It seems they took the bait!
But the Shen Family's wall was a bit too low; someone skilled at climbing could easily get over the wooden slats and tiles and land safely.
However, it would be a mistake to think landing meant safety.
Sure enough. A piercing scream suddenly rang out. Then it was muffled tightly.
Looking down, their foot had landed in a beast trap.
This was something Shěn Zhāo had bought at a high price from a hunter that afternoon, specifically for large game.
Shěn Zhāo waited for a while.
Was there no more sound outside the courtyard wall?
Shěn Zhāo didn't believe they would give up so easily.
Indeed, one group fled, and another soon came to the Shen Family's door.
Less than a quarter of an hour passed.
This time, the commotion wasn't from the Shen Family's courtyard wall, but from the main gate!
The Shen Family's main gate was made of two wooden doors, with an iron pillar in the middle serving as their connection.
The thieves fiddled here and there, cleverly removing the iron pillar.
They then smoothly entered the Shen Family's courtyard.
Shěn Zhāo thought this group had some skill.
Shěn Zhāo: "It's time I showed you my real skills."
With a whoosh, Shěn Zhāo scrambled out of the wooden bed and went to the window, poking a finger through the paper covering.
A small hole was made in the center of the window, allowing a clear view of five thieves. Two were thin and small, two were tall and large, and one was of average build.
Shěn Zhāo observed for a short while, then suddenly said,
"The moon isn't sleeping, and neither am I. I'll sleep with the moon."
This statement struck the five people like a thunderclap.
The five looked at each other, perplexed.
Their eyes were dazzlingly confused.
"Did you hear something?"
"Of course, it was loud."
"Yes, is someone still awake at the Shen Family's this late? Are they talking in their sleep?"
"Are we going in or not?"
The leader nodded resolutely, and the other four followed suit. They had already entered the courtyard; there was no reason to give up halfway.
The tall one took a packet of powder from his pocket. Then he took out a half-empty bamboo tube.
They intended to enter through the main hall.
After all, that was a considerable amount of Money, likely destined for the public treasury.
Shěn Lǐ shì lived in a room in the main hall.
The five crept forward.
In fact, the leader, facing the window, had poked a hole and inserted the bamboo tube. Just as he was about to blow the sleeping powder through it, his back was slapped.
"Monkey, stop messing around."
The man reprimanded.
He prepared to continue blowing the powder into the bamboo tube.
But his back was slapped heavily again. The leader was now truly angry.
He turned around furiously,
"Monkey, you're useless. You ruin everything you touch.
What are you doing?"
Waiting for him was Shěn Zhāo's sweet smile.
"Hello. Good evening. Welcome to my home."
The man jumped back in fright, stepping on a rock.
With a bang, he fell to the ground.
Then his vision met the eyes of Monkey and the other four.
They were all tied up and pinned to the ground.
The leader jolted to his feet, preparing to rush out of the courtyard, but Shěn Zhāo acted swiftly.
Left hook, right hook.
The leader and the other four sat in a row.
Terror filled the eyes of the five.
What kind of super-strong monster was this?
They struggled, trying to spit out the rags in their mouths.
Shěn Zhāo spoke loudly, word by word,
"You came to the Shen Family to steal Money. You're not capable of that. If you want to live, each of you gets ten punches.
Also, give me all the Money you have on you. Otherwise, I'll strip you naked, cut off your clothes, and hang you upside down from the willow tree by the village well."
The five trembled.
What a perverted Shěn Zhāo.
To be stripped naked and hung upside down from a tree? They couldn't bear such shame. None of them wanted that fate.
"Who shall start? Let's decide. If I get tired by the last one, I'll just strip his clothes."
The one called Monkey was the first to roll in front of Shěn Zhāo.
He proactively pushed his face towards Shěn Zhāo's fist, signaling that he should be beaten first.
Shěn Zhāo obliged.
Ten light punches landed.
Both his eyes turned into panda eyes, and his face swelled up like a steamed bun.
On his face, only his mouth could still move; everywhere else was relieved,
*Good, I don't have to get undressed.*
*Thank goodness.*
The other four scrambled to claim their order.
"I'll go there. Give me a kick, get out of the way."
Finally, the thin one managed to get second place.
Shěn Zhāo delivered another 10 punches, and another pig-like face appeared.
Three people remained.
Exactly the same force, the same angle, the same result.
The five looked at each other, wanting to laugh but unable to.
They laughed at others' faces, which looked hilarious, but their own faces were the same.
Laughing at others was like laughing at oneself.
Shěn Zhāo had thrown fifty punches.
Her hands were tired. She casually ripped the rags from the mouths of the five.
With a wave of her hand.
She then said,
"Scram! Come back to my house again, and next time it'll be your underwear."
The five felt a draft around their legs. They couldn't care less.
Their hands were tied, but their feet could run.
They hopped and skipped out of the Shen Family's courtyard.
In the same posture.
Equally comical.
A door on the right creaked open silently.
Shěn Wénhú stood there, his voice gentle.
"Are you done playing? It's late, time to get ready for bed."
Shěn Zhāo glanced at this gentle Second Brother, thinking inwardly, *You're still awake this late?*
Shěn Wénhú seemed to know what Shěn Zhāo was thinking and explained,
"Second Brother was afraid you couldn't handle those thieves by yourself."
However, Shěn Zhāo once again exceeded Shěn Wénhú's expectations.
*Amazing.*
With Shěn Wénhú's intelligence, he naturally knew Shěn Zhāo had attracted the attention of ill-intentioned people in the village that afternoon.
Therefore, when Shěn Zhāo had asked for bamboo strips and broken tiles from Shěn Dà Bó and Shěn Sān Shū that afternoon, Shěn Wénhú was the first to agree.
Shěn Cóng Bǎo and Shěn Cóngwèi were also enthusiastic because of this intelligent son/nephew.
Shěn Wénhú knew that the preparations on the courtyard wall might not be enough to deter them.
Before sleeping that night, he had taken two sharp sickles and given them to Shěn Cóng Bǎo and Shěn Cóngwèi, urging them to be vigilant.
He also kept a sharp knife in his own room, ready to support Shěn Zhāo at any moment.
However, Shěn Zhāo had single-handedly resolved all the thieves perfectly.
Through the window, illuminated by the moonlight, he clearly saw Shěn Zhāo's fifty punches.
It was satisfying for the one throwing them, and satisfying for the one watching.
Shěn Wénhú was in a good mood the entire time, a smile playing on his lips.
Shěn Wénhú yawned; it was time to prepare for bed. He had never stayed up so late even when studying.
Now that Shěn Wénhú had come out to remind Shěn Zhāo to go to bed, he himself needed to go back to sleep.
Shěn Zhāo accepted her elder brother's kindness.
With a rare soft tone,
"Second Brother, you go to sleep quickly. I'm going to sleep too."
"All right, Zhāozhāo."
Shěn Wénhú returned to his room.
Seeing Shěn Wénhú's figure disappear behind the door, Shěn Zhāo, following his lead, also went back to her room.
Sweet dreams.