RYEY – Chapter 218 They Actually Dared to Seize Supplies

“Uncle Liguo, Auntie, whatever happens, don’t get out of the car.”

Qin Guoqing brought the vehicle to a stop. He reached under the seat, pulled out a gun, slid it into the holster at his waist, opened the door, and got out.

When Cheng Qiao saw Qin Guoqing step out, she hugged little Cheng Li and vanished inside the car. Only then did Cheng Ligguo feel slightly reassured. He, too, took out a firewood-cleaving knife, preparing to get out and help.

But before Cheng Ligguo could step down, Cheng Qiao reappeared. Coiled around her neck was a thick, vivid-red venomous snake. Cheng Ligguo’s face instantly turned pale, yet he dared not move rashly.

“Dad, it’s called Little Red Head. It’s my pet,” Cheng Qiao said calmly. “Little Red Head, see those three bad men over there? Bite whichever one you like—just don’t bite the one wearing the green military uniform.”

Cheng Qiao put on her hat, gloves, and scarf, wrapping herself up tightly so that only her eyes were visible. She opened the door and got out. Cheng Ligguo hurried to follow.

Qin Guoqing sensed that Cheng Qiao and the others had gotten out of the car, and panic rose in his heart. These people were local thugs, specializing in blocking roads and robbing passersby.

Every military district had sent people to hunt them down, but they were extremely cunning, using the terrain to play hide-and-seek. When soldiers came, they hid; when they left, the robbing resumed. As a result, the problem had never been completely resolved.

Qin Guoqing had traveled this road several times without incident. He never expected to be intercepted today—someone from a “brother unit” must be unhappy.

“So,” Qin Guoqing said coldly, “what do you want?”

“Nothing much,” one of the men replied. “Just leave the supplies in the truck, and we’ll let you go.”

“And if I refuse?”

“Then don’t blame us for being rude.”

Seeing their shameless expressions, Qin Guoqing raised his pistol and aimed it at the man who was speaking. The man didn’t flinch at all, because the two behind him had also lifted their homemade shotguns, pointing them at Qin Guoqing.

Qin Guoqing was truly anxious now. He could shoot the three men, but he would likely die as well. Cheng Ligguo and Cheng Qiao were still behind him—most importantly, they didn’t know how to drive.

And there were definitely more than just these three. Who knew if there were people lying in ambush beyond that sharp bend? If he died and there was an ambush, Cheng Ligguo and Cheng Qiao would have no chance of survival.

Just as Qin Guoqing was about to give up the supplies and take everyone away, the two men holding the shotguns suddenly let out piercing screams.

The moment the man in front turned his head, Qin Guoqing moved.

He didn’t fire. Instead, he rushed forward, smashed the man’s head hard with the butt of his gun, then switched his hand into a knife-edge and struck down viciously at the man’s neck.

“Snake… Boss, it’s a snake… Snake! How… how is there a snake here?!”

The bitten man collapsed onto the ground, so frightened he couldn’t even speak properly. The other man clutched his face—Little Red Head had bitten straight through his cheek.

Cheng Qiao rushed over, swiftly recalled Little Red Head into her space, then saw the man with the bitten face standing there in a daze. She reached out and shoved him straight off the cliff.

The remaining man saw this and immediately forgot all about “big brother” or “second brother.” Enduring the pain, he ran toward the bend in the road.

Cheng Qiao wanted to chase him. She didn’t want anyone to know that people had died from snake venom again.

But the fleeing man seemed to sense her pursuit and ran even faster. Worried there might be an ambush ahead, Cheng Qiao had no choice but to turn back quickly.

“Throw him down too.”

Cheng Qiao pointed at the man on the ground who had been struck. Qin Guoqing hesitated, but Cheng Ligguo had already moved. The two of them grabbed the man—one by the head, the other by the feet—and tossed him off the cliff.

“Let’s go. Get back in the car.”

