In times of chaos and famine, I traded one pound of rice for two royal flushes.

"Water! Wine!" Qin Shaolang shouted without looking up.

Soon, Su Jin ran back carrying the heavy oilcloth bag, and Wang Tiezhu also brought over a small pot of boiling water with several men.

Qin Shaolang opened the cloth bag, inside which was a row of silver needles of varying lengths, each contained in a bamboo tube, along with several oddly shaped knives and several small ceramic bottles containing white powder and a strong, pungent liquid.

He picked up the earthenware bottle containing the pungent liquid, which was the first batch of strong liquor he had distilled.

He unscrewed the bottle, and without even looking, poured half a bottle of wine directly onto the wound, his hands, and a thin, sharp knife.

"ah--!"

The unconscious man was jolted by the intense pain, convulsed violently, and let out a scream.

Those around were horrified; in their eyes, this was worse than rubbing salt into the wound.

"Hold him down!" Qin Shaolang shouted coldly.

Two men stepped forward and held the injured man's limbs down firmly.

Without the slightest hesitation, Qin Shaolang firmly held the arrow shaft with his left hand, and with his right hand, he precisely cut through the flesh along the trajectory of the arrow.

His movements were not flashy at all, but rather mechanically precise and steady.

The sound of the blade slicing through flesh was clearly audible. Su Jin subconsciously turned her head away, but couldn't help peeking through her fingers.

She saw Qin Shaolang use a small pair of pliers to carefully cut off the barb on the arrowhead from the bloody wound before smoothly pulling the entire arrow shaft out.

A stream of black blood then gushed out.

Qin Shaolang remained expressionless as he quickly and forcefully wiped the inside of the wound with a burlap sack soaked in strong liquor.

Throughout the entire process, he didn't even frown once, his focus as intense as that of a craftsman meticulously crafting a work of art.

This composure, transcending life and death, left everyone around in awe.

They had seen doctors treat illnesses and herbal medicine applied to wounds, but had they ever seen such a bloody "medical technique" that involved cutting into people directly?

This isn't saving lives, it's clearly dissecting someone!

However, as Qin Shaolang moved, the black blood gushing from the wound gradually turned red, and the amount of bleeding visibly decreased.

Finally, he sprinkled the white powder evenly on the wound and then carefully bandaged it layer by layer with clean linen.

After doing all this, he finally breathed a long sigh of relief and stood up.

"His life has been saved; whether he wakes up or not depends on him."

He wiped the blood off his hands and glanced around the room.

The valley was deathly silent.

Everyone looked at him, their eyes filled not only with awe, but also with a deep-seated fear and reverence.

Despite the imminent threat of "the soldiers are coming," this man remained unfazed and saved one person's life first.

His audacity and methods have exceeded the imagination of these ordinary refugees.

"Now, let's talk about the officers and soldiers." Qin Shaolang's tone returned to its usual calm as he looked at Wang Tiezhu. "Which post is he on? And who's with him?"

"It's...it's Liu San from the eastern ridge, and Zhao Si is with him." Wang Tiezhu's voice was a little hoarse.

"Send two men to sneak over and see if Zhao Si is still there. Remember, just observe and don't move. If anything happens, come back immediately."

"yes!"

Qin Shaolang walked to Su Jin's side, and the latter immediately handed him a water bag.

He took a big gulp of water, the cool water clearing his jumbled thoughts.

"They're not coming for us," Su Jin suddenly said in a low voice, her voice trembling slightly, but her logic was clear. "If they were coming for us, they wouldn't have just sent scouts, and they wouldn't have surrounded us directly, instead of heading towards Black Wind Mountain."

Qin Shaolang glanced at her with some surprise.

This woman's keen insight always exceeded his expectations.

"That's right." He nodded. "The Black Wind Mountain bandit stronghold has been entrenched for many years and is a malignant tumor in Lantian Town. The government troops who came this time are most likely here to suppress the bandits."

"Then we..." Su Jin's heart relaxed slightly, but then it tightened again.

"We happen to be on their route to suppress bandits," Qin Shaoxing continued for her. "When their army passes through, nothing grows. If they discover us, we unregistered refugees won't fare much better than if we ran into bandits."

Panic once again spread among the crowd.

Yes, they are not bandits, but they are "illegal immigrants".

Those captured by the government were either sent to the army as men or enslaved as women, suffering a tragic fate.

"Mr. Qin, let's run! While it's dark!" a man couldn't help but shout.

"Run?" Qin Shaolang sneered. "There are so many of us, with our families in tow. How fast can we run? Where do we run to? Leaving such obvious tracks in the mountains, do you think the government scouts are blind? They're just going to their deaths!"

One sentence silenced everyone.

The valley fell silent again, with only the sound of the wind and the heavy breathing of the people.

Qin Shaolang looked around at the faces filled with despair.

He took a deep breath, his voice not loud, but it carried throughout the entire valley.

"Everyone, listen up!"

"First, extinguish all campfires immediately! Not a single ember can be left!"

"Second, all the women and children, carrying food and water, should enter the deepest cave, block the entrance with stones, and not make a sound!"

"Third, Wang Tiezhu, you take twenty strong men and clean up all traces of our footsteps at the entrance to the valley, making it look like no one has been here for hundreds of years!"

"Fourth, the rest of you, split up and hide in the crevices of the rock walls and in the bushes on both sides of the valley, and you are not allowed to make a sound!"

His commands, like sharp blades, cut through the chaos and panic, pointing everyone to the only way out.

"We won't run, we'll stay here and wait for them to pass."

A chilling look appeared on Qin Shaolang's face.

"This is our home, and no one can take it away from us."

At his command, the entire valley instantly came to life.

People were no longer panicked, but carried out his every instruction with unprecedented efficiency.

Soon, all the fires in the valley went out, plunging the valley into a deathly silence and darkness.

Qin Shaolang stood alone behind a boulder at the entrance of the valley, holding a military dagger he never parted with, his whole being blending into the darkness.

Su Jin didn't go to the cave. Instead, she took Su Tang's hand, who was trembling with fear, and quietly came up behind him.

Just then, from the direction of the distant mountain ridge, the faint sounds of barking dogs and hurried footsteps could be heard.

Qin Shaolang's pupils contracted.

His worst fears came true.

The soldiers' scouts, with their hunting dogs, have already searched the area!

The barking of dogs grew louder as it approached, so clear it seemed to be right next to my ear.

That wasn't just one dog, but a pack. Their voices were low and rapid, tinged with the excitement and greed characteristic of wild beasts.

Following closely behind were the soft rustling sounds of metal rubbing against leather armor, and the crunching sound of stepping on withered branches and leaves.

They are coming.

And it came straight towards the valley!