Chapter 138: Return of an Old Friend

Feng Er reminded him again, "City Lord, you must also give preferential treatment to the people guarding the city. That way, with benefits, everyone will naturally rush to practice martial arts."

"That's right. Feng'er, you reminded me very well. Pass the order down and say that those selected for city defense will receive an extra bag of rice every month. Yongkang, you and Liu Dazhuang should discuss dividing these people according to their functions and positions, and manage them like the military. Write a management method to fully mobilize everyone's enthusiasm."

Jiang Yongkang responded, his face expressionless, but he was actually shocked.

Militarized management.

Xu Zhenying... really has no ambition to dominate the world?

If she doesn't have it, then is this sensitivity innate?

"City Lord, there are people!" Mo Jinchun beside him suddenly moved and stopped them behind him. Everyone was startled and looked in the direction of Mo Jinchun's sight. They saw two or three black shadows moving not far from the city gate.

Everyone was already frightened, and after being scared by Mo Jinchun, the guards were so frightened that they could hardly hold their weapons and subconsciously wanted to escape.

Seeing this, Xu Zhenying felt extremely worried. He now had a lot of people under his command. Even if he gave them armor and let them hold weapons, they were still honest and timid farmers at heart, and would subconsciously avoid any disturbance.

She needs people who have seen blood and dare to fight and charge, not this kind of mob that can be intimidated by one or two people.

Jiang Yongkang also noticed that Xu Zhenying's eyes were unfriendly, and he knew what Xu Zhenying was thinking. Not to mention Xu Zhenying, even when he went to select candidates to defend the city, he could only barely pick the tallest one among the short ones.

Xu Zhenying was right. We had to start training quickly and let these people transform from farmers to soldiers as soon as possible.

Otherwise, what is the difference between them and the grassroots army?

Mo Jinchun stood at the front and without saying hello, he directly took the bow and arrow from the soldier next to him.

He was seen holding the bow in his left hand and the arrow in his right hand, aiming at the two sneaky people below. Then he stretched out his long arm, pulled the string back to its full extent, and let go of his hand. The arrow flew away from the string at lightning speed!

Such a fast movement, such a strong power!

Not to mention Xu Zhenying, even Jiang Yongkang was shocked.

This Mo Jinchun is definitely a martial artist!

"Who's there?!" Xu Zhenying's shout echoed throughout the night sky.

Mo Jinchun stopped Xu Zhenying behind him and said, "City Lord, be careful of an ambush."

After saying that, he looked around, and Xu Zhenying felt that it was really time to get a telescope.

"There are only two people. I'm afraid they are refugees from nearby."

Xu Zhenying said firmly, "It can't be refugees. Refugees usually move around in groups. How could they dare to come out alone?"

Mo Jinchun thought about it and realized that this was the truth.

"My Lan County does not accept any refugees, please leave quickly! Otherwise we will be shot to death with arrows!" Jiang Yongkang cautiously touched his knife while shouting to drive away the people under the city.

Unexpectedly, the two men were sneaking closer and closer, and everyone couldn't help but feel puzzled. Then they heard a familiar voice: "Upstairs... is that Brother Jiang Yongkang?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Zhenying immediately recognized the person downstairs and couldn't help but be overjoyed, "Hurry up and open the city gate! It's Ming Xiaoshuang!"

Mo Jinchun didn't know why Xu Zhenying and the others all looked happy, but he also guessed that the person downstairs might have a close relationship with them.

The gate of Lan County slowly opened.

It was a very dilapidated city gate, blown into pieces and barely pieced together.

Xu Zhenying went down to the city to greet them personally. Sure enough, he saw Ming Xiaoshuang's face. There was a person tied up beside him. Xu Zhenying couldn't help but be shocked. Fang Xun and Fang Ningmo almost blurted out, "Sister?"

"Cousin?"

Ming Xiaoshuang was disheveled and carrying a small bag. The only valuable thing on his body was his dagger. Seeing his relatives at this moment, he wanted to shed tears. He also saw that the people on the city wall seemed to be from the team, and he immediately guessed that Xu Zhenying and his men had occupied Lan County.

It was worth it for him to run back after going through so many hardships.

Ming Xiaoshuang wiped the sweat from his forehead and then untied Fang Ningmo's hands with embarrassment. He slapped his forehead and said angrily, "Oh, I'm so sorry. I met Miss Fang on the road. She said she was going to Qiongzhou. I thought she was a girl without anyone to accompany her, so how could she make it out of these deep mountains? I asked her why she wanted to go to Qiongzhou, but she couldn't tell me. I had no choice but to tie her up and let her follow me. Please don't blame me."

