Chapter 3

He looked down the mountain, where dozens of shadowy figures, veiled like devils, were drawing closer. Among this group of deadly people, some were vaguely seen riding horses.

Seeing them rapidly approaching, the villagers were at a loss, each preparing to flee.

Wang Ju was in a bitter state of mind. He was really lucky; it was his first time as a mule, and he had encountered this notorious group of butchers. But could he escape? If he did, not only would Zhu Qing and the old chieftain Wang Quan die, but he himself would also die. The two women would likely suffer an even worse fate.

The reason was simple: they were old, weak, and could not escape.

He shouted, “We can’t run. They have five horses. Once we run, it will be chaos. With the Black Bee Bandits’ cruelty, if they catch up, they will surely slaughter those who fall behind. Money can be earned slowly, but once people die… they are gone.”

“Everyone listen to Daniu; he is a scholar,” the old chieftain Wang Quan said.

Wang Ju was at a loss, thinking how the brainwashing education of the Song Dynasty could be so deadly. Scholars might have better insight and some wisdom, but they were not omnipotent.

Facing such great danger, Wang Quan was equally at a loss.

Zhu Qing found it amusing, but the boy’s words were not without reason. Even an army would be defeated if it fell into chaos, let alone a group of mountain villagers.

However, Wang Ju continued to stare seriously at the mountain below. This was not the time to find it amusing. If they encountered the army, though it would be dangerous, the Zhu family could bribe their way out. But encountering this group would mean death, and many deaths at that.

The maid named Pian’er was eager, but looking at the dark, dense figures, her eyes finally showed tension. However, everyone was in chaos, and no one paid attention to her.

“Boy, do you want to fight?”

“Absolutely not. They are too powerful. Even Ziyun Gong can be defeated by the Black Bee Bandits,” the only small vendor in the village, Wang Xun, said worriedly. He was considered the most “knowledgeable” person in the village.

“Ziyun Gong, there are a few Ziyun Gong in the northwest.” If it weren’t for the imminent threat, Wang Ju would have found it amusing.

Ziyun Gong was the brave general Zhang Jie of the prefecture.

In the eyes of the people of the northwest, the best general of the Song Dynasty was the late Di Qing. However, the most capable was not Di Qing, but Zhang Jie, whose courtesy name was Ziyun. According to legend, Zhang Ziyun, along with Generals Wang Kai and Wang Ji, defeated 30,000 elite Western Xia cavalry with 6,000 grain-protecting infantry at Rumaoguan, killing over 10,000 Western Xia cavalry. Later, he assisted Zhang Kang in a great victory over ten times the number of Western Xia cavalry at Baizisai, and again at Rumaoguan, defeating the Western Xia army led by Li Yuanhao. Di Qing’s achievements were in the Lingnan region, but in the northwest, he was not as capable as Zhang Kang and Zhang Jie. Due to the Song Dynasty’s weakness, the deeds of these capable generals were widely known in the border regions. However, how many Zhang Jie could there be in the world? In the entire Song-Liao war, the top individual fighter was Jing Si, followed by Yang Ye. In the entire Song-Xia war during the reign of Emperor Renzong, the top was Guo Zun, followed by Zhang Jie. If even a group of bandits could be compared to him, that would be strange.

Zhu Qing looked at the young man.

He also did not want everyone to run away. Once they fled, the nearly 300 stones of blue salt would be taken by the Black Bee Bandits. One stone of blue salt could be sold for 3 to 4 strings of coins in Yanzhou, and due to the court’s renewed ban on private trade with the Western Xia, even 3 to 4 strings of coins for blue salt were in short supply.

If everyone fled, the master would lose over a thousand strings of coins. And because they encountered the Black Bee Bandits, no one could be blamed.

But he also did not think resistance was a good idea.

“It’s you two,” one of Zhu Qing’s subordinates suddenly shouted at the two women.

Smuggling was too risky, so people often had various strange taboos.

“Don’t blame this and that. We are in such a situation, blaming two weak women, what a shame!” Wang Ju said disdainfully, then asked Zhu Qing, “Zhu Manager, why haven’t you smoothed things over with the Black Bee Bandits?”

