My stepsister tried to steal the prince's hand in marriage, but little did she know I had been

Chapter 312

Following the skinny monkey into the reed marshes, Si Qing finally understood why they had been unable to completely eradicate this group of river bandits for so many years.

If it weren't for the skinny monkey leading the way, we would never have discovered that there was such a hidden island in this great lake.

Zehu Lake is the largest lake in Dali, with numerous rivers converging here and then branching into countless other rivers that flow into the sea.

This small island is located at the westernmost part of Zehu Lake, closely connected to the canal, but because it is separated by a large reed bed, very few people venture here.

Moreover, these bandits had set traps outside the reed marshes. Apart from wild ducks that frequently visited, there were almost no signs of people. Even if someone did find the island, they would be killed by the bandits.

"I'll give you a big credit for this." Si Qing patted the skinny monkey on the shoulder.

Si Qingsheng was tall and strong; when he slapped the skinny monkey, he almost knocked the monkey to the ground.

The skinny monkey scratched his head: "This is a path I found when I went out to catch wild ducks for a treat."

“If you hadn’t discovered this path, we wouldn’t have been able to land on the island so easily.”

Si Qing sighed with relief, thankfully the skinny monkey's life had been spared.

Following the route given by the boat captain and the third brother, they were bound to face the enemy head-on.

Although there are only two or three hundred pirates left on the island, they know the terrain like the back of their hand and are excellent swimmers. If a fight breaks out, many of their brothers will surely be lost.

Si Qing was also one of the five hundred guards. He regarded these guards as his brothers, so he naturally tried his best to minimize casualties.

Following the path pointed out by the skinny monkey, they successfully landed on the island without losing a single soldier.

It was the dead of night, and the small boat moved silently through the reeds. They quietly dealt with the lookout bandits and captured the island while most of them were still asleep.

The bandits were awakened by the cries for help, only to find several burly men guarding their bedsides, staring at them menacingly.

"His Highness said that most of these river bandits are heinous criminals," Si Qing instructed. "Except for the women and children they have robbed, as well as those who look younger, leave no one alive."

"Everyone's here?"

As per Si Qing's request, almost all the pirates on the island were killed on the spot.

These river bandits have taken countless lives. Over the years, they have long lost their humanity and take pleasure in slaughtering people.

But they never expected that this day would come for them. Only when the cold knife was held to their necks did they belatedly realize what was happening and began to cry and beg for mercy.

They all claimed they were forced into this situation, but the greed and murderous intent in their expressions and eyes could not be concealed. The guards had all been on the battlefield with Xie Jinghan, and they could tell at a glance that many lives were on their hands, so they showed no mercy.

One by one, heads rolled, and cries of agony echoed across the island.

Wen Yitong huddled at the ugly woman's feet. They were on the highest point on the island, and although it was just a small hill, they could clearly see the hellish scene below.

Even though she knew these people deserved their fate, she still couldn't help but hug her shoulders when she witnessed this scene.

But beside her, an excitement shone in the ugly woman's eyes, and even the scars on her face seemed to exude a joyful aura.

Seeing this, Wen Yitong felt uneasy and wanted to leave at this moment.

Unexpectedly, the ugly woman grabbed her hand at this moment and warned her, "Have you forgotten what I told you? Look at the people on this island, almost all of them have been killed, but who knows if there are still some bandits hiding in the shadows."

“If you leave now… who knows what fate awaits you.” After saying this, the ugly woman saw Wen Yitong’s evasive eyes and said, “If you are afraid of being recognized, you might as well go find some mud to disguise yourself.”

“However…” The ugly woman hesitated for a moment before saying this.

Wen Yitong sensed something was wrong and immediately grabbed her hand: "But what? Is there some danger?"

She had originally planned to disguise herself as the ugly woman suggested before leaving, but if she couldn't leave, where would she find Granny Lin?

These past few days, she has been tormented and wished she could die immediately.

If she manages to escape the bandits' lair only to fall into Wen Shuyao's clutches, she might as well have died in the first place.

As she thought this, tears began to fall uncontrollably.

Seeing this, the ugly woman sighed: "We people will probably be sent to the government office first, and then our families will come to pick us up. But if we don't have families... I'm afraid we'll be sent to an orphanage."

Salesian Home?

Wen Yitong trembled upon hearing this.

On the surface, sales homes are places to help orphans and widows, but in reality, most women who fall into sales homes do not have a good ending.

Moreover, if she were to hide her identity, wouldn't she be reduced to being at the mercy of others again?

The ugly woman looked at Wen Yitong with pity in her eyes: "If you know anyone, you might as well seek refuge with them. Otherwise... your fate won't be much better than this, especially since you have such a face."

“If you were like me, you wouldn’t be so indecisive.” The ugly woman laughed heartily. “Luckily, I was decisive enough back then, otherwise, I would be just like them.”

The ugly woman was referring to the women who had borne children with the boat captain over the years.

These women were forced from the beginning, but they didn't have her desperate courage. They had no choice but to submit to the boatman and have been enslaved by him for years. They had long since come to regard themselves as the boatman's wives and concubines.

That's why they were so panicked when the island was captured by the Imperial Guard.

These river bandits were clearly their enemies, yet over time, they came to see themselves as one of them.

It's really ridiculous.

The ugly woman chuckled and patted Wen Yitong on the shoulder: "If you don't have that determination, you should reunite with your family sooner rather than later."

Wen Yitong's eyes darkened. Her family... did they expect her to go find Wen Shuyao?

Do not!

This is impossible!

Just as Wen Yitong was in a state of utter confusion, she saw a familiar figure.

Si Qing!

Wen Yitong's expression changed drastically. Just as she was about to dodge, she heard Si Qing say, "Where should we send these elderly, weak, women and children?"

“Naturally, it’s the sales home.”

"Orphanages are not good places to go." Si Qing frowned, clearly aware of the reputation of orphanages.

The person who answered his question shook his head helplessly: "But given the current situation, where else can we take in so many women? The sales home is the best place for them."