Fang Xun immediately bowed, his face filled with gratitude as he said, "How dare I blame Brother Ming...?"

Realizing that there were other people present, Fang Xun didn't want to reveal their identities, so he also reminded Ming Xiaoshuang, "My uncle and aunt have been so worried these past few days that they've been bedridden. If they hadn't been stopped by the snowstorm, the city lord would have taken people out to look for them long ago."

City lord?

Ming Xiaoshuang immediately spoke up, and couldn't help but glance at Xu Zhenying. Realizing that this was not the place to talk, Xu Zhenying happily grabbed his hand and said, "Come on, come on, come back to the house and talk. I'll have someone prepare food for you, and we can talk while we eat!"

Feng'er also had a happy look on her face. She was quick on her feet and went back to ask Miao and others to prepare the banquet.

Although it was called a banquet, the supplies in the city were not abundant, and it was just enough for one meal.

As soon as Ming Xiaoshuang came back, everyone in the exile team got the news and they all wanted to squeeze over to see him. Everyone wondered why Ming Xiaoshuang appeared here, and they were even more confused about where the others had gone. However, Xu Zhenying was very powerful now, and everyone didn't want to disturb them when they were talking. They exchanged greetings with Ming Xiaoshuang for a while and then went home.

The Fang family took Fang Ruyu back to apologize.

At a large round table, Ming Xiaoshuang and Xu Zhenying sat in the middle, followed by the Xu family members.

Everyone had already eaten dinner, and food was in short supply, so Miao only served a bowl of noodles and made two of her signature dishes.

Ming Xiaoshuang was not polite either. He had been hungry for several days in the mountains. At this moment, he was so hungry that his eyes were shining green. He picked up the chopsticks and started digging, without any image at all.

But no one minded at all. Huang Cui'e even sighed, "Oh, you must be starving. We were the same when we first entered Lan County. We wanted to gnaw on the table legs."

Xu Degui enthusiastically helped him pick up the dishes, and soon, Ming Xiaoshuang's bowl was piled high with food.

After the encounter, Xu Zhenying signaled everyone with her eyes to leave, leaving only her and Ming Xiaoshuang.

When Ming Xiaoshuang had almost finished eating, he burped and scratched his head a little embarrassedly: "Girl, I've been hungry for several days. I made a fool of myself."

Xu Zhenying waved his hand. "There's no need to talk about this between you and me. I didn't ask you at the city gate just now, why did you come back? Where are Zhao Bantou and the others?"

"Miss, I didn't intend to leave that night, but Zhao Bantou and the others were determined to leave, and it would have been inappropriate for me not to stay. After all, I was still wearing my official uniform at the time. I had planned to walk with Zhao Bantou and the others for a while, and then come back to find you after we split up. We followed your instructions and went to Ye County first, only to find that it was deserted, a ghost town!"

Xu Zhenying frowned, his face panicking, "Do you know where they went?"

"We don't know what's going on."

"Are there any signs of fighting inside the city? Or are there any signs of the city gates being stormed?"

Ming Xiaoshuang recalled carefully and shook his head. "It doesn't look like that to me. From my speculation, I think they left on their own. Maybe they saw that we hadn't returned yet, and the city had run out of food, so they might come looking for us."

Xu Zhenying felt an uproar of regret and self-blame, somewhat regretting his decision. "If I had known this would happen, I should have returned home immediately. My grandmother and little sister wouldn't have disappeared without a trace. They are just a bunch of old, weak women and children, completely unable to protect themselves. What if they encountered bandits nearby?"

Ming Xiaoshuang consoled her, "Miss, things have come to this point. There's no other way. I see you have a strong army under your command. Why don't you send some people to look for it nearby? They're not very fast, so they might still be wandering around in the mountains. There's still a good chance we'll find it."

Xu Zhenying nodded, "I've already sent people to look for it, but Jinzhou is close to Qianzhou, and it's all mountainous. Even though it's nearby, it's like looking for a needle in a haystack."

Ming Xiaoshuang fell silent. Although he was just a bailiff, he had spent so much time with these people, sharing life and death with them, that naturally gave rise to a special kind of friendship. Especially Old Madam Fang and Old Madam Xu, they were both very kind to him and truly treated him like a junior.

Now that this large group of people are missing, Ming Xiaoshuang is anxious and angry.

