After refusing marriage, she was pampered by the prince who acted as a shield.

Chapter 275: The Strange Mountain Bandits

Although everyone was in poor condition, they still had to continue their journey the next day. The army, which had been in high spirits after defeating two waves of assassination attempts, was now in low spirits. Everyone was listless, drowsy, and weak.

Li Jingyang frowned, worried that there might be another ambush.

Suzhou City grew larger and larger in their eyes. When they were finally about to arrive, everyone felt a sense of relief, but they also felt unwell and became somewhat lax.

Just then, another group of rampant bandits suddenly appeared in front of them.

Suzhou was not far away, but their path was blocked by a group of arrogant bandits.

Before anyone could even negotiate, the man, who looked like a bandit leader, waved his hand and ordered his men to attack Lin Rusi and her group.

The army, already weakened by diarrhea overnight, had been constantly on the move since early morning, exhausting both their mental and physical strength. They were all too weak to fight the bandits.

Soon, the army was routed and surrounded by more bandits who pressed them relentlessly, leaving them powerless to resist.

However, these bandits did not fight desperately to kill them like the first two groups. Instead, they did not really harm them, but only forced them into a corner with nowhere to escape.

Is this some new trap?

Lin Rusi took a deep breath and became even more vigilant, looking at the bandits around her with hostility. She didn't think that these bandits were being kind by not harming them; there must be a reason.

However, this group of bandits was far stronger than the two groups of assassins from before, and their army was also very weak, so they couldn't defeat their opponents at all.

Just when Lin Rusi and Li Jingyang's group thought they were going to be left there forever, a voice stopped the bandits from moving.

"Stop! Tie them up and take them back."

The bandit leader said lazily, his eyes darting around, not focusing on them, as if he didn't care at all: "Don't give them a chance to escape."

The bandits shouted "Yes!" and then tied them up one by one with ropes so tight that they couldn't break free.

So, Lin Rusi, Li Jingyang, and all the soldiers were taken back to the village.

Back in the village, everyone was locked up, leaving Lin Rusi completely bewildered.

The bandits did not harm them; they simply locked them up.

Later that evening, when the bandit leader arrived, he happened to see Lin Rusi and her companions being protected.

"Boss, you're here!"

Hearing the sound, Lin Rusi and the others looked out the window and saw a burly figure passing by.

"Okay, open the door, I'll go take a look."

As they spoke, several bandits respectfully opened the door, but the one walking in front was not the burly figure that Lin Rusi had seen.

He was clearly a fair-skinned young man; Lin Rusi would have believed it if you said he was from a wealthy family and had been living away from home.

She looked over with some confusion, but the man suddenly met her gaze and stared straight at her.

"Why did you tie up such a beautiful girl?!"

The man rushed over and said, "Hello, I'm Li Xiao Kui. This whole mountain stronghold belongs to me. How about it? Want to be my wife?"

Li Xiao Kui was somewhat proud, his eyes fixed on Lin Ru Si, completely captivated.

Lin Rusi raised her lips slightly but did not speak.

She had no liking for the bandit leader and naturally wouldn't agree to it, but given the current situation, it was best not to offend him easily, so she kept quiet.

On the contrary, Li Jingyang didn't care about the current situation at all; his face was just extremely ugly.

She hurriedly stepped in front of Lin Rusi and immediately retorted, "No way!"

Li Xiao Kui seemed a little unhappy and couldn't help but glare at him.

"Who do you think you are?! What gives you the right to say no?"

“She is my wife. We are already married and have consummated our marriage. You naturally cannot make her your wife!”

Li Jingyang was not afraid at all; his face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and he showed no intention of backing down.

I originally thought that bandits were all unreasonable, including the one in front of me.

But to my surprise, the person in front of me didn't do that. He just stiffened, slowly stood up, and looked a little disappointed.

"Alright, then forget it. I won't ruin their relationship." With that, Li Xiao Kui waved his hand.

The next moment, many bandits came in, released them, and untied the ropes binding them.

Lin Rusi and Li Jingyang exchanged glances, both of them wary.

strange!

Why isn't this bandit playing by the rules? Lin Rusi frowned, but remained silent.

Meanwhile, the bandits who came in brought in a lot of food and arranged for them to sit down.

The village was very large, and the bandits sat with them.

Lin Rusi observed the food laid out on the table, a hint of doubt in her eyes. There were quite a few meat dishes and fine wine on the table, which could be smelled from the aroma.

That's precisely why Lin Rusi is even more wary.

She always felt that there might be something wrong with the food.

Seeing this, Li Xiao Kui also figured it out. He casually picked up a chicken leg, took a bite, and mumbled, "Don't worry, I didn't poison it. I'm not that despicable."

Hearing this, Lin Rusi raised her eyebrows. However, it would be strange not to poison them. They were tied up on the mountain and even taken good care of them.

It looks really weird no matter how you look at it, right?

Lin Rusi frowned and asked in confusion, "But... since you are bandits, why don't you rob us or kill us? Why do you tie us up and treat us well?"

Li Xiao Kui finished the chicken leg in one bite, wiped his mouth nonchalantly, and Lin Ru Si carefully observed his actions. He really didn't look like a bandit.

On the contrary, he seemed like some rich young master who had run away from home; it was really strange.

Lin Rusi sensed something was wrong and stared intently at him. At the same time, Li Xiaokui had already sat down opposite her and spoke calmly.

"Hello, my name is Li Xiao Kui. Actually, I come from a wealthy family. My family is rich, but I really wanted to be a bandit, so I ran away from home. Now I'm the leader of a bandit group."

"what?"

Lin Rusi stared wide-eyed in confusion, her eyes filled with bewilderment.

She just stared at the person in front of her, as if she didn't understand whether Li Xiao Kui was serious.

The story of a rich young master running away from home to become a bandit sounds absurd no matter how you look at it.

After a pause, Li Xiao Kui continued, "However, I captured you because someone wanted me to kill you, to stop you, and to prevent you from continuing on your way."

With just that one question, Li Xiao Kui told him everything.

Lin Rusi clearly hadn't expected this turn of events. She subconsciously looked at Li Jingyang; this was no small matter.