Mayor Mare walked out of the auditorium.

He had planned to go straight home for dinner, and then go straight to bed after eating.

But after thinking about it for a while, he decided to visit Harrison, the captain of the National Guard, and discuss with him what to do next.

The mayor mounted his horse and headed for Harrison's northern camp.

The sun is almost setting.

After riding his horse for more than half an hour, the mayor saw a bonfire not far away.

There was nothing too particular about the arrangement of the National Guard's camps.

Tents of all kinds are scattered throughout the camp.

The militiamen walked back and forth in the camp

, around the campfire drinking, barbecue, bragging.

If he didn't know, the mayor thought it was a large-scale hunting camp.

Major Harrison deserves to be the captain of the militia.

He resolutely mingled with his warriors and was playing poker in an open space by the campfire.

"Eh, eh, you lose, don't play Laiha, I am willing to gamble and lose, your snuffbox belongs to me." Major Harrison threw his cards to the ground and pointed to a bearded militiaman next to him.

The others were heathing, like a bunch of hairless boilers.

The bearded man reluctantly handed the snuffbox into Harrison's hand.

Mayor Mare coughed behind them.

Harrison turned his head, a cigarette in his mouth, and the unbridled smile on his face subtracted a lot when he realized that it was the mayor.

"Looking for me?" Harrison gestured to himself.

Mayor Mare nodded.

Harrison tossed the card to another soldier behind him, stood up and stepped aside with the mayor.

"Major, don't we really want to talk to the Chinese leader on the other side? Send them an ultimatum or something, and I don't think they're in a hurry at all. The mayor was a little apprehensive.

The major frowned: "You don't really plan to fight those Chinese, do you?" ”

"I don't really want to fight, but what if the other side doesn't go along? I'd like to hear what you're planning, Major. ”

The Major put his arm around the mayor's shoulders and said to him "in a serious voice":

"Hey, bro, I don't know if you've ever tried to duel someone else."

Mayor Mare:

"Well, ten years ago, or earlier, cowboys in the West liked to solve problems this way, but not very much now."

The major patted him on the shoulder:

"Well, yes, I mean, you're right."

"Sometimes, however, the outcome of a duel is not necessarily decided after the gun is drawn, but before the result is reached."

"Duel is not about drawing the gun first, but about making the first move when the opponent can't bear the pressure, but you knock the opponent down before he pulls the trigger."

"I've won quite a few duels this way." The major said smugly, "Most of those who did it first died. ”

The mayor of the town was a little slanderous about the captain's words.

If you don't want to take the blame, just say it, if you want to be a bitch and want to set up a torii.

But he didn't say it, but listened to the captain talk eloquently:

"Starting tomorrow, every two days, I will move the camp forward a little bit, step by step, shrinking the blockade encirclement, which is called maximum pressure."

"When the barrel of our gun is about to reach the mouths of those Chinese, I believe that either those Chinese will strike first, or they will not be able to withstand the pressure and choose to make peace with us."

The captain's strategy sounds seamless, but he ignores the initiative of the townspeople.

Just as he was explaining his "great plan" to the mayor, a burst of gunfire suddenly came from the southeast of the camp.

"What's going on?" The captain was very alert.

"Like, it seems to be the direction of the Chinese settlement." The mayor of the town judged the source of the sound before the captain.

Then he slapped his thigh violently: "It's wrong, it seems that something happened!" ”

Captain Harrison understood what Mayor Mare meant almost instantly.

"Assemble, assemble, hurry!" He yelled.

The two were right in their guesses.

Someone did make a move.

After receiving the mayor's "order", the white-bearded old man immediately gathered the militants in the town.

These people include the relatives of the townspeople who died at the hands of Lin Sanshan ten years ago, some "steadfasts" who are extremely hostile to the Chinese, and many people who are afraid that the world will not be chaotic.

"Brothers, sisters, the group of people on the other side of the wasteland, we have a blood feud, and if we didn't have a chance in the past ten years, then this time, the state government has finally decided to solve this problem."

"Our dead relatives are begging us to avenge them, and if no one wants to start, then we will be the ones who ignite the war!"

"Grab your guns and kill those Chinese on the other side! We want revenge! Kick them out of our homes! ”

The old man with the white beard gave a passionate and inflammatory speech, and the people below also screamed.

As a traditional western state, Texas has always been full of martial arts, and the problems that can be solved with guns will never be moved.

The old man's idea was also very simple.

Since the National Guard is nearby, as long as there is a fight, it is impossible for them to ignore it.

Mayor Mare's right is that dinner time is a good opportunity.

Those Chinese were busy eating dinner, and as long as they launched a surprise attack, the Chinese were absolutely defenseless.

I don't have the authority to give orders to those National Guards.

But as long as the fighting resumes, they can't help it.

More than 2,000 people, plus these people in their own town, can't take those Chinese?

The old man didn't believe it.

With fifty or sixty people gathered, he quickly crossed the wasteland and touched the outer edge of the Chinese settlement.

"Touch it in, and then set fire to their house!"

The old man squatted in the grass and said to the people around him.

Then, they were "visible" by a sudden headlight.

"Please, all of you with guns in the wasteland, don't go any further! You are invading private territory, and if you want to enter, lay down your weapons! The loudspeaker of the settlement suddenly sounded.

This is a high-power incandescent lamp with a reflector behind it, and the white miserable light is extremely dazzling, illuminating the old man unable to open his eyes.

The person being illuminated raised his arm to cover his eyes.

The old man had no idea how he had been discovered.

And the people under him also looked at him and asked about his next move with their eyes.

The loudspeaker at the mouth of the stronghold sounded again, only this time the wording was a little harsher.

"If we don't put down our guns, then we're going to take tougher measures, just like we did ten years ago."

When the old man heard "ten years ago", he couldn't hold back anymore.

He jerked himself up from the grass, picked up his gun, and shot it at the lamp:

"I'll fuck you!"

The gun was very accurate, only a "snap" was heard, and even the light strip reflector was instantly shattered.

This shot, as soon as the lamp was broken, became the clarion call for the official start of the battle.

Dense gunfire rang out instantly.

The watchtowers of the settlement were lit up several more times, but they were quickly knocked out by the townspeople, and both sides began to fight in the dark.

The townspeople, on their part, also took the opportunity to sneak to the outskirts of the settlement.

But soon they were dumbfounded.

The perimeter is surrounded by barbed wire.

After hanging two charred "bacon" bodies, the townspeople also knew that the grid was electrified, so they could not move forward half a step.

At the same time, Lin Sanshan, who was having dinner, also received the news of an attack on the outskirts of the town.

Without saying a word, he dropped the dishes and chopsticks in his hand, and rushed out with the gun on his back.

Support from within the town arrived quickly.

"Put on another light and sweep the surroundings as fast as you can." Lin Sanshan found a good observation position and gave the order.

Another light came on.

The light swept across the wasteland outside, then extinguished after another gunshot.

However, the experienced Lin Sanshan had already found the direction of the enemy.

He picked up his automatic rifle and fired in that direction.

The Chinese soldiers behind him followed suit.

The white-bearded old man snorted, was shot in the thigh, and was quickly dragged back by the people behind.

There were a few more corpses in the wasteland.

The old hatred has not been settled, and new hatred has been added.

The old man thought that he could support his side a little longer in the dark night, but who knew that the reaction of the other side would be so fast.

However, when he looked up, he suddenly noticed a little fire in the distance to the north.

The National Guard, finally arrived. (End of chapter)