Ming Dynasty: A mere unruly commoner is rebelling against the heaven?

Chapter 286 Since there is no other way out, let’s fight to the end!
Gao Shun nodded, understood, and immediately gave the order.

"All troops, listen up and continue to march!"

At Gao Shun's command, the 120,000-strong army waved their whips and continued to march towards Xuzhou Prefecture.

When crossing the border between the two provinces, the commander of the Luzhou garrison issued an order to his subordinates early: "Quick! Move the barricades quickly!"

The garrison soldiers stationed on both sides of the road immediately moved the barricades away as quickly as possible.

Then, they stood on both sides of the road, watching in awe as the 120,000-strong army galloped past them and headed towards Xuzhou Prefecture.

At the same time, the people of Xuzhou Prefecture who participated in the civil uprising were coaxed into gathering together by the people of the four major families.

These common people were basically all farmhands or tenants of the four major families in Xuzhou Prefecture.

Their personal property is highly dependent on the four major families.

To put it bluntly, whether the people of Xuzhou Prefecture can have enough food, warm clothes and houses to live in this year all depends on the attitudes of these four major families.

Like the people of Pu County before them, the locals’ awe and obedience to these four major families were far greater than that to the Ming Emperor, who could be seen but not heard, despite the long distance and high mountains.

Therefore, the four major families were able to organize such a large, reckless and extremely stupid militia without any effort.

The militia of Xuzhou Prefecture also had about 30,000 to 40,000 people, all of whom were arranged outside the county town of Xuzhou Prefecture by the four major families.

Although they are just a group of rabble, tens of thousands of people gathered together are still very intimidating.

The patriarchs of the four major families and Tang Fang, the right vice minister of the Nanjing Ministry of Revenue, led by the old housekeeper of the Sun family, hurried to the camp where the militia gathered.

"Thank you, Master Zhou, for your kindness. I have never eaten so full in my life!"

"Master Sun! We have done everything you asked us to do. You promised to rent us two more acres of land next year..."

"Master Wang, will my rent next year...will it really be reduced by half?"

"Master Li, I will definitely pay back the fifty kilograms of rice I owe you this year. Can you return my granddaughter to me? She is only fifteen years old and can't take care of people. I'm afraid she will annoy you, Master!"

"..."

As they walked along, the militiamen gathered around them all looked at them with either flattering or pleading expressions.

These people were dressed in rags and tattered clothes, and some were even naked.

Some of them held hoes, some held sickles, and some just held simple wooden sticks as weapons.

Some of them were holding black and yellow coarse flour buns in their hands, eating with smiles on their faces.

Their attire formed a sharp contrast with the patriarchs of the four major families who lived in luxury.

But even so, these people are still grateful to these four major families.

The reason is simple: the four major families had previously promised them that as long as they participated in the civil uprising, they would receive generous rewards.

And during the riot, there was enough food to ensure that they could have a full meal every day.

Even the toughest coarse flour steamed buns could make them happy, because even the people in the south of the Yangtze River could not have a full meal every day.

The people were busy trying to show their courtesy to the four major families, but this group of people turned a deaf ear to them and quickly came to a simple tent.

Inside the tent, there were twenty or thirty sturdy men sitting, talking about something with frowns on their faces.

They kept sighing, their faces were sad and their expressions were full of despair.

When he saw the patriarchs of the four major families coming in person, he quickly stood up and greeted them respectfully.

"Four clan leaders, you are here."

These men showed great respect to the patriarchs of the four major families, and their respect was mixed with a sense of familiarity.

This shows that their relationship with the four major families is extraordinary.

Among them, some were small landlords in Xuzhou Prefecture, some were rich peasants in Xuzhou Prefecture, and they belonged to the middle class of Xuzhou Prefecture.

They made the greatest contribution to this civil uprising, and it was they who personally initiated the attack on the Pei County government office.

They were also the first to receive the news that 100,000 Black Cavalry were heading south of the Yangtze River.

"Your Majesty really sent troops to attack Jiangnan?"

"How many people did they send out in total?"

"When will the army arrive?"

"What should we do?"

As soon as they met, the patriarchs of the four major families asked several questions that they were most concerned about.

The leader was a small landlord named Zhao Ju, who was also the leader among these people.

He smiled bitterly and replied, "It's true. From the capital to Jiangnan, people have seen a large number of cavalrymen all the way south."

"That number, that scale... at least more than 100,000 cavalry..."

"And...and the army is now close to the Jiangnan border. If nothing unexpected happens, the imperial army will arrive at Xuzhou Prefecture in about an hour."

After Zhao Ju finished speaking with a pale face, all the strength in his body seemed to be drained away. He gasped heavily because of tension and fear.

"How could this happen? How could this happen?"

The patriarchs of the four major families felt completely despaired, and the only glimmer of hope in their hearts also disappeared.

Their original fantasies of self-entertainment were gone, and the blow of reality was too much for them to bear. They became confused and blindly believed in the person who had previously painted a beautiful blueprint for them.

