Yan Hongsha was startled: “Did it hit you?”

Of course, it hadn’t hit him, but at that moment, Luo Ren was indeed standing in an unfortunate position. The situation was quite dangerous—the stone fell rapidly, and as he dodged it, it almost brushed against his clothes.

So in his view, Yan Hongsha was certainly nothing like a little angel. If purely discussing physical resemblance, with the rope tied around her waist as she hung midair, her arms flapping up and down, she actually looked quite like a spider.

Mu Dai, however, was overjoyed: “Little angel, did you bring any food? I’m starving.”

This, she did have. Yan Hongsha remembered the bag of food and quickly waved her flashlight upward: “Fatty Cao, the wedding candies! Wedding candies, toss them down!”

After a while, candies came showering down from above.

When the trapdoor had opened, fearing it might flip back and close, Cao Yanhua had been desperately holding it open, leaving him no free hands. He asked Cao Jinhua to help, instructing her: “Don’t throw the whole bag down at once. There are people down there—it would be bad if they got hit. Toss it down a small handful at a time.”

Cao Jinhua felt as if she were dreaming: she’d never known about this cave in the mountain, and that there was a trap inside, with people at the bottom!

Her mind struggling to process it all, she simply followed instructions, grabbing a handful of candy and tossing it down the opening, then throwing a couple of red eggs and wedding cakes. She fearfully peered down at the dark hole, unable to see the bottom.

The candies came down in a shower, like rain. Luo Ren shined his flashlight and saw they were indeed wedding candies wrapped in bright red paper—exceptionally festive.

Yan Hongsha said, “Cao Yanhua is up there, and he’s fine. Yi Wansan is also okay, just lost a bit of blood. He’s resting in your car… Oh, this rope isn’t long enough. How am I going to get down…?”

She frowned, talking to herself, twisting her body midair as she tugged at the rope: “Luo Ren, should I have Fatty Cao pull me back up first? Then go find another rope?”

Luo Ren didn’t immediately respond. He exhaled deeply with relief, suddenly feeling weak and dizzy.

It was good that everyone was safe. They were all okay.

Mu Dai must have had the same thought, because when he turned to look at her, she had already sat down on the ground, unwrapping a piece of candy and putting it in her mouth. Suddenly, she leaned back and lay down.

It was that feeling of being on the brink of doom, then suddenly having the door to life flung open, back against the ground, limbs completely devoid of strength, yet wanting to shout out loud to release the excitement.

Luo Ren also sat down, looking up at Yan Hongsha: “Whatever you arrange is fine.”

Only Cao Yanhua was desperately anxious. The cave was too dark for him to see Luo Ren and Mu Dai clearly; he could only see Yan Hongsha dangling there. He shouted at her: “Murphy’s Law! Murphy’s Law! Hurry back up!”

The journey of a hundred miles is half complete at ninety—until those three people came back up, they couldn’t say they were completely safe. Besides, the three most capable fighters were down below. Calculating the time, the wedding banquet should have ended by now. Although Cao Village’s wedding feast would continue for three days, the bride and groom wouldn’t need to be present 24 hours a day. This should be when Qing Shan and Ya Feng had some free time. What if they came after them…

Thinking this, he couldn’t help looking back at the cave entrance repeatedly. He wasn’t sure how many times he had looked when a small pebble on the ground was kicked in with a soft clink.

It was as if someone had accidentally kicked a small stone while walking, and the pebble had rolled a short distance with that momentum.

Cao Yanhua’s mind froze, and then, seeing what lay before his eyes, he almost howled: “Murphy! I can’t tell your mother!”

But really, what did poor Murphy have to do with any of this?

Cao Jinhua was still holding the bag of wedding candies. When she saw Qing Shan and Ya Feng, the bag slowly lowered in her hand.

The scales of judgment in her heart truly began to tip toward Cao Yanhua’s side: the wedding was still ongoing, so why were Qing Shan and Ya Feng here, and what was that undisguised murderous intent on their faces?

While she was anxiously pondering this, Cao Yanhua shouted: “Cao Jinhua, help me hold the trapdoor!”

Then he yelled downward: “Trouble’s coming! Hurry up!”

Cao Jinhua, dazed and confused, quickly went to replace Cao Yanhua. He darted to the cave entrance in a few steps, spreading his arms like a blocking hen, his eyes bloodshot.

Ya Feng smiled and said, “You think you’re a match for me?”

In an instant, chaos erupted.

Cao Yanhua and Ya Feng grappled and rolled into a heap. According to Cao Jinhua’s assessment, Cao Yanhua was certainly getting the worst of it, as he kept wailing continuously. It was clear he was using all his strength, but for some reason, the slender and petite Ya Feng, with just one hand gripping Cao Yanhua’s wrist, was able to push him away almost completely.

