Chapter 264: This Thing Is Formidable
East of Chengcheng County town, beside the main road, a new cement road stretched towards Gao Family Village. A vast number of laborers, using various rudimentary tools, dug and dug...
It was incredibly arduous work, yet the laborers performed it with remarkable cheerfulness.
This was because the work was paid "daily," and the payments were reliably made.
Every morning, each person would receive a work token from their foreman. With this token, they could collect their meal. After eating, they would proceed to the construction site. If anyone was caught slacking, the foreman would confiscate their token and expel them from the work crew.
If, after a full day's work, their token hadn't been confiscated, it meant they hadn't slacked off—or, perhaps, they had but simply hadn't been caught, which was also acceptable.
In the evening, when work concluded, they would again present their token for supper. Afterward, they would return the token to the foreman and collect three catties of flour to take home.
This was Gao Family Village's "Temporary Labor Management Plan," which had been in effect for over a year. Invented by San Shier, it was proving quite effective, a simple yet efficient system for managing workers.
A staggering 8,200 people from the county town participated in this massive undertaking. Almost every refugee who had come to the town begging for food had joined the construction crew.
Most were responsible for road construction, a smaller portion worked at the cement factory producing cement, and another small group cooked for the 8,000-plus workers. As for the "veteran laborers" from Gao Family Village, they naturally became the foremen.
Li Daoxuan aimed a cluster of cameras at the construction crew. Then, with light taps on the "East" and "North" buttons on the outside of his box, he directed the cameras to perform an "aerial shot" of the colossal crew, capturing the entire scene seamlessly from start to finish.
This shooting session was deeply satisfying. Finding the right moment to edit and upload it would surely thrill his audience on TikTok once more.
Just then, his phone rang. He answered to hear Director Gao, the same official who had called him previously to request authorization for the video promoting Chengcheng's hand-pulled noodles.
Director Gao was clearly overjoyed. "Mr. Li," he exclaimed, "thank you! Your video was superb. Many people who watched it have become interested in our Chengcheng hand-pulled noodles, and tourist traffic has increased significantly recently."
Li Daoxuan was also pleased to hear this. "I'm glad I could help," he replied.
Director Gao said, "It's just that we haven't paid you for your services, and we feel a little bad about that."
Li Daoxuan chuckled. "Haha, it's nothing, really. I said from the start I'd provide it for free. I just hope your county continues to thrive and helps the local people prosper. Oh, by the way, I finished a video of the Chengcheng County God's Temple a few days ago. It's on my TikTok account. If you find it useful, feel free to download and use it. It should also help promote tourism in Chengcheng."
Director Gao was ecstatic. "That would be truly wonderful, thank you! I'll go check it right away... Oh wow... the special effects are incredible! The antique restoration is so well done... You must have spent a fortune making this video, didn't you?"
Li Daoxuan replied, "Not much, really. As long as it helps Chengcheng County, I'm happy."
Director Gao repeatedly expressed his gratitude, then downloaded the video and transferred it to their website.
Li Daoxuan shifted his attention back to the box. The moment his gaze returned, he immediately grasped the situation.
A lone rider on a fast horse was desperately galloping into the county town, shouting, "Urgent military intelligence! Urgent military intelligence!"
Li Daoxuan frowned, quickly directing his "focus" towards the scene.
The rider was one of Liang Shixian's household guards. As soon as he entered the yamen, he tumbled from his horse, urgently shouting, "My Lord, it's terrible! The Guyuan rebels are truly here this time. They are currently passing through Baishui County, heading straight for our Chengcheng County!"
Liang Shixian was startled. "It's not the group we negotiated with, is it?"
"No!" the guard hastily reported. "The one we negotiated with was Ghost Qianhu, who is currently stationed in Huanglong Mountain. This time, it's a fellow named 'North Water Wolf.' The rebels call him 'Wolf Qianhu.' This brute routed Li Ying's unit, captured Guerilla General Li Ying, and has been pillaging grain everywhere. Baishui County has suffered greatly at his hands. Now that he's had his fill in Baishui County, he's heading for our Chengcheng County!"
Liang Shixian cursed. "Damn it! Quickly go notify Inspector Fang and all the town and village militias. Tell them to prepare for battle immediately!"
The household guard nodded, swiftly remounted his horse, and spurred it towards where Fang Wushang was stationed.
Liang Shixian turned, addressing another household guard. "Go to Bai Family Fortress immediately and ring the bell, summoning Ghost Qianhu to aid us. I made an agreement with him!"
The guard nodded, dashed out, mounted a fast horse, and galloped frantically towards Bai Family Fortress.
Liang Shixian's heart pounded with panic. Border troops, they were truly border troops! And they had actually come.
Don't panic, he told himself. We still have Ghost Qianhu, who is also from the border army. Border troops against border troops, plus the help of our local militias and brave volunteers—this battle can be fought.
Li Daoxuan observed the scene, clicked his tongue, and pondered for a moment. This time, Gao Yiye wouldn't need to return to the village to give notice. Cheng Xu, he figured, would know what to do even without his direct instructions.
He tapped around the north, south, east, and west directions on the diorama box. Finally, he located them.
He reached out and tapped the "Gao Family Village" label. His view jumped back, and he scanned the village, but surprisingly couldn't find them.
Cheng Xu and the militia, to his surprise, were actually in a desolate mountain area next to the Ordnance Bureau. In front of them stood Xu Dafu, the head of the Ordnance Bureau.
Xu Dafu was handing a black, fist-sized sphere to Gao Chuwu. Pointing to the fuse on the sphere, he instructed, "See this clearly? Light it, then throw this sphere forward with all your might."
Gao Chuwu grinned broadly. "My strength is immense, you know! I can throw it really, really far!"
Xu Dafu countered, "I advise you to throw it as far as possible. If it's too close, it will kill you."
That remark gave Gao Chuwu quite a fright. He quickly pulled his helmet down, shrinking his entire body inside his massive iron armor, transforming into a giant metallic figure.
"Is this enough?"
"Yes, that's fine. Light the fuse now."
Zheng Daniu darted over from the side, helped Gao Chuwu ignite the black sphere's fuse, then promptly clapped his hands over his ears and retreated frantically.
The fuse began to burn.
When it had burned halfway, Xu Dafu yelled, "You can throw it now!"
With a booming "Heh!" Gao Chuwu roared, raised his long arm, and swung it forward with immense force.
The black sphere flew through the air, soaring far, far away, covering dozens of meters—a distance even beyond the effective range of a Three-Eyed Arquebus.
It landed.
"BOOM!"
A tremendous explosion rocked the valley, and the colossal sound of it made everyone flinch.
Several seconds later, as the thick smoke dissipated, Cheng Xu was the first to burst into laughter. "Hahaha! This thing is formidable! This thing is absolutely incredible, hahaha! Combined with the brute strength of those two fools, Gao Chuwu and Zheng Daniu, it's enough to slay gods and Buddhas alike!"
Comments