Weird Three Kingdoms

Chapter 3540 Soup Pancake and Good Poetry

The moonlight penetrated the broken clouds and created cracks of light and dark on the top of Zhuo County.

Ren Cheng's knuckles turned white as he gripped the knife handle.

The hemp rope used to tie the armor was already a little loose and broken, hanging low in the night wind like a beheaded snake.

The big man and Cao's flags above were blown askew by the wind.

"Tomorrow, tomorrow the Hussars will arrive... But what should we do?"

Ren Cheng stood on the city wall, looking at the scattered queues around him.

There weren't many soldiers guarding the city originally, and some have been fleeing in the past few days. It's good enough that half of them are still there. And the key is that these soldiers still haven't received their salaries...

In the afternoon, Ren Cheng went to the chief clerk again to ask for military pay. The chief clerk still looked sleepy and slapped the bamboo slips with the account, indicating that he had no money, not even a penny!

However, the chief clerk also gave Ren Cheng an idea, which was to "write an IOU".

"How can that be possible?!" Ren Cheng was very angry.

"Why not?" The chief clerk looked at Ren Cheng as if he was a fool. "It's always been like this before, what's wrong with that? Besides, as a person, don't just focus on money! You have to have a conscience! Conscience! You come to me every day to ask for money, what's the point?"

Ren Cheng touched his chest. Under the cold armor, there seemed to be only a little blood left.

The surrounding soldiers were all confronted by Ren Cheng and the team leader Wang Hu in the evening. When they were almost on the verge of a fight, the team leader Wang Hu agreed to take the soldiers to the top of the city wall, but the condition was that they had to get their wages before dawn, otherwise there would be no deal.

"I'm talking to you, County Lieutenant..." Wang Hu leaned against the shelter of the city gate tower and shouted, "It's already midnight! When will I get my pay? Being a soldier is indeed a life-threatening job, but without pay, what's the point of risking your life? Tell me, isn't this the truth?"

Not far away, one of Wang Hu's confidants responded, and then said that it was unreasonable to ask people to work hard for no money, no matter how hard you try...

"Just wait!" Ren Cheng gritted his teeth, "I'll go get you the military pay!"

"Yoho!" Wang Hu shouted, "Then we'll wait! Let me be frank, if we don't get the soldiers' pay, we'll do whatever we have to do. Don't use the patriotic interests to pressure us! The patriotic interests can't be eaten!"

Ren Cheng is from outside the area.

Wang Hu is a native of Zhuo County.

If Cao Cao was powerful, neither Zhang Fan nor Wang Hu would dare to do anything to Ren Cheng, but now...

Ren Cheng also knew this. His power came from Cao Cao and the Ren family, so once Cao Cao and Ren Jun's reputation fell, he would lose most of his power.

In the last days, local officials were unable to effectively manage the counties and countryside. This lack of local control was related to officials, but not too much. This was a drawback of Shandong and a common practice of the Han Dynasty.

If it was closer to Yuzhou, or Chenliu, or other places close to Cao's base, Ren Cheng could still find some people to help, but here, in Youzhou Zhuo County...

He came to take office alone and it was not long since he took office. Where could he find people to come?

How about changing your surname to Liu?

The yamen guard stopped Ren Cheng and refused to let him in, saying that the county magistrate had already rested and they could talk tomorrow if they had anything to say.

"Get out of the way!" Ren Cheng yelled at the guard, "The cavalry will be outside the city tomorrow! What else can we talk about tomorrow?!"

The yamen guard still refused to let him in, so Ren Cheng simply kicked the gate open and rushed in!

When he rushed all the way to the backyard gate, Ren Cheng suddenly stopped...

He heard it and smelled it.

In the backyard of the county government office, crazy laughter and the aroma of wine and meat filled the air.

"Ahhhh..." Ren Cheng yelled angrily, trying to break free from the surrounding Yading's pull, "I'm going to kill him... kill them..."

"County Lieutenant Ren..." Several guards grabbed Ren Cheng's coat and armor tightly, pulling his hands and feet, "Why are you doing this? Why are you doing this?"

The lights in the backyard of the county government office shone forth, swaying like ghostly shadows.

Ren Cheng suddenly understood something, "You all know, you all know! Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you tell me earlier?!"

A certain yamen guard smiled bitterly and said, "Would it be useful to tell you earlier?"

If a dragon from another country wants to suppress a local snake, it must first have the support of airborne resources from above.

