In a small village with only a few dozen households, nothing is trivial.
A child disappeared in the summer; someone's family had a conflict with someone's family; someone's daughter-in-law was rumored to be unfaithful; unknown strangers suddenly visited. In this kind of small village with tight information and sparse population, any incident can cause widespread discussion.
"I'm telling you something. It's a secret. Don't tell others." This is often the first thing housewives and aunts mention when whispering, and this "ulterior" secret will always be revealed in a very short time. It spread to the entire social network and became an open "secret" discussed by everyone.
Poor women who live a boring life always like to gossip. They seem to be afraid that one thing is not big enough, so they always like to add extravagance to the trivial things in the process of spreading them - when the neighbor's family quarrels, the male host's voice is slightly louder. Insulting words such as "Bitch!" yelled through the house can be used as "conclusive evidence" that the hostess Hongxing is having an affair by making false accusations and adding jealousy, and then begin to spread among the local housewives' circle, causing them to invariably go to the house. He began to exclude and isolate this "woman with a bad reputation" to avoid being "implicated".
A small thing can always turn into an earth-shattering event in the local circle of Hot Spring Village.
Or maybe it's this kind of exaggeration, like in "The Boy Who Cried Wolf," that makes them appear insensitive when the real big things happen.
Everyone working in the fields in the morning stopped what they were doing.
They stared blankly at the bloody team.
Almost all of them were in dilapidated condition. The dried blood had changed the texture of Jinhaori and other clothes from soft to as hard as rawhide. Even the sharp air that had been blowing continuously since yesterday could not shake it at all. It hung as heavy as a skin full of wine, motionless.
The look of exhaustion filled almost everyone, including the horse-riding Ronin. Their weapons were still as bright as possible, but everyone could see that they were walking with difficulty.
The villagers stared intently but said nothing. It's not that I don't want to say something, it's that I don't know what to say.
Those young people who had participated in the extermination of the bandits in the center of the lake and came back with great confidence and imitated the warriors in tying their hair were also among them. After returning home with a full load, these young people often boasted about themselves in front of the elders of the villagers, but at the wine table With the courage of one against a hundred, it seems that at this moment, he can't even drive them to take a step forward and ask the Rongrants what happened.
It was obvious that something big had really happened, but the villagers of Wenquan Village, who were supposed to have experienced "big winds and waves" as their daily routine and were "experienced in hundreds of battles", were dumbfounded for a moment, not only stopping to move forward but even speaking. Don't dare.
The hot spring village may not be considered big, but it only takes a moment for some news to spread.
The hotel owner Masayuki, who soon learned of everyone's return, and the missionaries and doctors who stayed behind, as well as the oiran and Jian Ye, hurried to the entrance to greet them. They were also shocked when they saw the scarred team. . But before Henry could tell him what happened, the anxious-looking doctor told them an equally troublesome thing - Aqiu, her father and other family members were all killed by the villagers who were in charge nearby. Seized.
Ling, who still had some redness and swelling on the left side of her face, looked anxious and had dark circles under her eyes. It was obvious that she had not slept well last night because Aqiu's family would be executed by the country soldier at noon today.
"Suka." After running all the way back to the hot spring village, the Luoan girl, who was not in much better spirits than Ling, couldn't help but curse after listening to Miss Doctor's narration. Henry glanced at her, but noticed that he had made a mistake Mira just turned her head and sulked and had no intention of taking back her words.
The development of the matter is very simple but also very complicated - Henry and his party set out to suppress the bandits, and all the deterrent combat forces, including the samurai and these tall foreigners, left. Torataro also went to Pingshan County after Hui's condition stabilized. Basically, when the rear was undefended, Allen, who had tried to snatch his daughter back but was frustrated, took this opportunity to come back and look for trouble.
Allen, who burst into the hotel with a loud roar, took advantage of the opportunity when no man was around? Ling was dining with Aqiu at that time, so when Allen tried to snatch her away, Miss Doctor naturally stepped forward to stop her.
