Chapter 78 Officials come down to the gauntlet, ask me to wait for the decisive battle tomorrow
One second you said you would not harm innocent people, and the next second you set fire to the mountain?
You know, it's September now, late autumn.
The weather at this time is very dry, and the mountains are covered with dead leaves. Once a fire is ignited, it will almost start a prairie fire.
The most important thing is that Woniu Mountain is not an isolated mountain, but a mountain range connected with the surrounding mountains.
Once a mountain fire is ignited, if you are not careful, the entire Mount Tai will be reduced to ashes.
So after hearing Chen Mu's words, Liu Bei said angrily: "Fourth brother, do you know what you are talking about?"
He was about to continue scolding, but Chen Mu had already explained in advance: "Brother, don't worry, I'm not really planning to set the fire, it's a threat."
"Another threat?"
Liu Bei was suspicious and barely suppressed the anger that was about to burst out.
He is better than others at this point.
Although there were times in the later period that he went his own way and refused to listen to others' opinions, but that was based on the situation after Guan Yu's death and his single-minded focus on revenge for Guan Yu.
In the early stage, if what others say makes sense, he will listen. For example, he will obey Zhuge Liang, Dharma Zheng, Pang Tong, Xu Shu and others.
Chen Mu said with a smile: "My eldest brother always taught me how I could really set a fire. We just pretended to set a fire. It was just a strategy to force Xu He to surrender."
"Are you sure it's just for show?"
Liu Bei was doubtful.
Why do I always feel so unbelievable about my fourth brother?
"certainly."
Chen Mu's face was not red, his heart was not beating, and he said seriously: "It's all just to put pressure on the Yellow Turban Thief."
"Okay, then you do it and I'll watch from the side."
Liu Bei made up his mind to supervise and not let Chen Mu do bad things.
Although the people in Banyang County and Changguo were traitors, they were unarmed people after all. Setting fire to the city was tantamount to massacring the city, and Liu Bei really couldn't bear to do such a thing.
Chen Mu shrugged and went back to write a letter.
The captured prisoners were used for this purpose. The prisoners could be sent back to deliver letters every day to ensure that the letters would be delivered to Xu He.
This time Chen Mu was no longer as gentle as before, but spoke harshly, scolding Xu He for surrendering.
If they don't surrender, the army will massacre all the people in the mountain.
"Come here, release a prisoner and send the letter over."
Chen Mu handed the written bamboo slips to the soldiers.
The soldiers went to deliver the message.
Soon? This letter was delivered to Xu He in the camp.
Hearing his literate subordinate tell him the contents of the letter? Xu He frowned: "The officers and soldiers actually want to massacre the people?"
The subordinates said: "The officers and soldiers have never been benevolent. Huangfu Song destroyed the Changshe? He used the corpses of Bocai Qushuai's army as a palace. In the first battle of Guangzong? He killed more than 100,000 people, and broke the coffin of the great virtuous teacher to kill the corpses? He did it again?
Jingguan. There have been countless cruel acts. How can the officers and soldiers say such things? It is only natural."
Xu He was a little puzzled and said: "Is this strange? If Huangfu Song came and told me this, I would still believe it. But I heard that Liu Bei, the leader, is known for his benevolence and righteousness and is famous all over the world. I once considered surrendering.
Just because Liu Bei has always been benevolent and righteous? He knows that even if I am defeated and die, he will not do anything to the people, so I continue to resist. How could he massacre the people? Aren't you afraid of losing your reputation? "
Because of Liu Bei's benevolence and righteousness, the Yellow Turban thieves continued to resist.
I have to say, it sounds ironic.
But that's the truth.
Maybe some people say? Since people are benevolent and righteous, wouldn't it be a good idea for you to surrender?
Can you surrender? That means taking orders from others.
No matter how good Xu He was to the people, he still had the ambition to separate the two counties and become the local emperor.
So don’t watch Cao Cao massacre the city? But sometimes he is forced to be cruel.
A good person will be bullied by others, and a good horse will be ridden by others? This is an eternal and hard truth.
Living in troubled times? People's hearts are unpredictable? Excessive pursuit of benevolence and righteousness is not a good thing.
"The letter is already here, and it's still fake?"
The subordinate shook his head and said: "I think Liu Bei is just a hypocrite. He talks so much about benevolence and righteousness. Now he's not threatening to kill us?"
Xu He sneered: "I want to see how they invade the stronghold. I don't believe they can really besiege it for two years."
Having said that, the threat from the officers and soldiers still cast a layer of gloom in Xu He's heart.
The people are his lifeblood and what he cares about most.
If the officers and soldiers really become so cruel, then all his next decisions must be made cautiously and cautiously, and he must not give the officers and soldiers a chance to break through the stronghold.
In the next few days, the officers and soldiers would release the prisoners and bring back letters every day.
Almost every letter is a threatening letter.
Not only did they threaten to attack the stronghold, but they also required them to surrender within five days.
"Snapped!"
When he saw the new letter that day, Xu He was furious and shouted: "The officers and soldiers have bullied us too much. They actually asked us to come down from the mountain and surrender within five days."
"General, calm down."
The subordinates advised: "In my opinion, the officers and soldiers are becoming more and more arrogant. If we don't give them a head-on attack, they may not know how powerful we are. How about we prepare our troops and train every day, and wait for the officers and soldiers to attack the stronghold in a few days?"
Then, kill them until their souls are gone."
Otherwise, this guy could have read a few books for a few days. He even knows two idioms in "Zuo Zhuan". Unfortunately, he is only half-experienced. The first sentence of "vigorous soldiers and horses" is okay, but the latter sentence of "the soul is running wild" seems a bit silly.
But Xu He didn't know this and nodded: "Yes, that's right. Pass the order and practice every day to prepare for the enemy."
The days passed and it was already late autumn.
In later generations, September was still summer and the climate was hot.
But that's the solar calendar.
In the Han Dynasty, the Xia calendar was used, but later it was called the lunar calendar or the lunar calendar.
Therefore, September in the Han Dynasty was actually around October in the solar calendar of later generations.
In late autumn in October, the weather can become hot and cold. Sometimes it is very hot during the day, and at night it is so cold that it makes people shiver.
Especially in the autumn wind, which blows all night long, it is easy to catch windchill, that is, a cold.
Now many people in Huangjin Village have fallen ill.
It is not serious yet, and common colds can be treated with herbal medicine. People from the whole city in the two counties go to the mountains, and naturally there are doctors there who can control the disease.
But through this, it also proves that the current weather is unpredictable, and Xu He has already distributed the winter clothes he made in advance.
People are now preparing to spend the winter on the top of the mountain, cutting down trees every day to make charcoal and burn firewood.
On the fifth day, the last letter was delivered.
When the subordinate read the letter, his expression changed in shock and he said: "Sorry, General, the officers and soldiers have written a letter of challenge and asked me to wait for the decisive battle tomorrow."
Xu He wondered: "Let's just fight the decisive battle. Just wait for the army to attack the mountain. What are we afraid of?"
His subordinate Qiqi Ai Ai said: "But...but the officers and soldiers asked us to go down the mountain, saying that they could let us set up a formation and confront each other head-on."
Xu He was happy at that time and sneered: "The officers and soldiers thought that a certain family was a fool and asked me to abandon the village and go down the mountain to face the enemy head on. I'm afraid even a child wouldn't be fooled."
However, his subordinates said with a mournful face: "But the officers and soldiers said that if we don't come down from the mountain, they will set it on fire."
"What?"
Xu He stood up from the mat in an instant, his expression changed with horror: "Burn the mountain?"