(I have been too busy these days and haven’t updated for three days. Now, two chapters are posted together.) Three days later, Shao Yan and his party of more than fifty people finally arrived at a small village near Qixian County after many twists and turns. Since the people here all have the surname Yang,
Therefore, it is called Yangcun, also known as Yangzhuang, and is under the jurisdiction of Qixian County
Yangzhuang is surrounded by mountains. Although the valley is not high, it is lush and lush. The river in front of the village is crystal clear, the sky is deep blue, and the air is fresh and sweet. In addition, there is a crystal clear stream at the east end of the village, and the water flows all year round.
The clattering sound is accompanied by a beautiful piece of music. The birds on the tree are not willing to be lonely, singing happily, seeming to be in harmony with the sound of the stream, forming a moving symphony.
According to a soldier who is familiar with the place, there are more than 200 households living in Yangzhuang, with about a thousand people. Compared with several small farms around it, Yangzhuang can be regarded as a progressive village. Since ancient times, households have been open at night.
, the simple folk customs of not picking up lost things on the road, the people rely on their own hands to work hard to build a beautiful home for themselves
However, this seemingly cozy village was looted by the allied forces of Liang and Chu not long ago. The once bustling streets have now become deserted and deserted. The doors of the houses on both sides of the street are tightly closed, and there are very few pedestrians on the road.
, occasionally you can only hear the sound of chickens crowing and dogs barking
Just when Shao Yan felt sorry for him, an old man walked up from the other side of the street. This man was quite old and there was no trace of black in his beard and hair. He looked depressed, stroking his beard and shaking his head as he walked.
sigh
Seeing that the old man was in a daze, Shao Yan stepped forward and asked, "Old man, do you live here?"
The old man raised his head disdainfully, and then realized that there were dozens of people standing in front of him. When he saw Shao Yan and others wearing the clothes of the Chu army, he couldn't help but panic, and quickly took a few steps back, shouting: "Folks
, run quickly, Chu soldiers are coming——"
Shao Yan guessed that he must have been frightened by the Chu army, so he had such a big reaction, so he shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Old man, you don't have to be afraid, we are from Donglin." As he spoke, he held the old man's skinny hands.
Hands like firewood
The old man broke away his hand angrily, and snorted fearlessly: "You thieves don't try to deceive me, don't you like killing people? Anyway, you have killed all the villagers in this area, so my old man is no exception.
One, come and kill me, so that I, the old immortal, can accompany those dead souls."
Zhang Huaide was angry and funny, "Old man, we are really our own people. I am Zhang Huaide, the commander-in-chief of Luojing, and this is the current emperor."
"Emperor - Your Majesty?" The old man looked at Shao Yan beside him in confusion, and said in surprise: "You, are you the Emperor?"
Shao Yan smiled and nodded: "Yes, I am Chen Long."
The old man has never met the emperor, but he has heard that the current emperor is a handsome young man, his surname is Chen Minglong, and he is very easy-going, and the strange man in front of him also fits these characteristics.
Shao Yan ordered all the soldiers to take off their coats and reveal the Donglin military uniforms underneath. Only then did the old man become convinced of Shao Yan's identity. He was frightened and knelt down in a hurry and said: "Long live the emperor, long live the emperor. The common people have no eyesight, and the common people deserve to be punished."
die"
"Old man, please get up quickly." Shao Yan helped him up calmly and sighed: "Now that Donglin has died, I am no longer an emperor. You should still call me Chen Long."
"Oh, no, the common people don't dare." The old man shook his head vigorously and said: "Your Majesty, although the common people are old, they still know the principle of 'keep the green mountains here, and you won't be afraid of running out of firewood.' As long as you are here in Donglin Kingdom, you will not be afraid."
There is no day for a comeback.”
