The fiercest soldier of the border army

Tang Shun patiently explained to everyone, "The silver we brought includes mine, everyone's, and even more so the silver of those comrades who fought alongside me to cover the rear and died in battle."

"In these extraordinary times, we will overcome difficulties together. Afterwards, I, Tang Shun, will make up for it one by one."

The soldiers present remained silent. In fact, they knew that they could only spend money if they were alive.

"The rest of you, come with me to find a sheltered spot to pitch your tents and settle in."

Despite the skepticism, what else can they do but follow orders right now?

Wei Zong found his identity card as a person from Chu, collected the silver, and headed straight for Xiushui Town.

Liang Enyi, accompanied by two new recruits, changed his clothes and headed straight for Linhe County.

The army's tents were set up in four sheltered spots behind the canyon.

It was simple, but it could keep out the wind and rain.

Inside the tent, cut bamboo was strung together to support the bed boards, wooden tables, and so on.

All military equipment and supplies were neatly stacked on bamboo planks inside the tent.

After completing these tasks, Tang Shun walked out of the camp alone, selected a suitable location, and directed his soldiers to dig out five huge cave dwellings.

As the sun set, Tang Shun led the remaining soldiers to eat dry rations soaked with sand.

Liang Enyi and the other two pushed the cart back.

The next morning, Wei Zong returned to his tent carrying his bundle.

"Team Leader, I'm back."

Wei Zong cupped his hands and reported, "That supervisor is as fat as a pig, and he's greedy for money. He approved the lease, and we've rented this area for a year."

wow——

"I found a shady business. This is fake silver that I bought. It cost forty pieces, which is equivalent to two hundred taels. It was filled with lead and only had a layer of silver on the surface."

"I specifically asked, the town can't use the silver ingots, they have to go to the county, and they won't find them in a short time."

"I've brought the people with me; they're all townspeople who are on winter leave, a total of thirty-seven people."

Tang Shun ordered all the soldiers in the team to change into civilian clothes and disguise themselves as an ordinary merchant caravan.

He did not show himself, but led his men to continue improving the cave dwellings, while Wei Zong and a few others kept an eye on the laborers.

According to Tang Shun's estimate, the bamboo, limestone, and clay sections could be completed in about seven days.

Then, the framework is woven together, the template is built, cement mixed with stones is poured into the framework, and after it dries, a fortified city is formed.

Only an hour had passed when Wei Zong rushed over, shouting, "Squad leader, these people are unusable!"

"I'd long heard that the border residents around Xiushui were notorious troublemakers, and seeing it today, it's certainly true!"

Wei Zong's face was grim. "We hired more than thirty people, and after an hour, they've only cut down a dozen or so bamboo stalks, turned over a small piece of clay, and barely touched the limestone."

"At this rate, when will it ever be finished!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Hang stopped what he was doing, straightened up, and said sarcastically, "I told you long ago that he's a troublemaker, but you didn't believe me."

"It's not too late to stop now."

Tang Shun frowned but did not respond. "Take me to see."

In the originally designated area, more than 30 people started work simultaneously in three directions.

However, they didn't seem to do much work; they just huddled together in twos and threes, chatting and bragging.

Some people dig once, stop three times, and the hoe tip only scrapes off a layer of topsoil.

"The boss is here, hurry up!"

"Hey, this is the boss, he's quite young." A young man said with a grin.

"We get paid by the day, it's not like we haven't done any work," another old man said, sitting on the ground with his trousers rolled up. "Even when the boss comes, you can't be unreasonable, right, everyone?"

Many villagers started making a ruckus, laughing and joking.

Zhu Hang clicked his tongue and glanced at Tang Shun.

Cheng Feng's face flushed with anger. "If you can't do it, then get out!"

Before the words were even finished, a dark-skinned man threw his hoe on the ground and said, "Fine, I won't do it. What do I care about your few coins?"

"You bunch of outsiders, we're not doing this. Nobody in town will work for you!"

Several people nearby chimed in, "We're looking for work during the winter off-season, not here to be insulted!"

In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen people threw down their tools and sat on the ground without moving.

Liang Enyi and the others felt as disgusted as if they had swallowed flies.

Poor mountains and bad waters breed unruly people.

"You son of a bitch—"

Cheng Feng drew his sword with a clang and was about to step forward when Tang Shun stopped him, "Don't do it!"

Tang Shun, dressed in a cotton-padded coat, stood tall and straight, cupped his hands and smiled, "Fellow villagers, we are merchants from the south who have contracted this land."

