307 Pile of Silver (1/2)
Chapter 307: Pile of Silver
Translator: TransnEditor: Transn
After blustering out a threat to Lady Meng and Meng Yuzun who was muddle-headed about the lady's secret, Gu Shenwei got a response on the following day.
In the afternoon, the citizens of South City got to witness a rare spectacle: more than 10 carriages, carrying two million taels of silver, were being transported to the Residence of the Dragon King in broad daylight.
The sole responsibility of the men sent by Meng Yuzun was to ensure that the silver was delivered; they even wanted to collect the boxes back. As such, the silver had to be stacked in the Dragon King's front yard after being weighed, and it literally became a mountain of silver. The taels of silver were so shiny that one would get dizzy just by looking at them. Everyone in the residence crowded around to see for themselves, their mouths agape in amazement.
More than 10 pairs of eyes could be noticed peeking unblinkingly and greedily at the silver from the door seams and over the wall of the front yard.
Fang Wenshi was also gazing at the pile of silver with his mouth wide open, and had to control his strong urge to throw himself on it. He had seen through the cunning ploy of the Meng family. ”This was obviously done to cause trouble in the residence. How many people would come in hope of snatching it for their own use? This move by the fat man is indeed ruthless.”
Gu Shenwei did not order the silver to be moved. Instead, he made the swordsmen from the Great Snowmountain erect a flag near it. Fang Wenshi suggested against using the Black Blood Flag as it had a somber reputation now, and Gu Shenwei had to re-design another one.
The murder of crows on the Reincarnation Hill had left an indelible impression in Gu Shenwei's mind, therefore the new flag he designed for the Great Snowmountain was black based with a crudely drawn side portrait of a red crow in the middle of it.
Fang Wenshi did not really like this design, but grudgingly accepted it in the end.
Xu Xiaoyi had secretly contacted many underground banks in the hope that someone would accept the deposit of two million taels of silver, but none of them dared to. ”It's too conspicuous. It'll be akin to openly going against the Meng Family by accepting your deposit. Furthermore, I don't have the resources to store it securely,” replied Shopkeeper Lyu of Southwall Tavern. He was heartbroken to have to pass over a deal like this; he wanted to do it but was also extremely afraid of the Meng family.
That very night, the robbers came, just as was expected.
Greed overcame fear, and there were at least five groups of bandits loitering around the residence of the Dragon King once night came. They were already fighting amongst themselves even before laying eyes on the silver, and only calmed down after one of them was struck dead. They came up with a plan by dividing the residence into different parts and made a deal to launch a multi-pronged attack. It was up to the individual bandit to grab as much of the silver as he or she could.
They were still somewhat wary of the Dragon King, and dared not aim to grab all of the two million taels of silver; they only wished to get part of it amongst the chaos.
The atmosphere within the residence of the Dragon King had suddenly grown tense.
Those who did not know any kung fu were made to stay in the backyard, and they were separated by gender into two different rooms. Four machetemen, four swordsmen and Lianye stood guard over them. Lianye did not wish to take part in guarding the silver because of his status as a monk and volunteered to help guard the backyard instead.
The remaining 30 over machetemen from the Tianshan Sect and swordsmen from the Great Snowmountain were responsible for guarding the front yard with the Dragon King.
Gu Shenwei only allocated two men to stand guard under the Red Raven Flag. The other people were dispersed throughout the surrounding area and stationed themselves in the various rooms, waiting for their orders. A lantern was hung under each corner of the roof.
The anxious bandits finally struck when it was close to midnight, and snow was beginning to fall.
The first wave consisted of three groups, each made up of five to eight bandits. They came leaping onto the roof from the east, west, and north. Some of them had concealed their faces but some did not bother to do so.
The three groups of bandits stood hesitating on the roof. The silver was just below them, but none of them dared to make the first move. It was only after 15 minutes and when the snow started to get heavier, when a bandit shouted, ”I'm Ma Er, Dragon King. My finances are a little tight right now, and I've come here to borrow some money. Please be generous. We can be friends. If you have any request, feel free to look for me from now on.”
After the 'pleasantries' were over, more than 20 of the bandits leaped into the yard, seemingly simultaneously. They had drawn their sabers and advanced gingerly through the shallow snow towards the pile of silver.
The two swordsmen standing guard under the Red Raven Flag drew their heavy swords and readied themselves for battle.
However, it did not start immediately, as bandits always waited for someone else to start a fight; they were always looking to grab the loot when the others were fighting. Slowly, their steps became smaller and smaller until they were almost marching on the spot.
Snowflakes were starting to cover the sky, and the light emanating from the four lanterns was soon not enough to pierce through the snow in the air. It was pitch black around the pile of silver, which was at the center of the yard, but it did not matter to the bandits; it was why they were here.
Soon, the second wave of bandits was already on the roof. They were no less than 60. A muscular bandit gave a loud roar as he raised the scimitar in his hand. ”The Dragon King has fewer men than us. Let's go!”
Thus, the battle began.
As the second wave of bandits leaped into the yard, the first wave rushed towards the pile of silver. The guards of the front yard came rushing out of the various rooms, and soon there were more than a hundred people congregating in the yard. The battleground immediately looked smaller, and this resulted in extremely brutal close combat.
As shouts from the front yard kept ringing out, those seeking refuge in the backyard trembled and huddled together. Fang Wenshi closed his eyes and quietly prayed. ”I'll be fine, the Dragon King will be fine, and the silver will also be fine.”
As the battle just began, someone had extinguished the flame from all the lanterns. The combatants were soon plunged into the pitch black night and never ending snow. There were only countless cries to be heard.
”Don't slash, it's me!”
”I've got the silver, let's go!”
”Grab a little more.”
”Hurry, hurry.”