After Huo Yunying thought about it for a while, he found Marshal Peng again.
This time he learned wisely and did not tell Marshal Peng that he would take away all his men.
Those seven hundred people were all left to Marshal Peng for his own use, and he only took thirty people with him.
This time, Marshal Peng did not stop him anymore. He praised Huo Yunying's enterprising spirit and let him choose from among the seven hundred people. He also graciously allowed him to pick some excellent equipment to take away.
After all, you only have thirty people with you. Even if these people all take away sophisticated armor and equipment, and each person takes away a horse, how much can they bring?
Compared to the 700 people who stayed, this was already a considerable concession.
Soon, the team of 700 people that Huo Yunying had worked so hard to pull together stood neatly on the school field, waiting for Huo Yunying's selection.
The corps commander, the chief, and everyone in charge of other matters including logistics and other matters in the military were all placed in front of Huo Yunying.
"You, you, and you..."
In fact, Huo Yunying didn't know much about these people.
After all, when fighting begins, he is always the first to charge, and the people who make the impression are often those who charge with him.
Huo Yunying felt that since these people could achieve military exploits and achieve high or even higher positions in the rebel army, they must have certain talents, and at least among these 700 people, they should be considered elites.
There were also people with anxious looks on their faces, and they kept winking at Huo Yunying, gesturing for him to take them away.
Obviously, Marshal Peng was watching from the side, and it was impossible for these people to really jump out and hug Huo Yunying's thigh and ask him to take them away. Otherwise, what if Marshal Peng didn't leave and was remembered by Marshal Peng in the future?
Moreover, among the seven hundred people, there are so many people shouting together, how can it be inappropriate?
So these people could only wink at Huo Yunying, hoping to take them away.
But the problem is, there must be far more than thirty people winking.
Huo Yunying also felt like her head was as big as a bucket. When she actually chose, she felt that she was suffering from difficulty in choosing.
But fortunately, after a while of struggle, thirty elites were selected.
"Peng Shuai, it's decided, these are the people." Huo Yunying said.
Marshal Peng was very happy: "Okay, then I wish you success in advance! You can come back and visit at any time in the future. Chuzhou City is your forever home!"
Although he said this, Huo Yunying knew in his heart that he would never come back again.
Then, Huo Yunying saw the camera gradually zooming up.
In the field of vision, the young Sheng Taizu left Chuzhou City with these thirty elites and headed towards the unknown distance.
Huo Yunying couldn't help but look happy: "Hey, could it be said that I am the first of the four identities to pass the level?"
What I see in front of me is obviously a CG cutscene that appears after the plot has come to an end.
In previous trial copies, this often meant clearing the level.
But soon, Huo Yunying realized that he was wrong.
Because in his field of vision, a system prompt that he had never seen before appeared.
[Failed to pass the level as "Rebel"!]
There is only such a simple line and no other explanation.
Huo Yunying was stunned.
"Failed?
"Why did it fail...Obviously Sheng Taizu successfully escaped from Marshal Peng's control and led his own team to conquer the world...
"Moreover, you didn't encounter the Northern Barbarian army?"
There is no further explanation from the system. Obviously, it is up to the players to think about why it failed.
Huo Yunying did not start over immediately, but fell into deep thought.
“Why is it directly judged to be a failure?
"Well... we should first think about where we are lacking.
"Military failure? It shouldn't be the case. I didn't encounter the Northern Barbarian army. I didn't die or suffer heavy losses like last time. Moreover, I also successfully broke away from the rebel army and went out on my own.
"Judging from the automatic triggering of the cutscene when leaving Chuzhou City, there should be no problem with this step.
"But the system directly determined that I failed...could it be..."
After some analysis, Huo Yunying had a guess in his mind.
But he did not put this speculation into practice immediately. Instead, he temporarily left the game and returned to reality.
I looked at the time and saw that it was only after two o'clock in the evening, so there was still plenty of time.
However, considering that the flow of time in reality seems to be much faster than in the game, Huo Yunying did not dare to neglect and quickly turned on the computer to search for relevant information.
Soon, he found the result he wanted.
"it's here!
"After a period of development, Sheng Taizu successfully recruited a team of 700 people, most of whom were people from his hometown.
