Zhao Zuoling was still a little dazed, but the look Lu Cijian had given him just now made him feel a little scared.
Although these city guards hadn't been on the battlefield for a long time, they were still men who frequently handled knives and were quite familiar with these river bandits.
He never really took those river bandits seriously, let alone Lu Cijian.
Although he had heard from some soldiers last night about how formidable Lu Cijian and Jiang Yimian were, he still didn't take it to heart, thinking that the soldiers in the city were exaggerating.
However, Lu Cijian's casual glance just now revealed a hint of murderous intent in the other person.
He had never seen such a look in anyone else's eyes, let alone in a civil official, except for those generals who had killed countless enemies on the battlefield.
He immediately put aside his contempt and quickly stepped forward, respectfully standing beside Lu Cijian, and asked, "Sir, what should we do next?"
Lu Cijian simply said, "There are probably more bandits on this island than you think. Lord Lin and Liu'er have certainly been captured by them. Listen to my instructions later."
Zhao Zuoling simply responded and didn't say anything more. He fell silent, and the previous ease on his face was gone.
The other soldiers are in the same situation now. After all, they have dealt with those river bandits quite a bit and know how cunning they are.
Now that they've been openly on the island for so long, and those people still haven't shown up, it's clearly not a good sign.
They didn't believe the bandits hadn't discovered their trail. Since they hadn't shown up yet, there was only one possibility: those people were waiting for them to come to them.
Just like when a powerful beast catches its young prey, it will give the prey some time to escape, making the prey think that it has a chance to escape.
However, the next moment they will be devoured by wild beasts.
For a moment, everyone's steps became heavier.
Seeing this, Lu Cijian hesitated for a long time before stopping and looking at the people behind him, saying, "You should all know that there will be casualties when we come here to suppress bandits."
So you need to listen carefully to what I'm about to say.
In order to minimize casualties, I expect you all to follow my instructions.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Zuoling simply replied, "I will do as Lord Lu says."
He originally thought that this bandit suppression mission would be a very easy task.
But now that they've arrived on this island, they realize that those pirates are not so simple.
It's really strange that they haven't encountered a single bandit after being here for so long.
It's obvious that those people have already prepared everything, waiting for us to jump into the fire.
It's a pity they only understand now.
Although the other soldiers didn't speak, their eyes were fixed on Lu Cijian with seriousness, clearly indicating their agreement. Seeing this, Lu Cijian breathed a sigh of relief, made some arrangements for the next steps, and then continued walking deeper into the forest.
But the moment he turned around, his grip on the sword at his waist tightened, and his brows furrowed.
The situation here must be worse than he imagined.
This battle will not be easy.
The deeper they went into the forest, the more surprised they became, feeling that Lu Cijian had been prescient.
The forest in front of us is so dense that anyone who wanders into it by mistake will surely get lost.
Even they, without those hidden marks on the ground and the torches they held high, would probably have been lost in the forest long ago.
Forget about finding the bandits; you might end up being eaten by wild animals in the forest yourself.
As soon as you pass through the woods, you can see the bright lights on the distant mountaintops, the throngs of people, and two people tied up in the open space in the very center.
Lu Cijian paused in his steps.
The soldiers behind him were also stunned, their eyes filled with disbelief.
The mountaintop was densely packed with people, far more than the city's garrison soldiers they had previously assumed, not less than 20,000.
They never really understood these river bandits.
Thinking of this possibility, everyone's steps became heavier.
As they approached, they saw who the two people tied up in the center were, and they both gripped the swords at their waists tightly.
Lin Yan'an and Liu'er were surprised to see a familiar person halfway up the mountain; they never expected Lu Cijian to be there.
But he immediately realized what was happening and frantically tried to tell the people below to leave immediately.
Unfortunately, their mouths were stuffed with rags, so they could only utter unclear syllables and couldn't convey any useful information.
Upon seeing this, Zhao Cheng simply smiled, rose from under the eaves, and looked at the person not far away, saying, "Lord Lu, it's been a long time! How have you been?"
He thought it might be difficult to see this person again, but to his surprise, they met again just over two months later.
Last time, he and the prince lost to this person, and this time, he's going to get it back with interest.
Lu Cijian simply looked at him coldly and said indifferently, "Release them."
Zhao Cheng, however, seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world. He picked at his ears and said incredulously, "What did Lord Lu say? Release them?"
Why did I release them? Didn't Lord Lu specifically send them here as bait? What, are you having second thoughts?
I've done exactly what Lord Lu wanted! You should thank me.
If he hadn't seen these two people, why would he have stayed here, willingly waiting for them to come to him?
Everyone was stunned by these words.
Lin Yan'an's eyes widened instantly, somewhat incredulous.
If his mouth hadn't been stuffed with rags, he would have definitely started cursing.
This guy surnamed Lu knew perfectly well that these bandits were not simple, yet he still deliberately lured him to the island.
Now he's not only betrayed him, but also Liu'er. He and this bastard are sworn enemies.
Seeing this, Zhao Cheng simply raised his hand.
The scarred man quickly removed the rag from Lin Yan'an's mouth.
Lin Yan'an was immediately enraged and cursed, "You surnamed Lu, have you been jealous of me all along? You actually used me as bait. You wait, if I get out of here alive this time, I will definitely, definitely, definitely not let you get away with it."
He insisted on complaining to Sister Jiang; he's no good.
Zhao Cheng raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. "Oh, it seems Lord Lu didn't tell them! Tsk, using two living people as bait just to get me to show up."
Lord Lu is treating them far too cruelly. If it weren't for my kindness, these two would probably be dead by now.
"Hey, you city guards, did you hear that? You dare come with someone like that? Aren't you afraid he'll get you all killed?"
The city guards were stunned for a moment, but not because they were afraid of dying there.
It was somewhat unexpected that Lu Cijian, knowing full well that this place was fraught with danger, still sent his acquaintances up as bait.
This is something that could easily lead to death if one is not careful, yet this person seems completely unconcerned, which seems rather cold-blooded.
Can such a person really be a good general?
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