Liu Sisi could tell from the sound of the horse's hooves that there was still some distance between them; her hearing was exceptionally good, far beyond what most people could match.
Gu Lingchen also heard someone shouting for help. "Young Master, Miss, and Master Liu, hold on tight, we need to hurry," Ah Sheng said anxiously.
"What should we do? If the bandits get into the village, won't the whole village be doomed?"
Liu Sisi cursed her bad luck; she had just bought the shop and hadn't even opened for business yet! How could she have run into bandits?
"Don't worry, Sisi, my people won't let them near me," Gu Lingchen said calmly to Liu Sisi, showing no fear whatsoever.
Gu Lingchen's bodyguards always stayed hidden to protect him. If he was in danger, the bodyguards would definitely step in to resolve the situation.
Since the jade pendant was stolen last time, he has been much more careful and has arranged for secret guards to protect it.
“Young Master Gu, I’m worried about what will happen if the bandits enter the village. Your guards will protect you, but the village will be unprotected. My mother, brother, and sister-in-law are still in the village!” Liu Sisi said with concern.
“Ah Sheng, take my token and walk back through the bushes to the county government to report to the authorities. If they refuse to send troops, show them the token and ask them if they still want to be the county magistrate.”
Gu Lingchen knew that if the county magistrate was still unwilling to send troops after the report was filed, it was probably because the bandits were colluding with the government. If he didn't reveal his identity, he probably wouldn't be able to mobilize them.
“Then, young master, you…” Ah Sheng hesitated.
"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine, go quickly," Gu Lingchen said.
“Yes,” Ah Sheng had some martial arts skills and could protect himself without any problem. He took the token and disappeared into the bushes by the roadside.
The sound of horses' hooves grew closer, and Gu Lingchen's carriage was almost at the village. Liu Sisi heard the sound of weapons clashing, indicating that Gu Lingchen's men had already started fighting with the bandits.
As soon as Liu Sisi entered the village, she was dumbfounded. The bandits had already entered the village? There were two groups of bandits?
When Liu Dashi saw the mess in the village, he immediately thought of his wife and son at home.
"Young Master Gu, please take good care of Sisi for me. You and the coachman should find a place to hide quickly."
He immediately jumped off the carriage and ran towards home. "Xiuniang, Sifu, Sixi, Ping'er, you must not get hurt."
"Dad, you..." Liu Sisi called out to him.
Liu Dashi gave Liu Sisi a resolute look. "Daughter, you absolutely cannot get into trouble. You two should hide quickly. I can't abandon your mother and the others. You'll be safer with Young Master Gu."
Liu Sisi glanced into the village. Although it was a mess, there were no corpses. "It seems the bandits didn't kill anyone, they just came to rob us?"
"Sister Sisi, let's get off the carriage and hide for a while. My men will catch up after they've dealt with the bandits behind us. Let's hide and wait for Asheng to bring the government officials."
"Young Master Gu, please have the coachman take you to hide. I can't abandon my family." Liu Sisi had finally found a group of relatives who loved her, how could she just watch them die?
After saying that, he turned and went in the direction Liu Dashi had just gone without looking back.
"Sister Sisi," Gu Lingchen called out helplessly, but he didn't know martial arts and was still a bit weak, so he had to hide and wait for his people to arrive.
Liu Dashi returned home and looked around, but didn't see anyone. His heart sank, and he had a bad feeling. He went out of the house and walked into the village because he heard some crying.
A short while later, Liu Sisi also caught up. When Liu Dashi saw his daughter arrive, he said anxiously.
"Daughter, why did you come along? It's too dangerous. Go back and find Young Master Gu now, hurry."
"Father, have you forgotten? I have the Snake Fairy protecting me. I want to go with you to rescue Mother and the others. Stop arguing, let's quickly find out where Mother and the others are."
Inside a farmhouse courtyard in Tianshan Village.
"Shut up, all of you! Stop crying! Come and stand up straight. Women, stand over here; children, stand over here; men, stand over there. Once you're all in line, turn them all off."
A one-eyed man, holding a machete, cursed menacingly.
"Second Master, we've basically searched the entire village. There's hardly any grain; it's mostly unpolished rice, only a few hundred pounds, and half a bag of polished rice. We haven't found much valuables either, just a few silver bracelets and some loose silver," a henchman reported.
"Damn it, this village is so poor, but luckily there are some women and children. If we sell them to human traffickers, we can make a fortune, and then the brothers can have some fun again. Haha..." the second-in-command said with a wicked grin.
"Second-in-command, you're awesome! Second-in-command, you're awesome!" A bunch of henchmen cheered...
"Second Boss, the brothers haven't had any fun in a long time. How about we have our way with all these women first?" The henchman had a wicked thought when he saw the group of women.
"Get out of here! If you break this, how will I get money to sell it? We still have to pay tribute to the county magistrate. Otherwise, how will you have fun? Keep a close eye on things and don't get any funny ideas, or I'll take your dog's life."
"Understood, Second Boss," the henchman shrank back.
At this moment, Wu and Li Caiping were embracing each other, with Wu holding Li Caiping protectively in her arms. Both of them were trembling slightly.
Liu Sifu was imprisoned elsewhere, and Liu Sixi's whereabouts are unknown.
Liu Dashi and Liu Sisi followed the sound and found a secluded spot in the courtyard.
"Dad, you stay here and keep watch for me. I'll sneak in and take a look," Liu Sisi said.
"Daughter, be careful," Liu Dashi said, still not entirely at ease even though he knew his daughter was protected by the snake spirit.
Meanwhile, A-Sheng arrived at Magistrate Zhou's residence and told his servant that he wanted to report to the authorities and asked him to quickly inform the magistrate.
Magistrate Zhou was enjoying himself with his concubine in the mansion when he was disturbed. His face darkened, and he spoke to A-Sheng in a bad tone.
"What matter requires reporting to the authorities?"
Lord Zhou, there are bandits attacking in the direction of Tianshan Village. Please send troops to suppress them.
"What?" Magistrate Zhou's eyes darted around, thinking to himself, "That idiot Hu Jin, how could he release another one and cause such a scene right in front of me?"
Looking at Ah Sheng, who was alone, I thought I could detain him and kill him without anyone noticing.
Seeing that his expression was not right, A Sheng immediately took out the token. "Magistrate Zhou, look carefully. There are important people in your territory now. If our master gets into trouble in your territory, your whole family will lose their heads."
"A distinguished person? Really?" Magistrate Zhou had never seen a token from the imperial palace and was somewhat skeptical of its authenticity.
"Are you waiting for the imperial army to come out before you send troops? Do you still want to be the county magistrate?" A-Sheng's tone was getting a little harsh. Although his master had secret guards protecting him, his master didn't know martial arts. What if something happened?
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