"The auspicious hour has arrived—"

Xi Nan was shoved out the door, walking towards the bandit princess’s entrance with a face full of despair, the cloth gag from his mouth already removed.

Xi Nan wanted to scream aloud, but being up in the mountains, there was no one to hear him even if he did, so he might as well save his energy.

The bandit princess was being supported by others, wearing a bright red wedding dress as she came out.

Xi Nan almost spat out a mouthful of blood.

What karma had brought this upon him!

Was his innocence really about to be lost today?

"Groom, don’t miss the auspicious time~"

Seeing Xi Nan not moving, someone next to him urged and gave him a push towards the bride, who unceremoniously grabbed Xi Nan.

"Brother Xi Nan, don’t be afraid. Once we’re married, we’ll be a family. I won’t hurt you," the bride whispered to him.

Xi Nan got goosebumps all over.

You are already hurting me now.

Knowing his current predicament, Xi Nan could only use a roundabout tactic: "Miss, we have no feelings for each other. Haven’t you heard that a forced melon is not sweet?"

"But this melon has already been picked. It can’t just be put back, can it? It wouldn’t grow well even if it could, so bear with me, Brother Xi Nan," the bride said. "Brother Xi Nan, I really like you and will treat you well in the future."

Xi Nan: "..."

Who asked you to treat me well!

The bride suddenly took something from her sleeve, and Xi Nan’s pupils shrank dramatically.

"Also, I’m not lying to Brother Xi Nan. This thing is really with me. I’ll return it to Brother Xi Nan as soon as we’ve completed the ritual," she said.

Xi Nan: "..."

Xi Nan and the bandit princess were ushered into the main hall, where the bandit leader and the prominent figures of the bandit den were seated, with the rest standing behind to watch. The main hall was bustling with excitement.

As the bride and groom arrived, a chorus of teasing and jeering arose.

"First bow to Heaven and Earth..."

Xi Nan was forced to bow.

"Second bow to the parents..."

"Husband and wife..."

Before the person could finish the phrase, a person suddenly rushed in from the outside: "Report! Leader, some people have arrived outside saying they’re here to congratulate."

The main hall suddenly fell silent.

The bandit leader frowned and asked, "Who are they?"

Given the nature of their work, what friends could they possibly have? This congratulation sounded suspicious.

"Never seen them before," the reporting person shook his head.

"How many?"

"More than a dozen, plus a carriage. The people in the carriage didn’t get down... but the carriage looks very luxurious."

Xi Nan’s eyes suddenly lit up.

Tower Master!!

It must be the Tower Master!!!

"How did they come up?" The bandit leader suddenly realized: "Why didn’t anyone from the bottom of the mountain report?"

"..."

The main hall fell into dead silence.

If the patrolling brothers below didn’t report, there was only one possibility: they were all... dead.

The bandit leader slammed the table and grabbed a large hammer next to him: "Go and have a look!"

-

A group of bandits swaggered towards the entrance of the stronghold, where more than a dozen well-trained people were surrounding the carriage.

The first impression the carriage gave was its expense.

This carriage wasn’t ostentatiously luxurious, yet it conveyed an understated opulence.

Many of the bandits’ eyes began to shine.

This darn thing is a fortune!

The bandit leader’s gaze swept over the crowd; after all, he was a seasoned bandit leader who had seen a lot. He calmly raised his chin: "For what purpose do you come uninvited, sirs?"

Ah Mu stepped forward, clasping his hands in the customary greeting of the martial world: "I heard there’s a joyous occasion at the stronghold. We’ve come specially to offer our congratulations."

"Congratulations?" The bandit leader sneered: "What proper reason could there be to congratulate us?"

"The groom is our Young Master Xi Nan. You tell me, what could we be congratulating?" Ah Mu forced a smile: "The leader doesn’t even know the identity of his own son-in-law?"

The bandits suddenly grew restless.

The little pretty face picked up by the bandit princess had little appeal to them, but since the bandit princess liked him, they didn’t say much.

Moreover, they often engaged in the act of abducting women themselves.

It’s only expected that the young lady should want to abduct a man.

However, now that the other party has come knocking... they don’t seem to be easy people to deal with either.

"Who are you?" The bandit leader remained calm: "What did you do to the brothers down the mountain?"

"Don’t worry, leader. We are reasonable people and wouldn’t harm without reason..."

"Why are you blabbering so much nonsense?" The curtain of the surrounded carriage was suddenly lifted, and a person inside impatiently commanded, "Just snatch the person back and leave."

Everyone peered into the carriage, where a young girl was holding a boy in her arms. The boy was awake, clinging tightly to the girl’s neck, his gaze fixed outside as if daring someone to try and take him away.

Ah Mu: "Tower Master, we can’t be so impolite..."

Fengman Building is a reputable and polite sect.

"Why bother being polite with a bunch of bandits?" Chuzheng impatiently said: "Hurry up."

Enough of this nonsense.

Trying to be a good person! Don’t say too much!

Ah Mu: "..."

-

The bandit princess stared at the boy in Chuzheng’s arms, filled with amazement and infatuation. She suddenly grabbed the bandit leader’s arm: "Dad, I want him!"

The bandit princess pointed excitedly at the boy.

This boy was much more handsome than Xi Nan!!

Chuzheng had intended to lower the curtain, but hearing the bandit princess’s words, she paused and looked over.

The bandit princess was wearing a fiery-red wedding dress, her veil half lifted, revealing her face—not stunningly beautiful, but quite lovely.

Chuzheng went silent for a moment.

Her gaze couldn’t help but shift towards the robust, muscular bandit leader... Maybe the girl’s mother looked good.

Chuzheng glanced down at the boy clinging to her and suddenly dropped the curtain: "Snatch the person back."

Ah Mu and his people: "..."

They had clearly come to rescue someone, so why did it look like bandits robbing a bride?

"Dad, I want that one just now," the bandit princess clung to the bandit leader, exclaiming excitedly: "I’ve never seen a boy that good-looking, Dad!!"

The bandit leader scanned Ah Mu and his group; it was just a dozen or so people. Their stronghold had dozens more.

The numerical advantage gave the bandit leader a sense of reassurance.

"Shut up," the bandit leader scolded: "Once we capture them, who wouldn’t be yours?"

The bandit princess stared at the car’s curtain, as though she could see inside through it, urging constantly: "Then hurry up and catch them!"

Ah Mu sighed, telling those beside him: "Quickly rescue Young Master Xi Nan."

-

Bandits, after all, were just some rough-and-ready fighters, skilled in only trivial martial arts. They usually preyed on lone merchants or unarmed individuals, strutting around as bullies.

Now, compared to these real martial artists from Fengman Building, they stood no chance.

Even with their numbers...

The bandit leader, the most skilled among them, held on for a while.

They thought their greater numbers would prevail, but those people were all seasoned martial artists, and they were no match.

No wonder they took their time coming up to say hello...

These bastards never saw them as a real threat at all.