Chapter 156

"Father Marshal."

Inside a civilian house in Wuchang City.

Li Dingguo, who had quietly returned, held a bowl of steaming corn porridge. "Eat something, fill your belly."

Zhang Xianzhong took the bowl, the sweet aroma of corn porridge filling the room.

Around them, everyone's stomachs rumbled like drums.

"Hahaha~~~"

Holding the porridge bowl, Zhang Xianzhong laughed out loud.

"I've lost before, been defeated before, been chased into a corner before."

"But never like this time, confusedly losing completely!"

He laughed while slapping his own face. "The snipe and clam fight, and the fisherman profits."

Zhang Xianzhong was truly angered.

He had happily entered Wuchang Prefecture.

Countless wealth, supplies, and people had fallen into his hands, and he had been planning to enjoy them properly.

Lin Dao's troops actually took the opportunity to attack, making him flee in panic, and he was even trapped in the city, unable to move.

After being a rebel for so many years, this was Zhang Xianzhong's most crushing defeat.

Sun Kewang immediately spoke up: "Father Marshal."

"It's all because Lin Dao is unrighteous."

"We all rose up against the Ming; we should be of the same mind."

"Even if we don't get along, we shouldn't ambush us while we're fighting the Ming Army."

"This person is truly a despicable villain!"

"Don't say such things." Zhang Xianzhong waved his hand. "Lost is lost, a loss must be admitted! A beating must be taken standing straight!"

"When the opportunity comes in the future, we'll get our revenge."

Over these years, he had also been chased by the Imperial Court's troops with no way to heaven or earth.

Although he was now trapped in Wuchang City, he was not panicked in his heart.

His experience in escaping was extremely rich.

He only needed to wait for the guards to relax, seize the chance to leave the city, and then it would be wide sky and open sea for birds to fly.

Once he raised his troops again, he would definitely have a good showdown with Lin Dao!

"Don't say more." Zhang Xianzhong handed the bowl of corn porridge to Sun Kewang. "You all eat."

Sun Kewang took it with both hands, inhaled the aroma of the corn porridge, and greedily took a sip.

Then he passed it to Li Dingguo.

The dozens of people around Zhang Xianzhong were his most core backbone.

The kind who were loyal unto death and shared life and death.

They weren't pretentious; each took a mouthful and shared the corn porridge.

"Tell me." Glancing at Liu Wenxiu licking the bowl, Zhang Xianzhong looked at Li Dingguo. "What's the situation outside?"

"Lin Dao's people are pacifying the people."

Li Dingguo, who had once again risked going out to get porridge, pondered for a moment. "Many places have added porridge sheds; anyone can go get a bowl."

"There are armored soldiers patrolling the streets; those who break the ban are killed on the spot."

"Our soldiers, and the Ming Army, once found, are all tied up and sent outside the city."

"As for the ruffians, scoundrels, and beggars, they are cut down in the street."

This was also Lin Dao's tradition.

Wherever he went, he would first sweep away city foxes, temple rats, and the Beggar Gang.

These people had not the slightest benefit; they were all experts in harming the common folk.

Fraud, deception, abduction, theft, murder for wealth, and taking lives.

They could be called utterly evil.

Against such evildoers, Lin Dao always struck with a heavy hand, sweeping them away cleanly.

Only thus could the common folk live peaceful lives.

After all, most of the time, facing local tyrants, the common folk dare to be angry but dare not speak.

"Right."

Li Dingguo smiled. "When getting porridge, I heard others say that the King of Chu is dead."

Zhang Xianzhong stroked his beard and pondered. "This Lin Dao, his hand is indeed ruthless."

"Not him."

Li Dingguo shook his head repeatedly. "I heard Lin Dao handed the King of Chu over to the people of Wuchang Prefecture to deal with."

"The people hated the King of Chu to the extreme; I heard he died very miserably."

"King of Chu~" Zhang Xianzhong grinned, about to say something, but then heard an angry roar from the street outside the house.

It was the lookout outside giving a warning!

Everyone subconsciously looked at Li Dingguo.

