OBS Chapter 1235: Shaving my head? It's not what I want
Chapter 1235: Shaving my head? It's not what I want
Chapter 1235: Shaving my head? It's not what I want
The morning mist covered Bailuyuan. When Mr. Zhu walked on the dew to the threshing ground at the entrance of the village, Qin Hao was training with more than 20 young and strong men.
These farmers who usually carry hoes are now lined up in three rows, doing push-ups following Qin Hao's commands. Their coarse cloth jackets have long been soaked with sweat.
"One! Two!" Qin Hao's voice was like a sword drawn from its sheath, piercing the morning mist. He had a Mauser pistol seized from a bandit on his waist, and the red silk on the pistol handle fluttered with his movements, like a dancing flame.
Mr. Zhu stood under the old locust tree and watched for a while, then suddenly coughed. Qin Hao turned around and saw that it was his uncle, and immediately trotted over, with beads of sweat rolling down his brow.
"Good morning, uncle." Qin Hao wiped his face with his sleeve, turned to Heiwa who had followed him and said, "You lead everyone to continue practicing, I will talk to uncle for a while."
Heiwa's dark face was covered with beads of sweat. He responded loudly and jumped back to the team like an agile goat.
Bai Xiaowen looked at Heiwa, who was giving orders on behalf of Qin Hao, and a hint of resentment flashed in his eyes.
Mr. Zhu suddenly spoke up: "Are you doing this on a whim? Or are you planning to train a strong army?" He twirled his goatee as he spoke, and his long blue cloth gown fluttered slightly in the morning breeze.
Qin Hao took off the water gourd and took two gulps, his Adam's apple rolling up and down. He wiped the water drops from his chin and suddenly smiled: "Is uncle afraid that I will become the second Zeng Shaver?"
"I never doubted that you have this ability." Mr. Zhu's eyes suddenly became sharp, like a mirror that can penetrate people's hearts.
"I didn't want to have my head shaved." Qin Hao's voice was as heavy as iron. "Don't worry, uncle. Everything I did was to protect my family from the pain of separation."
Mr. Zhu pondered for a long time and sighed: "Hao'er, your uncle has never doubted your character. It's just that a good thought has turned into a disaster. I'm afraid that if you are too radical, it will backfire."
The morning mist gradually dissipated, and the sunlight shone through the gaps between the locust leaves, casting mottled light and shadows on Qin Hao's face.
Seeing Qin Hao's resolute look, Mr. Zhu patted him on the shoulder and said, "Since you have made up your mind, just go for it. If you need help from your uncle, just ask."
Qin Hao bowed deeply, and when he looked up again, Mr. Zhu's blue cloth gown had disappeared around the corner of the village road.
As the sun was setting, Qin Hao returned to the Bai family's yard with three mud monkey-like boys. Xiancao had already prepared two large wooden barrels of hot water, and the steaming hot air was filled with the aroma of wormwood.
Qin Hao and Heiwa shared one bucket, Xiaowen and Xiaowu shared one bucket. After taking a bath and eating, Heiwa, Xiaowen and Xiaowu were so tired that they went back to their rooms to rest.
Bai Jiaxuan was squatting on the doorstep smoking a pipe, the fire in the pipe flickering. Qin Hao sat down next to him.
"Da, I have something to discuss with you."
"I want to recruit some young and strong men to form a regiment." Qin Hao got straight to the point. The moonlight shone on his taut jawline, like a layer of silver.
Bai Jiaxuan's pipe shook, and the ash fell on the surface of his shoes.
"You don't mean to..."
Qin Hao said seriously: "Da, it's not what you think. This regiment is mainly used to protect the country and the people. Now it is said that the villages in Bailuyuan have made money by growing poppies. There is no guarantee that there will be no kidnappings. If we can have a regiment, those bandits will have to think twice before taking action."
Bai Jiaxuan fell into deep thought. He certainly knew the benefits of having a gun in his hand, but as a small landlord who had lived a law-abiding life for half his life, he was used to holding a hoe instead of a gun.
Seeing him hesitate, Qin Hao continued to persuade him: "Da, you know that I have some friendship with Mr. Nan from Qinfeng Daily. Mr. Nan told me that the world will be in chaos soon. In a chaotic world, no one is without a gun. How can you protect your people?"
The night wind made the elm leaves outside the yard rustle, and Bai Jiaxuan's hands trembled as well.
"It costs money to maintain an army." The smoke rings he exhaled turned green in the moonlight. "Besides, the few guns the bandits have won't be enough."
"Da, you forgot that one of my classmates' family is an officer in the army. As long as they have money, it may be difficult to buy a cannon, but it is still easy to get dozens of rifles."
Qin Hao added: "A Hanyang rifle costs about 30 silver dollars, which means 600 silver dollars. Think about it, those bandits asked us for 5,000 silver dollars. If we had a group of 20 to 30 soldiers in advance, how could they dare to attack Bailu Village?"
