85: village

"Halt! This mountain is mine, this tree is mine! If you want to pass, leave your toll!"

A group of Mountain Bandits appeared in the forest, blocking the road with their swords, shouting at the four!

"Hehe."

"Haha."

The four looked at the more than ten Mountain Bandits, who were even shabbier than beggars, and burst into laughter.

"My Lord, please wait. This humble general will go and deal with them."

Then Liu Sandao spurred his horse forward, charging straight at the Mountain Bandits!

The Mountain Bandits' eyes glinted green when they saw the four men's warhorses and their attire!

If they could seize the equipment of these four, they would strike it rich and be able to go back and get revenge!

The Mountain Bandits charged forward with raised swords, showing no fear of the warhorses. Liu Sandao's blade rose and fell, and in an instant, more than half of the dozen Mountain Bandits disappeared, vanishing after falling to the ground. The remaining half scattered and fled.

"Catch one alive!" Lin Yue shouted to Liu Sandao. It turned out they were players, which piqued Lin Yue's interest.

"Yes, My Lord!" Liu Sandao's warhorse accelerated, and he bent down to pick up a person, bringing him back like he was lifting a chick.

"Who are you?" Lin Yue asked.

"G-great sir, I was wrong, please let me go," the player said, his face full of fear.

"Answer my question, and I'll let you go," Lin Yue said with a smile.

"Alright, I'm a Mountain Bandit from nearby."

"I know you're a Mountain Bandit. I want to know why you're even worse off than beggars?" Lin Yue asked curiously.

Before, the Yu Family Army couldn't even afford food, but they weren't dressed in such rags as these guys.

"We used to follow our Great Chieftain, at least we had enough food and clothing. Later, we were attacked by a group of Mountain Bandits called the Zang Ai Family. Our Great Chieftain died in battle, and we scattered and fled, which is how we ended up like this," the player said with a mournful face.

"Zang Ai Family?" Lin Yue had heard of this family when he was browsing the forums. They were one of the ten major guilds in ascension. He hadn't expected them to expand all the way to Liaodong Commandery.

"Alright, you can go," Lin Yue said. As fellow players, he didn't want to be too ruthless.

The player's face lit up with joy, then he cautiously asked, "Sir, you won't shoot me with an arrow in the back while I'm walking away, will you?"

Everyone laughed at his words. Lin Yue smiled and said, "Don't worry, I won't. Hurry up and go."

The player looked a bit disbelieving but still stood up and walked away step by step.

The player took regular steps, one, two, one, two.

One, two, and a look back.

Seeing that Lin Yue and his group truly had no intention of attacking, he took off running at full speed!

Everyone watched, roaring with laughter. The player climbed up the hillside in one breath.

Then he stopped, turned around, and seeing that he was already far from Lin Yue and the others, he cupped his hands around his mouth like a megaphone and shouted with all his might:

"You idiot!"

"I'm telling you, you're a big idiot!"

Then he turned and continued to run, leaving only the sound of roaring laughter echoing in Lin Yue's ears!

"My Lord, This humble general is going after him!" Liu Sandao and the two others spurred their horses, ready to give chase. A subject's death for his lord's humiliation—this was practically a slap in their faces!

"No need. Let's hurry back," Lin Yue stopped the three, his mouth twitching uncontrollably.

It was still a two-hour journey to the village from here. As long as they didn't delay further on the way, they could return to Houjia Village in the afternoon.

Then the four once again set off on their journey back to the village.

Although he had prepared himself mentally, Lin Yue was still greatly surprised when he arrived at Houjia Village!

Village: Houjia Village

Level: 3/3

Population: 9014/10000

Area: 20 square kilometers

Public Sentiment: 98

Buildings: Level 1 Civilian Houses: 1000, Level 2 Civilian Houses: 3000, Level 3 Civilian Houses: 30

Lord's Mansion: LV3 Council Hall: LV3

Tailor Shop LV1 Blacksmith Shop LV2 Medical Clinic LV1

Militia Camp School Elementary Barracks...

This was much better than before!

"My Lord, is this your Fief?" Liu Sandao asked, a little surprised.

"Yes, come inside with me," Lin Yue said, feigning calm.

"My Lord, you're back!" a surprised shout came from not far away!

"Hou Da!" Lin Yue turned his head and saw Hou Da leading a team of villagers patrolling outside the village!

name: Hou Da

Identity: Civilian

Peerage: None

Martial Power: 50

Intelligence: 46

Command: 38

Politics: 24

Charm: 57

Loyalty: Die-hard

Talent: None

"You've become an Initial-stage Martial General?" Lin Yue asked, delighted.

"Thanks to My Lord, after taking the Aptitude Pill, I just broke through to Initial-stage Martial General the day before yesterday," Hou Da said with a smile.

"That's good," Lin Yue said with a smile. With an Initial-stage Martial General stationed in the village, he could feel much more at ease.

"Come into the village with me. This village is really changing more and more," Lin Yue said.

"Yes, My Lord!" Hou Da responded, and as he walked, he said to Lin Yue:

"Village Chief Feng has truly poured his heart and soul into the village's construction. This humble general has often seen Village Chief Feng tirelessly inspecting the village during night patrols."

"You've all worked hard," Lin Yue said, pleased.

Now Jiang Gan had become a hands-off manager, completely refraining from interfering with Feng Cai's decisions. It could be said that the entire development of the village rested on Feng Cai's shoulders.

Fortunately, with the dedicated efforts of Feng Cai, Hou Da, and others, the village was able to develop in this way.

"This is all This humble general's duty!" Hou Da cupped his hands.

"By the way, where's Feng Cai?" Lin Yue suddenly asked. They had been in the village for so long, but hadn't seen Feng Cai.

"Hmm, This humble general hasn't seen him today either." Hou Da asked the team of Soldiers behind him, "Has anyone seen the Village Chief?"

"No," the Soldiers all shook their heads.

"Alright, he's probably busy somewhere, don't worry about him," Lin Yue said. "You've all worked hard too. Come on, I'll treat you to a drink, one cup each, the best wine!"

"Thank you, My Lord!" Everyone grinned. Drinking the wine treated by their Lord meant they wouldn't lack bragging material for the next two years!

"You lead the way," Lin Yue said to Hou Da.

The tavern was built after he left, and he didn't know where it was. This was a good opportunity to visit Mother Han. Since Han Tan treated him like a brother, Mother Han was like an elder to him, and he should visit her.

"My Lord, please follow me," Hou Da led the way, smiling at Lin Yue. "My Lord, Mother Han's wine is truly excellent, deeply loved by nearby villagers and wandering heroes. Even people from Heye City come here specifically to drink it!"

"That's good," Lin Yue said with a smile. With a skill to rely on, Mother Han wouldn't have to work as hard as before.

It was only a few steps away to Mother Han's tavern!

"Auntie, fifteen bowls of good wine!" Hou Da shouted as he entered!

"Brother Hou, please wait," Mother Han's daughter stood up from behind the counter, revealing a sweet smile.

"No rush, no rush," Hou Da said with a smile.

Then the curtain at the back door was pulled open, and a head peeked out, asking with a hint of confusion, "Hou Da? Isn't this your patrol time? Why are you here?"