Reclaiming Wasteland: Carefree Mountain Farmer

Chapter 133 Too Many Traitors
As heavy snow fell, the Southern Dynasty army advanced unimpeded, forcibly conscripting laborers along the way, and the army grew ever larger.

Starting from Lin'an Prefecture, we headed north to Jiangning Prefecture, crossed the Yangtze River, and entered the Huainan region.

The Northern Expeditionary Army marched from Lin'an Prefecture for seven days and gained the allegiance of all the cities in the Huainan region.

The punitive expeditionary force avoided the northern Jiangsu region to prevent friction with the Shan Nong Kingdom.

They then advanced directly northwest towards Luoyang on the Yuzhou Plain, and the defending troops along the way surrendered one after another. The army arrived at Runing Prefecture in half a month, and at this time it was less than 500 li away from Luoyang.

The situation is extremely urgent.

"Why is the rebel army moving so fast? They've covered two thousand li in less than half a month! Is there not a single place along this route that is loyal to me?"

Wan Chu had rallied, but the more he rallied, the more desperate he became.

Why doesn't anyone support me?
Gu Yizhi's expression was stern as he explained, "Your Majesty, this rebel army is led by the Dukes of Qin, Zheng, and Huguo, with the Prince of Fu and the Prince of Shou accompanying them. Moreover, they possess the Imperial Seal of the State and documents from the Ministry of War."

"When the garrison saw the official document and the army, and were persuaded by the imperial relatives in the city, they all surrendered. In many places, members of the imperial family opened the gates to welcome them and gave them rice and grain."

Wan Shi stared blankly ahead, leaning weakly against the emperor's throne.

"Why...why would you help Wan Hu? Don't you know he's cruel, tyrannical, and incapable of distinguishing right from wrong?"

Wan Shi couldn't understand why everyone was helping his younger brother, Wan Hu, who was clearly a disgusting and bad person.

Gu Yizhi knew very well that it was the Crown Prince's recent performance that had disappointed everyone.

The ministers and meritorious nobles who followed them to the south all sought stability.

Since the emperor has appointed the Prince of Qin as the new ruler, everyone will naturally support the new ruler, and there is no need to go back to bring the crown prince over.

Gu Yizhi did not provoke or blame the Crown Prince, but gently told the new emperor about the current situation.

"Your Majesty, Luoyang may fall at any time. According to what our spies in the south learned from the rebels, from the Duke to several princes, they all believe that the Shan Nong people will definitely move south and occupy Luoyang. So their main purpose this time is to plunder Luoyang and take away the families in the city."

Wan Qizhen finally understood the Southerners' motives and why the dukes and princes supported Wan Hu.

In everyone's opinion, the Crown Prince in the north and Luoyang could be defeated by the Shan Nong people at any time, so the Crown Prince's fate was uncertain and there was too much uncertainty. It was better to appoint the King of Qin.

“Father,” Wan Qizhen suggested, “Why don’t I take the troops borrowed from the Shan Nong tribe to defend Runing Prefecture? When the dukes and princes see me with the Shan Nong tribe’s army, they should be afraid.”

Wan Jingzhi immediately retorted, "Absolutely not!"

Wan Qizhen looked at his clansman brother, "Why?"

Wan Jingzhi, Wan Dai's nephew, said seriously, "If you lead the Shan Nong tribe's army there, the rebels will surely spread rumors that you have surrendered to the Shan Nong people, which will be even more detrimental to morale."

"Moreover, the southern rebels probably think that the Shan Nong tribe is not good at naval warfare. This time, their more than 100,000 rabble are planning to seize Luoyang and leave, and then rule across the river from the Shan Nong people. Even if we explain it to them, those people will not reason with us. They will definitely come in and plunder to stabilize their morale."

Qin Yang, the commander of the Eastern Palace Guards, immediately said, "I am willing to lead troops to Ruyang and use 30,000 elite soldiers to block the 100,000-strong army from the south. The weather is now bitterly cold, which is extremely advantageous to the defending army. Once the enemy is exhausted, they will surely retreat!"

Wan Dai was overjoyed and said, "Excellent! I hereby appoint you as Minister of War and lead 30,000 troops to reinforce Ruyang!"

"Your Majesty, I will certainly live up to your expectations!" Qin Yang solemnly replied.

Two days later, the messenger brought the great news that Qin Yang had led his troops to surrender to the southern rebels and had been granted the title of Duke of Xu in Ruyang County.

In the dead of winter, the Northern Expeditionary Army entered Runing Prefecture City to rest without any obstacles.

Wan-Chao stayed in the room alone all night, and called his son over early the next morning.

"I have already sent the Shan Nong people back to deliver a message to invite King Wu to come. Pack your things, and we will take the Shan Nong army to Shu."

