In the summer night, a leaden-green light arose, and in the small county town under the night sky, flames were burning, and the sounds of people were chaotic, accompanied by the cries of women and children. ..org

Black banners fluttered, but only in the places illuminated by the fire could people see the banners in the night.

On the shore of Taihu Lake, in a small county town north of Pingjiang Prefecture, the population had already dwindled after the disasters of war last year. At this moment, the ones who invaded again were a group of refugees called the Fair Party (Gongping Dang). After entering the county town, they did not start a large-scale massacre, but the homes of several local gentry and powerful families on the west side of the county town suffered.

At this moment, flames and slaughter continued, and another group of people, holding up the same banners, came from the fields outside the county town. In the night, the refugees who had seized the county town gate exchanged a few shouts with the newcomers and learned that this group held a high position in the Fair Party. They dared not stop them. As the newcomers drew closer, someone recognized the thin, middle-aged man at the front of the horses. The refugees near the city gate addressed him as "Fair King (Gongping Wang)" and knelt down.

The "Fair King" was He Wen. After the exchange, he spurred his horse forward, and his direct soldiers began to take over the defense of the county town. Another enforcement team entered the county town and began shouting: "Anyone who harasses innocent people will be killed! Anyone who seizes property in the chaos will be killed! Anyone who insults women will be killed..."

He Wen led his personal guards toward the direction of the burning flames. There were the mansions of the great clans, and in order to defend their houses and courtyards, they seemed to have experienced a round of offense and defense. As He Wen stepped into the courtyard, he could see corpses lying scattered on the ground between the courtyards. Among these corpses were not only strong young men with knives and spears, but also women and children who were clearly killed while trying to escape.

He did not speak and continued forward. A deputy brought a man over to pay his respects. This was a Fair Party leader in his thirties, with a black turban tied around his forehead. He was not of high status, but this time he had spotted the defense loopholes in this county town and temporarily summoned nearby helpers to break through the city. After the Jin people left, livelihoods in various parts of Jiangnan had not recovered, and there were refugees everywhere who had lost their homes and families. They could beg for food in the city or become bandits in the mountains. During this period, the Fair Party's momentum had gradually increased. He Wen's core team was still under construction, and there were countless forces on the periphery who had heard the name and joined the fight.

After briefly recounting what had happened, the leader began to talk about the resistance of the great clan members during the attack, which had resulted in many casualties on his side. He Wen inquired about the treatment of the wounded before asking, "Where are the elders? Where is the clan leader?"

The leader hesitated slightly: "Those old geezers resisted stubbornly, preferring death to surrender, so...we killed them."

"Take me to see where they are."

"...In the, in the ancestral hall." The leader led the way, then added, "These guys, the people outside are living in dire straits, everyone is starving to death, and they hoard gold, silver, and grain in their homes, piled up like small mountains. There are countless gold and silver utensils. I had people carry them to the ancestral hall. I dared not embezzle... Hey, San'er, come over and tell Mr. He about what it was like when we opened the granary. Those bastards even wanted to set fire to the grain..."

As they spoke, they arrived at the ancestral hall, where they could see the corpses lying inside. There were also wooden boxes of various sizes filled with gold and silver piled on one side of the ancestral hall. The leader immediately went over and opened the boxes for He Wen to see. He Wen walked to the pile of corpses and looked at them for a few moments before approaching the gold and silver, picking up a few gold items to examine. Then he inquired about the grain.

"Call over all the brothers who participated at your invitation. I have something to say to them, to thank them."

At this point, his expression and tone became gentle. The leader instructed his deputy to call the others. Soon, several other leaders were summoned to see "Fair King" Mr. He. He Wen looked at them for a few moments before waving his hand.

"Take their weapons, detain them first, and deal with them later."

His orders were given, and the deputy in charge of execution waved the signal flag. Among the people in the courtyard, some cried out injustice, some drew their knives, and some commotion immediately came from outside the courtyard. But because the elite troops under his command had been prepared in advance, the disturbance soon subsided, and the guards in the courtyard surrounded the leaders. Some made empty threats, and the leader of the Fair Party knelt down. He Wen looked at them.

"Killing people and destroying families just to vent your anger, killing everyone! There are even the corpses of women outside, women you raped and didn't have time to hide! The actions of beasts! Who did what, who didn't do what, everything will be investigated thoroughly! In a few days, you will face a public trial in front of all the people! You want to be the Fair Party? This is the Fair Party!"

Among them, someone cursed: "Hypocrite! We worked hard for you, brothers died and bled, and you treat us like this! We kept an eye on our men, and the people outside were not harmed at all! These people are full of gold and silver, and the grain is like a mountain. Look how well they are dressed. That's all blood and sweat of the people. Killing them is right! You, Fair Party, are hypocrites! You just want to grab these things and not share the benefits—"

He Wen said: "Are people who are well-dressed bad people? Then everyone in the world should wear rags to kill people!

