Wife, you didn't really drug me, did you?

Chapter 569 Mr. Iron Sword and the Five Tigers and the Sheep Formation
Upon hearing the people's words, Chen Xiaohu was initially shocked, but then felt gratified and happy. At that moment, he recalled a conversation he had with his brother, Ninth Brother.

At that time, Chen Jie was vigorously developing Huangzhou Prefecture. He used his own money to build houses for the people of Huangzhou Prefecture and carried out urban planning to improve their lives.

Chen Xiaohu was puzzled: Why spend so much money to bring so many benefits to ordinary people?
Chen Jiedao: Those who govern must first and foremost put the people first. This is not just empty talk. Those in power cannot do without the support of the people. Only by binding the interests of the people with their own interests can a regime be truly secure.

I build houses for ordinary people, construct shops for them, help them build reservoirs, expand farmland, recruit them to work in factories, and create employment opportunities for them. It may seem like I am the one who suffers a loss, but that is not the case at all.

Building houses for them is to improve the business environment and infrastructure of the entire Huangzhou Prefecture.

The purpose of building shops is to boost the economy; only when the economy is good can the tax revenue of Huangzhou Prefecture increase.

Building reservoirs and expanding farmland are all aimed at helping them make money, so that we can also harvest food and develop properly.

If we put them to work in factories, we can manufacture goods and sell them for money, and they can also earn money, increasing their purchasing power. This will make the economy of the entire Huangzhou Prefecture more prosperous. That's economics.

We have given the people such a good life, so they will be loyal to us. If one day a foreign enemy invades us, they will be the first to stand up for us, because if they harm us, they will harm their interests.

No one wants to see their interests harmed.

You see, if Huangzhou Prefecture ever faces a life-or-death crisis, these people will make their own choices.

As Xiao Hu looked at the people in front of him scrambling to join the army, eager to defend their interests and the people of Huangzhou Prefecture, he really wanted to run up to Chen Jie and say, "Brother Jiu Si, what you described has happened! It really happened!"

Little Tiger chuckled sheepishly. Just as Brother Jiu Si had said, everything was exactly as he had described.

It's a pity that Brother Jiu Si isn't here. If he were, he would definitely be very happy to see this scene.

Chen Xiaohu was thinking this, but Zhao Ya knew that if things continued like this, things would really get out of hand, so she immediately said, "Fellow villagers!"

“I appreciate everyone’s kindness, but Huangzhou Prefecture still has an army at present. We are not yet at a critical juncture. When the enemy really comes to attack in the future, I will ask you elders to defend Huangzhou Prefecture.”

"Also, Mr. Li, your house will definitely be compensated at double the amount if it is demolished. Everyone must remember this."

"These are the rules set by the city lord. As the saying goes, there can be no order without rules. We appreciate everyone's good intentions, but the money must be paid!"

Upon hearing this, Old Li and the others immediately said, "Ah, we can't accept this money. The city lord has been so good to us. If we accept the money back, wouldn't we be ungrateful?"

"No, no, Mr. Li, you must accept this money. If you don't, we won't demolish the house!"

"Ah, this?"

Old Li was left speechless by Zhao Ya's few words, caught in a dilemma. Finally, he gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, we'll listen to Third Madam. We'll accept this money with regret."

Zhao Ya said, "No, no, I'm not ashamed to accept this. This money should be yours."

"We're really embarrassed by what you're saying. Well then, Third Madam, since you've offered double the price, we'd like to share the burden with the City Lord. How about we organize people to transport all these diamond tiles over here, so your soldiers don't have to run back and forth and have to divide their forces to move them?"

Mr. Li raised another idea.

Zhao Ya was taken aback upon hearing this, but quickly replied, "Very well, very well. In that case, thank you all for your hard work. On behalf of the city lord, I thank you all!"

Zhao Ya bowed deeply at this moment. Seeing Zhao Ya like this, the people present all said, "It's nothing, we have plenty of strength."

"We have plenty of strength, and it is our honor to be able to help the city lord and the third wife."

The people were in high spirits. The Third Madam was actually bowing to them. How could they not understand what this meant?

What kind of status does the Third Madam have?

