The border commandery was vast with a sparse population. Apart from a few prosperous checkpoints and commandery cities, other areas were desolate due to years of warfare.

A convoy of merchants and horses hurried along the road.

Three carriages of goods, surrounded by more than twenty armed escorts with complete sets of swords, spears, bows, and arrows.

“Hurry up,” urged the lead escort. “Otherwise, we won’t reach the city before dark.”

The merchant among the convoy was young, with a casual air about him: “If we don’t reach the city, we can just camp in the wilderness. I wasn’t raised in luxury; I can endure hardship. I’ve traveled both southern and northern routes before. Sleeping under the stars is nothing unusual.”

The escort smiled bitterly: “Young Master Sun, it might be fine to sleep outdoors in the central plains, but it won’t do in this border commandery. Bandits run rampant here. Without the city’s protection, it’s very dangerous.”

The merchant sat up straight: “Really? Wasn’t it said that the border commandery has been free from warfare and is quite safe now?”

“There’s indeed no warfare, but these mountains are treacherous, and bandits are everywhere,” the escort said.

The merchant recalled the cities they had passed through earlier: “What about all those soldiers? Don’t they capture the bandits?”

“They try,” the escort urged his horse with a whip. “But they can’t catch them all. Besides, the soldiers are meant to defend against Xiliang, and they’re reluctant to use their forces to capture bandits.”

The merchant made an “oh” sound, thoughtful, his expression becoming slightly tense: “Then, let’s hurry.”

The group urged their horses and carts to move faster, but after crossing a hill, they encountered a group of people ahead. These people wielded large swords and let out strange laughs.

“Today’s our lucky day—”

“It’s been a long time since so many people passed through on this road.”

“Kind travelers, how about sparing some money?”

Upon seeing this group and hearing their strange laughs and calls, the escorts and merchants changed color.

“Retreat, retreat,” the lead escort urgently said, leading the escorts into a defensive formation.

The young merchant still had some hope: “They want money, so give them money—I’ve encountered bandits before, giving them money is enough.”

The escort shouted: “Young Master Sun, the bandits here aren’t so reasonable. They want money, but they also want lives. They’ll strip clothes and eat human flesh.”

These weren’t just bandits; they were beasts. The young merchant’s face turned pale, no longer as composed as before.

“Abandon the goods, abandon the goods,” he shouted, hurriedly running backward.

The bandits had already surrounded them with strange cries. A few bandits fell from their horses due to arrows shot by the strong bows of the escorts, but the group of bandits didn’t slow down at all, not even caring about trampling their fallen comrades.

They truly were heartless beasts.

Despair appeared in the eyes of the escorts; it seemed they were unlikely to survive this time.

The young master, being escorted as he fled, was hit in the shoulder by a flying stone—these bandits even used stones as weapons—and he cried out, falling from his horse—

He clutched his head and rolled several times, avoiding the horse’s hooves.

Around him were more screams and people falling from horses.

It’s over, it’s over, the merchant young master curled up on the ground. He had come this way specifically to fight for the family fortune, never expecting to lose his life here. Even if the family fortune became his, what use would it be? He, a dead man, couldn’t enjoy it—

Tears flowed from the merchant young master’s eyes as he vaguely saw a large sword swinging down toward his head—

But at that moment, there came more chaotic hoofbeats and the buzzing sound of arrows flying through the air.

With a bang, the large sword slid past the merchant young master’s shoulder and fell to the ground. The bandit on the horse also fell, raising a cloud of dust. Through the dust, the bandit’s ferocious eyes could be seen, with an arrow piercing his throat.

What was happening?

The merchant young master, who had narrowly escaped death, tremblingly lay on the ground and looked back.

Had the soldiers arrived?

“Which blind soldier dares interfere?” a bandit cursed hatefully. “I’ve paid enough bribes.”

The attack from behind caused the bandits to temporarily halt their slaughter, but there was no fear on their faces. Instead, they looked ferocious, as if ready to fight the soldiers.