But when this middle-aged man who bullied others saw that it was a short young girl who was blocking him, he took action mercilessly.
The slap was so severe that the redness and swelling on Ling's face still haven't gone away. The air in the hotel fell into silence for an instant, and Allen, who felt uneasy, roared loudly: "What? Is it wrong for me to take my child back?" Proclaiming his correctness? But he obviously did not expect the situation. severity.
Ling was not wearing a doctor's uniform at the time, but when she walked out of the dark place covering her beaten face, in the sunlight that filtered in through the window, when Allen saw that dark blue hair, his whole body trembled. got up.
Although she has no real power, as a doctor of Hoshiyong certified by Xinjing Tiankaku Academy, Aya's lofty status is equal to that of the feudal king.
In this country with such strict classes, it is an unforgivable crime for a peasant at the bottom to attack a being that is higher than the samurai and the Chinese.
"S-please my life!!"
One second, he thought he was a powerful man, a middle-aged farmer who showed off his strong status by beating a petite girl? The next second, his knees buckled, and he threw himself on the ground and desperately begged for mercy.
"Look, for my daughter's sake!" He grabbed Aqiu, who was shaking because he was infected by the adults' emotions even though he didn't understand what was going on. He tried to use this child he didn't care about to win the sympathy of the doctor. .
But things have inevitably escalated. It is rare for a big event to happen in a hotel and a small village where people come and go? The long-tongued woman and the long-tongued man quickly spread the whole incident throughout the entire hot spring village.
"Aaron hit a doctor."
"I knew he would do something like this."
Housewives and idlers were discussing this matter in a hurry. Many of them were very proud of their foresight. Only a few people lamented like this - "I feel sorry for his family."
Those who commit serious crimes like this will be punished with consecutive sentences.
The villagers stationed in such a small border village may not encounter a big event in ten and a half years, so they rarely took action at high speed. Less than half an hour after the incident was reported, all three people were mobilized. Arrested Allen's whole family.
Ling tried to stop him? She even hurriedly changed into a doctor's costume.
But the respectful countrymen still arrested everyone and announced that they would be executed at noon tomorrow.
When she said these things, Miss Doctor's expression was gloomy.
This is the tragedy of a noble man without real power.
The other party was going to be executed because he had offended her, and the person involved in the execution was even the one she originally wanted to protect. Her noble status can make these country people respectful, but she herself does not even have the power to forgive these people and save them from execution.
Be polite, but never give in.
What is noble is only the identity of the doctor, not her as a person.
For the first time in her life, Aya questioned the value of her efforts so far. However, when Torataro left and the entire hot spring village did not have anyone with more power than the locals, she could do nothing but be anxious.
"These are all nonsense." Even Henry among the group who returned from the bloody battle could not foresee that such a thing would happen. The context of the matter was very simple, but it was difficult to describe it in black and white because of the entanglement of people's motives. A clear distinction between right and wrong, good and evil - Allen has the rightness in Allen's own eyes. He wants to take back his child, even if it seems to others that he does not love her, but he tied the knot; Xiangshi Their actions are in compliance with the laws of Crescent Continent, but their motive is obviously just to increase their own fame rather than to uphold justice.
No one is innocent.
"Severely punished the following unruly people who assaulted the doctor." This is a great achievement that can make a lasting mark in the career of a country warrior. In the eyes of such a poor and remote lower-class warrior, this is something that may not happen once in a lifetime. big event.
Ling couldn't solve this matter. She was noble but powerless, so she could only wait anxiously for Henry and his party to return.
More than half of them were damaged in the battle, and even the bodies of their comrades could not be recovered. Although it actually had nothing to do with them, after hearing this incident, the Ronins under Ryunosuke all became aggressive as if they were diverting their anger.
