“You little bastard, you little bastard.”
The leader of the mountain bandits, Luo Qiang, had cracked lips covered in whitish flakes. His body was terribly weak, yet he continued cursing Xu Bao'er.
Along the way, Xu Bao'er rode her little donkey, gripping the chain in her hand and leading him along like a dog.
It was truly humiliating for a Mountain Bandit.
Luo Qiang had repeatedly tried to ambush Xu Bao'er, but who would have thought she seemed to have eyes growing out of the back of her head? She dodged him every time.
“You still have the strength to cause trouble? Then don’t blame me for being ruthless.”
Xu Bao'er smiled especially wickedly as she poured itching powder over Luo Qiang. The itching powder was her exclusive secret treasure, capable of making a person itch to the extreme.
Luo Qiang could not even scratch himself. The itching was utterly maddening, driving him to roll about wildly on the ground.
After a few more rounds, Luo Qiang became obedient, docilely acting like a dog as Xu Bao'er led him along.
Xu Bao'er pulled Luo Qiang through the street, making quite a spectacle and attracting plenty of attention, because the emblem of the jiulan mountain bandits was displayed on Luo Qiang’s clothes.
To publicly humiliate the jiulan mountain bandits in the middle of the street was practically courting death.
The jiulan mountain bandits had always operated in groups and were extremely vengeful. Even an innocent dog by the roadside would be struck by a knife.
Anyone who had offended them was ruthlessly punished without exception.
She was far too bold. The passersby did not even dare look at Xu Bao'er, afraid they would be dragged into the matter.
“Oh, you’re quite eye-catching.”
“I wonder if anyone will come to rescue you.”
Xu Bao'er's tone was relaxed and cheerful. She did not take the jiulan mountain bandits seriously at all.
Luo Qiang held back his anger. This Zhang San was doomed. Once their boss learned that he had been captured, he would come rescue him very soon.
When that happened, he would make this Zhang San beg for the ability to live and die, subjecting him to every humiliation imaginable.
Xu Bao'er read Luo Qiang’s thoughts and found the Mountain Bandit disgusting. His mind was filled with nothing but such sordid matters.
Despite being strong and robust, he was gluttonous and lazy, spending every day burning, killing, raping, and looting. He was utterly unforgivable.
The hurried sound of horse hooves came from afar, and the residents of the street instantly hid. In a moment, only Xu Bao'er and Luo Qiang remained on the street.
“Hmph, you know fear now, don’t you?”
“The jiulan mountain bandits are famous far and wide. Who wouldn’t be afraid?”
Luo Qiang was immensely pleased with himself inwardly, but he did not dare say it aloud. After all, he was currently being dragged along by Xu Bao'er.
Xu Bao'er jumped down from the little donkey and glanced around. The passersby had indeed fled quickly, practically as if they had undergone professional training.
The sound of horse hooves drew nearer. Seated atop a vermilion steed was Zhou Jin. His figure was tall and heroic, and his ink-dark eyes looked down upon Xu Bao'er and Luo Qiang with an intensely oppressive force.
His slender fingers gave the reins a gentle tug, and the steed stopped in front of Xu Bao'er.
Xu Bao'er had not expected them to meet again so soon. She raised her head and faced Zhou Jin’s scrutiny directly. The wind lifted her blue-black hair ribbon, sending it fluttering chaotically.
The afternoon sunlight was somewhat dazzling. Xu Bao'er looked toward Zhou Jin against the light. Beneath the sun, his entire body seemed coated in a layer of golden radiance. His purple robe, trimmed with auspicious cloud patterns, accentuated his broad shoulders and narrow waist, giving him an imposing presence.
“Zhang San?”
Xu Bao'er had not expected Zhou Jin to remember her name. What a good sign.
As expected, she had a face that was difficult to forget.
“Greetings, young master Zhou.”
Seeing that Xu Bao'er knew their prince, the soldiers behind him sheathed their drawn ceremonial sabers.
Zhou Jin dismounted with agile movements. He strode toward Xu Bao'er, the silver crane-patterned hem of his robe swaying with him.
“The person behind Young Master Zhang—is he a Jiulan Mountain Bandit?”
“Young master Zhou has an excellent eye. He is.” As Xu Bao'er spoke, she gave the chain another tug.
Zhou Jin glanced at Luo Qiang behind Xu Bao'er. The man was filthy and disheveled, with numerous abrasions on his body and layers of whitish flakes rising from his dry lips.
