The Prodigal Son

Once he came to his senses, the pangolin's face darkened, and he said menacingly, "Listen to me clearly, it's five taels of silver for every one of you here!"

Panther, fearing that Qin Yu might have misheard, emphasized "five taels per person".

"I know!"

Qin Yu nodded and smiled, "It's only a little over two hundred taels of silver, not much!"

Seeing Qin Yu's generosity, the pangolin was taken aback once again.

Have we really run into a sucker today?

While he was still in a daze, the man next to him had a sudden inspiration and immediately suggested in a low voice, "Master Leopard, since they're so rich, why don't we have them each pay ten taels of silver as a toll?"

"Bullshit!"

As if its sore spot had been touched, the pangolin shoved away the person next to it, shouting, "I'm a man of my word! What I say is what I mean! In our line of work, we have to keep our promises; we can't do things that kill the goose that lays the golden eggs!"

The pangolin's words reached Qin Yu and his group's ears.

The group exchanged a silent glance, a smile flashing across their faces simultaneously.

Got it!

They were lucky; they even encountered a bandit who followed the rules!

They also understand sustainable development!

"Alright, five taels or ten taels, it's the same!"

Qin Yu smiled at the pangolin, too lazy to tease them any longer, and ordered Qi Dachui and Di Rong, "Let's do it!"

Upon receiving Qin Yu's order, Di Rong immediately waved his hand and shouted, "Go!"

At Di Rong's command, the accompanying golden-armored imperial guards rushed towards the bandits on both sides of the hillside.

The group moved nimbly and swiftly, with remarkable discipline.

As the pangolin watched, a familiar scene suddenly flashed through its mind.

These are no ordinary caravan guards!

This seems a bit like... the Imperial Guard's approach?

not good!

We've run into a real tough opponent!

The pangolin was terrified and immediately roared, "You've got some tough guys! Run!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the pangolin quickly fled into the dense forest.

Seeing that the pangolin was about to escape, Qi Dachui immediately leaped out.

Although Qi Dachui was big, he was as light as a swallow.

He used the momentum to leap forward and pounced straight at the pangolin.

With a few quick movements, he blocked the pangolin's path.

The pangolin's heart sank, and he immediately swung his knife at Qi Dachui.

As a bandit leader, Pangolin was quite capable.

His slash actually produced a sound like wind breaking through the air.

Unfortunately, he was facing Qi Dachui, an eighth-level expert.

Qi Dachui simply turned slightly to the side and dodged the pangolin's attack.

The pangolin tried to sheathe its blade and sweep away, but Qi Dachui grabbed its wrist.

Qi Dachui exerted force with his hand, and the leopard-clad figure suddenly lost even his grip on the knife.

Bang!

Qi Dachui's seemingly light punch sent the pangolin flying backwards down the hillside like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily in front of Qin Yu and the others, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Just as Qin Xiong was about to step forward and capture the pangolin, the pangolin endured the pain and rolled over.

Bang!

The pangolin knelt heavily, begging for mercy: "My lord, spare my life!"

"..."

Looking at the pangolin kneeling on the ground, Qin Yu and the others couldn't help but exchange bewildered glances.

That bastard, he admits his mistake pretty quickly!

Qin Yu snapped out of his daze and teased Lü Si, "His speed in admitting his mistakes rivals yours!"

"Who admitted their mistake?"

Lu Si glared at Qin Yu with wide eyes, then turned his face away guiltily.

"Stubborn to the end!"

Qin Yu made a teasing remark, then stared at the pangolin with great interest: "How did you know we were government officials?"

"Sir, are you... really a government official?"

The pangolin looked up at Qin Yu with a look of utter despair, then immediately buried its head back down.

It's over, it's over!

After walking alone in the dark for so long, I finally encountered a ghost.

"Of course! Didn't you already see it?"

Qin Yu sized up the pangolin, "Tell me, how did you figure out we were government officials?"

When Qin Yu asked him, the pangolin lowered his body even further, his head almost touching the ground, and said in a trembling voice, "The way the people around you fought, sir, seemed a bit like the Imperial Guards..."

"You noticed that too?"

Lu Si approached in surprise, staring at the pangolin with astonishment.

Hearing Lu Si's words, the last glimmer of hope in the pangolin's heart was shattered.

Finished!

They really are imperial guards!

This is more like we've run into a tough opponent!

This is clearly a demon king who will take your life!

"You weren't ever in the Imperial Guard, were you?"

Qin Yu stared at the pangolin with great interest.

"No...no!"

The pangolin shook his head repeatedly, hurriedly explaining, "I was originally a centurion in Guangde Prefecture of Haizhou. Years ago, when the Crown Prince made his southern tour, I was fortunate enough to witness a scene of the Crown Prince's imperial guards fighting with someone, and I still remember it vividly..."

"A hundred and one county soldiers?"

Qin Yu was slightly surprised. "Then why did you become an outlaw again?"

The pangolin cautiously replied, "I was implicated in the assassination of the Crown Prince and was discharged from the military. Two years ago, unable to bear the humiliation, I accidentally killed a local bully and was wanted by the authorities. I was forced to become an outlaw. I beg you, sir, to spare my life..."

The pangolin was still begging for mercy, but Qin Yu and the others exchanged another silent glance.

Got it!

Yet another person implicated in the Crown Prince's case!

"That's not right!"

Ruan Zhi suddenly realized what was happening and looked at the leopard with a cold gaze: "Back then, those implicated were all officials of the seventh rank and above. You, a mere county garrison commander, shouldn't be implicated, should you?"

The border army generals were of the seventh rank, the garrison generals were of the seventh rank, and the county soldiers were of the eighth rank.

"I wasn't imprisoned, but I was later dismissed from my post."

The pangolin lowered its body, answering with a hint of grievance, "After the Crown Prince's case, the new governor had just arrived in Guangde Prefecture when he replaced all the county soldiers and generals. Almost all of those who were replaced were directly dismissed from their posts..."

That's it!

Qin Yu suddenly realized.

It makes sense. Even the Crown Prince was assassinated in Haizhou. Even if these soldiers and generals weren't implicated, the new governor certainly wouldn't feel at ease.

If it were him, he would definitely replace all the generals of the county army with his own confidants.

With such a serious incident, who would dare to joke around with this kid's life?

Just as they were talking, all of Pangolin Leopard's men were captured by Di Rong and his men.

They encountered almost no decent resistance.

Seeing their posture, many people dropped their weapons and surrendered.

"grown ups!"

Di Rong brought a person to Qin Yu.

"My lord, spare me! My lord, spare me! It was the shopkeeper who made me do it! Please, my lord, have mercy..."

Upon seeing Qin Yu, the people who had been brought over frantically begged for mercy.

"The shopkeeper?"

Qin Yu stared at the man being brought in, a hint of suspicion flashing across his face. "You... you look vaguely familiar?"

Di Rong replied, "This man is one of the waiters at the small restaurant where we had lunch! He was the one who suggested that this 'Panther' charge each of us five taels of silver as a toll!"

"I was wondering why you looked so familiar!"

Qin Yu suddenly realized, "I didn't realize your little restaurant was not only a rip-off, but also a total black market!"

This wasn't the guy he'd been talking to, but he still vaguely remembered him.

They didn't see the guy when they went to pay the bill; it turned out he had run off to inform the bandits!