Chapter Twenty-Five: Launching Another Attack

  "Great-grandson, I heard you guys went out to fight bandits these past few days. Look at all the extra guns you have - even if they're just homemade shotguns, we wouldn't look down on them. Can you sell a few to your great-grandfather?"

  Liu He was waiting for news from Li Lu and others at home when Liu Xiu came to find him. Liu Xiu's goal was confirmed, which was to buy the land cannon in Liu He's hands. Why did he want to buy it from Liu He? There were plenty of them outside, but Liu Xiu said that he hoped Liu He would sell it to them at a lower price, as they couldn't afford to buy it from outsiders.

  Although Liu Xiu and these people didn't have much land, they were considered to be quite well-off in the village. They naturally wanted to ensure their own safety. At first, they envied Li Lao Cai for having a gun, but no one was willing to spend their own money to buy one. It wasn't until this time when they heard that Liu He had gone out to fight bandits that they began to covet the shotgun in his hands. This could be considered a real gun, after all.

  "Grandfather, like this, I can give you those eight muzzle-loaders and also give you a rifle. However, I have one request: the person you choose must learn how to use these firearms properly, don't let them become like Li Lao Cai, who carried a gun on his back as if it were a toy, without even firing it once."

  It wasn't until Liu He had made several inquiries that he found out the two housemen under Lao Lai's command didn't know how to shoot a gun, they just liked to carry them around and show off, they were actually just for show.

  "Who's going to teach us, then?" "Rifles? Who told you that there are people here who can teach you? Wouldn't it be them teaching you?" "Hehe, my little grandson said that. Isn't he also learning how to shoot with Dog Egg and the others? He must have heard it from Dog Egg."

  Nature, Liu He guessed that this matter was spoken from the mouths of children. At first, when Liu Xiu came to find him, Liu He had anger in his heart, but after careful consideration, he really didn't instruct the workers to spread it out. Moreover, with the presence of children, the news would naturally spread out. Next, Liu He needed to announce discipline, that nothing could be said, especially now that it was three or four years before the little devils would invade, and this place was close to the railway line, so the little devils would naturally visit frequently, which required everyone to keep their mouths shut.

  "Grandfather, this matter of having guns, I'm leaving it all up to you. You must tell everyone in the village not to mention it, no matter who asks, don't admit that our village has guns, and also say that there's no one in our village who knows how to use a gun. Use Lao Li as an example, saying he was like that when he first had a gun too. I'm counting on you to take care of this."

  "Alright, good grandchild, although I don't know what you're thinking, I can see that you are good for the village. But, grandchild, tell me, was Wang Big Whiskers beaten to death by you? Because I saw several of your workers were originally under Wang Big Whiskers' command."

  Liu He let out a long sigh, this secret really can't be kept hidden anymore. Liu Xiu is such an old fox, if he hadn't come to buy cheap guns today, he wouldn't have spoken about this matter.

  …………

  "Master, master, I've heard that there are bandits on Golden Phoenix Mountain sixty miles away from our village. They have already come down the mountain to rob and kill people. It's said that they killed many villagers who refused to hand over their grain this time. The leader of the bandits is called Zhao Dapian."

  "He's guilty of a heinous crime, isn't he?" "Yes, they're extremely resentful." "Alright then, it's them. You all go back and rest for a day, then we'll need to set off."

  Soon, Liu He set out again, this time in four parts. The first part was naturally the reconnaissance team led by Li Lu, consisting of three people. The second part was the main force of Liu He's generals, who were all skilled hunters and had taken the lead in the previous bandit-eradication operation. The third part consisted of those who could use guns and hit stationary targets, and this time they were equipped with rifles seized from the bandits. They were onlookers but would also serve as emergency responders. The fourth part was made up of captured bandits and a few unarmed long workers.

  These three teams now have personnel that can be said to be very equal, with ten people in each team, except for Liu He, Li Shu, and Zhang Zhen.

  The first team was lightly equipped and advanced, with only Liu San carrying a rifle. This time, Liu He had already promised Li Lu that he would be equipped with one when they captured more rifles. There was also a young man named Xia Ji who was found among the captured bandits. He was agile, quick, and knew some hiding techniques. At home, he had been a hunter for a while, but not with guns, instead relying on traps. It was said that he had even hunted down a bear once. Li Lu took a liking to him as soon as he saw him, because they were the same type of people.

  The second team, also the main combat team, was relatively lightly equipped. Each person's main load was a rifle, twenty rounds of ammunition, and a water bag for each person. The water bags were purchased by Liu He from the county town because they didn't have canteens, so they had to buy these water bags used on the grasslands to carry drinking water. It should be noted that during long-distance marches, food can be skipped, but water cannot be skipped, and in order to ensure physical strength, they did not need to carry rations.

  The third team is the reserve team, also known as the spectator team. They are also a long gun, ten rounds of ammunition, a water bag, and each person carries some dry food, which is more important than the second team.

  The fourth team was even more heavily burdened, they were unarmed, each carrying only a standard-issue water bottle, and some carried food while others carried pots, completely like a logistics soldier.

  "Big brother, this time I'll definitely open my eyes when I shoot, I want to see it clearly and blow the bandit's head off with a loud bang. It's so satisfying, that scoundrel's brains splattered right in front of me."

  "Brother, how about you? Did you close your eyes last time you shot too? I also closed my eyes when I fired, I just didn't dare to look at the person I was shooting. You know it was my first time shooting someone."

  Liu He listened to their discussion on one side, his heart was sweating profusely, Genghis Khan, how can you still fight like this? No wonder the bandits who died last time were all different kinds, it turned out that they were all shooting with their eyes closed, not to mention others are also like this. No wonder only Liu He's head was blown off directly last time.

  But Liu He was not worried about this action, because these people had already killed people and were no longer afraid, and even Liu He wanted to do ideological work for them, not letting them kill indiscriminately.

  "Hurry up, hurry up, follow me closely, walk along the valley, don't take the main road, and don't walk on the mountain ridge either. Be careful not to be seen by the bandits' scouts." Liu He was getting angrier and angrier, you actually fired blindly, and thus began his torment of the crowd.