The city lord took the opportunity to eat and inquired: "The officials are on guard day and night, can they be warned?"
Zheng Anping said: "Before the millet returns to the warehouse, there will be thieves, so we have to take precautions." Without waiting for the city lord to ask again, he directly asked the city lord: "During the harvest in previous years, were there any thieves? How to prevent them?"
The city lord said: "Thieves have always been there every year, how can we stop them? It's just money and food. We haven't seen any thieves this year. It's a good thing that we can rely on the power of the doctor!"
Zheng Anping said: "Have you been asking for bribes for three years?"
The city lord said: "They are often asked for, and there are countless of them every year."
Zheng Anping said: "Two to two points each ask for one ride, is that okay?"
The city lord said: "We have asked for a number of requests, but we don't know when." Then he asked: "Have three pigs asked the doctor as well?"
Zheng Anping answered truthfully: "Two to two cents each will get one ride, which will equal a hundred stones per year."
The city lord said: "If you dare to ask the doctor for three pigs, you are extremely foolish. However, you only ask for a hundred stones at the age of one, and you know it yourself."
Zheng Anping asked: "How much did the pigs ask for three times in the past years?"
The city lord said: "I haven't counted the number, but it is far more than a hundred stones. Or a hundred and fifty stones...?"
Zheng Anping said: "The city lord once said that the city may have been attacked by hundreds of thieves. I would like to hear the details!"
The city lord recalled: "This is the past year! When I was a young man, I was very energetic, and I was on par with the thieves. On the night of Shuo, hundreds of thieves surrounded the city. There were many dark shadows, shouts and shouts. The huge tree crashed into the door. The young and old were all afraid, so they sent the common people out of the city to seek peace. The common people were humiliated, and they were able to persuade the thieves to turn around. The next day, three hogs were used as the center to make peace with the thieves. After that, the food of the city was They are all more than three pigs." He said with a sigh of relief.
Zheng Anping felt a little confident after hearing the city lord's explanation. In fact, these thieves did not actually attack the city, but mainly used to scare them. To be on the safe side, Zheng Anping asked again: "Can we invade again in the future?"
The city lord said: "One invasion is enough! If we succeed again, our lives will be miserable!" In other words, from the time when the city lord just took over and was still young, until now, there has never been a group of thieves attacking the city. Zheng Anping has some courage!
Zou San only asked for a hundred stones a year. On a regular basis, only five or six people survived. Even if he only received half the amount, there would only be more than ten people. They were short of food and clothing, so it was hard to say how effective they were in fighting. On his side are four soldiers who have been trained, have perfect armor, and are well fed and drunk. They should have no problem facing this group of thieves.
However, Zheng Anping did not want to omit the hundred shi of grain. After all, if you make someone hungry, you have to work hard; if you give them something to eat, they will be soft-mouthed and soft-handed, or it may not be resistance but help.
After the meal, the four of them discussed it, and they generally agreed on this. It's just that a house has been built on the other side of the abandoned city. If it is known to thieves, it will become a weak point and can be manipulated by others. Everyone still thinks it's better to move there as soon as possible. After all, the four of them live in a different city. If they really fight, they can be more free than among a group of old and weak people. The ruins and ruins in the abandoned city make it difficult for large groups to fight, but individual soldiers can become a good barrier to hide themselves and destroy the enemy. Everyone decided to move things to the abandoned city tomorrow without waiting for Cao Bao to come back.
They borrowed a car from the city lord and transported five carts of grain to the abandoned city the next day - of course they didn't have that much food left, but due to the abundance of grain transported from Huayang, most of it was left inside and outside the city. , the four of them also carried away a small half. ——In this way, everyone can probably stop transporting food from home this year. The sixth cart contained everyone's belongings, including four livestock; they also asked the city lord for a set of tableware. A large basket of fish and meat sent by Guan Zhongming was also shipped.
Due to the critical situation, the four of them decided not to separate for the time being. They did not live in any of the four official residences, but in the inn. They did not have to disturb each other and could cope with each other if necessary.
The transported grain was unloaded in the warehouse, and each person cleaned out a post house and took the straw that was placed in Zheng Anping's house yesterday back to his own house.
After the last truck was delivered, it was already afternoon. Zheng Anping said to the city lord: "The city lord knows where we live. If something happens in the city, we will hear the bells and drums and move. If there is a policeman in our city, raise a fire as a signal. I hope the city lord will help!" The city lord agreed. Zheng Anping felt that the city lord seemed to have relieved a huge burden...
After the city lord left, the four people discussed that there would be twelve hours a day, and each person would be on duty for one hour. They took a closer look and found a commanding height in the city, where they could observe the surrounding movements through the broken city wall. It was decided to set up a sentry post here.
Wuwang was very happy because the cattle and sheep could eat grass without even leaving the house. The dog is a little more troublesome, so I usually feed it some millet porridge. If you want to eat meat, I'm afraid you have to wait until it grows up and can go hunting.
Xiao Si went out to patrol, and the remaining people gathered firewood and started cooking porridge. The puppies and chickens smelled the fragrance and gathered around one after another; Wuwang and Wuer also came over. At this moment, everyone had the idea of a family.
After dinner, Zheng Anping went out to eat for Xiao Si.
