The Ming Dynasty: Starting with the border troops, it was overthrown and the Qing Dynasty was destro

Chapter 258 Assassination and Prison Break
Mianzhou City, the eastern gateway to Chengdu Prefecture, had relatively low city walls, but was already heavily guarded.

Especially after the large-scale suppression and arrest of rioters, the checks at the city gates became even more stringent.

Fan Gang and Ren Cheng knew that trying to attack the city with three hundred men was nothing short of a pipe dream.

"Let's go in batches, breaking it down into smaller groups."

“Old Ren, you take a hundred or so brothers, disguise yourselves as famine refugees, and blend into the groups that go to town every morning to sell firewood and find work.”

"Leave all the equipment to me, I'll go in from the other end."

Fan Gang squatted in a small grove of trees outside the city, scratching at the ground with a twig.

"The rest of you, follow me by water."

“Mianzhou City stands by the river. I’ve checked it over the past few days, and the section of the city wall near the river is unguarded.”

"Let's cross the river at night, sneaking along the shadows at the base of the wall. The two-zhang-high city wall isn't very high; we can climb it with a grappling hook."

With the plan settled, everyone began to act separately.

A few days later, at dawn.

Ren Cheng led about a hundred people, dressed in tattered clothes and with their faces smeared with mud, and mingled among a group of disaster victims, pushing a wheelbarrow and slowly making their way into Mianzhou City.

The guards, forcing themselves to stay alert and covering their yawns, carefully rummaged through the firewood and broken belongings on the cart:

"What bad luck so early in the morning."

Seeing the group of people swaying from hunger, and smelling the faint, sour odor of disaster victims, the soldier on duty waved his hand in disgust.

"Get out of here!"

Upon learning that Ren Cheng and his group had successfully entered the city, Fan Gang immediately led his men to the upper reaches of Mianzhou City.

That night, around midnight.

The surface of the Fu River reflected the sparse starlight, and the water flowed gently.

More than twenty sheepskin rafts covered with black cloth drifted silently downstream, clinging to one side of the city wall like ghosts.

Fan Gang took the lead, with a short knife in his mouth, and swung out the grappling hook with all his might, accurately grabbing the crenellation of the wall, and then leaping up the rammed earth wall.

After climbing to the top of the city wall and seeing that no one was around, he whistled softly to indicate that it was safe and sound.

As the ropes were lowered, more than two hundred elite soldiers followed suit, quickly and quietly surging up the city wall and disappearing into the shadows of the rows of rooftops within the city.

In this way, several groups of people infiltrated Mianzhou City in batches and successfully met up outside the City God Temple in the northwest corner of the city.

However, infiltrating Mianzhou City is only the first step.

The two men knew that they were in the enemy's lair, surrounded by soldiers on all sides. Although their troops were all battle-hardened elites, if they were surrounded by government troops and engaged in a protracted war of attrition, they would probably be overwhelmed.

After all, the group was traveling light, wearing only a cloth armor for self-defense.

In order to minimize casualties and achieve the goal of gaining a large advantage with a small investment, Fan Gang and Ren Cheng decided to cause some damage in the city first.

As long as we cripple the enemy's organizational capabilities, Mianzhou City can be easily captured.

If, before taking action, the top officials in the city are eliminated, especially the prefect, assistant prefect, and vice prefect, the enemy's deployment can be destroyed at its root.

So, in the following days, Fan Gang and Ren Cheng split into several groups and went through the streets and alleys of the city, staking out the gates of various high-rise buildings.

Their targets were clear: Prefect Shen Yao, Assistant Prefect Yao Xi, and Vice Prefect Yuan Yan.

Once these people are eliminated, we will immediately set fire to the city, cause chaos, break into the prison, and seize the armory.

But as easy as it sounds, the whereabouts of these Ming officials were not so easy to find out.

Prefect Shen Yao rarely went out, and the area around the prefectural government office was heavily guarded.

The Assistant Magistrate Yao Xi was unpredictable and often frequented the mansions of wealthy families.
The prefectural magistrate, Yuan Yan, was even more elusive, appearing and disappearing without a trace, making him impossible to meet.

Fan Gang and his men staked out the area for several days, but aside from figuring out the locations of a few wealthy families' residences, they found nothing about the whereabouts of several key officials.

"Can't wait any longer!"

Fan Gang squatted in the dark corner, irritably chewing on a blade of grass.
"People are dying in prison every day. If this drags on, everyone will probably die!"

"Let's move tonight!"

Just then, a sentry responsible for keeping watch in the west of the city crouched down and ran over.

"Commander!"

He lowered his voice, a hint of excitement in it.
"A discovery!"

