Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 391 The Power of the People

"Shameless!!"

“How shameless!!”

Dugu Yongye looked at the document in his hand and immediately became furious. He threw the document on the ground, stood up, and stomped on it a few times viciously.

He then looked at Yang Su, his teeth chattering.

"What kind of benevolence and love for the people? Bullshit!"

"Liu Taozi actually forcibly conscripted those dead people, forcing them to fill the ditches and build roads and bridges for him. Their progress is very fast, and the bandit army is only fifteen miles away from us!!"

Dugu Yongye was furious. "This guy still has the nerve to praise himself for being righteous? He forced people to do forced labor, especially in the middle of winter. He is even more cruel than us!!"

Looking at the furious Dugu Yongye, Yang Su laughed again.

"Don't worry, sir."

"Doesn't Liu Taozi's actions prove my conclusion once again? Governing a country is about controlling these fools. The people are stupid, and only strict laws can make them realize their power and govern them."

"If Liu Taozi had used this method from the beginning and recruited civilians to fill the gap, it would still be a threat to us. But now, it's too late!"

A fierce light flashed in Yang Su's eyes, "Winter is coming, Liu Taozi is forcibly conscripting civilians to assist the army. There will be heavy casualties and resentment."

"How many soldiers did we use to keep an eye on them?"

"How many soldiers can Liu Taozi send to keep an eye on those civilians?"

"Besides, there have been rumors everywhere in the past, boasting about how well the people of the Han Kingdom live. Isn't this the best proof?"

Yang Su immediately said: "My Lord, it's time to take action against Liu Taozi."

"My lord, please select some brave generals who are familiar with the local area, and have them lead a small group of elite cavalry out of the city to various places. Liu Taozi will send soldiers to keep an eye on these civilians. As long as we can attack their soldiers with elite cavalry and cause chaos, those civilians will take the opportunity to escape. At that time, Liu Taozi's camp will fall into chaos. As long as enough people escape, it can even cause unrest in Liu Taozi's rear, with thieves everywhere and roads blocked! ”

"The greater the chaos we create, the greater the price Liu Taozi will have to pay!"

"However, we must tell these generals not to fight too long and to retreat immediately after the attack. They should not get entangled with the enemy. The purpose is to cause chaos and give the civilians time to escape, rather than to kill more bandits. As long as these civilians get weapons, they will be born thieves. Fools have always been like this. They will only behave themselves when tied up with ropes. Once they get other things in their hands, they will either become robbers or beasts!"

Dugu Yongye decided to trust Yang Su again, and he immediately let Yang Su take charge of this matter. Yang Su was a little surprised. Although Dugu Yongye trusted him in the past, he mostly focused on domestic affairs and basically did not let him touch military affairs. This was the first time he was asked to be in charge of military affairs.

Yang Su immediately said that he would do it well and succeed, and asked Dugu Yongye not to worry, and then left in a hurry.

After Yang Su left, Dugu Xuda came forward again, the worry on his face even stronger than before.

"Grandma!"

“Can the Zhou people be trusted?”

Dugu Yongye looked at his son helplessly, "What do you want to say?"

"Grandpa, in order to deal with Liu Taozi, you brought all the troops from the rear here. If the Zhou people take the opportunity to attack, what should we do?"

"The Zhou people have wanted the Heluo land for a long time. We have already mobilized enough troops. If we continue to do this, the rear will be empty, which is equivalent to allowing the Zhou people to invade. I think this is really inappropriate!"

Looking at his anxious son, Dugu Yongye couldn't help but scold him: "I should have known that I shouldn't have let you read so many books! How can a son of a general be so cowardly? How can you not know the big picture?"

"Although the Zhou people want to occupy Heluo, they are more worried about Liu Taozi than me. Liu Taozi and I are fighting on the front line. If the Zhou people attack me, wouldn't that help Liu Taozi capture the city? How could they do such a stupid thing?"

"Besides, the Zhou people are short of food and grass. How can they turn around and attack our rear when they are sending troops to Ling this time?"

"If you don't understand military affairs, don't say anything more. It's just making people laugh!"

Dugu Yongye scolded his son severely, then drove him out, and told his attendants that his son was not allowed to come in to see him without his order.

After learning about Dugu Yongye's order from the soldiers, Dugu Xuda burst into tears and said to his attendants: We are all going to die at the hands of the Zhou people.

Baishi Village.

The smoke slowly rose, and the village inside and outside became empty.

The enemy built a small formation around the village and controlled the bridge in front, making it impossible for the Han army to advance. After an hour's battle, the enemy here was completely wiped out and the Han army pushed the front line forward again.

A large number of laborers are busy here, they are building a bridge.

To allow the army in the rear to pass through.

It is not realistic for a group of tens of thousands of people to pass through the current small bridge.

Some people brought in wood, some jumped down to damage the splinters, and some filled in the soil.

