Daily life of farming and supporting a family on the ancient Loess Plateau

Chapter 593 Meeting Hu Bingwei Again

Although the bandits didn't attack, Ji Laosi said that Ji Bawa and his wife had disappeared, and everyone thought they must have been kidnapped by the bandits. With someone leading the way, the bandits would definitely come to Niujiazhuang soon.

Ignoring the sweltering heat, the villagers gathered under the big locust tree, hastily discussing countermeasures, including Ji Yongling.

Some people suggested running into the ditch to hide. But there was nowhere to shelter from the wind and rain in the ditch, just a few dilapidated kilns. First, not many people could live there, and second, what would happen to the family's hard-earned possessions?

Some people said that it would be better to run to the neighboring county, or even better, to Qingzhou Prefecture... But everyone felt that if they did that, they might become homeless and landless refugees!

After much discussion, they still couldn't come up with a solution that would satisfy both sides.

After finishing a pipe of tobacco in a depressed mood, Old Master Ji said, "Run? How can we run? You all forget, when we were running around in our younger days, we encountered bandits on the way, and so many people died. We old bones were saved by our families risking their lives to protect us back then!"

Oh right, Ji Yongling suddenly remembered that her great-grandfather's entire family had perished while fighting bandits. Sigh, was history about to repeat itself?

Grandpa Ji continued, "Besides, this year's new grain has just come down, and this is the foundation for our survival next year! With so much grain, can each household haul it all away in one cart? If we don't haul it away, and leave it to the bandits, what will we eat on the road?"

"This won't work, that won't work, what should we do? We can't just sneak into the house and wait for the bandits to come to our door!" someone complained anxiously.

Niu Lizheng was somewhat angry and said, "You want to run? Who's stopping you? If you want to run, then hurry up and take your wife and kids and run! You have legs, who's holding you back from running?"

The person complaining stopped talking, and then everyone else fell silent. At this point, instead of sticking together for mutual support, going it alone will likely lead to an even quicker demise!

Ji Yongling thought for a moment, then stepped forward and said, "Sir, village head, since it's not easy to run away, how about this? Everyone, first take some corn stalks to the ditch, build some corn stalk shelters that can keep out the wind, and then carry some grain down there so that the women and children can hide first."

The remaining grain was hidden in various places by each household. Whether it was in the stove, vegetable cellar, water cellar, or even a quarry, they hid some grain in every possible place so that when bandits came, they wouldn't be able to find and take it all!

In addition, all the young men, uncles, and brothers in our village can form a team and take turns hiding and keeping watch at the beginning and end of the village. If they notice anything amiss, they should immediately notify the others!

Upon hearing this, Niu Lao Er agreed, saying, "I think Yonglingwa is right! If we rush to escape, who knows what we'll encounter on the way? We should do as Yonglingwa suggests, hide the grain, and hide in the ditch for a few days to see if the county magistrate can catch the bandits!"

Others agreed.

Niu Lizheng didn't care about anything else and directly ordered, "Women, go back and prepare dry food. Men, grab the corn stalks and rafters and hurry to the ditch to build the shed! Uncle Ji, the task of arranging the village guards for the young men in our village is up to you and Yonglingwa to discuss."

Once the matter was settled, everyone felt a little more at ease and went their separate ways to tidy up their homes.

Ji Yongling and Grandpa Ji roughly divided the able-bodied men in the village into several groups, and prepared to take turns guarding the village entrance and exit starting tonight.

In addition, Ji Yongling planned to have these able-bodied men pile up jujube and pepper trees brought back from the ditch at the entrance and exit of the village. These trees had thorns and would block the road, which could delay the bandits on horseback for a while.

After finishing all that, Ji Yongling arrived home and saw that Jia Ronghua and Lin Shengwen had already tidied up. Before she could even say what her next plan was, there was a knock on the courtyard gate.

The door knocker was knocked several times.

Ji Yongling and Lin Shengwen exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of danger in each other's eyes.

Normally, villagers would simply call out when knocking on the door, "Is Manchuan home?" or "Is Yongling's mother home?" Even when knocking, they would pat the door instead of knocking on the door knocker. Moreover, since everyone in the village already knew the bandits were coming and everyone was busy preparing, the knocking at this time sounded particularly unusual.

"Mother, you and the baby hide first, don't come out, I'm going to check!" Ji Yongling instructed Jia Ronghua, then slowly walked towards the door.

Upon reaching the gate, Lin Shengwen picked up an axe, gripped it tightly, and asked warily, "Who is it?"

A man stood outside the door and replied, "Young man, I'm just passing by. It's hot and my mouth is dry. I was thinking of asking you for a drink of water. Is it convenient for you?"

"There's no water in my house! Get out of here, get out of here!" Lin Shengwen said irritably.

"Wait a minute, I'll fetch you some water! We're all just poor people, it's nothing." Ji Yongling said, stopping the person outside the door.

"What are you doing?" Lin Shengwen asked in a low, impatient voice.

Ji Yongling shook her head and said in a low voice, "This man is suspicious! If he can't get water from my house, he'll go to someone else's house, like my fourth uncle's next door! These days, all the able-bodied men in the village have gone to the ditch and aren't home. I can't let him leave!"

Lin Shengwen nodded thoughtfully: "That makes sense! I'll just tie him up later!"

Ji Yongling shook his head and said, "Don't rush to make a move. If this person is a bandit, he will probably be on guard, and he may even have accomplices. We should act according to the situation!"

After saying that, she took a gourd, filled it with water from inside the house, and peered through the crack in the door. Outside, a man dressed in tattered clothes with disheveled hair was looking into the room with an unfriendly gaze.

Ji Yongling glanced at the man a couple more times, then gestured for Lin Shengwen to hide behind a door, and gently pulled open the latch.

When the man outside saw the gate open, he quickly put on a fawning expression and said gratefully, "Girl, you are so kind. Giving me a bowl of water on such a hot day is like saving my life!" As he spoke, he handed a broken bowl to the crack in the door.

Ji Yongling slowly opened a door, but instead of taking the bowl, she opened the gourd in her hand and poured a bowl of water into the man's bowl.

Seeing that the bowl was full of water, the man thanked Ji Yongling again and then gulped it down in one go.

Ji Yongling's eyes flickered. Seeing the man finish his bowl of water, she poured him another. While Ji Yongling was pouring him water, the man leaned closer. In the blink of an eye, the man reached out and grabbed Ji Yongling's neck.