Chapter 331: Thats How Bewitching It Was
Chapter 327 of "The Great Ming in the Box" opens presenting key developments: The instant he heard the gunshot, Feng Jun knew things had gone wrong: âDamn! He... Read on!
The instant he heard the gunshot, Feng Jun knew things had gone wrong: âDamn! He actually fired the firearm.âWhite smoke coiled up from the distant hillside. Clearly, Bai Yuan had fired there.
But Feng Jun peered toward Xiniuzhuangâs frontâFan Shanyue sat untouched on his tall horse. How could a firearm hit at this distance?
Indeed, Bai Yuan had missed.
Though he aimed carefully, his shot veered off. The bullet flew past at least one or two cun above Fan Shanyueâs head.
Not only did it miss Fan Shanyue, but it also missed the fierce bandits beside him.
Since Fan Shanyue rode a tall horseâhigh enoughâthe bullet simply sailed over the banditsâ heads, wounding no one. Not a single soul even noticed it.
Unfazed, Fan Shanyue and his underlings all turned to gaze at where Bai Yuan had hidden. None imagined anyone would dare ambush them from such a distance.
Fan Shanyue raised his whip and pointed at the smoke. âSend two men to check what troublemaker lurks there. That sounded like a firearm. See whoâs foolish enough to shoot randomly on the hill.â
A bandit smirked, âMaybe one of our own found some officialâs Three-Eyed Divine Firearm and is testing it?â
Fan Shanyue laughed, âIf so, snatch it back for me!â
The others roared with laughter: âExactly, boss deserves first dibs on any treasure!â
As they joked, thirty blinks of time had passed.
Bai Yuan had finished loading the firearm.
He instantly raised it, targeting Fan Shanyue once more.
Meanwhile, Feng Jun grew frantic, yelling at his servant: âHurry! Stop Mr. Bai immediately. This madness wonât kill Fan Shanyue! If the bandit grows alertââ
Bang!
A second shot rang out.
A blood hole blossomed in the very center of Fan Shanyueâs face. Without a sound, he toppled from his horse, stirring a cloud of dust.
Bandits swarmed around his body, gasping: âBoss! Boss!â
âSomeone murdered the boss!â
Only nowâthese unwary fools realized the distant shooter had assassinated their leader.
Feng Jun cried out in ecstasy: âHa! Bullseye! Fine shooting, Mr. Bai!â
His servant chimed in joyfully: âMaster, your nose⌠blood!â
Delirious, Feng Jun paid no mind to his gushing nosebleed, stomping and howling: âGot him! That lowlife Fan Shanyue finally met his end, hahaha!â
The servant sweated coldly. âMaster, your nosebleed sprays like a mountain spring.â
Feng Jun paused, âOh? That hard? Ahem⌠no wonder I feel dizzyâŚâ He collapsed backward.
âMaster! Master!â Servants scrambled to catch him, hoisting him up to flee.
Feng Jun commanded weakly: âSummon militia from nearby villages! With Fan Shanyue dead and bandits leaderless, crush them all⌠Gods, my head spinsâŚâ
His servants pleaded desperately: âMaster, calm yourselfâstop getting so worked up!â
On the other sideâŚ
Bai Yuan had succeeded in shooting Fan Shanyue, yet he shook his head with dissatisfaction. âIt took me two shots to hit. Such mediocre marksmanship. Iâll have to cross out half of my skills.â
A servant urged, âMaster! Run! Fan Shanyueâs men are charging!â
The spot where heâd ambushed Fan Shanyue was barely two hundred paces from Xiniuzhuangâs entrance. If the bandits closed in, itâd be perilous.
Though the straight-line distance was short, the bandits still had to climb a slope to reach him.
It mirrored Chongqingâs terrainâjust 190 meters from Liziba Light Rail Station to E¡Factory Cultural Park according to Gaode Map, yet a forty-minute walk. Thatâs how deceptive slopes could be.
Fan Shanyueâs men began scrambling up the slope.
Mid-slope, Bai Yuan remained utterly calm. He put away his firearm, stood up, and turned with the utmost grace, his white robes billowingâa perfect show-off moment. âLetâs go!â
Just as he turned, bowstrings thrummed behind him. Countless bandits at the slopeâs base unleashed a volley of arrows toward him.
The show-off act vanished instantly. Bai Yuan ducked and scrambled. His servants shielded him with bucklers as they sprinted wildly into Huanglong Mountain.
Li Daoxuan, watching from above, was amused but couldnât risk his miniature people getting hurt. He extended a finger behind Bai Yuan to block the arrows.
To the banditsâ shock, their arrows struck an invisible barrier mid-air and dropped feebly without even grazing Bai Yuan.
âThey missed!â the bandits exclaimed in terror. âHe caught our arrows! Heaven, he must be a monster!â
As the white-robed âmonsterâ vanished into Huanglong Mountain, the bandits dared not pursue. They retreated in panic toward Fan Shanyueâs corpse, utterly lost.
While they stood stunned, thunderous cries erupted from all sides.
Zhang Yuanwai from lower villages, Village Chief Li from Nantai Village, Yang Dazhuang from Yang VillageâŚ
Militia forces charged in unison.
At the rear, Heyang County Magistrate Feng Jun personally commanded. Twin streams of nose blood, like crimson dragons, streaked his face. With fingers dipped in blood, he drew a ferocious mask on his cheeks and bellowed, âBandits! You oppress the innocent! Today, you die with no grave!â
Fan Shanyueâs men recoiled: âWeâre pardoned! Weâre officials of the courtâhow dare you?â
Feng Jun retorted, âWhy shouldnât I? The Provincial Governor ordered your deaths. Skull bounty paid in Xiâan! Charge!â
Heyang patrol officers, Fengâs servants, constables, lackeys, militias, and villagers whoâd suffered a year under Fan Shanyue rushed forwardâŚ
Leaderless and demoralized, the bandits broke instantly. Outnumbered, they scattered.
Villagers settled scores without mercy: hoes rained down on their skulls.
Fan Shanyueâs forces were soon wiped outâroot and branch.
Not one innocent perished.
The kind-hearted had already returned to farming during the last âhomecoming.â Only the wicked remainedâtheir deaths deserved.
Li Daoxuan, observing from above, rejoiced for Heyang. Goodâthe year-long bandit scourge was crushed. Time now to boost economic development.