NABC Chapter 94 Where is there a paradise on earth?
Chapter 94 Where is there a paradise on earth?
Shen Qing pressed his face against the door, listening to the patrolling sounds outside. Even if it wasn't targeting him, the mountain stronghold still had basic security measures in place.
But bandits are no match for regular troops; they are not as disciplined, patrolling with lanterns while gossiping amongst themselves.
Shen Qing had good hearing and listened to the bits and pieces, hoping to gather some useful information.
"Ah~" Ding Er yawned and complained to his companion, "The new kid who just arrived has already become the sixth leader and is on his wedding night, while we've been stuck here all this time and are still stuck here all night in the cold wind. Gou Sheng~ tell me, how come there's such a big difference between people?"
"Oh, missing women?" Gou Sheng chuckled mischievously. "It's our turn to be on duty tomorrow, shall we go to the back hill and have some fun?"
Ding Er looked disgusted. "They've been played with to death, they're filthy, I'm afraid I'll catch a disease!"
"You're quite picky, aren't you? But then again, you still need to find a proper wife like Zhu Zi."
"It's not that easy. Zhu Zi only got a maidservant because he made a great contribution."
"A maid is fine, but the master doesn't even want her. So what if she's a young lady from a wealthy family? Once the master's tired of her, won't he just throw her into the back mountain?"
The casual conversation was scattered by the night wind. Shen Qing only caught a few words like "back mountain," "woman," and "kidnapping." Although she couldn't hear them clearly, Shen Qing had a feeling that it wasn't a good thing, and she secretly began to make plans in her mind.
The mountain breeze rustled, the shadows of the trees swayed, and the entire mountain village seemed to fall into complete silence.
Ye Mingzhu had a thrilling day. She was exhausted from talking so much and felt drowsy. Her eyelids were drooping.
"Why don't you go to bed and take a nap first?" Shen Qing kindly suggested.
Upon hearing this, Ye Mingzhu immediately perked up, shaking her head to try and stay awake, "No, I'm not sleepy!"
"..."
Shen Qing naturally knew what she was afraid of, and couldn't help but indulge in his mischievousness, laughing, "If I wanted to do something, what difference would it make whether you were asleep or awake?"
Ye Mingzhu's face turned bright red after her little scheme was exposed, and she was speechless for a moment.
"Pfft~" Shen Qing couldn't help but laugh. "Okay, okay, I won't tease you anymore. I'll go out and check. You go to sleep."
"Are you going out?" Ye Mingzhu perked up now.
Shen Qing nodded. After being here for more than half a year, he had also mastered the skill of judging the time by observing the sky.
Did you know that the hour of Chou (1-3 AM) is when people are most sleepy? It is during this time that people are most likely to let their guard down.
Ye Mingzhu nodded as if she understood, but when she saw Shen Qing get up, she immediately became uneasy. She was afraid of being left alone!
Seeing this, Shen Qing took out a crossbow from his bag. Fortunately, Zhu Biao did not search him in order to show his "respect for scholars". This equipment was picked up from Lu Huanong.
"Hand out."
"What is this?" Although puzzled, Ye Mingzhu still cooperated by extending her arm.
As Shen Qing strapped the crossbow to Ye Mingzhu's hand, he explained, "This is a crossbow from my old friend. It can fire three arrows in quick succession."
As she spoke, she half-circled Ye Mingzhu and taught her how to use it.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh," three arrows were driven deep into the pillar.
Ye Mingzhu stared in surprise. She could only draw a bow with the strength of a one-stone bow, but this miniature crossbow had the power of a three-stone bow and was easier to control.
"Who designed this?"
"The person is gone."
"...Please accept my condolences."
"So it's just a temporary loan to you. You have to return it to me when you're done."
"……Oh."
Shen Qing was hoping to find a good bow maker in the future to disassemble and study it, and see if it could be mass-produced.
This crossbow wouldn't be of much use to Ye Mingzhu; at most, it could be used to deal with a few bandits with malicious intentions. But if Zhu Biao ordered a mass attack, it would only be used to commit suicide.
I gave it to her simply to give her a sense of security, just in case.
Shen Qing listened intently through the window to make sure no one was passing by at that time before climbing out. Ye Mingzhu immediately locked the window and, gripping her crossbow, was wide awake.
Thanks to the poor living standards of people in this era, most of them suffer from night blindness. In addition, Shen Qing likes to wear black clothes when she goes out, which are dirt-resistant and convenient for walking at night. Therefore, even if someone passes by from a distance, they cannot see Shen Qing.
Why doesn't Shen Qing suffer from night blindness? What kind of living conditions does he have? Night blindness is mainly caused by a lack of vitamin A, which needs to be obtained from animal organs and vegetables. In those days, how often could ordinary people afford to eat meat?
Just as Shen Qing was making a nighttime raid on the mountain stronghold, a dark figure also sneaked up Tiger Head Mountain.
When the patrolling henchman went to relieve himself by the roadside while yawning, a dagger was suddenly pressed against his throat, scaring him so much that he wet his shoes.
"Hero, spare my life!"
"Say it again and I'll kill you!"
The henchmen immediately fell silent.
Where are the women you kidnapped and brought up the mountain being held?
A woman? The henchman had no idea who he was looking for, so he could only vaguely reply, "In the back mountain."
He pointed in a direction and the next second his neck was snapped, before he could even utter a sound.
The shadowy figure continued its stealth advance in the direction indicated.
Shen Qing made his way to the back of the mountain, where a stone house was still lit, and a group of people were queuing outside. Every now and then, bandits would come out from inside, their trousers tied at their waistbands.
"This new woman is really something!"
"The governor's daughter is quite beautiful. When the sixth leader is no longer needed, it will be our turn."
Hehehe~
Shen Qing's face was ashen. If he still couldn't guess that this place was where all the village prostitutes were being held, he would be a fool!
"Tsk~ Another one dead, kid. Carry him out and make him into meat for Fifth Master~"
What is Wheat Meat?
"Hey~ You're the kind of person who grew up eating wheat~ We ate a lot of it on our way out of famine."
The bandit named Maotou couldn't help but gag upon hearing this.
"Hey~ You haven't tasted how good McMurray is. Once you try it, you're hooked. You'll crave it if you don't eat it for a while. Do you know what kind of McMurray is the best? It has to be..."
Shen Qing felt nauseous and forced herself not to vomit. All that talk of "simple and honest folk customs" and a paradise on earth was an illusion. Even if they had suffered misfortune in the past, when they abandoned their basic human decency and became beasts, they deserved to die!
Shen Qing had once considered whether to seize a mountain stronghold and build his own power, but now it seemed impossible. When former law-abiding citizens overcame their psychological barriers and chose to become outlaws, most of them abandoned their conscience, and the oppression they had suffered would rebound tenfold, inflicting violence on the weaker.
Perhaps after years of discipline, they will become a well-disciplined army, like those in countries with stable regimes today, but this process requires sacrificing too many innocent people. Just as only through bloody and dark primitive capital accumulation can superpowers later stand proudly in the world, without the unscrupulous means of the first generation of wealthy people, how could the nth generation of wealthy people be so pure and untainted?
Shen Qing didn't know what his ancestors had done, but in both his past and present lives, he was a steady nth generation descendant. He couldn't do it, he really couldn't, unless a legitimate power descended from the heavens and allowed him to inherit it.