Chapter 212: Expanding Influence

The battlefield had just been cleared when Yang Xiuqing brought the good news to find He Yuzhu: "Zhuzi, we fought a truly beautiful battle! We wiped out over eighty bandit soldiers, captured thirty horses, over seventy rifles, and even a large truck!"

He Yuzhu nodded and asked with concern, "What about our own casualties?"

"Twenty-two brothers sacrificed, and seventeen wounded."

"This result is better than I had anticipated."

Yang Xiuqing, however, looked at him with some confusion: "Zhao Dashan is a veteran who has fought many battles; he says this was absolutely a great victory!"

He Yuzhu knew clearly in his heart that if not for those High Explosive turning the tide, the casualties among the refugees would likely have doubled. But at this moment, the joy of victory permeated the entire Shanzhai; why should he be a killjoy? Thus, he smiled and nodded.

Yang Xiuqing thoughtfully brought up a topic: "Zhuzi, that matter you mentioned earlier about finding a backer..."

"I won't hide it from you, my father is a person on the Communist Party side. If you are willing, I can help you build a connection."

Hearing this, Yang Xiuqing frowned slightly: "If they come, will they take away all our food?"

"I guarantee you, absolutely not." He Yuzhu's tone was resolute.

Yang Xiuqing spoke up: "The Shanzhai has hoarded so much food, it will be targeted sooner or later. Zhuzi, you are knowledgeable, analyze it carefully for me."

He Yuzhu said bluntly: "We are in the buffer zone between the two parties, and now we have killed people from the Security Regiment. Aside from joining the Communist Party, I cannot think of a better way out."

"What if we distribute the food and money, and everyone goes back to their own homes?" Yang Xiuqing pondered.

He Yuzhu gave a bitter smile: "People like you and your daughter who possess Kung Fu are naturally fine. But for most people dragging their families along, this is no different from seeking death. The mother and daughter following me almost starved to death on the road because their rations were robbed."

Yang Xiuqing nodded thoughtfully, then his eyes suddenly lit up: "Then... how about we use this food to recruit soldiers and buy horses? Let's hire more veterans who have fought in battles!"

"This method cannot solve the fundamental problem; once a large number of enemies come to attack, we have no reinforcements and will definitely be wiped out." He Yuzhu shook his head slightly.

"Doing this, will it chill the hearts of the old brothers?" Yang Xiuqing asked with some worry.

"We can give the existing brothers half a year's rations first as a guarantee, and from then on, pay based on labor." He Yuzhu had already thought it through thoroughly.

Yang Xiuqing said with some pleading: "Zhuzi, just stay."

He Yuzhu still shook his head: "I can stay for at most a few more days to help you get things in order here."

"Good! We just won a battle, let's be happy first! Come, let's go make a good meal!" Yang Xiuqing pulled He Yuzhu and walked outside.

As soon as the sky darkened, the Shanzhai began to boil with excitement. Everywhere, bonfires reflected smiling faces; men, women, old, and young were as excited as if it were the New Year.

In several large pots, captured pork and mutton were stewing, the aroma overflowing.

Children were chasing and playing in the open space.

At the banquet, He Yuzhu, Yang Xiuqing, Yang Mei, Zhao Dashan, Jin Yi, and several brothers who fought bravely sat at the same table.

Yang Xiuqing held his wine cup high, his voice like a booming bell: "The first cup of wine, to honor the twenty-two brothers who sacrificed!"

Having said that, he solemnly sprinkled the wine on the ground.

The whole crowd stood in silence, one after another splashing wine onto the yellow earth to comfort the heroic spirits.

"The second cup of wine, to Brother Zhuzi! Without him, there would be no victory for us today!"

Everyone raised their cups in unison to toast He Yuzhu.

After drinking, Yang Xiuqing said loudly: "Let our great hero say a few words, shall we?"

Amidst the cheers of the crowd, He Yuzhu stood up helplessly: "The reason I helped everyone is first, I respect Brother Yang's boldness and loyalty—he was able to go rob the road for you, this sentiment, I hope everyone will always remember; second, it is also fate between you and me. Since we met in this vast sea of people, I, He Yuzhu, promised to help, so I will never give up halfway..."

Before he finished speaking, the whole hall erupted in applause.

Yang Xiuqing raised his cup again: "The third cup of wine, to all the brothers who participated in the battle!"

Following this, He Yuzhu became the focus of the entire venue, with people coming to toast him one after another.

