knife

Chapter 246 Why don't I feel happy?

The villages not far from Yandu are mainly engaged in agriculture, with animal husbandry as a secondary industry.

This is something that several generations of Yuan emperors have been striving to promote.
Agriculture allows people to settle down, and the land can also keep people together.

Through the efforts of several generations, millions of acres of fertile land have been reclaimed around Yandu.

Although the vast majority of the land was controlled by nobles, large landowners, and big merchants, there was still a considerable number of self-sufficient farmers.

Unlike the Qin Dynasty, where land annexation became a major problem and an irreconcilable contradiction that made the dynasty teeter on the brink of collapse, in the Yuan Dynasty, land was never an issue due to the sparse population.

If you're willing, harness a horse or ox, find a piece of wasteland, plow it, sow seeds, and that land is yours.

The Yuan government had always encouraged such behavior.

Of course, if a piece of wasteland is cultivated into fertile land and yields a good harvest, it's inevitable that powerful and wealthy people will want to take it over.

For the poor, if they can't win, they can take a sum of money, find a piece of wasteland to cultivate, and they won't starve. They can always survive, right?

Zhou Yi and Gao Wuyang are now settling down in a small village.

This must be a small tribal settlement, with a dozen or so households sharing a single livestock shed, where all kinds of animals were kept together. The farmland surrounding the village was clearly reclaimed this spring.

Such land can be distinguished simply by looking at the field ridges or the color of the soil.

The harvest from mature, fertile land is vastly different from that from newly cultivated land.

"There's nothing we can do!" An old man, his cotton-padded coat now shiny and hardened, sat on the doorstep, watching Zhou Yi and Gao Wuyang inside, drinking mutton soup and eating steamed buns. "They still paid us. If we hadn't known better, we wouldn't have gotten the money, and we would have faced legal trouble. They have plenty of ways to mess with us."

"The fertile land that we finally cultivated has been turned into new land. I'm afraid the harvest will be reduced by half, right?" Zhou Yi sipped his mutton soup. And let me tell you, the old man's wife at home is really good at making soup.

"Then let's grow more!" the old man said, arms crossed. "If we work a little harder and raise some livestock, we can make a living. What do we ordinary people ask for? We just want a peaceful life and enough to eat."

“That’s right!” Zhou Yi nodded and said, “But things aren’t peaceful in Yandu right now. They’ve even started fighting. Father-in-law, if you trust me, then go somewhere else to take refuge.”

"They're fighting? Why are they fighting?" The old man was clearly alarmed.

"The emperor of the Great Yuan Dynasty is dead, and his sons are fighting over the inheritance, each wanting to be in charge. That's why they've started fighting." Zhou Yi finished his mutton soup and walked to the threshold to sit down next to the old man.

The old man's body was trembling slightly.

Judging from his age, he may have experienced the last struggle for the Yuan Dynasty throne. Perhaps Zhou Yi's words reminded him of those painful memories.

"Where can we go? We can only hope that the princes will decide their fate soon, then life will be better again," the old man said, trembling.

The sound of rapid hoofbeats rang out in the distance. The old man and Zhou Yi stood up at the same time. Gao Wuyang, who was inside the house, came out with a bowl of mutton soup in one hand and a steamed bun in the other.

"Northern barbarians!" the old man exclaimed, turning and running into the house. "Quick, hide! Guest, hide!"

Neither Zhou Yi nor his companion dodged; instead, they watched with great interest the dozen or so cavalrymen charging towards them.

These are barbarian soldiers from the western camp outside Yandu.

That is, it was under the jurisdiction of the Western Camp of the First Prince Jebe.

The area around Yandu was out of control on the very first day of the battle between Akdun and the Tiele.

What was out of control was the Western Camp, which was now without Jebe. The majority of the soldiers in the camp were Western and Northern Barbarian troops that the Yuan Dynasty had subdued during its campaigns in the north.

Normally, they were surrounded by the Yandu Garrison, with three large camps in the east, south, and north. These barbarian soldiers, having been terrified of the Yuan soldiers, were generally well-behaved and dared not cause trouble.

Now, the Eastern Camp has launched a fierce attack on Yandu City, while the Southern and Northern Camps are ambiguous in their attitudes, observing the situation. Meanwhile, the barbarian soldiers in the Western Camp, who have been itching to leave their camp, have begun to venture out and masquerade as bandits, looting and pillaging.

Today, Zhou Yi and his group encountered one of these groups.

They charged into the village recklessly, only to run into several young men. With a crack of their whips, the young men screamed and tumbled to the side. A woman rushed towards them, wailing. The barbarian soldiers laughed, and with a swift, graceful turn, they easily scooped her up and placed her across the saddle.

The woman, however, was fierce and reached out to scratch the barbarian soldier's face. The soldier, without any hesitation, slapped her, and the woman's head slumped as she fainted.

