"Big Shopkeeper!"
In a corner of Mingzhou City, several middle-aged men in sackcloth knelt respectfully before Pu Kaishan.
"How many of our people have been notified?"
At this moment, Pu Kaishan was like a lone wolf that had strayed from the pack, his entire being exuding a violent aura.
The Pu family's years of planning had been uprooted, and he, the Pu family's Big Shopkeeper, now harbored an intense hatred for Han Mo.
"Reporting to the Big Shopkeeper, soldiers are patrolling everywhere outside. Our people have only managed to contact over seventy individuals!"
As they spoke, their faces showed shame.
The vast Pu family could now only mobilize a mere few dozen people, a truly pathetic situation to speak of.
After all, the Pu family was involved in maritime trade. Within the Song Dynasty, they were merchants, but outside the Song Dynasty's borders, engaging in some illicit business was not entirely impossible.
"Seventy people? Seventy it is, we won't wait any longer!"
After taking a deep breath, Pu Kaishan finally made a firm decision.
After all, no matter how many people they could gather, they could not directly confront the imperial court.
If he wanted to get revenge on Han Mo, all he needed to do was set fire to the government granary located west of the city, and that would be enough to utterly destroy Han Mo!
With the methods of those rebels, once Mingzhou City fell, all traces of their actions would be thoroughly buried.
By then, besides Han Mo's disappearance, absolutely no one would attribute this matter to the Pu family!
As for how many people would die in the process, that was none of his concern!
"Big Shopkeeper, just tell us what to do! We will obey your every command!"
Everything these people had was given to them by the Pu family. Now, the Pu family's influence in Mingzhou had crumbled. Although it hadn't implicated them yet, they themselves understood that this was entirely because the rebels were besieging the city, and the imperial court and those watching the Pu family were unable to act.
"You should be able to see the current situation clearly. If we don't deal with that fellow named Han, once these rebels retreat, everything we have will be completely taken away by them! Therefore, I've decided to set fire to the government granary in the west of the city tonight. Those of you willing to come are my brothers; if you are not willing, then consider me as having said nothing!"
As Pu Kaishan spoke, he carefully observed the expressions on his subordinates' faces.
"Big Shopkeeper, our lives were given by the Pu family. Just tell us what to do!"
"You will all split up now, collect sulfur, kerosene, and other flammable materials from various places in the city, and gather here again before the third watch tonight!"
"Yes!"
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"General, we've just received news that a detachment of Song troops has arrived fifty li north of Mingzhou City!"
"How many are there?"
"Our men dared not get too close, so the exact numbers are not clear, but it should be no less than 20,000..."
Upon hearing this news, Qiu Rixin's entire body jolted.
The fighting on the city walls had not yielded any significant advantage for them thus far. Mingzhou City was far more difficult to attack than they had imagined.
They had initially thought that the soldiers of Mingzhou City, apart from the 3,000 Victorious Army, were all useless drunks.
However, they had not expected that these soldiers would not only show no signs of fear but would instead feel more energized with each passing moment.
The originally planned swift conquest of Mingzhou City had now become a tough bone to crack.
Fortunately, they had an absolute advantage in numbers, which allowed them to boldly engage in a war of attrition with the defenders at this moment.
But all of this was predicated on Mingzhou City being isolated and without aid.
Now that 20,000 reinforcements had suddenly appeared, they were in a dilemma.
When Han Mo and the others organized the evacuation of the civilians, they had taken almost all the edible supplies with them.
Anything they couldn't take was burned.
Within dozens of li of Mingzhou, there was almost no food left.
Taizhou was not prosperous to begin with, which was why so many people had followed them in rebellion.
In order to quickly raise their forces, Lü Shinang and Qiu Rixin had directly used the grain from the government granary as advance pay for the soldiers.
After they brought their troops out of Taizhou, the remaining provisions they had on hand were only enough for half a month.
If they broke through Mingzhou, they would naturally no longer have to worry about military pay and provisions.
But the problem was, if they gave up now, their subsequent situation would be truly dire.
"Do not tell anyone about this news for now!"
After a moment of hesitation, Qiu Rixin lowered his voice and placed a gag order on the scout.
"Yes!"
"You may go and rest now. I will consider this matter before making a decision!"
"Yes!"
After dismissing the scout, Qiu Rixin hesitated for a long time before finally going to Lü Shinang's tent.
"Old Lü, take a look at this!"
"What is this?"
Although Lü Shinang spoke, his gaze remained fixed on the soldiers attacking the city.
"The imperial army's reinforcements are not far away!"
After sending away the guards around him, Qiu Rixin said in a low voice.
"What did you say?"
Upon hearing this news, Lü Shinang almost jumped up.
"This is the latest news. The imperial army's reinforcements, twenty thousand strong, are now only fifty li away from us!"
"Is this news reliable?"
The suddenness of this news made Lü Shinang find it difficult to believe.
"The scout is in the camp right now, it's highly likely to be true! What should we do?"
Looking at the soldiers still fighting bloody battles in the front, Qiu Rixin was now caught in a dilemma.
"We must conquer this bone! To get ahead, this is our last chance. Otherwise, we might only end up as vassals to others!"
After a brief silence, Lü Shinang made a firm decision.
All their stakes had been placed on the table. If they gave up now, they would likely never have a chance to rise.
After all, even within the rebel ranks, there were distinctions. If they couldn't even take Mingzhou City, they would probably only be vassals to others for their entire lives.
"But what about those twenty thousand reinforcements?"
Qiu Rixin asked with some concern.
"I'll stay here and keep watch. You take five thousand men and buy me three days, no matter what!"
"And what if after three days you still haven't taken it?"