Chapter 17: The Night of Slaying Demons (Part Two)

For the village head of Xixi Village, this night was undoubtedly the most unforgettable of his life.

He had been sleeping soundly in the quarters of his seventh concubine when, in a daze, he felt as though a large troop had infiltrated the estate. He struggled to rise from his bed, and the sight of torchlight flickering through the cracks in the window frame sent a jolt through his body. Sneaking a look through a hole poked in the window paper, he saw the entire estate filled with armed toughs, while his own retainers were surrendering one by one.

"It's over! Run!"

As a seasoned veteran of survival, he realized immediately that the situation was dire. His estate was considered the most formidable in the surrounding ten miles, yet it had been breached so easily, leaving the entire village helpless. These intruders were clearly not to be trifled with—he had to escape!

Disregarding the concubine he had been dallying with moments before, he scrambled into his clothes and slipped out through the back door. He happened to run into his son and others who were also preparing to flee, so the group banded together to make a break for it. As it turned out, the direction they fled was exactly where Song Wan had stationed his men. Like sheep walking into a tiger’s den, they were completely surrounded.

"Brother, we’re in luck! We’ve wrapped them up like dumplings; they’re all here," Song Wan said, beaming. This was Liangshan’s first foray down the mountain to seek justice for the people, and he, Song Wan, would surely claim the primary credit.

"Well done, brother. Which one is the village head?" Ren Yuan was equally pleased; the task had been accomplished with effortless ease.

"The old man lying on the ground there."

Ren Yuan looked at the man sprawled on the earth. It was clear he had fled in quite a hurry—he had even put his shoes on the wrong feet.

"Which one is his son?"

"This one." Song Wan kicked a trembling young man on the ground, whose clothing was even more disheveled.

"Liu Si, take some men and call all the villagers here." Ren Yuan decided to summon the entire village.

"Chief? What for?" Liu Si was surprised, unsure of the Chief's intentions.

"Since we are acting on behalf of Heaven, we need a public trial. Bring all the villagers here to judge this man together. Let those with grievances report them, and those with grudges settle them! We must not let anyone accuse Liangshan of slandering him."

"I’m on it!" Though Liu Si didn't initially understand why he needed the whole village, once he heard the Chief’s reasoning, he immediately set off to gather the people. This village head had been bullying them for years; was there anyone in the village who didn't have a score to settle with him?

"Brother, this move is truly ruthless. I admire you," Yuan Lang said, his respect for the Chief deepening. He had originally thought it would suffice to simply kill the ringleader, but he hadn't expected his brother to call for a public trial! It was as if his brother were imitating the legendary Bao Zheng—after the trial, one stroke of the blade would be the end of it! How gratifying that would be!

If word of this scene spread, the opportunities for Liangshan to act on behalf of Heaven would only increase.

Before long, Liu Si returned with the old and young of the village. Roused in the middle of the night, the villagers were filled with trepidation, unsure of what these outlaws intended to do. Were they to be silenced?

"Fellow villagers!" Ren Yuan, naturally tall and imposing, commanded the attention of the entire crowd the moment he spoke. "Do not be afraid. As the saying goes, every debt has a debtor and every grievance has a source! We, the heroes of Liangshan, have come tonight specifically for the village head of Xixi. This has nothing to do with you! We have summoned you tonight only to serve as witnesses and to see for yourselves the fate of one who harms his neighbors!"

Ren Yuan possessed a formidable, Vajra-like appearance, and by channeling his inner energy into his voice, he sent a tremor through the crowd, as if the very chill in the air had been dispelled.

The villagers of Xixi finally felt at ease. Looking at the bound village head and his cohorts, they suddenly realized they might truly be able to seek vengeance.

"Are you the village head of Xixi?"

"Y-yes, it is I, the humble one..." The village head was already distraught with terror. Seeing that Ren Yuan and his men were all giants of men, he trembled so violently he could barely speak.

"Straighten your tongue before you speak." Yuan Lang kicked him, causing the man to howl in pain.

"I ask you, is it true or false that Xixi Village has been offering up young boys and girls to the river god every year?" Ren Yuan did not stop Yuan Lang; in fact, had he not been the Chief and the judge, he would have liked to kick the man himself.

