After a male student transmigrated into the body of a widow,

Chapter 113 Zheng Hao Admonishes Himself

The fighting lasted for nearly an hour. Every refugee who dared to take a step forward and stay within fifty paces of the Gu family was killed on the spot.

Seeing that Zheng Hao and his group were not easy to deal with, the disaster victims immediately turned away from them. However, although they dared not rush towards the Gu family's house, they were not afraid of the other houses in the alley.

The refugees, armed with wooden guns and sticks, stormed into each house, their cries of agony echoing through the alleyways.

Zheng Hao looked up at Niu Qiang, who nodded slightly in response, and then led his men to rescue the other families.

Zheng Hao withdrew his gaze and looked at the thick smoke billowing above the eastern and western city walls in the distance. That area was the residence of the prefectural officials and wealthy merchants, which had now all been burned down.

Niu Qiang led a group of bodyguards to rescue the families who had been robbed. Although the refugees looked numerous and imposing, Niu Qiang and his men were no pushovers.

They were all skilled martial artists who had been traveling north and south as镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) for many years, passing through many mountains and countryside. They had encountered countless bandits and brigands, and the number of lives on their hands was countless.

They had killed many bloodthirsty villains like bandits and mountain bandits, but the group of镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) were not afraid of the hundred or so ordinary refugees in front of them.

Niu Qiang and his group first rescued the family next door to the Gu family. There was a pear tree in the yard of this family. Usually, you could smell the fragrance of pears whenever you passed by. But now the yard was full of blood, and the pear tree was stained with blood. Apart from the smell of blood, you could no longer smell the fragrance of pears.

The man in this household protected his family while he stood outside the door wielding an iron sword, hacking at the refugees. His sword-wielding movements revealed some martial arts skills, but even so, after dealing with the attacks of dozens of refugees for a long time, he was becoming outnumbered.

Niu Qiang and his bodyguards stepped forward and, with swift movements, killed all the disaster victims.

Bai Lang stepped forward, clasped his hands in thanks, and said, "Thank you all for saving my life. I will remember your kindness and will never refuse to help me in the future."

Bai Lang's actions and words were forthright and generous. Niu Qiang had dealt with all sorts of people and could tell that the other party was sincere.

He said, "It was Scholar Zheng who, out of consideration for our neighborly relations, ordered us to come and rescue you."

Bai Lang was slightly surprised upon hearing this. He naturally knew that the only young scholar in the alley was a man, but he did not expect that the man would be able to command such a group of people.

Without giving the other party any time to think, Niu Qiang said, "I see you have martial arts skills. First, take your parents and husband to the Gu family's door, then come and help us drive away the disaster victims."

Bai Lang clasped his hands in agreement, then quickly escorted his parents and husband to the Gu family's gate. He then saw a tall, elegant young man holding an iron sword standing on the bloody corpses.

Perhaps he had been staring for too long, for the boy who had been standing still for so long turned to look at him. Instantly, Bai Lang was stunned by the boy's cold and calm black eyes.

After a moment, remembering that the other party was their family's savior, Bai Lang clasped his hands in thanks to Zheng Hao: "Thank you for your help, Scholar Zheng!"

Zheng Hao parted his thin lips slightly, his voice as clear as jade: "We are all neighbors, we should help each other out!"

Bai Lang clasped his hands in a fist salute again, then turned and walked towards Niu Qiang. Having been a镖师 (bodyguard/escort) for many years, he also carried a sharp iron sword. Working with Niu Qiang and the others made dealing with the disaster victims much easier than dealing with them alone.

Although both involve sword and knife wielding, it is clear that Bai Lang's style is different from that of Niu Qiang and the others.

When dealing with refugees, Bai Lang attacked with his sword, each move carrying a righteous and honorable spirit, following the orthodox path of martial arts. However, Niu Qiang and his men used strange moves, each step unexpected, and any move that landed on a refugee was fatal, displaying extreme ruthlessness.

Soon, more and more people were rescued by Niu Qiang and his group. These families were all reasonable and grateful. After the men of the family sent the elderly and children to the Gu family's door, they picked up their weapons and together with Niu Qiang and the others, drove the disaster victims out of the alley.

Niu Qiang drew his sword and killed the last refugee who was desperately resisting. After seeing that there were no more refugees alive in the alley, Niu Qiang ordered his men to disperse and guard the several exits of the alley to prevent refugees outside from sneaking in.

Then, Niu Qiang turned around and walked up to Zheng Hao, saying, "Scholar Zheng, the disaster victims have all been driven out."

Turning his gaze away from the corpse, which was almost half a person's height, Zheng Hao nodded and said, "Thank you for your hard work, brothers. I'll reward you all after tonight's business is over!"

