The next morning, Zhou's two sons set off with great confidence.
They carried the paper-cut figurines given to them by the Lin family's youngest daughter in their arms, as if they were carrying a talisman, and were no longer afraid of those bandits who killed and ate meat!
Laifu and Little Pink Butterfly floated beside them. Seeing how confident they were, they quietly blew a cold wind.
Zhou Jiren immediately recalled the time when he was taken away by the female ghost and shrank his ears.
Why is it so cold today?
This wasn't Zhou Kai's first time in the county town; he knew the place well and quickly knocked on the back door of the county government office.
"Who are you two? Knocking on the door so early in the morning! Don't you let people get any sleep?" The gatekeeper rubbed his eyes, looking displeased.
"Greetings, sir." Zhou Kai stuffed the pastries he had already bought into the gatekeeper's hands, his face bearing a humble and ingratiating smile: "Please help us announce that we have come from Ning'an Village and have important matters to report to the county magistrate."
"Oh..." The gatekeeper hadn't eaten breakfast yet, so he took a piece of pastry and stuffed it into his mouth. He kindly advised, "You, a villager, want to see the county magistrate? I suggest you go and report to the county assistant first. After all, big and small matters are not something a nobody like you can judge."
“No, how can bandits killing people be considered a small matter?” Zhou Jiren said anxiously.
"Ji Ren." Zhou Kai was much more composed than him, stopping his younger brother and signaling him not to speak recklessly.
Zhou Jiren: "..."
But what that officer said was really infuriating!
The two then followed the gatekeeper's directions to find a county magistrate.
"Bandits killed people? How many did they kill? Were they from your village? Do you know how many bandits there were? Where are they now?" The county magistrate, who was eating breakfast, asked slowly.
Zhou Jiren couldn't hold back his anger. Seeing his face, he was so angry that he wanted to jump up and down. His eyes darted left and right, wishing that if the county magistrate passed by and saw this county clerk being so incompetent, he would give him a good scolding!
Unfortunately, the county magistrate never showed up.
“Reporting to the County Magistrate,” Zhou Kai patiently answered the questions one by one, “We don’t know exactly how many people those bandits killed. Four people from our neighboring village were killed by them on the mountain. They not only killed people, but also ate human flesh! It was extremely cruel and terrifying. My father is the village head, and he thought we must report this to you, so that we can be prepared in case something happens, and that the county can make more preparations.”
"Alright, alright, I understand. You can all go back now." The county magistrate picked up the porridge, slurped down a large mouthful, and his face was full of perfunctory attitude.
"But sir! Those bandits are truly ruthless. If you don't report to the magistrate immediately and send men to suppress them, I'm afraid more people will die at their hands." Zhou Jiren finally couldn't hold back any longer.
The county magistrate gave him a cold look: "Why do you talk so much? Didn't I already tell you that I heard everything? Of course I will tell the magistrate! As for sending troops to suppress the bandits, do you think I am a celestial master descended to earth, able to conjure soldiers from beans and summon them to the mountains to suppress bandits with a wave of my hand?"
"Suppressing bandits in the mountains sounds easy, but where will we get the manpower? Where will we get the money and supplies? Besides, you've only mentioned it, and we're expected to rush to make arrangements?" The county magistrate said with a sneer, "If you're willing to provide manpower and money, then suppressing bandits in the mountains will be easy! If not, then stop pointing fingers."
"Then...then the county town won't take care of it? What if more people die?" Zhou Jiren was speechless, not knowing what to say, but he was anxious.
"Of course we should intervene, but you have no say in this. Everyone's life is in their own hands. If you don't want to die, just don't go up the mountain."
"You..."
The county magistrate said, "Alright, you can go back now. I will report to Lord Shangguan later."
"Alright, that's enough. Let's go back first. There's still a lot of work to be done at home." Zhou Kai was afraid that his younger brother would really offend the county magistrate, so he quickly pulled him aside.
Although the county magistrate was just a low-ranking, insignificant official, he was still an official, and if he wanted to cause them trouble, it would be easy for him.
“But brother, it’s obvious they don’t want to care about us! They’re so demanding in taxes and asking for so much money, but now they don’t care about our lives?” Zhou Jiren gritted his teeth in hatred.
"Shut up!" Zhou Kai quickly covered his mouth. "Do you want to die? How dare you say such things? I think you really want to kill my whole family. Go back now! I knew I shouldn't have brought you out. I should have come by myself!"
Zhou Jiren was dragged home by his older brother.
After returning home, Zhou Jiren angrily recounted the whole story, especially the arrogant manner of the county magistrate.
"They clearly mean they don't want to take care of us!" Zhou Jiren's chest heaved. Even though his older brother had been giving him a lecture the whole way, he was still furious.
"Sigh..." The old village head sighed, "The world is in chaos these days, and I'm afraid there aren't many soldiers in the county town. How can they possibly manage a poor, remote place like ours?"
"What should we do then?" Zhou Jiren immediately became anxious. His wife had been pregnant for two months, and if they encountered bandits, she might not even survive.
...
Meanwhile, at the Lin family home, Lin Wanyue was munching on sweet corn, while Laifu and Xiaofendie, who had escorted the Zhou family members to the county town, were also talking about the matter.
"That guy is no good! Luckily he didn't climb to a position, otherwise he would have been a corrupt official too," Little Pink Butterfly said indignantly, looking somewhat similar to Zhou Jiren.
Lai Fu chuckled and said, "There's no need to be so angry. I spat on him a few times, so he'll definitely lose money today, if not blood!"
Anyway, since this guy ran into Laifu, he can forget about having any good luck.
"If we can't rely on officials, then we can only rely on ourselves." Lin Wanyue nibbled on two ears of corn with her small teeth and looked at Laifu.
"Ah..." Laifu jumped back a step, "You're not planning to send me up the mountain to find bandits again, are you?"
It's not impossible!
However, you need to add sugar.
Lai Fu was secretly thinking about how to bargain.
His favorite food now is Yi Kou Lian toffee. He has to buy at least one jar of candy every time he goes there, otherwise he won't go.
"No need for that. It would be too much trouble for you to go. But you just need to keep an eye on our village and make sure the bandits don't get in."
Ning'an Village isn't very big. When Laifu goes out to play with Lin Wanyue, they usually have to circle the village several times, which is very easy for him.
"Well, we still need to add sugar," Laifu said shamelessly.
No sugar, no work!
"You're so stingy." Little Pink Butterfly rolled her eyes. "Wanwan, you don't need to beg him. I'll keep an eye on things for you from now on. If they dare to come, I'll warn you first."
"No, I didn't say I wasn't going..." Laifu said pitifully, afraid that he would lose all his candy in the future.
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