Ma Zhou sneered when he saw Li Chengqian's embarrassed expression. Li Chengqian was the Crown Prince of the Tang dynasty, but he had lived a good life since he was a child. He had never experienced hardships, and had never shed blood on the battlefield. Li Shimin's mentality was stable, but Li Chengqian's mentality was not. Therefore, Li Chengqian's mind was in a mess.
Ma Zhou continued, "Sons of the Tang dynasty, this official's promise was stated in front of everyone. You can choose not to believe this official, but with so many people watching and listening, there's no way this official can go back on his word. If this official loses my promise, not only will I lose you, but the soldiers of Pu 'an County will also not trust this official. Therefore, you do not need to worry that this official will go back on his word. "
Li Chengqian gritted his teeth and said, "Ma Zhou, you are so vicious!"
Ma Zhou ignored Li Chengqian and continued, "Sons of the Tang dynasty, this official once again promises that as long as you can capture Li Chengqian, you will be rewarded with 10,000 yuan. Whoever captures Li Chengqian will be heavily rewarded with ten thousand strings of coins and will be given an official position according to your ability. If you have the ability, this official promises to promote you by three ranks. If you do not have the ability, this official will give you 10,000 yuan and allow you to return to your hometown and take up the position of Li Chengqian. In short, whether you have the ability or not, as long as you capture Li Chengqian, you will be rewarded. "
Whoosh!!
This time, the discussion became even louder.
Even though Li Chengqian still had the personal guards of the Eastern Palace by his side, the eyes of the surrounding Tang soldiers were shining with ambition. Li Chengqian was a big fish. If they could capture him, they would be able to soar to the sky.
Li Chengqian was shocked and angry.
Damn it!
Damn Ma Zhou!
When Li Chengqian saw the expressions of the surrounding generals, he could not help but be angry. He looked around and shouted, "Whoever dares to act rashly, kill without mercy! You are all soldiers of the Tang dynasty. You should be loyal to the Tang dynasty. How can you betray the Tang dynasty? Kill our way out. Follow this crown prince and kill our way out. "
Unfortunately, after the order was given, no one moved.
No one was able to break through.
Instead, many pairs of eyes fell on Li Chengqian. Their eyes seemed to emit a faint green light, as if they wanted to devour Li Chengqian. Under such circumstances, Li Chengqian couldn't help but take a step back as his heart turned cold.
Upon seeing this, Ma Zhou asked again, "What's wrong? Is no one going to make a move? If no one made a move … Then, my men are ready to make a move. At that time, you won't have a chance. "
"Go!"
Suddenly, someone in the crowd of Tang soldiers growled.
Soon after, someone charged forward, heading straight for Li Chengqian's position. At this moment, it was as if a fuse had been lit. One by one, the Tang soldiers directly attacked Li Chengqian and rushed towards him. Even though Li Chengqian was protected by his personal guards, they were killed in the blink of an eye when faced with the surging soldiers even though they managed to resist for a moment.
The crowd continued to charge towards Li Chengqian.
Li Chengqian turned around and tried to escape. However, Ma Zhou's army was in the direction of the city gate. He was also surrounded by Tang soldiers, so there was nowhere for him to escape. In a short period of time, Li Chengqian was captured by a young general with a tall and sturdy figure. Upon seeing this, the surrounding Tang soldiers no longer went up to fight. Then, they all knelt down and surrendered to Ma Zhou.
Ma Zhou waved his hand and someone came forward to capture Li Chengqian. Then, Ma Zhou's eyes fell on the person who captured Li Chengqian. He asked in a deep voice, "What's your name?"
The general said, "Reporting to Military Counselor Ma, my name is Dong Da."
Ma Zhou slightly nodded and said, "Dong Da, what position do you hold in the Tang dynasty's army?"
Dong Da said, "I'm a team leader."
Ma Zhou asked, "Can you read?"
Dong Da said, "I can read!"
Ma Zhou asked again, "How about your martial arts?"
Dong Da knew that this was not the time to be modest, so he directly said, "This humble one has no problem dealing with 20 to 30 ordinary soldiers."
Ma Zhou nodded and said, "If that's the case, this official won't reward you according to your promotion by three ranks. Because your position as a team leader is too low. It doesn't even have a rank. I'll directly appoint you as a Commandant, and you'll be in charge of all the Tang soldiers who have submitted to me. This official just wants to ask you one question. Can you control this army and make them become a fighting force? "
Dong Da's heart surged as he heard this. He cupped his fists and said, "This humble general will definitely not disappoint Military Counselor Ma's high expectations."
Dong Da came from a humble family.
His martial arts were outstanding, and he could read and write. He even knew some military strategies. Unfortunately, in the army, he didn't know how to flatter and curry favor with his superiors. He had always been a small team leader, managing not many people. Now that he was appointed as a Commandant by Ma Zhou, he seized the opportunity to jump up and control more than 2,000 Tang soldiers.
Ma Zhou nodded and said, "This official believes in you. This official will transfer your reward of 10,000 strings of coins to you."
Dong Da said, "Military Counselor Ma, this humble one has a request."
