After lunch, Xu Zhutao settled Lu Chong and the other two in an inn. Then, they all took their weapons and rode out of the city. They naturally followed the map drawn by Lu Chong to check out the Qianma Ridge first.
The group rode west for more than 30 miles and saw a river. Not far from the river were two mountains that were not too high. Both mountains were dense with jungle and overgrown with weeds. Xu Zhutao took out a map and compared it with the map. He found that this was the Horse Riding Ridge.
Everyone rode their horses to the foot of the mountain to check for a while. There were no corpses on the ground, but there were many torn clothes and cloth. They knew that they had fallen from the battle. There were also black blood stains and broken weapons on the ground. Seeing this, Lu Dawei could not help but cry and curse,"What a vicious thief! If I don't kill you to avenge my brothers, I swear I'm not human!”
" My condolences, Old Lu," said Traveling Four Seas." Let's look around and see if we can find the bodies of the escorts."”
"I think he was probably dragged to the front and thrown into the river!"”
Even so, everyone still split up and patrolled the surroundings in detail. After a while, he suddenly heard Ding Ling, who was on the northeast side of the mountain, shout,""Everyone, come quickly. There are traces of soil being stirred here!”
When everyone heard this, they all rode over. As expected, they saw a large area of newly turned soil. The weeds on it had been uprooted. Lu Dawei cried and used his hands to dig open a part. Soon, a corpse was revealed. He cleaned the soil on the corpse's face and cried,"Ah! This is Little Zhang. They really all died here. I'm so sorry!”As he spoke, he wanted to dig up another piece of newly turned soil.
" Old Lu, let our brothers rest in peace," said Traveling Four Seas." There's no need to dig them up."”
Only then did Lu Dawei stop. He cried and buried Xiao Zhang again.
Xu Zhutao said," There are eight of us. We can split into four groups to search for the bandits. Each group will head in one direction, east, west, south, and north. The furthest we can go is 30 miles. We have to gather here in two hours at the latest. If we find any traces of the enemy, we must not act rashly. We must come back and report. Only after combining everyone's hands can we go straight to the main point. Does anyone have any objections?"
Everyone nodded in agreement and began to split up. The two souls of the dead went east and southeast to search, Xu Zhutao and Lu Dawei went west and northwest to search, Yu Raksha and Shangguan Wanqian went south and southwest to search, and You Sihai and Zou Bafang went north and northeast to search. After assigning the men, they agreed on a few simple signals to communicate in case of danger, and then split up to search.
Xu Zhutao and Lu Dawei traveled 30 miles to the west. On the way, they only met a few mountain people and did not meet any Jianghu figures. It was not time to meet up yet, so they went northwest with Lu Dawei. At this moment, they had just descended a mountain that wasn't very high. There was a wide valley in front of them that was winding and winding. There was also a small stream that flowed along the valley. " There's a stream here," Xu Zhutao said." The bandits must choose a place with water to build their stronghold. Why don't we go along this valley and take a look?"”
"That makes sense. Let's go," Lu Dawei said.”
The two of them searched along the valley. In the beginning, there were hills on both sides of the valley. As they went deeper, they found that there was a huge mountain on the left side of the valley. The two of them walked along the valley for a few miles and finally saw a village about five miles ahead. It was built along the right slope and was built on the hillside. In order to avoid being discovered, the two of them rode into the forest on the right and did not walk along the valley. They advanced for about three miles and found a suitable view. He finally saw the whole picture of the camp. The entire camp occupied more than six acres, almost a square. It was built against the east slope. The gate faced west, and there were two arrow towers on both sides of the gate. In the west, there was a fence outside the gate and the arrow tower, which was connected to the fence on the north and south sides. In the center of the camp, there was a flag. There were nine tents in the camp. In the east, there was a big tent near the slope, and the rest of the tents were smaller. The two of them were about to continue moving forward to take a closer look when they suddenly saw two figures in the forest ahead. The two of them gently dismounted their horses, tied them to the ground, and tiptoed forward.
