I trade in both worlds

Chapter 297 Desperate

Upon hearing this, Manager Liu frowned slightly and said in a low voice, "Boss Guo, there is something I need to remind you of. There has been unrest in the direction of Youzhou recently. There have been bandits robbing people."

His tone was filled with worry.

"Three or four days ago, a small merchant caravan was robbed. Luckily, no one was hurt, but all the goods were stolen. After the government took action, they couldn't find any trace of the bandits."

"Yesterday, another wealthy family's convoy was attacked, but the family hired a bodyguard and brought their own guards, and they managed to drive the robbers away in the end."

"But the losses were heavy. The guards and escorts were all injured and couldn't come back to Dingzhou to recover."

"This family seems to be quite powerful. After reporting to the authorities, they almost came out in full force, but in the end, they still found nothing. In the past two days, people in and outside the city have been in a panic. You must be careful."

After listening to this, Guo Yunfeng frowned and his eyes became deep. He looked at Xu Ziqing, and the two exchanged glances, both understanding the other's worries.

Guo Yunfeng was silent for a moment, then asked, "What did the government say?"

Shopkeeper Li sighed and said slowly, "The government said that according to eyewitnesses, these robbers might be the gangsters who committed a family murder in Bozhou a few months ago. That case caused a sensation and it was said that the means were extremely cruel."

Hearing this, Guo Yunfeng's eyes became more serious.

"What family murder case?" he demanded.

Shopkeeper Li lowered his voice, as if he was telling a secret: "It is said that she is the daughter of a wealthy businessman in Bozhou. One day when she was out, she picked up a wounded man and brought him back."

"The man was handsome, but after his injury healed, he claimed to have lost his memory. The rich businessman's daughter saw that the man was handsome and wanted to marry him. The rich businessman couldn't persuade his daughter, so he let him marry into his family."

Doesn't the rich businessman have a son?" Guo Yunfeng interrupted and asked.

Shopkeeper Li nodded, "Yes, it is said that when my son was born, a fortune teller said that he had to be raised in a Taoist temple before he was 18 years old, otherwise he would easily die."

"So the rich businessman's son has been living in the Taoist temple. He won't be 18 until next year. It's a pity that the wedding has become a nightmare for their family."

"Go on." Guo Yunfeng urged.

"On the night of the rich merchant's daughter's wedding, the whole family was killed by the man who married into the family and his gang of thugs. It is said that the moonlight was as bright as silver that night, and the gangsters sneaked into the mansion quietly and killed without mercy."

"The son of the rich businessman escaped because he lived in a Taoist temple. But there was a servant who happened to be ordered back to give a gift to the young lady. He hid among the dead bodies when the incident happened and also escaped."

"He dared to crawl out and report the case only after the robbers left." After saying this, Shopkeeper Li sighed, as if he felt sorry for the family's unfortunate experience.

Guo Yunfeng remained silent, but his heart was surging. He knew very well that as a bodyguard, it was his duty to protect the safety of the goods and his employer.

But faced with such brutal bandits, he had to reconsider his next itinerary.

"What are the government's next arrangements?" he asked.

Shopkeeper Liu shook his head. "What can the government do? They posted a reward notice, saying that anyone who can provide clues or catch the criminals will be rewarded handsomely."

"I think it's hard to get this reward. Those bandits are very cunning and their whereabouts are erratic, making them hard to catch."

"Reward notice?" A gleam of light flashed in Guo Yunfeng's eyes, as if he saw some hope.

He stood up and said to Xu Ziqi beside him: "Let's go and take a look together."

The two walked out of the inn, crossed the busy streets, and came to the government office. There were many people gathered in front of the notice board, talking a lot.

Guo Yunfeng squeezed into the crowd and saw portraits of four people posted on the notice. Although the lines were rough, one could still see a bit of fierceness in them.

The notice described the robbers in detail, saying that there were about forty of them who often appeared in the Dead Snake Ridge area.

Guo Yunfeng looked at the portrait carefully, thinking secretly in his heart.

"This bounty is not low." Someone nearby whispered, "It is said that Bozhou is also offering a bounty, and yesterday a wealthy family also offered a bounty. The total bounty is estimated to be nearly five thousand taels."

Five thousand taels! This is a considerable sum of money for any Jianghu person.

An inexplicable impulse surged in Guo Yunfeng's heart, but it was soon suppressed by reason.

He knew very well that suppressing bandits was not an easy task and if he was not careful, he might end up in an irretrievable situation.

However, as a bodyguard, his duty and honor did not allow him to retreat.

He turned to look at Xu Ziqi, his eyes revealing determination: "Mr. Xu, it seems that our itinerary needs to be changed."

Xu Ziqi was stunned for a moment, then he understood what Guo Yunfeng meant: "Boss Guo, you want to..."

"Yes, I want to try." Guo Yunfeng's voice was low and powerful: "First, we can get rid of harm to the people; second, the reward is also very tempting."

Xu Ziqi was silent for a moment after hearing this, then nodded slowly: "Boss Guo, although I don't know any martial arts, I support your decision. I will prepare some emergency medicine for you later, I hope it can help. But..."

He paused, his eyes full of sincerity: "Please remember, those are desperate criminals, they may not have any worries."

"But you are different. Your family is still waiting for you to return safely at home. So, no matter what, you must take care of yourself first."

Guo Yunfeng felt warm in his heart when he heard this. He patted Xu Ziqi's shoulder vigorously and said, "Don't worry, Mr. Xu. We will do it."

"In our line of work, we value righteousness above all else, but we won't blindly commit suicide. Brothers, we all have families, so we will act with caution."

As night fell, the lights in Dingzhou Inn were on. Guo Yunfeng summoned his escorts and informed them of his conversation with Manager Li during the day and his decision.

"Brothers, these robbers from Dead Snake Ridge are bullying the people and doing all kinds of evil. Now the government has offered a reward, why don't we go and suppress the bandits? Not only can we get rid of harm to the people, but we can also earn reward money. Why not do it?" Guo Yunfeng's words were sonorous and powerful.

After hearing this, the escorts were very excited and expressed their willingness to go with Guo Yunfeng to Dead Snake Ridge to wipe out the gang of bandits that were endangering the village.

"Captain, let's go and meet those bastards, so that they know how powerful we are." A young escort waved his fist, his face full of indignation.

"Yes, we can't let these thieves continue to be so arrogant, for the peace of our fellow villagers and for the reputation of our escort agency." Another older escort master also echoed.

Guo Yunfeng looked around and saw more than a hundred bodyguards, all of them had firm eyes and showed no fear.

A surge of pride surged in his heart, but more of it was responsibility and worry.

He knew very well that this would be a tough battle, but he also believed that as long as everyone united as one, there would be no difficulties that could not be overcome.