Golden Branch

"Amian! Together!"

Wang Heng held Wang Mian's hand with her backhand.

She thought about what Amian said.

In fact, Wang Heng had a bad feeling since this morning.

When we arrived at the river and boarded the pleasure boat, the feeling of uneasiness became even stronger.

If Wang Heng didn't know that she was not of much value, she would have mistakenly believed that the so-called river cruise banquet was a conspiracy.

And she is the core of the conspiracy.

"I'm just an orphan with no parents. I'm young, and my appearance is plain because I'm fat. I'm not worth being used."

On the pleasure boat, Wang Heng seemed to be eating and drinking, looking heartless and silly.

In fact, she was always worried, speculating, and comforting herself in her heart.

She was a little girl under ten years old. She never fought, quarreled or made any noise. The only ones who could be called "enemies" were probably Zheng Chi, Lu Jialan and a few other little girls.

There was no deep blood feud between them, just jealousy between children, not even a quarrel.

At most, there would be a few quarrels and a few pushes, but it would not lead to the use of water bandits or setting up a trap!

Water bandits!

Kill!

As a foodie, Wang Heng has an extremely sensitive sense of taste and smell.

She faintly smelled a hint of blood in the air.

It’s time to use the knife!

See blood!

He might even have killed someone!

Wang Heng might not be favored, but she grew up in luxury. The bloodiest scene she had ever seen was probably Lou Yu punishing his slaves.

kill?

She had never seen it before.

"Jiu Niang, hurry!"

"While there's chaos and the thieves can't tell who's who, let's get going!"

As a seasoned soldier, Ah Hu is naturally better able to judge the urgency of the situation than the two girls and make a choice immediately.

"Uh-huh!"

Wang Heng nodded vigorously.

The usually calm little chubby face finally showed panic.

Seeing that Wang Heng agreed, Ah Hu realized that the little girl was fat and not agile enough, so he quickly reached out and pulled Wang Heng up.

Wang Heng: …

After being picked up, Wang Heng didn't care about anything else and held Wang Mian's hand tightly.

Under the influence of the great inertia, Wang Mian was quickly pulled up.

"Let's go! There's a small boat hanging on the east side of the pleasure boat."

When Ah Hu got on the pleasure boat during the day, the first thing he did was to observe and search the entire pleasure boat.

Ah Hu understood the internal structure of the pleasure boat, the conditions of every corner including the bottom hold, deck, second floor, and even the outside of the hull, by sticking half of his body out.

He identified the direction and set out with a clear goal of seizing the spare boat.

With the small boat and the soldiers on the pleasure boat to hold the thieves back, they can protect Jiu Niang to the shore.

As long as she leaves the Yi River and reaches the shore, Jiu Niang will be safe!

"……it is good!"

Wang Heng is a person who respects "professionalism" the most.

When it comes to fighting and security, Uncle Hu is a professional.

The cabin was already in chaos. There were more than a dozen young men and women, all of whom were as pampered and spoiled as Wang Heng.

Where have they ever seen such a brutal and horrific scene?

Twenty or thirty pirates jumped out from all sides of the pleasure boat, holding sharp knives and looking extremely vicious.

They were fearless and fought with the guards of each family.

I don’t know if it was an illusion, but the guards clearly outnumbered the pirates, yet they were beaten back step by step.

Originally, they were just fighting fiercely on the deck outside the cabin.

The young nobles in the cabin could only hear screams and the clanging of weapons, but did not see the blood and killing with their own eyes.

But soon, the guards began to retreat into the cabin, and the pirates approached step by step.

The young nobles were terrified when they saw the injured guards and the ferocious pirates.

"Ah! Help!"

"Yeah! Mother! Save me!"

"I'm going home! I'm going home!"

"Someone come! Someone come quickly! Wuuwu, I don't want to die! I don't want to die!"

The spacious cabin suddenly became a mess.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Wang Heng and Wang Mian held hands and, under the protection of Ahu, quietly moved towards the side of the pleasure boat.

"Jiu Niang! Wang Jiu! Where are you going?"

Just behind Wang Heng, a voice suddenly emerged.

Wang Heng's plump figure froze. "Zheng Chi! It's Zheng Chi!"

Wang Heng bit her lower lip, wanting to pretend she didn't hear anything, and continued to follow Ah Hu out.

It was only a few steps away from the ship's side.

When they reach the side of the ship, Ah Hu and several of his men will jump onto the boat, cut the rope, and then... she and Amian will be able to escape from the pleasure boat.

At this moment, Zheng Chi showed up.

As Wang Heng felt secretly annoyed, her heartbeat suddenly accelerated.

"...Wang Jiu! Wait for me!"

