If I made you cannon fodder, how did you manage to achieve your goal of conquering the wolf's l

Li Kui's face turned green; he really wanted to yell back.

But the bloodstains on his neck still hurt, and his wrists were in so much pain that cold sweat poured down his forehead.

More importantly, Liu Sandao was right ahead.

If he makes trouble again after Liu Sandao has just suppressed the matter, it would be disrespectful to Liu Sandao.

So Li Kui could only grit his teeth and swallow his anger, but his eyes seemed to want to devour Xu Qingshan alive.

Xu Qingshan looked at him, his face expressionless.

Hate, hate as much as possible. When a person is in disarray, they will reveal their weaknesses.

Liu Sandao paused, turned around to look at Xu Qingshan, his eyes filled with a frighteningly gloomy expression.

"Xu Qingshan".

Xu Qingshan looked up. "Does Commander Liu have any further instructions?"

Liu Sandao sneered, "I hope you'll still be this stubborn in seven days."

Xu Qingshan thought about it carefully and said, "It should be possible, after all, the mouth doesn't eat grain."

Liu Sandao's eye twitched again.

He realized he had misjudged the kid; this wasn't a coward at all, he was clearly asking for a beating.

Liu Sandao stopped talking and turned to leave with his men.

The torchlight gradually faded into the distance, and the wind and snow swept back into the dilapidated courtyard.

Xu Qingshan stood at the gate of the courtyard until he was sure those people were completely gone before he closed the gate.

As soon as the door closed, his shoulders relaxed slightly.

I looked relaxed just now, but I wasn't relaxed at all.

Liu Sandao led seven or eight men.

If they really decide to break off all pretense and storm in, he won't be able to stop them.

At least for now, we can't stop it.

Xu Qingshan looked down at his hands.

My palms were sweating profusely; my body is still too weak. I only said a few words and lifted the knife for a moment, and my hands were already feeling weak.

No.

Let's eat!

Otherwise, if you encounter something like this again, relying solely on words will eventually get you beaten to death.

He turned and went back into the house.

Inside the room, all eight women were looking at him.

Shen Qinghe asked softly, "They won't come back, will they?"

Xu Qingshan placed the wood-chopping knife by the door. "It shouldn't happen tonight."

Shen Qinghe understood the implication in his words, "And what about after that?"

"I'll definitely come again in the future."

Xu Qingshan sat back down by the fire pit and rubbed his frozen hands.

"A man like Li Kui won't tolerate being wronged. A man like Liu Sandao won't feel comfortable being restrained in public either. Tonight is just a temporary respite."

The atmosphere in the room became heavy again.

The youngest woman shrank back, her face turning pale.

Xu Qingshan glanced at her and said, "Scared?"

The little girl bit her lip, not daring to speak.

Xu Qingshan said, "It's right to be afraid. It would be strange not to be afraid in this place. But being afraid is useless. If you want to live, you have to do something. Starting tomorrow, this courtyard will need to be renovated."

Xiao Hongluan looked at him. "Are you really planning to guard this dilapidated courtyard?"

Xu Qingshan retorted, "If we don't guard this place, where will we guard?"

Xiao Hongluan remained silent.

They really have nowhere to go now.

Xu Qingshan continued, "This courtyard is a bit dilapidated, but at least it has walls and a gate."

"The walls are low, we can add more. The door is broken, we can repair it. The space is small, but that has its advantages too; if someone does manage to break in, there aren't many people who can actually do anything about it."

At this point, he looked at Xiao Hongluan.

"Since you know how to use tripwires, you should also know some ways to guard the yard."

Xiao Hongluan did not deny it, "I know a little."

"Then tomorrow you can help me find a suitable place to set a trap."

Why should I help you?

Xiao Hongluan looked up at him.

Xu Qingshan smiled and said, "Because I'm not the only one living in this courtyard now."

"If someone breaks in, everyone will suffer."

Xiao Hongluan remained silent for a moment.

She glanced at the women behind her and finally nodded.

"Can."

Xu Qingshan then looked at Shen Qinghe.

"Just like before, you'll be in charge of the grain from now on."

Shen Qinghe hesitated and asked, "Are you really comfortable entrusting the grain to me?"

Xu Qingshan said, "I'm not at ease."

Shen Qinghe: "..."

Xu Qingshan said calmly, "But I don't have the energy to manage everything right now. If I don't hand it over to you, who am I supposed to? I can't even keep track of how many bowls of rice I eat in a day."

Shen Qinghe looked at him, suddenly unsure of what to say.

This person always speaks very directly.

It's so direct that you don't know whether to be touched or angry.

Xu Qingshan continued, "However, let me state the rules first."

Food is life.

"Anyone who dares to hoard, waste, or steal, I don't care what her past status was, don't blame me for turning against her."

Shen Qinghe nodded. "I understand."

Her voice wasn't loud, but it was very earnest.

Xu Qingshan hummed in agreement.

He was indeed exhausted after a whole night of running around.