"What happened next? Do you know about Prince Ming's rebellion?"

"Prince Ming is rebelling?" Ming Xiaoshuang was shocked. "When did this happen? Why did he suddenly rebel out of nowhere? What about Miss Fang?"

"This notice has been posted everywhere, but you've been traveling through the mountains and forests, so the news is delayed. We only learned about this when we arrived in Lan County. Not only that, the young emperor has also ordered all the princes to come to the capital to protect him. I'm afraid the Great Zhou Dynasty is about to be in chaos."

Xu Zhenying lowered his voice, "The notice said that Prince Ming claimed that his fiancée's family was murdered by Uncle Zhu. He marched north under the pretext of avenging his fiancée and purging the emperor's court."

Ming Xiaoshuang was stunned, and then his mind reacted in a flash, "Miss Fang is clearly here, why is Prince Ming insisting that they are dead?"

Thinking of the night when the bandits attacked, Ming Xiaoshuang felt a chill down her spine. "Miss, are you saying... Prince Ming is the one who's crying 'Catch the thief'? The bandit that night was actually him..."

Xu Zhenying gestured for silence, and Ming Xiaoshuang immediately shut up. But her mind was clear as a mirror. "No wonder Fang Ruyu refused to reveal anything, no matter how much I asked her. This girl is really... I don't know if she's stupid or brave enough to actually travel alone. She's lucky. When I met her, all her belongings had been stolen by the refugees, and she was almost forced to be sold as a slave."

Xu Zhenying was startled, remembering how Fang Ruyu looked just now. Her eyes were unfocused and she looked a little dazed, obviously having been greatly frightened.

A weak woman traveling alone with bandits everywhere outside, you can imagine what she will encounter.

"I was wondering why she was traveling alone. When I asked her, she just cried and said nothing, saying she was going to Qiongzhou. I knew she had sneaked out, and I thought she was going to see her lover... Fortunately, I acted decisively and tied her up for her safety. Otherwise, if she really let her go, it would have implicated all of us!"

Of course, if Prince Ming knew that this group of people were still alive, he would definitely take drastic measures to wipe them out.

Ming Xiaoshuang still remembered the various entanglements and felt a little scared. She couldn't help but curse, "Idiot! What an idiot! I don't know what she was raised on to be so stupid. If she were my daughter, I would really want to strangle her to death."

"Thank you for sending her back, otherwise Mr. Fang and Mrs. Fang would be worried to death."

Ming Xiaoshuang shook his head. "It was all a coincidence, and it saved us. We have to tell the Fang family to keep an eye on this young lady and don't let her get killed again. If she does this again, don't blame us for being ruthless. We'll have to get rid of all the Fang family members."

Xu Zhenying didn't respond and continued to ask, "What about Zhao Bantou and his men?"

"After we left together that night, we originally wanted to find a city to settle down. But after walking for several days and nights, we encountered nothing but refugees and bandits. The only county we came across was Hua County, but the city gates were tightly closed and no one was allowed in or out. Even when we revealed our identities, we were driven away." Ming Xiaoshuang said with some self-mockery, "My job as a bailiff is really pathetic. We couldn't enter the city for supplies, and we soon ran out of ammunition and food. Someone suggested going back to find the girl, saying that she was very capable and that we would have something to eat if we followed her. In short, the morale of the team was low. In the end, we had no choice but to hide in a deserted village for two days. Unexpectedly, we ran into a group of hundreds of refugees. We were beaten and fled in all directions. I took the opportunity to go to Lan County to reunite with the girl."

Ming Xiaoshuang clasped his fists, his eyes sparkling, and spoke sincerely, "Miss, I had no intention of returning to Bianjing City. Even if we hadn't encountered that wave of refugees, I would have found a way to return to you! From now on, my life, Ming Xiaoshuang, belongs to you. If you have any requests, I will do them without hesitation!"

Xu Qingying quickly helped Ming Xiaoshuang up. Xu Zhenying was deeply moved by the fact that someone had gone through so many hardships to seek refuge with her. What's more, Ming Xiaoshuang gave up everything in Bianjing City and sought refuge with a woman like her who had no future. Her true feelings were revealed even more in times of trouble.

"Brother Ming, I'm really happy and touched to have you back. To be honest, I'm in a precarious situation here too. Although it seems I now own Lan County and have five to six thousand men under my command, I looted this city. If the imperial court spares its time to suppress the bandits, we'll have no choice but to hand over Lan County to them. We might even be labeled bandits, and our lives are truly precarious. Under such circumstances, you still came to me without hesitation. I really...ah...what virtue do I have..."

