news was true. He hesitated and said, "How can you prove you're not lying to me?"

The man next to the burly man casually tossed him a silver ingot: "You can take a look at the year and place where the silver ingot was made."

Wan Jin took the silver ingot that was tossed to him, looked at the year of its casting, and then handed it to Lin Changning: "Commander, look, it looks like the batch of official silver that was confiscated from that corrupt official five or six years ago."

Lin Changning had only been in this world for a year, so naturally he was unaware of this matter.

Just to be on the safe side, Lin Changning told Wan Jin to take the silver ingot to Commander Zhou and confirm that it was correct before bringing it back.

Wan Jin accepted the order and quickly ran out. A short while later, he returned, panting, with Lao Zhou.

Old Zhou turned to the side and whispered, "It is indeed the batch of silver that was lost a couple of years ago. At the time, it caused quite a stir. The year and location on the silver match up."

Although Lin Changning didn't know how he ended up in the hands of a group of bandits, since they had already found him, he could only belong to them.

It's impossible to lose.

Lin Changning threw the silver back: "Fine, I'll have someone step back 10 steps, and those of you who are going to fight me, come forward."

The burly man and the people around him exchanged glances. Seeing the soldiers around him retreat, the burly man stepped forward, holding a large machete in his hand, his eagle eyes fixed on Lin Changning.

Lin Changning drew his sword, breathed on it to warm it, and then wiped it with his sleeve.

He polished his sword until it shone like new before looking at the burly man opposite him.

"Let's begin."

After saying that, illuminated by the surrounding firelight, Lin Changning charged directly at the man opposite him.

In the blink of an eye, the two had already exchanged two or three blows.

The burly man's arm went numb from the shock, while Lin Changning raised an eyebrow; this man's strength was far greater than that of an ordinary person.

She seemed to have some skill in using a knife.

After exchanging blows several times, both men realized that the other was not to be underestimated, especially the big man, who had thought he had picked an easy target. He never expected that the seemingly young and thin man in front of him would be so difficult to deal with.

Not only was he incredibly strong, but his swordsmanship was also exceptionally superb.

If he hadn't been quick-witted, he would have had his head chopped off with a single blow.

Lin Changning didn't give the big man a chance. Sensing the fear in the other man's heart, he pounced forward with even more excitement.

He slashed more than a dozen times in a row, each slash whistling through the air, leaving the burly man's hands numb and in pain.

The knife was fast and Lin Changning was strong, so the big man could only barely block Lin Changning's knife.

However, retaliating was extremely difficult, and as time went on, more and more people saw that the Han Dynasty was at a disadvantage.

Especially the group of bandits surrounding this house, whose leader had killed countless people with his large machete, were now being suppressed by a young-looking lad so much that he couldn't even lift his head.

While they were incredulous, they looked at the growing number of wounds on the big man's body and the sweat slowly seeping from his face, and they had to admit that their leader was indeed no match for the young man in front of him.

Lin Changning watched as the burly man in front of him grew weaker and weaker. With a flick of his longsword, he knocked the man's cleaver away. Then, he turned and thrust his blade across the man's forehead.

The boy won easily and with a sense of satisfaction. His face, illuminated by the firelight, radiated a heroic air, and he said with a hint of elation, "You lost."

The burly man looked at the sharp blade tip between his eyebrows, and felt slightly dejected.

His loss cost the lives of all the women and children in the village.

The burly man knelt on the ground: "I am willing to commit suicide. Please spare the women and children in the village. I will offer the government silver with both hands."

The big man's hands, hanging down at his sides, were clenched tightly.

Seemingly remembering what Lin Changning had just said about not having any bargaining chips, the big man lowered his head further and further until he finally knelt on the ground.

After waiting for a while, seeing that Lin Changning did not agree, he turned his head and looked at the people in front of the door again.

Feeling somewhat dejected, she stood up abruptly. Lin Changning, thinking the burly man intended to kidnap her, immediately assumed a defensive stance.

Unexpectedly, the big man brushed past her and rushed straight behind her, picked up the wood-chopping knife from the ground, and was about to slit his own throat.

Lin Changning's pupils contracted, and without thinking, he used his long sword to deflect the woodcutter's knife just as it was about to embed itself in the big man's neck.

"Are you crazy? I didn't say I wouldn't agree."

Lin Changning saw that this person still had some sense of loyalty. Although these people were not innocent, they were still quite devoted to the women and children in the village.

He's not entirely bad, but he's not entirely good either.

She never intended to harm these women and children; it was only after the big man said they knew the whereabouts of the government silver that she began to have some thoughts about it.

After all, no one would complain about having too much money, and a batch of embezzled government silver would amount to at least 100,000 taels.

If this batch of silver could be transported back to Taiyuan, that would be even better.

In addition to the achievements in this bandit suppression campaign, there is room for further advancement.

The burly man stared blankly at Lin Changning, a glimmer of hope in his eyes: "Sir, is what you say true? You won't harm women and children?"

Lin Changning nodded: "The yamen's business is for the yamen to handle. We are only responsible for taking you down. As for the women and children, as long as they have not committed any acts of harming or killing, they will be fine. I can assure you of that."

The big man waved his hand: "The women and children in my village only do some simple work in the village, such as farming and growing vegetables. They have never killed anyone."

Lin Changning sized up the big man and thought that what the man said was quite sincere. However, now that the stronghold had been captured, the next thing to do was to track down the whereabouts of the government silver and, ideally, to transport it back to Taiyuan quietly.

"I assure you that I will never harm women and children, but I will take the government silver."

The burly man clasped his hands in a fist salute, turned his head to glance at the man behind him who had given the idea, and only spoke to Lin Changning after seeing the man nod almost imperceptibly.

"The official silver is located below the cliff behind the village. There is a cave below the cliff. A herbalist from our village once went down there and found four large chests filled with silver. Once the adults have released the women and children, I can take them there."

Lin Changning nodded to the sensible man, then waved his hand to signal the soldiers behind him to clear a path.

"The women and children inside can come out, but I must warn you beforehand: women and children can leave, but no one else can. If I find anyone trying to blend in during the chaos, they will be executed without mercy!!!"