Upon hearing this news, the county magistrate immediately became agitated: "What's going on? How come there are bandits all of a sudden? Where did these bandits come from?"
The messenger looked confused: "Reporting to you, sir, I just stepped onto the street and saw a group of people shouting that bandits have arrived and have already injured people, so I rushed here to report this."
The magistrate, disregarding everything else, said in a deep voice, "Very well, lead the way!"
Upon arriving in Jing'an County, shouts rang out: "It's terrible! Bandits are robbing grain and killing people! Run!"
Constable Li led his constables over first. There were no more than twenty or thirty of them. But looking at those bandits, they were all burly and strong, holding knives in their hands, but their faces were covered with a black cloth. They were obviously not good people.
"My lord, please be careful. I'll take my men and go deal with these scoundrels first."
A man wearing a tiger-skin vest, holding a knife, rode a large brown horse, laughing loudly: "You bunch of idiots think you can fight us? Look at all these people behind us, on the trees, on the walls, on the rooftops, they're all our men. You defeated soldiers, I don't even care about you."
Officer Li was always hot-tempered, and upon hearing this, he lost his temper and grabbed his sword, slashing at the man's horse.
"You bastard, how dare you say such a thing? Your father will take your life first!"
The two men shouted and cursed as they swung their swords at the horse. However, the bandits outnumbered them, and before Li, the head constable, could even reach the horse with his broadsword, he tripped over something and fell to the ground.
The bandit leader stepped on Officer Li's chest and lifted him up. Several bandits who surrounded him immediately tied him up.
This bandit leader was surprisingly skilled; even when Officer Li intervened, he was defeated in less than a single round.
Upon seeing this, the county magistrate walked over to the bandit leader, pointed at him, and said, "Who are you people, daring to cause trouble in our Jing'an County? Don't you have any laws to govern you?"
"Law? You really are a foolish magistrate. Don't you know we're acting on imperial orders? Have you ever seen any bandits with such skill and so many men?"
The magistrate then understood. "Yes, these people are indeed very skilled. Besides brute force, how could there be so many bandits, each one exceptionally strong? They don't seem like bandits at all. But if it's an imperial edict, why would they rob grain and kill civilians?"
The magistrate's eyes swept over the man: "Impossible. If you were acting on imperial orders, how could you rob and kill the people?"
The man on horseback burst into laughter: "At least you're not a fool. Let me put it this way: we are acting on the orders of the Empress and Prime Minister Ding. The Emperor is seriously ill, and all affairs of the court are now being handled by Prime Minister Ding."
"You, you are actually traitors and rebels?"
The man on horseback threw his head back and laughed loudly, waving to his attendants behind him. Soon, the magistrate was tied up.
"Take this dog of a magistrate back, and we'll never have to worry about food again. We'll have no worries about food, clothing, or daily necessities. We'll be rich beyond measure!"
The group of people led the county magistrate away.
Soon, someone told Lady Cha what they had seen, and Lady Cha was furious: "Who is so audacious as to tie up the magistrate in broad daylight? Who are these people?"
A constable covered in blood said, "This, this is not bandits, but people sent by the Empress and Prime Minister Ding. They not only robbed the people of their grain along the way, but also killed them. The magistrate was taken away by these people."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Heng immediately paced anxiously in circles: "What's going on? Why would the Empress have my father arrested?"
Liang Shuyan thought for a moment, then looked at Zhao Heng and said, "Zhao Heng, go to the martial arts school now and have Erniu gather everyone there. We'll go rescue your father as soon as possible."
Zhao Heng looked at Liang Shuyan and said, word by word, "Auntie, aren't you angry with my parents? Why did you still try to save my father at this crucial moment?"
Liang Shuyan's face flushed slightly: "What are you saying, child? Your father is the magistrate of Jing'an County. Now he has been arrested by a group of unidentified people. How can we remain indifferent? No matter how much I hold a grudge, I can't mix public and private matters, right? Go quickly."
Zhao Heng agreed, nodded, and then hurriedly went to the martial arts school.
Seeing his mother's worry, Jin Dashan comforted her, "Mother, why don't we just have Princess Sweetheart ask the Emperor to scoop the man out directly?"
She had thought of this method, but she didn't want to involve Niu Niu.
"No, what if someone is trying to frame the princess? Dashan, you make arrangements at home, and I'll take Erniu and the others to see what's going on."
When Grandma Jin learned of this, she was very worried. She took Liang Shuyan's hand and said, "How about this, let's wait and have Erniu come up and discuss it first. If you go like this, won't you be ambushed by those people again?"
Liang Shuyan smiled and said, "Mother, no, don't worry, I will find a way to rescue the magistrate."
Outside the door, Erniu and his group of brothers from the martial arts school stood in a row. Liang Shuyan stood in the middle of the crowd and said, word by word, "Everyone knows about this matter. Just like last time, the people of Jing'an County are suffering and the county magistrate has been arrested. How can we do nothing? However, we are not familiar with the other side's specific actions for this trip. We must be careful and follow my orders!"
Jin Erniu nodded: "Mother, you're not feeling well, so please don't worry. I'll find a way to rescue the magistrate."
In the crowd, someone said, "I heard these bandits aren't ordinary bandits. What if they were sent by the Empress? Wouldn't we have to wipe them all out?"
Liang Shuyan suddenly recalled the last time the Empress was at her house. The look in her eyes when she glared at her still made her feel scared. If it really was the Empress who sent someone, it would be better to let her go alone. Maybe that was the only way to save everyone's lives.
"Everyone, please wait here. I'll go see this bandit leader first, find out the details, and then we can discuss things further, shall we?"
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