Chapter 330: Catch Them All

The fourth uncle was still struggling desperately. The burly man became a little annoyed and winked at the thin man next to him.

Fourth uncle was knocked unconscious by a stick.

Zhu Qingyan looked at him coldly. She really didn't have much sympathy for this man who relied on his position as the captain to indulge his son in doing whatever he wanted.

After the thin man knocked the fourth uncle unconscious, he walked up to the man with short braids hanging upside down, raised his hand and slapped him hard in the face, causing blood to flow from his mouth and into his eyes.

The little girl with short braids whimpered and struggled even more violently, causing a few copper coins to fall from her arms.

None of the bandits picked up the copper coin, but stared at the girl with short braids with even gloomier eyes.

Seeing this, Zhu Qingyan knew that this group of desperate criminals were enraged again, and quietly unbuttoned the secret buckle on his belt.

The burly man looked at the copper coins on the ground, sneered, and drew out the big knife from his waist, ready to rip open the little guy with short braids.

In this remote wilderness, if one or two people died and their bodies were thrown into the water, there would be no trace left.

There was a flash of silver light, and the burly man let out a cry of pain. The long knife in his hand fell to the ground. He covered his right hand tightly with his left hand, and blood seeped out from between his fingers.

Zhu Qingyan swung his soft sword and cut the ropes on the man's feet. He fell heavily to the ground and fainted.

The other bandits finally reacted and drew their swords to attack Zhu Qingyan. Zhu Qingyan was as fast as a dragon and was fighting against four bandits alone, but he was not at a disadvantage at all.

The burly man's expression gradually became furious. His right hand was injured, so he simply picked up the knife with his left hand and slashed at Zhu Qingyan.

Zhu Lan was surprised. He didn't expect that this man could wield a knife with both hands, and it seemed that his skills were quite good.

He was already a big man, and at this moment he was like a madman, so he forced Zhu Qingyan to retreat several steps.

Zhu Lan hid behind a tree and observed intently for a moment. His eyes were sharp and he suddenly said:

"Qingyan, focus on attacking the little guy!"

Zhu Qingyan didn't know what Zhu Lan was thinking, but he stabbed forward with his sword without thinking.

Seeing this, the burly man became nervous and lost his composure. Zhu Qingyan took the opportunity to bypass him and stabbed the thin man's neck with his sword.

The scene suddenly became still. No one dared to move, and everyone looked at the burly man in confusion.

The burly man's expression changed, he took two steps back, and mumbled something.

Zhu Qingyan glared, "Speak properly, speak Mandarin!"

"Don't, don't hurt my brother!" The burly man finally said something Zhu Lan could understand.

She had just noticed that during the fight, every time Zhu Qingyan attacked the skinny little man, the burly man would step forward to block his attacks, obviously with the intention of protecting him.

Zhu Lan didn't know the relationship between the two, but he thought the best strategy was to take advantage of their weak points.

Zhu Qingyan raised his eyebrows, "Oh, it's your brother."

After saying that, he deliberately raised the sword a little higher, scaring the little guy so much that he trembled all over.

The burly man actually knelt down with a plop, begging Zhu Qingyan to show mercy.

Zhu Qingyan was a little surprised. He didn't expect that these vicious bandits were actually so loyal.

She raised her chin, and the burly man immediately had all the belongings moved onto the boat intact, and continued to look at Zhu Qingyan pleadingly.

Zhu Qingyan blinked, not knowing what to do next, so he had to look at Zhu Lan.

Zhu Lan walked forward, lowered his eyes and asked the burly man: "What's your name, and where is this place?"

The burly man immediately said his name was Zhou Tong and that this was a place called "Fangcaotan".

Zhu Lan glanced at the three people who had entered the water earlier, "Are you pirates?"

Zhou Tong was a little embarrassed and said that he and his brother were not, but the other three were once pirates.

