Chapter 65 Shen You Doesn't Like It
As the sun set, Chu Xiao led his bandit-suppression troops out of the west gate.
Night enveloped the earth, and the boundless darkness served as their best camouflage.
The bandits robbed Shen Linhui and his group on the mountain path last night, and they won't be coming out again tonight.
Therefore, Chu Xiao had Cui Yang lead a small team to scout ahead beforehand. When the main force arrived at the foot of the mountain, Cui Yang returned with the information he had gathered.
"My lord, just like the information we gathered before, there are two gates, one in front and one behind. Their first lookout post is less than half a mile from the front gate."
"However, because they captured Shen Linhui, they transferred four or five people from the front to guard the woodshed at the back. Now there aren't as many people at the lookout post in front; they've all gone to the back ridge."
Amidst the howling mountain winds, Chu Xiao's cold and stern face was hidden in the dim light, making his strong jawline appear even more sharp.
He said coldly, "Proceed according to the original plan."
“Yes,” Cui Yang accepted the order and led his group away.
The remaining men, under Chu Xiao's orders, were divided into four groups: one group guarded the mountain pass, while the other three groups flanked it from three different directions.
There is no moon tonight, and it is dark all around. The cold winter wind howls through the bare branches, rustling softly.
Under the cover of night, a group of people made their way silently toward the bandit stronghold on the mountaintop.
Meanwhile, the bandit camp was brightly lit with candles.
Scarface tossed aside the leftover lamb leg bone in his hand, kicked the henchman who had delivered a message to Lin'an City that day, and asked, "Was that box given to anyone from the Marquis of Chengde's residence?"
The henchman quickly put down his wine bowl and said with a forced smile, "Don't worry, boss, it'll definitely be delivered."
"I personally handed the items to the people coming out before I left."
“Hmm,” Scarface nodded, and said nothing more.
The fat man and the tall, thin man both crowded around, holding wine bowls to toast him, their eyes gleaming with laughter. "Brother, soon we'll be rolling in gold!"
"Not only that! There are also stunning beauties!"
"Pah, what a loser."
Scarface chuckled and cursed, but unconsciously followed his words, imagining just how beautiful the beauty he hadn't yet obtained must be.
"Big brother, what should we do with that coward?"
"How do we handle this?" Scarface glared at him. "Do I need to teach you?"
"I was wrong, I was wrong," the fat man slapped himself in the face and smiled apologetically, "useless things should be killed and thrown into the mountains to feed the wolves."
Hahahahahaha.
However, their laughter didn't last long. The underlings rushed in anxiously, shouting, "Boss! Boss!"
"Something terrible has happened!"
"Soldiers have attacked!"
"What?!" Scarface slammed his fist on the table and stood up. "How did they know where the stronghold was?"
Everyone's first reaction was to go and see the lowly henchman who had come to the city to deliver the severed finger that day.
The henchman trembled and knelt down, begging for mercy, "Boss, it wasn't me!"
"It really wasn't me! I even took several extra detours on my way back to make sure there were no tails around before I dared to come back!"
Scarface kicked him away, yelling, "Traitor!"
He drew his blade, intending to end the man's life with a single blow, but the fat man and the tall, thin man stopped him, saying, "Brother, perhaps it's not him."
"Don't forget, we still have someone locked up behind us."
"Perhaps from the very beginning, that so-called young master of the Marquis's mansion going up the mountain to catch fighting crickets was just a pretext!"
"Damn it! It's all to lure the soldiers into the mountains!"
"I'm going to kill him right now!"
The sounds of fighting had already erupted inside and outside the village. Scarface threw away his sharp blade and drew his own broadsword instead. "Kill that coward and feed him to the beasts! The rest of you, follow me and fight your way out!"
For them, being mountain bandits meant living a life of constant danger and bloodshed!
Even if I die, it's worth it to have that young master of the Marquis's mansion buried with me!
As soon as he finished speaking, the fat man dragged his knife and ran towards the woodshed at the back, while the scarred man led all the remaining men out.
The shadows of the trees swayed, and a cacophony of sounds rose from the village.
The sounds of fighting could still be faintly heard in the backyard, but the bandits who had been guarding this spot had vanished.
Shen Linhui lay pale on the pile of firewood, feverish and delirious from pain and blood loss.
But I was still startled awake by a "bang".
When I looked up, I saw a huge, muscular man blocking my way.
Along with that came the gleam of the horizontal sword.
"Don't kill me...don't kill me..."
His survival instinct drove him to crawl to the other side, but with his hands and feet bound, his actions appeared to the fat man as nothing more than a death struggle.
"You actually dared to bring government troops up the mountain? I really underestimated you!"
The fat man, carrying a knife, approached him step by step.
"I don't..."
Shen Linhui shook his head in horror.
He couldn't actually hear what the fat man was saying; he just instinctively denied it.
"I'll give you anything you want, just don't kill me..."
"Don't kill me..."
He crawled on the ground like a worm, and no matter how hard he tried, he could never escape the fat man's massive shadow.
"Too bad, you've miscalculated!"
The fat man chuckled a few times, "You think my older brother is a pushover?"
"Let me tell you, there are dozens, if not hundreds, of soldiers who have died at his hands!"
"Those who go up the mountain tonight will never return!"
The sounds of fighting outside grew louder, and a heavy stench of blood began to permeate the cold, chilling winter air.