He had no choice but to secretly store the wine into his space, which was the only way he could drink a thousand cups without getting drunk.

At the banquet, He Yuzhu saw Ding Li beside him only busy picking food for him while she herself did not touch her chopsticks, so he said gently: "Little girl, eat quickly, the food is getting cold."

Ding Li shook her head: "I will wait for Master to finish eating before I eat."

He Yuzhu straightened his face: "There is no distinction between master and servant here. If you say that again, I won't keep you."

Tears immediately welled up in Ding Li's eyes.

He Yuzhu gently patted her head: "Be obedient, eat your meal well, and I won't drive you away."

"I'll be obedient." The little girl replied with a crying tone and finally picked up her chopsticks.

After three rounds of drinks, seeing that everyone was getting tipsy, He Yuzhu reminded them at the right time: "Everyone drink less, we still have serious matters to discuss later."

Only then did everyone put down their wine cups.

He Yuzhu asked Yang Xiuqing to select representatives for the meeting.

Yang Xiuqing acted decisively and immediately had each table elect one person.

In the end, the dozen or so people at the main table plus the thirty-plus representatives elected from each table, a total of fifty people, attended the meeting.

Yang Xiuqing spoke first: "Although we repelled the enemy, a dozen of them escaped. For those three hundred thousand catties of grain, they will definitely come back. To keep the grain, Zhuzi's opinion is: recruit soldiers and buy horses, and at the same time establish contact with the Communist Party, and join them if necessary..."

He Yuzhu was stunned—recruiting soldiers and buying horses was indeed his idea, how did it become something he said? It seems Yang Xiuqing is also a clever one, using his own mouth to say what he wanted to say.

Jin Yi stood up with a worried look: "I don't know much about the Communist Party. If they come, will the grain have to be handed over to them for distribution?"

He Yuzhu immediately explained: "If everyone is worried, we can first distribute half a year's rations to each household. Use the remaining grain to recruit soldiers and buy horses. By then, even if the Communist Party comes, we won't have much grain left in our hands, so everyone need not worry."

"This is a good idea!" Everyone agreed one after another.

Zhao Dashan spoke up: "Although I don't understand politics, I can see that this area is already in a state of confrontation between the two parties. We are in a 'three-no-man's-land' and will have to make a choice sooner or later. Relying solely on our current manpower, it is indeed difficult to withstand a large-scale attack. Moreover, training new recruits won't amount to much in less than two months..."

He Yuzhu took over the conversation and said: "Everyone saw this battle; cultivating combat effectiveness is not a one-day task. And the enemy won't give us much time. Therefore, once the decision to recruit is made, it must be fast."

"I agree with Zhuzi's opinion." Zhao Dashan expressed his stance.

After a heated discussion, He Yuzhu's proposal was finally passed unanimously.

The next morning, Yang Xiuqing took dozens of people to set up recruitment points on the road that refugees must pass, prioritizing the absorption of veterans with combat experience while providing a helping hand to those in distress.

He Yuzhu reorganized the five hundred and eighty-plus people in the Shanzhai into four companies: Combat Company, Engineering Company, Logistics Company, and Old and Young Company.

Each company had a clear division of labor: Zhao Dashan was responsible for the training of the Combat Company; Jin Yi led the Engineering Company to build fortifications; the Logistics Company was responsible for cooking, collecting firewood, and making clothes and shoes; the Old and Young Company took care of each other so as not to add trouble to others.

While surveying the terrain, He Yuzhu discovered that there was a mountain stream over five meters wide between the front and back mountains, connected only by a dilapidated suspension bridge. He immediately ordered the Engineering Company to rebuild the suspension bridge.

When he ventured deep into the back mountain to survey the area, he could not help but marvel at the sight before him: there was a natural rock cave here that was not only spacious and open, warm in winter and cool in summer, but also had a flowing mountain spring. Once the front mountain fell, one only needed to destroy the suspension bridge and hold this place, and even an immortal would find it difficult to attack.

Two days later, relying on his honest appearance, Yang Xiuqing actually brought back over three hundred veteran soldiers who had been on the battlefield.

Up to this point, the Shanzhai had already established an armed force of nearly five hundred people.

At the same time, He Yuzhu also made contact with his father He Daqing via radio, and they would be able to arrive in one day.

Just when everyone felt that good days were about to arrive, a sentry came galloping back in a hurry.

"There are over a thousand, the Bald Party troops are coming..."