Unlimited Resources: Raising a Minister with a Space Supermarket-Chapter 519 - 458: Laxatives

Yu Xiaolian couldn’t help but speak up, "Among the workers at the cement factory, there might be relatives of bandits. Before we can set them up, the bandits might already get the news."

"Right, what the lady said is very possible." Li Wenyuan nodded in agreement.

"Our mission to eliminate the bandits is of great importance; we shouldn’t act rashly. Didn’t the magistrate send He Jian to gather information on the bandits? It wouldn’t hurt to wait for He Jian to return before making a decision."

Su Jingchen nodded his head. After all, this was his first time dealing with bandits.

Yu Xiaolian looked at Su Jingchen, "Did you send He Jian alone to gather information? Is Linzhou in danger now?"

"He Jian’s skills are above Cao Gen’s, don’t worry, nothing will happen!"

In fact, Su Jingchen hadn’t sent He Jian; it was because something happened to Cao Gen that He Jian took up his sword, intending to avenge him. Unable to stop him, Su Jingchen came up with an indirect plan, disguising He Jian and sending him to infiltrate the bandit camp to gather intel.

Initially, Su Jingchen thought He Jian would return the next day, but two days passed, and there was still no sign of him.

While Su Jingchen and Yu Xiaolian were speculating that He Jian must have been captured by the bandits and were discussing how to rescue him, He Jian suddenly returned unscathed that night.

He Jian spent the past two days scouting the entire bandit camp at Wuyuan Mountain, and only after understanding the number of people and defenses there did he return.

He Jian reported that the camp did not have as many bandits as that attendant had claimed, only a little more than sixty. Before the recruitment at the Yangcheng County cement factory, the camp had over a hundred people, but some didn’t intend to become bandits in the first place. Therefore, when the county government recruited, offered food, lodging, and pay, some chose to leave the mountain and correct their ways.

"The camp’s warehouse is almost out of food, but two months ago, they robbed a cloth merchant. Those cloths haven’t been sold yet, and during this time, they plan to send people out to sell the cloth and exchange it for food."

He Jian took a big gulp of tea; he hadn’t had any food or drink for the past two days, all to gather useful information.

Before leaving, he had actually wanted to set the thatched houses in the camp on fire, but he feared alarming them, so he held back.

"This is a great opportunity. We can strike them down one by one when they come down the mountain to sell the cloth." Yu Xiaolian’s eyes lit up.

Su Jingchen nodded, "In that case, we don’t need to act out the landlord charade. We can just station people on the way down the mountain. When they come down with the goods, we’ll ambush them suddenly."

Yu Xiaolian asked He Jian, "In your opinion, how long will their food last?"

He Jian thought for a moment and replied, "They have about seventeen or eighteen bags of grain left. Considering their daily consumption of solid meals, these seventeen or eighteen bags of grain might last a little over half a month."

Su Jingchen suddenly suggested, "I have an idea. It might be a bit underhanded, but perhaps we can do it without moving any troops."

"Against these bandits, we needn’t hold back. Underhanded or not, as long as we subdue them, we’ll be benefiting the common people." Yu Xiaolian looked expectantly at Su Jingchen, "What’s your plan? Don’t keep us in suspense; just say it!"

Su Jingchen looked at He Jian, "Poison their water source!"

Before He Jian could respond, Yu Xiaolian hurriedly objected, "Using knockout drugs is acceptable, but poison is out of the question. Didn’t He Jian say there are women and children in the mountains? They’re innocent."

"I say there’s no one innocent up there. The women are bandit wives, and the children are bandit offspring. It’s said you have to pull the weed out by the roots, or won’t the bandit son’s avenge their father one day?" 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

The root is already bad; what good can grow from it?" He Jian thought Yu Xiaolian was being too sentimental.

Yu Xiaolian looked at Su Jingchen, "What do you think?"

Su Jingchen was silent. Successfully eliminating the bandits should be a joyful event, but if done so abruptly and brutally, what kind of image would that paint of him as a leader in the people’s eyes?

If he kills dozens of lives without trial, wouldn’t everyone fear him? Even if he becomes a Capital Official later, those Civil Servants and the Imperial Censor might accuse him of recklessly killing innocents.

"Great Liang’s law emphasizes three presentations before a decision, so solving it so brutally might indeed be inappropriate. It’s best to make them all unconscious and then bring them back for interrogation."

"It’s unlikely to make everyone unconscious. If someone drinks the water before cooking and finds something wrong, all efforts will be wasted." Yu Xiaolian frowned, "We might as well give them a laxative. This way, even if someone drinks first and gets a stomachache, they’ll think they ate something bad and won’t suspect the water."

"That’s excellent!" Su Jingchen slapped the table, "It’s settled then!"

He then turned to He Jian, "Can you get near that spring?"

He Jian said, "There are always a few people patrolling near the spring, but adding the drug isn’t an issue. However, if we put a lot of croton into the spring, wouldn’t it turn to porridge?"

Even if we add croton powder, it would turn sticky.

"No need for croton, I have a laxative for this purpose; a small dose should suffice," Yu Xiaolian said.

She had some digestive capsules that her father used to take because he often had constipation, so the household always had them prepared.

She planned to remove the powder from the capsules and have He Jian find an opportunity to add it to the water jars that the bandits use.

Yu Xiaolian had the misfortune of trying this laxative once. It truly kept her on the toilet from dusk to dawn, unable to sleep all night, causing her to call in sick from work the next day. That tiny pill left a deep impression.

After some discussion, they decided the sooner they rid the bandits, the better, and unanimously agreed to act the next day.

That evening, back in their room, Yu Xiaolian entered her space, found the digestive capsules, and began to open them with Su Jingchen, pouring the powder into a paper package.

"We need to prepare quite a bit; in one day, those bandits might still have the strength to wield a knife. We’ll have He Jian occasionally give them some until they’re too weak to resist. That way, we can easily capture them all." Yu Xiaolian chuckled slyly.

To be honest, Yu Xiaolian was quite interested in the bandit camp, but if she suggested going with He Jian to administer the laxative, surely Su Jingchen wouldn’t agree, right?

Sigh, better to forget about it. Now that she’s a married woman, she should settle down and properly take on the role of the County Magistrate’s Wife.

"Are you sure this laxative will work? Will it be effective in the hot spring water?" Su Jingchen was a bit concerned.

Su Jingchen’s question left Yu Xiaolian uncertain; she didn’t know if the hot spring water would neutralize the drug either.

"Normally, it should work. Do you want to try one tonight?"

Su Jingchen shook his head, "I’ll pass."

No sane person poisons themselves for no reason.