Chapter 4: Deep into the Tiger's Den. Didn't the boss say we absolutely had to...?
“Just because he is…” Fu Yun pondered for a moment, about to casually say that he was my brother, but immediately stopped herself, her tone slightly stiff: “He is my husband.”
"Oh?" The bandit leader looked suspicious, his gaze sweeping over Fu Yun, clearly not quite believing him.
"Ahem!" Fu Yun coughed lightly, trying to suppress the embarrassment in his heart, and continued to add with a forced smile: "He is very stubborn and will not listen to anyone except me. Moreover, as you have seen, he is quite skilled. If you do not want to cause trouble and want him to be a bandit's husband willingly, then do as I say."
After saying that, even he himself was a little overwhelmed.
Zhilan's lips twitched slightly upon hearing this.
The bandit leader was skeptical: "A man who practices martial arts?"
Fu Jun frowned slightly, not understanding what she meant for a moment. However, considering that Zi Lan had said that women had to learn martial arts from a young age, and seeing the disparity in status between men and women here, he guessed what it meant.
“Yes!” As she spoke, her clumsy words became more fluent, and Fu Yun’s mental burden was greatly reduced. She became more and more adept at acting and explained in a serious manner: “It’s mainly because I have something on him, so he has no choice but to listen to me.”
The bandit leader then realized, "So that's how it is."
Then she questioned, "Are you really willing to give up your husband so easily?"
Fu Yun said seriously, "I would never give it to you for no reason. I have conditions."
The bandit leader became interested: "Tell me about it."
Fu Yun: "I want money, you want people, it's that simple."
Bandit leader: "How many do you want?"
Fu Yun: "One hundred taels."
"Is she only worth a hundred taels?" Xiao Ba couldn't help but complain.
Fu Jun ignored it.
The bandit leader breathed a sigh of relief and was preparing to respond.
Fu Yun added, "Gold."
Zhilan gently shook her head, her expression somewhat complicated.
"Damn it!" the woman with a mole on her lip cursed. "Why the hell don't you just rob me? Believe me or not, I'll kill you."
Fu Yun didn't care about the woman's words. He smiled slightly, confident of his victory: "With his looks, there's no one else like him in the whole world. One hundred taels is already a great deal."
"I was being superficial," Xiao Ba muttered under his breath.
Fu Yun: "I don't have any unprofitable transactions here." Even if it's just a temporary measure.
[...]
The woman with a mole on the corner of her mouth glared at him: "You..."
"Deal!" The bandit leader interrupted her, agreeing immediately.
Problems that can be solved with money are not problems.
"Boss..." The woman with a mole on the corner of her mouth wanted to say something.
The bandit leader dismissed it, saying, "It's no big deal."
With that, she flicked her sleeve and said, "Let's go! Back to the village."
Fu Yun glanced at Zhi Lan, who met his gaze and nodded slightly, indicating that they should proceed according to plan.
Two women came over, preparing to tie Zhilan up with a rope.
Fu Yun stood in front of Zhi Lan: "No need, she won't run away. All I want is gold ingots."
The two women exchanged a glance, a hint of mockery flashing in their eyes, before removing the rope.
Zhilan gave Fu Yun a deep look, then lifted her foot and walked forward.
Fu Jun walked up to him and walked alongside him, whispering in his ear: "You have to act more realistically to be convincing."
Zhilan glanced at him, said nothing, and continued walking, a faint smile appearing on her lips in an instant.
Fu Yun glanced back at the father and son, and saw them looking at him with gratitude, silently thanking him.
Fu Yun nodded and turned to leave.
When the two stepped out of the courtyard, they discovered that in addition to the horses they had seen before, there was now another carriage outside.
The woman in front of the carriage explained, "The road back to the village is quite rugged. Considering that your husband is rather weak and not suited for long-distance travel, the eldest brother prepared a carriage for him."
Fu Yun: "They're quite humane."
After saying that, he climbed directly into the carriage.
Zhilan paused slightly, looking thoughtfully at the still swaying carriage curtain.
Fu Yun lifted the curtain: "Come up!"
