The Thief Prince

Along the forest path, the off-key singing of the men echoed:

"Raise your swords and spears and march forward, kill the corrupt officials and bring forth the sunshine."

"Don't ask about life or death on this journey; dying is better than starving to death!"

The Black Wind Thieves sang one line after another, without even a fixed melody, yet they all sang with great relish.

Li Zheng shook his head with a smile. His doggerel hadn't attracted many people, but his brothers had started singing it.

That's a good thing, it can improve the cohesion of the Black Wind Thieves, and it's worth the effort of thinking hard all night.

When we arrive at Liangshan later, we can change "Dangshan" to "Liangshan" in the song and use it directly as a military song.

At this moment, several riders galloped up from the front, led by Yan Yun.

Yan Yun rode up to Li Zheng's side: "Brother, there is a village ahead, with about a hundred households."

Li Zheng nodded and said to Wu Anqing beside him, "Map."

Wu Anqing handed over a cowhide map. Li Zheng flipped through it for a while and then said:

"It should be Zoujia Village, which is less than 20 li away from Shanzhou."

Reaching Danzhou means you've traveled halfway. After walking another hundred li or so, you'll see Dayeze.

At this moment, Zhang Yin rode over and said, "Brother, the army is running out of water and food. Why don't we go into the village to resupply?"

In order to bring as much gold, silver and military equipment as possible, Li Zheng did not carry too much food.

Bandits, after all, rob whose house they find and then eat it.

Looking at the sun, Li Zheng thought that he would not be able to reach Danzhou today, so he nodded and said, "Let's take fifty brothers and ten transport carts and go into the village to scout it out."

"Remember this well: once you enter the village, you must not harass the villagers, and you must not kill indiscriminately."

Tang Meng and the others knew Li Zheng's temperament; he didn't like indiscriminately killing innocent civilians.

Moreover, after these battles, everyone has become a bit more like a bandit.

Having robbed wealthy families and even the imperial army of the Great Zhou, it was truly shameful to rob ordinary people of their chickens, ducks, and geese.

"Brother Wu'an, Brother Zhang Yin, you two stay here and keep the soldiers in check."

"Here you are."

"Yes, brother."

Li Zheng, along with Cao Su, Tang Meng, Yan Yun, and fifty riders, headed towards Zoujia Village.

The village entrance was visible in the distance, but it was deserted. The surrounding forest was dense and lush, but not a single bird could be heard.

Li Zheng was somewhat wary. Could this place be like the Zhu Family Village, full of traps and ambushes?

So he stopped his horse and asked Cao Su, who was standing beside him, "Isn't this a trap?"

Cao Su shook his head: "Brother, don't worry. In such a desolate village, there probably isn't even a single village soldier."

Tang Meng, who was standing to the side, also said, "Brother is being too cautious. We are now strong and well-equipped. Let alone a village, we can flatten even a small stronghold."

Li Zheng laughed and said, "You've won several battles, and your tone has become increasingly arrogant."

Tang Meng scratched his head and said, "Brother, if there is any farm-made wine in this village, could we ask for a few jars? We brothers have been traveling for days, and our mouths are so bland."

Li Zheng thought about it and realized that it was unrealistic to expect all the bandits to give up drinking.

Anyway, the alcohol content of ancient wine was low, so even with so many people, they wouldn't drink more than a few sips, and nothing would happen.

So he nodded and said, "Drinking is fine, but don't get drunk and act recklessly, or I'll give you twenty lashes first."

"How could that be? I, Old Tang, am the most honest and obedient person."

The group entered the village amidst laughter and chatter.

Several women who were drawing water from the well dropped their buckets and ran away, while the men carrying hoes on the ridges of the fields dashed into their houses, closing the doors one after another.

Before long, the entire village lane was deserted, and not even a dog could be seen.

Li Zheng wasn't surprised. Once you become a bandit, you're nothing but filth, and you can't expect everyone to like you. He had that much self-awareness.

Just as he was about to instruct people to borrow grain from house to house, a dark figure suddenly darted out from the roadside.

The thing was as fast as a black wind and as strong as a bear, hurtling straight towards the dark cloud beneath Li Zheng's seat.

Li Zheng was startled and was about to tighten the reins.

His crotch was already dark and he hissed, shifting half his body away.

The dark figure grazed past Wu Yun's shoulder and crashed straight into Tang Meng beside him.

Although Tang Meng's horse was a good horse, it was far less intelligent than Wu Yun's, and was hit squarely by the dark shadow.

After a muffled thud, the horse collapsed to the ground with a pitiful neigh.

Tang Meng was also thrown off his horse, his back hitting the ground squarely.

Fortunately, he reacted quickly enough, rolled on the spot to dissipate the force, and stood up, clutching his waist and grimacing.

"elder brother!"

"Brother Tang Meng!"

The henchmen then realized what was happening and drew their crossbows and bows.

Li Zheng also drew his hand axe from his waist, as if to throw it.

However, the dark figure vanished in a flash, disappearing into the village lanes.

Li Zheng sheathed his axe, dismounted, and walked to Tang Meng's side: "Brother, are you alright?"

Tang Meng rubbed his back and grinned, "Brother, what the hell is that?"

Seeing that he spoke fluently, Li Zheng figured there was nothing seriously wrong and was relieved.

Looking down at Tang Meng's horse, I saw that white foam was flowing from the horse's mouth and nose, and its limbs twitched for a while before it became completely still.

Tang Meng stomped his feet in distress. He had only ridden the horse for two days and was still very excited about it.

The crowd gathered around, chattering amongst themselves, all saying they hadn't seen what the thing looked like, only that it resembled some kind of ferocious wild beast.

Only Cao Su dismounted, squatted down to examine the marks on the ground, and frowned, saying, "It looks like a person."

Tang Meng was taken aback: "A person? What kind of person has the strength to kill a horse? It looks more like a demonic black whirlwind!"

Cao Su didn't respond, but instead gestured with his hand to indicate the width of the mark, his expression becoming even more serious.

Li Zheng weighed the axe in his hand and said coldly, "Whether it's a person or a wild beast, they all belong to this village."

"Now that they've attacked us, there's no need to hold back anymore."

He mounted his horse and shouted, "Search every house!"

The henchmen responded in unison and immediately scattered, some kicking down doors, others scaling walls.

The village erupted in chaos, with chickens flying and dogs barking, pots and pans shattering amidst the screams of women.

Before long, an old man with gray hair and beard was carried out by his henchmen and staggered as he was pushed in front of Li Zheng's horse.

The henchman bowed to Li Zheng and said, "Brother, this old man is the village head."

"Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!"

"This old man is the village head of Zoujia Village. I was unaware of Your Majesty's arrival and have failed to greet you properly."

"Your Majesty, please just ask for grain or money, but please be careful not to harm the innocent!"

Li Zheng frowned at him and said in a deep voice, "Tell me, what kind of wild animals do you keep in your village?"

"Wild...beasts?"