Make a comeback? It's easy to say, but it's not easy. Shao Yan secretly smiled bitterly. Although he is not a person who retreats easily, the current situation is severe. Wanting to rebuild the old mountains and rivers in a short time is difficult in a word. Despite this,
He could not live up to the high expectations of the people of Donglin for him, so he smiled calmly and said: "According to your good wishes, old man, I will definitely restore the Donglin Kingdom. Not only that, I will also unify the world in the future and let the people of the world live a good life."
day"
The old man nodded in agreement, thinking that he had been waiting for so long, had been looking forward to so long, and even almost died. Now that his family had been killed, he originally wanted to use his old bones to find those thieves and fight to the death.
Although he knew it was a dead end, he was not afraid. However, the arrival of the emperor once again ignited the fire in his heart, and he kowtowed with excitement: "My Emperor, Holy Ming! If the folks in heaven can hear your words,
, you will definitely feel gratified.”
When Shao Yan heard the word "Heaven", he already guessed the tragedy that happened here. Before he could ask, the old man sighed deeply, and then patiently told everything that happened here:
A few days ago, a large number of Liang troops and a few Chu troops came to Yangzhuang. At first, they just grabbed some food and property, and occasionally injured some people. On the whole, they were safe and sound. Later, they used this as a stronghold, and many
The first attack was launched against Qixian County not far away. King Jinqiang, the commander-in-chief of Qixian County, led all the soldiers and civilians to rise up to resist. After Zhang Baihu, who was stationed in Changqing City, learned about it, he promptly dispatched three brothers of the Lu family to come to support, and the armies of the three countries fought in a melee.
In one piece, the soldiers of Donglin were unstoppable. The allies of Chu and Liang underestimated the enemy and were suspicious of each other. As a result, they returned in defeat.
After returning to Yangzhuang, these defeated soldiers vented all their anger on the people. They forced the city gates to close, and then gathered all the people in the city together. Under the guise of cleaning up the spies, they took the opportunity to attack the unarmed people.
There was a bloody massacre. In order to cover up the crime, they piled the corpses together and burned them.
After the troops from the two countries withdrew, nearby villagers rushed to rescue them from all directions, but it was already too late. This massacre was completely a retaliatory action by the enemy, so there was almost no one alive in Yangzhuang.
"...Hey, these murderous demons, after they kill people, they extend their claws to several nearby villages... Now there are not many people nearby who can breathe." Speaking of sadness, the old man
I couldn't help but burst into tears
After listening to his story, Shao Yan seemed to see the scene of people being killed, each living life falling into a pool of blood one by one. These miserable and bloody scenes passed before his eyes one by one, and he fiercely
Clench your fists and grit your teeth. Damn it, in the eyes of these bastards, the lives of ordinary people are as worthless as cabbage. Grandma, wait until the day you fall into my hands.
Kill you all
"Your Majesty, you haven't seen the tragic situation of the villagers. They..., they are really miserable. You have to avenge the villagers." The old man couldn't bear it any longer, and he knelt on the ground and started crying.
"I will," Shao Yan's eyes showed a fierce light, "I will not offend anyone unless they offend me. If someone offends me, I will repay you twice as much!"
"The Emperor is right!" Zhang Huaide echoed: "These bastards are treating our people like this today. If we have a chance to attack their country in the future, we must kill all their people. This is called 'blood for blood'
"
Seeing that he had completely misunderstood what he meant, Shao Yan couldn't help but feel dumbfounded, "Huaide, don't you think your 'blood for blood' trick is terrible?"
Zhang Huaide said disapprovingly: "What's this? Who asked them to harm our brothers and sisters? Your Majesty, don't you also say, 'If anyone offends me, I will repay you twice as much?'"
"Yes, I said that, but it was only for those brutal soldiers, not for the unarmed people."
"But..., is that the end of it?"
