"Dong... dong... dong..."
This morning, drums suddenly resounded through Xiao Family Village, their heart-stirring beats drawing people towards the pavilion where Xiao Ningshan, the lord of the village, resided.
"What's happening?"
"I don't know."
"It must be something big!"
"How can you tell?"
"It's the killing drum. The master is going to kill someone!"
"Who is he killing?"
"How would I know? Let's go see."
So, people surged towards Xiao Ningshan's pavilion.
Xiao Ningshan's pavilion was a three-story wooden building, tall and grand, surrounded by smaller houses and fronted by a paifang.
Paifangs, originating from the Zhou Dynasty, were structures erected to honor chastity and filial piety, common in the Central Plains and Jiangnan regions where Han people gathered, but rare outside the pass. Nevertheless, Xiao Ningshan, the lord of Xiao Family Village, had built one in imitation of Han architectural style to assert his status.
At this moment, two people, a man and a woman, were hung from the pillars of the paifang, both naked. Hundreds of Xiao Family soldiers, armed with spears and sabers, stood guard around the wooden pillars, allowing only distant observation and forbidding approach.
The man and woman, hung from the pillars, were already dead. The man's death was particularly gruesome. A long spear had been thrust into him from behind, piercing through his skull. The spearhead was smeared with brain matter, blood, and flesh, sticky and viscous. Blood flowed down the spear and the wooden pillar, pooling on the ground in a pool of black.
The man's body was covered in wounds, his face contorted in agony, clearly having suffered inhuman torture before death.
The heavy snow had temporarily ceased that day, and the sun shone brightly. The snow-covered landscape was exceptionally beautiful, yet the scene before the paifang was like purgatory, the stark contrast causing sighs and chilling the bones.
The assembled villagers of Xiao Family Village, men and women, old and young, whispered amongst themselves as they gazed at the scene. Some were terrified, some jubilant, but most wore indifferent expressions, seemingly accustomed to such events.
The household soldiers also looked on with cold indifference.
"Xiao Liangzi..." Just then, Wei the Blind frantically tried to push through the crowd. Seeing the man hanging from the pillar, he cried out in grief, "Xiao Liangzi..."
The man hanging from the pillar, dead, was Wei Liang, Wei the Blind's nephew by kinship. Wei Liang's parents had died early, entrusting him to Wei the Blind, who had raised him. Now, he had met a tragic death in Xiao Family Village, and how could Wei the Blind not be heartbroken?
Wei Liang, seeing the pitiable state of Ai Cao and her child, had wanted to help them escape with Zhou Fugui and the others. However, before dawn, they were discovered, and Xiao Ningshan cruelly killed them.
"Get away, don't come any closer!"
"The master's orders are to kill anyone who approaches!"
Wei the Blind lunged forward, and several household soldiers advanced, pressing their spears against him and shouting.
"You... you... why did you kill him?" Wei the Blind wailed, grabbing the spearhead. "Just one more day, and Xiao Liangzi would have been twenty. Why did you kill him?"
Wei the Blind clutched the spearhead, its sharp point piercing his palm, blood trickling from between his fingers.
"Get away, or we'll hang you on the pillar too!" Two strong household soldiers grabbed Wei the Blind from either side, intending to throw him out.
"Let him go!"
At this moment, Zhou Fugui, carrying the Zhuoyue bow on his back and with his saber at his side, emerged from the crowd and coldly addressed the Xiao Family soldiers.
Xu Mancang, Suo Dacheng, Pan Jiangui, Yi Jisheng, Yang Xinhong, Wu Tianqi, Hu Yuan, Chen Kunkun, Hong Wei, Hu Tieniu, and over twenty other fellow villagers from Luming Township, Youzhou, also emerged, each armed, and gathered around Zhou Fugui, their eyes burning with fury.
Li Qing, a frail scholar, dared not step forward. He stood behind, wanting to persuade Zhou Fugui but afraid to, regretting that Zhou Fugui had not heeded his words.
The onlookers, seeing the formidable arrival, quickly parted, creating a path and retreating to a safe distance to continue watching.
"So it's Brigadier General Zhou!" a household soldier leader stepped forward, looking at Zhou Fugui. "General..."
"Bang!" Before the leader could finish, Zhou Fugui swiftly kicked him directly in the groin, crippling his lineage.
"Ah!" The household soldier leader howled, falling to the ground, clutching his groin and writhing in pain. Despite the cold winter, sweat beaded on his forehead.
"Bravo!"
"Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!"
"General Zhou is mighty!"
Xue Wentai and others, renowned heroes from Guanzhong who had rushed to the scene upon hearing the commotion, shouted their praise.
It is said that friendship is forged through conflict. Xue Wentai, a pugnacious and reckless monk, feared and respected those even more fierce than himself.
