Chapter 29: The Uprising in Pei County Begins

  Inside the account, a candle was lit, and the flame was blown by the wind blowing from the gap in the camp, making it sway uncertainly. The faces of everyone inside the camp were also reflected, making them look unclear. Obviously, the atmosphere inside the camp was very depressing, as if they were all thinking about tomorrow's attack on the city. Yes, the problem they are facing now is indeed not small, after all, they are facing a county town that is not small! As for their side, there were only a few hundred horses, and in terms of military strength, relying on these few hundred horses to take down a county town was almost impossible. It's just that their momentum was high.

  Liu Shanhe sat in the center of the large tent, while the others surrounded him. Seeing that everyone looked a bit embarrassed, Liu Shanhe's heart was very bright. Because when Liu Bang took over this Pei County city, he had Xiao He write a letter to the elders of Pei County and then personally shot it into the city, mobilizing all the parents and relatives inside the city, and finally killing that corrupt official. This time, Liu Shanhe wanted to do something even more brilliant. However, he felt that it was not yet time for him to speak, so he walked back and forth in the large tent a few times, his eyes unconsciously stopping on Xiao He.

  Actually, Xiao He had already made up his mind long ago, but he wasn't the kind of person who liked to show off, so he was just waiting for the right moment. Throughout his life, Xiao He had been very cautious in doing things and always preferred to take action after others. However, at this time, seeing Liu Bang furrowing his brow with anxiety, and looking around at the other people, one by one, all of whom were at a loss, he had already made up his mind. Just as he was about to speak, he saw Fan Kuai beside him speaking first to Liu Bang: "I say, Third Brother, what's so difficult about this? I'll take a few dozen brothers and kill my way into the city, and in no time at all, I can bring you that dog official's head!" Fan Kuai's voice was like a loud bell, and as soon as it fell, everyone felt their ears ringing.

  Xiao He saw the situation and hastily said to Liu Bang, "Your Majesty, in my opinion, tomorrow's battle to take the city cannot be won by force, but only by strategy. What is your will?"

  Liu Shanhe thought for a moment and said: "Alas, I also think so, but, but, how can we cleverly take it?"

  Xiao He stroked his whiskers and smiled slightly, saying: "This is actually quite simple. However, we need to choose one person to be the insider, only then can this plan succeed. Moreover, the person who will be the insider must be exceptionally brave, able to kill people as if it were child's play, in order to accomplish this task."

  At this time, Fan Kuai was by Xiao He's side. As soon as he heard what Xiao He said, it was almost like he was made for the task. So he spoke generously: "Third brother, I can do it! Although I, Fan Kuai, have never killed anyone before, I have killed over a thousand dogs. And in my eyes, killing people and killing dogs are not much different. Third brother, let me go, I guarantee that I will handle the matter neatly!"

  "Then, how can you get into the city?" Liu Shanhe asked Fan Qiao back. Who knew that Fan Qiao seemed a bit impatient and said: "Alas, Third Brother, this is none of your business, I have plenty of ways."

  And so, the plan for the second day's attack was set. Xiang Yu first wrote a letter, the content of which was roughly this: The people under heaven have suffered from the cruel rule of Qin for too long; our fellow townspeople inside the city should no longer sacrifice themselves for that cruel Qin. If they cooperate with our righteous army outside the city to kill the county magistrate and open the city gate, then the righteous army will definitely protect the safety of all fathers and villagers. Otherwise, if they assist that corrupt official in defending the city, on the day when the city is breached, it will be a day of slaughter!

  It should be said that Xiao He is really a good hand at writing, this article is well-written, with beautiful words and phrases, and has a strong appeal to emotions. Liu Bang read the article written by Xiao He, titled "Letter to the Elders of Pei County", and couldn't help but applaud: Good article! With just this one article, we can conquer the small city of Pei County!

  Xiao He listened to Liu Bang's words and humbly said, "Your Majesty is overpraising me! If we can break into the city tomorrow, it will be the merit of all the generals and soldiers, as well as Your Majesty's good fortune!"

  Liu Shanhe felt a strange sense of comfort in his heart after listening to Xiao He's words, and thought to himself: "Hey, this Xiao He is really good at talking, the things he says are exactly what I want to hear. A person like him can provide you with ideas when it counts, and is also meticulous in every way, speaking without leaking a single word. Hmm, he's truly a talented individual!"

  The next morning, Liu Shanhe's troops gathered in front of the city gate of Pei County. Liu Shanhe ordered first: Brothers, scold the city for me! We must first show our strength and let those defenders know that our power is very strong!

