freenovelworld Chapter 634 Wuji Zhen Clan
Chapter 634 Wuji Zhen Clan
A polite eunuch Cao once said that when people are hungry, they usually have only one worry. When people are full, they will have countless worries. Therefore, many worries are caused by being full.
Right now, for the Yellow Turban Army under Lu Cheng, their only worry is hunger.
The dry food received from those officers and soldiers was very limited. In addition, the Yellow Turban Army usually had no logistics and just robbed wherever they went. It was impossible for them to carry much dry food on the way to escape.
Therefore, the people under Lu Cheng are really having trouble finding their next meal.
After walking for half a day, they barely covered a dozen miles. Along the way, they gathered some scattered Yellow Turban soldiers, and there were hundreds more mouths to feed in the team.
Fortunately, in the evening, Lu Cheng led his men to Wuji County of Zhongshan Kingdom and discovered a fortress.
Wubao is a kind of folk defense building, which appeared in the period of Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty and began to appear widely in the north during the reign of Wang Mang. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the society was in turmoil, and the local tyrants and powerful families built Wubao and organized local militias to protect themselves.
Lu Cheng followed the two scouts to the fort ahead. Looking at the fort ahead, which was no smaller than a small city, he was a little surprised. It seemed that he had really encountered a wealthy man this time.
Then, Lu Cheng led his men and stopped one mile away from the fort. He asked his men to stay where they were and rode forward alone to the vicinity of the fort.
At this time, the militiamen inside the fort had also discovered the Yellow Turban Army coming from outside, and they sounded the warning gongs and drums, summoning soldiers to guard the fort.
When Lu Cheng arrived outside the gate of the fort, a lot of people had gathered on the wall of the fort, and many soldiers drew their bows and arrows, aiming at Lu Cheng.
Sweeping the walls around the fort, I saw a flag on the middle gate tower with the word "Zhen" written on it. There was also a plaque horizontally in the middle of the gate tower.
Lu Cheng rode on his horse, holding a long sword, pointing at the people on the gate tower, and said loudly: "I am Lu Cheng, passing by here, and I have come to ask for some food and grass from your manor. Please give me some convenience!"
When Lu Cheng shouted, his voice was as loud as a huge bell. Everyone on the gate tower was shocked. Some of the timid ones even collapsed to the ground in fear.
On the gate tower, a scholar in his thirties with a short beard leaned against the city wall and looked at Lu Cheng below. He couldn't help but admire him: "This man is standing on his horse with a sword in hand, looking like a dragon and a tiger. He has an extraordinary bearing and is definitely not an ordinary Yellow Turban soldier."
A young general in a white robe standing next to him couldn't help but mutter in his heart: "He's just a vagrant and a bandit, he just has a loud voice. Wait for me to go out and capture him!"
"Stop, don't act rashly! Let me have a few words with him and see what he wants first."
"Uncle, the Yellow Turban bandits are wreaking havoc on the world and everyone has the right to punish them. My Zhen family is a prestigious family and you are an official in the court. How could you have an affair with the bandits?"
"Shut up, I have my own plans."
After that, the short-bearded scholar stepped forward, looked at Lu Cheng below and spoke loudly: "The general downstairs is invited. I am Zhen Yi, the head of the Wuji Zhen family and the former Shangcai magistrate. Now the Yellow Turban Army is on the decline and Zhang Jue is dead. Why don't you surrender to the court as soon as possible, instead of hiding everywhere? If the general is willing to surrender, I can recommend the general to the court."
Lu Cheng cupped his hands and said, "Thank you for your kindness, Master Zhen. The court is now full of corrupt officials, causing the people like us to suffer. Even if we surrender to the court, how many of these men under my command can survive? Since I have brought them out, I will bring them along to survive. Master Zhen, please lend us 500 shi of grain and grass. I will definitely reward you handsomely in the future!"