"This is a good and effective force, so in Chuzhou City, Marshal Peng was very happy and promoted Taizu Sheng to the position of governor.
"But not long after, Sheng Taizu left Chuzhou City with twenty-four people and headed south to Dingyuan...
"And these people are called the 'Twenty-Four Generals of the Two Huaihe Rivers'. Among them is the founding general Gu Yuan, and most of them will later become the pillars of the entire Dasheng Dynasty. Almost all of them are
Many of them were granted titles and became generals, and later became high-ranking officials in the Dasheng Dynasty..."
After checking the information, Huo Yunying understood what his problem was.
"There is a problem with the selection process..."
Comparing the two, Huo Yunying realized that she failed in this last step.
Under the circumstances at that time, Sheng Taizu really had no more choices.
If you stay, sooner or later there will be internal strife within the rebel army. Even if there is no internal strife, it is very likely that the Northern Barbarians will attack you. If you develop under Marshal Peng, your hands will be tied after all.
Therefore, if Huo Yunying only knew how to fight, then after reaching a certain level, the Northern Barbarian general Dong Chengyun would besiege Chuzhou City, and this would be an impossible battle to win.
Even if it was not Dong Chengyun but other Northern Barbarian generals who came, even if he led people to escape from Chuzhou City, the game would still be a failure.
Because this means that players have failed to properly analyze the current situation within the rebel army, and there will be no good results if it continues to develop.
If you want to leave, it is absolutely impossible to take away your subordinates, you can only take away a small part.
But of course there are particularities to who should be taken away.
Because these people taken away are not only the team that will conquer the world in the future, but also reflect Sheng Taizu's ability to recognize people.
Huo Yunying couldn't help but think of a question he had seen online before.
"For emperors like Sheng Taizu who came from a lower class, their famous ministers and generals were often a small group of people in a small area near their hometown. Why did famous ministers and generals appear together in that place?"
The answer to this question is very simple. It is actually just two words: "platform".
What kind of things can be done on any platform.
If a person is just an ordinary civilian who spends his life farming and herding cattle, he will not become a general when he is seventy or eighty years old.
And if a person has been fighting since he was a teenager, has more and more resources in his hands, and the opponents he fights are getting stronger and stronger, then as long as he has a certain amount of talent, he can always become a good general.
Many times, there are smart people in various small places, and the level of smartness of these smart people is actually about the same.
What really makes them widen the gap is their platform and resources.
The founding emperor was this platform.
On this platform, these famous ministers and generals encounter enemies that are difficult to defeat and problems that are difficult to solve. They may fail, but a large amount of resources can give them a guarantee and allow them to keep trying.
What's more, they can learn from each other and help each other.
Therefore, they will achieve higher achievements than others in the end.
Of course, the premise of saying this is that they are all capable and have good talents.
If there are people without talent, no matter how big the platform is, it is meaningless.
Therefore, another important factor is that the founder of the country has a good understanding of people and can know the talents and potential of these people, put them in the most suitable positions, and select the most capable talents for his own use.
And the key to playing the role of "rebel" lies in this.
As a rebel, Huo Yunying did not encounter very difficult battles. The Northern Barbarian army he encountered in the early stage was not difficult to defeat, and in an environment where all the heroes in the world were together, it was not difficult to recruit an army of several hundred people.
Other rebels at the same time were basically able to do this.
So, what makes Sheng Taizu fundamentally different from other rebels?
There are three points: the ability to judge clearly the general trend of the world, the decisiveness to make the right choice, and the ability to recognize people when selecting talents.
Without these three points, even if Sheng Taizu could fight, he would still be just a warlord in the troubled times of separatism, and would only fall into failure in the end; but with these three points, Sheng Taizu could stand out from countless rebels and create a new dynasty
.
The role of "Rebel" is a test of the player's abilities in these three aspects.
After figuring this out, Huo Yunying finally understood why he had not seen anyone named "Gu Yuan" after playing the role for so long.
Because the game "Dark Sand" deliberately re-covers the fog of history.
Sheng Taizu did not know that Gu Yuan would become the founding general of the country in the future. He gradually recognized his military talent and promoted him continuously, which finally made him a famous general.
