novelAbuy Chapter 118 Impregnable Fortress
Chapter 118 Impregnable Fortress
Upon hearing Li Sheng express his thoughts, Li Feng nodded vigorously.
"Please rest assured, General, the brothers will definitely spread your ideas of peace."
"Yes, I trust you to handle things."
After saying all that, Li Sheng remembered something else.
"Ah Feng, so what are your plans to do with those spies?"
Li Feng was resolute.
"Arrest them all!"
"Oh?"
Li Sheng looked at Li Feng with a puzzled expression, wondering where he got such courage.
Looking into Li Sheng's eyes, Li Feng laid out his thoughts completely.
"That's right, General. Although none of the people I visited believed those words, even if some people had doubts at first, they would dispel those doubts after asking their neighbors or chatting with the Taoist priests."
But it's always best to be cautious. Just because the people don't believe it now doesn't mean they won't believe it later. Rumors, repeated a thousand times, become the truth. Although Que Xuan sent few people, if they are allowed to spread the word throughout the city, it's hard to guarantee that no one will become suspicious over time. Moreover…”
He lowered his voice.
"If these spies only talk, I'm not afraid. What I'm worried about is them colluding with certain people in the city, working together from the inside..."
Li Feng had not forgotten that there were still many former gentry and powerful figures in Xiapi City. These people appeared to be well-behaved, but they might not have given up their ambitions.
Li Sheng pondered for a moment and then nodded.
"You make a good point. Then... let's arrest him."
"yes!"
Just as Li Feng was about to turn around to make arrangements, Li Sheng called him back.
"Wait a minute."
"Does the general have any further instructions?"
Li Sheng paced back and forth in the hall, his eyes darting around.
"It's not enough to just arrest people. If we're going to arrest them, we need to make sure it's all clear, so everyone knows who these people are and who they're working for."
"The general means..."
"Let's hold a meeting."
Li Sheng stopped and looked at Li Feng.
"I'll select some representatives from each village, and also some representatives from the group of refugees we've taken in through the work-for-relief program these past few months. I'll have them come to the county government office; I want to have a talk with them."
Li Feng was taken aback, then his eyes lit up.
"The general intends to..."
"Firstly, I really want to hear about the situation in the township; I've been traveling around a lot lately and haven't learned much about the grassroots. Secondly..."
Li Sheng's lips curled up slightly.
"Let the people tell us for themselves how the Taiping Army treated them. Their own words are a hundred times more effective than our propaganda. Let those captured spies hear it too. Let them see which is more real: what Que Xuan promised them or what I, Li Sheng, am doing."
Upon hearing this, Li Feng clasped his hands in a deep fist salute.
"General, you are brilliant! I will take care of it immediately."
He strode out of the back room.
Li Sheng sat back down at his desk and picked up an official document from the table.
It was a report that had been delivered yesterday, detailing the progress of several water conservancy projects outside the city. He read a few lines, then put it down, his gaze fixed on the sun-bleached sky outside the window.
He has been thinking about the alliance meeting these past few days.
Although Que Xuan was a weakling, the practice he represented—using supernatural beliefs to bewitch people and exchanging posthumous blessings for worldly obedience—had deep roots in this era.
He was considering whether to increase the proportion of supernatural beliefs in the Taiping Religion's ideology.
He certainly knows that superstition is unacceptable, but he can't say that it's useless.
However, after thinking about it for the past few days and listening to Li Feng's report, he gave up the idea.
His Taiping Sect followed a different path from the Yellow Turbans.
He wanted the people to live a good life while they were alive, instead of pinning their hopes on a vague "afterlife." He wanted to lead them to build a peaceful and prosperous world with their own hands, instead of kneeling on the ground waiting for others to give them alms.
This path is far more difficult than Que Xuan's, but it is also much more steadfast. Once a peaceful and prosperous land is established on earth, its allure will far surpass those illusory and unreal things.
The shouts from the street brought Li Sheng back to his senses, and he picked up the official document again.
The revolution has not yet succeeded, and comrades still need to work hard.
……
Before we knew it, the day of the gathering had arrived.
It was still early morning, but the sky was already bright.
The square in front of the Xiapi County Government Office gradually became lively.
The representatives of the people selected by each township got up before dawn, put on their best clothes, and walked a long way to get there.
