A Waste of Time: A Fierce Tiger Descends the Mountain – Who Can Stop It?

After a while, Commander Wu withdrew his gaze and sneered, "Jiuwan, it seems I underestimated you before, thinking you were just a petty thief."

Jiuwan remained silent, and Commander Wu spoke again: "Hand over the items, and I'll take you to see your mother and sister."

Jiuwan shook his head and said, "I don't trust you. I need to see my mother and sister. Otherwise, I'd rather die. You'll never get that thing."

After pondering for a long time, Wu Qianhu said, "You must take the things to see your mother and sister, otherwise I would rather lose the things than lose the lives of the three of you. You know that killing you is as easy for me as crushing an ant."

After thinking for a long time, Jiuwan nodded in agreement and said, "Let's do as the commander said. When I see my mother and sister, I will give you the things." He was secretly delighted, just as his brother Song Jiang had predicted.

Commander Wu turned his head and said, "Follow him to get the things, and then take him to see his mother and sister."

Yun Lishou bowed his head and said, "Yes."

Jiuwan thought for a moment and said, "Commander, there is something I don't understand. I hope you can enlighten me." After saying that, he looked at Commander Wu without any fear.

Wu Qianhu stared at Jiuwan with icy eyes for a long time before finally uttering a single word: "Speak."

Jiuwan said in a low voice, "Who exactly told you that I have the skill of scaling walls and leaping across rooftops?"

Commander Wu did not answer the question, but waved his hand and said, "Get out of here before I change my mind."

Standing by the dumpling stall, Song Jiang asked, "How long has he been inside?"

The servant replied, "It's almost the time it takes for an incense stick to burn."

Just then, a man came running from a distance. It was another servant. Song Jiang took out a string of coins, threw it on the table, and said, "Keep the change." He then hurriedly walked towards the back door, and the first servant followed him away.

Zhang Xiaoer picked up the money, looked at Song Jiang's retreating figure, and said strangely, "What a strange person."

At this moment, the gate of Wu's mansion opened, and another person came out and hurriedly left in one direction, which was the opposite direction from Song Jiang.

Wu Song finished the soup in his bowl, took out some silver and put it on the table, saying, "It's delicious. I'll come again tomorrow." Then he followed the man.

Zhang Xiaoer looked at the ten bowls in front of him and said with a wry smile, "This Wu Er is really a strong man."

Upon reaching the back gate, the two servants and Jiao Ting remained there, while Bian Xiang emerged from the shadows and followed Song Jiang. Song Jiang wasn't concerned about losing them, as they were heading towards Yang Zhi.

In fact, Song Jiang estimated that there wouldn't be many government troops in Wu's mansion, and that Jiu's mother and sister would basically not be in Wu's mansion.

First of all, this matter must be kept absolutely secret, so Commander Wu will not let too many soldiers and servants know too much. Even if Ninth Mother and Ninth Sister are locked up every day, they will still be discovered. If there is even the slightest hint, Commander Wu is afraid of triggering a chain reaction. Therefore, Song Jiang guessed that Qin's mother was most likely not in Wu's mansion.

Of course, things can change, and it's possible that Sister Jiu and her mother are indeed at the Wu residence, but that's alright, because the imperial treasure is with Yang Zhi.

As for the officers and soldiers, they would definitely be in the military camp. Who would call five hundred people to garrison in their own residence for no reason? Not to mention that there would be too many people and too many eyes, even getting them to eat would be a hassle!

If Jiuwan and Yunli Shou were to return to the Wu residence after obtaining the imperial seal, Song Jiang would lead his men to storm in and catch them red-handed. Zhu Tong would also bring the county magistrate to the Wu residence. At that point, Commander Wu would truly be in dire straits. After all, the imperial seal was of paramount importance, and if Commander Wu dared to resist, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to accuse him of treason. Even if he had connections in the court, no one would dare to stand up and plead for him in such an open matter.

Wu Qianhu was extremely controlling and had a whimsical and violent personality. He felt that he had Jiuwan completely under his control, and that Jiuwan was just an insignificant nobody to him, someone he could manipulate at will. Therefore, there wouldn't be too many people guarding the mother and daughter, but there wouldn't be too few either. They would probably be his trusted men, the same men in black that Jiuwan had been watching that night.

Of course, anything can happen, big or small. If there were hundreds of guards, things would become complicated, and the only option would be to force their way into the lion's den. But that was highly unlikely. After all, the mother and daughter were just ordinary, weak women, and Jiuwan was just a skilled thief. Commander Wu wouldn't be so wary of him, so Song Jiang dared to gamble!

Song Jiang was actually more worried about Wu Qianhu's reinforcements, which were the 500 soldiers in the military camp. So he left Wu Song, Jiao Ting, and two farmhands to guard the front and back gates. If anyone went to fetch reinforcements, they were to be intercepted and killed on the way.