"Commander Ren found several official sedan chairs parked outside Tingtao Pavilion on the west side of the city."

"My subordinates climbed over the wall and eavesdropped. There was a lot of music playing inside; it sounded like some important figures were having a feast!"

Fan Gang's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and he immediately spat out the grass stem he was eating:
"Go! Go and see!"

On the banks of the Pei River, at the Tingtao Pavilion under the cover of night, the sounds of string and wind instruments, mixed with human voices, drifted out and mingled with the river breeze.

Fan Gang, accompanied by several of his personal guards, changed into a black outfit and quietly hid in a dark street corner, crouching down to observe.

About an hour later, the courtyard gate opened gently, and several officials, who were drunk and staggering, were carefully helped out.

One of them was Yuan Yan, the prefectural magistrate.

He was dressed in an official robe embroidered with flowers and birds, and was helped by two charming singing girls as he drunkenly climbed into a rather ornate blue sedan chair.

Seeing this, Fan Gang pouted angrily and whispered:

"Follow him and see where he goes."

The sedan chair swayed and twisted through the quiet streets, finally stopping at the back gate of a small but high-walled mansion in the northwest corner of the city.

In a daze, Yuan Yan was helped off the sedan chair by the gatekeeper and staggered into the courtyard.

Fan Gang hid in the shadows, memorized the location, and quickly returned to gather his men.

It was midnight, late at night and everyone was asleep.

The courtyard was quiet, with only a faint candlelight still burning in the west wing, from which the faint sounds of a woman's giggles and a man's drunken murmurs could be heard.

Fan Gang and his men silently scaled the high wall and landed lightly in the backyard.

Looking around, there were only four guards on night watch in the courtyard, dozing off against the pillars.

Several guards crept over quietly and slit the throats of the four servants in an instant, then stood guard outside the east and west gates.

Fan Gang tiptoed to the outside of the lit room, moistened the window paper with saliva, poked a small hole, and looked inside.

The drunken Prefect Yuan Yan was leaning against the soft couch of the canopy bed, his feet soaking in a large brass foot basin.

Amidst the rising steam, a slender young concubine, dressed only in a thin gauze undergarment, was kneeling beside a foot basin, washing Yuan Yan's feet.

Her movements were gentle, and her fingers were fair and slender.

Yuan Yan squinted as he enjoyed the drink. After a few glasses, he felt hot all over and his eyes began to glaze over.

"Mmm, that feels good."

Yuan Yan groaned, his rough hands no longer content to rest on his knees, but instead moved restlessly up his concubine's smooth arm, grabbing her rounded shoulder.

The concubine's body stiffened slightly, but her hands didn't stop moving; her voice simply softened a bit more:

"Sir, the water is still hot, please soak a little longer."

But Yuan Yan wouldn't listen to any of that.
He exerted force and suddenly pulled the concubine into his arms.

Caught off guard, the concubine gasped and fell into Yuan Yan's arms, knocking over the foot basin and spilling warm foot-washing water all over the floor.

"Sir! The water has spilled!"

The concubine struggled to stand up and wipe herself.

"Let it spill! Why bother with it!"

Yuan Yan, reeking of alcohol, held her tightly with his arms like iron hoops. One of his large hands barbarically reached into her thin inner garment, wantonly kneading and groping her smooth back and waist, while his other hand roughly pulled at her belt.

"My darling, let me pamper you properly."

The concubine twisted her body, feigning resistance while simultaneously inviting it. Her thin gauze undergarment was torn open in the struggle, revealing a delicate, light red bodice underneath.

"Sir, please wipe your feet first."

"Screw you, I want it right now!"

Yuan Yan, panting heavily, suddenly pushed his concubine down onto the disheveled brocade quilt beside him, his heavy body pressing down on her like a mountain of flesh.

He recklessly gnawed at the concubine's bare shoulders, neck, and collarbone, frantically tearing at the cumbersome bodice ties with his hands, muttering lewd and obscene words indistinctly.

"Please be gentle, sir."

However, Yuan Yan's actions did not last long, perhaps due to the effects of the alcohol or because he was feeling tired and exhausted.

His movements slowed down, then his head tilted to the side and slammed heavily onto the concubine's soft chest, making a series of snoring sounds.

Outside the window, Fan Gang, hiding in the shadows, saw the whole scene clearly from beginning to end, and his blood boiled with rage.

"Pooh!"

"When push comes to shove, what a useless piece of trash!"

He spat with great regret, then gently drew his waist knife and crept to the door of the side room.

He slowly probed the knife tip into the crack in the door, gently prying at the latch.

"despair!"

