Chapter 82 "The village behind..."

"What exactly happened in that village last night? Has anything been found out?" Xiao Yan asked Qin Ji as they walked side by side toward the inn's lobby, inquiring about the aftermath of the drugging incident last night.

"During the second investigation, the guards found several sets of footprints in the woods outside the village, but no other clues. It seems that someone intended to do something last night, but before they could actually carry it out, you noticed something was wrong. Seeing that we sent people to investigate the village, they ran away beforehand," Qin Ji deduced.

"Could they be local bandits? I've heard that bandits in many places actually have a lot of 'popular support,' and it seems very suspicious that the drug could so easily knock out the entire village in one go."

As Xiao Yan spoke, she lowered her voice and leaned close to Qin Ji's ear: "Even if they are bandits, they were once civilians here. Everyone has relatives and friends. Qin Ji, could the inn we're staying at also be..."

The more she talked, the more suspicious she became. Xiao Yan suddenly felt that the inn looked very unsafe.

"No," Qin Ji raised his hand and pressed the smooth forehead of the person in front of him, as if to bring her overly scattered thoughts back: "This place has many mountains and little land. The quality of life in the surrounding villages is closely related to the number of caravans traveling on the Sanniu Bay waterway and this official road. Speaking of which, the people who hate the mountain bandits the most are them."

However, the fact that they wouldn't collude with bandits on a large scale doesn't mean that individual villagers wouldn't be bribed by them. As you just mentioned, wiping out the entire village at once is difficult for outsiders, but much easier for a villager who knows the village well.

“If they’re not colluding with each other, then there must be a bandit mole in the village. Aren’t they in great danger?” Hearing Qin Ji’s analysis, Xiao Yan’s brows furrowed deeply.

"There's no need to worry about them. Rabbits don't eat the grass near their burrows. Since those bandits only robbed merchants and travelers over the past year, it means that the surrounding villagers are not their targets. Otherwise, they would have used poison instead of sleeping pills last night."

"Besides, we've already wiped out the most active bandit gang during our road clearing operation. With that bloody lesson learned, the other smaller bandit groups should be more restrained." Qin Ji gently squeezed her hand and comforted her, "After we return to the capital, I'll write a memorial impeaching the local officials. With someone in power pulling strings for them, those people should have time to deal with the bandits here."

As Qin Ji spoke, a cold glint appeared in his eyes. These derelict incompetent fools, if they had paid even a little attention to the post-disaster resettlement, would not have caused such a calamity.

Or perhaps, after those people became outlaws, if the local government had done anything, those bandits, who were nothing more than a rabble, would have been easily persuaded to surrender or wiped out. But they simply let it go, resulting in the banditry not only remaining unresolved but also becoming increasingly rampant over the past year.

The second brother is quite interesting; he'll cooperate with anyone to assassinate him, showing absolutely no bottom line or class.

Thinking of the bandits from last night whose fighting power far surpassed that of ordinary mountain bandits, and that person in the capital who was always praised for his noble character and unparalleled dignity, Qin Ji could only sneer.

However, it was only after having a formal encounter with the old man's subordinates, just like last night, that Qin Ji realized that the person who used to bully him so easily was actually nothing special now.

This time, the second-in-command must have sent his elite troops to ambush us. But even with a numerical advantage, those men were still slaughtered like chickens and dogs by our own people.

"Qin Ji, Qin Ji! What are you daydreaming about? Come downstairs." Xiao Yan shook Qin Ji's hand a few times with a bit of force. After talking about the bandits, the man seemed lost in thought, as if sleepwalking and being led around by himself.

To be honest, it was quite amusing. If they were really going downstairs, Xiao Yan was worried he might trip and fall face-first, so she figured she could hold this clueless guy's hand and walk him around a few more times.

"Huh? Oh." Coming back to her senses, Qin Ji was incredulous to find herself already standing at the top of the stairs.

"My benefactor!"

"My benefactor!"

As Xiao Yanhui and Qin Ji descended the stairs and reached the lobby, a figure flashed before their eyes, and two people knelt down in front of them. The two of them called Qin Ji their benefactor in unison.

Startled by the sudden turn of events, Xiao Yan took a small step back. At that moment, the two men who had suddenly knelt down and called her benefactor had already kowtowed three times. She steadied her still-rapidly beating heart and turned her gaze to the man and woman in front of her.

They had just kowtowed three times, their foreheads flushed red, and not only their foreheads, but their eyes were also swollen and red. Their current state could be described as utterly wretched, but this wretchedness, combined with their handsome features, made them appear even more pitiful.

In the morning, Qin Ji briefly mentioned that the entire Shen family had been killed, leaving only the two siblings. Now, hearing them call him their benefactor, Xiao Yan Hui immediately understood their identities.

At this moment, the young man said to Qin Ji with a choked voice, "My name is Shen Nanhe, and this is my younger sister, Shen Xiyin. I am very grateful to my benefactor for saving us last night. If it weren't for you, my sister and I, along with our guards, would all have lost our lives at the hands of the bandits."

At this point, his already reddened eyes became even redder. He blinked as if trying to hold back tears, but in the end, he couldn't hold them back, and large tears fell down his face.

