A flurry of arrows scattered a group of about dozen people, but driven by their horses, a few still charged towards Miss Jun and the others.
At close range, bow and arrows are inconvenient.
Even if only a few remained, it wasn't certain they couldn't overcome.
The charging men raised their swords in their hands.
A battle was imminent.
The man holding the spear regained his senses from the shock, and hurriedly rushed towards this side, while the three men protecting the carriage had already stopped and were now turning their horses back.
With others coming to aid, they couldn't just run away without caring.
But just as they took a step, they saw those with bows retreating on their horses, and the remaining men behind them came forward, already raising their long spears.
"Kill."
Accompanied by a collective shout, the long spears thrust straight at the charging men.
The men rushing towards them were caught off guard; a thrusting spear pierced one's throat, he fell to the ground without a sound, his sword never having struck down.
"Leave a survivor."
The man with the spear shouted, but it was already too late.
The clash of metal was fast and brutal; the charging men were quickly skewered and fell to the ground, killed by each spear thrust.
The originally noisy scene quieted down in an instant, only the neighing of horses remained.
Too fierce.
The men looking at Miss Jun and her group felt a dryness in their throat.
"Good soldiers," one of them murmured unconsciously.
Who are these people?
Where could there be such formidable villagers who carried bows and set out to take lives?
They stared blankly at the group, and the girl also looked towards the man holding the spear.
"Since they are bandits, the intention is to rob and kill. Knowing the intention, why keep a survivor?" she said.
This was in response to his earlier shouted words.
The man quickly came back to his senses.
"Yes," he said, "Miss is right."
These were the first words she had spoken to them since she appeared and just asked two questions to this side.
"What are you doing?"
"Are you robbing? Are you bandits?"
And these words were directed at the band of bandits.
Then she ordered to start killing, even before making a sport out of archery by the young girl herself.
Indeed, killing that bandit and the leader of the bandits, for this girl, was just play, like hunting.
After having her fill, the others began the slaughter.
It's hard to describe how one feels about this.
"Who are you people?" the man holding the spear asked.
"We are farmers," said Miss Jun, and then she laughed.
Or she should perhaps say they were government soldiers?
The men, upon hearing her words, were stunned, but looking at her smile, they understood.
Farmers, are farmers these days this fierce? Indeed, such a statement is too absurd.
Even she herself must find this lie laughable.
Before he could say anything more, Miss Jun and her group had already put away their bows and spears and were turning their horses to leave.
They were leaving just like that?
"Miss, please wait."
A gentle female voice called out.
Upon hearing it, Miss Jun turned to see the carriage curtain lifted, and a woman stepped down.
She was in her forties, with a somewhat square face, and slightly raised long eyebrows that made her appear rather serious. Despite wearing dark-colored clothes, her imposing presence could not be disguised, unlike ordinary folks.
This woman's appearance seemed somewhat familiar.
Miss Jun felt an inexplicable notion flash in her mind, but she couldn't recall where she had seen her.
If she had seen her, it must have been in her childhood, for her memory had become increasingly sharp after following her master; if she truly had met her, she would definitely remember.
Upon seeing the woman getting off the carriage, four men hurried over with uneasy expressions, one of them, the youngest, extending his arm.
The woman naturally placed her hand on his arm, stepping forward somewhat awkwardly.
"Thank you, kind sir, for the rescue," the woman let go of his hand and bowed towards Miss Jun.
"No need to be polite, everyone would do the same when encountering bandits," said Miss Jun.
Would they really?
Not everyone possesses such abilities.
The four men watched her with complex emotions, noticing that she was merely returning the bow on horseback without any intention to say more.
"Miss, your virtue is as vast as the heavens," the woman nodded and spoke, "We lost our money in our flight; unfortunately, we cannot reciprocate your kindness thoroughly, which shames us."
Miss Jun smiled.
"I appreciate your intent," she said and bowed again, "Please excuse me."
With that, she turned her horse around, and everyone followed suit.
"Miss," the woman called out again, advancing a few steps with the support of the young man's arm.
Miss Jun halted and looked back at her.
Was it still for a thank you? She seemed quite straightforward and decisive, was she also so thoughtful?
"May I ask how much you would charge to escort us on our journey?" the woman inquired as she looked at Miss Jun.
Well.
Miss Jun slightly raised her eyebrows, a hint of surprise in her eyes.
This woman really was straightforward.
And quite bold to imagine such a thing.
"Having skills like yours is truly compelling," the woman perceived her thoughts, gesturing towards the men beside Miss Jun, including the girl with the covered face.
Whether it was the thanks or the just-mentioned hiring, their expressions remained calm and undisturbed, as if they simply did not comprehend or care.
Of course, it wasn't that they didn't care, but rather, these words and events were not what they cared about. Their only concern was Miss's commands.
To kill or to save, to act and when to stop.
This kind of absolute obedience, uniform will, is more terrifying than their ability to inflict harm.
"I need to go somewhere. Along the way, we've encountered several robberies," the woman continued, "I've been injured, and only these few men are left."
Upon hearing this, the four men appeared ashamed and sorrowful.
"We are useless," the chief man spoke softly, his voice choked, lowering his head.
The woman raised her hand towards him.
"It's the bandits who are ruthless, not our fault. Don't belittle ourselves," she said, then looked at Miss Jun, "Of course, I know these matters are ours and irrelevant to Miss, but having coincidentally met you, like a thread of hope, I thought to give it a try."
Interesting.
Pointing out the robberies along the way, and the probability of encountering more, it wasn't just bad luck always running into bandits; those robberies were targeted at them.
Miss Jun suddenly thought of Zhu Zan back in Runan.
"How about this, you pay, and I'll escort you home," he suggested with raised eyebrows upon seeing Manager Gao arriving in tears, especially when they had never mentioned wanting to go back or the predicaments they faced.
Not sure what he was thinking at the time, to step in proactively, probably truly for the money.
Simple, clear, and straightforward.
A slight smile curved at the corner of Miss Jun's lips as she looked at the woman.
"You, how much are you worth?" she asked.
*********************
End of Volume Three.