Outside Jiangling City, a few woodcutters were cutting down trees in the forest outside Jiangling City.
"I say, Old Li! Has your second son gotten married yet? " The woodcutters were tired, so they stopped to rest and gather together for safety reasons. After all, there were many tigers, wolves, worms, and leopards in the forest. The more people there were, the safer it was. Also, they were more familiar with each other and could chat.
"No, no!" Old Li stopped his axe and shook his head.
"Not yet? He's already twenty or forty, and he's already married. There's a family at the entrance of our village. Their eldest daughter is twenty eight today. Old Li, you can go look for a partner for your second son! "A fellow villager said to Old Li.
"I want to go too, but I don't have the money!" Old Li's face darkened. The rich had their troubles, and the poor had their frustrations. Old Li's frustration was that he had two sons. His eldest son had gotten married, but his youngest son had not settled down. That was because his family had no money.
All the money was used for his eldest son's marriage. How could there be any money left for his youngest son's marriage? That was why it was delayed until now. His youngest son was twenty or forty years old, and other people's children were already old enough to buy soy sauce.
"What do you do if you don't have the money? Are you going to let your youngest son have a good life?" Another villager asked.
"Sigh, let's take one step at a time. Maybe we'll meet a benefactor who will give us some money!" Old Li laughed at himself. This was an overly optimistic attitude. Benefactor? In this world, how many people could meet a benefactor?
Just as the group was chatting, suddenly, a few dark humanoid creatures covered in mud rushed out from the forest.
"Mon, monsters! Run, run!" When the woodcutters saw these pitch-black human-like monsters, they were immediately frightened and screamed. They threw down the firewood and ran away.
"Monsters?" Old Li was stunned.
"Old Li, run! Run! There are monsters! There are monsters! " The villager over there still had a conscience and didn't forget to remind Old Li, but after all, Old Li was old, and his body was no longer flexible. He came out to cut wood because he wanted to have more rations for his family. How could he outrun those middle-aged or young men?
When Old Li was about to move, several pitch-black humanoid monsters had already run in front of Old Li.
"Ghost, ghost!" Old Li was also scared. His vision turned black and he was about to pass out. Although they were in the woods, if he fell, it would not be a light fall. Seeing that Old Li was about to fall, the several black humanoid monsters hurriedly stepped forward to support Old Li. They didn't want Old Li to fall.
"Ghost, ghost!" Old Li slowly woke up. Seeing the few "monsters" so close to him, he was so scared that he fainted again, but he was stopped by a few voices.
"Old, old man, we are not ghosts or monsters. Old man, look carefully. We are human, human!" These humanoid monsters were about to approach Old Li. However, Old Li rolled his eyes. Only then did they remember that they had not cleaned up the mud on their faces and the filth on their bodies. One of them wiped his face with a piece of cloth from his body, revealing a human face. "Old man, old man, are you not afraid now?" The humanoid monster laughed, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth.
"You guys, you guys are humans?" Old Li asked these monsters.
"Yes!"
"Then how did you come out from there?" Old Li didn't understand. In fact, not many people came back from this forest. Most of the wood was cut in a lumber yard near Jiangling. However, they needed to pay taxes there, so Old Li and the others came here. The closest place here was Huarong Dao. What kind of place was Huarong Dao? To outsiders, it was called Huarong Dao. To the locals of Jiangling, Huarong Dao was called Ghost Cave.
This was because the people who entered Huarong Dao basically didn't come out. Even if they were lucky enough to come out, they would be half-dead. They would die within a few days after coming out. If it wasn't for the good wood here, Old Li wouldn't have come.
"We came out from Huarong Road!" The monster said. That was right. These people who were black all over and looked like they had fallen into a pile of mud were the Yangzhou Navy led by Lu Xun. They had gone through untold hardships and finally walked out of Huarong Road. The original team of 2,000 people was now left with less than 1,500 people. The remaining 500 people would forever stay in Huarong Road.
They came out of Huarong Road and saw a large forest. It was difficult to find the direction, so they wanted to find someone to guide them to Jiangling. Old Li and the others were lucky to meet them.
