The bald man stood on tiptoe and walked in front, supporting Suiye's shoulder.

Ye Wenxue followed in the middle.

The two henchmen walked at the back to prevent Ye Wenxue from escaping.

Ye Wenxue was unsure whether it was the bald man's group that took Sanyuan and Su Jiu away, and she was extremely anxious, which was also reflected on her face.

The bald man assumed she was short-sighted and eager to make money, thinking to himself: "Perfect! Once we get to the mountain stronghold, let's see how you escape!"

The two underlings weren't as optimistic as the bald man and didn't quite believe Ye Wenxue and her companion, but their leader was currently blinded by beauty and couldn't be persuaded no matter what.

Fortunately, the mountain stronghold was not far from the lake, and they had weapons with them.

If these two act even slightly suspiciously, she'll take the woman hostage to threaten the man. Being scolded by her boss is better than losing her life.

Suiye... Suiye is still struggling with this.

"Brother? Brother? What's your name? When you return to the stronghold, I'll have a good word for you with the boss."

Sui Ye snapped out of his daze and turned to look at Ye Wenxue.

Ye Wenxue didn't even blink: "Big brother, he injured his brain and forgot his own name, so I gave him a nickname, Gou Dan (Dog Egg)."

The bald man scratched his head and chuckled, trying to smooth things over: "A humble name is easier to raise a child with; your sister-in-law chose a good name."

Suiye: "......"

How did these two manage to keep pretending even though they knew each other was faking it?

Ye Wenxue raised an eyebrow at Sui Ye from where the bald man couldn't see.

A flawless persona is certainly desirable, but it is more likely to be viewed with suspicion than a flawed one.

Baldy might not believe Suiye's amnesia, and he might also doubt Suiye's identity, but he wouldn't doubt the relationship between the two, or Ye Wenxue's fighting skills.

The plan that Baldy followed Ye Shuo was very simple: he would recommend Ye Shuo to the chieftain, Ye Shuo would kill the chieftain and then support Baldy to take over, and Baldy would disband the stronghold and give Ye Shuo half of the stronghold's silver and grain.

This is a plan riddled with errors.

Sui Ye tried to speak more than once, but was forcibly suppressed by the bald man who pretended to be confused and the greedy Ye Wenxue.

The group first hunted and killed several wild boars and carried them back to the mountain village.

I was stopped as soon as I reached the path at the foot of the mountain village.

The bandits guarding the road scrutinized Sui Ye and Ye Wenxue warily, then pointed at them and shouted, "Strangers are not allowed to enter the stronghold. You'd better leave now."

The bald man patted his shiny bald head and said to Ye Wenxue and Suiye, "It's alright, I'll handle it."

The bald man pulled the bandit leader guarding the road aside, speaking in a voice that was neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for Sui Ye and Ye Wenxue to hear.

"Brother Dao, please make an exception. These two are my brothers, my men. Aren't they just members of the bandit gang?"

"No, what if they're sent by the imperial court to suppress bandits? Especially that big, dumb guy, he looks like he's not simple. It's too dangerous to let someone like that into the mountain stronghold. I don't agree."

The bald man reluctantly stuffed a few taels of silver into his hand: "The rebels from Qiongzhou are about to attack. Forget the constables in the yamen, even the general ordered to suppress the rebels has fled. Who will come to quell the bandits? Please be lenient with me, and then..."

He gestured for Brother Dao to look at Ye Wenxue, who was huddled behind Sui Ye, observing the surroundings. He lowered his voice and mumbled, "After it's done, we'll enjoy it together."

Dao Ge glanced at Ye Wenxue, whose eyes were innocent and clear, and weighed the silver in his hand: "Don't let the boss see this, he's in a bad mood right now."

"become."

Baldy told Suiye to put down the wild boar: "The kitchen is at the foot of the mountain. We need to go up the mountain. I'll find you a place with a good view to stay temporarily. Tonight, I'll recommend Brother Gou Dan to the chieftain and treat him to a good meal to welcome him back!"

Upon hearing the name again, Sui Ye's lips twitched. He silently put down the wild boar, patted the mud off his shoulders, and followed along up the mountain.

Halfway up the mountain, Ye Wenxue twisted her ankle: "Ouch, I can't walk anymore."

"This..." The bald man looked at the mountain peak where there was still halfway to go, and hesitated before looking at Suiye. "Brother Gou Dan, the mountain road is not easy to walk. Why don't you carry your sister-in-law on your back?"

Before Sui Ye could speak, Ye Wenxue turned her face away in disgust: "I don't want him to carry me. He just carried a wild boar and he's covered in sweat."

Suiye: "......."

Seeing that the bald man was about to volunteer to carry someone, he immediately lifted Ye Wenxue up and carried her on his back, saying, "Lead the way."

Baldy cursed Gou Dan for being ungrateful, but he wasn't sure if he could beat the man. In addition, he did have some desire to become the new chieftain, so he forced himself to hold back and led the way.

Suiye deliberately lagged behind by several steps, and whispered a few words: "How can you do this to Dazhuang and the children? How can you face your husband?"

Ye Wenxue was puzzled: "I just wanted to pretend to sprain my ankle so that Baldy would call a doctor and I could also look for Su Jiu. How did I offend them?"

Sui Ye was fuming and didn't want to talk, focusing on carrying Ye Wenxue up the mountain.

Ye Wenxue chuckled to herself: "You wouldn't do any work before, but now you're eager to carry people on your back?"

"Brother Gou Dan, sister-in-law, what are you talking about?" Baldy turned around and interjected.

Sui Ye glared at him, and Ye Wenxue replied in a coquettish voice, "My feet hurt, and I wanted him to massage them for me, but he refused. Brother, is there a doctor in the mountain stronghold?"

"Of course there is. We just seized some yesterday... We invited a doctor back to the stronghold to oversee things. Wait, I'll bring him over later."

"Okay, thank you, brother."

Upon reaching the mountaintop, the bald man led the two to a secluded wooden cabin, then hurriedly left under the pretext of finding a doctor.

Suiye peered through the window for a while, then whispered, "There are five people guarding outside."

Ye Wenxue sat at the simple wooden table, picked up a wooden comb from the table and combed her hair: "We'll see how things go tonight, so we don't cause any big trouble."

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!