"Giddy... giddy... giddy..."
A troop of Yan army cavalry thundered past, kicking up mud that flew as high as ten feet. Splattering mud all over Zhou Fugui, it prompted him to curse, "Damn you all, are you going to a funeral? Can't you watch where you're going?"
"Hey, Fugui, why didn't you just move further away?" Li Qing pulled Zhou Fugui a little further from the road.
Another troop of Yan army cavalry galloped by soon after.
The closer they got to Guangling Commandery, the more Yan soldiers there were, cavalry, chariots, archers, supply troops, and so on. They came and went daily, a ceaseless stream.
The reason was that the Yan army and the Xia army were locked in fierce battle around Guangling Commandery, Linhuai Kingdom, and Huainan Commandery.
"Squad leader Zhou Fugui, what are you doing?" asked the banner officer Albu Gu, as he rode up with his men.
"What else? On orders to scout the way," Zhou Fugui replied.
"Hmph, have you found a place to rest the horses?" Albu Gu asked with a snort.
"There's a village ahead, where we can temporarily rest the horses," Zhou Fugui said, pointing forward.
"A village? Are there any enemy ambushes?" Albu Gu asked again.
The ambush at Yuema River still made Albu Gu feel lingering fear.
In reality, Albu Gu had no need to worry now. The Yan and Xia armies were in a standoff. The Yan army had already dug deep trenches, surrounding Guangling Commandery for nearly three months. Under such circumstances, it was difficult even for the Xia army to leave Guangling Commandery, let alone launch a raid.
"I'm not a Xia insider, how would I know where they're ambushing?" Zhou Fugui shook his head. "Anyway, when we went, apart from some common folk, there wasn't a single Xia soldier."
"Hmm, lead the way," Albu Gu said, nodding.
After passing Xuzhou, the Dare-to-Die Battalion had been camping mostly in the wilderness, enduring hardships. Albu Gu now longed to find a town or village, have a good drink, and then get a good night's sleep.
...
"My lords, my lords, we are loyal subjects, you... what is this...?"
The village was named Danyang Village, a small village in the region of Lianghuai.
Danyang Village was settled by clans, with the Hong surname being the most common. The village head, a middle-aged man named Hong Biru, led them out, trembling, upon seeing a group of "barbarian" soldiers suddenly charge into the village.
Besides Albu Gu's Youzhou Banner, three other banners from different battalions of the Yan army, a total of over four hundred men and horses, had arrived at Danyang Village.
"Haha, he says he's a loyal subject?" Albu Gu roared with laughter, looking around.
The "barbarian" soldiers all laughed heartily.
"They are all common people." Zhou Fugui ignored the arrogant Albu Gu and went up to Hong Biru, comforting him, "Elder, do not worry. We are only staying here for the night and will not disturb you."
Seeing Zhou Fugui's polite demeanor, Hong Biru felt a little relieved.
In recent years, Yan and Xia had been constantly at war, causing devastation. Danyang Village had offended neither side, nor dared to offend them. They had closed their gates and paid no attention to the outside world, thus surviving to this day.
Some villagers had fled Danyang Village, but most were reluctant to abandon their ancestral lands and stayed. Currently, there were about fifty households, over two hundred people in the village.
Now, hundreds of "barbarian" soldiers had arrived, claiming to be staying overnight, but in reality, they wanted the villagers to hand over their food and drink. This meant that the fifty households in the village would have to exhaust their resources, providing all their food and drink to satisfy them.
If they could satisfy them, and the "barbarians" left in the end, it would be considered a great fortune.
Indeed, Albu Gu said with a smile to Hong Biru, "Squad leader Zhou is right. We gentlemen are staying here for the night. Quickly kill a chicken and slaughter a sheep, and entertain us well. Then you can be considered loyal subjects."
Hong Biru had no choice but to gather the villagers to bring out food and drink to entertain these wolf-like "barbarians".
"Squad leader Zhou, you guard the outside," Albu Gu ordered Zhou Fugui, then led his men into the houses.
"You son of a bitch," Zhou Fugui replied with a smile, but inwardly cursed, "I hope you choke on your wine, I hope a piece of meat gets stuck in your throat and you choke to death, you bastard."
"Fugui, why do you look so down?"
Zhou Fugui led his men to guard the outside and started a bonfire. Not long after, the villagers brought some food and drink. Zhou Fugui sat aside with a worried expression, neither eating nor drinking, so Li Qing came over and asked.
Zhou Fugui looked at Li Qing and said, "In times of chaos, the common people suffer the most."
"Mmm..." Li Qing nodded, "The common people work hard to grow grain, and they don't have enough to eat for three meals a day, yet they still have to give it to the army. It is truly difficult. But Fugui, you and I are but ants, what good does it do us to know this?"
"The learned scholar is right," Pan Jian Gui said dismissively, while chewing a piece of lamb. "Fugui, you are too soft-hearted. We have traveled a thousand miles to get here, what are we here for?"
"Didn't you say it yourself? To survive," Pan Jian Gui replied.
"Yes, indeed, to survive," Zhou Fugui said thoughtfully.
All of this was for survival.
When Zhou Fugui first came into this world, his engagement was broken off. To make matters worse, he was "conscripted" by the Yan court and became a soldier in the Yan army. If Zhou Fugui refused, not only would his life be in danger, but his entire family would be implicated. Thus, Zhou Fugui joined the army to survive.