Zhilan stared at him for a moment before getting into the carriage.
The carriage started moving as soon as the two of them were seated.
After a moment of silence, Zhilan suddenly leaned close to Fu Jun and whispered in his ear, "Why did you run away tonight?"
Fu Yun knew he was asking about climbing over the wall to hide from the Su family. After all, they had become business partners, and there were some things that needed to be clarified.
He sighed, a look of sadness on his face: "They're forcing me to marry someone I don't like, and I don't want to."
"Oh?" Zhilan asked, somewhat surprised. "Why not take him as a concubine first, and then marry someone you truly desire as your principal husband later?"
Fu Yun: "..." This is the real reason for running away. Being a submissive husband? That's out of the question.
He straightened his expression and said, "I only want to marry the person I love, one is enough."
Zhilan's lips curled up slightly, forming a beautiful arc, as if she found it amusing: "You're quite devoted."
Fu Jun fell silent, looking as if she didn't want to say anything more.
Seeing his expression, Zhilan didn't ask any more questions.
The rest of the journey was indeed quite bumpy, and the two didn't have a chance to continue their conversation.
The carriage was not very spacious, and even a bit cramped.
It might have been originally intended for one person, but there's not enough space for two.
When sitting close to her, Fu Yun always felt a faint, almost imperceptible fragrance emanating from the person next to her.
It wasn't the scent of rouge or face powder, nor was it the scent of vanilla; rather, it was an indescribable fragrance, somewhat like sandalwood or some kind of subtle incense.
But it's not accurate enough, because it's too faint, so faint that you can't smell it from a little distance.
I didn't notice it before; it must be because there were more outdoor smells that confused this faint fragrance.
He carefully scanned Zhilan's body, initially finding nothing. Just as he was about to look away, he inadvertently caught a glimpse of a tiny bit of silver powder on her cuff.
Fu Jun had a gut feeling that this silver powder might be something special.
He gently touched Zhilan's shoulder, and when the other person looked over, he pointed to the powder-stained cuff: "This is..."
Zhilan's expression froze for a moment, but he quickly recovered and replied in a low voice, "Don't make a fuss, I'll explain later."
Fu Jun nodded and didn't ask any further questions.
The carriage bumped along for about two hours before finally coming to a stop.
The carriage curtain was lifted, and two black cloths were handed in: "Tie them up, don't try anything funny."
Fu Yun and Zhi Lan exchanged a glance, already understanding each other: it seemed they were nearing their destination.
The two took the cloth, tied it up, and groped their way off the carriage.
Fu Yun felt the blindfold being tugged a few times, followed by a feeling of pressure on her eyes and the back of her head. It was probably someone checking how tight the blindfold was and reinforcing it.
His arm was grabbed, and he was forcibly pulled forward.
The wind howled all around, carrying the scent of mountain grass and the calls of many birds, as if we had entered a forest or mountains.
Fu Yun carefully felt the path beneath her feet. As she walked forward, she could feel some resistance. Her toes were slightly pointing upwards and her heels were tilting backwards, indicating that she was climbing a mountain.
Things frequently brushed against the back of my hand, and I occasionally stepped on soft, sprawling haystacks. The path was somewhat rugged and uneven, indicating that the road up the mountain was not wide and must have been a narrow path.
After walking for about an hour, the main force finally stopped.
"The boss is back!"
Excited voices rang out from ahead, followed by a flurry of hurried footsteps.
"Boss!"
"Boss!"
"Boss!"
The chattering and shouting gave Fu Yun a headache.
"Sisters, I'm in luck today! I've not only reaped a lot of goods and silver, but I've also snatched a stunningly handsome man. From now on, I'll have a chieftain husband. Let's see who dares to say I can't find a man."
The bandit leader spoke in a loud and boisterous voice, clearly in a very good mood.
Wow! Boss is so awesome!
"Boss is awesome!"
"Boss is awesome!"
Fu Yun: "..." Even bandits are afraid of being single?
The blindfold was removed, and after a brief adjustment to the light, Fu Yun opened his eyes. The sight before him startled him. Dozens of women surrounded him, their eyes fixed on the person behind him, filled with amazement and a predatory gaze.
Fu Yun: "..." Why do I have the illusion that Zi Lan is about to be dismembered?
He glanced back and saw that Zilan's face was pale, her beautiful eyebrows were tightly furrowed, and she was clearly very uncomfortable.
Fu Yun took a few steps back, raised his hand to block, and looked at the bandit leader sitting on the stone chair in front of him. He said coldly, "He does not belong to you until the deal is completed."
The bandit leader's gaze lingered on Zhilan for a moment. Seeing that she looked extremely uncomfortable, he said, "Second brother, take the two of them to the room next to mine. The gold will be delivered shortly."
"Yes, boss." The woman with a mole on her face waved aside the others, walked up to Fu Yun, raised her right arm, and gestured for her to follow her.
As Fu Yun walked forward, she glanced at her surroundings and realized that she was in a large cave with uneven rock walls. All the tables and chairs in the cave were made of piled stones. A few faint rays of light shone down from above, carrying a layer of hazy moisture. The ceiling was also made of uneven large stone walls.
Their headquarters are in a cave deep in the mountains. No wonder they're so arrogant. This place looks quite secluded and should be hard to find.
"Third brother, go prepare the gold. Fourth brother, go find some fine wine. The rest of you, prepare delicious dishes. Tonight I'm going to have a victory celebration banquet. We won't leave until we're drunk."
The bandit leader was still enthusiastically giving orders.
"Okay!"
"receive!"
The two were placed in a small stone cave. Although the space was small, it was fully equipped with everything they needed: a stone bed, a table, chairs, benches, and daily necessities.
Before stepping out of the cave, the second brother glared fiercely at Fu Yun and warned, "Stay put and don't go anywhere, or I'll kill you."
Fu Jun glanced at her but ignored her.
"You two, come here!"
"Second Master, what are your orders?" A voice responded from not far away.
"Guard this place well. If anything goes wrong, you'll be held responsible."
"yes."
As the footsteps faded into the distance, two more figures appeared in front of the cave entrance.
Zhilan glanced indifferently at the cave entrance and said in a low voice, "Take the gold and leave in a moment. I will take care of things here."
Fu Yun said, "What are you saying? Since we came together, we should leave together."
"You don't..."
Fu Yun waved her hand, interrupting him: "Don't say anymore, I'm not such an ungrateful person."
Zhilan looked at Fu Jun in silence for a moment, then lowered her eyes and said no more.
"Hey, Sister Cui, do you think the young master from the Su family is locked up inside?"
A woman's soft voice suddenly came from outside the door.
Fu Yun paused slightly, then silently pricked up his ears.
"Probably! The boss is so happy, it's probably true."
"Did you get a good look at his face? Isn't he exceptionally handsome?"
"I couldn't see very clearly from a distance, but judging from his figure, he seemed different from the rumors."
"What do you mean by that?"
"The young master of the Su family is said to be a gentleman, with a face like jade and a gentle and refined temperament, quite different from the aloof and handsome man we brought back today."
"But didn't the eldest brother say he absolutely had to snatch the young master of the Su family?"
"Who knows? Maybe they changed their minds at the last minute."
"That's true. As long as someone is handsome enough, it doesn't matter who it is."
Fu Yun twitched her lips: Quite compassionate.
He glanced at Zhilan subconsciously, only to find that her gaze was fixed on him, her eyes somewhat unfocused, and he wondered what she was thinking.
He didn't have the habit of interrupting people who were lost in thought, so he decided to look away and take a short break.
After all, I didn't sleep a wink last night.
But just as he looked away, the scene of their first meeting suddenly flashed through his mind, and he instantly became alert.
Yes, he finally understood why he had encountered Zilan while climbing the wall; his target had always been these bandits.
The sound of horses' hooves heard in the street at that time did not belong to the Su family, but to this group of bandits.
Their original plan was to capture the young master of the Su family, but he had already escaped, so they changed their target and went to other places to snatch him.
So, when Zhilan told him to leave first, did she already guess his identity?
A note from the author:
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