The rebel army's foremost master craftsman forged a million iron pylons!

"Brother Li, what happened?"

Under the big banyan tree at the village entrance, Li Tian stood with more than twenty young men who had been newly recruited into the militia.

Village chief Li Demao stood at the front, shading his eyes with his hand, standing on tiptoe to look ahead, and asked Li Tian behind him.

Not far away, dust billowed as more than twenty cavalrymen galloped toward them.

Li Tian glanced into the distance and saw that although the cavalry were in a scattered formation, the person at the very front was holding a large flag.

The banner bears the words "loyalty and righteousness".

"Village chief, don't be afraid. The people who have come are the rebels. They're probably here to collect our grain."

Li Tian had already made up his mind, and explained to the village chief with a smile.

"Grain? Where is there any grain left in the village? It's all been looted by the imperial army. This year's harvest isn't even ripe yet," the village chief muttered sullenly.

"Brother Tian, ​​how do you know they're from the Loyal Army? I saw they were from the imperial court, they were all wearing armor. Where would the rebels get such good armor?" someone retorted, unconvinced.

"Because of the two words: loyalty and righteousness!"

Seeing that the villagers didn't even understand who they were working for or fighting for, Li Tian simply explained it to them.

"The army we've joined is the army of the Loyal and Righteous King; we're fighting for him!"

"The righteous army has eight kings in total, and the Loyal King is one of them."

"General Chen is a general under the Loyal and Righteous King. After we enlist, we will all be under General Chen's command."

"So that's how it is!"

"What does the Loyal and Righteous King look like? Is he some kind of celestial being descended to earth, eight zhang tall, and able to breathe fire?"

Ma Erlengzi from the village, fully utilizing his imagination, started spouting nonsense.

"Hahaha!" Ma Erlengzi's words immediately caused a burst of laughter.

"The Loyal and Righteous King was also a human being!"

Li Tian was both amused and exasperated. Just as he was about to explain, the rebel army arrived at the banyan tree.

The leader was clad in iron armor and stood over eight feet tall; he was none other than Tie Niu, whom Li Tian had met once before.

"Brother Tie Niu, we meet again!" Li Tian greeted Tie Niu with a smile.

"So it's Brother Li."

"I'm busy with official business today, let's catch up another time!"

Tie Niu's real name is Chen Tie. Today, he clearly has military orders to follow, and he appears extremely solemn. After exchanging a few words with Li Tian, ​​he took out a token from his waist and said loudly.

"General Chen has ordered that due to the critical military situation, another 500 soldiers need to be recruited near Stone Village. No family with able-bodied men should refuse."

"Anyone who dares to harbor or refuse to hand over the goods will be killed without exception!"

"Good heavens, they're conscripting again! How are people supposed to live like this?"

As soon as Chen Tie finished speaking, the villagers of Shitou Village burst into tears.

"There's no one left in the village now. The imperial court came several times, and all those who could fight were taken away."

"Not long after, you came again. For the sake of your daughter-in-law, we are willing to fight you."

"But you're forcibly conscripting men now, how is that any different from the imperial army?"

"We're not going! We're not going! We're not going with you. We're returning the wife and the meat to you."

There was a chorus of complaints.

The village chief was sweating profusely with anxiety.

"Oh dear! Don't talk nonsense!"

"The rebel army is the army of us ordinary people!"

"They are different from the imperial army."

"Do you even want your lives?"

"Besides, you've already taken your wives home and slept with them, how can you return them to the rebel lord?"

The village chief meant well, fearing the villagers would suffer. After saying this, he turned to Li Tie and said with a fawning expression.

"Sir, it's not that we villagers don't trust you, but we just conscripted a few days ago, and now we're conscripting again. Is there something going on here?"

After hearing the village chief's words, Li Tian's heart was also moved.

Based on his understanding of the Loyal Army, he knew that the Loyal Army was not an unreasonable and domineering force. The fact that they beat two old soldiers with sticks for some hunters they didn't know showed that they truly cared about the common people.

The sudden conscription suggests there might be some misunderstanding.

"Brother Tie Niu, come down and have a drink of water before we talk. Everything's fine, why are you recruiting again?"

