Chapter 329: Jianghu Rules

While he was hesitating, the boat was only a few feet away from the shore.

"Look, there are people on the shore!"

As Chu Xin's shout rang out, everyone looked towards the shore at the same time. Sure enough, they saw several dark figures in the moonlight. They were dragging something with all their strength, as if they were playing tug-of-war.

In a blink of an eye, the boat had reached the shore. Zhu Lan and his companions were alert. Chen Li was so frightened that her face turned pale and she shrank into the cabin. Chu Xin hid behind Zhu Lan nervously.

Zhu Lan and Zhu Qingyan were standing on the boat, and only then could they see the people on the shore clearly. They were wearing ordinary people's clothes, but they didn't light torches, so they were obviously not righteous people.

Zhu Qingyan reacted quickly. She had already put away her soft sword, bowed to the shore, and said loudly;

"We are all in harmony, let's just say it's short!"

Seeing Zhu Qingyan, a weak-looking little girl, speaking like an old man, she said that she knew the rules and asked everyone to calm down. The people holding weapons on the shore were a little surprised and looked back at the same time.

Zhu Lan looked behind them and saw a burly figure walking out. He had a scar on his face and it was obvious that he was not a good person. He seemed to be the leader of this group of people.

A shorter and thinner man next to him looked at Zhu Qingyan suspiciously, as if he was a little wary, and said something in the ear of the burly man.

The burly man nodded, raised his hand to let everyone leave, and was quite polite to Zhu Qingyan, bowing and saying:

"It's a short distance, but the water level has risen and we need some money to use."

Zhu Qingyan frowned slightly and asked Zhu Lan in a low voice: "What should we do? They said they are short of money and need money."

After Zhu Qingyan finished speaking, he lowered his voice a few notches and asked if they wanted to take action.

She looked at the other group. There were five of them in total, and the only one who looked powerful was the burly man.

When I was in the Northern Frontier, Ah Jing would teach me a few moves whenever she had time, and before she left, she gave me a sword manual. I never wasted a day, and now my sword skills have improved a lot.

She really didn't take the five people in front of her seriously.

Zhu Qingyan's hand had already reached for his waist, but was held down by Zhu Lan without making a sound.

It was dark and windy here, and I was unfamiliar with the place. I didn't know if the other party had any accomplices nearby. Once they showed their weapons, it would be difficult to settle the matter peacefully. In addition, there were five people on the other side, and only Zhu Qingyan knew martial arts. If they really started fighting, swords and knives had no eyes, and it would be too dangerous.

In the current situation, I am isolated and helpless, so it is better to try not to cause any trouble.

So Zhu Lan asked everyone to hand over all the money they had on them to avoid disaster.

Zhu Lan and Zhu Qingyan were the first to take off their purses. Chu Xin had no money on him. Although Chen Li was afraid, she still handed the bag in her hand to Zhu Qingyan tremblingly.

Zhu Qingyan came in front of his fourth uncle, who looked very hesitant.

Zhu Qingyan raised his eyebrows, "Is money more important or life more important? Can't you tell the difference?"

Fourth Uncle must have understood. He sighed heavily and winked at the girl with short braids.

The boy with short braids' legs began to shake. He walked tremblingly into the cabin and pulled out a worn wooden drawer, which contained some loose change. It seemed that it was the fortune he and his fourth uncle had earned from ferrying people across the country for many years.

Zhu Qingyan gathered all the property handed over by everyone and walked up to the burly man. She was not even as tall as the man's shoulders, but she walked calmly without any fear.

She handed over the money and asked in a dignified and calm manner in code whether they could leave.

The big man looked at her with a hint of admiration in his eyes. He took the property, glanced at it, and threw it to the thin man beside him. He waved his hand, and three of his men jumped into the water, crawled under the boat like loaches, and took off the iron hook on the boat.

Zhu Lan thought that these three men should be former pirates. It was they who sneaked into the river, quietly hung the iron hook on the wall of the boat, and then returned to the shore to pull the rope and pull the boat directly over.

But since they are pirates, wouldn't it be more advantageous to attack directly on the water?

Now that the current crisis has been resolved, Zhu Lan doesn't want to continue to dwell on it.

The burly man even came to the boat in person and made a "please" gesture to Zhu Qingyan, really like someone who knew the "rules".

Zhu Qingyan had a sullen look on his face. He asked his fourth uncle, Little Short Bian and Zhu Lan to return to the boat first, and he was the last one to get on board.

Fourth Uncle and Zhu Lan both got on the boat, and then it was Short Bian's turn. He could not even walk steadily, and under the moonlight, one could even see that the color of his trousers had turned darker.

He stepped onto the deck tremblingly, but he lost his balance and fell forward, with two pieces of silver falling out of his arms!

Fourth Uncle's face changed immediately. He wanted to raise his foot to step on the silver, but it was too late. The burly man grabbed her short braid by the back of her collar and lifted her up, and she fell heavily to the ground behind him, letting out a scream.

"Shoulder to shoulder..." Zhu Qingyan was startled and was about to say something, but the other party raised his hand to signal her not to care.

According to the rules of the underworld, if the other party has emptied out all his assets, then the bandits have to show mercy to the other party and send the person away in a dignified manner. This is called "reciprocity."

But if the other party has ulterior motives, then that would break the rules.

Money matters little, rules matter much. If someone succeeds in playing tricks under your nose, you will have no face to mix in the underworld if the news gets out.

The burly man shouted, and several of his men immediately stepped forward, tied up the girl's legs with a hemp rope as thick as a finger, and hung her upside down on the tree.

The little boy was in pain and scared, crying for his parents. The fourth uncle was about to rush over to save his son, but the burly man grabbed his clothes and he could no longer move forward.

Zhu Qingyan placed his right hand tightly on his waist, ready to draw his sword at any time, watching every move of the people in front of him.

The man with short braids refused to hand over all his belongings, and he broke the rules of the underworld by hiding his belongings. The other party would definitely punish him. Now it depends on how the other party wants to end the matter. If he just wants to whip him a few times, or pour some ice water on him, as a minor punishment, Zhu Qingyan will not take action.

This little girl with short braids has a bad character. She was restless on the boat just now. I don't know how many girls on the boat have been harassed and teased by him before.

As long as his life wasn't harmed, Zhu Qingyan thought it would be good to let him suffer a little so that he would remember it.