At a glance, it was clear he had suffered inhuman torment along the road.
“How did Young Master Zhang capture him?”
Zhou Jin was suspicious. Zhang San was so thin and frail—how had he managed to capture such a vicious Mountain Bandit?
Moreover, mountain bandits did not usually appear alone; they generally moved in groups. Zhang San had not only captured one, but had also brought him into town like a dog on a walk. His courage was truly remarkable.
“Him? Someone else captured him and sold him to me.”
Luo Qiang listened to Xu Bao'er spout nonsense but did not dare make a sound. This pretty boy was vicious; along the way, he had given him all sorts of strange medicines.
They had made him unable to live or die.
If he dared say anything reckless, he would probably suffer another round of torment. Besides, Luo Qiang had identified Zhou Jin’s identity at a glance. Judging by his bearing, he was clearly Prince Duan, sent by the Imperial Court.
Falling into Prince Duan’s hands was even worse than falling into this pretty boy’s hands.
He had heard people along the road say that Prince Duan had arrived in Baiqu County, but there had been no movement. The mountain bandits, who had originally been too afraid to leave the mountain, were becoming anxious.
With Prince Duan remaining inactive, they still did not dare descend the mountain, and their food was nearly exhausted.
Thus, a group of jiulan mountain bandits secretly descended the mountain, only to be captured by Prince Duan’s men.
Once they lost their advantage in the terrain, the soldiers led by Prince Duan utterly overwhelmed the mountain bandits.
The jiulan mountain bandits who had descended immediately surrendered. This was their usual trick: pretend to surrender first, then wait for the main force to come rescue them.
But Prince Duan did not follow their script and directly hung the men from wooden stakes.
Under the scorching sun, he cut pieces of flesh from the mountain bandits, one slash at a time.
Prince Duan sent people to question the mountain bandits at random. He already knew the answers to some of the questions. If a Mountain Bandit told the truth, no flesh was cut.
If they lied or answered that they did not know, a piece of flesh was cut away.
Afterward, the flesh was fed to dogs, forcing the dismembered bandits to watch their own flesh being eaten. Such a cruel method truly made him a living yama.
The moment Luo Qiang saw Zhou Jin, his legs began trembling.
Zhou Jin looked at Luo Qiang’s trembling human legs and gave a contemptuous smile, guessing that the man had heard rumors about him.
“How much? I’ll buy him.”
The moment Luo Qiang heard that Zhou Jin wanted to buy him, his eyes widened. His mouth opened and closed, but no words came out.
“Him? No money.”
“I only have one small request: I hope to serve under Prince Duan and participate in this bandit suppression.”
Xu Bao'er was too lazy to play word games with Zhou Jin. She had come specifically because of him. She had kept Luo Qiang alive solely to have a stepping stone.
She did not care in the slightest whether the Mountain Bandit lived or died.
Zhou Jin swept a glance over Xu Bao'er. His sharp, eagle-like gaze gave Xu Bao'er the illusion that she had been stripped completely bare.
“Good.”
Luo Qiang held a respectable position among the jiulan mountain bandits. Zhou Jin recognized him: Luo Qiang ranked twenty-third among the bandits and was known by the nickname One-Eyed King.
Information extracted from him would be far more useful than that obtained from the few minor mountain bandits they had captured.
“No!”
Luo Qiang cried out hoarsely. He had never expected to fall into Prince Duan’s hands after all.
Even a veteran who had spent years among mountain bandits like him did not dare meet that man’s gaze.
Unfortunately, his opinion was useless.
Xu Bao'er handed Luo Qiang’s chain to a soldier behind Zhou Jin, then swiftly mounted her own little donkey and followed Zhou Jin’s party.
Zhou Jin turned his head and looked at Xu Bao'er riding the donkey, his gaze gaining a hint of curiosity.
Judging by her luxurious clothing, she was probably a noble young lady. But which family did this young lady of a noble family belong to? Her courage was astonishing; she was not afraid of the jiulan mountain bandits at all.
Disguised as a man—was she doing this merely to follow him in the bandit suppression? What exactly was her purpose?
Xu Bao'er knew Zhou Jin was looking at her, so she met his gaze openly.
Very good. Curiosity was the beginning of affection.
Zhou Jin shifted his gaze away. Why did he feel that she had come specifically for him?