With 100,000 elite soldiers at the start, what should you call me?

……

The "complaint meeting" is also known as the "complaint movement".

It's not as simple as just overturning wrongful convictions and bringing fairness to the people on the surface.

Its deeper spiritual core is to break the old ideas of the common people and let them know that they can also overthrow those landlords and powerful people, those high and mighty "celestial beings", and that all human lives are equal.

Wang Erzhu cried his heart out. His two daughters had been sold to the Li family, and although they would live a better life, at least they wouldn't go hungry anymore.

But to everyone's surprise, the Li family went so far as to kill his two daughters.

Is this even human?

This is a demon!

"Please, General, do me justice!"

Wang Erzhu knelt before Li Tian, ​​his forehead hitting the ground with a dull thud, and a red stain spread across the ground.

"Li Xiangshan, do you plead guilty?" Li Tian looked at Li Xiangshan, his sharp gaze like a blade, as if he wanted to tear him apart.

Li Xiangshan dared not meet Li Tian's gaze, lowered his head, and then looked at Wang Erzhu, but he still seemed unconvinced.

"Your two daughters have already been sold to the Li family, so they belong to the Li family. Whether they live or die is up to the Li family."

"When you sold your daughters, they were no longer your concern. However, out of consideration for the deep bond between you and your daughters, I am willing to compensate you with ten taels of silver for each of them."

Upon hearing this, Wang Erzhu suddenly looked up and stared intently at the other person, but he couldn't utter a single word.

Because in his old mindset, what the other person said actually made some sense.

According to the laws of the imperial court, children who are sold become slaves of other people's families. If the master kills a slave and is sued by the government, he will at most have to pay some money.

However, these words that disregarded life sounded different to Li Tian.

Such people are unforgivable, including their families.

"So you're admitting your guilt?"

Li Tian's voice turned cold. Li Xiangshan was stunned for a moment and didn't speak. He felt uneasy and knew that he would regret it if he admitted it.

But Li Tian didn't give him a chance to speak.

"With both witnesses and physical evidence, Li Xiangshan has been convicted of human trafficking and the brutal murder of two women. According to the laws of our new army, he shall be executed on the spot, immediately!"

As soon as he finished speaking, two soldiers stepped forward and dragged Li Xiangshan aside, pointing several dark gun barrels at him.

Li Xiangshan was immediately alarmed; these people didn't respect the laws of the Qing Dynasty!

"General, spare our lives! I'm willing to pay fifty taels per person, no, one hundred taels per person!"

bang bang.

Gunshots rang out, and Li Xiangshan was instantly riddled with bullets, his flesh mangled and bloody, dying a gruesome death right before everyone's eyes.

Wang Erzhu, Li Zhenyan and other members of the Li family, as well as the villagers of Lijiazhai below the stage, all stood there speechless with their mouths agape.

Surprise, joy, fear, anger—a variety of emotions danced across their faces.

"Who else has been wrongly convicted?"

Li Tian's powerful voice rang out again. The scene of the first execution had also greatly shocked him, but given his current status, he could not show any emotion.

Li Xiangshan, the eldest son who once did whatever he wanted in Li Family Village, was beaten to death in front of everyone.

The oppressed villagers were immediately agitated and eagerly reported the evil deeds of the Li family.

One by one, reports surfaced of the various evil deeds committed by the perpetrators, including bullying orphans and widows, driving a husband to his death and forcibly marrying his wife, and seizing farmland.

Anyone with a murder case on their hands, and with conclusive evidence, shall be executed immediately by firing squad.

"Kong Yunfei, the rest is up to you. All the villages we've occupied must hold a grievance meeting, and the villages and towns that have submitted will be dealt with later."

"There is one last order: wherever we occupy, the rat tail braid is strictly prohibited."

"Tell everyone that keeping a queue means losing your head."

After Li Tian finished explaining the situation, Kong Yunfei stayed in Li Family Village to personally handle the aftermath.

After the grievance meeting, logistical work such as registering the population, measuring the land, and distributing the land began. Afterwards, these work experiences were to be shared with brothers in other units.

