Jiang Jin looked up at him, her gaze suddenly drawn to the waist tag hanging at his side. She used her blade to flick the tag off.
The pattern on it looked somewhat familiar. She quickly remembered that it was identical to the waist tag Zhou Sui had picked up by the roadside earlier.
Jiang Jin's eyes grew even colder. These Quzhao people were out on official business, yet they slaughtered and tortured Han people along the way for their own amusement, not even sparing a six or seven-year-old child. They truly deserved a thousand deaths!
And these were only the two incidents she had witnessed. What about the ones she hadn't seen?
Take today, for example. If Yun Chengxuan hadn't wanted to eat meat, she could well imagine how miserably the three people before her—perhaps even more than three—would have died.
She had originally intended to end him with a single slash, but now she couldn't be bothered to lift a finger. She would let him "enjoy" it a little longer.
Seeing that she wasn't making a move, the Quzhao man spat out a mouthful of blood in anger. "You... you... you're going... too far!"
Zhou Sui examined the injuries on the middle-aged man. The fresh wounds were manageable, but the old ones were problematic, already red, swollen, and festering.
"This styptic powder can only stop the bleeding temporarily. Moreover, his old wounds are severe. The injuries really need to be treated by a physician."
The woman's eyes were filled with sorrow. "We don't have a physician."
Zhou Sui looked at Jiang Jin, his eyes silently asking for instructions. He couldn't make the decision to bring these people back to their party.
Jiang Jin was about to speak when she heard Yun Chengxuan's exclamation, "Aunt, there's someone here!"
The slender woman was startled by his voice. She hurriedly looked at Jiang Jin and Zhou Sui. Seeing no change in their expressions, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
The tall woman did not hesitate and told the truth directly, "It is our master and young master. Please, General, save them."
Jiang Jin quickly walked up the slope. She had actually noticed a gaze coming from this direction earlier, but sensing no malice, and since Yun Chengxuan had gone to check, she had ignored it.
Hiding behind the bushes was a young boy of about five or six years old, looking at them with a face full of terror.
Behind him lay an unconscious old man.
The boy suddenly spread his arms wide to shield the old man, his voice trembling, "Don't... don't eat my grandfather. If you want to eat someone, eat... eat me!"
Yun Chengxuan secretly rolled his eyes. "Who wants to eat you? We want to eat fish."
The slender woman ran up and stood in front of the boy. Her gaze toward Jiang Jin and the others was both wary and hopeful. "This... this is my grandfather. He has been sick for several days. Please, I beg you to save him."
The more Zhou Sui looked at the old man, the more familiar he seemed. He asked hesitantly, "Is your grandfather Mu Qing?"
The slender woman's eyes lit up. "Exactly! Do you know my grandfather? Please save him."
Zhou Sui explained in a low voice to Jiang Jin, "Mu Qing was once the Grand Minister of Agriculture of the Yan State, though he retired many years ago."
Jiang Jin gave a soft hum. "Bring them back."
Zhou Sui nodded. "Understood."
The tall woman and the slender woman were overjoyed and hastily thanked her, "Thank you, my lady."
They could also see that Zhou Sui was taking orders from the young woman before them, so they directed their gratitude straight to Jiang Jin.
The two carriages by the pool belonged to Mu Qing's group. Zhou Sui carried the unconscious Mu Qing and the middle-aged man into the carriages and was getting ready to return.
Yun Chengxuan, however, insisted on continuing to catch fish. "I haven't caught any fish yet. I want to eat fish."
Jiang Jin wasn't comfortable leaving her foolish nephew here alone, fearing he might fall into the pool and drown. She instructed, "Zhou Sui, take them back. Send some men over later to lead the horses and bury the bodies."
Zhou Sui agreed. He and the tall woman each drove a carriage, hurriedly leaving with the group.
Yun Chengxuan sighed heavily. "It's quite hard to just get some fish to eat."
Jiang Jin couldn't help but find it amusing. She patted his shoulder. "Come on, let's see if there are any fish in the pool."
