Legend Management Bureau Chapter 73

[ … words ]

Du Yu and Zhang San stayed in the room, neither knowing what to say.

Just now, some people from the stronghold had come over to ask Zhang San about the process of the Investiture of the Gods. Zhang San held it in, unable to say a single word. The stronghold leader had just declared in front of everyone that Zhang Youren died in battle. How could he dare overturn that conclusion?

Thus, no matter who asked, he claimed he was tired. After a few times, people stopped paying him any mind.

“Zhang Zhen, why do you think this is?” Zhang San asked, resting his chin on his hands and looking out the window.

“Why what?”

“Why did the leader say Zhang Youren died in battle?”

“What other reason could there be…” Du Yu now solely considered himself a lowly bandit. This way, he did not need to think too deeply about anything, and the reasons became obvious. “The leader took the three of us out to join the army, but the one who became a god was not him, but Zhang Youren. It would be one thing if Zhang Youren was appointed as an ordinary minor god, but he ended up as the Lord of All Gods. If I were the leader, I would be too embarrassed to mention it as well.”

“But I think it is a good thing!” Zhang San argued. “At least it shows that us mortals have a chance to become immortals.”

“It is a good thing for us, but not necessarily for the leader,” Du Yu said, shaking his head. “The leader did not become the Lord of All Gods. What does that mean? It means Jiang Ziya does not acknowledge our leader’s management skills!”

“If the people in the stronghold found out about this, would there be criticism? Would they rebel against him?” Du Yu felt like a master of management, analyzing the situation logically and clearly.

“That sounds terrifying. We are all bandits, do we really think that much?”

“Just because you do not think about it does not mean others won’t!” Du Yu replied.

“But you are pretty bold yourself, Zhang Zhen. You dare to say anything. If word of this gets out and reaches the leader, who knows how he will punish you,” Zhang San muttered, curling his lips.

“Am I afraid of him?” Du Yu crossed his legs and bragged, “It is not like you don’t know me. I am a fierce bandit!”

Just as the two were talking, a sudden knock sounded at the door.

“Who is it?!” Du Yu startled, hastily uncrossing his legs.

Zhang San opened the door to see an eleven or twelve-year-old boy standing outside.

“Zhang Gouzi?” Zhang San asked. “What is the matter?”

“The leader wants to see Zhang Zhen,” the boy replied.

“I am done for…” Du Yu suddenly had a bad feeling. “Zhang San, you have to testify for me. I only said those things because you asked…”

“Testify for what? I asked one sentence and you replied with ten! There is nothing I can do!”

Du Yu grumbled a few curses about his lack of loyalty before following Zhang Gouzi out the door.

It was night, and torches were lit everywhere in the mountain stronghold. Bandits gathered in twos and threes, either drinking wine or eating meat, creating an incredibly lively scene. This was Du Yu’s first time in a bandit lair, and the feeling was rather strange. Everyone seemed cheerful and easy to get along with. But thinking carefully about how each of them had blood on their hands, he could not help but shake his head.

“Little Gouzi, why is the leader looking for me?”

“I do not know.”

Facing the bright firelight of the mountain stronghold, Du Yu and Zhang Gouzi walked for about ten minutes before arriving at the leader’s residence.

“Leader, I brought him.”

“Tell him to come in.”

Du Yu pushed the door open and entered. The room was somewhat dim, lit by only a sparse two or three torches. He looked around but did not see where the leader was.

“Close the door,” Zhang Jian commanded.

Du Yu dared not dally. He turned back and pulled the door shut, though he left a small crack open just to be safe.

“Come over here,” Zhang Jian added.

Du Yu followed the voice and found Zhang Jian sitting on the floor alone, warming a pot of yellow wine in front of him.

“Leader… what is this?” Du Yu felt a bit confused. Zhang Jian had forbidden Zhang Qian from hosting a celebration banquet, yet here he was drinking by himself?

“Sit.”

“Oh.”

Du Yu did not stand on ceremony and plopped down on his rear, asking, “Leader, what do you need me for?”

Zhang Jian remained silent, picking up the pot of yellow wine to pour a cup for Du Yu as well.

“Zhang Zhen, this is about what happened during the day.”

‘I knew it,’ Du Yu thought to himself. ‘It seems letting a fat sheep go is no small mistake for a bandit. Was Zhang Jian too embarrassed to punish me in front of outsiders during the day, so he called me for a private talk tonight?’

Du Yu instinctively called out to Zhongli Chun in his heart while his right hand grasped the writing brush at his waist.

“Boss… about today… I lost my mind for a moment… I promise next time…”

“No, you did very well,” Zhang Jian slowly said after draining his cup in one gulp.

“Eh?”

“Were you telling me the truth during the day?” he asked, pouring more wine.

“I… it was the truth.” Du Yu did not know what was going on with Zhang Jian. He was clearly the head of all these bandits, yet he…

“I grew up in this Zhang Family Stronghold since I was a child. Thinking back, it has been over thirty years now.” Illuminated by the dim firelight, Zhang Jian spoke slowly. “I have exhausted every possible method to persuade the people in this stronghold to embrace goodness. I initially thought it was impossible, but now it seems there is some effect.”

