Can't a girl be a traitor like Cao Cao?

At this moment, he was seen wielding a long spear in the courtyard, and soon he was covered in sweat.

In this simple and unassuming courtyard, he practiced his skills every day, abstaining from alcohol and women, honing his marksmanship to perfection like an ascetic monk.

Such a life might seem extremely boring to others, but perhaps only someone like Li Zheng could find extraordinary enjoyment in what appears to be a dull existence.

Just as Li Zheng finished practicing his internal energy and was about to conclude his practice, he heard hurried footsteps outside.

He twitched his ear and launched a counterattack.

The gun tip grazed the man's ear, almost piercing his head and creating a bloody hole.

The newcomer was a member of the Water Gang. As soon as he saw the flash of silver light, Li Zheng's spearhead was already firmly embedded in the wood beside him.

He was terrified.

Li Zhengze said coldly, "I have said that no one is allowed to enter the courtyard when I am practicing martial arts."

"I...I understand...Boss..."

Only then did Li Zheng release the gun handle and pick up a towel to wipe his hands.

Then he asked, "What is it?"

The other party immediately informed Li Zheng that the water gang camp in the Xiangshui County area had been suddenly attacked and that the water gang had lost several generals.

Upon hearing this news, Li Zheng did not show much emotion, appearing calm and composed.

Then he asked, "Where are the others?"

"Reporting to the Chief, the other branch leaders have heard the news and have rushed back from the vicinity of Dongting Lake, waiting for the Chief to give us some advice!"

"Well, I see."

As Li Zheng spoke, he stepped out of the courtyard.

The gang member turned and glanced at the spear whose tip was deeply embedded in the wood, and was secretly alarmed.

Then he followed behind Li Zheng and walked quickly outside.

Before long, the two arrived outside the gang's council hall on the island and heard a series of noises coming from inside.

It seems that the leaders have already started arguing about what happened today.

However, everyone fell silent after Li Zheng stepped into the hall.

He then cupped his hands in greeting and loudly proclaimed, "Chief!"

The group of ruthless bandits who ran rampant on Dongting Lake were surprisingly as docile as cats under Li Zheng's command.

This shows just how powerful and influential Li Zheng truly is.

After Li Zheng sat in the main seat, he casually asked the group of guild leaders in front of him, "How much was lost?"

Upon hearing Li Zheng's question, a white-haired man who looked like a clerk immediately replied, "Seventy-six members of the gang died, and none were injured."

Four leaders were killed, and one was seriously injured.

Upon hearing that no one was injured, Li Zheng immediately frowned.

Then he asked, "Where is the body?"

The clerk then gestured, instructing his men to place the three headless corpses, along with a body snatched from outside the prefectural office, in the main hall in front of them.

Li Zheng frowned as he looked at the clean, fatal wounds on the corpses.

Then, as he examined the body, the clerk beside him whispered, "People from Xiangshui County have also come to inform us that the county government will be training troops to suppress bandits soon, and we should be on guard."

Upon hearing this, Li Zheng nodded, indicating that he understood.

At this point, the gang members below also began to stir.

A one-eyed leader shouted, "Chief! Our Water Gang has dominated Xiangshui County for many years and has never suffered such a great loss! If we don't fight back this time, those damn county soldiers will think we're afraid of them!"

"Yes! Boss! They must pay for this in blood!"

"Slaughter Xiangshui County to avenge our brothers!"

Hearing the commotion from his gang members, Li Zheng stood up expressionlessly.

Then he slowly said, "Recall everyone and keep them away from Xiangshui County in the near future."

Everyone was stunned when they heard Li Zheng's words.

The one-eyed man immediately showed a defiant expression and said, "Boss, are we just going to let this go like this?"

Li Zheng didn't reply, he just gave him a cold look.

One-Eyed immediately broke out in a cold sweat and bowed deeply, saying, "Understood, Chief..."

Seemingly sensing the doubts in the hearts of his gang members, Li Zheng remained silent for a moment before continuing, "The person who killed them is no ordinary person."

If you continue to wander around outside, you will only be defeated by them from all sides.

None of you are a match for him. Only I can fight him...

just wait.

I have a feeling they'll come to me on their own soon.

-

The next day, the sun shone brightly.

It was a rare good day in the still-chilly winter.

Under the warm sunshine, in front of the Xiangshui County government office, the Xiangshui County Commandant and the militia instructor Hui Ziheng had already gathered a large number of young men.

The military camp in the prefecture was now densely packed with people, numbering in the thousands.

They were all strong and brave men drawn from the counties under the prefecture.

Because the young and middle-aged people come from different backgrounds, their composition is quite complex.

Some of them were originally militiamen from other counties who were tasked with apprehending thieves, while others were fishermen from nearby villages.

There were also respectable men from prominent local clans, as well as archers who were already registered as soldiers in the county.

These are all different in various ways.

However, everyone at this time shared the same goal: to eliminate the floods of Dongting Lake for Xiangshui County.

Give the local people back a bright and clear world!

Because the Dongting Lake floods had plagued Xiangshui County for many years, every able-bodied young man with a bit of energy hated the Dongting Lake gang to the extreme.

Therefore, as soon as the prefecture issued the order to suppress bandits and to collect able-bodied men from villages in various places, many people rushed over immediately.

In less than half a day, the original quota of three thousand brave men had been filled. Some were even willing to forgo military pay in order to join the army and kill river bandits.

Left with no other choice, the prefect had to increase the quota to four thousand and remove some who were not physically fit, in order to barely appease the people's enthusiasm.

