Chapter 209: We Can Protect Ourselves

Lao Qian had already relaxed, holding a bowl and happily enjoying the fruit tea.

Upon hearing Gu Xixi say they still couldn't rest easy, he was startled and hurriedly asked:

"Why? Didn't you say there was nothing wrong and we could carry on as usual?"

Gu Xixi smiled and said, "We'll naturally carry on as usual, but necessary precautions must not be lacking."

"Last year when the village caught fire, a bunch of idlers from nearby villages rushed in and caused trouble—Uncle Qian, do you still remember?"

Lao Qian frowned, "I remember."

"You mean to say… this time someone might still take advantage of the chaos to loot?"

Gu Xixi said, "We can't rule out that possibility."

"At any time, when turmoil arises, public order will inevitably have some problems—either here or there will be trouble."

"What's more, we're facing such a huge disturbance."

"In the past, the Northwest had the Northwest Army stationed, so bandit uprisings were rarely heard of, but the Northwest Army now has major matters to attend to, and in everything we fear one lapse despite many precautions."

Lao Qian nodded repeatedly, "Exactly, you've considered everything thoroughly; making preparations ahead of time is never wrong."

Gu Xixi gave everyone another calming pill, "Actually, there's no need to be too nervous."

"As long as the Northwest remains stable overall, the situation stays in the hands of the Northwest Army, and those troublemakers will only dare to cause minor trouble, sneaking around."

"We commoners guarding the village can still protect ourselves without problem."

Zhang Shen had been panicking since just now, but she has gradually calmed down.

"That makes sense; as long as the Northwest Army is still here, we have nothing to fear—we rely on ourselves!"

"She had fully figured it out; anyway, things have come to this point—what's the use of being more afraid or worried?"

"Those who don't believe Xixi should just keep living as they have been!"

He Jinglan had been listening quietly; only now she propped her chin and said, "Although I'm not from your village, being here I am one with all of you."

"We share weal and woe; wherever I need to exert effort, I will not shirk my duty!"

Lao Qian said gratefully, "No wonder you're a good friend my grandniece made—Flower Pool Ford Village is also your home!"

They then discussed again how to set up defenses for the village.

Flower Pool Ford Village has natural terrain advantages, backed by a great mountain, yet only the big locust tree side has a single entrance.

It's easy to station guards there, and the rear mountain can also provide villagers with some needed foodstuffs and medicinal herbs.

They finally decided to implement a rotating shift patrol system.

Two people per team, five teams, covering the village's five areas.

Additionally, each day is divided into six shifts, with the guard changed every four hours.

Once anything happens, the patrollers can promptly discover it and alert the whole village.

Afterwards, they further divided it into two scenarios.

"If it's just petty thieves, idlers, and troublemakers, then the whole village will gather and beat them until they lose their teeth."

"If it's bandits carrying weapons and many in number, the villagers will quickly flee to the rear mountain."

"So each household's stored grain and valuables that can be hidden should be put away in advance."

"That will make retreat easier when the time comes."

"With a plan in place, Lao Qian was moved, saying, 'Indeed we need to pool our wisdom—thanks to all of you.'"

"\"Meng Dangni zi, Miss He, for thinking so much for our village, I, as village chief, thank you two on behalf of all the villagers. \""

"No delay, Lao Qian immediately stood up to go make arrangements."

"Walking out of the hall's door, he thought of another matter and reminded Gu Xixi: 'For now we can't go into the city to sell goods, and we don't know when the ban will be lifted.'"

"\"Our few orchards, chicken and duck eggs, medicinal herbs—these can be stored fine. \""

"\"But the Zhou family's vegetable growers, having picked more than they can eat, fear it will rot in the fields. \""

Gu Xixi understood; Lao Qian meant well, fearing that if her fruit-tree planting caused trouble at the Zhou family, the Zhou folk would resent it, and worst case the fruit trees would be wasted.