"Thank you for your consideration, Scholar Zheng." Niu Qiang smiled and continued, "They're quite happy about it! They're used to eating the food provided by Boss Gu, and those boys are spoiled rotten by Boss Gu and Sister Zhao's cooking. They say that food outside is not good, and they always miss the food at Haoyunlou and the food made by Sister Zhao!"

Niu Qiang wasn't exaggerating. Although these bodyguards were all people who had risked their lives, they weren't like bandits who were desperate criminals. They were very principled and valued loyalty.

They were indebted to Zheng Hao for sparing their lives, and in return, he established a security escort agency to provide them with a safe haven. Given this double favor, they felt obligated to repay him.

When they received the mission from Zheng Xiucai to protect their families, they thought they could finally do something for their benefactor, but they did not expect that Zheng Xiucai's elders would be so considerate and kind to them.

Almost every day, in the afternoon or evening, Gu Lin would bring several food boxes and place them on the stone table in the courtyard, inviting them to come in and have some snacks to fill their stomachs. Sometimes the food in the food boxes was made by Gu Lin and his family themselves, and sometimes it was bought from restaurants outside. All of it consisted of good meat and vegetables.

Considering that they had to guard outside day and night, Boss Gu prepared some non-intoxicating drinks, heated them up, and gave them to drink to keep warm.

Therefore, the bodyguards had a very good impression of Gu Lin, and they were both obliged to protect him because they were grateful for his help.

Zheng Hao replied without hesitation, "I'll let the brothers have a good meal another day!"

Then he said to Niu Qiang, "The troops stationed in the suburbs have almost received the letter sent by the prefect and are now on their way to the prefectural city. You stay outside and keep watch, I'll go check on Uncle Gu and Sister-in-law Zhao."

After saying that, Zheng Hao gripped his longsword, turned around, and stepped into his home.

After Zheng Hao left, Gu Lin helped Zhao's wife into the house. Because of the danger outside, Gu Lin did not dare to light a lamp. He reached out and groped on the table, finally finding the kettle and lifting it up to pour Zhao's wife a glass of water.

Zhao's wife took the cup, her face haggard and frightened. The thought of the fighting and killing she had just heard made her shudder.

Although she was usually willing to argue and fight with strangers, she had never seen such turmoil involving knives and guns.

Sister-in-law Zhao looked at Gu Lin with a blank expression: "Brother Lin, do you think Zheng and your Brother Zhao will be alright outside? Da Gen and his wife are living outside, I wonder if they've been affected."

Although Gu Lin himself was worried about the situation outside, he comforted Zhao's sister-in-law in a gentle voice, saying, "With Brother Niu and the others here, everything will be fine. Besides, Xiao Hao has practiced martial arts since he was a child, so he will definitely protect Brother Zhao. Da Gen and his wife live close to the Mu family. Qing Lian is quick-witted, and once she senses something is wrong, she will definitely take Da Gen back to her parents' home. Da Gen and the Mu brothers together are a force to be reckoned with; ordinary disaster victims are no match for them."

Gu Lin's comforting words were very helpful, and Zhao's frantically beating heart gradually calmed down.

Then, tears welled up in her eyes, and she said bitterly, "Well, these wealthy merchants and powerful families are stingy and greedy. They either close the soup kitchens or fill them with inferior soup. In time, the disaster victims will resent them to death and rebel and storm into the city. If they were killed, it would be fine, but we poor commoners have done nothing and have been implicated for nothing!"

Seeing Zhao's wife's angry and sad face, Gu Lin quickly changed the subject, saying, "Sister-in-law, the disaster victims outside haven't been dealt with yet, and we don't know what the situation will be like later. Let's hide in the tunnel first, so that Xiao Hao and the others won't worry and get distracted."

"Okay," Zhao's wife replied, heeding Gu Lin's words.

Next, Gu Lin led Zhao's wife to his bedside. Following Zheng Hao's instructions, Gu Lin lay down, reached his hand into the bed, groped around, and then pressed a spot under the bed. Suddenly, that spot dented.

Gu Lin and Zhao's wife watched as the originally flat floor under the bed opened up to both sides, revealing a square, dark passage.

Gu Lin turned to Sister Zhao and said, "Sister-in-law, you go in first!"

Sister-in-law Zhao nodded, and then, supported by Gu Lin, walked into the tunnel: "Brother Lin, come in quickly too."

Gu Lin bent down to go in when he suddenly heard slightly hurried footsteps outside the door. He quickly jumped down and closed the tunnel entrance.

Gu Lin was surrounded by darkness and couldn't see anything. The earthy smell of soil and thick dust assaulted his nostrils, and he struggled to breathe.

With a creak, Gu Lin heard the sound of the door outside being opened, as well as faint footsteps, because the tunnel was not completely soundproof.

Suddenly, his heart sank, because the footsteps were getting closer and closer to him, and then the footsteps abruptly disappeared.

Gu Lin gripped the long stick tightly in his hand, his eyes fixed on the closed, dark passageway above him.