The fat man had great confidence in Scarface and his brothers in the mountain stronghold.
After all, they had been occupying Xishan as bandits for more than just a year or two, and the surrounding prefectures and counties had tried to encircle and suppress them many times, but all had failed.
Tonight, in his eyes, is just a repetition of countless nights in the past.
He chuckled a few times, then suddenly an idea struck him. With a swift motion, he cut the ropes binding Shen Linhui's hands and feet.
"Run!"
Shen Linhui stared wide-eyed in disbelief.
He...he didn't hear wrong, did he?
Are they letting him go?
He struggled to his feet, dared not think any further, and limped toward the door of the woodshed.
However, after taking only two steps, his knees buckled and he fell straight toward the threshold.
"ah!"
The pain from his face hitting the ground and his legs made him cry out.
Looking back, the already lame leg was now stained red with blood.
The fat man stood behind him, holding a large knife, and laughed wildly.
"Run, keep running."
Shen Linhui trembled all over as he suddenly realized what was happening.
The fat man came over not to let him go.
But he couldn't care less about that anymore.
Now that the rope has been untied, this is his only chance to run. If he can get out, he can rejoin the soldiers outside.
They will definitely bring him back to Lin'an City safely.
Clinging to the last glimmer of hope in his heart, Shen Linhui ignored his bleeding leg and struggled to crawl forward.
"ah!"
But every time he crawled a little further, he was stabbed.
"ah!"
"ah!"
Before long, his back was covered in blood.
He was almost completely covered in blood and had lost all his strength.
"Don't come any closer...don't come any closer..."
The fat man, carrying a knife dripping blood from its tip, his face contorted with fat, continued to approach him step by step.
"How was it? Was the escape game fun?"
Hahahahahaha.
He laughed wildly, and Shen Linhui's hope was slowly extinguished.
The sounds of fighting outside continued to come, and he desperately hoped that soldiers would come to the backyard and discover his presence.
But no.
The outside world and this world seem to be separated into two separate worlds.
Even other bandits didn't see any running this way.
His eyes were empty and lifeless, his strength was almost exhausted, and there wasn't a single patch of good skin on his body. He struggled to climb over the threshold of the woodshed and crawled outwards.
A long trail of blood stretched behind him, followed by the fat man's disdainful and arrogant laughter.
"Help me..."
He didn't want to die yet.
He was only fifteen years old. Although he was lame, he was the son of a marquis and would inherit the title in the future.
He still has a long life of wealth and luxury ahead of him.
He...didn't want to die...
Shen Linhui opened his mouth, but the cold wind blew in, and his voice became so hoarse that he could hardly hear it himself.
All the noise in the backyard was drowned out by the howling mountain winds of the winter night and the ceaseless sounds of fighting.
When Shen Linhui could no longer climb, the fat man easily pulled him over and swung his broadsword horizontally.
Shen Linhui didn't even have the strength to raise his hand to struggle. He could only stare wide-eyed, blood gushing from his throat, and his legs kicked weakly a few times.
Completely stopped breathing.
"Pooh."
The fat man finished him off, nonchalantly spitting twice on the still-warm corpse, then stepped over him and headed towards the front yard.
However, as soon as he crossed the corridor, he was met with a long sword that gleamed with a cold edge.
Almost instantly, the blade flicked slightly, drawing blood and sealing the throat.
Chu Xiao stood in the corridor, tall and imposing, with a cold expression, like a judge from hell.
There was still a lingering murderous intent in his cold, dark eyes. He sheathed his longsword and watched as the fat man's burly body collapsed with a thud.
Behind them, Cui Yang and Mu Geng rushed over with their swords drawn. "My lord, all the resisters have been killed, and the rest have been tied up."
"Several herbalists and villagers were found tied up in the house to the west."
Chu Xiao casually wiped the blood splattered on his face, glanced at the woodshed, and said indifferently, "Take Shen Linhui's body back."
“The herb farmers and mountain dwellers were first brought back to the Criminal Investigation Department for detailed questioning.”
"yes."
Cui Yang and Mu Geng clasped their hands in agreement and each led their men to clean up the battlefield.
Unbeknownst to them, the bandit suppression operation had taken up most of the night.
As light gradually shone from the horizon, the rugged rocks in the distance were revealed.
The cold wind was biting, especially noticeable in the mountains.
The candles in the bandit camp had burned all night, but now they had burned out.
The sky was just beginning to brighten, but it was even darker than when they rushed in.
Chu Xiao turned and left.
The man's back view was menacing, and the hem of his tight-fitting clothes was stained with blood.
Behind him was a bright red trail left by Shen Linhui, who was covered in blood.
At the village gate, the criminal investigation team was escorting the bound bandits down the mountain. Scarface, who had resisted stubbornly, was already dead.
The lowly henchman who delivered the severed finger to Lin'an City is also dead.
The tall, thin man and the fat man also died.
No one will know about the severed finger.
Until we descended the mountain, the crisp morning air in the forest dispelled the stench of blood in the air.
However, this actually made it easier for Chu Xiao to smell the faint scent of blood on his body.
His brows furrowed slightly, and he subconsciously glanced up at the sky.
The timing was perfect, and the matter has been resolved satisfactorily.
Shen You would definitely not like me covered in blood.
After he returns to his residence and cleans himself up, he will go to the Marquis's residence to find her, hoping to earn some more rewards from her.
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