Chapter 44: Targeting
The barbarians mentioned by the lame man are the general term used by the people of the Great Zhou Dynasty to refer to the ethnic groups outside the Great Wall.
The ethnic groups outside the Great Wall, such as the Turks, Khitans, Uighurs, and Mohe, live in the bitter and cold land outside the Great Wall. They are mainly nomadic and have a tough folk style. Especially the Turks, who have a large number of herdsmen and war horses. Everyone is good at volley shooting, and even women can fight on horseback. They have become the overlords among the ethnic groups outside the Great Wall.
The Turks are like wolves separated by a fence, coveting the rich Central Plains of the Great Zhou Dynasty. In recent years, there have been frequent harassments at the border. However, the Great Zhou Dynasty was established by force, and its national strength is strong. In the short term, it is impossible to shake the foundation of the Great Zhou Dynasty.
There are many tribal leaders of the Turks who admire the culture of the Central Plains. The silk, tea, porcelain, refined salt, and even pens, ink, and paper of the Great Zhou Dynasty can be sold at sky-high prices as long as they can be transported to the outside of the Great Wall through the connections.
It is the nature of merchants to pursue profits, and the huge profits are really tempting. Even if they were caught, they would be beheaded for treason, but it could not stop the prosperity of smuggling business.
Among them, the most profitable one is human smuggling.
This is a nice way of saying it. To put it bluntly, it is to abduct and sell beautiful young men and women to the rich and powerful leaders of the Turks.
Ordinary civilian girls cannot be sold at a high price, so the bold ones will turn their attention to the daughters of officials.
The daughters of officials with good family backgrounds are not only beautiful, but also literate, and are good at playing the piano, flute, reciting poems and painting. The profit obtained by catching such a smuggler and selling it is naturally huge.
Of course, those who dare to attack the daughters of officials are definitely not ordinary bandits.
The gang of bandits led by the cripple scar are the most courageous and rampant gang of murderers.
The big boss hides behind the scenes and is responsible for "smuggling and selling stolen goods". The second boss disperses most of his men everywhere, looking for suitable targets and waiting for opportunities to attack.
The so-called suitable target is a lady with outstanding temperament and stunning appearance. Such a target is hard to come by. Sometimes you can't meet one for several months. Sometimes you have to weigh the difficulty of taking action.
Those who can ride on the official ship are all family members of officials, and there are many servants and guards. If you are not careful, not only can you not kidnap people, but you will also cause a disaster.
"How many servants and guards are there on that official ship?" The second in command restrained his impatience and asked: "How do they look? How many boatmen are there on the ship?"
The lame man thought for a while and replied: "Such a large official ship, there will be about a dozen boatmen on it. There are about eleven or twelve servants who got off the ship, and it is estimated that there are still a few on the ship. These servants walk very steadily and are quite strong. They look good."
The scarred face frowned when he heard it: "Second in command, listening to what the lame man said, the people on this official ship should have high official positions. It is really risky for us to rob such an official ship..."
The lame man sneered and quickly interrupted the scarred man: "We are doing a bloody business, so there is no way we don't take risks. Besides, this is not the first time we have robbed an official. These officials look powerful, but they become soft eggs when they encounter swords and guns. We don't take people's lives or rob gold and silver, we only rob two people. They will only seek revenge on their enemies. Besides, the girl who was robbed is an unmarried girl. They don't want to report to the authorities or dare to make a public statement. In the end, they can only suffer in silence."
Who dares to publicize the story of a daughter who is waiting to be married being robbed by a gangster?
Once it gets out, the woman's reputation will be completely ruined. Even if she is lucky enough to be found one day, she will never marry again in this life. It will also bring shame to the family.
Due to this concern, most officials who encountered such a tragedy sent people to secretly look for their daughters afterwards. After searching for a year or two, it was really hopeless, so they reluctantly announced to the public that their daughters died of illness.
This is also the cleverness of the bandits' crimes. First, they don't kill people, and second, they don't rob gold, silver, and jewelry. They only kidnap beautiful girls. In this way, they can make a fortune quietly without worrying about being chased by officials and soldiers.
Scarface was interrupted by the lame man, and he was a little unhappy. He snorted: "We usually rob those low-ranking county magistrates and prosecutors. This time, I heard you say that it was a high-class official ship. Those who can ride on such an official ship are at least fourth-rank officials. If you act recklessly like this, aren't you afraid of encountering hard points that pierce your hands?"
The lame man and the scarface quarreled endlessly.
The second in command frowned, his triangular eyes flashed fiercely, and he shouted angrily: "Okay, shut up. Whether it is worth taking the risk, wait for me to see it myself."
......
After Ling Xiao entered the shop selling the four treasures of the study, he touched this and that, and his face was full of joy.
The shop assistant on the side served very attentively, and introduced the paper, inkstone, and inkstone in the shop endlessly.
Since leaving Dingzhou City, Ling Jingshu has changed her usual gloomy and dull demeanor. The corners of her lips slightly raised, and her voice was gentle and elegant: "Ah Xiao, if you like it, buy some."
The customers and shop assistants in the shop couldn't help but secretly look over when they heard such a pleasant voice. They secretly imagined the true face under the veil in their hearts, and they were excited.
Ling Xiao hesitated for a moment, but couldn't bear to part with it: "It's better to buy less!"
The best pens, ink, paper and inkstone are quite expensive.
The silver Ah Shu brought with him was for medical treatment, so it was better to save some.
Seeing his look, Ling Jingshu felt distressed and amused: "If you like it, buy it all. We don't lack this little money."
Old Lady Ling and Fifth Master Ling were both generous, and the silver she brought with her was enough for the two siblings to spend.
After spending more than half an hour in the shop, Ling Xiao bought a lot of pens and ink that he might not use, and he looked very satisfied.
Ling Jingshu looked at Ling Xiao who looked very satisfied, and she also felt very satisfied in her heart.
After they finished shopping, Ling Jingyan and others came over. Just by looking at the brocade boxes in the hands of several maids, we knew that Ling Jingyan and Jiang had also spent a lot of money in the rouge shop.
Everyone came with excitement and left with satisfaction!
Not long after they walked out of the shop, a lame beggar suddenly rushed forward and knelt down in front of Ling Jingshu and Ling Xiao with a plop: "Masters and ladies, please have mercy on me! I haven't eaten for three days..."
He kowtowed while speaking, with tears on his face, and looked really pitiful.
Ling Jingshu frowned and subconsciously took a step back.
Whenever a strange man approached within three feet of her, she would almost immediately tense up.
Bai Yu behind him immediately rushed forward, took out some loose silver from his sleeve and gave it to the lame beggar: "Take the silver and go quickly."
The lame beggar took the loose silver and kowtowed to thank him.
Coincidentally, at this moment, a breeze blew by. The veil on Ling Jingshu's face was lifted up by the wind. Most of her face was exposed.
The lame beggar paused for breath and looked straight at Ling Jingshu.
Ling Jingshu frowned, but did not say anything. She pulled Ling Xiao and walked around the lame beggar to the official ship.
In front of the grocery store not far away, stood a tall and strong man. He had excellent eyesight and saw Ling Jingshu's beautiful face, and his triangular eyes almost glowed.
......