knife

Chapter 408 Please Help Me This Time
Fork in the road.

One road leads towards Danyang, while the other leads towards the county seat.

Jiang Ping reined in her horse and remained motionless for a long time.

"Do you still want to go to the county town to see the riot?" Li Dachui asked.

Jiang Ping nodded: "In the past, all I saw in Danyang was lush flowers and beautiful scenery, and all I heard was stories of a prosperous and peaceful era. Even when things didn't go well, it was just because of treacherous officials plotting against us and bandits causing havoc. But this time, after coming out to see for myself, it's not like what they said at all!"

Looking back on the road she had traveled, and recalling the scene of the old woman tightly clutching the grain sack, Jiang Ping's expression grew even more somber.

“Go ahead and go see it if you want, but you have to listen to me, otherwise I won’t be able to protect you.” Li Dachui said, “You probably haven’t seen a scene of thousands of troops charging into battle. If you were really caught up in such a war, I would be lucky to be able to protect myself.”

"Don't worry, I'll listen to you. I just want to see for myself what the Great Chu is really like now," Jiang Ping said.

The decision was made, and the horse was ready to go.

Along the roadside, some houses had been burned to ruins, while others were still burning fiercely, with thick smoke obscuring the sky and the acrid smell of burning food filling the air.

"Why burn these houses? They look like ordinary people's homes!" Jiang Ping was puzzled. She suddenly jumped off her horse, picked up a long bone, examined it in her hand, and exclaimed in astonishment, "This is a cow bone. In the countryside, owning a cow is a great fortune. Why would they kill a cow?"

A look of disgust appeared on Li Dachui's face.

“The people who organized this rebellion burned down the people’s houses, which must have forced everyone to join in the rebellion.” He said slowly, “As for the ox, it was of course killed by them to be used as military rations.”

Jiang Ping's face showed anger.

"For their own ambitions, they have made innocent people their vanguard; they truly deserve to die!"

“There is a cause for every effect!” Li Dachui said, “If the government here were honest and the people were prosperous, what trouble could these people cause? If they dared to incite rebellion, the people would probably report them to the authorities immediately. You provided these people with suitable conditions first, which allowed them to take root, sprout, and grow stronger. So, it is wrong to just condemn them.”

"You think they're right?" Jiang Ping looked at him coldly.

Li Dachui shook his head: "No, I also despise these people. In the border regions, we have always been ruthless in killing those who kidnap ordinary people to cause trouble. Because when war breaks out, the first to die are these ordinary people who have little ability to protect themselves."

"Alright, since we're both on the same page about this issue, could you help me quell this riot?"

"The two of us?" Li Dachui pointed at his nose and asked, "I don't want to die! Even if the two of us were made of steel, how many nails could we still make if we smashed our entire bodies to pieces?"

"A snake can't function without a head!" Jiang Ping said. "We need to find a way to sneak in, kill the leader, and without a leader, the ordinary people will naturally scatter!"

"And then what? Just wait for the government to come and arrest all these ordinary people, chop off their heads, and report it as a merit?" Li Dachui said.

"Don't forget I'm still here!" Jiang Ping pulled out a plaque from her bosom and waved it. "After all, I am a princess of the Great Chu, and my sister is highly respected. I'll go into the city, find the officials here, and persuade them to offer amnesty and appease them, promising not to kill a single person indiscriminately, how about that?"

Li Dachui remained silent, lost in thought.

“Li Bao, don’t you pity those ordinary people? This is the method with the fewest deaths. Only a few wicked people who want to cause chaos will die, but countless innocent people will be saved. This is a meritorious deed!” Jiang Ping said, “Moreover, I assure you that I will urge the local government to open the granaries, release grain, appease the people, and reduce taxes so that the people here can live and work in peace.”

“Alright, I’ll go. But if I go into the midst of the chaos, won’t it be dangerous for you to go to the county town alone?” Li Dachui asked.

"Don't worry, once I'm inside the city, no one will dare to do anything to me!" Jiang Ping said. "Just take me to the outside of the city wall."

"Alright, by the way, is your mother-and-child cicada still usable?" Li Dachui pulled a box from his pocket, opened it, and the cicada lay quietly inside, like a specimen. "If it's still usable, activate it if anything happens, and I'll come to your rescue!"

"Okay!" Jiang Ping said with a smile. "Li Bao, I didn't expect you to care about me so much!"