So thereafter, the county commandant and the local militia, who gradually became excited, enthusiastically began training this temporarily formed bandit-suppression army.

The Xiangshui County had not seen such a lively scene for many years. Outside the military camp, the people of the county could not help but stop and watch.

After a short while, Chi Junlin, who was in the county seat, finished discussing the provisions and pay for this army with the wealthy clans of Xiangshui County, and then came to the military camp with Wenren Tianxia.

Watching the group of strong and brave men practice naval warfare techniques, using bamboo poles as spears, and learning to thrust their weapons on the water.

Chi Junlin observed this and thought it actually made sense.

So I couldn't help but nod.

At this moment, Hui Ziheng also saw Chi Junlin coming over, so he temporarily put down what he was doing, jogged over, and greeted them very respectfully.

Chi Junlin nodded and said to him, "Don't worry about the provisions. I have already discussed it with them. The expenses for this bandit suppression will be shared by all the families. The grain in the granary of the prefecture is enough for you to use for at least a month."

Chapter 259 A Small Matter

Upon hearing Chi Junlin's words, Hui Ziheng's face immediately lit up with joy.

Before the bandit suppression campaign, his biggest concern was the supply of provisions. He had previously worried that if no one mentioned this matter, there might be serious problems during the campaign.

But unexpectedly, Lin Jun, a martial arts practitioner, was extremely knowledgeable about military strategy, having considered the matter thoroughly before anyone else.

This inevitably made Hui Ziheng curious about what Miss Lin Jun had done before.

Not only did he know the imperial envoy, but he also understood the ways of being an official and training soldiers.

And look at her moves; her martial arts skills are also very high.

He had never met anyone like Miss Lin Jun before, who knew everything and had such a profound understanding of all aspects.

At this moment, Chi Junlin turned to look at the group of soldiers again, as if he had thought of something, and a thoughtful expression appeared on his face.

Hui Ziheng then asked, "What's wrong, Miss Lin Jun? Is there a problem?"

Chi Junlin pondered for a moment, then said, "When we attack the Water Gang's island, there will definitely be a fierce battle. We can't take it down just by having more people."

Therefore, I think we still need to assemble an elite force. The number of soldiers doesn't necessarily need to be large, but they must be brave, fierce, and fearless in the face of death.

Upon hearing this, Hui Ziheng thought for a moment and then said, "If we're talking about elite troops, wouldn't the archers in my prefecture count? These archers have been training with me for many years and are exceptionally skilled. They are comparable to the strongest troops in the garrisons."

Furthermore, they are skilled in swimming; if I lead the attack on the island, they will undoubtedly fight fearlessly and will not retreat a single step!

Chi Junlin nodded, but then added, "It's possible, but still not enough."

"That……"

"Here's what I'll do. In the meantime, select three hundred able-bodied men for me. Ideally, these men should have family members who were killed by bandits, and those from impoverished families should be given priority. Once you've selected them, you'll personally train them. Make sure they master naval warfare as quickly as possible; I'll find them invaluable later."

Upon hearing Chi Junlin's words, Hui Ziheng felt as if he had received a military order from his superior, so he straightened up and replied to Chi Junlin, "Yes, sir!"

Then, Hui Ziheng subconsciously felt that something was wrong.

To say that the person before me was merely a "江湖人士" (a person of the martial arts world) who was only responsible for providing guidance, not command, in the suppression of bandits in Xiangshui County, was I being too humble?

So he looked a little embarrassed.

To cover his tracks, he casually asked, "Miss Lin Jun, when shall we make our move against the river bandits?"

Upon hearing this, Chi Junlin looked up at him.

He said somewhat sternly, "Don't pry into matters of military secrets. Your job is to focus on training your troops."

"understand!"

-

Meanwhile, as the various clans of Xiangshui County were enthusiastically preparing for the bandit suppression operation,...

It was still near the harbor, on that shady street near Coolie Street.

Inside the gambling den, gamblers were also engrossed in their games.

Although Xiangshui County is currently carrying out a vigorous campaign to suppress bandits, the people in this area are basically all useless.

Forget about bandit suppression; when their gambling addiction kicks in, even if I die, these guys will turn their ashes into urns and gamble again, hoping to win a couple of dog bones.

Hui Sanmei's husband, Lai Yuanwei, who was married into the Hui family, was such a person.

Although he had just gambled for half a day the day before yesterday, after returning to the Hui residence, he seemed to be in much better spirits and was not so neurotic anymore.

The next day, I took my daughter to the street and bought her a flower rope and jujube cake.

But the next day, the urge to gamble became unbearable. Lai Yuanwei relapsed into his old ways and his gambling addiction returned.

He knew that continuing to gamble like this was wrong, but when a gambler is addicted, he doesn't care about anything else.

At this point, he would be completely ruthless, willing to do anything just to play that game.

Thus, Lai Yuanwei, who had no self-control whatsoever, was led by his desires and once again came to the gambling den on Coolie Street.

"Supreme Treasure! Supreme Treasure! Supreme Treasure! Oh dear—how did I lose again..."

Lai Yuanwei at the gambling table had clearly been losing for a while; he seemed to be having bad luck, losing no matter how he opened the bet.

And those who gambled with him were still the same few sycophantic thugs.

At this moment, Lai Yuanwei was in a bad mood, but he did not realize that today might be the last time he gambled in his life.

After the accountant made another entry for him, he glanced at the group of thugs.

So the group got up and slowly left the table.

"Hey, why are you leaving already? We haven't finished gambling yet, why are you leaving?"

Lai Yuanwei was puzzled by this and was about to get up.