After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

When Ningnan returned to Lijia Village, it was past noon, when the sun was at its highest.

Most of the villagers packed up their valuables and iron tools and ran away. They took the cattle and sheep, and even the chickens. They didn't leave the thieves a single egg. The huge village became deserted.

Riding my horse across the stone bridge, I slowed down and looked around. I noticed that many houses had broken doors, and there were many knife and axe marks on the doors and windows.

The thieves had indeed been there, kicking open the doors of many houses. Finding the village empty, with no one and no valuables, they slashed and hacked indiscriminately to vent their anger... Ning Nan pulled on the reins, and the horse neighed a few times.

The group rushed to the home of the "Reading Seed".

At this moment, a few people emerged from the bamboo grove behind the house of the "Reading Seed."

Qin Yuanyao nodded and said, "It's the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

She dismounted and took it.

A moment later, Qin Yuanyao suppressed the joy on her face and rushed over, saying, "It's done... all the bandits have been captured!"

Ning Nan nodded, turned his horse around, and said, "Let's go check out that mountain stronghold."

There were traces of a large group of people walking through the bamboo forest. The imperial guards said that among these footprints were those of people from Lijia Village and those of thieves.

After passing through the bamboo forest, we entered the lush and verdant back mountains. After traveling five miles further, we could no longer ride horses.

Leave the horse in the woods and have someone take care of it.

Ning Nan, Qin Yuanyao, and the others rushed towards the valley.

About fifteen minutes later, we arrived at the valley.

The valley was not large, and the entrance had already collapsed.

Several imperial guards, along with the able-bodied men of Lijia Village, cleared the bricks and stones at the entrance while carrying the corpses out of the valley.

Some young men, sweating profusely, shouted slogans and swung their hoes, sending dirt flying, as they dug deep pits in the forest to bury the bandits' corpses on the spot and prevent the spread of disease.

Some of the surviving, still breathing bandits with bushy beards were tied to trees, their faces covered in lime, their mouths stuffed with strips of cloth, making muffled noises. Many of them also had arrows stuck in their chests and arms.

"Reporting to Young Master Ning and Commander Qin," a disheveled-looking officer from the Embroidered Uniform Guard stepped forward to report, his voice tinged with excitement.

"As Young Master Ning instructed, after we lured them into the trap, and once all the hundred-odd bandits had stormed into the valley, the two righteous men, Li Erlai and Li Sanzhuang, indeed detonated the entrance to the valley! As if divine retribution had been delivered, the heavens' might was overwhelming! Bricks and stones collapsed, blocking the entrance, and the bandits immediately fell into chaos!"

"We then unleashed a barrage of lime and arrows from the mountain stronghold in the valley. Caught completely off guard, the bandits were captured at a very low cost!"

The centurion wiped the soot off his face and stared intently at Ning Nan... Just a few days ago, he had some reservations about this young man, feeling that he was constantly making things difficult and acting without any method, exhibiting the typical scholarly arbitrariness... But he never expected that... in just a few days, the young man would help him achieve such a tremendous feat!

The Imperial Guards who rushed over, including Qin Yuanyao, were delighted. Many of them stared at Ning Nan's back with admiring eyes. Young Master Ning is truly... truly... a master strategist!

Ning Nan frowned and pointed to the open space not far away, saying, "How come so many people died?"

There were about eight corpses lying on the open ground, on bamboo mats, all covered with white cloth.

The bodies of the Black Tiger Mountain bandits would be moved into the pit and buried on the spot, while the few bodies that were carefully placed were undoubtedly those of their own people.

The centurion, who had made a great contribution, paused for a moment of joy, then his expression turned to sorrow.

Of the eight corpses, three were brothers from the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and the other five were young men from Li Family Village.

"Among the thieves was a mute, a master of internal martial arts, and incredibly strong. He broke through some rocks and led about ten men to climb over the ruins at the valley entrance and escape..."

"They ran into the brothers guarding outside... That mute slapped one of the brothers' heads off... The three burly brothers picked up iron hammers, rushed forward, and held off the mute scumbag. Several other Imperial Guard brothers followed suit and charged in... Li Erlai and his brother were fierce and brave, and one of them killed six of the escaped men in one go..."