But before he could close his eyes, the system's voice suddenly sounded.

[Successfully held out on the first night.]

[Seven-Day Survival Mission Progress: One Day]

[Family trust level increases: Low → Initial trust.]

[Reward: 10 jin of polished rice.]

[Reward: Three Armor-Piercing Arrows.]

[Reward: A set of carpentry tools.]

Xu Qingshan's eyes brightened slightly.

coming!

Finally, Brother Tongzi is giving us a decent reward!

The next moment, a slight sound came from the empty, broken rice jar in the corner of the room.

Shen Qinghe, who was closest, immediately turned around to look.

"There seems to be something in the rice bin."

Several women simultaneously looked towards the corner of the room.

Shen Qinghe walked over and lifted the broken wooden board covering the rice jar.

Then, she was completely stunned.

There was a clean little cloth bag in the rice bin.

She reached out with trembling hands and opened it, revealing white grains of rice.

The room fell silent instantly.

Even Xiao Hongluan was taken aback.

"White rice?"

Shen Qinghe said in a low voice, "It's white rice."

The moment those two words were uttered, everyone in the room changed their expressions.

In places like Blackstone Fortress, even brown rice is considered a delicacy.

White rice?

That's something only officers and the wealthy can afford.

They were escorted all the way to the border, where they were fed either moldy cakes or coarse porridge mixed with sand.

Sometimes there isn't even a bowl of hot water.

Seeing the white rice for the first time, the group was somewhat incredulous.

Shen Qinghe picked up a small amount of rice, her fingers trembling.

"It wasn't there just now."

"I checked when I was cooking porridge, and the rice container was empty."

Several gazes simultaneously fell upon Xu Qingshan.

Xu Qingshan remained silent for a moment.

This is indeed difficult to explain. I can't just say that I have a system; they might not believe me anyway.

So Xu Qingshan said in a serious tone, "Perhaps it's my ancestors showing their power."

The room fell silent for a moment.

Xiao Hongluan looked at him and said, "Did your ancestors even deliver rice?"

Xu Qingshan nodded, "Mm."

"I guess they're afraid I'll starve to death and that the family line will end."

The women's expressions suddenly turned strange.

No one, not even a fool, would believe that explanation.

But for some reason, the way Xu Qingshan said it made people want to laugh.

In the corner, the youngest girl couldn't help but chuckle softly.

After laughing, she quickly covered her mouth, as if afraid she had made a mistake.

Xu Qingshan looked at her and asked, "What's your name?"

The little girl stood up timidly.

"Zhao Lihua".

Her name is rustic, but she has delicate features.

Xu Qingshan nodded. "What can you do?"

Zhao Lihua whispered, "She can cook, farm, and raise chickens."

As she said this, she looked down at the worn-out straw sandals on her feet.

"We used to have two sheep at home, which I fed."

Xu Qingshan said, "Starting tomorrow, you will help Shen Qinghe."

"Cooking, boiling water, tidying up the yard."

Zhao Lihua nodded quickly, "I can work, and I don't eat much."

These words silenced the people in the room.

Xu Qingshan glanced at her and said, "Eating less is not a skill."

Zhao Lihua was stunned.

Xu Qingshan said, "Being able to work and survive is the real skill."

Zhao Lihua felt a slight pang of sadness and lowered her head to give a soft "hmm."

On her way to the border, the word she heard most often was "burden."

No one thought she could do anything, and no one asked her what she was good at.

Xu Qingshan was the first.

Although this person's speech was anything but gentle, she actually felt at ease with him.

Just then, Xiao Hongluan's gaze suddenly fell to the other side.

"There are more things there now."

Xu Qingshan followed her gaze.

A wooden box had appeared in the corner of the room, against the wall, at some unknown time.

Xu Qingshan walked over and opened it; inside was a set of carpentry tools.

A saw, a chisel, a plane, a wooden ruler, an ink line, and a few other small items whose names he couldn't recall.

As soon as this thing appeared, a woman who hadn't said much in the room suddenly stood up.

Her gaze changed noticeably as she looked at the set of tools.

Xu Qingshan noticed her. "You understand this?"

The woman hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

"I know a little."

"name."

Angelica dahurica.

Her voice was very soft, and her face was pale.

But his fingers were very thin and long, and there were some old calluses on his knuckles.

Xu Qingshan asked, "Have you ever worked as a carpenter before?"

Bai Zhi whispered, "My father is a mechanic."

"I studied under him for several years before the incident at home."

"Can you fix doors?"

Bai Zhi nodded.

"meeting."

"Can you make barricades?"

Bai Zhi hesitated for a moment, then said, "I'll do a simple one."

"Can you make crossbows?"

Bai Zhi's eyes flickered slightly, but she did not answer immediately.

Xu Qingshan looked at her.

Bai Zhi was silent for a moment, then said, "I can make small crossbows, but I don't have iron, so they're not very powerful."

Xu Qingshan smiled.

Good, very good, this is the real treasure!

What do you mean eight mouths? These are clearly eight functional positions.