Chapter 228: Beat You to Death

Chapter 228: Beat You to Death

And the last "darling wife" suddenly rushed forward, tightly grabbing Cheng Ge's other arm.

She shielded half of him behind her, and in a rough voice, tried to squeeze out a tender, trembling tone: "Don't be afraid, husband! Yue'er is here! Yue'er will protect you!"

This Yue'er had the most robust build. With this lunge and hug, she nearly pulled the already weak Cheng Ge off balance.

The Third Chief stared at this cringe-worthy sight:

A delicate, handsome young man in red, tightly surrounded by three burly, muscle-bound women, all insisting on protecting him...

The Third Chief felt a tightness in his chest, his temples throbbing. This utterly absurd scene was a real test of his bandit credentials.

Without thinking, a surge of rage welled up in him. He raised his Ghost-Head Saber, its tip pointing straight at the three posturing warriors.

He roared angrily: "Damn it! I'll chop up these disgusting freaks first to wash my eyes out!"

With a cold flash, the blade was about to swing down.

Cheng Ge let out a cry, his face pale, as if gathering all his courage, he suddenly spread his arms wide.

With his seemingly frail body, he firmly shielded the three "darling wives" behind him.

His voice trembled, but his gaze was stubborn, he urgently begged: "Kind sir! Spare them! Please don't! You... you can take whatever you want!

Gold, silver, valuables, the wagon goods—all are yours! I only beg you, please spare my family!"

As he spoke, he pulled the three of them into his embrace, adding sincerely:

"They... they've been pampered since childhood – delicate, frail, unable to fend for themselves—they can't stand being frightened!"

The "Feng'er" in his arms let out a rough sob at just the right moment.

"Little Fengfeng" cooperatively shook his massive body, while "Yue'er" hugged Cheng Ge's neck even tighter, almost choking him.

All the bandits: "…………"

Looking at these three "delicate," "weak," and "unable to care for themselves" "beauties," the bandits' stomachs churned, their expressions twisted as if they'd swallowed flies.

The Third Chief, still holding his saber, looked at Cheng Ge, who stood in front of him in a "over my dead body" stance,

then at the three disgusting things behind him—he simply couldn't bring the blade down.

Not out of sympathy, but because... it felt dirty to even chop them, and the scene was so bizarre he couldn't find a suitable angle to strike.

He reluctantly lowered his saber, feeling a tightness in his chest.

The younger underling beside him approached again, looking at the Chief who had lowered his saber, and asked quietly: "Third... Third Chief... you're... not even killing these?"

"Kill, my ass!" The Third Chief was full of pent-up anger, and he backhanded the lackey's head again, cursing: "Didn't you hear a word I said just now? Got cotton in your ears? Women! Take them all back to the stronghold! Can't you understand human speech?!"

After his roar, he glanced at Cheng Ge, still struggling to protect his family, and waved his hand irritably, adding: "And... and this one! Take him too!"

Cheng Ge and his group didn't struggle at all, cooperatively allowing the bandits to tie their wrists with rough hemp ropes, the other ends fastened to saddles, ready to be dragged along.

The mountain road was rugged and covered in loose stones. After just a few stumbling steps while being led, Cheng Ge furrowed his brow, his face full of reluctance.

He thoroughly adhered to the principle of "better to let others wear themselves out than to suffer himself," and immediately gave up.

With an extremely exaggerated "Oops," he went limp, collapsing softly onto the dusty ground, plopped down and refused to get up.

Ling Feng and the other two "darling wives," seeing this, immediately jumped into their acting roles, letting out earth-shattering wails:

"Husband—! What's wrong, husband?!"

"Damned bandits! Are you trying to drag my husband to death?!"

"My husband is noble and precious, how can he endure such suffering, boohoo..."

The noise made it sound as if Cheng Ge had already died.

The Third Chief, walking ahead, was startled by this sudden wailing. He whipped around to see Cheng Ge half-dead, slumped on the ground,

his face pale, lips tightly pressed, looking utterly weak.

The irritation the Chief had barely suppressed came flooding back.

He strode back, towered over Cheng Ge, and barked hoarsely:

"What's your problem now?! Playing possum? If you dawdle again, I swear I'll beat you to death!"

Cheng Ge looked up at him, sniffled, and then, as if throwing caution to the wind, hung his head and said quietly: "...Then, good sir, just go ahead and beat me to death."

He paused, then added in a small voice, as if stating an irrelevant fact: "...Though my family really is rich."

The Third Chief: "......."

He felt his temples start throbbing again. What kind of freak was this?!

Killing him seemed a shame—he might be worth a lot—but not killing him was infuriating enough to make his hands itch!

Finally, he ground his teeth viciously, almost snarling the words: "...Untie him! Put him on a horse!"

Cheng Ge was helped up, the ropes around his wrists undone, and then escorted to a relatively docile pack horse.

He looked at the bare, hard saddle, then at the Third Chief, who was about to mount the same horse to keep an eye on him.

Cheng Ge blinked and very naturally ordered: "You, go ride with him." He casually pointed at another bandit on horseback.

The Third Chief: "???"

He couldn't believe his ears, freezing in place.

He whirled around to glare at Cheng Ge, unable to stop himself from shouting again: "Don't push your luck, you bastard! Do you think this is a pleasure trip?! If you say one more word, I'll..."

"This horse is too small," Cheng Ge interrupted his threat, dangling his feet in the air, his tone eerily calm and matter-of-fact.

"It can't carry two people comfortably; it won't run fast. My father really is rich. If you bring me back in one piece, he'll pay you loaaads of money to ransom me."

When he said "loaaads," he deliberately emphasized and drew out the word.

After saying that, he even looked up at the Third Chief and flashed a perfect eight-tooth smile, looking utterly sincere.

"Damn it all..." The Third Chief's curse trailed off as he unexpectedly met that innocent smile.

He felt as if he'd been bewitched, swallowing the rest of his curse.

His face turned livid with frustration, and finally, he stomped his foot angrily and turned to find another horse.

But as soon as he took two steps, Cheng Ge called him back: "Wait..."

The Third Chief whirled around in fury and bellowed: "What now?!"