Chapter 132: Things One Dares Not Even Imagine

After entering the city, Xu Mo arranged for Niu Er and Niu San to take some of the goods to the Peony Fragrance shop. Xu Mo himself, along with Qin Mutou, Niu Da, and the other team members, escorted the bandits to the county magistrate's office.

The duty officer, upon seeing that bandits had been captured, immediately ran to report the news. Before long, Secretary Qi emerged. Having seen Xu Mo on a previous occasion when he had stood silently by Ning Yaxin’s side, Secretary Qi had mistakenly assumed he was a steward for the Ning family. Seeing him now, the Secretary naturally assumed they were Ning family men. He bowed politely and began to shower the Ning family with praise, maintaining a very cordial attitude.

Xu Mo did not interrupt, listening patiently with a faint smile. Niu Da, unable to bear it any longer, blurted out, "Secretary Qi, you have mistaken us. This is the proprietor of our Peony Brand soap! He is not from the Ning family."

Xu Mo bowed and said, "Secretary Qi, I am Xu Mo."

Secretary Qi was slightly startled, thinking to himself, *So he is Xu Mo?* He quickly apologized, "My apologies, my apologies! It is the proprietor of Peony Soap, Young Master Xu!"

Xu Mo waved his hand dismissively and said, "Secretary Qi, we were delivering goods to the city today when we encountered bandits. After a bloody battle, we finally repelled them..." He briefly described the encounter. Upon hearing the details, Secretary Qi was stunned, his mouth slightly agape, unable to utter a word.

He recalled that when Magistrate Hu first took office in Xinzhou, he had invested considerable effort and funds into training local militia to suppress banditry. At that time, a fierce group of over twenty bandits had faced a militia force of more than fifty. Despite the numerical advantage, the militia had suffered twenty injuries and three deaths, while one man had his arm severed, leaving him permanently disabled.

Yet, Xu Mo and his group of only forty men had faced a hundred bandits without a single casualty. Even more absurdly, the outnumbered bandits had suffered thirty-six casualties. It was a feat Secretary Qi could hardly fathom. After his shock subsided, he grew deeply respectful of Xu Mo and his men, lamenting that if they had been able to recruit such warriors back then, things would have turned out very differently.

"Guards, throw these bandits into the dungeon!" Secretary Qi commanded loudly. The officers responded in unison. He immediately added, "And find two doctors to treat their wounds. If anyone dies in prison, I will hold you responsible!" The officers acknowledged the order and led the bandits away.

Seeing the prisoners handed over, Xu Mo prepared to leave, but Secretary Qi detained him, warmly inviting him to sit inside and meet with Magistrate Hu. To be honest, Xu Mo had no great affection for the Magistrate, but Secretary Qi was a decent man, and his enthusiasm was hard to refuse. Xu Mo ultimately agreed. He had Qin Mutou and Niu Da wait outside while he followed Secretary Qi into the office.

Along the way, the Secretary praised Xu Mo incessantly, calling him brave and decisive—a true blessing to the people of Xinzhou. Xu Mo humbly shook his head and diverted the conversation. "By the way, Secretary Qi, there are about thirty bandit corpses outside the city. I must trouble you to have them handled; leaving them in the woods for too long would not be appropriate."

Secretary Qi immediately replied, "Rest assured, Young Master Xu, the magistrate's office will handle it. You need not worry." Hearing that the office would take care of the aftermath, Xu Mo nodded with a smile. He had no desire to waste time burying dozens of bodies; he had other important matters to attend to, and time was precious.

Soon, they bypassed the main hall and reached the second hall. "Young Master Xu, please wait a moment while I go invite the Magistrate," Secretary Qi said politely before hurrying away. Having never been inside the magistrate's office since his arrival in this world, Xu Mo looked around with curiosity, pacing the room.

Meanwhile, Secretary Qi went straight to the study to see Magistrate Hu Maoshuan. The Magistrate was practicing calligraphy and did not look up, asking, "Secretary Qi, who captured these bandits?"

"Reporting to your Honor, it is Young Master Xu Mo, proprietor of the Peony Brand soap workshop!"

"The proprietor of the Peony soap workshop, Xu Mo?" Magistrate Hu knew the brand, as he used it himself, but he had never heard the name Xu Mo before.

Secretary Qi nodded. "Today, while they were delivering goods, they encountered bandits. After a fierce battle, they killed about thirty and captured six alive. The prisoners are already in the dungeon."

Magistrate Hu nodded as he wrote. "Hmm, not bad! Thirty dead, six captured—truly valiant... wait, say that again? How many?" The Magistrate was so shocked that his brush slipped, turning a dot into a stroke. Seeing the reaction, the Secretary nearly laughed but kept his composure. "Your Honor, they killed about thirty and captured six!"

Magistrate Hu finally confirmed he hadn't misheard. "Secretary Qi, did you ask how many men they had? How many bandits were there? And what were their casualties?" He set his brush aside.

Secretary Qi knew the Magistrate was thinking of the past suppression efforts. "Your Honor, they had only forty men, and the bandits numbered about a hundred... and they suffered no casualties!"

"What did you say?" The Magistrate stood up, stunned. "Not a single casualty?"

Secretary Qi nodded solemnly, his expression firm. Magistrate Hu shook his head in disbelief, frowning. "Impossible! Absolutely impossible! Two years ago, I led over fifty militia against twenty bandits, and we suffered nearly fifty percent casualties. And they faced a hundred today with zero losses? I don't believe it—I absolutely do not believe it!"

"Your Honor, Young Master Xu is waiting in the second hall. If you do not believe it, you may see him yourself and ask about the details."

Magistrate Hu immediately headed toward the door but stopped after two steps. He turned and asked, "Secretary Qi, did Xu Mo ask to see me?" Before the Secretary could answer, the Magistrate added, "And why did you let him in? If he asks me for a reward, where am I supposed to find the money?"