Zhen Yi wanted to say something else after hearing this, but the young general in white robe beside him couldn't help but said, "You are so arrogant. You want 500 shi of food and fodder right out of your mouth. I want to see if you have the ability to take it!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the young general in white robe rushed down the gate tower, ordered the soldiers to open the gate, and rushed out with 300 soldiers.
The Wuji Zhen family originated from Zhen Han, the Grand Guardian of the Eastern Han Dynasty. Their family inherited an official position with a salary of 2,000 stones. In addition, their families have been engaged in business for generations, and they are also well-known wealthy merchants in the world today. They also need their own guards when doing business, so naturally they have to store some weapons and armor in the fortress.
Although the imperial court strictly prohibited the private possession of weapons and armor, this prohibition did not have much binding force on the noble families in the chaotic times. Some of the more careful ones would sew leather and iron pieces into their clothes to make cotton armor to fool people.
These three hundred soldiers do seem to be much stronger than the refugees and bandits under Lu Cheng, but at best they are just militiamen and not elite.
With just one look, Lu Cheng knew that the people training soldiers in Zhenjiabao did not have much ability and were just for show.
The young general in white robe, wearing silver armor and holding a silver spear, rode up on horseback and said aggressively, "Attention, thief, look at the spear!"
Facing the opponent's charge, Lu Cheng simply stepped on his horse's belly and took two or three steps forward. When the opponent's spear stabbed at him, he swung his sword to block it, directly knocking the spear out of the opponent's hand. When the two horses passed each other, he reached out and grabbed the young general in white robe, holding him in the air with one arm.
The young general in white robe was suddenly captured, and he was in a panic, dancing around in a very funny way.
Zhen Yi on the top of the city wall quickly said: "General, please show mercy and don't hurt my nephew's life. The matter of food and grass can be discussed easily."
Lu Cheng laughed, put the young general in white robe on his horse, and hit him on the back of the neck with his palm, knocking him unconscious: "Master Zhen, do you think this nephew is worth 500 shi of grain and grass?"
Zhen Yi was stunned when he heard this, then nodded quickly: "It's worth it. Please wait for a moment, General. I will have someone prepare a thousand stones of food and grass."
"Food and fodder alone are not enough. Master Zhen, please prepare carriages and horses to transport the food and fodder for us."
“That’s… no problem!”
Just based on Lu Cheng's ability to lift a man up in the air with one hand, the two or three hundred soldiers of Zhenjiabao could not resist him. What's more, there were more than a thousand Yellow Turban soldiers behind him.
While preparing food and grass inside, Lu Cheng took a look at the overall structure and defense of Zhenjiabao, but in his mind he thought of Zhen Mi, the wife of Emperor Wen of Wei, Cao Pi, and the sister-in-law who asked Cao Zijian to write "The Goddess of the Luo River".
However, Zhen Mi was probably only one or two years old at that time, still just a little baby.
The Zhen family is not only the richest family in the world, but is also one of the most powerful families in Hebei. A thousand dan of grain is nothing to them.
Moreover, Zhen Yi not only had people prepare carriages and horses to transport the grain, but also prepared a certain amount of fodder and food for the cattle and horses. His considerations were quite comprehensive.
When the more than 1,000 men saw that Lu Cheng had actually gotten the food, their trust in Lu Cheng immediately increased significantly. Some of those who could drive cattle and horses came forward to drive the cattle and horses, transporting the food away, as if they were afraid that the other party would ask for it back.
After getting the food, Lu Cheng kept his promise and released the young general in white robe.
After Lu Cheng left, a middle-aged man in his forties dressed in gorgeous clothes walked up to Zhen Yi and asked, "Fourth brother, since you knew that the Yellow Turban general was not easy to mess with, why didn't you stop Li'er just now?"
Zhen Yi smiled and said, "If we don't fight and just send them food, I'm afraid someone will really suspect that we are colluding with the Yellow Turban Army. Besides, Li'er is young and hot-tempered, and he doesn't know how high the heaven is or how deep the earth is. Letting him suffer a little will also be good for him in the future. Let people pay more attention to this Lu Cheng, he is definitely not a simple person."