"If you want to make great achievements, why don't you worry about not having a chance." The former county magistrate's voice was so cold that it could drip. After Henry told the store manager Yu Yazhi what happened in a simple language, the latter confirmed again and again when his face turned ashen. Knowing the truth of the matter, he hurriedly ran away and prepared to go back to call on the whole village.
Then the former Chinese showed his extremely high execution ability. The team of more than half a hundred people, with the smell of blood all over their bodies, led the doctor, Miss and others non-stop to the villager's residence on the outskirts of the hot spring village. The heavy sound of horse hooves and the collision of armor made the villager's ashigaru feel distant. He ran out to check, and after seeing this formation, he ran back crawling.
Immediately afterwards, a country man who was not very tall but had a big belly also walked out. He was covered in fat, not to mention that he had not yet put on the knife on his waist. When he walked out, an unbalanced knife slipped out and hit the ground. . Narumi frowned and looked at his scabbard, which had been scratched and scratched. It was obvious that this man didn't care much about his weapons.
"What are you doing?" The country man who realized what happened the moment he saw Aya with an unhappy face was still pretending to be dumbfounded, but Ryunosuke didn't show mercy to him.
"Hand over the list of prisoners you are holding here, and temporarily release the young and middle-aged labor force. Send people to hurry up and notify the Pingshan County headquarters to send reinforcements, and take out all the stored weapons." Ryuzosuke said condescendingly on his horse, and The country man, who was very fat after eating the products of the hot spring village, rolled his eyes, and after not seeing any Chinese family lines on his body, he straightened his back and coughed: "Ahem, this is Your Excellency Ronin. "
"What proof of identity and power do you have?" His attitude became very arrogant, but the former county magistrate who had gone through ups and downs for 11 years was definitely not someone who cared about red tape.
"Pull the bow." He gave the order, and the wanderers who had just returned from the battlefield dispersed and unfurled their bows and nocked arrows.
"This is my power."
"Hey -" The country man who had never seen such a formation and could only talk nonsense and his two ashigaru panicked. Under the threat of force, they acted quickly, but this is a small place after all, except for Apart from the Allen family, there was only one drunk old man who was imprisoned in the cell.
After Ah Qiu, who couldn't stop crying, was released, he ran towards Aya and Sakura. After this, Allen no longer felt resentful but kept kowtowing to thank the group, and then ignored them. Ah Qiu took the rest of his family members and hurried towards his home.
"Master, please go down and tell them how to write the document." Ryunosuke's status as a ronin is relatively subtle after all, so Narumi said this to Yajiro, the heir to the Aota family. The group of people divided their forces, and the wanderers, covered in blood and dust, returned to the door of the hotel. At about this time, the villagers who had been summoned by the manager Yazhi also gathered nearby.
Seventy to eighty percent of them were women with good intentions. They looked at the bloody team with curious expressions, and from time to time they glanced at this side with their peripheral vision while discussing something in a low voice.
"Not here." The girl from Luo An glanced at it. None of the young men who had participated in the bandit suppression activities on Huxin Island appeared in it.
Having experienced the battle, they probably guessed something when they saw a group of people reduced in number and carrying a strong smell of blood. So unlike these ordinary peasant women, they can still maintain simple and pure curiosity.
But escaping cannot solve the problem, and there is a gap between the villagers and the common people, so as the de facto talker of the hot spring village, the prestigious store manager Masaki becomes the narrator of this series of events.
They omitted most of the content that was too difficult to understand, and simply stated that there is a person who can drive demons and monsters and is likely to invade the hot spring village. At present, villagers must be mobilized to build a defense line, at least until reinforcements from Pingshan County arrive.
Yazhi informed all the villagers present, hoping that they could make a decision.
After the words fell, the air at the entrance of the entire hotel became quiet.
The villagers looked at each other, even the most eloquent woman with a long tongue could not say anything at this time. People in the small village have always exaggerated the big things like sesame seeds and mung beans as much as possible, but when they really encounter a big event, they don't know how to react.
