knife

Chapter 399 Ning County
The small boat glided lightly through the river.

Liu Chuang was rowing the boat.

The three people sitting on the boat were Li Dachui, He Yiming, and Ke Wuji.

Sitting on the boat, looking around, you see fertile fields on both sides of the shore, where farmers are busy at work.

In some fields, farmers are tilling the land with plows. The fertile soil rolls outwards like waves as the plow moves forward. The old ox pulling the plow is working hard with its head down, but it also sticks out its pink tongue from time to time to pick up the grass roots in front of it and put them in its mouth to chew.

Some fields were already filled with water. Farmers stood on harrows and plows, urging their water buffaloes forward. As the harrows and plows moved forward, large clods of earth in the water were broken up and sank into the water.

"Next comes breeding!" Ke Wuji was extremely familiar with farm work. "These fields are all seedling fields, and they require the utmost care. In another month, once the seedlings are cultivated, we can begin large-scale planting."

“Ning County is not large, but more than ten rivers crisscross the county, dividing it into small, fragmented areas,” He Yiming said. “The main crop grown in Ning County is rice. The natural conditions here are excellent, and the county is not affected by drought. The only problem is flooding. However, since we entered Ning County three years ago, we have been organizing people to dig ditches and canals, trying our best to connect all the rivers. In this way, when there is a flood, these rivers and canals can automatically regulate themselves, minimizing the impact of natural disasters.”

"It's indeed a good place!" Li Dachui laughed. "With terrain like this, cavalry is out of the question, and even infantry can't be used on a large scale. However, the canal gangs, who are extremely familiar with boats, can fully demonstrate their strengths here. A small flatboat like this can carry more than ten people, and a hundred or so can transport a thousand people. They are extremely flexible and can move in and out unpredictably. Most people who want to seize Ning County will give up in the face of difficulties. Moreover, this place happens to be in the buffer zone between Zhang Quanyi's and He Zudao's forces. Gang Leader He really knows how to choose a place!"

"It was a last resort!" He Yiming said, "The business of the Canal Gang is shrinking more and more, and the members can't even support their families. Moreover, looking at the current situation, chaos is inevitable. We can only form a society to protect ourselves. But in the current situation, we are still extremely fearful. Without a strong backing, we are like a candle in a storm, which may be extinguished at any time. Fortunately, we now have Elder Ke and Protector Li, so I can finally put my mind at ease."

Li Dachui turned to look at Ke Wuji: "Are you really going to transfer all your manpower to Ning County, moving from the shadows into the light?"

"Guardian, for countless years, the world has hurled many slanders at our Divine Cult, and those who join us are mostly ordinary people from the lower classes, who have little opportunity to speak out for themselves. 'Demon Cult, demonic cult,' in fact, everything our Divine Cult has done is aimed at relieving the people's worries and alleviating the world's troubles. It's just that because it conflicts with the interests of those in power, they have hurled countless slanders at us. This vicious cycle has made our situation increasingly dire. It has also led many of our high-ranking members to be unwilling to openly promote our doctrines, instead treating our Divine Cult merely as a tool, used when needed and discarded when not."

Li Dachui nodded, referring to Jiang Qian and her group from Nan Chu.

After seizing power in the State of Chu, the first thing he did was to turn his blade around and massacre his former partners and comrades.

Because Jiang Qian and her group now represent the powerful and privileged class of the Chu Kingdom.

They naturally could not allow those members of the Demonic Sect, who took rebellion as their mission, to make a mess of the Chu Kingdom.

As for things like equalizing wealth and status, etc.

It's easy to shout slogans, but how can they possibly be realized?
Even within the cult, there is a strict hierarchy!

"Therefore, I must raise the banner and attract like-minded people to Ning County to create a great cause together!" Ke Wuji said, "The Divine Sect has been operating for hundreds of years. Although it has been suppressed by those in power and its influence has been declining, it is not without resources."

"He Zudao still wants to use you. First, as your power grows, you will inevitably expand outwards, and he can use you to strike at Zhang Quanyi. Second, if you develop well, you will attract other demonic sects within the Chu Kingdom, and if they collude with each other, it will put pressure on the Chu Kingdom. Therefore, you are also He Zudao's bargaining chips in negotiating with Southern Chu. This guy doesn't want to lose out on either side. Be careful."

"I'll be careful!" Ke Wuji said. "A man like He Zudao would betray anyone for enough profit. He doesn't even care about his own father's life or death, let alone the likes of us. Right now, we can only say that we still need each other!"

The small boat zigzaggled through the waterway, and after passing through a narrow channel that resembled the mouth of a bottle, the view suddenly opened up, revealing a vast, calm, mirror-like lake. Along the shore, countless houses stood side by side, and boats of various sizes were moored beside the wooden piers.

