Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 263 Don't underestimate the stone man's one eye; it incites rebellion across the land!

The 7th day of the fourth month of the eleventh year of the Zhizheng era.

Henan Jiangbei Province, Runing Prefecture, Yingzhou.

A light drizzle, like smoke and mist.

The raindrops fell in a steady drizzle, mingling with the dust and turning into mud.

‘Pah! ’

He stepped into a mud pit and looked up to see his shoes, worth several hundred yuan, filled with yellow mud.

"This weather," Lin Dao sighed softly, swinging his foot. "Is this a sign that I'm not welcome?"

His figure disappeared.

When it reappeared, it was wearing a long raincoat and tall rubber boots.

He glanced down at the muddy road and strode forward despite the wind and rain.

Where there's a road, there are people.

Once we find the person, we'll know exactly where we are.

We can also know which time and space we have arrived in this time.

The rain kept falling, and Lin Dao remained silent.

After traveling several miles along the muddy road, we finally came across a village by the roadside.

I glanced at my watch; it was nearly 9:45 AM.

"Time for breakfast."

He gazed at the village where no smoke was rising from the chimneys. "There wasn't even any smoke."

In ancient times, ordinary people usually ate two meals a day.

They eat breakfast at 9:00 AM and lunch at 3:00 PM.

They mainly ate leftovers from breakfast, but their morning meal required cooking over a fire.

Although the village appears dilapidated from a distance, it does not feel abandoned.

If there's no smoke rising from the chimney at mealtimes, something must have happened.

Lin Dao raised his hand and pressed down on the bulging travel bag under his black raincoat before stepping into the village.

The mottled walls, cracked doors, broken bricks and tiles, and muddy roads all bear witness to the poverty of this village.

I walked along without seeing a soul. Many courtyard gates were not closed, and bundles of straw drying in the courtyards were left unattended, soaked by the rain.

Bundles of grass were an important form of tax.

It was levied in every dynasty.

"Something's happened." Lin Dao adjusted his mindset slightly and looked down at the road.

If there is no rain, you can also tell by whether there are hoof prints.

Unfortunately, it rained, and everything in sight was muddy and yellow.

The sound of horseshoes pounding in the rain came from afar.

Lin Dao suddenly looked up.

The sound of hooves was dense, and the forest path indicated that at least a dozen riders were approaching.

He immediately turned around and stepped into the courtyard next to him.

"Village head, where is the chief?!"

The clerk of the prefectural government, wearing a straw hat, had a grim expression.

I'm so annoyed that I have to go out to work on a rainy day.

Upon entering the village, he rode his horse and shouted loudly, "By order of the Darughachi, all village heads, chiefs, and community leaders of each district, village, and bao are hereby conscripted, along with regular and rotating households, to serve in the military!"

The archers who followed all spurred their horses and shouted.

There was no response from the village.

The archers broke into several houses and soon returned to report.

"There was still water boiling in the pot, so they must have left not long ago. Someone must have sent them a message in advance."

Labor service, a life-or-death journey in ancient times.

Countless people died from forced labor.

Whenever there was a major war, people would run away if they could, and no one was willing to perform corvée labor.

Kong Mu frowned. "Where's the kitchen knife?"

"According to the records, there should have been five kitchen knives in Qulu Village, but they have all disappeared without a trace."

"How dare you!" Kong Mu roared in fury. "Possessing a kitchen knife is treason!"

"Go back and report to Lord Darughachi, and have him dispatch troops to search for them. Slaughter all the common people and lowly citizens of the village!"

'boom! '

A muffled thud came from the rain.

Kong Mu, who was furious, suddenly trembled.

He looked at his left arm in disbelief; below the elbow, there was no trace of it, and blood gushed out.

On a rooftop a hundred paces away, Lin Dao spat, stood up, and put away his sniper rifle.

"Sudden winds and heavy rain have a significant impact on accuracy."

"It hit my heart, but it somehow slipped onto my arm."

He came down from the roof, disassembled the sniper rifle, and put it back into his travel bag.

Take out the assault rifle, load the magazine, pull the bolt, and release the safety.

Wiping the rain off his face, Lin Dao stepped outside.

A group of archers were shouting and circling around Kongmu, who was wailing with his severed arm.

They never imagined that death was approaching.

If a gunshot rings out, immediately turn your horse and run away; you might still be able to save your life.

By the time Lin Dao's figure came into their sight, it was too late to run.

"who?!"

An archer rode forward on horseback, holding a knife at an angle.

'Rat-a-tat-tat!'

A short burst of fire was fired, and three bullets struck the archer in the side, chest, and face respectively.

The archer tumbled and fell off his horse, splashing water as he landed in the mud.

The remaining archers were shocked, and some shouted.

"It's a musket!"

Several men charged forward, brandishing their swords, while others mounted their horses.

Although they were surprised that there were muskets that could still fire in the rain, they all knew that reloading a musket after each shot was very time-consuming and laborious.

Before it was fully refilled, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to describe it as a fire poker.

'Put-put-put-put~~'

Lin Dao opened fire with long bursts, first knocking down the archers who were walking towards him.

He then switched to short bursts of fire, moved quickly forward, and fired accurately at close range at mounted archers.

'Rat-a-tat-tat!'

'Rat-a-tat-tat!'

The archers were utterly horrified, as if they had seen a ghost. They had never seen, or even heard of, such a terrifying method of attack.

Time flies, it's only been a few breaths.

Lin Dao shot down more than a dozen archers, leaving only one alive.

Only then did the archer remember to run away.

"Click! Click!"

Lin Dao emptied his magazine.

He casually slung the AUG over his shoulder, pulled out the Glock 17, and fired at the archer who was riding away on horseback.

