Ren Xiaosu stood where he was and watched the group of bandits approach. Leading them was Zhang Yiheng, the man he had let go earlier today.
Zhang Yiheng shouted from afar, "Boss, don't shoot! It's me!"
Yang Xiaojin lay prone on top of a mound and carefully observed the subtle movements of these people with her scope in case anyone tried to ambush Ren Xiaosu with a sniper rifle.
However, she realized this group of people were not aggressive at all. Their guns were strapped across their chests, and the safeties were not even off.
Moreover, this group of people had really come here to seek shelter. Not only did they bring along the firearms and ammunition from the stronghold, but they were also carrying their own tattered bedrolls.
These bandits looked quite ferocious. Each of them was riding a muscular motorcycle, and on their backs were rolled up quilts that were tied to their bodies …
This scene was as strange as it could get.
Yang Xiaojin sighed. They had come here to exterminate the bandits, so how did they suddenly become the leader of the bandits?
Even if Yang Xiaojin, who had experienced the entire process, tried to recall it, she still could not figure out what had happened.
When Zhang Yiheng arrived in front of Ren Xiaosu, he immediately jumped out of his motorcycle and said respectfully, "Boss, I've brought our brothers here. We'll all be at your beck and call from now on."
Zhang Yiheng's brothers behind him were quietly sizing up Ren Xiaosu. So this was the expert from Stronghold 178 that their boss had mentioned? He looked so young!
Wait a minute, wasn't there a sniper as well?
At this moment, everyone realized the sniper might be aiming at them right now. Thinking of this, everyone got a little nervous. They were afraid that if they made any strange movements, the sniper would shoot them by mistake.
When Ren Xiaosu heard a man in his thirties call him "Boss," he felt a little awkward. However, this was not the time to be conflicted over how to address him. "Jin Lan, settle the brothers down. I'll hold a meeting with you all tomorrow."
The refugees who had been living here since the beginning were watching this scene with smiles on their faces. The children were still wandering around their parents. At first, the refugees were quite afraid of these bandits. But when they thought about it, didn't the bandits have to work with them to build the canals? They didn't even dare to slack off!
Thinking of this, the refugees gradually accepted this fact.
Moreover, Ren Xiaosu had told them that since they had a strong army here, those who wanted to farm would not have to fight with guns anymore. The bandits would naturally be in charge of fighting.
When it was time to sleep at night, Ren Xiaosu lay outside the tent with his arm as a pillow. He said to Yang Xiaojin, who was inside the tent, "I feel like something's still missing. Although we can keep them here by using this identity, they won't be able to put up much of a fight."
In the tent, Yang Xiaojin was still awake. When Ren Xiaosu set off, Xiaoyu had prepared such a tent for him. At first, she did not use it because she wanted to pretend to be a refugee. But now that she had deliberately "exposed" her identity, there was no longer a need to hide it anymore. She would stop pretending and lay her cards on the table.
Yang Xiaojin said, "You want them to be able to fight?"
"Yes." Ren Xiaosu said, "You've seen how good these bandits are. If they really get into a fight, they probably won't even know how to use their guns. Moreover, if there are any casualties, they'll probably run away with their heads in their hands. How does the army usually train its soldiers?"
"Under normal circumstances, the entire unit will fall apart when 20 to 40 percent of the weaker troops are killed or injured. Only those with conviction can continue to persevere." Yang Xiaojin said, "The military basically trains the soldiers from two aspects. One is to train them in their military skills, and the other is to strengthen their ideology so that they have the spirit to be fearless of death and difficulties. These two aspects cannot be achieved overnight."
"We still have to do it even if we can't do it." Ren Xiaosu chuckled.
"Alright then, I'll teach them how to use firearms," Yang Xiaojin said.
"In terms of ideological work, we'll have them unite first." Ren Xiaosu asked, "Is there any way we can do that?"
"They'll endure hardships together and continue to endure hardships until they can find joy in the midst of suffering," Yang Xiaojin said.
Ren Xiaosu understood what Yang Xiaojin meant. It was easy to see true love when one went through thick and thin together. But when one became rich and powerful, they would become greedy instead.
"Um … is it warm in the tent?" Ren Xiaosu suddenly asked.
Yang Xiaojin said calmly, "Why don't you come in and see if it's warm?"
"Hahaha." Ren Xiaosu said awkwardly, "I was just asking."
Ren Xiaosu was the first to give in.
…
Early the next morning, Ren Xiaosu woke up everyone who was sound asleep.
The bandits were all sleeping soundly when they were suddenly woken up. They were about to throw a tantrum, but when they saw that it was Ren Xiaosu, they immediately calmed down.
Ren Xiaosu gathered them together and said, "Have any of you worked in a brick kiln before?"
The bandits looked at each other. Why was this boss so different from the other bandits?
When the bandits from the other bandits took in new brothers, they would at least say something decent, such as saying that they would live a good life if they followed them, or that they would become stronger.
But when it came to Ren Xiaosu, he first had to dig a canal, and then he had to build a brick kiln?
Someone raised his hand and whispered, "I worked at the Soong Clan's brick factory before."
"Do you know how to build a brick kiln?" Ren Xiaosu asked.
"Our conditions here are crude, but we can build a simple one. It won't be a problem if we don't have enough bricks." That bandit said, "But we don't have enough firewood here. Just using shrubs won't do."
Yang Xiaojin suddenly said, "It's almost time for the spring floods. When the icebergs upstream melt, there will be a flood. At that time, a large amount of wood will flow downstream, so we'll definitely have enough firewood."
"Alright." Ren Xiaosu said to Jin Lan, "Bring all the weapons over here."
Last night, Ren Xiaosu had Jin Lan confiscate everyone's weapons. At this moment, Ren Xiaosu said, "I know what y 'all are thinking, but it won't be easy to gain my approval."
Everyone looked at each other. He was putting his words out in the open. It seemed like it would not be easy to submit to Stronghold 178.
However, if Ren Xiaosu said it would be easy to join Stronghold 178, they would not believe it. That was Stronghold 178 they were talking about!
Therefore, the more difficult the test was, the more realistic they felt it was.
Zhang Yiheng said, "Just tell us where to attack. We'll attack wherever you point us to."
Ren Xiaosu smiled. "I'm not looking for bandits who only know how to fight. I'm not interested in your measly combat strength."
The bandits started muttering again. "The people from Stronghold 178 are still the best. They're not even interested in us."
Jin Lan said resolutely, "Just tell us what you want us to do!"
"We'll start baking bricks today since we're still repairing the canal. All of you, go down into the river and scoop up the silt. We'll use the silt to make bricks. Ten bricks can be exchanged for one bullet. When you've accumulated 100 bullets, I'll return the guns to you. At that time, you'll be able to prove yourselves. Instructor Yang will teach you how to use the guns."
The bandits were speechless. It was so difficult to even qualify to take the test?
He was definitely not bluffing!
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