Ma Zhou said, "There's no harm in saying it."
Dong Da said seriously, "Although 10,000 strings of coins is a lot, it's not much. Actually, the lives of these brothers under this general's command aren't easy. They follow Li Chengqian, but they don't have enough to eat or wear. They even say that they will be given military pay and provisions, but in reality, they only have a little bit of money. It's difficult to even support themselves, let alone their families. I sincerely ask for Military Counselor Ma's permission to distribute this sum of money to the people under this general's command. "
As soon as he said this, the group of Tang soldiers who had submitted to him showed a grateful expression.
They had more than 2,000 people, but less than 3,000.
After the 10,000 strings of coins were distributed, each person would have more than three strings of coins. It must be known that for an ordinary family, three strings of coins could at least cover a year's expenses, and even leave a lot of money. After all, many people lived frugally. Other than necessities, they rarely bought anything else, and even rarely ate meat.
Therefore, three strings of coins was a huge sum of money to the ordinary soldiers who once belonged to the Tang dynasty. Dong Da wasn't greedy at all and was willing to share it equally. They were all very grateful to Dong Da.
After Ma Zhou heard this, his face showed a look of approval. When faced with a huge sum of money, Dong Da could suppress the greed in his heart. For the sake of long-term development, he could divide the money equally and gather the people's hearts to form a cohesive force. This was naturally the best.
This was a basic quality that a qualified general must have.
Ma Zhou nodded and said, "This 10,000 strings of coins is yours. If you want to share it equally with all the soldiers, that's naturally fine. As for how you want to distribute your money, you have the final say. "
Dong Da said, "Thank you, Military Counselor Ma."
Ma Zhou said, "Let's reorganize the army."
Dong Da immediately issued the order to reorganize the army. Everyone quickly reorganized. Then, Ma Zhou took Yang Lu, Tang Ziyong, Yang Zhengjian, and the others to lead a group of people and horses straight to the barracks.
After entering the barracks, Ma Zhou first settled Dong Da and the rest of the Tang soldiers. Then, Ma Zhou took Li Chengqian, Tang Ziyong, Yang Lu, and Yang Zhengjian back to the main camp. Ma Zhou's eyes directly fell on the detained Li Chengqian and said in a deep voice, "Li Chengqian, tell me, how should I deal with you now?"
Li Chengqian raised his head and gritted his teeth, "I want to see Du Qi. I want to see Du Qi. Ma Zhou, you have no right to deal with me. I'm the Crown Prince of the Tang dynasty. I want to see Du Qi. "
"Hahaha …"
Ma Zhou laughed after hearing this.
He laughed at Li Chengqian's greed for life and fear of death. The reason why Li Chengqian said he wanted to see Du Qi. In the end, he was actually afraid that Ma Zhou would kill him. Therefore, at that moment, he directly shouted that he wanted to see Du Qi. In fact, it was to save his life.
Ma Zhou said, "Li Chengqian, Li Chengqian, after all, you are a greedy person who is afraid of death."
Li Chengqian's cheeks twitched. He was slightly embarrassed.
His thoughts were exposed.
Ma Zhou continued, "Li Chengqian, don't worry. I won't kill you. It's a pity to kill someone like you. On the contrary, keeping you alive will be more useful. So, you don't have to worry. "
Li Chengqian immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
In any case, he was still alive.
Ma Zhou's eyes turned and fell directly on Tang Ziyong. He said neither quickly nor slowly, "Provincial Governor Tang, there's something I need you to arrange."
Tang Ziyong respectfully said, "Military Counselor Ma, please tell me."
Ma Zhou said, "I'll write a letter and explain clearly what happened in Pu 'an County. Arrange for someone to bring the letter to the front line at top speed. Inform General Xiao who is currently rushing to Pu 'an County. "
Tang Ziyong said, "No problem!"
Ma Zhou immediately wrote a letter and handed it to Tang Ziyong to prepare to set off.
Yang Lu suddenly said, "Military Counselor Ma, this old man has an immature idea. I don't know if it's appropriate."
Ma Zhou said, "Please speak, Eunuch Yang."
Yang Lu's expression was solemn. He said, "The news of Li Chengqian's capture must be reported to General Xiao. Then, should we inform His Majesty in Chang 'an? "
Ma Zhou's lips curled into a smile. He naturally understood Yang Lu's intention.
This was to show off his achievements in front of Du Qi.
Ma Zhou smiled slightly. He said, "Rest assured, Eunuch Yang. In my letter, I've already explained clearly to General Xiao. I've asked him to report to His Majesty about Li Chengqian's capture. In addition, I've also made it clear. I've asked General Xiao to truthfully report the contributions of Eunuch Yang, Provincial Governor Tang, and County Magistrate Yang. After all, in our army, General Xiao was the one to report to His Majesty about the course of the battle. "
Yang Lu was somewhat embarrassed when he heard this. He immediately said, "Military Counselor Ma's consideration is thorough."
Tang Ziyong and Yang Zhengjian also spoke one after another.
Ma Zhou, Yang Lu, Tang Ziyong, Yang Zhengjian, and the others discussed some follow-up arrangements.
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