The female prisoner was fierce

With the fall of Yanbei City, the entire Yanzhou was wide open.

The Northern Di cavalry marched south from here, across a flat plain, with no passes able to stop them.

These thoughts swirled in his mind before Xiao Jianyang forcibly suppressed them.

The problem right now isn't the Northern Barbarians, but the hundreds of refugees outside the stockade walls.

"Lin Qingxue, Li Tiezhu, Defang, what are your thoughts?"

Xiao Jianyang lowered his voice, his brows furrowing slightly.

Beside her, Lin Qingxue was the first to speak:

"Lord Xiao, now that Yanbei City has been captured by the Northern Di people, these people are not only refugees who have fled, but also readily available laborers and soldiers."

"Therefore, I suggest letting them in."

The suggestion was good, but Li Tiezhu frowned and said:

"Miss Lin, this is no joke."

"How many people are there in our village? Thirty or so capable fighters, but there are two or three hundred people outside, and even more two or three hundred more behind us."

"What if there are Northern Barbarian spies mixed in?"

Upon hearing this, Defang nodded in agreement:

"Yes, Miss Lin, Tiezhu is right."

"We just repelled one of Liu Xiuqing's commanders, and our strength has been greatly reduced. Moreover, the food in the village is enough to last for half a year, but that is calculated based on our own people."

"How long could two or three hundred mouths last if they all ate together?"

"Besides, where are all these people going to live? If someone gets sick and the infection spreads, the consequences would be unimaginable!"

Li Tiezhu added another sentence:

"Moreover, we are all women. Apart from Lord Xiao and those few elderly and weak people, how many able-bodied men are there among these refugees? If they have any evil intentions, we simply cannot control them with so few people."

After listening, Lin Qingxue fell silent.

Their words were not without merit.

but.

After thinking it over, she decided to stick to her opinion:

"I think it's precisely because we are all women that we should let them in."

Li Tiezhu was taken aback:

"What do you mean?"

Lin Qingxue looked at him:

"We only have about twenty men in our village who can fight right now. If the Northern Di people attack, or if Liu Xiuqing launches a counterattack, we won't be able to hold out with just that many men."

"Many of these refugees are able-bodied young men. If we can recruit them and have them help build fortifications, move stones, or even carry weapons to defend the village, our strength will be greatly enhanced."

She paused, then said:

"As for the issue of spies, we can separate the able-bodied men from the women and children, and let the able-bodied men live in a separate area. They are not allowed to go near the village walls and warehouses."

"Meals are distributed uniformly, so they don't have the opportunity to act alone."

"As long as it's strictly managed, there won't be any major problems."

After hearing these words, Li Tiezhu remained silent for a moment.

Defang also pursed her lips, but her eyes visibly relaxed a little.

On Xiao Jianyang's side.

I listened the whole time, but I had already made up my mind.

Lin Qingxue makes a good point!

The biggest problem for Black Cloud Village is not food, but manpower!

Even if all twenty-odd female soldiers were archers like Li Tiezhu, they couldn't possibly defend such a large village.

Last time, we defeated Liu Xiuqing thanks to the terrain and our preparations.

What if the next group is Northern Barbarian cavalry? What if it's several hundred men again?

The stockade walls will be breached sooner or later!

By then, everyone will die!

But if there are three hundred refugees, even if only fifty able-bodied men are selected from them, the village's defensive strength can be increased several times over.

As for the risks.

What is there that involves no risk?

Thinking of this, Xiao Jianyang decisively gave the order:

"Open the door."

Beside him, Li Tiezhu, Defang, and Lin Qingxue all nodded in unison:

"Yes, Lord Xiao!"

Since Xiao Jianyang had made his decision, he naturally obeyed the order and turned to stride toward the gate of the village.

Squeak!

The heavy wooden door was pushed open, and snow fell softly from the door panels.

The refugees kneeling on the mountain path looked up and saw that the village gate was open. They were stunned at first, and then burst into a deafening cry.

"The door is open! The door is open!"

"We're saved! We're saved!"

"Quick! Get in there!"

The crowd began to surge towards the village gate.

