Late Yuan Dynasty: I am the true emperor

Chapter 25: The people's hearts can be used (please read it later)
The eleventh year of Zhizheng, the fourth night of September.

It was a little after ten that evening, and a new moon hung high in the sky. The crescent moon could not provide effective lighting, and the rural area in the wilderness was pitch black.

Because Lu Jin and his men marched in secret and did not even dare to light torches, their marching speed was seriously affected.

So after passing Zhu Liangzu's main force in the evening, Lu Jin boldly led the main force onto the official road which was easier to travel on and marched quickly along the official road.

Lu Jin led a small team in the first echelon, Zhang Desheng led the vanguard battalion closely behind, Yu Tingyu led the main force in the center, and Zhao Zhongzhong led his battalion to the rear. Finally, at ten o'clock that evening, they arrived at a village thirty miles away from Lu'an.

Looking at the village that suddenly appeared in front of him, Lu Jin squatted down and raised his hand. All the scouts behind him stopped, and Yu Tongyuan also quickly came to Lu Jin.

"Brother Lu, what's wrong?" Yu Tongyuan asked in a low voice.

Lu Jin pointed to the village ahead and said, "This is a nice place."

Yu Tongyuan looked around and didn't see anything special. "Why did you choose to ambush here?"

Lu Jin nodded and asked, "How far is it from here to Lu'an?"

"Probably more than thirty miles." Yu Tongyuan estimated.

Lu Jin analyzed, "Thirty miles is the normal day's march distance on foot, which means that if we ambush here, we can focus on dealing with Zhu Liangzu without worrying about Lu'an suddenly sending reinforcements behind us.

“When Zhu Liangzu finds out he’s been ambushed, he’ll send people to Lu’an for help. It’s a 60-mile round trip, and even if the reinforcements run over, it’ll take them half a day. By then, we’ll have finished the fight.

"And this village is not bad either." Lu Jin pointed to the official road that passed through the village.

"This village is right on both sides of the official road. We just need to ambush in the village and wait for Zhu Liangzu's main force to come. Once we block both ends, we can surround and kill him."

Yu Tongyuan scratched his head. "That seems to be the case. So we chose this place? Do we have to help the villagers move again?"

"Smart, it is better for us not to hurt innocent people. Go and tell Zhang Desheng immediately to speed up and go around to the front of the village. Then tell your father that we will surround this village and then move." He emphasized again.

"Tell all the camps to be careful and not let any civilians escape. If the news leaks out, all the previous efforts will be wasted. The relocation conditions are the same as last time. Each household will be given one stone of rice. The rest will be given after the battle is over."

"Okay, I'll go right away."

Twenty minutes later, the village in front of them was surrounded. The Chaohu Red Scarves lit torches, poured into the village with great fanfare, and began knocking on doors from house to house. The village was suddenly in chaos, and many villagers were "invited" out.

Thousands of villagers gathered together, the scene was very chaotic, and there were also the cries of children. Facing the Chaohu Red Scarfs who were holding knives and guns and wearing heavy armor, the adults dared not speak out, for fear that this group of rebels would massacre the village or something.

Lu Jin came to the middle of the official road, jumped onto a cart, and shouted loudly to the villagers.

"Dear fellow villagers, please be quiet and listen to me." After all the villagers present were quiet and stared at him with fear on their faces, Lu Jin continued.

"We are the Red Turban Army from Chaohu. We are passing through your place on our way to attack Lu'an. We don't want to harm you, but we just want to borrow your village for a few days. Afterwards, each household will give you a stone of rice, and we won't take a penny from your property. If there is any damage to your house, we will compensate you accordingly.

"We, the Red Turban Army, punish the tyrannical Yuan, drive out the Tartars, and restore our Han people's country. We are here to rule for the Han people. I won't make things difficult for you, and I hope you won't force me to kill anyone.

"Just stay outside for a few days and come back with food, nothing will happen. If I find out that anyone has gone out to deliver a letter to the Tartars, I will use this knife to kill his entire family!"

The villagers felt a little relieved after hearing this. As long as they were not harmed, it was fine. Moreover, they were given compensation. Among the rebels, this was indeed quite benevolent. However, some people were still worried. Suddenly, an old man came out and asked bravely.

