If you traveled back to ancient times, while others ate Guanyin clay, you would actually have giant

Only then did everyone lift the horse's hoof, but the shod hoof remained unchanged.

"This is amazing! I made a special trip to the rocky beach, and it didn't even crack."

Not only Niu Er, but everyone in the village militia was shocked by what they saw.

"Old Chiang, I'm sorry to trouble you, but please load all the horses."

"Okay, my lord."

Having accomplished his task, Zhou Wu left without a trace, leaving behind only the admiring and astonished gazes of the crowd.

_________

Qingyang County

"Go and deliver this letter to the chief of Silverlight Cave."

"Yes"

After returning from Niujia Village, Peng Zhenguo became increasingly angry. He, a high-ranking official of the imperial court, had been so insulted. After much thought, he realized that he couldn't take action openly, so he could only do it in secret.

The leader of Yinguang Cave and Peng Zhenguo have been cooperating for many years. It can be said that the two cooperate with each other, or it can be said that they exploit each other.

However, Peng Zhenguo was unaware at this time that the person in charge of Yinguang Cave had changed.

. . . . .

Silverlight Cave.

"Brother, when are we going to take revenge?"

Silverlight Cave is now the domain of One-Eyed Dragon and Niu Bi. Niu Bi is currently groping a village woman he has kidnapped, while One-Eyed Dragon is flirting with a beautiful woman.

"Hmph, Second Brother, don't worry. In a few days, once we have complete control of Silver Light Cave, it will be the end for Niu Family Village. At that time, I will let you personally lead people to raze Niu Family Village to the ground."

"Okay, thank you, brother."

Thinking of the villagers of Niujia Village who had driven him away, and then of his elderly mother who died of a stroke not long after being driven out, Niu Bi's eyes were filled with rage, and he wished he could exterminate everyone in Niujia Village immediately.

"Boss, Second Boss, and the magistrate of Qingyang County."

The two were playing around when someone suddenly came to report.

"The envoy from Qingyang County?"

Upon hearing that it was an envoy sent by the government, both men were startled and broke out in a cold sweat.

"How many people came from the other side?"

Unlike the one-eyed dragon, Niu Bi quickly calmed down. The official had sent an envoy, not a soldier, which meant that things were not as he had imagined.

"Reporting to the Second Master, only one person from the other side has arrived."

"Big brother."

Niu Bi gave the one-eyed dragon a wink, and the other understood.

"welcome."

"Yes."

As soon as the henchmen left, One-Eyed Dragon waved for the two women to leave as well.

"Brother, what's going on?"

"Brother, I think things might not be as we think. If the government troops are attacking us, why only send one messenger? Why don't we wait and see?"

"Alright, I'll do as my brother says."

One-Eyed Dragon and Niu Bi have known each other since the days of Flying Tiger Village. One-Eyed Dragon is skilled but not very bright, while Niu Bi is quick-witted. The two hit it off immediately and became sworn brothers. So when One-Eyed Dragon is unsure of something, he usually asks Niu Bi for advice. Even the idea of ​​seizing the position of leader of Silver Light Cave was Niu Bi's.

"Boss, the messenger has arrived."

"Greetings, Your Majesty."

It was quite obvious that there was a hint of fear in the person's trembling voice.

"what's up."

Since they didn't know the other party's intentions, Niu Bi specifically reminded One-Eyed Dragon not to say too much.

"I am here to deliver a message for the County Magistrate."

"Oh,"

The henchman took the letter from the messenger and handed it to you, One-Eyed Dragon, but One-Eyed Dragon couldn't read, so he just gave you a writing brush.

Niu Bi opened the letter, examined it carefully, and then his face lit up with joy. He then gave the instructions.

"Come on, prepare a feast and properly entertain the envoy."

"Yes."

The henchmen swarmed around the messenger as he went off to drink and make merry, while One-Eyed Dragon looked at Niu Bi with a puzzled expression.

"Brother, this is great news!"

"Brother, what brings you this joy?"

"Brother, it turns out that the county magistrate of Qingyang County had a secret alliance with the former chief of Yinguang Cave. However, it is clear that the other party does not know that we have taken over. But that is not important. Since the other party can collude with the former chief, he can naturally cooperate with us. This letter is to ask us to find an opportunity to deal with Zhou Wu of Niujia Village."

"Haha, very good, very good. We were looking for revenge anyway, and we just happened to run into this. Let's use Zhou Wu's head as a pledge of loyalty. I'm sure the county magistrate will be satisfied."

"correct."

What thieves fear most is officials, of course. What ordinary people fear most is collusion between officials and bandits. Getting in touch with the government was something neither of them dared to dream of before. And now the opportunity has arrived.

Now that I think about it, the fact that Yinguang Cave was able to entrenched itself in Qingyang County for so many years and still rank among the top three in terms of power must have been largely due to the official background.

"Second brother, how should we reply to the county magistrate?"

"Brother, let's not reveal our identities yet. The messenger probably hasn't met the previous chieftain either. Let's pretend to be the former chieftain and agree to this. Once the matter is settled, we can bring some money with us. Wouldn't that solve the problem?"

“You’re right, my brother.”

In order to climb the social ladder to become the county magistrate, One-Eyed Dragon and Niu Bi immediately decided to accelerate their plan to retaliate against Niu Family Village.

. . . .

Niujia Village.

"Niu Er has been out with the local militia for several days now. Hopefully nothing bad has happened to him."

Niu Ye was a little worried. A few days ago, after discussing with Zhou Wu, Niu Er decided to lead the local militia to suppress bandits, which would also be a good opportunity for them to practice fighting.

"Uncle Niu, you can rest assured. With the current strength of the local militia, which bandit stronghold in the entire Qingyang County would dare to confront us head-on? Besides, before we set off, I already told Niu Er to proceed step by step and start with the small bandit groups."

"That makes sense, but for some reason, I just feel a little uneasy."

Uncle Niu actually knew the strength of the local militia, but his eyelids kept twitching today, so he asked the question.

"Come on, I'll treat you to some sweet fermented rice."

"not in the mood."

"Oh, let's go."

These days, a widow opened a fermented rice wine stall at the entrance of the village. Since it opened, the business has been booming. Because there are no snacks or drinks in this era, fermented rice wine has become a rare drink in Zhou Wu's eyes, and he goes back to support the business from time to time.

"Boss lady, two bowls."

"Yes, Lord Zhou, Lord Village Chief, please have a seat."

The landlady was an outsider who came to Niujia Village with other migrants. Because Niujia Village was not xenophobic and the locals were nice, most of the migrants who came to Niujia Village settled down here.

In order to help these refugees rebuild their families as soon as possible, Zhou Wu also provided interest-free loans to families in need. Therefore, almost everyone in Niujia Village knew Zhou Wu, and no one dared to say anything bad about him.

As soon as the two sat down, the proprietress brought over two bowls of fermented glutinous rice, each filled to the brim.

"Thank you, boss lady."

"Hey kid, you've got your eye on her, haven't you?"

"Uncle Niu, what are you saying? I just think the fermented rice is pretty good."

No wonder Master Niu misunderstood. Zhou Wu comes to drink a bowl of fermented rice wine almost every day. Anyone would think his motives were impure.