After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

The fiery red sun hung in the sky like a scorching hot disc, so red it was almost white. It was dazzling and made people feel scorched. After walking a hundred steps or so, you would be covered in sweat, feeling sticky and your head would start to spin.

This season has a name that is not particularly meaningful but has a certain aesthetic appeal: Grain in Ear (芒种).

It is one of the twenty-four solar terms, following Xiaoman and preceding Xiaoshu.

As Ning Nan stepped out of the room, he looked up at the bright red sky and suddenly remembered the twelve acres of land at home.

Every year when the Grain in Ear season arrives, we have to be busy every day, wading through mud to go to the fields, draining water and drying the fields to help the seedlings grow strong.

The fields must be muddy but not waterlogged, and the stalks must be strong to prevent lodging. Daily tasks include weeding, fertilizing, and controlling stem borers... a whole host of trivial, repetitive, tiring, and stressful tasks.

They used to tend to the fields like they were serving their ancestors... But now they don't have to serve these ancestors themselves. The day laborers they hired do these things; they are all old farmers with delicate hands.

He finally looked at the sky, abandoned the field, stood in the shadow of the eaves, and let out a long breath.

I failed the college entrance exam, then someone invited me to a company, and after a few interview questions, I became the CEO... That's pretty much the situation now.

It's a bit absurd, and I shake my head a little, but I can only try to get into the zone as quickly as possible.

Annihilate Black Tiger Mountain...

No.

"Completely annihilate Black Tiger Mountain—" His eyes sharpened slightly, and he stretched his fingers, making a few cracking sounds from his knuckles. "That's what we need to do now."

Master Zhu trusted those he employed and didn't employ those he didn't trust. He boldly promoted himself, not worried about the company collapsing. What else could he not dare to do? ...Moreover, there was a large sum of money to be made.

Secretary Qin, um... Steward Qin said that as long as we break through Black Tiger Stronghold to avenge the Zhu family's blood feud and capture the mastermind behind the attack on Miss Zhu, the Zhu family will be free of trouble once and for all. Whether it's their household registration or Cuicui's status as a slave, it won't matter.

Gold, silver, and fine silks could be packed in baskets, and he would also be given a large mansion in Nanjing... equivalent to a courtyard house in the capital... well, that's roughly the kind of reward he received.

of course.

The most important thing...

Household registration...

The other party made a clear promise that as long as Black Tiger Mountain was destroyed, they would process his household registration.

With household registration, he would finally have a starting point. As for houses, gold and silver treasures, it didn't matter whether Master Zhu gave them to him or not... With household registration, he could take the imperial examinations, and then he would have everything.

To be able to build such a large business in a place like Datong Street, right under the emperor's nose, means that such a person has an extremely powerful background, and the promises they make are quite credible.

Ning Nan took a breath and gritted his teeth.

As soon as he took on this responsibility, he first learned about the situation from Manager Qin, from the basics to the details. He asked how many people the other party had under his command, what their current plan was, and what they intended to do. The other party did not hold back or hide anything and told him everything. Ning Nan suddenly realized that the other party wanted to lure the thieves into a trap, which was quite skillful and daring.

He asked for pen and ink, pondered for a long time, wrote and drew for a while, and then issued several orders without any politeness.

It can be roughly divided into several aspects. The first aspect is the general direction. Please have Steward Qin write down how many people and how much money Master Zhu can mobilize, in addition to the people under her command that I just mentioned. Write down everything, especially those related to the government. The other party nodded in agreement.

The second aspect was to examine the map of the area surrounding Black Tiger Mountain. The other party said that the map was ready, and Ning Nan nodded, then said it wasn't enough.

Official maps show the terrain, topography, and some strategic passes, but they often lack crucial elements, such as people—not the bandits on Black Tiger Mountain, but the people living at the foot of the mountain.

Ning Nan wanted to know how many villages were around Black Tiger Mountain, and roughly how many people lived in each village. The villagers at the foot of the mountain were bandits, and the villages were like fish and water.

This information can be obtained through the official Yellow Register. It needs to be done quickly. Information needs to be collected, and then topographical maps and village distribution maps need to be drawn. Even the climate of the past few years needs to be checked in the county annals.

Favorable timing, advantageous location, and harmonious relationships are all essential, but simply knowing how advantageous the location is is not enough.

In addition to several maps, you also need to go to the nearby villages and find more guides, preferably woodcutters, fishermen, peddlers, etc. Prepare people and maps within three days.

