Upon arriving at the village chief's house, Jiang Wan first woke Sanlang and then told the village chief, "Grandpa Village Chief, our village has been targeted by bad people. Earlier on the mountain, Brother Xiao and I overheard them discussing their plan to attack our village tomorrow night."
The village chief was startled. "Wanwan, what did you say?"
Jiang Wan replied, "Village Chief Grandpa, you heard correctly. Our village is facing great disaster! These people don't seem like ordinary refugees. They not only want to steal our grain and water, but they also want to snatch the village girls, saying they want to have their fun first before selling them off. I suspect they are a group of bandits or mountain brigands hiding in the nearby mountains."
Sanlang looked around in a daze. Seeing that he was already back in the village, he quickly confirmed that what Jiang Wan said was true.
The villagers present turned pale with fright.
If they were just refugees, they might have dared to fight back. But if the other party were vicious bandits and brigands, how could they possibly contend with them?
Someone said with a pale face, "Village Chief, why don't we quickly turn back, choose another path, or simply return to our hometown."
"Yes, Village Chief. Those people definitely won't let us go. If we continue forward, aren't we just rushing to our deaths?"
The village chief was also terrified, his mind in a turmoil.
Seeing the villagers in such a panic, Jiang Pan said, "Everyone, calm down first. Don't panic, listen to me for a moment."
When he spoke, the villagers quieted down.
Jiang Pan said with a solemn expression, "The current situation is not as simple as we think. Since those people have been watching us for days and decided to make their move tomorrow, no matter which way we go, they will relentlessly pursue us."
The villagers' faces turned even paler. Some timid women even started crying, "What are we going to do! Everyone, think of a solution!"
Jiang Pan said, "In this situation, we only have two paths. One, hand over the grain and the village girls to ensure the survival of the rest."
As soon as this method was proposed, those with daughters were about to go mad. "No! I'd rather strangle her to death with my own hands than let her be defiled by those beasts!"
Jiang Pan nodded. "Exactly! Even if we hand these over, won't they still kill us? Even if they don't kill us, without water and food, we won't be able to survive either! Therefore, we can only take the second path: fight them!"
Everyone's hearts sank further into despair. How could a group of ordinary villagers fight against a band of brigands?
Jiang Pan was also extremely anxious, but these were the only two paths laid out before them. He absolutely refused to choose the first one, so only the second path was viable.
However, he had no idea how to proceed.
Suddenly, a bird chirped from above.
Jiang Wan looked up and saw Xiao Mazai had returned.
Xiao Mazai proudly reported its achievements to Jiang Wan. It had lured those people far away, pecked them to death, and then waited outside for its body to recover before flying back.
Seeing its smug look, Jiang Wan suddenly had an idea and assigned Xiao Mazai another task.
Having just won a battle, Xiao Mazai was now full of high spirits and flew away, flapping its wings.
After a while, Xiao Mazai flew back and landed on Jiang Wan's shoulder, chirping its report.
After listening, Jiang Wan took out a handful of millet from her pocket and fed it to Xiao Mazai.
Xiao Mazai happily enjoyed its spoils of victory.
Jiang Wan carried Xiao Mazai and went to Jiang Pan, tugging at his hand and signaling him to follow her.
Seeing that everyone was still immersed in their panic and hadn't noticed him, Jiang Pan followed Jiang Wan to a secluded spot.
"Dad, the old immortal has found the whereabouts of those brigands. They are in the mountains about fifty miles ahead on this road, numbering over a hundred people."
Jiang Pan's expression became even more somber. Over a hundred people didn't sound like many, but since they were brigands, their three to four hundred people didn't hold any advantage. After all, the village only had a little over two hundred men, including the old and the young.
Only a little over a hundred people were truly usable.
Seeing his furrowed brow, Jiang Wan added, "The old immortal said that we definitely cannot defeat them in a direct confrontation, but we can try other methods. Not far ahead, there is a mountain. The terrain of that mountain is quite steep, and it has cliffs on two sides, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. It might be advantageous for us."
Jiang Pan's eyes lit up. "Wanwan, can you take me to see that mountain?"
"Of course."
Jiang Pan immediately went to report the situation to the village chief, but he claimed that Jiang Wan and Sanlang had discovered it while wandering in the mountains.
Upon hearing this, the village chief immediately told him to hurry and take a few people to scout the mountain.
So, Jiang Pan quickly called a few brave and meticulous men, and with Jiang Wan in his arms, they set off.
Erlang suddenly darted out. "Dad, I want to go too!"
"What are you going to the commotion for! Stay with the group, look after your mother and sister-in-law!"
Erlang retorted, "Mother and sister-in-law are not in danger at the moment. I want to go and see, perhaps I can help."
Seeing his determined look, Jiang Wan said, "Dad, let's bring Er Ge along. Perhaps he really has a way."
Jiang Pan had no choice but to say, "Then follow closely and don't run around!"
"Yes!"
Erlang excitedly agreed and ran into the team.
The group of ten, under the moonlight, plunged into the mountain forest.
Xiao Mazai led the way, and it took nearly an hour for them to reach the foot of the mountain.
As Xiao Mazai had said, the mountain was very steep, and even climbing it was quite difficult for people.
Jiang Pan carried Jiang Wan on his back and led them up the mountain.
The mountain was not high, but it still took them a considerable amount of time to climb to the top.
Upon reaching the summit, Jiang Pan put Jiang Wan down and began to survey the terrain.
After looking around, Erlang said, "Dad, there are many stones on this mountain. We can use them. Also, we can make some pointed sticks and some simple launchers. They will definitely be very useful."
A man asked, "How do we make the launchers? Does anyone here know how?"
Erlang replied, "I do! It's very simple."
The other men were impressed. "Erlang, you're amazing, you actually know these things."
Erlang chuckled. "I just tinkered with them when I had free time. I've tried them, and the effect is quite good."
Jiang Pan didn't have the time to praise his son. After examining the situation on the mountaintop, he led the group back down the mountain.
Climbing up was easy, but descending was difficult. Even these strong young men had to tread carefully as they went down.
The elderly and children in the village had a hard time just climbing up.
But at this moment, even if it were a mountain of knives, they had to grit their teeth and climb.
By the time they returned to the village, it was already past midnight.
To avoid arousing suspicion from the bandits, the village chief instructed the villagers to maintain their normal routines.
However, except for the innocent children who knew nothing of the world, no one could sleep.
Everyone was anxiously awaiting news.
After Jiang Pan and the others returned, they went to the village chief and informed him about the mountain and the plan Erlang had devised.
"As long as everyone can climb that mountain, we have a great chance of surviving!"