PFC Chapter 474 Chasing
Chapter 474 Chasing
Chapter 474
Luo Shuiyao had woken from her light sleep when the carriage came to a complete stop. Unaware of the situation outside, she didn't get out hastily, but simply listened quietly. Hearing the arrogant and provocative words of those outside, she couldn't help but frown, anger rising, and then she looked up at Ye Yunzhou.
Seeing her unhappy expression, Ye Yunzhou immediately understood and said, "Let's go out and take a look."
Outside the carriage, the situation was tense. Given Ye Yi's temperament, he should have rushed forward and slaughtered the enemy without a single mortal left. But he caught a glimpse of the carriage behind him, and remembering his master still inside, without giving any orders, he could only suppress his murderous intent. He coldly regarded the arrogant and domineering men on the other side, his hand quietly tightening on the hilt of his sword. He had already mentally sentenced these people to death, but this appearance was mistakenly interpreted by the others as fear, so they dared not move forward, and the ridicule intensified.
Seeing him standing still, the crowd on the other side mistakenly thought he was timid, and the laughter grew even louder. Some even brandished weapons, deliberately provoking him, "What? Weren't you trying to be a hero saving the beauty just now? Now you're cowering like a turtle again?"
Ye Yi lowered his eyes to hide the murderous intent surging in his eyes, and a cold smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
Just as Ye Yi was suppressing his murderous intent, the carriage curtain was gently lifted. Ye Yunzhou, with a slender figure, was the first to exit the carriage. His gaze never fell on the group of shouting clowns across from him. His aura was cold, as if everything around him had nothing to do with him.
The people on the other side, who had been laughing and joking loudly, heard the noise and cautiously tightened their reins to look over. Seeing that it was a man who got off the car, and with such an arrogant attitude, the leader was instantly furious, and his previous joy disappeared completely. The pressure emanating from Ye Yunzhou made them feel as if they were back in the town capital—a place without dignity. This subconscious fear was fleeting, and when everyone recovered, it was replaced by even stronger anger.
People like them, fearing whatever they lacked most, were most afraid of it. On a normal day, they were merely the lowest of the low, toiled like cattle and donkeys in the town capital. That's why they acted so arrogantly when out and about, fearing anyone would see through their insignificance. Now, being ignored like this, it was like someone had suddenly ripped off the mask they'd been wearing to hide their shame.
Ye Yi and Chun Xing didn't notice their fleeting mood changes, or rather, they simply didn't take them seriously and naturally didn't pay much attention to them. After Ye Yunzhou got off the carriage, he reached out and steadily supported Luo Shuiyao, half-carrying her down from the edge of the carriage and carefully tidying her clothes.
Luo Shuiyao let him do what he wanted, but her eyes were fixed on the group of people opposite. After seeing their expressions and clothes clearly, she frowned slightly - not to mention Ye Yi and the others, even Luo Shuiyao noticed something was wrong.
These men wore uniform black boots, and while the swords they carried at their waists weren't rare, the patterns were identical, clearly not a ragtag group of soldiers. Yet, their clothing was a diverse mix, as if they were deliberately trying to avoid identifying their connections. They were all acting like hooligans and bandits, their arrogant demeanor. Luo Shuiyao recalled her time with Old Man Wang, and she instantly became convinced: These were the very people the town leader had sent to silence them!
Although Luo Shuiyao was certain of the other party's identity, she showed no fear. This Qingshui Town chief was truly arrogant, thinking that with just a dozen or so people, he could wipe out the entire Wang Family Village.
But thinking about it, she couldn't help but clench her handkerchief. The villagers of Wangjia Village were a mixed crowd of young and old, and they had been hungry for days, so their physical strength was already exhausted. In their hasty escape, they had to protect the elderly and children while also fending off this group of extremely vicious criminals. If they hadn't encountered them before, a direct confrontation with these people would have resulted in heavy casualties, even if not complete annihilation.
Fortunately, Old Man Wang, under the guidance of his guards, had already evacuated along the rugged mountain path, completely away from the main road, towards a secluded location. Even if these pursuers were to come with such force, they were nothing to fear. Not to mention Ye Yunzhou and Ye Yi's martial arts prowess, they were no ordinary warriors. Even Chun Xing and I were not completely powerless. The difference between us and Old Man Wang and the other frail villagers was stark. Luo Shuiyao breathed a sigh of relief, her confidence growing even stronger.
