Travel to the mountains and make a fortune in silence

Wang Qing'er composed herself and quickly said, "Oh, it's nothing. Zixuan, you quickly take people to transport all the grain outside the village back to the village, including everything edible from the fields. First, bring the elderly, women, and children from the farm back to the village, and make sure everyone else is safe."

Wu Zixuan nodded in agreement, "Okay, sister-in-law, I'll go and make the arrangements right away."

Wang Qing'er watched his departing figure, took a deep breath, and calmed herself down.

She knew that now was not the time to panic; she had to take action as soon as possible to protect her family's lives.

She is considering whether to move the elderly and children in her family to the mountains.

As Gu Yong and Gu Liang watched Wu Zixuan walk out of the courtyard, they exchanged a glance, put down their chopsticks in tacit agreement, and hurriedly followed him.

Meanwhile, at the village entrance, Village Chief Wang and Wu Zihao were gathering the village patrol team members.

They saw Village Chief Wang and Wu Zihao standing together with solemn expressions, and the atmosphere around them seemed somewhat oppressive.

They all stood ramrod straight, not daring to utter a sound.

Village Chief Wang took a deep breath and then told the patrol team everything that had happened in the county town.

When they heard that the county town had been occupied by the Japanese, the patrolmen couldn't help but gasp, their faces showing fear and unease.

Seeing this, Village Chief Wang quickly comforted them, saying, "I know you're scared, and I'm scared too. But we can't back down; we must bravely face the difficulties and dangers that are about to happen."

Behind us are our own parents, wives, children, and brothers and sisters.

Over the years, you have persisted in practicing martial arts every day, and your skills are quite good.

Moreover, our village is protected by sturdy city walls, so it won't be so easy for those Japanese to invade!

So please don't panic or lose your composure. Next, you need to be more vigilant, patrol carefully, and protect our village.

From now on, strangers will not be allowed to enter the village. If any relatives or friends of villagers come to seek refuge, their relatives must come out to claim them. We cannot allow Japanese people to infiltrate the village.

Next, I will organize another patrol team in the village to strengthen our defenses.

You must be fully focused. Team leaders, you will assign tasks yourselves, and work in three shifts. The number of people on night shift will be twice that of the day shift.

Not only must the village entrance be guarded, but personnel must also be stationed at every post on the village's city wall.

It's very cold at night now, so please bear with it. I'll arrange for everyone to bring out firewood so you can light a fire and keep warm..."

Although Chief Wang's words reassured the patrol team somewhat, their hearts were still filled with fear and unease.

After all, the Japanese are notorious for their brutality, and no one knows whether they will launch a large-scale attack on the village.

Village Chief Wang was equally afraid.

But as the village head, he had to remain calm and not let the villagers see his fear.

The village has several thousand people, and any mishap could lead to irreparable consequences.

Before long, the village chief quickly arranged for someone to ride a horse and strike a gong throughout Aoshan Village to summon the villagers to a meeting at the village entrance.

Aoshan Village is so big that if you bang a gong at the village entrance, many households won't be able to hear it.

The people who were having a feast at the Wu family's house also heard the sound of the gong. They had finished eating and drinking, so they put down their bowls and chopsticks, said goodbye to the Wu family, and hurried to the village entrance.

The once bustling Wu family home suddenly became deserted.

"Zixu, today is your big day, so don't go out. Stay home and keep your wife company."

Wu Lien-teh looked at his son and said.

Wu Zixu nodded hurriedly: "I understand, Dad."

Wu Liansheng: "Not everyone needs to go out. Just send one person out to listen. The village is planning to form another patrol team. Our family plans to send ten people first. What do you think?"

The Wu family now has more than thirty guards.

With many women, children, and elderly people in the family, the guards were responsible for protecting the safety of the entire family when they returned to the village.

In the capital, only a few people remained to guard the courtyard.

Everyone agreed.

"If the Japanese really come to attack our village, then all the able-bodied men will probably have to go out and defend against them," said Old Mrs. Wu with a worried expression. She knew very well that once the Japanese attacked, the young men in the village would be the first to stand in front of them.

Zhou echoed, "Yes, we old women will stay put and not cause them any trouble."

Although she is old, she understands that at times like these, all she can do is try her best not to add to everyone's burden.

Wang Qing'er said, "Grandma, why don't you take the children into the mountains? It's very safe there."

Although she had never been to the mountains, she had heard her husband say that many masters were trained there, and that powerful formations were set up in the surrounding forests, which only a few family members knew how to enter.

Zhou shook her head. "Let's not rush this. Let's see how things go."

She was also familiar with the situation in the mountains and knew that it was a backup plan left by her eldest grandson. She advised against going into the mountains unless absolutely necessary.

Grandma Wu looked at her daughter and son-in-law and said earnestly, "Son-in-law, Lianhua, you shouldn't go back. We don't know what the situation is like outside."

She was worried that her daughter and son-in-law might encounter danger outside, so she hoped they could stay in the village so they could look after each other.

“Mother-in-law, please let Lianhua and the children stay here. I need to go back and check on things at both shops, and also organize and hide the items.”

Wang's father had come to attend the banquet today, but who could have predicted such a turn of events? He hadn't brought anything with him, and if he didn't go back, what would happen to the family fortune? It was the culmination of his life's work.

Wang Qing'er: "Father, I'll arrange for people to go back with you, just like when we encountered the flood, to move everything from the shop and our home to the village."

After listening, Wang's father thought about it for a moment and felt that Wang Qing'er's suggestion was very appropriate, so he nodded and agreed: "Okay, I'll go back now."

Seeing this, Wu Ziqi quickly said, "Uncle, I'll go with you."

Wu Ziyu quickly echoed, "I'll go too."

"Then you should set off quickly. Remember to bring several carriages and more people to go with you, so that you can move things more quickly."

Wang Qing'er felt that her adoptive father had changed a lot and become a better person since Old Lady Wang died.

It's gotten much better for Wu Lianhua.

"Okay!" Mr. Wang quickly replied, then got up and hurriedly headed towards the door, afraid of being late.