Chapter 4: A Small Punishment

  Zhu Houxi and Lu Bingchuan's clothes are very similar, with basically the same color and pattern. If you're an expert, you can tell that the tailoring and workmanship are worlds apart, but at first glance, it's hard to see any difference, just like they're partners in crime.

  Zhu Houzhen covered her face and said, "Brother, I don't know martial arts. You go first and subdue that villain, then take him to the south of the city. If they dare to chase us, we'll use this villain as a hostage to threaten them. Our horses are in the south of the city. Once we get on horseback, we can take this villain outside the city and give him a good lesson. How does that sound?"

  "Very good, no, I mean very good. It's decided then, I'll go and hold someone back, what will you do?" Lu Bing asked.

  Zhu Houzhen smiled and said, "It's not that I won't chase after them, it's just that the safety of the hostages might be a constraint. Would you really dare to kill people? Of course not, taking lives requires paying with one's own life. For now, I'll take care of slowing down their pursuit speed. Besides, I have another important task."

  "What?" Lu Bing also looked confused and spoke in a muffled tone.

  "I still have to be responsible for my own safety and not cause trouble for you, in short, I need to take care of myself, got it?"

  "You're so clever." Lu Bing patted Zhu Houzhen's shoulder and scolded with a smile. The two brothers often did this, but in the Wang Mansion, they didn't dare to be so "disrespectful", they had to do it secretly, otherwise Lu Bing would have to eat another serving of "Bamboo Stick Stir-Fried Meat".

  The two brothers said they would do it, and after covering their faces with a towel, they quietly snuck over. People were watching the commotion and didn't notice these two strangely dressed men. Zhu Houzhen ran to the side and got a rope, tied it to the pillar of a nearby shop, then pulled the rope down to the ground, and ran to the other side of the street, making a few bad jokes at Lu Bing's expense.

  Lu Bing's eyes were like crescent moons, revealing a pleased smile. Neither of them noticed that an old man in the corner of the wall had been watching them all along. The old man was dressed very ordinary, but from time to time, his eyes would flash with a sharp light, only to quickly return to calmness. Seeing the two young men bustling about, the old man also smiled, smiling with great satisfaction.

  That dandy young man was showing off his might, but then someone in the crowd shouted: "At such a young age, you're not studying well and haven't even grown all your hair yet, but you've already learned how to flirt with girls. What will become of you when you grow up?"

  "Who is it!" The young master suddenly shouted loudly "Sneaking around is no skill at all, if you have the guts come out and show yourself."

  "I have a son, and that son is you. You're really unfilial, not knowing to come over and kowtow to me, instead making your old man come out." Lu Bing was constantly moving in the crowd, looking for the most advantageous position to make his move, while using words to mock the villain, making him furious and lose his guard.

  The onlookers burst into loud laughter, and seeing the villain being scolded was a relief to their pent-up anger. The villain indeed became enraged and ordered his subordinates: "Go and catch that person for me." His subordinates took orders and went to catch people, with a fierce but cowardly attitude, shouting at the crowd, occasionally grabbing someone and asking two questions, slapping them twice before letting them go. The crowd bowed their heads in fear, not daring to speak, when suddenly a figure rushed out, his right hand shaped like a claw, grasping towards the villain's throat. This person was none other than Lu Bing.

  That rascal had also practiced a few years of fist and footwork, lifting his leg to kick Lu Bing, but this move was still not enough in front of Lu Bing. However, seeing Lu Bing's left hand change from a fist to a palm, he suddenly swung out and chopped down on the rascal's leg. The rascal let out a painful cry. Anyone who knew two moves of fist and footwork could see that Lu Bing, who had come out to play the hero, was not using palm techniques, but knife techniques, only replacing the knife with his palm. The old man in the corner of the wall saw this scene and his eyes lit up again.

  Taking advantage of the situation, the old and young vendors ran away in a hurry, not even wanting the things on the ground. Lu Bing was still fighting, but they had already run away. Although it's not righteous, it's human nature and can't be blamed.

  The wicked young master's servant, Jia Nu, hurried to rescue him, but it was too late. Lu Bing's hand had already grabbed the wicked young master's throat, and with a twist of his wrist, he pulled the wicked young master into his arms. Then, in a loud voice, he said: "Don't move around, I'm a timid old man, if I get nervous and use force, your young master might lose his life."

  The crowd was as still as a cicada in winter, no one dared to move. The young man looked back at the person holding him and saw only two sword-like eyebrows and a pair of starry eyes, the rest of his face was covered, making it impossible to discern his features. Could he be a notorious thief? The young man thought this and couldn't help but feel secretly frightened, his legs turning weak and a pungent smell rising up.

