Volume One: The Novice Monk Returns to the Secular World Chapter Seventy-Two: From One Deadlock to Another (Part Three)

A dense mass of disaster victims spontaneously gathered near the government camp, shouting incessantly, “Corrupt officials are insatiable, persecuting good people, treating lives like grass!”
“Kill the corrupt officials! Release the grain and save the people!”
There were tens of thousands surrounding the government camp…
To them, the price of grain meant nothing; they only wanted free porridge, only wanted to survive!
“What… what should we do?” Magistrate Li Guo looked at the crowd, his voice trembling as he asked.
Qin Shirong sat upright, poured a pot of tea, and spoke softly, “Master Li, do not panic… now that they are here, there’s no escape… it was my own miscalculation… I will face them myself… do not be afraid…”
“Sir, look at them, how could they possibly listen to you now? Please, you must not go out,” Li Guo shook his head repeatedly.
“Haha… I, Qin Shirong, have always been honest and served the people… who would have thought that today I would fall at the hands of the populace… so be it…” Qin Shirong drank a cup of tea and stood up.
“Master Qin… perhaps we should call in the army to suppress them?” Li Guo frowned; this was indeed the last resort.
“No! They are His Majesty’s subjects…” Qin Shirong shook his head and strode out.
He understood perfectly well that stepping outside meant he might face death.
He recalled a line from the Disaster Relief Strategy:
“The court must not force wealthy merchants to sell grain, for this is the root of chaos.”
At first, Qin Shirong had thought the author overly cautious, lacking the courage to break and rebuild.
But now, he realized the Disaster Relief Strategy was correct—powerful families were so tightly interwoven, like a spider’s web, that no matter how hard one crashed into it, the rebound was inevitable.
The people may be directed, but not enlightened.
The words of the sage are indeed the ultimate truth of Heaven’s Way.
Just as Qin Shirong stepped out the door, a sword descended from above…
Then, a figure in white, a swordsman dressed in white, stood atop the roof.
This action stunned everyone present.
Someone cried out, “Who is he?”
The swordsman cupped his hands in salute, and a voice imbued with inner strength echoed, “Everyone, I am Li Bai of the Li family. May I say a word?”
Qin Shirong frowned. The Li family was known as one of the ten great noble clans—what were they plotting?
“Li Bai? From the Li family?” someone questioned.
“The benevolent Li family… I heard they donated the most grain, and provided the most porridge, too…”

“Li Bai the hero? Li Bai once saved my whole family…”
…
Though Li Bai was not the head of the Li family, his reputation was enough to represent them.
The title of the world’s greatest swordsman was no empty claim.
Legends like “Two Swords, One Blade” were mythic in these days, spread far and wide by storytellers.
Nearly every child knew the saying: “Li and Chen, twin swords; Yue, the mighty blade.”
Li and Chen, the twin swords, referred to Li Bai and Chen Bufan, masters of swordsmanship.
Yue, the mighty blade, referred to the Yue family’s Yue Ba Dao.
The three were equally famed throughout the land.
With the Li family’s good reputation, Li Bai the hero had become a deeply rooted figure in the people’s hearts.
Li Bai continued, “Everyone, listen to me. Do not act rashly. Wait until the truth is clear, and then return home. I, Li Bai, will ensure you receive an explanation. Please trust me.”
“What should we do?”
Some victims began to ask hesitantly.
“We trust Li Bai, but we do not trust that old dog Qin. I heard the rice meant for porridge was sold, and we were given rice husks instead. Hero, tell us, is that what a human would do?” a sharp-eyed victim shouted, raising his hand.
“That’s right, that old dog Qin is right there.” The victim next to him pointed at Qin Shirong, who was shielded by Li Bai, and hurled a clod of earth.
Smack.
It missed Qin Shirong, but Li Bai blocked it.
His white robe was stained an ugly yellow.
“Everyone, please trust me! I, Li Bai, swear to give you an explanation. If I speak a single false word, may Heaven grind my bones to dust and deny me a good death!”
Li Bai sliced off a lock of his own hair and cast it before the gate.
This was a heavy vow.
In this era, people valued their hair deeply, as the saying goes: ‘The body and hair are gifts from one’s parents.’ Swearing by one’s hair meant staking one’s life.
“Li Bai saved my life… If he stands before us, I will trust him.”
“But… if we just go home, what if there’s no porridge?”
“That’s true… We must have an explanation today…”
“Yes! Since Li Bai the hero has spoken, we believe him, but we must have an answer today!”

Just then, a giant blade crashed onto the roof, and a burly, bearded man stood atop it.
“Haha… Today I, Yue Ba Dao, also promise you all: within three days, you will have an explanation…”
Yue Ba Dao gripped his blade in both hands, saluted the crowd, and spoke slowly.
His voice was loud but not deafening—only those with mastery of internal energy could achieve such control.
“Yue Ba Dao is here too… Now, except for that dog Chen, the Two Swords, One Blade are all here…”
“Heh… Two Swords, One Blade; I think from now on, there’s only One Sword, One Blade left. Chen Bufan the traitor is not worthy to stand with them!”
“Yes! Well said…”
“Since Yue Ba Dao has stepped forward… we’ll wait three days!”
“……”
The dark crowd gradually dispersed.
Qin Shirong frowned and sighed.
“Thank goodness… the two heroes…” Li Guo breathed a sigh of relief.
“Heh… they come with ill intent… this is the Li family and the Yue family… Do you know… these great clans are led by the Yue family…” Qin Shirong continued, “This time, I suspect they wish to negotiate…”
“…”
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Back in her room, Qin Xuanxuan tightly clutched the stack of papers she’d retrieved from Xiao Yan’s wastebasket.
She carefully read through each hypothesis and, after finishing, her gaze turned complex.
So, this is another way to think about things?
Unfortunately, every single hypothesis had been refuted; some assumptions that seemed feasible to Qin Xuanxuan were riddled with flaws as well…
PS: This is a new book. Please recommend it! If you like it, help promote it through any channel… Your humble servant will be eternally grateful…