However, at this critical moment, a rope descended from the sky. The rope was thrown out perfectly and wrapped around Xu Yuehuai's waist, which immediately reduced the force of her fall. However, the brute force caused her intense pain, making her pant heavily and extremely uncomfortable.
Xu Yuehuai hurriedly looked up, but sadly, she still couldn't see anything.
"Moon".
Under the clear moonlight, someone was calling out to her.
Upon hearing that, Xu Yuehuai immediately recognized Qi Guze's voice.
It was truly unexpected that Qi Guze would jump down so bravely at this critical moment of life and death. Moved by this, Xu Yuehuai hurriedly replied, "Yes, I'm down there, and he's down there too. We're all safe."
Wang Ping'an was extremely anxious and timidly cried out, "Young master, save me! If you can save me and get me up the mountain, I'll give you half of the gold and silver I embezzled. No, no, no," Wang Ping'an comically changed his words, "I'll give you all of it, not half."
"Hurry up."
Qi Guze was too lazy to argue with the two of them.
After confirming Xu Yuehuai's safety, he gave a warning and then secretly exerted force, raising the rope. But after all, there were two heavy, living people below.
He quickly ran out of strength, and Xu Yuehuai was also exhausted from being pulled so hard that she was almost half-dead. While they were catching their breath, Wang Ping'an secretly exerted his strength, preparing to find a place where he could stand up.
But then, Xu Yuehuai heard Wang Ping'an exclaim, "What is that?"
What can Xu Yuehuai see?
But Wang Ping'an screamed again, the trembling voice of fear proving that what he saw was definitely extraordinary, "My God, it's a mandrill."
According to local legend, many wild beasts live in the towering mountains, and the mandrill is a kind of animal similar to a wild man.
Or rather, this creature is a savage, a mandrill with a crude and brutal nature, who enjoys eating people.
Wang Ping'an vaguely saw several almost human-like black shadows approaching on the cliff not far away. He dared not imagine what would happen if the mandrills got close to him.
In his fear, Wang Ping'an reached out and grabbed a stone, then threw it away.
As a result, some stones fell into the abyss, while others hit the opposite cliff.
But soon, a barrage of stones of varying sizes came from the opposite side, crashing and clattering, many of them landing on Xu Yuehuai. Xu Yuehuai stamped his feet and cursed, "Why did you provoke the mountain demon for no reason?"
"I'm so sorry, I didn't provoke them at all. They'll be here soon."
"Then what?"
"If you give us a good meal, then we're finished. We're not even worth a tooth and a tooth."
Xu Yuehuai had never seen a mandrill before, and didn't even know what a mandrill was. At this moment, her eyes were in excruciating pain.
But the tension created by Wang Ping'an was genuinely conveyed, and the stones being thrown at them didn't seem to cause harm, but rather seemed to be teasing them.
The thought that there were other "animals" on these cliffs who, like humans, could climb without having to touch the ground, felt terrifying to Xu Yuehuai.
"Brother Qi," Xu Yuehua shouted overhead in the utter silence, "Quickly pull us up! It's dangerous here! There are mountain demons here!"
"A mandrill?"
Clearly, Qi Guze didn't know what it was either, but from the terrified screams of the two below, he knew something was wrong. He quickly exerted his strength, and the rope was steadily pulled up inch by inch, almost reaching the ground.
Qi Guze was overjoyed and hurriedly reached out to pull the two of them up, but at the critical moment, he discovered that the rope was almost useless after being dragged and rubbed repeatedly.
At the very moment his hand touched Xu Yuehuai's hand, the seemingly secure rope suddenly exploded with a bang, and accompanied by screams, the three of them fell downwards simultaneously.
But no one knows how much time has passed.
On the cliff, Tie Xiong led the group to search for everyone.
"This is outrageous!" Tie Xiong gritted his teeth in anger. "We've dug three feet into the ground, and we still can't find Wang Ping'an? Where's the body?"
"Reporting to the general," the lieutenant stammered, his voice barely audible, "we haven't even found a stone."
“Then let’s continue,” he added, “turn over every body and examine it. We must find Wang Ping’an.”
"knew."
Everyone went off to search again, but soon several lieutenants arrived dejectedly, "General..."
"What's wrong now?"
These guys usually followed him in battles across the country and were quite formidable, but tonight they encountered this. They looked at each other in bewilderment, and finally the lieutenant mustered his courage and muttered, "Even His Highness and... and... Miss Xu have vanished without a trace."
"ah?"
Tie Xiong's eyes widened like copper bells, his heart pounding. "Find it quickly, hurry!"
His Highness is everyone's pillar of support, yet this group searched from dusk till dawn, turning Dragon Head Mountain upside down, but found no trace or clue.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Pei Xuan, the magistrate of Heping County, was glaring at the group of captured men who had cruelly poisoned many civilians.
Pei Xuan was an honest and upright man, so much so that although he was an official, his family often went hungry. In fact, Heping County was a key poverty alleviation area, and if he had embezzled and accepted bribes, Pei Xuan could have made a lot of money.
But Pei Xuan was upright and righteous, and naturally he would not collude with these guys. Now, looking at the bound guys walking away one after another, Pei Xuan thought, "This is truly outrageous. Wuming County and my Heping County are only a stone's throw apart. I live in peace and prosperity there, and I don't even lock my doors at night, but so many people have died here. I'm afraid even the Emperor will not easily forgive him if he finds out about this."
"My lord, please rest assured, all those who should be arrested have been arrested now."
"Where's the leader? And what about Wang Ping'an?"
Clearly, Pei Xuan also harbored deep hatred for Wang Ping'an.
The subordinate nodded. "We've searched everywhere. It seems Wang Ping'an has hidden himself, but don't worry, sir."
"Alright."
Pei Xuan sat down at a distance to await news. At the same time, he asked his accompanying clerk for pen, ink, paper, and inkstone. He wrote down all the evil deeds that Wang Ping'an had committed, and fearing that there might be problems, he hurriedly handed the letter to the person next to him.
“This county is worried that things might get complicated if we delay. Wang Ping’an is not someone to be trifled with. It’s not a big deal that we’ve arrested him today, but his connections here are definitely very deep and complex. If we do anything, it will have far-reaching consequences. Therefore, this letter must be sent to the capital secretly and quickly.”
"My good sir, what kind of face do I have to meet the Emperor?"
"this……"
He thought for a moment, then said, "A knife, bring me a knife."
A servant hurriedly brought over a dagger, and everyone watched as Pei Xuan pierced through the official robe with a single stroke, tearing off the rank badge. Not content with that, Pei Xuan then cut off a strand of hair, wrapped it inside, and handed it to a guard.
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