"So that everyone in the world can afford to eat?"
Upon hearing this, Ma Yuanyi looked at each other and the two big men behind him, and immediately couldn't help laughing.
This is the funniest joke the three of them have heard in ten years.
"Youth, don't be ashamed of your talk!"
"Do you know how much food is needed to feed the people of the world?"
"Don't talk about the common people in the world, let's talk about our Zhangqu Village. There are 62 households and 153 people in the village. The entire village has been without food for three days."
"And villages like ours are everywhere in the Central Plains. How many people do you think you can feed with these few cakes?"
"Don't make a joke in front of the Great Master. Take your cake and leave quickly!" Old Man Zhang scolded Zhu Yuanzhang angrily and waved his hands impatiently to let them leave quickly.
"Walk?"
"Uncle Zhang, it is impossible to let these people go. If they are spies from the imperial court, not only will the safety of the great virtuous teacher not be guaranteed, but even Zhangqu Village will suffer."
"You can't be kind to women at this time!"
Ma Yuanyi suppressed the smile on his face, took a knife from a big man behind him, and looked at Mu Ying again.
The fighting spirit in him boiled, and the killing intent almost solidified.
"Yuan Yi, don't be rude!" Just when the two sides were at war and about to start fighting again, Zhang Jiao spoke again.
The expression on his face was a little solemn.
He was shocked again by Zhu Yuanzhang, not because of the men who were hiding in the dark and could kill him, but because of his magnanimity.
He felt a faint trace of the emperor's aura from Zhu Yuanzhang. Although it was only an extremely weak trace, and it was only there and not there, it was definitely there.
Something like the Qi of the Emperor is so mysterious that it cannot be understood and cannot be artificially created.
But this thing does indeed exist.
Not only Zhang Jiao believed in this kind of thing, but also all the nobles in the world believed in it.
Zhang Jiao knew very well that he could not become a heroic overlord, so he had been looking for such a person for the past ten years.
But unfortunately it has never been found.
This is also the reason why the Yellow Turban Army had gathered hundreds of thousands of people before, but Zhang Jiao had always suppressed his desire to rebel directly. Without such a person with the spirit of an emperor as a leader, the rebellion would have been impossible to succeed.
Forcibly rebelling can only become cannon fodder and someone else's wedding dress.
Facts have also proved this. They were forced to raise the flag of rebellion three months ago because of a traitor's report. The result was that in just three months, hundreds of thousands of Yellow Turbans were dispersed by the imperial army and noble gentry from all over the country, and were completely defeated.
.
Even he was cursed and his life was short-lived.
Although this is related to his lack of confidentiality, in Zhang Jiao's view, the most critical thing is that the Taiping Army has not found a qualified leader from beginning to end.
I didn't expect that after the big event I had been planning for twenty years came to a complete failure, I would now meet someone with such an aura of an emperor.
This can only be said to be caused by fate!
A self-deprecating smile appeared at the corner of Zhang Jiao's mouth.
He seemed to see God's mocking look on him.
"Let them go!"
"Such a person cannot be a spy from the imperial court!" Zhang Jiao sighed and waved his hand with a tired look on his face.
What matters in rebellion is timing, location, and people.
Three months ago, the Yellow Turban Army could be said to have taken all three. If Zhu Yuanzhang had appeared at that time, Zhang Jiao would have been ecstatic.
But unfortunately it is no longer three months ago. Now the Yellow Turban Army has suffered a huge defeat. Hundreds of thousands of people have been completely dispersed and lost their unity. And the most important thing is that he will not die soon.
The Taiping Army is now a big ship that is about to sink.
Even if Zhu Yuanzhang is forcibly pulled onto the ship at this time, what awaits him will only sink with the ship.
Rather than hanging on to a person with a royal destiny, it's better to keep him as a kindling and wait for the next opportunity.
After all, although the contact was brief, Zhang Jiao could still see that Zhu Yuanzhang was a person who could empathize with ordinary people.
This is extremely important in Zhang Jiao's opinion.
"This is the only thing I can do for the brothers who were separated in the Yellow Turban Army.
"Let's go!" Zhu Yuanzhang took a deep look at Zhang Jiao and left without any more nonsense with Mu Ying and Zhu Biao.
He has not yet understood why Zhang Jue rejected him, nor has he understood Zhang Jue's current situation. Seeing Zhang Jue here can only be said to be a big surprise, and this was not in his original plan.
Therefore, he needs information, a lot of information.
Only when he has enough information can he make a correct judgment based on it instead of just guessing here.
