Chapter 68: Returning Home in Glory on Horseback

Luo Feng's strike was blocked, and the staff's momentum swept sideways.

Zhang Honghong, seeing the move, countered it; her movements were far smoother than before.

Seeing this, Luo Feng no longer held back, launching consecutive attacks on Zhang Honghong.

For a moment the two were evenly matched, and Wang Hou asked Jiang Jinshi, "Chief, who do you think will win?"

Jiang Jinshi stared at the battlefield without blinking: "Luo Feng will win, after all he... obtained divine power earlier than you, his body has adapted better, while Zhang Honghong just gained divine power and hasn't fully adapted yet."

Jiang Jinshi was right; Zhang Honghong now relied purely on combat instinct to face Luo Feng, her mind hadn't decided what to do, yet her body reacted first.

The outcome of their sparring was as Jiang Jinshi expected; after several rounds of intense fighting, Luo Feng won, and Zhang Honghong's arms were bruised badly.

Luo Feng apologized somewhat embarrassedly: "Sorry, Captain Zhang, I didn't hold back."

Zhang Honghong was enthusiastic, completely disregarding this minor injury: "Come on, buddies, what are you talking about? Let me train for two days and we'll continue."

Their fight ended; next up were Wang Sixi and Wang Hou.

Wang Hou shrugged: "Fourth Brother, we both bear the surname Wang; we were likely the same family centuries ago, so go easy on me!"

"You little brat, trying to set a trap for me!" Wang Sixi did not dare underestimate Wang Hou, forgetting that in the battle against the Poison Snake Stronghold, Wang Hou had cooperated with the Chief to kill the viper.

Their sparring style differed from Luo Feng and Zhang Honghong's; previously, the two fought with broad, open moves, making it quite pleasing to watch.

Now the two were essentially one striking and the other dodging; Wang Hou's agile body kept dodging, which annoyed Wang Sixi greatly.

"Don't dodge, you brat! Come fight head-on!"

Wang Hou replied while dodging: "You think I'm stupid? If I can dodge, why would I meet force with force?"

Moreover, the long staff felt awkward in his hand; with such a long weapon, he could hardly move, and a cleaver would be far more convenient.

Finally Wang Sixi threw away his staff: "I'm done, I'm done! This brat is like a loach—impossible to hit!"

I thought this sparring would end here, but who knew Jiang Jinshi would suddenly say, "Luo Feng, let's practice together!"

Luo Feng recalled Jiang Jinshi's moves from his battle with the viper, knowing the Chief had some skill, and quickly agreed.

Jiang Jinshi picked up a wooden staff, feeling it too light; compared to that, he preferred a weighted weapon like the Ghost Head Knife, ideally a spear would be perfect.

It seems we still need to find suitable weapons to equip everyone when we have time; otherwise our combat power cannot be fully exerted.

In the battle against the Poison Snake Stronghold, aside from Luo Feng who constantly watched Jiang Jinshi, perhaps only Wang Hou, who coordinated with the Chief, knew just how strong this Chief really was.

Both ready, Jiang Jinshi held the wooden staff pointing diagonally at the ground, like an old pine's roots.

Luo Feng held his breath, assumed a bow stance, staff tip raised.

Seeing Jiang Jinshi unmoving, Luo Feng suddenly attacked first, the staff wind thrust straight at his face.

Jiang Jinshi did not retreat but advanced, stepping sideways, blocking the attack with the staff tip and hooking the opponent's wrist with the butt.

Of course, Luo Feng's reaction was not slow either; he hastily withdrew his move to block horizontally, and the two staffs became tangled.

At this moment their fight was clearly more intense than the previous two bouts; the onlookers stared, transfixed, each pondering how they themselves would respond.

The answer is harsh; if Wang Hou joined the battlefield, such fierce staff techniques would likely give him little chance to catch his breath.

Wang Sixi and Zhang Honghong also could not withstand such moves, but fortunately several people have great room for improvement; for now they are merely temporarily outmatched.

Their fight did not last long, ultimately ending with Luo Feng's defeat and retreat.

Jiang Jinshi also felt pleased, from which he could digest more techniques for his own use.

The sparring also ended; the previously arranged matters now needed to be set in motion.

Although he had promised the County Magistrate Liu to drive away the Tang family in a short time, for Jiang Jinshi the time was still early; he now needed to keep expanding, striving to strengthen Yangguangzhai before undertaking any scheme.

Indeed, Jiang Jinshi planned to stir up trouble; how could he sincerely work for County Magistrate Liu? One could even say he was unwilling to serve any power or family.

What are they? They are mountain bandits, not private troops raised by others.

For now it's merely a matter of superior strength; he needed to lie low and bide his time, waiting for the opportunity—when it came, it would be Yangguangzhai's turn to rise.

As for banditry, Jiang Jinshi did not intend to over-interfere; appropriate delegation would motivate his brothers to work harder.

Descending the mountain together with Wang Hou, Wang Sixi, and others, Jiang Jinshi conveniently took his own horse, leaving another horse behind in the stronghold.

In Jiang Jinshi's arrangement, Wang Hou's unit was not for frontal combat; it was mainly used for gathering intelligence and assassination, etc.

Therefore Wang Hou could not remain in the stronghold, including later, when he would spend even more time outside.

Wang Hou himself understood this; he already had his own plan—to bring his brothers into the city to beg.

Beggars appearing anywhere would not be surprising; for example, to surveil someone, one could simply lie in the street all day—what identity could be more convenient?

With strong support from County Magistrate Liu, Jiang Jinshi had no qualms about expanding, planning to recruit several squads; naturally the squad leader positions had to be personally vetted by him, otherwise they couldn't be trusted.

Arriving at the gate of Jiangcheng, the group parted there; Wang Sixi took a few people and Huasheng to buy medicinal herbs.

Wang Hou, however, needed to enter the city to hide and gather intelligence; after giving some people necessary activity funds, Jiang Jinshi simply rode his horse back home.

Everyone says wealth and honor not returning home is like walking at night in fine clothes; in his past life Jiang Jinshi had no hometown to speak of, so he never felt the meaning of this saying, but now he deeply experienced it.

Upon entering the village, Jiang Jinshi was spotted by Old Lady Li; the horse he rode was incredibly eye‑catching, for even at Da Jiang Cun's wealthiest, they only had donkeys.

Riding out on horseback, to the villagers it seemed a privilege reserved for wealthy city families.

That statement is not false; after all, this place is not far from the frontier, constant warfare drives up demand for horses, and prices naturally rise as well.

Old Lady Li dared only to watch from afar, then suddenly thought of something and sprinted into the village, shouting while running: "Come out quick to see the horse! The Jiang family's little Ten has returned on horseback!"

Before Jiang Jinshi could even reach home, the surroundings were already crowded with villagers; he had to dismount and hold the horse by hand, fearing it would startle and hurt the crowd.

"Yo! Little Ten, this horse is really handsome!"

"How much silver did you pay for it?"

"It must be the money Xinyue that girl earned from gathering wild ginseng!"

"Having money to buy a horse but none to call a doctor for grandfather's family—what 'filial piety'!"

The noisy voices in the crowd made Jiang Jinshi unable to hear clearly; even if he caught something, he just laughed it off.

One person disliking me is his problem; a group disliking me is their problem.

Nor do I care about others cursing me behind my back, for they may not be able to swear as harshly as I can.