Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 607 Forced
Upon hearing Chen Rong's words, the veterans exchanged glances and fell silent, clearly agreeing that Chen Rong's conclusion was correct.

Mountain bandits usually don't cause such a big disturbance unless they have ulterior motives.

Tang Xingdao said, "Those bandits should have seen how we set up camp and defended ourselves along the way. They also know that it would be difficult for them to take us down if they brought men to launch a strong attack."

"Since a direct assault won't work, let us leave the camp."

Leaving the camp meant losing the stones and traps they could use for attacks. Furthermore, they needed to leave some men behind to guard the goods; splitting up meant dispersing their forces and making them easier to defeat one by one.

“We can’t go,” Chen Rong said, coming to his senses. “No matter what happens outside, we’ll stay here and there. There’s nothing they can do about it.”

Having made up their minds, everyone nodded in agreement.

However, the screams continued in the darkness, and the firelight grew larger and larger.

Although it's a trap, the attack on the village might actually be real.

The old soldier clenched his fists, his heart filled with hatred. If it weren't for his duty to escort goods, he would have gone to check on the situation in the village.

Tang Xing didn't say anything more, but he could understand everyone's feelings. Wasn't he the same? But they weren't sure of victory. They were in the open, while the bandits were in the dark, and they didn't know how many people were lying in ambush around them.

Everyone endured the ordeal with vigilance and patience. After an unknown amount of time, birdsong came from the trees, signaling the arrival of those who had been scouting from above.

Two shouts meant someone was approaching.

Tang Xing glanced at the old soldier beside him, who nodded and led the two men forward, following the sound of the call.

In the woods, a person was running. She stumbled and fell, but she ignored the pain, got up and started running again, calling out, "Help, help... save my child."

She stumbled again and fell to the ground. When she got up, she lost her bearings. Just as she was getting anxious, she heard the cry of a baby behind her.

The woman trembled and cried out in panic, "Help! Help! Please... come out... save my child!"

"If you don't come out, my child will die too."

The woman continued running forward. After running for a while, she looked around and suddenly saw a figure in the moonlight.

In the darkness, most people would scream in terror at the sight of such a scene, but she couldn't care less; she was looking for the people in the woods.

Without the slightest hesitation, the woman ran towards the figure, and upon reaching him, her knees buckled and she knelt on the ground.

"Are you a caravan passing through here?" The woman's voice was full of expectation. "Those people are looking for you. Please help me. If you go there, they will return my child to me."

"Please help me, I beg you."

By the moonlight, the old soldier saw the woman kneeling at his feet. Her clothes were disheveled, and her chest was torn open, exposing a large area of ​​her skin.

His hair was disheveled, blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, and his face was filled with panic.

“They said they would leave if you handed over a few boxes of goods,” the woman said. “If you don’t, they will kill everyone in the village.”

"Please, give them the goods and we'll pay you back whatever amount of silver you asked for... Otherwise, take me with you and go to the city, where you can sell me for some silver."

The old soldier remained silent.

Outside the woods, the sound of a baby crying came again, this time louder and filled with pain. The woman became even more anxious and began to kowtow repeatedly on the ground.

The old soldier was about to help the person up when the baby's voice suddenly stopped.

The woman seemed to understand something, and her whole body began to tremble violently, repeatedly saying, "The time has come, they've killed people, they've killed people."

"My child, my child..."

The woman cried out, her mind completely broken, but there was no more sound of a baby crying outside the woods.

A moment later, the woman suddenly scrambled to her feet and ran back as if possessed. But after only a few steps, she stopped abruptly, paused for a moment, and finally made up her mind. With all her might, she rammed her head against a nearby tree trunk. The old soldier, regaining his senses, tried to stop her, but the woman's body had already collapsed limply to the ground. ...

What Tang Xing, Chen Rong, and the others saw was a woman with her face covered in blood.

The woman was not yet dead, but she was already barely breathing.

“I haven’t figured out what’s going on yet,” the old soldier said hoarsely. “I don’t know if it’s a trap, but they started making their move outside the woods.”

Tang Xing and the others understood perfectly well that anyone who witnessed such a scene in the woods would not immediately trust the person before them, especially at a time like this.

Chen Rong was filled with rage, and the veins on his forehead bulged. Those people actually used such methods to force them to come out.

Two lives were lost in the blink of an eye.

Tang Xingdao said, "They will also drive people from the village over here."

"What do we do?" Chen Rong asked. "Just watch them kill?"

These things are impossible to prevent. They knew the journey was dangerous, but they could only try their best to make the caravan run as well as possible. How could they possibly take care of the villagers along the way?

Even if they warned the villagers beforehand to be wary of bandits, what good would it do? Didn't the village know that bandits were gathering? It was as if they hadn't said anything at all.

The journey from Daming Prefecture to the border market is long and arduous, making it impossible to be thorough in every aspect; whatever is bound to happen will happen.

No one can avoid it.

Before the group could come up with a solution, birdsong came from the tree again.

More people were released into the woods.

The outsiders didn't give them any time to think it over.

……

Not far from the woods.

A group of people stood there, the leader looking into the distance with a cold smile on his face.

Xia Dalang looked at the people around him and said, "Tell them that's how it is. Kill one person, and then let another in."

The man beside him said, "What if they don't come out?"

Xia Dalang said, "Then kill everyone in the village, and in two days, find another village."

The man's eyes flickered, and when he looked at Xia Dalang, there was a hint of fear in them.

Xia Dalang gritted his teeth: "My father, my family, my grandfather, and my maternal grandfather were all harmed by them. I will make them pay for their crimes in blood."

When Minister Xia realized things were going badly, he begged the Third Manager to rescue his two sons. However, neither Xia Ziqiao nor the Third Manager were able to leave Bianjing, while Xia Dalang managed to escape by sheer luck.

Xia Dalang did not go to hide at sea, but came to the northwest because he knew that Xie Yuyan was going to take this trade route and planned to ambush Xie Yuyan here.

“I have read all the news related to the Xie family and know how the Xie family got to where it is today,” Xia Dalang said. “Her strength lies in using small benefits to win over some people to serve her.”

"What she said in the village association was nothing but a way to deceive people. Those people were fools who believed her lies."

"Didn't she help people write legal documents and appeal their grievances? Now that the injustice is right in front of them, shouldn't they help? If they turn a blind eye, will those people still believe her?"

Even if she's not here, her capable people still make decisions for her, so he's attacking her morally.

(End of this chapter)