Divorcing your wife might feel good for a moment, but seeing me make money will make you regret it f

Xu Qing comforted her, "I know, old lady, don't cry."

She understood the old man's implication, but she still chose to come in, thinking that she had the electric baton for protection anyway. However, she hadn't expected there to be so many bandits.

She bought a packet of children's ibuprofen powder from the mall, and under the cover of her sleeve, poured out the powder, wrapped it in paper, and handed it to the old man.

"This is some medicine my daughter had left over from when she had a fever. It was very effective. You can give it to your granddaughter first. Just dissolve it in warm water."

The old man stopped crying, gratefully accepted the medicine bag, carefully placed it close to his body, and ran towards the backyard.

At this time.

The bandits outside the gate grinned as they entered the courtyard. The leader wore a black eye patch and had a full beard.

He looked in Xu Qing's direction and said in a gruff voice:

“If you can afford to build a house with bricks and tiles these days, your family must be wealthy. Take out 500 taels of silver, and I can let you two leave.”

Xu Qing couldn't believe this man's words. What credibility did bandits have? He still had to maintain appearances.

How can I believe you?

The bandit leader put on a polite demeanor: "We weren't born bandits, it's just that God didn't want us to live."

The fields yielded no harvest, yet the imperial court not only refused to provide disaster relief grain but also imposed taxes. This was a last resort.

We haven't harmed a single villager in this village; they're all locked up in the backyard. We'll release them once we've moved the grain away.

Xu Qing cast a suspicious glance at the one-eyed bandit: "Didn't the magistrate teach us how to eat the Demon Taro? With so many Demon Taro on the mountain, how come we don't have enough to eat?"

The one-eyed bandit sneered, "So it's because God doesn't want us to live. Our villages are the most severely affected by the disaster. Even the taro won't grow, and other villages don't allow outsiders to dig up the taro."

"Alright, stop stalling. The whole village is in the backyard; no one's coming back to save you. If you want to live, hand over the money."

Although Lao Shi was afraid, he still stood firmly in front of Xu Qing.

Xu Qing silently counted the number of bandits: eight. He wondered if there were any more outside, but there should still be guards in the backyard.

With so many people, she had no chance of winning.

"Didn't you say you wouldn't hurt anyone?"

"We won't kill anyone," the one-eyed bandit said with a smile after looking Xu Qing up and down. "But it's only right that we enjoy some women."

Old Shi immediately became anxious. He clenched his fists and roared, "If you want to bully our boss, you'll have to step over my dead body!"

The bandits burst into laughter, as if they had heard the funniest joke in the world.

"This old geezer thinks he can stop us? That's hilarious, hahaha."

"I can kick him to death with one kick without the boss even having to lift a finger."

"We can't hurt anyone, have you forgotten?"

"If someone dies, then they're no longer considered injured, hahahahahaha."

Xu Qing knew that these bandits' words could not be trusted. They might say nice things, but who knew if they would kill them all after they left?

However, Xu Qing also had a plan, thanks to the arrogance of these bandits.

She smiled charmingly: "I admire your heroic spirit. I really can't come up with 500 taels. How about I have a meal with you heroes, and then we can go to the room to discuss the amount of the ransom?"

Although Xu Qing is a mother of two, she is still young, and because she has given birth, she has a charm that young girls don't have.

She has been eating and sleeping well during this period, and she looks radiant. Coupled with her calm and composed demeanor, she stands out among the ordinary village girls.

The bandits immediately started drooling.

The one-eyed bandit, flattered by the beautiful woman's praise of him, began to act like the boss:

"Alright, but there's no good wine or food here. Come back to the village with me, and I'll take good care of you."

Old Shi grabbed Xu Qing, sweating profusely, "No, boss, we can't go with them."

Xu Qing gestured to Lao Shi not to rush, then said to the one-eyed bandit:

“It will take you time to transport the grain, and this place cannot be left unguarded.”

"I'm a very good cook, so why don't I prepare a delicious meal and drinks for you heroes here, so we can eat and wait?"

The one-eyed bandit was even more satisfied. This woman knew how to think of them; it seemed she had truly been captivated by his charm.

He waved his hand, signaling his men to take Xu Qing to the kitchen.

Old Shi wanted to go too, but was stopped.

The bandits didn't take Xu Qing seriously, a woman, and only sent one person to guard her.

Xu Qing busied herself in the kitchen, cooking a pot of white rice and stewing a pot of chicken soup.

I added a veterinary sedative-anesthetic that I bought from the mall—one that can make a cow turn over—to both the white rice and the chicken soup.

She was heartbroken that she had spent a whole tael of silver, and she was determined to make those bandits compensate her later.

I also bought a bottle of pure sorghum liquor, with an alcohol content of 80%. Aren't they heroes? Heroes have to drink strong liquor.

To be on the safe side, Xu Qing also added an anesthetic to the wine.

With everything prepared, Xu Qing had the bandits guarding the door bring out wine and food.

It's impossible to expect her to serve me; cooking is just for adding ingredients.

Surprisingly, the bandits obediently served wine and dishes and took Xu Qing to the courtyard.

The bandits cleared a space, built a platform out of blue bricks, and placed a wooden plank on it to serve as a table.

The one-eyed beggar sat at the head of the table, his gaze fixed intently on Xu Qing.

Xu Qing smiled and said, "Sorry to keep you waiting. Let's start eating. Are all the brothers here? You're the hero leader, so you can have both chicken legs."

Xu Qing placed the chicken leg into the one-eyed bandit's bowl, then poured a whole bowl of strong liquor and handed it over.

"This wine is homemade, but I must warn you, it's very strong. Many men get drunk after just a few sips. I wonder how many sips you heroes can handle?"

The bandits, drawn by the aroma of the chicken soup, were eager to start eating, but since their leader hadn't given the order, they could only stare at it like wolves, not daring to touch their chopsticks.

The one-eyed bandit was satisfied with his underlings' performance. He picked up his wine bowl and said disdainfully, "I drink wine like water. Let me taste your wine and see if it's as good as you say."

The one-eyed bandit downed his drink in one gulp, instantly getting tipsy. He shook his head and said, "It's...not that great...more...more."

"Boom" sound.

He collapsed heavily onto the table.

The underlings stared wide-eyed at the sudden turn of events, completely bewildered.

What's going on?

Xu Qing said with a smile, "I've already told you that my family's liquor is very strong, but your boss just wouldn't believe me."

Since he's drunk, let's help him to his room to rest. Let's continue eating.

"Are all the brothers here? Let's call the ones from the backyard over for a meal too, otherwise where will we get the strength to carry the grain later?"

The group of underlings felt that Xu Qing was very understanding, and immediately ran to the backyard to call for help.

Anyway, those people are all tied up, so they can't cause any trouble. Let's wait until they've eaten and drunk their fill before we talk about it.

Once everyone had arrived, Xu Qing happily helped them ladle soup, serve rice, and divide the chicken, repeatedly urging them to eat more and not to be shy, saying she would cook more if they weren't full.

The bandits had never received such care before; they felt a tingling sensation all over their bodies, and their bones went limp.

"No wonder the boss likes this woman, she has a really nice voice."

"Yes, I feel like my body went limp."

"Me too, this woman is absolutely gorgeous. I wonder if the boss can share her with us after he's had his fill."

“I…thump.”

"Dong dong dong dong."

A series of thuds rang out, and the bandits who had just been full of energy were all lying on the ground.