Starting with a blind date with a female constable, you acquire the Nine Swords of Dugu.

Chapter 91 Bandits Raid the Village

Outside the inn, the couple rode their horses slowly. Although the town wasn't very lively, it was still a county town, and there were quite a few people on the streets, so they couldn't ride horses.

As she walked, the woman in green suddenly thought of something and couldn't help but chuckle.

The man in blue asked疑惑地, "Jingmei, what are you laughing at?"

The woman in green smiled and said, "Brother Dong, I remembered that girl in white at the inn just now. She seemed a bit naive. Although I couldn't hear what they were saying, she was imitating our behavior."

The man in blue couldn't help but chuckle as he recalled the scene at the inn. He said, "She must be a young lady from a prominent family, who lives a secluded life in her home and is ignorant of worldly affairs. Those two must be engaged, but the girl doesn't know how to get along with her fiancé, so she imitated us when she saw us."

The woman in green said, "That man also has an extraordinary air about him, so he must come from a good family. As for that girl, well, she's obviously not from an ordinary family. I just don't know why the two of them came out without any guards or anything!"

The man in blue said, "I see that the young man has a sword around his waist, so he must also be a martial artist, and his skills must be quite good."

The woman in green shook her head and said, "It's probably just a show-off from a young master. I noticed his fingers were long and white, not like someone who wields a sword for long periods, nor someone who can endure hardship. Besides, he's so young, how high could his martial arts skills be? What if he encounters danger—"

At this point, the woman in green suddenly exclaimed "Oh dear!" and pulled on the reins, saying, "There were two horses in the inn's stable just now, which were obviously resting. And the accents of the man and woman didn't sound like they were from Tiannan County. Those two horses must belong to them."

The man in blue asked, puzzled, "So what?"

The woman in green said, "These two must be on their way. I'm afraid they'll continue their journey after they finish eating. These days, Luoxia County is not peaceful. There are flower thieves around, and that girl is as beautiful as a fairy. If a flower thief sees her, how could he let her go?"

It's getting late, I must remind them both not to leave the city, it's best to be careful!

The man in blue frowned and said, "Jingmei, let's avoid trouble. We still need to hurry on our way. As you said, it's getting late, and we need to get to Huangshan Village as soon as possible to protect Master's wife and junior brother!"

The woman in green hesitated for a moment, then said, "Brother Dong, I'll be right back. Sometimes, a simple reminder can save a life. For us, it's just a matter of saying a few words!"

Immediately, the woman in green dismounted and ran quickly back to the inn.

At this moment, Gu Guanqi and Jiang Baili were still eating.

Gu Guanqi had finished eating; it was Jiang Baili who was eating. This girl ate very slowly, chewing her food meticulously.

The woman in green walked straight to the table, cupped her hands, and said, "Gentlemen, I am Zhu Jing from the Tingshan Sect."

Gu Guanqi was slightly taken aback. He had heard of the Tingshan Sect, which was the number one sect in Tiannan County and had a great reputation in Qingzhou. This was because the sect leader, Qi Changkong, was one of the eight heroes of Qingzhou.

"Oh, so it's Miss Zhu. May I ask what advice Miss Zhu has for me?" Gu Guanqi asked.

Zhu Jing said, "It's like this. I see you two are on your way, so I came to remind you that there have been flower thieves appearing in Luoxia County recently, and the trouble has all happened outside the city. It's getting late, so if you two are going to continue your journey, it would be best to set off tomorrow. It's not safe at night! Especially—"

Zhu Jing glanced at Jiang Baili and said, "Especially a beautiful woman like you, it's extremely dangerous!"

Gu Guanqi was somewhat surprised, not expecting Zhu Jing to return specifically to remind them. He quickly cupped his hands and said, "Thank you for the reminder, Miss Zhu! We are extremely grateful!"

Zhu Jing cupped her hands in a respectful gesture, glanced at Jiang Baili again, and then cupped her hands in a respectful gesture, saying, "Take care, farewell!"

"Thank you," Gu Guanqi said again.

"You're welcome."

Zhu Jing turned and left.

After Zhu Jing left, Jiang Baili asked Gu Guanqi, "What's a flower thief? A thief who steals flowers?"