Now, Zhou Fugui had followed the Yan army south and was forced to fight the Xia army. On the battlefield, Zhou Fugui had killed many Xia soldiers, also to survive.
On the battlefield, if you don't kill the enemy, you will be killed by the enemy. This is an eternal truth.
In the Yan army, Zhou Fugui and his men obeyed military orders, also to survive, otherwise, they would lose their heads.
The desire to survive is human instinct!
"That's it..." Pan Jian Gui said, looking at Zhou Fugui and laughing teasingly. "Since it's to survive, why do you care where this food comes from? Look at you, not eating or drinking, are you trying to starve yourself to death?"
The Yan army had traveled a long distance, and the long supply lines could not fully satisfy the food and drink needs of all the Yan soldiers. Therefore, foraging locally was one of their strategies, which, in plain terms, was plundering the local populace.
"The Great Song's Yue Wumu, he would freeze to death without dismantling houses, and starve to death without looting. How did he achieve this?" Under Pan Jian Gui's persuasion, and also feeling hungry, Zhou Fugui picked up a piece of meat and said while gnawing.
"The Great Song's Yue Wumu? Who is that? What is the Great Song?" Li Qing, who had read many history books, had never heard of such a thing as the Great Song, and asked in surprise.
"Uh, a legend, just a legend," Zhou Fugui covered up vaguely. "The Great Song's Yue Wumu, would freeze to death without dismantling houses, and starve to death without looting. His discipline was strict, and thus his troops were a battle-hardened force, a victorious force. With these people, hmph, they are bound to lose."
"This historical turn has gone in an unknown direction," Zhou Fugui thought to himself. Perhaps the era of the Great Song had not yet arrived?
"Hey, Fugui, these words are for you and me, our brothers, to say. You must not let them hear," Li Qing and the others, startled by Zhou Fugui's treasonous words, looked around before saying to Zhou Fugui.
"Mmm..." One has to bow their head under a roof. Zhou Fugui also felt it was inappropriate, so he nodded hastily.
"Ah..."
At this moment, a scream came from inside the house, and then the door was suddenly kicked open. The village head, Hong Biru, with a mouth full of blood, collapsed at the door, startling Zhou Fugui and the others.
"Beasts, animals, damned beasts!" Hong Biru, unable to turn back, spat blood and glared at Zhou Fugui, roaring.
"Thump! Thump!" With two sounds, two "barbarian" soldiers chased out of the room and speared the village head to the ground with their long spears.
"Father..." Immediately after, a naked woman with disheveled hair rushed out of the room, threw herself on the village head Hong Biru, and cried loudly, only to be then stabbed to death by the "barbarian" soldiers with grinning faces, falling on her father.
"What happened?" Zhou Fugui, dumbfounded and furious, murmured.
"The southern rebels dared to assassinate the flag officer! The flag officer ordered them all killed!" a Yan general replied to Zhou Fugui and the others.
"Go to hell with your bullshit!" At this moment, Zhou Fugui still didn't know what had happened? He roared, "Canglang!" he drew his saber, pointed it at the Yan general, and shouted, "What monstrous deed have you committed?"
"Zhou Fugui, are you rebelling?" At this moment, Albu Gu emerged from the room, holding a sharp blade, his clothes in disarray, and shouted at Zhou Fugui.
"Rebel your mother!" Zhou Fugui was already extremely angry, his eyes wide with rage, holding his saber and about to fight Albu Gu. However, at the signals from Li Qing and Pan Jian Gui, Suo Dacheng and Xu Mancang held him back and dragged him away.
"Clang... Clang... Clang..."
"The barbarian dogs are harming the village head! All the old and young men in the village, come out and kill the barbarian thieves!"
"Kill! We'll fight them to the death!"
At this moment, a series of rapid gong sounds suddenly echoed through Danyang Village. Amidst the "clang clang" of the gongs, there were also shouts from countless villagers. Numerous villagers rushed out of their homes, carrying various weapons such as carrying poles, hoes, and pitchforks, and even iron spears and arrows, all surging towards the farmhouse where Hong Biru lived.
"Rebellious peasants! Why aren't you acting?"
Albu Gu glanced coldly at Zhou Fugui and his men, then ordered his subordinates.
"Rebellious peasants! Kill without mercy!"
In a short while, shouts of killing erupted in Danyang Village. Squads of Yan army cavalry galloped back and forth, cutting down until all the villagers in Danyang Village were slaughtered.
The villagers of Danyang Village were almost unarmed. Even with carrying poles, hoes, and pitchforks, which could hardly be called weapons, how could they be a match for the Yan army cavalry?
At this moment, it suddenly began to rain heavily. The torrential rain washed over every corner of Danyang Village, flowing along the corners of walls and houses, turning red and spreading in all directions.
"I did not kill Bo Ren, yet Bo Ren died because of me. I did not kill Bo Ren, yet Bo Ren died because of me!" Zhou Fugui stood blankly in the rain, muttering. His heart was filled with unbearable rage, yet he felt utterly powerless once again.
"Brother Fugui..." Xiao Qing tearfully tugged at Zhou Fugui's sleeve.
A young boy hiding in the grass, though drenched, dared not make a sound, only staring intently at Zhou Fugui and Xiao Qing.
"Zhou Fugui, the flag officer orders you to immediately lead your men back to camp!" a Yan soldier on horseback came over and relayed the order to Zhou Fugui.