If the names of these people are still exactly the same as in history, wouldn't the players just copy the answers?
The test of "knowing people" is completely ineffective.
Therefore, Huo Yunying's task is to expand the team and defeat the Northern Barbarian army, but also to clearly see the abilities of each person and keep the outstanding talents firmly in his mind.
The final test of the identity of a "rebel" is actually an exam.
The content of the exam is the daily performance of more than 700 people; and the standard of the exam is the player's own judgment; after the exam results come out, the system can judge whether the player's ability to recognize people is qualified, and the player is selected.
Can these selected people support the framework for conquering the world?
Twenty-four people were selected from more than 700 people. This was an extremely difficult multiple-choice question.
In history, Sheng Taizu almost passed the test with perfect scores, and now, it is the players' turn to recreate this operation.
After thinking about this, Huo Yunying took a deep breath, lay back on the bed again, and entered the game world of "Dark Sand".
Play the role of a "rebel" and start over.
There was still enough time, so this time he wanted to start from scratch and take a closer look at who among these seven hundred people could truly become the pillars.
…
At this time, Lu Heng was beginning his unknown life cycle.
As the game progresses, his identity is constantly changing, and he is constantly trying various sexy operations.
For example, he once tried to mobilize those desperate beggars to join him in uprising, but during the negotiation stage, because of a whistleblower, he was surrounded by officers and soldiers in a ruined temple, and was hacked to death without any resistance;
He also tried to spread various religions among the people at the bottom, spreading ideas such as "Heaven is dead and Huang Tian shall stand". He also tried to write a few anti-poems, but after a while, he still failed.
He was discovered by the government and then taken to the execution ground to be beheaded;
I once traveled all over the world, begging all the way, and searching for news about the rebels. As a result, I was killed by bandits who were cutting off the path. Even if I loudly said that I wanted to join the gang, the other party was completely indifferent...
In short, Lu Heng at this time was like a rookie who accidentally entered a game of chicken.
If Huo Yunying and Chu Ge can play one game in half an hour, then Lu Heng can play more than a dozen games in half an hour.
He died too quickly, and often in an unclear way.
What bothered him the most was that at this moment, he still had no idea how to pass the level.
After some analysis before, he felt that the greatest possibility was to have a certain amount of initiative.
You can't keep waiting for the rebels to find you. You have to find a way to form a rebel army yourself and forcefully enter the stage of playing a second identity.
But after trying it a few times, I found that it didn't work at all.
Therefore, Lu Heng felt as if he was back to where he started.
This hit him hard, and he was even worried that he would slow down the progress of the entire team.
What if all the other three people have cleared the level by then and he is the only one still wandering around pretending to be a beggar?
I can’t afford to lose this person!
Finally, the performance of another life begins.
Lu Heng carried out a series of standard operations he had summarized quite mechanically: in the early stage, whether it was herding cattle or farming, first find a way to survive. After finding the right time, he would go to a nearby temple to become a monk, and then travel around.
Try to get as close as possible to Sheng Taizu's life trajectory at that time...
But this time he was very disappointed that there were no temples nearby.
Finished, it seems that this performance will be sent again.
Just when Lu Heng was considering whether to just find a rock to hit him to death and start again, something unexpected happened.
After a severe drought, angry farmers captured the government office, and some people took the lead and revolted.
Someone sent an invitation to Lu Heng, hoping that he would join the rebel army.
Lu Heng thought about it before joining directly.
In fact, he didn't hold out much hope, because he had encountered this situation before, and the result was that the rebel army was quickly wiped out by the officers and soldiers who arrived. All the leaders were beheaded, and their bodies were hung on the city gate for public display.
.
But for Lu Heng, there was no hope if he continued like this anyway. Either way, he would die, so it would be better to die a happy death.
In the process of playing the role of "beggar", he experienced countless miserable lives and died too many times, and even became a little numb.
He has communicated with countless people at the bottom and knows their hardships. He also knows that there are too many government-forced rebellions and people's dire livelihood, and he also knows that ordinary people are powerless to change all this.
He wanted to raise the butcher's knife, but countless attempts ended in failure.