"Of course not." Shao Yan shook his head, then turned around and said to all the soldiers: "Listen to me, everyone in the world is one family. No matter which country you meet in the future, you should treat them well. You must not
Following the example of the soldiers of these two countries, I will tell you ugly things today. If I hear someone harming the people in the future, I will kill them without mercy! On the contrary, for those stubborn enemy soldiers, I will kill every one I see in the future.
See two, kill a pair to repay today's bloody shame, do you all understand?"
"Understood!" The soldiers threw themselves down and shouted: "Long live my emperor, my sage!"
Zhang Huaide was displeased because he thought his idea was correct. However, the emperor's words were so eloquent and everyone was echoing around him that he could only hesitate to speak.
"Old man, do you know where the armies of Chu and Liang are now?" Shao Yan then asked
The old man frowned and said: "It's strange to say that after those beasts slaughtered the city, they did not continue to attack the city. I heard that Liang Jun received the order from the top and moved towards the capital, but those Chu troops were mysteriously
Disappeared without anyone noticing.”
"Disappeared?"
Strangely, the Chu army's favorite thing is to fight for territory. Logically speaking, they should be stationed nearby, so why did they disappear out of thin air? Just when Shao Yan felt puzzled, suddenly there was a sound of horse hooves from all around. He thought it was the enemy.
Quickly making a retreat gesture, the old man realized that the situation was not good and quickly led them to a small road.
The sound of horse hooves was getting closer and closer. Before Shao Yan and others could move away, their path was blocked by this group of uninvited guests.
"Your Majesty, is that you?" The person who spoke was a man. Shao Yan heard this voice very familiar. He turned his head suddenly, but he didn't know that the person sitting on the horse was none other than the King of the Golden Gun, the commander-in-chief of Qixian County.
When the Golden Spear King saw that the other party was really the emperor, he couldn't help being surprised and happy. He hurriedly got off his horse and came to Shao Yan respectfully. In an instant, all the soldiers threw themselves on the ground and shouted "long live the emperor"
It was rare for the monarch and his minister to meet again. They chatted endlessly when they met. After a brief exchange of greetings, Shao Yan introduced Zhang Huaide and the old man to him one after another. The Golden Spear King was a cheerful person and immediately gave the old man some silver coins.
Afterwards, Shao Yan and others rushed to the Qixian camp with him. Along the way, the Golden Gun King seemed particularly enthusiastic. As he walked, he introduced Shao Yan in detail about the recent situation in the army. He told Shao Yan that that time Chu Liang
After the defeat of the two armies, they never showed up again, and he took advantage of this time to recruit a large number of troops nearby to expand his troops. Now there are 3,000 cavalry and nearly 7,000 infantry in Qixian City, which is more than before.
Once upon a time, whenever he talks about this, the King of the Golden Gun always has indescribable joy on his face.
It was already noon when we returned to the camp. Shao Yan considered that everyone in the trip to the capital had a hard time, so he asked the fifty soldiers to go down to rest first, leaving only Zhang Huaide and the four masters with him.
After lunch, Shao Yan and others, accompanied by the King of Golden Guns, inspected each barracks one after another. From the appearance, the Qixian camp was obviously much larger than before, and the original empty spaces had been erected.
The high camp tents were raised, and the soldiers walked busily between the tents. When they saw the emperor coming, they all knelt down and saluted in unison.
Seeing their neat military appearance and high morale, Shao Yan was even more delighted. In his impression, the King of the Golden Gun was just a rough man who had not made any achievements before, but he did not expect that this guy was not ambiguous at all in leading troops.
After the inspection, Shao Yan stopped, turned sideways and boasted to the Golden Gun King next to him: "I didn't expect that in just a few days, the changes here have been so great, that the Qixian camp can be like this today.
, you are indispensable for being the King of Golden Guns.”
The Golden Gun King's face turned red, and he said respectfully: "What, what? Your Majesty rewarded me too much. I feel a little ashamed. I secretly expanded my troops without informing the Emperor in advance. It is indeed suspected of deceiving the emperor and neglecting his superiors."
