Chapter 284 Mediation
Shen Wanxue and Rong Zhenbang both looked at Xia Juanjuan strangely.
Xia Juanjuan could only laugh dryly, not knowing what to say.
In just a short while, the group of horse thieves had come much closer!
Xia Juanjuan's heart sank. She had space, so it would be easy for her to escape.
But if that's the case, Rong Zhenbang and Shen Wanxue will still not be able to escape the fate of being killed, and if a fierce battle comes later, they will probably still be injured... If that's the case, what's the point of her traveling thousands of miles and going through so much trouble for these few days?
No! She couldn't let things continue to develop according to the script in her dream.
However, having said that, the horse thieves were outnumbered, riding horses, carrying swords, daggers, and homemade earthenware warehouses!
On their side, Shen Wanxue and Rong Zhenbang were both over fifty years old, and had been trapped in the blizzard for several days. They didn't even have the strength to stand steadily. As for weapons, apart from the Browning she secretly took out from the space before and a few small daggers, they had nothing else! How to fight against the horse thieves who were outnumbered?
Xia Juanjuan looked around anxiously, and suddenly, she pulled Shen Wanxue and Rong Zhenbang and ran towards the west.
"Dad, Mom, I see there seems to be a river over there, let's run over there!"
Rong Zhenbang was stunned for a moment, then nodded immediately and said, "Yes! Yes! It's frozen now, but the road is slippery. They chased us on horseback, and if they weren't careful, the horse's leg would be broken! Wanxue, try harder! It doesn't matter if the two of us die, but we can't let Juanjuan lose her life with us!"
After hearing this, Shen Wanxue also struggled and said, "Yes! We can't give up! I... I can still hold on! Let's run!"
After hearing what Rong Zhenbang said, Xia Juanjuan couldn't help but feel respect in her heart.
As expected, he had served in the military, and he immediately figured out why she made such a suggestion!
However, she was considering hoping that the horse thieves' horses would break their legs, and she had a backup plan in mind.
No matter what, we can only take a gamble!
The three of them immediately got up and ran quickly towards the riverbed in the west!
This river is very big, with a width of seven or eight meters from one bank to the other. It is a relatively important river in the area. The herdsmen's cattle, sheep, horses, etc. all have to drink water from this river to quench their thirst.
Therefore, there are ice holes dug from time to time on the edge of the ice surface to provide water for sheep and cattle. In addition, there are some ice holes dug for catching fish.
There have been blizzards raging these days, and the ice surface is covered with a thick layer of snow, which is very deceptive, making people think that it is also a snowfield, not an ice surface.
Xia Juanjuan had walked here before, so she knew the location of this river.
The three were afraid to run to the riverbed. Even if it was covered with snow, their feet would slip and it would be difficult to walk if they stepped in.
Xia Juanjuan simply let Rong Zhenbang and Shen Wanxue crawl on the ice, and then gave each of them a dagger that could be hidden in the boot, and let them use it as support to slide directly across the ice!
When the horse thieves saw the three people fleeing in panic, they were not upset, but became more interested.
What they love most is to see the desperate look of their prey who are at the end of their rope.
Moreover, the harder you struggle to catch the prey, the sweeter it will be when you enjoy it after catching it!
The horse thief leader rode his horse and looked at Xia Juanjuan with lustful eyes.
Although it was far away, the snowfield was endless and he could still see Xia Juanjuan's beautiful face when she turned back in panic.
She is completely different from the women on the grassland who are exposed to the sun all year round. Her skin is almost as white as snow!
He couldn't wait to strip her naked on the snowy plain to see if her skin was as white as milk!
Because of this dirty and excited mood, the horse thief leader consciously slowed down the pace of pursuit and played the trick of playing hard to get.
The other horse thieves were all of the same ilk. They immediately understood their boss's idea and followed suit, slowing down their pace a little.
However, this gave Xia Juanjuan and the others more time to escape.
Seeing that Xia Juanjuan and the other two had already run a long way, the horse thief leader suddenly shouted "Drive!" and rushed towards Xia Juanjuan and the others, waving his whip.
Xia Juanjuan heard the whooshing sounds from the horse thieves, turned around and saw that they were about to reach the ice.
She, Shen Wanxue and the others had almost reached the other side of the river and were struggling to climb up the shore.
At this time, the horse thieves had already stepped onto the ice. As time went by, the horses' hooves slipped, and the group of people were caught off guard. Several people fell down, and then one collided with another, and more than half of them, seven or eight people, fell down! Several horses' legs were also broken!
