Chapter 349: Trouble Brewing

Qi Si agreed with Xiao Er – they had to track down every last Northern Rong and deal with them one by one.

Not being able to go home was unbearable.

And then there was their food…

Just thinking of the Northern Rong taking even one sack of it made his heart ache.

“Uncle Qi Si, are you hungry? I’ve got food in my bag.” Yan Yu was sharp-eyed. Before Qi Si could say a word, she had already pulled a big steamed bun from her backpack. Her hand paused when she felt the dried meat, but after a moment’s thought, she handed that over too.

The Qi Family Three Brothers had one fatal weakness – never ask them if they’re hungry. If you didn’t mention it, they could hold out a while longer… but the moment you asked, their stomachs felt hollow.

The Qi Family had always felt close to the Yan Family, and with Xiao Er offering food, Qi Si didn’t hesitate. He scarfed down the big steamed bun in a few bites, though he took his time with the dried meat.

Still, he had to admit, the meat really did fill him up. Qi Si made a mental note of that.

Feeling a bit more energized, Qi Si stood up with renewed strength.

“Xiao Er, where should we start looking?”

Of course Yan Yu couldn’t say, “Gouzhu is leading us, we’ll find them in no time.”

“My ears are sharp. Wherever I hear movement or rummaging, that’s where we go.”

Qi Si didn’t doubt her for a second. “Alright, you keep listening. I’ll follow your lead.”

“Xiao Er, should we grab a door panel?” Qi Si asked belatedly.

Yan Yu thought it over. She had a better idea anyway—Qi Si carried things easily enough.

“Uncle Qi Si, find a good one.”

“Got it!”

Qi Si raised a leg and kicked. The door panel leaned heavily to one side.

He stepped forward and gave it a good tug—the panel came off clean.

The wooden stick in his hand now felt pointless. Qi Si didn’t overthink it. He leaned the stick against the yard wall, planning to pick it up later when he returned the panel.

With Gouzhu leading them from the shadows, they quickly found three Northern Rong men.

They’d hitched a mule to a cart—no idea from whose house—and loaded it with sacks of grain.

From the number of bags, it was clear they’d looted more than one household.

Qi Si was just about to tell Xiao Er to flank them when Yan Yu had already called out, “Gouzhu, go!”

Girl and dog charged together.

Yan Yu wasn’t reckless—she’d already seen they had bows slung on their backs.

If they didn’t strike now, when would they?

Her stick jabbed hard into a man’s side. She wasn’t tall enough to reach anywhere more vital…

But with her strength, that blow definitely hurt.

The man curled up in pain, not even able to draw his blade before Qi Si rushed in.

With a solid thwack, the door panel smashed into him and sent him flying.

Yan Yu: …

Brutal!

Before she could say a word, as soon as the man hit the ground, Qi Si took a giant step over and kicked him hard. When he didn’t move, Qi Si spun around and swung the door panel at the next man.

Meanwhile, Gouzhu had latched onto the third man’s arm and refused to let go.

The man couldn’t even hold onto his weapon. All he could do was pound Gouzhu’s head with his left hand.

He was hitting so hard, his own hand was soon covered in blood…

Yan Yu timed it perfectly and jabbed him in the chest. The pain had him snarling in agony.

Qi Si had just finished off another and didn’t even have time to check if he was dead. He dashed over, grabbed the last Northern Rong’s leg, and yanked him right off the mule.

Gouzhu reacted quickly to the situation, immediately letting go and leaping aside.

Qi Si swung a kick at the man, sending him tumbling several times.

He followed up with two heavy smacks…

The doorboard finally gave way under the strain and cracked!

Qi Si didn’t even care that his trusty weapon had broken down. He rushed back and used the battered board to finish the job.

For the man whose fate was still uncertain, he landed a few more solid strikes just to be sure.

Yan Yu: And with that, Uncle Qi Si completed a triple kill.

She and Gouzhu… could barely count as assists.

They had deliberately left three horses behind. Yan Yu tied their reins together and secured them in place.

Three live horses, and from what looked like a legitimate source… Even if they couldn’t keep them, selling them would be worth quite a bit!

