“City Lord!” Ji Xiaobo threw himself flat on the ground. “City Lord, this lowly one has already confessed everything he knows.”

“City Lord, can you spare this lowly one’s life? Can you give this lowly one one more chance?”

“Now that your own daughters have been taken too, what do you intend to do to save them?” Feng Jiu’er said, completely ignoring the rest of Ji Xiaobo’s plea.

Hearing Feng Jiu’er’s words, the Madams all turned their heads to look at Ji Xiaobo.

Ji Xiaobo clenched his fists tightly and stood up.

“City Lord, this lowly one wishes to go out of the city himself to search for them — would that be permitted?”

“Trying to run?” Qiao Mu raised an eyebrow.

“Of course not.” Ji Xiaobo looked at Qiao Mu and shook his head. “Liao Mushan has actually reached out toward my own daughters — how could this lowly one let him off easily?”

“Let’s hear it, then,” Qiao Mu said, staring him down.

“Liao Mushan’s parents are still alive. This lowly one will send someone at once to bring them here,” Ji Xiaobo said.

“Bring his parents out of the city and use them to trade.”

“Liao Mushan still has family?” Feng Jiu’er asked.

“Yes, his parents are both alive, and he has a younger sister who is about to be married off,” Ji Xiaobo frowned. “Right, we should bring his sister along too.”

“This lowly one has committed crimes beyond forgiveness and won’t live much longer anyway. City Lord, would you be willing to grant me this — after this is done, let this house remain for my Madams and children?”

“Everything else, I will hand over without hesitation — I only wish for them to still have a home.”

Ji Xiaobo’s words brought a slight easing to the faces of his three Madams.

At the very least, this man, facing death, was still thinking of them.

“If you have the ability to bring back every woman who has gone missing, I will spare your life, and I will return your four daughters to you unharmed,” Feng Jiu’er said.

“City Lord.” Ji Xiaobo’s face filled with astonishment. “My… my four daughters are in your hands?”

“They are not,” Feng Jiu’er shook her head. “The ones who took them are bandits — though, as it happens, I know them.”

“Town Chief, you should know what a mountain stronghold lacks most. If you don’t want your daughters to become the bandits’ women, you had best move quickly!”

How could Ji Xiaobo fail to hear the threat in Feng Jiu’er’s words? It meant this City Lord had connections on both sides of the law, didn’t it?

He clenched his fists tightly and said, “City Lord, this lowly one understands.”

“However, saving every missing woman will not be easy.”

“Mao Zhongcai is, frankly, a man without any conscience, and some of the women were sent away as far back as ten years ago. This lowly one…”

“That is your problem to solve,” Feng Jiu’er said, rising and walking toward the center of the hall.

“You have two days. I only care about results. Let’s go.”

As she passed by Ji Xiaobo, she turned her head slightly to look at him.

“A daughter belonging to a beast like you is still a person — and so are the daughters of the hardworking common folk outside.”

“What your daughters face two days from now may well be what the women you sent away are enduring right now — and perhaps not for the first time.”

“Ji Xiaobo, don’t try any tricks in front of me. What you’ve done is enough to earn you ten deaths, a hundred deaths!”

Feng Jiu’er snorted coldly, withdrew her gaze, and waved a hand. “Take everything away.”

“No need to leave anyone behind — no one can escape my sight. Let’s go.”

“Yes.” The men nodded in acknowledgment and took their orders.

Feng Jiu’er left, and everyone followed after her — those guarding fell into guard formation, those carrying goods carried them.

Before long, they had all departed.

On the way back, Xiao Yingtao asked, “Jiu’er, are we really leaving this whole matter to Ji Xiaobo?”

“Of course not!” Feng Jiu’er shook her head.

“A man like Liao Mushan — and he actually has family!” Qiao Mu scoffed coldly.

“That’s exactly why I also think it won’t do much good for Ji Xiaobo to threaten him using his family,” Xiao Yingtao sighed lightly.

“We’ll talk about it once we’re back!” Feng Jiu’er dropped the words and quickened her pace.

After the midday meal, the maids cleared away the leftover dishes and brought in tea.

Feng Jiu’er waved a hand, and the maids all withdrew, the last one closing the door behind her.

“The matter of missing women within the city is indeed real — the count has risen to a hundred now. A’Jiu, what are your thoughts?”

Feng Jiu’er picked up the teapot and poured a cup for Di Wu Ya.

Di Wu Ya took the tea she handed him, gently stroking the back of her hand.

“I’ll go with whatever you decide,” he said, raising the cup and drinking it in one go.

Feng Jiu’er pressed her lips together and looked at everyone present.

“So, does anyone have any suggestions? Let’s hear them.”

Also at the table were Feng Jiang, Qiao Mu, Xing Zizhou, Xiao Yingtao, Jian Yi, Feng Yinan, Yue Qinchun, and Yu Jingfeng.

“I feel so sorry for those girls!” Yue Qinchun’s mood had grown somewhat heavy.

Ever since learning of this matter, she’d barely been able to eat.

Twelve years old — what did that even mean? These people were utterly heartless.

Feng Yinan rubbed her head gently, saying nothing.

“By now, the entire Black Pool territory knows of our presence. Yi City and Wing City have both mobilized considerable forces toward Liuchuan City,” Xing Zizhou said.

“They certainly won’t allow us to take Liuchuan City. If Liuchuan City falls, both Yi City and Wing City will be threatened as well.”

“To take Pingyuan City, for now we can only follow the route drawn up last night — entering through the eastern gate of Pingyuan City and advancing northwest.”

“Xiang City, beneath Pingyuan City, was attacked a couple of years ago by Heishan City further down. Though the city held in the end, its military strength was greatly weakened.”

“This morning we received word that twenty thousand troops of the Longwu Army have arrived at Yue City and joined forces with the ten thousand troops of the Yue Family Army,” Yu Jingfeng said, looking up at Di Wu Ya.

“Perhaps we could strike early.”

“What I mean is, the sooner we move, the better.”

“Even if…” Feng Jiu’er said, gripping an empty cup, her gaze growing dark. “Snap” — the cup shattered.

“Even if we’re too late, I will still bring them back. How can my own citizens be bullied like this?”

“Jiu’er.” Xiao Yingtao frowned and moved to take Feng Jiu’er’s hand.

But she was a moment too slow — the hand that had crushed the cup had already fallen into Di Wu Ya’s palm.

“I’m fine,” Feng Jiu’er said, looking at the man whose breathing had gone heavy, and shook her head.

Di Wu Ya turned her small hand over, gently rubbing his fingertip along her cut fingers.

Seeing the blood, Xiao Yingtao stood at once. “I’ll go get the medicine box.”

“No need,” Feng Jiu’er shook her head.

Di Wu Ya poured a cup of tea, soaked a cloth handkerchief in it, and cleaned Feng Jiu’er’s wound.

He moved quickly, and Feng Jiu’er didn’t have time to refuse before he’d already started, so she simply let him.

She reached out and pulled the standing Xiao Yingtao back down. “Sit.”

“The key right now is whether our twenty thousand troops at Yue City and Sister Hua’s ten thousand Yue Family Army can bypass Xiang City and enter Pingyuan City directly.”

“Xing Zizhou, how’s the study of the geography coming along?”

“There’s one location worth considering.” Xing Zizhou pulled a map from inside his robe and stood.

Xiao Yingtao also stood and switched seats with Xing Zizhou.

Xing Zizhou sat beside Feng Jiu’er and spread the map open.

“Jiu’er, right here — take a look.”