She was not only the city lord's wife, but also a princess of the Great Qian Dynasty and the daughter of the Prince of Ruyang, who was renowned throughout Jiangnan.

How could they, a bunch of peasants, possibly bear such a heavy bow from the Third Madam?

Thinking this, everyone immediately returned the salute, and then they all mustered their strength to prepare bricks and tiles to serve as rolling logs and stones for the city guards.

Seeing Zhao Ya like this, Huang Wan'er said to Su Yunjin jealously, "Don't you know she's the First Madam?"

Su Yunjin understood Huang Wan'er's subtle attempt to sow discord, but simply smiled and said, "Sister Ya Ya did a very good job."

"Fortunately, the people have said they don't want compensation. There are hundreds of houses along the street. If each house is compensated at twice the price, how much money would that be? They don't even know how to save money for their husbands."

Upon hearing this, Su Yunjin said, "Sister Wan'er, that's not right of you. You can't skimp on this money."

Upon hearing this, Huang Wan'er frowned and said, "Why? There's a way to save money, isn't there?"

Su Yunjin asked, "Have you heard the story of Zigong redeeming people?"

"Zigong? Who is Zigong?"

Huang Wan'er looked completely bewildered.

Su Yunjin said, "Zigong was a disciple of Confucius. He was wealthy and did good deeds. During the Spring and Autumn Period, the states were in chaos, which led to a large number of people being sold into slavery. As a result, a large number of people from the State of Lu were stranded outside the country and became slaves."

"Therefore, the State of Lu stipulated that those who redeemed Lu citizens who were enslaved abroad would receive a state reward. After Zigong redeemed people abroad, he refused to accept the state reward, which was praised by the people at the time and regarded as setting a precedent."

"So he went to Confucius in high spirits, only to be controlled and criticized!"

"Oh, this is something to be criticized for? Doing good deeds without expecting anything in return, is that wrong?"

Huang Wan'er looked at Su Yunjin with confusion. Su Yunjin said, "Because he raised the moral standard. Let me ask you something. If you were a citizen of Lu at that time, and Zigong redeemed people without paying a ransom, and was then sent away, and you encountered a slave from Lu outside, you would logically want to save him. After all, returning to your country would not only allow you to reimburse the money for saving him, but also give him some reward money."

"But now, because of Zigong's actions, people feel that a person who rescues slaves and then asks the state for money is not truly saving people, but is a hypocrite and acts like a petty person."

"Would you still save people?"

Su Yunjin asked Huang Wan'er, who thought for a moment and said, "Probably not. Who would want to save someone if it just caused them trouble?"

Su Yunjin said, "That's exactly the point. If Zigong hadn't redeemed people without asking for ransom, the moral standard for this matter wouldn't have been elevated to the level of selflessness. Then, the people of Lu wouldn't have felt any moral burden when redeeming people."

"I'm not well-off to begin with. If I have to spend a lot of money to save someone, who would still want to be a good person?"

"This behavior raises the bar for being a good person without you even realizing it, which is the biggest loss for many people who want to be good."

"It would be better to set rules from the beginning so that everyone can accept them, then everyone would be a good person!"

Hearing this, Huang Wan'er understood the reasoning behind it. Su Yunjin said, "If Sister Ya Ya agrees to Old Li's request, then the other families may not say anything, but they will definitely not be willing to suffer such a great loss. In the end, although they will not say anything, they will be very unhappy in their hearts, which will lead to instability in the hearts of the people. This is a big mistake."

"That's why my husband emphasizes that everything should be done according to the rules. Our Huangzhou Prefecture is not short of money, so there's no need to break the rules for a little money."

After hearing Su Yunjin's words, Huang Wan'er said, "Sister Yunjin, you know so much, unlike me who hasn't read any proper books and doesn't even know about Zigong redeeming people."

Su Yunjin said, "Sister Wan'er likes Buddhism, but she may not like these Confucian things. I saw Sister Wan'er reading Buddhist scriptures the other day."

Upon hearing this, Huang Wan'er chuckled and said, "No, it's different, it's different."

She had no way of telling Su Yunjin whether the Buddhist scriptures she was reading were legitimate or not.

