After being forced into a marriage with a wealthy family, the virtuous wife caused a huge uproar.

"Where is my wife?" Gu Ce asked directly.

"My sworn sister hasn't arrived yet." Yuwen Zhang and his men were on foot, so they must be traveling slowly and it would take them two days to arrive.

Rong Yingluo rode a fast horse and covered more than a hundred li, which would only take a day.

"What?" Gu Ce was taken aback. She didn't come? Where did she go?

Gu Ce hurriedly returned to the manor, only to find out that Rong Yingluo had gone back to her parents' home.

"Why are you back again?" Li Xuanye had just finished processing a dozen or so folded paper documents when he saw Gu Ce walk in with a displeased expression.

"You go ahead with your work, I'll handle it." Gu Ce waved his hand and sat down to continue what Li Xuan Ye hadn't finished.

However, he instructed Anwu to keep an eye on the Rong family and report as soon as Rong Yingluo went out.

Two days later, Rong Yingluo finally went out.

He then abandoned the folding book and followed.

He didn't appear in front of Rong Yingluo until they were almost at their destination.

"Oh, what brings you here?" Rong Yingluo showed no signs of being caught, but was surprised to see Gu Ce there.

"You told your grandmother you were going back to your parents' house for a few days, and this is how you stayed?" Gu Ce was very unhappy, his face cold and stern.

"I went back to my parents' home and slept with my mother for two nights. My mother and father left the capital this morning, and I'm just seeing them off and also to watch the excitement of the Prince of Beijun raiding the bandit's den." Rong Yingluo had already received the message from her eldest brother that her father and mother were going to Qingyun Temple to prepare for her eldest sister's wedding, and she could see them off.

They won't be back in Beijing until March next year, so she naturally wants to spend more time with her family.

"Why didn't I see my father-in-law and mother-in-law's carriage? What are they doing out of the capital?" Gu Ce had followed her all the way and only saw her, Ling Feng, and Ling Yun.

"We parted ways about 20 miles from the capital. They were heading east to Liaocheng, while I was going to Gongxian, which is to the south," Rong Yingluo explained.

"What are they going to Liaocheng for?" Gu Ce asked again.

"Go and prepare for Young Master Qin's wedding." Rong Yingluo was telling the truth.

Upon hearing this, Gu Ce's displeasure vanished completely.

The lady sent eighteen silver platters as a congratulatory gift, so it seems that the man's marriage is true.

"Why are his parents-in-law preparing for his wedding? Doesn't he have any family of his own?" Gu Ce asked, even more puzzled.

The bodyguards who can send out Ling Feng and Ling Yun with such skills cannot be ordinary people.

"His home is far away, and none of his relatives are around, so only my parents can help with the arrangements." In fact, Rong Yingluo had been guessing about her brother-in-law's identity all along.

From this, Gu Ce could only conclude that his parents-in-law cared a lot about that man surnamed Qin, and basically treated him like their own son.

He felt a little jealous.

Why don't I see his parents-in-law treating him like this?

When Gu Ce and Rong Yingluo caught up with Yuwen Zhang, the more than 300 people he brought had already found a valley to prepare for camp.

"Oh, Lord Gu, you really don't care about me. Have you reported this to the Emperor?" Yuwen Zhang teased.

Knowing full well that Gu Ce was worried about Rong Yingluo, she deliberately said it was him who was worried about Gu Ce.

"Do you think the Emperor wouldn't know you're here?" Gu Ce retorted.

Yuwen Zhang had nothing to say.

He brought so many people out of the capital; how could the Emperor not know?

However, he didn't say what he was going to do.

I guess the Emperor thought he was leading a group to receive the goods.

"Master Yuwen, our men have discovered a cave, and it's exceptionally large. I think it would be better if we moved into the cave; the bandits wouldn't be able to spot us there, and we could catch them off guard," a one-eyed man reported.

"Alright, then we don't need to set up camp here."

The whole group set off for that cave.

By the time we were settled, it was already night.

