Chapter 51: Slaughter

Yangzhou City.

Night had just fallen.

The chaos had already lasted for a night.

At this moment, that dense mass of commoners had once again surrounded the vicinity of the Post House, holding various hoes and rakes in their hands, filled with righteous indignation.

"Get out!"

"Drive this group of mountain bandits out!"

"Is the County Marquis Mansion really going to do nothing?"

"Poor child of mine, so young and already..."

The scene was extremely chaotic. In the crowd, a highly respected old man was pushing his already deceased grandson in a cart. This old man was a rather famous private school teacher in Yangzhou City, with a very high reputation. His family member suffering persecution immediately incited the fury of the masses.

The situation was becoming increasingly complex.

If the people of Yangzhou could see through this, they would surely have realized the irreversibility of the situation in advance.

The conflict had progressed from the lowest level of commoners, then to the Garrison, and finally to elite figures like the private school teacher.

This progression of conflict was not accidental. Rather, someone was pushing it from behind!

What a pity.

In such a large Yangzhou City, I fear only Jiang Xuan saw some clues.

At this moment.

Several masters of the Powerful Clans in Yangzhou City had secretly gathered together.

"This Yangzhou City really is due for a change!"

"Master Cheng, did the young master of the Liu Family really say that? That his Shen Gong Workshop will bring us along to make a fortune?"

"Yes, do not toy with us!"

A group of old men, though their voices were low, were very agitated.

That Master Cheng smiled proudly: "Gentlemen, that young master Liu has a reputation abroad; can a petty person like Lu Zhengyi compare to him?"

Everyone nodded one after another.

"It is written in black and white, it cannot be fake!"

Master Cheng chuckled: "Gentlemen, that soap and fine wine are both big businesses! Yinzhou is now far wealthier than our Yangzhou!"

"Let's do it!"

"Yangzhou has indeed been rotten for too long; it is time for a change!"

"Master Cheng, you are truly ruthless! That was your own distant nephew, and you just raised your hand and brought down the blade like that..."

"That is why I said he was a distant relative, isn't it?"

Several masters muttered again.

Just as Jiang Xuan had expected, once the Civil Conquest begins, it conquers the hearts of the people! The prestige of the County Marquis Mansion had plummeted these past few days, and those Powerful Clans who were usually suppressed by Lu Zhengyi would naturally think of rebounding!

This is "nurturing the rebellious subject"!

It can be said that for Yangzhou to reach the level of chaos it is at today, these Powerful Clans played a major role in fanning the flames!

At this moment.

A servant suddenly broke in and shouted: "Master, Master, they've started, they've rebelled, they've rebelled!"

All the masters were shocked and stood up.

"Who rebelled?"

"Who started it first?"

"Quick, quick, summon the Military Officer Cheng, prepare to open the city gates at any time!"

"Gather all the private soldiers!"

Who started it first was no longer important. Whether it was the commoners here who could no longer hold back, or those Scattered Soldiers who finally did not want to listen to the strange howling outside.

The beginning of the matter was a torch being thrown directly by a commoner into the Post House where the Scattered Soldiers were staying. Coincidentally, it landed in the stable, and that was it—the fodder in the stable ignited directly, and the fire soared into the sky.

The Scattered Soldiers were furious; a general conflict would have been one thing.

But this was a direct fire attack; isn't this trying to take our lives? We masters are all people who play with blades and spears; if you want our lives, we will take yours first!

Thus, the first Scattered Soldier rushed out, raised his hand and brought down his blade, and slaughtered the old private school teacher.

This counted as truly igniting the flames of war tonight. How could the commoners still retain any reason? They charged over directly, and in an instant, the gates, doors, and windows of the Post House were all smashed to pieces.

"Outrageous!"

When Luo Xiongchao saw this situation, he was instantly enraged. He ordered his men to tie up Chen Kui, and since they had already started, they might as well go all the way. With a wave of his hand, several thousand Scattered Soldiers rushed into the crowd of commoners and began a true slaughter.

In the County Marquis Mansion.

