Jiang Lin corrected himself: "Oh, I don't kill you. I just turn you into useless cripples."
A servant brought Jiang Lin a chair, and he sat down, elegantly arranging his robes and crossing his legs. He regarded the refugees with a detached air, saying, "I'm aware you were misled into committing wrongdoing. Here's what will happen: tell me who masterminded the idea to kill and rob, and who suggested targeting the Wei family. If you entertain me, I might show you mercy."
His tone was gentle and coaxing, a stark contrast to the violence of moments ago.
Someone asked hopefully, "Really? Can you make that decision?"
The Wei family servants immediately backed him up. "How dare you question the Young Master? He’s the master of this family, everyone here obeys him. There’s nothing he can’t decide!"
Hearing this, the crowd grew excited. They began clamoring to expose the man with the broken back, listing his crimes: he’d been part of every killing, every robbery. He’d taught them how to murder, stirred up resentment against the court, and pressured them into attacking the Wei family.
It was as if he alone was responsible for everything, while the rest had merely been misled or coerced.
When they finished, they looked at Jiang Lin expectantly, hoping he’d let them go.
Instead, Jiang Lin uncrossed his legs and stood. "Tie up everyone who just spoke. We’ll send them to the authorities at dawn."
"Liar! He's tricking us!" Some of the quicker-witted refugees realized Jiang Lin's clever tactic, only those who had participated in the crimes alongside the crippled man would be aware of his actions. By speaking out against him, they inadvertently incriminated themselves.
The crowd erupted into chaos. Some tried to flee, others wailed in despair. The man who’d shouted about the trick raised his arms, his face fierce. "Damn officials, none of them keep their word! You want to send us to the government office to have our heads chopped off? Let’s see if you live long enough!"
He rallied the others: "Folks, if they capture us, we die. If we’re going to die anyway, let’s take as many of them with us as we can!"
"Right! Kill them, and maybe we’ll live! Charge!"
The refugees who’d been exposed as murderers grew desperate, inciting the others to fight. The hot-tempered ones lunged at Jiang Lin, trying to shove him into the fire.
Jiang Lin didn’t move. "You outsiders really haven’t heard of me. If the Wei family were so easy to kill, why would you be the ones sent as cannon fodder?"
[炮灰 (pào huī): lit. cannon fodder; fig. expendable pawns.]
They didn’t understand the term, and Jiang Lin didn’t explain. He simply kicked down every attacker.
Xun Qi gave a signal, and the experienced archers positioned on the roof released their arrows. With precision, they aimed for non-lethal targets, striking arms and legs. The air was filled with screams as the arrows hit their marks, causing chaos and panic among the crowd.
Xun Qi joined the fray, knocking down one refugee after another and tossing them to the servants, who later bound them with ropes. Once they were all tied up, Jiang Lin smiled. "The people who sent you here must’ve forgotten to mention one thing: the Wei family is on excellent terms with the Shengjing Prefect."
"Every one of you who has killed will pay with your lives, for the innocent blood you’ve spilled!"
Some had fled earlier, leaving about a hundred who’d entered. Of those, twenty or thirty had blood on their hands. The rest were first-timers, would-be criminals who’d picked the wrong night and the wrong family to test. But since they’d come, they’d shown their intent. Jiang Lin had no intention of letting them off lightly.
"Send them all to the authorities tomorrow. If the bailiffs are too busy to flog them, we’ll provide the manpower ourselves." Hearing they’d be sent to the government office, those who hadn’t killed panicked, begging for mercy with the usual excuses, they’d had no choice, they were desperate, they had families to feed. They clung to their one advantage: they hadn’t killed.
The murderers, however, glared at Jiang Lin with hatred, hurling curses his way. They didn’t get far before the Wei servants slapped them. "Shut your mouths! How dare you insult our Young Master? Keep it up, and we’ll rip your tongues out!"
Jiang Lin, pleased by the loyalty, addressed the bound refugees. "Before coming, someone must’ve told you we can’t just kill commoners, so you thought we’d be helpless, waiting to die. Pity, things didn’t go as you planned." Nor as the true masterminds had hoped.
Jiang Lin ordered the servants, "Gag them too. No need to lose sleep over their noise." The housekeeper led the repairs on the gate, then left some men to guard the prisoners while the rest returned to bed.
Meanwhile, the Fourth Prince and Jiang Rou, disguised and hiding in Shengjing, had been waiting all night for news of the Wei family’s massacre. Instead, they learned the refugees had been subdued. Jiang Rou’s face darkened with rage. "Useless trash!"
The Fourth Prince scowled. "Those Wei and Jiang bastards have nine lives. Even a mob of refugees couldn’t take them down."
They were far harder to kill than he’d thought.
Jiang Rou said, "Your Highness, those two must die. If they live, your grand plans will never succeed."
The Fourth Prince looked at her. "Then how do you propose we kill them?"
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