Thinking about the horses’ value, Yan Yu couldn’t help the surge of excitement in her chest.

Qi Si, apparently convinced that the doorboard was a handy tool, went to another house and skillfully pried off half a new one.

…

Yan Yu and Uncle Qi Si were sweeping through the enemies with deadly force.

Now that she had found her proper role, she and Gouzhu were getting better and better at providing support.

In her heart, Yan Yu began keeping silent count: one tael, another tael, yet another tael…

They seemed to realize this village wouldn’t be easy to take.

The Northern Rong retreated.

After thoroughly searching the village and confirming there were no more Northern Rong around, the villagers broke into cheers. One by one, they emerged from the Arrow Towers, returned to their homes, and began checking on their belongings.

Hearing the noise from the village in the distance, Yan Yu remained determined, continuing to run toward the outskirts with Gouzhu.

Qi Si had no clue what she was up to, but figured running wasn’t the worst idea.

The two of them chased the trail out of the village and soon spotted several Northern Rong in the distance. They were grouped together, not leaving, just lingering by the roadside talking.

Yan Yu’s expression tightened. She signaled for Uncle Qi Si to crouch lower as they crept closer.

Each rider had grain sacks strapped to their horses, and they kept glancing in a particular direction.

A possibility struck Yan Yu instantly.

They were waiting for someone!

More Northern Rong were on their way!

Yan Yu backed up just far enough to stay out of sight, then spoke urgently, “Uncle Qi Si, carry me! We need to get back to the village right now!”

…

Village Chief Luo was listening as each family recounted their losses, feeling relieved. “Not too bad, not too bad… they didn’t take much…”

“They’re still here!”

Qi Si came running at full speed with Yan Yu on his back, not even winded.

Yan Yu added, “Those Northern Rong who ran off didn’t actually leave. They’re still outside the village, like they’re waiting for someone!”

“They’re waiting? You mean more bandits are coming?”

“How could there be more?”

“What are we afraid of? However many show up, we kill them all!”

Master Lu said, “It’s quite likely more are on the way. Earlier it was only forty or fifty of them, tops. That’s too few. When the Northern Rong raid a village, they normally send at least two or three hundred. They wouldn’t be able to haul off our grain otherwise.”

The people of Xiao’an Village fell silent.

Yan Yu quietly filled in the missing piece in her mind.

So all the trouble they’d gone through before… was just to deal with the advance scouts. Most likely, they were here to survey the area. The real force hadn’t even arrived yet.

She cast a worried glance at the sky.

The moonlight was pale and cold, bathing the earth in its faint glow.

Reinforcements… when the hell are they going to get here?!

…

When will the reinforcements finally arrive?

Magistrate Tian was silently asking himself the same question, hoping the reinforcements would reach Crouching Tiger soon.

The situation outside the city was getting worse by the day.

There was still no sign of reinforcements, but more and more Northern Rong forces were appearing.

Previously, when the Border Army tried to break out of the city, they fell into a hidden ambush set by those Northern Rong dogs. The losses were devastating, and the enemy nearly forced their way in…

“Magistrate, things aren’t looking good out there. Where exactly did you send people to ask for aid? Is it reliable? Why aren’t they here yet?”

Yan Lao’er had sent his daughter out of the city, but he himself had stayed behind.

Rather than sitting in the government office worrying in fear, he thought it better to stay here where he could keep track of the latest developments.

By now, he was quite good at climbing the walls. After doing it a few times, he’d picked up some tricks. As long as he was careful and paid attention, there was no real danger.

What’s more, the Northern Rong rarely fired arrows anymore. They only loosed volleys when someone tried to charge out of the city.

It seemed like they wanted to trap them inside, but the growing number of Northern Rong forces massing outside made even someone like Yan Lao’er, who didn’t have much insight, feel that something wasn’t right.

So he came down to ask the magistrate.

The Northern Rong had been planning this for a long time – this wasn’t some petty skirmish.

Crouching Tiger City and Xiao’an Village were both grain stores they had their eyes on.

(End of Chapter)