The fiercest soldier of the border army

Do you dare accept?!

Those three words, heavy as a thousand pounds, struck Wu Yong's heart like a hammer blow.

He shuddered violently.

The expectant gazes of the hundreds of people present converged into sharp swords, piercing straight towards Wu Yong.

From the crowd, an elderly man with white hair trembled violently, his voice trembling with disbelief, "Squad...Squad leader, can...can you really let us go home?"

Another man, covered in filth, asked in a trembling voice, "Can we...go home?"

A day and a night of hard work had left them physically and mentally exhausted.

"It's the meaning of the town's surveillance." Tang Shun said calmly, placing all the pressure on Wu Yong.

Wu Yong stood frozen in place, his face alternating between pale and flushed, his expression unpredictable, caught in a dilemma.

If they agree, they will be betraying Wang Xianghong and losing several hundred taels of silver for no reason!

If he doesn't agree, his reputation as "Wu the Skinflint" might turn into "Wu the Cannibal."

After a long while, he suddenly threw his head back and burst into a sharp, piercing laugh:

"A mere bunch of defeated soldiers and nameless nobody dares to publicly coerce the people and threaten this town, attempting to forcibly enter the town?!"

He swept his gaze fiercely over the crowd, clearly having already devised a plan:

"This town knows you all. Your shouts are all just empty words; you're only here to plunder the people!"

Wu Yong forcefully accused Tang Shun of allowing his troops to plunder, and shouted:

"To protect themselves, they forced the people to build a city? What have the people done wrong?"

"Utterly absurd!"

He sneered coldly, his contempt evident in his voice, "Do you really think building cities and fortifications is child's play? You think you can just dig a pit and pile up a few mounds of mud and call it a city or fortress?"

"Do you know what layered rammed earth means? Do you know what foundation building and anchoring means? Do you know the methods of city gate layout and the techniques of arrow tower construction?"

"He was just a lowly border soldier who couldn't read many characters and couldn't even understand official documents."

He downplayed the seriousness of the matter, becoming increasingly arrogant and sarcastic, his voice dripping with sarcasm: "You dare to talk about building a city and defending the land? Who recognizes your indenture? You mere few dozen people, who can you possibly stop?"

Having finished his mockery, Wu Yong suddenly turned around and mounted his horse.

The thin, bony horse was weighed down.

Wu Yong gripped the reins tightly. "I won't waste my breath arguing with an ignorant brute like you!"

"You intend to coerce the people and bring soldiers to disrupt Xiushui; this town will absolutely not allow it!"

"You are nothing but pawns, your contracts of servitude are nothing but a joke!"

Wu Yong still had a flushed face and an upright demeanor.

"When the Xiongnu cavalry march south, I'll see if this pile of mud bricks can withstand the barbarian swords and horses!"

Having said that, he tightened the reins, bent down, and stared intently at Tang Shun with his cold gaze. "You, Tang Shun!"

"If you know what's good for you, obediently let them return to town. Otherwise, those worthless papers you've sold yourself into servitude will be the death warrants of the King of Hell!"

"The people of the frontier are all filled with courage and valor!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the riding whip lashed out fiercely!

"drive!"

The skinny horse galloped forward with difficulty, while several constables ran after it in a frantic pursuit. The arrogant and domineering figure quickly disappeared on the north slope.

A strong wind swept through the construction site, carrying sand and dust, leaving the area deathly silent; you could hear a pin drop.

The wind swirled bits of grass through the cracks in the newly built frame, making it creak and groan.

The people stood by the muddy ground, their hands resting on the edges of their baskets, motionless, as if someone had choked them with a knife.

Tang Shun stood on the edge of the slope, looking at the group of people with their heads down.

They were like flames that had been lit, igniting their anger.

They heard what Tang Shun said, but they also heard what the supervisor said.

These soldiers are nothing but discarded pawns; no one will acknowledge their indenture.

They've all been tricked!

A middle-aged man, with a gloomy face, his fingers filled with dirt, gripped the hoe tightly, the veins on his forearm bulging.

Tang Shun remained silent, allowing the people's agitation to fester. He walked to a tilted earthen basket, squatted down, righted it, and gathered the scattered pebbles into it.

That was the work of an old farmer, his face full of wrinkles and his hands cracked and bleeding.

The old man paused for a moment, but didn't say anything.

