"Okay, I'll write...!"

Seeing Chen Man's cold gaze and his son's pained expression, Kong Qian chose to submit.

"Yes, that's what it means to be pragmatic!"

Chen Man smiled, then released Kong Qian's son and ordered someone to bring cloth, writing brush and ink.

Kong Qian held the pen, looking at the snow-white cloth in front of him, a look of pain appearing in his eyes.

The Kong family members around them all closed their eyes and turned their heads away, unable to bear to look any longer.

Even the young and upright Kong Rong had to shut his mouth at this moment. Although he was not afraid of death, he was afraid that Chen Man and Lu Qing would really kill all the members of the Kong family.

After sighing, Kong Qian also began to write.

Before long, a proclamation detailing the crimes of the court's treacherous officials and inviting scholars from all over the country to join in their condemnation was completed.

Looking at the manifesto, Chen Man and Lu Qing nodded in satisfaction.

Lu Qing looked at Chen Man and smiled, "Tonight is New Year's Eve, so let the brothers under my command have a night of revelry. Then tomorrow we'll spread the proclamation throughout the land!"

Chen Man nodded: "Brother Lu is right!!"

Lu Qing then looked at a guard beside him: "Take all the members of the Kong family away and keep them under close guard..."

"promise!!"

The guard nodded heavily, then ordered his men to take the Kong family members to the back hall.

At the same time, all the wealthy households in the entire Lu County were attacked by the rebels.

In the firelight, a squad of soldiers under Chen Man's command arrived near a residential area, where most of the residents were ordinary people from Lu County.

"Brothers, charge!!"

A rebel leader looked at the lights in the civilian area, grinned maliciously, and then led his men to rush into the civilian area.

"stop!!"

Just then, a cold shout came from behind.

Everyone turned to look and saw another group of people walking over.

The leader frowned and asked, "Hmm? Who are you?"

A burly man stepped forward and said, "We are under the command of Chief Lu Qing. We have taken over this area. You may find another place!"

The leader was also furious: "How rude of you! We were the ones who arrived first!!"

The burly man sneered, "What's all this talk of etiquette? I'm saying we've taken this place. Are you going to leave or not?"

As he spoke, the burly man waved his hand, and the men behind him, armed with weapons, rushed towards the rebel soldiers under Chen Man's command.

Seeing this, Chen Man's men took a step back. One of the soldiers came up to the leader and whispered, "Leader, these are all civilians living here. There's nothing of value in them. Why don't we just let them have them? We should hurry up and find the wealthy family!"

"Let's go!!"

The leader glared hatefully at Lu Qing's men across from him, then led his men away.

Watching Chen Man's men leave, the burly man whispered to them, "We have now secretly surrendered to the royal army, so we must not do anything to harm the people. You must remember this!"

"Rest assured, leader. We brothers were all coerced by the rebels and led astray. Now that we have turned back, we will certainly not make the same mistake again!"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

These rebel soldiers, having marched for several days, were already seething with anger, and the wealthy families in Lu County became the targets of their frustration.

Countless people have seized other people's property and forced their wives and daughters into marriage.

In an instant, flames erupted throughout the entire town of Lu County, and screams and wails filled the air.

Fortunately, the defectors who had followed Lu Qing maintained their resolve and spontaneously protected the city's security, thus saving the city's inhabitants from being slaughtered by the rebels.

The rest of the Kong family were imprisoned in several woodsheds in the backyard of the Kong residence.

Hearing the faint wails of a woman coming from outside, Kong Rong inside the house was filled with resentment.

Before long, Kong Bao, who was lying next to Kong Rong, also slowly woke up, and Kong Rong and several young people hurriedly gathered around him.

Upon hearing that Kong Qian had already written the manifesto, tears streamed down Kong Bao's face.

Kong Bao looked at Kong Rong and said sadly, "Wenju, my Kong family is ultimately doomed!"

Kong Rong shook his head: "Patriarch, things haven't come to that point yet. My Kong family still has a chance!"

Kong Bao hurriedly asked, "Opportunity? What opportunity?"

Kong Rong whispered, "We must find a way to escape and report to the authorities, clearly explaining the plight of our Kong family. Only in this way can we gain the Emperor's and the court's understanding!"

Kong Bao said, "But... the city is now teeming with rebels, how can we possibly escape?"

Upon hearing this, Kong Rong immediately got up and went to the window. He looked out through the crack and saw the rebel soldiers on guard eating and drinking around the fire before returning to Kong Bao's side.

"Master, these rebels are all ruthless bandits with no discipline whatsoever. They will surely celebrate their capture of Lu County today. When the guards are lax at dawn, we can take the opportunity to escape from here, disguise ourselves as civilians, and flee the city!"

Kong Bao nodded upon hearing this, and then said, "Now that things have come to this, we have no other choice. However, if we all flee, I fear the bandits will come after us, and if we are caught, I'm afraid none of us will survive!"

Kong Rong frowned: "Then what should we do?"

Kong Bao said, "You can escape with a few young and strong men, while we stay here and deal with the thieves!"

"But....."

Kong Rong was about to speak again when Kong Bao interrupted him: "There are no buts. As long as you can escape, my Kong family will still exist, and there will still be hope..."

Upon hearing this, Kong Rong and the others could only nod in agreement. For the sake of the Kong family's continued existence, Kong Bao's suggestion was undoubtedly the best.

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