Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 417 Cao Bin's Oath
"Let's all try to understand each other."

"This is really a blind spot for me."

"Actually, my original intention was just to experience the joy of high-speed driving."

"Don't come to me if you have any problems, go talk to my bumper and tires."

"Please forgive me. When you meet the King of Hell, remember to tell him that your enemy is the Black Wheel."

Lin Dao, who had just returned the XCMG DE400 to the Yonghe Time and Space Equipment Warehouse, clapped his hands at the crushed fragments.

Calling them fragments is an understatement.

Under the pressure of this mining truck weighing four hundred tons, the people and horses crushed by the tires were essentially packed down.

Especially in the treads of each tire, there are chunks of flesh, bone, and iron packed together.

Pressure is a very dangerous thing.

As for the blood, flesh, paint, scratches, and other marks found in various places from the front to the back of the car, they are all insignificant.

"Wash them all thoroughly."

After a brief farewell, Lin Dao instructed the soldiers who came carrying buckets, chisels, and rags, "Don't leave any blind spots."

"It's hot lately, and it smells."

The reason why these modern machines are sent back to Yonghe Timespace for maintenance and cleaning after each use is that they are always used.

That's because Lin Dao carried the supplies through the time portal, and all the souls were annihilated.

Even if evil spirits from the battlefield wanted to pursue him for revenge, they would completely vanish the moment they passed through the portal.

Lin Dao is just seeking peace of mind.

After all, although these Khitans had strange hairstyles, they still looked somewhat similar.

If this were a humanoid creature like the Black, it would be without any psychological burden.

A group of soldiers specifically responsible for maintenance stepped forward upon receiving the order.

First, everyone put on their masks and gloves.

After all, the smell is truly unbearable.

Then they picked up their hammers and chisels and chiseled out the various debris that had been compacted inside the tire treads.

These debris were very hard, similar to dry, hardened mud bricks.

Besides flesh and bones, there were also fragments of various ironware.

Mainly armor plates, and weapons.

Undoubtedly, these iron objects are also deformed, making them difficult to remove; one would have to use force to chisel them out.

After chiseling, you still have to keep rinsing it with buckets of water.

Finally, wipe it clean with a cloth.

The oppressive feeling of having a giant object on your head while working would make it absolutely impossible for someone with megalophobia to do this job.

In addition, there's that pungent, mixed smell that's equally nauseating.

That was the smell emitted after the diesel engine had been running at high frequency, as well as the bloody smell smeared on the tires, bumpers, and various parts of the car body.

Although the work is tough, everyone wants to do it.

Besides the generous treatment, the opportunity to serve these magical artifacts, which seem to exist like mythical creations, up close is also a benefit.

The steel behemoths inside the warehouse were, in the eyes of these soldiers, a miracle.

This feels similar to modern people being recruited by aliens to do deep maintenance on interstellar warships when they're looking for a job.

Only the earliest members of the Beggars' Army who followed Lin Dao were eligible to apply for this job.

Lin Dao was in a hurry to get things done, so after cleaning half of the tires, he started the DE400 and moved it forward by half a tire's length.

They then turned off the engine and left, returning to the banks of the Gaoliang River.

At this time, the great battle on the banks of the Gaoliang River had come to an end, and the Imperial Guards and the cavalry of the Palace Guards were pursuing the fleeing enemy.

The infantrymen, on the other hand, were leisurely cleaning up the battlefield.

They collected the bodies of their own soldiers and, upon encountering wounded soldiers, hurriedly summoned stretchers to carry them to the wounded soldiers' camp.

As for the Liao army, whether they were cannon fodder or Pishi soldiers, they were simply thrown onto carts and prepared to be dragged to a selected location far away for burial.

The surrendered prisoners are currently digging a large pit over there.

Lin Dao, who had just arrived, saw the dark mass of prisoners mining in the distance and couldn't help but chuckle to himself.

"I succumbed to money too."

"To exchange them for money, they actually left the prisoners to work in the mines!"

"I used to never take prisoners."

Lin Dao has indeed changed; in his own view, he is about to turn to the Virgin Mary.

The prisoners who were not taken before are now being kept.

In his quest for free labor to mine, he's almost become someone else entirely.

"Money, money, money~ It's all money's fault."

Although these prisoners were basically destined to toil to death in various mines.

But since he wasn't slaughtered, Lin Dao felt somewhat depressed.

Fortunately, good news soon followed.

"Your Majesty, General Cao has captured Youzhou City!"

Previously, Cao Bin led over ten thousand elite troops to Youzhou City to keep watch over the Liao ambush troops and the city's garrison.

Both those inside and outside the city shared similar thoughts: they were all waiting for the main battlefield, dozens of miles away, to determine the victor.

When news arrived that the Qin army had won a great victory, the Liao army had suffered a crushing defeat and scattered, and the elite Pishi army had been almost completely wiped out.

Both sides had been very tacit and calm beforehand, and even though Cao Bin saw through the feigned surrender and ambush, he remained patient and did not make a move.

Both sides only had their insulters, listlessly exchanging insults on the city walls and outside the city.