As the wooden latch slid to the ground, a soft, crisp sound rang out clearly in the quiet room.

The snoring from inside the room was still deafening.

However, the concubine who was pinned down by Yuan Yan clearly heard the strange noise.

She turned her head sharply to look at the outer room, a hint of doubt flashing in her eyes. Could it be that one of the maids had come in?

She struggled to lift her head, making a small space beneath Yuan Yan's heavy body, and softly called out towards the door:
"Is it Chuntao?"

"Quickly, help me take a look at my old man."

Before she could finish speaking, the door to the inner room was suddenly pushed open, and a man in black, holding a knife, rushed in.

The concubine was so frightened that her face turned pale, and she was about to scream.

Upon seeing this, Fan Gang strode forward and covered her mouth tightly with his left hand, forcefully silencing her scream!

"Well!!!"

At the same time, the steel knife in his right hand was already pressed against the concubine's fair neck.

"Shut up!"

"Dare to make a sound and you will die!"

Fan Gang's tone was gloomy, which frightened the concubine so much that her hair stood on end, and she could only nod frantically and beg for mercy.

"Tie him up to the side and gag him!"

After giving instructions to the guards behind him, Fan Gang walked to the bedside.

He looked at Yuan Yan, who was still snoring and completely unaware of what was happening, and a cold smile appeared on his lips.

He casually picked up the brass basin from the ground and poured it over Yuan Yan's drunken face!

Wow——!
"what!"

"Who?! Which scoundrel?"

Startled by the foot-washing water, Yuan Yan suddenly opened his drunken eyes. Just as he was about to start cursing, he received a heavy slap across the face!

Snapped!
The slap was so powerful that it made him see stars, and half of his face swelled up instantly.

Immediately afterwards, a steel knife gleaming with cold light was pressed firmly against his neck.

The blade sent a chill through him, instantly dispelling any lingering effects of the alcohol!

"Hero! Hero, spare my life!"

When Yuan Yan saw the menacing figure with the knife before him, he was so terrified that his voice trembled.
"Silver, jewelry, antiques, calligraphy and paintings—I'll give you whatever you want!"

"They're all in the cabinets in the inner room of the main house. Go and take them!"

"I just beg you to spare my life!"

At first, Yuan Yan thought that the group of bandits had just arrived and even tried to bribe them with money.

But he didn't think carefully about what kind of bandits would be so bold as to attack a mere prefect?

Fan Gang sneered upon hearing this, and pressed the blade down further, a thin line of blood appearing on Yuan Yan's neck:

"Say!"

"What's your name? What's your official position?"

Yuan Yan was stunned. What was going on? The thief didn't want money? Then what did he want?
A sense of foreboding rose in his heart, but with a knife to his throat, he dared not refuse.

"The young Yuan Yan is actually the Vice Prefect of Mianzhou."

A sub-prefect?

Fan Gang was overjoyed. Good heavens, he had finally caught a big fish.

"good very good!"

"I'm asking you, where is the prefect of the city? Where is the assistant prefect?" "And those few prominent families in the city, are they home tonight?"

"Explain yourself clearly, down to the last detail!"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Yan was deeply shaken.

Why are these bandits asking about the official's whereabouts? Could it be...?

He dared not think about it any further and could only try to brush it off:
"Good sir, I'm just a prefectural judge, how would I know where my superior is?"

"I really don't know. Why don't you guys try looking elsewhere?"

"I don't know?!"

Fan Gang's eyes sharpened, and without uttering a single word, he decisively swung his steel knife.

"what--!!!"

A piercing scream erupted from Yuan Yan as his left little finger snapped off.

Blood gushed out like a fountain, instantly staining the bed red.

"You won't say it, right?"

"If you don't tell me, I'll keep chopping!"

"Tell me the truth, and I might let you off the hook!"

Fan Gang's tone was sinister, and the blade immediately moved to Yuan Yan's ring finger.

"I said! I said!"

"Hero, spare my life!"

The intense pain, so strong that it connected to the heart, instantly shattered Yuan Yan's mental defenses.

"Prefect Shen Yao lives in Wutong Lane in the east of the city. There are two stone lions at the entrance. The largest one is the house there!"

"The Assistant Magistrate Yao Xi... He... He usually lives in the backyard of the government office, but sometimes he also goes to... the home of the wealthy Zhao family in the west of the city."

"Master Li lives in Liuye Alley in the south of the city. Master Wang lives there."

Tears streaming down his face, Yuan Yan endured the excruciating pain and poured out the locations of several key officials and wealthy families in the city in a clear and unambiguous manner.

Fan Gang carefully noted it down, and then asked about the details of the city's troop deployment.

