I was a lord farming, how did I become an emperor?

Chapter 101 The Temptation of the Bandit Gang
……

……

Doc and Joseph exchanged a glance.

Both of them tensed up, and neither of them spoke.

Doc pointed to himself, then to the front.

Joseph understood, put the whistle in his mouth, and pointed to his right rear.

The two quickly spread out to the sides and silently moved closer.

Rhodes taught the soldiers some hand gestures, and they relied on hand gestures to communicate when it was inconvenient.

The two crept forward and soon spotted three figures crawling on the ground not far away.

Two large and one small creature were slowly crawling towards the wheat field.

Doc and Joseph remained silent, crouching low as they slowly approached.

When they were three meters away, the figure on the ground suddenly became alert.

"Run!"

With a shout, Doc kicked the figure in front of him away.

The tall figure crashed to the ground with a muffled groan.

Doc seized the opportunity to grab another short figure.

Joseph reacted even faster, lunging forward and pinning the third person to the ground.

"do not move!"

He drew his longsword, the tip pointing directly at the man on the ground, his voice icy: "Stealing grain from Frostleaf Town? You're asking for death!"

"Spare me! Sir, spare me!"

The people on the ground hurriedly begged for mercy, "We're just so hungry, we want to borrow some food!"

Doc frowned; the voice sounded familiar.

He grabbed the man's shoulder, turned his face towards him, and looked at him in the moonlight.
"Airo?"

……

……

In the manor, Rhodes was fast asleep when he was awakened by a knock on the door.

He rubbed his eyes and got up, but didn't get angry.

Because he had given instructions beforehand that he could be woken up at any time for anything related to food, no matter how small.

Lawrence stood at the door, mustering his courage to shout, "My lord, the patrol has caught three grain thieves!"

"People from our town?"

Rod put on his coat, his voice still sleepy.

“No, they are refugees from Luanshi Village,” Lawrence replied, bowing his head.

"Luan Shi Village?"

Rod was taken aback; the name sounded familiar.

"North of the Blackrock Mountains, on the side near Ice Peak Valley."

Lawrence quickly added, "Do you remember the bandits who attacked my caravan? They captured some people from Luanshi Village."

"Come on, bring it over and let us see it."

Rhodes yawned and walked into the hall.

Airo knelt on the ground, not daring to lift his head.

There was a woman and a child beside him, trembling with fear.

Rhodes leaned against the table, still half asleep and needing a while to recover, and asked, supporting his forehead, "I heard you're from Luanshi Village?"

"Yes, Your Excellency."

Airo's voice trembled, and he dared not look Rhodes in the eye. "I...we didn't mean it. Please have mercy."

Why go so far?

With his eyes closed, Rhodes asked, "Why not steal food from Ice Peak Valley? Isn't it closer?"

Airo swallowed hard: "There's a group of bandits over there."

"They raided the lord of Icewind Valley, stole several carts of grain, and then attacked our village."

“Our village has also been occupied. We dare not flee over there, so we can only come here.”

"I'm sorry, sir!"

Airo kowtowed violently, "We are starving and have no choice but to come and borrow some food. Please spare our lives!"

"We are willing to be slaves!"

Airo gritted his teeth and shouted it out loud.

Airo and Doc both come from Rock Village and have been best friends since childhood.

Doc couldn't plead for Airo because he himself was just a slave.

But Doc knew that after the autumn harvest, the lord would not lack food, but rather slaves.

Therefore, on the way here, Doc had repeatedly instructed Airo to be sincere and to submit willingly.

After all, being a slave here is much better than being a homeless refugee.

And it also allows you to keep your hands.

—A decree just issued by the lord before the autumn harvest: anyone who dares to steal grain will have their hands cut off.

Airo's current behavior proves that he has listened.

Rhodes closed his eyes, rested his chin on his hand, and said calmly, "Your attitude in admitting your mistake is not bad."

"Have you not eaten for days?" Rod asked casually.

"Two days, my lord."

Airo's voice was weak, "We can still endure it, but the child really can't take it anymore."

"I gave him some nuts, but it still wasn't enough..."

Rhodes didn't speak, his eyes remained closed, as if he were asleep.

The hall fell silent; no one dared to utter a sound, and even breathing became cautious.

For a moment, it was as if even the air itself had frozen.
After a long while, Rod opened his eyes and asked, "How many bandits were there?"

Airo was taken aback, and stammered, "A lot...more than fifty."

Rhodes sighed, somewhat helplessly.

But there's no way around it; many people in the northern wilderness can't even count the number.

Being able to count to fifty is already quite good.

How does it compare to Luanshi Village?

