Having lived in a peaceful era, Cheng Ruyi had never encountered such a thing before, so the only experience she could refer to was the unreliable period dramas and some equally unreliable ancient romance novels she had watched in the past.
After racking my brains, I could barely come up with a few feasible solutions.
First, defensive structures and traps need to be built, but bricks and stones are not necessarily needed. For example, in a situation like now where it snows every day and there is no sunshine all day, snow is actually the most natural, convenient, and abundant material.
The villagers could use the surrounding snow to build high walls, compact them, and then water them. While not as sturdy as bricks and stones, these walls would at least offer some defensive protection. And if the snow walls were high and thick enough, bandits might actually be unable to breach them.
As for traps, they are even simpler; they are nothing more than setting animal snares or digging pits, and many villagers know how to make these things themselves.
Never underestimate a trap; if used well, it can even take down an enemy without causing them any harm.
Secondly, more patrols can be added, and watchtowers can be built in important locations. As the saying goes, the higher you stand, the farther you can see. Sometimes, places that ground patrols might overlook can be clearly seen from the watchtowers.
If anything unusual is discovered, the gong and drum can be sounded immediately. This will not only alert the patrol team in time, but also give people staying at home enough time to prepare and avoid being caught off guard.
If possible, every household should build a relatively hidden cellar to store important items and essential daily necessities, so that they can hide in the cellar to save themselves in case of emergency.
In fact, villages like Lishan Village, which are close to the county seat, generally have relatively good living conditions, so each household has a considerable population. If you add up the seven or eight nearby villages, there are at least several hundred able-bodied men available. If everyone were willing to join the patrol team, it would definitely be enough to fight against the mountain bandits.
Ruyi knew that it would be very difficult. Everyone has their own selfish desires and is afraid of pain and death. Not to mention that many ordinary people have never actually fought with others. When faced with that group of desperate criminals, they would naturally feel scared and want to back down.
Unfortunately, there is still too little information about the bandits. We don't even know how many of them there are or what weapons they have. That's all we can do.
Cheng Ruyi wrote down all the methods she could think of and gave them to Guo Qinglan, hoping that she could take a look at them for Luo Xian. Although she didn't know if her methods would work, she didn't like to do nothing when danger was imminent. It was always better to be prepared than to surrender.
Unfortunately, Luo Xian didn't do anything after receiving the letter. Ruyi waited for a few days, but still felt that it was more reliable to contact the Zhou family directly.
The Zhou family were major landowners in Huaishan County, especially near the county seat. Many villages and hills actually belonged to their family, not to mention their dozen or so estates. They were truly the undisputed local tyrants.
So, the Zhou family might actually be more nervous and concerned than the county government, since these fields and villagers belong to their family's property. If something really happens, it will definitely have the biggest impact on their family.
Therefore, Cheng Ruyi specifically called Guo Qinglan and Zhou Yin out together to discuss countermeasures.
Although Zhou Yin had heard that there were bandits causing trouble in the neighboring Nanyang County, he thought it was just a minor disturbance. After all, bandits would occasionally come down the mountain to rob people. However, after hearing Guo Qinglan's news and Cheng Ruyi's analysis, he realized that the situation was more serious than he had imagined.
“Notifying the villagers to build defensive facilities and make traps is not difficult, but forming a patrol team is probably more troublesome. First of all, the weather is cold now and it snows almost every day. Staying outside for a while at this time can freeze people. In addition, many villagers do not have enough warm clothes and will definitely get sick in a few days.”
After Zhou Yin finished speaking with a deep frown, he looked up at Cheng Ruyi and said, "The most important thing is that Nanyang County is too far away from them. What does it have to do with them if bandits rob a neighboring county? They might even think you're making a mountain out of a molehill and wasting money and resources!"
Ruyi nodded to show that she understood. "So at first I hoped that the county government would take charge. The government's statement would be more convincing. The villagers may not believe it or be unwilling, but their natural fear of the government will make them habitually obey and do as they are told... Unfortunately, Magistrate Luo seems to have his concerns, which is why I came to you again."
Tsk tsk tsk~~~ So he was the second choice, humph!
Although he was somewhat resentful, Zhou Yin could understand, and now was not the time to dwell on such things. "I can't control the villagers in other villages, but if it's just the villages within the Zhou family's territory, we can give it a try."
"That's wonderful! With the influence of your Zhou family, I'm sure it will be effective!" Seeing Zhou Yantang nod in agreement, Cheng Ruyi finally felt a little relieved.
Overjoyed, she casually patted Zhou Yin on the shoulder and said generously, "Don't worry! Our Cheng family will also contribute money and effort!"
"Anyone who joins the patrol team can come and get a free bowl of spicy hot pot every day, and it definitely has meat in it! If anyone doesn't have warm clothes at home, they can register at our house and we'll lend them some for free. If anyone successfully catches a bandit, we'll give them a cotton-padded coat! What do you think? Wouldn't that attract more people to join?"
