151 For the Good of the Masses

"Wow! Look who's back!" Hui Shajing exclaimed in genuine surprise as he watched the party members enter the inn.

Hours had passed and night had fallen by now, yet Hui Shajing still remained seated at the exact same spot. It was unclear if he had moved at all throughout the day.

The rest of his entourage was no different.

Perhaps the only difference from before was the strong smell of alcohol on them, as well as their slightly unfocused pupils. Judging from this alone, it would not be surprising if the entire group had been doing nothing but drinking all day long!

Hui Shajing was not the only one surprised by the party's return either.

Uncle Hei, Uncle Bai, and the rest of the soldiers all revealed looks of confusion on their faces. The inn waiter was also finding it difficult to believe what he was seeing.

And their reactions were understandable as well.

Even if they were in a city, it would be uncommon for someone to visit an inn twice in the same day. That was all the more the case now that they were out here in the mountains.

There was nothing to be done in the area, so people usually only stopped by for a short rest before continuing on their journey.

In fact, the waiter had never seen a customer return on the same day since the opening of the inn!

"Perhaps the mountain is too scary at night?" Uncle Hei mocked, drawing laughter from the soldiers.

However, the mood quickly turned somber as the party members steadily approached Hui Shajing's table.

"What is it?" Uncle Hei stood up to block their way as they got too close for comfort.

He did manage to stop the party from advancing further, but no one chose to respond to his question.

"Young Noble Hui," Mo Mian ignored Uncle Hei and said. "May I ask what happened to the five bandits whom you captured a week ago?"

"What about them?" Hui Shajing frowned and responded with his own question.

"I believe you promised to let them go after you get the location of their hideout?" Mo Mian continued.

"Ah, that," Hui Shajing casually leaned back into his chair with a smile. "That's right. I did say that. What's wrong?"

"Did you?" Mo Mian asked.

"Why do you ask that?" Hui Shajing smile faded as he started to sense that something was wrong.

"I think you know exactly why I am asking that," Mo Mian said. "Or perhaps I should phrase it this way – why did you go back on your word?"

"Where did you hear that from?" Hui Shajing shot a cold glare at the waiter.

"It's not me! I didn't tell them anything!" the waiter jumped in shock upon seeing his gaze. "I have been in the inn all this time. There is no chance for me to say anything, even if I had wanted to!"

"Why do you care who told us that?" Pu Feixiang cut in impatiently. "Just answer the question."

"I do not appreciate the tone that you bunch are using to speak with my Young Noble," Uncle Hei cautioned. "Show some respect."

"It's all right, Uncle Hei," Hui Shajing calmed him down with a hand wave before turning back towards Mo Mian. "I believe the question here should be this – why do you care so much about those bandits in the first place? Don't tell me you are with them?"

"What a question!" Pu Feixiang scoffed. "You are obviously the one in the wrong, and yet you still dare to malign others? How shameless!"

"Let's not play games here, Young Noble Hui," Mo Mian maintained his composure, unlike Pu Feixiang. "You are a smart man. Since we are confident enough to return within the day and come up to you like this, this naturally means that we have found out everything. So that brings us back to my question earlier – why did you go back on your word?"

By now, the entire entourage was on alert.

Some of the soldiers even had their hands on their weapons, and were simply waiting for the order to fight.

The party members noticed this as well, but they were completely unfazed.

They had seen what the soldiers were capable of, and it was far from enough to threaten cultivators like themselves.

The only ones who could count as half a threat would be the two closer aides of the Hui Shajing, and perhaps Hui Shajing himself.

Even then, these three should not be able to pose much of a threat as long as they did not get careless.

Huu-!

Hui Shajing let out a long sigh.

"Fine, you got me. I have to say that you are more resourceful than I have imagined," Hui Shajing shrugged. "But you have truly misunderstood. It is not as though I didn't want to let them go. I simply had no other choice back then."

"You had no other choice? Did someone put a knife to your neck and force you to kill them?" Pu Feixiang snorted in disdain.

"Well, that is not what happened literally, but I can't say that your words are completely wrong either," Hui Shajing sighed again.

"What do you mean?" Pu Feixiang asked.

"Back then, those bandits told us the hideout location, so we decided to let them go as promised. Who knew that they would suddenly charge at us when our backs are turned?" Hui Shajing shook his head in regret. "Even if it is not for the sake of self-defence, we also have to consider other people in the future. If such aggressive people are allowed to roam the world freely, there is no doubt that they will return to a life of crime. Considering that, don't you agree that we have no choice but to take them down then and there?"

"It is all for the good of the masses," Uncle Hei nodded.

