Chapter 57: Thanksgiving 1

An hour later, it was dawn.

There were seventy bandits who attacked the official ship last night, more than half of them died, and the rest were seriously injured. The guards and boatmen on the official ship were also injured.

Wang Tong was worthy of being the leader of the Eastern Palace guards, and he handled such matters neatly. Only two bandits with less serious injuries were left to interrogate the details, and the rest were all sent to the nearest government office for filing and handling.

All the injured guards and boatmen on the official ship were sent to the cabin for treatment and bandage. Although the crown prince was traveling secretly, he also brought a skilled doctor on board. Dealing with these skin injuries was nothing.

Dozens of Eastern Palace guards kept taking water from the river to wash the boat planks, and the blood stains on the boat planks that had not dried were quickly washed away. Only the lingering smell of blood remained.

"......Your Highness, everything has been handled properly." Wang Tong, who had been busy for half the night, was still full of energy. He reported everything in a concise and concise manner, and finally said: "Lord Ling and all his family members came to ask for an audience to express gratitude, and are waiting outside."

The Crown Prince nodded lightly.

He did not look gloomy, nor was he impatient.

Wang Tong secretly breathed a sigh of relief and immediately ordered: "Please ask Lord Ling and his family to come on board."

The guards took the order and withdrew. After a while, Master Ling and all his family members entered the cabin.

Master Ling walked forward quickly, kowtowed, and said with tears of gratitude: "I, Ling Zhiyuan, thank His Highness the Crown Prince for saving my life. I encountered bandits last night, and fortunately His Highness the Crown Prince led the guards to rescue me in time. Otherwise, I am afraid that my family would have met with an accident."

These words were sincere and the gratitude was beyond words.

The Crown Prince accepted the greeting calmly: "Doctor Ling, please stand up. It's just a small favor."

Why did His Royal Highness suddenly appear on this waterway? How did he happen to see the distress signal and come to rescue?

The Crown Prince himself would not explain such trivial details.

Uncle Ling did not dare to ask more. He spoke gratefully and stood up.

Ling Jingshu also stood up with Sun and others, lowered her head and looked gentle and gentle.

She was completely different from the fierce girl holding a dagger last night.

The Crown Prince's eyes seemed to pass over the figure of the girl with lowered eyebrows and pulled the corners of his lips slightly. I don't know if it was sarcasm or funny.

"Come here, take a seat!" Although the Crown Prince was young, he was noble and his words and deeds were full of irresistible majesty.

Grandpa Ling was flattered and thanked him: "Thank you, Your Highness, for giving me a seat."

The man in front of him was the eldest son of the Eastern Palace, the most favored and favored grandson of the emperor. The prince was weak and did not have a long life. Perhaps, before the emperor passed away, it was possible that he would directly pass the throne to the grandson of the emperor.

In short, the Zhou Dynasty would sooner or later be the world of this young man.

It was a happy thing to be looked at differently by the grandson of the emperor!

......

At the order of the grandson of the emperor, several eunuchs immediately brought a small brocade card.

Naturally, everyone was not qualified to sit on the same level as the grandson of the emperor. Sitting on the brocade card that was one level lower was already a gift.

After Grandpa Ling sat down carefully, everyone followed suit.

Ling Jingshu deliberately sat in the back seat and deliberately lowered her head, not looking up at the grandson of the emperor. But her ears were carefully erected, not missing a single word.

The Crown Prince ordered: "Wang Tong, tell Doctor Ling's family what the bandits confessed."

"Yes," Wang Tong replied, standing behind the Crown Prince, and said in a deep voice: "There are about a hundred bandits in this gang. There are four boats in total, and their lair is very hidden. They usually engage in human smuggling."

Human smuggling?

Everyone was shocked.

No wonder the bandits didn't kill people after they attacked the ship last night. Instead, they sent most of their men to fight with the guards and boatmen, and then searched the cabin on the third floor to kidnap Ling Jingshu and her brother...

Wang Tong coughed and continued: "They specifically target beautiful and talented daughters of officials, and their methods are also familiar. First, they look for suitable targets, then secretly follow them, and then follow the ship to wait for an opportunity to attack. They don't hurt lives or steal gold and silver, but only kidnap the targets they like. After achieving their goals, they immediately escape and never stay."

"They act quickly and succeed repeatedly. The daughter who was kidnapped was worried about many things, so he didn't dare to report the case to the authorities for investigation and arrest, so he could only search secretly. Since then, there has been no news, but But they dare not make it public. "

"The kidnapped girls will be quickly transported to the outside of the Great Wall and sold to the hands of the barbarian leaders. The price is high, and one girl can usually be sold for the high price of a hundred war horses."

"Our Great Zhou Dynasty lacks war horses, and an ordinary war horse can be sold for two or three hundred taels of silver. The best war horses outside the Great Wall can be sold for a high price of three or four hundred taels of silver. A hundred war horses, that is, thirty or forty thousand taels of silver. With such a huge "profit", it is no wonder that these bandits dare to take risks."

"The two bandits could not resist the torture and told everything. That day, they targeted Miss Ling Jiu at the dock, and secretly followed her for two days and two nights before they found an opportunity to act."

After Wang Tong said this, everyone's face was not very good.

The following is everyone's psychological activities.

Uncle Ling: If Ling Jingshu is really kidnapped and sold outside the Great Wall, how can he face his old mother and fifth brother at home in the future?

Sun: It turns out that those people are really coming for Ah Shu. It's really an unprovoked disaster.

Jiang: Fortunately, I didn't succeed! Otherwise, Ah Shu's life would be ruined.

Ling Ji: It turns out Ah Shu’s premonition was right. It’s all my fault. She didn’t take it to heart at the time. If she had been prepared, she wouldn’t have ended up in this situation.

Ling Jingyan: Are these gangsters blind? Even if I am not as beautiful as Ling Jingshu, at least I am as beautiful as a lady. Why doesn't anyone notice me? ! ! !

...

Of course, no one feels it more deeply than Ling Jingshu.

Cold sweat broke out in her palms, and she was filled with fear.

This beautiful face never brought her true happiness. Half of the tragedy in the previous life came from Lu Hong's betrayal, and the other half came from Lu Qian's infatuation and Lu An's lust for women.

This life is even more ridiculous, to be targeted by such a group of greedy gangsters.

If she hadn't sent out the rescue signal earlier, if someone hadn't happened to come to the rescue, if she hadn't made a prompt decision... what fate would have been waiting for her now?

Ling Xiao suddenly stood up, groped his way to the emperor's grandson, and then knelt down with a plop: "Thank you, Your Highness, for saving Ah Shu! Your Highness's life-saving grace, Ah Shu and I will never forget it, and we will definitely repay you in the future." Your Highness’ kindness.”

As he spoke, he kowtowed three times vigorously.

Ling Jingshu looked at Ling Xiao's slightly thin back, her eyes suddenly became hot and watery appeared.