Having settled the matter, San Gouzi accepted Meng Zhao's suggestion. After the two carefully mulled it over again, they quietly slipped outside Crippled Li's home.
Fortunately, Crippled Li did not keep a dog. Otherwise, killing him without a sound and looting his household wealth would not have been easy.
Once outside the courtyard wall, Meng Zhao crouched below in a horse stance, bracing his hands together to form a step. San Gouzi, small of stature and more nimble in movement, climbed onto the wall and slipped into the courtyard. Then, from inside, he quietly opened a crack in the gate and let Meng Zhao in.
The two of them were actually rather recklessly bold. Without first scouting the place and investigating the situation, accidents could easily happen.
Fortunately, both were villagers and knew Little Cold Village inside out. Even without scouting beforehand, they still had a fairly thorough understanding of Crippled Li's home and those of his neighbors.
Crippled Li's home was arranged like any ordinary farmer's household. The courtyard wall was low, and the inside was haphazardly laid out. The three old hens San Gouzi had mentioned really were penned behind a fence in one corner of the courtyard, and Meng Zhao spotted them at once.
San Gouzi quietly crept to the door of the brick-and-tile house. Somehow, he had acquired a piece of wire and began working it through the crack in the door.
Meng Zhao looked at the pitch-black house. Not even a flicker of light shone from the windows, giving him three parts more confidence.
Clearly, Crippled Li had gone to bed early and should now have been sleeping like a log. That gave San Gouzi's efforts a better chance of success.
Otherwise, if Crippled Li discovered them beforehand and started shouting, it could bring unnecessary