Chapter 19

"Those bandits have occupied Green Dragon Mountain for many years. Over the years, they have plundered the surrounding villages and merchants, accumulating no small amount of wealth. Why doesn't the general go to Green Dragon Mountain and level their camp? The main force of these bandits has already been defeated here, and even if they defend the camp, there won't be many people left. It's the perfect time to launch a strong attack and take it down in one go."

Su Peng said this to Han Tuo.

Han Tuo's eyes lit up when he heard this and said, "Good! I had momentarily forgotten about this. Since that's the case, we shouldn't delay. We will immediately attack Green Dragon Mountain!"

"Yes!" The soldiers in front of Han Tuo responded to his order. Han Tuo instructed that the horses and weapons captured in Green Mountain Village should be temporarily left there, and they would return to retrieve them after wiping out the bandits on Green Dragon Mountain.

Su Peng and the other three remounted their horses and served as guides, leading this Black Water Army to attack the Green Dragon Mountain camp. Su Peng and the others had no objections, mounted their horses, and quickly advanced, with the Black Water Army following closely behind, heading for Green Dragon Mountain.

This time, the operation was several times faster than the trip there. In less than an hour, Su Peng and the others had already arrived at the wooden bridge.

"General Han, if you follow this small path up for six or seven li, you will reach Green Dragon Mountain... The main force of the bandits has been defeated at Green Mountain Village. The bandits guarding the camp are probably no more than a few dozen. I believe the general can easily take it down," Su Peng said to Han Tuo.

"The Black Water Army is trained in how to capture camps. This is just a practice for us," Han Tuo said confidently. The group rode quickly and soon arrived at the Green Dragon Mountain bandit camp.

The camp was built on a rather steep cliff, with dense forests on one side and a cliff on the other. There was only a narrow path leading to the front. The camp gate was about four to five meters high and was now tightly closed. Su Peng and the others could hear the uneasy breathing of people inside the gate.

"Listen up, people of Green Dragon Mountain! I am from the Black Water Army of Jiangning County. Your chief's attack on Green Mountain Village has been exposed, and he has been executed. Open the gate quickly and welcome us in, or don't blame us for leveling the camp!"

In front of Su Peng and the others, a vanguard officer shouted into the camp. Inside the Green Dragon Mountain camp, there was silence for a moment. Then, two torches lit up, and a man in his forties appeared above the gate, shouting down, "Sir, we send a large sum of money to Jiangning County twice a year and have never been late. For this reason, please spare us!"

"Ridiculous! You are facing death, yet you still speak nonsense? It seems you don't want to live!" The vanguard officer, seeing Han Tuo's expression, shouted back. The man on the gate frowned and said, "Then there's no choice. We can't just sit here and wait to die. We will defend the camp to the death and fight to the bitter end!"

"Want to fight to the bitter end? Do you even have the qualifications for that?" Han Tuo sneered, waved his hand, and at least fifty mounted archers behind him immediately readied their bows and arrows. They did not aim directly at the camp but at the sky, and they fired their arrows!

"Bang, bang, bang..."

The sound of bowstrings resonated, and over fifty arrows shot into the sky. These archers were all trained in archery. Although not everyone could hit a target from a hundred paces, they were confident in adjusting the angle to make the arrows land inside the camp.

Soon, a rain of arrows fell from the sky, none landing outside the camp, but all inside the gate!

Su Peng and the others watched the volley and felt a chill. They calculated their chances of survival if they were to fight the Black Water Army.

"Ah!"

"I've been hit!"

"My head!"

Inside the camp, cries of pain echoed. From the sounds, there were only about twenty people guarding the camp. Han Tuo waved his hand again, and the archers behind him immediately prepared to shoot again. At the same time, two Black Water Army soldiers with long-handled axes charged out of the formation.

The two axemen quickly rode to the base of the Green Dragon Mountain camp. Their eyes glinted with cold light, and almost simultaneously, they raised their axes and struck. The axes were uniquely designed, with a scythe-like weapon on the back. With one cut, they severed the ropes that held the camp gate shut.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

Two sounds echoed from inside the gate. Su Peng, who had read about ancient camps, knew that the winches holding the gate had been cut!

"Go!"

Han Tuo waved his hand again, and eight soldiers with long weapons charged forward, reaching the gate. They repeatedly thrust their weapons into the gate and then used their horses to push forward. The gate creaked and groaned.

"Crack!"

Finally, the gate's bolt could not withstand the force of the eight horses and broke. The eight soldiers forced the gate open!

The eight soldiers did not rush in immediately. Behind them, the fifty archers shot another volley, clearing the area around the gate. Then, Han Tuo ordered, "Change to melee weapons!"

The fifty archers hung their bows on their horses and took out melee weapons like spears and sabers, entering the camp in an orderly manner.

"Clear out the bandits in the camp. Do not kill those who are unarmed and kneeling on the ground. Kill anyone who resists or moves suspiciously!" Han Tuo ordered from his horse. The soldiers responded loudly and began to chase and kill the remaining bandits in the camp.

Han Tuo even sent his personal guards, who had their own tasks.

In less than an hour, the situation in Green Dragon Mountain was under control.