Seven paces away, the pistol was equally fast and accurate.

The horse, struck by several bullets, neighed and fell to the ground.

The disheveled archer was still struggling to get up when Lin Dao was already in front of him.

‘Bang bang! ’

With a double-click that shattered his skull, Lin Dao turned around and stood in front of the one-armed Kong Mu.

Without saying a word, he shot Kongmu in the other arm.

'Ahem~~~'

Kongmu's screams were heart-wrenching.

"I'll ask," Lin Dao said, looking down at him with the gun pointed between his legs. "You answer."

What is the year name this year?

"In...in the Zhizheng era." Kong Mu, filled with terror, trembled as he replied, "The eleventh year of Zhizheng..."

"Zhizheng?" Lin Dao looked slightly bewildered, quickly recalling the reign titles he had seen before.

"Oh." He nodded in realization. "It was Emperor Huizong of Yuan."

Upon hearing this, Kong Mu trembled violently.

To dare use the emperor's temple name while he's still alive—that's a crime punishable by the extermination of his entire family!
He had lost too much blood, got caught in the rain, and was now extremely frightened; his face was deathly pale.

Lin Dao asked again, "Where is this place?"

"Yingzhou, Yingshang County".

What brings you to this village?

He was quite far away before, and only heard that they were there to conscript laborers, and that they would massacre the village if they couldn't find anyone.

It's unclear what the specific corvée labor entails.

"The imperial court... the imperial court is repairing the river..."

Kong Mu's breathing grew weaker. "Conscript laborers at Huanglinggang in Cao County to block... to block the breach in the Yellow River!"

The voice grew weaker, and it was clear that the condition was beyond cure.

‘Bang bang! ’

Lin Dao saw him off on his journey.

Looking around, Lin Dao led the horses left behind by the group into several courtyards.

First, go to Yonghe Time and Space to store your weapons, armor, and raincoat.

Back in the modern world, I went online to look up information.

"Jia Lu controlled the Yellow River, plugged the breach at Huanglinggang, and dug a 280-mile-long river channel, returning the Yellow River to its original course, flowing south to join the Huai River and enter the sea."

"The Yuan Dynasty lasted less than a hundred years and did not do many good things. Jia Lu's river management was the best thing they ever did."

There is still information available, especially information about this river management project.

"Oh, the Red Turban Army was the one that started this river management effort."

"Don't say the stone man has only one eye; he can stir up the Yellow River and the world to rebel."

"It turns out that this stone figure was buried under the riverbank of Huanglinggang."

"Han Shantong, Liu Futong, Han Lin'er, Ming Cult!"

"The Ming Cult." Lin Dao mused. "If I knew the Great Shift of the Universe, wouldn't I be able to become its leader?"

For Lin Dao, the most difficult thing in any new time and space has never been the strength of the opponent or the lack of resources.

The hardest thing is always how to build a team.

Unable to bring living people through time travel, even with a million-strong army in several controlled timelines, he couldn't take a single hair with him; he could only build his forces in new timelines.

The Ming Cult, a force capable of both fighting and resisting, and possessing an organizational structure, was the perfect fit.

As for the idea that becoming the leader of the cult would mean having to believe in the sacred fire of the Ming Cult, etc.

It's almost like a joke, but Lin Dao is the most authentic Chinese.

When praying for wealth, people worship the God of Wealth; when praying for children, they worship the Bodhisattva; when praying for education, they worship Confucius; and when praying for rain, they worship Xiao Jinteng.

When people receive eggs, they pray to Jesus; when they pray for marriage, they pray to the God of Love. No, nowadays people pray to the God of Wealth when they pray for marriage.

You can worship whomever you need to.

When you're not needed, who are you?
"Ming Cult."

Lin Dao began to carefully examine the relevant materials.

The Ming Cult, also known as Manichaeism, originated from Zoroastrianism in Persia.

During the reign of Empress Wu Zetian, it was officially introduced to China, but it was quickly stopped by Emperor Li Longji and thus went underground.

Lin Dao had absolutely no interest in doctrines or anything like that; he only cared about the Ming Cult launching one uprising after another.

The most famous of these is, of course, the uprising led by Cai Mofangla.

He then researched information on sects such as Maitreya Sect and White Lotus Sect.

"If one can be the leader of the Ming Cult, then one can naturally be the leader of the Maitreya Cult and the White Lotus Cult as well."

He discovered a common point.

That is, the vast majority of those who associated with the Ming Cult and the White Lotus Cult were poor people who couldn't afford to eat.

If you can't survive, you have to find a way to survive.

"In the end," Lin Dao suddenly realized, "it's all about filling our stomachs."

"We Chinese have a long-standing tradition of valuing trust and reliability; it's a custom."

One person who cannot be ignored at the end of the Yuan Dynasty is Zhu Yuanzhang.

This ruthless figure, who came from the Red Turban Army of the Ming Cult, used the main force of the Red Turban Army to block the Yuan Dynasty.

He developed his power in Jiangnan and then launched his only successful Northern Expedition.

Expel the Tartars and restore the Central Plains.

"At this time, Zhu Chongba," Lin Dao thought carefully, "should still be a monk ringing bells and chanting sutras, right?"

Having made preparations, Lin Dao once again arrived in the Zhizheng Time and Space.

The rain finally stopped.

The village remained deserted, and the remains of Kong Mu and the archers were still submerged in the water.

Lin Dao glanced at it and then paid no more attention.

He led out all the horses, mounted them, and rode straight towards Cao County.

“It’s just a stone figure. I can bury one too, and it will definitely be a finely carved stone figure.”

"Will the Bright King be born to save all living beings?"

"I have come to save all living beings, therefore I am the Bright King!"

(End of this chapter)