That's all for today. We'll continue tomorrow. The wages will double. Anyone who wants to come can come.

Tang Shun walked up to Liang Enyi and instructed, "Settle the bill. That's all for today."

Liang Enyi was taken aback: "Check, please?"

"Yes." Tang Shun raised his voice, "We've wronged you today."

Liang Enyi hesitated for a moment, but still complied.

The money was quickly counted, ten coins per person, and handed over with both hands.

"Hey..." The dark-faced man gripped the copper coin, a glint of cunning in his eyes.

"Keep working tomorrow. If you do a good job, I'll reward you further."

After saying that, Tang Shun turned and left.

Zhu Hang and the others exchanged glances, their faces dark as they silently followed.

"Team Leader Tang, would you like me to teach you how to be a team leader?"

Zhu Hang finally spoke slowly when they were near the tent:

"People are inherently fickle; if you make them stand, they'll want to sit."

"If you ask him to sit, he'll want to lie down."

"You made him lie down, and he still wants to sleep with a woman!"

"Believe it or not, they might be able to call in even more people tomorrow after they've taken the money. But they think that if they cause a scene, they'll get an extra ten coins. Tomorrow, they'll only cause more trouble."

"They would think that we are traveling merchants without any foundation, and that we have no other way but to beg them to do business with us by paying more money."

Tang Shun stopped and asked in a low voice, "What would you do if you were in his shoes?"

Zhu Hang stood with his hands behind his back, full of arrogance, "Stop pretending to be a merchant, just show your armor, draw your swords, and nobody is allowed to leave until this is done."

Cheng Feng nodded in agreement.

"That's too simplistic." Tang Shun shook his head. "Forcing them to do it will easily cause trouble. We need to find a compromise."

"Then tell me, how do you propose a compromise?" Zhu Hang's proposed solution was rejected, and his face immediately darkened. "With your seven hundred taels, how many days' wages can you pay? How many bricks can you buy? If you smash it all down, you won't even see a splash!"

Zhu Hang's voice was loud, attracting the attention of the soldiers present.

They didn't speak, but their bewildered eyes made it clear to Tang Shun that they didn't know what the point of doing this was either.

Tang Shun said, "That's why I specially brought in fake silver, just in case."

"So, you specifically switched to counterfeit silver to prevent them from slacking off? To pass off fakes as genuine?"

Zhu Hang chuckled, "Team Leader Tang, have you lost your mind? Why not use fake copper coins? They can definitely tell the difference with silver."

A few barely perceptible sighs rang out.

Clearly, not only Zhu Hang, but the other soldiers also felt it was unreliable.

Paying with counterfeit money? How utterly clumsy!

From the moment when Tie Gou Sui was at the crossroads of life and death in Datong City, Tang Shun should have been able to win over the people.

Cheng Weiliang and the other two obeyed everything he said unconditionally, but they were always filled with doubts.

Tang Shun smiled gently, "I know you're confused, so I'll tell you."

"This silver is not for distributing, it's for burying."

"Bury?"

"Tonight, bury the silver in different places, in the clay, in the crevices of the limestone, and under the bamboo. Bury it all deep so that they can't easily dig it out, but they can still dig it out if they put in the effort."

"Tomorrow, a few of us will go and supervise the work. If any laborer digs up, we'll immediately stop the work and fire them, never to be employed again."

"So that's it..." Wei Zong had a flash of inspiration, as if he had grasped something, but he couldn't figure it out.

"We need to put on a show, something urgent and panicked, to drive them away."

"This afternoon, send a few more unfamiliar brothers to spread the word in town."

"They say this place is the burial ground of the previous dynasty, and there's a lot of silver buried underneath—under the bamboo, under the mud, inside the stones, everywhere."

A cold glint flashed across Tang Shun's face. "Believe it or not, they'll come digging themselves tonight."

Wei Zong and the others felt as if their scalps had exploded.

A chill ran from the soles of my feet straight up to the top of my head!

So that's how it is!

They had already guessed that these villagers didn't need any supervision in order to dig up the silver; they would do everything in their power!

"I see, I see." Zhu Hang was stunned. "You, surnamed Tang, actually have such methods!"

"Then we don't need to worry about it or keep an eye on it; let them dig as much as they want!"

Cheng Feng burst into laughter, his voice booming, "Brilliant, absolutely brilliant!"

"No--"

Tang Shun shook his head. "We need to send two people to keep an eye on them and prevent them from digging."

The group was stunned again. "Why is that?"