roccoschili Chapter 66 A Secret Maneuver
Chapter 66 A Secret Maneuver
Traveling day and night for three days, Li Chong, who was once impeccably dressed, now showed no trace of his former scholarly demeanor.
Although he wasn't exactly covered in dirt, if he walked down the street, people would definitely throw money at him.
In the mountains and forests of the Northern Song Dynasty, there was the most primitive wilderness atmosphere. Various branches and weeds tore his clothes to shreds, and only the calves where he was bound with leggings were still intact.
However, after these days of training, although Li Chong's clothes were torn, his eyes became even more bright.
Walking on mountain paths, while not quite effortless, I was no longer as breathless and unable to speak as I was on the first day.
Looking up at the horizon, the sun was almost completely setting, and soon the mountains would be plunged into darkness.
This is in the mountains, unlike the flatlands outside; the moonlight is not enough to fully illuminate the forest.
If a fight were to break out at night, torches would have to be lit, which would make them easy targets.
Therefore, if you're going to take action, you should do it now.
Looking at the mountain stronghold that was faintly visible in the distance, Li Chong asked in a deep voice, "Where is the road you mentioned that leads into the stronghold? No need to rest, let's charge in now and catch them off guard."
Hu Changyong hesitated for a moment upon hearing this, gripped his weapon, and said, "Since it's a surprise attack, it's best to make a big show of it. I'll lead the men up the side path, and you can attack from the other side. The people in the village will definitely think they're surrounded, and the fighting will be easier from there."
Li Chong frowned and looked at Hu Changyong: "Even at this point, you're still harboring ulterior motives? It's fine if you want to be a bandit, but do you have to force others to follow you down this dark path?"
Hu Changyong's intentions were obvious; he simply didn't want these people to know about the paths in the mountain stronghold.
But they didn't have many people to begin with. There were more than 300 bandits in the stronghold alone, plus the old and weak. Wouldn't it be more unforeseen if they split up their forces at this time?
Hu Changyong's face darkened, and he tried to explain, but he was speechless.
At this moment, Xue Ming spoke up, "Your Excellency, I think this fellow has ill intentions; he might even..."
Li Chong glanced back at him, and Xue Ming wisely shut his mouth.
This is not the time to escalate the conflict; we cannot let Xue Ming continue speaking.
Li Chong looked at Jia Zhuo and Zhong Mei beside him: "Do you two think the same way he does?"
Jia Zhuo shook his head directly: "Your Excellency, don't listen to this fool. I know that path too. If he won't lead the way, I can lead you there."
Zhong Mei then expressed her opinion frankly, came to Hu Changyong's side, and whispered a few words, making Hu Changyong feel very aggrieved.
"Come on, follow me, this way," Zhong Mei led the way.
Li Chong waved his hand, and the group quietly followed.
As Zhongmei walked, she said, "We discovered that path by accident when a few of us sneaked out to play. We managed to sneak out without my dad knowing several times. If we go there now, no one will find us."
Upon hearing this, Jia Zhuo's face showed a nostalgic expression: "Little Mei'er, do you really think your elder brother didn't notice?"
"Huh?" Zhong Mei turned around in surprise.
Jia Zhuo smiled slightly: "You're still so young. When your father and I were on the mountain, you were still an infant. We used this as our base, so how could we not have carefully surveyed the surrounding terrain? Every time you sneaked out, your older brother arranged for someone to follow you. Otherwise, how could he feel at ease?"
"father……"
Zhong Mei was momentarily stunned upon hearing this.
Li Chong interjected, "If what Mr. Jia said is true, then wouldn't many people in the village know about this path? Wouldn't they have set up sentries there?"
"Your Excellency can rest assured about that." Jia Zhu shook his head. "Not to mention that we did not reveal our whereabouts along the way, and no one knows that we have arrived here. As for that small path, only some old people in the village know about it. Du Heng and Deng Meng joined later and do not know about this place, so there are no sentries here."
"The road is a bit steep, so it might take some effort later."
Li Chong nodded slightly. He wasn't afraid of the effort, as long as he wasn't discovered.
They circled the village once, until the sun had completely set behind the mountains, leaving only a patch of evening glow on the horizon, preventing the mountains from becoming completely obscured.
Pointing to a steep path, Hu Changyong said expressionlessly, "This is the path. Go up from here and you'll reach the back village. From there, the journey to Juyi Hall is unobstructed."
As he spoke, Hu Changyong, leaning on his knife, was the first to step forward.
"Wait a minute," Li Chong called out to him.
As Hu Changyong turned around, Li Chong gave Wu Dalang a wink: "Let them go up first."
Wu Dalang was somewhat surprised. He looked at the path and gritted his teeth.
Fortune favors the bold, and now that things have come to this point, there's no room for him to turn back.
"Brothers, follow me!" Wu Dalang shouted, leading his men up the mountain.
"Erlang, you come along too. Remember not to hold back when the fight starts. They're full of murderous and arsonist bandits. Killing them will rid the people of this scourge!"
Although Wu Song was very skilled, Li Chong realized after spending time with him these past few days that he was actually a decent person.
He was imprisoned for murder because of a moment of righteous indignation.
Li Chong was worried that he wouldn't be able to do it, so he encouraged him a few more times.
Wu Song looked at Li Chong with some worry: "The master has no one to protect him, what if..."
Li Chong raised his long sword and gestured, "Don't worry, I'm not helpless. As long as you can hold off the people in front of you, you don't need to worry about my safety."
Wu Song nodded in agreement and followed after him.
Watching Wu Song's retreating figure, Hu Changyong waved his hand: "Hurry up, tell your men to leave quickly."
Li Chong, however, was no longer in a hurry and gestured, "It's your turn."
"You!" Hu Changyong was a little annoyed, thinking that Li Chong was playing a trick on him.
Fortunately, Jia Zhuo was still nearby and quickly stepped forward to stop them, saying, "We'll go right now, we'll go right now!"
Hu Changyong couldn't see clearly, but Jia Zhuo knew perfectly well that Li Chong was still wary of them.
By placing them in the middle, one in front and one behind, they can respond promptly should any unforeseen circumstances arise.
Judging from Hu Changyong's behavior, he was wary of Li Chong and they were not a good match. Jia Zhuo had nothing to say and could only urge everyone to set off quickly.
After Hu Changyong and his group went up, Li Chong nodded to Xue Ming: "Wenzhao, let's go."
"Yes!" Xue Ming bowed respectfully and beckoned his men to follow.
The path was indeed quite steep, and even though Li Chong had gotten used to mountain paths these past few days, he still found it somewhat strenuous to walk.
However, as he walked further and further away, the commotion ahead grew louder and louder; they were getting closer to the mountain stronghold.
By this time, it was completely dark, but the village in the distance was still brightly lit, so the road was still visible.
Li Chong and the others lay on the hillside, gazing at the distant mountain stronghold, and couldn't help but feel a little worried.
At this hour, the stronghold is still bustling with activity. Could it be that people have become wary of them?
Everyone looked at Li Chong.