Chapter Nineteen: Stirring Up Trouble Again

  Just as Chen An and others were getting a bit impatient, Liu Shi ran from the village to the outskirts, gesturing for everyone to enter, with his left hand flat on the left side, making a subtle safety gesture.

  As they entered the village, Chen An looked at this old man's beautiful home in his dreams with some disappointment. It was originally surrounded by walls, but it had long since collapsed into a wild grassland. Except for a small courtyard in the middle that was still on the verge of collapse, all the other houses were already dilapidated and covered with weeds, making it difficult for people to live there.

  Faintly visible are the remnants of the aqueduct that brought water from distant mountains, now abandoned and silted up. As Liu Shi walked into the small courtyard, the kitchen was bustling with activity, just like the wisp of smoke Chen An had seen earlier. Several wooden buckets were scattered in one corner of the yard, a horizontal shoulder pole lay nearby, likely used to fetch water from the nearby Mali River.

  An old man saw Chen An walking in and immediately prepared to kneel down. Chen An was startled, rushed over to help him up, "Old sir, what's going on?" while looking at Liu Shi with confusion.

  Liu Shi hastily pulled up the old man, somewhat embarrassed. "Young master, this is my uncle Liu Cheng." He turned his head and said to Liu Cheng, "Uncle, young master doesn't like this, it's all my fault for not making it clear earlier."

  Chen An suddenly realized that this was the younger brother of Liu Guan's family who had stayed behind to guard Chenjiazhuang all those years ago.

  "Master, you've grown up so much. I saw you when you were very young." Liu Cheng couldn't help but shed tears of joy upon seeing Chen An.

  Chen An couldn't help but feel a sense of desolation and wonder how things had become so barren.

  Liu Cheng stood up with a quivering voice, his nose and eyes streaming with tears as he told the story of Chenjiazhuang's hardships after Lao Yezi left.

  Old Master Chen left before he left, and the fields in his family were all distributed to the tenants of the Chen family, leaving only a dozen or so acres of paddy fields and several abandoned mountains on the periphery. The paddy field was rented to Liu Cheng for cultivation, and no rent was charged, which was considered as the cost of managing the mountain forest.

  But without the prestige of Old Master Chen's thousand-year-old family, the weak and powerless tenant farmers were no match for the cruel oppression of the corrupt officials and local tyrants. The land deeds in their hands were soon snatched away, and to create an atmosphere of terror, bandits were even deliberately invited to raid Chenjiazhuang twice, leaving the village destroyed and everyone scattered.

  In the end, only the paddy fields and mountain forests in Liu Cheng's hands were left. These officials probably felt that there was no flavor left, but they still had to leave some face for the Chen family of the past, so they stopped their hands and left Liu Cheng struggling in the village.

  But last year, these properties also attracted the attention of the rising gangster group Beipai, who came to harass and force Liu Cheng to sell at a low price. Liu Cheng refused, and as a result, he was beaten twice and broke his legs. Even recently, they planned to set fire to the village, but fortunately, it rained at that time and the village was saved from disaster. However, the village has become more and more dilapidated. The only house that can still be inhabited is the former residence of Old Man Chen.

  After listening to Liu Cheng's grievances, Chen An furrowed his brow. The old man had spent over a decade struggling to keep the house. Back then, he just wanted them to live a little better, but unexpectedly, it ended up harming them. Chen An rubbed his nose and after a brief moment of silence, suddenly asked, "What's with the horse thieves? What's with the North Gang? Who benefited the most from our family?"

  The hardships of life have taken their toll on Liu Cheng, who is actually a younger cousin, but looks much older than Liu Guan's family. His memory has also deteriorated, and he hesitated for half a day before speaking incoherently.

  It is said that the horse thieves are on the mountain near Zhongzhai, and the northern faction seems to be in Hanan Village. The most serious invasion of Chen's farmland was by the Wang family in the county town. As for the others, Liu Cheng is not very clear either.

  Chen An looked up at the sky and thought it was still early, so they might as well settle down first. Now that they were back in their hometown, there would be plenty of opportunities to find a place later.

  Apart from the scouts continuing to patrol within a five-mile radius, Lin Yushan led a few people to climb to high places to observe the terrain and draw simple maps. Liu Shi directed the rest of the personnel to dismantle all the remaining houses, fill in the pits and unevenness, and set up sheds temporarily.

  Anyway, these houses are useless now, it's better to rebuild them and expand the village area. Chen An has no qualms about demolishing the old houses that hold childhood memories.

  After Chen An circled around the village, he began to ponder that in the future, the Zhuangzi should encompass the entire mountain head, forming a large mountain village with an area of two or three miles, at least satisfying the residential needs of over a thousand people. Nearby, deep wells can be dug, and far away, mountain springs can be introduced. The belly of the mountain can also be hollowed out to store military supplies and food, and the top of the mountain can be purchased with firepower to cover the surrounding area, creating an all-around defensive fortress.

  Back in the only courtyard that could provide some shelter from the wind and rain, Liu Cheng was excitedly preparing meals for everyone with the help of a few people.

  Chen An's heart skipped a beat as he called over Liu Cheng, "Liu Shu, where are your family members?" He remembered that Liu Shi had mentioned his paternal uncle was already married and had a daughter.

  Liu Cheng slapped his forehead, suddenly enlightened. "Look at my memory, I'm so careless. Young master, after the Northern Gang came to our village and made trouble, it's not safe, so I quickly let my wife take our daughter back to her mother's house in Bixi Town, only I stayed behind to guard the village."

