Raising a wife? The mistress of the Hou family divorced and remarried her younger uncle

Chapter 228 I'll Keep You Company
Two days later, the bandits sent a letter full of respect, inviting the young princess Su Qingwan to leave the city to discuss trade cooperation between Xilin and Huainan.

After all, the bandits occupied the fortress where Xilin and Huainan traded, strangling the throat of commercial exchanges. They wanted to get a piece of the pie in this prosperous trade route. The idea of ​​"I planted this tree, and if you want to pass by here, you have to leave money for passage" had long been deeply rooted in their hearts.

Yun Zhizhou was worried when he heard about this. He knew that the bandits were cunning and was worried about Su Qingwan's safety, so he tried to dissuade them, saying, "Princess, the bandits are cunning and this trip may be dangerous. In my opinion, if they really want to talk, they can come to Huainan City. The city is heavily guarded and can protect the princess."

Su Qingwan had already made a plan in her mind. When faced with the bandits' invitation, she first left them alone for two days, and then decisively agreed to go out of the city to negotiate, even letting the bandits choose the location.

Seeing her firm attitude, Yun Zhizhou tried to persuade her again, but was interrupted by Su Qingwan with a wave of her hand.

Su Qingwan's eyes were firm and her expression was stern. She said in a resounding voice: "Since the bandits have sent a letter for negotiation, let them go. As for the outcome of the negotiation, it will naturally be decided by me. In the past, when my father and brother were alive, did they ever have the slightest fear in the face of the enemy's invasion? The thousands of troops in Xilin are just ants in their eyes, so how could they take the bandits seriously? If I hide in the city because of fear of the bandits, not only will the bandits sneer at me, but those who covet the Huainan Palace will also think that the little princess is cowardly and incompetent and can't handle the big task. I must not let the Huainan Palace be humiliated!"

Yun Zhizhou sighed helplessly, but still advised earnestly: "What the princess said is very true, but there are more than 10,000 bandits, and the city guards are only 3,000. The disparity in strength is huge. How should we deploy defense? The princess is of noble status and the backbone of the Huainan Palace. She must not take risks. Otherwise, send a substitute to protect the princess."

Su Qingwan shook her head slightly, her tone unquestionable: "Brother-in-law, there is no need to persuade me anymore, I have made up my mind. Leading troops to fight has never relied on numbers to win. I ordered Chenfeng to select 500 elite soldiers to accompany me, and let the guard team of 500 people wait two miles away. There is no need to mobilize a large number of troops to avoid alerting the enemy."

Yun Zhizhou saw that she had made up her mind and could only obey the order and leave.

The late spring in Huainan City is like a gorgeous painting, full of vitality. The breeze blows, the fragrance spreads for miles, and the city is full of flowers and colorful. Peonies bloom along the way, the huge flowers are gorgeous, as if competing for beauty, the road out of the city is surrounded by flowers, and the flowers sway in the breeze, as if welcoming Su Qingwan's trip.

In this picturesque scene, Su Qingwan saw a ragged mother and daughter begging on the street. The mother looked haggard and thin, and the child in her arms had a timid look and was skinny. Su Qingwan felt a sharp pain in her heart, and her eyes dimmed instantly. She whispered to Qingyun: "Go and give them some food."

Watching Qingyun handing the food to the mother and daughter, Su Qingwan felt mixed emotions.

She knew very well that what she could do now was just to send some food to fill their stomachs and solve their urgent needs. When she just returned to Huainan, everything was in ruins. There were so many poor people like this mother and daughter in the world, and she couldn't save them all. The only thing she could do was to quell the rebellion of the bandits in Huainan, develop farming, and let the people have a home to return to, fields to cultivate, and enough food and clothing with their own hands.

After all, it is better to teach a man to fish than to give him a fish.

Thinking of this, Su Qingwan’s goal became more determined.

The Huainan bandits must be subdued, either by recruiting them, allowing the people to return to the city, divide the land and settle down in Huainan, which is the best way to properly resettle them; or by taming them by force, but that will inevitably lead to bloodshed. In this world, there has never been a way that is both bloodless and makes everyone happy.

The place chosen by the bandits for the negotiation was in a field ten miles outside the city. It was flat and had a wide field of vision without any obstructions, so there was no need to worry about ambushes.

In a place like this, any slight movement can be seen from afar.

Su Qingwan and her group arrived early, and she ordered people to quickly set up the meeting platform. At this moment, a burst of horse hoof sounds suddenly came from a distance, the sound was like thunder, rolling in. In the blink of an eye, hundreds of horses appeared in the field like a black tide, their hooves trampled through the shallow grass, splashing flowers, and galloped all the way.

The leader was a gentle-looking man.

The bandit leader's surname is Zhang, and his given name is San.

Although his name seems sloppy and casual, and he is a bandit who has become a gangster, he is actually gentle and handsome, with red lips and white teeth, and a sense of elegance between his eyebrows, making him look more like a scholar who is well-read in poetry and books.

When Lu Zhu received the bandit's letter, he angrily cursed: "This bandit leader must be a big, fat man with a face full of fat. He deliberately makes trouble to tease people. When we meet in person, I must teach him a lesson!"

But now, seeing how handsome and gentle Zhang San was, she couldn't help but blush and whispered, "Girl, he is so handsome, he doesn't look like a bandit at all."