That's all! You say they are evil people, what evil have they done? When, which month, which day did they do it? Where are the victims? So many dead people, who committed the evil deeds? Did this old man do it, or did the ten-year-old girl lying outside do it! If you don't speak clearly before killing people, you are bandits! This is unfair!"

"They are so rich, and the people outside are starving to death. The evil things they have done are definitely there if you just ask around. It's all right in front of you, Mr. He. Don't pretend to be ignorant—"

"The little girl outside did it too?"

"In the chaos of war, how can you distinguish so clearly—"

"—Take them down!"

In the night, the chaos and commotion continued for a while, and the flames in the mansions of the wealthy finally died down. He Wen went to see the grain stored in the homes of these wealthy families and ordered the soldiers to collect the remains. Afterward, he gathered with the deputies and attendants who had come with him in the outer courtyard. Someone spoke of the grain and mentioned the refugees and famine outside. Others said that the leader this time was able to restrain the refugees from disturbing ordinary people, and he had done a good job. He Wen ate some dry food and slammed the bowl in his hand on the bluestone bricks in the courtyard. For a moment, the courtyard was silent.

"In which village or street you lived before, there were always ruffians, right?"

He said: "They usually idled around, did no proper work, and took advantage of opportunities to freeload from this family or that. As long as there was a good thing that didn't require effort, those people would definitely be there. These people are not murderous bandits, nor are they desperados who don't care about the eyes of others. They live next to you. As long as they can get a little benefit, they can come up with a set of reasons and explanations..."

"These ruffians have one characteristic. If you are bandits or desperados, maybe one day you can make a fortune, but ruffians will never make a fortune. They spend their whole lives trying to take advantage. They have no sense of rules in their hearts..."

"Today you smashed this big courtyard and saw all the gold and silver, all the grain. Ordinary people will never see so much in their lives. You also see, hey, these people are dressed so well, the blood and sweat of the people. My Fair Party, acting on behalf of Heaven, is doing justice. You're talking bullshit—"

He Wen waved his hand, glared, and shouted.

"Are none of these people killed wrongly? What if they are killed wrongly? Have you thought about it! Because there is always a reason to kill wrongly! In the chaos of war, who can avoid incidentally killing some old, weak, women, and children! Doing things and finding reasons, who can't find them? But finding them after doing it, you are just ruffians trying to take advantage! Once you point to taking this little advantage, you will never be able to do anything big in the future."

"If you want to do something big, do something real, you must have rules in your heart!"

He Wen stood in the courtyard, speaking slowly and deliberately.

The flames stirred restlessly in the night. In May, the Fair Party, which had been constantly expanding for a period of time, began to experience internal division and began to develop more mature guidelines and codes of conduct.

At the same time, in the ruins of Daming Prefecture on the north bank of the Yellow River, a black banner fluttered quietly. At this moment, the retreating Jurchen Eastern Route Army was stationed on the south bank of the Yellow River, considering a proper strategy for crossing the river.

From April, the Chinese and Guangwu armies, which had been confined to Liangshan Marsh, began to emerge from their bases in batches, resulting in several skirmishes with the Wanyan Chang troops, who were securing the Eastern Route Army's return north. Although these battles were brief, the troops led by Zhu Biao, Wang Shanyue, and Liu Chengzong clearly demonstrated their future operational intentions: once the Jurchen army prepared to cross the river, they would not let go of the opportunity to harass these crossings.

Over the past two years, these troops in Liangshan had demonstrated a tenacious fighting spirit. Although the Jurchen Eastern Route Army was powerful, the hundreds of thousands of Han Chinese captives they were taking north were incredibly bloated, which was the Eastern Route Army's weakness. The chaotic situation that would inevitably result from opening it up would give Zong Fu and Zong Bi a headache.

But at the level of contending for supremacy, headaches were not such a serious problem.

Faced with the Liangshan troops' decisiveness, Zong Fu and Zong Bi had gathered elite troops, prepared to cross the Yellow River and launch a major battle. At the same time, Wanyan Chang and Shulie Su led tens of thousands of troops to press from the north. Among them, Wanyan Chang deployed troops meticulously, and Shulie Su's aggression was like fire. The two sides' military styles complemented each other perfectly. Thus, in mid-May, as many as hundreds of thousands of Eastern Route Army troops were about to deploy a dragnet to remove this last thorn in their side on the way north.

The news of the Western Route Army's defeat and Nianhan's crushing defeat in the decisive battle in Hanzhong also poured over this land on both sides of the Yellow River like boiling oil at this moment. On the north bank of the Yellow River, Zhu Biao, Wang Shanyue, Liu Chengzong, and others were encouraged and had all decided to fight a beautiful battle here. For this purpose, the staff had made countless plans and deductions for several days in a row. Although there were not many of them, they were all veterans who had experienced the most brutal fighting. The opponent's camp was bloated and eager to return home. As long as they found this weakness, the ants might be able to bite a terrible wound on the elephant's body.

