Chapter 251 Being Targeted by Thieves
"Master, someone's following us." The slave at the rear stepped forward to report the situation. "After we left the city, they've been following us. At first, there were only three idlers, so I didn't take them seriously. I didn't expect them to follow us for three days. At noon, eight more people jumped out of the village in the distance, and that's when I realized something was wrong."
Sui Yu subconsciously grasped the short blade hanging at her waist. She looked forward and saw a large green mountain stretching for more than 20 miles to the northwest. The official road also narrowed there, making it the perfect place for road robbery.
Song Xian drove her camels up the mountain. Standing on the higher ground, she could indeed see a dozen people lagging far behind the camel caravan. She beckoned over her servants and asked them what to do about the situation.
"Master, we have more people than them, and we have camels for transportation. We don't need to be afraid of them." Qingshan stepped forward and said, "They can't beat them, and they can't run away. They should be afraid of us."
Sui Yu nodded. "You're right, but do you see the mountain in front of you on the right? Be careful when you pass by there, there may be someone hiding in the woods."
"Could there be bandits?" Qingshan wondered.
"I can't say for sure, but let's be on guard." Song Xian came over on a camel and said, "My men will guard the south, yours will guard the north, and we'll have ten more people guarding the rear. My uncle Li said that this place isn't far from the county town, and Chang'an is to the east. We don't think there will be bandits who want to kill and kill people. It's most likely that they're mountain dwellers who want to rob people on the road, but only take the goods and leave people alone. So we're on guard against those who come down from the mountains to intimidate us. If the camel caravan is disrupted, the people behind us will take the opportunity to steal the camels and goods."
Sui Yu nodded, "Okay, I'll listen to you."
Sui Yu arranged for Zhang Shun and Li Wu to take Xiao Chunhong, Liu Yaer and Sancao to cover the rear. Similarly, Song Xian also assigned five servants to go there, and the rest of the people dispersed to guard both sides of the camel caravan.
Sui Yu and Song Xian walked in the middle. Song Xian didn't know how to shoot a bow and arrow, nor had she practiced stick fighting, so she could only use a machete to defend herself. However, she was protected by servants on both sides, so Sui Yu was not worried about her.
The men behind him caught up, and Zhang Shun raised his rattan bow and shouted, "Stop! If you come any closer, I'll shoot you."
"Brother, we are going to Chang'an. Please give us a ride." The idlers behind us were fawning and ingratiating. They slowed down their pace and continued to follow, saying, "We are all from the nearby village. We don't do bad things. You can't shoot arrows. If you hurt me, you will go to jail."
When Sui Yu heard the sound, she struck the gong to call for a stop, and then drove the camel to the end of the team.
"Sister Yu, what are you doing?" Song Xian shouted.
Gan Da and Gan Er looked at each other and quickly followed.
"No need to shoot arrows, just go over and hit them. Don't hit the head, hit the legs and feet. If you break any bones, I will pay to bail you out and will never let you go to jail." Sui Yu said.
As soon as these words were spoken, Li Wu rushed out with his machete, followed closely by Xiao Chunhong. Zhang Shun put down his bow and arrow, replaced it with a martial arts stick, and rode a camel with the Song family's servants to chase after them.
"You guys go over there too. Chase them two miles away and come back." Sui Yu said to Gan Da and Gan Er, "Remember, don't kill them, and it's best not to see blood either. Just hit them with a few sticks so that they can't get up for a while."
Gan Da and Gan Er responded, and the two brothers drove their camels to chase after them.
How can a lazy and idle man compare to a man who has practiced martial arts seriously? What's more, a camel is taller than a man. Before the stick is swung, they are already frightened and their bones become weak.
Song Xian drove her camel over and witnessed a one-sided fight. The fleeing thief was shouting that he wanted to report to the police. Li Wu rode his camel and chased after him with a machete in hand. He was so scared that he screamed for help and jumped into the ravine in panic. He rolled and crawled to the other end of the ravine and limped into the mountain.
"Catch them." Sui Yu changed her mind. She shouted "Go!" and drove the camel over, saying, "Catch them! Don't let them get away."
This group of idlers couldn't run away even if they wanted to. Under the sticks, they fell to the ground and cried out in pain.
"Are there any of your people hiding in the mountains?" Sui Yu jumped off the camel. She drew her sharp short blade and squatted down, saying, "If you don't want your tendons cut and you become a cripple, then tell the truth."
"Who are you? We just want to go to Chang'an to make a fortune, and plan to walk with you for a while." The man with a shifty look was cunning and insisted on his words. However, when he saw the man with a machete coming over and stepping on his arm, and the short knife flashing with a cold light pressed against his wrist, he shuddered involuntarily, and the light in his eyes disappeared.
Sui Yu lowered her eyes and calmly watched the blood oozing from under the blade. She held the knife and tried to lift the skin along the edge of the wound. The man happened to fall sideways and struggled. When he raised his arm, the wound was pulled from under the wrist to the palm, and blood gushed out.
Wang Er screamed in pain and broke out in a cold sweat. He glared at Sui Yu and said, "There are people on the mountain. We only want money, not lives. Leave half of the goods, and next time you come, we won't rob you again."
"You are quite righteous." Sui Yu smiled. She put away her knife and said, "Tie up these people. Gan Da, go inform Manager Song and integrate the team. We will leave now."
One ran away, and ten were tied up. Sui Yu arranged for people to take six bundles of coarse cloth and tie them behind the backs of the thieves, and tie their hands behind their backs. He also took four jars of wine and tied them in front of the other four thieves.