"Wait... wait a moment. Kill... kill me first. I beg... beg you..." The Quzhao man whose legs had been severed was surprisingly still alive.
His face was pale and bloodless. The severe pain and fear caused his entire body to spasm and twitch uncontrollably, a thick pool of blood spreading beneath him.
He was experiencing a fate worse than death. His whole body felt freezing cold, his vision went dark, and his consciousness blurred, as if he could see the men and women he had tortured and killed coming back to claim his life.
He wished he could die immediately, but his body was limp, making even the slightest movement difficult. Unable to end his own life, he no longer dared to harbor any complaints; he only begged for a swift death.
Displeased that the man was delaying his fish-catching, Yun Chengxuan stepped forward and delivered a swift kick to his head.
Jiang Jin didn't try to stop him; it was about time anyway.
Crack.
The man's head was kicked almost into a right angle by Yun Chengxuan; his cervical spine was clearly completely snapped.
The man convulsed violently a few times before finally finding release. A faint, eerie smile lingered on his face.
Only then did the aunt and nephew walk contentedly to the edge of the pool. The water was crystal clear, and with a single glance, they indeed saw several plump fish swimming at the bottom.
Jiang Jin strongly suspected that the Quzhao people had come here for the fish in this pool as well, only to unfortunately run into Mu Qing's group.
Yun Chengxuan took off his outer coat and was about to jump into the water when Jiang Jin quickly grabbed him. "What are you doing? The water is too deep. It's dangerous."
Yun Chengxuan waved his hand dismissively. "Aunt, you underestimate me. I'm very capable."
Jiang Jin couldn't help but rub her forehead. Catching fish barehanded was no easy feat, but seeing Yun Chengxuan so full of confidence, she didn't stop him again.
Although there were fish in the pool, the water was exceptionally deep. Even if ordinary people saw them, they wouldn't necessarily be able to catch them.
It had to be said that this fellow Yun Chengxuan really had a knack for catching food. Every now and then, a fish would be tossed up onto the bank.
Jiang Jin gathered some aquatic weeds by the pool, threaded them through the fishes' gills, tied a knot, and made them ready to be carried off.
Just as she was stringing up the ninth fish, Dong Si and Xie Nanxiao arrived with their men. Seeing the extra seventeen sturdy warhorses, they were thrilled.
Xie Nanxiao joked with a laugh, "Young Master Yun, you're quite amazing. Just wanting to eat fish got us all these horses! Heh heh, call me along next time."
Yun Chengxuan popped his head out of the water, looking somewhat bewildered. "What?"
Xie Nanxiao laughed heartily. "Nothing, keep going."
He turned and called out to Jiang Jin, "My lady."
Jiang Jin nodded. "Bury the bodies as soon as possible, and wash up these weapons to take back with us."
Dong Si was already directing the soldiers to loot the corpses, passing on his experience in the matter.
With many hands at work, the looting went quickly. Before long, all the money and valuables were stripped from the bodies. These men were surprisingly wealthy; from fewer than twenty people, they looted twelve strings of coins.
They also found another five strings of coins and over a hundred catties of grain distributed among several horses, which was a welcome unexpected harvest.
Dong Si organized all these items and watched the soldiers dig holes to bury the bodies.
Yun Chengxuan searched the bottom of the pool and only came up when he was certain there were no more fish.
Seeing that there was nothing else for her to do here, Jiang Jin took Yun Chengxuan and Dong Si and rode off first.
As soon as they returned to camp, Zhou Sui hurried over to report, "Elder Mu's unconsciousness was caused by a high fever. Doctor Mu has already administered acupuncture to alleviate the symptoms, and the fever-reducing medicine is still brewing."
"Mu Wei mostly suffered from blade wounds. Doctor Suo has already treated his injuries and applied medicine. He also has a fever, so medicine was prescribed for him as well."
Jiang Jin understood; this Mu Wei must be the middle-aged man.