Ren Cheng came with nothing in his hands, only a letter of appointment. Who would immediately kneel down at his feet?

Just like now, when Ren Cheng was almost mad with anger, the servants and private soldiers on duty in the backyard sneered and pointed their swords, guns and arrows at Ren Cheng.

……

……

In the flower hall, the lights cast the shadows of several people on the carved wooden door.

The wine flowed along the ground and on the singer's snow-white back.

"The county lieutenant... is here? Haha, he's gone again?" Zhang Fan burped and raised his eyebrows nonchalantly, "Fool! Haha, a fool! He... uh, what is he doing here?"

"He must be here to ask for money..." County Magistrate Wang was lying in the arms of a singing girl, laughing, "How can we give him money!"

"No money, no people! He! What can he do? It's a bummer!" The chief clerk shook the wine bowl, splashing the wine and staining his body. "If it were you, I should have killed him long ago!"

County Magistrate Zhang Fan waved his hands, "You, you don't understand... If we kill him... who will defend the city?"

"Defend the city?" The chief clerk tilted his head and thought for a moment, "Ah! I see! Haha, the county magistrate is very wise! Very wise!"

Zhang Fan laughed loudly, pushed the singer away, shook his sleeves, and revealed his bony arms, "Bring...bring pen and ink! I, I want to write a letter of surrender to the Hussars... to the Hussars!"

The county magistrate clapped his hands, "The county lieutenant is incompetent! He caused the loss of Zhuo County! We have no choice but...hahahaha, we have no choice but to do it for the safety of the people in the city, for the peace of Zhuo County..."

The chief clerk stood up and saluted the county magistrate crookedly, and then saluted the county magistrate, "You two really, really... endured humiliation and understood the greater good, for the people of Zhuo County... you have worked hard! You have been wronged!"

"Of course, of course!" Zhang Fan laughed, "Who made me the father and mother official of Zhuo County? As an official, I should protect the people! Haha, hahaha! Let me think about it, what should I call this cavalry army?"

"Hmm... Heavenly soldiers? Not right. Imperial division, not right either, a little ironic. Hmm, heroic army? Not quite there..." Zhang Fan suddenly slapped the singer beside him, and laughed as she grumbled, "Got it, got it! 'Superior soldiers'! That's 'superior soldiers'!"

"Soldier? Great! "

"That's great!"

"Drive those four horses, four horses are strong and powerful. Gentlemen rely on others, while villains rely on others! It is natural for us to rely on each other!"

"Hahaha……"

……

……

Ren Cheng found three or two sets of broken armor in the empty armory.

The rusty armor plates collided with each other, making tiny, mournful sounds.

When he reached the top of the city wall carrying these broken pieces of armor, almost all the soldiers on the top of the city wall had left, with only two people left.

A fool was smiling foolishly at him.

A kid with a runny nose.

"They're all gone!" the boy said.

The fool also repeated with a smile, "Gone, all gone!"

"Why... don't you leave?" Ren Cheng asked.

Now, all of Lian Rencheng’s original followers have run away.

"A bowl of soup noodles." The boy said, "You treated me to a bowl of soup noodles. I said I would treat you in return."

"That bowl of soup noodles is not worth the money!" Ren Cheng said, "You should go back too! I... I will treat you to a meal next time I have the chance!"

The boy shook his head, "No, if I go back, I won't have the chance to treat you to soup noodles."

"You fool!" Ren Cheng yelled.

The boy looked up and said, "You are the fool!"

The fool at the side laughed, "Fools are good, fools are wonderful! We are all fools! You are, he is, and I am too! Fools, fools!"

Ren Cheng laughed, but tears flowed down his face.

"Okay! That's perfect!" Ren Cheng picked up the broken armor and said, "In that case, let's be stupid together!"

When Ren Cheng was tightening his armor belt for the boy, the dawn in the east was tearing through the night sky, and the first cavalry scouts appeared at the end of the official road.

The jagged mountains in the distance rose and fell in the morning mist like a row of rusty fangs.

The tricolor flag held high was like the cold light flashing from fangs.

"bring it on!"

Ren Cheng went down the city wall, reached the city gate, opened the door, and walked out proudly.

A thin mist covered the fields.

It was quiet on the city wall.

Ren Cheng felt as if he was walking from the human world to the underworld, but a ray of morning light at the city gate made him feel as if he was walking out of the underworld.

Everything is so chaotic.

