In the dim firelight, the woman's figure was graceful, her natural beauty accentuated by her coarse cloth clothes. Her face was flushed, and she smiled and cupped her hands in greeting: "Chief Jie, how have you been?"
Jiedu was both surprised and terrified.
To his delight, he saw Chu Jinjin. To his horror, he realized that his supposedly impregnable Black Eagle Stronghold had been so easily breached. Chu Jinjin had entered without anyone noticing. If she hadn't deliberately stolen the patrolling guard's purse and opened the armory, no one would have discovered her until now.
Thinking further, if she wanted to assassinate him, she probably already had.
Qingxiao quickly lit the candles and rushed over with a smile: "Miss Jinjin, it really is you! What brings you here?"
Before any news from the capital could reach them, Chu Jinjin was secretly summoned, a fact that ordinary spies could not obtain.
"It's a long story, but to put it simply, I was just passing by and happened to miss you two." Chu Jinjin glanced at Jie Du, understanding his concerns, and said with a smile, "Chief Jie, there's no need to worry. I'm a special case. Apart from me, there are probably very few people in this world who can get in. Ordinary soldiers shouldn't even think about it."
She comes from the apocalypse and has honed her skills by traversing the darkness for over a decade.
Fearing that Jie Du might be worried, Chu Jinjin took out something and threw it over.
Jie Du caught it accurately, squinted and examined it for a moment, the candlelight in his eyelids seemed to brighten considerably: "What, what is this?"
Chu Jinjin smiled and said, "This is a gift for you when we first meet."
It's just a climbing tool commonly used in later generations, made of fine cowhide with raised sections in the middle to increase friction.
Chu Jinjin's words weren't just empty words of comfort. Having witnessed it firsthand, she realized just how treacherous the Black Eagle Mountain stronghold's terrain was. The cliffs were almost vertical, and slippery in the middle. Without sufficient climbing skills and equipment, it would be extremely difficult.
If we want to take it down, where are we going to find so many soldiers who are good at climbing?
"Thank you, Miss Jinjin." Jie Du bowed deeply. He was overwhelmed with shock. From a way to detect lies, to a hot air balloon that could fly, and now a glove he had never seen before.
Chu Jinjin, how many more surprises are in store?
His intuition told him that if Chu Jinjin wanted to, she would have a great deal of hatred, so much that it could come infinitely close to his hatred.
Chu Jinjin clutched her stomach, saying weakly, "How about some actual thanks? I'm starving! Is there anything to eat?"
The most uncomfortable thing about traveling isn't the bumpy ride and the hardships of being exposed to the wind and sun, but the food.
The human stomach is so fussy.
In the past, during the apocalypse, you could just grab a bite when you were hungry and drink water from the roadside when you were thirsty. But now, even with clean food and water, you're still not satisfied.
Jie Du laughed heartily: "Prepare a banquet."
Qingxiao personally oversaw the process, and soon a table of the highest-grade dishes was prepared.
The food and cooks at Black Eagle Stronghold were certainly no match for those at the Chu family, but Chu Jinjin had only managed a few bites of dry rations since morning. She was so hungry that everything tasted delicious.
Jie Du was engrossed in studying the climbing gloves. He understood the protrusions on the gloves, but he didn't understand the countless tiny suction cups in the middle. Until he accidentally stuck them to the smooth tabletop, and when he tried to pick them up, he couldn't lift them up for a moment.
Jie Du was stunned and speechless.
"Don't overthink it. This is called a suction cup. The material is extremely rare and cannot be mass-produced." Back when Chu Jinjin was still a carefree young lady, she had always wanted to make a glove like this, but after searching all over the capital, she couldn't find anything similar to rubber.
When she finally gave up, her father accidentally discovered something similar in the northern desert.
However, even with raw materials, production is impossible without modern machinery.
In the end, it was the father who found a craftsman, and it took more than a year to barely finish making it.
Jie Du breathed a sigh of relief, unsure whether to feel fortunate or not.
"Eat slowly, no one will take it from you." Qingxiao has changed a lot. After leaving Manyuanchun, she has shed all traces of her former self. Wearing coarse cloth and hairpins, if it weren't for her unchanged facial features, no one would believe that she was the top courtesan who captivated countless powerful and wealthy people when she walked down the street.
Qingxiao's smile changed, becoming gentle and soft: "Miss Jinjin, you said you were just passing by, where are you headed?"
Chu Jinjin had almost finished eating and let out a satisfied burp: "The emperor ordered me to kill a few people."
Qingxiao: "...You've met the Emperor?"
How did he get involved with the Emperor in just a few days?
Chu Jinjin didn't hide anything, from the charity gala to the palace, and then complained, "I thought I was being sent to do disaster relief and investigate which official was corrupt or something, but it turned out to be murder."
Jie Du put down his climbing gear at some point and said in a low voice, "Let me see the list."
Chu Jinjin came here with this very intention.
"What a fine emperor! Does he think killing these people will solve all the problems?" Jie Du shook his head with a smile, a smile that seemed to be more than just mockery. "No one wants to be a bandit. The greatest desire of the people is simply to live a peaceful life. He kills one, but there will be another."
Chu Jinjin strongly agreed: "Chief Jie, in your opinion, should these people be killed?"
For her, killing was easy, but she couldn't kill without a reason. If the bandits on the list were all starving and had nowhere else to go, what would be the difference between her and an executioner?
Jie Du shook his head: "I don't know. I sent people to inquire in the north. All I can say is that most of those who are still alive have either become bandits or are preparing to do so. It's impossible to count."
Chu Jinjin grinned: "What about Zheng Zhengfeng, the Northern Governor?"
The imperial court's repeated disaster relief efforts had little effect, and this person was clearly the culprit. Chu Jinjin's real target this time was him, while the so-called bandit leader was far away from the emperor, and whether she killed him or not was up to her. At worst, she could explain the situation and find a place to live in anonymity.
“Zheng Zhengfeng deserves to die. I’ll tell you about his situation in detail later.” Jie Du pointed to a name on the list and said solemnly, “Miss Jinjin, this person must not be killed.”
Chu Jinjin glanced at her: "Li Dahua, what's wrong with her?"
She was very impressed by the name; the only female bandit on the list.
Qingxiao laughed and chimed in, "Li Dahua actually became a bandit leader? Impressive, hahaha."
Chu Jinjin sensed something unusual: "You two know each other?"
Qingxiao smiled and glanced at Jiedu: "Let the chieftain speak."
Jie Du seemed somewhat reluctant to speak: "She has mental problems, somewhere between a fool and a normal person."
Chu Jinjin: "...Idiot?"
Can a fool become a bandit leader?
“Li Dahua is born with superhuman strength and can kill a black bear with one hand. Miss Jinjin, if you really encounter her, you must be extremely careful. If she gets close, I'm afraid even the best kung fu won't help. She seems to have no feeling of pain.” Jie Du stopped there, looking strange.
Chu Jinjin was listening with great interest: "And then?"
A simple-minded girl with superhuman strength became a bandit leader, a story more exciting than any novel she had ever read.
Qingxiao chuckled: "Li Dahua has two hobbies. One is eating. She can eat as much as several strong men in one meal. It is said that she was kicked out by her family because of this. The second is that she likes handsome men."
Chu Jinjin: "......."
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