[R18] Will drink wine – “About Wine” Chapter 145 [English]

Chapter 140 Suburbs

Cai Yu was gathering people here with great fanfare, but the refugees outside the city had already gathered in a sea.In just one night, the news that someone had set up a tent to provide porridge spread throughout a radius of more than ten miles. Hungry and emaciated refugees gathered in groups and blocked the porridge tent in Cizhou.

Qiao Tianya watched people swarming in. The manpower at the front to maintain the porridge team was no longer enough, so he gave Fei Sheng a look.Fei Sheng withdrew knowingly, led his royal guards to strictly guard the grain cart, and replaced Cizhou’s guards to maintain the team.These guards in royal robes and black robes carry swords. They are all capable and intimidating to the restless people around them.

“Master,” Qiao Tianya raised his arms to block people and whispered to Shen Zechuan, “It’s getting dark. We’ve been here for two days and one night. It’s almost time. It’s time to retreat to the back.”

Shen Zechuan just finished talking to the old man among the refugees. Hearing this, he did not look back. He took back the blue handkerchief he took out and said, “It doesn’t matter if you stay.”

Qiao Tianya looked around and saw that the crowds around him were all refugees with dove-shaped faces. He was worried that there would be a conflict and someone fished in troubled waters and hurt Shen Zechuan in order to grab food, so he said: “Master, stand behind, and it will be the same next to the food truck.”

Shen Zechuan saw that the forest was completely dyed, the burning clouds were like torn red cotton, the setting sun had already set halfway, and it would be dark soon.He stayed outside the city for two days and one night. Now he looked away and said, “There’s no rush.”

* * *

The sky was getting darker, and lanterns were set up in every shop along the streets in the city.There are no restaurants or teahouses in Chazhou now, but due to the overpopulation of people, many kilns have opened in off angles.When Cai Yu wanted to recruit people, he called all the gang leaders within his gang. These people relied on Cai Yu for their livelihood. They usually had no real business. They liked to bully the weak, ran rampant in the city, and liked to get into trouble. They rested all year round. When they were called out one by one, they still had their trousers raised and their eyes were wet. Some of them were drunk.Cai Yu’s cronies did not dare to offend anyone, so they coaxed and flattered them, so they invited these people out.

They called their names and lined up at one end, and Luo Mu and Kong Ling also started to move at the other end.

Kong Ling bowed to the gang leaders who secretly helped Luo Mu and said: “Everyone knows that Cizhou came here to sell grain. As long as the danger can be avoided tonight, the price of rice will be even lower tomorrow.”

One of them said: “It’s empty talk, how can brothers believe it?”

Kong Ling turned sideways, led Luo Mu out, and said, “My words are not trustworthy, but Mr. Luo’s words can always be trusted, right?”

Luo Mu came to help again and again. In this half month alone, he helped these small gangs a lot of money.They have been severely suppressed by Cai Yu recently. They dare not go out in the alleys during the day, and the one or two or five buckets of cheap food cannot be transferred. They have been forced to a desperate situation by Cai Yu, and they are all supported by Luo Mu. Naturally, they are willing to believe Luo Mu’s words.

Luo Mu cleared his throat and said: “Currently, all the granaries in the city are managed by Cai Yu alone. The prices are too high. Even ordinary people like us, let alone ordinary people, cannot afford it. The price offered by Cizhou is suitable, close to that of Qidu. What’s even more rare is Cizhou’s promise that the price will never rise in the future. I have signed a document with Cizhou, and there is no falsehood in black and white.”

The gang leaders gathered together to talk to each other.

Kong Ling continued: “I know everyone is worried about the Yan family, but as the saying goes, long-term pain is worse than short-term pain. Instead of letting the Yan family control the lifeline of Chazhou through Cai Yu’s power, it is better for the brothers to make the decision themselves. Moreover, Cai Yu is willing to lower the price today because the price of rice in Cizhou is too low. If we can’t get rid of him tonight, then when our Cizhou grain trucks are withdrawn, the rice price in Chazhou will still rise back to the original state.”

If you want to work together with others, you must first clarify your interests and concerns with them.Kong Ling knew this well. Cizhou’s original price was one tael, one stone and eight dou, but Shen Zechuan did not mention this number during the two-day price reduction, just to encourage people at this moment.

Kong Ling paused for a moment and continued: “According to what we all know, as long as everyone is willing to work hard, when Cai Yu is defeated, the price of rice will be three buckets lower than one, two, one stone and three buckets!”

As soon as these words came out, the crowd immediately started boiling.

The price of rice in Qudu is only one tael, one stone and five dou, but Cizhou is willing to give one stone and six dou, and the effect far exceeds the sweetness of Cai Yu.What we saw in it was not only food, but also a way to survive in the future in Chazhou.The most important thing is that the first batch of grain this autumn was not bought with their own money, but with Luo Mu’s money.After the fall of Cai Yu, Chazhou will still have Cai’s granary that can be plundered. Together with the two grains, we will no longer have to worry about surviving the winter this year!

There was a sudden chorus of harmony from below, and morale was high for a moment.

Kong Ling nodded to Luo Mu and said to the gang leaders below: “The people in Cai Yu haven’t left the city yet. Everyone, please stay calm. We have our own arrangements.”

At about midnight, Cai Yu’s men and horses left the city.These bandits used the arsenal of the Chazhou garrison. Although the equipment was old, it was very complete.Swords and shields are all available, and at a glance, they still look like a regular army.

When the cronies sent people to investigate in the morning, there were only a thousand people outside the city. But when he went out of the city now, he saw that there was no end to the black crowd, and it was clearly twice as many as during the day.There were only 1,500 men and horses belonging to Cai Yu in the city. He had brought a thousand with him on this trip. When he crowded at the gate of the city, he showed some timidity.