On the south bank of the Yellow River, Zong Fu and Zong Bi were even more looking forward to proving their difference from the Western Route Army's Nianhan and Xiyin with such a battle and victory. Against the backdrop of the disastrous defeat in the southwestern campaign, as long as they could bury this Black Flag Army in Shandong, which had been tested in past battles, on the banks of the Yellow River, the morale of the military and the people in the country would be greatly boosted.

Against this background, on the fifteenth day of May, in a desolate village west of Daming on the north bank of the Yellow River, Zhu Biao, Wang Shanyue, Liu Chengzong, and others temporarily met to greet the envoy from the southwest, Dong Fangxian, the "Chief Manager" of the Bamboo Union. Zhu, Wang, and Liu roughly stated their upcoming combat ideas to Dong Fangxian. It was not until the afternoon that Dong Fangxian began to relay some of the words Ning Yi had asked him to bring.

"Mr. Ning asked me to bring over an idea, just an idea. The specific decision is up to you. Moreover, this idea only has practical significance after you have made full combat preparations."

After Dong Fangxian finished speaking, Wang Shanyue laughed: "What bad idea does old Ning have again? Tell us."

"Negotiate, make peace."

Dong Fangxian looked at Wang Shanyue and said calmly. The scar on Wang Shanyue's face immediately became unsightly. He spat on the ground.

"It's just a reference choice. The final decision is up to you," Dong Fangxian repeated.

Wang Shanyue raised his head and waved his hand at Zhu Biao and Liu Chengzong: "There are more of your people here, so the decision...how will it be made?"

"We will listen to everyone's opinions to the greatest extent. Mr. Ning said that we can even vote in the army." Dong Fangxian was a little fat, with a lot of white hair on his head. He usually looked amiable, but now, facing Wang Shanyue's burning gaze, he was calm and composed, without any fear. "Mr. Ning said before he came that at least one thing Master Wang can rest assured of is that there are no cowards in the Chinese Army."

Wang Shanyue stared at him for a moment: "You speak, I'll listen."

Dong Fangxian nodded: "On the north bank of the Yellow River, the Chinese Army and the Guangwu Army together have less than 30,000 troops. The advantage is that they have all fought battles and can use the terrain to maneuver and fight guerrilla warfare. Everything else is a disadvantage. The Jurchen Eastern Route Army has 200,000 troops, plus Wanyan Chang and Shulie Su. They are indeed wearing shoes, and it's not worth fighting. But if you really go all out to fight, your chances of survival...aren't high. That's putting it politely."

Wang Shanyue said: "First, we are not afraid of death; second, Zong Fu and Zong Bi are eager to go back and fight for power and profit, which is also our advantage."

Dong Fangxian said: "No one is afraid of people. We're talking about how to die; second, given that the Western Route Army has already suffered a crushing defeat, if Zong Fu and Zong Bi really go all out, they can go back first and leave the 200,000 troops to Wanyan Chang to wipe you out in Shandong. They are troublesome, but at least they won't be as disgraceful as Nianhan."

Dong Fangxian's gaze turned to Zhu Biao and Liu Chengzong: "In the worst-case scenario, you will be annihilated, causing huge losses to the Jurchen Eastern Route Army. The hundreds of thousands of Han Chinese they are taking north will die tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands in this great battle. As for the possibility of you killing Zong Fu and Zong Bi in a certain decisive battle, it's not impossible, but it's rare. In terms of combat power, you are short of supplies and have even gone hungry for so long. You probably still can't beat the Tushan Guards on the frontal battlefield."

"After all, fighting is not just theory," Liu Chengzong said, "but...you go first."

"Mr. Ning feels that the first problem in the Shandong situation is that neither side believes the other has the possibility of retreating. Master Wang has defended Daming Prefecture for so long that he has long since disregarded life and death. Brother Zhu Biao did not retreat when he faced Shulie Su two years ago, and he still resolutely came to rescue people in the face of the crisis in Daming Prefecture. Our past achievements have already shown that no one in the Chinese Army is afraid, not even death..."

"I'm not in the Chinese Army," Wang Shanyue interjected.

Dong Fangxian smiled: "That's also why Zong Fu and Zong Bi don't think it's possible for them to pass through easily. They have to fight because there is no choice. On our side, we also believe that Zong Fu and Zong Bi will never let go of Liangshan. But Mr. Ning believes that besides fighting, we have at least two other choices. For example, we can leave, give up Liangshan, and go to Jin, how about..."

"We have been operating here for quite some time, and we have already established our prestige..."

