Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 26 Endgame
The fighting lasted until midnight; both Imperial Guard Gao and Commandant Sun were in a frenzy. Few of Commandant Sun's regular soldiers remained standing, and two of the Eastern Palace guards had also been killed or wounded.

No matter who the mastermind behind this gang of bandits is, the blood debt must be paid in blood!
After responding, the two men each led their still-mobile subordinates to search for the post station.

Pei Qinghe wasn't idle either. She glanced around and pointed to more than ten people who were still able to fight: "You few, come with me."

Pei Yun had been stabbed in the shoulder, and Pei Yan had injured her left leg; both needed to have their wounds treated and bandaged. Mao Hongling also had two minor injuries but was still able to walk, and silently followed behind.

The inn was littered with corpses, including soldiers, bandits, and some women.

No one cried.

A night of bloody slaughter ensued, everyone desperately trying to survive, the ground littered with corpses. Bandits could die, soldiers could die, even the postmaster and his men at the inn were dead, so why couldn't the women of the Pei family die?

Pei Qinghe is right. To survive, one must fight with all one's might.

Pei Qinghe swung his sword and beheaded a bandit: "Cut off all the bandits' heads, in case anyone is pretending to be dead and hiding among them."

Mao Hongling held a spear in her left hand and picked up a long sword in her right. With a sudden swing, she severed a head. Blood splattered onto her skirt, blooming into a crimson flower.

At this moment, the former second young mistress of the Pei family completely disappeared, and Mao Hongling survived.

The Pei women gritted their teeth and went to cut off the heads of the bandits.

Suddenly, a cry of surprise rang out!
A figure covered in blood and motionless suddenly jumped up.

Pei Qinghe was prepared; with a flick of her right hand, the longsword flew out.

The sharp long knife pierced the bandit's chest, and with its remaining force, it pierced into the tree trunk.

The bandit who had been feigning death let out a miserable scream as he was pinned firmly to the tree by the long sword. Blood flowed down the hilt of the blade.

The rescued woman, surnamed Xu, was the fourth wife's cousin-in-law, and she was twenty-seven years old. Having escaped death, her heart was pounding, her breathing was rapid, and her beautiful face was deathly pale.

Pei Qinghe said to Madam Xu, "Be more careful next time."

Still shaken, Ms. Xu nodded mechanically.

Pei Qinghe then said, "Go and cut off his head."

Xu had never killed a chicken in her entire life, and during this night's battle, she had stayed in the back and hadn't really lifted a finger. But now, Pei Qinghe directed her to step forward, grit her teeth, and swing her knife down.

As a result of improper force, the knife got stuck in the bone.

Ms. Xu's face turned bright red, whether from shame or embarrassment.

Pei Qinghe did not mock Xu Shi. Instead, he took the knife from Xu Shi's hand, pulled it back with a slight effort, and then beheaded the bandit leader.

Effortlessly, like a farmer chopping a cabbage.

Xu opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a single word. She turned her head and vomited all over the ground.

A blurry, distant scene flashed through Pei Qinghe's mind.

She committed her first murder when she was fourteen. The women of the Pei family were exiled and lived a difficult life in their place of exile. From time to time, local ruffians and bandits would come, either demanding food or trying to take advantage of them. After a conflict arose, fighting was inevitable.

With her face disfigured and her mood gloomy, she acted recklessly, hacking a bandit to death with a woodcutter's knife.

After killing someone, she vomited once and had nightmares for several nights in a row. Later, after killing many more, she got used to it.

After working for most of the hour, they found two who were feigning death. All the bandits' heads were chopped off and piled up in one place, a truly gruesome sight, like a scene from hell. But there was something even more important to do next.

"Pick up all the weapons."

Pei Qinghe instructed in a deep voice, "Rinse it clean with water and put it into grain bags. Hide it in the cellar first."

Mao Hongling hesitated for a moment, then asked in a low voice, "Should we discuss this with Captain Sun and Guard Gao?"

Pei Qinghe said calmly, "They've wiped out over a hundred bandits, so all the military merits go to them. I just want some insignificant spoils of war. Is there any need for discussion?"

This is true.

After a night of fierce fighting, the bandits were wiped out. Pei Qinghe charged ahead, killing the most and the most fiercely. The death of the bandit leader under Pei Qinghe's blade was a crucial turning point in this decisive victory. It is no exaggeration to say that Pei Qinghe was the greatest contributor.

Pei Qinghe didn't want the credit and gave it all to Captain Sun and Guard Gao. He only wanted some weapons from the bandits. How could the two of them have the nerve to object?

There was another deeper meaning, which Pei Qinghe did not voice.

These captured weapons were all made of fine iron, and were even better than the weapons in Captain Sun's possession. How could ordinary bandits possibly have such powerful weapons?
Hide all these weapons to pass the government's inspection, and take them all with you later. Let this gang of thugs of unknown origin die quietly, just like real bandits.

This is also a good thing for the Crown Prince.

The Crown Prince doesn't need to do anything; as long as he stays calm, he'll be the real winner. Even the Pei brothers couldn't make the Crown Prince lose his composure, so how could he possibly turn against the Prince of Wei because of the Pei family's women?

Pei Qinghe's actions demonstrate her attitude of self-preservation and her stance of not pursuing the matter to the end.

As expected, when the guard learned of this, he did not object. He even took the initiative to say to Pei Qinghe, "In this battle, many women of the Pei family were killed or wounded. Sixth Miss must be very tired after fighting all night. Why don't you go and rest first? I will handle all the follow-up matters."

They're all smart people; they only speak three-tenths of what they mean and stop there.

The mastermind behind this band of bandits is someone the Pei family cannot afford to offend. The fact that Guard Gao is intervening is tantamount to the Crown Prince standing up for them. At least it can stem the tide of future trouble.

Pei Qinghe could not refuse this favor: "Thank you, Guard Gao."

The guard gave Pei Qinghe a deep look: "I should thank Sixth Miss. It is thanks to Sixth Miss's calm and decisive command that we are now lying on the ground as corpses."

After a night of fierce fighting, Pei Qinghe's formidable strength was undeniable. The guard, initially shocked, then filled with admiration, and now, as he calmed down, doubts began to surface in his mind.

His archery skills were divine, and his swordsmanship was ruthless; these could all be attributed to innate talent. But where did that composure—killing with the ease of slicing through melons and vegetables—come from?

Is there really a born killer in this world?
Pei Qinghe understood Gao Shiwei's doubts, but such things could not be explained, nor did they need to be.

Suddenly, Captain Sun's excited, hoarse voice rang in my ears: "He's not dead yet! Quickly, call a doctor!"

Pei Qinghe turned her head and looked over.

The square-faced soldier, his right arm severed, lay in a pool of blood. Everyone assumed he was dead and planned to lift him up and place him among the corpses of the other soldiers. However, after lifting him, the square-faced soldier actually moved.

He's not dead yet; he still has a breath left!

Most of Captain Sun's fifty men were dead, and those who survived were all wounded. There was only one doctor. Captain Sun roared with bloodshot eyes, and Doctor Bao responded verbally, but he couldn't come over for a while.

Pei Qinghe stepped forward: "I'll bandage his wounds."

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(End of this chapter)