Please forgive me, Your Majesty"
Shao Yan waved his hand generously and said: "The King of Guns is serious. You are doing this for the sake of the overall situation. How can I blame you? The law is dead and people are alive. As long as we do things that do not violate our own conscience, why bother?"
Why care about so much? What’s more, things in this world are ever-changing, and sometimes plans can’t keep up with the changes. At this time, we should adapt to changes and act cheaply when necessary, so why not?”
"Yes, yes, what the emperor said is absolutely true. I have learned from you." The Golden Spear King kept nodding and bowing.
Shao Yan was really not used to seeing him talk like a "little minister" and talk in a flattering manner. He thought to himself what happened to this guy today. He hadn't seen him for a long time, and now he seemed to have changed.
Like a person
The Golden Gun King noticed that Shao Yan's expression was abnormal, and he hurriedly stepped forward and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, let's go back to the camp. There are many people here and the air is turbid. I'm afraid it will stain your noble body, so why don't we let Wei Chen see you off?"
Go back to camp and rest”
Shao Yan smiled helplessly: "Lao Jin, when did you become so cautious? This is not like your style at all. Well... I still like you better before."
The King of Golden Gun suddenly became confused and hesitantly said: "Your Majesty, please don't misunderstand me. I am just nervous about your dragon body. I have no other intention."
Shao Yan laughed loudly: "You don't have to be so nervous. I don't mean to blame you. I just think you have changed and become calmer and more mature than before."
The Golden Gun King's face was red. Shao Yan couldn't help laughing when he saw that he looked like a little lady. At this moment, he saw a soldier walking in a hurry with a big basket in his hand.
Come here, because he was walking too fast, he accidentally bumped into Zhang Huaide
Zhang Huaide was very angry and was about to reprimand the King of Golden Guns. He rushed over and gave the soldier a hard slap in the face. He cursed: "Asshole, you don't have eyes. How dare you hit Mr. Zhang? Come here."
Pull it down and chop it off.”
The soldier was so frightened that he lost his life and said, "Master Jin, please spare my life. My subordinate was careless. Please forgive me, Mr. Jin."
The King of the Golden Gun thought for a while and then said: "This is your first offender, so you will be exempted from the death penalty. In this way, since you have eyesight but no eyesight first, let someone gouge out your eyes. Who is here?" After that, he called two people
Soldier
Shao Yan's heart suddenly twitched, and he thought to himself, once a person's eyes are gouged out, the feeling is no better than death. Damn, is this the King of the Golden Gun's method of running an army? This is too cruel.
"King of Guns, I think he made an honest mistake, so let's forget it."
"Yes, Brother Jin, let him be spared this time," Zhang Huaide said sincerely: "The emperor is right, this was just his unintentional mistake, and I don't want to pursue it anymore."
The King of Golden Guns said categorically: "No, everyone is equal before military law. We must not break the rules because of anyone. I have spared him the death penalty, but he must be punished for living crimes. Come and give me military justice immediately."
"You -" Zhang Huaide saw that he didn't show any kindness to him, so he couldn't help but glared angrily: "Brother Jin, don't you even want to show respect to the emperor?"
The Golden Gun King ignored him and made a gesture. Two soldiers quickly walked over and pushed the tortured soldier to the ground. One of the soldiers picked up a knife and stabbed him in the eye. Shao Yan was about to stop him.
However, it was still a step too late. I only heard a scream of "ah", and saw the soldier fainted immediately. Two eyeballs had been pierced, and the bright red blood stained the whole face. The scene was too horrible to watch.
Seeing this, Shao Yan couldn't help but shudder, and he felt like nauseating in his heart, but he heard the Golden Gun King say with a proud face: "Humph, let me see who dares to rush to the peak in the future, this is what will happen."
Zhang Huaide got angry after hearing this. Shao Yan patted his shoulder and told him not to be impulsive. After all, the King of Golden Guns