But when news of the main battlefield arrived, the city and its surroundings immediately erupted into a frenzy, like water being poured into a pot of hot oil.

The first to receive the news were the Xi people who were acting as ambushers within the city.

They held a high position in the Liao Kingdom, second only to the Khitans. The Xi people were also present on the main battlefield. When those mountain-like behemoths rampaged across the battlefield, completely crushing the morale of the army, the Xi leader on the main battlefield immediately sent messengers to Youzhou City, urging the Xi people within the city to flee.

Once the main force of the Southern army advances, they will be trapped inside the city and have nowhere to run.

Upon receiving the news, approximately 20,000 Xi soldiers in ambush quickly set off, opening the north gate and fleeing on horseback.

Their commander was also a shrewd man.

They understood that once the main force failed, the garrison inside the city, mainly composed of Han Chinese from the Yan-Yun region, would immediately become unreliable.

In order to make amends and curry favor with their new master, it was inevitable that they would send over 20,000 Xi cavalrymen.

Therefore, he made the very decisive decision to run away immediately.

Facts have proved that his choice is correct.

The wealthy Han families in Youzhou City also had their own people in the army.

However, their status was not high, and the messengers they sent arrived much later than expected.

By the time they received the news, the Xi people had already fled outside the city.

Without the offerings for atonement, things became difficult.

The most fatal flaw was their feigned surrender!
After an emergency discussion, the heads of the wealthy families quickly arrested all the family members of the powerful Liao Kingdom families in the city.

Afterwards, he sent someone to descend from the city in a gondola to discuss surrendering the city to Cao Bin outside the city.

Enraged, Cao Bin not only hurled insults but also nearly killed the messenger who was leaving the city.

After much persuasion from the crowd, he finally calmed down, but then he started demanding an exorbitant amount of money.

When the messenger returned to the city and recounted the events, the wealthy and powerful families in the city breathed a sigh of relief.

If Cao Bin smiles broadly and generously states that the previous events were all misunderstandings and can be forgiven, then...
That's what made them feel uneasy, fearing that the other party would turn against them after they surrendered the city.

Because if they put themselves in Cao Bin's shoes, they would have done the same.

The envoy then left the city again, expressing to Cao Bin his willingness to surrender the city and agreeing to all of Cao Bin's harsh demands.

"We only ask for one thing."

The envoy cautiously glanced at Cao Bin's expression. "General, please swear an oath that you will never break your promise and kill us!"

Cao Bin roared in anger, "What kind of person do you take me for?!"

Fortunately, the soldiers stopped him and tried to persuade him.

Cao Bin then reluctantly and unwillingly swore an oath.

"May Heaven and Earth bear witness!"

"Cao Bin of Zhending Prefecture hereby makes an oath."

"If we obtain Youzhou City, we will not harm those who surrender the city."

"If I break this oath, may I be struck by lightning and die a horrible death!"

People in this era still value oaths.

As a result, the wealthy families in the city finally lowered their guard and, given the Qin army's great victory and the Liao army's defeat, chose to surrender the city to save themselves.

Escaping is unrealistic for them.

These large households have been established here for hundreds of years, some over a century, others with a history spanning several hundred years.

Their roots are here; why did they flee with the Liao people?

What can you do after escaping?
They'll just be cannon fodder.
Even if you let them graze livestock, they won't raise them.

Therefore, surrendering the city in exchange for security was their only option.

As for handing over land and property, that's nothing.

As long as the family foundation remains, it doesn't matter if it takes decades to recover.

If it doesn't work in a few decades, then it will take a few hundred years; eventually, there will be a chance to rise again.

After Cao Bin entered the city, his first order was to have all the garrison troops return to their camps and to confiscate their weapons and armor.

As for the reason, it was naturally because the emperor was about to arrive, and these people were not trusted.

This is a very reasonable request, and the major investors have agreed.

The main force of the garrison in Youzhou City was Han Chinese from the Yan-Yun region.

The control of these troops was basically in the hands of these wealthy families.

The members of their clan have essentially monopolized all official positions at all levels.

After completing these tasks, Cao Bin assigned troops to control key locations.

After that~
He raised the butcher's knife!

Cao Bin broke his oath.

After disarming the garrison, they immediately began to slaughter all the wealthy families!
Military officers of all ranks were also dragged out and beheaded.

In an instant, blood flowed like a river within the city of Youzhou.

Many people cursed Cao Bin before they died.

They said he had broken his oath and would surely die a horrible death.

But Cao Bin, already furious about the feigned surrender, didn't care about that.

All he wants now is revenge!
When Lin Dao rode his horse into Youzhou City, he saw corpses and blood everywhere on the streets.

Cao Bin didn't even spare the clansmen of these wealthy families.

It's truly a case of either not doing it at all, or doing it thoroughly and decisively!

He slaughtered every single man in the village, inside and out.

Cao Bin was willing to break his oath to wash away the humiliation of being deceived and almost trapping his army.

When Cao Bin, covered in blood, came to apologize, Lin Dao simply gave him instructions.

"Go and write an exemption document, and write it to Heaven and Earth."

"I vouch for you and release you from your oath!"

(End of this chapter)