“Embrace goodness?!” Du Yu was stunned. He never expected this bandit leader to harbor such grand ambitions…

“Zhang Zhen, do you know?” Zhang Jian murmured to him. “I originally had a much further place to go, but I could not stop worrying about my brothers in this stronghold, so I had to come back.”

“What does that matter?” Du Yu also picked up his cup and took a sip. However, he never expected the wine to taste so awful. He forcefully clamped his mouth shut to stop himself from spraying the bitter, sour, and astringent yellow wine right onto Zhang Jian’s face, thinking to himself, ‘The brewing techniques of this ancient era really leave much to be desired.’

Gritting his teeth, Du Yu swallowed the wine and coughed a few times before saying, “Boss, if you want to go somewhere far away, then just go. You left for a year before, and nothing happened to the stronghold. Besides, isn’t the second-in-command here?”

Zhang Jian did not reply. Seeing Du Yu’s empty cup, he picked up the flagon to pour him another round.

“No, no, no, Boss, I cannot hold my liquor…” Du Yu hurriedly covered his cup.

“Cannot hold your liquor?” Zhang Jian gave a bewildered look. “I remember one spring, you drank Zhang Qian under the table.”

“Uh… I was young and foolish back then,” Du Yu excused himself. “Now I find that quitting drinking is actually quite nice…”

“Sigh.” Zhang Jian seemed weighed down by something. He did not overthink Du Yu’s words. Slowly withdrawing the flagon, he refilled his own cup and continued, “Zhang Zhen, matters are not as simple as you suggest. That faraway place I mentioned… once I go, I will never be able to return. And my lifelong wish is for the brothers in this stronghold to spend the rest of their lives in peace.”

“Oh?” Du Yu responded ambiguously, unsure of what Zhang Jian was getting at.

“As for Zhang Qian, he is naturally highly capable, but his bandit tendencies are far too deeply ingrained. If I let him take over the mountain stronghold, one or two years might be fine. But as time passes, the stronghold’s wicked actions will inevitably draw the imperial court’s attention, and that will mean trouble. I do not want every brother in this stronghold to end up dying here.”

“Then what are you suggesting, Boss…?”

“I have a bold idea, and I wish to discuss it with someone I can truly trust,” Zhang Jian revealed.

“Boss… are you saying you trust me?” Du Yu asked in confusion.

“Yes. No matter what, your performance today made me see you in a new light. I originally thought that once Zhang Youren left, there would be no kindred spirits left in this stronghold.”

Du Yu felt this was a great opportunity. He might just get to hear Zhang Jian’s story directly.

“Speak your mind, Boss. What is it that you want to discuss?”

“I…” Zhang Jian looked around and asked, “Did you properly close the door earlier?”

“It is closed. Go ahead.”

Zhang Jian pondered for a moment before declaring, “I want to take all of these brothers and join the army.”

“Eh?” Du Yu felt this plot sounded a little familiar.

“King Ji Fa of Zhou has just established his regime. This is exactly when he is in need of manpower. If we go and enlist, we might all secure a peaceful end.” It was as if Zhang Jian had considered this deeply for a long time before voicing the idea. “But if we do the exact opposite and continue being bandits at this critical juncture, we will likely be the first ones wiped out.”

“Wait… wait a minute.” Du Yu smoothed out his thoughts and said, “Boss, you truly want to seek amnesty and serve the state?”

“Amnesty? What is amnesty?”

“Ah!” Du Yu shook his head and explained, “Boss, there is a story from my hometown about a mountain stronghold with one hundred and eight bandits. Their leader had the exact same idea as you and took everyone to join the army. The final outcome was completely tragic…”

“Oh?” Zhang Jian suddenly widened his eyes. “Zhang Zhen, is what you say true? How come I have never heard a story like this?”

“It is normal that you haven’t heard it. No one will hear this story for another one or two thousand years.” Du Yu curled his lips. “I will be blunt, Boss. You are all bandits, after all, bandits with a strict hierarchy. You have a leader, lieutenants, a tactician, and many fiercely loyal fighters. In other words, you are no different from a foreign army. Inside a military camp, you would be the prime targets for elimination. Even if you join the army, you will only serve as cannon fodder.”

“Zhang Zhen, I never imagined you possessed such profound insight.” Listening to Du Yu’s speech, Zhang Jian instinctively sat up straighter. “Please continue, I am all ears…”

“I don’t have insight, I’ve just read this kind of story before.” Du Yu shook his head. “I loved reading it as a kid, but only after growing up did I realize it was an out-and-out tragedy.”

“Zhang Zhen… after our exhausting journey these past few days, are you feeling fatigued?”

“Hm?” Du Yu did not know why Zhang Jian suddenly asked this, so he could only reply, “Boss, I am not tired. Just give the word if you need something.”

“I did not mean anything by it…” Zhang Jian said, a little abashed. “That story you just mentioned, could you tell it to me?”

“Tell it to you?” Du Yu paused. “Boss, that is a very long story. Are you sure you want to hear it?”

“Yes… For the sake of the brothers in this stronghold, I must consider things as thoroughly as possible.”

Du Yu sighed, only feeling that being a leader was truly a difficult task.

“Alright, Boss. If you are prepared to talk with me all night long, then I will tell you this story.”

The night was heavy. Bathed in the glow of the few torches inside the room, Du Yu began narrating the tale, starting from the Thirty-Six Heavenly Spirits and Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends.