"It's still thousands of miles away from the ocean you want to see," Quan Jinghuai joked as he walked over.
Otherwise, he couldn't imagine that looking at the map could excite her so much.
“No, Brother Quan, look here,” Hong Xiaoduo said, pointing to a spot on the map.
Quan Jinghuai stepped forward curiously and bent down to take a look: "Dalian Mountain? Is there anything special about it?" In his memory, it was a very large mountain with dense trees in the forest.
"By the way, I heard from some friends in the martial arts world that there's a group of bandits living there. Xiao Duo, don't tell me you're planning to go and eliminate them for the people?" Quan Jinghuai asked.
“If that’s the case, I advise you to give up this idea as soon as possible. This is different from the bandits we usually encounter. Because the terrain of Dalian Mountain is dangerous, the bandits on the mountain are not ordinary people. The local government troops have tried to suppress them several times but have all failed.”
After listening to Quan Jinghuai's words, Hong Xiaoduo blinked her big eyes and said, "I just saw that there are big mountains here, and I was thinking that we should camp there and go into the mountains to hunt some wild game for the children to satisfy their cravings."
I never expected that there would be people who would occupy mountains and rob people.
But Brother Quan, are you afraid of them too?
"What are you talking about? Is this a question of whether you're afraid or not? Your brother Quan is just one person. How can I fight against hundreds of bandits?" Quan Jinghuai asked.
“Brother Quan, you’re wrong. You’re not alone now. You have me too. I’m actually pretty good too,” Hong Xiaoduo said with a smile, pointing to herself.
Quan Jinghuai shook his head helplessly: "No matter how good you are, the two of us can't handle those bandits. Especially now that we're with eight of them, safety comes first. I'll see if we can find a way to go around them."
Hong Xiaoduo thought it made sense. Brother Quan had been around for many years and was very experienced. If he said he couldn't handle it, then the other party must be quite powerful.
"Alright, then we'll do as you say, Brother Quan, and take a detour," Hong Xiaoduo said regretfully.
The regret is not that we can't eliminate the bandits, but that we can't hunt wild game anymore.
It's been so long since I've hunted wild game; my skills must be rusty.
"By the way, Brother Quan, since everyone knows there are bandits in that area, caravans and travelers will definitely take detours. In that case, if the bandits can't rob them, how will they make a living?"
"It's not like you'll go three years without business, then make enough to live off for three years once you open a shop, is it?" Hong Xiaoduo asked curiously.
“In the end, there are still people who don’t know the way and still want to take that path, as well as people who are too confident, thinking that they have highly skilled guards and bodyguards, and that they themselves are also highly skilled, and some are just taking chances.” Quan Jinghuai sighed after he finished speaking.
After hearing this, Hong Xiaoduo began to regret that she couldn't deal with these bandits. If only she could ask Old Man Luo for a few grenades, she could throw them into the bandit group. The destructive power would be so great that one explosion would wipe out the entire group, and no matter how skilled the bandits were, they would be powerless to fight back.
However, although it was just an idea, she had a premonition that Old Man Luo would not agree to give her such a modern weapon of mass destruction.
Hong Xiaoduo lowered her head and continued looking at the map, searching for another path.
It's just a matter of taking a longer route. I can't be reckless and only think of myself as a hero who fights evil and protects the innocent, putting children in danger!
While looking at the pictures, Fei Yan had already packed up the things with the little ones, ready to set off again at her command.
At this moment, Wei Junpei, the Minister of Personnel, who was far away in the capital, had just finished court and was returning to his residence by carriage.
Upon arriving at the gate of the mansion, the gatekeeper stepped forward and placed a stool for the master to dismount from the carriage, watching him alight with a serious expression.
Upon entering the mansion, as soon as they reached the main hall, the lady came over and personally helped them remove their cloaks.
"Master, are you angry again today?" Madam Qi poured tea and handed it to her husband, speaking gently.
Wei Junpei took the teacup: "I didn't get angry. Getting angry would only harm my health and benefit those corrupt bastards."
Looking at her husband's face, Madam Qi thought to herself, "He's not even angry yet? He talks a good game, but he just can't do what he says!"
"Madam, you don't know, they're colluding with each other now, and investigating them is quite difficult. If they used this energy of collusion and unity to assist His Majesty and benefit the people, how wonderful that would be! Alas!" Wei Junpei became more and more angry as he spoke.
"Sir, please don't be angry. Let alone those corrupt officials, some common people also have crooked ideas. This morning, someone came to the door, saying that someone had introduced them and they wanted to see you, sir," the steward beside him added.
Wei Junpei was puzzled after hearing this: "Who in the capital doesn't know that I'm upright and old-fashioned? No one has dared to do this for so many years. Why is someone suddenly appearing today?"
"Yes, the gatekeeper said just half an hour ago that the carriage was still diagonally opposite our gate. It looked unfamiliar, and we had no idea where it came from," the steward added.
The steward's meaning was simple: he noticed his master was in a bad mood and wanted to chat with him.
Just then, the gatekeeper arrived again.
Looking at the things the gatekeeper was carrying, Wei Junpei smiled and looked at Madam Qi, saying, "Knowing that I'm in a bad mood, you sent someone to buy some snacks to go with the wine in advance?"
Upon hearing this, Madam Qi was taken aback: "It wasn't me." She then looked at the steward, assuming it was him.
"Reporting to you, sir, this food box was handed to the man who came to see you this morning. He said he wanted to show it to you." The gatekeeper quickly explained.
"What? This, this is something from our household!" Upon hearing this, Madam Qi immediately stepped forward to examine it carefully. She was not mistaken; the food box in the gatekeeper's hand was indeed from her own household, and it even bore the household's mark.
Wei Junpei suddenly remembered something, stood up abruptly, and loudly asked the gatekeeper, "Can you see clearly who it is? Is it a young woman of about fifteen or sixteen years old? And she's with seven bald, very pretty little children?"
The gatekeeper shook his head: "Reporting to sir, no, there were three of them: the coachman, a woman, and a young lady in the carriage."
"Not her?" Wei Junpei was a little confused.
"Go, let them in." Wei Junpei made the decision immediately.
The gatekeeper acknowledged, put down the food box he was holding, and jogged out.
"Master, are you referring to the young lady who delivered the food box that day?" Madam Qi asked, remembering the incident.
When the master came back last time, he was in a great mood and told her about this matter, praising that young lady to the skies!
"Master, perhaps you've misjudged things sometimes. What if that young lady gave the food box you sent to someone else as a favor?" Madam Qi quickly tried to cover for her husband, afraid that if that were the case, he would be heartbroken!
Wei Junpei, however, thought differently: "We don't know what exactly happened, Madam, please don't make wild guesses. I'm confident I can't misjudge people..."
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