" Second Bandit Chief," a figure in front of him said," we've had a great harvest this time. One thousand bolts of silk, two thousand bolts of satin, and a box of jewelry. It's enough for us to eat and drink for three months!”
Lu Dawei trembled when he heard this. Xu Zhutao saw his ferocious face and red eyes that seemed to be spewing fire. He was about to ask him what was wrong. Then, he heard the second bandit chief say," Crow, you're right. We only need to have such a huge harvest four times a year and we won't have to worry about food and clothing. When the time comes, we'll go and snatch a few more beautiful women back. Everyone will have a share!”"Speaking of women, hehe, I haven't tasted the two girls I snatched back this time."”His words were filled with regret. "What the f * ck are you in a hurry for?!" Second Bandit Chief asked. It'll be your turn in two days. As long as you perform well, I'll give each of you one in the future!”The crow said," Hehe, I heard that the Jade Lady Divine Needle is peerless in beauty. In the future, when the second bandit chief snatches it back, let me have a taste of it too…" Xu Zhutao was also surprised when he suddenly heard the crow mention the Jade Lady Divine Needle. He did not know who these bandits were. "Bullsh * t!" Second Bandit Chief scolded. That Jade Lady Divine Needle is my reserved wife. You bastard, you want to touch that kind of fairy-like beauty?”Seeing that the second bandit chief was angry, the crow hurriedly slapped herself twice and said in a low voice,"Second Bandit Chief is right. I know my mistake! I don't dare to have wishful thinking. I just hope that I can take a few more glances at the wedding night. When the second bandit chief is married, hehe…"
At this time, Xu Zhutao and Lu Dawei got closer and could clearly see the two people in front of them through the gaps of the branches and leaves. They saw a young man in his twenties who looked like a rat and had a repulsive face. The other was a big man in his forties with a fat head and big ears. Then, he heard the second bandit chief say," That little girl's Ice Vitality Divine Needle is very scary. I have to work hard for a few more years before I dare to look for her!”Xu Zhutao saw that the person who said this was the older one, the second bandit chief. Suddenly, he heard Lu Dawei mumbling,"It's him! So it's him…"
Xu Zhutao suddenly remembered a person that Luo Yan 'er had mentioned before. His name was Ran Feixiong, nicknamed Libengshan. He was the second brother of the two Ran brothers in the east of Wuchang City. According to Luo Yan' er, he was unfilial to his mother and often beat and scolded her mother. It was said that he had joined the Green Forest and became a bandit leader, so Luo Yan 'er refused to treat him.
Xu Zhutao pulled Lu Dawei's sleeve and said softly,""I also know who the second bandit chief is. Let's go. It's time to go back.”
The two of them walked back to their mounts. Xu Zhutao remembered Lu Dawei's ferocious expression just now and said,"Chief Escort Lu, what happened to you just now?”
Lu Dawei gritted his teeth and said," 1,000 bolts of silk, 2,000 bolts of satin, and a box of jewelry. These are the goods that were robbed from our escort agency!"”
Xu Zhutao said," Chief Escort Lu, don't get too excited. Fortunately, we can still get the goods back after we exterminate these bandits. Let's go back and gather first."”
The two of them led their horses for a while before they got on their horses and galloped towards Qianma Ridge.
When Xu Zhutao and Lu Dawei returned to Qianma Ridge, they found that everyone else had returned. It turned out that it was already two hours after the agreed time. The others were anxiously waiting for the two of them. At this time, they were relieved to see the two of them return.
"Did the two of you discover anything?" Jade Raksha asked.”
" Yes." Xu Zhutao nodded and said," It was because we discovered the bandit lair that we delayed our return trip."”
Seeing Lu Dawei's indignant expression, Travel Four Seas asked,""Old Lu, what's wrong with you?"
"We've really found out about those damned thieves," Lu Dawei said angrily.”