Lu Zhengyi heard the news, his expression changed, and he shouted: "A rabble, how dare they deceive me!"

"Order Captain Yuan to lead the Garrison to quell the chaos!"

"If there are any who obstruct, kill them!"

"Yes!"

The three thousand Garrison soldiers of the County Marquis Mansion had seen too much of the Scattered Soldiers' tyranny and arrogance these past few days; they had long been unable to hold back. They were waiting for this very order, and one by one, they grabbed their blades and swords and rode out to meet the battle.

By this time.

The entire Yangzhou was truly in chaos.

Businesses, flower houses, and restaurants had long since closed their doors to guests. The streets were filled with agitated commoners, Garrison soldiers, and Scattered Soldiers.

"Kill them for me!"

Luo Xiongchao was known as the Bitter-Faced Yama precisely because he possessed astonishing martial prowess, was skilled in using two giant hammers, and was adept at fighting. On the battlefield, he was always charging and breaking through enemy lines, which was why so many brothers were willing to follow him. At this moment, letting loose the slaughter, he was like a god of death on the street, killing wherever he went. Seven or eight Garrison soldiers could not even get close to him!

With him clearing the way, just as the battle began, the five thousand Scattered Soldiers occupied an absolute upper hand.

For a time, Yangzhou City flowed with blood, and the commoners fled in defeat.

"Brothers, follow me to take the County Marquis Mansion!"

Seeing that the situation was so smooth, Luo Xiongchao's confidence surged, and he took the path straight toward the County Marquis Mansion.

At this moment, Captain Yuan arrived with his elite troops, shouting, "Do not be arrogant, you thief! Let me, Yuan, come and meet you!"

This Captain Yuan was also a leader among the military; he held a long spear, possessed immense strength, and his War Horse galloped beneath him. As he thrust his spear out, in the dim light, he aimed straight for Luo Xiongchao's head.

"Is that all you have!"

Luo Xiongchao sneered, his feet kicking wildly at the horse's belly, and the War Horse neighed. He did not accelerate as expected, but instead swung his giant hammer backhanded, striking the tip of the long spear squarely. Captain Yuan was horrified, feeling a massive force strike him; his web between thumb and forefinger shook, and before he could react, Luo Xiongchao's other giant hammer had already swung over, landing on Captain Yuan's head.

"Bang!"

Captain Yuan had fallen from his horse and died, his eyes staring fixedly, blood flowing from his seven orifices.

The three thousand Garrison were all struck with terror at once.

Compared to them, the Scattered Soldiers had their morale greatly boosted, driving straight in, with no one left to stop them.

Lu Zhengyi was already scared out of his wits.

"Stop them, stop them!"

"You cannot let them break into the County Marquis Mansion!"

"Where are the private troops of the Powerful Clan? Send for reinforcements quickly!"

The civil officials and strategists in the County Marquis Mansion had also long since fled in a panic.

"My Lord, the Powerful Clan has already been notified, but, but, they responded that their private troops have all gone home to farm!"

Lu Zhengyi spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Farming?"

In the middle of winter, what kind of damn farming is that!

"My Lord, I, I am going home for a moment!"

"My old father has a cold, I am going back to check on him!"

"My Lord, my sow is about to farrow..."

Before Lu Zhengyi could say anything more, those Chief Clerks, Counselors, and Executives all found various excuses to run away.

A sense of despair gripped his heart.

Only at this moment did Lu Zhengyi feel extreme regret.

When Jiang Xuan came to offer advice, why did he think to refuse? Had he known it would come to this, he should have used violence to suppress these snakes and rats first. Before, he had always thought about how to avoid causing a mutiny, but now he knew that in such a chaotic situation, violence was the strongest weapon to solve all problems!

"My Lord, run quickly!"

"That group of thieves is about to break in!"

At this time, only a few old, weak, sick, and disabled people remained in the County Marquis Mansion, along with Lu Zhengyi's family.

At this moment, the Scattered Soldiers had already broken through the last line of defense of the County Marquis Mansion. Seeing Chen Kui tied up and running miserably behind Luo Xiongchao's horse, Lu Zhengyi cried out in sorrow: "Master Chen, you have harmed me deeply!"

