Chapter 40: Looted by Mountain Bandits
Bai Zilin grabbed another handful of fried noodles, threw the bag into Bai Shuisheng's arms, and said, "Here you go, I'm full!"
Bai Zilin stuffed all the rice in his hand into his mouth, then sat down under the tree roots with a roguish air, fiddling with his bow and arrows.
Bai Shui angrily weighed the rice bag in his hand: "You son of a bitch, I told you to come back, not so you could eat my food! Bai Zilin, I'm warning you, if you don't catch any more animals by tomorrow, you're getting the hell out of here! I don't keep good-for-nothings!"
Bai Zilin ignored his words and continued fiddling with his bow and arrows without even lifting his eyelids, which made Bai Shuisheng stomp his feet in anger, but he didn't dare to do anything to him.
On the other side, Old Man Liu looked at the four men and asked, "What happened? Why didn't you bring back anything? Wasn't that Bai family kid really good at hunting?"
Old Liu said with a dark face, "Hmph, what's so great about him? We chased him around the mountain for ages, and he didn't even manage to shoot a single bird!"
Liu Lao Er disagreed: "Dad, I think that bastard is deliberately failing to catch any prey, just so we can have a share. That bastard is wicked, otherwise how could he be playing with that big idiot!"
Hearing her husband's words, Aunt Liu's eyes lit up instantly: "Oh, Dad, do you think Bai Zilin has already slept with our big idiot? Oh, that won't do! The Bai family is dishonest; they want to marry a wife without paying a dowry. Dad, you have to talk to the Bai family! At least get some fried rice back!"
Old Man Liu didn't speak, but his eyes were fixed on the place where the Bai family was resting, and he was thinking seriously.
Second Sister-in-law Liu looked at Madam Liu: "Sister-in-law, don't you think so?" Madam Liu thought to herself, "Your mother my ass! That big idiot has been kicked out of the Liu family. If you can get it, go ask for it yourself."
Aunt Liu pursed her lips and looked at Boss Liu again: "Big brother, what do you think?"
The eldest son turned his face away, saying that the second son's wife was talking in her sleep!
Grandma Liu retorted to Grandpa Liu, "Old man, you should go find the Bai family, okay?"
Old Man Liu shoved Old Woman Liu aside in a huff: "Go away, go away, you go if you want to. You know you won't get anything, yet you still do that useless thing. Get out of here and stay somewhere else."
After finishing their meal, the Zhao family climbed onto the oxcart and slowly made their way forward. The villagers of Shizigou Village also quickly got up from the ground and started walking.
Liu Ye slung the bag over her back, picked up the wood-chopping knife in her right hand, and strolled ahead. The Bai family members walked behind her. Bai Zilin hurried a few steps to catch up with Liu Ye and whispered, "Where did you go last night? I couldn't find you in the woods."
Liu Ye replied dismissively, "I hid them, and I hid the cart and basket too. It's not safe for me to carry them. Didn't you see a bunch of people eyeing them?"
Bai Zilin nodded and said, "You did the right thing. It's just a pity about that pile of stuff. We haven't even eaten a few bites yet. Wait two days and I'll get rid of the Bai family. Then I'll hunt for you to eat. I reckon they won't last more than a few days. As long as I eat their food every day and can't catch any prey, they won't be able to stand it and will have to kick me out."
Liu Ye smiled and nodded: "Brother Bai, you're so smart. I knew it! You went back so readily because you had a plan in mind."
Bai Zimei stormed up to the two of them, yelling, "Hey, what are you saying? Isn't an idiot supposed to be unable to speak?"
Bai Zilin wasn't going to tolerate her. He shoved Bai Zimei aside and pulled Liu Ye's hand to continue walking forward: "Idiot, can't I talk to myself?"
Bai Zimei was almost knocked over by Bai Zilin's push. She was so angry that she put her hands on her hips and was about to curse when Bai Wangshi retorted, "Alright, stop fooling around. Do you still want to eat meat?"
Bai Zimei stomped her foot angrily: "Hmph, I'll endure it for the sake of the meat!"
Suddenly, five horse-drawn carriages appeared on the road ahead, rushing frantically toward them. The frightened refugees quickly dodged to the sides of the road, but there were too many refugees on the road. The drivers cracked their whips, blocking the road completely, and the carriages still couldn't get through.
Enraged, the coachman shouted, "Run! Run! Bandits are coming!"
The carriage curtain was lifted from the inside, and the master sitting inside shouted to the outside, "Run over these poor wretches!"
The driver was almost in tears. He wanted to push them over, but he couldn't move them because there were too many people: "Sir, there are too many people. We can't get through. You'd better sit still."
Liu Ye and Bai Zilin exchanged a glance and quickly hid in the nearby grove. What? The bandits are here again!
Village Chief Zhao quickly jumped off the oxcart, trying to turn it around and run back, but there were too many people, and the narrow road was impossible to navigate. When the disaster victims heard that bandits were coming, they all ran backwards, making the situation even more congested. No one could move forward, and more than half of them ended up in the mountains.
"Make way, make way! Let me turn the oxcart around, please make way!" Village Chief Zhao shouted until his throat was hoarse, but the oxcart still couldn't turn around.
Just then, a cloud of dust billowed ahead, and the deafening sound of horses' hooves echoed. A group of bandits with knives charged out of the dust. The bandit leader, a fierce-looking man with a full beard and a square face, roared like a drum: "You stop right there! I'll see where you run! Stop them all!"
Liu Ye realized something was wrong; these people were no pushovers! Sure enough, as soon as a hundred or so bandits arrived on horseback, they surrounded the disaster victims and the five carriages, leaving no room for them. Even Liu Ye and his companions, who were hiding in the woods, were dragged out and driven to join the disaster victims.
The bandit leader brandished his broadsword and herded all the people from the five carriages together. Among those who got off the carriages were young masters, masters, and their wives. There were quite a few people, and they were all terrified, like quails, with their heads down and not daring to speak. The young ladies and maids did not dare to raise their heads either, and the wife hid in the master's arms, sobbing.
The bandit leader roared, "You sons of bitches, you run away as soon as you see me! I'll let you run! Take all the valuables off them and drive the carriage away too!"
The bandits ransacked the five carriages, leaving nothing behind, including the drivers and servants, and then dumped them among the disaster victims.
The bandits stole all the food the disaster victims had, including Village Chief Zhao's oxcart, Liu Ye's bag, her machete, and Bai Zilin's bow and arrows. The bandits then rode away on horseback, leaving cleanly and efficiently.
Only a group of disaster victims, who had been thoroughly looted, and the people in the five carriages remained. Among them, the people in two of the carriages were from the beef vendor's family. The young lady and her master had been robbed. The young lady's jewelry and her fine outer clothes had been taken away, leaving her only in her undergarments. At this moment, she was hiding behind the master with her hair disheveled, crying her heart out.
"Dad, I'm scared, sob sob sob, I'm scared, I want to go home, sob sob sob sob!"
Master Qin took off his outer robe and draped it over his daughter Qin Qiaoyun: "Put it on quickly. We'll leave once the bandits are far away. Stop crying, you're giving me a headache. If you hadn't insisted on coming to Taicheng, we wouldn't have run into bandits. You brat, you still have the nerve to cry? Shut up!"
Qin Qiaoyun sobbed softly as she put on her clothes, muttering resentfully, "What? You blame me for everything! What did I do to deserve this? I was just trying to help you relax, and I messed up!"
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