In reality, he was on the verge of tears.

This was a natural psychological reaction. The Black Bee Bandits were too notorious, and it would be best to pacify them if possible.

“Boy, the Black Bee Bandits come and go without a trace. Even the government can’t capture a single bandit. Where can we smooth things over?”

“Daniu, let’s run. We can’t delay,” another young man said.

The Black Bee Bandits were too notorious. Although their numbers were less than the villagers, the villagers had no organization or order. Once they engaged in battle, it would result in a greater massacre.

“Let me think for a moment.” Wang Ju continued to stare at the mountain below.

In northern Shaanxi, many hills had become barren, but this area was close to Hengshan and was not severely damaged. The hills were sparsely covered with spruce and fir, and under the pines and firs grew many sand cypress, wild azaleas, yellow poplar, and juniper. Under these shrubs, there were also some wild vegetables and ferns, and under the wild vegetables and ferns, there were some mosses, forming a complete three-dimensional vegetation ecosystem.

It was not very dense, but it could hide some people.

“Move quickly, don’t dawdle,” the Qiang household Li Sandog said.

“Once we run, it will be chaos immediately. They have horses, and we haven’t eaten or rested yet…” Wang Ju said.

“What should we do?” several villagers asked anxiously.

Wang Ju then asked Zhu Qing, “Zhu Manager, the Black Bee Bandits have been around for several years. Has anyone resisted?”

“Boy, at first, some people resisted, but they were all killed. Later, everyone was terrified, and no one dared to resist,” Zhu Qing said, looking at the panicked villagers with a bitter smile.

If this transaction were completed successfully, besides giving the villagers 100 strings of coins for mule work and various expenses, it would bring the master over 500 strings of coins in profit. But it seemed this trip would end in a total loss.

However, a glint of light appeared in Wang Ju’s eyes.

“At first… now… Zhu Manager, we need an additional 50 strings of coins for mule work.”

“What do you mean?”

“Protect the goods and fight back.”

“As long as the goods are not damaged, I can promise, on behalf of the master, an additional 100 strings of coins for you.” Zhu Qing said through gritted teeth.

With a heavy reward, there would be brave men.

He heard the underlying meaning in the young man’s words. Could it succeed?

Sure enough, hearing the additional 100 strings of coins, everyone on the mountain became restless, but the excitement quickly disappeared as the Black Bee Bandits drew closer.

“Two strings of coins, Grandpa, let’s go for it.”

“Daniu, what do we have to fight with? Almost all the laborers from the village are here…” the old chieftain Wang Quan said uneasily.

“Please trust me once. They are also human.”

“Humans are different,” Li Sandog said.

“They are still human. Look at them, they don’t even have scouts.”

“This is not a military operation.” Uncle Wang Wei was also very anxious, as the Black Bee Bandits were getting closer, and his nephew was still hesitating.

Li Sandog’s eyes narrowed. “Wang Wei, listen to Daniu.”

“Then… Wang Ju said a few more words.

“Is it feasible?” Wang Quan asked doubtfully.

“Zhang Ziyun once took a bold risk, going alone to spy on the Qiang people. He was discovered and managed to escape by his wit, but he died soon after from multiple arrow wounds. Pride leads to downfall!” Zhu Qing’s eyes lit up. “The young man’s words make sense.”

The boy was now called young master.

Wang Quan gave him a dirty look.

Everyone was still hesitant, and Wang Ju said, “There are still five horses and some weapons…”

“Let’s do it,” Li Sandog said.

However, he was usually quite isolated in the village and had little influence.

Wang Ju looked at his uncle and whispered, “If we run, can I escape?”

“Then it’s settled. Zhu Manager, remember your words, 200 strings of coins.” Uncle said.

“Rest assured, if we can defeat them, not a single coin of the 200 strings will be missing.” Zhu Qing said. The lives of the mountain villagers were not worth much, but this batch of goods was worth a lot. Since it couldn’t be saved anyway, they might as well fight.

Pian’er was eager again, but the young woman pulled her hand.

Thus, everyone followed Wang Ju’s instructions, but the young woman noticed that almost everyone was a bit tense.

Soon, dozens of men surged up…

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