Gu Guanqi thought for a moment and said, "More or less!"

"Then why would I be in danger? I don't have any flowers to steal," Jiang Baili asked.

Gu Guanqi chuckled and said, "The 'flower' in 'flower thief' is a metaphor, used to describe a woman."

"Is that so?" Jiang Baili asked again, "Then how do flower thieves steal women?"

Gu Guanqi said, "This is a difficult question to answer. Let's not talk about it anymore, okay?"

"it is good."

Neither Gu Guanqi nor Jiang Baili took Zhu Jing's reminder to heart.

In fact, Gu Guanqi wouldn't mind actually running into that lecherous thief and then acting on behalf of Heaven to bring him justice.

After Jiang Baili finished eating, Gu Guanqi paid the bill and then left the inn.

Upon arriving at the stable, Gu Guanqi led out the two horses and handed the reins to Jiang Baili.

But Jiang Baili, standing beside the horse, didn't immediately take the reins. Instead, she stared blankly at Gu Guanqi and asked, "You—"

"Are you going to help me mount the horse now?"

Gu Guanqi smiled helplessly and said, "Miss Jiang, you need to understand one thing: that kind of behavior is not necessary, and not everyone has to do it."

"I understand." Jiang Baili nodded. "Then, should I help you onto the horse?"

"No need," Gu Guanqi said.

"it is good."

Jiang Baili took the reins from Gu Guanqi and then mounted the horse.

Afterwards, the two left the city and traveled along the official road.

After traveling for more than an hour, the sky gradually darkened, and the distant mountains turned into dark silhouettes. The days were relatively short in winter.

Gu Guanqi took out a map, looked at it, and said, "There is a village about three miles ahead called Huangshan Village. Let's go there to stay the night."

Jiang Baili didn't say anything, but simply followed Gu Guanqi.

Before long, a small village appeared ahead, with a few dozen scattered households, earthen walls and thatched roofs, and wisps of smoke rising from their chimneys. At the entrance of the village stood a stone tablet with the three characters "Huangshan Village" engraved on it.

Gu Guanqi pulled on the reins and dismounted.

Jiang Baili remained seated on horseback, looking at Gu Guanqi, and asked, "Isn't it necessary to help me dismount?"

"Yes," Gu Guanqi said.

"it is good."

Jiang Baili then dismounted and followed Gu Guanqi into the village.

As soon as he arrived at the village entrance, Gu Guanqi noticed something amiss.

Several villagers were sitting under the old locust tree at the village entrance. As they entered, their eyes all turned to them. Those gazes were scrutinizing, as if they were examining something suspicious. A few who had been chatting abruptly stopped talking and looked at them warily.

Gu Guanqi's heart skipped a beat, but he remained expressionless and led his horse further inside.

However, the further they went in, the stranger it seemed, with everyone staring intently at the two of them.

Gu Guanqi was puzzled and was about to ask someone if he could stay the night when suddenly, "Bang!"

A piercing gong rang out in the village, followed by several more rapid and frequent clangs, which sounded particularly loud in the twilight.

Almost simultaneously, the once quiet village was like a hornet's nest that had been stirred up. Footsteps and shouts came from all directions, and a large group of strong young men carrying weapons rushed out, each with a tense expression and fierce eyes.

In the blink of an eye, Gu Guanqi and Jiang Baili were surrounded.

Dozens of villagers spread out in a fan shape, surrounding Gu Guanqi and Jiang Baili in the center. Several strong young men stood at the front, holding machetes, their muscles taut, ready to pounce at any moment.

Gu Guanqi frowned slightly, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword, but he did not draw it.

Jiang Baili watched this scene without any change in her expression, seemingly unaware that the two of them were already surrounded.

Gu Guanqi looked around, and as his light swept across the faces of these villagers, he saw that most of them had not only hostility in their eyes, but also an undisguised fear, and their hands were trembling.

It can be basically ruled out that it was a robbery.

He knew that there must have been some misunderstanding.

Just as he was about to speak, a woman's voice suddenly came from behind the crowd, tinged with surprise and confusion: "What are you doing here?"

The crowd automatically parted to make way, and a man and a woman walked out from behind.