Cheng Qiao grabbed Cheng Ligguo and Qin Guoqing and hurried them toward the vehicle. They had to leave immediately—if the one who escaped brought reinforcements, they wouldn’t get away.

Cheng Qiao and Cheng Ligguo got into the car, and Qin Guoqing followed quickly. But suddenly—bang!—his leg, which hadn’t yet been pulled inside, was struck by a blast from a homemade shotgun.

Sure enough, there were two men hiding beyond the bend. They had concealed themselves atop a large rock, planning to help transport the supplies. They never expected that, in such a short time, two of the three men would be dead.

If the last man hadn’t escaped back, they wouldn’t even have known what had happened. One of the men leapt down from the rock, raised his homemade shotgun, and fired straight at Qin Guoqing’s leg.

Cheng Qiao, immensely strong, yanked Qin Guoqing into the car while sliding herself into the driver’s seat. She twisted the key, started the engine, slammed the door shut, and stepped hard on the accelerator. The vehicle lurched forward.

Qin Guoqing and Cheng Ligguo stared at Cheng Qiao in shock. They had no idea she knew how to drive.

Cheng Qiao gave a bitter smile. In her previous life, after making a fortune, the very first thing she did was buy a car.

The man who fired the shot didn’t know whether he’d hit anyone, though the sound suggested he had. But if he’d hit someone, how could the car still be moving?

Before he could figure it out, the vehicle was already charging straight toward him. Cheng Qiao flicked the steering wheel slightly, pressed harder on the gas, and sent the man flying.

With the impact force and the sharp bend in the road, the man rolled straight off the cliff. Of the remaining two, one was poisoned by snake venom and wouldn’t live much longer; the other was so terrified he lost control of his bladder. In this freezing weather, he likely wouldn’t make it back either.

After passing eight consecutive bends, Cheng Qiao finally stopped the car. She immediately stopped Qin Guoqing’s bleeding, fed him hemostatic powder and anti-inflammatory medicine, then asked about the route.

Cheng Ligguo spoke up—once he’d traveled a road, he could replay it perfectly in his mind.

Since Cheng Ligguo knew the route, Cheng Qiao fed Qin Guoqing an anesthetic powder without hesitation. The roads here were either gravel or washboard paths, and the jolting was severe. With the anesthetic, he wouldn’t feel the pain.

“Girl, ahead is Wushaoling,” Cheng Ligguo said. “Once we enter Wushaoling, we’ll be close to our base. Should we take Qin Guoqing to the hospital first?”

“Dad, find a clean place to stop first. I can treat Guoqing’s injury. If we go to the hospital, it’ll be too late.”

Cheng Ligguo immediately understood. There was likely something special about these medicines, and his daughter didn’t want them exposed. When the car entered Wushaoling, Cheng Ligguo pointed to a flat area.

The terrain formed a concave shape—once the vehicle drove into it, it would be hidden from the view of passing cars and people. With a wave of her hand, Cheng Qiao stored all the supplies in the vehicle into her space, then took out a simple bed and set it up in the cargo area.

With Cheng Ligguo’s help, she lifted Qin Guoqing onto it. She took out scissors and cut open his pant leg. The blood had already clotted, but as she searched for the bullet, fresh blood began to flow again.

“Found it.”

Using tweezers, Cheng Qiao carefully extracted a steel pellet. She checked thoroughly again, and only after confirming there was just one pellet did she proceed to stop the bleeding, disinfect, apply medicine, and bandage the wound.

“Your master taught you all this, didn’t he?” Cheng Ligguo asked.

“Yes,” Cheng Qiao nodded. “Luckily it was a steel pellet. If it had been a lead bullet, it would’ve been much more troublesome.”

“And driving—your master taught you that too?”

“No,” Cheng Qiao said with a smile. “One of Shitou’s friends drives trucks. I tried driving for fun a few times. Didn’t expect it to actually come in handy.”