After listening, Zhou Yin and Guo Qinglan couldn't help but exchange a glance, feeling both puzzled and admiring. Was it really necessary to go to such lengths for those unrelated villagers?
The Zhou family is willing to contribute money and effort, at least to protect their own assets, but what is Cheng Ruyi's intention?
Guo Qinglan knew that Cheng Ruyi was kind-hearted and seemed to have great pity for the poor people at the bottom of society. Whether it was rescuing children during the Lantern Festival or helping disaster-stricken refugees, she did everything herself without hesitation. However, there should be limits to kindness.
So she thought for a moment before speaking tactfully: "Sister Cheng, I know you have a kind heart, but isn't this going a bit too far...?"
“It’s alright, a serving of spicy hot pot only costs a dozen or so coins!” Ruyi knew what Guo Qinglan was about to say, so she interrupted her and continued to explain: “The cotton-padded clothes are not given away casually. If anyone deliberately dirties or damages them during the rental period, they will have to pay for them. Besides, how many of these ordinary people can actually catch the bandits? These things may sound like a big expense, but in reality, the cost is not much. I’m not stupid. I just hope that doing this will motivate the villagers more.”
"Wouldn't it be even better if many villagers caught the bandits? Not only would it protect our homes, but it would also solve the government's problems. Who knows, these bandits might even be wanted criminals, and we could get some bounty!"
Seeing Cheng Ruyi say this, Guo Qinglan didn't know what to say, but she was also slightly affected. Whether it was the Zhou family or the Cheng family, they were just ordinary families. If a master appeared among the bandits, no matter how many people there were, it wouldn't be of any use!
As a member of the Changfeng Escort Agency, wasn't her martial arts training from childhood all for the purpose of punishing evil and promoting good? Now was the time for her to lend a helping hand! So after thinking it over for a while, she decided to go to the county government office to find Luo Xian and persuade him to write a letter to the escort agency, saying that bandits were causing trouble and his life was threatened. She believed that her father would definitely send someone over in this way!
After they finished discussing their plans, they went their separate ways to attend to their own matters.
In the days that followed, all the villages within the Zhou family's sphere of influence, including Lishan Village, built a snow-white barrier around the village. Although it was only three or four feet high at the moment, it was visibly growing taller and thicker every day.
Some villagers who didn't have walls built simple fences using snow and water during this time. However, people weren't very enthusiastic. Some of their fences couldn't even be called fences; they were just piles of snow that were short and not sturdy. Moreover, even when the Zhou family's patrolmen saw them and warned them, they still did it.
All of this was within Zhou Yin's expectations, and he would naturally deal with it after this matter was over.
The situation in Lishan Village, however, stands in stark contrast to the other villages.
In fact, Lishan Village is considered one of the smaller villages in the area, with only about sixty households and a population of only seven or eight hundred, less than a third the size of Zhoujia Village.
However, after experiencing this year's drought, they all greatly admired Cheng Ruyi and kept a close eye on the Cheng family's activities, including visiting the shops on the official road and the villas on Lishan Mountain.
After the Zhou family explained the situation, they asked the village chief to ask Cheng Ruyi for her opinion. After receiving her feedback, they devoted themselves to the construction project without hesitation.
Because the village was small, and almost everyone in the village worked together, the snow wall was built in just a few days. After it was completed, everyone went to help the Cheng family and also fenced off the shops along the main road. The village became one of the fastest to build a wall among all the villages managed by the Zhou family.
It even spurred the enthusiasm of several nearby villages. These villages had suffered reduced harvests at the beginning of the year because they hadn't heeded the advice of the village chief of Lishan Village. So, they learned their lesson this time and, seeing how proactive the people of Lishan Village were, they started to take it seriously as well.
Just as everyone's defense construction was in full swing, a major event occurred.
In late November, several villages near Tianlou Town were suddenly attacked by bandits. The bandits were vicious and ruthless, not only robbing and killing, but also setting fire to the villages. If it hadn't been for a heavy snowfall that extinguished the fires, the consequences would have been unimaginable. Even so, almost no one survived in those villages.
The news shocked the entire Huaishan County.
Huaishan County has a total of seven towns, and Tianlou Town is located at the southernmost point, bordering Nanyang County.
Previously, when incidents occurred in neighboring counties, everyone was indifferent and only discussed them casually over tea. However, Tianlou Town is a large town in Huaishan County. After Tianlou Town comes Baisha Town, and the county seat is not far to the north of Baisha Town!
However, this incident, like a signal, continued to escalate.
While the people of the county town were engrossed in their discussions, bandits began raiding villages in other parts of Huaishan County. Although not as brutal as those in Tianlou Town, these raids still resulted in many casualties and affected the entire county, making them virtually impossible to prevent.
Only one village suffered the fewest casualties and losses because it had built snow walls and patrols would immediately sound a gong to warn of bandits when they spotted them.
A few days later, the county government finally began sending people to various villages and towns to post notices, reminding everyone that there had been banditry recently, which had caused serious damage, and advising villagers to take precautions and pay attention to safety in accordance with the methods mentioned in the notice.
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