The other person pursed their lips and became somewhat silent.

Ning Nan thought for a moment: "Manager Qin, um, I know you want to use bait to catch fish, but it may not be very effective. The king fish won't come out of its nest. If we catch one fish here, it will send another one over in a while. We can't catch them all... The best way to catch the king fish, um... is to drain the pond."

"Of course, this is also the dumbest way."

Ning Nan helplessly spread his hands: "I do wish I could be like Zhuge Liang, solving problems with a wave of his feather fan and three strategies at a time. But that's fiction. The real Zhuge Liang handled everything meticulously, personally taking charge and working tirelessly until he died in office... We're not Zhuge Liang, so we have to be even more diligent than him..." We need to be professional and scientific in our bandit suppression efforts.

call.

Qin Yuanyao remained silent, her eyes flickered, and she seemed lost in thought. She exhaled and silently wrote down these requirements.

Black Tiger Mountain is located about 50 li west and north of Lijia Village. It is 800 zhang high, with a steep mountain body and a peak that reaches the sky.

Four sentry posts stand guard at the foot of the mountain, and looking up from below, one immediately senses a powerful and imposing aura of "one man can hold the pass against ten thousand".

In addition, the mountain is backed by Yunze Lake, which connects to the Yangtze River. The village is associated with many river bandits who roam the river and plunder merchant ships.

Despite years of efforts by the government to suppress bandits, they either failed to eradicate them or, even if they captured a stronghold and executed its leader by slow slicing, the bandits would soon elect a new, more daring leader to continue ruling the mountain.

This year's leader is said to be even more ferocious, having repelled three attacks by government troops. The local garrison was overwhelmed and focused on defending the territory. The surrounding county magistrates and garrison commanders also lost their composure, becoming content as long as the enemy didn't raise the flag of rebellion. Black Tiger Stronghold's power was unparalleled for a time.

The third thing Ning Nan asked Qin Steward Qian to do was to inquire whether Master Zhu could report to the imperial court and have his powerful connections or high-ranking officials send a higher-ranking official over.

For example, a general or a eunuch, in short, he needs to be able to control the county officials in the surrounding counties to a certain extent. Simply put, he needs a powerful figure to back it up.

The seasoned veterans will naturally pass the buck to each other, but it doesn't matter. With a tiger skin, there's room for dialogue, and we can always find a way to get them working.

Qin Yuanyao nodded, her thin, wheat-colored cheeks becoming slightly sunken: "These are all fine."

Ning Nan smiled gratefully and said that he would sort out his thoughts in the afternoon and write down the other things that needed to be done before handing them over to Manager Qin... Secretary Qin visibly bit his cheek.

Take a step forward, leaving the shade under the eaves, and a wave of heat hits you.

He walked straight into the main room of Sanjin's house.

Erlaizi, holding a bowl of tea, stared at Old Man Xu.

Perhaps sensing some kind of disrespect, Er Laizi was rather rude to Old Xu and the others... Ning Nan smiled, casually greeted Old Xu, and called Er Laizi away, "Come on, let's have lunch at my house." Er Laizi stood up arrogantly.

Old Xu glanced at Er Laizi's waist and said with a smile, "I'll see you two off."

After seeing Young Master Ning and the boy named Li Erlai out of the courtyard, Old Man Xu's eyes darkened slightly. As he turned around, he saw Commander Qin also staring at the two figures as they walked away.

The old man approached Qin Yuanyao: "You've killed people." His voice was low and hoarse.

"You've killed them all?"

"Young Master Ning may not be able to tell, but he has at least seen blood... Li Erlai has definitely killed someone."

Qin Yuanyao remained silent for a while before saying, "It's not important anymore." She nodded towards the thin figure in the golden sunlight. "From now on, he's our leader."

...

...

Dahei and Sanzhuang returned from the back mountain. Ning Nan glanced at Dahei, who nodded slightly and smiled, "Big brother, I'm going home to cook for Master." His master had been paralyzed for a long time and needed someone to take care of him... Ning Nan nodded.

On the way, San Zhuang picked up Li Xing and pulled out two pastries from his pocket as if to show off. But Li Xing also had some, and even more than San Zhuang.

"Given by my sister-in-law!" Li Xing raised an eyebrow.

I had just entered the Ning family's courtyard.

Then I saw my sister-in-law holding a kitchen knife, standing in front of the chicken coop, seemingly preparing to kill a chicken.