"Oh, Lord Yazhi is really good at joking." Finally, a woman spoke. Her dry laughter caused several women to chime in, but they soon fell into silence again.
No matter how ignorant they were, it was obvious that these bloody ronin were not joking with them.
"I, I still have things to do at home, so I'm going back first." "Yes, the same goes for my family." "Ah, my children still have to-" Farmers rarely have the power to choose, and they are not surprised. He chose to escape. Ryunosuke sighed, and then shouted at the farmer who was about to turn around and leave.
"Everyone stop it!"
The obedient nature engraved in their bones made these people unable to move even after being stirred. The former county magistrate, who has lost power and has been exposed to many Rigal ideological trends, originally did not want to use his power to suppress people in this way, but it is obvious that if democracy is adopted at this point in time, this group of people will only become a mess and be broken down one by one. .
The reason why the social system with aristocrats as the apex and condescendingly ruling over others has existed for such a long time is precisely because many times it is more efficient for a powerful individual to act arbitrarily than for a group of rabble-rousers to talk in unison—Ryuunosuke continued, His tone of voice when talking to farmers is very different from when talking to Henry and others:
"What do you want to do, escape?"
"Where can I escape?" He pointed to the point without mercy: "The terrain in Zhangzhou is dangerous and full of swampy miasma. Although there is a waterway to the north, it is already occupied by monsters. There is a land route to the east, but it is extremely time-consuming to climb up and down. Time. Then go south to Pingshan County? It will take several days even if you work hard. What are you going to do with your family and have to walk? "
"The Romance of Fairy Wood"
"It's summer harvest season now, and those who abandon farmland and fail to pay taxes will be severely punished. How will you get your future rations?"
“I don’t need to tell you what the punishment for deserting the peasantry is, right?”
"You can't escape forever."
"Abandoning your home, how will you live your life in the future?"
"I'll tell you what will happen. Either you will have to live a poor life with only one bowl of porridge a day, depending on others. It's still summer, but if it comes to winter, you will probably freeze to death due to lack of heating fuel."
"Or you might become a bandit and be killed by a samurai. Can you live like this? Can you give up such a comfortable life now?"
His words made the farmers stop. Although Ryunosuke could use force to force these people to obey his orders and fight, he also knew that the forced militiamen had low morale and could not exert much combat effectiveness.
Wenquan Village is a relatively affluent village in Zhangzhou. Relying on the farmland and the products near the swamp, they can eat pretty well. At least they can often see fish and shrimp on the table.
Farmers don't know anything about justice and honor. If you bring up the spiritual beliefs of warriors, they may nod and say they are respectful on the surface, but they will never listen to them in their hearts. But the former county magistrate’s words hit home—these people don’t want to lose their current lives.
"Then, what should we do? We are just farmers."
"Yeah, I've never seen any monsters before."
They were shaken.
Mira looked at the group of people and recalled many things she had experienced in Rigar.
Like their counterparts in Rigal, these Kazuto peasants were parochial. Narrow-minded, selfish, greedy, cowardly - although these words are very similar to the condescending contempt of aristocrats who live a carefree life, any prejudice will spread precisely because it is correct to a certain extent.
Selfish and narrow-minded, but definitely not stupid.
Farmers will not sacrifice themselves for the sake of sentiment. In their view, this is unrealistic. Their thoughts are actually closer to the mercenary adventurers of Rigar, and 11 years of ronin life have also allowed Ryunosuke to understand what to say to touch these people at the bottom.
They are short-sighted and cannot see the big picture, so it is more efficient to tell them anything here than to directly tell them that they will lose their fields, homes, and their current lives.
These people will never stand up for national affairs. They praise the spirit and loyalty of the samurai but secretly sneer at them, but they will use a hoe to knock out the brains of their neighbors in order to save their own grain.
