"However, I established the Yi Province Militia not just to do the right thing. There are some things that should be done."
"I've decided to lead my troops to hold off the Mount Liang army and buy enough time for the people of Linwen County to retreat!"
Wu Shuangren stated her decision decisively.
There was an uproar, and many people looked surprised.
In fact, everyone felt that Wu Shuangren had done a good job of properly resettling the people of Linwen County within the city and then sending people to help with the evacuation.
No one expected that he would actually send troops to confront the Mount Liang people!
Would they be willing to take such a risk just to save more people in Linwen County?
Linwen County and Bo County are very far apart and have almost no contact with each other.
Do such people really exist in the world?
Yan Bin suddenly stood up, his face flushed red, his voice trembling. "Commander, I, Yan Bin, am willing to lead the soldiers of the Linwen County Militia into battle! You tell us how to fight, and we'll fight exactly as you say! If I even flinch, I'm not Yan Bin!!"
Several captains from the Linwen County Militia also stood up and shouted along, very excited.
Wu Shuangren raised his hand to press them down, his gaze serious, and said, word by word, "There is no Linwen County Militia here, only the Yi Province Militia!"
"..."
Yan Bin and the others were taken aback, and many others present looked at each other in bewilderment.
"I said on the day the Yi Province Militia Yi Province Militia was established that it was to protect our homeland and our families. As long as you bring people to join the Yi Province Militia, I will definitely help any of your families if anything happens to them in the future. That's why the Yi Province Militia must go to the rescue when Linwen County is in danger!"
Wu Shuangren's voice rang out in the courtyard. It wasn't loud, but every word struck a chord in everyone's hearts.
"When you go back today, tell your company commanders and captains exactly what I just said, and then have them tell every single Militia Private in your regiment. I want everyone to clearly understand why we are fighting and what we are fighting for."
Wu Shuangren's gaze swept over everyone. "Do you all understand?"
"Yes!"
Bai Jinhuan, Chen Tie, Yan Bin, and others were the first to stand up and bow.
"Yes!"
The others also stood up and bowed.
However, Wu Shuangren could clearly see that many people present had hesitant and unwilling expressions on their faces.
It's obviously not going to happen quickly for everyone to immediately accept the concept that the entire Yi Province is 'one family'.
Getting them to willingly risk their lives for "outsiders" is not something that can be done overnight.
"Also, this time we're not going to fight Mount Liang head-on; our mission is to delay, not to confront them directly."
Wu Shuangren continued.
Hearing this, many people relaxed a little.
"Now we will begin assigning specific tasks."
Wu Shuangren said solemnly.
Everyone perked up, looking at the group leader with either anticipation or trepidation.
At 3:15 PM, a large contingent of people emerged from the camp outside the west gate of Yi Prefecture City, began to assemble, and then set off onto the official road.
Wu Shuangren left a battalion of troops to guard the city, and led the rest of the Yi Province Militia to Linwen County.
Xu Jing, Liao Yu, Wu Dongrong, and Xu Nanzhi were all in the team.
Wu Shuangren originally didn't want the three people following him, so he made up an excuse to have them stay and help him guard the city.
But none of the three listened to him.
On the west gate, Guo Jiwang held a wine gourd in his hand, watching the large army outside the city gradually disappear into the distance.
He took a big gulp of wine, looking somewhat gloomy.
Zhou Zhengqing stood beside him, also keeping an eye on the large army outside the city.
Only when he could barely see the dust rising did he speak, "Is the master very angry?"
Guo Jiwang his head. "I'm just very disappointed."
"..."
"Zhengqing, do you think I chose the wrong person?"
"The adults said before that Militia Commander Wu is suited to be a hero, but not a tyrant."
"Yes, this further proves that my initial judgment was correct."
Guo Jiwang took another sip of wine. "He doesn't know how to make choices, acts too impulsively, and always seeks victory through risky means. One in ten thousand people like that would never achieve great things!"
"But I admire Militia Commander Wu even more!"
Zhou Zhengqing suddenly spoke.
Upon Guo Jiwang froze in his drinking motion.
He put down his wine gourd and turned to look at Zhou Zhengqing.
The other person looked at him intently.
Guo Jiwang chuckled, "I used to admire people like Wu Shuangren, but such people either repeatedly run into obstacles and end up battered and bruised, or they die young. Look through history, how many people achieve success like that?"
Zhou Zhengqing: "But you still offered advice to Militia Commander Wu this time, didn't you, sir?"
"..."
Guo Jiwang remained silent.
Zhou Zhengqing: "You said last time that you wanted to see how far he could go. I think that with Militia Commander Wu's abilities, plus your assistance, he might really go very far!"
Guo Jiwang another sip of wine, turned and walked down from the city wall, leaving behind only one sentence:
"If he continues down this path, one wrong move and he'll lose his life and everything! I've bet everything on him, and I'm likely to lose everything."
On the official road, Yan Bin led a group of Linwen County Militia, along with Wu Shuangren's personal guard and cavalry, riding two men on one horse.
After these days of training, the cavalry and guards are now at least able to ride at full gallop in simple formations.
