The first rays of sunlight in the early morning shone into the room, and wisps of cooking smoke were already rising from the small stove.
Since he got the wheelchair, Qi Lixiao didn't like staying alone in the room very much.
While Li Zhichen was bustling around, he would quietly sit in the yard with a book on his lap. After all, he could recite all these books backwards. He would read whatever page the wind blew to, and from time to time he would look up at Li Zhichen, feeling an inexplicable sense of peace in his heart.
He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he always felt that his body had become much stronger recently, and his spirit had also perked up.
Previously, he was extremely frail. Even a slight breeze could make him sick, and each illness was worse than the last. Sometimes he would be drowsy and unable to open his eyes for several days.
Now, he was awake for most of the time. Li Zhichen would even wheel him out to soak up the sun or take a stroll in the mountains.
Qi Lixiao's eyelashes fluttered. He almost had the illusion that he was no different from a normal person.
...
After lunch, Li Zhichen wheeled Qi Lixiao out for a stroll.
Before they knew it, they had walked to the city gate. Li Zhichen looked into the distance and saw a group of people bustling around a notice board, discussing something.
Li Zhichen walked closer to take a look and found that it was a notice recruiting escorts.
“...Sincerely recruiting highly skilled escorts. Those interested please come to Rongfu Inn for a face - to - face discussion.”
Li Zhichen glanced at it briefly and then looked away disinterestedly. Her gaze fell on a missing - person reward notice in the corner of the notice board, and she was momentarily dazed.
The woman in the portrait was about seventeen or eighteen years old, with a beautiful face and a proper and dignified attire.
Li Zhichen read the small words below the portrait and learned that this woman was actually the daughter of the county magistrate. She had accompanied her father to take up his new post, but unexpectedly, she had been kidnapped by bandits on the way!
The county magistrate had searched for his daughter for half a month, but there was still no sign of her.
He wanted to see her alive or find her body. Helplessly, the county magistrate had to post this notice, promising a reward of one hundred taels of silver to anyone who could bring the woman back.
“Has no one claimed this missing - person reward yet?” Li Zhichen asked, surprised as she looked at the yellowed paper.
A man standing beside her nodded and said regretfully, “Alas, the county magistrate has too many concerns, so he made up this story about the daughter being kidnapped by bandits. I think it was clearly the mountain bandits who took her! What a pity!”
“Mountain bandits?” Li Zhichen was a bit surprised. “If that's the case, why doesn't the county magistrate just send troops to wipe out the bandit lair and rescue his daughter?”
The man sized Li Zhichen up and down and sighed. “You must be from out of town. It's normal that you don't know about the bandits on Qinglong Mountain. The bandits on the mountain used to be from the same community as the villagers below. They were quite close and had connections. So even if the government wants to intervene, they're powerless.”
Qi Lixiao's eyes suddenly moved. He whispered in a voice that only he and Li Zhichen could hear, “There are three reasons why this bandit lair hasn't been wiped out for a long time. First, there are a large number of bandits on Qinglong Mountain, and they have a large stockpile of bows, arrows, and weapons. If the government sends troops to surround and suppress them, they may not gain the upper hand. Second, Qinglong Mountain has a special terrain. It's easy to defend but difficult to attack, and it's located at the junction of Lin County and Li County. The former county magistrates of both counties were afraid of getting into trouble and kept shifting the responsibility to each other. No one wanted to take care of it. Third...”
Qi Lixiao paused and smiled faintly. “In your opinion, how could a group of mountain bandits formed by refugees develop so powerfully over the decades?”
Li Zhichen hesitated. “Is it because of collusion between officials and bandits?”
“Exactly. It's precisely because they have backers that the bandits have become even more reckless.”
Li Zhichen looked at the portrait a few more times and then calmly looked away.
Just as she was about to wheel Qi Lixiao away, she heard the system's gentle reminder: [Host, aren't you going to apply for the escort job? It's not too late to refuse after looking at the hiring fee~]
Li Zhichen casually glanced at the small words in the lower - right corner and was immediately shocked—it was thirty taels!