He thought this time would be the same as before, but he didn't expect that the moment he decided to join the rebels, his vision gradually improved.
There's a fire in the government office.
Immediately afterwards, the field of vision continued to increase, and the city, as well as the small and big cities further away, were surrounded by beacon smoke.
In Lu Heng's field of vision, a system prompt that he had never seen before also appeared.
[Clear the level as a “beggar”! 】
[Evaluation of clearance: Sometimes, the process is more important than the ending; sometimes, the general trend of the world just depends on an accident. Heroes are not the only creators of history, but they have indeed left the most profound mark in the history books.
】
Seeing the system prompt, Lu Heng was completely stunned.
I...cleared the level?
That's it?
Why did I pass the level?
He even couldn't believe this fact.
One second, he was crawling around like a dog in troubled times, begging along the streets, being chased and chopped down by officers and soldiers, and the next second, he had already cleared the level...
This copy is too nonsensical.
Even Lu Heng himself couldn't figure out how he passed the level.
Thinking back carefully, he really didn't do anything. He just accidentally encountered angry farmers burning down the government office. He rebelled in anger, and he joined in along the way.
Then it was cleared.
But the problem is, he has encountered this situation before and failed to pass the level?
Lu Heng was puzzled and had to look at the clearance evaluation again.
Then, he seemed to understand.
The evaluation of this identity’s clearance actually contains the core of the “beggar” identity trial.
"Sometimes, the process is more important than the result."
"Sometimes, the general trend of the world just depends on an accident."
"Heroes are not the only creators of history, but they do leave the most profound mark in the history books."
Why is the process more important than the result?
Because the trial of "beggar" status is not intended to allow players to achieve the specific result of "becoming a rebel".
It's about letting players realize something through the entire process.
For example, the suffering at the bottom, or the difficulty of a successful uprising.
In this process, Lu Heng has played many low-level people and experienced many completely different lives.
In real history, there were countless low-class people like Sheng Taizu. They might be shepherd boys who herded cattle, farmers who died in corvées, or beggars who were killed and took credit for their merits...
Only by understanding the difficulty of life for the people at the bottom can we understand some of the decisions Sheng Taizu made later. Only by understanding this pain can we gain the courage to change the world.
Why does the general trend of the world depend on an accident?
In fact, if you look at Sheng Taizu's experience as a beggar, you will know that at that time, he did not think that he could really complete this great undertaking. He just took it step by step, was pushed by the general trend, and finally embarked on this specific path.
How much of this is passive acceptance, and how much is active?
I'm afraid it's hard to tell clearly.
Lu Heng couldn't help but smile bitterly: "It turns out that the role of 'beggar' is a European emperor detector..."
He understands.
The only condition for passing this identity is not ability or determination, but luck.
Taizu Sheng was lucky.
Because throughout the ages, there have been countless oppressed peasants and countless people at the bottom who have had no choice but to do so. There may be some people among them who are as talented as Sheng Taizu, but they have already died at the beginning.
A severe beating from a landlord's servant, a natural disaster, or an accident may all cause the death of these people who were born at the bottom and had the chance to become heroes.
This is why most people who could become emperors throughout the ages came from aristocratic families.
From this perspective, Sheng Taizu was a true European emperor.
As a player, Lu Heng experienced infinite times in randomly generated situations. After who knows how many times, he accidentally got a successful start.
Taizu Sheng only had one life and one chance, but he grasped it perfectly.
In the stage of playing the identity of "beggar", it has nothing to do with ability, but just pure luck.
From another perspective, that era was also lucky.
Because a heroic figure like Sheng Taizu appeared.
There are many such troubled times.
Throughout the ages, there have been some troubled times in which heroes emerged and powerful dynasties were established; but there are also some troubled times in which the chaos has continued like this. You cut me, I kill you, and the chaos has been going on for hundreds of years.
Some places were separated during wars, and for hundreds of years, the appearance of some heroes took these places back, so that future generations can naturally say "it has been a part of it since ancient times."
But some places were separated, and no heroes appeared. It kept separating like this, becoming two places, and never came back.
In the troubled times at that time, if people like Sheng Taizu had not appeared, all developments would have been unpredictable.
History books are written jointly by the people, but it is undeniable that those heroes did write a profound and colorful stroke in it.
