After some picking and choosing, only more than a hundred people finally got the weapons that were better preserved.
The remaining archers of the rural soldiers had no choice but to take out the hatchets they carried with them and attach a long pole to serve as a simple sword.
Some people who didn't bring a hatchet just used a long stick.
The village soldiers looked around, and then looked at each other.
Do you still want to attack the copycat?
It turned out that these people really wanted to do something after receiving the reward.
After all, if the bandits are really successful, there will definitely be rewards in the future. In addition, the village can also be robbed, and if you are lucky, you can make three to five dollars.
But after going through the arsenal, they finally understood.
I'm afraid it's just pretense this time.
But this trip was not in vain. After all, the reward of 500 coins was mixed with it.
In fact, Chang Zhixian and Liu Yong thought so.
They knew in their hearts that it would be a foolish dream to rely solely on these archers and soldiers to break into the village.
With a strong momentum, a frontal feint attack, and attracting the main force of the bandits, the mission has been completed.
The rest was left to Han Zhen. It was great to be able to capture it, because Changzhi County could make a fortune in suppressing bandits.
If you can't defeat it, you won't lose much.
As for the reward given to the archer soldiers, it was just a drop in the bucket to him, and he regarded it as spending money to buy reputation.
In short, no matter what, Changzhi County is in an invincible position.
This is the way to be an official.
…
"Follow the leader of the capital and go out of the city to suppress the bandits!"
Liu Yong was riding on a horse and waved his hand, quite high-spirited.
More than 400 archer soldiers, holding a variety of weapons in their hands, left the county in a chaotic manner and ran towards Songshan Ridge.
When we reached the foot of the mountain village, the originally clear sky was now covered by dark clouds.
After a while, raindrops fell from the sky.
After wiping the raindrops from his face, Liu Yong pulled out his saber and shouted loudly: "Form up!"
These archers were new recruits and were at a loss for the moment.
On the contrary, the vast majority of rural soldiers had participated in the previous two bandit suppressions and already had experience.
I saw two strong country soldiers standing at the front holding shields.
There was no way, the gravel road leading to the mountain village was too narrow, and only two people could walk side by side at the same time.
The country soldiers armed with spears divided into two teams and followed closely behind the shield soldiers.
The one with the bow and arrows falls last.
"Attack the stronghold!"
Along with Liu Yong shouted again.
The two shield soldiers raised their shields and held them in front of them, walking step by step along the gravel path towards the mountainside.
…
In the mountain stronghold halfway up the mountain, thousands of fleeing households were harvesting wheat in the fields despite the light rain.
I don’t know how long this rain will last. If it rains for a long time, the wheat in the fields will fall on a large scale.
Although the wheat harvest has nothing to do with the refugees, the Shibao is not a good source.
If there is no harvest by then, I'm afraid they will kill people again to vent their anger.
No one wants to be killed, so each one is particularly concerned about escaping.
A banquet was being held in the Juyi Hall deep in the village.
The banquet was full of people drinking and drinking, changing cups and cups, and it was so lively.
Shi Bao spent a lot of money this time, and the banquet included not only game from the mountains, but also mutton and fresh fish.
In the Song Dynasty, mutton was the most precious, and the price of one sheep could buy two cattle.
Under the mutton, there is fresh fish.
Because transportation is inconvenient at this time, it is not easy to eat fresh fish in inland areas.
Beef comes next, and pork comes last.
Compared with the Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties, the number of cattle in the Northern Song Dynasty increased dozens of times. Although the government strictly controlled the cattle, many people died of old age, so beef was not a scarce commodity.
In the early Northern Song Dynasty, the imperial court banned eating beef, but no one bought it.
So much so that later on, the government simply turned a blind eye, and Emperor Zhenzong of the Song Dynasty issued a special edict: "In the two states of Zhejiang, cattle are slaughtered for food. It is not common to cook them. Anyone who buys them should pay attention to them." Don’t ask about guilt.”
This means that it is illegal to kill a cow without any reason.
But those who buy beef and eat it back will not be punished.
Even the emperor compromised, and it was even less possible for local officials to control it. Some state and county officials even instituted a beef tax in order to make money.
If you buy beef, you have to pay extra tax...
A total of fifty or sixty people, including the big and small bosses in the village, plus seventeen deserters, gathered in the lobby. The sounds of playing, teasing, and playful laughter were intertwined, creating a bustling crowd.
"Report!"
While drinking, a sudden shout came from outside.
Immediately afterwards, a bandit walked into the lobby quickly and reported: "Master, a large number of officers and soldiers were found at the foot of the mountain!"
Officers and soldiers?
For a moment, everyone was shocked, and the entire lobby fell silent.
Shi Bao put down his wine glass and said solemnly: "Officers and soldiers? How many are there?"
The bandit answered truthfully: "There are four to five hundred people, and the leader is Liu Yong, the head of the county government."
Hearing this, the bandit in the hall had a smile on his face again.
With a smile on his face, Shi Bao turned around and ordered: "Fourth brother, lead two hundred brothers to guard the gate of the village."
"Got the order!"
The strong man named Laosi stood up and walked out of the lobby with a relaxed expression.
Seeing this, Wei Da couldn't help but said: "Master Shi, why don't we stop here today. Since the officers and soldiers are here, we should go and help."
"Brother Wei, please wait a moment. It's just a group of local soldiers. I'll go and come back."
The fourth child waved his hands nonchalantly.
When the fourth brother went out, he saw that Wei Da still had a worried look on his face. Shi Bao comforted him: "Brother Wei is rightly worried. These rural soldiers are just showing off and will disperse on their own in a short time. The first two That’s how it is this year.”
A fleeing soldier was surprised when he heard this and couldn't help but ask: "What kind of bandit is this for suppressing the ground?"
"How dare they really suppress the bandits?"
Shi Bao took a sip of wine and sneered: "These dog officers are all as cowardly as rats, they are just making money in the name of suppressing bandits!"
"It's really a dog officer!"
Among the fleeing troops, the square-faced strong man looked indignant and slammed his fist on the table.
Although he didn't like Shi Bao, he strongly agreed with these words.
If it weren't for this group of dog officers, they wouldn't be deserters.
Shi Bao laughed, picked up the wine glass and advised: "Come on, come on, Brother Wei, keep drinking."
After three or five glasses of wine, a hint of drunkenness gradually appeared in the eyes of Wei Da and others.
Seeing that the time was right, Shi Bao winked at his subordinates calmly, then stood up and came to Wei Da's side.
"Brother Wei, although I, Shi Bao, am a bandit, I have the most respect for you and other Western troops guarding the border. Without you to protect our home and country, I'm afraid the Xixia people would have invaded the Central Plains long ago."
Shi Bao put his arm around Wei Da's shoulders and put his other hand into his arms covertly.
At the same time, the bandits at other tables also began to use the excuse of toasting to approach the deserters intentionally or unintentionally.
Wei Da was drunk at the moment. Hearing this sincere compliment, he felt extremely comfortable.
On the contrary, the strong man with the square face noticed something strange.
"Kill!"
At this moment, there was a faint cry of killing coming from outside the lobby.
It was obvious that the bandits were at war with the country soldiers.
The next moment, two loud shouts suddenly sounded in the lobby.
"Do it!"
"Brother, why don't you do it?!"
Um?
At this moment, everyone was stunned and stunned.
Shi Bao subconsciously looked at the square-faced strong man. The two looked at each other and saw murderous intent in each other's eyes.
