The rain had stopped before dawn, and although there were still scattered drops, it didn't bother much. As soon as the sky was slightly bright, Ran'er asked Zhang Dazhu to put on an ox cart, took two other long-term workers, sent his grandfather and two to the shore of Xiling Lake, hired a carriage, and escorted him out of thirty miles and back.

At breakfast, Grandpa Li came over, and after hearing what happened at night, he returned to Xia Village and called his three sons and four grandsons, intending to let them temporarily protect Ran'er and the two sisters before the future of the palace protectors. The three brothers of Uncle Li Shun, plus the two sons of Uncle Wu and Uncle Cheng's family, the five of them came to Zhulin Villa with Grandpa Li. Ran'er arranged for them to live in the five rooms where Grandpa Li was by the ancestral hall first.

Zhang Dazhu rushed back before lunch. When he got home, he said to Ran'er:

"I really guessed it, less than ten miles away from the shore of Xiling Lake, we were stopped by two strangers in Uncle Ge's carriage. They thought that there were only Uncle Ge and Changgong Liu Jin, but they didn't expect that the carriage and the ox cart were in the same group. When he realized that there were five of us on his side, he obediently retreated. ”

"Is Uncle sure that my grandfather and I am safe?"

"There will be no problem, we will send Uncle Ge and the two of them out of Xiling Lake for thirty miles, taking the official road, and there are people coming and going on the road, and they don't dare to do it in front of the public."

"That's good. There is one more thing for the uncle to do. ”

"That's what Ran'er commands."

"After the two of them went back, the other party knew that we had asked the palace for help. If I were them, I would definitely do it before the people sent by the palace arrived. And the people sent by the palace will arrive in five days at the earliest, so we have to make some preparations in advance to deal with the other party's actions within these five days. ”

"What are you going to do to prepare?"

"Ask my uncle to hire twenty people from a nearby village. Five hundred copper coins per day. Make it clear to them that they are not here to work, but to guard the home. And he told them that he had hired them for ten days, that is, not two pieces of silver per man. In these ten days, if nothing happens, if something happens, it will inevitably be a fight with knives and guns. Therefore, the people who are required to be hired are aware that there will be fights. The second is to be young and healthy, skillful, and finally have kung fu. For those who have kung fu, the salary can be doubled. Third, in case you are injured and disabled in a fight, we will cover all the expenses. ”

"Okay, I'll go find someone right away."

"Don't worry, Uncle can't be late after lunch. I estimate that the most likely time for the other party to make a move is the night after tomorrow. ”

"Why the night after tomorrow, sister?"

Qinglian asked puzzled.

"Those two people can't intercept my grandfather, they must know that we will take precautions. Grandpa Li invited the three uncles in the morning, and he must have known about it by the other party. Today day, tomorrow day, after two days of precaution, seeing that there is no movement, according to common sense, there will be some relaxation on the third day. So, I guess they're supposed to get their hands on the third day. If it drags on any longer, when the people from the palace arrive, they will have no chance. So, Uncle Zhang, you must not make a big deal when you invite someone, it is better to do it quietly. Otherwise, if the other party knows, they will be forced to do it in advance. ”

"I made a note of it, and after eating, I went to invite someone, and tried not to be publicized."

The arguments of the three did not accuse anyone. It's Aunt Zhang and Xiaoyu, Zhang Dazhu didn't say anything. Just let Xiaoyu not go out these days, and try to stay with the Ran'er sisters.

In the afternoon, Ran Er Qinglian and Xiaoyu accompanied their grandmother to the pavilion by the pond to cool off, practice, read, and write as if nothing had happened. It's just that at night, Ran'er used the excuse of taking care of her grandmother to move her grandmother to Qinglian's room upstairs to live, and the sisters lived in Ran'er's room.

Zhang Dazhu, who went out to invite people, did not return overnight, and at night, Qinglian couldn't sit still. Keep looking at the path in the direction of Xia Village. When Ran'er saw it, she smiled and said:

"Lian'er, don't look at it, Uncle Zhang won't come back so soon. Do you think it's easy to get someone into a fight? ”

"What if something happens tonight?"

"Don't worry, it'll be fine."

Sure enough, as Ran'er said, there was nothing wrong all night. It is safer during the day than at night. However, looking at Qinglian's expression, she was still very nervous. By the time of lunch, Qinglian had become a little restless. Ran'er comforted:

"Don't worry, Lian'er, Uncle Zhang will definitely be back this afternoon."

"How does my sister know?"

"Guess, no matter whether Uncle Zhang has invited someone or not, he will come back today to say something. Uncle Zhang is not the kind of person who is reckless. ”

"What if Uncle Yi can't invite someone?"

"No, even if you invite less than twenty people, there will always be a few. There will never be no one who will not be invited, after all, we offer a lot of money. ”

In the evening, Qinglian, who was sitting by the pond, found Zhang Dazhu leading two people from the direction of Xia Village. I couldn't help but say to Ran'er:

"Sister, why did you only invite two people?"

"No, there must be one later?"

"Oh, I see, Uncle Zhang doesn't want to be discovered."

"Lian'er is so smart."

As she spoke, Ran'er asked Xiaoyu to accompany her grandmother in the pavilion, and she and Qinglian walked towards Uncle Zhang.

"Ran'er, fortunately, I have invited all the people. Afraid of attracting the attention of outsiders, they divided into many groups, and they all arrived one after another after dark. ”

"Uncle has worked hard, let's go back and rest first."

"Just walked a little bit and wasn't tired. Where are you going to let them live? ”

"Please ask Grandpa Li to go home first, vacate the five houses, and let them squeeze there. Anyway, there is a vigil at night, but I just hide in it during the day to rest. Fortunately, it was only three or four days, and it was not a big problem. Where did the uncle get the people from? ”

"It's really lucky. When I went to the shore of Xiling Lake to inquire, someone told me to go to the dart bureau or the martial arts hall to ask for someone. I'm right when I think about it, whether it's a dart game or a martial arts hall, the people in it are all fighting for a living, so it's best to ask for help. I just happened to know that there was a martial arts hall on the north side of Xiling Lake, and as soon as I walked there and talked to the owner of the museum, the owner immediately agreed. ”

"Don't you think we are being paid less?"

"At first, I was also worried that the other party would think that the salary was low, so I was going to wait for the other party to make a counteroffer, and then add it to one tael of silver per person per day. I didn't want the other party to hear that when he came to Daughter Po to protect the Fang Soul Temple, he didn't even pay back the price, so he agreed. ”

"What daughter Poe, what Fang Soul Temple?"

Qinglian was confused when she heard this, and couldn't help but ask Zhang Dazhu.

"Haha, this is what outsiders call the Bamboo Forest Villa and the county lord and the ancestral hall of the main mother."

Qinglian's eyes widened, and she looked at Zhang Dazhu and asked

"How did we not know?"

Ran'er smiled slightly when she heard this, but didn't say anything.

"That's what all the towns call it. It's just that no one said it in front of your sisters. ”

"Uncle, is there any reason why the martial arts hall agreed so happily?"

"There's a reason. It is related to the Rui Wangfu. Listening to the introduction of the martial arts hall Zhang Pavilion owner, when he was traveling abroad, he had been to the capital and did not want to be bullied by a few evil young men in the capital, because he was afraid of the family power behind them, Zhang Pavilion Master did not dare to fight back, and happened to be rescued by the prince of Lu Rui. Since then, Pavilion Master Zhang has always wanted to find an opportunity to repay the kindness of Lord Rui. Pavilion Master Zhang also said that in May, he also came here to see the prince, but was stopped by the prince's guards, and finally failed to do so. ”