However, Xiao Jianyang led his men out.

Standing at the entrance of the village, without them having to lift a finger, Lin Qingxue and the other two beside them drew their swords.

Clang~~

The blade was cold and sharp, its edge gleaming coldly in the wind and snow.

"Listen up, all of you!"

Li Tiezhu shouted, and the crowd instantly fell silent.

"Listen carefully to what our Lord Xiao has to say."

woohoo~~~

No one spoke; they all stared intently at Xiao Jianyang, who stood at the village gate, their eyes filled with hope and trepidation.

Of course, there's still something to look forward to!

Xiao Jianyang spoke calmly, enunciating each word clearly:

"Gentlemen, you may enter the village, but I have three rules."

"First, everyone must follow instructions after entering the village. No one is allowed to run around or make noise. Anyone who violates this rule will be expelled from the village."

"Second, able-bodied men are to be grouped into separate units and live in the same accommodations. They are not to enter other areas without orders."

"Third, everyone must work. Those who can move stones should move stones, those who can cook should cook, and those who can mend should mend. There are no idle people in the village."

His gaze then swept across the crowd, cold as a knife:

"Those who can do it, come in! Those who can't, get down the mountain now!"

After he finished speaking, no one came down the mountain!

Everyone nodded frantically, afraid that if they were too slow, they would be locked out.

"Come in!"

Seeing this, Xiao Jianyang stepped aside.

Followed by.

With a whoosh, a large crowd began to pour into the village gate.

First one, then ten, then a hundred.

Cries, coughs, and children's screams mingled with the snowflakes and rushed into Black Cloud Village.

Lin Qingxue stood beside the village gate, counting them one by one.

Ultimately, the number settled at two hundred and thirty-seven!

This is the number of people who entered in the first batch!

People were still climbing up the mountain from the foot of the mountain.

However, not many people are willing to come in anymore, since some people will go to stay with relatives and there is no need for them to come to Black Cloud Village.

Seeing this, Xiao Jianyang ordered the village gates to be closed, and then led the female soldiers of the guerrilla unit to divide the refugees into teams.

They were divided into three teams!

One team of able-bodied men, one team of women, and one team of the elderly and children!

The able-bodied men were led directly to an open space in the northeast corner of the village, which was originally used by Liu Xiuqing to store timber, but was now being used as a temporary camp.

The women and children were put into several storerooms that had been cleared out in the middle of the village.

The elderly were housed in a row of thatched huts near the South Gate.

In an instant, the entire Black Cloud Village was thrown into chaos.

Some cried, some shouted, some were looking for their children, some were looking for their parents.

Xiao Jianyang stood on high ground, coldly observing everything.

Chaos is normal.

It would be abnormal if things weren't chaotic.

But despite the chaos, order must be maintained.

"Su Wanruo!"

"exist!"

The logistics manager, Su Wanruo, immediately ran over.

She had been busy settling the second batch of people from Lijia Village, and now there were two or three hundred more refugees, increasing her workload tenfold.

"Distribute the food according to the number of people, one bowl of porridge per person, half a bowl for the children, let them eat first, and then we'll talk about other things."

"yes!"

"Chu Yiran!"

"exist!"

The girl, carrying a medicine box, emerged from the crowd. The frostbite on her ears hadn't healed yet, but she couldn't worry about that now.

"Take your medical equipment and separate the wounded and sick into the shed next to the wounded soldiers' camp."

"Anyone with a fever, cough, or infection from an external injury should be isolated and kept away from other people."

"Yes, Lord Xiao."

Chu Yiran responded and then immediately led the female soldiers with medical equipment into the crowd to examine each person one by one.

Xiao Jianyang then summoned Li Tiezhu:

"You take your men with bows and crossbows and search everyone who comes in."

"Confiscate all those carrying swords and knives, and shoot anyone who dares to resist."

"yes!"

Li Tiezhu accepted the order and left.

Xiao Jianyang stood in the wind and snow, issuing instructions one by one.

His expression remained calm throughout!

Even cold-blooded!

At a time like this, he cannot show the slightest hesitation.

Of course, a seasoned special forces soldier wouldn't have such an expression.