Reborn as a Happy Wife in a Rural Family
Chapter 53: Encounter

Chapter 53: Chapter 53: Encounter

Eldest Brother Xiao and Second Brother Xiao couldn’t help but feel a chill crawl up their spines. They never would have imagined that their seemingly gentle little sister-in-law possessed such a commanding aura at this moment.

They had underestimated this young woman.

Tsk, tsk, tsk. From now on, Third better not fall into her hands.

「At this time, Xiao Yunjing and Wuqing were on their way back to Qinghe County.」

Darkness had fallen, and they couldn’t reach the County Town by nightfall, so they planned to spend the night by the roadside and continue their journey at dawn.

Xiao Yunjing stopped the carriage, secured the horse, fed it some fodder, and then climbed back into the carriage to sit.

This time, they were a few days behind his projected schedule. He was afraid Li’er would worry, so as soon as their business was concluded, they had begun their journey back without pause.

There were also three women they had rescued in the carriage. Wuqing decided to rest inside, while he sat in the driver’s seat, leaning against the carriage shaft, dozing.

Suddenly, a carriage approached from the opposite direction. The driver, a man dressed in a black robe, shouted, "WHOA!" Seeing that the area was spacious, he also stopped his carriage.

He alighted, tied up his horse, rubbed his hands together, went into the darkness to relieve himself, and then returned.

Xiao Yunjing wouldn’t normally pay attention to such carriages, but just moments ago, he had heard faint whimpering sounds coming from it, as if a child’s mouth had been gagged.

His intuition told him these people were kidnappers.

Xiao Yunjing began to observe the carriage more closely.

This kidnapper isn’t simple, he thought. The black-robed man driving the carriage walked with a steady gait, his hands powerful—he could be considered a third-rate expert. And although I can’t see the person inside the carriage, his aura seems even more profound than the black-robed man’s, clearly indicating his martial prowess surpasses the driver’s.

"Young Master, please watch things for a moment." Wuqing alighted from the carriage; nature called, and she could no longer hold it.

"Alright, go ahead," Xiao Yunjing nodded.

"Brother-in-law?"

Awakened inside the other carriage, Dashuang and Xiaoshuang heard Xiao Yunjing’s voice and were overjoyed.

The two boys immediately squirmed, their mouths stuffed with cloth gags. They could only make desperate muffled sounds, hoping their brother-in-law would notice.

Seeing their vigorous commotion, the person inside their carriage frowned and said to the black-robed man, "Let’s go."

The black-robed man immediately untied the reins and was about to jump onto the carriage.

"Friend," Xiao Yunjing called out, "there’s quite a commotion in your carriage. Do the people inside need to relieve themselves?"

Hearing the commotion and muffled cries from the carriage grow even louder, Xiao Yunjing knew the children inside were desperately signaling for help. As if guided by an unseen hand, he blocked the carriage.

"Friend, mind your own business," the black-robed man snapped, leaping onto the carriage and cracking his whip, ready to depart.

Xiao Yunjing exerted a bit of force, and the carriage remained perfectly still, not budging an inch.

Seeing they had encountered an expert, the black-robed man anxiously called out, "Second Shopkeeper!"

The one addressed as Second Shopkeeper spoke from within the carriage, "Friend, which path do you walk? The Blue Clouds Gang is on official business. Please, allow us to pass."

Xiao Yunjing stated coolly, "Leave the children in the carriage, and you may depart."

Hearing their brother-in-law intervene, the two boys thrashed about even more violently inside the carriage.

It couldn’t be helped. Although they knew some martial arts, before these two experts, they were merely lambs to the slaughter.

"Young Master, what’s happening?" Just as the two sides were at a standoff, Wuqing returned after relieving herself and saw the scene.

"Wuqing, rescue the children in the carriage," Xiao Yunjing ordered directly.

Hearing that children were involved, Wuqing didn’t hesitate for a second. "Yes, Young Master."

Then she darted towards the carriage.

