Chapter 5: He Hit Them With His Own Ability, Why Should He Let Them Go?
“Pah, before saying anything about us, let’s see what kind of person you are.”
Everyone said to Qin Wanwan, “Wanwan is truly a lucky charm, even rabbits willingly come to her.”
“Wanwan, is this rabbit okay for Uncle?” someone teased her.
The little one’s expression was conflicted for a few seconds.
“Alright, I’ll give it to you. My Daddy and I will eat one.”
There are so many of them, let Wanwan generously give one.
Everyone was instantly charmed by the warm-hearted little one. A group of rough men, yet they liked these soft and incredibly well-behaved little ones the most.
Otherwise, tall men generally prefer delicate and beautiful women. A tiny one like her really tugs at their heartstrings.
The rabbits caught this time, plus the first one Qin Wanwan caught, made a total of five.
Others also found rabbit holes nearby and caught rabbits.
Those who were familiar with each other gathered to share some meat; those who couldn’t get any could only blame their bad luck.
Their rabbits were taken to the kitchen staff to be cooked. Roasted meat is quite dry, and Qin Wanwan’s little teeth might not be able to chew it.
The head chef of the kitchen staff was a chef before he joined the army. It was precisely because of this skill that he could live comfortably in the military camp.
The rabbit meat stewed for them was tender and flavorful.
Qin Wanwan, a tiny person, held a large bowl that contained not only rabbit meat but also chunks of radish.
Her little face was buried in her food as she ate.
Everyone else also ate with satisfaction.
Qin Wanwan is small now and has a small belly. After eating half of the large bowl of meat, she handed the other half to Xie Chong.
The little one let out a burp, “Wanwan can’t eat anymore, Daddy eat.”
Xie Chong did not refuse. He didn’t disdain food that others had eaten, especially since it was meat.
Xie Chong ate very quickly, finishing the meat in a few bites. He even used the remaining broth to soak his dry rations and flatbread.
Not long after they finished eating, as Shen Shu was wiping Qin Wanwan’s little face, a soldier arrived with a thin and emaciated old man in a coarse cloth shirt.
“General, he says he knows where Black Tiger Stronghold is.”
The old man knelt down as soon as he approached.
“General, the commoners of our Qingshui County have suffered greatly from the bandits of Black Tiger Stronghold. If you, General, can wipe out Black Tiger Stronghold today, this old man will thank you for your great virtue on behalf of all the people of Qingshui Town.”
Xie Chong didn’t waste any words. He just clarified the general situation of Black Tiger Stronghold, then instructed Shen Shu to stay and look after Qin Wanwan and the army. He then took an elite squad of soldiers to deal with the bandits.
Qin Wanwan didn’t fuss or demand to go along. Although she was young, she was sensible.
However, she worried about her Daddy in her heart, and from time to time, she would crane her neck to look in the direction Xie Chong and his men had left.
“Don’t worry, little one. Your father is the God of War. He can handle those Tartars who are as strong as bears, let alone these small bandits.”
Qin Wanwan asked, “Is my Daddy very powerful?”
“Of course, the General is powerful,”
The answer came from Shen Shu, who was bringing a bowl of water and happened to overhear the question.
Shen Shu handed the water to Wanwan, his eyes showing respect and admiration for Xie Chong.
“The General joined the army at sixteen and at eighteen was already leading a small squad in fierce combat. During the Battle of Fengtai, he killed one hundred and eight enemies and, by charging into the enemy’s encirclement, beheaded the enemy general.
From then on, he began to shine. As his rank increased, he killed more and more Tartars, driving them all the way back to the grasslands. Our Tianqi Dynasty also recovered five cities in Pingzhou.
“He is also good to his soldiers, with strict military discipline. Every time the court issues rewards, they are distributed according to military merit, and he never keeps our silver for himself. Moreover, when military rations were insufficient, he often used his own money to buy grain for us. He also arranged for retired soldiers who were disabled due to war.