  With Liu Shanhe's words, the five or six hundred people really started scolding the city. The sound was truly earth-shaking, with all sorts of voices and curses, almost every unpleasant word and insult in the world was used by them. Why did these guys scold so fiercely? One reason was Liu Shanhe's order, but another reason was that after living in Mangdangshan for so long, psychologically, these people must have been very depressed. In the two years they spent in Mangdangshan, due to Liu Shanhe's military discipline, even if they had grievances or dissatisfaction in their hearts, they didn't dare to scold loudly and recklessly like this. Now that their lord encouraged them to scold, wasn't it like letting them vent all the resentment they had accumulated in those two years in Mangdangshan? As a result, Liu Shanhe's subordinates, who were almost reduced to being vagrants, scolded the city wall with all their might, scolding until they were hoarse and delighted. The soldiers on the city wall, holding weapons, because they had no orders from their superiors, although they had already lost their will to fight after being scolded, still stood there motionless, executing the tasks assigned by their officers.

  At this time, Liu Shanhe felt that things were almost done, and he ordered his soldiers: "Archers, prepare to shoot!" At this time, someone had already tied the letter written by Xiao He last night to an arrow. Now, Liu Shanhe saw that dozens of archers had already taken their positions, with their left knees bent, their left hands holding the bow, and their right hands supporting the arrows, which were already strung and ready to be shot! They just waited for Liu Shanhe's order to shoot!

  "Alright! Release the arrows!" With Liu Shanhe's order, a flurry of feathered arrows shot into the sky, looking like a dense rain of arrows. Liu Shanhe knew that in fact, he didn't have many arrows in his hand, each archer only had seven or eight arrows at most. However, although they didn't have many arrows, the powerful momentum and sharp morale created by releasing the arrows were very important for both sides of the battle. For the defenders inside the city, seeing the rain of arrows coming towards them would make their psychology collapse early on, and their combat effectiveness would greatly decrease; on the other hand, when they saw their own arrows shooting towards the enemy's position, it was a sign that victory was near. It made them eager to become an arrow themselves, flying into the city to fight the enemy soldiers in a fierce battle!

  "Halt!" Liu Shanhe felt that the timing was about right, so he waved his big hand and shouted at the archers who were charging up. Then, he arranged all his troops in a single line, and it seemed that they had already surrounded the county city of Pei like a watertight seal. According to Xiao He's plan, the remaining tasks were almost entirely up to the people inside the city. As for them, they only needed to surround the city without attacking, waiting quietly for developments.

  But Liu Shanhe's archers shot arrows into the city wall. Among them, a soldier picked up Xiang Yu's letter that had been shot in by the archer and unfolded it to read. Just as he was reading intently, someone suddenly came over and snatched the letter from his hand. The defending soldier was about to curse loudly - they had just been scolded by those despicable guys outside the city gate, and now they could only vent their anger again. Otherwise, they might be suffocated when they returned.

  But when he lifted his head and saw that the person who had snatched the letter from his hand was none other than Fan Kuai, a notorious butcher in Pei County, he immediately changed to a smiling face and said: "Oh, I thought it was someone else! It's actually Master Fan! You take it, you take it!"

  Almost everyone in Pei County knew that Fan Kuai, the dog butcher, was a straightforward and generous person who made friends with all kinds of people and was quite a figure on the streets. Moreover, he had excellent sword skills, but rarely showed them off. However, people said that the more low-key someone like him was, the more formidable they were. So when Fan Kuai got his hands on the silk book first, the others didn't dare say anything and could only smile and respectfully see him off.

  Only Fan Kuai was seen, holding a letter in one hand and supporting an old man with the other, climbing onto a high platform. At this time, Fan Kuai shouted to the crowd below that still murmured: "Fathers and elders, fathers and elders, I have here a letter shot into the city by Liu Bang's army outside the city using bows and arrows. Now, we ask this old man to read it out loud for everyone."

  This Fan Kuai, although he looks like a rough man, is also a coarse but meticulous person. He thought to himself that it would not be suitable for him to read this letter of silk personally, not to mention that he was illiterate, even if he were literate, it would not work. Everyone knew that he and Liu Bang had a close relationship, so if he were to read it, the persuasive power would not be great. However, it was also impossible to casually find someone to read it, as that would not have much appeal either. After some thought, he found an old man. This old man was literate and had a certain prestige, having him read this letter of silk would be perfect.

