Chapter 862 I Can Put a Bullet Through Your Head
When Lao Huihui's words rang out, the Prince of Fu burst into laughter. "Hahaha, my ancestral home isn't outside the city walls. It's deep within Luoyang itself! He can't touch it, he can't burn it, hahaha!"
While he reveled in his mirth, the faces of the local gentry, whose ancestral estates lay scattered around Luoyang's periphery, turned a ghastly shade of pallor.
A minor official began to whimper, his voice barely a whisper. "Your humble servant was once a commoner, tilling the earth in Duanjiagou. The old house and fields, passed down through generations, are all there! If they are consumed by fire, then I... I would become the eternal sinner of the Duan clan."
Several merchants and landowners, their faces etched with despair, cried out in unison: "Brave sir, please, don't burn it, don't burn it down!"
Lao Huihui roared with laughter. "If you wish to spare your ancestral homes from the flames, then gather a thousand bushels of grain. I'm not asking for an exorbitant sum."
The assembled gentry exchanged uneasy glances, then huddled together, clearly intent on a swift consultation.
The Prince of Fu, meanwhile, adopted an air of complete detachment, like a spectator engrossed in a public spectacle.
Bai Yuan, however, found his interest piqued. He seized a metal megaphone and boomed across the city walls: "Lao Huihui, direct your gaze here! I am Bai Yuan, and I offer you my respects."
Lao Huihui scoffed, "Spare me your flowery pretensions."
Silence met his words.
Lao Huihui bristled with anger. "Are you truly unaware of our current predicament? How can you still prattle on with such absurdities?"
Bai Yuan remained unperturbed. "Regardless of the circumstances, one must never abandon propriety. That, sir, is the true path of a gentleman."
Those listening collectively rubbed their temples in exasperation.
Lao Huihui rolled his eyes so hard they nearly disappeared. "Get to the point, man!"
Bai Yuan inquired, "It seems you've never been one to plunder the common folk?"
Lao Huihui snorted. "What meager wealth do the common folk possess? Could I even plunder five taels of silver from an entire family? It's far more profitable to seize a Prince of Fu; a single capture could net hundreds of thousands of taels. And even setting aside the silver, if I were to boil him and eat him, the Prince of Fu's ample flesh alone could feed three destitute souls."
The Prince of Fu gasped, utterly aghast. "This king is not palatable in the slightest!"
Bai Yuan chuckled. "Refusing to prey on the common folk suggests you still possess a sliver of conscience. Tell me, what truly compelled you to rebel? Could we perhaps discuss it?"
Lao Huihui narrowed his eyes. "What's this? Do you intend to use your silver tongue to persuade me to surrender? I'm not so easily fooled!"
Bai Yuan countered, "To abandon the shadows and embrace the light—how could such a choice be deemed foolish?"
Lao Huihui burst into booming laughter. "Are you truly unaware that I was once a grand general of the border army, an official of the imperial court? If I were to surrender now, wouldn't I simply revert to being an imperial official? How would that be any different from before I rebelled? They'd still withhold my military pay, refusing to give it, no matter how desperately I needed it!"
Bai Yuan fell silent.
Ah, well. This fellow, much like Lao Nanfeng, was one of those border soldiers driven to rebellion by unpaid wages.
It was merely that Lao Nanfeng's squad had the good fortune to wander into the Heavenly Lord's domain, where they now reveled in lavish feasts and a life of modern comforts. But Lao Huihui still roamed the wilderness, risking his life daily, fighting tooth and nail for every morsel of food...
Such are the vagaries of fate!
From identical beginnings, lives could diverge onto vastly different paths.
Bai Yuan let out a long, contemplative sigh. "What if we paid you your due wages, and you laid down your arms? How would that be?"
The Prince of Fu, sensing an opportunity, eagerly scrambled to the battlements. "You want military pay? That's hardly complicated! I'll give it to you, this king has plenty of money. I'll give it to you. Just cease this rebellion! Wouldn't it be better to return to the imperial court and serve as a military general?"
Lao Huihui scoffed. "Why in heaven's name should I trust you? I don't even trust Zhu Youjian, let alone a mere Prince of Fu! If I wanted your money, I'd sooner breach Luoyang's defenses, throw you into a great pot and boil you! Wouldn't all the wealth in your mansion then be ours for the taking?"
