The Bandit Suppression Office, Officers, Kill

Young Master Lei heard this and immediately cupped his hands toward Lu Chen, "So Brother Lu is a disciple of a martial arts school. My apologies for the lack of respect."

He patted Young Master Zhang on the shoulder, "Brother Zhang, since we are exerting ourselves for the two Miss Meis, it is only right that we put in some effort. Come."

With that, he nimbly jumped off the carriage.

Young Master Wen remained silent, following him down as well.

Seeing his companions move, and catching a glimpse of Mei Ying's large, smiling eyes looking at him from inside the carriage, Young Master Zhang felt his face grow hot with embarrassment.

Unwilling to appear incompetent or delicate in front of the young lady he admired, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and climb down.

Mei Ying lifted the cotton curtain of the carriage window and poked half of her pretty face out, her voice sweet and crisp, as if laced with honey:

"Brother Zhang, Brother Lei, Brother Wen, you've worked hard! Put in a little more effort; once the road is cleared, we can head home early!"

That "brother" and those few soft words were more effective than any whip.

A glow immediately returned to Young Master Zhang's face, and Young Master Lei grinned as well.

Even the cold-looking Young Master Wen seemed to quicken his pace.

The three men rolled up their sleeves, not caring that their fine silk robes were getting dirty, and began to lift and push, clearing away the scattered broken wood and stones. Though they were clumsy and inefficient, they were at least moving.

With the addition of Lu Chen and Liu Qi, the five of them soon cleared away a small portion of the road block.

Just then, the sound of rapid hoofbeats came from behind.

Lu Chen turned his head abruptly to look.

The three government runners had returned, dragging the pair of mother and child behind their horses.

At this moment, the woman tore off her headscarf, revealing a head of messy short hair and the stubbly face of a man.

The child threw off his cloak, revealing himself to be a fierce-looking dwarf; both were bound tightly.

The leader of the runners spurred his horse forward and cupped his hands toward the group:

"Everyone, do not panic! We are officers from the Provincial Anti-Bandit Bureau, having pursued the Iron Eagle Gang bandits to this point. These two are habitual criminals of the gang, known as the Mandarin Duck Crutches. They specialize in cross-dressing and using a dwarf to pose as a child to swindle soft-hearted travelers, and have already taken many lives!"

Upon hearing this, everyone felt a chill run down their spines, a wave of lingering fear washing over them.

It was fortunate they hadn't fallen for the trap.

The leader continued, "Interrogation just now revealed that this group of thieves has set up ambushes in more than one place. There is likely support further ahead on the main road. If you take the main road now, you will be walking straight into a net. Follow us quickly and take the small path on the east side to bypass the thieves."

Hearing this, the group became even more panicked.

The two young ladies turned pale.

Young Masters Zhang, Lei, and Wen were in a state of chaos, saying repeatedly:

"Quick! Take the small path!"

"Listen to the officer!"

"Liu Qi, hurry, drive the carriage!"

The group scrambled onto the carriage, urging them to leave quickly.

"Wait."

Lu Chen stepped forward, blocking the path between the carriage and the government runners.

"Officer, if we abandon the main road for an unfamiliar path, what if there is an ambush there as well? Wouldn't we just be turtles in a jar?" Lu Chen said.

The leader's expression sank abruptly.

The sallow-faced runner to the side immediately barked sharply, "Insolent! We are acting out of kindness, yet you stand there being suspicious and spouting nonsense!"

"Brother Lu!" Young Master Zhang, anxious and afraid, couldn't help but complain, "Doesn't the officer know better than you? Stop talking!"

Young Master Lei chimed in, "That's right, Brother Lu, listen to the officer, you can't go wrong!"

Lu Chen ignored them, keeping his eyes fixed on the leader:

"I have heard of the Iron Eagle Gang. They are a ragtag group of twenty or thirty people who specialize in setting up traps, kidnapping, and robbery. The scale of this operation—felling trees to block the road and killing for loot—is not something the Iron Eagle Gang has the guts to pull off."

A flash of malice crossed the leader's eyes:

"You know quite a bit about the underworld. Are you one of them?"