"General, since you are willing to fight for us Han people, can you please change the location? No matter whether you win or lose this battle, you will implicate all the elders of our village.

"We also hope that you can win and drive the Tartars away, but you can't beat Zuo Junbi of Luzhou, and our Marshal Zhu of Lu'an is not easy to deal with either. If you win, it's fine, but if you lose, you can just leave. But what about the people in our village?"

Lu Jin laughed when he heard that. He picked up the steel knife and gestured with it in his hand.

"Haha, my old man, I'm a rebel!!! Do you think I'm too easy to talk to? I'm asking you to move out. This is an order. I'm not here to negotiate with you! I don't want to hurt innocent people, so I'm telling you in a nice way.

"As for Zuo Junbi of Luzhou, his head was chopped off by our own hands and is now hanging outside Luzhou City. Luzhou City has also been surrounded by our Chaohu Navy and can be taken at any time.

"And Marshal Zhu, who you said was difficult to deal with, just fell into our trap today and left your place during the day. Don't tell me you didn't know.

"Right now, Lu'an is empty, so we have to take it!

"Don't say that we will implicate you. If we win, how much benefit can we give you? Why don't you tell us?"

The villagers present were all shocked when they heard this. Zuo Junbi was killed yesterday and Luzhou was besieged today. In those days, information was not easily accessible. Although it was in the neighboring county, the news did not spread that quickly. They only learned about Zuo Junbi's defeat and death at this moment.

As for Zhu Liangzu passing by here during the day, they did see him, but they didn't know what he was going to do. It turned out that he fell into the trap of the red-turbaned general in front of them to lure the tiger away from the mountain. It seems that this group of people came prepared and were very confident of winning.

Looking at the villagers who were stunned by the news, Lu Jin took the opportunity to raise his knife and shouted.

"My fellow Han Chinese, this world has belonged to us Han Chinese for thousands of years. It is the territory passed down by our ancestors. When will it be the turn of the barbarians to call the shots? Look at the life you have led under the rule of the barbarians.
"The tyrannical Yuan Dynasty harmed the people, sent tax collectors to levy heavy taxes, and did not provide relief to the people when natural disasters occurred. In recent years, there have been continuous disasters, and countless people have died in China. There are thousands of miles of starving people, and corpses are everywhere! Has the court ever asked about this or taken any action?

"No! Not only did they not care, they also sent the Semites to lend money at high interest rates, with annual interest rates a hundred times higher, and interest compounded. It was like a knife scraping at the bones, forcing so many people to sell their children and daughters, and destroying their families.

"Today, I, Lu Jin, follow the will of heaven, uphold justice, and punish the tyrannical Yuan Dynasty in order to restore a bright and peaceful world to the Han people of the world!
"When I conquer Lu'an and kill the Tartars in the city, all the high-interest loans you owe will be written off, and all your brothers and sisters who were sold as slaves will be released to the people. I will also open the granaries to release grain to help the people who can't make ends meet!

"Listen to me, everyone! Those of you who are Han Chinese and don't want to be slaves to the Tartars, and want to save your children and relatives who were sold back home, all of you should obey me. When I finish this battle, it will be the day for us Han Chinese to turn things around! Now, everyone, get moving, take your food and livestock, and go out to avoid the war for a few days. I will never let you down."

Lu Jin's words were very inflammatory, because what he said was in line with their interests, and some people present immediately stood up. "General Lu, I want to fight with you in Lu'an. My sister was sold to the Hu people in the city as a slave. After we take Lu'an, can you bring my sister back?"

"General Lu, can the money we owe to the court be written off? I will fight you too!"

"Take me with you, and screw the damn Tartars. In recent years, there have been disasters and only two of us are left in our family of eight. We can't survive anyway, so let's just follow General Lu in the rebellion. It's better to die as a hero than to work like a slave for the Tartars!"

Looking at the angry villagers, Lu Jin suddenly laughed. The people's hearts can be used!
He said immediately.

"Brothers who are willing to join the army, take your families and hide away for two days. Help us keep a good eye on the people and don't let them report to the Tartars.