"False! False! It’s all a lie, Great King!"

Ren Yuan had expected the man to argue, but he confessed immediately. "The so-called river ghosts and river gods are all fake. It was the county magistrate and the clerks of Yuncheng who made me do it, just so they could scrape together extra silver every year to split among themselves. Great King, since ancient times, the common folk cannot fight the officials. They were the officials, and I was but a commoner—they forced me into it!"

"Fake?!" Many villagers in the crowd were struck as if by lightning. Some even rolled their eyes back and fainted on the spot.

"It was fake! Give me back my child’s life!"
"You beast! My poor child!"
"Great King, grant us justice! My child was only three years old! So small!"
"You scoundrel! When you were taking the money, why didn’t you say you were being forced?" Yuan Lang delivered a heavy slap, drawing blood from the village head’s mouth.

"Which clerk in Yuncheng County is connected to you?" Ren Yuan’s face was ashen. These people would stop at nothing to hoard wealth, regardless of the lives of the common folk. To kill children so casually—was there no humanity left in them?

"His surname is Song! That man’s surname is Song! I only know of one Clerk Song in Yuncheng County!"

"Brother, it must be that Song Jiang. It seems that when he acts 'righteous' and disperses wealth, it is all ill-gotten gains! Bah! And he deserves the title of 'Timely Rain'? I am ashamed to share a surname with him!" Song Wan cursed, genuinely disgusted by the shared name.

"Hmph, that Black Song is truly no good."

Ren Yuan held even more contempt for Song Jiang, but he then called Liu Si over. "Liu Si, see if this village head’s son is the one who bullied your family back then. Every grievance has a source—this beast is yours to deal with."

Liu Si had been waiting for this moment. Upon receiving the order, he rushed forward, raining punches and kicks upon the village head’s son. "He killed my mother—I would recognize him even if he turned to ash!"

"Brother Si! No, Master Si! Have mercy, Master Si! It hurts! Please spare me! Let me go!" The man being beaten was indeed the one who had molested Liu Si’s wife, injured his mother, and seized his family’s land. Under the barrage of blows, he begged incessantly.

"Master Si! Master Si! Spare my son’s life! Chief! I have money and grain in the estate! I am willing to offer it all to the mountain stronghold to buy our lives!" Seeing his son being beaten, the old village head grew desperate, hoping to use money to save them.

"Money and grain? Is it yours? It belongs to these villagers! How dare you use their wealth to save your own life?! Liu Si, ignore him! Continue!" Ren Yuan cut the old man off. Old fool, your family has committed too many evils; this wealth will not save you!

"Spare you? I begged you the same way back then—did you ever spare my family?! Now you dare to beg me? On what grounds?" Hearing the pleas, Liu Si grew even angrier. Encouraged by his Chief, he stopped holding back, drew his blade, and hacked at the man.

Blood splattered! Not yet satisfied, Liu Si turned to the village head, raised his blade, and severed the old man’s head as well.

"Mother! I have avenged you!" After personally executing his two enemies, Liu Si let out a roar to the heavens, releasing the bitterness in his heart. The villagers whose children had been killed by the village head’s family also shouted along, their eyes red with fury.

"He who sows his own destruction cannot live." Ren Yuan had no desire to look at the corpses and waved for his men to drag them away. "Fellow villagers! The village head’s family is all here today. If anyone else has grievances, speak them one by one! This pack of beasts has oppressed you for too long—today we settle all accounts!"

"Thank you, Great King!"
"Thank you, Great King, for granting us justice!"

The village head’s family had been accustomed to acting with impunity, but now they suffered. The villagers stepped forward one by one, recounting every ugly deed they had committed.

"Execute them!" Ren Yuan did not show a shred of mercy. They had brought this upon themselves; he would not be soft on evildoers.

"Fellow villagers, from this day on, there are no more evil demons in Xixi Village! If anyone ever commits evil again, come to Liangshan and find us! We will grant you justice!"

"Many thanks, Great King!"
"The Great King is benevolent!"
"The Great King is our savior!"

Listening to the cheers of the people, the men of Liangshan could not help but stand even taller. They were proud; following such a Chief, they felt this was the life they had truly longed for.