Everyone was busy with their own things, and there was a clerk pushing a cart behind them. The amount of vegetables and sundries in the wooden barrel had obviously increased.

After all, everyone is engaging in physical activities nowadays, so they have to eat better.

Dou Chong struggled to lift up the crossbeam with a few friends. They slowly pushed the crossbeam across the ravine, connecting the two sides, and then they began to reinforce it.

Not far away, there were a few soldiers standing on a high place, holding bows and crossbows, looking into the distance, watching the enemy's movements.

They didn't know how long they had been busy. When the sky began to darken, they finally prepared to stop and rest.

Instead of going back, they set up camp right where they were, made some bonfires, and cuddled up to each other for warmth.

Although tired, everyone was in good spirits. They sat together in groups of three or four and talked about interesting stories from each other's hometowns.

“That’s the city wall of Hanoi, right?”

"Hahaha, when everyone works together, things go faster."

"In a few days, we will be able to watch His Majesty capture the city, capture the old thief Dugu alive, and rescue the people in the city!"

"This old thief, finally has this day."

Although everyone came from different places, they were able to quickly form a united front when talking about Dugu Yongye's many evil deeds.

Dugu Yongye's harsh rule was applied to all the people. Even his former subjects were not much better off. At most, they were not sent out to dig wire. They still had to pay taxes and perform military service. Even if several of his sons had died in the army, the old father would still be arrested and sent to the barracks.

Relying on his amazing and benevolent policies during this period, he successfully united the people from all over the country and brought them under Liu Taozi's command.

Just as everyone was venting their anger.

The soldiers standing on high ground cried out in surprise.

“There’s a thief!!”

The soldiers hurriedly blew the horn and then fired into the distance.

A cavalry suddenly appeared not far away.

The people stood up one after another, staring at the distance in horror. Of course they knew that cavalry.

The cavalry under the command of the old thief Dugu!!

There were not many cavalrymen, only a hundred or so. They came galloping forward. The leading few were shot and fell down, while the rest began to fight back. The soldiers on high ground were immediately suppressed.

Yang Su rode forward and looked at the civilians standing beside him.

Because the battle line was quite long and the marching speeds of various armies were different, the number of civilians and soldiers in different places was very limited.

For example, here, there are only eight or nine hundred civilians, and only dozens of defenders.

Yang Su came running with a spear in his hand, stabbed the soldier in front of him with the spear, and threw him out.

He stood up proudly and looked at the people in front of him.

"The enemy troops are dead! Run! Pick up your weapons! Run!!"

Then a young man suddenly rushed out and picked up a large crossbow dropped by a Han soldier nearby.

A smile appeared on Yang Su's face.

"I'll run away from you!!!"

The young man picked up the crossbow, roared angrily, and pointed the crossbow in his hand towards Yang Su.

"Boom~~"

Yang Su already sensed something was wrong when the other party roared, and he suddenly turned sideways.

The crossbow bolt flew past his face.

A blood streak appeared on his face.

"Kill these bastards!!!"

The young man roared.

The civilians who were resting rushed up shouting, holding the tools in their hands and roaring. The movement here had already been noticed in the distance. The ground was shaking slightly, and the enemy cavalry would soon arrive.

Yang Su looked at the mob in front of him in astonishment.

"damn it!"

"damn it!"

He touched his face and turned around to lead the knights away quickly. He saved them, but they dared to bite him first? ? However, the goal has been achieved anyway. These civilians have become a mob. Liu Taozi will have to worry about what happens next!

His purpose was only to harass and cause chaos, and he was not willing to engage in battle.

Most of his men were cavalrymen, and they wanted to leave. The civilians couldn't stop them. However, a few of them raised their crossbows and shot and killed the two unlucky guys.

Yang Su led the cavalry to distance themselves, then squinted his eyes and looked back at an extremely strange angle.

He saw that the mob was still chasing him, and when he realized that they couldn't catch up, he started cursing.

Then, the enemy cavalry approached.

The mob stopped?
"Uh-huh!!!"

Yang Su reined in his horse suddenly.

The warhorse neighed and raised its front hooves, and the surrounding knights also stopped.

Yang Su turned his horse around and stared into the distance.

Yang Su's eyesight was very good. Even when it was almost dark, he could see clearly.

He saw that the mobs had stopped, they no longer roared or ran around, and the knights had no intention of suppressing the rebellion and seemed to be talking to them.

Yang Su cursed under his breath.

"What a bunch of cowards. They don't even dare to run."

"go back!"

He led the crowd and disappeared on the road again.

The common people surrounded the cavalry.

"That bastard attacked us and told us to run, so I shot him. Unfortunately, I missed!"

“There are a lot of them, going over there.”

The leaders were talking to each other, and the knights dismounted to look at the wounds of the soldiers, and then found a few wounded soldiers to ask about their situation.

They quickly informed the rear of the incident.