“Why are there so many people all at once?” The hall leader from behind poked his head, “They are crowded to the edge of the sky!”

The confidant turned around and said with a sad face: “You are so hungry that you can’t walk, how can you be considered a human being? What matters most is the grain truck. The master said that as long as you can get it, the food for this team in Cizhou will be divided among the hall leaders themselves.”

The hall master silently counted the people, and saw that they were all refugees in ragged clothes, and Cizhou’s guards were very few, so he said: “If you have a boss, let’s do it! Have you seen those Cizhou guards? How many heads are divided into several carts, whoever kills more will get more when the food is distributed later!”

The crowd was gearing up and swarmed away without the need for orders from their trusted aides.

* * *

As soon as Shen Zechuan put the porridge to his mouth, he heard the sound of killing.A group of bandits emerged from the official road, and they slashed with their swords.Fortunately, the Cizhou Guards were guarding the edge. The two sides were in close combat. Fei Sheng immediately spoke and shouted to the refugees: “It’s time to grab food. Cai Yu sent people to grab food!”

Fei Sheng raised his voice, but his voice was not loud enough.But the nearby refugees were already panicking, jostling together, and shouting: “We’re grabbing food! Cai Yu sent people to grab food!”

When the hall master on the other end heard this, he suddenly became jealous and laughed ferociously: “We are robbing the food! Whoever dares to block the way will be sacrificed with a sword! Brothers, charge!”

The number of guards in Cizhou was too small and could not withstand the bandits’ momentum.There were all the refugees behind them, huddled together now, and there were screams of being trampled all over the place.When the bandits saw this, they became playful. They dragged out the old, weak, women and children, and threatened them with knives: “Not only will they steal food, but they will also kill people, kill people!”

The woman holding the child was dragged by her hair by the bandits, making the bright knife tremble all over with fear, and she cried and begged.However, the bandits have always done many evil things. When they saw her crying, they not only showed no mercy, but laughed in unison, and even reached out to pull the child in her arms.

Unexpectedly, a hand suddenly appeared from the crowd and held the knife.

Qiao Tianya swung his robe and smiled: “Why do you kill people? Why do you humiliate others? It doesn’t sound happy to hear you cry, so you pick up the knife and drop it neatly!”

The bandit tried his best, but the knife could not move even an inch. He shouted: “Good guy! Let go!”

Seeing that he was blushing, Qiao Tianya took a few steps back, and the hall master staggered to follow.

Shen Zechuan stood behind and said, “What’s the point of playing tricks on others? Qiao Yueyue, let go and give it back to him.”

Qiao Tianya said: “It’s easy to say, easy to say, let go, let go right away!”

As soon as he finished speaking, Qiao Tianya really let go of his hand.The bandit was dragged forward with great force and rushed towards Qiao Tianya.Qiao Tianya dodged to the side, raised his leg and kicked the bandit on the butt. He was kicked into the crowd and fell right in front of Shen Zechuan’s feet.

The bandit wanted to get up, his eyes followed the white robe upward, and when he was about to slide to Shen Zechuan’s chest, the top of Yang Shanxue’s scabbard pressed against his heart.

Shen Zechuan changed his indifference, his eyes were sharp, and he said sternly: “Cizhou is here to help the people of Chazhou. Cai Yu doesn’t want me to enter the city, so that’s all. Does he even have to demolish the porridge shed? Then just demolish it, don’t hurt anyone.”

The voice of “he” is neither high nor low, but people around can hear it clearly.Chazhou was suffering terribly due to the food prices raised by Cai Yu and the Yan family. The people were filled with grief and anger. Listening to the rescued woman crying, many people actually cried too.

How did this bandit know that he had already hatched a plan? He only remembered the heads that the hall leader had just mentioned.Because he couldn’t lift his head, he held his head and said angrily: “The boss is the king of Chazhou. If he wants to demolish or kill you, can you stop him?!”

Shen Zechuan relaxed his pressure slightly and said, “These grains——”

Soon enough, the bandit picked up the knife that had fallen close to him, raised his hand and slashed towards Shen Zechuan’s chest.Qiao Tianya had already moved, but he couldn’t resist the bandit’s close approach, and the blade was pointed straight at Shen Zechuan.However, at this moment, the bandit clearly saw the calmness in Shen Zechuan’s eyes, as if he had been waiting for a long time.

Yang Shanxue’s scabbard hit the side of the bandit’s knife with a “bang”, but with the sound, there were drops of bright red, splashing on Shen Zechuan’s sleeve.

The man next to Shen Zechuan had collapsed on the ground and said in horror: “He killed someone!”

Qiao Tianya originally thought that the blood belonged to someone else, but when he took a closer look, it was Shen Zechuan’s left hand bleeding.

There were loud cries all around, but Fei Sheng shouted loudly from a distance away: “Who dares to hurt my lord!”

The sound fell and the Jinyi guards drew their swords in unison.The hall master at the back knew from the moment Qiao Tianya took the knife that he was facing a tough fight. He quietly stepped back a few steps and ordered: “According to the master’s wishes, hack them to death with random swords!”

The bandit in front of Shen Zechuan was still alive. Qiao Tianya carefully kicked him from behind and knocked him to the ground. However, before Qiao Tianya drew his sword, several people rushed out from behind Shen Zechuan and pounced on the bandit, punching and kicking him.The crowd was excited, and their anger had reached its peak. All of a sudden, the refugees rushed together and crashed into the bandits desperately.

“Cai Yu opens a warehouse! The evil thief deserves death! Don’t hurt your benefactor!”