  Chen An grasped Liu Cheng's arm, "Liu Shu, it's like this. Tomorrow, I'll get Liu Shi to accompany you to the county town, buy some wood and hire workers, we'll rebuild Chen Family Village, and you can be the second manager. The head manager position is for your brother, I don't dare give it to you. There's nothing else, just continue helping us guard the house. Once things have improved, we'll send someone to bring your mother back."

  Liu Cheng was suddenly overcome with emotion, tears streaming down his face, and he felt like kneeling down to kowtow. Chen An quickly grabbed him and helped him sit down to rest.

  After a while, the humble kitchen began to emit the aroma of rice, making people feel hungry and unbearable.

  Liu Cheng, who had calmed down, was now the second-in-command of the Liu household. Suddenly, he remembered a message from a while back: "Young Master, my brother sent someone to pass on a message saying that we should stock up on more grain and hay since many people are returning to their hometowns. However, I'm in a difficult situation and don't have any money to buy things, so I had to give up. Luckily, you all brought your own food today; otherwise, there really wouldn't be anything to eat."

  Chen An nodded, that's it. I'm sure Liu Guan Jia didn't know his hometown would decline to this state either. Liu Cheng Ren is loyal and dedicated, but dealing with those local rascals and corrupt officials is clearly beyond him.

  Since the opponent has bandits, bullies, gentry and officials, let's deal with them one by one. At worst, I'll finish off the horse thieves and become a horse thief myself. Chen An was determined in his heart, having guns and bullets is really great.

  It didn't matter if they spent one more day sleeping outdoors, but the villagers of Chenjiazhuang eating hot meals couldn't care less about the empty village having nowhere to stay, instead it made Liu Er's housekeeper feel uneasy.

  The next day, Chen An looked at the temporary sketch of Lin Yushan's ten-mile radius and directly gestured with his hand to confirm the idea of rebuilding Chenjiazhuang within a three-mile radius around this mountain.

  Liu Shi and Er Shu ran to the county town more than 50 miles away to purchase supplies and hire laborers. Zhao Si carried a bag of silver coins, smiling and following behind, also entering the city, he was preparing to check out the situation, after all, they couldn't just rush in blindly.

  Lin Yushan was sent by Chen An to the surrounding mountains, on the one hand to further survey the terrain, and on the other hand to organize people to cut down trees. Clearing the view, building walls and houses all require wood, and even cooking requires firewood. Lin Yushan was assigned this bitter task, and immediately grumbled and didn't want to go, but was glared at by Chen An's glasses, so he hurried off.

  As for Chen An and Hu Zi, they became the most leisurely two people, following the mountain road according to Liu Ershu's directions, walking towards the distant mountains to pay respects to Chen An's mother.

  Looking at the tidy and clean environment, Chen An was still grateful for Liu Ershu's diligence and honesty.

  Looking at the name on the tombstone that seemed familiar yet strange, Chen An felt a daze as he had no memory of his mother. He respectfully lit incense and solemnly kowtowed several times. Chen An stood there silently for a long time, gazing into the distance. After a sigh, Chen An left this scenic spot with Hu Zi.

  By evening, the wooden stakes of a circle of walls had been knocked down, and after the civilian workers were hired later, they would directly dig trenches and lay stone foundations. First, the ground was leveled and the wall was built at the same time, and then the house was slowly built. Chen An always liked to have defensive works first.

  Two days later, Zhao Si returned leisurely after having been to many places, drinking a lot of good wine and eating a lot of good food. As soon as he entered Chenjiazhuang, Zhao Si's originally lazy and scattered eyes suddenly became sharp, his drunken demeanor immediately disappeared, and he seriously reported the situation he had learned about to Chen An.

  This small county town nestled among the mountains is also not peaceful. The horse thieves rooted in the northern Zhongzhai near the mountain, have been repeatedly raided and looted the surrounding prefectures and counties, and the government has pursued them for several years without any results, it is estimated that they are completely colluding with the officials.

  There are also many underground gangs, with a small county of only 50,000 to 60,000 people having three families with hundreds of followers. The North Gang and the South Gang were on opposite sides of the Baishui River, and they had several firefights over the exploitation of sand gold. The North Gang's headquarters was in Hanan Village, which was strategically located and easy to defend, controlling the upper reaches of the Baishui River all the way to the confluence with the Bailong River, where sand gold was mined. The South Gang's headquarters was at Yule Pass, where an iron chain bridge spanned the river, guarding a strategic location and controlling the confluence of the two rivers to Biku Town, where sand gold was also mined. Below Biku Wharf, however, was the domain of the Boat Gang, which controlled the wharf to the Sichuan border, where cargo was loaded and unloaded for trade.

  As for the Wang Lao Ye in the county town, he was a salt merchant by origin, with connections to high-ranking officials and good relations with the government. It is said that one of his sons is serving in the military in Lanzhou, belonging to the type of person who has both wealth and power. Even the three major gangs do not dare to offend Wang Lao Ye excessively.

  Chen An closed his eyes and thought carefully for a moment.

  What comes out must be paid back, and what they've eaten of mine must be spat back out. Chen An never had any intention of letting them off. Adding the government offices, there are at least six powerful forces in the county seat, unfortunately, almost all of them have offended Chenjiazhuang.

  Taking down the six forces is not a simple matter. However, Chen An, who likes to use his power to suppress others, doesn't even bother with schemes and plots. The government has its own laws, the royal family has its own rules, the Taoist sects have their own methods, and the bandits have their own codes, but none of these are as effective as Chen An's approach - a single strike is enough to destroy them all. As for how to deal with the government, that will have to wait until Master returns and they can discuss it in detail. As for the other forces, Chen An simply ignores them and takes them down directly.

  The first target is the horse thief. No matter what official you collude with, wipe them all out and stir up this water thoroughly before saying anything else.