Chapter 130: The War Between Peasants and Landlords

"You say you didn't see the two of them at the residences of Zhang Chu'an and Zhang Xiaofan, and by the time you arrived, the people in the residence had already escaped through tunnels dug long ago," Wanyan Honglie asked in shock.

"That's right. When we arrived, the residence was empty. After searching for a while, we found a secret passage that had been opened. We tried to pursue them through the passage but were blocked halfway."

After hearing the messenger finish, Wanyan Honglie panicked. This coup he launched had only two purposes: after seizing political power, to capture these two traitors, Zhang Chu'an and Zhang Xiaofan, and then lead the great army to encircle and annihilate their revolutionary base, which was now leaderless.

As it turned out, these two had dug tunnels beforehand and escaped. Since everyone in the residence had fled, it meant they had known about our plans long ago.

Thinking of this, Wanyan Honglie could not help but start trembling. The days of being dominated casually by Zhang Chu'an over the past few years floated before his eyes like a nightmare.

Wanyan Honglie, plunged into fear, kept backing away. Just as he was about to fall, Temujin supported him.

"Thanks, brother Temujin." After thanking Temujin, Wanyan Honglie immediately asked in confusion: "Brother Temujin, if they knew about our actions, why didn't they stop us?"

"Because they want to fight us fairly and squarely, seizing the world with absolute military force, just like the fierce tigers on the grasslands that only eat the prey they hunt themselves and stay away from other carrion." Temujin finished with a solemn expression, then sighed and said: "I estimate that while we were plotting the coup, they had already prepared for war."

Hearing this, Wanyan Honglie's face instantly turned iron-green. They had prepared for war, yet they had just seized power. Most of the generals nationwide who held military power were from the Wanyan family; they all wanted to eliminate him as soon as possible, so it was impossible for them to be of one mind.

Once the war started, his subordinates would be disloyal and divided. Wanyan Honglie could not help but feel a severe headache.

However, Temujin on the other side was extremely excited at this moment. There is a type of person in this world who, no matter how many times he fails, firmly believes he will become an extraordinary person.

Such people, when facing setbacks and difficulties, not only feel no fear but face them calmly and devise solutions, summarizing through constant failures and finally walking step by step toward success.

Temujin was such a person. Although he had previously been driven out of the grasslands by Guo Jing and Nie Huaishang, he did not sigh with the sentiment of "Since Yu was born, why was Liang born?" Instead, he was somewhat grateful that Heaven sent down someone capable of defeating Temujin; only such a person was qualified to fight him.

Compared to Guo Jing and Nie Huaishang, his good brother Jamukha and adoptive father Wang Han were so fragile. Compared to Zhang Chu'an and Zhang Xiaofan, the rulers of the Jin Kingdom were so foolish.

If this world did not have them, although his own abilities could sweep across the world, that would be far too lonely.

He would also never witness so many wonderful things. Without their existence, how could he deeply comprehend the soul-shaking power of unity and shared hatred between slaves and herdsmen, as if a torrential flood, surging and unstoppable?

Similarly, without them, how could he witness with his own eyes the power of firearms, that sharp and unparalleled flame jet, as if capable of turning all obstacles into ashes? It was they who opened a new window of vision for him, letting him appreciate this novel scenery.

Now, Temujin was about to embark on an unprecedented journey. He would lead the true rulers of this land for thousands of years—those landlords standing high above. And the enemies of these landlords were the peasants and slaves who had been enslaved and exploited by them for generations. This was an unprecedented war, full of unknowns and challenges.

Temujin's inner excitement was beyond words. His blood seemed ignited by a powerful force, beginning to boil within his body. He felt his heartbeat accelerate, his breathing become rapid, as if a mighty force was pushing him forward.

He knew this war would be a hard and arduous struggle.

Zhang Chu'an, just let me see your true skills, shall we?

"Your Highness, although the generals of the Great Jin Kingdom may be disloyal and divided, if we promise them some benefits, such as allowing them to spend their own money and grain to train armies, then we will have an endless supply of troops."

If you want a horse to pull a cart, you must give the horse grass to eat, right? The revolutionaries give land to peasants and slaves, so we will give the Han gentry enough benefits.

After hearing Temujin's words, Wanyan Honglie sighed. He knew that once such an order was issued, the true rulers of the Great Jin Kingdom in the future would not be their Jurchen nobles but the Han gentry.

But at this moment, he was already in a situation where he could neither advance nor retreat, with no other choice. Moreover, since he launched the coup to seize power, the Jurchens would not let him off no matter what.

Then he must tightly hug the thigh of the gentry group, delegate power to them, and let them recruit soldiers themselves to fight against the revolutionaries.

At the same time, Zhang Chu'an and Zhang Xiaofan, who had just escaped from Zhongdu Prefecture and rushed to the nearby revolutionary base, eagerly sent messages to Guo Jing in Western Xia and Nie Huaishang in Mongolia.

Zhang Chu'an: "Everyone, Wanyan Honglie's coup has succeeded. I believe it won't be long before he issues an edict ordering landlords to organize their own militias to encircle and annihilate our revolutionary base. How many troops do you have? Do you want to come and fight together?"

Guo Jing: "How many ten-thousands of troops do you have on hand?"

Zhang Xiaofan: "Located deep in the mountains, pretending to be bandits but actually regular troops, the combined forces amount to at least three hundred thousand."

Nie Huaishang: "In that case, even if the Jin Kingdom has a million troops, they are no match for you. Moreover, the Han gentry and Jurchen nobles have been completely separated by you. The Jurchens have fought many battles and have many famous generals, but without money and grain, they cannot rely on their own influence to recruit large numbers of people to build an army. The gentry have money, grain, and influence, but they lack famous generals who have fought many battles."

Guo Jing: "Although the enemy's troop quality and organizational mobilization capabilities are poor, our opponent is Temujin. Use whatever strength is needed to deal with him. If you can use 107 rocket artillery to bombard, absolutely do not hold a Type 56 submachine gun. If you can use a million, absolutely do not use three hundred thousand. Mobilize as many people as possible."

Guo Jing: "Here is the plan: although I just conquered Western Xia, the land reform work here is about to be completed. We will first send fifty thousand cavalry along with one hundred and fifty artillery pieces to support you. Subsequently, two hundred thousand newly organized and trained troops will rush to the battlefield immediately."

Nie Huaishang: "Good. Since Guo Big Brother's Western Xia revolutionary new zone can afford such a huge gesture, then we, the old revolutionary base of Mongolia, cannot fall behind. We can grit our teeth and mobilize eighty thousand cavalry to fight. Bring the seventy 107s you are supporting us with. After the newly organized fifty thousand cavalry finish training, they will immediately support the battlefield."