Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 40 Swaggering
"...There were about ten people outside the city gate, mostly women, with only two men. Everyone had a horse!"

“Every single one is a fine horse!”

The two men rushed to report to the young master.

Shi Yan nodded slightly and muttered to himself, "A fine horse is worth a hundred taels of silver, and it's priceless. Just who is this Miss Pei Liu? She has more than a dozen fine horses."

The servant beside her chimed in, "Sixth Miss Pei makes no attempt to conceal herself, flaunting herself in the city like this. I'm afraid she'll soon be targeted by the bandits."

Bandits were rampant in Changping County, with five or six gangs of varying sizes. Traveling merchants were frequently robbed, suffering greatly. Moreover, this was the only route to the north, and there was no way to avoid it. Every time Shi Yan came to Changping County, he had to bring at least seven or eight servants with him.

A group of women, with fine horses, bought a large quantity of grain seeds... It would be against all reason for the bandits not to rob them.

Shi Yan's eyes flashed: "Perhaps this is exactly what Miss Pei intended."

The servants were completely bewildered: "Young master, where did you get this idea? Who would want to provoke bandits?"

"A group of women can't all fight."

Shi Yan smirked: "Just wait and see what happens."

He instructed the grain shop manager: "Manager Qian, keep an eye on the situation in Pei Family Village. Report any news to me immediately."

True gold fears no fire. It's a good time to assess Miss Pei's abilities and see if she's truly worth befriending.

Manager Qian hurriedly and respectfully agreed.

……

Pei Qinghe urged his horse forward at a slow pace, and the others followed suit. They traveled at a leisurely pace, stopping frequently, and had already rested twice during the more than one-hour journey.

Pei Yun couldn't help but move closer to Pei Qinghe and whisper the question that had been bothering her: "Why don't you hurry back to the village?"

Pei Qinghe raised the water pouch, took a sip, and gestured with her eyes.

Pei Yun turned her head to look around, her eyebrows twitching: "That person seems to have been following us from a distance since we left the city."

Pei Qinghe hummed in agreement.

Pei Yan also leaned over and whispered, "Have we been too conspicuous today? Have we been targeted? I've heard that there are many bandits in Changping County. Could this guy following us be a bandit spy?"

Pei Qinghe glanced at Pei Yan: "If so, are you afraid?"

Pei Yan raised an eyebrow arrogantly and chuckled, "What's there to be afraid of? If any bandits dare to come, we'll kill them one by one, or two by two."

"I'll go over there right now, grab the person, and question them."

"Wait!" Pei Qinghe reached out and stopped Pei Yan, who was itching to go: "Let him come along."

Pei Yan was taken aback.

Pei Yun, with her meticulous and perceptive mind, said: "Did you deliberately make a spectacle of yourself today to attract a band of mountain bandits?"

Pei Qinghe said calmly, "Clearing wasteland and planting crops will take at least half a year to yield a harvest. There are over two hundred people, young and old, who need to fill their stomachs. Where will they get their food and drink?"

“Our Pei family are the families of exiled criminals, and we cannot leave our place of exile, much less prey on innocent people and ordinary merchants. When bandits came to us, we had no choice but to take action in order to protect ourselves.”

That makes perfect sense.

Pei Yun understood and nodded.

Pei Yan understood, clenched her fist and shook it, grinning to reveal two small tiger teeth: "Let them never leave alive!"

The group slowly rode their horses back to Peijia Village.

Pei Xuan and Pei Feng led a bunch of kids out to greet them, followed by Madam Feng and the others. The man following at a distance greedily licked his lips.

It turned out to be a bunch of children and women!

It's like a piece of fat meat falling right into your mouth from heaven.

The man hid in the shadows and watched for a long time before quietly turning around and sneaking into the forest before dark. He walked all night along mountain paths and at dawn he crawled into a ravine and couldn't wait to tell his boss the good news of finding the fat sheep.

The bandit leader, nicknamed "Black Bear," who was over nine feet tall, dark-skinned, and had a fierce face, listened with his eyes shining: "You really saw it clearly? They really have more than a dozen horses?"

“Not only that, there should be good horses in the village.” The man licked his lips and chuckled a few times. “I only saw two or three men, one of whom was a cripple with a missing arm. It was almost all children and women. And most of them were young and beautiful girls.”

The other bandits also became restless: "Boss, what are we waiting for? Let's go today and rob horses and women."

“Kill all the boys, and take all the women into the mountains.”

"After I snatch it, I'll get one."

"The eldest goes first, then we'll divide the rest."

The mention of women made the bandits roar with excitement.

The bandit leader was the calmest of them all. He grabbed the messenger by the collar and asked, "Are you sure there aren't any men in the village?"

The messenger pointed to the sky and swore, "I looked for a long time and only saw three. There's also a cripple with a missing arm."

"Boss, hurry up and go, don't hesitate."

"If Scarface gets there first, we won't even have a chance to eat it while it's still hot."

Six bandit groups each occupied a hilltop. Scarface Wolf's band of bandits was the closest to them, only two or three days' journey away.

We can't let someone else snatch away the juicy meat that's already in our mouths.

The bandit leader made a decision quickly.

There were over a hundred people in the village, and excluding women and children, there were more than 120 bandits capable of fighting. Half of them stayed behind to guard the village, while the rest of the bandits, each armed with knives, spears, axes, and other weapons, headed out of the mountains. They descended the mountain in a day, arriving at Pei Family Village just in the middle of the night.

Magistrate Wang of Changping County was a notorious drunkard, spending his days drinking. When Peijia Village was robbed by bandits, Magistrate Wang did absolutely nothing. At most, he would feign concern by writing a memorial to the imperial court and sending a few yamen runners to collect the bodies.

How did the village become empty?

It was all thanks to that gang of bandits.

A trip there, with horses, provisions, and women. Just thinking about it makes my blood boil.

……

"There are six bandit gangs in the mountains. The bandit leader closest to Peijia Village is nicknamed Black Bear. He uses a thick-backed long axe and is tall and strong. It is said that he killed a bear when he was young. Later, he recruited men and occupied the mountain valley to build a bandit stronghold."

From the thatched hut in the center of Peijia Village, Pei Qinghe's calm and clear voice rang out: "Black Bear has more than a hundred men under his command. Apart from the children and women, we still need to leave people to guard the stronghold. I estimate that there are about sixty or seventy people coming to Peijia Village."

"Most of them were armed, but their skills varied greatly. They were a rabble, far inferior to the gang of thugs we encountered before."

"They came in a hurry without investigating the situation in Peijia Village. It's obvious they don't take us seriously."

"Underestimating the enemy and advancing rashly is a cardinal sin in warfare. If they come, we must keep them all here."

The last sentence, though understated, is brimming with murderous intent.

Pei Yan was filled with fervor upon hearing this and was the first to chime in, "Yes! Let them never return!"

(End of this chapter)