The cavalry scouts in the distance may have never seen such a scene, so they reined in their horses and watched quietly.

"I...I..." The boy was still a little nervous and swallowed.

Ren Cheng patted the boy on the shoulder, "You should go back... You have already returned my favor by accompanying me here!"

The boy hesitated.

The fool laughed at the side, "Go back, go back!" Ren Cheng looked up, took a breath, and said, "How about this... do me a favor..."

"You say," the boy said.

"Haha, generally speaking, at this time, I often have a poem..." Ren Cheng said slowly, "I just happened to think of a good poem... Can you help me write it down and pass it on to others? Otherwise, won't no one know about the good poem I finally thought of?"

"Poetry?" The boy was puzzled.

Ren Cheng nodded and looked up at the Hussar scouts in the distance.

"The official seal is dipped in the wine, the banquet is still hot,

The battlements are hollow with hemp ropes.

If you can steal the national martial arts with all your skill,

Who is standing in the wind with a sword across his body? 』

"The broken blade still has the marks of a broken eye.

The remnant soldiers and rusty armor began to show loyalty.

You all laughed at me for not knowing how to retreat.

Who remembers the mourning of the people in Yanshan?

"What a good poem! What a good poem! This is truly the best poem I have ever written in my life!" Ren Cheng laughed, and then pushed the boy, "Let's go, let's go! Spread this good poem for me!"

The fool also shouted, "Good poem, good poem!"

When the boy saw Ren Cheng drawing his sword and charging at the scouts of the Hussars, he suddenly cried out, "County Lieutenant Ren! I can't remember! There are so many, I can't remember them all!"

Ren Cheng laughed loudly, "Hahahaha! Remember as much as you can! If you remember more, I'll treat you to soup noodles next time!"

"Soup cake! Soup cake! Good poem! Good poem!"

The fool jumped and followed Ren Cheng.

The morning light splashed down, and a bit of blood was stained in the golden light.

……

……

"We, on behalf of the people of Zhuo County, are pleased to welcome the new soldiers!"

Zhang Fan brought his officials and bowed down in front of the city gate after learning that Wei Yan had arrived.

"The arrival of the superior troops is like a drop of sweet dew after a long drought! The people of Zhuo County are all eagerly waiting for the superior troops! Come, quickly, and offer your food and drink! Offer your food and drink!"

Even some petty officials lifted their baskets and pots high up.

Wei Yan frowned, "You want to surrender?"

"That's right, that's right!" Zhang Fan knelt down in a proper manner, "I have admired the cavalry for a long time, but I have never had the opportunity... Now that the general is here, it is our long-cherished wish that has come true. I am so lucky, so lucky!"

Wei Yan still frowned, "Why not fight?"

Zhang Fan waved his hands repeatedly, "I dare not, I dare not! How dare I, a soldier who has come so far, offend the general's might? No, absolutely not!"

"Tsk!"

Wei Yan was speechless.

Wei Yan marched northward from Yijing all the way to Zhuo County, but he did not fight any decent battles along the way.

Basically, all the counties and prefectures we passed through surrendered!

At first, Wei Yan was quite happy, but later he realized something was wrong.

It might be inappropriate to chop off all these surrendered guys, but Wei Yan became more depressed if he accepted it.

Wei Yan's original plan was to surround and attack the reinforcements, disrupt Jizhou's arrangements, and at the same time dig a trap in Yijing. He never thought about actually taking over Zhuo County and other places.

As a result, as soon as the flag was raised, the county magistrate of Zhuo County came over with his tail wagging, presented the list of Zhuo County and other things, and almost came up to lick Wei Yan's boots...

"Wait!" Wei Yan pointed at Ren Cheng's body beside him, "What's going on?"

"Uh... this guy is just a stubborn person, a fool..." Zhang Fan said with a smile, "We all in the city, officials and civilians, welcome the general here... Come on, play the drums and music to welcome the soldiers into the city!"

All of a sudden, drums and music sounded.

Zhang Fan originally thought that Wei Yan would happily go into the city, but he did not expect that Wei Yan would just stare at Zhang Fan with a wooden face.

After a while, the sound of the drums gradually faded away and then became silent.

"call--"

A gust of wind blew by, making Zhang Fan feel a little cold on his back.

"General..." Zhang Fan hesitated, "General, what are you doing..."

Wei Yan hummed, "You can't surrender!"

"Ah?! What?!" Zhang Fan was shocked. "I admire the cavalry with all my heart, and I look forward to their arrival day and night..."

