Chapter Thirty: The Red Robed Thief

  In the large courtyard of the county government office, Yuan's soldiers and officers were having a grand feast, eating and drinking to their hearts' content. The atmosphere was lively and joyful, with laughter and conversation filling the air, creating a unique and festive ambiance that filled the entire compound.

  The exhaustion and hunger of the past few days have finally been alleviated.

  Being able to get thorough and unadulterated relaxation is indeed one of life's greatest pleasures.

  He picked up a large piece of meat from the boiling water in the pot with chopsticks, blew it gently for a few times, dipped it in some salt, and put it into his mouth. Yuan Shang leaned back and savored it for a while, feeling extremely satisfied and delightful.

  Meat, meat, it's been so long since I returned from my journey that I've lost the taste of meat...

  And in this era, I can still eat hot pot, and God is not stingy with me.

  Gao Lan looked around and saw that the atmosphere was good, so he smiled and suggested to Yuan Shang: "Today's banquet is so enjoyable, everyone has eaten their fill, why not let the soldiers sing a song or two to liven things up?"

  Yuan Shang's eyes lit up at the words, and he nodded: "Alright, if the soldiers are interested, let them shout a couple of times, it'll also help loosen their muscles."

  Gao Lvwen stood up upon hearing the words and came to the county government office, saying to the soldiers beside the bonfire: "Brothers, are your bellies still full from eating?"

  The soldiers of the Yuan army held their chopsticks one by one and cheered in unison, their voices loud and rhythmic.

  "I'm full! I'm full! I'm full!"

  "Is there anyone with strength?" Gao Lan continued to ask loudly.

  "Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!"

  "Good!" But then he slapped his thigh heavily and said loudly: "Since you have the energy, let's sing a song together! Can we?"

  The words fell, and suddenly the entire courtyard was filled with thunderous shouts.

  Sing! Sing! Sing! Sing!

  Only to see Gao Lan take out the sword from his waist, look up at the sky and sing loudly. Then, one by one, the soldiers of the Yuan army in the courtyard shouted, the passionate poem chapters surged with enthusiasm, echoing in the night sky of Nandong County...

  "Shall I say I have no clothes? I share the same cloak with you. The king is about to raise an army. I will sharpen my spear and halberd! Shall I say I have no clothes? I share the same socks with you. The king is about to raise an army. I will sharpen my halberd and armor! Shall I say I have no clothes? I share the same trousers with you. The king is about to raise an army. I will sharpen my armor and weapons! Let us march together!"

  Listening to the thick song, feeling the strong military travel sentiment, Yuan Shang's heart is filled with emotion.

  This is the life of a military man, this is the chaotic world of warlords at the end of the Eastern Han dynasty.

  Every day, I see how many corpses and lost souls are quietly buried.

  Every day, due to war, we lose our compatriots and the tears on our faces are hard to dry.

  But the disaster brought a lingering haze that could not crush the unyielding backbone of the soldiers, they were passionate, they were surging, they were enthusiastic, they were strong, they were unyielding, and they were jubilant.

  Yuan Shang was not pleased that he had arrived in a chaotic world of war and turmoil, but he was grateful to be able to deeply experience the emotions of military life that he had no opportunity to understand in his past life.

  Perhaps for a real man, a life without having been on the battlefield is indeed incomplete.

  For some reason, this feeling and scene made Yuan Shang think of a few famous phrases from later generations...

  Standing at the summit of the mountain, the winds and clouds from all directions gather before one's eyes. Listening to the sound of pines beside the ear, the joys and worries of countless families are on one's mind.

  Yuan Shang let out a long sigh and a hint of a knowing smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

  Maybe I can slowly blend into this era now.

  Just as the atmosphere was high, a horse flew to the front of the county government office, and the scout hastily dismounted and entered the main hall, whispering a few words in Zhang's ear.

  Zhang's face suddenly turned somewhat gloomy.

  He waved his hand to let the servant retreat, Zhang Jing got up and came to Yuan Shang's side, using the cover of the singing voices in the courtyard, he said in a voice that others couldn't hear: "Third Master, there's something."

  Yuan Shang snapped out of his reverie and turned to Zhang Jia: "What's wrong?"

  Zhang Jing nodded solemnly and continued in a low voice, "The scout reported that 15 miles east of the city, there is an army of several thousand troops rushing towards Nandun County, but it's unclear where they came from."

  "Soldiers and horses?!"

  Yuan Shang's face turned pale as soon as he heard the words: "Could it be Xiahou Yuan? This guy reacted so quickly, and changed direction to head south so fast?"

