The Thief Prince

By the time the temple was cleaned up inside and out, it was already broad daylight.

All sorts of spoils were loaded onto oxcarts, donkey carts, and horse-drawn carriages. If there wasn't enough room in the carts, they were carried by manpower. Not a single copper coin was lost.

The underlings were terrified of poverty, and Li Zheng also needed this wealth as start-up capital.

At this moment, Li Zheng was riding a horse, with Tang Meng, who was beaming, beside him, and Zhang Yin, who was barely maintaining his balance on the horse.

The original owner was an expert in horsemanship, needless to say, while Tang Meng had learned to ride horses when he traveled the martial arts world.

Zhang Yin was not so good at it. As a hunter, he was always running around in the mountains, and he had more opportunities to ride tigers than horses.

Li Zheng patiently instructed, "Brother Zhang Yin, don't be nervous. Don't fight against this beast. Just let things take their course."

"Don't squeeze your legs too tightly, otherwise the horse will feel pain and won't move."

Zhang Yin wiped his sweat, barely maintaining his balance: "That beast, it's really disobedient."

The horse beneath him seemed somewhat dissatisfied, stamping its hooves on the spot, causing Zhang Yin's body to stiffen.

Li Zheng and Tang Meng laughed, but they didn't mock Zhang Yin.

To reach this level on your first time riding a horse is already quite impressive; you're very talented.

Once Zhang Yin was able to ride his horse at a leisurely pace, the team was ready to depart at any time.

Seeing the pitiful children at the end of the line, Zhang Yin asked Li Zheng, who was standing beside him:

"What should we do with these children? Should we take them back to the mountain stronghold?"

Li Zheng shook his head decisively: "We're in this dangerous business, how can we support so many children? Let's send them back to the authorities."

Zhang Yin frowned and said, "Brother, sending them back is like throwing lambs to the slaughter!"

Li Zheng asked, puzzled, "Why not? In broad daylight, they wouldn't dare harm these children again, would they?"

Tang Meng sneered, "Brother, you still don't understand. This isn't the capital. Officials don't need to hide their harm to the people."

Li Zheng realized that he hadn't adapted to modern thinking and had overestimated the role of public opinion.

These days, officials don't care at all what the people think of them.

The so-called love for the people also meant love for the gentry and powerful families.

He then asked, "Are there any highly respected Confucian scholars in the area? Or any prominent families who have accumulated a long history of good deeds?"

Zhang Yin thought for a moment and then said, "There really is one."

"Old Master Liu from the south of the city usually lives in his manor outside the county. It is said that he was once a high-ranking official in the capital and could be on friendly terms with the prefect."

"Is he reliable?"

Tang Meng nodded: "He's reliable. Many brothers received his help before they came up the mountain."

Li Zheng thought for a moment and concluded that those who could be on equal footing with the prefect were at least retired officials of the fourth or fifth rank, who should be able to protect these children.

"Send a few brothers to take the children to his doorstep; that's all we can do."

Although the matter was settled, deciding who to send became a problem.

Although Old Man Liu lived outside the county town, it was still government territory, and no one wanted to make this trip.

In the end, it was Ma San who stepped forward: "Brother, I'll take a few fellow villagers to see them off."

Li Zheng looked at Ma San, feeling somewhat conflicted, not wanting him to do this dangerous job.

Ma San patted his chest and said, "Brother, don't worry. I don't have any other skills, but I'm the fastest runner in the stronghold. I'll definitely be safe and sound."

He also had his own thoughts. He knew that he didn't have much ability to kill enemies. If he wanted to maintain his position in Brother Li Zheng's heart, he had to take the initiative to do things that others were unwilling to do.

Li Zheng laughed and said, "Alright, if you do this well, I'll reward you with a small leader position."

In a mountain stronghold, there isn't only one position: leader. There are also junior leaders among the henchmen, who can manage more than ten people.

Ma San is one of our own, so regardless of his abilities, he should be given priority for promotion.

Ma San was overjoyed and cupped his hands in thanks, saying, "Thank you, brother!"

After saying that, he selected seven or eight fellow villagers and led the children toward the county town.

Li Zheng watched their figures disappear, and sighed in his heart: I hope these children can grow up safely.

After Ma San left, the group began their return journey.

Now that it is broad daylight, one can occasionally encounter passersby and merchants on the road. Upon seeing the menacing Black Wind Bandits, they all run away in fear.

Li Zheng didn't send anyone to hunt them down, letting them escape.

Since their actions that night had already been exposed, they might as well let more people see it and also bring some fame to Black Wind Village.

Chen Wang's son, Chai Xixu, wanted to live in anonymity, while Li Zheng, the bandit leader of Black Wind Village, wanted his reputation to grow as high as possible.

Moreover, the greater Li Zheng's reputation as a bandit, the less likely the court officials would link the two together, thus making him safer.

But if I go out to rob again in the future, I'll have to cover my face with a black cloth.

Otherwise, if his own arrest warrant were to be issued, someone would inevitably recognize him.

As they neared the foot of the mountain, two people suddenly jumped out of the roadside bushes. The boy among them said to Li Zheng with delight:

"Brother, you're back!"

These two people were Yan Yun and the maid.

Li Zheng was out on business, so naturally he couldn't leave the maid with Zhou Qing.

She had Yan Yun take her down the mountain to hide early on, both for safety and to monitor Zhou Qing's movements.

Li Zheng asked with a smile, "Nothing happening in the mountains?"

Yan Yun was about to speak when she saw Tang Meng and the other person and shut up.

Li Zheng said, "It's alright, just say it."

Yan Yun then replied, "There's no movement on the mountain; the chieftain is still up there."

Tang Meng and Zhang Yin then realized that Li Zheng had been monitoring Zhou Qing, and their expressions immediately became unnatural.

Li Zheng looked at the two men frankly and said, "Brothers, there's something I've been thinking about for a long time."

Tang Meng lowered his head and didn't respond, but Zhang Yin said, "Brother, please speak freely."

"After this incident, we definitely can't stay in Black Wind Stronghold anymore. We need to find another stronghold."

After reading those deadly letters, how could the person behind the scenes possibly let it go?

Given Black Wind Stronghold's current strength, it would be annihilation if they came knocking on their door.

The two knew this principle, but their attention was drawn to the joy of their great victory.

Tang Meng said, "The chieftain might not agree."

Li Zheng looked at him: "Brother, rest assured, how could the chieftain be confused about matters of life and death?"

Tang Meng stopped talking, his face, covered in purple spots, filled with conflict.

Li Zheng didn't urge him; he knew he would have to choose between himself and Zhou Qing sooner or later.

Zhang Yin readily agreed: "Brother, have you already decided where to go?"

Li Zheng smiled and nodded: "Brother knows me well, there is indeed a good place for me."

"Brother, tell me quickly."

Li Zheng asked, "Brother, do you know about Ohnosawa?"

"It is known that the Great Wilderness Marsh spans the Yellow River and the Ji River, and it is said that all the waterways of the Central Plains converge here."

Li Zheng continued, "A hundred years ago, the Yellow River breached its banks and changed its course, forming a pond in a low-lying area, and there happened to be a high mountain in the center of that pond."

Tang Meng chimed in, "Huh? I've heard people talk about this mountain before, it seems to be... Liang... Liang..."

Li Zheng laughed and said, "Brother is right, it is indeed Liangshan."

That body of water was then called "Liangshan Marsh"!