Ever since the Jurchen people attacked, Caitou felt that life suddenly became more comfortable.
Previously, he sold his labor in the city and lived like a dog. When the civilians in the northern lands either retreated to Prefecture City or fled southwards, seeing these people who used to be high and mighty become so anxious, Caitou felt a sudden sense of pleasure in his heart.
He ran out of the city, and first, he randomly robbed a few villagers of their bundles on the road. The villagers did not dare to resist, and the feudal authority did not bother, and he realized his good days had arrived.
He gathered a group of companions and began to loot along the road. Fleeing civilians were more terrified than usual and easier to bully, and the feudal authority, busy with guarding against the Jurchen people, couldn't care less about these robbers.
Without robbing, he would not have known that the civilians in the northern lands were actually so wealthy; these past two weeks, they had lived days of eating meat daily and celebrating nightly like newlyweds.
Of course, there were those who resisted, but they always chose carefully before looting. They naturally wouldn't disturb those wealthy people with guards, only targeting those who were alone or clearly unarmed villagers.
Now these easy targets were becoming harder to find. Those who could escape had escaped, and it had been two days since they last 'opened shop'.
Unexpectedly, as dusk fell, they encountered this group of people.
Four or five men dressed plainly, their faces full of provincial naivety, clearly villagers who usually stayed in remote places and never ventured out.
The group was small, and they even carried bundles on their horses, and there was also a young girl traveling with them.
This truly was a massive harvest.
Caitou jumped out, ready to declare that this road and these trees were his, but before he could open his mouth, he heard a soft female voice utter this sentence.
Kill them?
Kill whom? What does it mean?
Caitou was slightly stunned, only to see the few naive-looking men with earthy faces dismount in a flash, pulling something from beneath the horse, taking a leap, and in the blink of an eye, they were already in front of him.
Along with them came knives.
Bright, shining… knives.
Knives!
Caitou's eyes widened.
Were these men also robbers?
He opened his mouth to shout, but suddenly felt the world spinning, and the people in his vision becoming blurred and smaller.
What's happening?
Why was he flying?
This was Caitou's last thought.
Caitou's head fell to the ground and rolled, and only then did the men following him react. They screamed, waving their knives in a chaotic battle.
But the few men had already lined up in front of them, their knives slashing down in unison, seemingly ordinary, but they couldn't fend them off.
Had they encountered professionals? And very skilled ones at that!
"Misunderstanding… heroes… spare…"
The cries barely started when they abruptly stopped, several knives precisely stabbing into the chests of the men, then pulled out with blood splattering, the bodies fell twitching to the ground, and in moments, they were motionless.
From the moment these seven men jumped out to their deaths on the ground, it was only a blink of an eye.
Lei Zhonglian had only managed to dismount and hadn't even drawn his knife yet.
Impressive.
Watching Yang Jing and the others sheathe their knives and stand up straight. This was the only thought in Lei Zhonglian's mind.
This was the first time he saw them kill.
In the past, seeing them wield farm tools in the fields felt unremarkable, but dropping those for knives was terrifying.
What was even more shocking was their speed of response to the command.
Miss Jun wasn't surprised; it seemed natural to her.
"In times of national crisis, these people don't go to kill the Jin thieves but only bully their own kind," she said, scanning over the corpses on the ground with a hint of severity, "truly scum."
She glanced at the trees beside the road after speaking.
"Hang them on the road as a warning."
This time Lei Zhonglian didn't fall behind, quickly following Yang Jing and others to hang the men on the roadside trees, and Caitou's fallen head was picked up and thrown onto a tree as well.
Miss Jun did not take another glance at the corpses and spurred her horse forward; the group quickly vanished into the twilight.
The darkness enveloped the road, and it remained deserted until the break of day when people finally appeared.
It was a group of seventeen or eighteen men and women of all ages, carrying large and small packs, obviously heading to the Prefecture city.
Their expressions were fearful, cautiously peering around.
"I heard that the bandits are active along this road," a woman whispered, clutching her child tighter.
"It's fine, we have many people," an elderly man said, sounding confident though his eyes revealed some anxiety.
However numerous, they were just old people, women, and children, hardly a match for those strong young men.
"We can't delay any longer," another man said quietly, "Everyone around has left, if we don't go now, and the situation becomes more tense, we won't be able to leave. Let's try our luck now."
"Right, I heard that Caitou and his group went to the east of the city yesterday, they're not here today. Let's hurry, once we get to the main road it will be safe," someone else said, nodding in agreement.
They could only comfort each other; after all, the road must still be traveled.
Fortunately, as they walked, no one indeed jumped out.
"Please, no one be there, no one be there," as they got closer to where the rumored bandits might appear, their silent pleas became more urgent.
Suddenly a child cried out.
"Someone's there."
This cry sent everyone into a panic, and two women even collapsed to the ground from weak legs, while the men on the sides managed to stabilize themselves and look around in terror.
The road was completely deserted; there was no one at all.
"What are you yelling for? Did you see a ghost? There's nobody there," the men scolded the child, irritation mixed with relief.
The child, pale with fright, pointed towards a large tree by the road.
"In the tree," he said with a trembling voice.
In the tree?
Everyone had only been looking around them, not considering the possibility above them.
Could it be that these bandits had taken to hiding in the trees?
With hearts pounding, everyone looked up, immediately widening their eyes, and the women screamed in terror.
There were actually seven bodies hanging from the tree, one with its head severed.
How terrifying!
Had things really gotten this chaotic?
"That's, that's Caitou and his men," a man suddenly shouted.
The bandits?
This statement prompted everyone to move closer and after several confirmations that these were indeed those notorious villains, everyone burst into relief and joy.
"Thank you, Old Heavenly Father," a few of the elders even knelt on the ground to give thanks, "for eliminating these beasts bringing disaster upon us."
"This has nothing to do with Old Heavenly Father, surely it was the feudal authority," some men quickly countered, their expressions relieved and happy, "With such an authority in place, we have nothing to worry about, the northern lands will surely be stable."
"Yes, yes, absolutely right."
"Let's hurry towards the Prefecture city."
The group, filled with joy and relief, helped each other and quickened their pace.
Meanwhile, in Kaide Prefecture south of Qingyuan Prefecture, the populace did not share this joy. The area was deserted, and looking into the distance, villages were in ruins and smoke still rose from incomplete burnings, creating a desolate scene.
From the direction where the dark smoke billowed, dust clouds stirred again accompanied by eerie cries, as more than a dozen riders clad in full armor surged forward, their attire distinct from the Great Zhou Soldiers, and their horses laden with bulging sacks and several young women.
They sped along the highway as if it was uninhabited, quickly moving forward.
As the dust settled, the withered grass in the roadside ditches suddenly quivered, and a head popped out.
His face and body were dusty as if he had rolled in the soil, and it was precisely because of this he remained unnoticed, blending into the undergrowth.
"Ptui," he spat the dry grass out of his mouth, his eyes shimmering with a cold light as he watched the departing cavalry, "What a fine kindling."