Seeing this, Feng Xiao and his companion didn't dare to be presumptuous and quickly stepped forward to help Nie Yun up: "Brother Nie Yun, don't say that. Since you have killed more enemies than us, we should be the ones who lost. We believe that your character is honest."
Nie Yun stubbornly shook his head: "A loss is a loss, I won't cheat."
Seeing that Nie Yun was about to bow to them again, Feng Xiao and the other man could only look at Lü Tu with pleading expressions: "My lord, what do you think of this..."
Lu Tu laughed loudly: "Don't try to refuse. Nie Yun is younger than you all, so why don't you just call him your brother?"
Hearing this, the Feng brothers were relieved. It wasn't that they were afraid to answer "brother," but rather that they were wary of Nie Yun being Lu Tu's man. If they rashly defeated Nie Yun and caused Lu Tu to lose face, it would go against their original intention.
"In that case, Brother Nie, let's address each other as brothers from now on!"
"Okay, Brother Feng, Second Brother Feng."
The three held each other's hands, and smiles appeared on their faces.
Xiao Zhong nodded secretly and whispered, "My lord, that's about enough."
Lu Tu said loudly, "Since that's the case, then starting tomorrow, the Feng brothers will go with Brother Xiang to Pangjia Village to take over the village. They will bring iron rams to manage the Kunlun slaves for you and regularly transport the minerals from Pangjia Village back!"
Xiang Ze and the Feng brothers stepped forward from the crowd, and Tie Hang was also full of excitement: "Yes, sir!"
Xiang Ze's abilities are beyond question, as Lü Tu has already experienced firsthand and is well aware of them. The Feng brothers have also demonstrated their strength through this trial, so having them as Xiang Ze's deputies should be a good fit.
After all, with only 50 men, they were able to kill more than 100 bandits. Even if it were the border troops of Huai Shuo, they should be able to do the same.
Xiao Zhong then reminded him, "Sir, they also brought back a large amount of gold and silver. I just roughly counted it, and it totals 1,800 taels of silver."
Lu Tu nodded: "This time you seized a total of 1,800 taels of silver. The village will keep 1,000 taels, and the remaining 800 taels can be divided among the brothers who went into battle today!"
Upon hearing this, the soldiers who had bravely gone out to kill bandits that day became excited, their eyes shining with excitement, knowing that it was a full 800 taels of silver.
Even if you include all the soldiers who went to war on both sides, each person could get 8 taels of silver, which was enough for a family of three to cover their daily expenses for a year.
Even though everyone's wives, children, and elderly parents live in the village and their daily expenses are relatively low, money is always a hard currency that can be used to hedge against future risks, which is undoubtedly a very reassuring thing.
The other soldiers who didn't get a chance to fight also looked on with envy, but they knew that since Lü Tu had rewarded these people today, he would reward them in the future as well, since everyone had seen Lü Tu's character.
"Thank you for the reward, sir!"
Lu Tu waved his hand, signaling most of the people to disperse. He then handed 800 taels of silver to Feng Lie, instructing him to distribute it to the other soldiers and also to see how Feng Lie would handle the situation.
He then led Xiang Ze to an open space in the training ground and threw him the Mo Dao he had just brought.
Upon seeing this, Xiang Ze's pupils contracted. As he caught the long sword, his body visibly sank down. Fortunately, Xiang Ze had already assumed a horse stance and shifted his center of gravity downwards, otherwise he would have really strained his back.
By the light of the torch, Xiang Ze examined the long-handled sword for a moment, then his eyes gleamed with a sharp light: "My lord, what is this weapon called? It's so heavy; using it for slashing will make things twice as effective with half the effort!"
"The Mo Dao (陌刀) is one I had specially made by a blacksmith to deal with cavalry. Do you think you can handle it?"
Hearing Lu Tu's words stirred up Xiang Ze's heroic spirit, and he said loudly, "Allow this humble general to give it a try first!"
"good!"
As he spoke, Xiang Ze began to slowly wield his Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword). Although he had just grasped the Mo Dao, his movements were quite professional and precise. Even someone like Lü Tu, who had undergone systematic training, could tell that the techniques Xiang Ze used were definitely not amateurish.
He had long recognized Xiang Ze's extraordinary family background, and today only strengthened his resolve.
Xiang Ze held the Mo Dao in his hand, spun around, and performed a triple slash on the spot. The last strike was powerful and heavy, chopping down a tree and snapping the trunk, which was as thick as a bowl, in half on the spot.
"Good!" Lu Tu and Xiao Zhong shouted in unison.
Xiang Ze sheathed his Mo Dao, his eyes filled with undisguised joy: "My lord, this Mo Dao is truly a divine weapon, it's so useful!"
Lu Tu knew, of course, that the Mo Dao was useful, and asked Xiang Ze, "If I gave you 20 Mo Daos, are you confident you could defend Pangjia Village?"
After thinking for a moment, Xiang Ze said in a deep voice, "With the 200 soldiers you've given me, plus the Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword), I'm confident I can handle 800 enemies!"
Lu Tu nodded: "Then I'll prepare some more explosives for you."
Xiang Ze had previously learned how to use explosives from Nie Yun and others, so he naturally understood how powerful explosives could be.
Upon hearing that Lü Tu was even willing to provide him with explosives, he was overjoyed and knelt down on one knee, clasping his hands in a fist salute: "This humble general can handle 3,000 enemies!"
"Okay! Go back and rest. I'll get your things ready before you set off tomorrow!"
"Thank you, sir!"
As for explosives, Lü Tu certainly made a lot. After all, the proportions and production of this stuff were child's play for Lü Tu, and he could make as much as he wanted.
But he couldn't give this thing to Xiang Ze at night, because if a spark were to fall, half the village could be razed to the ground.
After Xiang Ze left excitedly, Lü Tu looked at Xiao Zhong and asked, "Mr. Xiao, is there anything you would like to say?"
"The arrangements made by the master are so detailed that I can't think of them all right now. Oh, by the way, how long should Xiang Ze and his men carry their provisions this time?"
Lu Tu said in a deep voice, "At most 15 days. If they don't send someone back to collect the grain within 15 days, then there must be a problem."
"Yes, sir, I'll arrange it right away."
When Lü Tu returned home, he stood in the four separate rooms and was somewhat troubled, especially since all four rooms were lit up.
He went to Nangong Huiyu's room first, but as soon as he opened the door, Nangong Huiyu jumped up from the bed in surprise: "Husband, what brings you here?"
"I'll keep you company. Are you hungry?"
Lu Tu pulled her into his arms, and Nangong Huiyu smiled sweetly: "Hehe, I'm not hungry. I just ate a steamed bun."
Lu Tu looked down at Nangong Huiyu, who had originally seemed like a goddess, and who now found even eating a steamed bun a wonderful thing since following him.
Indeed, love always brings a sense of indebtedness. He tenderly kissed Nangong Huiyu's forehead and said, "I'll sleep with you tonight."
"Um!"
The two fell asleep in each other's arms, but the baby in Nangong Huiyu's belly was not as well-behaved as the little guy Lü Xing. It kept kicking Nangong Huiyu's belly all night, which really prevented the two of them from sleeping well.
The next morning, Lü Tu first had a cartload of explosives transported to the drill ground and handed over to Xiang Ze.
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