Wang Heng raised her foot and continued to move forward, but Zheng Chi was even faster.

She completely disregarded her appearance and manners, and pounced, rolling and crawling to Wang Heng's side.

Two thin arms tightly hugged Wang Heng's legs: "Wang Jiu, I know you have a trick up your sleeve. I, I want to be with you!"

Zheng Chi was also frightened, and her voice was trembling.

However, the extreme fear also made her mind exceptionally clear - following Wang Heng would save her life.

Zheng Chi was a "distinguished guest" in the Lou family, and her food, clothing and other expenses were treated just like those of the young girls in the Lou family.

In addition to Yue Li, the housekeeper of the Lou family also provided Zheng Chi with slaves in accordance with the family's old custom.

Zheng Chi was surrounded by not only the personal maid she brought from the Zheng family, but also a second-class maid, a maid for menial tasks, and a strong servant.

When Zheng Chi went out, he was served by more than a dozen people and was surrounded by people.

However, Zheng Chi knew in his heart that these slaves would be enough for his daily life.

But if she encounters danger... she has no guards!

Especially since Lou Yu followed Yang Rui to gain experience, all his men were in the camp on the river.

Lou Yu himself had to rely on the troops lent to him by Wang Heng for protection, so how could he assign any of them to Zheng Chi?

Uh, okay, Lou Yu doesn't like Zheng Chi, this bean sprout.

Even if he had someone on hand, he wouldn't give it to Zheng Chi.

Lou Yu dislikes and even rejects Zheng Chi, and Zheng Chi, the person involved, is naturally well aware of it.

Coincidentally, she also doesn't like Lou Yu.

She insisted on staying in the Lou family, not because of her own wish, but because of her grandmother's request.

Zheng Chi could not refuse his grandmother's arrangement, but he would not rush to curry favor with Lou Yu.

They maintain superficial closeness and act like an ordinary pair of "cousins", which is fine!

However, when she encountered a crisis, Zheng Chi suddenly realized that not being valued by her cousin was a very dangerous thing.

My cousin doesn't like her, so he doesn't arrange any extra guards for her!

Zheng Chi even suspected that if the four strong women around him were in danger at the same time as himself and Wang Heng, those strong women would run to protect Wang Heng.

There's nothing we can do about it. That fat girl Wang Heng is Lou Yu's treasure.

Since the master values ​​you, we servants naturally dare not treat you poorly!

So, when Zheng Chi realized that the pleasure boat was in danger, his first reaction was to find Wang Heng in the crowd and then hug her!

Wang Heng lowered her head, her fair, round face full of helplessness.

This was probably the first time someone hugged her thighs.

The person who hugged her was Zheng Chi, who was hostile to her.

If Wang Heng hadn't seen the panic on Zheng Chi's face, she would have suspected whether this was her new plan.

"...Zheng Shisi, get up quickly!" Wang Heng scolded in a low voice, holding back her silence.

"No! If you don't agree to take me with you, I, I won't get up!" Zheng Chi didn't care about it when it came to life and death.

She had set her sights on Wang Heng and was determined to follow her.

Wang Heng: …

Taking a deep breath, Wang Heng caught a glimpse of the pirates and guards who were still fighting fiercely. She knew that she could not delay any longer.

First of all, you will miss the best opportunity to escape.

Secondly, if there is a quarrel, it will definitely attract some people's attention.

She and Wang Mian both had a consensus: if those pirates wanted to take hostages, she, Wang Heng, would be the first choice!

We must not let the pirates know that she is the eldest daughter of Wang Lin, the Chief Clerk of Yizhou!

"If you don't get up, how can you follow me?"

Wang Heng suppressed her surging anger and had no choice but to compromise.

Hearing this, Zheng Chi immediately let go of his hand and stood up.

Wang Heng: ...So agile! As expected of a bean sprout, she can flip over even faster than a sticky rice dumpling!

Wang Heng, who needed help from her subordinates even to stand up, realized for the first time the "trouble" that obesity brought her!

"Thirteenth Lady, Sixteenth Lady, you, follow along!"

Wang Heng looked past Zheng Chi and saw Zheng Shisan and Zheng Shiliu who were following Zheng Chi closely.

The two little girls also looked thin and weak.

They were not as shameless as Zheng Chi. They were also scared. Their faces were pale and their bodies were trembling, but they still kept their heads down and curled up.

At most, they would secretly raise their heads and look at Wang Heng with eyes filled with pleading and longing.

Wang Heng sighed silently. She knew too well the feeling of being unable to protect herself.

In order to survive, they dare not fight or compete and can only swallow their anger.

Not to mention my past self, even the current Wang Heng cannot act as she pleases and be free and unrestrained.

