The entire Gao Family Village was once again plunged into chaos!
The villagers ran around like headless chickens.
However, the situation this time was much better than the last.
At least the villagers knew to prepare war materials.
They didn't know if rocks and oil would be useful for a night battle, but they prepared them anyway.
The two blacksmiths rushed back to their forge and brought out the armor they had finished making over the past few days.
Most of the female villagers had been weaving over the last few days. Although they had slacked off when Shansier was away, the diligence of the working people of the Dynasty was undeniable. Even with a bit of slacking, their efficiency was still considerable. With a large amount of cotton cloth available in the village, the two blacksmiths enlisted the help of several nimble-fingered women to thread the iron plates they had forged earlier.
They had eight sets of cotton armor.
This type of armor was actually more suitable for the current Gao Family villagers than the elaborate iron armor. Iron armor was too heavy; if the villagers, who lacked formal military training, wore it, they would be too weighed down to move.
But the cotton armor was light, allowing the villagers to remain agile.
"Zheng Daniu, here is one for you! You are a core fighter."
Zheng Daniu grinned widely.
"Save one for Gao Chuwu; he is also a core fighter. As for the rest, step forward, you strongest young men..."
A woman ran over from the side and handed Li the Blacksmith a very thick roll of cotton cloth. "Blacksmith Li, I have another roll of cotton cloth here that I didn't have time to give you. The bandits won't be here for several more hours. Do you think you have time to make another set of armor?"
"Blacksmith Gao, I have extra cotton cloth here too."
In less than half an incense stick's time, the two blacksmiths received several more rolls of cotton cloth.
The two were just about to rush off to speed up the armor making when they heard a slightly embarrassed, yet pleasing, female voice. "I... I also... have some cotton cloth."
Everyone was startled by the sound. They turned their heads and saw that it was the Saintess.
Gao Yiye held a large roll of cotton cloth in both hands and said awkwardly, "I... I also wove a bit..."
Everyone: "Pffft!"
Shansier was gone for two days, and Dao Xuan Tianzun had not manifested in those two days. As a result, demons and monsters were everywhere in the village, and even the Saintess had neglected her duties.
*Forget it, now is not the time to mock the Saintess.* The two blacksmiths quickly rushed into the forge, summoning the village's other blacksmiths and women skilled in needlework. They had a whole day ahead of them; perhaps they could rush out a few makeshift pieces.
A large group of people quickly worked to produce cotton armor.
...
Outside the Gao Family Fortress, Gao Chuwu strode quickly toward Bai Family Fortress. He only knew the general direction of the Bai Family Fortress, not its exact location, but it didn't matter—he just needed to speak sweetly.
He asked everyone he met along the road, and once he even asked a few bandits. The bandits immediately drew their knives, but before they could swing, Gao Chuwu had already run ten meters away, leaving the bandits bewildered. In this great drought, when everyone was starving, how could he run so fast?
A journey that took others two hours, Gao Chuwu completed in just an hour and a half.
He arrived at Bai Family Fortress.
What met his eyes was a bustling scene of construction.
Bai Yuan, dressed in a white scholar's robe and with his hands clasped behind his back, stood straight like a refined gentleman. He was supervising his servants, tenant farmers, and nearby hired villagers repairing the fortress walls that Wushang Ming Wang had breached last time.
In the open space outside Bai Family Fortress, a large group of young men were holding long staves and practicing stabbing movements.
It turned out that after Bai Yuan returned home, he had reorganized the militia. This time, he spent more money and recruited more people, swearing to protect Bai Family Fortress and ensure it would never be breached by bandits again.
Seeing his subordinates practicing with such intensity, Bai Yuan felt a surge of excitement. He shouted, "Bring me a bow."
A servant quickly handed him a light bow.
Bai Yuan nocked an arrow and shot it at a scarecrow not far away, hitting it squarely in the face.
"Hahahaha! The art of 'Archery' among the Six Arts of the Gentleman has returned to me! Hahahaha! Add it back! Add it back!"
Just as he was enjoying himself, he heard a simple, honest voice shouting in the distance, "Old Master Bai! Old Master Bai!"
Bai Yuan turned his head. "Oh, isn't that... Gao... Gao Fifteen? Gao Five-Five? Gao One? Gao Two? Gao Three? What was your name again?"
Gao Chuwu quickly ran up to him. "Gao Chuwu!"
Bai Yuan: "Right, right, I remember clearly, you're Gao Chuwu. What's wrong? You look exhausted from running."
Gao Chuwu quickly explained, "A band of bandits is planning a night raid on Gao Family Village. Master San doesn't know how to fight, and asks for Old Master Bai's help."
Bai Yuan's face instantly darkened. "Those damned bandits! Gao Family Village has shown me kindness. Since this concerns Gao Family Village, it concerns me, Bai Yuan. This is what is meant by 'It is impolite not to reciprocate.' I am very particular about the art of 'Propriety' among the Six Arts of the Gentleman."
"Men, bring two horses!"
Servants immediately brought two fine horses.
Last time, Bai Yuan had fled with his wife and children in a carriage. But this time, Bai Family Fortress was secure, and he didn't need to flee with his family. There was no need for a carriage; riding a horse was more comfortable and much faster.
"Gao Chuwu, do you know how to ride a horse?"
"No!"
"Then just hug the horse's neck tightly, and hold on for dear life."
Gao Chuwu: "Huh? Huh?"
Bai Yuan vaulted onto his horse. He instructed his servants, "Follow the training I gave you and guard the Bai Family Fortress until I return."
The servants shouted in unison, "Understood, Old Master!"
Bai Yuan watched Gao Chuwu clumsily climb onto the horse and grab its neck. He laughed once, held Gao Chuwu's reins in one hand and his own in the other, and squeezed the horse's flanks with his legs. "Let's go!"
The horse shot forward. Gao Chuwu's horse, pulled along by Bai Yuan's, also began to run. Once the horses were running, Bai Yuan tossed the reins to Gao Chuwu. There was no need to control it; the horse would follow his own.
The two men on two horses galloped toward Gao Family Village at top speed.
The horses' speed was much faster than any man could run. It took Gao Chuwu an hour and a half to get to Bai Family Fortress, but only half an hour to return to Gao Family Village. When they saw the Hakka Clan Fortress, it wasn't even noon yet.
At this moment, Li Daoxuan was assembling a camera array.
He definitely needed a clear view of the night battle, so he needed to install multiple high-definition cameras and turn on and calibrate the night motion detection alarm function.
There were a lot of gadgets to operate!
He also needed to wipe the glass of the container spotlessly clean so that the ring of cameras could capture the great battle from multiple angles and positions, making it easier for him to edit a higher-quality video.
He had just finished calibrating the surveillance camera array when he saw two small horses, each the size of two finger joints, running toward the village. He exclaimed, "Oh!" and laughed. "Those little horses are cute. So, the Six Arts Gentleman, Bai Yuan, has arrived."