Wei Yan waved his hands, "Didn't you understand what I said? You can't surrender!"

"Huh?" Zhang Fan was stunned. He originally thought he had misheard, but he didn't expect Wei Yan was really unwilling to accept their surrender!

Zhang Fan suddenly began to tremble in his heart. If they didn’t accept the surrender, did they want to massacre the city?

It’s okay to massacre the city, but you can’t kill me!

Zhang Fan fell to his knees with a thud, "General! General, you can't do this! I am loyal to the Cavalry, and it is known to the sun and the moon! Although I am in Cao's camp, my heart is with the Cavalry! I... I..."

Wei Yan rolled his eyes and looked at the sky.

A cloud floated over, casting a large area of ​​haze.

The sun seemed ashamed to see such a small figure, so it hid away.

"I said, you can't surrender! You ask for help!" Wei Yan said impatiently, "You! Defend the city! Ask for help! Do you understand?"

"Seek... seek help?" Zhang Fan hesitated, "Where can I seek help?"

Wei Yan glared, "Go to Jizhou for help! Where else do you want to ask for help?"

Wei Yan waved his hand, "Go back, go back! Close the city gates! Then defend the city and ask for help! Do you understand? !"

……

……

"This cavalry general... won't come into the city? Won't accept surrender?!" Wang De approached the gloomy Zhang Fan and asked in a low voice, "County Master, what's going on with this cavalry army? Should we give them more cattle and wine? Or more money?"

For them, it is only when small amounts of money fly away that it seems so painful.

"They didn't ask for money!" Zhang Fan said unhappily.

Wang De was immediately puzzled. "Isn't it a good thing that you didn't ask for money? Why are you, County Master..."

Wang De originally thought that he would have to pay a large sum of money, but it turned out that the General of Cavalry did not ask for any money!

In this way, one in and one out, wouldn't it be a big profit? !

Zhang Fan glared at Wang De angrily, "They want us to ask for help!"

"Ah ha? What?" Wang De was stunned. "What do you want?"

Zhang Fan couldn't help but slam the table, "Ask us for help! Ask for help!"

"Please... what the hell are you begging for?" Wang De's eyes widened.

Not to mention the question of where to seek help, Zhang Fan, Wang De and others didn't even think about staying in Zhuo County!

They had prepared everything, and would take advantage of the arrival of the Cavalry Army to settle all the accounts. Then they could take the money they had looted in Zhuo County and go to Chang'an to live a carefree and enjoy life.

Isn’t it for the retirement life in your later years that you work hard for most of your life?

Could it be that it is really for the service of these peasants in Zhuo County?

What a big joke!

But now...

"This is really a call for help..." Wang De muttered, "If the reinforcements don't come, it's fine, but if they do come..."

Zhang Fan rubbed his head, "This is also a headache for me..."

The main problem is a bunch of bad debts.

The Cavalry Corps is new and they certainly don’t understand the local situation, so what the situation in Zhuo County is, isn’t it up to Zhang Fan and others to decide?

This is a very simple logic. Only when the Cavalry Army arrives can the accounts of Zhuo County be balanced.

"How about sending some good wine and beautiful women over?" Wang De suggested.

"You think I didn't send it off?" Zhang Fan frowned, "I took the wine, but threw the person out."

"Hiss..." Wang De took a breath, "Don't like beautiful women? This... this cavalry general, could it be that he likes men..."

"Ahem!" Zhang Fan suddenly felt his anus tighten, and then he looked at Wang De, "You can go and try it!"

"I, I, I... I can't do it! I am a broken flower..." Wang De's eyes rolled, "How about we ask for help... Since the Hussars want us to ask for help, let's ask for help..."

"You are stupid!" Zhang Fan cursed, "If we ask for help, then if anything happens... it will be our fault! If the defense of the city is not good enough, it is the responsibility of the county lieutenant Ren, not us! If we ask for help now, then if something happens... it will be our fault!"

"That's true..." Wang De nodded, then pondered for a moment, "Eh? County Lieutenant Ren is not dead yet!"

"Oh! Great!" Zhang Fan laughed and clapped his hands. "You are the one who came up with this idea! Great! County Lieutenant Ren is a really good man! Regardless of life or death, he dedicated himself to the people of Zhuo County and sacrificed himself for the people of Zhuo County! Great! He is really a good official, a good county lieutenant, and a good role model for the Han people!"