When night fell, Zhang Quan led the caravan straight into the dense forest of Shang Mang Mountain.
There were only about a hundred people in the Chu clan's caravan, so their ability to fend off the bandits wasn't that great. However, Zhang Quan and the others were veterans in this caravan, and they had a wealth of experience. If they couldn't fend off the bandits, then they could just hide. Shang Mang Mountain was huge, and with their experience, they could easily circle around the bandits and sweep away all traces of their trail, leaving Shang Mang Mountain safely.
Even if they were unlucky and were discovered by the bandits, Zhang Quan and the others would decisively leave the goods behind and run.
Although the bandits were ruthless and merciless, compared to killing, robbing was far more important. So, if they encountered such a situation, the bandits would definitely go for the goods they left behind first, and Zhang Quan and the others would be able to escape easily.
It was inevitable for a caravan to run into such situations. As long as they didn't get into trouble often, the Chu clan wouldn't blame them. They would make up for their losses with a few more trips.
Zhang Quan looked up at the sky and whispered to the caravan, "Let's go a bit further. There's a fairly large cave up ahead. We'll rest there."
Suddenly, a loud laugh sounded. "There's no need to go. If you want to rest today, you can rest here!"
Along with this voice, torches were lit, and the clanging of weapons could be heard. A dense group of bandits appeared in front of them.
Zhang Quan's expression immediately changed. What was going on?
He had only decided to take this route recently, and there weren't any bandits in the vicinity.
Most importantly, even if he was really unlucky enough to encounter bandits, he should have been able to detect a trace of movement. Moreover, these bandits clearly seemed to know the route of their caravan and deliberately waited for them here!
"Run!"
Zhang Quan shouted and urged his horse to turn around and run. The other stewards and members of the caravan did the same. They didn't have time to think too much about it.
However, the situation was different from what they had expected. The quality of these bandits was comparable to that of soldiers. Faced with the goods they left behind, the bandits didn't even spare them a glance, and charged straight for them.
Moreover, the stronger ones among the bandits targeted the stewards of the caravan, while the ordinary cultivators of the caravan were ignored.
Zhang Quan couldn't help but feel anxious as he watched the bandits catch up to the stewards of their caravan and kill them one by one.
He gritted his teeth, pulled out a dagger, and stabbed it into the horse's butt. The horse neighed in pain and sped up.
However, at this moment, a heavy sword flew over from afar, directly smashing towards Zhang Quan.
Although Zhang Quan was the manager of the caravan, he had only practiced some basic martial arts. He had relied on his own methods to manage the caravan all these years, not martial arts.
When the heavy sword smashed down, he subconsciously turned around and raised his arms to block, but his arms were directly smashed into pieces. He spat out a mouthful of blood and fell from his horse.
Behind him, Ma Kuo walked over slowly. He picked up the terrified Zhang Quan and whispered into his ear, "Zhang Quan, right? Young Master Chu Xiu asked me to bring you a message. Steward Zhang, have a safe journey! "
The moment he heard this, Zhang Quan's eyes were filled with shock.
He understood, he understood everything now. The second young master of the Chu clan had colluded with bandits to rob their caravan!
However, Zhang Quan didn't have the time to feel resentful or regretful. Ma Kuo had already pulled out a dagger and stabbed it into Zhang Quan's chest. He twisted it with all his might before throwing Zhang Quan, who was already struggling to breathe, to the ground.
Ma Kuo flicked the blood off the dagger and waved to the other bandits. "Go, open the goods. Let's see what young master Chu has prepared for us."
The next morning, news came from the Chu clan's manor. The Chu clan's caravan had been robbed!
The entire caravan had more than a hundred people. Not only had they lost all of their goods, they had also lost more than twenty people. Most importantly, the three stewards of the caravan were among the twenty people. None of them managed to escape.
The Chu clan had been doing business for many years. The only time they suffered such a great loss was when they weren't familiar with the paths of Shang Mang Mountain. In recent years, something like this had never happened before.
In the courtyard of the second madam, Chu Sheng's face was a little gloomy. "Mother, do you think this has something to do with Chu Xiu? Steward Zhang and the others had just offended Chu Xiu, and now something happened here. "
The second madam's expression was also gloomy. "I don't know. Logically speaking, Chu Xiu shouldn't have the guts to do something like this. If the master finds out about this, even if he is the master's biological son, the master will cripple him.
