It is true that there is strength in numbers. As the sun just dipped below the mountain, the meal was already ready.
Li Si, who was directing everyone, stopped Li Niushi and asked him to call Zhang Rui over. In the past two days, the villagers' respect for Li Si has increased by more than one level because of Zhang Rui, which made the man very happy.
In Li Si's eyes, Zhang Rui's achievements were as good as his own son's, and that sense of pride made him excited.
…
When Zhang Rui arrived, the sky was getting dark.
Zhang Rui was supposed to be allowed to say a few words, but looking at the hungry and drooling crowd, Zhang Rui didn't say much and just summoned those who passed today's assessment and asked them to maintain order.
There are too many people eating, so naturally there are no tables and chairs to sit on like last night. It can only be done in the form of serving food in the canteen. The elderly and children line up in front, and there is a person in front of each water tank with food.
The team lines up first to get their meals, and then they go to the vegetable vat where their favorite dishes are placed and queue up to get their food.
Looking at the long queues for each food vat, Zhang Rui estimated that there must be over a thousand people. It seemed that people from the three nearby villages were here.
Fortunately, there is plenty of food. The villagers all know each other, and there are bandit suppression team members to maintain order, so the order is very stable. There are also many jars for holding rice and dishes, so the meal can be prepared very quickly.
In the cooking alone, six hundred kilograms of rice were cooked, and nine water tanks were filled. There are nine places that provide meals at the same time, so one can feel at ease no matter how much he or she eats. The more popular meat stewed with soybeans has been cooked for six tanks, which makes people feel the weight. There are many other dishes, even vegetables, which have been cooked for three tanks.
The food is just more, so no one wants to risk the reputation by jumping in line. The most important thing is that Sixth Brother has already spoken, and everyone is at ease waiting for the meal.
…
In the open space, everyone who had packed the food wolfed down the food. Many people finished a bowl of rice with meat stewed in soybean juice without taking a few bites, and then went over to continue getting food.
…
The sky was getting darker and darker, so Zhang Rui asked Li Niushi to light the firewood in the open space. The huge fire not only gave people in the dark a sense of security, but also gave people who were eating enough light.
Like everyone else, Zhang Rui's stomach was already hungry. However, as a leader, you cannot ask your team members to stay hungry to maintain order after you have eaten your fill first. So, when order was stable, he asked the team members to take turns eating. He took the team members who had already eaten and went around to express condolences to the elderly, asking them to eat slowly and make sure they were full.
Zhang Rui's actions were unanimously favored by the elderly, and many of them even couldn't help crying.
Although many people talk about the prosperous age of Kangxi and Qianlong, it was the prosperous age of officials and Manchu men. How can ordinary people, especially tenant farmers, have anything to do? Normally, in a good year, you can only eat chaffy vegetables to have enough food and clothing. As long as there is a slight drought or flood, you have to be in debt or sell your children to survive.
The cries of the old people made many people feel sad. They had forgotten how long it had been since they had eaten meat.
When some elderly people learned that Zhang Rui was so hungry that he had not eaten yet, they all offered to give Zhang Rui food in their bowls. Sometimes Zhang Rui can't push it anymore, so he can only eat a small amount.
People's hearts are made of flesh. It touched the elderly and also made the team members who were following Zhang Rui feel a sense of honor. Especially when some elderly people hold their hands and teach them earnestly, they feel proud.
…………
Dinner lasted for nearly an hour.
The moon is already hanging in the sky, the moonlight is bright and clear, and the stars are shining in the sky. In hot weather, the nights will be particularly cool.
Some people who had things to do, some who went to bed early, and some who were blindfolded all went home.
In this era without entertainment, having a bonfire and a group of people chatting together is good entertainment.
At this time, someone suggested that Zhang Rui come out and say a few words. This proposal waited until everyone unanimously agreed.
Zhang Rui was pushed out by everyone and came to the bonfire. He went around and saluted and said
"Thank you fellow villagers. This year is not easy for anyone. We can only overcome this difficulty by supporting each other and helping each other."
"Yes…"
"Brother Six said it well..."
"You're right, we need to help each other..."
…
Zhang Rui's words resonated with the villagers...
After a while, Zhang Rui had to make a pressing movement with his hand. The people around looked at Zhang Rui and became quiet.
"But we can still help each other get through natural disasters. But what about man-made disasters? We all know that bandits were recruited to Dagou Village a few days ago. Not only were their food robbed, but several people were killed in a row. Pity them. They all have wives, children, and children, and the backbone of the family is gone, so how can their wives, children, and children live?"
As he spoke, Zhang Rui couldn't help but look moved, with a particularly sad look on his face. Everyone was filled with emotion after listening to Zhang Rui's words. What should I do if I encounter it?
"The Dog Fighting Village is not very far from our place, isn't it? Is there anyone from the Dog Fighting Village here?" Zhang Rui called loudly
"I…"
"Both of us are from the dog hunting village..."
At this time, two voices came out from the crowd.
I saw two strong young men, both about 1.65 meters tall and with rare builds, coming to Zhang Rui and saluting Zhang Rui.
Zhang Rui took a look and saw that he was actually a member of the bandit suppression team?
One of them, who was slightly taller, said: "Brother Six, my name is Chen Deyun, and this is my brother Chen Decai. Both of us brothers are hunters in the dog hunting village. It's embarrassing to say that although the two of us witnessed it with our own eyes, there was nothing we could do. I can only watch the villagers being killed."
As they spoke, their faces were filled with sadness and anger.
"The bandits stole food and even killed people. But when we reported it to the officials, the officials not only ignored us, but also beat us, saying that we were unruly people. We saw several families crying. We were very worried. Those Bandits have no humanity and they don’t even spare children.”
"Originally, the government ignored them, and we gave up hope of killing the bandits. If it wasn't a coincidence, we heard Sixth Brother saying that he wanted to recruit a bandit suppression team. We two brothers wouldn't have come together together. Now we just want to kill a few more A bandit to avenge the villagers."
Zhang Rui watched them walk over, patted the two of them on the shoulders and said: "Well done, this is a bloody man. Blood debt must be paid with blood, let us work together. Kill these damn bandits." .”
"Hmm...definitely..."
"Kill them and avenge the villagers..."
…………
Zhang Rui comforted the two of them, sat down aside, and said to the people around him: "The bandits have been living here for a long time. I believe that everyone sitting here will have two or three things with the bandits. Who else has had problems with the bandits?" If you are angry, you can speak out and let us all know that the bandits are hateful and deserve to be killed."
After the two brothers Li Deyun and Li Decai told their stories, the villagers rushed to tell all the hateful deeds of the bandits. Even Li Si came out and talked about his dog hair.
All kinds of sorrow and anger, all kinds of tear-jerking things are being told
It's late at night, but people don't want to sleep.
Until the bonfire is gone.