Suddenly, a sound came from above, and the passage opened.

Gu Lin raised his long stick, about to smash it down, when he heard a clear, crisp voice coming from above.

"Uncle Gu can come out now, everything is fine outside."

When Gu Lin looked up and saw Zheng Hao's face, he immediately put down the long stick in his hand.

Then, Zheng Hao stretched out his arm to Gu Lin, and Gu Lin put his hand on it, using the other's strength to come out of the tunnel.

Then, he turned around and pulled Sister Zhao out as well.

Gu Lin turned to Zheng Hao and asked, "Has the government sent troops?"

Tens of thousands of refugees were outside the city. Even though Zheng Hao and his group were quite skilled, and most of the refugees were heading towards the east and west of the city, the Gu family's neighborhood consisted mostly of well-off families. Unlike wealthy merchants and powerful clans who had strong servants to defend against the refugees, the refugees preferred to plunder these unarmed civilians.

Zheng Hao's group consisted of only a dozen or so people, while there were at least several hundred disaster victims who came to plunder. Even though Zheng Hao had practiced martial arts since childhood and the bodyguards were skilled fighters, Gu Lin was still worried that there would be a situation where too many ants could kill an elephant.

Zheng Hao explained, "After receiving the message, the barracks still need to assemble the soldiers. Now that an hour has passed since the city fell, the garrison should be arriving soon."

Upon hearing this, Gu Lin looked at Zheng Hao in front of him, gasped, and said, "So, it was just a few of you who drove away all the refugees who broke in?"

Zheng Hao remained calm and nodded slightly. "After dealing with the victims who attacked our house, I sent Niu Qiang with men to rescue the other families in the alley."

At the same time, we gathered other able-bodied men to help resist the disaster victims. The victims were usually hungry and weak, so they were no match for strong men. Therefore, we worked together to drive them out.

Zheng Hao spoke casually, but Gu Lin and Sister-in-law Zhao were deeply troubled.

As they gazed at the handsome young man before them, his gentle and refined scholarly image gradually faded from their minds, transforming into that of a strategist and battlefield general in a play, capable of defeating a hundred men single-handedly.

Gu Lin asked, "Are any of you injured?"

Zheng Hao: "Neither Brother Zhao nor I were injured, but two bodyguards were accidentally injured, but they were minor injuries and nothing serious."

Gu Lin said to Zheng Hao, "Now that it's safe outside, I'll go out too, so I can bandage the wounds."

Sister-in-law Zhao nodded in agreement.

Looking at Uncle Gu, who was so concerned about the injured, Zheng Hao said, "The blood and filth outside haven't been cleaned up yet. It would be better for Uncle Gu to stay at home."

Gu Lin looked up at the other person.

Zheng Hao said without changing his expression, "The alley is full of severed limbs. If Uncle Gu sees them, he might feel unwell."

Gu Lin shook his head slightly and said, "If there were still disaster victims outside, I wouldn't go out and cause trouble for you. But now that we're safe, Brother Niu and the others were injured while protecting us. If I were to stay at home and not go out, it would be too cold and heartless of me."

"Xiao Hao, although I am afraid of blood and corpses, this is not a reason for me to escape reality."

Zheng Hao lowered his eyes slightly, looking at the young man in front of him who had made up his mind and looked determined, and said softly, "Okay."

Hearing the other party agree, Gu Lin smiled, and then he turned to Zhao's wife and said, "Sister-in-law, go and boil some mint water. Brother Niu and the others just fought off the disaster victims and are soaked in the smell of blood. Go and boil some mint water to refresh them!"

Zhao's wife responded and went to the kitchen. Gu Lin then went to the main hall, carrying the medicine box he had specially ordered from the clinic doctor, and followed Zheng Hao toward the gate.

When they were just a few steps from the gate, Zheng Hao stopped and turned around. He looked down at Gu Lin and said, "Uncle Gu, it's not too late to go back now."

Zheng Hao admitted that he did not respect Uncle Gu's wishes as much as he had imagined.

Uncle Gu wanted to take that step that bound him, but Zheng Hao was worried that the other would get hurt. He wondered if Uncle Gu, who didn't even dare to kill a chicken, could really overcome the mountain of corpses and sea of ​​corpses just a door away.

Gu Lin did not back down. With a resolute look in his eyes and a gentle expression, he said to Zheng Hao, "Xiao Hao, I am ready."

The boy in front of him was facing away from the moonlight, so even though Gu Lin looked up at him, he couldn't see the specific expression on the other's face.

Zheng Hao remained silent for a while before finally speaking, "Okay."

He didn't say anything more, such as telling the other person to let him know if they felt uncomfortable seeing what was outside the door, and that he would bring them back.

Seeing the other person's determined expression and demeanor, Zheng Hao knew the answer in his heart.

He should respect Uncle Gu's ideas. Zheng Hao kept walking and constantly reminded himself.