The Red Lands 2

by ForestRage

  "The hardest part of farming is the fear of being killed."

  Clod commented philosophically.

  "I really do not know how to answer that."

  Was all Chu could reply.

  Whether by wild animals or through forced slavery the outcome was the same.

  The harvesting of the fields took them near a month to complete. Clod had them cut and dry the stalks in the fields for winter feed and bedding for the horses. The corn had to undergo shelling by hand. Chu could only shed respect for those old farmers after looking at his callused hands.

  The village Chief came along with a large wagon and some escorting guards. The workers from the wagon removed a large-scale and set it up in the field. It was one simple lever scale with large trays on the two sides.

  They opened the large sacks of corn and continued inspecting for any discrepancies. Clod informed Chu that normally farmers would mix in some small stones with the corn. This was standard practice and it all depended on how strict the collector was.

  "No matter where you go, humans are a scheming life form."

  The Chief was very happy with the contents while placing them on the scale. They continued the cycle until reaching the agreed total.

  Mr. Thomas kindly offered some small bags of grain to all the workers and a small pouch with some copper coins to the Chief.

  The wagon and its guards lumbered off to the next farm.

  Just like that most of the farms harvest landed up in the hands of the Empire. All those grains would soon be caravaning before winter to the large cities. Bribes would remain with the agents for a job well done.

  "Ah! So that's where the Chief gets the money to pay the bandits from."

  Ming burst out as it dawned on him.

  "What the heck! No wonder farmers live a miserable life in this place!"

  Chu raged. As a kid, he could only seethe in anger when the transactions were taking place.

  Mr. Thomas could only force a smile.

  "You brats don't know how lucky you are. Nearly all my savings went in taxes. I had reached the point of farming for pleasure because I was not earning a single copper."

  Chu understood the difficulties of a farming venture.

  If not for him branching out into vegetable crops and fruits they would be dining on grain gruel like regular farms during winter.

  Clod and Mrs. Thomas vegetable fields kept providing a constant supply of food. Produce in excess underwent pickling and placed in storage for later use. The cellar and kitchen became filled with kegs of preserves. Slabs of cured meats and sausages were hanging in the remaining spaces.

  The striking difference from the other farms was the bunker-like shed with reinforcing double wall and door. In there contained enough smoked and cured quality meat to feed a small army.

  Chu and the others were now standing on an open harvested field. Spreading out around them were countless corn stalks drying in the pale sun.

  Singh came up to them.

  "Excuse me Master Clod, we have finished hauling the logs. Doug and the others only have this last load of logs to install."

  Clod thought for a minute and then replied.

  "Okay, that's all the work for today. Get the horses up to the stables, I will take it from there."

  "Yes Master Clod, I'll go tell the others."

  Singh gave a slight bow to the others and hurried off.

  Chapter 20

  Do the crime, pay the time

  Singh returned quickly to his companions.

  Currently, they toiled in constructing the palisade defense for the south wall. Five young men bustled about, busy digging holes and raising thick, rounded logs to form a tight fence.

  "Chong, guide the horses and wagon up to the stable. Master Clod will meet you there. We're done for the day."

  Chong helped finished setting a log in the hole before heading out. Doug looked up, his clothes drenched in sweat. His tired eyes testified to his fatigue.

  "Master Clod really said that?"

  He asked in a hoarse voice.

  Singh nodded in reply while relieving Chong of his position. The surrounding workers found hidden strength on the news as they hastened to complete the remaining logs.

  When Chong returned to lend an additional pair of hands, the sited logs laying on the ground soon found their positions on the wall. With the last log buried, tied, and pounded into place, the workers collapsed onto the grassy incline.

  "Oh man, that was tough."

  "You telling me? My hands are like claws, they can't even open out fully."

  "Ha ha ha, that's what you get from trying to hog the sawing."

  "You deserved it since you tried to worm away from the easy jobs. My shoulders are killing me after having to lug those post every day."

  They chattered voicing numerous complaints like a batch of factory workers being released from duty.

  Recovering strength to drag their tired bodies, the men headed to the western entrance. Near this portion of the completed wall, they entered the gate and walked to the wooden shack erected next to it. This hastily built abode was twice as large and much better than the ones in the slums.

  A line of horizontally nailed, thin branches on two upright post stood on the side. Some small sticks nailed horizontally on the upright post were built on the side. On this crude clothesline hung garments drying in the autumn sun. Theses extra suit of clothes were provided by Mr. Thomas.

  “The wind is blowing with a chill these days. I feel clammy.”

  “Then take your clothes off man. You want to catch a cold?”

  Ever since the fateful day when they conducted a failed ambush, Doug and his group found themselves drafted as free workers. Mr. Thomas allocated a place to stay as well as some additional clothes.