After confirming several times that nothing had been missed, Fan Gang summoned Ren Cheng, who was keeping watch outside:

"Old Ren, the situation is clear now."

“Let’s split up. I’ll take a team to the east of the city to kill Prefect Shen Yao, and then head straight to the prefectural prison to release the imprisoned people.”

"Take another team to the west of the city and kill the Assistant Magistrate Yao Xi."

"Once you're done, don't delay, immediately go and guard the city's armory!"

"Once I release the people, I'll come find you! Let's arm them first!"

Ren Cheng nodded heavily:
"Understood, be careful in all things!"

He then summoned a small team of a hundred men, who disappeared silently into the night.

Seeing this, Fan Gang also prepared to leave with his men.

At this moment, the personal guard beside him pointed to Yuan Yan, who was lying on the bed clutching his severed finger and gasping for breath in pain, and to his concubine in the corner, who was gagged and trembling, and asked for instructions:
"Commander, what should we do with these two?"

"And this house... that guy's shouting just now attracted a lot of guards, so...?"

Fan Gang casually waved his hand and gave the order:
"Slaughter them all, leave no one alive!"

"Hurry up, and when you're done, light a fire and burn it all."

"We have another place to go, we don't have time to dawdle."

Upon hearing this, a fierce glint flashed in the guard's eyes:
"Order!"

Still lying in bed, Yuan Yan watched Fan Gang's departing figure with a look of despair and roared:
"Good man! Good man!"

"You promised to let me go, you..."

But before he could finish speaking, he was stabbed through the body by several steel knives at the same time and died suddenly.

The concubine in the corner only had time to let out a sob before she died.

A dozen or so guards filed out and began a massacre inside the house.

Soon, flames and thick smoke shot into the sky, illuminating the night sky in the northwest of the city.

Wutong Lane, in the east of the city.

The residence of Prefect Shen Yao was much more imposing than Yuan Yan's villa. The vermilion gate was tightly closed, and the two stone lions in front of the gate looked particularly ferocious in the firelight.

The firelight and screams coming from the west of the city had clearly alerted this place, as there were voices and flickering lights inside the gate.

"No time to dawdle!"

"Block the back door and storm the front!"

"Charge in and finish them off quickly, leave no one alive!"

Looking at the firelight that illuminated the western night sky, Fan Gang knew that they didn't have much time left, and decisively gave the order.

The vermilion gate was flung open with a crash after being repeatedly rammed, and the eager soldiers, like a flood bursting its banks, surged into the house.

"Thief!!"

"Protect the master!!"

The courtyard erupted in chaos!

The guards huddled together, hastily preparing for battle.

But how could these house guards be a match for these veterans?
Upon contact, he was knocked to the ground as easily as cutting melons and vegetables.

Screams, the clash of weapons, and the sounds of burning houses rose and fell.

The entire Shen family mansion instantly turned into a bloody slaughterhouse!
At this moment, Shen Yao was hiding in his study, trembling with fear as he listened to the deafening shouts and wails from the front yard.

Before he could even put on his coat, Shen Yao pushed open the back window and tried to jump out to escape.

But as soon as he peeked out, he saw several men in black in the back garden, slaughtering the servants in his mansion at will.

A man in black had just slashed down a guard who was trying to resist, splattering blood all over himself. He looked up and met Shen Yao's eyes, who was clinging to the windowsill.

"Mom!"

Shen Yao was so frightened that he wanted to run away as soon as he saw the sign of trouble!

But how could those fierce soldiers let him go?
He grinned maliciously, rushed forward, grabbed the window frame with one hand, nimbly flipped over and entered, and slashed at Shen Yao's back with his knife.

Shen Yao felt a gust of wind behind his head, and he instinctively lunged forward.

With a "ripping" sound, the blade tore through his official robe, leaving a long gash on his back.

The excruciating pain caused Shen Yao to fall to the ground, and he struggled to get up.

But the fierce soldier behind him caught up slowly and stepped on his lower back.

"Dog officer!"

"Still want to run?"

The soldier sneered, then grabbed his waist knife and stabbed Shen Yao through the back.

Shen Yaoru was struck by lightning, coughed up a mouthful of blood, convulsed a few times, and then stopped moving.

And so, the top official in Mianzhou City died on the spot.

"Leave a few people here, and burn this place down too!"

"The rest of you, come with me to the state jail!"

After killing Shen Yao, Fan Gang wiped the blood off his face and gave a stern order.

The flames quickly began to spread in the east of the city.

But at the same time, Ren Cheng encountered trouble.