Yuwen Zhang arranged for dozens of men to investigate the bandits of Huangling Mountain in advance.

They knew exactly which hilltop the bandits gathered on, where they had set up sentry posts, and where their entrances and exits were.

They would act as soon as night fell.

Huangling Mountain is not just a single peak; it is a continuous range of mountains.

Some valleys are still inhabited by people.

The bandits of Huangling Mountain either robbed passing merchants or directly charged them tolls.

They even dared to rob the goods of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion; this was far too arrogant. There are rules for highway robbery, and this shouldn't be done. Rong Yingluo still couldn't understand the reason behind it.

The team of over three hundred people moved in a very organized manner, busy but not chaotic.

Everyone quickly prepared dinner, and after eating, they lay down to sleep fully clothed, waiting for the time to carry out the plan.

Yuwen Zhang gathered several leaders, as well as Pan Zhenming and Gu Ce and his wife, to discuss their plans for the night.

In the firelight, Yuwen Zhang unfurled a hand-drawn map.

"Look closely at this map, everyone. This is the main gate for the bandits to enter and exit. There are twelve guards at the gate, divided into three groups, who rotate every four hours."

Every night at midnight is when they change shifts.

There is another path on the back mountain, guarded by four people who change shifts every six hours. That is their retreat route.

There are also two other roads on either side, which are relatively difficult to travel. Horses cannot go up the mountain, and there are guards on both sides.

We need to split into four groups, reach the guarded area, and eliminate them all at the same time. So we agreed to act simultaneously at midnight, to prevent the guards from relaying the message back to the stronghold.” As the commander of this operation, Yuwen Zhang had already devised a plan to eliminate these hundred-plus bandits in one night.

"I'll go to the back mountain and cut off their escape route," Gu Ce volunteered.

"Then I'll go with the Fourth Prince and enter through the main gate." Rong Yingluo was worried that something might happen to Yuwen Zhang.

He can't walk yet and needs to be carried upstairs. If someone hurts him, she can treat his injuries promptly.

"You come with me." Gu Ce ordered without hesitation.

"You're so skilled, and you have several bodyguards with you, you don't need me to follow you." Rong Yingluo didn't buy his explanation.

"If you're not coming with me, then you should go back to Beijing right now." Gu Ce was very stubborn. How could he feel at ease if he wasn't under his watchful eye?

"You..." Rong Yingluo's cheeks puffed out in anger.

Yuwen Zhang merely glanced at them and continued to instruct his subordinates on how to cooperate and who would be responsible for which area once they went up the mountain.

"Remember, do not kill the elderly, weak, women and children indiscriminately, unless you encounter someone who strongly resists," Yuwen Zhang instructed in the end.

This statement shows that he was not someone who indiscriminately killed innocent people.

The women and children on the mountain were likely women abducted by bandits, or they may have been forced to come up the mountain.

It was still early, so the group found a place to lie down and take a nap.

At the hour of Hai (9-11 PM), the night watchman blew a whistle to wake everyone up and begin their work.

A tall, burly man, the one who had called him "Old Iron" that day, carried Yuwen Zhang on his back and followed the guide, walking at the very front.

The other teams also set off in the directions they were assigned to.

Do not light torches, lest you attract the attention of the bandits' sentry post if you get too close.

These remaining soldiers were all trained, and they walked at night without the slightest disorder.

Rong Yingluo was led by Gu Ce, stumbling forward in the dark.

Today is October 25th, the darkest time of the night. The waning moon has not yet appeared, and we are relying entirely on following the guide.

Yuwen Zhang assigned Gu Ce only thirty men.

A dragon, moving forward slowly from front to back.

The road behind the mountain was even longer, but fortunately we arrived at the sentry post not far away on time.

The bandits' sentry post had a light. With this guidance, they quickly located their target.

Gu Ce gestured to An Yi, who was following closely behind, and An Yi led An Er to sneak up quietly.

Rong Yingluo only saw the two people on the sentry post fall down, but did not see An Yi and An Er appear.

But an accident still happened.