Thinking this, Huang Wan'er said, "Alright, it seems we have nothing else to do here. Let's hurry up and cook some porridge so the soldiers can have something hot to drink."

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately pitched in to set up the wood-fired pot and start cooking porridge.

Zhao Ya glanced at them, then immediately followed Xiao Hu up the city wall; there were still enemies to deal with over there.

"Is Brother Ni alright?"

Zhao Ya and Chen Xiaohu went up to the city wall and looked at Ni Wenjun, whose face was serious, and asked, "Brother Ni, how is it?"

Ni Wenjun said with a serious expression, "They look like they're rehearsing some kind of formation."

Chen Xiaohu looked over and said, "Really?"

Zhao Ya looked over and said, "Three, four, three, nine palaces, eight trigrams, seven luminaries without movement, the great formation is set up, like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, this is the Five Tigers and Sheep Formation!" Zhao Ya immediately understood the true nature of the formation in front of her, no wonder she was a woman who had read Yue Fei's military treatise.

Upon hearing this, Ni Wenjun and Chen Xiaohu both frowned and asked, "The Five Tigers and Sheep Formation?"

Zhao Ya said, "That's right, it's the Five Tigers and Sheep Formation. This formation has five gates, and when combined, its power is astonishing. This is recorded in the Wumu Legacy!"

Upon hearing this, Ni Wenjun and Chen Xiaohu gasped, "It seems the other side came prepared!"

Zhao Ya said, "Regardless of what they do, we need to remain calm and observe first. Setting up this grand formation will take some time, so we'll just act according to the situation."

Upon hearing this, Chen Xiaohu asked, "Can our Three Talents Formation withstand this?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ya said, "The Three Talents Formation is the most stable of the ten great formations. Moreover, I have hidden basic variations within it, so it should be able to hold its own, at least it won't be defeated too quickly!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Xiaohu said, "Alright, things have come to this point, and we can't expect perfection. We can only take it one step at a time."

After saying this, Chen Xiaohu looked at Ni Wenjun and said, "Brother Ni, what do you think?"

Ni Wenjun said, "We'll deal with whatever comes our way. It's alright. What can the enemy do, no matter how strong they are!"

"I, Ni Wenjun, have no fear of battle!"

Ni Wenjun spoke with great enthusiasm, and Chen Xiaohu remained silent for a moment before saying, "Our formation is almost complete, so let the brothers rest and wait for the opportune moment."

Chen Xiaohu had come to terms with it; it was just one battle, so what was there to fear?

……

At this time, outside Huangzhou City, in front of the main tent of the army that was suppressing the rebels.

Xu Shouhui and Zhao Pusheng stood respectfully before a short, stocky old man. The old man wore a Bagua Taoist robe, and his hair was casually tied into a cow-heart shape with a fiery red jade hairpin. He carried a rusty iron sword on his back.

He looks ordinary, even somewhat ugly, but no one dares to underestimate him, because his strength far surpasses that of ordinary people.

This person is none other than the reclusive patriarch of the Mount Tai Sect, one of the Five Sacred Mountains Sword Sects, known as Master Tianmen, also called Mr. Iron Sword!

He was the previous leader of the Taishan Sect. Even many Taishan Sect disciples felt that this old leader had passed away many years ago. Who would have thought that not long ago, just when the imperial court had sent Boluo south to attack Huangzhou Prefecture, but he was stopped by the Prince of Ruyang, and then the two princes were fighting, this Taishan Sect's grandmaster returned.

Moreover, as soon as he came out of seclusion, he forcibly integrated the Five Mountains Sword Sect. After that, I heard that when they were at Bright Peak of the Demonic Sect, the Five Mountains Sword Sect was thoroughly dealt with by Chen Jiu Si of Huangzhou Prefecture.

So this Mr. Iron Sword boldly declared that he would teach this arrogant young man a lesson. He said that the old men were just too old to show their faces, not that they were dead. How dare this young man bully the Five Mountains Sword Sect like this? If they didn't agree, he would definitely make him regret it!
So, Mr. Tie Jian arranged for someone to contact Xu Shouhui, who had a grudge against Chen Jiu Si.