The people on the other side, who were originally furious and ready to rush forward with swords drawn, involuntarily stopped their actions the moment they saw Luo Shuiyao's face clearly. This was not because they were shallow, but because the girl before them was breathtakingly beautiful.
Her eyebrows were as curved as a crescent moon, her almond eyes were full of waves, her lips were as red as a dot, her skin was as white as cream, and her figure was graceful, like a willow swaying in the wind. Even though they were used to seeing beauties in the town capital, in a small place like Qingshui Town, where had they ever seen such an outstanding woman?
Upon seeing this, the leader suppressed his anger and suddenly had an evil thought: If this woman is kidnapped and handed over to the town chief, won't he be able to run rampant in the town capital in the future?
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but curl his lips. He reached out to tidy up his unruly hair and deliberately cleared his throat. When the woman's eyes fell on him, he immediately straightened his back, his face full of pride.
"My dear lady, I am the chief of the yamen runners of the town capital. I came here today to apprehend some evildoers, but I did not expect to meet you by chance. I wonder how old you are? Where do you live? Are you married?"
In order to avoid being seen through by the girl, he deliberately pronounced the words "chief of the town's capital yamen runners" very heavily and dragged out the pronunciation.
If this kind of posture were placed on a handsome young man, it could give him a certain air of elegance and grace. However, he held his head high, his neck stiff, and his wrinkled, coarse clothes rustled with his movements, the edges frayed. He shook his head as he spoke, his artificial tone resembling a parrot's imitation.
Such an artificial look only looks funny and incongruous.
As soon as he finished speaking, he held his head high, adopting a haughty demeanor. He had learned this rhetoric and manner from Mr. Li in town. In the village, this demeanor always attracted many women to approach and chat with him. Now, he also held his head high, waiting for the woman before him to look at him with admiration.
But the next moment, a piercing chill suddenly ran down his spine, as if being stared at by a hungry wolf. He couldn't help but shudder, and the smug expression on his face gradually froze. He looked around frantically, trying to find the source of this chill.
Just as he looked around, trying to figure out what was going on, the horse in front of him suddenly let out a mournful cry and collapsed to the ground. Caught off guard, he fell off the horse's back and rolled several times on the ground, feeling dizzy and dazed.
At the same time, Ye Yi, upon seeing his master taking action, rushed out like an arrow from a bow. His sword gleamed with a chilling cold light, and his movements were as swift as a ghost. In the blink of an eye, the enemy troops were stabbed, screaming and falling from their horses, and the scene was immediately in chaos.
Such a sudden change was too unexpected. Not only was the person being attacked caught off guard, but even Luo Shuiyao was startled. When she saw Ye Yi had put away his sword and returned to his side, she realized that she had subconsciously clenched Ye Yunzhou's arm.
Ye Yunzhou looked normal, with a chill in his eyes still there - he just patted Luo Shuiyao's hand soothingly and told her not to be afraid.
Chun Xing crossed her arms. She had long been disgusted with these people, but now seeing their miserable state, she felt very happy.
The leader and the fat man were the first to come to their senses. They covered their bleeding shoulders and stared at them in shock and confusion.
Ye Yi sneered, his eyes full of contempt: "A bunch of rabble-rousers, how dare you be so ignorant in front of my master? You are really courting death!"
Only then did the leader swallow his arrogance. He narrowed his eyes and carefully examined the men before him. From their appearance alone, they seemed unremarkable, with only a chilling aura emanating from them, and no other notable features. But who could have imagined that these seemingly ordinary individuals possessed such extraordinary skills? He was secretly horrified. If he hadn't realized by now that he and his men had hit a wall, then all his years in the town capital would have been for nothing.
His thoughts raced, and despite the hatred he felt, he had to suppress his anger and put on a look of regret. He forced himself to stand up, supporting the fat man beside him, his face fawning. "Gentlemen, please forgive me, it's us who were blind and rude, and have offended you. We apologize and hope you will forgive our misdeeds."
He was extremely humble, completely different from his previous arrogance and domineering attitude.
Seeing this, the people behind him were shocked and confused, but they tactfully helped each other to stand up, nodded silently in agreement, and no longer dared to show any arrogance.
They were used to being arrogant in front of the people, relying solely on the power of the town chief to bully others. But because of this, they had also seen people more powerful than the town chief, and had long been accustomed to the survival method of saying one thing to one person and another to another, so this kind of face-changing was naturally familiar to them.