Although Xue Wentai, the pugnacious monk, believed he could gain the upper hand in close combat against Zhou Fugui, Zhou Fugui's swift and decisive kick was truly impressive, earning him loud cheers of encouragement.
Zhou Fugui ignored Xue Wentai and the others. He took the Zhuoyue bow from his back, drew an arrow, and coldly stared at the Xiao Family soldiers. "Did you not hear me tell you to let him go?"
Zhou Fugui's imposing presence startled the two soldiers, who quickly released Wei the Blind. Yi Jisheng and the others helped Wei the Blind back.
"Fugui, Fugui, they are too cruel. Xiao Liangzi died so miserably," Wei the Blind sobbed to Zhou Fugui.
"Yes, I will seek justice for him," Zhou Fugui nodded.
Zhou Fugui could already guess the reason for Wei Liang's tragic death. The woman hanging on the pillar was a clear indication.
Ji Duo'er had previously warned Zhou Fugui not to meddle in other people's affairs, and the hypocritical beast in human guise had also explicitly forbidden him from touching his woman yesterday. Therefore, there must have been some connection between Wei Liang and the deceased woman. While Zhou Fugui was unaware of the specifics, no matter the reason, it did not warrant Wei Liang's death. Before killing Wei Liang, they should at least have informed Ji Duo'er and Zhou Fugui.
Xiao Ningshan's cruel murder of Wei Liang had already enraged Zhou Fugui and his companions.
In truth, Zhou Fugui had not ignored Li Qing's advice; on the contrary, he frequently reminded himself to remain calm and patient.
Zhou Fugui had also held back when dealing with the household soldier leader earlier. Otherwise, catching him off guard, Zhou Fugui would have shattered his windpipe or torn it asunder, not just crippled his reproductive organs.
However, crippling his reproductive organs was more agonizing than killing him.
If Zhou Fugui commanded a large army, he would have ordered a village massacre to avenge Wei Liang. But now, he only had about twenty fellow villagers. If a conflict erupted with Xiao Family Village, all of them would perish here.
Zhou Fugui was not afraid of death. He had nearly died several times on the southern battlefield and at Pijin City due to sheer luck. What Zhou Fugui feared was endangering the lives of his loyal fellow villagers and friends.
As for the five hundred convicts, they might even wish for Zhou Fugui and his group to die and would not offer assistance. Xue Wentai and his group had even come to provoke them earlier.
Therefore, Zhou Fugui could only remain calm, engrave this deep hatred in his heart, and seek revenge when the opportunity arose in the future.
"Why did you kill my brother?" Zhou Fugui asked coldly, holding the Zhuoyue bow.
"He... he... seduced the master's woman." The household soldiers dared not approach Zhou Fugui. Seeing him with the bow and arrows, they either hid far away or behind pillars and other objects to avoid arrows. One soldier, emboldened, replied.
"Speak louder!" Zhou Fugui roared, nocked an arrow, and shot. The arrow pierced through a pillar, its tip stopping inches from a soldier's nose, terrifying him to the point of nearly soiling himself.
"Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!"
"The White Tiger Camp, form ranks!"
The situation was dire. Zhou Fugui brandished his Zhuoyue bow and shouted the order, simultaneously nocking three arrows.
"Yes, Commander of the Camp!"
"Roar! Roar! Roar!"
Xu Mancang, Suo Dacheng, and over twenty other men were moved to tears. They responded with loud shouts and formed three Big Dipper formations.
They had not heard this command in a long time, feeling both excitement and sorrow. Once, there were over three thousand soldiers in the White Tiger Camp, and now only a little over twenty remained.
"General Zhou, I have arrived!" Xue Wentai raised his tattooed right arm, holding his large ring-hilted saber in his left hand, and roared as he led over a hundred men from Guanzhong to Zhou Fugui's side.
"Men of Guanzhong, young and old!" Xue Wentai then shouted to the Guanzhong men. "Do we draw our swords when we witness injustice?"
"Yes!" Over a hundred Guanzhong men roared in unison.
"This damned village is pushing too hard. General Zhou seeks justice, but these scoundrels are bullying us with numbers. Is this the way of the world? Today, we aid General Zhou. Are the men of Guanzhong, young and old, afraid?" Xue Wentai roared again.
Xue Wentai had not had any wine or meat in Xiao Family Village, and he still held a grudge.
"Afraid of what? Are Guanzhong men cowards?" The over a hundred Guanzhong men roared together.
"Kill! Kill them! Charge in, eat their meat, drink their wine, and rob their women!" Before Zhou Fugui and the others could act, Xue Wentai waved his large ring-hilted saber and roared, preparing to lead his men into the fray.