Yang Su returned to the city, and a doctor bandaged his wound. Yang Su's face was solemn. When something like this happened, he was unwilling to see Dugu Yongye. At least he would wait until the others brought good news before he could go to see Dugu Yongye.

The young Yang Su was more arrogant than before and would not allow himself to fail.

Tonight, he sent out more than 40 generals to various places to create chaos and make the civilians riot.

I am really unlucky to have met a group of cowards who dare not rebel. The generals in other places must have gained something, right?

He sat at the city gate, waiting for everyone to come back. He would not go anywhere until they came back and presented the victory report.

I waited like this for a very long time.

The sky was completely dark, and then began to turn white.

Yang Su felt more and more uneasy.

Everything that happened in the past was within his calculations, so why did things start to become different in the end?

The city gate opened and a group of people quickly entered the city.

The general leading the group was covered in blood, and there were only seven or eight knights around him, all of whom were also wounded to varying degrees.

Yang Su was shocked and hurried forward, "Were we ambushed? Someone leaked the secrets?!"

The general raised his head and looked at Yang Su with a look of particular resentment.

"ambush?!"

"You fucking Zhou people, do you think we can't tell who you are?"

"Are you sending us to die?"

The Qi general stepped forward and tried to grab Yang Su's neck, but Yang Su dodged easily with a cold look in his eyes, "I will pretend I didn't hear that. Now tell me, were we ambushed?!"

"ambush?!"

"I led my men and rushed over, killing several sentinels. As soon as I shouted at those people to run, they rushed over to fight me like crazy. If I hadn't been protected by them, I would have been dragged down by them. Several of my trusted aides were dragged down by them and bitten to death! Bitten to death!!"

"Those are my brothers who have shared my life with me!!!"

The general roared and tried to rush forward again, but the soldiers around him quickly stopped him and sent him aside.

Yang Su stood there in a daze.

"How is this possible?"

"Could it be that Liu Taozi used his soldiers to impersonate civilians in order to seduce me to take action?"

"No, no"

Yang Su stood there, talking to himself.

At this moment, more and more generals began to come back, each of them was injured. They all went to create chaos according to Yang Su's orders.

Well, chaos was created, but unfortunately it was all directed at them.

Those civilians actually helped the defenders to attack and even entangled them, allowing the arriving Han cavalry to annihilate them completely.

More than forty were sent out, but only a dozen came back.

Yang Su stood at the city gate until dawn.

The sky was bright and the sun was shining brightly.

Everything in the city was so bright, but in Yang Su's eyes, everything was blurry and not very real.

At this moment, a general walked up to Yang Su and looked at him with a stern face.

"Mr. Yang, let's go. The lord is waiting for you."

Yang Su looked at the soldiers, didn't say much, got on his horse, and then walked towards the government office.

When he arrived at the government office, he saw many generals coming in and out. Most of these generals looked at Yang Su with unfriendly eyes. Not just unfriendly, some of them even clenched their fists and almost fought with him.

When Yang Su walked into the inner room, it was exceptionally quiet.

Dugu Yongye sat in the upper seat, his face serious and he said nothing.

Yang Su knelt down and bowed to him.

"Lord."

"My beloved generals. Some died, some were injured. Most of those knights were my elites, the only elites who could fight against the Mandrill Camp. They were killed by a bunch of common people."

Dugu Yongye's tone was cold as he spoke to himself.

Yang Su's face did not show much fear. He said calmly, "There is an enemy spy among us."

"Someone is leaking information for Liu Taozi."

"Oh?"

Dugu Yongye raised his head and stared at Yang Su, "What does this mean?"

"At this point, there is only one possibility. Among those civilians, there are elite soldiers hidden by Liu Taozi."

"Liu Taozi knew in advance that we were going to attack various places and create chaos, so he sent elite troops, disguised as civilians, to hide in various places on the front line, waiting for us to get close, and then suddenly attacked and led everyone to launch an attack."

Yang Su said confidently: "As long as we can catch this traitor, our plan will still work!"

"This defeat is indeed my fault, but it's not because I made a wrong decision, but because I didn't think of the possibility that someone might have tipped off."

"Liu Taozi couldn't think of such a sinister plot. This must have been arranged by Zu Ting."

"Zu Ting is a despicable person who has no bottom line in doing things. When he was in Shuozhou, he secretly bribed many ministers of Qi State to provide him with information, and even caused chaos and conflicts in the country, and then took over Qi State."

"Liu Taozi has a great reputation, and many generals are afraid of him. Zu Ting must have taken advantage of this and bribed our people to provide him with information."

The anger on Dugu Yongye's face dissipated a little, and he became hesitant again.

"really?"

"If you don't believe me, we'll know once we give it a try!"

Yang Su said seriously: "We have fallen into Zu Ting's trap this time, but as long as we can find out the identity of the traitor, we can use the traitor to fight back against Zu Ting!!"

"Zu Ting is not a concern."

"I have another plan!!"

(End of this chapter)