On Youzhou City, there were a few flags planted crookedly, and a few old and weak soldiers were crooked, looking listlessly into the distance.

A soldier pressed his waist knife and leaned weakly on the battlements, looking at the streets and alleys of the city that had become empty.

A familiar veteran stepped forward and said to the soldier: "General, you say, why did the state pastor crusade against our Zhonglang general in Youzhou this time?" Isn't this your own family fighting your own family, isn't this cannibalism. ”

Now Youzhou City, Lord Zhou Mu took all the civil and military soldiers away, and Lord Zhao, who was originally arranged to defend Youzhou City, also hurried out of the city last night to chase Gongsun to engage in it, and he has not come back until now, and now Youzhou City, there is almost no one in charge, everyone can say whatever they want, no one blames you and supervises you.

The soldier glanced at the veteran: "How do I know why?" The world is already in chaos inexplicably, today you beat me, tomorrow I beat you, that's every day of war and chaos and death every day, who said the reason? Then he sighed, "Who cares what reason?" Hit it. ”

The veteran sighed: "In the first few years, although the days were hard, everyone could still live in peace, as long as God could reward a few rains, everyone could still live, but now it's okay, you beat me, I beat yours, conscription today, arrest Ding tomorrow, and Raff the day after tomorrow, even if the wind and rain are smooth, the land can't be planted, and there is no food to eat, everyone can only be displaced, fleeing everywhere, alas-what the world." ”

This soldier also sighed: "What world? What kind of world is this? Now even if you and I are lucky enough to be a soldier not as a soldier, although the old officials promised us a military salary, that is, there is no shadow, but there is more or less food to eat, although we can't eat enough, but we won't starve to death, let's be content. ”

The veteran nodded happily: "Yes, you see those people, not only do they have a heavy workload, but also whip and scold, but also have to bring their own food to do things for the army, and I don't know when this war will end, just this consumption of their own food, will make many people starve to death on the road, forcing the small families behind them to be cornered, often the war is involved, they will be stuffed with a wooden stick, let them go into battle, and finally die I don't know where to die, it's really pitiful." ”

The soldier shook his head and smiled bitterly: "There are too many people in the world who are pitiful, and we little people can't be pitiful if we want to, so it's better to protect ourselves." ”

When the two of them were chatting boringly, a half-grown child beside him, holding a big knife that was as high as others, raised his face and asked, "If Lord Zhou Mu is defeated this time, what should we do?" ”

The soldier patted him on the head: "What should I do?" General Gongsun Chan won, he gave us food, we will patrol for him, I don't care who he is, as long as they give us food and can let me live temporarily, I will do things for whom. Then he said with a big grin: "But let me work for them, I don't want to do it yet, I am better than your treatment, but two meals of brown rice a day are not enough for me to give him with my life." ”

Such a straightforward expression not only did not cause surprise to the people around him, but everyone nodded yes together.

That is, the officials are better, and they can still eat enough for a day, but these ordinary soldiers are just two nests, a bowl of vegetable soup, just for these two nests, a bowl of vegetable soup to sell their lives to him, it is really not worth it.

"I heard that the treatment of the Lu family army in the south is really good, not only three meals a day, but also a meal of meat for five days, I heard that last time under the city of Youzhou, they had a fight with Gongsun Zhan, at that time, the horse meat, those soldiers of the Lu family army who ate it began to regulate."

When he said this, the soldier's eyes were full of envy, jealousy, and hatred. I didn't forget to lick my chapped lips, the last time I ate meat, it was when I was a child, it was my father who brought back a hare, and that smell has always made me linger 30 years later.

"If I can join the Lu family's army, I can eat enough every day, and eat meat for those five days, and I can give my life to him."

For such unproductive words, the old and weak soldiers around them nodded again and again, and the lower class people have little hope for life, in fact, just a simple meal can make them desperate.

"I've heard about it." A tun chief also came over and said to everyone mysteriously: "I have heard that now Captain Lu is really peaceful in the world, and the people are rich, as long as you go to him, you will immediately get the land contracted for a lifetime, and there is only tax and no tax (tax is tax, and tax is conscription, these are two concepts) The land tax is also pitiful, only one hundred catties of grain per mu of land, and all the work that the government wants to do must be paid to those laborers." ”

"Really, really?" The people around immediately gathered around to listen to the novelty: "How can there be such a thing in the world?" You don't talk gibberish here. This soldier laughed and scolded, and now there is no boss here, everyone is a brother who stirs horses and spoons in a pot, what do you say and hear? There is no need to go online.

"My lord, do you really not know or do you not know? In the administration of our lieutenant, not only the land contracts were given to the people and soldiers, but also the land reserved for themselves, which was stipulated that no rent and tax would be charged, but it was stipulated that the yam should be planted within three years. ”

At this time, a veteran soldier came forward and said, "What's wrong with planting yams?" In the governance of our school captain, planting yams, that is simply a good way to make a fortune and marry a daughter-in-law, you don't know, now there, an acre of land can produce five or six thousand catties of yams, and the price of a pound of yams, almost catch up with the price of a pound of millet, that is to say, now in the school captain's office, an acre of yam is equal to the production of two thousand acres of land here, I have a distant relative, who was really poor at that time, quietly ran there, and now he is so rich that he is oily, just a few days ago, also quietly brought a sum of copper coins to her nephew, and quietly persuaded them to go to the captain. ”

These things, although a bit exaggerated, but it is true that the income of an acre of yam is far greater than the output of normal land, we all know that when the raw materials of industry are higher than the price of agricultural products, this is also an indisputable fact, now, Lu Peng has begun to restrict everyone from planting yams, for fear that there will be a surplus of raw materials, and there will be a grain cheapness again to hurt the farmers, the most important thing is that everyone goes to plant yams, then there will be a shortage of real food, and there will be another food famine in the future, what is too much, There has to be a balance. ”

All the soldiers on the city wall began to envy and longed for the prosperity of the people under the rule of the captain, and everyone could only be silent.

After a long time, a deep voice sighed, "When will it be good for Lord Captain to govern Youzhou." No one answered his question, but everyone's hearts were filled with this exclamation.

At this moment, a soldier facing the outside suddenly shouted, "Look, Lord Marquis, there is an army coming from the east." ”

The marquis suddenly turned around, nervously held on to the battlements of the city wall, and looked east.

On the eastern horizon, huge smoke and dust were billowing up, the rumbling horses' hooves, the trampled earth was trembling, and a fiery red flag was fluttering in the wind, with a big Lu character on it, which made everyone stunned.

Everyone knows the purpose of staying behind, that is, the bosses want to guard against Lu Peng, but now, Lu Peng, the captain of Youzhou, is here.

At this time, a conscientious soldier shouted: "Hurry, pull the drawbridge, close the gates." ”

And the soldiers around the military waiting for the east gate are all looking at this military waiting with eager eyes, waiting for the order of this military marquis.

The marquis looked at the brothers around him, then at the depressed city of Youzhou, turned his head, and then at the flaming red banner outside the city.

Suddenly, he kicked up and kicked the troubled soldier directly: "It's the captain of Youzhou who is back, it's the captain of Youzhou, it's our top boss, do you still want to commit the next crime?" ”

Then he didn't look at the aggrieved guy, and yelled at the brothers beside him: "Hurry up and open the city gate, put down the drawbridge, and let's go together to welcome the return of the captain." ”

Half an hour later, the four city gates of Youzhou had changed the Great King Banner, and the fiery red Lu character banner began to wave in the wind on this city - it was quite arrogant.

(End of chapter)