"Yes, yes, yes!"
The old general nodded repeatedly and said gravely, "He was pitch-black, and I don't know where the fellow came from. He beat several of my men to the ground."
When he had seen what was happening earlier, he had sent his guards over to ask about it. To his surprise, that Black Charcoal Head had attacked them outright.
If not for the heir's guards at the end, he himself would probably have been hammered to death by that Black Charcoal Head.
"Your Highness, how did you know?" Haitang asked blankly from the side.
The heir had been here the whole time. Could he really predict the future? That was far too impressive.
Lin Yi glanced at her and smiled. "A guard reported earlier that because I wiped out the bandits for the people, quite a few were preparing to come and join me. I thought it was just talk, but it turned out to be true."
Since it was Zhou Cang, there was no mistake. These should be the Yellow Turban soldiers who had spawned earlier.
They had grown from over twenty thousand at the start to more than thirty thousand in the end, including three thousand elites. They had greatly increased Lin Yi's strength.
To make the best use of them, Lin Yi had put Jia Xu in charge of them. He had not expected this to happen.
"Really? That Black Charcoal Head came to join the heir?"
The old general was stunned too. Had the heir become so wise and virtuous that so many people came to join him as soon as he arrived? Even the Prince of Northern Liang hadn't received such treatment back then, had he?
Haitang was dumbstruck as well. With twenty or thirty thousand people casually coming to join him, it really seemed the heir could sweep through Xiliang Commandery.
The group slowly walked outside. Sure enough, the space before the dilapidated commandery governor's residence was packed with people wearing yellow headscarves. At their head stood Zhou Cang, his skin dark and his body radiating a powerful aura.
Quite a few townspeople were watching from the sidelines, evidently drawn by the commotion.
"Your Highness, you have rid us in Xiliang of a scourge that plagued us for years. I, Zhou Cang, am willing to follow you and protect my homeland," Zhou Cang said solemnly. As soon as he saw Lin Yi, he went straight up and knelt before him.
As he led the way by kneeling, the people behind him immediately dropped to their knees across the ground.
"Your Highness, Xiliang has been in chaos for so long, and now we have finally seen hope in you. We are willing to follow you and sweep away the darkness in Xiliang."
Huh!
Hearing that, Lin Yi couldn't help finding it a little strange. Those weren't words an ordinary commoner could have spoken, and why did the voice sound so familiar?
He looked toward the voice and saw a familiar figure. It was none other than his strategist, Jia Xu.
At the moment, however, Jia Xu was dressed in ordinary clothes with a yellow headscarf on, working hard to sing his praises.
Holy shit!
Realization dawned on Lin Yi, and he couldn't help marveling inwardly, What a Jia Xu! He truly lives up to his reputation. What a brilliant move!
He had guessed what Jia Xu was thinking. The black-bellied strategist was building momentum for him, fashioning an image of him as someone seeking hope for Xiliang. No wonder he had created such a grand scene. With what he had done today, people would probably continue to come and follow Lin Yi.
Jia Xu had even found them a reason: for nothing else but hope for Xiliang and the sweeping away of the darkness, they simply had to follow the heir.
With that thought, Lin Yi immediately understood his role. He sighed and said with a look of compassion for the suffering, "Your trust in me, Lin Yi, makes me very happy, but it also weighs heavily on me."
"Earlier, in White Monkey County, I saw the people suffering under the bandits and swept through more than thirty bandit strongholds in a rage. Though I was excited to rid the people of those scourges, my heart was also very heavy, for there are probably more bandits in Xiliang than we imagined."
"Now, with your help, I have finally seen a glimmer of hope. I, Lin Yi, thank you all on behalf of Northern Liang."
"Although I am only a commandery governor, I can promise that as long as I have a bowl of rice to eat, none of you brothers will go without a mouthful. I hope that one day, everyone will have enough to eat and everyone will have meat."
Sob, sob, sob!
Never mind Jia Xu, the actor; even the townspeople watching from the sidelines were stunned. So there was a story behind the heir's sweep through more than thirty bandit strongholds. It was truly moving.
"The heir is merciful!"
"For the heir to come to our Xiliang Commandery is truly a blessing for us!"
"What? We can even eat our fill? I want to follow the heir too! I can't run away anymore. I have to protect my home."
"I'm definitely not doing this to eat my fill and have meat. I just want to protect my home."
For a moment, the townspeople watching could no longer stay put. Several of them dropped to their knees as well, crying and shouting that they wanted to follow the heir, leaving the old general dumbstruck.
What was going on? How was the heir so impressive that these people were crying and shouting to follow him?
Haitang's eyelids twitched. How much grain would so many people need? It would definitely be an astronomical amount.
But looking at the dense crowd before her, she felt somewhat relieved. With so many followers, even if those people joined forces, they wouldn't be able to hurt the heir, would they?
No one saw when Jia Xu, the number-one actor, disappeared into the crowd of Yellow Turbans.
Zhou Cang got up from the ground and said solemnly, "Your Highness, I, Zhou Cang, entrust my life to you. Whatever you need, just give the word."
Lin Yi couldn't help pondering the matter. The Yellow Turban Army was not very strong in battle and could not yet be used to suppress bandits. It would be a terrible waste to lose them for nothing.
After all, though their combat strength was low, there was no question of their loyalty, and they were also a labor force. Losing even one of them would not be worth it.
At that moment, he remembered something: he had previously obtained two high-yield crops, sweet potatoes and potatoes. He could start cultivating them now.
With that thought, he said gravely, "Brother Zhou Cang, the people of Xiliang currently face a problem: getting enough to eat. In fact, I once received guidance from an immortal and obtained two high-yield crops."
"High-yield crops given by an immortal?"
Everyone's eyes lit up. High-yield crops given by an immortal were probably no ordinary things. They wondered whether they could solve the people's food problem.
Lin Yi nodded and said gravely, "According to the immortal, these two crops can yield over three thousand jin per mu. If properly tended, they can yield as much as eight thousand jin."
"Eight thousand jin?"
Hearing that, not only was Zhou Cang dumbfounded, but even the old general beside him was scared witless. He blurted out, "If they really yield eight thousand jin per mu, perhaps no one in the world will ever starve to death again."
He hurriedly turned to his heir and pressed him. "Your Highness, is that true?" This would be boundless merit.
"As the son of the Prince of Northern Liang, what would I gain by lying to you? It would only tarnish my father's name," Lin Yi said with a solemn expression.
Others might not know, but he knew these two crops well. They were unquestionably high-yield crops, and two harvests could be grown in a year. Once they were introduced widely, no one would starve to death.