  Zhang Jing lightly shook his head and said, "It shouldn't be, according to the scouts' reports. The other side's troops have a certain number, but they are mostly without armor, their clothes are disheveled, their weapons are mixed and matched, and there are both strong and weak horses. They don't seem like regular army troops, but rather...".

  Yuan Shang raised an eyebrow: "Bandits?"

  "Not bad!"

  "This is interesting..."

  Yuan Shang stood up with a smile: "When I was at the border of Yanzhou, those old farmers who were farming told me that there are many strong bandits in the Central Plains, and the counties have their hands tied, making it difficult for the government to control. I just didn't know which route this group of bandits was taking under the golden banner."

  Zhang Jing heard the words and replied, "Just now, Shi Hou said that although he didn't know the details of the other side, he could see clearly that the leader of this army was wearing a red shirt and red robe, with a high hat on his head and riding a red war horse..."

  "Red Robe Bandit!" Yuan Shang suddenly realized, saying: "That old farmer once said that the bandits in the Central Plains are divided into three groups. The Yellow Turbans remnants led by Sima Ku and Xu He are the most powerful, followed by Chen Lan, Mei Cheng, Lei Xu, Chang Yi and others who are extremely vicious. Then there is this Red Robe Bandit who just emerged last year and caused a lot of trouble, to the point where even their name is unknown."

  Zhang Jue nodded and said, "Third Master, forgive me for speaking bluntly. Since the soldiers have already eaten their fill and their dry rations are ready, it's better for us to leave early and head to Liu Bei's place in Runan. It's not worth confronting that red-clad bandit head-on."

  Yuan Shang thought for a moment, shook his head and said: "Don't rush to leave first, I'd like to get to know this red-clad bandit better. To be able to mix in Cao Cao's backyard without being caught, he must not be an ordinary person. Who knows, there might even be unexpected gains."

  Zhang Jiao said: "The other side is coming with a strong momentum, I'm afraid they are rushing to seize the grain and money of Nandun County, and may not have the intention to discuss with you in detail."

  "So, we need to think of a way to make him willing to talk to me. For example... after capturing this bandit leader, whatever I say to him, won't he have to listen obediently?"

  Zhang Jing narrowed his eyes: "Young master intends to fight with bandits?"

  Yuan Shang smiled and shook his head: "No need to go to so much trouble, I have a plan that can take down the bandit chief without losing a single soldier!"

  Outside Nanton County Town

  A cutting north wind, a column of troops raising clouds of dust had slowly begun to appear before the east gate of Nandun County...

  "Waaaah~~!"

  As a loud wolf howl echoed through the sky, this bandit army suddenly stopped in its tracks in front of Nandu County. A group of cavalrymen galloped their horses horizontally with swords drawn, shouting and yelling as they ran wildly around the city walls.

  It's strange that the weapons held by this group of cavalrymen are different from the normal long spears and lances held by ordinary cavalry.

  All equipped with sabers and short bows, and formed in groups of three riders as a unit, nine riders as a team. When running left and right, they were completely disorganized and ran wildly, but subtly had room to support each other, their tactics were completely different from ordinary cavalry, and it was quite strange.

  On the city wall of Nandu County, Gao Lan looked at this cavalry with a rub of his eyes, as if he didn't dare to believe it.

  After a while, Fang saw him slowly turn his head around, looking at Zhang Jiong with a puzzled expression: "Jiong, this kind of cavalry, I feel like I've seen it somewhere before... Could it be..."

  His face was gloomy, and his complexion was also changing between red and white. After a while, he shook his head and sighed: "Impossible, absolutely impossible! In this vast world, there is only one person who can train such cavalry... But everyone knows that man has been dead for two years..."

  Gao Lan heard the words and nodded, but suddenly said: "But what about these cavalry..."

  "Perhaps it's just a coincidence that our training methods are similar, nothing more."

  At this moment, the troops below suddenly dispersed to both sides. In the middle of the army, there was a general wearing all red armor and robes, riding a bare horse, with a golden crown on his head. His bright red attire stood out especially in the night, making her white skin like snow and icy bones even more captivating.

  "Where is the Magistrate of Nandong County? Come out and answer."

  Lift your head and gaze at the county town of Nanton, a soothing sound echoes across the entire sky.

  Yuan Shang blinked his eyes and looked at the red-clad bandit chief below with some surprise.

  "What's going on? The leader of the bandits is actually a woman?"