The reason for guarding both gates was to prevent Wu Qianhu from having a backup plan. If someone were to send people to find the soldiers at both gates at the same time or leave through one of the gates, and Song Jiang missed one gate, it would be a huge mistake. In order to prevent him from sending several groups of people, Song Jiang would have two servants stay at the front and back gates to avoid any oversight!

Song Jiang had to leave no openings; otherwise, failure would not only result in the deaths of Jiuwan and his two children, but also in heavy losses on his side. After all, five hundred soldiers were a considerable fighting force, well-equipped, well-trained, and armed with bows and crossbows. Song Jiang did not want any losses on his side, not even the slightest! Therefore, he would not give Commander Wu any chance whatsoever!

At the tea stall, Yang Zhi was leisurely drinking tea and eating a steamed bun, thoroughly enjoying himself.

Wu Da was still busy at the pancake stall, his face full of hope for the future and satisfaction with life.

Two people walked in one after the other. Yang Zhi squinted and saw that it was Jiu Wan, whom Song Jiang had introduced to him before. He didn't recognize the person behind him.

The two walked up to the stall, and Jiuwan gave him a wink. Yang Zhi immediately smiled and said, "You're here."

Jiuwan slowly asked, "Where are the things?"

Yang Zhi patted his clothes, indicating that he had it in his arms.

Yun Lishou first sized up Yang Zhi. He had a blue birthmark on his face and was just an ugly man dressed in rags. It was true that people of similar character associate with each other!

Stepping forward, Yang Zhi secretly pulled open his clothes. Yun Lishou took a closer look and saw that he was holding the luminous pearl and the eight-treasure box. He couldn't help but feel overjoyed.

Jiuwan stepped forward, preparing to take out the luminous pearl, but Yun Lishou quickly stopped him and asked, "What are you doing?"

Jiuwan said helplessly, "I'll take the items and go exchange them for you!"

Yun Lishou pointed at Yang Zhi and said, "This ugly fellow has to come along too." His tone was full of contempt!

Jiuwan secretly admired him. Just as Song Jiang had thought, seeing Yang Zhi with the treasure, he would definitely kill Yang Zhi as well.

Yang Zhi feigned ignorance and asked, "Where to?"

Jiuwan smiled wryly and said, "Brother Yang, just follow me all the way."

On the way, Jiuwan asked Yun Lishou again, "Wu Qianhu will definitely keep his word, right?"

Yun Lishou nodded and said, "Don't worry, Qianhu is a man of his word." But in his heart he thought, "You've also caused the death of this ugly man."

After walking for a long time, the three of them left Qinghe County and came to a remote and desolate place outside Qinghe County. In front of them was a courtyard that looked abandoned for a long time. Jiuwan recognized it as the former military granary. If someone hadn't led them there, they probably wouldn't have been able to find this place!

Yun Lishou gestured with his lips and said, "The person is inside, right? Give me the things!"

Jiuwan refused, saying, "I need to see my mother and sister before I will give you the things."

Yun Lishou smiled and said, "Alright, let's go in then."

Pushing open the door, the courtyard was filled with men in black, each holding a gleaming steel knife. There were about thirty of them. Further inside the courtyard was a room, where there were also about ten men in black standing on both sides, making the total number about fifty.

Yang Zhi secretly calculated that if he didn't protect Jiu's mother and younger sister, he could handle all fifty people himself, although some might choose to run away.

However, if he needs to protect Jiu's mother and sister, and Jiu Wan's combat strength is not strong, he might also need to protect them! If the other party fights to the death, it is not certain that he can defeat them all. But at this moment, the die is cast and the arrow has to be released. He can only take it one step at a time.

Upon unlocking the room, Jiu's mother and sister were found huddled together, trembling. They were clearly frightened, but neither of them was injured. It seemed that Wu Qianhu hadn't done anything to harm them beyond threatening them.

When Jiu's mother and sister saw Jiu Wan, they rushed over, hugged him, and cried. Jiu Wan also shed tears.

Yun Lishou said with disgust, "A lowly person is a lowly person. If you want to cry, go cry there. Quickly hand over the things so I can go back and report."

Jiuwan nodded at Yang Zhi, who then took out two treasures from his pocket. Yun Lishou took a handkerchief and put it in his hand to receive them, while covering his nose with his other hand and scolding, "You're really too inconsiderate! What if you put these things on your body and they smell bad?"

Yang Zhi smiled faintly but remained silent. Jiu Wan pulled his mother and sister behind him and said, "Now that the things are in your hands, can we leave?"

Yun Shouli sneered, "Of course you can, then you'll all be walking into hell!" He waved his hand and said to the men in black, "Go, leave no one alive."