"Damn it! How can there be a river here! What does the guide do for a living?" The horse thief leader was so angry that he started cursing!
He was also thrown off his own horse and almost fell face first into the mud!
The horse thief in charge of guiding said tremblingly: "Boss, I'm sorry, I was careless for a moment and forgot about this!"
But it’s not a big problem!
Wasn't it just the loss of a few horses and a few falls? A dozen strong men couldn't catch up with the two old men and a woman?
They directly charged the three people they were chasing after for this crime. They will suffer the consequences soon!
The horse thief leader and other horse thieves simply abandoned their horses and ran towards Xia Juanjuan and the others!
"Girl! Don't think you can run away just by leading us onto the ice! Just wait and see what I'll do to you after I catch up with you!" The horse thief leader shouted even more arrogantly!
Shen Wanxue looked back and saw that the horse thieves had already staggered to the center of the river. She was terrified: "Zhenbang, Zhenbang! They are catching up with us! What should we do! What should we do!"
After hearing what the horse thief said, Rong Zhenbang now knew that their target was Xia Juanjuan, and immediately said: "Juanjuan, take Wanxue and run! I... I will hold them back here for a while, delaying the time..."
Before he finished speaking, there were two "crackling" sounds from the wood, echoing through the sky!
Rong Zhenbang subconsciously threw Shen Wanxue to the ground and protected her under him!
On the ice, the leader of the horse thieves was so angry that he yelled, "Damn it, which son of a bitch opened this wooden warehouse?"
Although they all carried earthen warehouses with them, they were used to prevent themselves from being engaged in close combat with the cavalry on the grassland.
Normally, a sword would be enough to plunder a lone herdsman, but firing a gun at this time might attract the attention of patrolling cavalry and lead them over.
The other horse thieves looked at each other, and none of them fired a shot!
Just when they were wondering, suddenly, a strange "crackling" sound came from under their feet!
The guide was stunned for a moment, and suddenly said in a trembling voice: "Boss, I'm afraid... the river surface has cracked!"
He knew best that the water flow in this river was relatively fast, so it froze later and the thickness of the ice was thinner than that of other completely frozen rivers.
Normally it will not crack, which ensures that the herdsmen and their cattle and sheep can cross the river separately across the ice!
This time, they had more than a dozen people and more than a dozen horses. It was already a bit dangerous, and then there were the two gunshots just now...
No one was injured, I'm afraid it hit the ice and caused a crack!
"Everyone... stay where you are..." the guide continued, but before he could utter the three words "Don't move", the 'crackling' sound of the ice surface suddenly intensified, and at the same time, the number of cracks on the ice surface increased and it began to crack, visible to the naked eye!
"Everyone run! Run!" a horse thief suddenly shouted, and then ran away.
When the others heard this, they were so nervous that they couldn't decide what to do, and they all rushed to the shore!
As a result, the ice surface cracked almost instantly, and several of the slower runners fell into the icy river water!
Rong Zhenbang and Shen Wanxue looked at the scene in front of them in astonishment.
The ice was so solid, how come it suddenly cracked?
Xia Juanjuan had already gotten up and pulled them aside, saying, "What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and run!"
Although the breaking of the ice could kill at least half of the horse thieves, there was no guarantee that there wouldn't be others that were fast enough to reach the shore.
If that happens, and the horse thief is caught, there is absolutely no chance that he will survive!
Rong Zhenbang and Shen Wanxue finally reacted, quickly got up and continued running!
Just as Xia Juanjuan expected, three or four horse thieves, including the horse thief leader, escaped to the shore!
Seeing his brothers' horses' hooves broken or falling into the water by these three men, how could he still have the confidence of victory? He could not help but get angry and took out his earthenware sling and aimed at Xia Juanjuan and the other two!
Another horse thief stopped him and said, "Brother, don't do it! It's not worth it for a woman! If we open fire again and really attract cavalry, we'll be finished!"
The bandit leader was so angry that he jumped up and down and said, "Chase! Damn it, I won't be a human being if I don't kill them today!"
Shen Wanxue was old after all, and suddenly she tripped and fell to the ground!
Just like that, a horse thief had already caught up with them, with his sword raised high: "Damn, you old bastard, go to hell!"
"Bang!" There was another wooden sound, and the horse thief looked down at his chest in disbelief, then slowly fell down!
Xia Juanjuan held the gun in both hands and looked at the horse thieves with almost fear.