Love Lock

Chapter 83 Forced to Help

"Oh? Is the information accurate?"

Ashina's eyes gleamed with golden light.

"The scouts at Beiguan must have heard this news as well." Princess Yujia nodded and continued, "I think we can't stop our harassment. We need to adjust the intensity of our harassment from time to time. Then we can prepare in secret, and a month later, when we are fully prepared, we can release the news that Ala and Meng Kingdom are going to attack Beiguan ahead of schedule. While Cao Xiong's attention is on Ala and Meng Kingdom, and he is used to our harassment and becomes complacent, we can take Yong'an City in one fell swoop."

"Hmm! Brilliant, this plan is brilliant. Yujia, you truly are the smartest woman on the grasslands. Hahaha..."

Ashina was clearly satisfied with Princess Yujia's plan.

When Alpi saw that the Khan had approved the plan, a glint of excitement and belligerence immediately flashed in his eyes.

He stood up, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Majesty is wise! This humble general is willing to lead the army to charge into battle for Your Majesty and capture the Northern Pass!"

Ashina looked at the two of them and nodded in satisfaction. He stood up, walked to the sand table in the center of the tent, and traced attack routes on the sand table with his fingers.

"Heh heh, who says the Turks only fight in the autumn? In a month, we'll settle this once and for all and show the Great Jing people how powerful we Turks are!"

………This is a lazy dividing line………

Songyang Town, Jingzhou.

Pingchuan and Jinju waited at the post station for another day, but Han Lei still did not return. Following Zhao Zun's instructions, they also set off for Cangzhou.

The two thieves who stole wine and sold it for silver returned to the inn where Han Lei and Wei Chengchao were staying. After having a hearty meal outside and wandering around aimlessly, they returned to the inn.

Meanwhile, inside the room where the two thieves lived, the two sat under the dim light, smugly discussing their next plan.

"Brother Yang, we've really struck it rich this time!" one of the thieves said with a big smile, slapping the table.

“That’s right, Xiao Tong. I, Yang Haibo, have never seen so much money in my life!” Yang Haibo grinned from ear to ear. “Now I have money to buy medicine for my mother.”

"Brother Yang, can I...can I buy myself a decent set of clothes?" Xiao Tong looked at Yang Haibo with hopeful eyes.

Yang Haibo glanced at his tattered clothes and nodded firmly. "Buy it, I'll buy it for you tomorrow, but make sure you save enough money for Mother's medicine."

"Hmm!" Xiao Tong nodded, then suggested, "Today, a few other young masters also wanted us to deliver wine to their homes. Brother Yang, why don't we strike while the iron is hot and steal from that courtyard again in a couple of days? Maybe we can make another fortune!"

"This...isn't that a bad idea?" Yang Haibo hesitated for a moment, but agreed after thinking about it. "However, they might already be on guard. We need to be careful this time and not let the government officials catch us."

boom!
Just as the two were discussing things, the door to the room was suddenly kicked open.

"If you're afraid of being caught by the authorities, why do you still steal?"

A group of burly men dressed in tight-fitting clothes and carrying weapons stormed in. The leader was none other than Da Wu from the Big Character Team.

"what?"

"Brother Yang!"

The two thieves were terrified, and the one called Xiaotong trembled and hid behind Yang Haibo in panic.

"Take them down!" Da Wu roared, and the members of his squad immediately surrounded the two thieves. "Please spare us! Please spare us!" Yang Haibo and Xiao Tong's faces changed drastically upon seeing this. They tried to escape, but they were already surrounded and had no way to get away.

Da Wu stepped forward, grabbed the two men, and dragged them out of the inn.

"Whether I spare you or not depends on what my young lady says. Come on, I'll take you to meet her!" Da Wu said coldly.

Before long, the two thieves were taken to the best restaurant in town—Piaoxianglou.

Although the restaurant was brightly lit, business wasn't very good. Da Wu led the two to an elegant private room, pushed open the door, and ushered them inside.

Inside the private room, a woman dressed simply but with a sweet face sat around a round table laden with delicious food. She was none other than Han Lei.

When Han Lei saw Da Wu bring in two thieves, she didn't show any anger on her face. Instead, she smiled and invited the two to sit down.

"Please have a seat, gentlemen!"

The two thieves looked at each other, feeling uneasy, wondering what this pretty girl was up to.

"My daughter asked you to sit down, so please sit down," Da Wu shouted impatiently.

"Yes, yes." Yang Haibo pulled the child down to sit down tremblingly, not daring to breathe loudly.

"You two are quite capable! You managed to steal all the wine from my yard and sell it for an unexpectedly high price."

Han Lei smiled and got straight to the point, but her eyes revealed a hint of amusement.

Yang Haibo and Xiao Tong were startled by what they heard and didn't know how to answer. They looked at each other and decided to confess.

Yang Haibo, being slightly older, was the first to leave his seat and kneel on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly as he pleaded, "Auntie, young lady. We...we were forced into this situation and, blinded by greed, committed this heinous act. Please, young lady, have mercy on us this time!"

The younger children quickly knelt on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly and begging for mercy: "Please, young lady, spare us! We will never dare to do it again."

Han Lei didn't say whether she would forgive them or not, but instead carefully examined them.

The two thieves were not very old; the older one was no more than seventeen or eighteen, and the other looked only fourteen or fifteen. They were thin and emaciated, appearing to be suffering from chronic malnutrition.

So young, and already going astray?

Han Lei frowned slightly, looked at Yang Haibo who was slightly older, and asked, "Why did you just say that you were forced into a corner?"

Yang Haibo didn't dare to look up. He pointed to the boy beside him and said, "My name is Yang Haibo. I'm from Yangjia Village, Taoyuan County, Jingzhou. This boy is Tang Xiaotong. He's an orphan and has been learning to be a peddler by my side."

"If you have a legitimate business as a peddler, why would you also become a thief?" Han Lei asked, puzzled.

Yang Haibo continued, “Young lady, we are really not bad people. My family were originally tenants of the Su family. Two years ago, due to a locust plague, our land yielded nothing. The Su family came to collect the rent, and my father argued with them. The Su family's steward then had my father beaten to death and took back the land. My mother also fell ill and has to take medicine year-round. With no land to cultivate, I could only become a peddler. But the harvest was bad, and with the annual war in Beiguan, not many people bought our goods. We barely had enough to eat, and my mother couldn't go without her medicine. That day, we were selling our goods when we passed by a courtyard and were attracted by the aroma of wine in the courtyard, so… so I became greedy.”

Upon hearing this, Han Lei looked at them with a hint of pity.

She had heard Zhao Zun mention that the Great Jing Dynasty had four great families—Wei, Sun, Su, and Song.

I love you all, I love you all


(End of this chapter)