The bald man slowly raised his hand and clutched his head in disbelief.
He had originally thought that the local militia could just wipe out the bandits, since the chieftain was there anyway.
The chieftain's background is obviously extraordinary; he might even be a son of a powerful official who has fallen to this state. We can easily deal with him by dealing with him a bit.
Who would have thought that the eldest brother was Huo Zhaoqing, who had been wanted for months? The wanted Huo Zhaoqing was the eldest brother!
Although it is unknown what the relationship is between the Huo family whose property was confiscated and Huo Zhaoqing, it is clear that not only is the eldest brother unable to help deal with the situation, but he may also be using the mountain stronghold as a way out.
Is this some kind of joke?!
Now that's bad. Even if the bandit stronghold isn't wiped out, Huo Zhaoqing might still implicate them.
As long as a bandit doesn't kill anyone, he'll only be locked up for ten days or half a month. But if he harbors a traitor and avoids reporting it, it's not as simple as just being imprisoned.
Baldy and Zhixing exchanged a glance, both feeling a bit uneasy.
Since ancient times, the common people have never fought against the officials... Of course, even if they wanted to, they couldn't win.
The bald man covered his face and muttered under his breath, "What should I do? I don't want to die."
Dazhuang didn't understand and bravely asked, "If you don't tell us, and we don't tell us, how many people know that your older brother is a wanted criminal?"
The bald man shook his head, his tone filled with despair:
"You don't understand. Some of the brothers who were driven down the mountain couldn't beat their boss, so they ran off to other mountains to become bandits. If we wipe them out, they'll see the wanted poster and be questioned..."
Those people have all seen Suiye and Boss Ye with their own eyes. If they are resentful, they should report them to higher authorities...
The bald man glanced at Ye Wenxue, wanting to ask her what she thought.
Ye Wenxue remained expressionless, beginning to regret saving the person.
It's just a dozen or so taels of silver, just building a house, just gathering some herbs, what's the big deal?!
Neither of them should be saved.
Look, the fire is almost on him.
If the official from the imperial court is an honest one, that's fine. He can investigate the facts and clear her of suspicion. Some officials might detain her for a few days before releasing her, while others might continue to detain her until someone is caught.
If the official sent by the imperial court were an enemy of Huo Zhaoqing, they might imprison her entire family and publicly declare her an accomplice to a traitor, thus killing her outright.
Then her poor children will be motherless again.
Oh, how pitiful.
"Mother?" Dazhuang waved his hand in front of Ye Wenxue's eyes, feeling that his mother was thinking about something dangerous.
Ye Wenxue snapped out of her reverie and looked at the only person who had no direct connection to Huo Zhaoqing:
"Xu Lin, you've teamed up with me and Baldy to do business, so you're unlikely to escape easily. Think of a way quickly."
Xu Lin, who was about to distance himself from the matter, said: "...I'm still blind."
The implication is that no one would make things difficult for a blind man, two old people, and a little girl.
Ye Wenxue and Dazhuang: "..."
Baldy and Zhixing: "..."
All four faces showed worry at the same time.
The bald man couldn't understand it: "My older brother never told me he was Huo Zhaoqing."
He should have told Zhixing earlier. As soon as Zhixing saw the wanted notice, he immediately informed them.
Now, in this freezing weather, we can't walk or escape, we can only sit and wait to be caught.
Ye Wenxue quickly calmed down: "Don't worry, the people sent by the court to Longxing Prefecture have other tasks. Eliminating public grievances and settling the refugees is the top priority. Suppressing the bandits will have to wait."
Recalling what Zhixing had said and what the young general had done in the prefectural city, everyone had to admit that Ye Wenxue's words made sense.
The government was dealing with merchants and officials who were driving up grain and coal prices, and registering displaced people to settle in the city and provide them with free food and drink. Anyone with eyes could see that they were dealing with public grievances that had been boiling for more than half a year.
Xu Lin suddenly tapped the table, drawing everyone's attention: "I think we need to send people to Tanzhou City and the surrounding prefectures to investigate the situation."
If the rebel army from Qiongzhou were to advance into Tanzhou, and officials from the neighboring imperial court were to arrive, the most pressing matter would not be dealing with public grievances and settling the people.
Instead, it was to resist the rebels' continued northward invasion and ensure that the territory would not be occupied and swallowed up again.
After all... compared to the territory of a country, the ever-growing population obviously comes second.
Otherwise, the imperial court wouldn't have made such a fuss for more than half a year without sending any reliable ministers to provide disaster relief and rescue the people.
Baldy, Zhixing, and Dazhuang were all confused and wished they could grab Xu Lin by the collar and make him explain.
Ye Wenxue quickly slammed her hand on the table, deterring the bald man who was about to grab her collar:
"Don't worry about so much. Send someone to investigate under the guise of a merchant. But... I'm afraid your stronghold will have to fall apart."
If the situation truly stabilizes, the bandit stronghold won't last long.
The bald man sighed: "Many people don't have any skills to make money, they only know how to farm... But these days, seeds cost money, farm tools and cattle cost money, and you also have to pay an additional agricultural tax."
Every few months, they had to perform corvée labor again. Families without money could only send their own people to perform this service, leaving behind the elderly, children, and wives at home.
The fields and farmland need careful tending; when natural disasters strike and the harvest fails, it can be fatal…
He glanced at Ye Wenxue and said very sincerely:
"Brother Ye, perhaps you're only trying to get the village's labor force and Old Master Xu's charcoal-making skills by getting us to sell charcoal together."
But for both of us, it was a lifesaver; otherwise, with this winter so cold, I don't know how the elderly and children in the mountain village would have survived.”
Xu Lin remained silent, then followed the bald man and said, "This guy rarely speaks human language."
Baldy usually speaks without thinking and is very efficient at doing things but never considers the consequences. However, what he said today really resonated with him.
If it weren't for Ye Wenxue, he might not even have been able to save his father's life, let alone get treatment for his eyes or live in a warm house.
Ye Wenxue raised an eyebrow: "How did we get to this point? Weren't we discussing our backup plan? Baldy, what are your plans?"
The bald man said with a dejected look, "I'll ask my brothers first. Those who are willing to go back to their hometown to continue farming will each be given one tael of silver and a bag of rice. I'll send them down the mountain in the spring."
"Those who are willing to follow me... come with me to town to open a shop and start a business. I've already thought it all out. How about escorting goods? The brothers are strong and tough in fights; escorting goods won't be a problem."
Ye Wenxue rolled her eyes: "I'm asking if you plan to send someone to gather information, who to send, and when to set off."
The person's answer was completely irrelevant; it's unclear whether they even grasped the main point of her statement.
The bald man wiped his face and was about to lead his men there when Zhixing suddenly spoke up: "Boss Nian, let Zhiwu and me lead the men."
"You? And Zhiwu? This is no joke. You need to think carefully. You may very well encounter the Qiongzhou rebels and face numerous dangers."
Zhixing nodded. He learned from Brother Dazhuang that Elder Nian was from Qiongzhou and might have had a grudge against the rebels, which was probably not a pleasant one.
If he were to encounter the rebels in Qiongzhou, it would likely be even more dangerous.
It would be better to let him and Zhiwu go. They're used to all sorts of things and have encountered all kinds of challenges, so they're not afraid.
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