Time passed slowly, and Lu Qing remained lurking in the tree.
On the other hand, Magu was extremely anxious.
"Well, haven't you found Brother Lu yet?"
"We didn't find him. Da Shan and I searched the area several times, but we couldn't find any trace of Young Master Lu," Xiao Tian replied.
"How could this be? Could it be that we're too late, and Brother Lu has already broken in and been caught?" Ma Gu asked anxiously.
"Probably not," Xiao Tian said hesitantly. "We've been here for so long and haven't seen any signs of unrest in Happy Village. If Young Master Lu had broken in, it shouldn't be this peaceful."
"I think Young Master Lu is probably hiding somewhere, waiting for the right opportunity to make his move."
Magu thought about it and agreed that it made sense.
Lu Qing is a Qi and Blood Realm martial artist. If he breaks in, Happy Village will not be able to eliminate him without making a move.
More likely, as Xiao Tian said, Lu Qing is lurking somewhere, waiting for an opportunity to strike.
“Then we’ll continue to wait. We absolutely cannot let anything happen to Brother Lu,” Ma Gu said, suppressing his anxiety.
Xiao Tian and Da Shan exchanged a glance.
If it were the usual Mr. Ma, he would never have failed to think of such a question.
It seems that Master Ma really values that young master Lu highly, to the point that he has even lost his usual composure.
Lu Qing was unaware that Ma Gu had brought men who were waiting to meet him on the other side of the mountain.
He remained hidden in the tree, waiting for night to fall.
Finally, as time passed, dusk arrived, and the sky gradually darkened.
At this time, lanterns began to be lit in Happy Village, and it gradually became brightly lit.
Lu Qing, who had been resting with her eyes closed all afternoon, opened them as well.
"Alright, cheer up, we're about to have guests!"
The two guards below, no longer slouching, stood up straight.
Lu Qing then realized that this Happy Village was actually open at night.
No wonder he'd been lurking here for so long without seeing anyone go in.
The lights came on, and after a while, Lu Qing finally saw someone coming.
And there were quite a few people.
There were villagers dressed simply, walking over, and there were landlords dressed in fine silks and satins, arriving in sedan chairs.
Lu Qing even saw an old man wearing patched clothes with a sleazy look on his face.
I really don't know where these people get the money to spend in this lavish place.
Just as Lu Qing was about to take action while the other side was receiving guests,
Suddenly, cries of pleading and shouts came from outside, growing louder as they approached, and soon reached the gate of the village.
Lu Qing looked and saw that it was a man in his forties, who was struggling with a young girl.
The cries came from the girl, who was clutching the man's hand and pleading bitterly.
"Father, please, this money can't be gambled away anymore. This is the money I earned by embroidering silk for so long, to pay for Mother's medical treatment!"
"Bullshit! Your money is mine. I need some, so what's wrong with taking it?" the man cursed. "Your mother's illness isn't serious. Let her hang in there and she'll get better. Besides, once I make my money back, I'll have all the money I want. Then you can hire as many doctors and buy as much medicine as you want for your mother!"
"Father, it's really no good! Mother coughed up blood yesterday. If we don't get a doctor and medicine soon, she really won't make it!"
The girl still refused to let go of the man's hand, pleading and crying.
"What do you mean she can't take it anymore? I saw her this morning and she was perfectly fine. She'll be fine after a couple more days of rest!" the man said impatiently. "Are you going to let go or not? If you don't, do you believe I'll kick you?"
"Father, please, Mother really needs money for medicine, otherwise she will really die, she will really die!"
The girl, her face streaked with tears, clung tightly to the man's arm.
"Then let her die!" The man kicked his daughter away. "It'll save me from working so hard; I can earn money to buy her medicine!"
Upon hearing this, the girl lying on the ground suddenly opened her eyes wide, seemingly unable to believe that her father would say such a thing.
However, when she saw her father about to walk into the village, she rushed over and hugged his leg.
"Dad, please stop gambling and give me my money back..."
"Let go of me!"
The man was again held back and unable to move, which made him furious. He raised his hand to hit him.
At this time, a lot of people had gathered at the entrance of the village to watch the excitement, most of whom were guests who came to Happy Village to have fun.
Seeing this scene, instead of feeling sorry for them, they watched with great interest.
The two guards at the gate couldn't help but laugh when they saw the man being carried and unable to move.
The first guard shouted, "Zhao Laosan, are you even capable? You can't even manage your own daughter. If you don't know how to manage her, why don't you hand her over to our village for us to help you? We guarantee we'll train her to be completely obedient!"
The man was already angry, but his eyes lit up when he heard this.
"Master Chen, are you telling the truth? Your village is willing to take her in?"
The first guard was taken aback. He had only meant to tease him, but he never expected that Zhao Laosan would take it seriously.
He looked at the girl and found that she was indeed quite pretty.