Gu Guanqi thought to himself, "What a coincidence!"

Because the man and woman were the same two martial arts figures they had met at the inn in the county town earlier that day: the woman who called herself Zhu Jing of the Tingshan Sect and the man in blue who was traveling with her.

At this moment, Zhu Jing walked closer, her gaze sweeping back and forth between Gu Guanqi and Jiang Baili, her eyes full of suspicion. She asked, "Didn't I warn you that it was getting late and you shouldn't leave the city? How did you end up here?"

"So it's Miss Zhu," Gu Guanqi said, bowing slightly. "We two have urgent business to attend to and cannot linger, so we didn't stay in the city. We traveled all this way and only arrived at this village after dark. We were just looking for a place to stay for the night, but we don't know what the situation is like here?"

Zhu Jing said, "Are you guys really that bold? I told you that Luoxia County is not safe, and you still dare to come out."

Gu Guanqi explained, "We both know a bit of martial arts, so we're not afraid of those things."

"You rich kids and young ladies just don't know what's important. You'll regret it when something really happens!" Zhu Jing waved her hand and said, "Alright, since you're already here, stay! But I have to make it clear to you first, there's big trouble in the village tonight. A group of bandits might come to rob the village, so we organized the villagers to set up defenses and resist. You've really come at the worst possible time."

Gu Guanqi asked in confusion, "Why didn't you report it to the authorities?"

Zhu Jing said, "We've already sent someone to report to the authorities, but I'm afraid it won't be in time. So we must also prepare our own defenses and resistance, just in case. The bandits won't give us time to wait for government rescue!"

Gu Guanqi nodded and said, "Miss Zhu has thought things through very well."

"Well then," Zhu Jing said, "You definitely can't leave now. The bandits are nowhere to be found, and if you go out, you might run into them, which would be very dangerous. Since you know martial arts, you can stay here and help out."

Then she looked at Jiang Baili and said, "The women and children in the village are all hiding in the ancestral hall right now, so why don't you go there, young lady?"

Gu Guanqi understood that Zhu Jing still had doubts about their identities and deliberately arranged for them to be separated. This was both to facilitate surveillance and to make them hesitant to act rashly if they had other motives.

Gu Guanqi did not object.

He felt this was a good thing, because Jiang Baili's internal energy was currently imbalanced in terms of yin and yang. If he used his internal energy, it would aggravate the yin energy in his body. Therefore, it was best not to take action.

So he nodded and said, "Alright, thank you very much, Miss Zhu!"

"Come on, we'll take you there."

Zhu Jing and the man in blue turned and walked forward, with Gu Guanqi and Jiang Baili following closely behind.

As they walked, the man in blue cupped his hands and said, "I am Zhang Guodong of the Tingshan Sect. May I ask your names, sir and young lady?"

Gu Guanqi said, "My name is Gu Guanqi, and her name is Jiang Baili."

Zhang Guodong and Zhu Jing both turned around abruptly and sized up Gu Guanqi.

"Brother Gu, what a fine name," Zhang Guodong said. "It's the same name as our Qingzhou Sword Immortal!"

Gu Guanqi chuckled lightly, but didn't say anything more.

Soon, the group arrived at the village ancestral hall, and Zhu Jing knocked on the door.

Two middle-aged women carefully opened the door. Zhu Jing explained the situation to them, and then said to Gu Guanqi and Jiang Baili, "Miss Jiang, please wait inside. There are women and children inside."

Jiang Baili looked at Gu Guanqi.

Gu Guanqi nodded slightly, stepped closer, and said in a low voice, "Miss Jiang, try not to take action now if possible, but if any bad guys appear later, don't hesitate, just beat them up."

"it is good."

Jiang Baili nodded and followed the two women into the ancestral hall.

As night deepened, the moon peeked out from behind the clouds, casting a cool, silvery glow. The village was silent, save for the occasional bark of a dog and the rustling of the wind through the treetops.

Everyone held their breath and waited.

Gu Guanqi stood in a small alley, holding his sword.

He did have a general understanding of the situation here.

The wife of Qi Changkong, the leader of the Tingshan Sect, came from Huangshan Village. Some time ago, on the anniversary of her father's death, she brought her son back to the village to pay their respects.

