"What's going on? Where did those people come from? Weren't you not allowed to bring people?"
The surrounded bandits cried out in terror.
Those people dressed in green blended seamlessly with the surrounding dense forest; had they not taken the initiative, no one would have known they existed.
When exactly did they sneak in?!
These people were all highly skilled in martial arts, and their moves were incredibly agile, unlike those disciplined soldiers.
What they didn't expect was that their secret passage had been discovered by this group, and they had now blocked their way.
Within a few breaths, all the bandits were knocked to the ground by the group of men in green.
"Master, what should we do with these people?"
After defeating all the bandits, a man in green walked up to Xiao Ye and quietly asked him a question.
Xiao Ye glanced at them and said, "Leave these alive, and then have someone notify the soldiers down the mountain to attack. Your men will go after the bandits who escaped through the secret passage."
"yes!"
Soon, many of the men in green disappeared, having received their orders.
These people were not the five thousand he brought with him, but rather a force he had built up in the martial arts world.
Even before he set off from the capital, he had already sent a message to have his martial arts forces infiltrate Langya Mountain.
When they lead their troops to attack Langya Mountain, the bandits of Langya Mountain will focus all their attention on them.
Then, taking advantage of this opportunity, he used his influence in the martial arts world to control Langya Mountain.
Xiao Ye tied up several bandits alive, then walked up to the county magistrate's daughter.
He glanced at her suspiciously, but didn't ask any further questions for the time being. He simply ordered the people around him, "Take her away with you!"
A glint of light flashed in the woman's eyes, but she still pretended to be terrified and let them take her away.
Because the bandits' attention was focused on Xiao Ye, by the time the soldiers from the foot of the mountain came up, there were no more traps on the mountain.
Before long, they reached the top of Langya Mountain.
With the covert assistance of another group of Jianghu forces under Xiao Ye, Langya Mountain was quickly looted.
Although Xiao Ye sent men to ambush them in the secret passages, the passages were too complicated, and a fire broke out unexpectedly at the end, so they could only run away with the loot they had collected from the bandits.
Although many bandits had fled, at least one suspicious item was found in the cave, which they had dropped during their escape.
Armor in the military.
This kind of thing, which is only used by soldiers in battle, actually appeared in the bandit's den.
Xiao Ye immediately understood that someone was probably secretly training a private army under the guise of bandits in Langya Mountain!
Training private soldiers requires a lot of money, and when they didn't have enough, they turned their men into bandits!
Judging from their current posture, their private army training is almost complete, and the bandits of Langya Mountain will gradually attract the attention of the outside world.
So, they're using this opportunity to slip away unnoticed!
Xiao Ye carefully put away the armor, then returned to the government office from Langya Mountain with the captured prisoners and the many valuables seized.
When the magistrate saw Xiao Ye return alive, a look of astonishment quickly flashed across his eyes.
After a few seconds of stunned silence, she excitedly went to greet him.
"Your Highness! You're finally back! That's wonderful! What happened to those bandits? Were they all captured?"
Xiao Ye glanced at the magistrate suspiciously and chuckled, "Why does the magistrate seem to care more about bandits than his own daughter?"
His first reaction upon seeing that he had returned unharmed was not to look around for his daughter, but to inquire about the whereabouts of the bandits.
This is so contrary to how she knelt down and begged him to bring some fake gold to save her daughter the first time they met!
Xiao Ye thought coldly to himself.
Then, when he thought of the county magistrate's daughter he had brought back, a complex and wary look appeared in his eyes.
"Well... I am, after all, an official of the imperial court, and naturally I must first concern myself with matters of national importance before my own personal affairs. Your Highness, is my daughter still alive? If not, I can only..."
The magistrate gave an awkward, bitter laugh, then put on the act of a heartbroken old father.
"Bring the magistrate's daughter here."
Xiao Ye immediately had the county magistrate's daughter brought in.
When the magistrate saw his daughter, he was stunned for a moment before bursting into tears and hugging her.
Xiao Ye observed the two people's reactions, his gaze falling once again on the jade pendant at the woman's waist.
Suddenly, he asked, "Where did your daughter get the jade pendant at her waist?"
The magistrate and his daughter paused in their weeping embrace, but the woman finally turned around and looked at Xiao Ye with tearful eyes.
“This was a gift from a childhood friend of mine. I am very grateful to Your Highness for saving my life. If Your Highness likes it, I am willing to give it to you.”
"Sending off the orphan?"
Xiao Ye exclaimed in surprise.
She actually gave me that thing so readily?
I vividly recall the difficult days of my childhood, when the girl took care of me day and night and shared her meager rations with me.
Having no way to repay her, he gave the girl his jade pendant.
The girl was overjoyed, saying that this was the first time she had ever owned something so valuable and that she would cherish it dearly.
This time, even if they beat her to death, she would not give it to anyone else.
But now, the magistrate's daughter is offering to give it to me just because I asked a question and glanced at her?
Xiao Ye remained silent, his mind filled with complex emotions. Suddenly, he thought of Su Liluo in the manor.
Finally, he said coldly, "Then give it to me!"
He's already married, so what happened back then can only be considered a joke.
As for this woman, he should take good care of her.
but......
He glanced at the magistrate's daughter again, feeling that something was amiss.
So he remained somewhat suspicious, keeping a distance from her and never bringing up the events of that year.
The magistrate's daughter, however, was delighted, thinking that Xiao Ye had accepted her advances.
She took the jade pendant from her waist, took small steps to Xiao Ye, and handed the jade pendant to him.
"Your Highness, your savior is beyond words—"
The woman was about to express her gratitude for being saved and her desire to repay him with her body, but Xiao Ye suddenly interrupted her coldly.
"You don't owe me anything."
Xiao Ye quickly snatched the jade pendant from the woman's hand and turned to leave.
The woman stood there, stunned. How could this be?
Wasn't it said that the Crown Prince would treat him differently if he saw this jade pendant?
Why is the Crown Prince still so indifferent?
As the prince's figure was about to disappear from sight, the woman felt anxious, fearing that she would never have another chance to get close to him.
Then, the woman suddenly cried out.
"Your Highness, that jade pendant was my engagement token. Now that I have given it to you, I wish to repay your kindness by marrying you. Even if it's just as a maid or concubine, I would be willing!"
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