Chapter 2301 - Capturing the Hairy Thief

Xie Erren's face turned ashen. As a reporter, he had witnessed his share of ugly scenes, but this was the first time a blade had been pressed directly against his chest. Unlike the theatrical posturing of the old spacetime, these natives would truly drive a white knife in and pull a red knife out.

"Is this the Xie bandit?" another man in black walked over and asked.

"That's him." The short, wiry man handled Xie Erren roughly. "This appearance, this attire, and the pistol in the drawer—only a True Kun has these." He fished Xie Erren's revolver and ammunition box from the drawer and tucked them casually into his waistband.

Xie Erren was terrified, barely maintaining his composure. Though the small man spoke with a slight accent, it was unmistakably the "New Language" spoken only by naturalized citizens. He recalled Xu Ke's warning when they first entered Wuzhou: there were very likely traitors embedded in the Ming forces. Watching this man tuck the revolver into his belt without a second glance, his movements practiced and familiar, confirmed his suspicions—this was no native.

Meanwhile, Jiang Suo searched every pocket on Xie Erren's person, not even sparing his toilet paper. Only then did they bind him with ropes, gag him with a walnut, and pull a hood over his head. Xie Erren's world went dark; all he knew was that someone was dragging him forward, and he could only stumble along blindly.

Song Ming wanted to search the office for confidential documents, but Jiang Suo warned that once gunshots rang out, the Australians would react quickly—reinforcements would arrive any moment. Wuzhou City was compact, and this location was close to both the Great and Small South Gates. Once the enemy organized a response, their few dozen men wouldn't stand a chance.

Song Ming agreed, but having come this far, he couldn't leave empty-handed. Ignoring the risks, he swept everything in Xie Erren's drawer into a bag and slung it over his shoulder, then sprinted toward the back courtyard.

They left just in time. The moment the gunshot echoed through the night, Qian Duo, who was observing enemy movements at the Great South Gate, froze. Gunfire inside the city! And not from bird guns or firelocks—that was the distinctive crack of Nanyang rifles.

Judging by the volume and direction, the shooting had occurred in the southern district, somewhere near the County Yamen or Prefectural Yamen.

Cold sweat broke out across Qian Duo's back. If the Prefectural Yamen had been attacked, it would be a disaster. He immediately dispatched a sergeant with a squad to investigate.

The gates of the Prefectural Yamen were shut tight, showing no abnormalities, but the door sentries were missing and the side gate stood wide open. Sensing trouble, the sergeant immediately ordered:

"Fix bayonets! Prepare to fire!"

The squad made quick preparations and burst through the side gate into the front courtyard. It was empty. The sergeant ordered men to open the main gate while sending point men to search. They had barely gone a few steps before discovering the bodies of two sentries at the entrance to the service lane leading to the Second Hall—one felled by a crossbow bolt, the other hacked down.

Knowing the situation was grave, the sergeant sent a runner back to inform Qian Duo while leading his men deeper inside.

Entering the main hall of the second courtyard, they found four or five more bodies scattered across the yard—men from the Guard Squad alongside unidentified attackers in black. Blades, spears, and weapons lay strewn everywhere.

"Those fledglings!" the sergeant muttered. A major incident had occurred; caution was no longer a priority. He roared:

"Fire!"

"We can't!" A soldier grabbed his arm. "The Chief might be inside!"

The sergeant realized his near-mistake. If a volley went in and struck the Elder, his entire family would be executed! He immediately raised his rifle and fired a shot into the air, shouting, "Charge!"

But the moment they rushed into the courtyard, a chaotic volley of fire met them. Two men dropped on the spot. Then, with bloodcurdling screams, more than a dozen men in black poured out from the flower hall and corridors. The Volte Army soldiers had no time to shoot; both sides crashed together in brutal melee.

Most of the Volte Army soldiers were veterans, skilled in bayonet fighting. Though they lost two men at the start and found themselves at a disadvantage, they quickly formed into pairs and trios, fighting back-to-back with their bayonets.

The ambushers were Song Ming's family retainers and personal guards—his most ferocious fighters. Left behind as a rearguard, they had already accepted death. Each fought with suicidal abandon. For long minutes, neither side could gain the upper hand.

The stalemate broke when Zhu Si charged back with the Guard Squad. Song Ming's rearguard couldn't hold; they were killed or captured to a man. Zhu Si burst into the office to find it in shambles. The security secretary lay dead. His jaw dropped in shock—the Chief was gone!

A lost commander—whether killed or captured—meant devastating consequences. Zhu Si had served in the Great Ming army and knew this well enough. He didn't know how the Australians would handle such a situation, but an Elder's status was obviously far more exalted than even a Great Ming Governor-General or Provincial Governor—at the very least, it was equivalent to a Prince of the Blood.

The thought made his hair stand on end. He immediately ordered a search of the entire Yamen and sent runners to notify Qian Duo and Zhao Fengtian.

The searching soldiers quickly discovered several guard corpses in the back courtyard. The rear gate stood wide open. Clearly, the attackers had fled through there.

Zhu Si's eyes turned blood-red. He dragged over a captive who had been badly wounded by bayonets and demanded, "Who are you?! Where have you taken the Chief?!"

