latelenovela Chapter 430: Conscripted Men 3
Chapter 430: Conscripted Men 3
The two men carefully avoided the soldiers and farmers at the foot of the mountain and hurried home.
Because we came here by rowing a boat today, but in order to avoid alerting the enemy, the boat was stopped halfway, so the return time today was much later than usual.
By the time the Taoist priest and Lu Chuan got home, it was already past eleven o'clock in the evening.
At this time, Xu Han was very anxious at home and wanted to run out to find them immediately.
But Xu Han still had self-awareness. With her small body, it was difficult for her to walk at night. She didn't want to get lost before she could find anyone.
Besides, although she was worried, Xu Han was still very confident in the skills of the Taoist priest and Lu Chuan. It was always the case that only the two of them beat others, and it was almost impossible for the two of them to be beaten.
Thinking of this, Xu Han slowly adjusted her mentality and was no longer so anxious, but as time passed, she couldn't help but feel a little worried.
Seeing that the two had not returned yet, Grandpa Zhao had been waiting in the main hall.
"Xiao Han, it's getting late, why don't you go to bed first. Xiao Chuan and the Taoist priest must have been delayed by something. They should be back soon."
Xu Han stopped walking and slowly sat down. "Grandpa Zhao, I'm not sleepy yet. Let's wait a little longer. Besides, I can't sleep if they don't come back."
"Well, alright then. The hot water in the pot is about to cool down. I'll go add some more firewood. They can take a bath when they come back soon."
"Okay, I'll go see the kids too."
When Xu Han came out again, there was still no movement outside.
After waiting for a while, Xu Han heard the barking of a dog outside. It sounded like someone she knew.
Hearing this, Xu Han laughed out loud, unable to hide her excitement. They were finally back. She said to Grandpa Zhao, "Back? They are back."
"I heard it. I'll go open the door."
Grandpa Zhao quickly came to the back of the courtyard gate, but he was still very cautious and did not open the door on his own initiative.
Grandpa Zhao didn't open the door until he heard Lu Chuan calling.
Xu Han followed them out, having been worried the entire night. When she saw the two of them, she complained angrily, "Why did you come back so late? What happened? I was so worried."
There was a series of questions and Lu Chuan didn't know which one to answer first.
Grandpa Zhao came out to help at the right time and said, "Okay, Xiaohan, go prepare some food first. They must be starving after coming back at this time. Let them take a bath and eat something first."
Xu Han finally reacted and said quickly, "Yes, yes, you guys go take a shower first, I'll go prepare dinner. If you have anything to say, we can talk after dinner."
The two were indeed very hungry. They thought they could go into the county town today, so when they went out, Xu Han only gave them dry food for the morning. Lu Chuan and the Taoist priest had not eaten for almost the entire day.
As soon as Xu Han put the food on the table, Lu Chuan and the Taoist priest began to wolf it down, one mouthful after another, with their cheeks bulging.
After a fierce meal, Lu Chuan and the Taoist priest ate until they were half full. Then they began to slow down their eating speed and slowly said, "When we were going down the mountain today, we saw a lot of people in the mountain. They were conscripting men at the foot of the mountain, and they all hid in the mountain."
Xu Han sat up straight when she heard this and asked anxiously, "Are they okay?"
Then he asked, "Have you spotted us?"
Lu Chuan explained, "Not yet. The place where they are staying is quite far from us. I don't know if they will go deeper later."
The Taoist priest continued, "The situation down in the mountain is very bad. Because of the conscription, the young and strong laborers have all hidden in the mountains, and the crops in the fields have not been planted yet. The old, weak, women and children who stayed at home all closed their doors and dared not come out easily.
Because we were pressed for time today, we didn't have time to rush into the county town to check out the situation. I think the situation is similar to that in the village, and everyone is in danger."
Grandpa Zhao nodded in understanding, "That's understandable. For them, staying alive is the most important thing right now. The people in the county town should be the same. Even if you go there, there will probably be no one on the street. They must be hiding at home and dare not come out at this time."
As Lu Chuan continued to eat, he said, "Today, my master and I looked around the village and found that the soldiers did not kill us. They only searched the periphery of the mountain and did not go deep into it.
The conscription of men should have just started not long ago, but I don’t know if they will intensify the search later.”
After listening to this, Grandpa Zhao continued, "It seems that neither the soldiers nor the people hiding in the mountains have been forced into a corner yet.
When the people in the mountains run out of food, they will definitely go into the mountains to find food, or go home. However, as soon as they go home, they will be captured by the soldiers, so they will most likely choose to go into the mountains again to find food.
As for those officials who can still catch people, they are naturally unwilling to go deep into the mountains. When they can no longer catch people and have no way to report, they will definitely choose to go deeper. "
After Grandpa Zhao's analysis, Xu Han immediately grasped the key point, "We have to prepare ourselves. If someone finds out that we are deep in the mountains, and that we have food and chickens, ducks, and geese, we will definitely become their target of attack.
Whether it is soldiers or civilians, they are all threats to us. Even unarmed civilians are the same. If people are hungry, they can do anything.
Moreover, these people have experienced disasters and have seen all kinds of hell on earth. We cannot underestimate them."
The Taoist priest nodded and agreed, "You are right, girl. Although they are not very skilled, they are numerous. Even if they cannot hurt us, our homes that we have worked so hard to build will be destroyed by them. I don't want the yard and road that I have worked so hard to build to be ruined by them."
Lu Chuan finished the last mouthful of soup, wiped his mouth and continued, "Then starting from tomorrow, Master and I will take turns to guard the entrance, and by the way, we will set some traps around it just in case."
Everyone unanimously agreed to Lu Chuan's proposal.
Xu Han also added, "Starting tomorrow, the children will not be allowed to play outside the yard. They will only be allowed to play inside the yard. During the day, we will not light a fire at home, so as to avoid being discovered and coming over when seeing the smoke.
Anyway, we have already prepared a lot of food, which will be enough for us to eat for a while."
Grandpa Zhao agreed, "That's best. From now on, we should try to reduce our presence until this storm is over."
Xu Han thought for a moment and asked again, "How did you get back? Where did you leave the boat? Don't forget to transport it back home. It would be bad if someone found out."
"It's still parked in the same place! It's too late today, we'll tow it back tomorrow."
After everyone had a brief discussion about what to do next, they went back to their rooms to rest. It was too late today, and Lu Chuan and the Taoist priest had been busy all day, so they were very tired. It would be better to rest early. If there was anything they didn't remember, they could still think about it tomorrow.