More than three hundred riders and over six hundred men set off ahead of time.
The group rested very few times along the way, traveling through the night.
The next day, around 3 a. m. (the hour of Yin).
The group arrived in Linwen County Seat.
Yan Bin personally came to the city and opened the county gates, after which more than 600 people entered the city.
Immediately afterwards, Yan Bin led his men to the government office, woke up the county magistrate and assistant magistrate of Linwen County, and had a conversation with them.
Subsequently, the entire county government was mobilized.
Yan Bin divided the more than 600 people he brought into over a hundred teams, and they went door-to-door, beating gongs and drums, to inform them:
"The Mount Liang rebels are coming! Everyone pack your things and head to Yi Prefecture City immediately; someone there will take us in!"
The people of Linwen County were actually prepared.
Yan Bin had sent word more than ten days ago that every household should pack up their valuables in advance and be ready to flee at any time!
The Yan family had lived in Linwen County for over thirty years, distributing grain for disaster relief, and building bridges and roads, earning them a very good reputation.
Although Yan Bin was the head of the local militia and a powerful figure, he never bullied men or women or forced the sale of land. Instead, he led the militia to protect Linwen County from the bullying and harassment of bandits and local bullies, and was deeply supported by the people.
Therefore, the people of Linwen listened to what he said, and the vast majority of them had made preparations long ago.
Suddenly awakened and hearing the announcement from outside, people immediately began packing their belongings.
In addition to the residents of the county town, Yan Bin also sent people to notify the residents of more than a dozen surrounding villages one by one.
But moving involves so many trivial and unfortunate things.
Various minor variables and unexpected events also emerged one after another.
Mobilizing tens of thousands of people to evacuate quickly is something no one has experience with, so chaos and confusion are inevitable.
Even though Yan Bin had already publicized the situation and made preparations in advance, by the time the first group of evacuees actually reached the official road, it was almost noon (11 a. m.).
The four main officials of Linwen County —the magistrate, the assistant magistrate, the registrar, and the county constable—did not evacuate first. Instead, they stayed behind with dozens of yamen runners to help organize the people to evacuate.
With the help of these local officials, the evacuation was not so slow as to be outrageously slow.
Of course, there are still some people who are unwilling to leave for various reasons, and after several attempts to persuade them, they can only give up...
Around 3 PM, Wu Shuangren led his large army and encountered the first group of evacuees on the official road.
He immediately ordered two Rong Province Battalion to send some men to help carry bags, hold children, and carry the elderly.
With the help of a large number of able-bodied young men, the retreat speed immediately increased!
The main force continued its journey towards Linwen County, and Wu Shuangren would send people to help whenever they encountered evacuating residents of Linwen County along the way.
He prioritized selecting men from the two Rong Province Battalion, followed by the Fourth Battalion, Fifth Battalion, and Seventh Battalion.
As darkness completely fell.
Wu Shuangren finally led the main force to Linwen County.
Along the way, he sent almost all the men from the two Rong Province Battalion, the Fourth Battalion, the Fifth Battalion, and the Seventh Battalion to help the people evacuate and lead them back to Yi Prefecture City.
When they set out, Wu Shuangren had more than 9,000 soldiers under his command, but now only more than 4,000 remain.
Yan Bin came out to greet him, covered in dust and with bloodshot eyes.
His voice was hoarse as he said, "Commander, about 90% of the people in the city and surrounding villages have been evacuated."
Wu Shuangren nodded.
Yan Bin did a better job than he had expected, managing to evacuate 90% of the troops in a single day.
Has the area been cleared?
Wu Shuangren looked around.
Yan Bin nodded. "We've already sent people to clean it up, and now we have people we've placed around watching the area."
Wu Shuangren: "Alright, let's proceed with the plan and enter the city."
"Yes!"
Yan Bin turned around and went back to prepare.
Next, Wu Shuangren ordered each battalion to enter the city in turn, and fires were lit at the city gates.
He ordered each brigade to light several torches, and each brigade deliberately stretched out its ranks before entering the county town one brigade after another.
Along the official road, the flames formed a long dragon that stretched as far as the eye could see, a truly magnificent sight from afar.
To the west of the county town, in the distant mountains and forests, two people were perched on two extremely tall trees.
They stared intently at the direction of the county town gate, counting the processions formed by the flames. Each time a group of people entered the town, they would silently count them in their minds.
Nearly half an hour passed, and their eyes were sore from watching. Only when the last bit of firelight entered the city gate did they slide down from the tree.
"How many?"
Someone asked.
"I counted about eight or nine thousand people."
Another one said.
"I'm about the same; it matches what they said in Yi Prefecture City. Let's go back and report."
The two picked up the knife hidden under the tree and disappeared into the night.
On the city wall of Linwen County, Wu Shuangren stood there until all the Militia Private had entered the city.
Yan Bin ran over, panting, "Commander-in-Chief, everything's arranged."
Wu Shuangren: "Did the people watching around notice anything unusual?"
Yan Bin shook his head. "No, even if the other side has arranged spies, they can only watch from a distance."