371: Gather the militia and unify their management!

When Lin Yue and the others returned to their Fief, Feng Cai was guiding the village and town chiefs from the nine towns and eighty-one villages under Hou City's jurisdiction, while Chen Dubao, Commandant was chatting idly with Hou Da, who had just returned to the Fief with forty warhorses.

The Generals were enthusiastically directing numerous servants to prepare for the wedding and set up the venue.

The main venue for this event was chosen to be the Lord's Mansion, which had just received the Earls Mansion plaque.

"Hey, you there, come here and hang this large red cloth on the door," Wang Da Tou said, pointing at the door.

"Yes, General," the servant replied, taking the large red cloth and stepping forward.

"Wait a moment, first move this table in. That can be done last," She Jian interjected.

"Alright, General!" The servant put down the red cloth and went to move the table.

"You wait, first prepare the fruit!"

"Alright!"

"No, first sweep the floor."

"Alright!"

"Wait..."

Lin Yue watched as seven or eight servants were being spun around by more than ten military officers, ultimately accomplishing nothing, and he felt a headache coming on.

Finally, under the pretext of assisting in cavalry training, he called the Generals to outside the town, and the arrangement of the venue was entrusted to Wang Zhi, who had grown up in the palace and was familiar with wedding and funeral procedures.

At the same time, Lin Yue told Wang Zhi not to make it as elaborate as in the palace, as Pan Feng and A Rong were both military officers, and if they followed palace rules, they might be exhausted to death. However, essential elements should not be omitted, and the scale should be grand!

Wang Zhi had always been a spectator, and this was his first time participating in guiding a ceremony. He was very enthusiastic and called over an elder from a nearby village to refer to folk wedding customs and improve the process.

Concurrently, the wedding banquet preparations were in full swing, and the entire Lord's Mansion operated in an orderly manner.

But Lin Yue suddenly realized that he seemed to be the only idle person?

After some thought, he decided to find Feng Cai. After all, his Fief had just expanded, and he had acquired a new group of subordinates. He needed to go and see them, at least to let them see him, which would help them feel more secure.

Lin Yue then walked towards the council hall.

As he reached the doorway, he heard Feng Cai's hearty laughter.

"Rest assured, follow our Earl, and you will enjoy a life of ease.

As for your militia issues, I will send Hou Da to select some strong men to serve as the Guard, and the rest should be disbanded," Feng Cai said with a relaxed smile.

"Lord Mayor, we will certainly abide by your decision. We have always envied the development of your town. However, if the militia is suddenly completely disbanded, won't our villages be in danger?

Of course, I am not questioning your strength, Lord, but we are concerned that the Mountain Bandits appear and disappear unpredictably, and you might not be able to handle everything," an old man said tremblingly.

The villages selected elite men to form militias, which not only resisted Mountain Bandits but also served as the main force in inter-village conflicts. With the sudden disbandment and "elites going public," they would have no strength at all. Wouldn't they be at the mercy of others in the future?

Feng Cai sneered inwardly, thinking that all the nearby Mountain Bandits belonged to Wang Hu. Would Wang Hu rob them? These were just excuses. He then smiled and said:

"Old man, you can rest assured. Did you see that burly man who just walked past the door?"

"Is it that upright, imposing man?" the old man asked after recalling.

"Exactly, old man, your memory is good. Do you know his identity?" Feng Cai asked in a leisurely manner.

"Could it be the Earl?" the old man asked in surprise.

If he were the Earl, their failure to bow would be disrespectful!

Feng Cai shook his head.

"That's good, that's good," the old man breathed a sigh of relief.

"He is a Titled General of the Great Wall Legion, commanding a million troops, and a trusted confidant of General General Meng Tian! He is our Lord's closest friend!" Feng Cai boasted, shaking his head.

"Bang!"

The old man was so startled that he slid directly from his chair to the floor.

"Oh, old man, what are you doing? Get up quickly, the ground is cold," Feng Cai said with a smile, motioning for someone nearby to help him up.

"Then I, this old man, have been disrespectful! Oh, to be old and still do such a thing, it's truly a sin!" The old man sat back in his chair, wailing despairingly. He had been disrespectful first. If that person held even a slight grudge and mentioned his impolite behavior to the Earl, he would be in great trouble!

"It's alright. He is our Lord's closest friend and is usually straightforward; he won't hold it against you. Old man, please relax," Feng Cai comforted him.

At this, not only the old man but nearly a hundred people in the bustling hall collectively breathed a sigh of relief.

"Then, did you see that burly man with a prominent head, a head different from ordinary people?" Feng Cai asked with another mysterious smile.

"That big-headed one!"

Someone in the crowd shouted.

"Right!" Feng Cai nodded.

"Could he be the Earl?" the old man asked tremblingly.

Feng Cai shook his head again and smiled, "He is Titled General Wang Li of the Great Wall Legion!"

"General Wang Li!" Another gasp of surprise went through the crowd. Wang Li was as well-known among the common people as General Meng Tian.

"Wait, I haven't finished speaking yet," Feng Cai said with a smile, "General Wang Li's deputy, and also a member of the Wang family, a family of military marquises."

"A family of military marquises?"

"Yes!" Feng Cai nodded.

"Then isn't that Wang..."

"Shh, you must not call the old General by his name," Feng Cai said with a serious expression.

Everyone in the hall covered their mouths in surprise.

Outside the door, Lin Yue had a constipated expression. What was Feng Cai doing? Not allowed to call him by name? Was this a fantasy novel?

But Feng Cai in the hall continued proudly, "His temper is not good. Just now, as you all saw, in front of Li Chengliang, the Commandery Commandant of our Liaodong Commandery, he cursed him so badly that Li Chengliang could only bow and agree, not daring to retort in the slightest.

Moreover, General Wang said he wasn't satisfied and told Li Chengliang to come back the day after tomorrow to continue being scolded. You will see him the day after tomorrow."

The old man once again slid from his chair, thinking that person was actually Li Chengliang!

They had been far away just now and could only see the figures of a few people. They did see Li Chengliang bowing, but heard no sound. They hadn't expected him to be scolded into silence!

This had surpassed their imagination!

"Alas, old man, please get up quickly. It's not good to hurt yourself by falling."

"I didn't mean anything else by saying all this. I just wanted to say that to apologize, Li Chengliang promised to present a thousand fine horses as a congratulatory gift to the military officers under our Lord's command tomorrow.

These fine horses will all equip the Guard, and the more than ten military officers who just filed out are all Generals of the Great Wall Legion!" Feng Cai said with a smile.

He had replaced the protagonist Wang Zhi with Wang Da Tou because he felt that a Eunuch might not be paid attention to by the many village elders, and they wouldn't know what a Supervisor did. But attributing this matter to Wang Da Tou made a big difference! From the current situation, the effect was very good, extremely good! Hadn't they been scared silly?

"More than ten are all Generals?" Some in the crowd were already dumbfounded.

"Of course."

"Do you know what they went to do?"

"Bored, so they went out to kill a few people for fun?"

"What killing? They went to train cavalry for my Lord. These thousand fine horses will all be used for the Guard.

Just imagine, in a few days, there will be a thousand cavalry. With these thousand cavalry, they will be as swift as the wind. What Mountain Bandits are there to fear?

So, the militia is not of much use. It's better to disband them and resume farming, which can also add a few mouths of grain to the village."

Everyone in the hall had already been scared silly by the identities of the Generals Feng Cai had introduced earlier. Now, no one cared about the militia. Hearing Feng Cai say this, they all bowed and agreed!