Chapter 65: Lair
Chapter 65: Chapter 65: Lair
"Miss Mu!"
Chen Shouheng suddenly spoke. "Let’s turn back and attack!"
Mu Yuanying froze for a moment, then instantly understood. "Alright! Let’s attack!"
Chen Shouheng took a deep breath and grabbed the other bamboo pole from the black-canopied boat. He unleashed his full power, and the small boat shot forward like an unbridled stallion, surging upstream against the current, straight toward their pursuers.
The Water Bandits on the three speedboats behind them clearly hadn’t expected their prey to dare to turn back and fight. They were caught completely off guard, even forgetting to fire their crossbows.
Just as they were about to close in, Mu Yuanying cried out.
"Now!"
She was the first to leap into action. Her longsword transformed into a flash of light, streaking toward the leader on the nearest speedboat.
Chen Shouheng moved at almost the same instant. He pushed off with his feet, causing the small boat to dip slightly as his entire body shot through the air like an uncaged tiger, pouncing toward another speedboat.
The other three Martial Artists also leaped up, lunging for the enemy boats.
The attack was so sudden that the Water Bandits never imagined their prey would suddenly become the hunters. In their haste, their formation fell into chaos.
SHLICK!
As the light of Mu Yuanying’s sword passed, a Water Bandit clutched his throat, blood spurting, and fell into the water with a scream.
The bandit leader raised his saber to block, but his weapon was easily deflected by her exquisite swordsmanship. The tip of her blade instantly struck a vital point on his chest, and he went numb and collapsed.
This group of Water Bandits wasn’t highly skilled in martial arts to begin with; their leader was only at the Marrow Refining realm at best.
Once Chen Shouheng and the others got into close quarters, the fight became completely one-sided.
Soon, most of the Water Bandits on the three speedboats had been dealt with.
Some of the bandits were dead, others wounded. Seeing their leader captured and their comrades brutally killed in an instant, the few who remained let out a yell, abandoned their boats, and leaped into the water, desperately fleeing into the depths of the reed marsh.
None of the five were strong swimmers, and they feared they would run into danger again if they pursued rashly, so they had to let them go.
Mu Yuanying pressed the tip of her sword against the throat of the captured bandit leader and said coldly, "If you want to live, answer my questions honestly."
The leader’s face was ashen. He trembled and nodded repeatedly.
"How did you know we were coming? And how did you set up an ambush in advance?" Mu Yuanying demanded sharply.
With a miserable expression, the leader whimpered, "The order came from above. They said the Government Office would be sending elites by the waterways for a sneak attack in the next few days. We were told to lay down waterweeds and fishing nets in all the channels ahead of time. As soon as we saw you, we were to block your boat, send men to scuttle it, and rain down arrows. We were just following orders to set up an ambush here..."
"Above? Who is ’above’? Where did this information come from?" Mu Yuanying pressed, a sense of foreboding rising in her heart.
"I don’t know, I really don’t know..." The leader felt the longsword prick his neck and hurriedly said, "Right, right, I heard... the news came from the Government Office..."
’The Government Office?’
Mu Yuanying’s expression changed drastically.
Although the existence of the Government Office’s "decapitation" plan to exterminate the bandits wasn’t a total secret, the time and location of the operation were top secret. They had even intentionally leaked false information several times to create diversions.
Only a very small number of high-level officials knew the actual details.
How could the Water Bandits get such detailed information from the Government Office several days in advance?
There was only one explanation.
There was a mole in the Government Office!
A cold glint flashed in Mu Yuanying’s eyes as countless thoughts raced through her mind.
After finishing off the Water Bandit with a single stroke of her sword, she said in a low voice, "This is no small matter. We must return immediately."
"Right."
The group nodded. The black-canopied boat turned around and sped toward Jingshan County Town.
...
After leaving the reed marsh, Mu Yuanying, Chen Shouheng, and the other three Martial Artists abandoned the boat and switched to traveling by land.
The waterways were faster, but the Water Bandits had eyes and ears everywhere, making it too risky.
The land route was slower but comparatively safer.
