Chapter 23: Even Children Can Pull Off Robberies Now?

From their current vantage point, they would likely remain unnoticed as long as they stayed quiet and the others didn't look too closely. Yu Jinchen stared intently at the scene unfolding across from them. Soldiers wouldn't target ordinary people without reason, so the only logical conclusion was that those men were bandits. And those bandits were clearly no match for the well-trained soldiers.

Soon, the bandits fell one by one. Seeing that they were losing and facing total annihilation, their leader signaled for them to flee. The direction they chose for their escape happened to be exactly where Yu Jinchen and her two younger siblings were hiding.

Yu Jinchen watched the bandits rushing toward her and sighed inwardly. So much for trying to be a spectator.

Mu Yiyue turned pale. "Big sister, let's run!"

Yu Jinchen raised an eyebrow. "Yiyue, what is a man afraid of? I'm not afraid; do you think you're less capable than I am?"

Mu Yiyue clenched his fists. "I'm not afraid, I'm just worried you'll get hurt and Father will scold me when we get back."

Hearing this, Mu Eryue also put on a brave face. "I'm not afraid either."

Yu Jinchen smiled. "Good."

Before long, the cornered bandits spotted the siblings. A glint of greed flashed in their eyes, and they moved to seize the three of them. With hostages, they might just survive the day.

In her previous life, as a descendant of a martial arts family, Yu Jinchen loved nothing more than having sparring partners to hone her skills. As the bandit’s hand reached for her, she grabbed his wrists and delivered a swift kick to his crotch. Caught completely off guard, the bandit gasped, his face turning pale with cold sweat as he collapsed in agony, clutching his groin.

The two remaining thugs, shocked to see their leader taken down by a young girl, angrily raised their blades to strike her. Yu Jinchen, keeping them in her peripheral vision, leaped forward and kicked the hands holding their weapons. In an instant, both blades flew out of their grips.

"Eryue, go grab the swords!"

Seeing his older brother move to pick up one, Mu Eryue immediately followed suit and retrieved the other. Yu Jinchen nodded with satisfaction. Their reflexes were decent.

The two bandits stood frozen, staring in shock at their empty hands. Before they could recover, Yu Jinchen kicked them both in the head, and they collapsed, unconscious, almost simultaneously.

Without hesitation, Yu Jinchen searched their chests, finding two daggers and a few hundred copper coins. "Times are tough; even the bad guys don't have much money."

Min En, who had just caught up, stood stunned. *Are children these days capable of robbery?*

He looked at Yu Jinchen with a complicated expression. "Little girl, you’ve got quite the skills." He had seen the entire fight clearly.

Yu Jinchen remained guarded. In her past life, she had read enough history to know that ancient soldiers were often no better than bandits. With her wild boar and only children in tow, it was inevitable that someone might target them.

Min En’s men arrived and promptly tied up the bandits. Min En asked, "Just now..."

Yu Jinchen clutched her coins, adopting the tone of a child. "I only took two daggers and a few hundred coppers. You arrived too late; you can't take them from me."

Min En sighed. "That’s not what I meant. I wanted to ask, who taught you your martial arts? Your skills are impressive." *As if I would steal from a child? That would be beneath me.*

Yu Jinchen blinked. "I don't know you, so I won't tell you. Father says I shouldn't talk too much to strangers."

*Is this too childish for a ten-year-old?*

"Fine," Min En said helplessly. "Regardless, it's better to run when you encounter danger. These men were incompetent, which is why you could take them down, but you might not be so lucky next time. Do you understand?" They had almost let the bandits get away.

*As if you aren't incompetent yourself,* Yu Jinchen thought. She feigned obedience, nodded, and signaled her brothers to put the swords on their cart. They continued pushing the cart toward the military camp.

Min En watched as the boys took the swords, but he said nothing. The blades had no special markings; they were likely items the bandits had looted from a blacksmith.

Min Qi watched the direction they were heading and asked suspiciously, "Where are they going? Are they headed to the camp?"

"If I'm not mistaken, yes," Min En replied.

Sure enough, when Min En and his men reached the camp gate, they found the siblings arguing with the guards.

Yu Jinchen looked anxious. "Kind brother, please just report it. Our wild boar is still alive; it’s fresh meat." *Playing a child is exhausting.*

The guards were truly inflexible. Liu Xiaoliu said with bureaucratic rigidity, "We don't accept items of unknown origin, regardless of notification."

Yu Jinchen arched a brow. "Are you afraid I poisoned the boar to kill you all?"

Liu Xiaoliu was speechless. *This child is blunt.*

Yu Jinchen turned and untied the rope on the boar. The animal, which had been exhausted and sleeping, woke up at her touch. Seeing Yu Jinchen, it struggled violently, desperate to escape. A moment later, she tapped it on the head again, and it passed out once more.

Yu Jinchen looked innocent. "Brother, the boar is clearly alive. Now you must believe I haven't poisoned it, right?"

The soldiers who witnessed this were stunned. *What a violent little girl! I suddenly feel sorry for that boar.*

Just as Liu Xiaoliu was about to speak, he looked past her. "Commander Min En."

The siblings turned to see the soldiers they had met earlier escorting the remaining bandits. Min En smiled at Yu Jinchen. "Little girl, we meet again."

Liu Xiaoliu asked in surprise, "Commander, you know her? Then..."

Min En waved his hand. "You were just doing your job." He turned back to Yu Jinchen. "I heard what you said. We’ll take the boar. Name your price."

The siblings were delighted. Yu Jinchen thought for a moment. "You set the price. I don't know the market rate." She wanted to see if this man was someone worth doing business with in the long run.

Not wanting to cheat a child, Min En said straightforwardly, "How about this: a flat price of three taels of silver. Does that work?"

Yu Jinchen didn't hesitate. "Deal."

*A profit.*

Shun Mao, a deity, could see at a glance exactly how much the boar weighed.