They were all poor people, Wang Heng felt deeply sympathetic.

It's enough to save one person at a time, and adding two skinny little girls wouldn't be a problem.

"Thank you, Jiuniang!"

Zheng Shisan and Zheng Shiliu's eyes suddenly lit up.

I originally thought that they would be abandoned and would have to fend for themselves on the pleasure boat.

Unexpectedly... Zheng Shisan's eyes flashed with light, and she knew that Jiu Niang was a kind person.

If you follow her, you will definitely have a good future.

"Haha! We caught her! This is the little girl from the Hedong County Magistrate's family!"

"And this one is from the Cheng family in Hedong."

"...Where are the little brats from the Wang family? The little girl from Wang Changshi's family is worth ten of them!"

In the pleasure boat, the fierce battle between the pirates and the guards seemed to have a clear outcome.

The pirates began to select hostages from a group of crying and fleeing little nobles.

Lu Jialan was captured, and several young men and women were also controlled by the bandits.

The pirates still felt it was not enough and continued to search among the crowd.

"Jiu Niang! Quick! Run!"

Wang Mian's calves were shaking and he could hardly stand.

Ah Hu didn't delay and grabbed Wang Heng's arm and ran towards the side of the ship quickly.

Wang Heng's small body was about to fly up, but she still didn't let go of Wang Mian, so Wang Mian also flew into the air and was dragged out of the cabin.

A hint of coldness flashed in Zheng Chi's eyes. Wang Heng was so nice. She would rather hold Wang Mian as a pariah than take good care of her.

Although he was feeling resentful, Zheng Chi did not stop and trotted closely behind him.

Zheng Shisan and Zheng Shiliu did not hesitate and followed closely.

The group quickly came to the side of the ship. Ahu protected Wang Heng, while another group climbed up the side of the ship, grabbed the hemp rope, and jumped into the small boat hanging on the hull along the rope.

He stood firmly in the boat, turned around, raised his hands high, and prepared to "pick up" someone.

Seeing this, Ah Hu quickly stretched out his hands and tried to pick up Wang Heng.

At this moment, Lu Jialan in the cabin saw the situation and cried out at the top of his voice, "Wang Jiu! Wang Jiuniang is there! They are trying to jump off the boat!"

This shout directly alarmed the pirates.

They followed Lu Jialan's instructions and found Wang Heng and others.

"Great! There are still some fish that have slipped through the net!"

"Hahaha! There's a big reward for capturing the little girl from Wang Changshi's family!"

"Catch her! Quick! Catch her!"

"The boat! Yes! They want to take the boat and escape! Cut the ropes!"

The pirates were shouting in unison, and some of the pirates nearby raised their knives and rushed forward with a grim smile.

"Jiu Niang, be careful!"

Wang Mian was quick-witted and noticed a flash of light coming from the side. He pushed Wang Heng away and stood directly in front of her.

Wang Mian's movements were too fast and he used all his strength.

Ah Hu was about to pick up Wang Heng, and all his attention and strength were focused on Wang Heng.

He couldn't help but stagger two steps after being hit.

A large knife flew over, almost glancing at Ah Hu's scalp.

so close!

If Wang Mian hadn't bumped into her, the blade might have hit Wang Heng or Ah Hu!

Ah Hu staggered and fell heavily on the side of the boat, but he still did not let go of Wang Heng.

A pirate on the deck had already rushed over. He aimed at the rope and started chopping it.

After a few seconds, the finger-thick hemp rope began to break, and the boat was swaying in mid-air.

Seeing this, Zheng Chi made a quick decision. He stepped on Zheng Shiliu and climbed onto the side of the boat. He flipped over and jumped down first.

The soldier standing in the small boat could not see the person jumping down in the dark, so he could only catch the person first.

Wang Heng caught a glimpse of this scene out of the corner of her eye, and was speechless with envy: Bean sprouts are pretty good too, their movements are so flexible!

She couldn't go on like this, and Ah Hu was so tired that he was out of breath while holding her.

She stepped on Ah Hu's arm and crawled up with great difficulty, but if she wanted to roll down as nimbly as Zheng Chi, she still needed someone's help!

"Jiu Niang! Run away!"

Wang Heng's chubby little body was stuck on the side of the boat, unable to move up or down, and her little face turned red.

More pirates rushed up and tried to grab her.

At the critical moment, a thin figure rushed up.

Zheng Shisan raised his hands high, used all his strength, and pushed hard, and Wang Heng was thrown out.

But at the same time, the hemp rope hanging the boat broke.

Wang Heng and the boat fell into the water almost at the same time.

thump!

Wang Heng brushed against the side of the boat and fell into the deep river...