Chapter Eighteen, Thirty Strokes of the Cane
Half an hour later, the drill ground was crowded with people, all wearing yellow turbans, thousands of Yellow Turban soldiers with soft armor, and many civilians from Zhuo County came to watch. More than 500 Yellow Turban soldiers were tied up with ropes, each guarded by two Yellow Turban soldiers. These people's faces were pale, filled with fear and regret, they knew Xu Feng would punish them, but didn't know what fate awaited them.
Xu Feng dismounted and, surrounded by Xue Cheng and others, walked to the high platform in the center of the school field. Standing upright, he looked down at the dense crowd below, his face solemn and pale. Xu Feng cleared his throat, raised his hand, and the noise on the field immediately stopped. There was not a single sound, and all eyes were fixed on Xu Feng.
"Do you know what we are?" Xu Feng asked.
"The Yellow Turbans." The scattered Yellow Turban soldiers responded in disarray.
"Say it louder."
"We are the Yellow Turbans."
"Why did we become Yellow Turbans and what are we fighting for? Is it because the imperial court is incompetent, those in power disregard our lives, oppress and exploit us, not allowing us to have a way out? So we responded to the Master's call and joined the Yellow Turbans. Who is our enemy? Who can tell me?" Xu Feng loudly asked.
Seeing everyone's silence, Xu Feng continued: "It is the imperial court, it is the government army, it is the clan and gentry who oppress us..."
"What have you done? You've attacked innocent poor people, robbed them of their belongings, and bullied their families. Do you still have a conscience? Do you remember what you used to be? You're harming your own kind, do you feel proud of yourselves? If you had any skills, take up arms and go fight the enemy, kill the corrupt officials and evil tyrants. That way, even if you die, I, Xu Feng, will admire you and erect a monument in your honor, so that my brothers can remember your names forever. But what have you done instead? You've done something worse than pigs and dogs! I look down on you, and the people look down on you too."
Xu Feng's words were like a thunderclap, making the five hundred Yellow Turbans hang their heads in shame.
"Come on, take them all down. Military law is heartless. I hope you won't blame me." Xu Feng said, waving his hand and turning away.
"General, we know we were wrong, please spare our lives." The speaker was Zeng Shan, originally a great general under Cheng Yuanzhi's command. This time in the siege, he had some minor achievements, but now Zeng Shan regretted his actions and took the initiative to beg for mercy, hoping that Xu Feng could show leniency and give him another chance. The others also opened their mouths to beg for mercy, admitting their mistakes. After all, life only comes once, and no one wants to die.
"It's good that you know your mistakes, I'm glad you can do so. However, a country has its laws and the military has its rules. If I let you off today, how can I lead the army tomorrow? How can I make my brothers believe in me? If I had known this would happen, why bother starting in the first place? Letting it go unpunished is hard to convince the masses. Take action!" Xu Feng turned his back on the crowd and gritted his teeth as he raised his hand again.
"Ka-cha, ka-cha..." Hundreds of executioners, their knives rising and falling, blood spraying wildly in the air, heads flying off, five hundred skulls, almost in the blink of an eye, all fell to the ground. Scalding hot blood, a bloody scene, many timid ones were frightened to the point of vomiting uncontrollably. The onlookers were even more shocked, this commander was ruthless and merciless, his subordinates were killed so brutally, five hundred people were killed at his command, truly decisive.
However, the shock was shocking, but the hearts of the people were still warm. Xu Feng's words made them understand that the Yellow Turban Army was their own team and would not bully or rob the people of their money and grain. With such a strict iron law, who could not feel at ease? After a long time, all the people in the teaching ground cheered and shouted in praise.
"As their commander, I failed to restrain my subordinates in time and stop their evil deeds. I, Xu Feng, should be subject to military law. Xue Cheng, listen to the order, sentence me to 30 military cudgels." With that, Xu Feng took off his helmet and armor, revealing the single garment underneath, lifted his shirt, and leaned forward to receive the punishment on the high bench.
Everyone was stunned after hearing it. Soldiers breaking the law, being beaten or killed, were nothing new, but they had never heard of a general being punished as well. Those sayings like "A prince who breaks the law should be punished like a commoner" and "When a subordinate makes a mistake, the general is punished" were just lies to deceive others, no one would take them seriously. However, looking at Xu Feng's solemn expression as he lay on the high bench, everyone was still half-believing and half-doubting, they widened their eyes and stared closely at Xu Feng.
"General, this..." Xue Cheng was stunned that Xu Feng would actually take the punishment himself. As the main general, no matter right or wrong, it seemed like no one would blame him, so why did he have to be so strict with himself? Xue Cheng couldn't understand at all.
"Get on with it, or are you trying to make a mockery of me in front of the three armies?" Xu Feng urged coldly.
Promise
Seeing Xue Feng's resolute tone and eyes filled with trust, Xue Cheng gritted his teeth and gestured to the soldiers beside him, "Bring me my staff."
"Nuò" Bing Ding didn't dare to disobey, so he hastily fetched the walking stick. Xue Cheng took over the walking stick, turned around, gritted his teeth and rushed towards Xu Feng saying "Sorry, Peak Brother."
"Go ahead, I won't blame you."
"Thud, thud, thud..." Xue Cheng didn't hold back, swinging his arms with force, both hands striking the club heavily onto Xu Feng's body. After several blows, Xu Feng's body was covered in bloodstains. Xue Cheng knew that Xu Feng trusted him, which is why he allowed him to carry out the punishment. With tens of thousands of soldiers on the training grounds and numerous civilians gathered to watch, hitting too lightly would only make Xu Feng lose face and be ridiculed by everyone.
"Hiss..."
Everyone looked at Xu Feng's teeth clenched and endured the beating, all couldn't help but take a breath of cool air. Just a few slaps down, Xu Feng's body was already full of bloodstains, his buttocks were bloody and flesh torn, his clothes stuck to the bloodstains, just looking at it made people's hearts ache.
"General, stop fighting!" All the soldiers couldn't bear to watch anymore and shouted in unison.
"Brother Feng... forget it." Xue Cheng also advised, patting Xu Feng's body. As an executioner, he didn't feel good about it either, especially as a brother. He would rather have the stick hit himself, that way it would be more bearable.
"We're still eleven short." Xu Feng said gritting his teeth, ignoring everyone's dissuasion.
"Alas," Xue Cheng sighed helplessly and swung his arm again...
"Xu brothers, what's the point of this? You led soldiers out of the city to chase and kill Liu, Guan, and Zhang. The affairs within the city have nothing to do with you, why must you torture yourself like this? Look at you now, what a state you're in?" Zhou Cang scolded with concern as he looked at Xu Feng being carried back on a stretcher by soldiers.
"General, these soldiers are mostly from Cheng Yuanzhi's account, with loose military discipline and no rules. It is difficult to form a force without strict management. I hope General Zhou can understand my brother's kindness." Xu Feng said with emphasis.
"I understand what you mean, from now on let's just call each other brothers and stop with the formalities. You're a good guy, Xu Feng, I've made up my mind about this brotherhood." After a long while, Zhou Cang firmly said to Xu Feng.
Such a brother is worth making friends with.