"The warriors have sent a document to Pingshan County informing them of the situation and requesting reinforcements. They are not asking you to go to the front line to fight. You only need to build a defense line here and wait until the reinforcements arrive." The former county magistrate added fuel to the fire, making these people aware that he After telling them what they had to lose and not needing to fight on the front line, they felt relatively at ease.
After these words, many farmers stopped leaving, and at this point they could finally officially start taking action.
"how should I do it."
As long as one person takes the initiative, more and more people will join the ranks.
Through the connections of the store manager Yazhi, they began to gather blacksmiths and other craftsmen in the village. The summer harvest rations were also gathered together to be temporarily stored in the hotel's warehouse. Several families closer to the swamp were temporarily relocated to the hotel, and their houses served as the front line against Saburo.
The sailboat had all been burned, and the snake-like man could no longer go anywhere else by water. Hot Spring Village is the only direction he can move forward, and everyone has a vague feeling that he will not try to escape.
Although they are half-baked, the value of those ghouls is still considerable.
The heavy-armed ronin under Ryunosuke are full of elites. They are professional Kazuto samurai who have been off-duty and have been trained in various martial arts since they were seven or eight years old. Training such a professional warrior would take more than ten years and cost as much as the income of a dozen peasant families.
These weakened ghouls have similar combat capabilities to fully armed samurai in one-on-one combat, although they lack tactics and coordination, so collective actions rely more on numbers to win. But even so, this existence is enough to make ambitious people unable to restrain themselves and get ready to take action.
Because these soldiers are too cheap.
It has tenacious vitality and is as ferocious as a beast, but only ordinary mortals are needed as materials to transform, and it takes less than ten days and a half to form combat effectiveness.
This is a force that can shake the foundation of Xinyuezhou society with warriors as its base. Although it has many flaws and shortcomings, and from the perspective of people who know the inside story like the sage, it seems to be stupid and overestimating the behavior of trying to control the sea, but once it is spread, it is still enough to attract a large number of people. People rushed towards it like insects attracted by the light source.
Saburo will not escape.
He will definitely come here and expand his power step by step.
As a former famous but powerless scholar, he probably had the deepest understanding of things like what Ms. Doctor had experienced.
Therefore, even if he puts aside his personal hatred, he is still hostile to Ryunosuke, who was born into a noble family. He hates the samurai class and wants to overthrow the existing system with his own hands.
The implicit Japanese culture always makes them love to use metaphors and rhetoric. The so-called dragon ascending to the sky and the bright moon shining together are actually wanting to become a king by themselves.
The biting wind made the signal flags rustle.
The barrier that was quickly erected allowed the sentries to observe the enemy's situation from a higher place. The outer fence had wooden thorns with pointed downwards to resist the climbing of the ghouls, but it was not made of stone after all, and there were slightly more of them. It will probably be overturned.
Ryunosuke lied.
It is very likely that they will not be able to survive the arrival of reinforcements from Pingshan County.
There was only one reason why Saburo left only part of his troops to protect the sailboat - he took the main force to expand his troops. Although the miscellaneous bandits who were brought into the swamp fled in all directions under Henry's plan, Saburo would probably not let go of these good materials.
Optimistic estimates suggest that those who were killed near the sailboat were only a hundred or so at most, which meant that his remaining troops were still more than ten times the existing Ronin troops.
Among the dozens of villagers, the young and middle-aged people had incredible fighting prowess, but they could only make up the team to more than a hundred people. The remaining old, weak, women and children had trouble even protecting themselves.
Not to mention whether reinforcements from Pingshan County will arrive. Even if the young master uses the Qingtian family's tokens to prove his identity, it would be impossible to convince a group of samurai who have never seen these monsters that there is an army of demons about to attack.
So the actual plan was not to hold on and wait for reinforcements as the previous county magistrate said.
They have to take the initiative.
Only by continuing to implement decapitation tactics can there be a way to survive.