  In return, they helped in the harvest, gathered firewood and constructed the lumber wall. All the chores requiring heavy labor dropped onto them. In the mornings, Clod limped down to the shack and delivered their task for the day.

  The interactions with the farm residents remained minimal. Clod acted as the manager and provided the daily necessities. Ming visited a few times when they completed their jobs early but use the time to spar with them. Their routine shuttled them between the shed and work.

  Wooden barrels filled with water and basic kitchen supplies left them in a much better position than living in the slums. Even this large shack that was hastily built was ten times better than what they lived in before.

  The wood used in constructing the shack fitted tightly together sealing them off from the wind. Quilts hanging from the tiled wooden roof helped keep the interior warm and cozy at night.

  They were also fully convinced that this place was even safer than the village.

  During their first week, the farmer carried them out to the forest to cut lumber. They were so frightened they nearly pissed themselves. The younger teens even begged the old man to spare their lives.

  Such a small defenseless party venturing in the forest would no doubt be easy pickings for the resident beasts.

  When a Wildcat appeared, they were so scared they were rooted to the spot. All that fear quickly dissipated when Mr. Thomas killed the creature with one shot.

  Doug and the others soon realized that this farming family was a tad bit uncommon from the others. Mr. Thomas made it no secret that he was a former Mercenary and Adventurer.

  After a month of witnessing the man and his 'children' venturing in the forest. Only to return towing wildcats, foxes and even a large Jaga, they were convinced of their strength.

  'This damn family was too abnormal. No wonder they had no problems farming near the forest.'

  The father was ruthless, he even lugged his daughter into the forest. They forced the little girl to help carry some of their kills. She was young and looked much nicer than the girls her age they encountered in the village.

  Something about her frightened Singh and Chong to death, but they either suppressed a terrible memory or refuse
d to say the reason why.

  The six of them had long taken over the work of processing the carcasses. Their direct overseer overlooking this task appeared very strict when it came to this job function.

  Clod liaise as their manager, but the one who watched over them turned out to be a girl less than half their age and size. The little girl, however, commanded their most respect and instilled the maximum fear.

  'Thinking of the devil...'

  Dyna strolled in from the west gate with her little hands clasped behind her back. She soon spotted the group relaxing on the log. With a smile, she skipped over to them.

  Two months ago, if this happened in the Slums. Doug and his posse would have slapped such a girl silly and then stolen everything from her. If she was any older then they might have surrounded her and done some unspeakable actions.

  But that was in the past.

  All of the young men jumped up and welcomed the little girl with smiles.

  "Greeting to the young miss."

  "The young miss is looking wonderful as always."

  "Please, please have a seat, you have worked hard today as well, young miss."

  Dyna did not hesitate and sat down in the middle of the log. The others did not dare to sit and remained standing in front. Of course, they made sure that they always stood at a distance from her.

  Such actions might seem out of the ordinary to others until they noticed the wolf lying lazily at the side with its eye on the men. Ever since they found themselves captured by this family, these men never truly found themselves left alone.

  At least one huge wolf always accompanied them. Not a man felt brave enough to attempt an escape. Somewhere out in the grasslands were two more of these creatures under the beck and call of a little girl.

  'Which villager had not heard stories of how cunning and vicious these beast were.'

  What made matters worse was that these oversize wolves were almost as twice as large as the wild ones seen in the forest near the village.

  Fear kept Doug and the others from even thinking about scheming.

  At first, they were in despair about falling in this family's clutches. But Mr. Thomas gave them hope.

  "I will not kill you for attacking my children. But the price of that assault will be working until the next year's crop is planted. Then you will be free to leave."

  By the end of next Spring, they had the assurance to leave. Despite the hard work, the benefits of this deal far outweighed the losses. They had a secure shelter, food and ample firewood to burn for heat during winter. There were also perks to be gained, just like at this present moment.

  "Doug, send two people to meet Lykos outside. I have a weasel and four hares to bring back. Take one for yourself and prepare the weasel-like I showed you. I will come back with Clod before dark to collect my share."

  Dyna's large wolves prowled virtually unstoppable on the grasslands. They operated like modern day excavators, digging out rabbits, minks and other creatures from burrows normally left untouched by other predators.

  Before Doug could reply, Singh and another teen rushed out to fulfill the demands.

  Dyna replied with a smile while skipping away happily.

  For the past few weeks, this brief interaction kept Doug and the rest content.

  Ever so often the girl would provide them with a wide variety of meats for small services. Life was so good that they had even forgotten when was the last time they did not eat meat.

  Doug and the others left for the butchering shed. The sooner this work ended, the sooner they would be feasting on delicious roasted hare tonight.

