After seeing the two off, Ye Ming returned to the backyard.
Su Xiaorong sat dazed on a stone bench, her eyes red and swollen from recent crying.
Ye Ming slowly walked over to her and whispered, "Are you feeling better?"
"Yes, I'm better. I just thought carefully about what my husband said, and I understand."
Remembering the horrific scars on Xiao Ming's body, Su Xiaorong's heart ached again.
"It's okay. I promise, we'll be able to rescue my sister soon."
"I'm going to the county government office to see the magistrate later. It's not convenient to discuss things with so many people around right now."
"Just wait here."
Relying on others to protect oneself wasn't enough; first, one needed an army of their own.
As a farmer, he needed official permission to recruit militia and distribute weapons.
In the past, relying on him and Yang Xiong to protect those around him would have been enough.
But now that they had provoked the Zhou family, even a compound bow wouldn't be enough.
Arrows were limited, and the Zhou family, with its vast resources, had countless cannon fodder.
With a well-organized team, he would be more relaxed when facing the enemy in the future.
"My dear husband, it's getting late. You should go and come back quickly, otherwise you won't be able to make it back before dark."
"Okay, I understand."
Thinking of the urgency of the matter, Ye Ming quickened his pace and soon arrived at the Qingshui County Government Office.
Cui Xian had just finished handling government affairs and was about to leave the office and return home.
"Brother Ye, do you have anything else to do?"
Ye Ming also got straight to the point without any nonsense: "Brother Cui, I want a document to recruit local militia to protect my family."
"The Zhou family is the local tyrant in Qingshui County. We have offended them today, and they will inevitably retaliate against me."
He had sensed the Zhou family's situation when he first arrived in Qingshui County.
On the first day, they dared to send people to threaten and bribe him, the county magistrate, and even the yamen runners under him did not dare to provoke them easily.
He could understand Ye Ming's concerns.
"Yes, but the court stipulates that civilians can only recruit ten men."
"Of course, if you don't have wooden bows, you can recruit more."
This also meant Cui Xian relaxed the requirements for Ye Ming. If there were any shortages in the future, Ye Ming's men could fill in.
After all, the government office only had a dozen or so people, not even half the number of Zhou's servants, so they were desperately short of manpower when things got tough.
"If you think it's okay, I'll have Zhang Hang approve the documents for you tomorrow."
"I'll also give you two swords for self-defense. As for the wooden bow, you can ask a craftsman in the city to make it."
"You know all the money from the government office was used for disaster relief. Please understand."
Ye Ming wouldn't care about this later; he didn't even want
the money from the government office. Now that there were vacancies, relying on the men from Qingshi Village wouldn't be enough.
There were only a dozen men in the village of eighty, and even fewer of those men were healthy.
The only men who could be considered healthy and strong were himself, Liu Qiang, Wang Cheng's son Wang Hu, and Niu Er.
The others were either survivors of the battlefield with missing limbs or too old to fight effectively.
It seemed like I'd have to go to the pawnshop tomorrow.
"Thank you, Brother Cui."
"These are minor matters. The main thing is that I can't stand the Zhou family's wrongdoings."
"As the saying goes, a strong dragon can't overpower a local snake. It's mainly because I'm not a strong dragon, otherwise I'd have been dealt with by the Zhou family long ago."
"It's getting late. If you don't mind, why don't you bring your sister-in-law to my house to stay for a night?"
Ye Ming wouldn't stay if he wanted to. He had to go back and work on the winemaking
and the formation of a self-defense force in the next few days.
"No thanks, Brother Cui. I have things to do back home."
"Don't bother me any more. I'll come back another day when I have time."
Cui Xian didn't think much of it. He smiled and saw Ye Ming off for a few steps before mounting his horse and heading back.
By the time Ye Ming and the other three returned, it was already completely dark.
They had a quick dinner, and Yang Xiong took his daughter to stay in a thatched cottage not far from Ye Ming's house.
Neither Ye Ming nor Su Xiaorong had much in mind tonight, so the continuation of the incense offering was put on hold for the day.
The next morning, Ye Ming sent Yang Xiong to the city to get the documents for recruiting local militia.
He was at home drawing up blueprints for the Jenny loom.
This loom marked the beginning of the First Industrial Revolution, boasting weaving efficiency far exceeding that of current Dayun Kingdom looms.
Increasing efficiency seven or eightfold wouldn't be a problem.
"But we still have to make the key parts ourselves, primarily the delicate components like the axles and wheels."
"Speak clearly to Huang Wenwen when we meet, to prevent the Zhou family from imitating us soon."
"And the composite bow blueprints. Without steel, the resulting strength won't be very strong."
"Besides, steel production is strictly controlled these days, so I guess Cui Xian won't let me off the hook."
"Or maybe we can make the Zhuge Crossbow, and as for the composite bow, make a wooden youth version."
It was a shame. Buying blueprints and books was limited; you could only buy one for every hundred Life Points you had.
Plus, points were incredibly expensive. After buying a composite bow blueprint, Ye Ming only had seventy or eighty Life Points left.
He'd have to wait a few days before trying to trade in the Zhuge Crossbow blueprints.
Exchanging silver for points wasn't cost-effective at this point.
Of course, there was no need to buy the gunpowder formula for now. Ye Ming knew the approximate ratio from reading numerous novels in his past life.
He could experiment on his own.
"Nowadays, saltpeter and sulfur are both medicines, and not much is mined."
"They can only be bought in the clinic. When I go to the Huang family poetry and prose meeting tomorrow, I can ask Huang Wenwen to buy some for me."
After doing all this, Ye Ming prepared to go out and take a look.
"Husband, Brother Qiang is here and wants to discuss the spring plowing with you."
Spring plowing? Isn't it just farming?
For him, who was born a farmer in his previous life, farming is very familiar to him.
Maybe the people in Qingshi Village can be asked to plant some hybrid rice, potatoes and sweet potatoes.
Anyway, the grain seeds in the online shopping system are very cheap. Although potatoes and sweet potatoes are a bit expensive, Ye Ming can still afford them.
"Okay, pour Brother Qiang a glass of water, I'll be out soon."
"Brother Ming, you are finally out."
"I want to discuss something with you on behalf of everyone."
Discussing things, Ye Ming was puzzled, is it about salary increase and meat for one day?
Ye Ming originally planned to do this tonight, since Liu Qiang took the initiative to speak.
It's not a big deal, after all, the current wages are really too low.
"Brother Qiang, you have something to say, we are listening."
"It's like this, the men in the village are dwindling."
"Everyone discussed helping each other with spring planting."
"Brother Ming, you have helped everyone in the village so much, and Xiaorong is weak."
"Everyone discussed helping your family plant first, don't rush to refuse, this is everyone's good intentions."
"If it weren't for you, I don't know how many people in our village would have starved to death during this period."
"If you don't let us help, we won't be embarrassed to help you work."