Chapter 35

Finally...

As the bandit leader's strength was exhausted, his movements slowed down significantly; the guard seized the opportunity and slashed sideways with his sword, and the bandit leader's right hand holding the knife fell off in response, warm blood spurting from the severed arm.

The bandit leader knew that the situation was lost and shouted to the crowd: "Avenge me."

Before the bandit leader could say more, the guard's sword went straight through his chest, and with a wide-eyed stare, he fell straight to the ground.

On the other side of the battlefield, a winner had also been decided; it was already a case of being outnumbered, and while trying to protect the young lady in the carriage, the guard was caught off guard by the bandits and stabbed.

The bandits had just solved the trouble in front of them when they heard their boss's cry, and he fell into a pool of blood before they could step forward to rescue him.

Among the bandit team, the one holding the broken knife raised it and shouted: "Avenge the head leader."

A group of people swarmed up with broken knives and firewood knives; anyone who saw this scene would feel a bit of heart palpitations, and if it weren't for the thought that his young lady was still in the carriage, the guard would have wanted to turn around and run.

Reason told him that if he abandoned his young lady and left, he would be chopped into mince by the Tang family, and that would be considered a large piece.

Jiang Jinshi, who was watching the battle, thought that once the bandit leader died, the bandits would scatter, but he didn't expect these people to be so loyal.

It was just a pity that the group was blinded by hatred; the two guards had horses, and they preferred to fight outnumbered rather than leave, which clearly showed that the people in the carriage were very important to them.

Just like before, they only had a chance of winning by using the people in the carriage as a threat; otherwise, it would be easier to be broken one by one.

As if to confirm the conjecture in Jiang Jinshi's heart, the guard did not choose to fight hard against the bandits but turned around and ran.

When the crowd dispersed, the guard would suddenly turn around and slash at the nearest bandit; regardless of whether he hit or not, he would immediately turn around and continue running, never lingering in battle.

Just like this, under the guard's deliberate containment, the bandits gradually moved away from the carriage, and being broken was only a matter of time.

Jiang Jinshi, who had wanted to wait for both sides to suffer and then jump out to rob them, now had eyes shining with excitement.

A heaven-sent opportunity; if he didn't act now, when would he?

The two people in the carriage heard the sounds of fighting moving away and had just breathed a sigh of relief when the carriage curtain was lifted.

To prevent accidents, Jiang Jinshi first used the Ghost Head Knife to lift the curtain, and only after ensuring safety did he feel at ease.

Seeing the shape of the Ghost Head Knife, the two huddled together again, their hearts rising to their throats once more.

When she saw Jiang Jinshi's face clearly, the maid slowly exhaled; in an instant, she had imagined everything.

This man must have seen her mistress's peerless beauty through the carriage curtain earlier, and after catching up, he discovered that their team was being robbed.

But being timid, he only dared to hide in the nearby grass, and only after the bandits were lured away by the guards did he pick up a knife from the ground to pretend to be a hero saving a beauty.

Originally just a fleeting thought, the more the maid thought about it, the more she felt that this was exactly what happened, and then the look she gave Jiang Jinshi was filled with undisguised contempt.

It wasn't just the maid who thought so; even Miss Tang herself believed it.

Due to her family background, ever since she, Tang Rui, reached the age of marriage, there were always people trying every possible way to "encounter" her or "save a beauty."

Jiang Jinshi was just about to start the robbery when the maid spoke first: "Can you ride a horse? If you can, hurry up and send our young lady back."

For a moment, Jiang Jinshi didn't know how to answer; it could even be said that he didn't expect the other party to want him to be a coachman.

Tang Rui frowned at the maid: "No need for that, we can just wait here for Fifteen to return."

After saying that, she turned her head and ordered Jiang Jinshi with a haughty air: "You may withdraw!"

Jiang Jinshi lifted the big knife and carried it on his shoulder, the corners of his mouth curling upward involuntarily, his face wearing a ferocious grin.

"I say, did you two get something wrong?"

The maid became increasingly impatient, stepping forward with her hands on her hips: "I say, you person, why don't you understand what's good for you..."

Before she could finish speaking, a large knife slashed straight down from above toward the maid's forehead; seeing that her maid was about to be split in two, Tang Rui desperately pushed her away.

"Bang!!!"

Jiang Jinshi's Ghost Head Knife landed heavily on the bottom of the carriage, the wooden boards at the bottom breaking directly under this blow, and the splashed wood chips flew onto the shocked faces of Tang Rui and the other.

Slowly lifting the Ghost Head Knife, the dull metallic sound of the rings hitting the blade seemed particularly harsh at this moment.

Looking at the two who had quieted down, Jiang Jinshi nodded with satisfaction: "Next time, please be quiet and listen to what others have to say first."

At this moment, the maid was huddled in the corner of the carriage like a little quail, trembling, her hands covering her head, not daring to look directly at Jiang Jinshi.

Tang Rui first glanced at the cold-glinting Ghost Head Knife, then stiffly twisted her neck: "Dare... dare I ask, young master, no, no, no, young master, please speak."

Jiang Jinshi pointed the tip of the knife at Tang Rui: "Robbery!"

Tang Rui gripped the hairpin in her hand tightly; she didn't believe there could be such a coincidence, and she concluded in her heart that this person was in cahoots with the previous bandits, she just didn't know if she could drag it out until Fifteen returned.

So Tang Rui rolled her eyes and squeezed out a smile at Jiang Jinshi: "Good fellow, I was in a hurry when I went out today, and I don't have much silver on me. Why don't you let me go, and I will definitely offer five thousand silver another day, how about that?"

Hearing this, Jiang Jinshi rolled his eyes; this woman seemed to think she was very smart, drawing cakes for bandits—you really have had a life.

"I said robbery, hand over everything valuable on you."

Feeling the impatience in the other party's tone, Tang Rui felt a bit of heart palpitations; if the other party only wanted money, it would be fine, after all, it was just some worldly possessions.

But as a bandit, where would he have seen a woman as beautiful as her? If she were to be robbed of her purity by a bandit, how would she face people in the future?

Thinking of this, Tang Rui raised the gold hairpin in her hand and whispered to comfort herself.

Tang Rui, it's okay, it's okay, this won't hurt.

It will be over in an instant, and that's better than being defiled by a thief.

Jiang Jinshi saw Tang Rui raise the gold hairpin and thought the other party finally understood his meaning, his gaze fixed on the gold hairpin and unable to move away, not hiding his greedy expression at all.

In Tang Rui's eyes, this thief was staring straight at her face, looking like a hungry ghost in lust.

Better a short pain than a long one!

Gripping the gold hairpin tightly, she thrust it violently toward her own neck.

The gold hairpin stopped an inch before her snow-white swan neck, and it was visible to the naked eye that Tang Rui's whole body was trembling.

Two lines of clear tears slid down her cheeks, and Tang Rui slumped weakly on the chair, the gold hairpin in her hand sliding to the edge of her skirt.

She didn't want to die!

The storybooks she had secretly bought were still hidden in the cabinet, unread, and her wish to go hunting in the mountains had not yet been realized; there were still so many things she could do in her life.

Actually, thinking about it now, that scholar who had been pestering her wasn't that annoying either.

Jiang Jinshi had no interest in understanding the other party's inner world, reaching out and leaning over to pick up the gold hairpin.

Tang Rui's thoughts were interrupted by Jiang Jinshi's movements, and seeing the thief's hand reaching toward the corner of her skirt, Tang Rui could only turn her head, despairingly closing her eyes, not daring to think about what would happen next.