  Only then did the old man unfold a silk book with trembling hands and read aloud in his very aged voice: "Fellow villagers, the world has suffered under Qin for a long time! Now Chen Sheng has already risen up in revolt, and heroes from all over the country are responding to the call. The day of the downfall of the cruel Qin is not far off! As for the people of Pei County, although they are guarding the city as ordered by the Magistrate of Pei, when the feudal lords rise up together, they will surely slaughter the people of Pei. For the sake of your families, it would be better to join forces and kill the Magistrate of Pei, then choose a worthy candidate to respond to the call of the feudal lords, so that your households can be preserved! Otherwise, both you and your sons will be slaughtered, which would be of no benefit."

  After hearing the old man read out the contents of the silk book, the people in the crowd who were holding various weapons (which were actually just household items) began to discuss and argue among themselves. Some even shouted: "Go kill that corrupt official! That corrupt official has never shown any kindness to us common people!"

  Fan Kuai knew that at this time, what was most needed was an idea! The timing should be quite good. As long as one person stood up, then these old hundred surnames who had been stirred up by that letter would definitely follow the leader and point to where they would hit.

  Fan Kuai thought of this, and he couldn't help but get very excited. He cleared his throat and continued to shout to everyone: "Fellow villagers, fellow villagers! Don't you all want to live? That's easy! We just need to kill that Magistrate Pei, welcome the righteous army outside the city, and we'll all be safe and sound! Come on, follow me, come on, let's charge into the county government office together, chop off that dog official Magistrate Pei's head! Let's go, let's go, towards the county government office! Rebel, rebel!"

  It should be said that Fan Kuai's voice was the most appropriate at the most opportune moment, in the most appropriate way, and in the most appropriate place. After shouting, Fan Kuai took up his sword in one hand and continued to shout as he charged to the front of the troops, rushing towards the county government office...

  At this time, Pei Gong was resting in his bedroom! Although he had long known that Liu Bang led the crowd to attack the city, but he never thought that the soldiers inside the city, as well as the common people, those guys who usually obeyed him, actually rebelled!

  "Oh no, oh no... Something terrible has happened! The common people in the city have all rushed into the county government office~~~ The common people in the city have all rushed into the county government office~~~" Magistrate Pei was taken aback and suddenly became stupid, he sat down on the ground with a thud, his whole body trembling with fear.

  "What to do? What to do?" The yamen runners under him were also frightened, because they had never experienced such a scene before! In the past, those common people would always be trembling with fear when they saw them, but how did it suddenly turn into madness? If they didn't think of a solution, once those people rushed in, wouldn't they kill them along with the yamen runners?

  At this time, the first thought in Commander Pei's mind was to run! Run!

  "It's all chaotic, it's all chaotic! It's all turned upside down, it's all turned upside down! This group of unruly commoners, this group of unruly commoners!" Magistrate Pei was also at a loss for words at this time, and he flailed about like a headless fly. Suddenly, he turned to the most trusted constable beside him and said: "Quickly, quickly, quickly prepare for me, follow me in escaping, hurry up and escape with me!"

  "Sir, sir, it's no use running away! All the roads have been blocked by those rioters and our city guards! One of the officials said. This remark made the county magistrate's heart sink completely. He knew that this time, he had really reached the end. At this moment, he couldn't help but sigh: "Alas, being an official in these chaotic times is too difficult! Either you're killed by the tyrannical king or by the common people!"

  However, Bailiff Pi had been an official for many years and still had some backbone. Seeing that things were already reported this way, he didn't dare to think of a better outcome. Those people had already surrounded the county government office, so it was better to appease them and perhaps there would still be a way out!

  Then, Commander Pei ordered the gate to be opened. At this time, the soldiers and civilians who had been waiting outside the gate for a long time all rushed in like a flood of water, suddenly filling the small courtyard with a sea of black heads!

  When he saw so many people, and these people were all holding their hands, the county magistrate who was usually strict and dignified was also extremely nervous at this time. The county magistrate finally calmed down and said to everyone: "Everyone, what's going on? Let's talk about it. I actually wanted to rebel against Qin a long time ago, but I haven't waited for a better opportunity yet. Today is just right, since you're all here, let's discuss rebelling against Qin together. Hmm, this saves me the trouble of inviting you all. What do you think? Just tell me, whatever I can solve for you, I will do my best..."

  That's what Commander Na said, almost bringing out all the knowledge he had learned in his life and saying all the good things he knew. However, he knew that whether it worked or not wasn't up to him to decide.