Rod continued to ask. "Not as many as the people in our village."

Airo closed his eyes and thought for a moment, "Definitely not."

"Are there two fiftys?"

"A little more than two fiftys, but definitely not more than three fiftys."

Airo said firmly.

Many people, including wild men, have a limited number of counts, but they naturally form groups.

They can group numbers using the limited numbers they know, but a savage can only group them into ten tens at most; any more and their brains become completely confused.

"Do they have horses?" Rod pressed.

"Have!"

Airo replied, "They have more than thirty horses, and the leader is said to be a knight!"

Thirty horses?

Rhodes raised an eyebrow, immediately perking up.
"Thirty horses were all ridden? Not any of them were used for transporting goods?"

“Yes, sir, the cart is pulled by oxen,” Airo replied.

This bandit gang is quite something.

A horse that can be ridden is not necessarily a warhorse that can fight, but it does have the potential to be trained into a warhorse.

Rhodes was very tempted.

He waved his hand, "Lawrence, take them downstairs and get something to eat."

“Yes, my lord,” Lawrence replied.

"Thank you, my lord! Thank you so much!"

Ai Luo quickly kowtowed, and his wife hurriedly pulled the child to kowtow as well.

Lawrence saw that Rhodes was thinking, so he quickly pulled the three of them away.

After everyone left, Rhodes did not go to sleep.

After thinking for a long time, he summoned Durant and Lawrence to the hall.

He leaned back in his chair, looked at the two of them, and slowly asked, "Lawrence, how long until the autumn harvest is finished?"

“It will take about another week, my lord,” Lawrence replied.

"I want you to give me the exact time."

Rod asked seriously, "Seven days to finish everything?"

"Seven days may not be enough time to process the straw, but the grain will definitely be stored in the granary."

Lawrence patted his chest and solemnly assured everyone, "Everyone is working hard now, and no one is slacking off!"

Rhodes nodded, then turned to Durant: "How's the situation on the military side?"

"The training is going very well."

Durant realized that Rhodes had some new plans, straightened his back, and reported carefully: "After being baptized in the last battle, the recruits are more composed and have gained a sharper edge."

"As you instructed, the training of those forty savages is progressing smoothly. They are in good physical condition and are improving rapidly."

"The kids in the Knights squad are working very hard, and everything is normal."

After listening to Durant's report, Rod nodded slightly.

Then he told Durant what had happened in the middle of the night.

Durant heard that there were people stealing grain, but Lawrence was in charge of the autumn harvest, and the people had already been caught, so he didn't rush to ask for details.

After Rhodes finished speaking, he immediately realized that his lord was interested.

"My lord, are you planning to take action against that bandit gang?"

"I really want to."

Rod paused, his voice low.

"I'm just hesitant. They shouldn't be in our Black Pine Ridge right now. Should I provoke them?"

"Should we take them down, or let everyone breathe a sigh of relief first?"

"I'd like to hear your opinions."

Rhodes's gaze swept across the two faces.

"My lord, I don't understand things like war."

Lawrence chuckled sheepishly and said, "But you always make a lot of money when you go out. From a business perspective, I think we should hit you."

Durant hesitated for a moment, then nodded slightly.

"Please forgive my bluntness, Your Excellency."

Rhodes nodded. "Go ahead."

“I know you are very cautious and always weigh many things, but this is not a disadvantage for a new lord.”

Durant took a breath and said, "But I think the harvest scene has boosted morale, and I don't think they are afraid of war."

"There's been no word from the Earl yet; if they're going to come, it'll be at least a week."

"To think about the future, so they won't come and cause trouble when we're busy with the autumn harvest..."

Durant's eyes were determined. "I think if we have the chance, we should take them down now."

"I think so."

Rod breathed a sigh of relief, a smile playing on his lips. "Most importantly, they have more than thirty horses."

"Thirty rideable horses!"

This was Rhodes' first proactive war against a foreign power, and he was very worried about whether his decision was right or wrong, so he was wavering in his mind.

Durant's eyes lit up: "Then we absolutely have to take them down!"

"it is good!"

Rod slammed his hand on the table and stood up abruptly.

"Now that it's decided, let's start making arrangements."

He turned to Lawrence and said, "Go and call that Airo over here."

Lawrence paused for half a second, then quickly nodded, "Yes, Lord!"

He quickly turned and ran away.

Rhodes would never go on an expedition, so some methods must be used.

Durant immediately stood up. "Your Excellency, I will go and have the soldiers prepare now. Let them rest well for the next few days."

"Also, inform Gunle so he's aware of the situation," Rod instructed.

"No problem, Your Excellency."

Durant responded immediately and took action.

(End of this chapter)