Clearly, this reminded him of the tragic deaths of his family members the previous night. Seeing her brother cry, the younger sister beside him couldn't hold back her own tears and began to sob uncontrollably.

"It was nothing, you don't need to be so upset or take it to heart." Compared to the siblings' sorrow, Qin Ji's expression seemed rather indifferent. He raised his hand to signal them to get up quickly, then pulled Xiao Yan back and started to leave.

But before he could take a step, Shen Xiyin kowtowed at his feet again, tears streaming down her face as she sobbed, "We...we were originally returning to our hometown with our father."

Little did we know that when the caravan reached the canyon, a large number of bandits suddenly appeared from the surrounding area. They killed anyone they saw. Now, only my brother and I are left in our family. We really don't know... what to do in the future..." The girl choked up and couldn't speak for a moment.

Apart from the brother and sister's cries, there was only silence in the hall. The cries sounded even more suppressed and helpless in the silence, which was heartbreaking.

"Although your guards are injured, their lives are not in danger. They should recover in a few days. Also, I brought back some of the money you brought home last night. Those guards risked their lives to save you; they are all loyal men. I think they can help you with your family's funeral arrangements and also send you home safely."

Qin Ji's words sounded like he had thought of everything for them, but upon closer examination, they perfectly reflected the image of someone who, while saving someone, didn't want to get involved in any subsequent trouble.

"Our benefactor saved our lives..."

Before Shen Nanhe could finish saying he was determined to repay the debt of gratitude, Qin Ji interrupted him: "Since I have received your three kowtows, then consider it as you repaying my life-saving grace."

After saying that, he no longer cared about the two siblings who were precious in their previous lives, and quickly walked away with Xiao Yan, picking up a table and sitting down.

His actions were a blatant attempt to distance himself from the two siblings, indicating that he didn't want to have much contact with them.

Xiao Yan gave him a look, the meaning in her eyes was very clear: "What are you plotting with this act?"

Ever since being thoroughly deceived by Qin Ji, Xiao Yan's understanding of him has greatly increased. Just now, from the slightest expression he showed, she knew that he was acting.

But the brother and sister who had suddenly lost all their relatives did look pitiful. In the end, it was still that bit of compassion that was at play. If possible, Xiao Yan would actually not want Qin Ji to drag them into any more life-or-death disputes.

However, thinking back to what Qin Ji just said, no matter what he was planning, although his tone was cold, his suggestion was for the sake of the two of them. If the brother and sister only wanted a peaceful life in the future, returning to their hometown with their guards and family property was indeed the best solution for them at this time.

Qin Ji tapped Xiao Yan's hand twice with his fingertips, signaling her to calm down.

Shen Nan, who was still kneeling on the spot, listened to what his benefactor had said and saw his indifferent appearance. A hint of surprise flashed in his lowered eyes. After the surprise, he pondered: "This person saved his brother and sister, wasn't it to use them?"

Qin Ji admitted that after witnessing the murder of the Shen family last night, he did indeed have some ulterior motives towards the brother and sister when he rescued them.

However, if they had listened to his advice and allowed loyal guards to accompany them home with their wealth, then his schemes would have never existed and would never have surfaced again.

Now it's up to them to choose.

A moment later, Shen Nanhe suddenly stood up and took a few steps forward, walking to Qin Ji again before kneeling down once more: "Benefactor, please have mercy on us. My brother and I want to return to the capital. Please take us with you. We cannot let our family die in vain at Sanniu Gorge. Even if it costs us our lives, we will go back to seek justice."

Xiao Yan sighed softly to herself; they had ultimately chosen revenge.

Qin Ji looked at Nan He, but his gaze was more profound than before.

After a few breaths, he reached out and helped the man up: "Get up. Our caravan is indeed heading to the capital, but the road ahead may be even more dangerous than what you experienced last night. Are you sure you want to come with us? Even if you are heading to the capital, it would be safer for your guards to protect you on your way back than for you to travel with us."

"The road ahead may not be peaceful; you need to think carefully." Qin Ji's words carried a strong hint of ambiguity.

Shen Nanhe clearly understood the implication, but his expression did not show any sign of retreat; instead, it became even more resolute: "Nanhe humbly requests that our benefactor give us a ride."

The more this person hinted at the dangers ahead, the more unfathomable Shen Nanhe felt this person was.

Although the man's true identity was still unknown, Shen Nan believed he knew the true identities of the bandits from the previous night. Anyone who could so readily attack the assassins sent by the Marquis of Dingbei was no ordinary person.

Moreover, this morning he even heard these people say that last night they not only killed all the bandits in the canyon, but they also led men to level the bandit's den.

This further convinced Shen Nanhe that the mysterious owner of the merchant guild must be an enemy of the Marquis of Dingbei, and an enemy who was completely unafraid of the Marquis's power. As long as he still harbored the desire to avenge his family, he could not let such a person go.

......

Three days later, the Second Prince's residence in the capital received two secret letters at the same time. Strangely, both letters were sent by carrier pigeon from Sanniu Gorge.