Tang Shun knew what they were thinking.

The governor failed to take away the townspeople, but he did take away their hearts.

They already knew that their group had been abandoned by the captain and their lives were hanging by a thread.

If it were soldiers in the army, Tang Shun might explain everything, boost morale, and unite the townspeople to speed up the construction of the city and overcome the difficulties together.

However, the people of the border regions have always been unruly and difficult to tame, fearing power but not gratitude.

The people, who were originally gathered together by greed, were suppressed by the authorities and worked day and night, so they had a burning anger in their hearts.

If they were to organize themselves and wield iron weapons, Tang Shun's group of new recruits would be torn to shreds in an instant.

Tang Shun turned his head and looked at the north slope.

The framework of this pass has been established.

Three days later, the cement can be formed.

With the addition of stones and sand, it can be poured into a wall.

In seven days, everything will be resolved.

But currently, there is no one available.

Tang Shun turned around and shouted to the soldiers, "Line up!"

At this time, the people could not eat any kind of flatbread.

They are going to rebel, riot!

There are some things you can let them hear, but you can't say to them!

The soldiers, including Zhu Hang, began to line up. Their movements were not exactly neat, but they were tense enough.

They clearly sensed something was wrong.

Three veterans in their seventies were in charge of firing the kiln around the clock and no longer participated in daily drills.

"You all saw it."

"The town of Xiushui already knows we're here."

Tang Shun stood at the front of the group and spoke loudly, clearly audible to all the hundreds of townspeople: "The Xiongnu are not far away. This battle is unavoidable."

Someone below swallowed hard.

The townspeople held their breath and watched coldly.

"We can't enter Xiushui Town. If we want to protect the people of Xiushui, we still have to start from here."

"I know you hate Captain Wang; he's the one who's been trying to send us to our deaths."

"but--"

Tang Shun's voice suddenly rose, "We are the border troops of the Great Qian Dynasty, we eat the imperial rations, and we receive the imperial salary!"

"Wang Xianghong, in collusion with the town's supervisor, abandoned us, leaving the three thousand people of Xiushui in dire straits, turning this place into a death trap!"

"What have the people of Xiushui Town done to deserve this!"

The sound was like a thunderclap, causing many townspeople to look up.

Tang Shun raised his voice to a new high, speaking with great emotion, "We border troops are acting on orders; it is our duty!"

"The captain ordered us to garrison Xiushui Town, so we should protect the people of Xiushui Town!"

"As for everything else, it's all empty talk!"

Tang Shun's words were resounding.

A heavy atmosphere hung in the air.

The restless townspeople gradually held their breath and listened intently.

Clearly, they listened.

"If a pass were built here, with walls six zhang high and no more than two hundred paces from east to west, one man could hold the pass against ten thousand!"

"It covers an area of ​​about one or two miles from north to south, enough to accommodate the people of Xiushui seeking refuge!"

"The Xiongnu can't break in; they can only besiege us!"

"But they can't afford to waste time. This place isn't exactly a strategic stronghold; they won't fight to the death here!"

"Therefore, we built this city not only to save our own lives, but also to save the lives of our people!"

After Tang Shun finished speaking, he turned around, walked to a higher earthen slope, pointed to the skeleton, and said:

"If this wall can't be built..."

"Xiushui Town has no soldiers to use, and its earthen walls, which don't even have watchtowers, can be easily scaled."

"At that time, any man in Xiushui Town taller than a cartwheel will be killed."

"Women will be stripped naked and severely humiliated in front of men!"

"Those with even a little bit of beauty would be taken to the northern grasslands, confined to sheepfolds, forced to eat grass and mud, give birth to one wolf cub after another, and then die!"

"Children will be used as military rations and cooked at any time!"

Some townspeople couldn't help but take a deep breath.

It's as if the cries of men, women, and children when the Xiongnu cavalry invaded are still vivid in my mind, breaking my heart.

It's like Xiushui Town, built along the river, where the sounds of women and children squatting by the river washing their clothes and the laughter of children playing around the willows are no longer heard.

Instead, there were towering flames, collapsed doors and windows, and the sinister smiles of the Hun barbarians.

Their home, built over many years, has been reduced to ruins, and the surrounding neighbors have been reduced to livestock.

pat-

At that moment, a dark-skinned man suddenly threw his pickaxe and hoe to the ground...