Li Tian gave Lai Xiaoer, a villager, a wink.

Lai Xiaoer immediately ran home and brought over a bowl of hot water.

Li Tian held the hot water in his hands and said with a smile.

"Sigh~"

Chen Tie dismounted, picked up a large bowl and drank it all in one gulp, then plopped down on a large rock at the village entrance, looking distressed.

"It's not that our General Chen insists on conscripting soldiers."

"It's a matter of necessity!"

"Fellow villagers!"

Chen Tie suddenly raised his head, a deep worry flashing in his eyes.

"The imperial army has arrived. It is said that there are more than 30,000 troops, and they will arrive in Nankai City in four or five days."

"Nankai City may be in danger at that time."

"Not only is Nankai City in danger, but the surrounding area of ​​more than sixty miles is also likely to be in danger."

"It is said that the imperial court has issued a strict order this time."

"The area around Nankai City should be completely barren!"

"General Chen was forced to conscript soldiers a second time."

"Otherwise, we simply can't defend Nankai City!"

Upon hearing this, a hush fell over the surroundings, and all the villagers wore expressions of utter terror.

Next second,

The crowd erupted in chaos.

The voices of questioning rose and fell like a tide.

"How could this happen?"

"Where is General Chen? Didn't he say that Nankai City would be safe for the next three years? Why are the people from the imperial court here so quickly?"

"What should we do? The imperial court has cavalry! They have armor! They have powerful bows!"

"We have nothing."

"What are we going to do?!"

Chen Tie was completely overwhelmed by the questions. He was already short-tempered, and now, after being questioned like this, he roared in anger.

"Shut up, all of you!"

"This is General Chen's order, what does it have to do with me, Tie Niu?"

"Anyway, if your Stone Village sends another thirty able-bodied men, anyone over sixteen and under fifty, who can walk, we'll take them all!"

"You can decide for yourselves. I still need to go to the next village to inform them."

After saying this, Chen Tie mounted his horse and shouted, "Go!"

The twenty-odd cavalrymen sped off towards the next village.

Before long, the news had spread throughout the entire Stone Village.

"Li Tian, ​​what do you suggest we do? Why is the Loyal and Righteous Army still recruiting?"

"If someone is over sixteen, I only have two sons in my family. Are we going to send them both to the battlefield?"

"But the imperial army is coming soon. If we don't join the rebels, given the imperial court's brutality, everyone will die!"

While everyone was discussing it, Li Tian walked silently toward a fine horse tied up at the entrance of the village.

Li Tian untied the reins, mounted the horse, and with a flick of the reins, chased after Tie Niu's troops.

"Hey! Why did Li Tian leave?" A chorus of questioning voices rose from behind.

Li Tian didn't care about anything else, spurred his horse and rode away, quickly catching up with the Iron Bull troops.

"Brother Tie Niu, please wait!" Li Tian shouted.

"Oh, it's Brother Li!" Tie Niu was quite polite to Li Tian, ​​smiling as he asked, "Brother Li, what brings you here?"

"Brother Tie Niu, you won't be able to recruit soldiers this way!" Li Tian said with a serious expression.

"I know it's difficult to recruit soldiers this way, but General Chen said he would cut off my head if I couldn't recruit enough men."

Tie Niu scratched his face in frustration. He looked simple-minded, but he wasn't stupid. He knew that Li Tian had caught up with him, so he must have already made up his mind.

"Then, in Brother Li's opinion, how should we recruit soldiers?"

"The wheat is ripe, and the rebel army is numerous. Let them harvest the wheat for the villagers first!" Li Tian said calmly.

Tie Niu was originally a hunter and was also very familiar with farm work. Upon hearing this, his eyes lit up and he quickly asked.

"and then?"

"Then, conscription will be based on the principle of voluntariness!"

"Brother Tie Niu, you only see that adult males have the ability to fight."

"But they overlooked the fact that men, women, and children here could all provide assistance to the rebels."

"They can help the rebels by producing weapons, relaying intelligence, digging trenches, and delivering supplies!"

"Brother Tie Niu, winning a war isn't about supplies, it's about winning hearts and minds!"