The peasant woman quickly calculated that the entire village had been preparing for a mass exodus th

Their clothes were tattered and slovenly, reeking of alcohol, and their steps were unsteady yet fierce, their eyes fixed on the spot in her arms.

Zhao Taohua's heart clenched instantly. Oh no! These people saw Madam He giving her fifty taels of silver just now, and they wanted to snatch it!

Zhao Taohua was both scared and unwilling, so she abandoned the old cloth and basket on the ground and ran away desperately in the opposite direction.

She lost a huge amount of money by having those fifty taels stolen!

"Chase!"

The scarred man glanced in the direction Zhao Taohua had fled and ordered his men to split up and give chase.

In a short while, these people slowly surrounded Zhao Taohua in a fan shape, trapping her in the middle and leaving her with nowhere to go.

Seeing that things were not going well, passersby quickened their pace and left, fearing they would get into trouble.

One of the skinny, monkey-like thugs reached for the silver she had slipped into her bosom: "Little girl, give us the money, or else..."

Zhao Taohua hugged herself tightly, her palms already soaked with sweat.

She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, and said loudly:

"Brothers, as you just saw, it was the head of the village's wife who gave me the money. She is waiting for me to use the money to buy cloth for her to make embroidery."

"If you seize it today, you will ruin the village head's wife's plans. She will certainly not let it go easily, and then you gentlemen will likely find it difficult to escape."

As Zhao Taohua spoke, she kept an eye on their expressions. When she saw them hesitate for a moment, she immediately spotted the skinny thug. He was thin and weak, so she used all her strength to shove him into the ground.

Sure enough, they successfully broke through and found a glimmer of hope!

"Damn it, that girl ran away! Everyone hurry up and chase after her! Once we catch her, we'll sell her to a brothel!" the scarred man cursed.

These grown men were actually intimidated by a little girl. So what if it's the money of the village head's wife?

They took fifty taels and ran straight out of Qingshui Town, hiding far away. How could Pavilion Master Lü still find them?

Besides, this girl herself went to a brothel, how could she possibly come out and complain?

The scarred man's voice reached Zhao Taohua's ears, scaring her into a frantic escape. Her mind raced, thinking quickly about the direction of Duting. Only by going to Duting could she save herself and the fifty taels in her arms.

"boom!"

Just as Zhao Taohua was running away in a panic, she suddenly kicked a stone and fell forward.

But the next moment, she was grabbed by the back of her collar and didn't fall to the ground.

Just as she thought she had been caught by the scarred man and his gang so quickly, and was desperately trying to squeeze their hands to continue her escape, she suddenly heard a familiar voice:

"Zhao Taohua, why are you pinching me?"

Shen Ming's voice was hissing; Zhao Taohua had put in all her strength for those few blows.

Zhao Taohua looked up in shock, her brain momentarily blank, and the next instant her nose suddenly stung, and tears began to flow uncontrollably, the flow becoming more and more intense.

Shen Ming was stunned. He was the one being pinched, so why was she crying?

He frowned and gently wiped away her tears with his hand.

"Stop crying, I didn't do anything to you, but you pinched my hand so hard it's all bruised..."

Not far away, Zhao Lianhua stopped in her tracks upon seeing this scene: the two of them were flirting in the street.

The next moment, she saw a group of people blocking the two of them. They didn't look like good people at all. Zhao Lianhua was so scared that she quickly hid behind the corner of the wall and stuck her head out to peek over there.

"here!"

“Little girl, let’s see where you run this time. We’ll never be fooled by you again.”

The scarred man grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth, as if the fifty taels were already in his pocket.

The young girl is quite pretty; she can be sold for a few taels of silver.

At the scarred man's command, all the thugs pounced on Zhao Taohua.

Seeing this scene, Zhao Lianhua thought to herself: Goodness, how did Tao Hua get involved with this group of people? If she gets caught by them, she'll be in big trouble.

Suddenly, Zhao Lianhua thought of something, and a cold smile appeared on her lips. "Retribution has come, hasn't it?"

That damned peach blossom! She ruined her plans just a few days ago and failed to tarnish Zhao Shengxiang's reputation.

Now, Yang Fengshou's family is choosing between her and Zhao Shengxiang, but it's uncertain whether they will ultimately choose her.

Zhao Lianhua stared into the distance with a ruthless glint in her eyes, hoping that Zhao Taohua would eventually fall into the hands of these people!

Shen Ming's eyes were cold and stern as he strode towards the thug at the front. Before the thug could make a move, a powerful punch landed squarely on his face, and the man screamed and fell backward.

Seeing this, another thug drew a short knife from his waist and slashed at Shen Ming. Shen Ming easily dodged it by turning to the side, then took a step to the side, grabbed the other man's wrist, and twisted it, causing the knife to fall to the ground.

He kicked Zhao Taohua's feet, causing her to pick it up for self-defense.

He raised his leg again and kicked the thug in front of him, sending him flying into the air before he crashed to the ground like a toad.

The scarred man unexpectedly came to the rescue. This man was tall and agile, but he was a strange man with silver hair.

Who cares what it is, I'm going to get those fifty taels and that brat today!

So, the scarred man and several other thugs rushed forward. Shen Ming showed no fear and nimbly weaved through the crowd, delivering punches that landed squarely, either aimed at the jaw or striking the side ribs.

Soon, a series of groans filled the air as all the thugs were beaten to the ground, their arrogance vanished.

what?

Zhao Lianhua watched this scene with some disappointment. She hadn't expected Shen Ming to be so good at fighting. No wonder he was the only hunter in the village who dared to go up the mountain to hunt.

He's quite good-looking, tall and strong, and he never comes back empty-handed from his mountain climbs. He earns a good amount of money over the course of a year.

However, he was considered a jinx by the old Taoist priest; getting close to him would bring bad luck at best, and death at worst. Otherwise, she would have considered it.

But Peach Blossom dares to get so close to him; she's just waiting to be in trouble!

Zhao Taohua saw Shen Ming looking down at the scarred man and the others and asking, "Did you make Taohua cry?"

Zhao Taohua's fear finally subsided, and a faint smile appeared on her face when she heard Shen Ming's question.

"I, we..."

At this point, the scarred man dared not admit it.

However, he couldn't just renege on his promise now. Zhao Taohua wiped away her tears and stepped forward to Shen Ming, saying:

“Brother Shenming, those guys just tried to rob me of my money. After I managed to escape, they not only wanted the money, but also wanted to capture me and sell me into a brothel.”

Shen Ming's eyes instantly darkened, as if a raging torrent was surging from a black abyss:

“This is outrageous, Sister Peach Blossom. I’ll take all these people to Duting for you.”

The thugs, led by the scarred man, were terrified, but no matter how much they begged for mercy, it was to no avail, and they had no chance of escaping from Shen Ming's watchful eye.

Finally, they were all taken to the capital. When the constables were recording the case, they learned that the scarred man and his gang were trying to steal the deposit given by Madam He. They then said to Zhao Taohua:

"Don't worry, young lady, these people will definitely be punished even more severely."

Shen Ming reminded him, "Officers, please investigate thoroughly. They may have sold many respectable women into brothels in the past."

If Zhao Taohua hadn't met him today, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

Shen Ming lowered his eyes to look at Zhao Taohua's face. Her cheeks were flushed with a faint pink, her eyes were clear and bright, and she was full of spirit. She had helped the whole village make a lot of money and often helped him sell his game.

A girl like that should live happily ever after in Zhao Family Village.