Chapter 220: Selecting Hostages

Seeing work here, more and more elderly women and men voluntarily gathered.

These people, being elderly, were all protected behind by the villagers.

They were worried they couldn't use their strength, but finally caught a chance they could manage… tying people up.

Everyone immediately felt vigorous, holding ropes and watching all directions.

As soon as a bandit fell on the field, the elderly group swarmed up, some pressing, some holding, some tying, giving the bandits no chance to breathe.

Zhou Dasao took charge of leading the team, while Qin Dasao and Gu Xixi voluntarily acted as escorts for these people.

The two brandished their long knives and axes fiercely, preventing other bandits from approaching.

A sturdy bandit was just flung up by the Village Chief, falling flat on his face; before he could get up to catch his breath, several old men immediately piled on, pressing down his whole body.

The sturdy bandit struggled and cursed, but after only a couple of sentences he was already wrapped up like a zongzi by several women.

Zhou Dasao lifted an iron shovel, a full scoop of dirt, and mercilessly stuffed it into his mouth, saying, "How foul your cursing is!"

"How did your parents raise you? You don't see that these people are all those you should call uncle and aunt, yet you spew filth!"

The bandit's mouth was full of dirt; he couldn't curse, only glaring hatefully at the crowd before him.

At this moment, behind Gu Xixi and the others lay a patch of wild grass; ahead, within the semicircle visible, no one approached—it was a safe gap.

Gu Xixi found it interesting to watch everyone tying up the bandits, so she glanced a few more times, completely unaware that she herself had already been targeted.

Suddenly, she heard a fierce rustling behind her, sensed something wrong, but by the time she tried to turn her head, it was too late.

Gu Xixi felt her left shoulder being pressed down hard; before she could react, her whole body was forced to step back two paces.

A large hand tightly gripped her throat; she immediately felt some difficulty breathing.

Gu Xixi saw Qin Dasao and the others either shocked pale or anxiously worried.

At this time, with the sun high, she glanced up and saw a tall tree in the distance, its crown dense and lush; as the leaves swayed in the wind, flashes of silver light flickered.

Gu Xixi's heart, which had been a little tense just moments before, instantly calmed.

She wanted to tell everyone not to worry, but being choked she couldn't speak, so she could only silently close her eyes at them.

The one holding Gu Xixi hostage was precisely that bandit chief.

Earlier, seeing the situation turn against him, he spotted a slender, weak girl among the crowd—namely Gu Xixi—and decided to take her as a hostage.

After all, a young girl is most easily frightened; her tears and sobs, her pitiful, rain‑like appearance, arouse pity.

Using her to threaten the villagers would definitely be most effective.

Thus the bandit chief, taking advantage of the villagers' melee, sneaked alone into the wasteland beside the village.

He hid in the grass, crept up close, and resolved to seize a hostage by surprise.

As he had expected, he succeeded.

The bandit chief was greatly pleased, shouting loudly, "People of Huachi Du Cun! And you, Village Chief holding an iron rod! Stop at once! Look—this young woman of your village is already in my hands!"

Those who heard it first all turned their gazes this way.

Some of the Huachi Du Cun villagers who were still bravely resisting the enemy received a reminder from their companions and only then realized something had happened.

The melee gradually subsided.

Once they figured out what had happened, the remaining bandits cheered and provoked.

The Huachi Du Cun villagers were greatly startled.

Lao Qian and several other vigorous young men immediately wanted to rush to the rescue.

Fortunately, Lao Zhou was the steadiest; he stopped them and said in a low voice, "Don't act rashly—Boss Gu is being held by the bandit chief; if we provoke that villain, we might endanger Boss Gu's life."

Lao Qian glanced at Gu Xixi, gritted his teeth, and shouted at the bandit chief, "You just want grain, don't you? I promise—I'll bring out all my family's grain and load it onto your cart."

Lao Qian's idea was very practical.

First, as Village Chief he ought to have been at the forefront when something happened.

Second, his household is small; his orchard at least still has income from raising chickens and ducks, so even without grain, buying grain with money to last until the autumn harvest would not starve them.

Other villagers with no extra income, if their grain were taken again, would be left with the whole family starving.

Third, even if victory over the bandits was imminent and in sight, compared to Gu Xixi's life, Lao Qian, however unwilling, unhesitatingly chose to retreat and yield.

Yet now, the bandit chief, believing he held the advantage, said complacently, "We were only after some grain to begin with."

"But since you refused a toast and chose punishment, I've changed my mind."

He gave an evil smile, lowered his gaze, and said to Gu Xixi, "Why are you like a block of wood? Scared stupid?"

"Hurry up and cry—why aren't you crying?"

Gu Xixi was certainly not a block of wood; she felt no worry for her own safety, and even had the leisure to weigh her options seriously.

Should I use poison or a anesthetic?

The poison she prepared is meant to act quickly and take effect fast, so those poisoned will indeed die in an unsightly manner.

Originally, the village rumors had already made her sound sinister enough—for example, that anyone who offended Gu Xixi would sooner or later bring misfortune upon the whole family.

Previously, in the wilderness, killing a Beili Army soldier just to protect herself had been no big deal.

In broad daylight, with everyone watching, to poison someone to death.

The death throes would still be that twisted convulsions, bleeding from the seven orifices, the face turning dark…

Gu Xixi was certain the rumors would likely escalate to "ghostly reincarnation," "evil cultivators," "who would have thought an ordinary person would carry such poison," and so on.

Moreover, the Government Office and the law regulate poisonous substances capable of causing death.

At this moment, moreover, it was not a life‑or‑death juncture.

All things considered, it's better not to use poison.

Seeing Gu Xixi still unresponsive, the bandit chief's eyes turned sinister; he gripped her shoulder hard.

"I'll make you cry! Cry now, and at once tell your fellow villagers to save me, save me!"

"Otherwise, I'll kill you right now!"

After a moment, he only heard a faint sigh.

Now even the bandit chief didn't know what to do.

An ordinary woman taken hostage would already be terrified.

But this woman right here—threatened to this extent—not only does she not cry or make a fuss, she even has the presence of mind to sigh; is she perhaps an idiot?

The bandit chief naturally wouldn't really kill the sole hostage.

Seeing the hostage not buying it, he, bewildered, could only change his strategy and, with a fierce grin, shouted:

"Brothers! Hurry up and act, charge into the village! Take whatever you fancy!"

"The hostage is in my hands—I dare anyone to stop you!"

The remaining bandits numbered only seven or eight.

These seven or eight men hesitated for a moment, then cheered and rushed forward.

However, before they could run past the big locust tree, they felt several flashes of cold light sweep past their faces.

Swish—swish—swish…

In the blink of an eye, nobody present had yet seen what had happened.

The bandit chief's shoulder, thigh, and wrist—several spots at once—burst with blood.

"You… you ambushed us!"

As he fell, he still struggled to kill Gu Xixi, hoping to take her down with him even in death.

But he suddenly stiffened, and as his long sword clanged to the ground, he collapsed like a lump of mud.

He couldn't muster any strength.

His body couldn't move at all.

What's going on?

The bandit chief stared at Gu Xixi, who was closest to him.

He opened his mouth, only to discover in horror that he couldn't make a sound.