  He dribbled unconsciously when he remembered how the boy named Chu showed them how to rub a mixture of salt and other spices before slow roasting the meat.

  "Ch… Chong make sure those idiots don't destroy the pelts, especially the weasel. If we do it right, the young miss will certainly throw in another hare. She is not as greedy like that Ming fella."

  Chong could only answer with a nod. His mind drifted with the image of a roasted hare with its fat dripping over the fire.

  ◆◆◆

  Chu and Mr. Thomas did not have much of any concerns about having some promising bandits residing at arm's length away.

  First, they had always maintained a watch and never lax in security. The only issue now being the weekend trips limiting to two people. With Dyna and the wolves, they did not expect trouble.

  As for Doug and the others trying to poison them, it was even more unthinkable. They had too many special noses to sniff out strange smells from raw meat.

  Worse yet, they were always under the watchful eyes of the wolves. The beasts would quicker attack them than to eat any scraps from them. Doug and the others would rather piss themselves than scheme against this hardcore father and family.

  Some of the meat found its way to neighboring farms and the village. Mrs. Thomas was a welcome visitor among the hard-working farm women. With Mr. Thomas reputation as a mercenary no one questioned his ability to hunt and capture prey.

  Lucy and the others kept themselves cloaked so as not to attract unwanted attention. Most of the times it was unwarranted since the men were out working hard. The last thing on their minds was revenge.

  With this extra help, Chu was looking to expand the harvest next year to all the fields. After it was done, then Doug and the others could be sent on their way. He was not that naive to change the mentalities of such people.

  This week Ming was going to spend a month living in the slums. His job was the hardest and needed time to mingle with the residents.

  If what Mr. Thomas said was true, he felt they were still too dependent on Lucy. For the protection of his farm, he needed additional help. He needed to release some more fighters.

  It was time to fill in some job vacancies.

  Chapter 21

  Bringing in new older members

  It approached the end of autumn when Ming returned on the wagon with Mr. Thomas bringing the results of his task. The next weekend Chu and Mr. Thomas returned with him to the village. They conducted meetings in the village home. This time Mr. Thomas conducted the interviews with Chu sitting at the side like a bystander.

  The method transpired similar as the first time he looked for new helpers. The young men in the slums were not the kind he wanted. By now he was aware of the village culture. The only males residing in the slums belonged to those who committed crimes or had high hopes of joining a bandit gang.

  Village households were quicker to outcast their daughters rather than a boy who could provide an added income. His luck was not so fortunate as to find another Clod or Ming.

  This was not to say that every year the slums would be filled with an influx of girls. The village was too small as to discard large batches of children. There was also the fact that some families kept their children either because of love or future material gains.

  The last winter saw a boost in income for most families. Thus it was measly pickings this year for him. His biggest fear was being usurped or killed because of his young age. He would have gladly settled with his current companions but his future plans called for more helpers.

  Nurturing loyal helpers and companions was the one thing he was not going to skim upon at this 'young' age. This was the main reason he preferred to make use of people like Doug and company before setting them loose.

  The first person Ming brought over was an old lady named May and her husband. This was the same woman Ming had paid during the winter to help cause a distraction in the Slums.

  Old lady May and her husband Jim were actually not that old. They had just clocked over forty in age. Chu nearly fell off the stool in shock at that revelation.

  He could have sworn when they entered that these two individuals were nearing their eighties. On seeing them he was about to administer some serious bitch slapping onto Ming.

  He was still fresh and new to the world that he kept forgetting the basic things. Life expectancy in the village was not high an
d slum dwellers were always going to have a rickety and fragile appearance.

  May and her husband Jim were two-year veterans of the Slums. Jim was a trapper who caught a bout of sickness one year from being stuck in a blizzard one winter. Since then he suffered from a severe rheumatoid type pain in his hands.

  Unable to make the payments for their village home, they moved to the slums. Mr. Thomas asked some other questions before deciding to take them in from tomorrow. Chu had prepared those questions in advance.

  The couple would live and take care of the village house, negating that travel during winter from the barn. The following spring they would assist Clod in the field preparation works. When the couple left Mr. Thomas assured Chu that with a little rest and good food, they would be adequate helpers in the farm.

  Chu agreed eventually but stipulated that the newcomers would spend time in the village or in a planned newly constructed house near the fields.

  Just like for any job requirement he planned on a probationary period before assimilating the new helpers into the current party. The next person turned out to be a girl. This time it was Mr. Thomas who couldn't hold back his scoldings.

  "What are you trying to build, a farm or a brothel?"

  "What do you expect from the labor pool we have to work with?"

  Came the helpless reply. The girl was around Ming's age and moved confidently unlike the customary timid manner normally displayed.