The captive had been stabbed in the abdomen, his intestines spilling out. He was clearly beyond saving. Gasping for breath, he managed a laugh. "What good will knowing do you..." His head lolled to one side, and he died.

Zhu Si was so enraged he hacked wildly at the corpse with his sword. Neither Xie Erren's body nor any trace of him had been found in the courtyard or halls—he had clearly been abducted. Judging by the attackers' combat prowess and weapons, these were no ordinary bandits but elite government troops. This raid had been meticulously planned.

Zhu Si organized men to track and pursue while sending others to beat the drums at the Bell and Drum Tower to signal a city-wide Level One Alert. The message was clear to all naturalized personnel and retained indigenous staff: enemies were inside the city.

According to the contingency plan, all defense zones would go on full alert upon the signal, and the reserve team at the Three Generals' Office would immediately coordinate with the Detective Team to conduct a city-wide dragnet.

But the plan had hit a snag due to the troop shortage. Neither Zhu Si nor Qian Duo had any real reserves. Zhu Si was running around like a headless fly when Qian Duo and Zhao Fengtian finally arrived.

"What's the situation?"

"The Chief is missing!" Zhu Si said, his voice tight with fear. "I've sent men to track them. I don't know if it's too late..."

Qian Duo swore viciously. "No wonder! They were feinting east to attack in the west!" He thought for a moment, then looked up. "The situation is clear now. The enemy has no intention of taking Wuzhou. I'll assemble the full company immediately and launch a city-wide search. Even if we have to dig three feet into the ground, we must find the Chief!"

Zhao Fengtian winced at the ominous phrasing. "No need to dig three feet. It's been fifteen minutes at most since the gunshot. They haven't gone far. With city walls on all sides, they can't escape!"

The three of them divided responsibilities on the spot. Zhao Fengtian would remain at the Prefectural Yamen to handle the aftermath, Zhu Si would go to the Great South Gate to oversee defense, and Qian Duo would take his company to search the city.

"Battalion Commander Zhu, send out everyone from the Detective Team immediately," Zhao Fengtian added. "Tell them: anyone who finds traces of the enemy gets ten taels of silver; anyone who finds traces of Chief Xie gets twenty; and anyone who rescues Chief Xie gets one hundred."

The Detective Team was composed entirely of retained local personnel. At such a critical juncture, they might not be willing to risk their lives without strong incentive.

As the three split up, Zhao Fengtian stamped his feet and sighed, half-contemplating suicide. At that moment, Zheng Ergen arrived, his face white with panic.

"Why was there shooting? Why was the Detective Team deployed all at once..."

"Something catastrophic has happened!" Zhao Fengtian explained the situation, and Zheng Ergen's face went even whiter. "Chief Xie... the Chief... he won't... nothing will happen to him, right?"

"The Chief is a fortunate man blessed by heaven," Zhao Fengtian said, trying to sound reassuring. "Besides, they weren't in the Yamen long. They won't find it easy to escape in the dark."

"I hope so, I hope so..." Zheng Ergen murmured, then suddenly remembered something. "That Advisor Hao—he's probably the ringleader!"

"Even if he isn't, he's definitely involved." Zhao Fengtian suddenly realized that the prime suspects, Cai Lan and Jiang Qiuchan, hadn't been arrested and were still at the Three Generals' Office. Two helpless women couldn't escape, but with such chaos erupting outside, they might very well take their own lives.

"Old Zheng, take men to the Three Generals' Office immediately. Arrest Cai Lan, Jiang Qiuchan, and everyone who serves in the courtyard—anyone who's had contact with Cai Lan. We must prevent any suicides!"

The explosion had sounded when Luo Yangming had already returned to his residence. Worried, he hadn't gone to bed but had dozed off in his study instead.

The blast outside the city jolted him awake instantly. He threw on his clothes and stood by the window, listening. The intermittent cannon fire made his heart clench. What was happening?

This didn't sound like Volte Army artillery—it was more muffled and dull, clearly the report of government firearms. Could Xiong Wencan be counterattacking? No, that was obviously impossible...

Though full of questions, he was a HID cadre and couldn't simply run to the Prefectural Yamen to ask about the situation, nor could he attend meetings without authorization. He could only pace in his study, waiting for news.

From the sounds outside alone, the situation seemed critical. Not only cannon fire, but also the whistle of signal rockets crossing the sky, followed by gunshots.

The gunshots worried him most—that meant the enemy had approached the city walls.

Everyone in his household had been awakened by the noise. No one dared light a lamp. One by one, they dressed and crept over to ask what was happening.

"I don't know any more than you do," Luo Yangming said, trying to sound calm. "It's probably a sneak attack by the Ming forces. Nothing serious. Don't be afraid."

"Oh Heavens, oh Buddha," Ding Atao wailed, her hair disheveled and eyes brimming with tears. "If the Great Ming army retakes Wuzhou and they discover you worked for the Australians, Master, what will become of us?" She burst into sobs.

Li Wensheng hurried to comfort her. "Mistress, please don't worry. There are plenty of important people in the Rehabilitation Bureau. Even if the sky falls, they'll hold it up. Besides, the Ming Kingdom may never fight their way back."

(End of Chapter)