The Border Commandery was vast and sparsely populated. Apart from a few bustling checkpoint cities, other areas lay desolate due to years of warfare.
A merchant caravan hurried along the road.
Three carts of goods were guarded by over twenty escorts, all armed with blades, spears, and bows.
"Faster," urged the lead escort. "We won't reach the city before dark otherwise."
The young merchant in the group replied casually, "If we don't make it, we can camp in the wild. I'm no pampered noble—I've endured hardships before. I've traveled both northern and southern routes, and sleeping rough is nothing new."
The escort gave a wry smile. "Young Master Sun, camping outdoors might be fine in the heartland, but not here in the Border Commandery. Bandits run rampant. Without a city's protection, it's far too dangerous."
The merchant straightened up. "Really? I heard the Border Commandery has been peaceful with no more fighting."
"It's true there's no war, but these barren lands are overrun with bandits," the escort explained.
Recalling the garrisoned cities he'd passed through, the merchant asked, "But there are so many soldiers—don't they capture the bandits?"
"They do," the escort said, cracking his whip to urge the horse onward. "But they can't catch them all. Besides, the troops are stationed to defend against Western Liang. They won't waste manpower hunting bandits."
The merchant hummed in understanding, his expression growing slightly tense. "Then let's hurry."
The group shouted and whipped the horses to gallop faster. But as they crested a hill, they saw a crowd of mounted figures ahead, waving large blades and cackling wildly.
"Today's our lucky day—"
"It's been ages since so many travelers came this way."
"Kind passersby, spare some coins, won't you?"
At the sight of the bandits and their eerie laughter, the escorts and merchants paled.
"Fall back, fall back!" the lead escort shouted urgently, directing the escorts into a defensive formation.
The young merchant clung to hope. "They want money—just give it to them. I've dealt with bandits before; paying them off always works."
The escort yelled, "Young Master Sun, these bandits aren't so reasonable! They'll take your money and your life—strip you bare and even eat human flesh!"
They were less like bandits and more like beasts. The young merchant's face turned ashen, all his earlier composure gone.
"Abandon the goods, abandon them!" he cried, scrambling backward in panic.
The bandits closed in with howls. Arrows from the escorts' strong bows knocked a few from their horses, but the rest charged ahead without hesitation, even trampling their fallen comrades.
Truly savage beasts with no humanity.
Despair flickered in the escorts' eyes—this time, the odds looked grim.
As the young master fled under escort, a stone—these bandits even used rocks as weapons—struck his shoulder. He cried out and tumbled from his horse.
Covering his head, he rolled repeatedly to avoid trampling hooves.
More screams echoed around him, followed by the thuds of others falling from their mounts.
It's over, it's over, the merchant's son thought, curled on the ground. He'd taken this risky trip to secure his family inheritance, never expecting to die here. What use was the inheritance if he was dead? A corpse couldn't enjoy wealth—
Tears welled in his eyes as he glimpsed a large blade swinging down toward his head—
But just then, a louder clamor of hoofbeats and the whir of arrows cutting through the air erupted.With a thud, the broadsword slid past the merchant's young master's shoulder and fell to the ground. The mounted bandit also tumbled down, kicking up a cloud of dust. Through the dust, the bandit's ferocious eyes were visible, an arrow piercing his throat.
What happened?
The merchant's young master, having narrowly escaped death, trembled as he lay on the ground and looked back.
Had the government troops arrived?
"Which blind government soldier dares interfere?" the bandit cursed bitterly. "I've paid my dues!"
The surprise attack from behind halted the bandits' slaughter, but instead of fear, their faces showed vicious determination to fight the troops.
However, when they turned around, they saw no armored soldiers or military banners—only a group of people dressed more lavishly than the merchant caravan itself. Men and women, old and young, adorned in gold and silver, with perfumed carriages and fine horses. Were it not for the weapons in their hands, they would have appeared to be a wealthy family on an outing.
Who were these people?
Their splendor was truly breathtaking.
Did they think their few skilled guards made them capable of righting wrongs and eliminating evil for the people?
"Who are you?" the bandit leader's eyes gleamed as he shouted mockingly. "Perfect timing! The men of Pingchuan Valley are collecting goods. Come and offer your lives to your grandfathers!"
This area was their territory. At the mention of their name, everyone retreated—even the government troops showed them some respect.
But these people didn't retreat. Their leader was a young girl wearing a floral dress and a wide-brimmed hat with fluttering white gauze. As the gauze lifted, it revealed her charming and lovely face.
Yet this charming, lovely girl held a bow in her hands.
"What bad timing," she called out cheerfully. "The folks from Qingya Stronghold are heading to the market. Anyone blocking the road must die."
Qingya Stronghold?
That didn't sound like a proper place. And her words—"heading to the market," "block the road and die"? The merchant's young master, curled on the ground, turned pale again.
Even the fierce bandits turned pale.
"Qingya Stronghold?" they cried out, looking at the girl leading the group. "It's Mu Mianhong!"
Who was Mu Mianhong? The merchant's young master wondered dazedly. No sooner had the thought crossed his mind than he heard shouts of "Mu Mianhong!" "Mu Mianhong is here!" "It's Mu Mianhong!"
Amid the cries, the once-ferocious bandits scattered like stray dogs.
The group of men, women, old, and young became the new hunters. They shouted and whooped; some drew bows and shot arrows, while others—the merchant, covering his head and peeking through his arms—saw a child about ten years old standing on a horse's back, swinging a spinning dart. With a swoosh, it flew out, and a fleeing bandit instantly fell to the ground, motionless.
The child let out a clear, childish cry of triumph at his successful hit.
The merchant understood: these were bandits too! He had stumbled upon a case of thieves falling out! The tears he had held back began to flow again. There were truly too many bandits in the Border Commandery—
Around him, the sounds of hooves, jeers, weapons cutting through the air, and human screams continued. The merchant covered his head and screamed along, but strangely, no hooves trampled him, nor did any blades or arrows pierce his head—
Gradually, the sounds faded into the distance.
The merchant lifted his head in disbelief. The earlier bandits had become corpses scattered across the ground. In the distance down the road, dust clouds hinted at the retreating figures of the men, women, old, and young.
What had just happened?
"Young Master Sun," the Escorts ran over to help him up.
Supported to his feet, the merchant looked around. "Is it over?""It's over," one of the Escorts said. "Those bandits have been driven off, and they've gone far away."
That sounded odd. Wasn't this supposed to be a case of thieves robbing thieves? Why stop halfway? The merchant's son was puzzled, but escaping death was always a good thing.
"Quickly, let's hurry on our way," he said urgently.
After checking, all the goods were intact. Three Escorts had died and over ten were injured—this was already an excellent outcome. The group didn't even have time to grieve, loading the deceased onto the carts and giving the wounded basic bandaging.
"Young Master Sun, look," an Escort said.
The merchant, now seated in the cart, glanced over and saw the Escort picking up a flower from the blood-stained dust on the ground—
"Kapok flower," the merchant, well-traveled and knowledgeable, recognized it immediately. But as he reached out to take it, he realized it wasn't a real flower but a silk one.
He recalled the shouts of those bandits.
"Mu Mianhong," the merchant murmured, looking at the silk flower and then into the distance.
The dust had settled, and there was no sign of anyone.
"Is that the girl's name?"
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