"General, General, we found a woodcutter! He seems to know how to get to Jiangling. " In order to hide in the forest, Lu Xun and the others were in the forest, waiting for the people who went out to investigate to come back. After half a day, someone finally found people and brought a woodcutter back.
"Quickly, invite him in!" Lu Xun was very happy. They had finally walked out of Huarong Road. Naturally, they had to find a local to guide them to River Tomb. Although Wu Mi was from River Tomb, he had never gone to River Tomb from the exit of Huarong Road, so it was difficult for him to find the way. Now that they had a woodcutter, it would be much easier.
"Yes!" Soon, Old Li was brought in front of Lu Xun.
"Old man!" Lu Xun walked forward, and Old Li was subconsciously scared. But fortunately, Lu Xun's face was still very handsome even if it was a little dirty. It made people feel very comfortable looking at it, so Old Li didn't scream.
"Old man, don't be afraid. We just want to ask where this place is!" Lu Xun said to Old Li.
Old Li looked over. There were many people in the forest, and they were all wearing armor. This should be a group of soldiers, and this young man should be the leader. "General, this is the boundary of Jiangling!" Old Li said to Lu Xun.
"Jiangling?" When Lu Xun heard these two words, his eyes lit up. Great, the place he wanted to go was Jiangling.
"How far is it from here to Jiangling City?" Lu Xun continued to ask the old man.
"About 40 Li!" Old Li said to Lu Xun.
"40 Li?" Lu Xun frowned. Forty li wasn't a long distance, but it was a short distance. If they were to march in a hurry, then it would only take them a day to reach it. However, Lu Xun and the others were exhausted, so they needed to rest. Even if they had the energy, they wouldn't have the strength to attack Jiangling City. But if they were to rest along the way, then they would have already been discovered by the defenders.
The reason why Lu Xun and Wu Mi entered Huarong Dao and came to Jiangling City was not because Lu Xun was confident that he could defeat the defending army of Jiangling City with just two thousand soldiers. Jiangling City had at least ten thousand soldiers. Even if there were ten thousand pigs on the city walls, Lu Xun might not be able to defeat them.
The reason why Lu Xun and Wu Mi entered Huarong Dao together was to launch a surprise attack on Jiangling City. Once the city gate was taken down, Lu Xun's 2000 elites would be able to display their might.
However, the exit of Huarong Path was 40 Li away from Jiangling City. If they ran all the way, would they still have the energy to fight?
"Old man, is there a shortcut?" Lu Xun asked again.
"General, you want to go to Jiangling City?" Old Li was not a fool. Jiangling City had been peaceful for a long time, and Old Li was once a soldier under the command of General Cai. He had fought in Nanyang, but after the army was disbanded, Old Li returned to Jiangling City. Looking at the armor and clothes of these soldiers, it was obvious that they were not from Jiangling City. Although there was a Jingzhou dialect, Old Li knew where Jiangling City's soldiers went out these days.
Not to mention, at the exit of Huarong Path, they were covered in mud. It was obvious that they had just come out from the flower passage.
"Yes, we want to go to Jiangling City!" Lu Xun nodded.
"General, why are you going to Jiangling City?" Out of curiosity, Old Li asked again.
"Old man, you are too long-winded. Our general is asking you a question, but you are not answering. Where did the question come from?" The colonel was not satisfied and said to Old Li.
"Yes, yes, yes!" Old Li quickly nodded. One must know that he was in the hands of others. Old Li was able to come back alive from the battlefield. Naturally, he was knowledgeable.
"Old man, we are going to Jiangling City to look for an old friend. This is your Jiangling City's Wu family's eldest daughter. We are going back this time to escort her to visit her family!" Lu Xun said to Old Li.
"Jiangling City's Wu family? Is it the Wu family's Old Master? " Jiangling City's Wu family was a big family. Naturally, many people knew that Old Master Wu's family had been in Jiangling City for several generations.
"Yes, yes!" Lu Xun called Wu Mi over. Wu Mi used some of the streams in the forest to clean up a little, revealing her beautiful face. Old Li felt that she was like a fairy from a painting. Moreover, Wu Mi spoke in Jiangling dialect, which made Old Li believe her.
