I worked myself to the bone to become a saint, and survived on a deserted island with a stunning pri

The food in the mountain village was very simple.

There was only brown rice, cornbread, and some wild animal meat.

However, this kind of food was already considered excellent for Chu Nan and his group.

Even though it's tough here, it's still much better than being on a deserted island.

However, Chu Nan was also very cautious. To avoid Zhang San poisoning him, he would almost always wait until Zhang San took the first bite before eating.

During the night, Chu Nan did not sleep, but lay in his room, listening quietly to the sounds outside.

Outside the courtyard, in a less desirable side room.

Zhang San and his four former local bandit henchmen sat around the table, their expressions somewhat solemn.

"Boss, are we really going to acknowledge this Chu Nan as our leader?" A thin bandit next to him asked with a frown.

"Yes, nobody knows what Chu Nan is thinking."

"We brothers have meat to eat and wine to drink with our leader, but Chu Nan came with so many people. Does that mean we'll all have to go out and work to support him from now on?"

"Why don't we run away, brother? We have over 40 brothers, we can find a place to stay no matter where we go. At worst, we can just leave the stronghold to that Chu Nan."

Hearing what his trusted subordinates said, Zhang San's face darkened.

"I think this Chu Nan is quite capable. If we could follow him, we might not have to live in such fear like we do now," Zhang San said slowly.

As the leader of a bandit stronghold, the pressure he faced was unimaginable to his subordinates.

The bandits on three sides were all larger than him, and if he wasn't careful, his location would be discovered and his territory swallowed up.

He even had to take care of his subordinates' basic needs, such as food, drink, and sanitation. If they couldn't even get enough to eat, he couldn't be the boss.

But now they've encountered Chu Nan, whose martial prowess is unknown. Furthermore, it seems Ding Chu Nan has connections in the capital.

If such a person could lead the stronghold, they might be able to contend with the other three strongholds and no longer have to fear having their head chopped off while they sleep.

"Human hearts are unpredictable, brother!" the thin bandit advised.

"How about we take advantage of the darkness..."

The skinny, monkey-like bandit made a slashing motion across his neck with his hand.

The others also stirred, looking at Zhang San expectantly.

"Absolutely not!" Zhang San said in a deep voice.

"This Chu Nan is definitely not an ordinary person. If we act rashly, we won't even know how we died!"

"The reason I've survived this long is because I'm cautious and careful."

"If any of you make a move, don't blame me for not showing any mercy," Zhang San threatened his four subordinates.

"Yes, brother." Seeing Zhang San's insistence, the four of them had no choice but to agree.

As the lights in the room went out, everyone went to sleep. No one noticed that a dark shadow had disappeared outside the window.

Back in his room, Chu Nan let out a long sigh of relief.

It seems that my deterrence has worked well; at least for the time being, Zhang San and his men will not dare to have any thoughts of resistance.

"Even if they exist, it's fine. It'll just eliminate some unstable factors," Chu Nan sneered.

The next morning, as soon as Chu Nan got up, the door opened by itself.

Immediately afterwards, a girl of about fifteen or sixteen years old, dressed in a light green plain dress, held a copper basin in her hands, which was half full of steaming water.

"Boss..." The little girl looked at Chu Nan with some fear.

"This servant will help you wash your face."

Chu Nan was taken aback. He hadn't noticed this little girl yesterday. Could she have been kidnapped by Zhang San and his men?

"What's your name?" Chu Nan asked gently.

Upon hearing this, the little girl trembled: "This servant...this servant's name is Xiaozhuzi..."

"Little Bamboo?" Chu Nan was taken aback. Why would a perfectly normal little girl have such a name?

"Were you kidnapped by them?" Chu Nan asked again. "If you want to go home, I will send someone to take you home. I will definitely not harm you."

Upon hearing Chu Nan's words, Xiao Zhu hesitated for a moment, then shook her head.

"It's okay, just say what's on your mind." Chu Nan's tone was as gentle as possible.

Seemingly sensing the goodwill in Chu Nan's tone, Xiao Zhuzi stopped shrinking back as before.

"This servant did it voluntarily..."

"what?"

Chu Nan felt like his head was spinning.

Some voluntarily entered brothels, some voluntarily signed indentures, but I've never seen anyone voluntarily come to a bandit stronghold.

If a pretty and well-behaved little girl were to enter a bandit stronghold, wouldn't she be violated by so many bandits?

"Why did you come here voluntarily? Do you know this is a bandit stronghold?" Chu Nan asked, frowning.

Xiao Zhu nodded repeatedly: "This servant knows, but this servant really has nowhere to go and doesn't know how to earn money to eat, so I had no choice but to come in and beg for a way to survive."

"Uh..." Chu Nan rubbed his forehead with one hand: "Did they bully you here?"

Little Bamboo shook her head: "Boss Zhang Mazi said that I resemble his daughter, so he didn't let anyone bully me and treated me very well."

Chu Nan blinked, surprised that Zhang San actually had a kind side.

"Where were you before?" Chu Nan asked curiously.

Judging from Xiaozhu's manners, she is very polite and doesn't seem to come from the village. Instead, she looks like a maid who has served a young lady from a wealthy family.

Xiao Zhuzi said softly, "This servant was originally a maidservant of the young lady of the Sun family in Huayuan County, which is nearby."

"Last year, it seems that Master Sun offended the county magistrate. That day, when I went out to buy pastries for Miss, a group of soldiers arrested Master Sun and Miss."

"They killed many people, and the lady is dead too..."

At this point, Xiaozhu wiped away her tears: "Madam treats me very well, and Miss treats me well too."

"And then?" Chu Nan listened intently.

"Later, fearing being caught, I ran away from the city. When I got here, I met Zhang Mazi."

"After hearing what I said, Zhang Mazi was about to let me go."

"I have nowhere else to go, so I beg Zhang Mazi to take me in and serve him like a slave."

Chu Nan nodded. Zhang San did a good job; it was a good deed.

After all, these bandits were basically only involved in murder, robbery, and plunder.

If they encountered such a woman, they would most likely take her back to the stronghold, vent their frustrations on her, and then either sell her or kill her.

"The boss's..." Little Bamboo began.

Before she could finish speaking, Chu Nan waved his hand and said, "You don't need to call me 'Big Boss.' If you don't mind, you can call me Brother Chu or Chu Nan."

"This servant wouldn't dare..." Little Bamboo was startled.

This era placed great emphasis on etiquette and hierarchy. If a servant dared to address her master as a brother, she would be beaten to death, and even the government would support the master's family.

"It's alright, don't be afraid." Chu Nan waved his hand kindly.

"You can go down now. We'll call you if we need anything." Seeing her timid appearance, Chu Nan couldn't bear to persuade her any further.

"Yes, this servant will take her leave." Xiao Zhu bowed gracefully to Chu Nan and then withdrew.