Chapter 50
Chapter 50
Xiao Jingmo glanced over the crowd and saw that Cui Jin had yet to return. Only Zou Yong remained on horseback, with no intention of dismounting.
“Father, now is the perfect time to act.”
Xiao Jingmo murmured into Xiao Che’s ear, his gaze shifting toward Zou Yong at the rear.
At that moment, Zou Yong was still brandishing the whip in his hand, lashing the Xiao Family Branches not far from him.
He kept driving them to move faster.
“Father, it looks like Cui Jin never told Zou Yong about the terrain here. Their partnership isn’t as solid as it seems, is it?”
Xiao Jingmo let out a derisive laugh.
“It’s all driven by profit. Who would willingly split the credit with someone else? If all of us were to die here today and Cui Jin took Jin Bao away, he could claim two shares of credit by himself. As long as Zou Yong is alive, he’s just someone who can steal his glory.”
Xiao Che saw straight through the filth in Cui Jin’s heart.
“Cui Jin’s target is my sister, so he’ll definitely come back.”
Both of them were certain of that.
But right now was the perfect chance to get rid of Zou Yong.
Neither of those two was anything good. Both of them had designs on Jin Bao. If they could eliminate one, then one it would be.
Without a change in expression, Xiao Che handed Jin Bao to Xiao Jingmo.
“Leave this to me. Protect your sister.”
Xiao Jingmo nodded. Holding Jin Bao, he quietly retreated to the side and, without drawing attention, separated his own family into a relatively safe area.
Xiao Che glanced at Zhu Laosan and Li Si, who were still scouting the terrain, then took a few steps back.
He drew the dagger he had kept on him all this time. While everyone’s attention was on the marshland ahead, he flung it out in one swift motion.
The dagger sank straight into the horse’s leg. Startled, the horse bolted with Zou Yong on its back.
Zou Yong was so frightened his soul nearly left his body. He tried to grab the reins, only to nearly be thrown off by the violent jolting. He clung desperately to the horse’s back, without the slightest thought of jumping down.
This confirmed one thing even more: Cui Jin truly had not told him there was a marsh ahead.
On top of that, Zou Yong had been at the very rear of the group the entire time, so he had not noticed anything unusual in front.
The panicked horse sent Madam Chen’s family flying.
Fortunately, the ground was all covered in grassy tussocks, so no one suffered serious injuries.
The horse had not gone far before its hooves sank into the mire, leaving it unable to move.
Zou Yong’s panic eased a little. He had truly been afraid the horse would go mad and throw him off. His leg had not even healed yet; if he were injured again, he would probably leave his life here.
The color gradually returned to Zou Yong’s pale face.
But before he could even catch his breath, he realized something was wrong.
The horse did not seem to have stopped because it had been brought under control. He could already feel his own body sinking.
He lowered his head and saw that the horse’s four legs had been completely swallowed by the black mire. His own feet had already touched the ground.
“No… a marsh?”
Zou Yong’s heart began to race, and his breathing nearly stopped. He immediately turned his head and shouted to Zhu Laosan for help.
“Brother San! Save me! This is a marsh!”
Of course Zhu Laosan knew it was a marsh. But everything had happened too quickly, and he had no idea what madness had gotten into Zou Yong for him to ride straight in.
It seemed Zou Yong might not have known the terrain here either. Otherwise, why would he have spurred the horse forward like that?
Now, no one could save him. He was some distance from the group, and even with a rope, they would not have been able to pull him back. Besides, they did not have a rope at all.
Everyone could only watch helplessly as Zou Yong was swallowed by the mire.
Where a horse and a man had just disappeared, only a few black bubbles gurgled up, as if nothing had happened there at all.
That made everyone even more terrified. A nameless panic spread through the crowd.
Madam Chen had just climbed up from the ground when she saw with her own eyes Zou Yong die in the marsh. Her legs trembled uncontrollably, and her lips went numb.
“He… he… is gone?”
When had Madam Chen ever seen such a thing? She was so frightened she could not even speak properly, and she huddled together with her son and husband.