Shen Shu spoke of Xie Chong as if he could not stop.
Qin Wanwan propped her little arms on her cheeks and listened very attentively, her big eyes exceptionally bright.
Shen Shu couldn’t help but pat her little head. “So little Wanwan, don’t worry. It’s just a small bandit group. Our General will surely take it down easily.”
A dozen miles from the Tianqi army’s encampment, deep in the mountains, under the dark and windy night, the shouts of battle echoed through Black Tiger Stronghold.
The more than three hundred people in the entire Black Tiger Stronghold were all vicious criminals, so naturally, there was no discipline among them.
Xie Chong did not fight battles he wasn’t sure of winning. Even when facing a group of bandits, he would not underestimate them.
While it was still light, he took two or three men and went lightly armed to capture a few scattered bandit lackeys who were outside. He then interrogated them to understand the internal situation of the bandits and, with their help, familiarized himself with the surrounding terrain in the shortest possible time.
Then, at night, when the bandits in the stronghold were most relaxed, he launched his attack.
The soldiers Xie Chong brought were all elites. They dealt with the patrolling guards and only revealed themselves and launched a full-scale assault when they were discovered inside Black Tiger Stronghold.
One group infiltrated the Black Tiger Stronghold’s armory and set fire to the buildings.
Without the advantage of weapons, the battle was even more one-sided.
Xie Chong directly confronted the bandit leader.
The bandit leader ate a lot and was strong, wielding a fearsome pair of axes with incredible strength.
Xie Chong, holding a black spear with a red tassel, moved without any wasted motion. The red-tasseled spear in his hand was like a swimming dragon.
After less than ten moves, the bandit leader was at a disadvantage, and one of his axes was knocked flying by Xie Chong.
Seeing that he was outmatched, the bandit leader casually grabbed someone to block Xie Chong’s thrust and then hurled his axe at him before turning to flee.
Xie Chong’s wrist twisted, and with a heavy thud, the axe flying towards his face was deflected, sticking into a tree and cleanly cutting it in half at thigh-thickness.
In that opening, the bandit leader, taking advantage of the terrain, had already fled far away.
Xie Chong used his strength to leap onto the watchtower, casually picked up a bow and arrow from the ground, nocked an arrow, and shot it in the direction of the bandit leader in one fluid motion.
Swish~
As the arrow flew out, the inferior bow in his hand could not withstand his strength and snapped.
One, two, three…
*Thwack*…
In just three breaths, the arrow that flew out struck the bandit leader in the center of his forehead.
Logically, it was dark now, and people’s eyes could not see clearly at a distance of three hundred meters.
But Xie Chong’s eyes could see.
He had a pair of pupils that could see clearly even in the dark.
It was precisely because of such eyes that in several night battles, he could accurately find the enemy leaders, behead them, and lead his soldiers to achieve great military merit.
The head, second-in-command, and third-in-command of Black Tiger Stronghold were all beheaded, and all the bandits were captured.
Afterward, Xie Chong led his men to begin the sweep.
The hostages were rescued, and they were told not to let anyone escape without thoroughly searching them. Anything valuable was collected, and their better clothes were stripped off to be washed and worn again.
They truly left no stone unturned.
He won it with his own ability, so why should he let anything go?
Finally, and most importantly, was the bandits’ treasure vault.
Only when they could no longer find anything else to loot did Xie Chong bring everything down the mountain, including the people, the money, and even the animals from the stronghold.
Xie Chong did not want the bandits who were still alive. He simply had them tied up and sent to the local county office.
Those who were captured and brought to the mountain were given the choice to leave or stay, and their fate would be decided tomorrow.
However, there was a minor incident. A young lady who had been robbed and violated by the bandits wanted to take her own life.
After being rescued, she still wanted to die.
Xie Chong, too lazy to argue with them, simply had them knocked unconscious and taken away.
This behavior was more like bandits than bandits themselves.