Xu Zhutao said," We found the bandits 'nest in the northwest direction, but we didn't have enough time to go deep. Those bandits were the ones who robbed Chengxing Bodyguard Agency. That's why Chief Escort Lu was so angry." " This search also saw the bandit group's second bandit chief. This person is from the east of Wuchang City. You all know him or have heard of him before. Guess who he is?”
They all asked who it was, but Xu Zhutao only smiled and didn't answer.
Travelling Four Seas was a meticulous person. After thinking for a while, he suddenly shouted,""I know, east of Wuchang City, that's Ran Feixiong from the Mountain of Collapsing Power! Am I right?"
"That's him," said Xu Zhutao.
Ding Ling said,"I remember now. That Jade Lady Divine Needle once mentioned it to us."”
The few heroines tried to recall, and they all remembered.
"What a bastard!" Zou Bafang cursed. Damn it, they even snatched the goods from their fellow countrymen. They were really bastards!”
"Let's go back to the inn first, then we'll discuss it further. We still have to prepare some things."”
When everyone returned to the inn, Xu Zhutao asked the shopkeeper for a private room to discuss matters. He also found a pen and paper to draw the rough terrain of the thief's lair. When he came back, he saw that Lu Chong and the two children were not walking around, so he ignored them.
Xu Zhutao called everyone to a private room and circulated the map of the thief's lair to everyone. He went straight to the point and said,"I plan to attack the camp at midnight tonight. Anyone who is unwell can tell me now.”Seeing that everyone was silent, he said,"Brother You, Brother Zou, Brother Lu, the three of you are from the same hometown as Ran Feixiong. Do you know how good his martial arts are?”
" Maybe he's stronger than the three of us, but he's definitely not a match for Young Master!" You Four Seas said.”
Xu Zhutao said," Then the only thing we need to worry about is the First Bandit Chief. We don't know who he is, and we don't know if there are still the Third Bandit Chief and the Fourth Bandit Chief. I'll deal with the First Bandit Chief myself. Leave the other Bandit Chiefs to the swordswomen." We have three goals. First, we have to rescue the hostages. The second was to kill all the thieves, and the third was to find the goods.”
Shangguan Wanqian said,"He actually kidnapped a woman. He really deserves to be killed!" I want to kill them all!"
Xu Zhutao said," We have to complete the targets in order. First, we have to complete the first target, then the second, and then the third. Since there are hostages and goods, we can't set fire to them. If you have any good ideas, please bring them up."”
" Brother Xu, although we can't set the fire, we still have to prepare a torch," Ding Feng said." When we get the hostages and goods back, we might as well burn them!"”
Xu Zhutao said," That won't do. There are a total of 3,000 pieces of cloth and a box of jewelry. We don't have enough manpower to move them."”
"Ah!" Ding Feng said in surprise. There are so many!"
Xu Zhutao said," I've seen the map of the thieves 'lair. I'll lead three people to the biggest tent. When we rush into the big tent, you four heroines will go and rescue the hostages. Then, gather the rescued hostages in one place and leave one person to guard them. Then, the three of you will come out and kill the enemy." Tonight, prepare your hidden weapons. I hope that we will intimidate the enemy when we make a move. Try not to waste time with the enemy.”
"Then, how do you think we should assign our men?" asked Jade Raksha.”
Xu Zhutao said," After we set off tonight, I will capture two guards alive for interrogation. As long as we figure out how many Fort Masters and how many kidnapped women there are, it will be easy to deal with them. When we start the night raid, the kidnapped women may not be gathered together. This will require the four heroines to be flexible. After the hostages are rescued, gather the hostages together. Cousin will protect the hostages while the other three heroines will go out to kill the enemies. There are too many goods. The thieves will not be able to take them away after the night raid. We can only find a way to transport the goods back after killing all the thieves. Do you have any objections?"
Everyone was silent for a while, then Travelling Four Seas spoke first,""This distribution is very good, but I am afraid that our martial arts are too weak and will implicate Young Master.”
