Chapter 218: Stopping and Robbing
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
On the road.
There were many carriages parked in groups of three to five. The people in the carriages were all frowning as if they had encountered a huge problem.
The road was blocked, so Tang Jinghong and Chu Qingzhi had no choice but to stop their horses.
Chu Qingzhi looked at the many carriages in front of her and thought to herself, Is this the ancient version of traffic jams?
“Jinghong, have you ever taken this road before?”
Tang Jinghong got off the horse. “Yes, but it’s been three years. I don’t know if there have been any changes now.”
Someone beside them heard their conversation and took the initiative to say, “There are no changes, but there are more bandits. There are bandits in front who have set up a checkpoint. You have to pay half the value of the goods you are carrying in order to pass.”
Chu Qingzhi also got off the horse. Even though she was dressed like an ordinary man, she was still eye-catching. She calmly asked, “The world is peaceful. Why would there be bandits?”
“The world is peaceful? What a joke.” That person laughed mockingly. “Only people like you who have never traveled say such things.”
Tang Jinghong frowned. He was dressed in black and had an aura that made people not dare to look at him directly. “What do you mean?”
“The world is no longer peaceful…” That person suddenly realized something and stopped talking.
Chu Qingzhi smiled. “Uncle, let’s not talk about the world. Let’s talk about the bandits.”
Only then did the person start talking again.
“I don’t know where those bandits came from. They suddenly appeared half a year ago and set up a checkpoint in front of the Qingshui Bridge. They want everyone to pay the toll.”
“To get to where we want to go, we must pass Qingshui Bridge. We have no choice but to pay. It’s getting harder and harder for merchants to earn money. I plan to quit after this trip.”
Tang Jinghong’s voice became deeper and deeper. “Why aren’t the officials doing anything?”
“Officials?” The person was full of mockery. “They colluded with the bandits. Why would they care about our lives? They only care about our money.”
Chu Qingzhi gently tugged at Tang Jinghong’s clothes, indicating for him to calm down. “Jinghong, let’s go ahead and take a look.”
Tang Jinghong cared about the world. When he encountered such a thing that harmed the people and the country, he could not help but be angry.
However, with Chu Qingzhi’s reminder, he immediately restrained his emotions.
“Alright, let’s go and take a look at the front.”
That person kindly reminded, “1 don’t think you can keep these two horses.”
Chu Qingzhi was speechless.
Tang Jinghong and Chu Qingzhi walked forward one after another.
In front of them was a river that was eight to nine meters long. The water was clear and calm. Occasionally, fish could be seen swimming in groups.
There was a three-meter-wide stone bridge above the river. On the stone bridge was engraved the auspicious sign of the Qilin, as well as the words “The wind and rain in harmony.”. Against the mountains and rivers, the scenery was very beautiful.
However, at the two ends of the stone bridge, there were ten-meter-long chevaux-de-frises blocking the way.
There were more than ten burly men standing in front of the chevaux-de-frise. They looked like they were not to be trifled with.
At this moment, a man dressed as a landlord was taking out silver from his clothes and handing it to one of the burly men. His face was filled with pain and anger, but he did not dare to say anything.
After taking the money, the burly man waved his hand, and two people carried the chevaux-de-frise away to let him pass.
At this moment, a figure suddenly rushed out from the side, snatched the money from the burly man’s hand, and ran.
The burly man was stunned for a moment and said angrily, “Catch the thief, quickly catch the thief!”
Immediately, half of the burly men chased after the thief. The thief ran extremely quickly and disappeared into the forest.
Chu Qingzhi was speechless.
First, it was a robbery. Then, it was a thief shouting ‘catch the thief”.
Those who went after the thief soon gave up and returned. Then…
The burly man waved his hand and asked his subordinates to put the chevaux-de-frise back. He ordered the landlord. “Your money was snatched away. You have to pay me again.”
Hearing that, the landlord felt dizzy. The money he had just paid was already half of the profit. If he gave the other half now, he would have made a wasted trip. “Brother, it was you who lost the money…”
Before he could finish speaking, the burly man slapped him in the face. Then, he took out a knife and placed it on his neck. “Are you paying or not?”
The man trembled in fear and hurriedly took out the money. “Here, here…”
In the next second, the money was lifted up by a sword and landed in Tang Jinghong’s hand. At the same time, he raised the sword again and waved it…
The burly man’s throat was cut by the sword, and a blood-red line appeared on his neck. Blood slowly flowed out of the line, and more and more blood flowed out. Finally, he fell heavily to the ground.
This scene shocked everyone.
They immediately retreated, while the other burly men drew their sabers and surrounded Tang Jinghong. “Kill him!”
Tang Jinghong was instantly surrounded by more than ten burly men.
Chu Qingzhi did not have a suitable weapon. She took the horse whip from a coachman’s hand. After injecting a wisp of spiritual energy into it, the soft horse whip immediately became a killing weapon.
Chu Qingzhi flew to the bridge and fought with the burly men who were rushing over from the other side.
Pa! A whip lashed at a burly man’s body, shattering his internal organs. The burly man spat out blood and died quickly.
Pa, pa, pa. After a dozen or so sounds, the burly men opposite her were completely wiped out.
On the other side, Tang Jinghong killed half of burly men, Chu Qingzhi flew back to help. After a few whips, only one was left.
Chu Qingzhi tied the burly man up with vines.
The onlookers were all stunned, admiration towards Chu Qingzhi almost overflowing from their eyes.
Immediately, a young man came over with two bowls of water. “Heroes, you’re too awesome. Please drink some water.”
Tang Jinghong refused. “We’re not thirsty, thank you.”
The young man looked at the two of them with sparkling eyes. “You can drink it later. I’ll put it here.”
When the surrounding people saw this scene, they regretted not fawning on the two of them earlier. If they befriended the two of them, their safety could be guaranteed.
Tang Jinghong turned around and asked, “Who is your master?”
If they dared to rob people in broad daylight, it meant that they had a powerful master.
The burly man was already scared out of his wits and quickly said, “Lu Hongtu!”
Tang Jinghong frowned. Lu Hongtu was a small general in the northern border army. “Why are you robbing people here?”
The burly man broke out in cold sweat. “You can only be promoted if you have money. In the northern border army now, whoever pays more will be promoted.”
Had the northern border already become so corrupted?
Tang Jinghong’s expression turned extremely ugly. He looked at him coldly. “Is there anyone like you who stops travelers and robs money?”
The burly man’s breathing became heavy. “On every road that leads to the northern border, there are people robbing the travelers.”
Tang Jinghong clenched his fists tightly, unable to suppress his anger.. “The Lord of the Northern Border doesn’t care?”
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