The young beggars, seeing how formidable San Gouzi was, were too scared to move recklessly.
The burly-faced thug had been knocked out by the soporific powder Tian Dou scattered. He, along with three or four other ruffians, were engaged in a fierce battle with Lu Yun and his group.
Lu Yun and the other four children all knew martial arts. When they discovered that the ruffians had little skill, their confidence surged. With San Gouzi assisting them, their small fists flew with even more vigor.
The young beggars, realizing the strengths and weaknesses of both sides, immediately chose their allegiance. They rushed forward in a swarm, attacking the ruffians and the adult beggars.
Caught off guard by the internal betrayal, the ruffians were subdued in a short while.
Seeing that the situation was dire, two adult beggars tried to flee. However, San Gouzi bit them fiercely, refusing to let go. Lu Yun leaped over and kicked them into submission with a few swift blows.
After all the captives were securely bound, Lu Yun ordered the other two ruffians to be dragged over.
Six or seven ruffians were thus thrown haphazardly under the bridge. Surrounding them were five young boys, six or seven young beggars, and three dogs.
Lu Yun called out the two young beggars who had delivered the message. Then, in front of everyone, he gave each of them 30 wen and two meat buns.
The two young beggars stuffed the money into their pockets and eagerly grabbed the buns, taking huge bites.
The older of the two, while chewing, mumbled incoherently, "This young hero, I learned from them. You are just five small children, they didn't believe it, saying you were definitely fried."
Lu Yun patted his dirty shoulder. "Mm, I believe you."
The aroma of the meat buns wafted into the nostrils of all the young beggars. Without any hesitation, they gulped down their saliva.
Wu Wa placed a hand on his forehead.
Lu Yun said to the young beggars, "Today, you helped us punish the bad guys. When this is over, I'll treat each of you to two meat buns!"
"Oh, oh, thank you, young hero!"
The young beggars' eyes lit up, and they cheered.
Lu Yun shifted his gaze to the people tied up on the ground.
Due to the moderate dose of the soporific, those individuals had already woken up.
The first one to arrive, a sharp-featured man, cursed, "You little bastards, just you wait. I'll deal with you one by one later! I'll peel your skin and fry you!"
Lu Yun immediately walked over and kicked him in the mouth several times.
The sharp-featured man's teeth were instantly knocked out, and his lips swelled into two sausages.
Seeing this, the other ruffians all shut their mouths tightly.
They considered themselves unlucky today, to have fallen into the hands of these little brats. They figured these children wouldn't dare do anything too severe. Hmph, a true man knows when to bend and when to stand firm. Once they endured today's humiliation, they would settle the score later!
As for those young beggars, they would show them what a truly ruthless person was!
Lu Yun sternly declared, "Sharp-feature, Master Ma, Laughing Tiger, and these two stinking beggars! You bully the young and the weak, the few against the many. In the past, to force my little brother to steal, you beat him and abused him daily, even ordering people to put leeches and lice on him. Today, I will let you taste the same suffering."
Lu Yun used a small dagger to lightly slice each of them, creating small cuts on their skin. Then, he exchanged a glance with the other four children. The four children immediately pinched leeches from the clay bowls and placed them on the bleeding cuts.
The ruffians turned pale with fear.
These little brats were even more ruthless than them, cutting their skin before applying leeches. It was too damn cruel!
The greenish-brown leeches, smelling the blood, immediately wriggled their soft bodies and burrowed into the flesh.
The young beggars standing by looked on with schadenfreude.
Each of them had been severely bullied by these ruffians. Today, it was finally the ruffians' turn to experience the taste of being bullied.
This feeling of revenge was joyous and made them feel incredibly satisfied.
If these young children could thoroughly deal with these ruffians today, they would recognize the leading young child as their older brother from then on.
He could protect his own little brother like that, seeking revenge for him regardless of the cost, so he would definitely be able to protect them in the future.
As long as they became his younger brothers.
The leeches were frantically sucking blood, and the ruffians felt a crawling sensation all over their bodies from the disgust.
Lu Yun then used the dagger to comb through their hair, allowing Tian Ya to personally pour the lice from the porcelain bottle onto their scalps.
The lice, having found a suitable environment to survive, immediately tumbled their famished bodies and burrowed into the hair.
Everyone present shivered at the sight.
After placing the lice, Lu Yun said to Tian Ya and all the beggars, "Later, we will stuff their mouths with stinky socks. Anyone present who has been bullied by these ruffians can come up and beat them."
After Lu Yun finished speaking, no beggar dared to move. A few older beggars said, "Young hero, if we beat them today, but don't... kill them, what will happen if they retaliate against us later?"
This question stumped Lu Yun.
Yes, it was satisfying to take revenge on these ruffians today, but if they let them go, they would surely retaliate. The five of them wore masks, but these young beggars did not. He had planned for a long time, but he hadn't thought of this point.
Tian Dou, Lu Yu, Tie Zhu, and Tian Ya all looked at Lu Yun blankly. They too hadn't considered this aspect.
"Everyone, don't rush. Let me think!" Lu Yun's mind was in a bit of a mess at the moment.
Should he kill them? But they were still children, and they were really hesitant to kill.
Although they had fought many brawls in Hongshu Village, they had only injured those people and had not personally killed anyone.
Or should they go back and find Big Brother and Sister-in-law? But if their brother and sister-in-law found out about such a big commotion they had caused, they would surely spank them soundly.
Just then, a lazy voice suddenly rang out, "You take your revenge as you please, I will handle the aftermath!"
The children turned their heads, but saw no one.
However, the bushes on the other side of the bridge began to rustle. After a while, a man crawled out from the bushes.
The man crawled on the ground, moving forward. Only after he had completely crawled out of the bushes did the children realize he was disabled, with no legs below his knees.
His clothes were extremely tattered, his hair was long and disheveled like a bird's nest, and his beard was also long and thick, covering half of his face. Although his face was dirty, one could still see scars from knife cuts.
His age was indiscernible, but judging by his voice, he was likely in his twenties or thirties.
"Uncle Cripple!" Tian Ya's eyes suddenly lit up, and he shouted, running towards him.
The man called "Uncle Cripple" revealed a set of yellow-black teeth and smiled, "Kid, you know me?"
Tian Ya rushed to his side, his eyes brimming with tears. "I've been looking for you and Uncle Fool for a long time, but I couldn't find you."
Uncle Cripple's eyes were a little unfocused. He didn't remember knowing this well-dressed, rich child in front of him, especially since he was wearing a mask.