Xu Shouhui had long harbored the idea of ​​eliminating Chen Jiu Si and seizing control of Huangzhou Prefecture. He had heard reports from his scouts about the richness of Huangzhou Prefecture more than once, and he was extremely envious of it.

He was eager to obtain a letter from Huangzhou Prefecture, and on top of that, Peng Yingyu, the monk Peng, had somehow gone mad. He no longer fawned over him and no longer cared about him, but instead began to frequently associate with Chen Jiu Si from Huangzhou Prefecture. As time went on, Xu Shouhui felt neglected.

That only intensified his desire to kill Chen Jiu Si.

It was because of all these reasons combined that Xu Shouhui finally decided to kill Chen Jie.

In Zhao Pusheng's words, if Chen Jiusi stays with my master for a while longer, my master might develop the idea of ​​deposing the emperor, and then Xu Shouhui will be nothing.

On one hand, it threatens his throne and could potentially render him nothing. On the other hand, it's a gamble. If he fails, he might lose everything, but if he succeeds, then Monk Peng will have no choice but to remain emperor, and he can win back Monk Peng's heart. Why not?

Having figured all this out, Xu Shouhui decided to take a gamble. If he won, he could continue being the Emperor of Tianyuan; if he lost, he would have nothing. It was better than doing nothing and watching himself lose everything!

With this idea in mind, Xu Shouhui joined forces with Zhao Pusheng to send troops and take the opportunity to kill Huangzhou Prefecture while it was in a state of chaos!
Moreover, they also learned that Chen Jiu Si was not in Huangzhou Prefecture. By the time they occupied Huangzhou Prefecture, Chen Jiu Si might not have returned yet. In fact, even if he did return, what difference would it make? They had Mr. Iron Sword.

These old monsters finally couldn't resist coming out of the mountains.

According to Zhao Pusheng, these old monsters are all very powerful. When they went into seclusion, they were all at least at the Fusion God Realm, many of them were at the second or third level of the Fusion God Realm, or even the third or fourth level, or even stronger.

There are two reasons why these Molten God Realm experts are hiding.

Firstly, he was terrified by Zhang Sanfeng's Jiazi Demon-Slaying Technique back then. Really, those at the several levels of the Fusion God Realm were nothing more than dead souls under Zhang Sanfeng's sword.

Even among the fourth-level Molten God experts, Zhang Zhenren killed three of them, scaring them so much that they ran into the mountains and forests and dared not come out.

After they went into seclusion, the three leaders of the Zoroastrian Church gradually emerged, acquired their own titles, and then some busybodies created a list of top experts.

Actually, all of this happened after these people were scared and went into hiding, and it has only been less than thirty years in total.

Moreover, besides Master Sanfeng, martial artists after the Fusion God Realm have another problem: they like to hunt each other, because martial artists in the Fusion God Realm inevitably need Dao Fruits to improve.

With Dao Fruits of Heaven and Earth so scarce, it's incredibly difficult to obtain a wild one. Therefore, they prefer to hunt down any emerging cultivators at the Fusion God Realm. Consequently, many old monsters, sensing the danger, immediately hide away.

If they can't be found by others, they'll be safe.

This is actually like a law of the dark forest: as long as a martial artist has reached the first level of the Fusion God realm and fused with a Dao Fruit, they are considered to have entered the game. Anyone who shows their face is likely to be instantly killed. Therefore, these old monsters have all hidden themselves away.

Those who didn't hide are those on the Heavenly Ranking; they all have powerful backgrounds and are people others dare not hunt down at will.

For example, the tenth-ranked Prince Ruyang, the eighth-ranked Li Siqi, and the fourth-ranked Bolotemur are all from the imperial court faction. Who would dare to kill them? You should know that behind them stands the living Buddha Phagpa, the terrestrial immortal. Hunting them down? You're asking for trouble.
Then there's Fang Guozhen in ninth place, Liu Futong in seventh, Peng Yingyu in sixth, and Han Shantong in second. They're all from the Zoroastrian faction. The Zoroastrian faction is united, and if anyone is bullied, they'll immediately gang up on them. Especially since Han Shantong was almost at the fifth level of the Fusion God realm, anyone who dares to hunt them down would be stirring up a hornet's nest.