"Report, sir. In addition to over forty bandits, there are also over two hundred and forty elderly, women, and children in the camp. They appear to be the bandits' families. How should we handle them?"

A Black Water Army soldier dismounted and reported to Han Tuo.

"Take them all. These bandits' families will be taken back to Jiangning County as war captives and slaves. They are also a source of wealth," Han Tuo said.

"Yes!" The soldier responded and left.

"Look, this is all because of your idea. Over two hundred people have become slaves," Ji Ming whispered to Su Peng, who was riding beside him.

"You have a strange mindset. They are just NPCs... Besides, if we don't eliminate the bandits on Green Dragon Mountain, won't they just regrow like grass in the spring?" Su Peng said calmly.

"You've been playing for a week. Do you really think they are just NPCs?" Ji Ming sneered. Su Peng's expression didn't change, and he said, "I will find out what they are eventually."

"Haha, it seems you're not a complete fool," Ji Ming said, but didn't say anything more.

"Report! In a secret room in this camp, we found the bandits' treasure trove!" Suddenly, another soldier ran over and reported to Han Tuo.

Han Tuo's expression finally changed. This was what he wanted—the bandits' accumulated wealth over the years.

"Take me there," Han Tuo said, then looked at Su Peng, Ji Ming, and Sun Shijia, and said, "You three come with me."

The three nodded. Su Peng noticed that the soldier who reported was one of Han Tuo's personal guards, whose armor was slightly different from the regular soldiers.

Su Peng followed Han Tuo and the personal guard. Green Dragon Mountain was built on a mountain, with several natural caves. They soon arrived at one of the caves, which had two guard posts and ten soldiers guarding the entrance.

Han Tuo and Su Peng entered the cave. The walls had been treated to prevent dampness, and inside were treasure chests and some swords and knives. The chests were filled with silver, estimated to be at least several thousand taels.

As they went further in, they found a partitioned area. Inside, there was only one chest.

"Open the chest," Han Tuo ordered the personal guard. The guard opened the chest, and the room was instantly bathed in a golden glow—it was a small chest of gold!

Sun Shijia felt a bit dizzy at the sight of the gold. He estimated that the gold, in the form of ingots and small gold bars, was at least three hundred taels!

The five of them stared at the small chest of gold, holding their breath. Even Han Tuo, a centurion of the Black Water Army, felt his heart race at the sight of so much gold.

"How many people know about this gold?" Han Tuo suddenly asked the personal guard.

The guard, though feeling dry-mouthed, smiled slightly and said, "Only I know. I know this is a critical area, so I didn't let anyone else in."

"Very good. You are smart. I will find a way to promote you in the future," Han Tuo said, then looked back at Su Peng and the others. "The gold bars are about ten taels each. Each of you can take one."

Sun Shijia swallowed hard.

Su Peng felt this was a windfall. Over the past few days, he had gained a sense of the currency value in this world. One copper coin was roughly equivalent to 1.5 RMB, and ten taels of gold was about 150,000 RMB.

Three hundred taels of gold was worth about 4.5 million RMB.

In reality, it might be even more, as there was no inflation in this world, and basic necessities like food were very cheap, making gold even more valuable.

To Su Peng and the others, it was a huge sum of money.

"Thank you," Ji Ming said without much expression, walked over, and took a gold bar. Su Peng also walked over, took a gold bar, and put it in his pocket. Sun Shijia, swallowing hard, also took a gold bar.

The personal guard, though envious of the remaining gold, knew he couldn't take more than he could handle, so he also took a gold bar.

"Take the gold, and forget about this room and this chest. If you remember, it might bring you trouble," Han Tuo said expressionlessly, using both a carrot and a stick.

Su Peng and the others knew that the ten taels of gold were a bribe to keep them quiet about the gold. They took it without hesitation and wouldn't ruin Han Tuo's plans.

"This chest of gold, you will help me take it away. As for the silver outside... divide it into three parts. One part will be distributed to the soldiers here, one part will be sent to my residence, and one part will be turned over to the Black Water Army's public account," Han Tuo said. It wasn't that he was greedy, but this was the default rule for distributing war spoils in the Black Water Army. If he didn't follow the rules, it might raise suspicions.

Su Peng and the others had no objections. The personal guard went out and found a covered cart, possibly one the bandits had looted from merchants. They then moved the chest of gold onto the cart, and Su Peng and the others sat on the cart to guard it.

Seeing Sun Shijia staring at the chest of gold in a daze, Su Peng smiled and patted his shoulder, saying, "Don't blame them for taking the lion's share. Three hundred taels of gold is more than we can handle now. But if we have more strength, skills, or status, it might be different."

Sun Shijia nodded slightly, still in a daze, and continued to stare at the chest of gold.

Su Peng shook his head and, with Ji Ming, drove the cart, escorted by the personal guard and the Black Water Army, heading for Jiangning County with the bandits' families.

As for Green Mountain Village, the Black Water Army threw countless torches, and soon it was burning in a sea of flames behind Su Peng and the others.

Watching the burning Green Mountain Village, Su Peng shook his head, sighed lightly, and, with Ji Ming, drove the cart, following the Black Water Army towards Jiangning County...