Xu Zhutao said," There's no need to worry about that. I've never gone on a killing spree since I left the mountain and traveled the martial world. I only killed Gong Ao in the battle at Sunset Horse Farm. These bandits are far inferior to Gong Ao. If I wanted to kill them, I would definitely do it cleanly!”His words were awe-inspiring, and his eyes shot out a cold light that was like the edge of a blade. Everyone couldn't help but tremble.
"Big Brother, when are we leaving?" Shangguan Wanqian asked.”
"Everyone, go rest now. We'll set off at noon."”
At noon, everyone set off. Xu Zhutao and Lu Dawei took the lead and sped toward the valley that they had discovered today. They arrived at the valley in about an hour. The group advanced another five miles and tied their mounts to the right slope before walking forward. When they arrived at the place where Ran Feihu was found today, Xu Zhutao asked the group to stop. He wanted to see if there were any bandits on sentry duty who had captured one or two people and brought them back for questioning. However, he didn't find anyone at the place where Ran Feixiong and Crow were staying today. He waved his hand to signal the people behind him to follow him and continued to move forward. Along the way, he didn't find any thieves on guard.
At this time, they were already two miles away from the thief camp. Everyone finally saw the whole picture of the thief camp. It was indeed the same as what Xu Zhutao had drawn for everyone during the day. However, there were no guards on the left and right arrow towers of the gate during the day. Now, there was a guard on each arrow tower.
Jade Raksha said," This group of thieves isn't very smart. They only set up two arrow towers at the main gate, and there's only one gate. Aren't they waiting for us to catch them like turtles in a jar?!"”
Xu Zhutao knew that Jade Rakshasa was very experienced in military formations and had defeated the Japanese pirates many times. "Cousin, what should we do?"”
"If there are arrow towers in the four corners of this camp, it will be a little difficult for us to sneak in quietly," said Jade Raksha. Now, of course, you should first kill the two sentries on the archer tower, then capture the two guards on the left and right of the gate and ask for their confessions.”
"Good Ling, good Feng, you two take one each on the archer tower. I'll go attract the attention of the two guards at the gate."”As he spoke, he leaped out and landed outside the gate of the camp in a few leaps. When the two guards saw that it was a young man, the guard on the right shouted,"Brat! What do you do?"
"I'm here to see your second bandit chief. I'm his distant relative," said Xu Zhutao.”
"Eh? You know our second bandit chief?" the guard on the left asked.”
"Aren't you talking nonsense?!" Xu Zhutao said. How can you call me relative if you don't know me?"
The guard on the left was instantly furious and said angrily,"Brat! You must be up to no good for appearing here so late at night! Tell me, what do you want?"
Xu Zhutao glanced left and right and saw Ding Ling and Ding Feng sneaking to the north and south fence, quietly approaching the archer tower. They even raised the Departed Soul Needles in their hands. Xu Zhutao knew that the two of them had already made up their minds. "What?" he shouted at the guard on the left. You want to make a move!"
The word "attack" was one of their secret codes. After saying that, he quickly rushed to the guard on the left side of the gate and knocked him down. At the same time, two soft "uh" sounds came from the top of the gate, and then "pu" sounds were heard. The two people on the arrow tower had been hit by needles and fell to the ground. Xu Zhutao slowly walked to the guard on the right side of the gate. The guard was shocked when he saw Xu Zhutao knock down the guard on the left with a lightning-fast move. He was about to call the police when the young man, who was moving slowly, came behind him like a ghost and covered his mouth.
"Brother, the gates of hell are open." Xu Zhutao laughed.”He stretched out his right hand and knocked the guard down again. He grabbed one guard in each hand and rushed back. When he returned to the crowd, he put the two of them down. At this time, Ding Ling and Ding Feng had also returned.
Zou Bafang knew that he had to go out and ask for a confession. He opened the acupuncture point of the guard on the left and asked,"Brother, do you want to die or live?”
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。