She smiled and said, "\"Uncle Qian, rest assured; when I first devised these intercropping methods for you to choose from, I already had ways to handle any trouble. After you finish the villagers' meeting, I'll go talk to the Zhou couple. \""

Lao Qian breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "\"As long as you have it in mind, that's fine. \""

"At the villagers' meeting, Lao Qian didn't mention the possibility of the Northwest Army rebelling against the imperial court; he only said the situation was unstable, Qing Tian County seat was sealed off, fearing outsiders would take advantage of the chaos to loot, and the village should also prepare early, etc."

"Like a drop of water falling into a boiling oil pot."

"The whole village exploded."

"Some panicked, some didn't believe it, and some disagreed with Lao Qian's idea of villagers defending themselves."

"Lao Qian was never a soft touch to begin with, and especially at this juncture he was still suppressing his temper fiercely—he wouldn't indulge these people."

"\"You don't want to do it, right? \""

"\"Fine then, let's not do anything—leave the village gate wide open, nobody cares. Wait till the day your homes get robbed, your kids playing in the village get snatched, or you're asleep on the kang in pitch darkness and don't know who slit your throat. \""

"\"By then don't come blaming me, the village chief, for not knowing what's going on! \""

"\"I've thought up a way out for you and you don't want it—I'm too lazy to bother! \""

Lao Qian said this and strode off, shaking his hand.

The villagers exchanged glances, seeing Lao Qian truly had no intention of turning back, they all grew anxious and shouted to detain him:

One who thought himself clever chuckled, "\"Village chief! We're still discussing this—why are you in such a hurry? \""

Lao Qian snapped back angrily, "\"Discuss your mother's fart, \""

"\"What ideas do you have in that dog's belly? Speak up—if they obey you, you can lead them to do it. \""

That person shrank his neck, not daring to utter a sound.

The villagers wavered for a moment, then chattered in disagreement.

"\"There's really no other way; otherwise, just listen to the village chief. \""

The Village Chief is one of us after all; he wouldn't possibly cheat us, right?

Didn't the Village Chief say that patrols are just a precaution; there may not really be bandits?

Although the wheat harvest is coming soon and there's a lot of farm work, if each household takes turns on duty, I can accept that.

……

Several elderly folks grabbed Lao Qian, telling him not to argue with everyone, to just do what he should, and the whole village will listen to him.

The matter has thus been settled.

At the end of the day, nobody wants to be robbed bare and lose their life.

Since we don't dare to gamble, we can only cooperate with the Village Chief's arrangements.

After the meeting dispersed, Gu Xixi hadn't even moved her feet when the Zhou couple came over on their own.

Old Zhou has always been a tight-lipped person, with a solemn face, sighing and not speaking.

Although Madame Zhou could see she was also anxious, her attitude was still okay.

She gave an apologetic smile and asked, 'Xixi, we can't go into town to sell vegetables these days; look at these vegetables of mine...'

Gu Xixi said, 'I remember you planted long beans, cilantro, and small greens—three kinds.'

Seeing that Gu Xixi remembered, Madame Zhou felt somewhat grateful, 'Exactly.'

Cilantro and greens are fine, but I planted the most long beans; they keep growing in summer, one batch after another, I can harvest several big bunches every morning—but what should I do?

As she spoke, she glanced at Gu Xixi's reaction from the corner of her eye.

Gu Xixi replied without hesitation, 'Sister-in-law, don't worry, I have a plan.'

When the weather gets hot, many people suffer from summer fatigue and lose their appetite; pickled vegetables, sour and crisp, are the best to sell at this time.

On the contrary, fresh long beans are in season, and the county town already has plenty of vegetable farmers selling them.

These days, you probably can't get a good price for them, right?

Bringing this up, Madame Zhou felt a bit ashamed; earlier Gu Xixi had advised her not to plant too many long beans.

But she heard that Gu Daye's family made good money selling long beans last year, so greedily she planted more.