  "Damn it, don't pee, is it dirty or not? Urinating and defecating everywhere will be fined. Look at you, your face is still green, did your gallbladder burst? I'll call 120 for you." Lu Biao didn't care if the young punk understood or not, anyway he just spoke freely and teased him however he pleased.

  The young man's leg was still aching from the kick, his throat was sore and uncomfortable, and now he had wet his pants. He felt both angry and frustrated, and wanted to cry out in rage, but his throat constricted, forcing him to swallow back his cries. Lu Bing whispered menacingly in the young man's ear, "Follow me, don't make a fuss, or you'll lose your life." With that, he dragged the young man off towards the south. The young man didn't dare resist, his throat was too sore and painful, and he had no strength to fight back. He could only admit defeat and follow Lu Bing.

  The common people didn't stop him, this evil young master has been showing off his power every day, and hasn't spared the ordinary people from suffering. If it weren't for relying on his family's wealth and influence, as well as having a high-ranking official as an uncle, he would have been beaten to death who knows how many times already. The common people made way for him, each with a schadenfreude expression on their faces.

  Lu Bing took the young master hostage and left, the family slaves dispersed to take action. Some went to report to the officials, some informed the family and looked for people to surround and capture, while others chased in the direction where the young master was taken away. Coincidentally, they were all on the same road, heading south. Just as they ran out of the village, a rope suddenly appeared, and everyone was caught off guard and fell to the ground.

  Someone with sharp eyes saw that it was a small child pulling the rope, and couldn't help but get angry, shouting that today was unlucky, the young master had been tied up and taken away, now even a little kid dared to come out and oppose him, so everyone rushed towards the child.

  Zhu Houzhe pulled the rope and before he could burst out laughing, he saw the slave from that family chasing after him. He quickly turned around and ran, shouting as he went: "You can't catch me, what's the point of getting angry? If you don't go rescue your young master now, he'll be in danger!"

  The phrase "killing with a single word" is indeed true for these household slaves. If something were to happen to the young master, they would be held responsible for not taking good care of him, and this matter would become serious. If things go wrong, that person in the capital might get angry, and they themselves might lose their heads.

  Zhu Houzhen didn't dodge among the common people, and they all gave way to him, casting admiring glances his way. As he ran, Zhu Houzhen said, "Thank you, thank you, thanks to the old and young masters for their kindness." It was as if he were performing a stunt.

  When the evil young master's family slaves rushed over, the common people stood there and didn't give way to this group of "running dogs", one by one seeming not to have seen them, deliberately blocking their advance.

  Just as Zhu Houzhen was about to run far away, he still turned his head from time to time and shouted: "Children, you come quickly to chase your young master!" As soon as the words fell, a drunken man stumbled towards Xiaotong from the corner of the opposite street, blocking Zhu Houzhen's way. Zhu Houzhen did not slow down his pace, because the drunkard had no malice, but only stared at Zhu Houzhen with blurred eyes and didn't react.

  A house slave of a local tyrant recognized him and shouted loudly, "Constable Fan, catch that little rascal in front!"

  Fan Da Hai heard the noise and looked towards Zhu Hou Chen. Although he had drunk a lot, he was still a tall and strong man, and he could handle Zhu Hou Chen who came running at him. Zhu Hou Chen was young and weak, and his boxing skills were just learned, so he was no match for Fan Da Hai. If they were to fight head-on, it would be absolutely impossible.

  Fan Dahai reached out and grabbed Zhu Houzhen's face, Zhu Houzhen shouted loudly and tried to dodge, but after all, he was too young, his body couldn't compare with Fan Dahai, and he was about to be caught.

  Time flies, the old man hiding in the corner suddenly appeared in front of Fan Dahai, moving so fast that no one noticed. He slapped his hand on Fan's wrist and said with a smile: "Friend, you've had too much to drink." Before he knew it, Fan's body flipped over in mid-air and landed heavily on his back, getting battered and bruised all over.

  Zhu Houzhi's face turned red as he shouted, "Thanks!" Then he took off in a mad dash. The old man hugged his arms and looked at the stunned young master's servant, shouting, "Don't chase him, come to me instead."

  The house slaves didn't know the old man's ferocity, thinking that just now Fan Dahai was just drunk and another meddling old man had run out. So they were furious and wanted to catch the old man and beat him up together to vent their anger, which would also be a good account for the master's family. The house slaves exerted themselves to squeeze out of the crowd and rushed towards the old man with fists and feet...

