Using Oneself as Bait

The person most delighted to learn that Lu Cheng had recovered two carts of medicinal herbs was the steward, Liu Xitian.

Liu Xitian was originally nothing more than a peasant.

When that great figure from the imperial court collapsed in Liu Village, he had not yet reached the age of ten.

It was not until that lord rose to prominence in his middle age that Liu Village began to take flight.

Thus, Liu Xitian's generation belonged to those "chickens and dogs" who ascended to heaven because one person attained the Dao.

Such people had never received any training in commerce or political maneuvering.

They were illiterate, possessing not a shred of vision or insight.

Yet, because of the family's rapid development, they suddenly found themselves with status far exceeding their peers, leading them to mistakenly believe they were men of great talent and strategy.

Gradually, they developed the arrogant personality of the nouveau riche.

But when they truly encountered trouble, they were immediately stripped of their facade.

Forget solving problems; they could barely even control their own emotions.

This batch of herbs had been pre-ordered; if they were lost, the entire Liu Village would have to pay a massive indemnity.

This caused Liu Xitian, a mere straw bag, to panic like a headless fly.

With the herbs gone, Liu Xitian would inevitably be pushed to the fringes of power in Liu Village, and he would likely be sent off to farm the herbs himself.

Having spent half a lifetime struggling to become a wealthy master, he could not bear the thought of returning to the fields just as he had begun to enjoy his status.

Moreover, it wasn't just him; his entire family would struggle to rise again.

Beyond that, it was also because he was, at his core, a farmer.

Although he had encountered bandits while delivering goods in the past, they had always been easily repelled.

Now, having witnessed so much life and death, he was nearly frightened out of his wits.

Therefore, when Lu Cheng recovered a portion of the losses, it immediately gave this straw bag a sense of familiarity.

He had felt this same sensation the first time he led a team, when the guards easily drove off the bandits.

Now, that feeling had returned.

With a sense of reliance in his heart, he regained a bit of his courage and reason.

Yes, Lu Cheng was still in the party.

Ever since Lu Cheng saved Liu Xitian from the water bandits, the steward, who had originally been full of hostility toward him, had developed a significant amount of trust in Lu Cheng.

Now, he practically viewed Lu Cheng as his savior.

Having survived the ordeal, he could no longer hold back.

The man in his forties laughed and cried all at once.

With tears and snot streaming down his smiling face, he bowed repeatedly to Lu Cheng.

It was as comical as it could possibly be.

"Lu Cheng, Young Hero Lu, it is all thanks to you. It is laughable that I was so rude to you before; I truly have eyes but failed to see."

As he spoke, he actually raised his hands and began to slap his own face.

"I am truly damned, truly damned!"

Lu Cheng comforted him for a long while before finally stopping his actions.

Liu Xitian wiped away his tears and snot, then scanned his surroundings.

Seeing that only four of the original ten carts remained, and that the party of over thirty men had been reduced to less than a third, his emotions surged once more, and he nearly broke down in tears again.

"Oh, woe is me! If only I had listened to Young Hero Lu earlier, it wouldn't have ended up like this!"

"How am I supposed to answer to the clan now?"

As soon as Liu Xitian said this, the expressions of the remaining men changed.

In particular, Xiao Kuang of Emerald Cloud Abbey and Zhou Yunxiang of Lin Martial Arts Hall.

As the leaders of the guards, the two were responsible for the safety of the caravan.

Under normal circumstances, it would have been easy enough to explain.

But everyone in the party knew that the two had been at each other's throats throughout the entire journey.

That was nearly a split in the team.

Now that the losses were so severe, there was no way to shirk responsibility.

The silver compensation was secondary; the real issue was the sects behind them, which had been dragged into a massive humiliation by these two.

Therefore, the two had to "cooperate" this time.

They exchanged a glance, reaching a consensus through a rare moment of eye contact.

Since Xiao Kuang had a closer relationship with Fatty, he was the first to speak:

"Steward Liu, there is no need to be overly anxious."

"The situation this time is different from the past; no one could have expected so many martial artists to attack."

