Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 216: War
Upon hearing the number, Pei Qinghe breathed a sigh of relief: "Thanks for your hard work, Manager Shi."

Shi Yan spent his days raising money and supplies, working hard but never boasting of his achievements. Upon hearing this, he smiled and said, "I don't know how to lead troops into battle. This is all I can do."

Pei Qinghe smiled brightly at Shi Yan: "The Pei family army is not lacking in people who know how to fight, but it lacks people as capable as you. You alone are worth a thousand soldiers."

Shi Yan's eyes were full of smiles: "Since the general is coaxing me like this, I must serve the general to the utmost and die for him."

Pei Qinghe issued an order: "From today onwards, Pei Family Village will accept a maximum of ten refugees per day. If the whole family is coming, priority will be given to families with women."

In such a world, it is extremely difficult for a woman to live peacefully.

Once this news spreads, those who want to come to Peijia Village will no longer easily sell their wives and daughters. With more women, Peijia Village will become more and more stable.

However, there are always exceptions. Upon hearing of this regulation, some of the refugees who came seeking refuge abducted women along the way, claiming they were their wives and daughters, intending to sneak into Pei Family Village.

Those in charge of recruiting refugees were all elderly people from Peijia Village, and they questioned them very carefully. Sensing something was wrong, they immediately separated the family and questioned them separately. After finding out the situation, they immediately reported to Pei Qinghe.

Pei Qinghe sneered: "You're too clever for your own good! Keep the woman here, and don't let this clever man go either. Hang him under the tree north of the village as a warning to others."

On this day, another strange thing happened.

More than two hundred people from the entire village crossed several mountains to come to the outskirts of Peijia Village seeking shelter.

Pei Qinghe went to the outside of the village and saw more than two hundred people kneeling down. There were men, women, old and young, all kowtowing and crying their hearts out.

The leader was a man in his forties, not very tall, with a dark complexion and rough hands; he looked like an honest and hardworking farmer.

The farmer kowtowed countless times, his forehead dripping with blood: "General, we are from Zhu Family Village. I am the village chief, the second son in my family. The soldiers have robbed all the grain in the village. We have no way to survive. Please, General, take us in."

Pei Qinghe said calmly, "Pei Family Village only accepts ten people a day. There are more than two hundred of you in total, and Pei Family Village cannot break its rules. If you want to enter the village, wait outside."

Ten people a day, more than two hundred people in total, can slowly make their way into the village over twenty days. It's springtime now, and even without grain, they can manage to get by with wild vegetables and fruits to stave off hunger.

Village chief Zhu Er immediately said, "We are willing to wait. Today, please accept the young girls from our village."

Before Zhu Er came, he made a special inquiry and knew the rules of Pei Family Village regarding taking in refugees. Men might not be accepted, but women were taken in one by one.

Pei Qinghe glanced at Zhu Er, asked for his name, and had it written down in the register.

The ten women were quickly taken in and brought into the village.

The rest of Zhujia Village settled in thatched huts outside the village. They were pleasantly surprised to find that people from the village brought out steamed buns every day—not many, but enough for each person. Even if they couldn't find wild vegetables or herbs, they wouldn't starve.

However, far too many people came to seek refuge in Peijia Village. No matter how many thatched huts were built, there wouldn't be enough to house them all. Besides, it was impossible to accommodate everyone from Zhujia Village.

Zhu Er was a decisive man; he gathered all the women in the village and had them sign up first.

Some women wept, reluctant to part with their husbands and sons; others worried that their wives and daughters would abandon their families once they entered the village; still others whispered that General Pei had taken in women but refused to take in men like them.

Zhu Er said, "In this world, we'll live one life at a time. Let them find a way to survive first. Even if the general doesn't want us in the end, there's nothing to complain about. We're all men, with hands and feet, we can just go into the deep mountains to find a way to survive."

At Zhu Er's insistence, all the women in Zhujia Village signed up and were accepted into the village. "There are more than seventy women in Zhujia Village." Pei Yan and Pei Zhi spoke highly of Zhujia Village: "They have all entered Peijia Village. As for the men, I followed your instructions and didn't take them for the time being. They didn't complain and are still living obediently in the thatched huts waiting."

Pei Qinghe smiled and nodded, "This village chief, Zhu Er, is quite capable and of good character. Let him enter the village, observe him for a while, and if there are no problems, then let him be the leader."

Among the refugees who came to seek refuge, some intelligent and capable individuals gradually distinguished themselves. Pei Qinghe did not hesitate to promote and give them important positions. Those who could fight were useful talents, and those who could farm and manage refugees were equally talented.

Spring plowing had ended, and the wasteland outside Peijia Village had been reclaimed. Pei Qinghe then ordered the refugees to continue reclaiming wasteland.

The entire Yan County was her territory. With a single order from her, without even the need for government officials to issue land deeds, the displaced people would diligently clear wasteland and cultivate the land.

For the refugees, the absence of bandits, soldiers, and exorbitant taxes meant they had no worries about their wives and daughters being taken away. They could peacefully farm and work every day – that was the best life they could hope for.

They didn't even need to eat their fill. Before they could grow grain, one steamed bun a day was enough to make the refugees grateful and worship Pei Qinghe like a god.

In early April, the Guangning army and several other garrison units arrived in Bohai County. The rebel army's advance on the city was halted, and they had to retreat again and retreat into their camps.

Qiao Tianwang was quite annoyed to see that Tao Wudi had been unable to break through for a long time, so he sent 50,000 troops to reinforce him.

General Situ established a foothold in Qin Prefecture and, taking advantage of the capital's weakened defenses, launched an attack on the city. King Qiao was furious and personally led his troops to resist the imperial guards.

Both the North and the South were drawn into the flames of war.

At the end of April, Pei Yi led a few people and fled back to Pei Family Village in a sorry state.

"...We bought more than 500 horses outside the pass, and on our way back we were ambushed." Pei Yi, who was seriously injured, lay on the bed with a pale face and spoke intermittently: "The ones who ambushed us were the Liaoxi Army. They not only stole our horses, but also wanted to kill us to silence us."

"Master Zhan and the others were all killed. I was stabbed, but I escaped back on a fast horse."

"General, you must avenge us!"

After Pei Yi finished speaking, the breath he had been holding in dissipated, he closed his eyes, and never woke up again.

Everyone burst into tears.

Enraged, Pei Yan drew his sword and shouted, "I'm leading troops to Liaoxi to kill that traitor Li!"

Pei Qinghe rarely showed her emotions; her eyes were slightly red. Five years ago, on her way to exile in Youzhou, she took in two refugees. The two changed their names and followed her to Changping County. They first diligently farmed, then practiced swordsmanship, and remained loyal to her. In her heart, Pei Yi of the Pei family had long since become family.

The Liaoxi army had clearly been coveting the horse for a long time, and they set up an ambush on the road that Pei Yi and his party were bound to take, stealing their horses and killing them.

Blood feuds must be avenged in blood.

"Pei Yan, put your sword away. Now is not the time to send troops."

Pei Qinghe slowly said, "I will repay this blood feud tenfold."

(End of this chapter)