A cavalryman spotted Zhou Yi and Gao Wuyang, and seeing the two of them casually standing at the door watching the commotion, with one of them even eating, he immediately spurred his horse and charged straight over.

Equestrianism is truly excellent.

He brushed past the gate, and the horsewhip in his hand lashed out at Zhou Yi.

Gao Wuyang immediately took a step back and turned his body slightly to the side, continuing to drink the mutton soup and gnaw on his steamed bun.

Zhou Yi reached out and grabbed the whip. With a single tug, the barbarian soldier on horseback was pulled off. Amid the soldier's screams, Zhou Yi's other hand touched the soldier's neck, twisted it, and with a crack, the soldier's face was directly exposed to his back.

Zhou Yi leaped onto his horse, let out a long laugh, and charged off.

Gao Wuyang freed one hand and pulled over the dead barbarian soldier, placing it under his buttocks to make himself feel more comfortable. He drank his soup while watching Zhou Yi kill people.

It's quite a sight to see a peak eighth-rank expert kill someone.

A dozen or so barbarian soldiers were really not enough for Zhou Yi to kill.

Before Gao Wuyang had even finished his soup, Zhou Yi had already killed everyone.

"Not bad!" Zhou Yi rode back, dismounted, patted the shiny black horse he had just stolen, and laughed, "Good luck!"

"I'm afraid it has brought disaster to this village as well!" Gao Wuyang turned around and glanced at the old couple huddled together in the house. The two of them were huddled together. The kind-looking Zhou Yi from before was now seen by them as no different from the King of Hell.

“Whether we kill them or not, they’re all doomed!” Zhou Yi walked up to the old man and said, “Let’s run away. If we run far away, we might be safer. This place is too close to Yandu. Even if we kill these barbarians today, there will be more barbarians coming out to burn, kill, and plunder tomorrow or the day after.”

"Doesn't the government care?" the old man asked in a trembling voice.

"They're busy fighting for the throne right now, they don't have time to bother with the affairs of us nobody!" Zhou Yi said. "These dozen or so horses are yours. Take what you can carry and get away from Yandu while you still have time!"

The village had only thirty or forty people in total. They were all miserable and pitiful, leading their livestock and carrying their meager belongings as they fled towards the distant mountains.

Watching their retreating figures, Gao Wuyang sighed: "Headmaster Zhou, you said that our mission this time was very successful, and that Yuan Kingdom will soon be in complete chaos. These barbarians coming out to burn, kill, and plunder is just the beginning. The ensuing melee between the princes will be what truly plunges Yuan Kingdom into the abyss. But right now, why don't I feel happy at all?"

Zhou Yi chuckled: "You see how miserable these people are now, right?"

"Yes!" Gao Wuyang nodded.

"But think about it, the taxes these people pay will support a lot of Yuan soldiers, and the grain they pay will feed a lot of Yuan soldiers and warhorses. Those young people may seem pitiful today, but if they are conscripted into the army and follow the Tiele or Akdun into the pass to slaughter our comrades, will you still feel sorry for them?"

Gao Wuyang shook his head violently: "No way! When that time really comes, I will naturally take up my knife and kill them, but right now, I still feel sorry for them!"

Zhou Yi patted his shoulder. "You really need to rest for a while. Why don't you go back to Tai'an City? With your mentality, Guan Shan will definitely deal with you! That guy is ruthless! And in the next few years, the things you'll be doing will likely contradict your kindness in many ways. Wu Yang, there's no justice in war between nations. You must understand that. If you really pity them, you can only show compassion after we defeat and conquer them, understand?"

"Understood!" Gao Wuyang nodded. "I'm going to the Eagle Bandits' territory; I won't return to Tai'an City!"

Under the rising sun, Tiele, leading a group of men, looked at the black smoke rising from a village in the distance, at the fleeing crowds, and at the barbarian soldiers rushing back and forth. He was furious and pointed his whip and halberd ahead, saying, "Go! Cut down all these beasts on the spot! Is there no law? How dare they act so recklessly in the capital of Yan!"

"Your Highness!" Gao Qunshu reached out and pressed down on Tiele's riding whip, shaking his head and saying, "The Western Camp is only looting right now; they are not our enemies. If you attack them, you will only create another major enemy for yourself. These people have no rationality; they do whatever they want!"

"Are we just going to watch them harm our people?" Tiele roared.

“Your Highness, it’s just a temporary sacrifice. If we can persuade the Renduo and Xifeng families to unite the three camps in the east, south, and north, what does it matter if we wipe out all these barbarians? But right now, we really can’t afford to cause any more trouble. Let’s go!” Gao Qunshu raised his whip and struck the Tiele horse’s rump. The warhorse neighed and galloped forward.

Behind them, plumes of black smoke rose from the village that had been plundered by the barbarian soldiers.

The area surrounding Yandu was originally a prosperous land. Tens of thousands of barbarian soldiers thrived in the chaos, plundering wantonly. Overnight, countless widows, orphans, and even families were wiped out.

(End of this chapter)