The bandits who had just arrived were dumbfounded. They watched as Jin Lan and the others happily dug the silt in the river. Then they used the silt to make bricks and used the number of bricks to exchange for bullets.
Ten bricks could only be exchanged for one bullet.
When they saw this, they did not think much of it. But when Jin Lan, Zhang Yiheng, and the others received a bullet, their faces beamed with happiness. What was going on?!
Aren't you all bandit leaders? Why are you so happy to get a bullet?! Have you never seen the world before?!
The bandits watched as the group of people dug the river wider and wider. Originally, the riverbed was just a ditch formed by a small river that had been diverted. But now, the river was getting wider and wider. It looked like it was going to become a big river soon.
The refugees had been worried that when the spring floods arrived, the elevation of the riverbed would cause the embankment to burst. If that happened, it would definitely affect the crops.
But now, they were not worried at all. The spring floods were nothing to be afraid of.
In the river, Jin Lan and the others filled their pockets with bullets. The bullets rattled in their pockets. The bandits who had just arrived were shocked by this strange scene. "Are these people under a spell?"
After Jin Lan finished what he was doing, he gathered the new bandits together and routinely told them what they needed to do, what they could exchange the bricks for, and what long-term plans they had for the future. For example, they planned to build ten small houses after the spring floods. By the time summer came, they would be able to build those houses.
The bandits listened in a daze. They thought to themselves, 'Are they still fucking bandits?'
Then Jin Lan got to the main point. "Do you know who's in charge of this place? You might think that you were unlucky to get caught, but let me tell you, you're actually lucky."
As Jin Lan spoke, he kept talking. The bandits would look at Jin Lan, then at Ren Xiaosu and Yang Xiaojin. Their eyes gradually became confused.
At this point, there was no need for Ren Xiaosu to do anything. Jin Lan and Zhang Yiheng could handle everything for him. He and Yang Xiaojin only needed to take action at the beginning to reduce the casualties.
Groups of bandits came and joined the brick-making army. During the day, they dug silt to make bricks, and at night, they memorized the rules. Life was very fulfilling …
The spring flood arrived as scheduled. Everyone could feel that the water in the river was getting stronger and stronger. They could even catch fish from time to time. Now, the fish were biting anyone they saw. If it weren't for the fact that they had so many people, it would have been difficult to deal with them.
More and more firewood was piled up on the shore to dry. There were also whole tree trunks that had been washed away by the flood upstream. The thinner ones were used as firewood, and the thicker ones were kept as house beams.
The refugees in the settlement also helped them build some temporary mud houses, as well as two small brick kilns.
The bandits helped the refugees dig canals and rivers, and the refugees reciprocated by helping out a little.
At this time, the refugees were no longer afraid of the bandits. Everyone was just like the villagers of a small village.
A refugee went to Ren Xiaosu and said, "Big Brother, let's start baking the bricks. Otherwise, when the first rain comes, many of the bricks we made will be ruined."
"Alright!" Ren Xiaosu agreed. A large area of the bricks had been laid out, and it looked like it was enough to build more than a dozen houses.
Baking bricks was not a particularly difficult technical job. All they had to do was place the bricks in the kiln, close the door, and wait for the firewood to be added.
The bandits who knew how to add water to cool the bricks would naturally do it.
Bricks were divided into red bricks and green bricks. The silt and clay contained iron, and after it was completely oxidized during the firing process, it would form iron oxide, which was red bricks.
If the iron was not completely oxidized during the firing process, it would turn into green bricks.
The brick kiln that Ren Xiaosu and the others built had a roof and did not let in oxygen. Therefore, the bricks produced were all green bricks.
"How many days will it take to bake these bricks?" Ren Xiaosu was a bandit who had baked bricks before.
"Our kiln is small, and we can only bake about 20,000 bricks at a time. I estimate it'll take about ten days to finish. However, there'll be a cooling period in between, so it'll take another two days." The bandit explained, "Building a 20-square-meter house will require nearly 2,000 bricks. This kiln is enough for more than a dozen houses."
Thinking that they would soon be living in brick houses, the bandits were quite excited.
After all, most of the people here had never lived in brick houses their entire lives. In town, brick houses were a symbol of status.
"Alright." Ren Xiaosu said to the refugees in the settlement, "Send some of your men over to guard the place. When the bricks are ready, we can build a few houses for you all."
Jin Lan muttered, "Why should we be the ones who bake bricks and build houses for them?"
Ren Xiaosu glanced at him. "Cut the crap."
Jin Lan ran off with his head drooping. He shouted to his men to make more bricks before the rainy season arrived. There were already more than 400 bandits on their side, and they were working very fast!
But after a few days, the sky turned gloomy. This made Jin Lan and Zhang Yiheng's hearts ache. "Hurry up and help me save the bricks. Carry the dried bricks into the mud huts!"
Halfway through the rescue operation, a drizzle covered the entire wasteland like a fine cotton cloth.
"What bad luck." Jin Lan hid under the eaves and said, "Of all the times, it had to rain now."
"Captain, can we go into the huts to take shelter from the rain?" a bandit muttered.
The huts were filled with bricks, and there was no place for anyone to stand. When Jin Lan heard that, he glared at him. "If you go in to take shelter from the rain, where are we going to put the bricks?! These are the bricks that everyone worked so hard to make, so how can we waste them? "
The bandits pursed their lips. At this moment, they were no better than bricks.
A large group of people were squatting outside a pile of mud huts in the rain while guarding the bricks inside.
Jin Lan muttered, "Boss still wants to build houses for those refugees? I wonder what he's after. We don't even have enough for us to live in."
"What's the matter, Captain? Are you complaining about Boss?" someone whispered.
"I'm not complaining." Jin Lan curled his lips. "I can tell that those two are indeed different from the big shots in the stronghold. Those big shots look down on us from the bottom of their hearts, but those two aren't. Have you ever seen a big shot from an organization dig for silt in a river like us? I'm sincerely convinced by those two just because they're willing to work with us. "
"Then what do you mean, Captain?"
"I just don't think it's worth it. Why can those refugees live in houses without even pressing a single brick?" Jin Lan swore.
"The brick kilns were built by them," someone muttered.
Jin Lan glared at him. "You talk too much."
But at this moment, several refugees braved the rain and came over. They shouted at Jin Lan, "Don't stay here in the rain. Go to our houses to take shelter from the rain. We've already discussed it. Y 'all can go to whichever house you want to take shelter from the rain. There'll definitely be enough space. There's still some hot soup at home. Y 'all can have some to warm yourselves up. "
Jin Lan was stunned for a moment before hurriedly saying, "Hey, hey, alright, coming right over!"
A bandit next to him whispered, "Captain, aren't we still angry about the construction of houses?"
"Who says I'm angry?" Jin Lan stiffened his neck. "Our fellow villagers are so nice to us, so what's wrong with building a few houses for them? We have to be like Boss. Do you understand? Be more generous! When the rain stops, we'll build houses for our fellow villagers! "
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