But soon, Bai Siling turned around and walked to the other side.
On the other side, Huang Yongtu had already noticed the commotion.
"What were you talking about with that lad?"
Huang Yongtu frowned.
"Nothing much."
Brushing past Huang Yongtu, Bai Siling returned to her group without any hesitation.
Displeased, Huang Yongtu harrumphed coldly and quickly diverted his attention. On the other hand, Wang Chong was shocked by Bai Siling's actions.
"This woman... is a little too formidable. Did she see through something, or is it just a woman's intuition?"
Looking at the motionless Bai Siling in the distance, Wang Chong's mind was in turmoil.
Bai Siling's actions had truly caught everyone off guard. Wang Chong had to admit that he didn't expect Bai Siling to be paying attention to him all this while.
But even so, Wang Chong didn't think that he had any flaws that she could see through. In Wang Chong's view, Bai Siling's actions seemed to be the fearsome intuition of a woman.
"The women in the training camp who are able to reach True Martial realm are indeed extraordinary!"
Wang Chong thought. Second Sister Wang Zhu Yan, Marchioness Yi, Princess Ni Huang, and now Bai Siling were the same as well.
This left Wang Chong feeling deeply apprehensive!
Furthermore, Bai Siling's final words left Wang Chong with an indescribable feeling. Bai Siling said that she had met him somewhere before.
But Wang Chong knew that it was impossible for him to have met her before!
"I have underestimated her."
Wang Chong thought.
At the peak of the mountain, the fire was still blazing. It should have been a swift mission, but Xu Gan took an entire hour to arrive.
By the time they came down from the mountain, they were all covered in soot, and Xu Gan's face was as dark as the bottom of a wok.
"Milord …"
Zhang San spurred his horse forward with a glimmer of hope in his eyes. However, Xu Gan quickly turned his head away.
"Don't ask. You've failed. Two of them escaped! "
As he said those words, Xu Gan's complexion was extremely awful. This time, he was full of confidence and had considered all the problems very well.
But when they really arrived at the top of the mountain, everything was completely different from what they had expected.
Xu Gan spent more than an hour hunting down the bandits who had escaped, hoping to make up for his mistake. However, the darkness of the night, the complicated terrain, and the darkness of the night instead became his greatest obstacles.
Even though he had given it his all, the two bandits still managed to escape.
Even Xu Gan himself sustained some injuries. It wasn't from the bandits but from his hasty pursuit that his steed lost its footing and got caught in the thorny vines.
Xu Gan wanted to lie and say that he had killed all of them, but other than him, there were still twenty veterans of the Tang dynasty.
It was impossible for him to do such a thing even if he wanted to.
"Milord, there's no need to worry about it. There are still many bandits and highwaymen on the road to the west, and this is only the first one. There will be many more opportunities in the future, so just be careful."
Zhang San consoled.
In the first place, the royal court didn't expect the recruits to succeed in this operation. They were just making use of this opportunity to temper them.
Zhang San had already thought this through, so he wasn't too disappointed.
Since it was still early, the group made use of the darkness of the night to rush toward the second bandit den.
Xu Gan had been suppressing his anger for a long time now. This time, without waiting for orders, he led the twenty cavalrymen up the mountain like ferocious tigers unleashed from their lashes.
Having learned his lesson from the last time, Xu Gan was exceptionally cautious. He had also made ample preparations beforehand.
But an hour later, Xu Gan appeared before them with an even uglier complexion than before.
Even though he had been extremely careful, a few bandits still managed to escape.
It wasn't that Xu Gan hadn't participated in other missions before, but the bandits on the road to the west were exceptionally cunning. They were more familiar with the terrain here, and they were more adept at making use of it. At the same time, they were also more experienced in dealing with government troops.
It was as if he was holding a loach in his hand, unable to catch it no matter how hard he tried.
"Damn it!"
Xu Gan's face turned livid. He had finally realized that the mission wasn't as simple as he had thought.
"Brother Xu, why don't you let me give it a try?"
Huang Yongtu stepped forward with his steed between his legs and offered.
"There's no need for that. I don't believe that a disciple of Longwei Training Camp like me, the heir of the Xu Clan, won't be able to deal with a bunch of weak bandits! "
Not only did Xu Gan not give up after two consecutive failures, he was even more determined to wash away the humiliation he had suffered.
Making use of the darkness of the night, the group headed west. When they arrived at the third bandit den, Xu Gan immediately charged up the mountain.
The commotion this time around was clearly much better than the previous two. There were no blazing flames or the neighing of horses.
But when a small bandit slid down the cliff and disappeared into the valley, Xu Gan felt like his lungs were going to explode.
Without a doubt, this meant that he had failed yet again.
The escape of any bandit meant that their whereabouts had been compromised. After three consecutive failures, something unexpected was bound to happen. Xu Gan's mission was a complete failure.
"Brother Xu, it's inevitable for you to fail the first time. Why don't you rest for a while and leave the rest to me? "
Huang Yongtu patted Xu Gan's shoulder and said nonchalantly.
