20demayo Chapter 96 A Young Man's Sincerity
Chapter 96 A Young Man's Sincerity
As night deepened, no one noticed the bloody incident that had occurred on the back mountain. Shen Qing finally managed to calm Zhen E down and promised the women in the stone house that she would definitely rescue them.
At this time, which is roughly three or four in the morning in modern time, most people are sound asleep. As long as you avoid the patrol team, you won't be discovered.
Shen Qing was already very familiar with this. The bandits' patrols were not as thorough as those of the regular army, and it was not too easy to find the pattern and avoid them.
The journey back to the "new house" with Zhen E went very smoothly, without any unexpected incidents.
Shen Qing crouched down against the wall and gently knocked on the window. Three long knocks and two short knocks were the pre-arranged signal between him and Ye Mingzhu.
"Dewey?" Ye Mingzhu asked in a low voice, still uneasy, to confirm again.
Shen Qing was taken aback. Oh, this was a name he had just made up on the spur of the moment. He almost didn't realize it.
"it's me."
With a creak, the window opened, and Shen Qing nimbly climbed in. Ye Mingzhu was about to step out the window when suddenly a hand appeared out of nowhere. Startled, she reflexively pressed the window down. A muffled groan was heard. Why did that sound so familiar?
Shen Qing looked at her twitching fingers, which were pinched, and sighed helplessly, "There's another one outside."
Ye Mingzhu was puzzled, but seeing Shen Qing's expression, she figured he must be one of her own, so she loosened her grip and opened the window, whereupon a pitiful face came into view.
"Zhen E?" Ye Mingzhu was somewhat surprised, and asked as she made way for her, "Why are you here?"
Zhen E climbed in through the window, saying, "Of course I'm here to save you."
After landing, Zhen E circled the luminous pearl, looking it over from head to toe. "Are you alright? Has anyone bullied you?"
Ye Mingzhu's initial感动 (feeling of being moved) vanished instantly, and she kicked him, yelling, "Your mind is full of filthy things!"
Zhen E was completely relieved. If she could still kick him, she must not have been bullied. Seeing Ye Mingzhu glaring at him angrily, she finally relaxed after holding back all day. Her eyes immediately reddened, and she burst into tears, hugging the person in front of her tightly.
"Mingzhu, you scared me to death!"
Ye Mingzhu was stunned by the sudden action. When she realized what was happening, she started punching Zhen E with both hands and feet. He was trying to be a scoundrel on her!
Despite the barrage of blows, Zhen E refused to let go and continued to sob.
Feeling the warm, wet liquid on her shoulder, Ye Mingzhu paused. Was she really crying?
"Why are you crying? I'm the one who should be crying."
No, Shen Qing thought, having been force-fed a mouthful of dog food (a Chinese slang term for witnessing public displays of affection), he was the one who should be crying.
"Alright, alright," Ye Mingzhu patted Zhen E stiffly, "Thank you for coming to save me..."
"But if you take advantage of me again, I'll get angry!"
"Ahem~" Shen Qingqing coughed, "Excuse me, it's almost dawn, shouldn't we discuss the important matters first?"
Zhen E then let go of her hand, sniffed, and gradually calmed down.
The three of them sat in a circle and began to discuss.
"What happened on the back mountain can't be kept secret for long; it will be discovered within half a day at most."
"So we need to take advantage of this time difference. You go down the mountain under cover of darkness to gather your troops, and we'll launch a surprise attack from the inside and outside!"
"Then Mingzhu, come with me first."
"I'm afraid it will be a bit difficult." Shen Qing glanced at Ye Mingzhu. She only knew a little bit of fancy footwork, and even if she managed to avoid being discovered, she would slow down Zhen E's speed.
Ye Mingzhu was also self-aware and shook her head, saying, "I can't leave. If they can't see me when it's light, they'll become suspicious."