Qing Shan strode toward Cao Jinhua.

Cao Jinhua’s heart raced in fear: “What… what are you doing? Qing Shan, you, you, don’t come closer.”

Qing Shan ignored her, crouched by the trap, and grabbed the dangling rope. He reached behind his waist but found no suitable tool. Suddenly, his expression turned cold, and he began viciously grinding the rope against the edge of the stone.

The climbing rope wasn’t thick, but it was generally abrasion-resistant and tough. Cao Jinhua didn’t understand this; she only saw that the finger-thin rope would soon be worn through, and her face paled: “A person is hanging on that rope, Qing Shan! This is mur… murder. Stop it…”

She was holding the trapdoor and couldn’t move away, so she tried to kick Qing Shan. But he was crouching too far away, and her leg wasn’t long enough. She kicked once, twice, always falling short by a couple of inches. From below came Yan Hongsha’s scream. When Cao Jinhua turned her head, she saw Ya Feng getting up and walking toward her. Cao Yanhua, lying on the ground, suddenly struggled to sweep Ya Feng’s legs, knocking her down, then pounced on her and firmly restrained her.

It’s now or never! Cao Jinhua thought. A life was at stake! If this rope broke, wouldn’t that girl Yan Hongsha fall to her death?

She shouted and did something she never thought she would—while still firmly holding the trapdoor with both hands, she jumped in place and awkwardly used the jumping momentum to kick Qing Shan in the forehead.

In terms of build, Cao Jinhua was larger than Qing Shan, and her brute strength was considerable. This kick used all her might, sending Qing Shan rolling away. When Cao Jinhua landed, she stumbled, her foot almost giving way, causing her to break out in a cold sweat from fear.

The tense atmosphere below was no less intense than above.

With Cao Yanhua’s screams, the violent shaking of the rope, and Yan Hongsha’s screams, Mu Dai and Luo Ren already knew things had gone awry. The brief moment of leisurely relief instantly vanished.

Luo Ren asked Mu Dai, “Can you climb up the wall like a gecko?”

He knew Mu Dai was injured, but at this point, several lives were at stake.

Mu Dai’s voice trembled: “I can’t climb fast enough. There’s not enough time to go up now… Connect the ropes, Luo Ren. If you connect them all the way, I can climb the rope…”

Before she finished speaking, Luo Ren had already rushed to the rope bed and pulled out the end of the rope. He had tied it with skill, sturdy as a rope bed when assembled, but easily pulled back into a long rope when needed.

He returned with the rope, already having coiled half of it in circles, leaving a large section in his hand ready to throw: “Hongsha, steady yourself, catch this, then tie the two ropes together.”

With that, he threw it upward forcefully, but it wasn’t enough—it fell short by several meters. Yan Hongsha’s position was, after all, several dozen meters high.

The rope shook even more violently. From above came the faint screams and shouts of Cao Yanhua and Cao Jinhua. Yan Hongsha clung to the rope, her body swaying like a small boat capsized in waves. Luo Ren’s forehead began to bead with sweat. At this moment, Mu Dai suddenly said, “Luo Ren, throwing knife.”

Luo Ren immediately understood. He pulled out his throwing knife in a reverse grip, looped the end of the rope around the knife handle, and asked Yan Hongsha sternly: “Is your backpack fully packed?”

Yan Hongsha answered, her voice jolting with the movement: “It’s full!”

“Give me your back!”

Yan Hongsha gritted her teeth, hugged the rope, and turned her back downward. Luo Ren threw his hand upward, and Yan Hongsha felt the throwing knife pierce her backpack. Without waiting for the rope to stop swaying, she quickly reached back to pull out the knife and began hastily tying it to the rope around her waist.

At the same time, Mu Dai rushed to the rope in a few steps, grabbed the end, and began climbing up like an ape.

Luo Ren was simply stunned. He had also learned to climb ropes—it was a basic skill for mercenaries—but his climbing was that of a normal person: wrapping the rope around his ankle, using his body for leverage, climbing up a section, releasing the rope, rewrapping—the speed might vary, but there weren’t significant differences.

Mu Dai’s method, he didn’t know how to describe. Her speed was too fast, her body almost floating, with the force concentrated in her two arms.

Yan Hongsha was still looking down, not having finished tying the ropes together, when Mu Dai was already in front of her. Without greeting her, and quite unceremoniously, Mu Dai first grabbed Yan Hongsha’s body to leverage herself upward, then stepped on her shoulders, instantly rising a meter or two.

In this rope ladder scenario, Yan Hongsha was like a convenient stepping stone. She hadn’t expected Mu Dai to climb up so quickly and exclaimed in delight: “Mu Dai, you’re the little angel!”

This “little angel” didn’t hear her, because she was already nearly at the cave entrance.