"Minister Tang, Minister Tang, didn't you say that His Majesty would never send troops south?!"

"Now that His Majesty has really sent out troops, what should we do?!"

"Minister Tang, please say something!"

The patriarchs of the four major families looked behind them and saw that Tang Fang, who had just been planning and was full of vigor, was now pale and sweating profusely, unable to speak a word. Tang Fang's eyes were dull and he stared at the patriarchs of the four major families for a while without saying a word. Suddenly, he used all his strength to run out quickly!

"Minister Tang! Why are you running?!"

"Minister Tang, don't run!"

"Tang Fang, stop right there!"

"..."

The patriarchs of the four major families were horrified and subconsciously ran after him!

It was Tang Fang who instigated the people to cause trouble, and they couldn't let Tang Fang, the instigator, get away!
Unfortunately, Tang Fang was faster. He found a horse in front of the barracks and urged it to rush towards Nanjing.

"Go! Go! Faster, faster!"

Tang Fang kept waving the whip, his mind was blank and he had only one thought in his mind.

That is to rush to Nanjing as soon as possible and stay away from the dangerous place of Xuzhou Prefecture.

Immediately report the matter of His Majesty sending troops to attack Jiangnan to Nanjing Minister of War Zhang Peng!

"Stop him, stop him quickly!"

The Zhou family leader yelled desperately, but unfortunately everything happened too quickly.

The people outside the camp had not yet reacted. They didn't know why the attitudes of the patriarchs of the four major families towards Tang Fang changed so drastically in just a short moment.

But they had to obey the orders of the patriarchs of the four major families, so they had to chase and block them in a hurry, and the encirclement was full of loopholes.

Just like that, Tang Fang found the right opportunity amidst the hurried and panicked pursuit and blockade of the crowd, shook off the people chasing him, and ran away.

"Patriarch Zhou, what should we do now?"

Seeing Tang Fang running away, the head of the Li family asked worriedly, his expression was full of sadness and despair.

Their four major families have been running Xuzhou Prefecture for generations. Their roots are here. Even if they want to run away, they can't.

"How to do how to do?"

The Zhou family head muttered to himself, looking on the verge of collapse.

In the face of absolute military crushing, all strategies are in vain.

Now, the only thing the patriarchs of the four major families can hope for is that Zhu Youtang will care about his own reputation.

I bet that these troops heading south would not dare to commit such vicious incidents as massacring civilians!
"Return to the city, return to the city immediately!"

"Let these unruly people block the gates of Xuzhou City!"

"I just don't believe that these armies dare to commit such a heinous crime and openly massacre civilians!"

"As long as we hold on for a while, once things get out of hand, Nanjing will definitely find a way to save us."

"Of course...of course..."

The head of the Zhou family talked to himself, saying things that even he didn't believe, and comforted himself.

But they are already at the end of their rope, and they can only hold on for a while. The patriarchs of the other three families have no choice but to believe in them.

"Okay, then I'll go mobilize those unruly people!"

After the head of the Li family finished speaking, he immediately came to the center of the camp and asked Zhao Ju and his group of small landlords and rich farmers to gather together the lowest-level farmhands and tenants.

Facing the huge crowd of tens of thousands, the head of the Li family felt a little more stable.

"Fellow villagers, we heard your cries just now!"

"We promise that our previous promises will definitely count!"

"Starting from next year... No! From now on, all your land rents will be reduced by half... 10%!"

"In addition, our four major families will also provide an additional 50,000 acres of land for everyone to rent!"

"We guarantee that every Xuzhou citizen can plant the fields of our four major families!"

The head of the Li family shouted loudly, and after hearing it, the people of Xuzhou Prefecture were all excited, cheering and crying with joy.

Being able to have their labor exploited by the four major families is the greatest joy they have ever dreamed of!
"We have heard the needs of each of you. Chen Erniu, you can take your granddaughter back from my house today!"

"Zhou Damao, you can rent an extra three acres of land from the Sun family next year..."

Before the head of the Li family could finish his words, screams broke out from all around.

Every citizen of Xuzhou had an ecstatic smile on his face.

At this time, the head of the Li family suddenly changed the subject: "But before that, there is one more thing that needs your help!"

Suddenly, voices of agreement rang out all around.

"Patriarch Li, don't worry, no matter what it is, we will help you!"

"That's right. We will never be able to repay Patriarch Li for his kindness in this lifetime. If you have anything to say, just tell us directly. Even if it means risking our lives, we will definitely help the four patriarchs to accomplish it!"

"Patriarch Li, if you have anything to say, please tell me as soon as possible. The affairs of the four major families are the affairs of the people of Xuzhou, and we will definitely not shirk them!"

"..."

Listening to the shouts of the people around and looking at so many people supporting them.

Patriarch Li and the other three patriarchs looked at each other and nodded secretly. Their originally panicked mood gradually calmed down.

There was even a hint of smile on the corners of their mouths.

(End of this chapter)