No strange things are allowed to evolve!

"Please speak, Your Excellency Mountain God!" the local gentry said respectfully.

"Didn't we just say that Zhao Village is sparsely populated and not suitable for a small-scale farming economy based on family units?"

Jiang Shu said with a smile:

"So I'm thinking of industrializing our Zhao Village, turning all that land into factories, and exporting our products. We won't grow grain anymore; we'll rely on importing large quantities. This way, the grain we get will be of higher quality, and both the time and labor costs will be lower."

After observing the various tasks being undertaken by the unlicensed workers in the temple, Dianzi Wang immediately realized what was going on.

"This is the prototype, right? We'll produce these industrial products later, okay?"

“That’s right.” Jiang Shu nodded: “I will find a way to handle the technology and production materials. The operation will be handled by these villagers. They have already been trained by me and are very skilled.”

skilled...

The local gentry recalled the scenes they had just witnessed.

Does it refer to stuffing an iron rod into the mouth?

"Then, you will be in charge of the export of various products. I know that each of you has a caravan, connections and resources. Each of you can be responsible for one or two products. I don't think that will be difficult for you," Jiang Shu continued.

"Understood," the gentry nodded.

“In this way, everyone in Zhao Village will have the opportunity to use their abilities, and the money they earn will be distributed according to their work. Everyone will become prosperous together, and no one will go hungry anymore. They will be able to live a comfortable life that they never thought possible. I will have fulfilled my long-cherished wish.” Jiang Shu smiled kindly.

“But, Lord Mountain God,” Idea King suddenly thought of something and looked at the unemployed laborers of Wang Village, “how should their wages be calculated? We villagers are alright; when we're just starting out and haven't made any money yet, we can help each other out. But they…”

Jiang Shu was taken aback, then frowned and hesitated, saying, "We still need to give them money? As long as they don't starve, that's enough, isn't it?"

"Uh..." The gentry were taken aback, then gasped.

This mountain god is no longer just protecting his own.

Isn't this already racist?

No wonder the other party considered our previous heartless behavior as just human nature, a mere lapse in judgment.

It turns out this person isn't even human.

The landlords who oppressed their tenants seemed to be doing charity work in his presence.

This filled Idea King with awe and respect.

After regaining his senses, Idea King smiled admiringly and said, "Then it's alright."

"Oh, right."

Jiang Shu changed the subject:

"Since our Zhao Village is going to transform into a valuable asset shared by everyone, we can no longer just mind our own business."

After you go back today, you must not only start to take care of the things I have asked you to do, but each family should also select some capable servants to guard the house and quickly form a team that can protect everyone's property.

Oh, no, not as soon as possible, ideally immediately.

"Is this matter actually a higher priority?" Idea King asked, somewhat surprised.

“That’s right.” Jiang Shu nodded: “Actually, if I had to say, I would like to form an army.”

"The army?" Idea King was having trouble keeping up with Jiang Shu's train of thought.

How did this business venture, which involved building factories, end up forming an army?

If the goal is to protect property, a small guard unit would be enough. What would be the point of having an army?

In response, Jiang Shu explained, "Since we are expanding, this number of people is definitely not enough. But having them invite people one by one would be too inefficient. So if possible, I hope to invite people on a large scale."

invite...

Is it really not an arrest?

The local gentry, suddenly realizing what had happened, wanted to ask but dared not.

At this moment, the idea master was completely captivated by Jiang Shu's personal charm, so all he could think about was how to share Jiang Shu's burdens.

He then voiced his concerns: "But there are many gentry in Wangzhuang just like us, and they each have their own servants and guards. We may not be able to invite them all over smoothly."

"Take this with you."

Jiang Shu handed Dianzi Wang a dark object.

“This is…” Idea King was very confused because he had never seen it before.

"You know about the top-tier hidden weapon, the Rain of Pear Blossoms Needle?" Jiang Shu asked.

The idea king shook his head.

"It's okay if you don't know, it has nothing to do with that anyway."

Jiang Shu explained:

"This is the G18, one of our products. It's like a repeating firearm. I'll teach you how to use it in a bit."

"Such a small thing, a firearm that fires in rapid succession?" Idea King couldn't believe it.

"Well, we'll start by intimidating them. If they don't comply, we'll aim for their legs, but we'll be careful not to kill them. If we knock them down, we'll bring them back."

Jiang Shu instructed:

"But if you see a bald man, aim for his head and shoot. That's their evil god. It's okay if you don't kill him, but if you do, I'll reward you handsomely."

Chapter 217 Pay Attention to Entry Timing

That night.

Led by his servants and guards, the idea master arrived at the neighboring Wang Village in the dark.

When they reached a point about 100 meters from Wangzhuang, they realized something was wrong.

"Sir, this is a bit strange. It's only a few o'clock, why is every house in Wangzhuang dark, with only a few lights on?"

Everyone immediately became alert and hesitated to make any rash moves.

But after observing for a while, the idea king suddenly remembered something.

He frowned and said in a low voice.

"I wonder if it's because most of the people in Wangzhuang are with the Mountain God?"

"Uh..." The person who spoke first gave an awkward smile: "That's true."

But then someone else spoke up.

“It’s still not right. I was here just a couple of days ago. There wasn’t this wall outside then, but now, for some reason, not only has this high wall been built, but also these fences.”

He looked at the newly built wall outside Wangzhuang and said.

This person's name is Zhao Xiaojie, and he was one of the first members to join Jiang Shu's gang.

He had never engaged in agriculture in Zhao Village before, but often went out hunting, so he was very familiar with the surrounding terrain and was also quite close to the people of Wang Village. Therefore, he was initially responsible for inviting the first batch of workers from Wang Village on behalf of Jiang Shu, and thus he had visited Wang Village a few days ago.