"If we fight, it will be difficult to continue these operations," Dong Fangxian said, "Then there is another choice. If you have made preparations to fight, I will cross the river and negotiate a result with Zong Fu and Zong Bi. In some form, in some step, we will give each other a way out. Considering that Wu Qimai of the Jin Kingdom is about to die, and the Eastern Route Army is bloated, Zong Fu and Zong Bi are likely to agree to such negotiation conditions. You will retain the possibility of development for the time being and become the vanguard for attacking the Jin Kingdom someday in the future."

Wang Shanyue was silent. Dong Fangxian said, "Shandong has already been devastated before. There were no wheat seedlings for the winter wheat last year. Your current rations are only enough to eat for a month or two. Mr. Ning has proposed borrowing grain and seedlings from Jin. Once you get through this, you will slowly recover your strength. And Shandong, you will truly start to operate it..."

"What about the hundreds of thousands of people abducted by the Eastern Route Army?" Wang Shanyue asked, raising his head.

Dong Fangxian said, "Can they be saved?"

"If we launch an attack, some people can escape in the chaos."

"...Some people will escape, more people will die. Then, you will die, and the disgraced Eastern Route Army will capture all the people they can catch and send them north."

"If we avoid it because of this, what will the people of the world think of us?"

"There is no good choice here, and it is difficult to judge which choice is worse. So Mr. Ning said that you can make your own decisions. If you decide to fight, I will do my best to cooperate with you. If you decide to negotiate, I will try my best to negotiate. Everyone is a martial artist, so of course you all know that many times we withdraw our wrists in order to strike the enemy in the face with a greater force..."

His fat arm shrank and punched out with considerable force: "Launching a battle here can encourage the people of the world and may even really encounter Zong Fu and Zong Bi on the battlefield and kill them. This is the most straightforward and simple choice. But if you retreat today, you will have a regret in your heart, and it may even be turned over someday in the future, and even leave a bad name. Five or ten years from now, it's hard to say whether you will be able to exert more strength and attack the Jin Kingdom...Be cautious in your judgment."

Wang Shanyue looked at him: "It is also possible that you, the fat man, will cross the river, and the two fools Zong Fu and Zong Bi will not be willing to talk, and you will become a sacrifice that we send to them. They will burn you first to sacrifice the flag."

Dong Fangxian smiled: "Very possible, but if others were to negotiate such a thing, it probably wouldn't work out. I, the fat man, have no choice but to take a trip."

His words were calm, and in the ordinariness, there was a disregard for life and death. In fact, the four people present had mostly known each other and dealt with each other for more than ten years. Even though Wang Shanyue was quite unhappy with Ning Yi and the idea he proposed, he understood in his heart that the proposal of this idea was not out of fear, but because the battles and losses that the Liangshan army had experienced in the past two years were indeed too tragic. By this time, its vitality had not recovered. If they carried out another fearless fight, they could certainly tear a piece of meat from the Jurchens, but that was all it would be...

The Yellow River flowed down turbulently, and the sun gradually turned to the west. Zhu, Wang, Liu, and others on the river bank talked to each other, considering the next choice. In the desolate mountains and wild ridges a dozen miles away from them, Luo Ye, who had become somewhat thin, and others were maintaining their weapons in the sunlight. Not far away, Guan Sheng's troops were also resting, while Lu Junyi was leading reconnaissance troops, active in the more distant places. They were all eager to cut off someone's dog head in the upcoming battle.

Under the same background, a little more than a hundred miles south of the Yellow River, another envoy team bearing the mission of negotiation was approaching the Jurchen Eastern Route Army camp. This was an envoy sent from the Lin'an Little Court. The leader was Huang Zhong, the Minister of Rites of the Little Court. This was one of the most trusted right-hand men of the Left Prime Minister Tie Yan. He was clear-headed and eloquent. The purpose of his trip was to impress Zong Fu and Zong Bi, so that these two Jurchen princes, under the current situation, would release some of the Lin'an people who had been captured and taken north.

This was the inspiration that the Lin'an Little Court received after learning about Dai Mengwei's deeds: After the crushing defeat in the southwest, in order to maximize the containment of the Chinese Army, Xiyin had left a lot of benefits to Dai Mengwei, who was anti-Chinese Army. Now the days of the Lin'an Little Court were not easy either. In the foreseeable future, the Black Flag Army would become the most terrible force on the land of the former Wu Dynasty. Therefore, as one of the firm forces against the Black Flag, they also hoped that the two princes, Zong Fu and Zong Bi, could give them as much support as possible before leaving.

When the Eastern Route Army left, it had taken tens of thousands of people from Jiangnan one after another. Under the current circumstances, if they could persuade the other party, they could at least release one thousand, or even several thousand, people who originally belonged to Lin'an. Everyone who participated in this lobbying would be greatly famous, and Tie Yan and others would have a more solid rule over Lin'an.

That was how they considered it.

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