Xu Gan was from Longwei Training Camp, and his cultivation was even higher than his. Initially, Huang Yongtu had thought highly of Xu Gan for this mission. However, the three consecutive failures had left Huang Yongtu's eyes wide open. He began to look down on Xu Gan a little more and a little less.
Furthermore, it was written all over his face.
Sensing this change, Xu Gan harrumphed coldly before riding his steed to the side. Even though he was indignant, after failing so many times, even Xu Gan was at a loss for words.
Taking advantage of the fact that there was still some time before daybreak, the army marched for twenty li and arrived at the fourth bandit's territory. Needless to say, Huang Yongtu was in high spirits as he led the twenty-odd cavalrymen forward like tigers and wolves.
Roughly an hour later, Huang Yongtu finally returned with his men. Unlike Xu Gan, there were injured soldiers in Huang Yongtu's group as well.
Just by looking at his expression, everyone could tell that Huang Yongtu had failed as well. He had failed to wipe out all of the bandits.
"What are you looking at? Is it strange to fall into a trap? There's something interesting to see here! "
Huang Yongtu angrily retreated to the side with his men. Huang Yongtu didn't expect the bandits to be so cunning. The path leading to the den seemed to be safe, but it was actually riddled with traps.
In a moment of carelessness, Huang Yongtu and his steed had fallen into a trap. Since the trap had already been triggered, the bandits in the den had already been alerted. It was easy to imagine what would happen next.
Huang Yongtu might be strong, but his fist was stuck in the air, unable to exert any strength at all.
"Hmph, and I thought that you were a capable man!"
Naturally, Xu Gan wouldn't let this opportunity slip by.
Only at this moment did everyone realize that the simple order from the Bureau of Military Personnel was completely different from what they had imagined.
It wasn't difficult to defeat those bandits, but it was impossible to annihilate all of them without letting a single one escape.
The fourth and fifth bandit groups were located relatively close to each other.
The one to carry out the mission this time was Bai Siling.
But they still failed.
Five missions from the three of them ended in failure. Even Lieutenant Zhang Lin was unable to offer any words of consolation at this point.
These few recruits from Shenwei and Longwei Training Camps seemed to be completely inexperienced. At this rate, there was no way they would be able to succeed in the mission.
There was no need for them to carry on with the mission.
Furthermore, even though they had wiped out a few groups of bandits, it wouldn't be long before new groups of bandits rose up and reclaimed the hills.
There was no lack of such adventurers on the road to the west.
Five missions in a single night. By this time, the sun had already risen, and it was no longer suitable for them to carry out any missions.
"Alright, let's rest for a while. Don't give up, we'll continue tomorrow night … "
Before Zhang Lin could finish his words, he was interrupted by a sharp rebuke.
"Brat, what are you laughing at? Are you mocking us? "
Xu Gan suddenly glared at Wang Chong and bellowed furiously.
"Am I?"
Wang Chong pointed a finger at himself with a perplexed look on his face. He had been sitting on the back of the horse all this while, and he didn't seem to have done anything at all.
When did Xu Gan see him mocking them?
"Hmph! Still trying to deny it? "
The more Xu Gan thought about it, the angrier he got. Three missions in a single night, and all of them ended in failure. This left Xu Gan fuming. At this moment, he felt that everyone was mocking him.
No matter whose gaze it was, even if it were to brush past him, Xu Gan would find it extremely jarring. As for whether Wang Chong was laughing at him or not, it didn't matter anymore.
"… Do you think that we are useless? Do you think that you are more formidable than us? Hmph, do you think that I can't see through your thoughts? If you are that formidable, why don't you go? Let us see what you are capable of! "
Xu Gan said coldly.
"Am I?"
Wang Chong pointed at himself with an innocent look on his face. He didn't seem to have such thoughts, nor did he say such words. However, from the looks of it, Xu Gan seemed to have confirmed his thoughts.
"Hmph, what arrogance!"
Huang Yongtu harrumphed coldly by the side. Initially, he thought that Xu Gan was a weakling, but when it came to the operation, he realized that the situation was far more complicated than he had imagined.
At this moment, Huang Yongtu felt a stinging sensation on his face.
It wouldn't have mattered much if all of them had failed, but of the four of them, three had failed. Only Wang Chong had yet to give it a try.
At this moment, Huang Yongtu was naturally standing on Xu Gan's side.
"Lad, since you are so formidable, why don't you try it yourself? Then why don't you do it yourself and show us! "
Huang Yongtu mocked from the side.
A glint flashed across Bai Siling's eyes. She wanted to say something, but she eventually held it in. Only Lieutenant Zhang Lin was a little worried.
"Sirs, it's important for us to maintain amicable relations. We still need to work together in the future. Besides, the sun is already up, and it's no longer suitable for us to make a move … "
Zhang Lin urged his steed to stand in the middle of the group, hoping to alleviate the tense atmosphere. But at this moment, something unexpected happened.
"Alright!"
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