After saying this, he quickly left the courtyard to avoid being caught in the crossfire. He then locked the gate from the outside of the courtyard and admired the two imperial treasures for a long time before muttering to himself, "I'm afraid you'll only get to see these things once, Commander Wu."

In the courtyard, a swarm of men in black slowly approached. Yang Zhi stepped forward, ready for battle; the fight was about to begin.

The steward of the Wu family was walking quickly towards the military camp outside the city. Commander Wu had given him a token that could mobilize all the soldiers.

His orders were to lead his soldiers to the abandoned grain depot and clean up the mess, but he didn't care or want to know what kind of mess it was.

Just as he was leaving the city and entering the wilderness, a young man suddenly appeared in front of him, blocking his path. He frowned, clearly indicating ill intent, but still cursed, "Get out of my way."

The young man before him did not get angry, but instead showed a faint smile. The steward of the Wu family stepped forward and scolded, "Could it be that you have encountered a fool who cannot understand my words?"

The young man made his move instantly, throwing a punch at the butler's throat—a deadly strike right from the start!

The butler was also skilled; he hurriedly dodged before the fist even got close, but he was still a step too slow. The iron fist, as hard as a hammer, struck his shoulder, and a sharp pain shot through his collarbone, as if the bone had cracked.

This young man is a master, and he's ruthless. He's obviously here to kill me. I've never encountered anyone like him before. He must be here to cause trouble for Commander Wu, since we have no grudge against each other!

Seeing that things weren't going well, the butler quickly turned and ran back, but the young man was faster and instantly ran ahead of him. The butler was startled and threw a punch, but the young man ignored the punch. Little did he know that this was just a feint. Suddenly, a dagger appeared in the butler's left hand and he stabbed it towards the young man's chest!

The young man swiftly dodged, then kicked the steward in the chest with his left foot, followed by a kick to the throat with his right. The steward coughed up blood and collapsed to the ground, barely breathing. This move was Wu Song's signature technique, the Jade Ring Step and Mandarin Duck Kick. From dodging the dagger to striking, it was all done in one smooth motion, without any hesitation.

Wu Song hesitated for a moment, but then he remembered that the steward had concealed a dagger in his hand when he threw a punch, clearly intending to kill him. Without hesitation, he stepped forward and grabbed the steward by the throat, killing him instantly. Wu Song closed his eyes and recalled his conversation with Song Jiang the day before.

In the dense forest, Wu Song asked, "Brother, do we really have to kill the messenger?" Although Wu Song was usually brave and fierce, he didn't really have the courage to kill anyone. Otherwise, he wouldn't have knocked someone unconscious and assumed they were dead, and in his panic, he would have tried to run away!

Song Jiang nodded and said, "That man must die. If he doesn't die, he will cause endless trouble in the future!"

Seeing that Wu Song remained silent for a long time, seemingly conflicted, Song Jiang patted Wu Song's shoulder and said earnestly, "Second Brother, I know you are kind and generous, but you must be discerning in your dealings with people! Some people are not worth your kindness; otherwise, you are being stubborn and will only harm yourself. As the saying goes, if you don't cut the weeds at the root, they will grow back in the spring breeze. You must be ruthless when necessary. Remember this: mercy to the enemy is cruelty to yourself."

Wu Song hesitated for a moment before saying, "That person..."

Song Jiang shook his head and said, "I know what you're going to say. Commander Wu is infamous. Everyone in Qinghe County hates him. Do you know why there are so few refugees in Qinghe County? It's because he killed many refugees innocently and used their heads to fight bandits and gain merit. That's why no one dares to come to Qinghe."

Wu Song was so shocked that he couldn't speak. He had no idea about such a wicked and despicable thing! Song Jiang continued, "Since someone could deliver a message to him, that person must be his confidant. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been entrusted with the important task of mobilizing troops. He's aiding and abetting evil, so he must have done his share of wicked things. Therefore, he's not innocent."

Wu Song nodded solemnly. Song Jiang patted Wu Song's shoulder again but said nothing more. Wu Song had always been a clean and decisive man. Apart from avenging Wu Da, he had never shed blood before. But since the bloodshed at the Mandarin Duck Tower, he had shown no mercy in killing the Flying Centipede. Therefore, Wu Song would not let those who deserved to die go unpunished. He trusted Wu Song to make the right choice.

Wu Song opened his eyes, looked at the corpse at his feet, and silently murmured, "Mercy to the enemy is cruelty to oneself." He then picked up the token, glanced at the corpse again, and hurried towards the military camp.

Yang Zhi looked at the group of men in black who were eager to make a move with a cold smile. His eyes were filled with a strong fighting spirit. It had been too long since he had felt this kind of blood boiling. He was afraid that he would have to go on a killing spree today!