It's still voluntary, if you want to stay, you can stay, if you want to go, you can go.

"Scholar" Tian Wen was puzzled by this. He believed that now was the time to employ people. It is said that there is strength in numbers. Although there were only a few hundred people, as long as everyone worked together at this critical moment, it would be clear whether they were defending or breaking through.

The army drinks a pot.

Therefore, Wang Wu’s arrangement was temporarily unacceptable.

"Fifth Brother, why do you still let them choose?"

Gou Sheng was also a little confused. Fifth Brother finally controlled the situation. Now he should have gathered everyone to fight against the Tatars. Why did he let people leave?

Zhao Jinzhong remained silent, as if the captain's arrangement had nothing to do with him.

The mute Zhu San wanted to express some of his thoughts, but he couldn't say anything except "Aba Aba", so he had to keep silent.

The remaining flag officers had no opinions and stood aside without saying a word.

After looking at these brothers who were willing to fight him to the end, Wang Wu did not hide his true thoughts.

"Big waves wash over the sand!"

He pointed at the Ming soldiers who were debating whether to go or stay, and explained to everyone that the current situation was basically a dead end, and human nature was complex, and most people would choose life when faced with life and death.

Therefore, if he forces these people to follow him and fight to the end, it is difficult to guarantee that none of them will waver because of fear of death. Not only will this not have the slightest effect on the team, it may even lead to catastrophic consequences.

For example, some people may choose to become traitors, inform the Qing army, or act as internal agents of the Qing army because they do not want to die.

Since the all-out war against the Qing Dynasty began in the 17th year of Chongzhen's reign, both the Ming and Shun armies, as well as the Great Western Army, have suffered enough from the traitors.

Lessons learned, bloody.

The facts right before our eyes are the likes of Suo Yanlong and Tian Shouyi.

If these two people had not been determined to surrender to the Qing Dynasty, how could the more than 4,000 Ming army disperse in such a rush, with only a quarter remaining?

The truth is very simple and vulgar, and can be understood in just a few words.

What Wang Wu wants now is not quantity, but quality.

This quality is not about how capable the people left behind are, but that the people left behind have a will to die!

A heart that is sworn in with the Tatars!

A heart that is willing to follow Wang Wuchengren!

Only such people can become the real backbone and the real dead soldiers.

Only in this way can we have real unity and real strength!

Forcibly tying everyone together would do no good to Wang Wu, because he didn't know who would be the next Suo Yanlong, Tian Shouyi.

He even had to worry that one day while he was sleeping, someone would cut off his head and offer it to the Qing army to receive a reward.

Therefore, it is necessary to make a voluntary choice to stay or go.

Let’s get rid of the fake and keep the real.

Gou Sheng said "Oh" and understood what Fifth Brother meant: "It means to let those who are afraid of death get out and let those who are not afraid of death stay, so that we don't have to worry about internal problems."

"right!"

Wang Wu nodded and looked at Tian Wen. The latter did not speak this time, but nodded.

A scholar can always see the truth clearly.

Without hesitation at the moment, I took people to do statistics and select candidates.

About half an hour later, the results came out.

About one-third of the people chose to leave, and two-thirds of the people chose to follow Wang Wu and continue fighting with the Qing army.

A total of 487 people stayed and 226 left.

Among them, more than 30 of Wang Wu's soldiers also chose to leave.

This left only about ninety soldiers from Wang's fifth direct lineage.

However, Wang Wu did not express dissatisfaction with the departure of more than 30 direct subordinates. Instead, he divided some silver and two copper coins that the mute Zhu San had found from Tian Shou's account among them, which was regarded as a means of payment.

He couldn't ask whether these people would join the Qing army or return to their hometowns to farm after they left.

Those who left did not leave together, but separated camps one after another.

Some had tears in their eyes when they left, and they looked back from time to time to glance at the bright banners on the dam. They obviously had special feelings for the place where they had fought, but they had to leave due to the situation.

Wang Wu can experience that kind of psychological torture firsthand.

Some just kept their heads down and just walked, not daring to raise their eyes to look at everything around them, let alone their companions who were watching them leave.

This is a feeling of guilt.

There are also those who, upon hearing the notice that they can leave, immediately pack up their bags and rush to the camp gate without looking back.

This is what I wish for.

After the soldiers who did not want to continue fighting left, the dam site became much deserted, but as the crowd gathered again, a new force emerged invisibly.

In other words, it is hope.

Hope it is in the person of the big sword king Wu who claims to lead them to fight the Tatars to the end!

Wang Wu is no longer at the dam, but in Suo Yanlong's house.

In addition to Wang Wu, there was Tian Wen in the room, as well as Liu Tichun, a former guerrilla soldier from the old camp, Ma Sizhong, and General Manager Xu Deyi.

Four people in total.

Ma Sizhong was from Weinan, Shaanxi. He joined the Peasant Army in the 13th year of Chongzhen's reign, and it has been 24 years now.

I am forty-three years old, but I look like a sixty-year-old.

Not only is his hair white, his skin is even darker, and there are layers of wrinkles on his face. He looks like an old man, but the thick calluses on his hands tell Wang Wu that this Ma Sizhong is a person who cannot be judged by appearance.

Cruel person.

Xu Deyi was from Xiangcheng, Henan. He joined the Dashun Army in the 16th year of Chongzhen's reign. He was a whole round younger than Ma Sizhong, being only thirty-one this year.

Both of them used to be Yu Guohua's subordinates, but now that Yu Guohua was killed by Suo Yanlong, they naturally became the new commanders of the Yu Department.

Yes Ma and Xu took the initiative to find Wang Wu because they wanted to know what they should do now.

"Brother Ma, Brother Xu, I was just about to discuss this matter with you."

Wang Wu was very respectful and polite to Ma and Xu, although in terms of military position, he was actually a Jingzhou general awarded by the Yongli court, and his official position was higher than that of Ma and Xu.

But you have to be self-aware. He, the Jingzhou General, is nothing but a blank promise. He only became Tian Shouyi's personal soldier captain last year. Before that, he only had more than 20 people under his command when he was the commander-in-chief.

I brought less than a hundred people with me.

Ma and Xu, who came from the same "regular army", are really incomparable.

In addition, now that we have to continue to fight against the Qing Dynasty together with the other party, it is impossible to show off the airs of a general, so I humbly call the two of them eldest brothers.

The two of them were very pleased with the title of eldest brother.

Even though they all had official positions awarded by the Yongli court of the Ming Dynasty, because they were both from the Laoshun Army, they liked to treat each other like brothers.

He has quite the temperament of a reckless hero.

"Without hiding anything from the fifth brother Wang, what we mean is..."

Ma Sizhong put forward an opinion on behalf of the Lao Shun Army. They also believed that Wu Jiayuanzi could not be defended, so they had to evacuate from here, but where to evacuate, the two of them could not make up their minds at the moment.

Excluding the possibility of a frontal breakthrough from the Qing army's defense line, it would be an almost impossible task.

If the entire army of 4,000 men were present and everyone worked together, there might be a chance.

Now, it's really just a dream.
Chapter completed!