The route took them through countryside, and the group couldn’t find any means of transport, forcing them to rely on their own two feet.
The road was muddy the entire way, making for a difficult journey.
「After walking for several miles.」
Suddenly, Mu Yuanying, who was walking at the front, stopped and said in a low voice, "Look over there. There’s a light."
Everyone’s spirits lifted. They looked in the direction she was pointing. Sure enough, a few faint but distinct lights flickered in the distance.
"There’s a village!"
The eyes of the sturdy man with the saber lit up. "Finally, a place to rest our feet! We might even be able to get some hot food."
"It’s not far. Come on, let’s go take a look."
Mu Yuanying estimated the distance, a trace of hope in her voice.
After the battle tonight and the long trek, she was also exhausted.
They hadn’t considered the possibility of failure on this raid, so they hadn’t brought any rations or water.
The five of them quickened their pace, and soon, a small village appeared before them.
However, as they entered the village, a strange feeling crept over them.
It was too quiet.
No dogs barking, no chickens crowing... The entire village seemed to be slumbering in a dead silence, not at all like a place where people lived.
"What’s going on? Where... where did everyone go?"
The sturdy man with the saber frowned, his hand instinctively resting on the hilt of his weapon.
"Something’s strange."
The tall, skinny man with the Short Sword also lowered his voice, his wary gaze sweeping over the tightly shut doors and windows.
"Let’s go check."
Mu Yuanying’s gaze scanned the few houses at the village entrance. Most of the courtyard gates were ajar. She took the lead, walking toward the nearest house.
The courtyard wasn’t large. Firewood was stacked in a corner, and the clothesline was empty.
The door was also ajar.
Inside the main room, there wasn’t much clutter. There was only a simple bed made of wooden planks, with a patched coarse cloth outer garment tossed carelessly at its head.
Mu Yuanying walked to the bed and reached out to feel the bedding. "The bed is cold."
Her eyes scanned the surroundings, but she noticed there wasn’t much dust in the main room. It was clearly inhabited.
"Something is wrong with this village."
Mu Yuanying frowned. "Let’s split up and investigate. Be careful. We’ll meet back at the stone millstone at the village entrance in half an incense stick’s time. If you see anything unusual, signal immediately."
The five of them quickly split into two groups.
Mu Yuanying and Chen Shouheng went west as one group, while the sturdy man with the saber, the tall, skinny man with the Short Sword, and the middle-aged Swordsman went east.
The two of them bypassed a few empty courtyards and soon arrived at a house with a light on.
Muffled, coarse laughter, deliberately kept low, could be heard from inside.
A hoarse voice spoke up: "...Third Brother, what’s the damn rush? After we finish this ’shipment,’ we should go out for a bit too."
Another voice mumbled in agreement, "We should’ve gone out long ago. This godforsaken place is full of men. It’s killing me! The other day, I was starting to think the Water Monkeys were looking pretty!"
Chen Shouheng and Mu Yuanying exchanged a look, both seeing the shock in the other’s eyes.
’This is definitely not a conversation between ordinary villagers!’
"You should drink less. The boss arranged for us to be on watch."
"This place is a shithole where even birds won’t crap! How are those useless bastards from the Government Office ever going to find us? What the hell is there to be afraid of?"
’This isn’t an abandoned village at all. It’s the Water Bandits’ den!’
Mu Yuanying’s eyes instantly turned ice-cold. A sharp, murderous aura emanated from her, but she forcibly suppressed it.
She took a deep breath and gave Chen Shouheng a hand signal to retreat.
The two of them withdrew silently and moved quickly toward the rendezvous point at the village’s stone millstone.
The sturdy man with the saber, the tall, skinny man with the Short Sword, and the middle-aged Swordsman were already waiting there.
Mu Yuanying explained what the two of them had encountered and asked the other three, "What about you?"
The sturdy man with the saber had an excited look on his face that he couldn’t suppress. "The biggest house on the east side was locked, but a window was broken. We went inside to take a look... There’s stuff piled up in there!"
"What kind of stuff?" Mu Yuanying pressed.