Top-notch Little Horseman

"Smack!..."

Liang Kun slammed his fist on the table in anger and roared, "How dare you!"

"Damn bastard! Go, drag him over here right now. I want to ask him who gave him the guts!"

Zhang Dahu immediately called Zhao Shaojun, and together they pulled Uncle Laogen over.

Uncle Lao Gen was treated like trash and thrown in front of Liang Kun.

"Chief Shepherd, I haven't done anything wrong, why are you..."

Before Uncle Lao Gen could finish speaking, Liang Kunli interrupted him.

"Shut up!"

"I don't want to hear your nonsense. Just tell me, who gave you the right to give Ye Chen and the others warhorses without my permission!"

Uncle Lao Gen didn't dare to meet Liang Kun's eyes. He lowered his head and huddled together, saying, "Yes, it was approved by the shepherd. I was just following the rules..."

"Besides, I tried to stop them, but I couldn't..."

Upon hearing this, Liang Kun frowned and looked at Zhao Shaojun and Zhang Dahu, asking, "What happened?"

"Sir, when we found him, he was tied up..." Zhao Shaojun hurriedly stepped forward and clasped his hands in greeting.

"My lord, we have conducted a brief investigation and found that the warhorses were stolen by Ye Chen and his group. Their reason is that you approved the granting of the horses to them," Zhang Dahu said, clasping his hands in a fist salute.

Liang Kun clenched his fist, suddenly looked up towards the door, and shouted, "Go! Get the warhorses ready immediately and give chase! We absolutely cannot let them take the warhorses!"

Regardless, the most urgent task is to retrieve the warhorses; we absolutely cannot allow Ye Chen and his men to take them to the Desolate Dust Pass.

Zhao Shaojun and Zhang Dahu immediately made the arrangements, and soon 20 warhorses were brought in.

"By the way, where's Hong Chengye?" Liang Kun asked Zhang Dahu as he mounted his warhorse.

"Reporting to Your Excellency," Zhang Dahu replied with a fist and palm salute, "we just received news that he has left the horse camp and is heading towards Huangchen Pass."

Upon hearing this, Liang Kun's face darkened, and he said in an icy voice, "Fine! Fine, Hong Chengye, you've ignored my warning!"

"Fine, since you're determined to go against me, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

He waved his hand and ordered, "Go! Give chase!"

The horses' hooves thundered, kicking up a thousand dust clouds.

Liang Kun led his group and quickly chased after Ye Chen for ten miles, but they couldn't even see Ye Chen's horse's rear end.

He had to wave his hand to make everyone stop.

"Could it be that we've gone in the wrong direction?" Liang Kun turned to Zhang Dahu and asked.

"Sir, the direction should be correct, but they probably anticipated that we would pursue them, so they must be traveling light," Zhang Dahu said, looking ahead.

"If we keep chasing them, we might not find them until we reach the Desolate Dust Pass. In that case... it will be very difficult to get our warhorses back."

Liang Kun frowned in thought, his cheeks puffing out slightly. "What idea do you have?"

"Well..." Zhang Dahu thought for a moment, then shook his head, indicating that he didn't have a good solution either.

Zhao Shaojun smiled and looked at Liang Kun, saying, "Sir, instead of waiting for others to make a move, why don't we strike first?"

Upon hearing this, Liang Kun raised his eyes slightly and asked, "Hmm, what's wrong? Do you have a plan?"

"I know a few brothers in the underworld who specialize in shady businesses, such as highway robbery, kidnapping, and taking money to solve problems for others."

"We can ask them to take action, have them disguise themselves as refugees from the Desolate Dust Pass, and take advantage of the chaos to eliminate them!"

As he spoke, he made a throat-slitting gesture, "After dealing with Ye Chen, the lord, along with me and Da Hu, appeared just in time to drive away the refugees and rescue that woman."

"In that case, if Ye Chen and the others die at the hands of refugees, it will have nothing to do with you, sir."

"Even if someone asks about it later, we can say that there was a rebellion of refugees in Huangchen Pass, and a small team of horse herders unfortunately perished."

"The lord personally led men to the rescue, but unfortunately it was too late, so no one can say anything about it."

Upon hearing this, Liang Kun pondered for a moment, then frowned and looked at Zhao Shaojun, asking, "Are the people you know reliable?"

Zhao Shaojun nodded and said, "Don't worry, sir. Those men have a life-or-death bond with me. As long as the money is right, they'd even dare to kill their own fathers!"

"Oh? How much silver do they want?" Liang Kun frowned and stared at Zhao Shaojun as he asked.

Zhao Shaojun held up three fingers and said, "Five hundred taels of silver."

Upon hearing this, Liang Kun's eyes narrowed. They really dared to ask for five hundred taels of silver!

"They really dare to ask for five hundred taels of silver! Aren't they afraid of choking on it?"

Zhao Shaojun shrank back, his face resolute, and said, "Sir, there are ten of them. To deal with them, we'll need at least fifty men."

"They are all desperate criminals, ten taels of silver per person is not a high price. After the deed is done, they will be paid another fifty taels as hush money, for a total of five hundred and fifty taels of silver."

Upon hearing Zhao Shaojun's words, Liang Kun's eye twitched.

Five hundred and fifty taels of silver is no small sum, but compared to the cost of killing Ye Chen, it's still worth it.

If I could kill Ye Chen, firstly, I could quell my hatred; secondly, I could get that woman; and thirdly... I could also put an end to Hong Chengye's hopes and shut the others up.

This deal seems quite worthwhile!

"When can we make our move?" Liang Kun asked, staring at Zhao Shaojun, having made up his mind.

"We can set off at any time. As long as you give the order, I will go find them immediately and get the job done tonight."

After a moment's thought, Liang Kun's expression darkened, and he said coldly, "Go!"

"Yes, sir!"

Zhao Shaojun clasped his hands in a fist salute to Liang Kun, then turned to leave.

"Wait a minute!" Liang Kun called out to him, his voice fierce. "Tell them to be clean, absolutely no survivors!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Shaojun smiled and said, "Please rest assured, sir, they are skilled and will handle things cleanly. They will not leave any trace."

……

Northern border, border army camp.

Governor-General Cao Bucun of the Three Borders sat upright in the main seat of the hall.

Cao Bucun was probably in his early fifties, with a thin face, and wore white armor.

Seated to his left and right were the commanders of various departments and the generals of major checkpoints.

To his left sat a man named Jin Qiaohui, a fourth-rank official with both civil and military titles, in charge of military affairs supervision.

On the right is the Northern Border General, Yunhe Bridge, wearing the robes of a third-rank military officer, with a robust physique.

Civil officials are on the left, and military generals are on the right.

There was a rosewood table in the middle, and also an invisible wall.

Cao Bucun raised his eyes and looked at Jinqiao Hui, asking, "Lord Jin, how is the matter of the refugees being handled? Is there any latest report?"

Jin Qiaohui bowed to Cao Bucun and said, "Reporting to Your Excellency, the number of refugees in the Lingyuanbao area has increased to more than 1,500, most of whom are fleeing famine from Liangguang and Qinghe counties."

"In addition, northern cavalry have circled the border, and they have already appeared thirty miles from Lingyuan Fortress."

Upon hearing this, Cao Bucun frowned. The situation was indeed urgent!

Without the obstruction of Huangchen Pass, the Northern Barbarian cavalry entered the territory as if it were empty. If the Northern Barbarians were to break through Yanmen Pass, the northern border would fall in no time.

"No, something bad has happened!" Just then, a soldier rushed in and reported to Cao Bucun in a panic.

"Sick...sick, the warhorse is sick!"