And the outcome of history may actually be finalized because of a certain decision made by a cowboy in a certain ravine.
Lu Heng couldn't help but be filled with emotion.
“OK, let’s call it a day!
"My mission is completed, and I can happily conquer the cavalry trial."
He also didn't expect that he, who was playing the role of a beggar, would be the first among the four members of the team to pass the level.
Just before deciding to launch this trial copy, a new line of prompts appeared in the field of vision.
[The current identity has been cleared, and you can enter the trials of other identity players to watch.]
"Eh? Can it still be like this?"
Lu Heng also didn't expect that this multi-person trial illusion would have such a setting.
Naturally, the priority of clearing the Cavalry Trial was not that high. Lu Heng returned to the original space and saw the cards of the other three identities.
He can directly see the current status of the other three players from a God's perspective.
Huo Yunying, who acted as a "rebel", was still fighting around Chuzhou City to expand his team;
Zhao Haiping, who plays the role of "commander", is leading a large army of military commanders to eat sand in the barren mountains and ridges outside the Great Wall;
Chu Ge, who plays the role of "Emperor", is immersed in writing papers and handling Sima Yan's case.
It seems that Chu Ge's progress is the fastest.
Thinking of this, Lu Heng directly tapped the "Emperor"'s identity card and entered the trial illusion where Chu Ge was.
…
At this time, Chu Ge, holding the memorial in his hand, was deep in thought.
Sima Yan has been imprisoned.
But Chu Ge has not yet completely made up his mind on how to deal with it specifically.
Sima Yan himself must be killed.
But what about his family? Where about his children and grandchildren? Where about his daughter?
Emotionally speaking, Chu Ge is of course inclined not to kill.
Although Sima Yan is the leading figure in the bureaucratic group of the Lianghuai Sect, his son and family records currently seem to be far less talented than him, and they do not have much power or status.
For a civilized person who grew up in modern society, it is a matter of course that "it does not bring harm to the family".
Sima Yan must die, but this kind of death actually has the element of unjust killing. If his whole family is also implicated, it is indeed a bit excessive.
But intellectually speaking, Chu Ge knew very well the principle of "cutting the grass requires eradicating the roots".
Why kill Sima Yan?
Because Chu Ge was not sure whether he was an acting savant or not, and whether Sima Yan, like Sima Yi, was secretly harboring evil intentions and would start causing trouble after Sheng Taizu died.
So, what about Sima Yan’s descendants?
Are there people like Sima Yi's descendants? Will the two Huai factions be connected again after Sima Yan and Sheng Taizu died, and these bureaucrats will be connected together, causing some unpredictable changes in the future?
This dilemma made Chu Ge feel entangled.
Just then, he heard a familiar voice.
"What are you struggling with?" Lu Heng asked.
Chu Ge was stunned for a moment. He turned around and looked at Lu Heng who appeared next to him in a "spirit body" state. He almost thought he had hit a ghost.
"How...how did you get here?" Chu Ge was surprised.
Lu Heng chuckled: "I have cleared the level! According to the game mechanism, after you clear the level, you can watch the progress of other identities."
Chu Ge was obviously surprised and said "Awesome".
Obviously, he did not expect that Lu Heng, who played the beggar, would be the first to pass the level.
"I'm a little undecided about how to handle this matter now."
Chu Ge briefly told the problems he encountered.
For him, the strategy for the "Emperor" identity has gradually come to an end. After handling this case, his mission will almost be completed.
If Guo Zuo of the Great Sheng Dynasty lasted for more than 230 years, the role of "emperor" would be considered a pass.
"Then...do you need me to help you make an idea?" Lu Heng asked.
Chu Ge: "Huh? You say."
Lu Heng pondered for a moment: "If I had to decide, I would kill them all and leave a son."
Chu Ge looked at him with an expression that seemed to say, As expected of you, you made such a cruel decision so easily.
In fact, intellectually speaking, Chu Ge is more inclined to this approach, but as a modern person's values, it is always difficult for him to make up his mind.
"So, can you tell me how you made this decision?" Chu Ge asked.
