Seeing that the situation was hopeless, the bandits knew that escaping was the priority. But then a group of archers appeared and unleashed a barrage of fire at the fleeing bandits. After one wave of fire, not many bandits were left alive.
Soon it was time to clean up the battlefield, and Prefect Shen, under the protection of his guards, arrived at the bandits' lair.
The bandit's lair was like a military tent, with three chairs placed on it, indicating that there were three bandit leaders there.
There were quite a few seats on both sides of the large tent, indicating that there were quite a few bandit leaders. The bandits had been entrenched here for decades and their organization was quite large. It was no easy feat to wipe them out this time.
Before long, several survivors were captured and brought into the main tent, one of whom was the third leader of the bandits.
Prefect Shen immediately interrogated the third leader. According to his confession, just a quarter of an hour earlier, the other two bandit leaders realized that the situation was not good and that the bandit stronghold could not be defended.
He took his trusted men and went from a secret cave in the back mountain to an exit on the edge of a cliff, then used ropes to descend to the bottom of the cliff and escape.
Based on the route provided by the third leader, Prefect Shen immediately sent men to pursue them. They quickly reached the edge of the cliff and indeed found a rope leading to the bottom of the valley. They went down the rope and continued their pursuit.
After the bandits' stronghold was wiped out, Prefect Shen was eager to know the whereabouts of the imperial edict and official document. Upon learning that there was a treasury on Qianniu Mountain, he immediately went to investigate.
The vault was located in a natural cave. The bandits who guarded the entrance had long since disappeared. There was a huge stone door at the entrance of the vault. Prefect Shen ordered his men to push the stone door open.
The stone gate was too heavy, and it took more than a dozen soldiers a great deal of effort to move it open.
The cave was very deep and pitch black inside. Prefect Shen ordered his men to light torches and go into the cave to investigate.
Illuminated by dozens of torches, Prefect Shen was able to see the contents of the treasury. Most of the items inside were looted by bandits, with gold and silver treasures packed in more than a dozen large wooden boxes.
These are all large amounts of wealth that the bandits have plundered over the decades. Apart from a portion being handed over to the imperial court, most of this wealth will belong to Qing'an Prefecture.
With this money, Prefect Shen could accomplish a great deal, and he would no longer have to worry about a lack of funds during the next few years of his term.
Money would certainly please Prefect Shen, but his mind wasn't on that; he was eager to find the imperial edict and official document.
Prefect Shen, accompanied by his personal guards, searched every corner of the treasury but could not find the imperial edict or official document.
Prefect Shen was a little confused. If such an important item wasn't in the treasury, then where was it?
Prefect Shen walked out of the treasury in a depressed mood. He could not openly search for the imperial edict and official document, lest the news get out and be used by his political enemies.
At this moment, the clerk came over and offered his opinion to Prefect Shen.
The bandits stole the new prefect's imperial edict and official document. The leaders couldn't possibly be unaware of the importance of these two items; they must have kept them close at hand, either carrying them with them or placing them in their residences.
Prefect Shen thought the advisor's analysis made sense, so he went to the bandit leader's residence and actually found the imperial edict and official document there.
Seeing the important items that had been lost and recovered, Prefect Shen finally felt relieved. These bandits were really rampant. They knew that these things might bring trouble upon themselves, but they didn't care and still challenged the government.
That was indeed the case. If Zhao Xian hadn't invented the catapult capable of attacking mountains, the government would have had no way to deal with them.
Then someone came to report that they had found a prison built by the bandits on the mountain, where more than a dozen people were imprisoned. They claimed to be villagers from the surrounding area who had been captured by the bandits to work.
"Oh, really? Bring them all to me, just in case any bandits have infiltrated."
Soon, more than a dozen people came over. He was poorly dressed, emaciated, and had dark skin, clearly suffering from malnutrition due to long hours of working in the sun.
These people came before Prefect Shen and all knelt down.
“Sir, we are all villagers from the surrounding area. We were captured by bandits and forced to do hard labor. We work during the day and are locked up at night. Many of the laborers have been tortured to death. It is thanks to your suppression of the bandits that we were able to be rescued.”
As Prefect Shen looked at the villagers, his eyes welled up with tears. These bandits had plagued the village for years, but this time they had finally been wiped out.
"Dear villagers, you have suffered. I will arrange for someone to verify your household registration in a moment and then send you down the mountain to go home. You don't need to worry."
"Thank you, Your Honor! We can go home now and see our wives, children, and elderly mothers again." Many people wept bitterly and kowtowed repeatedly in gratitude.
They quickly followed the soldiers, but a boy of about fifteen or sixteen years old stood still and did not leave. He kept his head down and remained silent. He was in better condition and was not pale and emaciated.
He showed no sign of joy at being rescued; in fact, he seemed terrified of the high-ranking official before him.
"Who are you, and why do you refuse to let the soldiers escort you home?" Prefect Shen spoke gently, afraid of frightening the young man before him.
After a long while, the boy slowly spoke, but dared not look up.
“I came from Liaocheng. Two years ago, I fled south with my parents to escape famine. A year ago, I wandered here and encountered bandits. My family was separated, and I was kidnapped by the bandits to the mountains. Because I was young and weak, I could not do hard labor.”
When the bandits saw that I could read, they asked me to teach them to read. Overall, the bandits weren't too bad to me; at least they didn't let me go hungry. However, they were still wary of me, afraid that I would escape. I was watched during the day and locked up in a cell at night.
The master rescued us during his bandit suppression campaign, but I truly don't know where to go, or if I'll ever find my parents.
Prefect Shen knew that Liaocheng was a small border town, the main battlefield between their Great Northern Dynasty and the vassal state. Due to years of war, the residents had long since fled, and it was impossible for them to return.
Prefect Shen was in a bit of a predicament; he didn't know how to deal with the boy.
Zhao Xian looked the boy over and had a feeling of déjà vu. This was the boy's most helpless moment, and he should help him.
“Your Excellency, why not let this young man come back with me? I have a large family and many houses, so we should have no problem making a living. At the same time, I can help him find out information and reunite his family as soon as possible.”
"Then thank you, Young Master Zhao. All expenses for the young man at your home will be covered by Qing'an Prefecture until his parents are found."
Prefect Shen was very pleased that Zhao Xian accepted the young man.
Since taking office, Prefect Shen has devoted most of his energy to suppressing bandits, which has delayed many other matters. After completing the suppression, Prefect Shen returned to Qing'an Prefecture to handle some important affairs.
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