Although they have studied the history of the late Eastern Han Dynasty, they also understand that it should be the last year of Emperor Ling.
But after all, this is the mythical version of the Three Kingdoms, and it has already been greatly different from the original history.
So he still has to wait for Jin Yiwei to find out the true situation about this world.
When he comes again next time, whether Zhang Jiao is willing or not, he will join the Yellow Turban Army.
Seven days passed in the blink of an eye.
In the valley base where the space gate is located, Zhu Yuanzhang put down the situation of the world that Jin Yiwei had initially investigated and fell into deep thought.
Although we are now in the mythical version of the Three Kingdoms, history is still following its original trajectory.
According to Jin Yiwei's intelligence, it should be the first year of Emperor Zhongping of the Han Dynasty, five years before Dong Zhuo led the Xiliang army to Luoyang.
The current situation in Zhangjiao can be said to be quite bad.
The Taiping Army was betrayed by traitors and suffered heavy losses. Many key members and strong men died. Two months ago, Zhang Jiao led the main force of the Yellow Turban Army in a decisive battle with Huangfu Song and suffered a disastrous defeat.
He also suffered a curse attack from an unknown strong man, and his life was short-lived.
It can be said that if Zhu Yuanzhang had not intervened, Zhang Jiao would have died of illness soon, and the Yellow Turban Army, leaderless, would have been completely wiped out in the next two to three years.
In the future, the Yellow Turban Army will become an important tool for the heroes of the late Han Dynasty to increase their seniority, including Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Jian. They all gained great reputation because of the Yellow Turban Army.
It can be said that if there had not been the Yellow Turban Uprising, there would have been no Three Kingdoms.
Of course, now that Zhu Yuanzhang has joined, he naturally does not want to see such a thing.
Because the Yellow Turban Army and the Red Turban Army at the end of the Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty were similar organizations, and they were all composed of ordinary people with poor legs who could not survive.
If these people don't rebel, they can only wait to starve to death. Zhu Yuanzhang has the most say in this, so he wants to seek justice from the world for these people.
To be honest, he is much luckier than Zhang Jiao.
At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, there were no big aristocratic families at all.
After being suppressed by the Sui and Tang Dynasties, and then being killed over and over again by the Yuan Dynasty, the environment for rebellion at the end of the Yuan Dynasty was quite favorable.
It was precisely because there was no suppression from the gentry combined with the ruling class that they, the peasant rebels, were able to rise step by step in those troubled times, and finally reached the peak.
But it was different in the late Han Dynasty. The scholar-bureaucrats in this era were too powerful, and many of them controlled a county or even a state.
Coupled with the imperial army's encirclement and suppression, compared with the Red Turban Army uprising in Zhu Yuanzhang's era, the Yellow Turban Army had a hellish start.
But now it's better, the system has sent the Zhu Yuanzhang plug-in.
With the plug-in, the Yellow Turban Army will show even greater tenacity and vitality.
In a small courtyard behind Zhangqu Village, Zhang Jiao was lying on a rocking chair, enjoying the cool air.
Compared with seven days ago, Zhang Jiao is now even thinner, and can even be said to have become skin and bones.
"Great Master, please eat some!"
"This is something that the villagers worked hard to come up with. It's their sincere intention!" Old man Zhang stood in front of Zhang Jiao holding a bowl of rice porridge and persuaded him earnestly.
"Uncle Zhang, please call me Erwa!"
"You are my uncle, you have watched me grow up, why do you call me a great virtuous teacher?"
"That's what outsiders call it!" Zhang Jiao said with a wry smile.
"Nonsense, you are the pride of our Zhangqu Village. If our own family sincerely worships you as a great sage and mentor, how can others sincerely worship you?" Old Man Zhang said seriously.
"pride?"
Zhang Jiao sighed: "This battle was so completely defeated, I guess the folks are wondering why they hate me?"
"After all, if it weren't for me, their fathers, sons, and brothers wouldn't have died outside."
Zhang Jiao's expression flashed into a trance for a moment, as if he was recalling the past ten years ago.
"Talk nonsense again!"
"As long as I'm here, I don't think anyone in Zhangqu Village dares to say bad things about you. I'll beat the old man to death first!"
"Who doesn't know that you are working hard for us poor people?"
"What's so damnable is this world."
"Besides, if it weren't for you, everyone in our village would have starved to death ten years ago."
Listening to old man Zhang chattering about his achievements, Zhang Jiao felt a little dazed again.
"Uncle Zhang, I'm going to die!"
