I should have just taken advantage of their paralysis and finished them off!
Cheng Ruyi felt a little regretful, but after thinking about it carefully, she felt that it was safer to do things the way they were now. Who knew what trump cards they might have? If the other side decided to fight to the death, they would be the ones who would suffer. So it was safer to stick to the plan, delay the time, and wait for reinforcements from the rear.
Seeing the altar broken and the most important "holy blood" spilled all over the ground, the leader became extremely nervous, as if he had lost his composure. He didn't even think about chasing after the people to arrest them. He immediately organized people to get things to catch the precious "holy blood," while he searched everywhere for things to plug the cracks. The quarry was thrown into chaos.
Perhaps inspired by last night, Guo Xiaoyu took the opportunity to set fires several times during the night, some burning houses and others directly burning the clothes of the henchmen. They were not very harmful, but extremely humiliating!
By the time they managed to plug the crack in the alchemy furnace with great effort, midnight was almost over.
Cheng Ruyi remained where she was, firstly because it wasn't close to where the three of them had hidden before, and going back would require crossing an open space without any cover, which she dared not risk after using up her invisibility talisman; secondly, because when she entered the house, she saw a delicate little wooden box in the corner cabinet, and she vaguely felt that the contents must be related to her main quest.
Of course, she didn't intend to steal it right now or anything; she just wanted to stay here and keep watch so that she could take out the wooden box as soon as the reinforcements arrived, ensuring that the mission could be completed smoothly.
Just then, a dozen or so people in special uniforms rushed out of the entrance. They were agile and well-trained, and quickly knocked down the bandits. Then Guo Xiaoyu and Guo Qinglan also rushed out and joined the melee. A moment later, even the yamen runners arrived at the scene.
Cheng Ruyi's eyes lit up. It seemed that reinforcements had arrived, even faster than she had expected!
She carefully concealed herself and moved towards the house. When she reached the edge of the open space, she saw Guo Xiaoyu and another person in uniform fighting together against the bandit leader. Seeing that the three of them were evenly matched and it seemed that no one could gain the upper hand for a while, she immediately ran into the house, grabbed the wooden box, and ran away!
"You audacious little thief! Put the stuff down for me!" The bandit leader, as expected of someone whose martial arts level was a level higher than Guo Xiaoyu's, was able to keep an eye on the situation in the house even when he was being held back. Moreover, after discovering Cheng Ruyi, he was able to withstand the attack and seriously injure two people with his own hands, and then rushed towards Cheng Ruyi.
Seeing this, Cheng Ruyi was terrified. She immediately threw the wooden box in her hand far away and then ran away in the opposite direction with all her might!
Are you kidding me? No matter how important the mission is, if I lose my life, I'm done for!
Fortunately, after taking the wooden box, the leader only turned around and glared at her fiercely before turning away, trying to escape.
"Listen to my command, everyone! Capture the bandit leader with all your might! Do not fail!"
Upon hearing the order, the uniformed men and constables immediately gave chase and quickly left the quarry.
Cheng Ruyi then realized that these people looked very unfamiliar and did not seem to be from Huaishan County. Moreover, she did not recognize the person who had just shouted.
"Madam Cheng, are you alright?" After instructing the yamen runners, Registrar Peng jogged over to her side and finally breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that she was in good spirits.
According to him, Dongming County in the north sent people immediately after receiving the notice from Magistrate Luo, which is why they were able to arrive earlier than the reinforcements from Huaishan County. Moreover, the magistrate of Dongming County comes from a prominent family and has a group of highly skilled bodyguards by his side. It was those bodyguards who just dealt with the bandits.
He had just visited the children with Guo Qinglan and the others. Most of them were still alive, but for some reason they were all unconscious. Although the situation was not optimistic, at least for the time being, they were not in any immediate danger.
Seeing that the yamen runners of Huaishan County had taken control of the quarry, Cheng Ruyi took out most of the "Nourishing Energy Sugar Pills" and handed them to Registrar Peng, saying, "These are life-saving pills. You can crush them and give them to these children."
After receiving the pills, Registrar Peng thanked her gratefully and immediately went back to take care of the children. It wasn't that he didn't want to chase after the bandits, but with his current manpower, chasing them would not only fail to catch them, but might even offend the noble magistrate next door. It was better to focus on logistics and earn this stable credit.
"Cheng Ruyi! You've got some nerve!" Guo Qinglan, having settled everything, walked towards her angrily with Guo Xiaoyu. "You almost lost your life just now, do you know that?!"
