Late Ming Dynasty: Oops, I am surrounded by the Donglin Party

Sichuan, Kuizhou Prefecture, Daning County, Youjia Village.

It was quiet in Youjia Village. Although it was early morning, there was not even a wisp of smoke from cooking.

At You Dongsheng's home at the east end of the village, the final farewell was taking place.

"Son, mother... mother can't hold on any longer." Lying on the shabby little wooden bed, You's mother said weakly to her son.

Although Yu's mother looked to be in her forties, she was skinny and her eyes were sunken and lifeless.

But she still used all her strength to look at her son You Dongsheng. He was her only son and her only concern in this world.

You Dongsheng knelt in front of the bed. He was about twenty years old and very thin. He looked at his mother and tried hard not to cry out.

"Mom is... gone, you have to... live well, keep on living..." Before she could finish her words, Yu's mother's eyes lost their luster.

"Mother——" You Dongsheng finally couldn't bear it anymore and screamed in pain at the top of his lungs in the dilapidated hut.

He hated this world and hated why God made him watch his loved ones die one by one.

First it was his sister, then his father, and today his mother also passed away. In this big world, he is now all alone.

It was all because of that damned county magistrate. During the planting season, he stole all the food that their family had stored.

It's all their fault!

You Dongsheng hated them so much that he wanted to cut the magistrate of Daning into pieces.

But he knew that was impossible. He hadn't eaten a grain of rice for two days. Not to mention killing the magistrate to avenge his family, he himself could hardly save himself.

You Dongsheng hated his own incompetence and slapped himself twice.

He took out an old pickaxe from the house and started digging a hole under the loquat tree in the yard.

There are already two graves under the loquat tree. He buried his sister half a month ago, buried his father six days ago, and today, he is going to bury his mother.

He had no strength, but he kept digging with the pickaxe, never stopping even though he was already starting to sweat. This was the only thing he could do.

After working for an hour, he finally buried his mother.

He kowtowed to his parents, then stood up and looked around blankly. Everything was empty, without a single familiar figure.

He suddenly smiled and shook his head. He was thinking that if he died, there would not even be anyone to dig a grave for him.

He didn't know where to go, and maybe he would starve to death in a few days.

Just as I was confused, I suddenly heard shouts from outside the village.

"Eat the King of Rebellion, drink the King of Rebellion, the King of Rebellion comes and doesn't pay taxes!"

The shouts mixed with the sound of gongs broke the tranquility of Youjia Village like a thunderclap.

People came out from their homes in groups of three or four. Like You Dongsheng, they were too thin to look like a human, but their expressions were more or less sad.

You's mother is just a microcosm of Youjia Village. Which family has not lost someone because of this disaster?

There were not many people in the group, only about twenty, wearing tattered clothes, some holding knives and some holding spears.

The leader was a strong man in his thirties, who held the gong in one hand and struck it with the other.

"Eat the King of Rebellion, drink the King of Rebellion, the King of Rebellion comes and doesn't pay taxes!"

Although he shouted in a high tone, there was no expression on his face, just like the villagers from Youjia Village who surrounded him.

"Can I survive by following you?" You Dongsheng asked with difficulty, still holding the pickaxe in his hand.

The middle-aged man looked You Dongsheng up and down.

"As long as you join the King of Rebellion, you will have food to eat. When we conquer Daning City in the future, I will make sure you have enough to eat!"

"Attack Daning City? Are we going to kill the county magistrate?" You Dongsheng's eyes finally lit up a little, and his hands gripping the pickaxe tightened.

"Of course we have to kill these corrupt officials. It is them who have caused us to be torn apart from our wives and children and our families to be destroyed.

Do you want to join? If so, follow the team and you will have dinner tonight." The strong man continued to beat the gong.

He has seen this kind of situation too many times and has long been numb to it.

"I want to join you. I want to kill the magistrate of Daning and avenge my parents!" You Dongsheng joined the team with red eyes.

One, two, three, half an hour later, Youjia Village was empty.

……

Thirty miles away from Youjia Village, there was a village filled with noisy crowds. Although these people were dressed in rags and had pale faces and thin bodies, they were all filled with righteous indignation and high morale.

“King Chuang, the team has expanded to nearly 20,000 people.

According to your instructions, there are more than 6,000 people who have good physical strength." Hao Yaoqi said with a smile.

The last defeat had left them with only a dozen or twenty people. They thought they had no chance this time, but unexpectedly there was always a way out.

This time, the imperial court really gave them a big gift. The imperial court forcibly requisitioned grain, causing the people in the entire Sichuan to almost run out of food.

Now, as long as they bring people over and raise the flag, countless people who can't survive will join them.

Originally, many people were a little nervous, fearing that no one would come to surrender, but in just less than half a month, they gathered so many subordinates.

Moreover, people who want to join them are constantly gathering here from all around, and the situation is very good.

"It's really Song the Dwarf who has the solution. Once he shouts the slogan, people will definitely join him. It's much smoother than what we did before." Liu Zongmin praised.

Before, they didn't really trust Song Xiance. Fortunately, Li Guo stopped them. Otherwise, if they were really killed by him in a confused manner, it would be a serious crime.

"You are always so impulsive and always ready to kill people. When our team grows bigger, we must abide by military discipline. We must not make the same mistakes again."

Niu Jinxing took the opportunity to scold Liu Zongmin.

Before this, there was only one military advisor, Niu Jinxing, in King Chuang's team. After Song Xiance joined, there were two military advisors.

However, there was no conflict between Niu Jinxing and Song Xiance. Niu Jinxing was better at planning wars.

Song Xiance was better at logistics, including but not limited to baggage transportation, boosting morale, encouraging others to join, and forming alliances.

There is no conflict between the two.

"Prince Chuang, there is not much food left in the camp. I think it would be better for us to attack Daning City directly.

If we take over Daning City, more people will come to join us," Hao Yaoqi said excitedly.

"Song the Dwarf hasn't come back yet, why are you so anxious? Wasn't the last failure enough?" Li Guo frowned.

"Although there are not many people in the Yaohuang Thirteen Families, they are more familiar with the terrain here. Especially at times like this, we must be more patient."

Niu Jinxing said earnestly.

Hao Yaoqi felt a little embarrassed, but he still suppressed the impulse.

"Hey, military advisor, I was wrong. I will listen to you."

Li Zicheng, who had been silent all this time, put down the steel knife in his hand and looked around at these brothers who had been through life and death with him for many years.

"Brothers, God has blessed us and given us another chance.

The imperial court is now busy with building the Lu state and has no time to care about this place thousands of miles away.

We should take advantage of this opportunity to keep a low profile and prepare for war.

But there is only one chance, so you must not act rashly in the future. With the military advisor here, we will proceed steadily and cautiously.

From now on, military orders are respected. If you do not obey military orders, I, Li Zicheng, will recognize you as my brother, but I will not recognize the sword in my hand! "

……