At the same time, Wang Chun hurriedly carried Xu Lin's father back to the bamboo house, and quickly said before Xu Lin could speak:

"Brother Lin, something terrible has happened! Zhixing and his group have been captured by the garrison soldiers who were clearing out the area down the mountain!"

Xu Lin was stunned. Ignoring the fact that his eyes, which had just recovered, couldn't be exposed to strong light, he turned around and was about to run to find the bald man.

Xu Lin was extremely grateful to Zhi Xing for helping them earn so much money, and it was impossible for him to just watch Zhi Xing get arrested and pretend nothing had happened.

Xu Lin's father quickly stopped him: "What's the use of you going? Can you even find the bandit stronghold?"

Wang Chun helped the old man who had jumped off his back and nodded emphatically: "Brother Lin, let me go, I know the way."

Xu Lin frowned and thought for a moment: "Go and come back quickly. If you don't see Zhang Suinian, come back immediately. Don't stay in the mountain stronghold for too long."

Logically speaking, the soldiers shouldn't have been able to arrive at the town at the foot of the mountain so quickly.

There were countless bandits and robbers along the way, so the soldiers should have been delayed for several days.

Wang Chun ran to the kitchen, grabbed a cleaver for self-defense, and pushed open the wooden door to leave.

Xu Lin's father subconsciously helped Xu Lin to sit down at the table, and began to recount what had happened:

"The garrison troops haven't arrived yet; what's coming is the advance team, led by a young general, who's here to scout out the situation."

Zhixing and his group hadn't reached the town at the foot of the mountain yet. It wasn't because the snow had melted, but because they had taken a shortcut, going directly from near Tanzhou City to a town at the foot of the mountain.

They were traveling under the guise of merchants and hadn't committed any acts of arson, murder, or looting along the way, so they shouldn't have been arrested. But I heard from Zhiwen that..."

Xu Lin looked over with a sullen face.

Xu Lin's father poured himself a bowl of tea and drank it haphazardly: "Zhiwen said that among those who traveled with the vanguard, some had been robbed by bandits and identified Zhixing and Wang Jin as bandits."

The group was arrested and taken to a small town at the foot of the mountain, where they were imprisoned.

Zhixing had been doing business in the small town at the foot of the mountain for a while, and many people knew him.

As soon as Zhixing was brought to the small town at the foot of the mountain by the vanguard, several people recognized him and went to inform Zhiwen.

Xu Lin's father happened to be staying at the house rented by Zhiwen these days. He learned of the news by chance and hurried back to report it.

"Before we left, Zhiwen was trying his best to slip money into the government office, hoping to smooth things over and get a meeting with that young general, but... alas."

Young generals are not so easy to meet. Zhiwen was even suspected of being an accomplice of the mountain bandits and was almost arrested.

Xu Lin clearly understood the seriousness of the matter. He glanced at the dark sky outside, gritted his teeth, and said, "If Wang Chunruo doesn't see Baldy, I'll... go find Lady Ye."

Xu Lin could see Ye Wenxue's appreciation for Zhixing and his three companions. Now that Zhixing and Zhiwu had been arrested, and Zhiwen and Zhiwang were suspected, they would not be able to escape easily.

Ye Wenxue couldn't possibly not go and see.

Xu Lin's father sighed, got up, and quickly packed his luggage: "That's all we can do."

*

The town at the foot of the mountain

Zhiwen, Zhiwang, and others paced back and forth outside the magistrate's house, almost frantic with worry.

The two tried many methods and spent money to smooth things over, but even though they received the money, they couldn't save the person.

Even this much silver was only enough to ensure that the people in their household would not be suspected or imprisoned.

This time, Zhiwen spent a full five hundred taels of silver, humbly begging for a chance to meet the town mayor.

The mayor of the small town at the foot of the mountain is the county magistrate, and can be considered the highest-ranking person besides that young general.

If he could put in a good word for them, perhaps Zhixing and the others could escape death.

Compared to beheading, caning and forced labor were nothing.

After waiting another half hour, the door opened from the inside. The servant glanced at the several large baskets of bean sprouts, sweet potatoes, and other items brought by the two men, and his eyes instantly lit up with a smile.

"Please come in, both of you. Lord Lu has just finished his shift and has been delayed. Please forgive him."

Zhiwen and Zhiwang exchanged a glance, both having a guess in their minds, but they couldn't figure out what he was after.

I followed the servant into the house, passed through the veranda and the backyard, and arrived at the study.

The servant knocked on the door: "Sir, Manager Zhang and his younger brother have come to visit."

"Come in."

The servant pushed open the door and said with a smile to Zhiwen and his companion, "Please come in, gentlemen."

He turned and left quickly.

Zhiwen hesitated and dared not go in.

The county magistrate is a third-class Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) and a ninth-rank official in charge of a region. He has to think carefully about his words in advance, otherwise he might offend someone, and the eldest brother Nian and the eldest brother Ye would have to get a few more people out of jail.

Zhiwang gritted his teeth and pulled Zhiwen inside.

The two men dared not look directly at the official's face, and bowed their heads respectfully, saying, "Sir."

Lu Fang put down the document, glanced at Zhiwen and Zhiwang, and shook his head helplessly: "Speak, what is it?"

He had already guessed and knew why the two children had come to him, but the law was strict and could not be disobeyed.

Moreover, the evidence presented was sufficient; that group of people were clearly bandits, and he could not possibly show favoritism.

Upon hearing the familiar voice, Zhiwang couldn't help but half-raise his head and steal a glance.

Yes, this local official who governs the area looks exactly like Mr. Lu, whom Brother Wen invited to teach them.

Zhiwen wasn't that bold, so he lowered his head and said, "I beg Your Excellency to have mercy and spare the lives of Zhang Zhixing and the others."

Lu Fang shook his head: "Do you know how many people have identified them as bandits?"

Zhiwen and Zhiwang were taken aback.

Lu Fang continued, "There are five people, and none of them are from the same family. Among these people are innocent civilians, merchants, and even bandits who have been robbing people along the way."

Zhi Wang's eyes flickered slightly; he sensed something was amiss.

Zhixing and Zhiwu were both picked up by the eldest brother of the bandits and brought back to the bandit stronghold. By then, the stronghold had long since stopped doing business without capital. Even if someone pointed the finger at them, they shouldn't have targeted Zhixing.

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