"Four mid-stage Refined Strength experts, ten early-stage Refined Strength experts, and over twenty skilled brawlers."

As he spoke, Xiao Kuang's face showed a sigh of regret:

"Such strength is already no weaker than some martial arts factions."

"Even the Cloud Billow Sect and Flying Cloud Sect in Yang City only have a late-stage Refined Strength expert holding the fort."

Zhou Yunxiang also nodded:

"Indeed, if it were just the water bandits and thugs along the way, they wouldn't be worth mentioning."

"So this time, it is not a failure of strategy."

"On the contrary, it is already quite remarkable that we managed to save half of the medicinal herbs."

"No matter who came in your place, they could not have achieved what Steward Liu has done."

To Liu Xitian, these words were equivalent to finding him a perfect excuse to step down.

Sure enough, upon hearing this, Liu Xitian felt a weight lift from his heart.

A look of joy appeared on his face involuntarily.

That's right, what Xiao Kuang and Zhou Yunxiang said was absolutely correct.

With the situation being so complex this time, how could he be blamed?

The bandits this time were equivalent to an entire martial arts sect.

Yet the caravan's protection had not changed at all from before—oh, there was one extra person, Lu Cheng.

But he had also managed to save two extra carts of herbs.

Looking at it this way, he actually had merit rather than fault!

Liu Village had only started dealing with martial artists in large numbers since they began growing medicinal herbs a few years ago.

For the decade prior, it had just been simple market trade.

Where would Liu Xitian have encountered martial artists?

Thus, in just a few words, his perception was completely altered by the two men.

He couldn't even remember to hold them accountable for their failure to provide adequate protection.

Lu Cheng did not speak.

He simply watched from the side as the two of them "hoodwinked" Liu Xitian with their back-and-forth banter.

Lu Cheng did not care about the outcome for Xiao Kuang and Zhou Yunxiang.

He also had no way to influence the decisions of Liu Village.

The only thing he could do, for the sake of Fatty and the others, was to root out the mole.

As for what happened afterward, it was none of his business.

Once the three of them finished "comforting each other," Lu Cheng spoke up:

"Steward Liu, now that things have reached this point, I wonder what the arrangements are for the follow-up?"

Given the current state of the caravan, continuing to Yunshan County was impossible.

They either had to turn back home.

Or stay here and wait for Liu Village to send reinforcements and replenish the herbs.

But based on Lu Cheng's judgment, Liu Village would not choose the latter.

"This..."

Hearing this, Liu Xitian found it difficult to make a choice for a moment.

He had no choice but to look toward Xiao Kuang, Zhou Yunxiang, and Lu Cheng.

Xiao Kuang and Zhou Yunxiang had finally managed to hoodwink Liu Xitian and "unify" their story; how could they dare to say anything more now?

Seeing Liu Xitian hesitate, one lowered his head, and the other looked away.

They simply refused to meet his gaze.

Helpless, Liu Xitian had no choice but to stare at Lu Cheng.

Lu Cheng sneered inwardly, though his face remained impassive as he lowered his voice to say:

"If Steward Liu has no arrangements, I do have a suggestion."

Liu Xitian hurriedly replied:

"It would be for the best if Young Hero Lu has a suggestion. Please, speak quickly."

Hearing this, Xiao Kuang and Zhou Yunxiang shifted their gazes toward him as well.

Lu Cheng looked at Liu Xitian and said:

"To tell you the truth, while pursuing the enemy, I managed to identify their origins from the belongings of one of the bandits!"

"I will rush back to Liu Village first thing tomorrow morning to find the clan leader."

"Once we request the Martial Suppression Battalion to intervene, we will not only recover the medicinal herbs but also wipe out this group of unsightly scoundrels in one fell swoop!"

As Lu Cheng spoke, his peripheral vision remained fixed on Xiao Kuang and Zhou Yunxiang.

He took in every reaction the two men had.

The moment his first sentence left his lips, he caught a flash of panic quickly crossing the face of one of them.

Seeing this, Lu Cheng understood everything in his heart.