Chapter 318

The quickest to return were Fan Xiaoliu and Wu Gousheng, who went to buy medicine.

They nearly ran all the way, despite the chilly weather at the end of October, causing them to sweat in their thin shirts.

“Uncle Ding, here! Take a look if the hemostatic powder is alright?” Wu Gousheng panted as he asked, handing over the basket containing the medicine.

Ding Heli quickly took it and checked, “It’s good! I’ll call out names based on severity. No pushing or hesitating, whoever’s called comes forward first!”

Earlier, Ding had already done some basic bandaging for the injured, and bleeding was minimal. The application of the ointment was mainly to prevent infection and future fever.

The injured men obediently stepped forward, sitting in a circle, calm and patient, waiting for their names to be called.

Li Wen approached Fan Xiaoliu and Wu Gousheng, exchanging glances with them. Li Wen understood and intentionally used a loud voice, audible to Fan’s father and son nearby, asking, “How much silver did this medicine cost? Is there any left?”

“Brother Li, you don’t know, this medicine is expensive! Let alone leftovers, if it weren’t for the shopkeeper rounding down, we’d have to chip in a few extra wen!” Fan Xiaoliu raised his voice.

The other men expressed relief, “Thank goodness Uncle Ding found the silver. Otherwise, if we had to pay ourselves, we’d have to sell several batches of rabbits!”

“Yeah, these villains caused all this trouble. Making them pay for the medicine is already letting them off lightly!”

“I wish we could give them a few more cuts!”

The bandits tied on the ground were fearful and angry upon hearing this. Their silver was ill-gotten, and facing the authorities would be problematic. Taking it away now was just right; they could plead innocence and perhaps reclaim it later!

Fan Erzhu squatted on the roadside, scolding his father and younger brother on both sides, “I used to think Fan Xiaoliu and Wu Gousheng were straightforward and considerate, but now it seems they’re full of bad intentions!

How could they have spent all that silver on medicine? They must be hiding some, truly malicious, even profiting from buying medicine.”

Fan Sanzhu grunted in agreement, his eyes gleaming with envy, blaming his father and older brother for taking the initiative to distance themselves, leaving him out of the opportunity to buy medicine. That would have made him rich instantly with dozens of taels of silver!

Then he remembered the dozen or so big knives thrown into the river, sighing in regret, “So many knives, even if they were disliked, could have been sold for silver. Such a waste throwing them all into the river, impossible to retrieve in this weather.”

“Who says otherwise? Wicked and foolish!” Fan Erzhu rolled his eyes, regretting not being in charge. Finally, when Ding Heli applied medicine to Hu Wenhua, everyone learned he was also injured!

Fan Jin nervously approached to check, and Ding Heli reassured him, “It’s fine, the wound isn’t too deep. Just keep it dry and avoid strenuous activities when you return.”

Hu Wenhua’s wound stretched across his entire back, extensive and painful. But he gritted his teeth and didn’t make a sound.

People with stronger wills tended to ignore their injuries more easily. His back injury meant he couldn’t use either arm forcefully; otherwise, the healing wound would easily break open again, leading to bleeding and infection.

“Alright, he shouldn’t exert himself for a while. I’ll have my father-in-law and mother-in-law keep an eye on him,” Fan Jin promised gently.

Ding Heli thought since he was now at the herbal medicine shop every day, changing his bandages, they could also keep an eye on him.

Hu Wenhua smiled wryly, feeling both his brother-in-law and Uncle Ding were overly concerned.

It wasn’t until Ding Heli finished applying medicine and re-bandaging all the injured, and waited for a long while, that the constables arrived late under the leadership of Xu Laosan and Li Wu.

The head constable kicked one of the tied-up bandits and removed the cloth from a few others’ mouths, but before he could start questioning, cries of innocence echoed loudly from the ground.

“Sir, we’re innocent! We didn’t do anything, we were just passing by. These people tied us up. Please, you must intervene!”

“They even injured our brothers, it’s outrageous!”

“We’ve suffered from flooding, we’re already poor, and have no money on us. How could we be bandits? They seem more like bandits!”

The constable, not one to loaf around, glanced over and asked Li Wen, “Where’s your travel permit?”

Previously, travel permits were only needed for long journeys, but after the floods, there were more refugees and disaster victims. To avoid disrupting the daily lives of the people of Guangning Prefecture, Magistrate Wu ordered that everyone must carry a travel permit.

This was something they should have carried every time they entered the city. Li Wen quickly and respectfully produced it.

The constable quickly inspected it and, finding no issue, forcefully kicked the person who had cried out as being wronged, scolding, “You dare falsely accuse others! Do you think I’m stupid or blind?”

“Fine, if you claim innocence, show your travel permit! If you don’t have one, tell me where you live, your family name and given name, and who can vouch for you.” Fan Xiaoliu was quick-witted and promptly presented a beautifully embroidered purse previously confiscated from them, respectfully stating, “Sir, this is what they were carrying. It doesn’t seem to belong to them. Inside, there’s only a bit of broken silver. They injured our men, and that little bit of broken silver was used to buy medicine.”

He pointed to several men with obvious bandages and continued, “You see, that little bit of broken silver isn’t enough; we had to add a few more wen to make up for it! These people were too ruthless!”

The constable had initially wanted to make a little extra, but upon hearing that the broken silver had indeed been used to buy medicine, especially since it wasn’t enough, he had to relent.

Lowering his head, he looked at the purse with its exquisite embroidery, growing increasingly pleased!

An opportunity for merit had arrived!

In recent days, several wealthy households in the city had been robbed, leaving Magistrate Wu in a bind as he lacked enough constables — and even if he had enough, who would want to confront these desperate refugees?

These people were perfect; they solved his urgent problem.

Lowering his head to look at the securely bound thirty-plus people, he chuckled, “Very well, it turns out that you lot were the culprits behind the recent robberies of several wealthy households in the city.

It’s truly effortless when the culprit comes to you!”

The ones who had cried out in innocence stood frozen in place, then quickly reacted, tearfully pleading, “Sir, we didn’t do anything!

We only dare to rob travelers on the road; we’ve never entered the city, and we can’t even get in!”

“We’ve heard about what’s happening in the city. They outnumber us and are even more vicious. We’re not like them at all, Your Honor, please see the truth!”

This time, they were truly innocent, and even the men whose mouths were stuffed with cloth behind them made uneasy whimpering noises.

“Enough talk! With witnesses and evidence at hand, let’s go, take a trip to the yamen, and we’ll see if the instruments of the law are harder or your mouths!”

“Take them away!”

The constables rushed forward in a commotion, hauling away the securely bound bandits.

After a while, Xu Laosan asked in a daze, “Why do I feel like this batch isn’t the same as the ones the official mentioned?”