The situation at the entrance was dire. Cao Yanhua, his face bruised and swollen, was firmly held by Qing Shan. He was frantically and futilely scratching and clawing. Cao Jinhua, pale-faced, held the trapdoor, wanting to help but powerless to do so. Ya Feng crouched by the trap with a cold smile, grabbed the rope, opened her mouth, bared her teeth, and bit down on the rope.

At that moment, Mu Dai suddenly appeared from below, climbing up the rope at great speed. The first thing she saw was Ya Feng. Without thinking, she swung a slap at her, while her body leaped up. Seeing Ya Feng’s neck from behind, she inserted her hand into her collar and yanked her sideways with a powerful twist. Then she fell to the ground, sliding her body away. As she slid near Qing Shan, she grabbed his leg and pulled hard, directly dragging both Qing Shan and Cao Yanhua to the ground. As her sliding momentum continued, she pressed against the ground, rose, and stood firmly.

Cao Jinhua, supporting the trapdoor, could not close her gaping mouth for a long time, wide enough to fit an egg.

Mu Dai had essentially scattered all three people above the moment she appeared, disrupting the battle in the process.

Cao Yanhua was almost in tears: “Little Master, beat her up!”

Without needing his reminder, Mu Dai knew the evil bamboo slip was on Ya Feng, so she kept her eyes firmly fixed on her.

She said, “I’ll take the woman, you handle the man.”

Ya Feng also stood up, her fair and delicate face full of ferocity, roaring as she charged toward Mu Dai.

On the other side, Cao Yanhua was already wrestling with Qing Shan. His body was sturdier than Qing Shan’s, and he had some foundation, landing solid blows on Qing Shan. Amid the chaos, he didn’t forget to remind Mu Dai: “Little Master, her strength is immense, don’t try to match her force directly.”

Mu Dai, almost in close combat with Ya Feng, heard the reminder and twisted her body, sliding directly past Ya Feng’s side. But she didn’t miss the opportunity to fight dirty, chopping a hand at Ya Feng’s ribs.

Ya Feng was nearly driven mad with anger, secretly gritting her teeth. If she could just get her hands on Mu Dai, she would crush her bones.

But Mu Dai seemed to have guessed her thoughts. Heeding Cao Yanhua’s earlier warning, she refused to confront Ya Feng head-on. Several times, she just grazed by, like a swimming fish, but each time, she struck with underhanded tactics.

Sometimes pulling Ya Feng’s hair, slapping her when given the chance, targeting her lower body.

All these techniques were true teachings from her master.

Her master had taught her combat strategy, explaining what to do when it truly came down to life and death.

—Fight if you can win, run if you can’t, and use dirty tricks if you can’t escape. Face and honor are important, but life is paramount. Without life, what use is a face?

When she said this, her master was sitting in a wheelchair, winding up her white hair in front of a dressing mirror. Her dark green clothes with silver trim were neat and pressed, her hair wound without a strand out of place.

Mu Dai had grumbled: “What about what others will say? They’ll say I don’t play by the rules.”

“People who don’t like you will criticize you no matter how well you follow the rules. People who like you will like you even if you break the rules. Don’t worry about what they say.”

Mu Dai thought for a moment: “What if I use dirty tricks and still can’t win?”

“Then it depends on whether your opponent is a man or a woman. If it’s a woman, you still have to fight hard even if you’re losing. If it’s a man…”

At this point, she paused, her gaze meeting Mu Dai’s in the mirror.

Mu Dai asked: “What about if it’s a man?”

“Then you cry.”

Mu Dai was incredulous: “Crying works?”

Her master said, “With your little face, it probably will.”

As she said this, she lowered her head slightly, picked up a plum blossom silver hairpin from the table, and inserted it obliquely into her already-wound bun.

Her hair was as white as snow, the silver plum blossom pin in full bloom.

Mu Dai’s master was born during the Republic of China era. When she became an apprentice at six years old, she brought twenty silver coins wrapped in red cloth as her tuition, knelt on both knees, held her head high and chest out. According to the rules of the martial arts school, the senior would ask a question, and she would answer crisply. Her breath had to be strong, her voice clear.

“Why do you want to become an apprentice?”

“To uphold justice and fight for the righteous.”

“Who is the hero of our circle?”

“Swallow Li San.”

“Which kind of wealth can be plundered?”

“Wealth without benevolence.”

“Which kind of poverty should be helped?”

“Poverty that doesn’t compromise one’s integrity!”

…

However, all this was from a very, very long time ago.

When Mu Dai became her apprentice, her master was already over seventy, disabled in both legs, and confined to a wooden wheelchair year-round. The people who cared for her called her Old Lady Mei, but once, during the Mid-Autumn Festival in August, slightly tipsy from wine, she smiled and told Mu Dai that in earlier years, people had called her Plum Blossom Ninth Lady.