"Hold on tight, these things are your reward for this trip." Sui Yu pulled the hemp rope around Wang Er's neck and said, "We merchants value peace and harmony and don't want to make enemies. Later, tell your companions that we are willing to spend money to avoid disaster. Once we get out of this Daqing Mountain, these things will be yours. Of course, I have to trouble you to accompany me. After we get out of this mountain, I will let you go."
"It's too little. You should change the coarse cloth into silk cloth." Wang Er bargained, "Our boss will definitely not agree."
"It's okay. It doesn't matter if the cloth is cheap. As long as your lives are not cheap, that's all that matters." Sui Yu pulled an arrow from the quiver and put it to his neck, saying, "Remember, if anyone hiding in the mountains comes out, you ten will be the first to die. Your lives are in your own hands."
After saying this, Sui Yu said to the servants with a cold face: "Did you hear that? Whenever the bandits come down the mountain shouting for war and killing, you should chop off their heads with the knives in your hands first."
"Leave this job to us, so that some of you won't be hesitant to do it. We've killed people before." The Song family's servants came over and took the rope. They rode on camels, dragging the heavily laden thieves, and shouted in hoarse voices, "Hurry up."
Sui Yu fell a few steps behind. She whispered something to Li Wu, who nodded with a smile.
The caravan continued to move forward, and the official road turned right along the mountain. Before all the camel caravans had turned in, Sui Yu picked up the gong and struck it.
"Boss, you can't push the stone!" Wang Er shouted in a shrill voice. "This caravan is willing to spend money to avoid disaster. The money and goods have already been given to us."
"Second brother, don't go down the mountain, they want to kill us." The man, whose face turned purple from being strangled, shouted.
"Listen up, people in the mountains! If you don't want these ten men dead, don't show up. Our leader is willing to give us six pieces of silk, four jars of wine, and four thousand coins to buy their safety," Li Wu shouted. "Once they leave this mountain, we will let them return and give them the money and goods."
"How do we know if you keep your word?" the people hiding in the mountains shouted.
"Believe it or not, at worst you can just come out and we will kill them first, and then fight you to the death." The servant of the Song family shouted in a rough voice, and at the same time, he used force with his hands to tie the thief's neck like a hanged chicken.
There was no movement in the mountains, and the camel caravan on the official road sped up. After a while, the entire caravan entered the alley between the mountains.
Sui Yu asked Song Xian to walk in front and guard, and she stood at the end of the team. The Song family's servants were also there. They gave her a signal, and the bandits on the mountain followed them.
Sui Yu breathed a sigh of relief. As long as there were no rocks rolling down the mountain, the caravan would not suffer any loss.
Half an hour later, the bandits walking in the mountains and forests came down. There were about forty or fifty of them in a large group. They followed the caravan not too far away, obviously trying to prevent them from breaking their promise.
"How do you choose your targets?" Sui Yu asked the thief carrying the wine jar, "Do you rob all the caravans passing by?"
Wang Er was so tired that he was out of breath. He gasped for breath and pretended that he had no strength to answer.
"When the master asks you, just tell the truth." The servant of the Song family kicked him.
Wang Er's body tilted and he was about to fall to the ground, but the servants pulled the rope around his neck and dragged him up, almost strangling him to death.
Half of the mulberry wine was spilled, and the strong smell of alcohol was inhaled into Wang Er's lungs along with a hoarse and lung-wracking cough. He looked like he was drunk, and his whole face was red and purple.
Sui Yu turned her face away in disgust and went to ask another thief.
"We don't rob every caravan. We have people in the county town. We will inquire about the caravans entering. We only rob small caravans. We chose you because there are women in your caravan." He confessed honestly.
"Didn't anyone report it to the police? Don't the officials in your county care?" Gan Da asked.
"We live in the mountains. The police came in to look for us a few times, but after coming up empty-handed, they just left us alone."
"Did they accept bribes?" Sui Yu didn't believe it. These thieves wouldn't stop just to make a quick buck. If the government wanted to intervene, they could catch them by disguising themselves as a merchant caravan.
No thief was willing to answer, even the thief who was coughing non-stop at the back shut up.
"People in front, let our people go, leave the money and goods behind, and then go your separate ways." The thief following behind shouted.
Gan Da looked at Sui Yu, who shook his head, "Tell them we're afraid they'll change their minds and won't let them go until they leave this mountain."
Gan Da went to shout, Sui Yu drove the camel forward, and she discussed with Song Xian how to catch the thief.
"Once we leave this mountain, we will no longer be under the jurisdiction of Taiyuan County. We will capture the thieves and send them to Chang'an." Sui Yu said excitedly.
"Their number is about the same as ours. Isn't that a bit risky?" Song Xian asked. Then she realized, "You didn't intend to give them the money and goods from the beginning?"
"That's right." Sui Yu smiled. "Why should we keep good faith with thieves? We worked so hard to earn money, so why would we give it to them? As for the number of people, we have camels, bows, and swords, so we still have a chance of winning. We can capture as many as we can. Otherwise, they will rob us again when we come here next time."
Song Xian was a little undecided, so she went to discuss it with the servant her father had left for her. The servant agreed with Sui Yu's idea, so she didn't say anything more.
After walking for another hour, there were only about thirty people following behind. They became more and more impatient and kept shouting and cursing. If they had not been out of their territory, they would have started fighting long ago.
Sui Yu called Zhang Shun and Li Wu and asked them to tell the others that they could not go any further because the sun was about to set.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com