Wan Qizhen was puzzled. "Why go to Shu? Luoyang is a well-fortified city, and we have the support of the Shan Nong people in the rear. The city has enough food and supplies to hold out until next year." Wan Dai calmly replied, "I thought about it all night. When the three dukes and two kings arrive in Luoyang, how many people in the city will open the gates to welcome them? After thinking it over and over, I can't find even ten people who are willing to defend the city to the death and refuse to surrender."

“I’m afraid that my father, my son, and my grandson—three generations of our family—will be kidnapped by those who betray us while we are still asleep.”

"Now we can only trust the Shan Nong people. We will take 7,000 elite troops to Shu, hand over Luoyang to King Wu, and let King Wu fight them."

Wan Qizhen was somewhat taken aback, "This..."

Wan Di said directly, "Don't say any more. If they supported another prince, I would accept it and not be their enemy. But they chose to support that beast Wan Hu!"

Wan Shi grew increasingly resentful as he thought about it, and said bitterly, "Rather than let the people of Luoyang be robbed by that beast and die in poverty, it would be better to let King Wu come. At least he could save the people of Luoyang from being robbed by soldiers and bandits and from suffering such devastation. Our Wan family has committed too many heinous crimes and has been punished by heaven! We must never commit any more murders."

Although Wan Qizhen really didn't want to lose Luoyang, the current situation was indeed untenable.

There are too many traitors in the city. Prince Fu and Prince Shou are elders in the clan who have led troops into battle. The Three Dukes are also the senior military commanders of the current Wen Dynasty, and their disciples are all over the Central Plains.

It was indeed impossible to defend; the city gates could be opened from the inside by their own people at any moment.

Wan Di acted swiftly, immediately leading over a hundred family members, thousands of trusted followers, and more than seven thousand elite soldiers of the Shan Nong tribe to flee to Sichuan.

Luoyang was governed by less than a thousand mountain farmers who remained.

At the gates of Luoyang, Xue Chonghu watched the departing entourage of the Crown Prince, remaining silent for a long time.

Hou Guozhong, the general defending Luoyang, looked at Xue Chonghu and asked, "General, do you think we can hold Luoyang?"

"Yes!" Xue Chonghu immediately said, "Tell the people and garrison of Luoyang that this city now belongs to the Shan Nong tribe, and that we will live in peace with them from now on. The rebel army from the south is not here to save the people of Luoyang, but to plunder their money and lives! Arrest people and take them south!"

"We must defend Luoyang! Only then can we stay in our hometown and live a peaceful life with our parents, wives, and children! The southerners are no match for King Wu. Now that they have surrendered, not only have their property and money been seized by the rebels, but their lives are also in danger!"

"Instead of doing that, we should hold Luoyang. King Wu will arrive in two days. By then, everyone's things will still belong to everyone. King Wu will only provide relief to the disaster victims and reward those who have made contributions. He won't be like the southerners who came here just to plunder!"

"Tell the garrison commanders of cities like Zhengzhou and Kaifeng that anyone who dares to open the gates and surrender to the southern rebels will be granted a rank of chiliarch by any soldier in the city who kills the traitor!"

Upon hearing this, the garrison of Luoyang nearby immediately felt reassured.

Fortunately, the cavalry that came this time were from the Northern Plains, and these men had extensive experience in managing traitors.

These people were among the first to be defeated and surrender, obediently sitting down as prisoners; they had received professional prisoner training.

Later, he successively educated the Hukouwei, Gaoliuwei, Tongzhouwei, and even the Luoyang Army.

Having managed people from Luoyang before, these experienced individuals quickly gained the approval of their subordinates by chatting casually.

Most importantly, Beijiwu had previously released many prisoners of war from Luoyang. These prisoners did not describe the Shannong people as bad as they thought. In addition, many Luoyang soldiers defected to the Shannong people and thought that the Shannong people were very capable fighters, so they all accepted it.

Within a day, a large number of Luoyang civilians were summoned to assist in the defense. Based on the rich management experience gained from conquering Beiyuanwei and Tongzhou, they began to stabilize the order by sending cavalry to shout messages and immediately establishing grassroots organizations.

With a thousand mountain farmers managing Luoyang, order within the city was brought under control.

Within half a day, Luoyang's ownership was determined, and nearby Kaifeng and Zhengzhou also decided to follow the Shan Nong people and no longer obey the orders of the Wan family clan.

The main reason is that most people would rather die than move. They would probably move if threatened, but if they had a choice, they definitely wouldn't want to move.

Since Luoyang is definitely not going to be defended, and the southerners are only coming to rob and capture people, why bother opening the gates and surrendering?

Although it was said to be a campaign to quell a rebellion, everyone knew that nothing good would happen after the army entered the city.

Distance makes the heart grow fonder. The people of Luoyang, who had been tormented by Emperor Wen of the Ming Dynasty many times, preferred to believe the mountain farmers rather than the people of the Ming Dynasty.

(End of this chapter)