Since it was a rare opportunity to come back, I stayed in the village for a few more days.

And it just so happened that this stay coincided with the sudden convening of the martial arts tournament.

Qi Changkong needed to contact other martial arts sects in Tiannan County, and was worried that the martial arts world would be in turmoil, so he sent his disciples to bring his wife and son back.

-

This task fell to Zhang Guodong and Zhu Jing, both of whom were Qi Changkong's personal disciples and were husband and wife who were fellow disciples.

However, when the two arrived in Luoxia County, they learned that the county was also in turmoil recently, plagued by flower thieves. Just as they arrived at Huangshan Village, a villager overheard two bandit scouts talking while gathering herbs on the mountain. They learned that the other group planned to rob Huangshan Village that night.

Zhang Guodong and Zhu Jing immediately sent someone to report to the authorities, while simultaneously organizing the villagers to resist and waiting for the yamen officials to arrive.

Besides Zhang Guodong and Zhu Jing, there were also several guards brought by Qi Changkong's wife, so the village's defenses were not entirely without power.

About an hour later, a muffled sound suddenly came from afar, growing clearer and clearer as it approached.

It was the sound of horses' hooves.

The sound of dense hooves, at least thirty or forty horses, thundered outside the village.

On a low wall, Zhang Guodong shouted in a low voice, "Get the tripwires ready. Don't rush, just do it when I say 'make your move'!"

The villagers gripped their weapons tightly; some were trembling, others were gritting their teeth, and veins were bulging on their foreheads.

The sound of horses' hooves grew closer, and torches lit up in the distance. Torches flickered in the night, like will-o'-the-wisps, tearing open the dark darkness.

The atmosphere suddenly became very tense.

Meanwhile, the village ancestral hall.

Inside the main hall, dozens of women and children were huddled together. There were women holding babies, old women leaning on canes, and several young girls, all looking terrified and not daring to breathe. Several younger children had their mouths covered by their mothers, preventing them from crying out.

In the center of the crowd sat a middle-aged woman.

She was about forty years old, with a dignified appearance, delicate features, and dressed in a close-fitting outfit, with a short sword hanging at her waist.

She sat there, her back ramrod straight, her gaze steady, her expression composed.

The women there were able to slightly alleviate their fear by looking at the woman.

This person is Chen Rou, the wife of Qi Changkong, the leader of the Tingshan Sect.

Hearing the sound of horses' hooves outside, Chen Rou's expression remained unchanged, but her hand had already gripped the hilt of her sword as she looked around.

Finally, their gaze fell upon Jiang Baili.

Jiang Baili sat alone on a chair at the far end of the ancestral hall, a distance away from the others. Her back was against the wall, her plain white dress standing out starkly in the dim candlelight. Her long, black hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her cool, expressionless face remained unreadable.

From the moment she entered the ancestral hall until now, she hasn't uttered a single word. She simply sits there quietly, her gaze fixed on a certain point in the void, as if lost in thought, or perhaps pondering something.

Looking at her, Chen Rou felt strangely calmed down.

Her calmness at this moment was feigned, because she knew that all the women here regarded her as their pillar of support, and she had to pretend to be composed.

However, her composure was feigned, but she discovered that the incredibly beautiful little girl was genuinely not afraid at all.

"If such a pretty girl isn't afraid, what do I have to be afraid of?"

Chen Rou kept reassuring herself like this, and she actually felt much more at ease.

Jiang Baili remained seated there, motionless.

suddenly-

Her brow twitched slightly, and she slowly turned her head toward the window on the left.

There was a wooden window with a hole about the thickness of a little finger, which would normally go unnoticed. But at this moment, an extremely thin bamboo tube was slowly extending into the hole, silently, and then a wisp of very faint white smoke rose from the bamboo tube and quietly spread out.

The women in the ancestral hall were immersed in fear, and no one noticed the bamboo tube or the wisp of almost transparent smoke.

Jiang Baili slowly stood up.

Her movements were very quiet, without making a sound. Several women around her were wiping away tears with their heads down, and none of them noticed her.

She walked to the window and looked at the bamboo tube.

Then, she slowly extended her right hand and gently blocked the opening of the bamboo tube with her index finger.