"'If a soldier fights without training, he will be killed.' You have never been trained and you don't know how to fight. If I ask you to fight now, I will kill you. When we finish this battle, if you are willing to join the army, come to me, okay?"

"Okay, the general must take us with him when he attacks Lu'an."

Lu Jin nodded, "Hurry up and help the villagers move and find a place to hide."

The villagers then took action.

After a while, the generals from Chaohu came over. Zhao Zhongzhong was holding a head in his hand and said to Lu Jin happily.

"Brother Lu, there is a post station in this village. The postman tried to escape on horseback and went out to deliver a letter, but I killed him with a single blow and seized six war horses."

Lu Jin nodded, then frowned and said, "He's just a postman, you can kill him if you want, but why chop off his head? Who are you showing it to? Don't chop off the head of such a small person next time."

Zhang Desheng, who had been blocking the Lu'an direction, also rushed over at this time, bringing with him a man. When the man saw the scene, he was so scared that he wet his pants on the spot.

"Brother Lu, this man is a trader living in the village. He tried to escape during the chaos, but I caught him. Should I kill him?"

The peddler fell to his knees and kowtowed to Lu Jin. "Please spare my life, my lord. I am just a needle and thread seller. I have never done anything to harm the world, and I have no intention of informing the Tartars. Please let me go!"

Lu Jin frowned when he heard this. His focus was not here at all, so he asked immediately.

"What did you say? A peddler living in a village? Is there an inn in this village?"

Zhang Desheng immediately replied, "It has a large bunk bed, provides water and food, and is a place for merchants to rest. It's not really a big inn."

Wow, a village has both a government post station and an inn. It seems that the village is quite large. It is worthy of being a village built on both sides of the official road. It should be similar to the service area of ​​a modern highway.

He immediately asked the vendor, "What is the name of this village?"

"In reply to your Majesty, this village is called Guanting Village, and the people around here call this place Dongsanshiliting."

Lu Jin nodded and asked, "What's your name? Where are you from? What do you do? Do you know Zhu Liangzu from Lu'an?"

The hawker dared not not answer and answered whatever was asked.

"In reply to your Majesty, my name is Yang Wuyi, and I am from Xin'an Township. My family farms, and I also do some small business, selling needles, thread, fruits, salted fish, and other small items to supplement my family income.

"Of course I know Zhu Liangzu, but he doesn't know me. I don't know how Zhu Liangzu offended the king. I can't beat him and can't help him. Please let me go, king."

Lu Jin asked again, "Where is Xin'an Township?"

"Xin'an Township is not far to the north of Lu'an City."

"Oh, then do you know where Zhu Liangzu lives? Does he live in the city or outside the city?"

"Outside the city, his family has a lot of land and a big house. I've even been to their village to attend the big market!"

"Oh, so you know his house. That's great. Would you like to show us the way? Don't worry, we won't kill you." Lu Jin's eyes lit up when he heard that, and he said to the peddler with a smile.

The peddler's face suddenly froze and he wanted to slap himself a few times. Why did he say so much? He could have just said that he didn't know him. It was a pity that it was too late now!
"I am willing to lead the way. Please let me go, my king."

At this time, Yu Tingyu and his son, Zhang Desheng, Zhao Zhongzhong and others also looked over and asked in confusion, "Brother Lu, aren't we setting up an ambush here? Why are we going to look for Zhu Liangzu's family? Are we going to capture his family?"

Lu Jin didn't think it was a big deal and nodded immediately. "Yes, I heard that Zhu Liangzu is very powerful and good at fighting. Are you sure you can capture him? If you are not sure, just capture his family members. That will definitely make him afraid to act rashly and force him to bow his head."

Yu Tonghai frowned slightly, "It's not good to not let the family suffer any harm, right?"

Before Lu Jin could say anything, his father Yu Tingyu threw a big bag over him.

"You are talking nonsense, war is a matter of life and death, what do you mean by not letting your family suffer? Rebellion is punishable by death, and if you are caught, your entire clan will be executed! Why don't you tell the court that your family will not be harmed?"

"Dad, don't hit me. Give me some face. I'm the battalion commander." Yu Tonghai said unhappily, covering the back of his head.

"Pfft hahahaha"

Everyone present laughed out loud when they saw this.

(End of this chapter)