Bai Jiaxuan was somewhat tempted. Although it had been several days since his daughter was kidnapped, he still felt scared when he thought about it.
"The Bai family can certainly afford a few hundred dollars, but a regiment of soldiers needs a lot of money just for food and wages every month..."
Seeing that he was willing to give in, Qin Hao quickly struck while the iron was hot: "Da, raising a team of militiamen is not as expensive as you think. We can recruit them directly in the village, and just provide them with training and meals."
Bai Jiaxuan hesitated: "If we don't give them money, will they be willing to do this? This is a job that takes a lot of effort."
Qin Hao smiled and said, "Da, why do we organize militia? It's not to let them go to war and risk their lives, but to protect the safety of Bailu Village. As long as we promote it properly, we are not afraid that no one will be willing to do it."
Bai Jiaxuan smoked his pipe and thought for about five minutes, then gritted his teeth and said, "Okay, as long as you don't give me salary, I'll provide the food and guns."
Qin Hao smiled and said, "Da, this money has to be shared by everyone, otherwise this group of brave men will become our family's personal guards. Not to mention anything else, even I, Tai Heng, cannot agree to it."
……
The next day, before the morning mist had dispersed, Bai Jiaxuan rang the rusty bell in the ancestral hall. The sound was as dull as thunder, startling the sparrows on the elm tree and causing them to flutter into flight, drawing messy lines in the gray sky.
When the villagers rubbed their sleepy eyes and gathered at the ancestral hall, they found that more than a dozen benches had been placed on the blue brick floor.
Bai Jiaxuan stood in front of the ancestral tablet with his hands behind his back, his back straighter than the pillars of the ancestral hall.
"We called everyone here today to discuss a major issue concerning the safety of the entire village." Bai Jiaxuan's opening remarks quieted down the villagers who were whispering to each other. When he mentioned the idea of forming a militia, the ancestral hall immediately exploded.
"Aren't we just raising an army? If the imperial court finds out, you'll be beheaded!" Bai Xinger almost dropped the pipe in his hand.
Several elders even stood up to oppose it, their gray beards shaking with anger.
Lu Taiheng slowly stood up with the help of a red sandalwood cane. The copper-covered cane made a crisp sound when it knocked against the blue bricks. "Jiaxuan, our ancestors have been honest farmers for generations. We don't like to play with swords and guns."
Bai Jiaxuan subconsciously looked at his son. Qin Hao nodded imperceptibly, took a deep breath, and repeated his son's words from last night.
The voices of opposition gradually weakened. Lu Taiheng opened his mouth, but in the end he said nothing. On the one hand, Bai Jiaxuan was right, and the villagers had nothing to say. It was useless for him to oppose because he was alone and weak. On the other hand, after his son Lu Zilin went to prison, the Lu family was seriously injured and needed to rely on the Bai family to maintain its status.
"Those who want to register must be young and strong between 25 and 45 years old." Bai Jiaxuan held up two fingers, "Those who smoke opium or like to gamble are not accepted!"
A villager asked how much salary this regiment received per month.
Bai Jiaxuan looked at his son and said, "There is no salary, only food."
As soon as these words were spoken, someone started shouting, "Who would work if they don't pay me?" The speaker was a big, strong man. He counted on his fingers, "I can earn thirty copper coins a day by carrying heavy loads for others!"
The ancestral hall was immediately filled with laughter. Several young men echoed in a sarcastic tone: "Just provide food? Do you think we are beggars?"
Bai Jiaxuan's face turned pale.
"Quiet!" Qin Hao suddenly shouted. The sound waves hit the beams and pillars of the ancestral hall, making the eardrums hurt.
After everyone fell silent, Qin Hao pointed his finger at everyone present and said, "This group of brave men are not the Bai family's thugs, nor are they the Lu family's guards. They are here to protect our wives and children, the wheat in the granary, and the silver dollars saved under the kang mats!"
"I believe that the villagers should have heard about it. Now the outside world is saying that we have made money by growing poppies in Bailuyuan. Those bandits and corrupt officials are eyeing us. This time they kidnapped my sister, and next time they might kidnap your relatives. If we have a regiment to protect ourselves, who would dare to mess with us?"
These words were like a basin of cold water poured over everyone's heads. The most vocal opponents shrank their necks and kept silent.
Heiwa suddenly jumped out from the crowd and leaped to the altar like a little leopard: "I sign up!" He grabbed the tea bowl on the altar and smashed it to pieces.
"Whoever wants to touch our Bailu Village must first ask the gun in my hand if it agrees!" Amid the crisp sound of flying porcelain pieces, the young man's dark face turned red.
After the crowd was silent for half a minute, a man in his twenties stood up.
"I'll sign up, too."