He led his men straight to the home of Zhao, a wealthy man in the west of the city. According to Yuan Yan's instructions, Yao Xi, the Assistant Magistrate, was likely having a banquet there.

However, after rushing in, they only caught a few Zhao family servants who were so terrified they wet themselves.

After some questioning, it was learned that Yao Xi had indeed come tonight, but did not stay overnight after the banquet. Instead, he went to the Wang family in the south of the city to continue his revelry!
"Damn it! We missed them!"

Ren Cheng cursed in frustration.

Seeing the flames burning in the Zhao family mansion and the towering flames in the east and west of the city, he knew he couldn't delay any longer.

"Let's go! To the armory!"

"According to the original plan, we'll take the armory first and wait for Commander Fan to bring his men to collect the weapons!"

He made a decisive move and led his men straight toward the city's armory.

Meanwhile, Fan Gang, without stopping, led his men to the vicinity of the prefectural government office.

At this moment, the jailer of the prefectural government office had been alerted, and the jailers were frantically trying to lock the doors.

Upon seeing this, Fan Gang and his men immediately rushed forward, instantly cutting down several prison guards at the door and smashing open the heavy cell door.

"Folks!"

"We are the righteous army under General Jiang of Long'an Prefecture! We've come to rescue you!!"

Fan Gang's loud voice echoed in the gloomy, dimly lit prison.

"The corrupt official in the city is dead!"

"Follow me in rebellion! Charge out! Capture the cities! Open the granaries and distribute grain!!"

That sound was like heavenly music!

The people in the prison were imprisoned in dark, stinking cells, suffering torture every day, and had long since given up hope.

The instinct for survival and a deep-seated hatred for the government erupted suddenly.

"Thieves! The righteous army! The righteous army has come to our rescue!"

"Follow the royal army and fight our way out!"

Enraged, hundreds of people, guided and helped by Fan Gang's soldiers, broke free of their shackles and poured out of the prison.

Some picked up the sticks dropped by the jailers, while others fought bare-handed. They formed a surging crowd and followed Fan Gang's footsteps, rushing towards the armory in the city!

In the chaos, a few clever clerks from the prefectural government hid in dark corners and narrowly escaped disaster.

They trembled with fear as they listened to the deafening shouts and cheers outside.

Only after the rioting crowd had receded somewhat did they emerge like frightened mice.

The sight before them terrified them: the government office was in complete disarray, the prison gates were wide open, and all the prisoners had escaped.

The group mustered their courage and went off separately to deliver the message, hoping to find their superior to take charge of the situation.

A man ran to the residence of Prefect Shen Yao and saw flames soaring into the sky. The mansion was engulfed in flames, and the bodies of servants and guards lay scattered at the entrance. The sound of houses collapsing could be heard from inside.

Another person ran to the villa of Prefect Yuan Yan, and saw only towering flames and billowing smoke; the entire house was burned to the ground!

"It's over! It's over!"

The minor officials were ashen-faced.

Clinging to a sliver of hope, they stumbled and staggered toward the home of Master Zhao, a place frequented by Tongzhi Yao Xi.

When they arrived, the Zhao family's house was also engulfed in flames, but in the chaos, they learned that Yao Xi had not spent the night there.

"Quickly! Go to the Wang family residence! Prefect Yao might be there!"

A minor official shouted.

The group then ran desperately back to the Wang family mansion.

When they finally found Yao Xi, the highest-ranking official in Mianzhou City at that moment, was disheveled, embracing a similarly panicked maid, his face as pale as paper.

He was clearly awakened by the chaos and fire outside, and was so frightened that he was completely disoriented.

"Prefect Yao! Something terrible has happened! They've rebelled! They've all rebelled!"

The minor official collapsed to the ground, crying incoherently.
"There are...there are a large number of thieves! They...they killed Prefect Shen! They burned down the Shen residence!"

"Prefect Yuan's villa was also burned down! Master Zhao's house was also on fire! The prefectural jail was smashed open, and all the prisoners escaped! They...they were shouting that they were going to rob the armory! The leaders were a lot of black-clad thieves, extremely fierce!"

Yao Xi felt weak all over and almost collapsed to the ground, while the maid in her arms screamed.

He forced himself to remain calm, his voice trembling:

"Quickly! Quickly! Go to the patrol station! Have the patrol inspector immediately muster all archers and yamen runners, fully armed, and assemble them at the armory! Quickly!!"

He then roared at another minor official:
"You! Go immediately to the few remaining wealthy families in the city! Tell them that the bandits are powerful and want to break into the city!"

"Have them send out all their servants and guards! Bring weapons! Assemble at the government office immediately!"

"Hurry! It'll all be over if we're any later!"

(End of this chapter)