After the list was submitted, all parties were notified to go back and prepare the ransom while awaiting further instructions. Each base that was to ransom people could send two to eight people to accompany them, depending on the number of people to be ransomed.
Those accompanying the group must be in good physical condition, and must arrange their own food and lodging. No problems should arise due to them during the trip, and they must fully obey the arrangements made by the higher authorities.
When the notice came down, twelve days had already passed. By the time everyone gathered outside the safe zone with the ransom, more than twenty days had passed since the meeting.
Qiu Feng selected only 360 people to be redeemed, and even so, they were considered large numbers on the redemption list. Many small bases had nowhere to turn for help, or could not bear the consequences of providing assistance, so they chose to give up directly.
On the day of departure, apart from the 500 soldiers in the convoy ahead, there were only 35 base vehicles following behind. Li Ke set off with Niu Dazhuang and six other people, driving a total of three vehicles: two trucks and one off-road vehicle.
The weather was already scorching hot at noon, so the convoy only chose to rest between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., and tried to speed up their journey at other times.
Half a month later, half of the soldiers left the team. Li Ke and his men continued their journey with the remaining troops. Three days later, they entered a mountainous area where vehicles could not travel, and the convoy temporarily stopped.
Two days after they were stationed in place, a team of twenty men appeared in the distance. They did not approach the encampment, but simply waved the gray triangular flags in their hands.
Li Ke was also observing those people through binoculars. Their skin was dark yellow, and their facial features were flatter. Upon closer inspection, they were quite different from Chinese people.
The group of twenty robbers were all armed and had bullets on their belts. They were not tall, but they all looked very strong.
The officer in charge gave the order to load the supplies onto the mobile carts, transport them there, and follow the group.
Li Ke and his six companions followed in the middle, also pulling a cart of goods. When they finally arrived at their destination, the group of people had vanished and reappeared on another hilltop, waving flags and urging them to continue.
After a ten-minute rest, the team continued their journey, walking through the mountains for nearly a week before finally stopping.
The base personnel, including soldiers, numbered approximately 350. They were led to a small basin in the mountains, where the group of 20 men had completely disappeared.
The group stopped to rest and patiently searched for the guides. Soon, gun barrels appeared on the surrounding hills, surrounding Li Ke and his companions.
The other side's men had clearly been lying in wait. The officer in charge called out, "We've come to ransom as requested. We've brought the ransom, but where are our men?"
An opening appeared in the line above, and a group of bound people walked out of it. They were barefoot, disheveled, dressed in tattered clothes, and covered in various wounds, indicating that they had suffered considerable abuse.
Li Ke and Niu Dazhuang stood together, searching for their own people in the crowd, but after all the bound people had come down the mountain, Li Ke still couldn't find Zhou Heng and Jin Ce.
Niu Zhuang whispered to Li Ke, "Only seventy-odd people are on our redemption list. The rest don't match up. Zhou Heng, Jin Ce, and his team are not among them."
Those present could already tell that something was wrong. Of the hostages brought over, only the people at the very front looked relatively normal. Behind them were some half-crippled people and elderly people who had difficulty walking and were emaciated.
There were almost no able-bodied men, healthy women, or children, a situation that differed greatly from their ransom list. Clearly, the other side was not exchanging hostages according to the list they provided.
The officer stepped forward to negotiate with the other party, and ten minutes later, he returned to Li Ke and the others: "The other party said that anyone who has not been taken care of is already dead. We only have one choice: leave the things behind and take the people away. If you don't agree, then leave everything behind."
No one spoke. Those who were assigned to travel with the convoy were all extremely calm and rational. It was clear that the other party had not given them any choice in the matter at hand.
Moreover, there are more than a thousand guns pointed at them on the mountain. They don't even have a good position to cover themselves. What right do they have now?
After relaying the contents of the negotiations, and seeing that no one spoke, the officer continued, "I have already agreed."
The other side sent people to inspect the grain and gold, and demanded that the officer arrange for the goods to be delivered up the mountain. The deliverymen were required to unload all their weapons.
The officer followed instructions and arranged for people to send the inspected supplies up the mountain. He then came down to negotiate with the inspectors, walking among the remaining troops with a gun in his hand.
These medium-sized robbers, with eyes that appraised Li Ke's group as if they were merchandise, made no attempt to conceal their mocking contempt.
Everyone was suppressing their anger, waiting for the deal to be completed. Occasionally, cries and painful groans could be heard from among the hostages, making the time feel unbearably long.
Someone stopped in front of Li Ke and Niu Dazhuang. The person was a short man with large nostrils, dark brown skin, strong limbs, and an arrogant expression.
"Take off your hat and mask!" the man shouted at Li Ke. He spoke slowly in Mandarin, but his pronunciation was still quite clear.
The officer looked over, and before he could speak, Li Ke took off his hat and mask, revealing a handsome face underneath.
The man scrutinized Li Ke's face, a smug smile of having discovered a flaw appearing on his lips: "Take off all the disguise on your face, and then we'll start killing you!"
Li Ke's eyebrows twitched slightly, and he began to slowly peel off the beard from his face. He even poured some water onto a towel in front of the other person and washed his face.
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