The Ten Canvases

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Xiang Yang sat the woman on the bridge railing and said with a smile, "Do not be afraid, lady!" 

The woman seemed to be in a state of utter shock, as she went completely limp as she sat. However, with a loud splash, the Third Chief had already climbed back from the river. Swinging both his hammers, he yelled, "Brothers, let's get rid of this mongrel!" Loud shouting of the bandits followed after, as they jumped down from their horses and charged at him with their daggers.

The Third Chief swung his copper hammers as he charged straight toward Xiang Yang. Locking his gaze onto the Third Chief, Xiang Yang drew circles with his hands and lunged at the man. Instantly, the Third Chief felt enormous forces pushing him from the sides. While he was still in shock, his hammers banged into each other. The huge collision caused his arms to go numb, thus he lost his grip on both of the hammers. Then, Xiang Yang gently touched the hammers with his right foot, causing them to be propelled back onto the Third Chief's feet. The heavy blow caused him to cry in excruciating pain, as if all the bones in his feet were absolutely crushed.

Xiang Yang burst into laughter at the pitiful sight. Then, he waltzed around the Third Chief gleefully as he uncovered his palms and slapped the Third Chief 30 times consecutively. Nevertheless, he already had a plump face, so the swelling from the slaps was not obvious at all. Xiang Yang then darted toward the group of bandits, ruthlessly beating them all into submission. All of them were struck down, and no one could escape from his violent fist. Then, Xiang Yang raided the loots from the bandits and freed the other captured women. As he walked through them, he kicked the steel daggers from the ground into the river, including the hefty copper hammers. Dumbfounded, the bandits could only stare at him while lying paralyzed on the ground. Suddenly, Xiang Yang announced, "Scram! I shall wipe out the White Tiger Camp within three days! Return to relay my message!"

Needless to say, the gang of bandits dared not to stay for another second. Hence, they hastily climbed onto their horses in a completely chaotic manner. Some of them fled away on foot pitifully as they could not even muster the strength to hop onto their horses.

Xiang Yang looked at the 20 women dressed in tattered clothes and asked, "Do you know the way back to your village?" One of them replied softly, "Yes… It's the Zhou Village right in front." Xiang Yang benevolently distributed the money to the ladies and asked them to return home. Finally freed from the bandits, the women expressed their gratitude to Xiang Yang, before helping each other up and leaving.

The woman captured by the Third Chief was still sitting on the bridge. When Xiang Yang checked on her, she was biting her lips and trembling uncontrollably. He gave her a smile and extended his right arm, "Young lady, what's the matter? Come on, try to stand up." Xiang Yang could only study the woman’s appearance when she raised her head to meet his gaze. She had a pair of dark, profound eyes, cherry lips, and a refined nose. Judging from her appearance, she seemed to be around 18 years old. Nevertheless, her body was frail as she was exhausted from being abducted by the bandits to a faraway place. She was originally squirmed up at a corner on the railing. However, only when she saw that Xiang Yang's countenance was sincerely kind without a trace of evil, she stood up slowly. However, she still refused to hold his hand.

Xiang Yang questioned, "Why didn't you follow them?" The young woman grabbed onto her loose clothes and murmured, "I… I’m not from this place. May I know your name, sir?" Xiang Yang replied with a smile, "My name is Xiang Yang. What's yours, my lady?" Her face went maroon before she answered softly, "My surname is Zhao… My last name is Wanyan." Xiang Yang asked, "Please don't call me sir, it’s quite awkward. Where are you from, Lady Zhao? I can help you if you have nowhere to go." Zhao Wanyan replied, still blushing, "No… I am actually from Luoyang. I... I can go back on my own, you don't have to worry about me..." However, she lost all her strength after she got off from the railing and tripped on her feet, causing her to fall straight into Xiang Yang's arms. She let out a soft yelp out of embarrassment as she suddenly fainted.