The Zhou Tong brothers were originally gangsters. They were robbed of their mountain and came to Jiangzhou, where they planned to make a living on the water. They happened to meet a few fleeing bandits and took them in as their younger brothers, preparing to establish their own mountain.

Zhu Lan recalled seeing many soldiers at the ferry earlier. At that time, he heard that there were bandits on another river, so the government sent people to suppress them. It seemed that some fish slipped through the net and ran to the waterway to Xiangyang County.

She thought for a moment and then asked, "Are there any other thieves on this road?"

Zhou Tong nodded as if to show off his achievements. "Yes, yes! Many pirates have fled here. There are several more places ahead with their men, all waiting for passing ships! This is the first time you have taken this route today, and it is night now, they will definitely take action!"

"How can we avoid it?"

"This..." Zhou Tong thought about it and said that as long as three branches were erected on the bow of the boat, two long and one short, the bandits on the road would know that they were friends of the underworld.

We all make a living on the same river, so we should give each other some leeway and not fight.

Zhu Lan looked at Zhou Tong, who immediately understood and asked his men to cut a branch, then he respectfully inserted it on the bow of the boat with his own hands.

"Qingyan, bring people aboard."

Zhu Qingyan kicked the little guy on the butt and asked him to stand up and walk with him.

"Lady, this..." Zhou Tong hurried to catch up, but was forced back by Zhu Lan's cold gaze.

"If what you said is true, we will release you after we arrive safely in Xiangyang County. If you dare to deceive us——"

A sinister smile appeared on Zhu Lan's lips.

"Take him as the first sacrifice."

Zhou Tong wanted to use himself to exchange his brother back, but Zhu Lan ignored him and got on the boat.

Zhou Tong was a burly man with good kung fu skills. If he really got on board and had any bad thoughts on the way, it would be a big trouble.

The fourth uncle was awakened by someone splashing him with cold river water. He rolled and crawled to check on the injuries of Little Short Bian. He found that his son was still alive, and that’s why he didn’t faint from crying.

The short braid was moved to the boat, and the fourth uncle dared not neglect it anymore, and honestly rowed the boat again. He was trembling all the way, and his eyes kept glancing at Zhu Qingyan behind him, and the thin man with the soft sword on his neck.

Along the way, Zhu Lan and the others were alert and on guard against the surroundings. When the boat passed through several shallows, they could vaguely see a few small boats without lanterns coming towards them in the night, but when they saw the big branches at the bow, they quietly retreated.

At first light, the ferry finally came into sight. Chen Li, who had not slept all night, stood up excitedly and said that Xiangyang County was ahead.

The boy with the short braid had also woken up, curled up with his legs hugged, and was still in fear. Chu Xin looked at him with contempt and cursed him with his mouth, "You deserve it."

Zhu Lan and his three companions, along with the skinny man and Chen Li, got off the boat. Zhu Lan wanted to pay the boat fare, but his fourth uncle refused to take it. Finally, Zhu Qingyan quietly put a few copper coins on the boat.

Chu Xin looked at the man with the sword on his neck and asked Zhu Lan, "Should we send this guy to the government?"

The outlaws sound like they are taking pleasure in revenge, but what they do is murder and robbery, and who doesn't have a few lives on their shoulders? Otherwise, the short braid wouldn't have been nearly ripped open.

Zhu Qingyan also looked at Zhu Lan with burning eyes.

Zhu Lan shook his head. "A gentleman's word is as good as his bond. Since I promised to release him once we arrive safely, I cannot break my promise. Otherwise, wouldn't that be a betrayal?"

After saying that, she asked Zhu Qingyan to put away his sword and release the man.

The man was overjoyed, praised the "heroine" twice, and ran away.

Zhu Qingyan looked indignant and somewhat unwilling, but then he heard Zhu Lan's calm tone:

"Inform the Xiangyang County Magistrate and send someone to follow them to see how they connected and catch them all in one fell swoop."