Starting with choosing a wife, creating the most powerful Xia

Ah Leng's red lips were already slightly parted, showing her astonishment.

Today she heard Chu Ling'er recount what they had encountered yesterday, but what she heard and what she saw with her own eyes were ultimately different.

The sheer impact of having such a mountain of treasure right before your eyes is something you can't get just by hearing about it.

Overjoyed, she thought, "My husband has been through so much trouble, but now things are finally looking up."

Most of the troubles in this world are caused by hardship. Now that he has a large sum of money as a foundation, not only will he have fewer worries in the future, but Chu Xuan's plans and preparations will also have the opportunity to be fully realized.

There were no warehouses or similar facilities in the village, so for the time being, Lu Yongyuan's house was cleared out and used as a temporary warehouse.

Although they were extremely tired, every villager's face shone with joy.

After Chu Xuan summoned Chen Lu, he put him in charge of the warehouse security together with Zhou Meng.

On the one hand, it was to test Zhou Meng; on the other hand, it was also to be a little wary of the villagers.

The villagers of Wuming Village used to be quite simple and honest, but Chu Xuan didn't think that human nature could withstand such a test. A person who was used to being poor might suddenly have evil thoughts when he saw a treasure mountain fall from the sky.

He then divided the warehouse key into two copies, keeping one for himself and giving the other to Chu Ling'er.

When she received the key, Chu Ling'er was at a loss for words, and her eyes began to well up with tears again.

For her, this was more than just a simple key; it represented Chu Xuan's trust.

Seeing that she seemed about to cry from emotion again, Chu Xuan could only smile wryly.

He quickly said, "Ling'er, from now on, when we distribute wages to the villagers or buy anything, we'll have to go through you. This matter seems simple, but it's actually quite complicated and meticulous. You're very thoughtful, so it's more suitable to entrust this matter to you."

Chu Ling'er nodded emphatically: "Husband, rest assured, Ling'er will definitely live up to your expectations."

"Of course my husband trusts you."

Chu Xuan chuckled.

He did this to give Chu Ling'er something to do; he couldn't let her stay bored all the time, or she might think she was a useless person.

Now that he holds the reins of finance, he will naturally be viewed with greater respect.

After making these arrangements, A Leng led her people down the mountain.

Chu Xuan found the village chief who was busy at work, took him home, and made him a cup of tea.

The village chief was puzzled for a moment and was about to ask a question when he heard Chu Xuan speak.

“Village chief, I have already spoken to Zhou Meng about those bandits. In the future, apart from leaving a few people to guard the warehouse for him, the rest will be incorporated into his private army.”

The village chief had known for a long time that Chu Xuan had this idea. He had probably spared the Hanyang Gang members because of this, so he wasn't too surprised.

Those mountain bandits may not have any other skills, but they are ruthless and vicious, which is top-notch. Otherwise, they would not have become outlaws.

But Chu Xuan's next words stunned him.

"Also, see if there are any able-bodied young men around twenty years old in the village, who are physically strong and trustworthy, and bring me some as well. Not many, about twenty or thirty should be enough."

The village chief looked at him blankly: "Sir, do you want the villagers to join this private army?"

He hadn't thought about it that way. To be honest, the village chief still had a lot of doubts about Chu Xuan's private army plan, but he agreed to handle it out of instinctive trust.

Deep down, he was unwilling to let the villagers get involved.

"good."

Chu Xuan nodded in agreement without any attempt to hide his feelings.

“The bandits can indeed give this private army some fighting power in a short time, but you have been in Wuming Mountain for so many years, you should know what kind of people they are. They can be used temporarily, but it is impossible for them to last long.”

"They are only temporarily subdued because of my intimidation, but who can guarantee that these people won't harbor rebellious intentions?"

You see, most of the people who become bandits are restless and quick-witted. Chu Xuan wouldn't be surprised if they got into all sorts of trouble.

In addition, they are used to being carefree, disorganized and undisciplined, and have no connection with the phrase "military orders are like mountains." They might suddenly become disobedient, making it impossible for Chu Xuan to place his bets on them with peace of mind.

Therefore, he had to prepare for both possibilities.

The Hanyang gang members are only there temporarily; we'll see how things develop before making a final decision.

The young and middle-aged people in the village are what Chu Xuan needs to focus on.

"Don't worry, although these young and middle-aged men don't do any production, the village's warehouse will give each of them a monthly stipend of one tael. In addition, the village will build a house and canteen for them, providing meals three times a day, with at least one meal including meat. Those who perform exceptionally well will receive additional rewards."

"I won't drag them to their deaths for no reason. At least I'll make sure they have enough ability to protect the village."

Perhaps sensing the worry in the village chief's eyes, Chu Xuan added a sentence.

His offer was actually quite generous in the entire Great Xia Dynasty.

According to the laws of the Great Xia Dynasty, an ordinary soldier is not actually under the command of the military camp. Most of them farm at home and earn their own money through their own labor.

Only when conscripted during wartime will each person be given 300 copper coins per month as military pay.

But in Chu Xuan's private army, they didn't even need to do regular work. Even if they didn't go to war, they still had a fixed monthly salary.

That's quite a generous sum.

If this condition were to get out, who knows how many people would be scrambling to get in.

The village chief also gasped, and was immediately moved.

After hesitating for a moment, he slowly nodded.

"In that case, I will spread the news soon, but there is one thing..."

He said with a wry smile, "I don't know how to train troops either."

The village chief had lived on the nameless mountain for generations, and his knowledge of military equipment was limited to what he had heard of. He was completely ignorant about how to train soldiers, let alone Zhou Meng and the others.

But Chu Xuan just waved his hand and smiled.

“The village chief need not worry about this matter. After I have investigated Zhou Meng, I will have him handle it.”

The village chief was taken aback: "Zhou Meng? Sir, this man used to be a bandit. He's good at robbing and plundering, but can such an important task as training soldiers be entrusted to an outsider?"

A bandit leader going to train troops? Don't be ridiculous.

But Chu Xuan just smiled inexplicably.

Zhou Meng was obviously out of the question, but Chu Xuan hadn't considered using ordinary methods to train his troops either.

After all, no matter how good the training methods of this era are, can they compare to his dimensional reduction attack?

He will write down the modern training methods of Earth and let the soldiers practice them. Zhou Meng will just need to supervise from the side.

Does it matter whether he will or not?