Next is the face of Shaolin, Zen Master Kudu. For Shaolin, firstly, it is a place where old monsters often hide. Secondly, it has a similar relationship with Wudang. Back then, Master Zhang also came from Shaolin. You can't refuse to give Master Zhang face.

In addition, Kudu is not just a pretty face; his strength is also astonishingly simple, reaching the threshold of the fourth level of the Melting God. Kill him?
You need to have that ability too.

Therefore, he was not afraid of crossing the river in a dry place.

There is only one left, and that is Yuan Sanjia, who is third in the world. He is proficient in divination and the Yin-Yang arts of Liu Ding Liu Jia. If you want to kill him, you have to find him first. In addition, his strength is also at the fourth level of the Fusion God, so killing him is not realistic.

Finally, there are the two at the very top, two immortal beings on land. Heh, if they don't kill others, people are already burning incense in gratitude. You still dare to study the two of them?
Therefore, those who hide in the deep mountains are usually wild masters from small sects, such as those four-stage Fusion Gods who were frightened by Master Zhang and hid in the deep mountains back then.

Then there are people like Mr. Iron Sword. Although the Five Mountains Sword Sect is a famous sect, compared with the imperial court and the Zoroastrian system, they can only be considered as isolated individuals. Moreover, their strength is not high. They are generally at the second or third level of the Furnace Realm. Wouldn't someone at this level be a sitting duck outside?
They are easily hunted by other old monsters, so they like to hide and even fabricate information about their deaths. For example, this Mr. Iron Sword, in theory, passed away thirty years ago, and his tombstone still stands on the ancestral grave in Mount Tai.

But now it's all alone, seemingly back to life. There's no need to find it unbelievable. After all, this is the stark reality. If you don't want to become someone else's prey, you either need a powerful force to protect you.

Either you play it safe and hide away, then no one will bother you.

Moreover, it's not like you'll never have a chance to succeed. If you're lucky, you might arrive during a time of great upheaval, when the world is in turmoil, the sun and moon are turned upside down, and the secrets of heaven are revealed. You can then try your luck and perhaps become one of the lucky ones.
Just like Zhang Sanfeng in the past...

Okay, this example isn't quite right, but many people genuinely believe they will become the next Zhang Sanfeng. After all, Zhang Sanfeng emerged from the previous great calamity and achieved his current status as a terrestrial immortal.

Moreover, there are some old monsters, as well as old friends from the previous era. They all caught up in the wars of the previous era and eventually made great progress.

Therefore, the unusual celestial phenomena, the sun and moon out of their orbits, the Greedy Wolf star obscuring the Purple Star Palace, and the instability of the Emperor Star clearly indicate great chaos, but also present an opportunity for them!
At this moment, Mr. Iron Sword stood outside the camp with his hands behind his back, watching the soldiers outside clumsily practice the Five Tigers and Sheep Formation that he had just passed down.

"What do you all think of my Five Tigers and Sheep Formation?"

Looking at the great formation, Mr. Tie Jian asked a question. Upon hearing this, Zhao Pusheng immediately replied, "This formation is incredibly powerful, with experts from five different schools serving as its core. It is truly a remarkable formation. With such a great formation, how can we not break through this small Huangzhou Prefecture!"

"Ha ha……"

Upon hearing this, Mr. Tiejian chuckled and was very satisfied with Zhao Pusheng's horses.

At this moment, Xu Shouhui also spoke up: "I have never heard of or seen such a grand formation before. Only a reclusive master like Mr. Iron Sword could possibly know such a strange formation, right?"

Upon hearing this, Mr. Iron Sword said, "Hey, you can't say that. This formation wasn't created by me; it was left over from the Song Dynasty. I was just giving him a brief explanation."

"That's already quite remarkable. Such a grand formation is truly a divine technique. I'm sure Huangzhou Prefecture will be able to win this battle!"

Upon hearing this, Mr. Iron Sword laughed heartily and said, "Haha... His Majesty the Emperor knows how to speak."

As Mr. Iron Sword spoke, he immediately added, "Let's practice for another half an hour, then we'll start the battle. It's getting late, and I'll be resting in Huangzhou Prefecture tonight!"

(End of this chapter)