My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 45 Xiaoyi Li Sanlang

The group entered Wild Buffalo Mountain, but Li Xuanba was still somewhat bewildered.

With Zhang Silang as their guide, their journey was much smoother than expected. They didn't even encounter the most famous wild buffalo, and their journey was unimpeded.

The area at the foot of the mountain is relatively safe and there is no major danger.

Li Xuanba looked at Zhang Silang, who was leading the way at the front, but he was still pondering the arrangements for the future.

Is the original idea still feasible?
With Qingzao Village already established in the mountains and identified as a rebel by the county, destined to be wiped out sooner or later, if refugees are still hidden here, won't they be affected in the future? Won't it cause even bigger trouble?
If we were to send the person directly to Qingzao Village... well, the people of Qingzao Village are already doing that themselves, and even doing it better. Why would we need to go through all that trouble if they were just going to block the road and rob the officials escorting the guards?

Li Xuanba gradually formed his own plans.

He was originally more concerned about resettling refugees, and his second brother was more concerned about the local militia. However, after today's experience, Li Xuanba began to pay more attention to the local militia under his command.

There are no troops stationed in the area, and the nearest prefecture, Yingyang, is a hundred miles away. Moreover, the local forces simply do not obey local orders.

Due to excessive corvée labor and various disasters, and rampant banditry in the area, the local militia organized by officials were mostly stationed in the city to patrol, guard, and arrest, and were simply unable to manage the affairs outside.

As for the local militias organized by powerful local magnates, judging from the reactions of the people in Meng Village just now, they are even more terrifying than thieves.

In this situation, having a local militia that can temporarily protect the many villages outside the city, maintain order, and defeat thieves is a very good thing.

Only then did Li Xuanba understand why his second brother was so insistent on organizing the local militia.

Second Brother really does have a long-term vision.

Li Xuanba had made up his mind. He decided that Qingzao Village should handle the resettlement of the people themselves, while he could provide other forms of assistance to help them survive. He also hoped that when his father returned, he could persuade him to stay.

He decided to focus on dealing with the local thieves first.
After entering Wild Buffalo Mountain, led by Zhang Silang, they visited many places, but Li Xuanba simply shook his head, seemingly not approving of them.

After walking for a while longer, it became dark.

Without Li Xuanba even needing to speak, everyone urged him to turn back, as the weather was too dark to continue into the mountains.

Li Xuanba readily agreed.

“Brother, I don’t think Bison Mountain is very suitable for settling refugees.”

Li Xuanba spoke up.

Feng Li was taken aback. "Why?"

"There aren't as many refugees outside as we thought. Besides, we heard that there was plenty of food on Buffalo Mountain, but today we haven't encountered a single rabbit, let alone a buffalo. It's simply not enough to feed so many refugees."

Feng Li frowned. "I've heard that a band of bandits has emerged in Wild Buffalo Mountain, called Qingzao Village. It's indeed dangerous for them to settle refugees here."

“In that case, I will talk to my elder brother about the resettlement. There are rampant bandits in the countryside, so we should focus on defeating the bandits in various places first.”

Feng Li also thought of the tragic state of Tao Village today and quickly nodded.

"That's how it should be."

As they approached Mengcun, Zhang Silang bid farewell to the others. Li Xuanba had already instructed him to have Zhang Sengyuan find him at the farm in the southern suburbs.

It was night when everyone returned to the farm.

The group then rested at the farm.

The next day, just as dawn broke, Li Xuanba was woken up by the noise.

"Lang Jun?"

"Lang Jun!"

Li Xuanba hurriedly got up and subconsciously went to call Duan Niang, but then he remembered that he was not at home. He hurriedly changed his clothes and walked out quickly. Liu Chounu was standing at the door. "My lord, someone is here."

Li Xuanba's eyes lit up. Could it be Zhang Sengyuan who has arrived?

He quickly instructed Liu Chounu to invite the person in.

Soon, the three followed Liu Chounu into the courtyard. Zhang Sengyuan was not among them. The leader was a thin old farmer, accompanied by two young men.

Upon seeing Li Xuanba, the old farmer immediately began to kneel and worship.

