My elder sister is so noble, this time it's my turn to strike back

Qiu Ning came back to his senses in a second, and at the same time cursed himself in his heart.

She felt that she was becoming more and more useless, as she had just been distracted at such a critical moment.

Without the other party counting, Qiu Ning hugged the trunk and slid down from the tree like a nimble monkey, landing steadily on the ground.

"Who are you? Why are you here?" She patted the dirt off her hands and asked the man.

At the same time, he looked at the other person calmly.

Unexpectedly, the man didn't answer according to the usual rules. Instead, he asked, "I should be the one asking you this. A little girl actually appeared in this deep mountain forest. It's not just to collect herbs."

As soon as the other party spoke, he revealed that Qiu Ning was a woman, and his tone was somewhat questioning.

Although Qiu Ning was surprised, he thought about it carefully and realized that he disguised himself as a medicine boy to collect herbs to hide his identity, so it was normal for him to be discovered.

I can only say that my disguise skills are not good enough.

"I... to be honest, I heard from the old people down the mountain that there are many aged medicinal herbs on this mountain, so I thought of coming here to try my luck."

"I see that you have an extraordinary appearance and are quite skilled. You must not be an ordinary person. You appear in this mountain. You can't be just passing by, right?"

This man was about twenty-five or twenty-six years old. Although he looked a bit fierce, Qiu Ning did not sense any murderous intent from him, and at this moment he could not help but let down his guard a little.

If the other party also came to explore the Guo family's mineral veins, perhaps they could work together.

Just as the other party was about to speak, another man in tight clothes suddenly trotted over from the other side of the path and reported to the dark-skinned man:

"Master, the pursuers are coming. There are quite a few of them this time. We must leave immediately."

Judging from the tone of voice, they should be this man's subordinates or guards, who just came back from scouting the terrain ahead.

The man's handsome brows slightly frowned, as if he had not expected the enemy to arrive so quickly, and he immediately ordered:

"It seems we've alerted the enemy. Call everyone back and retreat first."

"Yes!"

The man who looked like a subordinate received the order and was about to turn around and leave when he saw Qiu Ning. A murderous intent flashed in his eyes.

He placed his hand on the hilt of the knife at his waist and asked Gu Li:

"Master, who is this woman? Do you want me to decide for you first?"

Qiu Ning suddenly felt as if he was facing a formidable enemy and couldn't help but take a few steps back.

Who were these people? Why did they want to beat and kill me the moment they saw me? Moreover, this subordinate looked like someone who had been on the edge of a knife for years, and he had a very strong murderous aura.

Just as Qiu Ning was secretly thinking about how to escape, he heard the man from before say:

"No need to worry, you go first."

A few words lightly decided Qiu Ning's life or death at that moment.

After the subordinate left, Gu Li first glanced at Qiu Ning, then said, "This place is not suitable for picking herbs. Miss, please don't stay. It's best to leave quickly."

After saying this, he actually planned to leave Qiu Ning behind and turned to leave.

"Hero, please stay!"

Qiu Ning reacted and tried to call Gu Li.

The other party didn't turn around, but just paused and asked, "Miss, is there anything else?"

Qiu Ning knew that the other party was planning to leave him alone, but if he really let the other party go, what would happen if the enemy came back later?

Wan Zilang didn't know any martial arts, and A Kuan and the others didn't know where they were hiding. If he wasn't careful and was caught by the enemy, he would definitely die.

Therefore, after seeing the man's kung fu, Qiu Ning immediately came up with an idea.

That means she has to cooperate with this person, enter the cave in front first, and wait for an opportunity to find evidence of the Guo family's crimes.

After thinking for a while, Qiu Ning took a step forward, stood in front of Gu Li, took a deep breath and said:

"Don't blame me, sir. I lied earlier. I didn't come to this mountain to collect herbs. I heard there was a mineral vein here, so I wanted to come and explore it."

After Qiu Ning finished speaking, he stared at Gu Li without blinking.

After hearing her words, the other party's eyes flashed with a cold light. He sneered:

"You are truly courageous, young lady. Should I say you are brave, or are you ignorant and fearless?"

Qiu Ning understood.

As expected, the other party also came for this vein. That would be easy.

"Since our goals are the same, how about we work together for a while? I'll help your people get into the mine, and you'll protect me. How about that?"

Since this person had just ordered his men to withdraw and even mentioned the threat of alerting the enemy, Qiu Ning was certain that his men had not yet penetrated deep into the enemy's territory. Therefore, he proposed cooperation.

Sure enough, after hearing Qiu Ning's proposal, Gu Li's eyes showed a bit more interest.

However, the next second, Gu Li's eyes fell on Qiu Ning's back, and instead of answering, he asked, "Oh? Then how can you prove that you are worthy of my protection?"

How capable can a little girl who looks less than seventeen years old be?

Before Qiu Ning had time to think about the meaning of his words, he suddenly felt a sense of danger approaching from behind.

Before Qiu Ning could react, a dagger suddenly appeared on his neck, and the other shoulder was held hostage by the enemy behind him.

"Don't move! Be careful of the sword!"

"Well, you guys, I was wondering why I couldn't find anyone after searching for so long. Turns out he was hiding in a tree. Humph! Now that you're here, you fearless idiots, don't even think about leaving here alive today!"

The person behind her suddenly spoke, and Qiu Ning recognized him. This was the man in gray who had been looking for them under the tree earlier.

After living for two lifetimes, this was the first time that Qiu Ning had a knife held to his neck and became someone else's prey.

At this time, she finally realized what Gu Li meant.

This suspicious man obviously wanted her to prove her innocence before she would cooperate with him.

Qiu Ning's mind was working rapidly.

At this time, the man in gray spoke again, threatening Gu Li: "If you know what's good for you, put down your weapons and surrender immediately, otherwise, I will kill this stinky girl on the spot!"

As the gray-clothed man spoke, he applied a little more force to his hands, and a blood mark immediately appeared on Qiu Ning's neck.

A tingling pain spread.

However, Gu Li's expression did not change, and he did not say a single extra word. His cold eyes fell directly on Qiu Ning.

Qiu Ning cursed this person in his heart for not helping him, and forced himself to calm down and not panic.

In a desperate situation, Qiu Ning actually thought of a way that might be worth a try.

She took a deep breath, suppressed her hands that were trembling with nervousness, and suddenly shouted at the gray-clothed man behind her:

"How dare you! I'm General Guo's trusted confidant, specially ordered to come here to oversee the mining progress. Yet you dare to hold me hostage? Do you think you've lived too long?"