After a long time, Zhang Jiao sighed softly.
He has clearly felt the call of fate and death. With a fatal curse on his body, he will not survive this winter.
This is also the reason why he chose to come back here after breaking through the siege of the imperial court.
This is his hometown and his roots. He wants to be able to return to his roots when he dies.
Hearing Zhang Jiao's words, Old Man Zhang burst into tears.
"Great Master, let's not fight with the imperial court anymore. Let's surrender to the headquarters!"
"Whether the imperial court wants to kill or behead you, let's all listen. You have such great ability. As long as you are willing to work for the imperial court, the imperial court will definitely not leave you alone."
"Do you think so?" Old Man Zhang asked.
"it's useless!"
Zhang Jiao smiled bitterly and shook his head: "I have already been on the imperial court's must-kill list!"
"Uncle Zhang, please don't do anything stupid."
"As long as you don't tell me about your relationship with me, no one will know that I am related to Zhangqu Village."
"It's just... we in Zhangqu Village may starve to death this winter!"
"I'm sorry, Uncle Zhang. I broke my promise. After all, I still didn't bring back any food!" Zhang Jiao sighed heavily again.
"Uncle Zhang, just leave me alone and let me wait here to die alone!"
"When I die, burn me and bury me in front of my parents' graves. Don't write my names." Zhang Jiao explained his funeral affairs.
"Er baby...you!" Old Man Zhang opened his mouth, and there were thousands of words to say, but they were stuck in his throat and he couldn't say a word.
"Great Master!"
"That Zhu Yuanzhang is here again, this time pulling three large carts of stuff."
"He said they were all meat pies for us?" At this moment, Ma Yuanyi kicked open the door and barged in sweating profusely.
"What?" Zhang Jiao opened his eyes slightly. He was already determined to die, but suddenly he smelled an extremely unusual smell.
His intuition told him that maybe he really could save the life again.
"Help me up, let me go and see for myself!" Zhang Jiao struggled to get up.
Soon, with the help of Ma Yuanyi, he arrived in front of the big tree at the entrance of the village, and he saw the three people he had just met a few days ago.
But this time it wasn't just the three of them, there were more people, and three extremely weird cars.
"Is this a motorcycle?" A trace of surprise flashed across Zhang Jiao's face.
However, he did not ask about these irrelevant matters, but looked at Zhu Yuanzhang again, waiting for his explanation.
"hehe!"
"Old man, I'm here today to answer your question from a few days ago!"
Zhu Yuanzhang did not look at Zhang Jiao, but looked at Old Man Zhang and continued: "You ask me if I can feed the people of the world?"
"My answer is yes!"
"You ask me if I can feed all 62 households and 153 people in Zhangqu Village. My answer is still yes!"
"You just have to wait and see the answer to the first question, and we will realize the answer to the second question today!"
Having said this, Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand.
Behind them, Zhu Biao and Mu Ying suddenly opened the compartment of a truck, revealing a truck full of meatloaf that had been piled up during the period.
"Hiss...!" The people of Zhangqu Village who heard the noise all around and rushed over to watch the excitement suddenly heard the sounds of inhaling and swallowing.
"Do these really allow us to eat freely?" A boy in his teens suddenly asked with a hopeful look on his face.
"That's right, come and eat. If it's not enough, we still have it here. It's enough for today!" Zhu Yuanzhang said with a smile.
"Whoosh!" When the boy heard Zhu Biao's words, he rushed to the front of the car, took two meatloaf in each hand, and put them directly into his mouth.
"Meat!"
"There's meat in this!"
"Quick, big guy, come and eat!" The little guy ate frantically while turning back to greet the villagers.
With someone taking the lead, things will be much easier to handle.
First the children couldn't hold themselves back, then the middle-aged people, and then everyone rushed over.
"Slow down, don't grab it, everyone has a share!"
"We have enough to take care of today!" Zhao Chang, a very inconspicuous seventh-grade official who came with the car, worked hard to maintain order.
He felt the same way about the scene he saw today.
In other words, he, like the people here, was saved by His Majesty twenty years ago.
He is from the Jiajing plane, and he is a poor man.
Twenty years ago, their hometown suffered a major flood.
He was only seven years old that year. When the family was at its most desperate and almost starved to death, it was His Majesty who led the Ming Dynasty's grain convoy to continuously deliver grain to them.
Without that food, he would have died long ago.
At that time, he made a secret vow.
He must become an official in the future, and he will spend his whole life repaying the truckloads of life-saving food His Majesty sent him.
