The Child Emperor

Chapter 114: Effective Arrows

Finding himself in a perilous situation and an uncertain future, Marquis Guiyi blamed everything on his daughter’s unruly behavior. “Why did you have to kill Chai Yun when we hadn’t even left the capital? We finally found someone to help, why did you choose to escape? The Weary Marquis is trapped, unable to even save his own life, son why did you agree to become the ‘Empress’? You…”

The three concubines echoed Marquis Guiyi’s words with a unanimous “yes” while also revealing their true thoughts. Why go to the steppes? It would be better to stay in the Capital. Chai Yun died in the Jin family manor, but it wasn’t Marquis Guiyi who killed him. They could offer a good explanation, hand over the real culprit, and perhaps they could get forgiveness from the Chai family.

The two older brothers remained silent, and the maidservant Qingting had no place to speak in such a situation. The room was small, and Jin Chuiduo could only accept all these accusations without saying a word.

Having heard only two sentences, Jin Chuiduo was furious, but she forcibly restrained herself, fingers nervously playing with the bow.

Marquis Guiyi saw his daughter’s small movements and became even more angry, shouting, “Alright, you’re addicted to killing, huh? You want to kill even your own father?”

“Marquis, look at the young lady’s eyes; it is us she wants to kill,” the concubines added fuel to the fire.

Jin Chuiduo could no longer bear it. In an instant, she took an arrow, drew the bow, and her two brothers, prepared in advance, hurriedly stepped forward to dissuade her. The three concubines hid behind Marquis Guiyi, not daring to make a sound.

Everyone stepped back from wherever Jin Chuiduo’s arrow was pointed. Even Marquis Guiyi was afraid. One of his hands shielded the three concubines, and the other pointed at his daughter, “You, you…”

Jin Chuiduo couldn’t possibly harm her own family. With nowhere to vent her anger, she turned and walked out of the room, only to see three bandits wielding knives and axes threateningly.

“Move your head aside,” she said to Han Ruzi at the door.

The three bandits had no idea who this woman was and had no knowledge of what had happened in the room. They were captivated by this bow-wielding girl, even though she had an angry expression. She was like a brightly colored bird which suddenly entering a dimly lit room. The onlookers were amazed, and before they could close the door, the bird had already flown away.

In Duan Wanshan’s eyes, he saw only a lady, not her bow or arrows. Involuntarily, he put down the giant axe in his hand, revealing a drooling smile on his face. “This young lady…”

The young lady’s response was a swift arrow.

Not many could evade an arrow shot from such a close distance, but Duan Wanshan was an exception. Having experienced a lifetime of combat, his reflexes were faster than his own thoughts. While still wearing a wicked smile, his hands lifted the giant axe, perfectly shielding his chest and blocking the fatal arrow.

“I…” Duan Wanshan uttered only one word, and no one knew if he intended to curse or boast.

Jin Chuiduo’s second arrow swiftly followed, as if it had been ready on the bowstring.

Perhaps due to his absent-mindedness, Duan Wanshan’s hands didn’t react in time this time. He held the axe in front of his chest, allowing an arrow to pierce through his throat.

Duan Wanshan exerted force with his legs, offsetting the arrow’s momentum. He didn’t fall immediately. His two subordinates behind him roared angrily and charged towards the archer, heading for both the girl with the bow and the “Emperor” sitting in front of her.

The long poles, prepared in advance, finally came into play, keeping the two vicious subordinates at a distance. They swung their blades wildly, gradually cutting the poles short. Dozens of bandits outside the courtyard shouted and rushed in.

Han Ruzi was surprised; Cai Xinghai’s tactics were effective against martial artists in the pugilist world but not as effective against bandits.

Everything happened in an extremely short time. The long poles were becoming shorter, the two subordinates were swinging their blades, the bandits outside were charging, and the villagers were throwing everything they could find. Meanwhile, Jin Chuiduo continued shooting arrows.

One arrow, two arrows… without a moment’s pause, as fast as a chef stir-frying vegetables. In the blink of an eye, she had taken down seven or eight people.

The two subordinates were the first to fall, followed by several bandits at the front. Suddenly, the entire fishing village fell silent. Everyone realized they were merely spectators in this battle, and the real fighter was just one person.

Jin Chuiduo maintained her bow-drawing posture, her chest slightly heaving. The stifling air she had experienced in the room finally found release. In fact, this was her last arrow. She was usually extravagant with her archery, often shooting two or three arrows at a single target, depleting her resources quickly.

However, with Han Ruzi shielding in front, those outside couldn’t see the empty quiver. They only noticed one thing—this woman’s arrows never missed.

As a result, she transformed from a dazzling beauty to a ruthless killer who left people dead.

There were still over forty bandits remaining, but not a single one dared to advance even half a step. They all stood still in their original positions, not daring to move.

The silence persisted for a while, ultimately shattered by the defiant Duan Wanshan. He couldn’t stand any longer, collapsing to the ground. Many people were unclear about what had happened. Both the militia inside and outside the courtyard, including the dozen temporary guards chosen by Han Ruzi, almost simultaneously knelt down, incessantly kowtowing and shouting, “Empress!”

Jin Chuiduo’s expression turned cold again. The bandits were unaware of the reason behind this change in her demeanor. Seeing that she seemed to be getting angry again, without hesitation, they dropped their weapons and also knelt on the ground, shouting “Express!”

Jin Chuiduo turned back into the room.

Her eldest and second brother were leaning against the door, peering outside. As soon as they saw their sister turning around, they hastily stepped aside. The elder brother whispered to the father, “Dead… eight of them.”