If it was someone else, they wouldn't believe Lu Xun's words. This was because the news of the Wu Clan's destruction had spread like wildfire in Jiangling City. Although Old Li was from Jiangling City, his house wasn't in Jiangling City. Instead, it was in a remote village far away from Jiangling City. It was rare for him to go to Jiangling City a few times a year. In this era where one had to walk to get out of the house, one had to shout for news.
"There is a shortcut to Jiangling City! But you need someone to guide you. Old man, you still need to chop wood to go back and sell it for money! " Old Li was in a bit of a dilemma. He had to bring these lumber back and sell it for money. Only then could he ensure that his family could survive for the next half a month. Otherwise, there would be nothing to eat for the next half a month.
"It won't delay, it won't delay. Old man, look!" Lu Xun waved his hand and a guard came from behind him. Lu Xun took a piece of golden leaf from the guard's hand and handed it over.
"Old man, as long as you lead us to the shortcut, this golden leaf will be yours!" Lu Xun said to Old Li.
Old Li was shocked when he saw the golden leaf. Ordinary people had never seen gold before. They only saw copper coins and the like. Old Li quickly shook his hand. "No, no!"
"Of course!" Lu Xun said to Old Li. "As long as old man leads us to Jiangling City, this golden leaf will be your compensation!"
"That's too much, too much!" Old Li was still shaking his head. The simplicity and kindness of the ancient people were reflected in Old Li. If it was in the modern era, people would not be afraid that you would not give enough. If you gave too much, they would be eager. It would be good if they did not slander you!
But the ancient people were different. Basically, they were willing to lead the way. But Old Li really had no choice. If he did not work hard to chop wood, his family would have no food for half a month. He had a twenty-four year old son at home. His appetite was not small. As the saying goes, "A half-grown son will eat his father to death".
"Not much! Old man, take this. Don't you have a second son who is not married yet? Take these back and talk about a good marriage for him. In this way, old man, you can enjoy your life comfortably! "Lu Xun continued to say to Old Li. The words of these woodcutters were heard.
"My second son!" When Lu Xun mentioned his family's second son, Old Li looked at the golden leaf in front of him and was moved. With this golden leaf, his family's second son would be able to get married. This way, Old Li would be able to feel at ease. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to see his son's naked body all day long. But who let his family's four walls be so bare?
"Thank you very much, General!" Old Li still reached out his hand to take the golden leaf and put it in his arms.
"Ah!" Lu Xun laughed. "Old man, I will have to trouble you for everything!"
"No trouble, no trouble!" Old Li took the money from others. Naturally, he would do something for them. Old Li stood up and led Lu Xun and others to a small path.
… …
"Chen Ming, do you think it is right or wrong for me to rely on the second son?" Dong Zhi asked his aide. Dong Zhi had been in a dilemma for the past few days because he didn't know whether it was right for him to side with Liu Pan or not.
In the past, Dong Zhi was very happy with Liu Pan because in Jiangling, Dong Family and Wu Family were like fire and water. Although Dong Zhi was the governor of Jiangling, Dong Family's power was not as strong as Wu Family because of the relationship between Wu Family and Huang Family. Therefore, Dong Zhi could not do anything to Wu Family. With Liu Pan as his backer, it was different. At least in the imperial court, Dong Zhi could be considered to have someone.
Originally, he wanted to suppress Wu Family a little, but who knew that the second son would be so ruthless. He directly exterminated the Wu Family. Hundreds of people in Wu Family were killed just like that.
Liu Pan's actions had indeed taken revenge on the Huang Family, but it had also frightened Dong Zhi.
"Sir, do you have any other choice?" The aide asked Dong Zhi.
"Yes! Do I have any other choice? " Dong Zhi also smiled bitterly. After the Wu Family was destroyed, Dong Zhi was branded with Liu Pan's brand. It was basically impossible to wash it off. He would either fight Liu Pan to the end or be destroyed by others. If Liu Pan didn't exist, he was afraid that the Huang Family would have made a move on him.
"Not good, not good, the Yangzhou Army is attacking!"
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