The Prince of Fu recoiled, startled. "Why must you mention boiling people every other sentence?"
Bai Yuan sighed deeply once more. He understood that mere words would be insufficient to persuade this man to surrender. Lao Huihui had been wronged and deceived before, and the imperial court's credibility lay shattered. Furthermore, proudly displaying the banner of Gao Family Village would be equally futile; Lao Huihui had never even heard of such a place...
Evidently, this was not the opportune moment for an awkward long-distance negotiation. He first needed to establish Gao Family Village's reputation in Lao Huihui's eyes, only then could he hope to sway him to their cause. This process, Bai Yuan realized, would likely demand a more direct approach.
Bai Yuan lifted the megaphone again. "Lao Huihui, fix your gaze upon that large rock situated directly between our positions. Do you see the small yellow flower blooming upon it?"
Lao Huihui squinted, his eyes focusing. "I see it," he called back. "What of this flower?"
Bai Yuan offered no reply. Instead, he swiftly produced his Flintlock Rifle.
"Crack!"
With a deafening crack, the small flower abruptly disintegrated, its delicate form exploding into a myriad of petals that danced away on the breeze.
Lao Huihui instantly sucked in a sharp breath. *So far, and yet so precise? What kind of miraculous skill is this?*
Bai Yuan holstered his Flintlock Rifle, then retrieved the metal megaphone. "You see that? Forget any notions of conquering Luoyang! It is only because you refrain from plundering the common folk that I offer this warning. Otherwise, a simple feint would have drawn you close enough to attack the city, and a single shot would have sent you straight to the underworld."
The declaration was undeniably arrogant, yet Lao Huihui recognized the stark truth within it.
If his opponent were to feign a weakness or employ some other stratagem, luring him within that flower's range would be effortless. The spot was still hundreds of paces from the city walls, making it easy for him to drop his guard.
If they could obliterate a small flower from that immense distance, they could just as easily put a bullet through his head.
The thought made Lao Huihui regard Bai Yuan with newfound respect.
Bai Yuan concluded, "Maintain your principles, and refrain from harming the innocent. We shall undoubtedly have occasion to meet again."
With that, he ceased his pronouncements, observing the rebels with a cool, assessing gaze.
After a period of fervent deliberation, the city's gentry and affluent families did indeed dispatch a portion of grain to Lao Huihui. Naturally, it wasn't the full thousand bushels he'd demanded; following a round of intense bargaining, they ultimately secured their ancestral homes for a payment of five hundred bushels.
Lao Huihui, true to his word, ceased all hostilities around Luoyang once the payment was received. He promptly withdrew his forces and departed, heading southeast.
Only after Lao Huihui had retreated a considerable distance did the Prince of Fu turn to Bai Yuan, a look of complaint etched on his face. "Master Bai," he grumbled, "since you possess the ability to put a bullet through his head from such a range, you should have devised a way to lure him closer and then simply eliminated him! Why issue a warning? Allowing the tiger to return to its mountain lair—how utterly impractical and unwise is that?"
Bai Yuan scoffed, "You understand abso— *cough*... I nearly uttered an impropriety, and then the 'rites' aspect among a gentleman's six arts would have been utterly negated."
He once again adopted his customary air of dignified contemplation, tilting his head forty-five degrees to gaze at the sky. He spoke slowly, "We are defending from within the city walls, and we haven't managed to encircle their forces. In such circumstances, if I were to put a bullet through Lao Huihui's head, his subordinates would undoubtedly scatter in every direction. They are all cavalry; we would never catch them, not a single one."
"Once they've escaped, it's highly probable that some 'Little Lao Huihui' or 'New Lao Huihui' type will emerge to take command of his army. Their policy would then shift from 'not plundering the common folk' to 'indiscriminately plundering the common folk,' leading to chaos that would spiral beyond control and spread devastation far and wide. It's far better to allow Lao Huihui to retain command; at least for now, his forces maintain a semblance of discipline."
Only then did the Prince of Fu truly grasp the reasoning. "I see! That makes perfect sense! Master Bai's foresight is truly comprehensive."
Bai Yuan gazed into the distance, watching the direction of Lao Huihui's retreat. After a moment's thought, he turned and summoned Jiang Cheng. "Dispatch a few men," he instructed, "lightly armed and with minimal escort, to make discreet contact with Lao Huihui."
Comments