Chapter 117: Chang Duan 2/2

He couldn’t have imagined that while the laborers continued working after eating, one of them would find the guard watching over them and tell him what Chang Duan had said, swearing, “Chang Duan definitely wants to escape!”

Most of the laborers were indeed grateful to Chang Duan, but there were also a few who were jealous and resentful toward him.

They felt that since they were all captured laborers, why should Chang Duan be able to live a good life while they couldn’t?

However, even though some were jealous, they wouldn’t betray Chang Duan.

They also wanted to escape; they didn’t want to stay here any longer.

There was only one who went to the guard and betrayed Chang Duan.

This person came with Chang Duan. He was as thin as a dead tree, and judging by his appearance, he didn’t have long to live.

Some people speak kindly when they’re close to death, but he… He couldn’t live any longer and wanted to drag others down with him.

While others hoped to escape at night, he betrayed everyone.

Chang Duan knew nothing about this. He followed his original plan and made a pot of braised food that would definitely cause diarrhea after eating it, then brought it to the overseers and guards.

However… When he arrived, Chang Duan felt that something was wrong.

Manager Feng had been smiling and chatting with him at noon, but now he squinted at him, eyeing him warily. “I heard you want to escape.”

Chang Duan was startled, but he didn’t show it on his face. “Manager Feng, what are you talking about?”

Manager Feng snorted, “I heard someone say you’re planning to escape with the laborers.”

“Manager Feng, it’s a misunderstanding! There’s absolutely no such thing…”

“Really? Then eat the food on the table.” Manager Feng pointed at the dishes Chang Duan had brought.

Hearing this, Chang Duan didn’t hesitate. He picked up the dishes with chopsticks and started eating. “Manager Feng, this must be someone trying to frame me…”

Chang Duan was determined to pin the blame on someone else, but he was terrified to the extreme.

This matter was hard to resolve.

If these people started getting diarrhea after eating the food he cooked, they would never let him off.

He could only find a way to stall.

Chang Duan pretended to enjoy the food he had tampered with, trying his best to eat it.

But Manager Feng brought the dishes Chang Duan hadn’t tampered with in front of him… Chang Duan could only eat those.

Seeing Chang Duan eat all the dishes without any reluctance and with a normal expression, the overseers and guards breathed a sigh of relief.

After receiving the news, they weren’t afraid of anything else; they were only afraid that Chang Duan might poison them.

But looking at the current situation, Chang Duan probably hadn’t poisoned them. Maybe someone really was framing him.

But even so, they weren’t reassured.

Two guards stood up and locked Chang Duan away before returning to continue eating and drinking.

“So, does Chang Duan really want to escape?”

“Who doesn’t want to escape? I’m tired of this place. I want to go outside and live freely.”

“This guy has tried to escape before. After we dealt with him, he didn’t dare to run away again. Now, who knows if he’s lost his mind again?”

“He’s good at cooking. It’s a bit of a waste to kill him. Whether it’s true or not, let’s teach him a lesson this time.”

“Keep a close eye on him. Don’t let him come into contact with anything that could kill people if eaten.”

…

As these people ate and drank, on the other side, Chang Duan, who had been locked up, was filled with fear.

If those people started having diarrhea… He probably wouldn’t live to see tomorrow.

He wanted to see his wife and daughter, his brother, and his mother, but he probably wouldn’t get the chance.

Just as Chang Duan was in despair, suddenly there was a loud noise outside.

Chang Duan was startled.

The shouting was loud, something that the few guards at the quarry couldn’t have produced.

Had outsiders arrived?

Indeed, outsiders had arrived!

In Daqi, the military units guarding local areas were called “xiang army.” In Hexing Prefecture, there were stationed xiang army, and Jin Xiaoye’s uncle worked as a cook for them.

The people in these military units were conscripted locally, and serving in the military was a form of corvee labor.

Magistrate Zhang couldn’t mobilize the Xiang army, but he fabricated a lie, claiming that County Magistrate Yan had raised private troops and had ulterior motives.

The Xiang army commander usually had no battles to fight, and unless he had connections in the capital, it was difficult for him to be promoted.

Now that County Magistrate Yan is suspected of raising private troops, wouldn’t this be an opportunity for military merit? Plus, there were several officials supporting Magistrate Zhang’s statement…

According to Magistrate Zhang’s request, the Xiang army commander led his men and quietly rushed to Linhu County.

He didn’t act recklessly until Magistrate Zhang arrived.

If Magistrate Zhang had come in person, then County Magistrate Yan really must have raised private troops!

The Xiang army commander was persuaded by Zhang Zhifu and ordered his soldiers to charge into the quarry.

The quarry had a total of two to three hundred guards. These people not only supervised the laborers in stone quarrying but were also responsible for transporting the harvested Lishe stones. So, on ordinary days, there were only a few dozen people left at the quarry. However, these few dozen people were all skilled and well-armed.

When the Xiang army rushed in hastily, the two sides immediately clashed. 

Upon hearing that they encountered resistance and that the resistance was armed and armored, the Xiang army commander looked towards Magistrate Zhang and exclaimed, “Master Zhang, I never expected that there would actually be private troops raised by County Magistrate Yan here!”

“Please hurry and arrest those people, Master Zhang,” Magistrate Zhang said.

Upon hearing this, the Xiang army commander immediately urged his men to go and arrest the people.

The Xiang army was lax in training, their weapons were mediocre, and their combat effectiveness was not very good. On the other hand, the “private army” was extremely fierce. Originally, there would have been casualties on the side of the Xiang army.

However, in the midst of the battle, those “private troops” suddenly clutched their stomachs. At first, the Xiang army commander was worried about deception. After killing a few people, they realized that these people had indeed suddenly become unable to fight.

The Xiang army commander was overjoyed. However, at this moment, Manager Feng shouted, “Who are you people? The King of Jin won’t let you off!”

The Xiang army commander was dumbfounded. “The King of Jin?”

The only brother of the current emperor was born of a concubine who had plotted against him and was only conferred the title of king of a county. Everyone knew that the emperor despised this brother, so much so that he was only given the title of a county prince.

Although the late Prince of Jin had once been powerful and had even oppressed the current emperor, he died early! Before he could make a move against the emperor for the throne, he died himself.

The emperor’s hatred for the King of Jin was not as strong as it was for his own brother. Whether for the stability of the court or out of personal desire, in the absence of his own heir, the emperor would probably pass the throne to the King of Jin.

Because of this, many people in the court were inclined towards the King of Jin. Even before the current emperor died, they had already begun to curry favor with the King of Jin.

Magistrate Zhang was afraid that the xiang troop commander would mess things up, so he said sternly, “These private troops are indeed raised by the King of Jin, but His Majesty sent me to Hexing Prefecture to eradicate the influence of the King of Jin in Linhu County! If you don’t help me today, His Majesty will definitely convict you! The person sitting on the throne now is not the King of Jin!”

The Xiang army commander snapped out of his daze and shouted, “Even if the King of Heaven came, I would still arrest you!”

Manager Feng was dumbfounded.

Meanwhile, the Xiang army, outnumbering them by dozens, had already rushed forward and arrested them. In a short amount of time, this Xiang army had taken control of the quarry, lit torches to count the people at the quarry, and brought the frightened laborers to Magistrate Zhang.

“I heard that my brother is here. I don’t know if he’s still alive…” Chang Zhan didn’t dare to approach, afraid of hearing bad news.

There were quite a few laborers, but not an excessive amount… Chang Zhan looked around and found that his brother wasn’t among them. His heart ached, and tears flowed down his cheeks.

But then, from a distance, came a familiar cry for help: “Help! Help!”