Xu Zhenying's eyes were slightly red.

Ming Xiaoshuang also felt warm in his heart, and felt that all the hardships he had experienced along the way were worth it, and it was also worth abandoning everything in Bianjing City.

He always felt that it was easy to add icing on the cake, but it was not easy to provide timely assistance.

From his observation, Xu Zhenying is surrounded by many capable people, and he was able to gain Xu Zhenying's special attention only because of his friendship with him while selling soap.

Now that he was betting, he would make a huge bet. Ming Xiaoshuang was going to bet his entire fortune and life on it, betting that Xu Zhenying would give him a future!

"Girl, I feel at ease and hopeful following you. It's more exciting than my own work."

"In that case, I won't be polite. I still say that I can't promise you any future, but I can guarantee that you will not suffer any loss if you follow me." Xu Zhenying gladly accepted Ming Xiaoshuang's return. Ming Xiaoshuang was a man with a flexible mind, who could advance and retreat, and could be ruthless at critical moments. He also cooperated well with her, making her even more powerful.

"Miss..." Ming Xiaoshuang remembered that everyone around her had just called Xu Zhenying the City Lord, so she changed her address to follow the local customs. "City Lord, when I entered the city just now, I saw a high platform at the city gate, and on the platform was a dog-head chopper. What's going on? Are they going to see blood?"

"You've come at the perfect time. There's a big show going on tomorrow." Xu Zhenying patted his shoulder with a smile. "But it's too late today. I'll have my fourth aunt clean up your room. Get a good night's rest first. Come back tomorrow morning and I'll tell you in detail about the situation in Lan County."

Ming Xiaoshuang clasped his fists and accepted the order.

Although he was exhausted to the extreme both physically and mentally, Ming Xiaoshuang was unwilling to rest. Although Xu Zhenying didn't say anything, as a subordinate he had to grasp the situation in Lan County as soon as possible, otherwise there might not be a place for him among the many capable people here.

So, when Xu Dechi led him to the room, he asked about the situation in the city in a roundabout way.

Xu Dechi also knew that Ming Xiaoshuang held an extraordinary position in Xu Zhenying's mind, so he told him basically all the information he knew.

It didn't take long for Ming Xiaoshuang to learn about the food crisis in Lan County. He also learned that Xu Zhenying had arranged many tasks including production, city defense, logistics, and sanitation within a single day. He also learned that the dog-head guillotine was used to intimidate the wealthy families in the city.

There will probably be blood tomorrow.

However, Ming Xiaoshuang had killed countless people during his exile. He had nightmares in the first few nights, but after a while he stopped thinking about anything and fell asleep.

Today, he is more sharp and aggressive than when he was in Bianjing City.

A knife that has seen blood will naturally be extraordinary.

Ming Xiaoshuang listened to what Xu Dechi said while observing the city of Lan County.

It was late at night and the long street was almost empty, except for the occasional footsteps of patrolling soldiers.

Farther away there was the sound of a woman's laughter.

If Xu Zhenying hadn't mentioned it, he wouldn't have been able to tell that this was a city that had just been captured.

Xu Zhenying's ability was fully demonstrated when he was able to settle 5,000 refugees in one day.

Ming Xiaoshuang once again felt that he had made the right bet.

The world is in chaos now, and all the princes are gathering in Bianjing City. There is no chance for him to achieve success. It would be better for him to follow Xu Zhenying!

He had a strong premonition that Xu Zhenying would definitely accomplish something that ordinary people could not achieve!

Tomorrow, it will be Ming Xiaoshuang's turn to make a comeback!

The next day, before dawn, as soon as the rooster crowed, the lights in the county government office were turned on.

When Jiang Yongkang, Xu Yinxi, Feng'er, Mo Jinchun and others arrived, Xu Zhenying had already finished a set of military boxing. She was sweating all over, but she didn't hide it from everyone and wiped her face with a handkerchief.

Xu Yinxi had proposed to select one or two hardworking maids from the refugees to take care of her, but unfortunately Xu Zhenying refused and only considered selecting a woman to manage the household affairs.

When everyone arrived, they found that Ming Xiaoshuang had already arrived.

He was the first to arrive and naturally stood at the front.

Seeing that no one looked surprised, Mo Jinchun realized that Ming Xiaoshuang had an extraordinary status in their circle. Could he be the person Miss Xu liked?