"Have you thought this through? If she enters our village, it will be difficult for you to redeem her later," the guard warned him.
"It doesn't matter, she's a money-loser anyway. It's her good fortune to be able to enter the village. Mr. Chen, just tell me how much she's worth?"
The man called Zhao Laosan didn't seem to care. He was just as worried that he didn't have enough money to make up for his losses.
"I can't make that decision, but I can help you go in and call someone out to appraise the value," the first guard said.
"Then I'll have to trouble you, Master Chen!" Old Zhao said, bowing and scraping.
"Father!" The girl's face was filled with disbelief upon hearing this conversation.
When she saw that the guard had actually gone into the village to call for help, fear flashed in her eyes. She quickly got up from the ground and tried to run outside.
"Trying to run?!"
But this time, she couldn't leave even though she wanted to.
Zhao Laosan grabbed her and dragged her back.
"You didn't go back when I told you to, so don't go back now. Just stay in the village and make some money for me!"
"Father, no! I'm your daughter! How could you sell me?!"
The girl cried out, filled with immense terror.
“I’m doing this for your own good. It’s much better to be able to enjoy life in the village than to stay at home embroidering every day. You wanted to buy medicine for your mother, right? As long as you earn money there, your mother’s illness can be cured.”
Ignoring his daughter's struggles, Zhao Laosan dragged her back to the village entrance.
Just then, the guard called out the people from the village.
Amidst the girl's despair, both sides signed a contract.
Zhao Laosan received a sum of money, while the girl was dragged inside amidst cries and screams.
After receiving the silver, Zhao Laosan completely ignored his daughter's cries and happily took out a piece of silver to look at.
Now his betting capital has suddenly become much larger, and he's definitely going to be able to win it all back!
Someone nearby, seeing him like this, couldn't help but mock him, "Zhao Laosan, you're really ruthless. You even sold your own daughter. Aren't you afraid that when you get back, your wife will come after you?"
"She dares!" Zhao Laosan glared. "Besides, what right do you have to talk to me, you rascal? Didn't you also sell your widowed sister-in-law into prostitution? Your sister-in-law raised you from childhood!"
These words were so offensive that the bald-headed man didn't dare to say another word.
"Zhao Laosan, is your daughter still unmarried?"
At this moment, a well-dressed, pot-bellied fat man asked.
Zhao Laosan was taken aback: "Yes, she's only sixteen. What's the point of her getting married?"
"I didn't expect to get a new virgin into Happy Village today. I'll have to have a good taste of her." The portly fat man patted Zhao Laosan on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry, Zhao Laosan, I'll treat your daughter well!"
"Master Wang, then you must call Zhao Laosan your father-in-law!" someone teased from the side.
"Get out of here! Can't you speak properly? Who does he think he is? Father-in-law? I'd look down on him even if he were my grandson," the fat man cursed.
Laughter filled the area in front of the village gate, except for Zhao Laosan, whose face turned ashen.
Lu Qing had already stood up on the big tree.
His face was obscured by the shadows.
However, the icy aura emanating from him made Xiao Li, who was standing next to him, feel a little agitated.
Standing in the tree, watching the scum in front of the village for a while, Lu Qing finally restrained himself and did not act impulsively.
Now is not the time.
Quietly climbing down from the tree, and taking advantage of the cover of night, Lu Qing circled around and found a secluded corner of the village, where he gently climbed over the wall.
Xiao Li stood steadily on his shoulder.
Upon entering the village, Lu Qing began to survey the situation inside.
The village is quite large, with many buildings, among which a tall wooden building in the middle stands out.
That's Lu Qing's target.
Using the shadows cast by various buildings, Lu Qing moved quickly through the village.
Xiao Li has a special ability to sense things; he can always warn someone in advance if they are nearby.
And so, Lu Qing moved among the various buildings, yet no one could spot him.
Just as he was about to approach the main building, a series of curses reached his ears.
Turning a corner, I saw a heavily dressed middle-aged woman walking towards me with two men.
Behind him followed a young girl, the same one Lu Qing had seen at the entrance of the village.
At this moment, the girl's hands were already bound and she was being pulled by a rope. If she slowed down even a little, she would be scolded.
Seeing the girl's face full of despair, Lu Qing hesitated for a moment, but still quietly followed behind.
Soon, he saw the three men force the girl into a room in the corner of the village.
Lu Qing followed behind, observed for a while, and found that there was no one guarding him, so he quietly approached.
When he arrived at the house, he noticed that it was different from the other houses; it was made of stone.
"Lock this little girl in first, starve her for three days and she'll behave." A sharp, sarcastic voice came from inside the house. "And you little girls, if you still don't behave, I'll throw you all into the mountains to be eaten by wolves!"
Lu Qing slowly peered into the room, and when she saw the situation inside clearly, her pupils suddenly contracted.
At the same time, the killing intent that had been suppressed in his heart for so long could no longer be contained.