"No, it's too dangerous for you to stay here. It's like playing with fire!" Zhen E exclaimed. Tiger Head Mountain could be wiped out anytime, but Mingzhu's safety was the top priority!
Ye Mingzhu frowned. "Where else will we find such a good opportunity? Speed is of the essence in war. How many soldiers' casualties could be reduced by seizing the right moment in battle?"
"But what if something happens to you..."
"Everyone else can die, so why can't I?"
Upon hearing this, Shen Qing looked at Ye Mingzhu with admiration. There are not many powerful figures who cherish their people and prioritize their own safety.
After a long stalemate, Zhen E finally gave in and went down the mountain to gather more men.
Their plan was actually very simple and straightforward. The more complicated the plan, the more likely it was to go wrong. After dawn, Shen Qing would take Ye Mingzhu out to act out a scene of "marrying a chicken, following the chicken; marrying a dog, following the dog" to make them lower their guard. Then, they would find an opportunity to hide Ye Mingzhu in the big tree where he had been hiding the night before.
Afterwards, he would find an excuse to gather several leaders to hold a meeting in the Hall of Righteousness. Once the signal for Zhen E to attack the mountain was given, he would instantly kill Zhu Biao. He would kill as many of the other leaders as possible before reinforcements arrived. The sudden attack would leave them leaderless and in disarray. Then, Shen Qing could escape, and the bandits could be left to the government troops.
Their ideas were always good; they just focused on working hard and left the rest to fate.
After all, it was going to be a tough battle that they were risking their lives for. They made it sound easy, but they were still very nervous. In the two hours between Zhen E's departure and dawn, Shen Qing and Ye Mingzhu couldn't sleep. They looked a little tired, but that was in line with the description of "fighting until dawn".
Shen Qing glanced at the sky and said, "We can go out now."
Ye Mingzhu nodded nervously. Just then, Zhu Biao's loud voice came from outside.
"Sixth brother, even if you're newly married, it's time to get up."
Shen Qing frowned. Why would Zhu Biao come at this time?
I had no choice but to improvise. Just as I was about to get up to open the door, the system's voice rang in my mind.
[A large group of people has been detected approaching!]
Shen Qing paused, had she been exposed? How could it have happened so quickly!
[There was a woman in the stone house last night in the crowd.]
Shen Qing recalled that he had revealed his identity as the sixth leader by talking to Zhen E in front of those people last night. He had been careless and underestimated human nature.
"What's wrong?" Ye Mingzhu asked, noticing Shen Qing's pale face and her standing motionless.
"The plan has been leaked."
"What should we do then?" Ye Mingzhu didn't ask Shen Qing how she knew. She didn't know when it started, but she had come to trust Shen Qing without any doubt.
Shen Qing pulled the luminous pearl toward the back window, and the system told him that there was no one in that direction.
"You run first, I'll hold them off."
Knowing that staying here would only be a burden, Ye Mingzhu didn't hesitate to climb over the wall and run away.
Shen Qing took a deep breath, composed herself, and turned to open the door.
"Big brother, why are you up so early?"
"Dewey, the chief has treated you well, yet you colluded with outsiders to harm the brothers in the village. You are utterly heartless and ungrateful!"
Shen Qing looked at the charlatan Zhang who jumped out and started grinning. Why is it this guy again?
"Old Zhang, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want. What evidence do you have that I'm colluding with foreign enemies?"
"I have witnesses!"
It's quite a coincidence. Last night, Niu Er said he wanted to do as the locals do and go to the back mountain to have some fun, but he didn't come back all night. After knowing each other for so long, doesn't he know how long Niu Er can stay?
Sure enough, when they arrived at the stone house, they saw the dead Niu Er, but the women inside were still alive.
Although they insisted they knew nothing, Zhang Tian used his expertise in psychological warfare and managed to persuade one of the women to betray him and reveal the identity of the new sixth leader.
Zhang Tian was overjoyed. "Hahaha, you've fallen into my hands this time, haven't you!"