Lu Heng was a little surprised: "Is there any difficulty in this? Isn't it the standard answer given by Sheng Taizu? I would like to ask you, what is the reason for not copying the standard answer?"
Chu Ge was silent for a moment: "Intellectually, I know the importance of 'eliminating the roots'; but emotionally, I feel it is too cruel."
Lu Heng smiled indifferently: "Cruel?
"So, have you ever seen the scene of a great disaster, when all ten houses are empty?
“Have you ever seen a scene in which farmers sell their sons and daughters and the whole family either dies of the plague or bloats to death from eating Guanyin soil?
"Have you ever seen the scene where the headless corpses were left hanging on the city gate after the rebels were exterminated by the government troops?
"It is cruel to kill dozens of people, but is it cruel to see the world in chaos and millions or more farmers repeating this scene countless times?"
Chu Ge was a little surprised: "But these were not caused by Sima Yan and his family. On the contrary, Sima Yan played a vital role in ending this troubled times."
Lu Heng nodded: "Yes, you are right.
"But Sima Yan is not a person, he is a large network that connects the entire bureaucracy.
"What makes life miserable for the people at the bottom are officials at all levels. Some of them suddenly changed from officials of the Northern Barbarians to officials of the Dasheng Dynasty; some climbed up along the branches, and the top of the branches was Sima Yan and his
Lianghuai Sect; Sima Yan is dead, and his descendants may still be able to reconnect the system.
"In ancient times, blood was very important. In any uprising, a member of the previous royal family must be elected. And a person's origin is itself an extremely precious resource.
"So in ancient times, it was indeed cruel to exterminate clans at every turn, but it was consistent with the social reality at that time. There are too many examples in history of people who did not eradicate the roots but were killed by the other party at the expense of others.
"What's more, even if he was killed unjustly or by mistake, so what?
"The unjust killing of dozens or hundreds of people will not shake the great power of the Sheng Dynasty. In terms of results, will there be any difference?"
Chu Ge was silent for a moment: "From an absolutely rational point of view, this is indeed true, but...
"It's too hard-hearted."
Lu Heng asked back: "What if that's not the case? What kind of person do you think Taizu Sheng is?"
"I have never thought that Sheng Taizu was a kind-hearted person. He was indeed hard-hearted and could even be said to be ruthless at times. He probably killed countless people unjustly and by mistake.
"But the moral qualities of modern people are really not of much help in this troubled world.
"There is a saying that if you have enough food and clothing, you will know honor and disgrace; if you have enough food and clothing, you will know etiquette. There is another saying that the material base determines the superstructure. In this era where the material base has not been reached, there is no soil for modern moral standards to survive.
"So, what's the point of being sentimental?
"Kill him quickly, the next step is now."
Chu Ge smiled helplessly, but gradually, there was a bit of relief in this smile.
Yes, what are you thinking about?
Too redundant.
Chu Ge knew very clearly why Lu Heng was able to make this difficult decision so decisively and naturally.
Because Lu Heng has played the role of a "beggar" and has seen too much death and suffering, death is no longer something that deserves too much caution for him.
People who grew up in peaceful times regard life as more important than Mount Tai.
People who grow up in troubled times regard life as lighter than a feather.
But some people who live in troubled times take life very lightly not because they despise life, but because they weigh the pros and cons with an extremely cold sense.
Chu Ge couldn't help but think, did the real Sheng Taizu in history also go through such an inner struggle before deciding to kill Sima Yan?
The rational side told him that this man was a brother who conquered the world together and was the greatest hero, so he should not be killed. Even if he was killed, it would be best not to harm his family.
But at this time, the young man who had been a beggar came to him.
He recalled the situation when the world was in chaos, people were dying of hunger everywhere, and those who escaped from the chaos were no better than peace dogs.
I recall the sight of bones exposed in the wild and no roosters crowing for thousands of miles.
As a result, the last trace of compassion in my heart finally disappeared.
A warrior on horseback, an emperor with an iron fist, doesn't need that kind of thing.
so be it.
Thinking of this, Chu Ge sighed softly and used one word as his final answer.
"kill!"
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
As I said before, they are all big chapters now, so I posted them together. When I pushed the book, my identity as an immortal cultivator was exposed by my deskmate.