Only Zhang Xianzhong suddenly stood up from the straw mat. "Go!"

The wall between this courtyard and the neighboring one had long been broken through.

Zhang Xianzhong led the charge through the gap into the neighboring courtyard.

Before he could make his next move, the courtyard gate here was suddenly smashed open.

A large batch of armored soldiers surged in like a tide.

Looking at the thick iron armor on the soldiers' bodies, Zhang Xianzhong's eyes flashed with a touch of despair.

Their iron armor was inconvenient to move in, so they had long since thrown it away.

Most of what they wore now was leather armor made of deer hide, at most with a piece of chain mail armor inside.

Compared to these armored soldiers who were like iron lumps from head to toe, there was no comparison.

"Charge out!"

Zhang Xianzhong was extremely fierce and brave, charging forward first while wielding his blade.

His adopted son and the old camp old bandits also stepped forward one after another.

Blade light and sword shadows, spears coming and hammers going.

After a short and intense collision, more than ten on Zhang Xianzhong's side fell.

But on the armored soldiers' side, the few who fell were at most injured.

This is one of the important reasons why Zhang Xianzhong's troops were defeated like withered weeds meeting a scythe in that great battle a few days ago.

At that time, besides their troops being scattered and encountering a surprise attack while unprepared.

Lin Dao's forces were almost all armored soldiers, and all wore iron armor, truly impossible to beat.

The crushing advantage in equipment could not be made up for by martial valor.

Zhang Xianzhong and the others were forced into the houses.

On this side Sun Kewang took out a fire stick and blew hard, and flames burst forth.

He took out a three-eyed gun about a chi long, ignited it with the fire stick, kicked open the window, and pointed it outside.

After three volleys, several armored soldiers outside fell.

The distance was too close; a well-made firelock was enough to knock down an armored soldier.

Shouts came from outside; the armored soldiers in the courtyard dragged their injured companions and quickly retreated.

"If each of us had a firelock," Zhang Xianzhong still had the mood to joke at this time, "we wouldn't have lost to these iron skins."

This sounds simple, but in reality even the semi-firearmized Ming Army couldn't do it.

The artisan households of the Ming Dynasty were equivalent to slaves, living in extreme misery, with no thought of fine craftsmanship at all.

Their premium rate was extremely extremely low; out of over a hundred items, there might not be a single usable premium one.

The probability of a premium item was probably about the same as a certain company's lottery odds.

The three-eyed gun in Sun Kewang's hand was the best among the many captured firearms.

Footsteps sounded again outside the courtyard.

This time the armored soldiers charging in all held thick blast shields in the front row.

They leaned against each other, forming a shield wall and advancing to a position seven or eight steps from the house.

The shields landed on the ground.

The next moment, Zhang Xianzhong and the others inside the house all held their breath.

Behind the shields were several rows of armored soldiers holding firelocks!

So close a distance, such a narrow house.

After a few rounds of firelocks, it was estimated there was no one standing left inside the house.

The armored soldiers holding shields would then rush in to clear out; everyone had to die!

"Surrender~~~"

Zhang Xianzhong suddenly raised his voice and shouted outside, "I am Zhang Xianzhong, I surrender~~~"

Everyone threw their weapons out from the doors and windows.

Then they came out of the house one by one with both hands raised high.

The shield-holding armored soldiers stepped forward, directly knocked the people down with their shields, then took out rope to tie them tightly, and dragged them out of the courtyard.

Zhang Xianzhong, bound with five-flower binding and dragged out, looked at the armored soldiers densely filling the street outside, and could only smile bitterly.

With such a lineup, how could anyone escape?

Li Dingguo, who came out following, saw this scene and said in a trembling voice, "Not me!"

"Child."

Zhang Xianzhong smiled at him, "I believe you."

The group was brought before Lin Dao.

Li Dingguo couldn't hold back and blurted out, "How did you find us?"

Not understanding, he couldn't die with his eyes closed.

Lin Dao laughed.

He teased, "You actively surrendered to me and brought me here, and you've already forgotten so soon?"

Li Dingguo's face instantly turned red.