Lu Chen's expression remained unchanged:

"Just hearsay. I also know that when the Anti-Bandit Bureau makes an arrest, they usually dispose of the suspects on the spot to save trouble. You aren't in a hurry to return and claim credit, but instead, you are dragging prisoners along and insisting on escorting us burdens through a detour. Such 'Bodhisattva hearts' don't sound like the work of the government."

Hearing this, the way everyone looked at the three runners became filled with suspicion.

Thinking about it carefully, there were indeed suspicious signs everywhere.

The Provincial Bureau was far from here; unless it was a notorious bandit leader who had shaken the province, why would they send officers all the way here to pursue them?

Seeing their ruse exposed, the leader stopped pretending and snarled:

"I intended to lure you into the woods and finish it quietly. Since you refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit, we will send you on your way now."

"Attack!"

The three fake runners lunged simultaneously, leaping from their horses and pouncing in a triangular formation.

Lu Chen drew his blade, a flash of steel slicing across the throat of the bandit on his left.

With a backhand stroke, he drove the blade into the chin of another, the tip erupting from the back of the man's skull.

Only the leader remained.

The leader roared and lunged, but Lu Chen parried two strikes. As the third descended, Lu Chen stepped forward instead of back, ducking into the man's guard and driving his steel blade upward into the leader's abdomen, burying it to the hilt. He twisted his wrist, shredding the internal organs.

The leader stiffened, his sword slipping from his grasp as he slowly collapsed to his knees.

The three fake officials were nothing more than common thugs; how could they possibly be a match for Lu Chen, who had been strengthened by multiple card draws and was now standing on the threshold of the External Force realm?

In a few swift strokes, they were reduced to ghosts beneath his blade.

The thin man disguised as a woman and the dwarf had taken advantage of Lu Chen's struggle with the fake officials to break free from their ropes, charging straight for the carriage.

The maid Xiao Gao screamed, spreading her arms to block their path.

Mei Dai held her terrified sister Mei Ying in a death grip, the faces of the three women drained of color.

The dwarf clutched a gleaming short blade, his expression twisted in a savage snarl.

Liu Qi was locked in a desperate struggle with the thin man, his situation perilous.

Hearing Mei Ying's shriek, the three young masters steeled themselves and rushed forward, attempting to subdue the dwarf.

Yet, though the dwarf was small, his movements were slick, and he was a master of the blade.

Not only did the three fail to catch him, but they were also slashed by his short blade, their clothes shredded and their bodies covered in bloody gashes, leaving them in a pathetic state.

Lu Chen, having finished off the three fake officials, turned to see the situation at the carriage. Seeing three men being forced into such a sorry state by a single dwarf, he couldn't help but be speechless.

He strode forward in a few long steps, his large hand reaching out to clamp onto the back of the dwarf's neck like an iron vice.

Subdued, the dwarf was both shocked and enraged. He glared with fierce eyes and cursed foully:

"Fuck your mother! Let go of me!"

Lu Chen hoisted the small, vicious thug, the muscles in his arm bulging as he swung him high and slammed him violently into the ground!

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

The dwarf was smashed into a blurred mess of flesh and blood, his limbs twisted as he lay limp in the snow pit, no longer breathing.

Lu Chen turned and walked toward the thin man who was grappling with Liu Qi, launching a flying kick.

The thin man had just pinned Liu Qi into the snow and raised his fist when a fierce wind suddenly struck the back of his head. He turned in terror.

Snap!

His neck bone shattered.

The thin man's head lolled to one side, and he collapsed to the ground, limp.

Beside the carriage, a sudden, deathly silence fell.

Only the howling wind and snow remained, along with the heavy, panicked breathing of the crowd.

Lu Chen bent down, grabbed a handful of clean snow, and wiped the blood from his blade.

"Clear the road. We leave immediately."

Lu Chen's decisive brutality struck fear into the hearts of the others; no one dared to say another word, and they immediately buried their heads to clear the road blocks.

Lu Chen remained silent, leaning over to search the corpses.