Besides, even if he has the guts, he doesn't have the power. The bandits of Shang Mang Mountain are arrogant and unruly. Why would they listen to him? Last time, I spent ten thousand taels of silver to hire a small bandit gang. Where did Chu Xiu get so much money?
Before we have evidence, we shouldn't spread this matter. Otherwise, the master will be unhappy. "
Chu Sheng nodded, but at this time, he suddenly said, "Why don't we dig out all of Chu Xiu's subordinates and ask them if they have any clues?"
The second madam coldly snorted. "Chu Xiu has become much more cautious after returning from the Southern Mountain Mining Area. After returning to the Chu clan, he sent all of his subordinates to the Southern Mountain Mining Area. Now, we can't find them at all. The only one following him is Gao Bei. However, that person is his confidant. Since Chu Xiu keeps him by his side, he won't be afraid of us digging him out. "
Chu Sheng's face showed a trace of unwillingness. His opponent had always been the eldest son of the Chu clan, Chu Xiu. He didn't expect that Chu Xiu would suddenly appear and cause him such a big loss.
The second madam waved her hand and said, "Alright, don't complain. The master will send you to a meeting later. Say what you should, but don't say what you shouldn't."
Chu Sheng nodded, turned around, and walked out.
The incident with the caravan wasn't a big deal, but it wasn't a small one either. Because such a thing hadn't happened in many years, it alarmed Chu Zongguang. Some of the stewards, as well as Chu Xiu's sons, were called over to listen to the meeting.
Inside the meeting hall, Chu Xiu sat there without the slightest expression on his face. Chu Sheng, on the other hand, occasionally glanced at Chu Xiu. No one knew what he was thinking.
Several members of the caravan, who had escaped death, still had frightened expressions on their faces. They recounted what happened that night, but unfortunately, there wasn't anything of value.
They didn't even know the bandit's name, nor did they see the bandit's face. Those bandits killed everyone they saw, and they only cared about running for their lives. How could they care about such things?
Chu Zongguang waved his hand slightly irritably and said, "Alright, alright, I'll remember this lesson. Next time, be more careful. Disperse, I'm going back to seclusion."
At this time, Chu Xiu suddenly stood up and said, "Father, the caravan is like a group of dragons without a leader. I'm willing to lead the caravan to Shang Mang Mountain again."
When these words came out, everyone present was stunned, including Chu Xiu's three brothers.
Ever since the Chu clan had been established in the Tongzhou Prefecture, apart from some open and secret battles with other clans, the number of people who died in the caravans was the second highest.
Just like this time, if you were unlucky enough to encounter bandits, whether you could survive or not would depend on your luck.
Thus, even if Chu Sheng and the others managed the caravan, they would never follow the caravan. At most, they would be responsible for arranging the caravan's goods and so on.
Chu Zongguang frowned and said, "Why are you following them? How can you lead a caravan without any experience? "
Chu Xiu said gravely, "The caravan is currently in a state of panic. If they don't have someone with enough authority to lead them, when will they be able to resume their journey?
Other matters can be delayed, but our Chu clan's pharmacy cannot be delayed. There are some medicines in the pharmacy that will run out of stock if we don't bring them back soon.
As a direct descendant of the Chu clan, I should take the lead and inspire the people. Father, please allow me to do this. "
Chu Zongguang frowned. He hadn't expected Chu Xiu to be so enlightened.
However, after thinking about it, he still said, "Then go. Be careful."
Chu Xiu cupped his hands and walked out under the puzzled gazes of the others.
The other three Chu Xiu's brothers didn't pay him any heed. This kind of strenuous, unrewarding, and even dangerous task, they wouldn't do it even if it was given to them for free.
The caravan's members were all gathered in a small courtyard. Several dozen of them were dejected, and the Chu clan members who passed by pointed at them.
This time, they were indeed vexed. They were robbed as soon as they entered the mountain. They didn't keep their things, and many of them died. Some of them even developed a mentality of fear and didn't dare to travel with the caravan again.
Chu Xiu parted the crowd and walked in. The group of people were also listless. Only a few of them stood up and cupped their hands at Chu Xiu. "Greetings, second young master."
Chu Xiu glanced at the crowd and said, "Pack up. The caravan will set off for the Yan Kingdom again."
Hearing this, the people immediately became anxious. Someone immediately said, "Second young master, we just got into trouble. No matter what, we need to recuperate for a while and think of a countermeasure before we leave. What if we are robbed again after entering the mountain? "
The other caravans also agreed. They were really scared out of their wits.
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