After the first group of migrant workers were moved and were willing to help invite their fellow villagers, either by writing letters or by personally making appointments, they no longer needed him, so he did not come again.

Only now, when Idea King needed a suitable guide, did Jiang Shu arrange for him to serve as an advisor and deputy captain, leading the newly formed "Zhao Village Special Forces" of nearly a hundred people to launch a night raid on Wang Village.

Commonly known as conscription.

Upon hearing this, Idea King immediately said, "It must be that their evil god discovered that so many people were missing from the village and became afraid of our mountain god, so he closed the village to protect himself."

Everyone agreed that, in any case, it would be difficult not to notice if half the people were missing, which was obviously the most reasonable explanation.

Moreover, the people of Zhao Village trusted Jiang Shu to an unprecedented degree. Almost everyone who had a good impression of Jiang Shu was 100% loyal to him, trusting him more than they trusted themselves.

Therefore, they firmly believed that the so-called evil god was afraid of their own mountain god.

This further strengthened their confidence.

After all, from their perspective, their night raids to conscript men were perfectly just.

They came to rescue innocent people threatened by evil gods. The reason they made these people work was simply because Zhao Village and Wang Village had a bad relationship. The people of Zhao Village risked so much to rescue them and made a huge sacrifice. Moreover, there is no such thing as a free lunch. So since they were rescued, it was only natural for them to do something within their power to repay them through labor.

Since we are partners of justice, and even evil gods are afraid of our orthodox mountain god, what do we have to fear?

With this in mind, everyone drew the pistols that Jiang Shu was equipped with, disengaged the safety, and were fully prepared...

At the same time, the person in the Wangzhuang Ancestral Hall felt an itch on their head and suddenly opened their eyes.

"So many people have arrived so quickly?"

He was somewhat surprised.

He hadn't expected that after expending so much divine power to quietly abduct half of Wangzhuang's people, Jiang Shu would be able to quickly gather such a large group of people to interfere with him.

Fortunately, he was cautious, fearing that Jiang Shu would use the same trick again. So he set up a barrier with his divine power a hundred meters away from Wangzhuang. As long as an outsider stepped in, he would be able to detect it immediately.

"I thought it might happen, but I didn't expect it to be so soon..."

His head itched, his eyes darkened, and then he let out a cold laugh:

"However... these people are probably the limit of what you can control right now, right?"

Outside Wangzhuang.

Just as Idea King led everyone to infiltrate the interior, intending to search for survivors from house to house and take them away without attracting the attention of the evil god, flames suddenly erupted everywhere.

"Oh no! An ambush!"

At first, Dianzi Wang panicked, but he quickly calmed down and began to work with Zhao Xiaojie to disperse the special forces team in an orderly manner, each finding advantageous terrain as cover and observing the situation.

Just as everyone was still in a state of panic after the unexpected incident, they saw that many heads had appeared outside the wall barrier they had just climbed over.

There were huge crowds of people everywhere, and it was impossible to tell where they came from or when they appeared.

Without saying a word, the leader of Wangzhuang, seeing the prey surrounded, waved his hand and shouted, "Fire the arrows!"

Whoosh whoosh!

Hundreds of arrows pierced the air, raining down on the people of Zhao Village.

Fortunately, everyone found cover immediately, and a volley of fire prevented any major casualties.

However, given the extremely high density of the arrows, some people were still unfortunately hit, but fortunately, none of them suffered fatal injuries.

After firing the first volley of arrows, the leader of Wangzhuang, who clearly knew that it was impossible to wipe out the entire Zhaozhuang army, provoked, "You are the henchmen of that evil god, aren't you? Hmph! You underestimate our Wangzhuang too much. You only have such a small number of men, yet you dare to launch a night attack. It seems that the mountain god has overestimated you. You are nothing but arrogant gamblers."

After saying that, he raised his arms and shouted, "Fellow villagers, kill them, and we can counterattack and rescue our families!"

Before the people of Zhao Village could react, another volley of fire was launched.

This time, there were even a few loud explosions from muskets.

Zhao Xiaojie immediately recognized the hunters from Wangzhuang whom he had met several times before, amidst the firelight.

"These misers have actually brought out their most treasured firearms. It seems that everyone in Wangzhuang is now a soldier, and their fighting spirit is very strong!"

He shouted.

"What fighting spirit?!"

While dodging the rain of arrows, the idea king gritted his teeth and said:

"They were all bewitched by the evil god!"

Another volley of arrows rained down, and the people of Zhao Village were in a sorry state.

Several more people were hit by arrows this time, and some are now seriously injured.

Fortunately, the muskets were not very accurate and had a very slow loading time, so no one was hit yet.

By this time, the people of Zhao Village had recovered from their initial bewilderment. Even though they had only been guards and not soldiers who had been on the battlefield, they were initially afraid. But now that they had seen blood, their adrenaline surged, and they were finally fired up.

"If you weren't so reluctant to destroy our houses and shoot us with rockets, how would you still be breathing so much?"

Wang Zhuang led the way, continuing his brazen provocations:

"You can keep hiding! You can dodge arrows, but I don't believe you can dodge bullets!"

His confidence was indeed justified.

The wall was some distance from the houses in the village, in between which was a very open and flat area without any cover. Relying on the wall, the people of Wangzhuang could shoot at anyone who wanted to break out from any direction.

Hiding inside would eventually lead to being riddled with arrows, while trying to escape would make them easy targets. In short, the people of Zhao Village were already trapped the moment they stepped over the wall.

Even if you find cover temporarily, the musket doesn't care if it's a plank or a haystack; it will just shoot right through.

When the people of Zhao Village were no longer able to resist, they could then tighten the encirclement and annihilate them one by one.

Unfortunately, reality is often not as wonderful as planned.