The Second Shopkeeper inside the carriage heard another person approaching. He immediately flung aside the curtain and leaped out.

SWOOSH!

A hidden weapon shot towards Wuqing. She simply sidestepped, caught the flying projectile with one hand, and then, like a phantom, appeared behind the Second Shopkeeper. She grabbed his neck and, with a surge of strength—

SNAP!

With a sickening crack, the Second Shopkeeper’s neck broke.

Seeing this, the black-robed man tried to flee, but Xiao Yunjing merely pointed a finger at him, and the man froze, unable to move.

"Acupoint sealing from a distance!" The black-robed man was aghast. Only a Martial Arts Master possesses such an ability!

The black-robed man gulped. Heavens! Not even our gang leader has such profound cultivation!

Wuqing now carried the two children out of the carriage.

"Young Masters?" Wuqing exclaimed in surprise. She quickly untied the snake-tendon ropes binding the two boys and removed the cloth gags from their mouths.

"Brother-in-law!"

Once freed, both boys rushed towards Xiao Yunjing.

Wuqing thought, These two only have eyes for the Young Master.

"How is it you two?" Xiao Yunjing hugged them, patting their backs, his voice filled with surprise.

"It was all Gu Dahe..."

Dashuang quickly recounted the entire sequence of events.

It turned out that as they were leaving school in the afternoon, someone had stopped them at an alley entrance. The man claimed their mother had fallen at home, broken her leg, and was now at the Medical Clinic. He said the doctor had sent him to intercept them, mentioning that the twins would be easy to recognize.

Anxious and not thinking clearly, the two boys had followed the man.

At that time of day, aside from students leaving school, the town was quiet. As they followed the man to another alley entrance, two individuals suddenly leaped out and pressed handkerchiefs over their noses and mouths. As soon as they inhaled the powder on the cloths, they fainted.

They awoke about half an incense stick’s time later and realized they had encountered kidnappers.

The Second Shopkeeper, whose neck Wuqing had snapped, had told them not to waste their efforts trying to escape, as it was futile. He claimed he had bought them from their third uncle for one hundred taels of silver.

Afterward, they had tried to break free from their bonds, but even after exhausting their strength, they couldn’t manage it. It wasn’t until the carriage stopped here and they heard Xiao Yunjing’s voice that they began to struggle and call for help again.

"That animal!"

Xiao Yunjing was consumed by rage. Li’er must be terribly worried by now. He comforted the two boys and ushered them into his carriage, away from the cold night air.

"Wuqing, tie this man up. Then, you drive their carriage, and we’ll proceed slowly towards the County Town."

"What about this body?"

"I’ll handle it."

"Alright." Wuqing used the same snake-tendon ropes that had bound the boys to tie up the black-robed man. She placed him beside the children, telling them to watch him.

Meanwhile, Xiao Yunjing searched the Second Shopkeeper’s corpse. He found a contract; the contents detailed Gu Dahe selling the two boys, and the signature was indeed Gu Dahe’s.

Additionally, there were quite a few silver notes and a money pouch. Inside the pouch, apart from a token identifying the Second Shopkeeper, there was also some silver—not much, just a dozen or so scattered taels.

Xiao Yunjing counted the silver notes; there were over three thousand taels in total.

Xiao Yunjing sneered. Heh, still a fat sheep.

He then found a dagger and several small throwing knives concealed in the Second Shopkeeper’s trouser leg, all of which Xiao Yunjing confiscated.

Finding nothing else, Xiao Yunjing tossed the Second Shopkeeper’s body off a cliff to feed the wild beasts.

The snow has just melted; it’s a time when wild beasts are ravenous. By morning, likely only scraps of clothing will remain.

Xiao Yunjing cast a cold glance at the spot where he had disposed of the body, then returned to the carriages. After everything was settled, the two carriages slowly moved off.

He reckoned that with Li’er’s intelligence and the skills of his Eldest and Second Brothers, they would undoubtedly investigate this matter and come after them.