Thirty taels! Do you know how tempting that is for someone who is on the verge of poverty?!
So, with a straight face, Li Zhichen immediately wheeled Qi Lixiao around and walked away without a trace of hesitation.
She found the inn according to the address on the notice. As soon as she entered, she unexpectedly met an acquaintance.
In the inn's lobby, Shang Hongbo was sitting in a private room, sipping tea with a middle - aged man. He casually looked towards the door and was slightly startled when he saw Qi Lixiao and Li Zhichen. He immediately got up and walked towards them.
After hearing Li Zhichen's intention, Shang Hongbo laughed.
He pointed at the middle - aged man beside him. “What a coincidence! This is Boss Hu, who posted the notice. He's a merchant from the southern part of the Yangtze River. I once did business there and cooperated with him. We're old acquaintances. Now, Boss Hu has come here to do business, and inevitably, he has to pass by Qinglong Mountain...”
He paused and lowered his voice a bit. “The mountain bandits have been camped on Qinglong Mountain for many years and have committed numerous crimes. They rob anyone they see! Not long ago, a group of merchants passed by Qinglong Mountain on their way. Not only were their goods and money looted by the bandits, but the whole group was either killed or injured. When the merchant's family went up the mountain to collect his body, they only found a head that had been gnawed beyond recognition by wild beasts!”
Hearing this, Boss Hu looked even more worried. He had already heard the rumors about the bandits on Qinglong Mountain. Although he had spent a lot of money to hire a group of escorts from a security agency, he was still a bit nervous. So he was planning to hire a few more groups of bodyguards to protect himself.
However...
He frowned and sized Li Zhichen up and down. He said embarrassedly, “Miss, it's not that I'm looking down on you, but this journey is extremely dangerous. How can a woman like you be an escort?”
Hearing this, Shang Hongbo also hesitated. Although he had witnessed Li Zhichen's strength and knew that an ordinary man couldn't match her, this journey was no joke. If Li Zhichen had an accident on the way, wouldn't she just be putting herself in danger?
The refusal on their faces was obvious, but Qi Lixiao, who had been silent all this time, suddenly said calmly, “You two bosses can rest assured. My wife is excellent at archery. She can shoot through a willow leaf from a hundred paces away. Not long ago, she even hunted down a wild boar.”
[2 hours of health points added.]
Li Zhichen raised an eyebrow and was a bit happy to be praised by Qi Lixiao.
Shang Hongbo was stunned and a bit surprised. Li Zhichen could even subdue a wild and fierce beast like a wild boar?!
Suddenly, he remembered the story that had been circulating in the streets and alleys in recent days. He suddenly realized and said, “So you're the Jade - faced Overlord!”
Li Zhichen:?
What overlord?
She knew every word Shang Hongbo said, but why couldn't she understand them when they were put together?
Shang Hongbo whispered a few words to Boss Hu. The latter immediately showed a look of surprise on his face. When he looked up again, his look at Li Zhichen had changed instantly, and there was even a hint of reverence in his eyes.
Boss Hu quickly nodded and said, “Since the young lady is so brave, why don't you give it a try!”
As soon as he finished speaking, a group of strong men in uniform dark - colored clothes rushed into the inn. They were all big and strong, full of power. They walked in unison, with a strong sense of the jianghu around them. They looked hard to deal with.
Li Zhichen sized them up and guessed that these were the escorts Boss Hu had recruited the day before.
All the escorts were wearing the same dark - colored clothes, except for the man in front who was wearing a fur coat. He was the chief escort.
His surname was Yao. Since he had many children at home and was the sixth in line, everyone called him Yao Liu.
Yao Liu was about thirty years old, tall, with a square face, dark skin, a scar on his face, and a look of harshness and shrewdness in his eyes.
Yao Liu's gaze slowly swept around the room and finally landed on Li Zhichen and Qi Lixiao. His eyes immediately darkened.