Three Wus

047 Three Wus

Ming Shu sat on the ground and rested with everyone else. Tonight, he had personally killed several pirates.

It was also the first time he had killed someone with his own hands since being reborn.

Yet, astonishingly, he had felt no discomfort at all throughout the entire process. He had performed far more valiantly than Little Zhao. Little Zhao still needed some time to adapt to this face-to-face bloodbath.

Perhaps he had already experienced many killings in his previous life. Deep in his soul, his subconscious had long since grown accustomed to it.

The Butcher and the others did not rest. Instead, they hurried to deal with the aftermath. Quite a few people had died in battle, leaving everyone heavy-hearted. Many houses had also been burned down.

They had actually been extremely cautious. The moment they encountered the ambush, they had decisively retreated. The Butcher, who had led the breakout, had paid the smallest price and suffered no serious injuries, but Hunter, who had covered the rear, had been gravely wounded.

Hunter had continued fighting instead of treating his wounds in time. He had fought all the way to the final moment of his life, then hurriedly entrusted his last wishes to those beside him before dying in battle.

Only after the fighting ended did the Butcher hear Hunter's final words from the others.

At that moment, he brought the three boys before Ming Shu and made them kneel.

"They're Hunter's sons: Wu Dalang, Wu Ergou, and Wu Sanchai. He also has a little daughter, Sibao. He had no great ambitions in life. All he wanted was a wife, children, and a warm kang." The Butcher introduced them one by one.

"Unfortunately, they were born in troubled times and could only become slaves and dogs. Before he died, he entrusted them to my care and told them to follow you. Since they were born in troubled times, I hope the Village Lord will treat them well."

"I understand. They'll return to the village with me. I'll arrange everything for them from now on. What about you?" Ming Shu naturally knew that, although the valley might still have strategic value after this battle, the people here no longer dared to defend it.

Their fighting spirit had also scattered.

"We want to live in town too."

"That's fine. Starting today, you can pack up and move there. I'll have people prepare things first. Once the aftermath here is dealt with, you can set out. The houses are still being built, so we'll make temporary arrangements. It'll be crowded, but you should still be able to get through the winter."

Spring had already arrived, but the chill of early spring was biting. At night, it could sometimes be even more frightening than winter.

"This place will be rebuilt into a small fortress. We'll still need to station some people here. From now on, we'll also expand our patrols to this area." Ming Shu turned and spoke to Zhao Dun and Old Zhao.

After tonight's slaughter, Ming Shu had shown them another side of himself—swift and decisive. It was as if he had grown up overnight and would no longer ask them about everything.

Ming Shu continued wiping the congealed blood from his short gun.

Xiao Shiyi brought people over pushing a handcart loaded with steaming mantou. Only after everyone had eaten their fill did they have the strength to continue handling the aftermath.

On the way back, they would also have to lift Ren Yuan onto the handcart and push him back along the same route.

Ren Yuan had fought the most ferociously. Now he was completely exhausted, lying on the ground and panting. He did not appear to have many injuries, but he needed a good, long rest.

Fortunately, he had broken through earlier and increased his strength. That was why he had been able to fight so fiercely in this battle. Otherwise, it might only have ended in a hard-won victory. He probably would have suffered more injuries as well.

After this battle, Baishi Village officially incorporated the Butcher and his people. Along with the farmers who had recently come to pledge allegiance and were still under observation, the registered population within Baishi Village finally surpassed five hundred.

Among them, they discovered several elderly people who knew how to dry and boil sea salt, as well as others who knew how to raise livestock and poultry.

Ming Shu gave them all monthly wages, encouraging and guiding them to conduct related experiments. Only by mastering key technologies themselves could they have a say in their own development.

The poultry and livestock of this world were not merely ordinary animals. Perhaps their bloodlines had mutated, or perhaps their ancestors had accidentally eaten some kind of spirit fruit. In any case, the temperaments of certain livestock were rather unusual.

Some even possessed a certain degree of intelligence. Pigs were not necessarily stupid, and cattle were not all honest. The emotions and wisdom of old cattle truly existed. Dogs were even more so.

Chickens, ducks, and geese were somewhat easier to deal with. Even so, experienced elders were still needed. Hatching eggs alone required genuine expertise. With their limited resources, they needed to save costs at every step.

At the same time, they also increased their support for the spy team under Zhao Chuan.

If they could discover which household might be colluding with the pirates, they could guard against them and settle the score later.

This account would not be settled so easily. They had to find a way to blind the pirates' eyes on shore first.

The money and resources in hand could still last for some time. By managing their household frugally and avoiding wasteful spending, they could maintain things in the short term.

Many supplies could be obtained nearby through barter.

After the battle, Little Zhao brought back another piece of good news. The other leader from before—the man carrying the Snow Moon Frog—was named Zhu Dapi, and he had also begun to loosen his tongue.

He first provided an important piece of intelligence.

Although this entire area had nominally belonged to the Qunwa Island Pirates' raiding grounds, in reality, they had merely hung their name over it on the surface.

In secret, another group had also been coming ashore. They had never cooperated with them, but he guessed they were probably the Evil Dragon Island Pirates.

According to rumor, Evil Dragon Island had originally had only a dozen or so people stationed there. Those people regularly came overland from the north. Judging by their appearance, they seemed to be guards from the royal tents of the various barbarian kings.

Their auras and strength were both formidable.

Most of the bloody killings on shore had been carried out by them. The Qunwa Island Pirates only sought wealth—they wanted supplies but not people. The Evil Dragon Island Pirates, however, captured people and took them back.

More than a decade ago, when the Qunwa Island Pirates had first come here to plunder, Zhu Dapi had still been a lowly underling. Donghai Prefecture and the surrounding regions had not yet become so desolate.

It was only after the Evil Dragon Island Pirates also came ashore to raid that people began to grow afraid and flee in large numbers.

Zhu Dapi had seen how wonderfully Tie Ju and the other man were living now. He was so envious that tears nearly sprang to his eyes, and his thoughts began to stir.

Tie Ju now had to patrol the fields every day and assist with irrigation.

His water-spraying demon art was still barely usable. At the same time, his status had risen slightly. Among the pirates, his authority had also grown. He could now command them to work.

Before the irrigation system was fully established, borrowing Tie Ju's ability was especially convenient. Combined with Ming Shu's reliable weather forecasts, agricultural development proceeded fairly smoothly.

What they feared most was the pirates coming back to cause trouble.

Ming Shu sent Little Zhao to the prefectural city again to check the situation. It would be even better if he could arrange a meeting with Lord Li Jixu. He would set a time and pay the man a personal visit.

As pirates successively wished to abandon darkness and turn toward the light, renounce evil and return to the right path, Old Zhao and the others began assigning them more assessment tasks.

With attitudes this enthusiastic, they should squeeze them a little harder.

The speed at which they moved bricks and built houses also increased. If they had possessed this awareness earlier, why had they ever become pirates?