Most of them were ordinary people who had the most contact with the Taiping Army on a daily basis. There were old farmers working in the fields, craftsmen with calloused hands, laborers who had worked on the canal for two months, and refugees who had been taken in just last month.
Everyone wore an expression of both nervousness and excitement. All of this was because they had heard that they would be able to see Li Sheng today.
Li Feng arranged seating in the square and directed his soldiers to maintain order. He deliberately left an open space next to the seats for the common people, where the dozen or so spies he had captured a few days earlier sat.
These people had their hands tied, but they weren't gagged. They squatted on the ground dejectedly, and a few were still muttering to themselves.
Without keeping the people waiting long, Li Sheng soon emerged from the county government office.
He wasn't wearing armor, just a simple blue cloth short coat and cloth shoes. He didn't look like a general with thousands of soldiers; he looked more like an ordinary country farmer.
The only difference was that he walked with a steady gait, had piercing eyes, and exuded an aura that commanded respect.
When the people in the square saw him come out, they all stood up in a rush.
No one taught them how to do it, but almost everyone bent down at the same time.
Some elderly people even tried to kneel down, but Li Sheng quickly walked over and helped them up.
"Old man, you mustn't."
The old man looked up, his eyes already red.
"General... I've lived all these years and never seen an official like you..."
Li Sheng patted the back of his hand, said nothing more, turned around and walked to the platform in front of the square, sitting down facing the people.
"Fellow elders, please sit down. I've invited you all here today for no other reason than to hear what you all have to say."
He looked around, his voice not loud, but it reached everyone's ears clearly.
"I, Li Sheng, have captured Xiapi for several months now, but I've been traveling around a lot during this time and haven't been keeping up with local affairs. I've invited you all here today for two reasons: first, to ask how everyone is doing, and whether the Taiping Army's rules have caused you any trouble; secondly…"
He paused, his gaze sweeping over the row of bound spies.
"Recently, rumors have been circulating in the countryside that I don't understand the Yellow Heaven and that I'm using the Yellow Turbans' influence to intimidate the government. I'd like to ask you elders, do you believe these things?"
The square fell silent for a moment.
Then, an old farmer with gray hair stood up.
He came from Sunjiazhuang outside the city. His surname was Sun, and most of the villagers were his relatives. When he stood up, his hands trembled slightly, whether from nervousness or excitement, it was hard to tell.
"General, let me say a few words first."
Li Sheng nodded.
The old farmer cleared his throat; his voice was aged yet powerful.
"The general asked us if we believed those rumors. To tell you the truth, we farmers are illiterate and don't understand anything about 'yellow sky' or 'yellow sky.' But we farmers do understand one thing: the land."
He stretched out his rough palm and gestured to indicate the name.
"Before, the land belonged to others. We farmed the land our whole lives, working for others. When the general came, the land was divided among us, and our names were written on the deeds. I've farmed the land for many years, and this is the first time I've ever felt that this land is mine."
His voice trembled slightly.
"The land is mine, so I'm working my ass off on it. This spring, I planted twenty mulberry trees on the ridges of the fields and dug a small ditch to bring in water. My son said, 'Dad, why are you working so hard now?' I said, 'This is our own land. If I don't work my ass off, I'll be letting myself down, and I'll be letting the General down even more.'"
He turned around, facing the people in the square, and raised his voice.
"Those who speak ill of the general, go ask around in Sunjiazhuang, who would believe them? The villagers aren't stupid; they know perfectly well who treats them well!"
After finishing speaking, Old Man Sun sat down, his chest still heaving violently.
A middle-aged woman next to her then stood up. She was wearing a faded coarse cloth dress, her hair was held back with a wooden hairpin, and her face was simple and honest.
"General, my name is Zhang Liushi, and I am from the city. My husband broke his leg while working at the docks last year, and my family has been relying on me to do laundry for others to make a living. At that time, my children were crying from hunger, and I was so worried that my hair was falling out in clumps."
As she spoke, her eyes reddened.
"Later, when the general came, people from the Taiping Cult came to my house and asked me what trouble I was in. I told them that my husband's leg was injured and he couldn't work. The next day, they brought a bag of rice and even found a doctor for my husband. Later, when the canal was hiring, they arranged an easy job for my husband, watching over the material yard, and provided him with two meals a day."
Her tears finally fell, but she didn't wipe them away, letting them stream down her cheeks.