"This is our headquarters in Ning County!" He Yiming said, pointing to the houses in front of him. "We are currently training our navy."

On the vast lake, fleets of boats shuttled back and forth, flags fluttering and drums beating incessantly, seemingly indicating that two groups were engaged in a fierce battle.

"It already looks quite impressive!" Ke Wuji said with a smile.

"We can't speak for ourselves on land, but on water, our canal gang is quite confident!" He Yiming said with a smile. "If the Protector-General can help us solve the land problems, then in Ning County, we will have no weaknesses. We just need to manage internally well and expand externally, and we will surely achieve great things." "Wei Yi has already abandoned Hedong County; his main force is retreating towards Chang'an via Yongfeng," Li Dachui said. "So our main force in Yongfeng was also going to retreat to Chang'an. Now that we have Ning County as a base, let's deploy a portion of it there!"

“Protector, be careful of Linghu Zhishu. If he realizes that you are the backer of Ning County, I’m afraid He Zudao will not be saying what he’s saying now!” Ke Wuji warned. “He Zudao has always been wary of you, and now he has probably heard those rumors. Once he believes them, he will definitely try to suppress you in a crazy way.”

“Of course,” Li Dachui said. “Right now you don’t have independent capital, so you have to be careful and not let outsiders see our cards. Zhang Qingyun will handle these things well. On the surface, Ning County is just a joint venture between the Demonic Sect and the Canal Gang.”

"Zhang Quanyi is taking advantage of this opportunity to head north and capture Xingyang. This presents us with a rare strategic opportunity!" Ke Wuji said. "Otherwise, Zhang Quanyi would certainly not tolerate us causing trouble around him. Once he has captured Xingyang and turns back, he will find that the price he has to pay to take advantage of us again will be unbearable. At that time, it will be time for negotiations!"

“Zhang Quanyi won’t last long!” Li Dachui shook his head and said.

You mean...?

“Now that Linghu Ye has taken Hedong County and controlled Tongguan, he will definitely not let Luoyang go next!” Li Dachui said. “Compared to Chang’an, Luoyang is naturally easier to attack. Zhang Quanyi thinks that Linghu Ye will take advantage of the situation to attack Chang’an, so he sent troops to take Xingyang. He really doesn’t understand Linghu Ye at all.”

"Would Linghuye suddenly turn around and take Luoyang?"

"Definitely!" Li Dachui said, "Next, Chang Lei, Linghu Shili and the others will definitely cross Tongguan and join forces with Li Guohua to rush straight to Luoyang. The Qi County Chen Clan and the Donghai Qin Clan, who were just taught a lesson by Zhang Quanyi, will naturally also swarm in. Zhang Quanyi won't be able to swallow Xingyang, and I'm afraid he won't be able to stay in Luoyang for long either!"

"If we were to become neighbors with Linghu Ye, I'm afraid our lives would be even more difficult!" He Yiming said with some worry.

Li Dachui laughed and said, "Don't forget, you are He Zudao's men. Zhang Quanyi can't hold on any longer, so he will definitely defect to He Zudao. Without Luoyang, Zhang Quanyi will have completely become He Zudao's subordinate."

"So next, what we need to prepare to deal with is actually the Linghuye Group!" Ke Wuji suddenly realized.

"The pressure will indeed be greater, but it is precisely under this immense pressure that He Zudao and Zhang Quanyi will be even less likely to abandon you, especially after you have demonstrated your strength! With the navy as the main force and the land forces as the auxiliary force, let's have a good contest with Linghu Ye's subordinates on this land."

Should we take the initiative?

"When the enemy advances, we retreat; when the enemy is tired, we attack; when the enemy camps, we harass; when the enemy retreats, we pursue; we lure the enemy deep into our territory, then trap them and beat them!" Li Dachui laughed heartily: "This is your territory. Linghu Ye's army is indeed very good at fighting on land, but on the water, at least for now, they are only at the very basics."

"So you know nothing at all!" He Yiming laughed. "Guardian, let's go to the village and take a look. Although it's not big, it's small but complete. We can build boats under 100 meters long ourselves."

One hundred liao (a unit of weight) is considered a large ship in this kind of river.

Even on a large river, a hundred liao is considered a medium-sized warship.

Hearing this, Li Dachui was somewhat surprised. He was more concerned about the strength of the technological capabilities here than the number of troops.

"Then let's go take a look. I'll be leaving in a couple of days!"

"Where is the Protector-General going?"

"Let's go to Xiangcheng first, then maybe Ruyin County, and finally, I think we should go to Danyang! After I come back from Danyang, I'll go to your Demonic Sect's headquarters." Li Dachui said to Ke Wuji with a smile. "I'm really quite curious about your sect's founding master."

(End of this chapter)