"I grew up eating at many people's homes, and now it's time for me to repay everyone. I don't want salary money, but just enough to keep me from starving to death."
As if a dam had burst, the young and strong men rushed forward. Bai Jiaxuan counted them and found that there were more than 30 people, much more than he had expected. He looked at these farmers who usually bent their heads to dig the soil, and now their eyes were shining, and suddenly he felt his nose sore.
"I, Bai Jiaxuan, swear here—" Bai Jiaxuan suddenly lifted up his robe and knelt in front of the ancestral tablet: "Anyone who is injured while protecting the village, the Bai family will invite the best doctor to treat him until his injury is healed!"
"For the disabled, the Bai family will plow the fields for them! All the harvest will belong to them. For those who died in battle, their wives and children will be raised by the Bai family! A separate page will be opened in the family tree so that future generations will remember the names of these good men!"
Every time he spoke, he kowtowed heavily, and the dull sound of his forehead hitting the blue bricks was heart-wrenching.
After the last kowtow, the ancestral hall was so quiet that one could hear the sound of incense ash falling to the ground.
What followed was an uproar, and someone shouted: I signed up too, but I was too slow and they got there first.
Lu Taiheng walked up to Bai Jiaxuan and said earnestly, "Jiaxuan, since the regiment is to protect the peace of our village, the expenses incurred cannot be borne by your Bai family alone. Our Lu family also has the responsibility to support these men who defend our homeland."
"That's right, our Leng family will also do our part..." Mr. Leng also stood up.
Soon, several wealthy family heads in Bailu Village rushed to pay, as if they were afraid that if they paid too slowly, the regiment would no longer protect them.
When Lu Taiheng returned home and asked his daughter-in-law to take the money, Lu Zilin's wife complained: "Da, if the Bai family wants to show off, just let them do it. Why should we flatter the Bai family? If it weren't for their kid, he wouldn't have been locked up..."
"That's just a woman's opinion! The whole village, young and old, are watching. Even the young and strong men who have joined the militia are watching. If our family doesn't pay, will they still help us wholeheartedly if we encounter any problems in the future? Bai Jiaxuan is making a veiled move, using the money of our entire village to support their soldiers. This is a clever move. The Bai family deserves to be prosperous." Lu Taiheng couldn't help but think of his son Lu Zilin. Sure enough, other people's children had never let him down.
……
In just three days, he collected one thousand yuan, which was far beyond Qin Hao's budget. That night, Qin Hao took the one thousand yuan to Xi'an to find his classmate.
At first, when his classmates heard that he was going to buy so many weapons, they were shocked and thought he was going to rebel. But when they heard that he only wanted rifles, they were relieved.
Later, with the help of his classmates, Qin Hao got thirty brand new Hanyang rifles. Of course, these were all "old and broken" that had been discarded by the Quartermaster Department.
There are also a thousand rounds of bullets. Unfortunately, heavy weapons are not available. However, such equipment is enough to equip a regiment of thirty people.
Before taking the equipment away, Qin Hao returned to school and asked for a half-year leave. When the teacher asked him about it, he evaded the question by saying that something had happened at home and he needed help to deal with it.
……
On the threshing ground in the morning mist, thirty regiment warriors lined up in three rows, their feet still stained with mud, but they already held the shiny Hanyang rifles in their hands.
Qin Hao set up a blackboard in the threshing ground, drew a diagram on it, and then demonstrated by holding up the butt of a gun. For these rough guys who couldn't even write their own names, it was better to teach them step by step than to tell them ten times.
"Keep the butt of the gun steady against your shoulder, keep your right eye, the sight, and the target in a straight line, and don't point the muzzle at the ground! If you accidentally fire the gun and break your toe, your wife might remarry overnight..."
The crowd burst into laughter.
After the laughter, Qin Hao began to correct their gun-holding techniques step by step.
A month later, under Qin Hao's training, the originally honest farmers had become quite imposing when they carried the Hanyang-made rifles.
From early morning to sunset, the ridges of the fields are filled with their running figures.
The regiment's soldiers panted heavily, and beads of sweat hit the loess. I don't know who started it, but thirty voices suddenly started to roar in the slang Qin Hao had made up:
"Exchange hoes for steel guns, and use mud legs to protect our hometown!
Three points connected in a line, the bandit will meet his lord of hell! "
At first the villagers gathered together to watch the joke, but gradually the way they looked at these young men changed. They began to believe that perhaps these young men would really protect their safety one day in the future.
That night, Lu San was about to close the back door and go to sleep when suddenly a dark shadow fell in. Lu San was startled and thought it was another bandit.
He was just about to pick up the hoe and hit him, but when he looked at the man in the moonlight, he immediately put down the hoe and helped him up.
"Gou Wa, what's wrong with you?"
"Lu San, is your clan leader here?"
"In the front yard."
"Take me there quickly, something big has happened in our village!"