I used the Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword) to fight the Japanese.

The village head's courtyard is easy to find; it's the largest one in the whole village. It's a large brick and tile house with two courtyards inside and outside, and a pair of stone lions at the entrance, which looks particularly impressive.

It was pitch black all around. Mancang led the group silently towards the village head's courtyard and stopped at the tall gate. They pressed their ears against the heavy gate and listened, but it was completely silent inside.

"Go!" Mancang ordered his men to scale the wall.

The two brothers quickly climbed onto the roof and landed in the courtyard. Seeing that no one was around, they were about to return to the gate to open it and let everyone in. Just then, a servant in the gatehouse heard the commotion, flashed his flashlight at the two men, and simultaneously pointed a dark gun barrel at them!

"Where did these petty thieves come from, daring to steal from the Ma family? Don't they know how many eyes Lord Ma has?" As a guard of the Ma family, he had seen many such situations. It was only natural that the Ma family, with its great power and influence, would be targeted. Accustomed to flaunting their power and influence with the Ma family's authority, he assumed the two were just petty thieves trying to steal. With guns in hand, he believed these two wouldn't cause any trouble.

"Uh... haha, we've been found out! Brother, please forgive us, we're short on cash lately and just wanted to sneak into this grand mansion to get some travel expenses. We didn't expect it to be Old Master Ma's residence, it's us..." The man with the box bowed and begged for forgiveness politely, looking embarrassed and awkward after being caught thieves.

But before he could finish speaking, a "whoosh" sounded from beside him, and Shimizu's arrow had already shot out and accurately embedded itself in the servant's chest! As he watched the servant fall backward to the ground, the flashlight beam shone brightly on the roof.

Seeing that they had succeeded in their attack, the two men quickly turned off their flashlights. One dragged the body into the room while the other opened the door to let everyone in.

Those outside the door naturally heard the commotion inside. After entering, they quickly dispersed and hid in various corners of the courtyard.

Sure enough, just as everyone had concealed themselves, three beams of flashlight shone from three directions in the backyard, and a flippant voice drifted over from afar:

"Liu Zi, caught another petty thief? How many did you catch this time?"

"It's been strange these past few days, petty thieves keep coming. The Ma family mansion isn't that easy to rob! They're really brainless!" A servant's voice rang out from the other side. Clearly, these people didn't take it seriously; if a thief came, they'd just catch him and beat him up—they didn't care at all.

"Shhhhhhh!"

In the pitch black, the lights in the hands of the three men were the brightest beacons. There was no need to aim too much; so many people just raised their hands and fired. After a round, the three beams of flashlight landed close to the ground, illuminating a courtyard. The three servants were now three corpses lying not far away, never to rise again!

Having dealt with the four servants, the group dared not delay. After searching the front yard and finding no one on night watch, they crouched down and headed towards the back yard. The four hunting dogs were the most eager; they darted into the back yard, quickly circled around, and finding no one alive, quietly returned to the group to await their orders.

The night watchman was easily apprehended, and those who were sleeping were like fish on a chopping board. Within half an hour, all the servants and masters in each room were bound hand and foot and forced to kneel in the courtyard. The courtyard was brightly lit, and everyone—men, women, and children—trembled with fear, the women sobbing softly…

"Gentlemen...gentlemen, spare my life! If I have offended you in the past, please tell me, and I am willing to pay double the price as compensation. If you only want money, the silver dollars are in the closet in the bedroom, please take them! Please spare my whole family, I will be eternally grateful!" A bald old man in the courtyard knelt up and shouted to the crowd.

"Haha, Chief Ma is begging for mercy now? Given your usual arrogance, shouldn't you have been stubborn and refused to submit even at the cost of your life?" Da Zhao said with a sigh as he approached.

"No! No! We were just putting on airs in the past. Please forgive us..." Chief Ma lowered his attitude and was determined to be let go.

At this moment, his entire family was like fish on a chopping board, how could he dare to act arrogantly? But these people were all unfamiliar faces; he shouldn't have offended them before! Moreover, they were all carrying crossbows—did they really take down the guards with such primitive weapons? He had spent a fortune equipping them with Hanyang rifles! They were taken down without firing a single shot—how useless!

"It's not impossible for me to let you go, but you have to cooperate! You have to answer my questions truthfully, understand?" Da Zhao continued in his affected tone.

"Absolutely, absolutely! Gentlemen, please feel free to ask. I, Ma, will answer all your questions to the best of my knowledge!"

"That's good! Where did you send Tiger?" Da Zhao asked with a gloomy and serious expression.

"Tiger?..." The old man suddenly understood. So this group of people came for Tiger! But when did Tiger, a peasant, become friends with such powerful figures? Wasn't he forced into mining by the Japanese? Even if he escaped, he'd just be a laborer!

"Which Tiger?... Is there some misunderstanding?..." The old man pretended to be stupid. Tiger had already been sent to the Japanese, and it was uncertain whether he was alive or dead. If he told the truth, he was probably in grave danger!

"Haha, it seems Chief Ma isn't satisfied with our methods! Come on! Show Chief Ma what you've got!" Da Zhao called out to Manxiang, seeing that the old man was being disobedient.

"Okay!" Manxiang understood immediately, raised his hand and shot an arrow into the young man next to the old man. The arrow was embedded in the young man's shoulder, and blood instantly stained the silk nightgown red.

"Ah?... Father! Father!... Save me!..." The young man, who looked about fifteen or sixteen years old, fell to the ground after being shot in the shoulder, clutching his wound and screaming in anguish!

"Mingzhong!...Mingzhong, are you alright?..." An old woman not far away saw her son shot with an arrow and, ignoring the pain in her knee, she knelt down and wailed.

"Mother!... It hurts so much!... My arm is going to fall off..." the young man cried out urgently, clutching the woman's thigh.

"Master!...Tell them! We can't let Mingzhong be ruined for the sake of Huzi!..." the woman pleaded from the side.

"Haha, it seems Chief Ma is still not satisfied! Continue, this time don't hold back!" Seeing that this guy still refused to tell the truth, Da Zhao ordered Man Kuang to continue firing.

"Stop! I'll talk! I'll talk!..." The old man shouted as he saw that the box was full of bows and arrows.

He gestured for a halt, his eyes fixed intently on Ma Baozhang, awaiting further instructions.

"...It's all my fault! I shouldn't have been so foolish as to hand Tiger over to the Japanese!...It was a moment of folly on my part, please forgive us, my lords!...Take all the silver dollars in the cabinet, consider it compensation for Tiger's life!..." The old man finished speaking with a face full of regret. If he had known that Tiger had such a group of friends, he shouldn't have provoked them!

"You mean Tiger is dead?" Da Zhao immediately became alert, his eyes fixed on the old man with hatred!