Su Qingwan thought to herself that bandits are born fierce, which is a deep-rooted stereotype in the hearts of the people. A man who can lead the 18 mountains in Huainan and has nearly 10,000 bandits under his command is definitely not a good person. He is born so elegant and so hypocritical, so he should not be underestimated. Zhang San got off his horse neatly, followed by more than 500 bandits, all of whom were burly, tall and strong, dressed in bandit costumes, with flesh on their faces and fierce momentum.

Chen Feng frowned slightly when he saw this, but he felt relieved when he saw that the number of troops on both sides was equal. At least, from this point of view, the other party did not seem to want to provoke a conflict during the first meeting.

Zhang San smiled and greeted Su Qingwan in a dignified manner: "Little Princess, I have long heard of your name! The assassination in the city a few days ago was actually done by my men on their own initiative and they acted rashly. I hope the princess will not blame me."

Su Qingwan's lips curled up into a light smile, with a hint of sarcasm in her tone: "The people have been killed and burned cleanly, so it's naturally not Master Zhang's fault."

Zhang San laughed loudly, and Su Qingwan invited him to sit down with her. At this time, the fields were full of warblers and wild flowers, like a paradise. Su Qingwan couldn't help but teased, "The place chosen by Master Zhang is really good. Whether it is for a meeting or... burying a body, it is a Feng Shui treasure land."

Zhang San was slightly startled, then smiled and said, "I really admire you for bringing light cavalry to the appointment. You are indeed the descendant of the King of Huainan, and you are very courageous. Aren't you afraid that I will suddenly attack and catch you all in one fell swoop?"

He was born gentle and handsome, but his voice was rough and bold. His voice was very inconsistent with his face, as if it came from two different people.

Su Qingwan looked calm and said firmly, "If I were afraid, I wouldn't have come. This Huainan fiefdom, the whole area, is my territory, including the hilltop you occupy. If you are timid in your own fiefdom, how can I lead the entire Huainan territory?"

"What a big tone!" A man behind Zhang San couldn't help but roared. He saw that Su Qingwan was born weak and young, so he didn't take her seriously and had no fear in his heart.

Zhang San raised his hand, glanced at the man coldly, and stopped him. Zhang San had a high reputation among the bandits, and he was a man of his word. Seeing him angry, everyone dared not say a word.

Zhang San put away his smile, his face serious, and said very directly: "My princess is straightforward, and I also admire people like you who are courageous. Since we are here to discuss, let's get straight to the point. The Eighteen Mountains in Huainan have been under my control for ten years. My brothers have long been accustomed to the days of being bandits. In the future, we don't want to surrender to the court. We just want to live a peaceful and stable life in the mountains. I hope to reach a gentleman's agreement with the princess."

Su Qingwan sneered, her eyes were like torches, and her voice was particularly cold in the wilderness: "Five years ago, you led 300 bandits to break into Huainan, burning, killing and looting along the way, kidnapping 11 young girls, killing more than 30 civilians, seriously injuring nearly 100 people, and robbing a total of 3,000 taels of gold and silver. Four years ago, you led 600 bandits into the city again, killing nearly 100 people in my Huainan guards, robbing supplies and nearly 10,000 taels of gold and silver, and trampling on farmland and destroying arable land. That year happened to be a drought, and hundreds of people starved to death in the Huainan fiefdom. In the past five years, you have come to Huainan City to burn, kill and loot nearly six times, killing countless people, robbing gold and silver, and robbing young girls, women and children, doing all kinds of evil. Now, you actually want to make a gentleman's agreement with me, don't you think it's too late?"

Zhang San frowned, pondered for a moment, and nodded slowly: "I made a big mistake, but the past is over, we should all look forward. Now the title of King of Huainan has not been restored, and it is not easy for the princess to support the Huainan Palace alone. Things change all the time, and we, a group of mountain bandits, may also be of use to the princess."

"Oh? Tell me about it." Su Qingwan pretended to be interested.

Zhang San straightened his back and spoke incessantly, "Twelve years ago, the Huainan clan was brutally slaughtered, and everyone was helpless. The princess must not want the court to send Jinyiwei here again to stir up blood and gore, right? The generals of Huainan at that time were afraid of being accused of treason and betrayal, so they dared not disobey the imperial edict. But we bandits are not afraid! If the princess has an order, we are willing to serve the princess's troops and go through fire and water without hesitation. Moreover, Huainan and Xilin are about to rebuild trade, and the eighteen mountains of Huainan are all under my jurisdiction. I can restrain the bandits and ensure that they will not cause trouble for the caravan, and I can even help protect the escort. We bandits are not useless, right?"

He spoke very logically and with all his flowery words, he did not lose any of his scholarly air. His innate temperament was hard to fathom.

Lu Zhu secretly curled his lips and thought to himself: Tsk, he has a pretty face but says such shameless things.

Su Qingwan smiled faintly, with a hint of disdain in her tone: "Your so-called escort and becoming my soldier are all clearly marked with a price, right?"

"The little princess is smart! We have more than 10,000 bandits, and we also need to eat and wear clothes, and we have to make a living, right?" Zhang San was confident, as if he was sure that Su Qingwan was now weak and would not dare to wipe out the bandits easily.

"You need to eat and wear clothes, what does it have to do with me?" Su Qingwan's voice became colder and colder. "My Huainan Palace has never traded with bandits. Either surrender and obey my jurisdiction; or, fight on the battlefield."

Zhang San's face suddenly turned gloomy, and a hint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes.

Su Qingwan still smiled and said slowly, "Choose one of the two. You choose. I'll accompany you to the end!"

Today's one, it's quite long