"General, I'm just a woman, I don't know any grand principles. I just know that when I was in my most difficult time, it was you who helped me. I will remember this kindness for the rest of my life."
The square fell silent.
Then, one by one, the people stood up.
A young man who had worked on the canal for two months, his skin tanned dark, patted his chest and said...
"General, I'm strong and I'm not afraid of getting tired. I'm willing to keep doing the work on the canal!"
Some refugees who had fled from Suiling knelt on the ground and kowtowed, saying that if it weren't for the Taiping Army taking them in, their families would have starved to death long ago.
There was a teenager who stammered.
"General... I want to follow you. I'm not afraid to die."
Each person's words were short, and each person's words were so simple as to be almost clumsy, but it was precisely this clumsiness that made each word like a pebble thrown into the hearts of everyone present.
The row of bound spies initially showed disdain, some even muttering curses under their breath. But gradually, their expressions changed.
One of the young spies, who looked to be no more than twenty years old, had been keeping his head down, but at this moment he couldn't help but raise his eyes.
He looked at the expressions on the faces of the people as they spoke, at the tears in their eyes, and at the heartfelt, almost pious gratitude on their faces.
He wasn't unfamiliar with that expression.
He had seen people weep and kneel before Que Xuan.
But the people here have never been like this before.
He then recalled what Que Xuan had said.
Que Xuan always said this to them.
"To die for the Yellow Emperor, one's soul will return to the heavens after death and enjoy eternal incense offerings."
He always said that the suffering in this world is a "test," and only by enduring it can one receive blessings after death.
But here with Li Sheng, no one talks about what happens after death.
They were talking about current events.
The land we have now, the grain we have now, the irrigation canals we have now, and the life we have now.
The spy suddenly felt a tightness in his throat.
He remembered why he had followed Que Xuan in the first place.
It wasn't because he believed in any gods, but because he was desperate. His family had lost their land, his parents had starved to death, and he was wandering alone. It was the people of Que Xuan who gave him a bite to eat and told him: "Follow the angels, and you will be reunited with your family after you die."
He believed it.
But now, looking at these people, he suddenly felt that if he could live a good life while he was alive, what happened after he died... didn't seem so important.
Another spy next to him was also in a daze.
He was Que Xuan's confidant and had followed him the longest. He had witnessed the scene of thousands of people kneeling and worshipping when Que Xuan ascended the altar to perform rituals. He always thought that this was what it meant to "win the hearts of the people".
But now he suddenly realized that Que Xuan's "winning the hearts of the people" was completely different from Li Sheng's.
Which one is more reliable?
He already had the answer in his heart.
On the stage, Li Sheng was still talking to the people. He asked them what suggestions they had and what they needed him and the Taiping Sect to do.
The people looked at each other, and finally shook their heads.
An old man spoke on behalf of everyone.
"General, you've been good enough to us. We don't want much, we just want to farm and live a good life."
Li Sheng smiled and didn't insist.
The gathering lasted from morning until afternoon. Li Sheng had several large pots of porridge cooked and drank it with the people. He squatted on the ground with his bowl in hand, chatting with the people like old friends, without any airs.
Even the bound spies were given a bowl of porridge.
The young spy held the bowl, his hands trembling.
For someone of Li Sheng's status to treat them, these lowly servants, in such a way is something Que Xuan could never do.
The gathering ended as the sun began to set.
The people left reluctantly, some even turning back to look at Li Sheng from a distance, as if trying to remember his image.
Li Sheng stood at the entrance of the county government office, seeing off the last group of people.
Li Feng walked to his side.
"General, what should we do with those spies?"
Li Sheng glanced at the row of people who were tied up, his gaze sweeping over their faces.
"Keep it locked up for now."
He paused, then continued.
"Send them all to the irrigation canal after tomorrow. Heaven doesn't support idlers. Once they're here, they can forget about getting a free meal."
Li Feng was taken aback, then realized what was going on.
"promise!"
The afterglow of the setting sun shone on the city walls of Xiapi, bathing the entire city in a warm yellow hue.
Li Sheng turned and walked back to the county government office. Behind him, the spies were being escorted towards the prison.
The young spy was walking at the very back. He suddenly stopped and looked back.
Li Sheng's figure had already disappeared from sight.
He wanted to know why Li Sheng was so kind to them, these peasants.