Chapter 73

After Chen Wuji finished speaking, the expressions of the villagers around who were watching the excitement changed instantly.

"I said, when Chen Wuji killed someone earlier, the Yuan family didn't utter a word, but now they suddenly gathered so many people to cause trouble — obviously they were waiting for the right moment!" a burly man in the crowd shouted.

"Don't waste words, first block them!"

"That dog Yuan Laoer is still perched on my wall today, peeping at my wife washing clothes!"

"He's been loitering at my doorstep these past few days!"

"He looks like a pig's head, yet his thievish heart won't die!"

"What's the point of blocking? Just kill them — I've long seen they're no good."

"Right, kill them!"

……

The villagers surged toward Chen Wuji with a menacing presence.

The Yuan clan, originally numerous and strong, instantly became the weaker side.

Although the Yuan family is the biggest clan in Xishan Village, when the other villagers of various surnames unite, they are not enough to match them.

Yuan Jintang's face turned as black as a pot bottom; he angrily shouted, "You bunch of idiots, I'm here to capture the murderer, yet you shield the killer — you're the ones rebelling!"

"No need for the Village Chief to come personally; regardless of why Chen Wuji killed someone, he did kill, and we'll be watching him. But if you, Lao Zamao, dare to take another step, don't blame us for being ruthless," Liu Tiechui of the Liu family shouted loudly.

This kid is a giant in the village; his family isn't wealthy, yet he grew to two meters tall, his build as sturdy as a young calf.

His household is the only other hunting family in the village besides Chen Wuji's.

However, this skill has basically declined in Liu Tiechui's hands; he doesn't like going into the mountains to hunt, spending most of the year in town carrying loads and pulling carts, only going into the mountains for a few days when there's no work in town.

Liu Tiechui's words drew strong approval from countless villagers, who angrily shouted for the Yuan family to get out of the way, threatening to kill them if they moved again.

Yuan Jintang felt like killing someone in the moment, his lungs trembling with rage.

A bunch of idiots!

Utterly stupid!

Just as the two sides were on the verge of drawing swords and crossbows, a group appeared at the village entrance carrying torches.

The intrusion of these uninvited guests suddenly silenced the noisy villagers.

Countless eyes met; some were bewildered, some fearful.

Chen Wuji immediately spotted the bandit leader in the crowd.

It was that bastard who had been chasing him relentlessly to kill him.

"Yuan Jintang, you dog, still claim you have no rebellious intent!" Chen Wuji suddenly bellowed.

"Everyone, the Yuan family's rebel allies have arrived — grab your weapons!"

Although the villagers hadn't seen much of the world, their eyes still worked; seeing the bloodstained knives in the men's hands and the women and loot on their shoulders, they instantly understood who they were.

The crowd instantly became like a swarm of bees — some retreated in fear, some mustered courage and raised their weapons, but their feet seemed glued to the ground.

"Elders, advance — if we don't, our grain and wives and daughters will be theirs, and they'll show us no mercy; they've massacred the Zhao clan!" Chen Wuji, seeing the situation, added fuel to the fire again.

Expecting these commoners who are not MilitaryHousehold to scream and charge forward at the sight of bandits is unrealistic; we can only prod their weak spots to force them forward.

The real bandits have come — we have no choice but to go up.

If we don't go up, we'll all die together!

This gang is ruthless; they will truly kill and slaughter villages.

The moment he saw them, Chen Wuji's mind conjured the grim scene of the Zhao clan.

The provincial troops are incompetent, actually letting this gang escape.

Though the villagers felt a bit timid seeing the bandits' bloodied knives, Chen Wuji's words — "They'll loot your grain and dishonor your wives and daughters" — instantly steadied their spines.

Behind them lay their village, their families, wives and daughters — where could they flee?

"Kill!"

"Hack them to death!"

"Protect the village!"

The villagers shouted chaotic slogans, brandishing assorted weapons as they charged forward.

Yuan Jintang, however, went numb!

At the moment the bandits appeared, his mind went completely blank.

He couldn't fathom how these beasts would show up in Xishan Village at this very moment.

"Uncle, what should we do?" a Yuan family young strongman asked.

"What do you mean, what should we do? Kill the bandits!" Yuan Jintang nearly roared, "Your mother is already so old — do you really want the bandits to give you another brother? Kill!"

"That Chen idiot..."

"Damn your mother's head, Chen — hurry up and kill the bandits!" Yuan Jintang shouted.

Now, no matter what is said, we can't lay a hand on Chen Wuji anymore.

Once we act, even if he isn't a bandit, he'll be deemed one.

With so many eyes watching the village, plus the filthy water Chen Wuji's grandson just splashed, even if he had ten mouths he couldn't clear his name — he would surely become a merit entry on the magistrate's achievement record.

Zhou Buping also went numb.

He merely wanted to find a place to rest and regroup.

During the day, a madman hacked down fourteen of their most reliable brothers; the great grudge still unavenged, they were then surrounded by provincial troops — not to mention the loot was nearly all lost, and the brothers he'd brought down from the mountains lost another twenty or so, nearly wiping out the entire force.

After a winding escape, Zhou Buping finally found the troops he'd sent off, mustering about two hundred men, only to run into the provincial troops again by ill fortune.

After a fierce battle, of the refugees he'd gathered, some died, some fled, and by nightfall fewer than fifty remained.

Zhou Buping felt weary, believing he had chosen the wrong timing for his uprising, having misread the almanac.

He gave up gathering more refugees, consulted with his comrades, and chose the remote Xishan Village surrounded by mountains, planning to loot once, then retreat to the mountains for temporary rest before plotting a bigger move.

This village, however, was carefully selected by them.

The village is remote, with only one road leading into it, backed by mountains; if anything goes wrong, they can quickly hide in the mountains. Once they enter the mountains, no matter how many Provincial Troops come, they can absolutely do nothing to them.

It is said that behind this village there is also an ancient plank road; if the uprising fails later, they can still head north along this route straight to the Old Stronghold and hide there again.

But Zhou Buping, despite all his calculations, could not figure out how this remote village had actually prepared defenses, with hundreds of villagers lighting countless fires at the village entrance waiting for them.

Are they gods?

As the shouts of killing rose, Zhou Buping's doubts and incomprehension were also drowned in the knife light and sword shadow.

"Withdraw! Quickly withdraw!" he shouted hoarsely.

Although they were facing only a group of villagers, they could not attack.

They had been fighting all day, were exhausted, and their numbers were far fewer than the enemy's; to fight would be death!

Even if the Refugees died, they could be stirred up again; Zhou Buping did not feel sorry for these people.

But the brothers he had brought down from the mountain now numbered fewer than ten.

If any more die, his grand plan will be completely ruined.

Run, we must run!

After resting and recuperating, we will return to take revenge and slaughter this broken village!