Cheng Dalei is also considered a veteran in the martial arts world. He can roughly judge what kind of people the five thieves are by looking at their appearance.
The bandit trade is not easy to get into. Salt and iron are controlled by the government. It is considered a big deal to get a simple knife. Those who are not good at it can only use iron rods and forks. Those who are not capable can use it.
A big stick.
Judging from the appearance of Lin Ying and the other five, they are probably bandits at the bottom. It is hard to say whether the so-called cottage has a territory. It is estimated that these five people are the only ones in this gang. It is not that they can't survive. Starting from this
A trade without capital.
The so-called going back to the mountain to call for help is just a way to escape.
Cheng Dalei couldn't help but remember that when he first debuted, there were only five people in Toad Village. Rats and Toads were all inferior beings, so they showed mercy to these five people.
When the empire was in peace, one hundred and eight cities were like stars scattered across the territory of the empire. Villages and small towns gathered outside the cities. If a war broke out, these people who were not qualified to live in the cities would bear the brunt of the disaster.
There are some distances between cities, and customers and merchants have to pass through hundreds of miles of no-man's land. In this way, bandits and water bandits have a living environment. There is no shortage of murderous outlaws among them, but most of them
They are still poor people who cannot survive farming.
The endless emergence of bandits has also stimulated the development of the escort bureau. In the Taiping years, the escort bureau was a big force, and there was a lot of money to be made. However, now that the war is in chaos and people often travel thousands of miles, the escort bureau's business has gradually become unbearable.
In the past, there were many rules between thieves and escorts. Escort agencies often had good friendships with certain bandits, and would send people to give them gifts during holidays. Bandits often did not do things to perfection.
It's okay to steal wealth, but it's taboo to kill a whole family. Monks don't steal, Taoist priests don't steal, scholars don't steal, and some bandits with strict rules don't want to steal women's family members.
Of course, rules are just rules, and whether you keep them or not is another matter. When the world is in chaos, those so-called rules become something to deceive others, and everyone becomes more and more unscrupulous in doing things.
Lin Ying was captured by Cheng Dalei as a coolie and accompanied Cheng Dalei and the other five people for thirty miles. Cheng Dalei felt uncomfortable on the horse, and the five of them still had to work.
There is a bridge in front of you. Not far across the bridge is Jingzhou Runan City. Looking over it from a distance, you can already see the general appearance of the city.
"Stop." Cheng Dalei waved his hand to stop them.
The five of them were exhausted. When they turned back to face Cheng Dalei, they felt a little timid. They were about to arrive at Runan City. They no longer needed to work by themselves. Would they kill themselves directly or capture themselves and hand them over to the government?
If it were handed over to the government, it goes without saying that several serious crimes would be placed on his head and he would be asked to hold the vat for those desperadoes.
"Hero, spare your life." Lin Xiong suddenly kowtowed: "I have an eighty-year-old mother above me and a child with a yellow mouth. It doesn't matter if you kill me, you can at least spare my brother's life and let my mother die."
Cheng Dalei looked at his appearance and saw that his hands were bruised by thorns and the straw sandals on his feet were already worn out.
"Get up, get up."
"Hero, I beg you to be noble and spare my brother's life. I will repay your kindness by working as a cow and a horse in my next life." Lin Xiong's eyes were filled with tears.
"stand up."
Cheng Dalei suddenly shouted, Lin Xiong didn't dare not to get up, and stood up shakily from the ground. Cheng Dalei sighed softly: "Being a bandit is quite embarrassing for you to do this."
His eyes fell on their feet. The five of them were in a miserable state, and the blood blisters on their feet were broken by stones.
He glanced at Liu Facai, who took out a bag of silver from the carriage and threw it into Lin Xiong's palm.
Lin Xiong staggered to catch it, raised his head and looked at Cheng Dalei with difficulty. As soon as he took it, he knew that the bag of silver contained fifty or sixty taels, and there were twenty or thirty silver ingots weighing two taels.
The five of them all found it strange and felt that something was amiss today.
"This is for you. You should get a share of the money for your efforts. This is my rule." Cheng Dalei looked at the five people and said: "Let's replace a pair of shoes first. They are all men who can't be pushed down. They need to go out.
Make people look up to you. If you are a gimmick, it is on your head; if you are lame, you are lame on your feet. If you don't even have a pair of good shoes, how can people look up at you?"
"You really won't kill me?" Lin Xiong still couldn't believe it.
"By the way, what's your name?"
"Lin Xiong, the Rat Who Crosses the River."
"It's a good name. I can't say it's a person who does big things. I may hear this name from others in the future." Cheng Dalei said: "People who do big things don't kneel down casually."
Lin Xiong stood there blankly, raised his head and asked: "Hero, I know you are a big shot, and you don't care about us small fish and shrimps. But please leave a name or a surname. We have a thank you in our hearts, and we also know who we are thanking?"
"
Cheng Dalei pursed his lips: "My surname is Cheng."
Several people drove a carriage across the bridge to Runan City. Lin Xiong and the other five stood there blankly, and Lin Yingcai said for a long time:
"The surname is Cheng, who is the bull rider?"
Not many people in the world have seen Cheng Da Lei's appearance, but many people have heard of his name. Everyone says that there is a man named Cheng who rides a black bull, carries a big ax, and kills people without calculation. He is a leader in the banditry.
The first person, Lin Xiong, and the other five people have naturally heard of it, but Cheng Dalei did not bring an ax when he went out this time. In the eyes of the five people, Miles Dalei was a fairy-like figure, and they did not expect to meet him.
It happened that they met, which made Lin Xiong and the other five people feel like they were in a cloud.
Cheng Dalei and his party continued on their way.
If you have never experienced this world, you would think that the world is like the love between sons and daughters. When a man is angry, he will leave no trace for thousands of miles. The small bridges and flowing water in the Jiangnan water town, the romantic scholars and the gentle girls. The yellow sand in the Mobei outside the Great Wall blows in the face, and the sword is carried on the back.
A traveler travels thousands of miles alone.
I say this, but I understand it only after I have experienced it. You think you are a romantic scholar, but you may not even be a bookboy who polishes ink for scholars. You think that the courtesan of a brothel will treat you differently, but you may not even be able to give it to you.
Rolling eyes. Those who are romantic are a few people. No matter the rivers, lakes or temples, they are only the rivers, lakes and temples of a few people. In fact, most people can't even afford a pair of shoes. They are just living. There is not much poetry and painting to tell others.
For example, Lin Xiong and the five of them were so embarrassed that they had to wear pants as bandits. Cheng Dalei waved his hand and rewarded them with fifty taels of silver, which was a blessing but not necessarily a curse for the five of them. Sake made people's faces red.
, Wealth and silk attract people's hearts. If one of the five people sees the money and wants to monopolize this windfall, it is not a rare thing.
However, this is not what Cheng Dalei cares about. The world is really too chaotic, and no one is just a fish swimming in the rivers and lakes, and cannot stir up any trouble.
When he came back to his senses, Runan was already in front of him.