"Not me! I didn't! You're talking nonsense!"

"Haha~~~"

Lin Dao laughed loudly, "Just teasing you."

"Previously interrogating prisoners, we learned you were still in the city."

"Searched for two days without finding anyone."

"Just thought, no matter what, you have to eat."

"Veterans are stationed at every porridge shed."

"People who have been on the battlefield." Lin Dao pointed at Li Dingguo's hands, feet, and eyes, "Different from ordinary commoners."

"You may be cautious, going to different porridge sheds for three days straight."

"But strangers draw attention by default."

"On top of that, your hands and feet are coarse and large, your tiger's mouth is full of old calluses, there's an arrow wound on your cheek, and your expression is vigilant with killing intent overflowing naturally."

"Finding you wasn't hard."

Li Dingguo breathed a sigh of relief.

Proved his innocence, that he hadn't betrayed his adoptive father.

"Marshal Lin~~~" Zhang Xianzhong's face was full of smiles "You're formidable, I'm convinced."

"From now on I'll follow you, serving as your vanguard before the saddle and behind the horse."

"I want nothing, just give me a mouthful of rice to eat, deal?"

His smile was radiant, his face full of sincere expression.

Lin Dao, who had been smiling before, slowly withdrew his smile upon hearing this.

Meeting Lin Dao's slightly cold gaze, Zhang Xianzhong's smile also gradually retracted.

"Eight Great Kings."

Lin Dao spoke leisurely "Is this you looking down on me?"

"Treating me like Chen Qiyu, Beng Wancan that kind of Ben Zi?"

"Once or twice is acceptable, not a third time."

"How many times have you feigned surrender already, and you still want to pull this on me?"

In the seventh year of Chongzhen, Zhang Xianzhong was trapped in Chexi Gorge.

He bribed Five Provinces Governor Chen Qiyu with gold, silver, pearls and jewels, feigned surrender and escaped.

In the eleventh year of Chongzhen, Zhang Xianzhong accepted the famous Recruitment and Pacification Governor Beng Wancan's recruitment.

Stationed troops in Gucheng to rest and reorganize for four years, recuperated and bided his time, then rebelled again.

The same trick, even Saint Seiya wouldn't dare use a second time.

This feigned surrender business, Zhang Xianzhong has already used it twice, and still wants to use it a third time on Lin Dao.

Does he really think Lin Dao hasn't read history books?

"Finished."

Zhang Xianzhong shook his head repeatedly "I fall into your hands, it's not considered losing face."

Sun Kewang shouted loudly from the side "Marshal Lin!"

"We're all Anti-Ming Righteous Army! Why bother with mutual slaughter!"

"Like this, isn't it making relatives pained and enemies delighted!"

Hearing these words, Lin Dao shook his head "Your words are wrong."

He raised his hand and pointed at himself "I am the Righteous Army."

Then his finger pointed at Zhang Xianzhong "You lot are bandits."

"So-called Righteous Army, is resisting injustice, upholding justice."

"You lot." Lin Dao narrowed his eyes sweeping across the crowd "What you've done before, haven't you already forgotten?"

"Battlefield opposition, nothing reproachable."

"Even feigned surrender can count as strategy."

The horse whip in Lin Dao's hand swept across the crowd.

"Massacre cities, plunder, burn villages and destroy towns, forcibly abduct able-bodied men, insult women, regard human life as grass and mustard."

He took a deep breath, voice like a great bell.

"How many crimes have you committed yourselves, could it be you've forgotten them all!?"

All around was silent without sound, only Lin Dao's roar echoing.

After a moment of silence, Zhang Xianzhong raised his head and looked straight at him "You're a Buddha reincarnated, with a Bodhisattva's heart."

"I'm an evil ghost with deep sins, deserving of death ten times over."

He turned his head and signaled his adopted sons.

"I've lived long enough already, dying at your hands doesn't count as disgracing my reputation."

"Only begging you can spare these kids of mine."

Sun Kewang, Li Dingguo and the others shouted in unison.

"Father Marshal!!"

"We're willing to live and die together!"

End of Chapter