Sunrises and sunsets passed, and time flew by. Half a month had gone by in the blink of an eye. Now, the people of Houxi Village had grown accustomed to the quiet and comfortable environment within the cave.
Besides the abundant water source and sufficient food, another matter brought them great joy: Su Muqing's experimental vegetable patch had succeeded.
The villagers were very curious. What had the Su family girl mixed into the soil? In just half a month, she had managed to grow vegetables in a cave that lacked sunlight.
When they tasted the fresh, green, tender vegetables for the first time, they could hardly believe it. Perhaps it was psychological, but they felt the vegetables were exceptionally crisp and refreshing.
Since it was confirmed that vegetables could be grown in the cave, without Su Muqing needing to remind them, everyone spontaneously carried a lot of soil back from the mountainside to her.
After Su Muqing mixed in the spiritual soil and handed it back to the villagers, they arranged it in rows along the other side of the cave. In total, four plots of spiritual land were laid out.
Su Muqing then took out many different types of vegetable seeds and planted various vegetables in each plot. Many of these varieties were ones the people of Houxi Village had never even seen before.
On August 19th, the third son, who had gone to Yongping Prefecture alone, returned at a gallop with fifteen people. These were all former subordinates of the Prince of Jing. The remaining dozens would follow after sorting out matters in Yongping Prefecture.
When the Prince of Jing's mansion had its incident, all the overt properties belonging to the Prince of Jing's mansion in the capital were sealed by the Emperor. However, Leng Muran had considerable private assets across the country. The previous Emperor knew about this, but the current Emperor was unaware.
Before Xu Fu and the others escaped the capital, they instructed everyone else to carry on with their businesses as usual. After they settled down, they would communicate via carrier pigeon.
Most of the people were arranged to work at the various businesses across the country. A small team of the Huo Family Army was also hidden in Yongping Prefecture. Once Xu Fu and the others settled down, the Huo Family Army would arrive in batches to regroup.
The Huo Family Army soldiers who arrived were overjoyed to see Lu Yuzhi, who, despite his white hair, was clearly no different from a normal person. The old Prince had only this one descendant, and Heaven had finally shown some mercy!
The leader of the Huo Family Army, Huo Xin, was infinitely grateful to Su Muqing after Xu Fu told him that she had saved Lu Yuzhi's life.
Xu Fu said to Huo Xin, "Muqing needs to go to Tianzhao Kingdom to find medicine for the young master and is worried about the people in the village. I've thought long and hard, and finally decided to transfer you all here. Firstly, to look after the safety of the people in Houxi Village. Secondly, there are many things we need to start preparing."
Huo Xin understood Xu Fu's implied meaning. He patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, Elder Xu. Since she is the young master's savior, she is also my savior, Huo Xin. We will do our best to protect the villagers, even at the cost of our lives. Once the young master's poison is completely cured, it will be time for us to seek justice!"
In the evening, Su Muqing brought out many delicious foods to entertain Huo Xin and his group. For a long time to come, the safety of Houxi Village would depend on them. With Xu Fu in charge, and now a group of exceptionally skilled individuals, she could finally set off with peace of mind.
On August 22nd, the third day after Huo Xin and the others arrived, scouts reported signs of bandit activity ten kilometers away in another direction down the mountain. It seemed Song Biao's two brothers had returned.
The group disguised themselves and then galloped towards the west of Kanzi. Towards evening, a troop of people indeed arrived in the distance. A rough count showed about sixty people.
At the rear of the troop, several ox carts were loaded with supplies, and behind the supplies, a long string of women was tied with ropes. After Li Xiaomei identified them, the two people riding at the forefront were Song Biao's two younger brothers, Song Bao and Song Kui!
Su Muqing settled Li Xiaomei in a safe place. Then, Huo Xin and the others dispersed to both sides, tightly monitoring the bandit troop from the flanks to the rear, preventing any stragglers from escaping in the chaos. Lu Yuzhi and the others engaged them directly from the front.
Song Bao saw a group of people suddenly rush out from the roadside and surround them without warning. Moreover, these people moved with light steps and agile postures, clearly indicating they were skilled martial artists. He couldn't help but become vigilant.
Just as he was about to find an excuse to bluff his way through, his third brother, Song Kui, yelled at the top of his lungs, "Which gang are you from? Are you tired of living? How dare you block your grandpa's path!"
After Song Kui shouted, he suddenly saw Su Muqing in the crowd, and his eyes lit up. He quickly dismounted and came before her.
"This young lady, I like her. I'll take her!" he said, reaching out to touch Su Muqing's face.
"Third brother!" Song Bao saw that the situation was not good and quickly called out to stop him, but it was too late.
As soon as Song Kui's hand extended, Su Muqing grabbed his wrist. He smirked playfully and taunted, "Little lady, are you in such a hurry to hold your哥哥's hand? Haha..."
"Ah!!" To his surprise, in the blink of an eye, Song Kui let out a pig-like scream.
The bandits behind Song Kui couldn't see what was happening to him. They could only see his whole body trembling non-stop, and soon, smoke began to rise from him.
Song Bao called his brothers to dismount, intending to go to his aid. Just then, Song Kui fell backward with a "bang!", kicking up a cloud of dust.
After the dust settled, the bandits finally saw his miserable state. Song Kui was now disfigured. His eyes were wide open, his eyeballs protruding significantly. His tongue was swollen and hanging out. The exposed skin was scorched black, as if from severe burns, and there were large wounds that looked like burns.
Seeing his brother's deathly state, Song Bao stumbled back several steps. He raised his wolf-tooth mace and, with grief and indignation, shouted, "Charge! Kill them! The second master will be heavily rewarded!"
The bandits raised their weapons and charged forward. Huo Xin and the others surrounded them and a fierce battle ensued. In a short time, half of the bandits were eliminated. Seeing that he couldn't win, Song Bao tried to escape in the confusion.
However, before he could even reach his horse, a sudden clap of thunder rang out, and a pit suddenly appeared in front of his feet. Song Bao turned to look at the young girl walking towards him.
As Song Bao shifted to the side, he pleaded, "This young lady, we can discuss everything. I am Song Bao, the second boss of Menghu Village. As long as you spare my life, you can take all this stuff and these women. You are skilled in martial arts; we can join forces. Or in the future, I will pledge allegiance to you and obey your commands..."
"Song Bao, your three brothers have committed all sorts of evil deeds: rape, abduction, arson, and robbery. Today, I will act on behalf of Heaven and send you to reunite with your brothers!" After Su Muqing finished speaking, she drew a short sword from behind her, flashed forward, and appeared before Song Bao.