"I was trying to find out who was behind the case, and they were clearly evenly matched just now. Who knew he would suddenly go berserk and rush over?" Unable to explain the mission, she could only offer a weak explanation.
"Actually, it wasn't a draw," Guo Xiaoyu explained. "His opponent was just hesitant at first, which is why he didn't go all out. To be honest, this was the first time I'd ever truly fought someone at the 'Masterful' level. It was definitely different from sparring with my master. Unfortunately, he ran away after only a few moves."
Guo Qinglan was even angrier after hearing this, "It's one thing for her to be unreliable, but how can you be like this too!"
Cheng Ruyi noticed that Guo Xiaoyu was holding her right shoulder and that Guo Qinglan was also pale, so she gave them both a "moisturizing energy candy".
After the two men swallowed the pills, she asked, "What do we do now? Should we stay and wait for Magistrate Luo? Or should we go after the leader?"
After discussing it, the three of them still felt that they should chase after them and see what was going on. It seemed a bit unreliable that the people of Dongming County would leave all their children with them and then go after the bandit leader without leaving a single one of them. Moreover, Guo Xiaoyu and Guo Qinglan could help if necessary.
"Xiaoyu and I will go, you stay here!"
"I want to go too, I can help~~" Cheng Ruyi argued. She had just obtained the core evidence and was almost able to complete the mission. How could she be willing to go back like this? "I'm quick-witted, maybe I can help everyone outsmart them."
Guo Qinglan and Guo Xiaoyu exchanged a glance. Considering Cheng's wife's behavior, they ultimately agreed to Cheng Ruyi's request.
After explaining things to Registrar Peng, the two of them each picked up Cheng Ruyi with one hand and chased after her.
The chase led them all the way to the edge of a cliff.
The bandit leader was forced to the edge of a cliff. Although he was covered in wounds, he was still very fierce. Anyone who tried to get close was beaten until their heads were bleeding. For a moment, the two sides were deadlocked.
Here it is! One of the most classic locations for chase scenes in novels and movies: a cliff!
Cheng Ruyi couldn't help but complain in her heart as she quietly pulled the two of them around to a secluded spot on the edge of the cliff to hide, and then carefully observed them.
The cliff isn't actually that high, only about 20 or 30 meters high, and below the cliff is a river, which, judging from its geographical location, should be the Jinshui River.
"Is this height difficult for you? What would happen if you jumped?" Cheng Ruyi asked Guo Xiaoyu curiously.
“This…” Guo Xiaoyu paused for a moment, which was unusual for him, “If I can successfully find a few footholds, it’s possible to jump down safely, but the prerequisite is that I can swim. Can bandits swim? I certainly can’t. If I jump down, I’ll probably be in big trouble.”
Indeed, Cheng Ruyi also discovered that most people in this era could not swim.
So now the question is, can the bandits swim? She thinks they probably can't, otherwise, with their skills, they would have jumped off and escaped long ago, instead of struggling like this on the edge of the cliff.
While the three girls were hiding aside discussing what was none of their business, the battle over there had already reached a fever pitch.
Suddenly, someone in the crowd shot out a hidden weapon, which flew straight towards the bandit leader at great speed. The leader barely managed to dodge it, but when he turned around, he exposed an opening behind him and was hit hard with a palm.
The leader was sent flying by a palm strike. At the same time, the wooden box was also thrown into the air and landed on an open space not far from Ruyi and the others. When the nearby yamen runners saw this, they rushed over and picked up the wooden box. Just as they were about to turn around and run away, they were instantly shot through the heart by an arrow shot from the woods. They fell straight to the ground, still holding the wooden box.
"Watch out, everyone! There's an ambush!"
Unexpectedly, the bandits had accomplices lying in ambush in the woods. Guo Xiaoyu and Guo Qinglan exchanged a glance, left Cheng Ruyi with only the words, "You hide here!" and then leaped into the woods.
Cheng Ruyi didn't have many life-saving tools left, so she dared not act recklessly. Therefore, she obediently huddled in the grass and remained motionless, hoping to survive until she was safe.
Unfortunately, fate had other plans. With a gasp, Cheng Ruyi looked up and saw an exquisite wooden box gracefully flying towards her in a parabolic arc, landing precisely in her arms...
Cheng Ruyi watched as the bandit leader, covered in blood and like a mad beast, roared at her, "It's you again!" Then, for some reason, he suddenly seemed possessed, unleashing his full power, throwing aside the constables blocking his way with one hand, and charging towards her with red eyes.
Help! This is the end for me!
Without a second thought, she grabbed the wooden box, turned, ran two steps to the edge of the cliff, and leaped into the surging river, her figure disappearing instantly...
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