This highland should be the former site of a drum tower. It was built with earth on a high platform. It is about two feet high. There are faint traces of steps on one side, but they are no longer usable. Because the soil for the fortress was not compacted, it was overgrown with weeds. The top area is not large, but it is enough for one person to lie down on his back. It's just rather steep and the steps are damaged, so be careful going up and down.
The so-called fully armed means wearing at least three layers of leather armor, carrying a crossbow and a bag of arrows (one hundred) on the waist, and holding a halberd in the hand. The complete set of equipment is about thirty kilograms. It was very dangerous to climb such a building while fully armed, so everyone decided to dress lightly when standing sentry, wearing only a layer of armor, no halberds, only crossbows, and only ten arrows.
Zheng Anping didn't feel comfortable climbing this earth platform with his halberd. He regretted a little. With so much effort, he didn't think of letting them repair this high platform!
When you climb up, you can have a panoramic view of the surrounding scenery. The sun has sunk behind the western mountains, and there are still patches of sunset in the western sky. There are several small settlements at the foot of the distant mountains. In the southwest, two rivers, with different widths, flow in parallel to the north from roughly the same direction, then branch off to the edge of the city and go east around the south and north of the city respectively; the river in the south of the city approaches the foot of the Great Wall after traveling for more than ten miles. , suddenly turns north, joins the river in the north of the city, and then flows into the chasm. The river in the north of the city flows directly outside the north city, forming a natural moat in the north of the city. There are few people on the other side of the river, and it is a wilderness. If there are more people in Guanyi, there will be no obstacles to development on the other side. The east side of the city is surrounded by two rivers. The grassland in the middle of the river has been basically reduced to ashes and has been reclaimed into acres of land - although only 400 acres have been cultivated, which is a very inconspicuous piece of land. Zheng Anping thought, for example, it would be helpful to change the seeds in each plot of land, which would be beneficial to maintaining soil fertility and increasing harvest.
Due to river barriers in the west and north of the city, it is very difficult to sneak in without any movement. To the east of the city is the Great Wall, surrounded by rivers on all sides. It was determined that the main warning direction was to the south, which was the only exposed aspect of the abandoned city and could lead directly to Huayang. Next is the north, mainly because there is a wilderness on the other side of the river. If someone sneaks close, it is not easy to detect; if someone sneaks close to the city and enters the water, he will touch the city edge.
There is also a wilderness between the two rivers in the south of the city, but because there are people walking there from time to time, the grass is lower than in the north, and there are more obvious trails. Looking far into the distance, one can vaguely see Nanguan. The city wall there has not yet been repaired, especially the city gate. It's a massive undertaking that could take up to a year, and is a far cry from building a temporary parapet. Opposite Nanguan is Mayi, the hometown of Brother Ma San. From the city, you can only vaguely see the edge of the fields - that is also the boundary of Huayang City.
If what the city lord said is reliable, the Han soldiers in Huayang are not allowed to leave the boundary of Huayang, just like the Wei soldiers at the Great Wall are not allowed to leave the Great Wall. So what happened to the Han soldiers who appeared yesterday? Is it an accident or the beginning of a series of troubles?
As soon as Cao Bao discovered the Han soldiers, he immediately stepped up his guard and immediately got up to go to Daliang. Did he know something?
It is completely impossible for a hundred households in Guanyi to support a fiefdom of fifty miles. If only the people in Guanyi reproduce naturally, it would take more than a hundred years under the best circumstances. Only immigration can quickly make Guanyi prosperous. But where can we find so many immigrants? …
In the afterglow of the setting sun, Zheng Anping was observing the activities around him and thinking wildly. There is really nothing around. People in Guanyi basically cannot go beyond three miles of the city and cannot reach the river at all. Only escaped hares occasionally passed through the grassland. In the sky, crows chirped, announcing the end of the day. When the sky was filled with stars, Brother Su came to take over. The two simply said "nothing".
When the rooster crows for the first time, Zheng Anping comes out to take over again. Xiaosi also simply said "nothing" and walked down the stage along the steps.
It was pitch black all around, and I could only barely see the surrounding grasslands through the starlight. Zheng Anping simply sat down, calmed down, and listened carefully to what was going on around him. Some thoughts kept popping up in his mind, and it wasn't up to him to decide. Since he couldn't get rid of it, Zheng Anping simply stopped controlling it and followed his thoughts. His ears seemed to be more alert and he could hear subtler sounds. He just sat there, ushering in the darkness before dawn. Brother Su is here to take over...
After dawn, everyone had eaten, and it was time for Zheng Anping to go to work again. Suddenly Xiao Si appeared and said, "Someone is coming from the east." Everyone hurried out and found that it was Cao Bao. Now the five of them had gathered together and returned to the inn together. Zheng Anping was going to stand guard, and Cao Bao said: "No need. Although the situation is urgent, there are only five of us. If we are on guard with all our strength, we will be exhausted before we encounter the enemy." . The most important thing is to rest and recuperate." One sentence vetoes the necessity of sentry. It was not easy for Zheng Anping to refute. After all, after spending most of the day yesterday, he was indeed exhausted both mentally and physically.
But Zheng Anping was worried and asked, "What if a thief suddenly arrives?"
Cao Bao said: "If thieves come, they must go to the south. During the day, if the livestock is kept in the south, they can take care of both. At night...there are many houses in the city, and they change their residences every three or five nights, making them ignorant and they will not be able to attack!"
Wuwang said: "After three to five months, the puppies will grow up and they can look after the family!" Everyone laughed and agreed.
