Chapter 160: Chopsticks and Rolling Logs
Li Daoxuan's field of view was actually wide enough to see all the bandit forces.
Zhengjia Village had been the first village where he expanded his view, only about two or three miles in a straight line from Gao Family Village. Since then, his field of view had continuously expanded, now encompassing more than five miles around and revealing several other villages.
Therefore, the vast mountain forests east of Zhengjia Village, within Heyang County, were all within his field of view.
The sight of eight thousand bandit soldiers climbing the mountain together was genuinely amusing, like a swarm of tiny ants scurrying up a miniature rockery in a potted plant.
Upon closer inspection, although the bandit forces numbered eight thousand, fewer than half were able-bodied fighters. Only the front three or four thousand had any real combat capability; the latter half consisted entirely of the elderly, weak, women, and children.
This was a notable characteristic of the peasant wars in the late Ming Dynasty. Though numerous, the bandit forces couldn't truly be called an "army." Wherever they went, they forcibly conscripted all the local populace to march with them, and among these conscripted civilians, the proportion of the elderly, weak, women, and children was considerable.
When battle erupted, they were of no use.
They also consumed vast amounts of food, becoming a burden on the bandit forces.
This meant that while the bandit forces sounded impressive, often numbering tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands, their combat effectiveness was low. Even if they looted relentlessly, they still couldn't eat their fill or stay warm.
Xing Honglang rolled her eyes beside him, thinking to herself: "You weren't saying that a moment ago! You were clearly planning to retreat. What suddenly invigorated you so much? What exactly gave you this confidence? It seemed to happen the instant that seemingly foolish simpleton mentioned 'the Heavenly Lord will help.' This Instructor He instantly became invigorated. How peculiar."
The militia, over a hundred strong, dispersed to search for suitable large stones.
Xing Honglang had already considered retreating. However, seeing the militia preparing for battle, if she retreated now, it would seem cowardly and against the code of loyalty of the martial world. She glanced at her subordinates; her thirty or forty salt smugglers seemed to share the same idea, all a bit eager to retreat but unwilling to abandon their loyalty.
"Move stones!" Xing Honglang finally decided to stay.
Over a hundred people immediately spread out, searching everywhere for large stones.
Xing Honglang quickly found a head-sized stone, intending to carry it to the cliff edge. But as she reached for it, she realized her right upper arm couldn't bear strain. If she exerted herself, the wound would reopen.
Her brow furrowed slightly.
Just then, a man even more robust than her came over from the side, effortlessly picked up the stone, and helped her carry it to the cliff edge.
Gao Chuwu arrived.
Xing Honglang shot him a glance: "Hmph, I never need help with my work!"
Gao Chuwu was still feeling guilty about the previous incident. He didn't reply, turning to carry another stone.
Soon, everyone had gathered a pile of stones.
But.
It was clearly not enough!
Suitable stones weren't something you could just conjure up. Stones that were too small were useless; they needed to be large enough to kill a person. But they couldn't be so large that they were impossible to move. This placed strict limits on the size of the stones. If they had ample time to prepare slowly, it wouldn't be difficult, but finding many stones of the right size within a short period was indeed challenging.
Cheng Xu glanced at the stones everyone had brought to the cliff edge. There were fewer than three hundred pieces. Over a hundred people, roaring in unison, could throw them all down in just two rounds. This wouldn't achieve much at all.
Xing Honglang said, "It's too late to cut down trees and make rolling logs now."
Cheng Xu frowned, "What can we do?"
Li Daoxuan understood their predicament. He chuckled and reached for a large box of disposable chopsticks he had accumulated from countless takeout orders.
It was a truly massive box of chopsticks. He casually plucked one out.
Then, with a snap of his hand, a small piece, several millimeters long, broke off. Another snap, and another small piece broke off. For those that wouldn't snap, he resorted to large scissors. Before long, he had a handful of short wooden sticks.
The shorter ones were about 3-4 millimeters long, the longer ones about 6-8 millimeters long. He broke them casually, without bothering to make them neat or uniform. Then, he reached out and placed this large pile of short wooden sticks into the diorama box.
Cheng Xu and Xing Honglang were in the midst of their frustration. Suddenly, they saw the clouds in the sky part. A vast pile of wooden logs, supported by an unseen force, slowly descended from the heavens, piling up before them.
Xing Honglang was instantly startled. Her thirty or forty salt smugglers were even more terrified, retreating repeatedly.
But the Gao Family Village Militia, however, was not frightened. First, they collectively bowed deeply towards the sky. Then they laughed in hushed tones: "The Heavenly Lord truly will protect us, heh heh heh."
"We were just worrying about not finding enough rolling logs and stones, and now we suddenly have so many rolling logs!"
"These wooden stakes are just the right size!"
"They're perfect!"
Cheng Xu's spirits also soared. "Whatever we lack, the Heavenly Lord provides! How can we lose this battle? Hahaha!" He casually picked up an arm-length log and placed it at the cliff edge. He laughed triumphantly: "One of these pushed down the mountain, rolling all the way, will crush so many foolish bandits! Hahaha!"
Just as he was thinking this, a "boom" sounded nearby. Gao Chuwu and Zheng Daniu carried over a massive log, a man's length. They set it down at the cliff edge. Then the two simple-minded men grinned together: "When we push this one down the mountain, it's guaranteed to make them cry for their mothers!"
Cheng Xu: "..."
The younger generation truly does surpass the old, leaving the former to perish on the sands. Cheng Xu thought to himself: "From now on, I'll just focus on commanding. Competing in strength with these two simpletons is simply inviting humiliation."
It was only then that Xing Honglang collected her thoughts. She pointed, aghast, at the sudden pile of logs before them: "These things... how did they fly down from the sky?"
Cheng Xu turned to her. "A gift from the Heavenly Lord," he said.
Xing Honglang looked up at the sky. "The Heavenly Lord is..."
Cheng Xu declared, "A deity!"
Xing Honglang: "!!!"
She had been to Gao Family Village several times. She often heard the name "Heavenly Lord," but she always thought the Heavenly Lord was some kind of cult leader. And Gao Yiye was this cult leader's woman. A Saintess, in her experience, was typically just a figurehead for a cult leader to parade around and use as he pleased.
Only now did she realize things weren't quite as she had imagined.
The Heavenly Lord really *was* a Heavenly Lord!
And the Saintess really *was* a Saintess!
For a moment, Xing Honglang didn't know how to react to this situation. She froze.
Her group of salt smugglers, however, didn't overthink it like she did. Since they had witnessed a deity manifest, they might as well worship. With a rustle, they prostrated themselves on the ground.
Cheng Xu chuckled. "Stop prostrating yourselves and get to work! Move all the wood granted by the Heavenly Lord to the cliff edge! The bandits are getting closer!"
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