"Second Uncle, Dog, take the horses back."
"Unload the meat first, then bring the horses back."
As he spoke, Liu Tiezhu stepped forward and took the rifles and bullets from the three bandits.
Besides the weapons and ammunition, he also found over two hundred dollars in their pockets.
Just then, Second Uncle and the others returned leading the horses.
Er Gouzi pointed at the bandits' corpses on the ground: "Brother Zhu, what do we do with these bandits?"
Liu Tiezhu thought for a moment and said, "Drag them into the bamboo grove and bury them. Untie the horses and let them go."
Let the horses go too?
Hearing this, Second Uncle and his son both widened their eyes, thinking they'd misheard.
"Second Uncle, Dog, I know what you're thinking."
"If we don't let the horses go, it'll bring disaster."
"We can't put our families in danger over three horses," Liu Tiezhu said.
These bandits would regroup after their raids.
When they counted heads and found some missing, they'd definitely investigate the area.
If they found the horses at their home, they'd surround them, and everyone would die.
Second Uncle paused, then caught on.
The three of them worked together to load the bandits' bodies onto the horses.
"Second Uncle, Dog, hurry up."
"Bury those three bastards, let the horses go, and get back quickly."
After giving his instructions, Liu Tiezhu turned and left.
Second Uncle grabbed his arm: "Zhu, where are you going?"
"I'm going to throw the bandits off our trail."
"Don't worry, I have a gun and I'll stay in the shadows. I'll be fine."
"When you get back, hide in the cellar and wait for my news."
Liu Tiezhu left without hesitation, resolute.
Watching him walk away, Second Uncle opened his mouth but swallowed his words.
Ten minutes later, Liu Tiezhu, carrying three rifles, arrived at Huangwu Village.
The village was filled with weeping, and in the distance, flames shot into the sky.
These bandits were more brutal than he'd imagined—not only killing but also setting fires, determined to wipe out the villagers.
Liu Tiezhu roughly figured out his bearings and quickly headed toward the fire.
He came to Huangwu Village not to be a hero, but to clear Liujia Village of suspicion.
Three bandits had died in Liujia Village, and the Tiangang Stronghold bandits would surely massacre the village in revenge.
What Liu Tiezhu needed to do was quietly take down a few more bandits.
That way, he could not only disrupt the Tiangang Stronghold's investigation but also intimidate their leader.
Ten minutes later, Liu Tiezhu reached a spot five meters from the fire.
He took the rifle off his shoulder, loaded a bullet from his pocket, and set it on the ground.
After that, he retreated into the darkness, lying flat and waiting silently.
In the yard ahead, sobs filled the air.
A peasant woman was tied by her hands to a tree, her clothes already torn to shreds.
Beside her lay three men and one woman.
All had been shot through, blood pooling on the ground.
Three bandits, having had their fun, raised their rifles and ended the woman's life.
"Damn it all, if the boss hadn't ordered it, I'd have taken that woman back to keep," the lead bandit said, still savoring the moment as he pulled up his pants with a laugh.
The other two loaded the looted meat onto the horses.
The three left the yard, rifles slung over their shoulders, heading for the next house.
After a dozen steps, the lead bandit stopped and said to the others, "Damn, I feel like someone's watching us."
"You feel it too?"
Years of banditry had honed his instinct for danger.
As he left the yard, he'd felt a chill down his back.
The bandit on the left said, "Boss, it's probably nothing."
"Who the hell would dare spy on us? They asking to die?"
The lead bandit thought it over and figured he was right.
"Let's go, next house."
"See if we can find another big-chested woman."
With a wave of his hand, the lead bandit stepped out first.
Bang. The lead bandit dropped straight to the ground.
A hole in his forehead smoked as blood gushed out.
Liu Tiezhu had struck, killing the lead bandit with one shot.
After taking him out, Liu Tiezhu quickly switched rifles and aimed at the second bandit.
Without hesitation, he pulled the trigger.
The second bandit fell before the third even realized what was happening.
Panicked, he fumbled to load his rifle.
By then, Liu Tiezhu had already swapped to the third rifle.
"Bastard, in your next life, remember to be a good person."
As he spoke, Liu Tiezhu pulled the trigger.
The bullet pierced the bandit's skull, blood splattering everywhere.
Liu Tiezhu stripped the three bandits of their weapons and ammunition, then quickly led the three horses back toward Liujia Village.
Huangwu Village and Liujia Village were separated by a rice paddy. Taking the path along the fields, he was home in minutes.
Hearing the hoofbeats, the people moving meat in the yard panicked.
"Second Uncle, Big Brother, it's me."
Liu Tiezhu lowered his voice and called into the yard.
Recognizing his voice, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Together, they unloaded the meat from the horses.
Liu Tiezhu told them to lock the door, then shouldered his rifle and led the horses away.
He couldn't keep the horses. As he let them go, he planned to take out a few more bandits.
An hour later, the gunfire stopped.
No one knew how many had died that night; the air was thick with chilling cries.
Liu Tiezhu returned, leading three more horses loaded with dried meat.
In that hour, he'd visited three villages and killed nine bandits.
Besides the meat on the horses, he'd also taken four rifles and over five hundred dollars from the bandits.
After unloading the meat, Liu Tiezhu untied the horses and let them go.
"Zhu, how many bandits did you kill?" Second Uncle asked in shock after the gate was closed.
An hour ago, Liu Tiezhu had gotten six rifles; now he had four more.
With one rifle per bandit, that meant at least ten dead.
"I killed fifteen bandits, but the last few didn't have guns," Liu Tiezhu said honestly.
In the last three villages, only four of the nine bandits had rifles; the rest carried machetes.
Second Uncle said, "Ten rifles are enough."
"With these, we'll be safer from now on."
"By the way, besides the rifles, there are about sixty rounds of ammo and over five hundred dollars in the sack."
"All taken from the bandits," Liu Tiezhu added.
Hearing this, everyone was stunned again.
Five hundred dollars—how many families had those bandits looted?
"Zhu, you killed so many bandits. Tiangang Stronghold won't let this slide."
"We need to figure out how to avoid their retaliation."
Coming back to his senses, Second Uncle's face was etched with worry.
Liu Tiezhu said, "Second Uncle, don't worry. Tiangang Stronghold won't dare come out of the mountains anytime soon."
"With all this commotion, the authorities will send militia to the villages."
"Unless they want to die, the Tiangang bandits won't risk leaving the mountains."
"What we need to do now is hide the meat and guns."
Given the current situation, Tiangang Stronghold wouldn't act rashly for a while.