“Oh my god!” Marquis Guiyi fell backward into the embrace of his three concubines, fortunately not fainting this time.

Jin Chuiduo closed the door heavily and said coldly, “Is there anything else I shouldn’t do?”

From father to brother, not a single person dared to utter a word. Only the maidservant Qingting excitedly clenched her fists.

The shouts outside gradually disappeared. Donkey Kid was one of the temporary guards. At this moment, he crawled to the “Emperor” in fear and asked, “The Empress is so powerful. Yesterday, I was a bit impolite to her. Will there I be in… danger?”

“Those who are loyal will only receive rewards, not punishments. Where is the danger?”

Donkey Kid breathed a sigh of relief.

Han Ruzi realized this was a rare opportunity, even more perfect than he had anticipated. He stood up immediately, walked to Duan Wanshan’s corpse, and said, “He refused to accept my kind offer, and this is the consequence.”

He then walked into the group of bandits outside. Anyone picking up a weapon could kill this young man, but no one dared to touch the swords and blades by their sides. Instead, they all moved away.

“For a little gold and silver, you willingly took great risks. You robbed people and fought the government. Now this is a deal worth a fortune, why don’t you cherish it? Yes, I can’t immediately reward you. But what you’ll get from me in the future is not just gold and silver. It’s status, prosperity, and fame, lasting through generations!”

These words were addressed to everyone.

“Long live!” Suddenly, cheers echoed through the sky.

Seizing the opportunity, Han Ruzi appointed the old fisherman Chao Yongsi as the chief clerk and Chao Hua as the deputy general. Chao Hua then selected several dozen officers. They were called “Centurions,” even though each of them commanded no more than thirty people. The bandits surrendered their weapons and dispersed into various squads.

Chao Yongsi was responsible for recording positions and names. There was a shortage of paper in the village, so he wrote on the door panel. This door panel had a remarkable origin, having served as the “sedan” of the “Emperor” and “Empress” the previous night.

Han Ruzi personally pulled out more than a dozen arrows from the corpses and showed them to the crowd. Jin Chuiduo’s arrows were somewhat different from the usual arrow. The arrowheads were longer, adding some weight. Although this shortened the shooting distance, the initial trajectory became straighter.

“These arrows shall serve as my command token. Remember it well. In the future, all my orders will be authenticated by a command token. Those without arrows are impostors.”

Han Ruzi delegated the remaining tasks to the Chaos. The loosely organized militia finally began to establish some rules, sending out guards to the outskirts of the village and no longer allowing newcomers to enter freely.

However, this was just the beginning. Han Ruzi was well aware that it would take more than a year or so for these people to become a disciplined army. At present, he lacked both time and soldiers. What he lacked most were competent officers. Although he had read some military books, he had no practical experience. He could only establish a rough framework, and he was uncertain as to what to do next.

Han Ruzi publicly handed the first command arrow to Chao Hua, entrusting him with the responsibility of managing the entire army.

Then, holding the remaining arrows, he walked into the house to meet the Jin family.

The entire family was in silence. Marquis Guiyi sat on a stool, looking lifeless. He didn’t dare to glance at his daughter, and the three concubines were trembling. They had known that dealing with the young lady was not easy, but today, they truly understood how fortunate they had been all along.

Han Ruzi stood at the doorway and said, “Things have come to this point. The steppes are not an option for now. Would you be willing to join our army?”

Marquis Guiyi looked up at Weary Marquis and sighed. As the head of the family, he should have made decisions for the entire family. However, at this moment, he could only think of himself. “Ah, what can I do? Take each step as it comes. But I won’t join any so-called ‘army’. This is not an army; it’s a group of desperados. In less than three days… never mind, I won’t meddle in this, nor will I participate. When the imperial soldiers arrive, I will just surrender and confess my crimes. As for others—” He glanced at his daughter again. “Everyone can go their separate ways.”

The three concubines immediately exclaimed, “Lord Marquis, we’ll follow you through life and death…”

Han Ruzi didn’t enter the room to invite these four people to join his cause. Instead, his interest was in Marquis Guiyi’s two sons and one daughter.

Jin Chuiduo stood proudly, refusing to speak. Her second brother, Jin Chunzhong, took a step forward, suppressing his excitement, and whispered, “I’ll join. It’s better than waiting for death.”

Her eldest brother, who had not fled with his sister earlier, spoke up, “Staying means a dead end, and leaving is not an option. I’ll join too. You are not a reckless person. You must have a plan, right?”

“Yes, I do. We’ll discuss it later.”

All eyes turned to Jin Chuiduo, especially the maidservant Qingting, who kept gesturing to her young lady, urging her to agree.

After a long wait, Jin Chuiduo finally spoke, “Those are my arrows.”

“Sorry, I used them as command arrows. Can I borrow a few temporarily?” Han Ruzi held the arrows before Jin Chuiduo.

Jin Chuiduo glared at him, looking angry. Her expression didn’t seem like someone willing to join the “army”; instead, she looked more like someone about to shoot arrows.

After a moment, she snatched back all the arrows and counted them one by one. She handed five to Han Ruzi and said, “You may borrow them for only three days.”

Han Ruzi smiled, “There’s one more outside, making it six in total. I’ll return them exactly as they are in three days.”

As he finished speaking, Jin Chuiduo took back one arrow, saying, “I’m only lending five.”

Han Ruzi didn’t mind, happily accepting four arrows. That should be enough, he thought. Finally, he could send someone to inform Yang Feng. Only Yang Feng could contend with those fate seers.

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