freenovelworld Chapter 118 Li Haifei
Chapter 118 Li Haifei
The bandits were stunned for a moment before they came to their senses and realized that there were two living people in front of them!
In an instant, their fear receded like a tide, replaced by a surge of malice. The corners of their mouths curled into twisted arcs, making their disheveled and fierce faces appear particularly grotesque.
The bandit leader let out a chilling burst of maniacal laughter, which was followed by a chorus of boisterous laughter from his men. The ear-piercing laughter echoed through the mountain stronghold, startling the birds into scattering in all directions. After the laughter subsided, the bandit leader suddenly raised his hand, his large palm sweeping out a pause mark. The crowd fell silent instantly, and the stronghold became completely still.
The bandit leader stepped forward, his fleshy face trembling, his fierce gaze sweeping back and forth between the two men, and he spat out a few words viciously: "Choose one: life or death."
Xia Li parted her red lips slightly and slowly uttered a single word:
"or."
provocative!
"You won't listen to reason, so you'll have to suffer the consequences?" The bandit leader's face instantly darkened to a point where it seemed to drip water. He pointed his thick finger at the two men and cursed, "You brats, I don't care how you sneaked up the mountain, whether by accident or by intent to spy. If you know what's good for you, hurry up and have your families send you a ransom of five hundred taels each. Otherwise, hmph, this day next year will be your death anniversary!"
"You can't afford to take my life." Yu Yang narrowed his eyes slightly, a cold glint flashing in them, and spiritual energy surged around him as he prepared to attack.
But in an instant, Xia Li gently pulled her back.
At the same time, a voice transmission quietly entered his ear: "Don't rush, I've checked, these are just ordinary people, they can't hurt us in the slightest. But this mountain stronghold is strange in every way, there must be some unspeakable secret, let's investigate first."
Across from him, the bandit leader also began to have doubts:
This kid is so calm, could he have some powerful backer in the capital?
However, he immediately sneered and thought to himself: Hmph, they probably don't know that in this small piece of land, the backer behind me is really strong!
The bandit leader, his face full of disdain, waved his hand and said, "Take them away and force them to write home. Once we have the money, we'll kill them. Anyone who dares to trespass on my Wulong Village can forget about leaving the mountain alive!"
Soon, several bandits pounced on the two men like wolves, dragging them to the backyard. On the way, they didn't forget to give the guards a vicious order: "There will be whipping tonight. If these two don't behave, give them a good beating. After they finish writing their letter, bring them a bowl of soup and make them drink it. Then dispose of them."
As soon as the bandits left and the two closed the courtyard gate, before they could even breathe a sigh of relief, a clear voice suddenly rang out: "Don't you understand?"
The sudden sound startled the two men, who quickly turned to look. They saw a girl of about seventeen or eighteen, like a frightened deer, cautiously peeking out from the nearby hay. She glanced at them timidly at first, then quickly slipped out, frantically brushing the straw off her clothes while whispering:
"They said the bandit leaders are having a gathering tonight, and to prevent trouble, they're going to kill you after you finish writing your letters. Right now, they're probably preparing poisoned wine for your send-off. If you drink it, you're really going to die."
"Thank you for informing me, sister. But why are you here?" Xia Li smiled, her voice gentle and warm, like a spring breeze.
"Pfft!" Yu Yang couldn't help but laugh out loud. The two women's eyes immediately turned to him, and he quickly suppressed his laughter, his face turning red, waving his hands repeatedly and saying, "Sorry, sorry."
Inside, however, he was already overjoyed: Haha, the boss is over thirty and still calls this little girl "sister," it's hilarious! But then again, she's only 15, she's just a little kid in our eyes.
Just as Yu Yang was secretly chuckling to himself, the two girls had finished chatting about why they had come here. It turned out that this place was Wulong Village on Wulong Mountain, and the girl's name was Li Haifei. A few days ago, when she passed by the foot of the mountain, she was spotted by a bandit leader who took her up the mountain and wanted to make her his wife.
Xia Li understood; no wonder they saw the bandits drinking and celebrating in the front hall when they first came in.
She playfully stuck out her tongue and said apologetically, "Haha, I almost accidentally drank my sister's wedding wine just now..."
Li Haifei's lips twitched slightly: ...
Sister, you don't stab like that!
Moreover, they were surprised to find that Wulong Mountain was actually located on the outskirts of the capital!
How could such a large-scale bandit rampage be tolerated at the foot of the capital, so close to the emperor?
Something unusual must be going on. The two exchanged a glance, and the same thought flashed through their minds simultaneously: Unless,
Collusion between officials and bandits!
Given their arrogance and domineering nature, this bandit must have powerful backers in the capital whose status and influence are far from ordinary.
Yu Yang and Xia Li understood each other perfectly, exchanged another glance, and nodded emphatically.
Something's definitely up!
The three of them huddled together and quickly began to discuss countermeasures.
After some discussion, they decided that the two of them would pretend to be poisoned to death and secretly search for evidence in Wulong Village while the bandit leader arrived. Li Haifei would return to the bridal chamber and wait for the bandit leader to arrive before drugging him and controlling him, so as to extract more secrets from him.
In the face of life and death, the trust between the three seemed to be tightly bound together by an invisible force, making it unbreakable.
Xia Li took out two exquisite small porcelain bottles from her bosom and handed them to Li Haifei: "Sister, this is a sleeping pill, this is a mute pill, and this is poison powder and antidote... Use them as needed when the time is right. We will come to meet you at Hai Shi (9-11 PM)."
“Okay.” Li Haifei took the medicine bottle, clutched it tightly in her hand, and nodded firmly. Then, she flashed away like a ghost, returning the way she came, disappearing without a trace in the blink of an eye, as if she had never been there at all.
Yu Yang and Xia Li exchanged a smile. As planned, they pretended to "die from poisoning" and were casually abandoned by the bandits in the back mountain.
After the bandits left, the two quietly opened their eyes and, like ghosts in the dark, began to wander around Wulong Village, carefully collecting evidence.
Then they arrived at a small, secret room.
Two middle-aged bandit leaders were talking.
Kong Wu asked, "How much water do you have? How many troops do you have?"
Tian Lin, the leader of Wulongzhai, replied, "100,000? What's wrong? Is war about to break out?"
"That informant is probably up to no good." That informant is unreliable; he might betray them and lead the army up the mountain.
"What's there to be afraid of? We've been raided before, what can they do to me?"
"We still have to save face. You guys just pretend to be scared and run away to another mountain to lay low for a while. Come back in a few days."