With her delicate face and slender waist, the royal uncle lost control.

The further you go in, the dimmer the light becomes, and the quieter it gets; even the noise from the street gradually fades away.

Yun Nian's heart gradually tightened.

This alley is so remote that it doesn't look like anyone lives there at all.

"etc."

She stopped abruptly and grabbed Qiluo. "Something's wrong."

What about the little boy?

How could they disappear in the blink of an eye?

Yun Nian looked around; the alley was deserted.

"Qiluo, let's go back." Yun Nian made a quick decision and turned to walk out.

At this moment, three burly men appeared out of nowhere and blocked the alley entrance like three walls.

They had fierce faces and their eyes gleamed with ill intent.

"Oh, where are you headed, young lady?"

The leader was a burly man with a fierce face, grinning and revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth. "Since you're here, don't be in such a hurry to leave."

Yun Nian's heart sank; she knew she had fallen into a trap.

She shielded Qiluo behind her, forcing herself to remain calm, and asked, "Who are you? What do you want?"

"What are you doing?"

The man chuckled, rubbing his hands together as he approached them. "Of course, we'd like to invite you two ladies over. Don't worry, we brothers are the most considerate..."

Before he finished speaking, two other men quickly stepped forward, each carrying a sack.

"Miss, be careful!"

Qi Luo screamed and tried to stand in front of Yun Nian.

But these two weak women were no match for these three burly men.

Yun Nian felt a sudden darkness before her eyes, and she was completely enveloped in a sack, with a strong, earthy smell hitting her face.

She struggled desperately, but the sack was tied tightly, and her hands were tied behind her back with rough rope.

"Qiluo! Qiluo!" she cried out.

"Behave yourself!" Someone kicked her leg, and it was quite hard.

Yun Nian winced in pain, let out a muffled groan, and dared not move again.

She could feel herself being carried upside down, being jostled forward, and her stomach churned violently.

The sack was filled with an indescribable odor.

Yun Nian was so dizzy from the jolting that she felt a sweet smell getting into her nostrils, her head was getting heavier and heavier, and her eyelids were getting heavier and heavier.

She bit her tongue, trying to stay awake with the pain, but her consciousness was still gradually fading out of control.

All that remained in my ears was the sound of heavy footsteps…

"Miss, Miss, wake up..."

In a daze, it seemed as if someone was calling her.

Yun Nian struggled to open her eyes.

She found herself lying on a pile of hay, her hands and feet tightly bound with rough hemp rope, unable to move.

Qi Luo was right beside her, also bound, and looking at her anxiously.

Looking around, it was an extremely simple woodshed.

The walls were mottled, revealing the adobe bricks underneath, and some old farm tools and miscellaneous items were piled up in the corner.

The only window was nailed shut with a few thick wooden strips, letting in only a few rays of dim light through the cracks.

Yun Nian felt a chill run down her spine and fully regained her senses.

The faint sound of several men talking could be heard outside; their voices were rough and had heavy accents.

"The chieftain is in luck now! That girl is fucking gorgeous! Otherwise, would the chieftain have agreed to do this deal with that man?"

"Indeed, in all my years, I've never seen such a beautiful girl. And that maid next to her is quite lovely too, pretty and delicate..."

"Just hold back. The chieftain said neither of them are to be touched; he'll deal with them personally when he gets back. If you dare to cheat, the chieftain will skin you alive."

"Tsk, didn't the chieftain take the brothers down to Mount Ling to gather supplies? They won't be back for two days. I'm so anxious..."

The sound gradually faded into the distance.

Qiluo trembled with fear, tears welling up in her eyes.

She asked in a low voice, "Miss, what should we do?"

Yun Nian calmed down, her brain working at lightning speed.

Chieftain?

Mountain bandits...

Tiger Roar Village!

She suddenly recalled some memories from her past life.

Yeling Mountain is located in the western suburbs of Beijing. Its terrain is steep and easy to defend, making it difficult to attack.

The bandits of Yeling Mountain became increasingly rampant, committing arson, murder, and looting in several nearby villages and towns, causing unrest among the people.

Later, Qin Jiuchen was ordered to lead troops to suppress the bandits, which finally eradicated the banditry completely.

I never imagined that I would fall into the hands of these bandits in this lifetime.

Moreover, judging from what those people said earlier, they were traded to the village chief by "that person".

Regardless of who instigated it, the most important thing right now is to escape.

Yun Nian carefully searched the woodshed.

She noticed a square vent that was boarded up at the bottom corner of the wall.

The opening wasn't large, but given her and Qiluo's figures, they should be able to squeeze through.

"Qiluo, do you see that vent? We'll go out through there."

Qi Luo followed her gaze, a glimmer of hope flashing in her eyes.

"Untie the rope first."

Yun Nian shifted her body and sat up with her back to Qi Luo. "Stand up and take the hairpin off my head."

Upon hearing this, Qi Luo struggled to sit up, turned her back, and with her hands bound behind her back, painstakingly found Yun Nian's hair bun and pulled out the silver hairpin.

"Miss, I got it."

"Okay, hand it to me."

Yun Nian adjusted the angle and began to use the sharp tip of the hairpin to rub against the hemp rope tied to her wrist.

It took a while of cutting for the rope to break.

With her hands free, Yun Nian quickly untied the ropes binding her feet and then turned around to help Qi Luo untie them.

The two moved quietly to the area below the ventilation opening.

Yun Nian used a hairpin to pry open the wooden board sealing the vent.

The wooden planks were not nailed securely and quickly loosened under continuous prying.

She gritted her teeth and finally managed to pry open a gap in a wooden board.

"Miss, that's enough!"

Yun Nian also climbed up, and the two of them squeezed out through the narrow gap one after the other.

Outside is the back wall of the woodshed, right next to a dense grove of trees.

It was getting dark, and the mountains and forests were shrouded in mist, making visibility very low.

"Go that way."

Yun Nian used her memory to determine the direction, "Xiangguo Temple is south of Yeling Mountain, let's head south."

The two had only run a few steps when a rough, loud shout suddenly came from behind them: "Stop! Those two women ran away!"

Oops!

Was discovered.

Yun Nian turned around and saw three bandits carrying knives rushing over from the other side of the woodshed, each with a ferocious look on their faces.

"Run!"

She grabbed Qiluo and tried desperately to rush deeper into the woods.

Qi Luo suddenly stopped and forcefully pushed Yun Nian forward.

"Miss, you go first! I'll distract them!"

"No!" Yun Nian grabbed her hand. "If we're going, we'll go together!"

"It's too late!"

Qi Luo was so anxious that tears streamed down her face. "Miss, listen to me, if you get caught too, we're all doomed."

As she spoke, she forcefully shook off Yun Nian's hand, turned around and ran in another direction, deliberately kicking down dead branches by the roadside as she ran, making a rustling sound.

"Over there!"

The bandits' attention was indeed drawn to her, and they shouted as they chased after Qiluo.

Yun Nian watched Qi Luo's figure disappear into the mist, her heart aching.

But she knew that Qiluo was right.

Now is not the time to act on emotions.

She gritted her teeth, turned and ran south with all her might.

The mountain path was rugged and difficult to traverse, with withered branches and vines constantly tripping her up.

Her skirt was torn by thorns, and there were several bloody marks on her arms and face.

Today is the first day of the lunar month. According to his memories from his previous life, Qin Jiuchen would go to Xiangguo Temple to pay respects to his deceased mother on the first day of every lunar month.

If only she could arrive before he left...