"What are you talking about? It takes ten years of cultivation to share a boat ride, and a hundred years to share a pillow. We've at least shared ten years of fate together. Besides, I think you're a nice young lady, and you suit my taste, so helping you out is no big deal!" Li Dachui laughed. "Otherwise, I might even run into the chaos of the army to help them out and make Yong'an County even more chaotic!"

"Then why did you change your mind?" Jiang Ping's eyes flickered. "Because of me?"

"There's some connection, isn't there? It's rare for the spoiled little princess to turn her attention from the clouds to the common people and do something practical for them. As a friend, it's only right that I lend you a hand."

"So, we're friends?"

"I suppose we can be considered friends!" Li Dachui laughed. "When we get to Danyang, and you're all in charge, don't forget to look after me!"

"Of course!" Jiang Ping smiled and urged her horse forward.

Yongxing County, under the jurisdiction of Yong'an Prefecture.

Outside the county town, tens of thousands of people, organized by the demonic cult disciples, almost completely surrounded the small town, making it seem as if almost the entire county's population had come.

Standing on high ground, one could easily see the core of this force. Ordinary civilians, of course, didn't have military tents; they weren't even bothering to build a simple shack, so they certainly wouldn't have any strict encampments or defenses.

Under the moonlight, they sat on the ground in small groups, while in some places, bonfires were lit.

To the west of the main group, one group stood out as distinctly different.

A dozen tents were pitched together to form a small camp. Flags fluttered on the poles, and the tribesmen below could be seen wearing uniform clothing, with many also in armor.

This should be the core of this team.

Relying on sheer numbers to conquer Yongxing County might be successful, since a county seat is unlikely to have a large number of troops stationed there.

They unexpectedly captured Yongxing County, seized more weapons from the county's armory to arm the villagers, and obtained more grain from the granary so that their followers could have enough to eat. Then, they led even more people toward the next target.

Until the government officials came to their senses.

Then came the professional machines of violence.

Faced with a fully armed professional army, such impromptu riots will achieve virtually nothing except the loss of countless lives.

Because those organizers have more resources or stronger abilities, they are often able to escape after a failure, lie low for a while, and then come out of hiding to regroup and start another uprising.

In their eyes, ordinary people are nothing more than disposable tools.

The most tragic thing is that such people are often called heroes.

Li Dachui felt that if he encountered such a hero, he would definitely kill one if he saw one, and kill two if he saw two.

Li Dachui prefers disciples of the Demonic Cult who are willing to humble themselves and establish themselves in a particular place, like Ke Wuji.

Li Dachui decided to take a look at these demonic cult disciples in Yongxing County. If they wanted to be heroes, he would send them to the underworld to become heroes. If they had other reasons, he could help them, but at least he couldn't use the lives of ordinary people as the price for his actions.

Finding a secluded corner, Li Dachui escorted Jiang Ping to the city wall. Watching her small figure disappear into the alley, he then descended the wall and walked leisurely towards the rebels' core camp in the distance.

As he walked, he took out a mask from his pocket, put it on his face, and then kneaded and patted it. A new identity was about to emerge.

Lu Xiong!

Ke Wuji's confidant, an elder of the Demonic Sect.

When Li Dachui, a stranger, was leading a horse through the crowd, not a single person came up to question him or check him. Their most common reaction was to turn around and glance at the man leading the horse, and then ignore him.

Or perhaps they thought that those who appeared here were most likely rebels like themselves!

Of course, this guy didn't rebel because he couldn't survive, because he was well-dressed, had a horse, and a knife at his waist.

Then it must be the leaders' group.

Because Li Dachui is heading that way.

This left Li Dachui speechless.

If the people in the county town knew what was going on, they could organize a group of people, change into civilian clothes, and launch a surprise attack, killing the horse first and capturing the king first, thus wiping out this army of tens of thousands of people.

Or, such an unorganized and undisciplined rebel force, outside the Great Wall, would probably only require a hundred-man cavalry unit to charge in a few times and be routed.

Such a rebellion is utterly pointless.

It was purely for the purpose of rebellion.

Finally, there was a response.

Just a hundred paces or so from the well-organized camp, a small group of people came out to greet him.

Li Dachui strode forward, forming a somewhat strange hand seal, and shouted: "Burning holy fire, burn my broken body, what joy is there in life, what fear is there in death? The hall master of the Thick Earth Banner is here, Lu Xiong of the Sharp Gold Banner comes to pay his respects!"

"So it's Commander Lu of the Ruijin Banner!" An old man who walked over was surprised. He formed a hand seal, but it was slightly different from the one Li Dachui had formed. "This uprising is led by Hall Master Su of our Houtu Banner. Commander Lu, please, please!"

(End of this chapter)