However, looking back, there were no armored soldiers or banners, only a group of people dressed even more lavishly than the merchants—men and women, old and young, adorned with gold and silver, in luxurious carriages and on fine horses. If they hadn’t all been holding weapons, they would have looked exactly like a wealthy family out on a journey.

Who were these people?

They looked so dazzlingly luxurious.

Perhaps relying on a few skilled guards to right a wrong and eliminate evil for the people?

“Who are you?” the bandit leader’s eyes gleamed as he mockingly shouted, “Perfect timing! The lords of Pingchuan Gou are gathering goods. Come and give your lives to us.”

This area was their territory. People retreated at the mere mention of their name, and even soldiers had to show some respect.

But these people didn’t retreat. The one in the lead was a young girl wearing a floral print dress and a bamboo hat with floating white gauze. As the white gauze flew up, it revealed her pretty, adorable face.

Yet the pretty, adorable girl held a bow in her hand.

“What bad luck. The folks from Qingya Stronghold are on their way to the market,” she called out with a smile. “Anyone blocking the way will die.”

Qingya Stronghold?

This didn’t sound like a legitimate place, and listen to her words—going to the market, and those who block the way must die? The merchant’s young master, curled up on the ground, turned pale again.

The originally fierce bandits also turned pale.

“Qingya Stronghold?” they shouted, looking at the girl in the lead. “It’s Mu Mian Hong!”

What was Mu Mian Hong? The young merchant master wondered blankly. As the thought flashed through his mind, he heard a chorus of shouts: “Mu Mian Hong!” “Mu Mian Hong is here!” “It’s Mu Mian Hong!”

Along with these shouts, the once-fierce bandits fled in all directions like frightened dogs.

The group of men, women, old, and young had become the new hunters. They shouted as some drew bows and shot arrows, and others—the merchant, who was curled up on the ground with his arms covering his head, peeked through the gap in his arms and saw a child about ten years old. The child was standing on horseback, raising a spinning dart in hand, which flew out with a swoosh. A fleeing bandit instantly fell to the ground and didn’t move again.

The child let out a childish, clear shout of triumph for his successful strike.

The merchant understood. These were also bandits! This was a case of bandits robbing bandits! The tears that had stopped now flowed again. There were truly too many bandits in the border commandery—

Around him were the sounds of hoofbeats, shouting, weapons cutting through the air, and the miserable cries of people. The merchant clutched his head and also cried out continuously. But strangely, no horse hooves trampled him, nor did any swords or arrows pierce his head—

Gradually, the sounds faded away.

The merchant somewhat incredulously raised his head. The previous bandits had all become corpses scattered on the ground. In the distance on the main road, amid the rising dust, the silhouettes of the group of men, women, old, and young could vaguely be seen.

What was going on?

“Young Master Sun,” the escorts came running to help him up.

The merchant was helped to his feet and looked around: “Is it over?”

“It’s over,” an escort said. “Those bandits were chased away, and those other bandits have also gone far away.”

It sounded strange. Wasn’t it bandits robbing bandits? Why did they stop halfway? The merchant young master didn’t understand, but surviving a near-death experience was always a good thing.

“Quickly, let’s continue our journey,” he said urgently.

After a check, all the goods were still there. Three escorts had died, and more than ten were injured. This was already an excellent outcome. None of them even had time to grieve. They loaded the dead onto the cart and quickly bandaged the wounded.

“Young Master Sun, look,” an escort said.

The merchant, now seated in the cart, looked over and saw the escort pick up a flower from the bloody, dusty ground—

“A cotton flower,” the merchant, having seen much of the world, recognized it immediately. But upon taking it, he discovered it wasn’t a real flower but a silk one.

He recalled what those bandits had shouted.

“Mu Mian Hong,” the merchant murmured, looking at the silk flower, then toward the distance.

The dust had settled, and there was no longer any sign of the people.

“Is that the girl’s name?”