The man looked to be about the same age as Liu Chounu, and Li Xuanba dared not accept such a courtesy, so he quickly helped him up.

The man spoke with a very heavy local accent.

"Third Master! We've come for help!" The man spoke faster in his haste, and the two young men chimed in from time to time. It took Li Xuanba a long time to finally understand what they meant.

They said that some thugs had injured the herders in their village and stolen their few cattle.

Li Xuanba did not hesitate and immediately called Feng Li in, asking everyone to tell Feng Li the details of what had happened.

These people were originally villagers from a nearby village. Their village had three oxen, each looked after by one person, who took turns working on each family's farmland. But last night, someone broke into the house of the person in charge of guarding them, injured him, and stole the oxen.

It is said that the other side did not have many people, and they searched outside the village for a long time without finding any trace.

After listening to their story, Feng Li was quite surprised. "I know about the matter, but why did you come here for help? How did you know about Sanlangjun?"

"People from Mengcun have come and talked about Sanlangjun, saying that he would protect the people outside the city."

Feng Li pondered for a moment, then looked at Li Xuanba, "To be able to accurately locate the house of the person in charge of guarding it, this must have been done by someone familiar with them. It doesn't seem like the work of a roving thief on a whim, or the work of local ruffians!"

“Brother, then I’ll trouble you to take a few people over there to take a look. The villagers are already suffering, and if they lose their oxen, wouldn’t that ruin the important spring planting season?”

Feng Li nodded and helped the old farmer up.

"Let's go!"

The old farmer bowed three more times and then quickly left with Feng Li.

After they left, Li Xuanba quickly washed up and ate something. While he was eating, Liu Chounu brought over another group of people.

Several more villagers were being threatened by thieves. One villager had been captured and had his ear cut off by the thieves. The thieves demanded that they gather enough food to send to them within two days, or they would slaughter their village.

They knelt on the ground, the leader crying loudly. The one whose ear had been cut off was his son, who was injured by the thieves and was still lying in bed with a fever, unable to wake up. Kneeling behind him was his grandson, who was also wailing loudly.

Li Xuanba helped the man up.

"Don't worry, old man, I will definitely wipe out this gang of bandits. I have a doctor here, and I will also try my best to save your child!"

He looked at Liu Chounu beside him, "Lord Liu! Gather everyone, let's get rid of these bandits!"

The crowd quickly gathered in the front yard. Li Xuanba thought for a moment, then called Zhang Du over.

"Senior brother, you stay here."

“I think there might be other people coming to ask for help. We can’t take everyone with us. You stay here. If anyone comes to ask for help, write down their identity, address, and what they need to do. We’ll take care of it for them when we get back!”

Zhang Du was a little stunned. He didn't expect that two groups of people would come to them for help so early in the morning!

Thinking about it carefully, I get angry again.

What exactly are the local government officials doing?
Judging from the way these villagers are acting, the government has done absolutely nothing, letting the thieves wreak havoc everywhere!

He nodded emphatically, "Please rest assured, my lord, I will handle this matter well."

Li Xuanba followed Liu Chounu onto his horse, and the two villagers were also carried onto the horses by the knights, and they galloped away.

Zhang Sengyuan rode his mule, looking at the large farm in the distance, feeling somewhat hesitant.

He didn't know how to get in. If he directly said he was going to see Sanlangjun, would it arouse suspicion? After all, Sanlangjun was still a child, and a child from a noble family at that. And his current attire didn't look like someone who knew Sanlangjun at all. He was afraid of causing trouble for Sanlangjun.

Just as he was hesitating, a man strode out of the gate and stared in Zhang Sengyuan's direction.

The man appeared to be dressed as a samurai and carrying a weapon, but he didn't quite look like a warrior; he seemed rather tired at the moment.

"I've seen you standing here for quite a while. Are you here to see Sanlangjun?"

Zhang Sengyuan was taken aback, then nodded cautiously.

"come in!"

With a wave of his hand, Zhang Sengyuan quickly dismounted the mule, tied it to the side, and followed the man into the farm.

The man led him to a courtyard and gestured for him to sit down.

"Third Master has gone out on business with his men and is not in the manor. You can leave your name and address, and I will inform Third Master of the matter when he returns."

"what???"

(End of this chapter)