"That mute killed five of us. One of the bandits pointed at the Sanzhuang and Erlai brothers, saying they were the ones who detonated the gunpowder... The mute wasn't deaf, though. After severely injuring the Sanzhuang brothers, he screamed 'Ah ah ah,' as if seeking revenge, and then grabbed the Sanzhuang brothers and ran away... When the Erlai brothers saw this, they were distracted... and accidentally got stabbed by a bandit... After the Erlai brothers decapitated the bandit, they bled too much and collapsed..."

"Take me to see!" Ning Nan waved his hand and interrupted in a deep voice.

Erlaizi and dozens of wounded soldiers stayed in a makeshift tent.

When Ning Nan saw Er Lai, the boy was lying on a quilt, asleep with a pale face.

The centurion spoke so lightly, but after asking the doctor, he learned that Er Lai's wound stretched diagonally from his left shoulder to his lower right abdomen. The wound was very deep and had almost damaged his heart.

To kill his opponent while suffering such a wound, this kid is completely reckless.

The wounds had been treated and bandaged... According to the booklet he had written beforehand, the bandages had been boiled in boiling water. The doctors he had invited from Hangezhuang did a good job of doing so, and the wounded soldiers' camp was relatively clean.

There wasn't much penicillin left, so it had been given to Erlai beforehand. The doctor said that Erlai had already used some on everyone with wounds... If it was used in batches, Ning Nan wasn't sure if it could prevent wound infection, so he could only hold Erlai's hand tightly and hope that the kid would be lucky.

Outside the tent, he caught a glimpse of Erlai's father, Han Donghu, carrying a bowl of soup-like substance, hurrying over.

Erlai is the butcher's only son.

Ning Nan immediately stood up.

He walked past the tent without stopping, without ever meeting Uncle Donghu.

With a gloomy expression, he led the group back to the Embroidered Uniform Guard headquarters.

"The physical appearance matches," Qin Yuanyao said, her eyes equally gloomy.

"The person who fought his way out here... is the mute who rescued Xiao Chun at Shili Gorge!"

Ning Nan narrowed his eyes: "So... the person the mute was leading on the horse... was San Zhuang?"

"It should be..." Qin Yuanyao glanced at the scholar whose complexion had become extremely gloomy, even exuding a murderous aura, and pursed her lips, saying, "We sent people to track down that mute. According to the news that came back, the mute, along with Xiao Chun and three righteous men, should have fled towards Black Tiger Mountain."

Ning Nan nodded his chin.

Take a step.

Qin Yuanyao and the other Imperial Guards immediately followed behind.

Upon reaching the place where the horses were to be stopped, Ning Nan untied the reins and mounted the horse.

"Walk,"

He pulled on the reins, turned his horse around, and calmly addressed Qin Yuanyao and the others who were mounting their horses.

"We went and took Black Tiger Mountain."

……

……

The shoreline where the water glistens.

An hour after Ning Nan left, Cuicui boarded a small boat and, under the protection of numerous Imperial Guards, went ashore.

At this moment, two commanders of the Imperial Guards arrived with their troops. After ensuring sufficient protection, everyone allowed Cuicui to mount her horse and leave, and reported: "Commander Shangguan is waiting for Your Highness ahead and will go with Your Highness."

Hmm... Shangguan Yun has come in person.

Along with Shangguan Yun and his large guard, they also arrived to report on the battle situation in Shili Gorge and the back mountain valley.

The young doctor won a great victory.

The entire force of Xiao Chun was annihilated.

They found and killed Chen Mu, a fourth-rank military officer... He killed him with his own hands.

"Well done," she said casually to the two Imperial Guard commanders who came to report.

Immediately, the woman grabbed the reins and turned the horse around.

There was no one in front of her, and as she looked up, a gust of north wind blew in her face.

The woman's eyes were clear and calm, like a sword ploughing forward... This gaze ploughed across the road, across the plains, across the mountains and forests, across Lijia Village... Hmm... She hummed softly again... Well done, hmm.