At this moment, a Crossbow Bolt shot over, striking Lu Zhengyi squarely in the forehead.

This indecisive Yangzhou County Marquis, ever since he took one hundred thousand taels of silver from Chen Kui and welcomed the Scattered Soldiers into Yangzhou City, had never imagined that this would be the beginning of the great chaos in Yangzhou and his own death.

The Scattered Soldiers took the County Marquis Mansion immediately, and following that, they began a frantic looting.

The County Marquis Mansion was engulfed in flames reaching the sky.

That night, Yangzhou suffered the greatest disaster in its history. The family fortune that Lu Zhengyi had accumulated over many years was completely looted by these Scattered Soldiers, and all the grain in the storehouses was burned.

After the Scattered Soldiers controlled the County Marquis Mansion, they rushed to the streets and began acts that angered both man and god.

They were mad.

The Scattered Soldiers were all mad.

Perhaps they knew that even if they took the Yangzhou County Marquis Mansion, they would not dare to occupy it for long and could only loot it before fleeing, so this hysteria became even more unrestrained.

Luo Xiongchao was even worse, already wantonly pulling at Lu Zhengyi's wives and concubines in the County Marquis Mansion to enjoy himself.

"Have the people from the Powerful Clan not arrived yet?"

Luo Xiongchao asked with an angry roar.

A subordinate reported: "General, I have already sent word, they, they are currently preparing!"

"Go and urge them!"

Luo Xiongchao waved his hand. He had ordered several Powerful Clans in the city to prepare one hundred thousand in silver, otherwise, what awaited them would be the extermination of their families! He thought that with the silver, he could leave this place.

At this time, a person ran over to report: "General, a large group of troops has appeared outside the city, demanding to enter! The other party claims to be the young master of the Yinzhou Liu Family!"

"What?"

Luo Xiongchao stood up abruptly and laughed wildly: "This fellow actually dares to come, hahaha, he must be here to deliver silver to me!"

Taking a few underlings with him, Luo Xiongchao rode his horse to the city wall.

Looking out, he indeed saw a large group of Yinzhou Army. Luo Xiongchao sneered immediately: "This fellow must not know that Yangzhou City is already in my pocket; he is here to negotiate the Iron Mine matter!"

The crowd laughed.

Clearly, in their eyes at this moment, Liu Zheng and his group were already fish on the chopping block!

Luo Xiongchao was overjoyed and sent someone down to negotiate, ordering Liu Zheng's side to hand over twenty thousand taels in Silver Notes, and the iron ore would then be his Yinzhou property.

Hearing this, Liu Zheng rode his horse forward a few hundred paces and laughed loudly: "General Luo, money in one hand, goods in the other; do I not know what kind of reputation you lot have?"

"Insolent!"

"Audacious!"

"You brat of the Liu Family, how dare you insult my General?"

An arrow flew out, and Qin Zhangfeng snorted coldly, blocking those few arrows beside Liu Zheng.

Luo Xiongchao sneered: "Little brat of the Liu Family, there is no need to discuss this matter further..."

Who would have thought that at this moment, a Military Advisor beside him let out a sinister laugh, leaned into his ear, and said: "General, why not do this? That brat of the Liu Family surely does not know the situation inside the city. Since both our sides have agreed to let Chen Kui and Lu Zhengyi negotiate, why not let them in? Wouldn't we then be catching a turtle in a jar?"

Luo Xiongchao was overjoyed upon hearing this.

Since the matter had already been laid out on the table, what was there to hesitate about?

Kill them and seize their goods!

"Good!"

"I invite Young Master Liu to enter the city for a detailed discussion!"

Luo Xiongchao gave his men a look, signaling them to prepare an ambush, and then shouted loudly.

At this.

Liu Zheng's side was stunned instead.

They were still thinking and waiting for the Powerful Clan in the city to secretly open the city gates; they had not expected that Luo Xiongchao would actually open them himself?