  After the fight over a cup of tea, six or seven villainous houseboys were lying on the ground, either with bruised faces or bleeding heads, and one had his arm twisted into an unbelievable shape, apparently crippled.

  Lu Bing grabbed the evil young master and waited for a while in the south of the city, then Zhu Houzhen came running. The two untied the reins that tied the horses in front of the inn and mounted their horses. Lu Bing laid the evil young master horizontally on the horse, fearing that Zhu Houzhen would forget how to ride in his panic, so he asked: "Can you still ride?"

  "It's necessary." Zhu Houzhen replied.

  Lu Bing nodded and didn't say much, urging the horse to gallop with Zhu Houzhen, the horse sprinted forward, heading south, leaving behind two trails of dust.

  After running wildly for about half an hour, they arrived at a desolate land on the northwest side of Anlu. Lu Bing single-handedly threw the villain to the ground with great force.

  The young master was thrown to the ground, his buttocks aching, but he didn't cry out. His face turned pale and he pointed at Ah Biang and his brother, his eyes wide with fear, shouting: "I'm the young master of the Jiang family! Let me go quickly or I'll kill your whole family... Oh no, mom, I was wrong, I won't dare again!"

  The young man hadn't finished speaking when Zhu Houzhen stepped forward and broke his fingers. Lu Bing was taken aback and said, "You're too cruel." Zhu Houzhen smiled and replied, "When dealing with this kind of person, there's no need to be polite. A dog can't change its nature of eating feces. If you don't thoroughly beat him once, he won't remember the lesson."

  After finishing, Zhu Houzhuo lowered his head and whispered to the painful and sweating evil young master "Jiang family's eldest son" beside him: "I have always hated others pointing at me." The tone was calm and steady, not urgent or anxious, it seems that his mentality is extremely stable, where does he look like a twelve or thirteen year old child, can be described as a mature and ruthless young man.

  "Brother, how should we deal with this kid?" He turned to ask Lu Bing, who thought for a moment about what Zhu Houzhen had said earlier. Considering the situation just now, this young master must be used to acting tyrannically, so it's better to give him a small punishment. So he pulled out a small dagger and handed it to Zhu Houzhen with a cold smile, wanting him to carve a mark on the young master's body.

  The young villain didn't see Zhu Houzhuo's face, but saw the cold light in his eyes. Adding to this was that these two were vastly different in age and size, yet the smaller one seemed even more ruthless than the larger one. He couldn't help but burst into tears again, scrambling to get up and run away. The little bit of martial arts he knew was completely forgotten. Not to mention Lu Bing, but even Zhu Houzhuo would be unbeatable in his panicked state.

  Zhu Houzhen kicked the villain to the ground with one foot, then pulled out a dagger and stabbed it into the villain's Achilles tendon. The action was extremely familiar and the dagger was very sharp, instantly cutting off the tendon. Suddenly, blood flowed freely, and the villain let out two miserable cries before fainting.

  Zhu Houzhen wiped the blood from her hand on the rascal's body, then stripped off his clothes and carved on his back with a dagger: "Beware of evil-doing, a small punishment."

  After the fight, Zhu Houzhuo took off his mask and smiled at Lu Bing. Lu Bing couldn't help but swallow his saliva, he really didn't expect Zhu Houzhuo to be so ruthless. Suddenly, he was speechless and didn't know what to say.

  Lu Bing remained silent for a moment before speaking in a soft voice: "Isn't this going too far?"

  "But." Zhu Houzhu's eyes revealed a strange glow, then he smiled and restored his appearance to that of someone his age. "Let's go, brother."

  Lu Bing nodded and the two of them rode their horses towards Anluo. On the way, Lu Bing asked: "Didn't you encounter any danger just now?"

  "Besides, you usually don't want to teach me more moves, saying that I need to master the basics first or it'll backfire. Mother's... just now I almost got caught by a patrol officer."

  Lu Bing was shocked and hastily asked: "Then how did you escape?"

  "An old man came out to save him, looks like a master." Zhu Houzhen replied.

  "Do you still remember what that person looks like?" Lu Bing asked, Zhu Houzhen nodded, and Lu Bing continued: "Next time we meet, we must thank him properly."

  Two men galloped into Anlu on horseback, arriving in front of a large mansion. After handing their horses over to the servants, the two brothers quietly made their way towards the inner courtyard. Just as they were about to slip into the backyard, they heard someone shout from behind: "Lu Bing, stop right there!"

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