This fawning expression was a stark contrast to their previous arrogance and dominance, making them nauseous. Seeing them yield, Luo Shuiyao didn't bother to talk any more—she had already been delayed quite a bit by Old Man Wang and the others, and she feared they wouldn't be able to reach Qingshui Town today.
Thinking of this, she was in no hurry to leave. She glanced at the leader calmly and asked leisurely, "You just said you were a yamen runner from Qingshui Town?"
The leader, who claimed to be the chief of the yamen runners, hurriedly nodded upon hearing this. In his opinion, these people were highly skilled in martial arts, but to ask such a question must be because they were wary of the town capital behind them. How could he not acknowledge it? "Yes, we are the town capital's yamen runners."
Then, he asked tentatively, "Miss, do you want to ask...?"
Unexpectedly, Luo Shuiyao didn't respond at all. Instead, she instructed Chun Xing and Ye Yi, "We may not be able to reach Qingshui Town today. Move the carriage to the side of the road and take these people there to rest for a night. We can continue our journey tomorrow."
She looked up at the darkening sky. According to the city's curfew, they couldn't enter the city at all. They might as well take the opportunity to rest and interrogate him - who on earth was this town chief and why was he so arrogant?
Chun Xing naturally agreed, dismounted, drew the whip from his waist, and drove everyone to the side of the road, not forgetting to ask them to lead the injured horse.
Ye Yi glanced at Ye Yunzhou inconspicuously, and seeing that he just looked down at Luo Shuiyao without saying a word, he curled his lips and pulled the carriage to the side of the road as he was told - there was a flat open space not far ahead, which was suitable for camping.
When they reached a flat surface, Ye Yi tied up the carriage and, along with Chun Xing, found a length of straw rope from somewhere and tied the men's hands behind their backs. Because they didn't have enough rope, they had to sit back to back in a row, looking ridiculous like a string of candied haws, making anyone who saw it laugh.
Luo Shuiyao didn't care what the two of them were doing. She turned around and wanted to collect firewood to start a fire, but Ye Yunzhou stopped her with his hand: "You go and rest, I'll do it."
She replied "Okay" softly and let him go. She turned around, took out a piece of cloth from the carriage, and spread out the food that had been prepared long ago.
Night gradually enveloped the earth. Ye Yunzhou quickly gathered firewood and skillfully built a bonfire. The dancing flames cast flickering shadows on the figures of the people, and the warmth of the fire formed a sharp contrast with the huddled appearance of the bound men.
After the bonfire was built, Ye Yi and Chun Xing washed their hands in the ditch nearby, then walked straight forward and sat down next to the food.
Because the bread and pickled meat I had brought with me had been distributed to everyone in Wangjia Village, all that was left were coarse flour bread and some dried meat strips. Although the taste was not very good, they were still very durable.
Chun Xing broke off a piece of cake and handed it to Luo Shuiyao. She took a bite herself and muttered to the remaining cake, "It's a pity that we didn't bring a clay pot when we went out today, so we can't boil water. Otherwise, we could make some hot soup to moisten our throats."
Plans cannot keep up with changes. They could have reached Qingshui Town before the curfew, but who knew so many things would happen along the way.
The dry food and dried meat they had now were from an old man's stall they passed by as they were leaving the city. Seeing the old man working so hard at his old age, they bought some out of pity, but they had no idea that it would become their only food.
Luo Shuiyao accepted the pancake without disdain. Though its texture was rough, the more she chewed, the more wheaty its aroma became. However, the dryness scratched her throat, making swallowing difficult. Fortunately, there was still some cool, boiled water in the kettle, so she ate it with relish.
After swallowing half a piece of bread, her stomach finally felt warm. Luo Shuiyao put down the kettle and caught a glimpse of Ye Yunzhou beside her. The firelight made his outline clear, but his eyes, always calm, were fixed in thought, and the dry food in front of him remained untouched.
She hesitated for a moment, pinching the dried meat between her fingers—perhaps she disliked such a crude meal? But the night was getting darker, and she didn't know what she would face when she entered the city tomorrow. While she pondered, she handed the dried meat over, "You have some too."
Ye Yunzhou looked up at the sound, the firelight dancing beneath his eyes, unexpectedly softening his hard features. He took the jerky and didn't explain much, simply taking a gentle bite. The chewing sound mixed with the crackling of the campfire was particularly clear in the silent night.
The atmosphere here was harmonious, and Luo Shuiyao and the others were eating with gusto. The yamen runners who were tied up in a chain over there were already very hungry, and they couldn't help but roll their Adam's apples up and down, staring at the food and swallowing their saliva.