"That's right," Hui Shajing agreed. "That's our sole purpose – to do things for the good of the masses. In a way, you can say that the bandits simply got their just deserts. But don't worry, we have laid their bodies to rest."

"By laying their bodies to rest, you mean leaving their corpses out to rot in the open?" Mo Mian questioned.

Hui Shajing narrowed his eyes.

With that, it was clear that the party members had truly found the bandits' hideout.

"Right, I forgot that we did that. It is meant as a stern warning to any others who are intending to lead a life of crime," Hui Shajing explained.

"And the rest of the bandits in their hideout? Why did you have to kill them all?"

"Same reason. They were being aggressive."

"The children too?"

"That reminds me! The children were really scary too, brandishing weapons and all! Who knows what they have been taught since birth?"

"And why were the women in a state of undress?"

"That part really shocked us as well! They were already dressed like that when we arrived. Can you imagine just how vile the bandits are to treat their women in such a degrading manner?"

Zhao Yunxiao smirked as he listened to the duo's exchange of words.

He had to admit that this Hui Shajing was quite a shameless talker.

Not only was he completely unfazed even when faced with a barrage of questions, but he was also able to instantly come up with an excuse for every question posed.

Of course, whether these excuses were believable or not was another matter altogether.

"If you are as noble as you said, don't you think the loot that you obtained from the bandits should be handed over to the local magistrate instead?" Gui Longcan interjected. "Why are you staying around here instead of doing so?"

"Who knows if there are other bandits in the area? We are staying around just in case some of those lowlifes who fell through the net decide to vent their anger out on the innkeeper, simply because they can't do anything to us," Hui Shajing said with a straight face. "But don't worry, I will definitely hand in all the loot once I get back to town. I am on close terms with the local magistrate after all."

"Don't you think that you are acting beyond your station?" Chu Han was the one to ask this time. "Something like ridding the world of bandits should be the responsibility of the authorities. If everyone is to act like you and take matters into their own hands, then wouldn't the world descend into chaos?"

"That I don't agree with," Hui Shajing shook his head. "It is everyone's responsibility to help others in need. Since I am able to take care of the bandits, I naturally will not hesitate to help."

"That does make sense," Chu Han rubbed his chin in contemplation. "In that case, I heard that the nearby East Stream Village has been plagued by a demon for months. Your aides and soldiers seem like able fighters, so why don't you go help them out as well?"

"Is that the case? I haven't heard about it," Hui Shajing shrugged. "I will see what I can do once I find out more."

"Oh? Didn't you say that you are on close terms with the local magistrate? If that's the case, shouldn't you have already heard about this issue?" Chu Han probed further. "After all, the problem has existed for months."

"If it has been reported to the local magistrate, then it is a matter that the local magistrate should deal with. They are not obliged to tell me about it," Hui Shajing frowned.

"But that doesn't matter, does it?" Chu Han continued. "Isn't your sole purpose to do things for the good of the masses? Isn't it everyone's responsibility to help others in need? Now that you know about the issue, let's go deal with it right now. If you are unaware of the location, we don't mind leading you there either. In a way, that is a far bigger problem than mere bandits. Every day that we delay could mean an additional death. The villagers will surely appreciate your assistance!"

"Enough! Why are you asking so much?" Hui Shajing finally lost his temper. "I have been acting cordial all this while, but don't think that I am afraid of dealing with you bunch! If you don't want to die, then mind your own business and move along!"

"Finally decided to stop your pretence?" Mo Mian finally smiled. "You sure are a tough nut to crack."

"You seem to be very confident in yourselves," Hui Shajing sneered. "You might be smiling right now, but let's see just how long you can keep that up for!"

With that, Hui Shajing reached into his sleeves and retrieved a token, raising it up in front of him to let the party members have a good look.

The golden token was about the size of his palm, crafted into a clean hexagonal shape. There were numerous runic characters engraved into the gold, each of them neatly painted over with what appeared to be red ink.

The only engraving that had not been painted over was an emblem depicting a golden leaf, located right in the centre and taking up most of the space on the token.

"Do you see this? This is a token that symbolises the authority of a powerful cultivator, given to me personally as a symbol of protection!" Hui Shajing announced confidently. "If you dare to harm so much as a single hair on my body, the token will trigger and summon the cultivator over. When that happens, you can be prepared to die without a grave!"

Hui Shajing was not an idiot as well.

The party had already witnessed their fight with the group of bandits, so they should have a good grasp on their overall battle prowess.

Yet despite that, the party was not afraid to challenge them.

This meant that unless the party members were all idiots, they should be far stronger than they looked, most probably even stronger than Uncle Hei and Uncle Bai combined.

Therefore, Hui Shajing naturally would not have allowed things to devolve to such a state without having an ace card like this hidden up his sleeves!