Fortunately, all the soldiers in the new army were literate, having received at least nine years of compulsory education, so the work proceeded quickly, though it would still take at least a few days to complete.

The property of the Li family in Lijiazhai was confiscated, and their treasury was found to contain 30,000 taels of silver, more than 1,000 shi of grain, and a number of livestock and farm tools.

The Li family truly lives up to its reputation as a prominent family in Lijia Village.

With over a thousand bushels of grain, plus other troops searching for food, the rations for the 100,000 soldiers are now secured.

Li Tian can't let his brothers go hungry, since they're following him.

After noon, the soldiers who had borrowed grain and tools from various villages returned one after another.

After taking a sip of hot soup, the first meal was finally settled.

Li Tian felt as if this first morning had lasted for several days, as he was constantly busy.

"Have Yong-ho's two horses been delivered to the front lines?"

"Reporting to the commander, it has been sent to the front lines."

While Li Tian was having a meeting with his brothers, they captured several Qing spies and seized two horses.

Horses were an important means of transportation and intelligence transmission in this era. Therefore, after finishing the business at Li Family Village, Li Tian found two brothers who could ride horses and made them take on the role of messengers.

Da da da.

The two had just finished discussing the horses when the sound of hooves approached.

"Reporting to the commander, urgent news from the front: a large number of Qing troops have been spotted on the opposite bank of the river."

A messenger ran breathlessly into the open-air meeting room.

"The Qing army moved so quickly!"

Li Tian immediately climbed up a low peak and, sure enough, saw dust billowing on the opposite bank of the river, with a black line heading straight south.

"They're cavalry, and there are probably no fewer than three thousand of them! There are also three thousand infantry following behind," Zhang Yonghao estimated.

Li Tian looked grave; the Qing army's speed of action was somewhat unexpected.

Moreover, the enemy has cavalry, which moves much faster than them.

Judging from their posture, they were clearly coming for them.

The outer defense line was handled by the Third and Fourth Armies led by Zheng Youren and Feng Wei.

Li Tian wasn't sure if these two men had the ability to command 10,000 men, but in any case, as the commander, he had to share some of the pressure with the front lines.

Three cobblers are equal to one Zhuge Liang.

Fortunately, the front line of the new army is not far away, only three or four miles away.

"commander."

Inside a makeshift command post built of grass and trees, Zheng Youren and Feng Wei bowed to Li Tian.

Li Tian nodded slightly.

"How do you plan to deal with the Qing army's actions?"

Although Li Tian could command 100,000 elite soldiers at will and longed to micromanage and personally take command, he was unsure of his own command abilities and would never risk his brothers' lives.

Feng Wei stepped forward and said, "Commander, look, this is a simplified topographical map we've drawn."

Feng Wei raised his hand, gesturing for Li Tian to look at the map hanging next to him.

The map was very simple, drawn on coarse cloth, but the person who drew it was quite skilled; the black lines vividly depicted the surrounding terrain.

"Jianning Prefecture is mountainous with little flat land, so the only way to launch a large-scale cavalry charge is in these few special open terrains."

"Based on the current equipment situation of our army, Lao Zheng and I discussed and decided to ambush in these relatively narrow sections of the road."

"These sections of road are surrounded by hills, which are suitable for ambushes. Just two battalions of troops are enough to completely block the enemy's path."

"If the Qing army breaks through, we still have five regiments to block the exit and engage the Qing army in a direct battle."

Li Tian took the map, walked out of the command room, and stood on a high place to look down. The road was winding and narrow, ranging from a hundred meters wide to a dozen meters wide, and surrounded by mountains and forests. It was indeed a good place to ambush.

Given the superiority of their weaponry, waging this ambush and blocking battle is indeed feasible and advantageous for them.

At this moment, a thought suddenly arose in Li Tian's mind;

"Since two battalions are enough to completely block the enemy, could we send two more regiments to flank them, surround the Qing army, and annihilate them in one fell swoop?"