Late Han Dynasty: Did the Yellow Emperor truly descend?

Chapter 22 Reconnaissance

"Li Feng".

"exist!"

"You will be in charge of reinforcing the defenses. Lead twenty men to reinforce the roadblocks at the village entrance, and also set up another one on the small road behind the village to prevent bandits from attacking from the rear."

"promise!"

Li Feng also left with his men.

"The rest of you, go back and check the equipment, sharpen your swords and spears, and prepare everything that can be used. From today onwards, no one is allowed to leave the village and must be on standby at any time. Oh, and the other elite soldiers stay behind."

"promise!"

The people in the square dispersed, and soon only Li Sheng, Liu Wu, and ten elite soldiers remained on the threshing floor.

Liu Wu stood there looking at Li Sheng, somewhat excited.

"Brother Sheng,"

Liu Wu licked his lips.

"What are our plans?"

Li Sheng looked up at the sky. The sun had already risen, and its rays shone on the distant wheat fields, which were a vibrant green.

"With our limited manpower, we won't be able to resist the approaching bandits unless we join forces with the main force in the county."

"So, what does Brother Sheng mean?"

"Let's go to the county town together and see what the government thinks. At the same time, we also need to go out and see what the situation is like to the north."

Li Sheng turned to look at Liu Wu.

"You, me, and the brothers here, let's go to the county town to scout things out, and then go take a look to the north."

Liu Wu was taken aback: "Just the twelve of us? Isn't that too few?"

"With more people, the target is bigger; twelve is just right."

Li Sheng patted his shoulder and comforted his deputy.

"Don't worry, I'm here for you."

Liu Wu nodded blankly.

……

The twelve of them walked and stopped frequently, and when they reached the outskirts of the county town, they spent some time figuring out the general situation around the town.

At this time, a large number of refugees gathered at the entrance of the county town, mostly in family units, with their families in tow, looking bewildered.

A notice was posted at the city gate, offering a reward for beheading the thief, but few people went to read it.

Most people gathered at the city gate and formed a long queue. Soldiers checked people at the gate and allowed them to enter the city.

The procession entered the city slowly and was very noisy.

"Brother Sheng, this isn't right."

Zhao Hu lowered his voice.

"Why is the county like this? It doesn't look like they're about to go out of the city to meet the enemy; it looks more like... they want to retreat into the city to defend themselves."

Li Sheng did not respond.

His suspicions were becoming increasingly clear.

Liu Wu stood to the side, his expression grim.

"Brother Sheng, is the government really going to abandon the people outside the city?"

Li Sheng still didn't jump to conclusions, but Zhao Hu started cursing first.

"I knew it! The other day they conscripted laborers and made us donate money and grain, saying it was to protect the borders and keep the people safe. So they only protect the officials in the county town? They don't care about the lives of the people outside the city? What's the use of such a damn government!"

Liu Wu remained silent, but Zhao Hu's words resonated deeply with him.

He looked at Li Sheng: "Brother Sheng, what do we do now?"

Li Sheng said, "The bandits are coming from the north. If they want to attack our Dongping Village, they have to go around the county town first. So regardless of whether the government troops come out to fight, we are not in danger for the time being."

"There's no danger for now, but what about later?"

"From now on," Li Sheng paused, "if we do nothing, the bandits will come to us sooner or later."

Everyone agreed that it made perfect sense.

Li Shi stepped forward: "Brother Sheng, what do you suggest? We'll all listen to you."

Li Sheng raised his head and looked north.

"Let's first scout out the roads in the northern countryside."

No one speaks.

"Sitting idly by and waiting to die is not the solution."

Li Sheng's gaze swept across everyone's face.

"I've decided to head north and see for myself. We need to know what kind of opponent we're facing, what their equipment is like, and what their typical tactics are. Knowing your enemy is half the battle. How can we fight if we're completely in the dark?"

Liu Wu raised his head and looked at Li Sheng.

"Brother Sheng, I'll go with you."

"Okay, you're in."

Li Sheng patted him on the shoulder.

"Brother Sheng, we'll go with you!"

The remaining people all agreed and decided to follow Li Sheng to the north to investigate.

Li Sheng looked at everyone, feeling gratified.

"Good, we brothers are all great!"

"Don't worry, everyone. With Heaven's protection, our journey will surely be successful!"

He boosted morale.

Upon hearing Li Sheng mention Huang Tian, ​​everyone's spirits lifted.

"Set off!"

"promise!"

The twelve people set off fully equipped.

Traveling north along the official road, the crops in the fields gradually thinned out, and the villages along the roadside became more and more dilapidated.

Before the rebels even arrived, they were already on the verge of bankruptcy.

Looking at this desolate and dilapidated scene, everyone felt as if a stone was pressing on their chests.

I never imagined that life was so difficult in other villages.

"Brother Sheng, something's not right up ahead."

Zhao Hu seemed to have discovered something and gestured to the others.

"I saw it."

Li Sheng shaded his eyes with his hand and looked into the distance.

In the distance, a thin wisp of black smoke stood out starkly against the hazy sky.

That was smoke from a fire.

"Everyone, stay alert!"

Li Sheng's voice was low, but everyone could hear it clearly.

The group followed Li Sheng, crouching low, and stealthily made their way forward along the field ridges and ditches.

Less than fifteen minutes later, a strong stench hit us.

It smelled like blood, mixed with a burnt smell, and an indescribable, nauseating stench.

Many brothers showed signs of nausea and vomiting, and one even couldn't help but cover his mouth and run to the side to dry heave twice.

Liu Wu glared at him fiercely, his eyes like knives.

Look at the brothers that Brother Li Sheng brought out, they didn't even flinch, and then look at the scum I brought out!

Li Sheng did not turn around; his gaze remained fixed on the village ahead.

Looking from afar, the first thing you see is that big tree at the entrance of the village.

The village is small, with only forty or fifty households.

But now, it no longer resembles a village.

The archway at the village entrance was leaning to one side, its inscriptions hacked beyond recognition by knives and axes.

Several thatched houses in the village were burned down to their blackened frames, still emitting wisps of smoke.

The most shocking sight was the corpses on the ground.

They were lying haphazardly, mostly men.

He must have been killed while defending the village entrance against bandits.

Li Sheng made his own judgment.

The stench emanating from the corpse had already attracted carrion-eating crows.

Li Sheng frowned slightly as he watched the crows pecking at the corpse.

His face was expressionless, but his fingers gripping the halberd were turning white at the knuckles.

Liu Wu followed behind him, his gaze sweeping over the corpses, his face ashen.

"brute."

He muttered a curse under his breath.

The others also looked solemn, gripping their iron spears tightly.

Fortunately, they were all elites carefully selected by Li Sheng and had undergone a period of off-the-job training. After the initial adaptation, they all maintained the proper qualities.

Li Sheng glanced back at the men he had brought with him and nodded with a hint of satisfaction.

"Everyone did a fantastic job! See what's happening before you clearly, remember it, this is what bandits do. If we can't defend our village, this will be our village's fate."