“Brother Xiao, you’ve been stationed in the Southern Frontier for years, so you know this kind of terrain better than we do. What should we do now?”
Zhu Laosan had run out of ideas as well.
If they turned back now, the original route was blocked. Taking a detour would clearly be even more of a death sentence.
As for returning to Suizhong to wait, the food they had on them was no longer enough to support the journey back. With so many mouths to feed, they would probably starve to death on the road before they even made it there.
When Xiao Che heard Zhu Laosan ask, his brows were tightly furrowed too.
After a moment of thought, he said, “As far as I know, marshland has edges too. If we’re lucky enough to find the edge of the swamp, we may be able to get through.”
But that was practically a near-certain death gamble.
One wrong step, and the entire group would be wiped out.
Zhu Laosan was also weighing whether it was feasible.
“No. That’s too dangerous. This swamp stretches as far as the eye can see. Who knows where the edge is?” Li Si objected at once. He still wanted to go home and reunite with his family. He couldn’t die here.
While everyone was arguing endlessly, Jin Bao quietly whispered a few words into Xiao Jingmo’s ear.
“Second Brother, there’s a little stone path over there.”
Xiao Jingmo looked in the direction Jin Bao was pointing. It was the complete opposite of the direction Cui Jin had led them. There was a gentle slope there, with sparse reeds growing on it, and it looked drier.
Below it were a few puddles, the water relatively clear.
“Little Sister, you’re saying we can go that way, right?”
Xiao Jingmo’s eyes lit up.
Jin Bao nodded her little head. “That’s right. There are hard stones underneath, all in a row, like the back of a big mountain.”
An underwater stone ridge?
He had once read about such things in a travelogue. It said that at the edges of some marshes, shifts in ancient river channels had left behind hard stone ridges hidden beneath the water, firm enough for people to step on.
That was probably what his little sister meant.
But since it was underground, no one who was not extremely familiar with the terrain or who had not lived here for a long time would ever notice it, let alone pass safely over it.
The stone ridge was not a straight line either. Without a guide, even if ordinary people knew its rough location, it would be extremely difficult to cross.
Now that they had Jin Bao, they should be able to make it through. He just needed to think of a way to keep everyone from realizing this had anything to do with his little sister.
Xiao Jingmo’s thoughts stirred, and an idea came to him.
He handed Jin Bao to Pei Wanqing.
“Mother, please hold Little Sister for now. I’ll go take a look over there.”
Pei Wanqing took Jin Bao, but grabbed Xiao Jingmo.
“Mo’er, you mustn’t wander around. There are marshes everywhere here, and we don’t know the land. If you step into empty ground, what is Mother supposed to do?”
Xiao Jingmo gently patted the back of Pei Wanqing’s hand, gave her a meaningful look, then smiled at Jin Bao.
“Little Sister is our family’s little lucky star. Mother, you don’t need to worry. I know what I’m doing.”
Pei Wanqing understood at once and said nothing more.
Xiao Jingmo had not been gone long before he called out.
“Father, come take a look. This side seems a little different.”
Xiao Che had been trying to think of a solution as well. Hearing this, he immediately went over with Zhu Laosan.
“Father, look. The water here is clear, and it’s drier than the place we were standing just now. Could this be the edge of the swamp?”
Xiao Che crouched down and examined it carefully. At last, his tightly knitted brows eased.
“That’s right. This is indeed the edge of the swamp.”
Zhu Laosan was overjoyed and immediately herded all the exiled prisoners over.
“Officer, my father lived in the Southern Frontier for years. He knows this kind of terrain better than anyone. Let my father lead the way up front,” Xiao Jingmo proposed directly.
Xiao Che did not refuse, and Zhu Laosan cupped his hands. “Then we’ll have to trouble you, Brother Xiao.”
There was another reason Xiao Jingmo was in such a hurry. Jin Bao had said that men in black were coming to hunt them down.
Judging by how long it had been since Cui Jin left, those men in black should be appearing soon.