When the village chief gathered all the men and told them they were going to chase the thieves, not everyone was willing.
Everyone had their concerns, fearing injury, or even death.
Risking their lives for someone else's daughter seemed like a bad deal.
Jiang Pan was a bit angry: "You don't have to go, no one will force you. But you need to think clearly. Today it's someone else's daughter who was stolen, it has nothing to do with you, you can stand by and watch. If one day it's your wives, daughters, or sisters who encounter such a situation, don't expect others to help you."
"I have a daughter, I must go, because I cannot accept our little mountain village's daughters being bullied and defiled by others!"
The village chief slapped his thigh: "Well said! Da Pan, I'll go with you! Our little mountain village has never been bullied like this, let alone had our daughters snatched away! If I can endure this, what kind of man am I!"
"I'll go too!"
"Count me in!"
"And me!"
More and more men stepped forward, and in the end, almost all the men from the little mountain village stood up, even ten-year-old children clamored to go and save people.
The two families who lost their daughters were so moved that they knelt to thank the villagers, but they were quickly helped up by the village chief's wife and others.
Jiang Pan said: "There's no time to delay, we must set off immediately. Those under twenty and over forty cannot go, the rest, follow me quickly. The sooner we get there, the less danger the two children will be in!"
Soon, the team was assembled, and they, holding firewood axes and wooden clubs under the moonlight, chased in the direction the thieves had left.
Jiang Pan wrapped Jiang Wan around his back with a carrier and ran at the forefront.
Jiang Wan, using her special ability, controlled a small bird to lead the way for them.
Actually, Jiang Wan was not confident before. What she said to Jiang Pan was just her guess, and also a way to motivate everyone to be willing to save people.
But fortunately, her guess was correct.
After running for about half an hour, Jiang Pan told everyone to slow down: "Do you smell anything?"
Everyone quickly sniffed, and there was the smell of food in the air. Those people were nearby!
"Move lightly, we need to catch them off guard! Only in this way can we save the people while ensuring our own safety."
Jiang Pan's voice was low and powerful, giving courage to the somewhat panicked men.
"Let's go, follow me, tread lightly, and don't make too much noise."
Seeing Jiang Pan carrying Jiang Wan, those people reminded him: "Brother Da Pan, why don't you find a place to put Wan Wan down first? Don't let her get bumped."
They really couldn't understand why Jiang Pan would bring a five-year-old child on such an important mission. What if she cried and ruined things.
Jiang Pan said: "Have you forgotten how strong Wan Wan is? She might be able to fight better than you."
Everyone: ...
There were sixty to seventy people in their group, all strong men, and they moved quite methodically.
The group slowly approached the place where the thieves were hiding, their footsteps very light all the way.
After they entered the forest and walked for a while, they saw the firelight in the mountain hollow ahead.
"These bastards really know how to hide, who would have thought they were hiding so close to us!"
The men from the little mountain village gritted their teeth in anger.
Jiang Pan signaled them to be quiet and find a place to hide first.
Those people were very vigilant, with several people on guard. If they got too close, they would easily be discovered.
The opposing side was not too numerous, only about a hundred people, but more than half of them were strong men. These people had encountered many difficulties during their escape from famine, and they were ruthless. If they rushed forward rashly, they would definitely push the two girls out as hostages, or even harm them.
Therefore, they couldn't be hasty. They had to strike with one blow and ensure that their own side suffered as little casualties as possible.
Jiang Wan, lying on Jiang Pan's back, controlled the bird to fly into the thieves' camp and search for the two girls among the crowd.
Soon, the bird found the two girls.
According to the bird's description, the two girls were in good condition and were not injured.
Jiang Wan breathed a sigh of relief and quietly told Jiang Pan about the situation of the two girls. Jiang Pan also quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
He was really afraid that the two girls would be harmed by those thieves. Even if they were rescued, the two girls would probably not survive.
Fortunately, they arrived in time!
The thieves did not expect anyone to see through their scheme. They were hiding in the mountain hollow, celebrating joyfully, and were busy cooking with pots and stoves.
The aroma of food wafted into the forest, making the men from the little mountain village grit their teeth.
"Da Pan, when are we going to make a move? If we don't move soon, all the food and water will be wasted!"
They had traveled all day and were already very hungry. But their water and grain had been looted by these scoundrels. They had come all this way, and seeing those scoundrels eating their food and drinking their water, they wished they could kill them all with one blow!
Jiang Pan's eyes were fixed on those people. Seeing that the guards had also been called to eat, he said to everyone: "Move closer slowly, and try to get as close as possible before making a move."
Jiang Wan asked Jiang Pan to put her down, "Dad, I'll go save the two sisters first. After I reach them, you can make your move."
How could Jiang Pan agree to let her do such a dangerous thing.
"Dad, I'm a child, no one will notice me. I'm the most suitable to save the two sisters. I promise I won't run around. I'll just stay by their side and not let the bad guys get close to them, so you won't have any worries. Don't worry, the old immortal will always be by my side to protect me."
As soon as she mentioned the old immortal, Jiang Pan's objection lost some of its force.
"Then you must be careful."
Jiang Wan nodded, grabbed two handfuls of dirt from the ground, smeared her fair, chubby little face until it was dirty, and then carefully sneaked out of the woods.
Everyone watched with bated breath as the small figure dodged quickly through the weeds, and soon, she reached the edge of the thieves' group.
Jiang Wan crouched down, and following the bird's instructions, she moved forward bit by bit within the enemy's formation.
The thieves would never have thought that an enemy had already infiltrated their ranks. They were happily sharing the cooked dinner.
It is said that stolen goods taste the best, but things that are snatched are even more flavorful.
The thieves ate with beaming smiles, completely unaware that Jiang Wan had successfully reached the two girls.
The two girls, one named Zhang Qiaoxiu and the other Zheng Cui'er, were now pale with fear, their eyes swollen like walnuts from crying.
Just now, the thieves had said that after they finished eating, they would let the girls serve them.
They were already of marriageable age, how could they not understand what 'serve' meant.
The thought of being defiled by those people made them wish they could die immediately.
But they were tied up and could not move, and their mouths were stuffed with cloth. Even if they wanted to die, they couldn't.
Jiang Wan approached the two girls and whispered: "Sister Zheng, Sister Zhang, don't make a sound, our village people are here to save you."
When the two girls heard this voice, they couldn't believe their ears. They opened their eyes, which were swollen into narrow slits, and saw a chubby little dirt-covered face grinning at them.