"You...!" The squad leader was shocked, but as soon as he finished speaking, he felt a sharp pain in his hand, and the knife was taken away from him.
Immediately afterwards, with a "thud," the squad leader opened his mouth wide, only to be struck by the man in the sleeve with his knee. He fell backward uncontrollably to the ground, his face contorted in pain.
The onlookers nearby were all astonished, watching the commotion with disbelief.
The man in the robe ignored the squad leader who was lying on the ground clutching his stomach and walked towards Hu San with a solemn expression.
Hu San's face was covered in blood, and he lay on his back on the ground, still sobbing. The man in the robe walked up to him, and as he squatted down, his solemn expression changed to one of concern.
"Let's go, brother." The man in the robe helped Hu San up.
Hu San looked up at the unfamiliar man. He didn't recognize the face. The only impression he had of him was that he had asked the man earlier, "Have you planted rice in your yard?"
But now—
He turned to look at the squad leader, who was slowly rising from the ground. The man's ferocious expression terrified him, so he shook his head and sobbed:
"We can't leave..."
"I...I'm finished..."
"You can go now!" the man in the robe said in a loud voice, and helped Hu San walk out.
"Stop!!" The squad leader, slightly hunched over with his hand on his stomach, his face covered in cold sweat from the pain, still yelled at the two men:
"You two bastards! Are you trying to rebel?!"
Upon hearing the word "rebellion," Hu San trembled with fear, a wave of immense terror washing over him, making him feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave.
He understood what rebellion meant: it was a heinous crime punishable by slow slicing and the extermination of nine generations of one's family!
But did I rebel?
He moved his lips, wanting to say something in his defense, but suddenly realized that he couldn't come up with any compelling arguments.
But by then, someone had already spoken up for him.
"If you say so, then it is so!"
The man in the robe responded angrily, then placed the knife in Hu San's other intact hand. Hu San looked at him in alarm, and the man in the robe said:
"Brother, whether or not they rebel is entirely up to them. No matter how much you say, it won't be as effective as a single word from them."
"But if rebelling can get you back home to plant that field of rice seedlings, then go ahead and rebel!"
"If anyone tries to force you again, just slash them with this knife!!"
Hu San was startled, and his hand holding the knife trembled involuntarily.
The squad leader's face had turned pale, and he was backing away.
The man in the robe, however, held his head high and shouted to the rest of the people:
"It's better to keep your life in your own hands than to leave it to such a court!"
"Everyone, let's go!"
Wow!
The crowd erupted in uproar, and the noise rose and fell. The team, which had been scolded by the squad leader for "not allowing anyone to move," was now in complete disarray, with no semblance of formation left.
The squad leader's expression had already changed, and he turned and ran away.
The man in the robe turned around and gave him a cold look, his face showing disdain. He then led Hu San into the city. After a brief moment of stunned silence, more than a dozen people rushed out from among the people who were standing on the ground and ran after them.
Then, the entire group of about a hundred people started running, heading towards the city.
"They've rebelled! They've rebelled!"
"Help! They've all run away!"
The squad leader, his face filled with panic, ran towards the place where the commotion had started, shouting as more soldiers and conscripted civilians gathered there.
But in his panic, he failed to notice that the atmosphere was becoming increasingly tense, and his shouts immediately triggered a series of chain reactions.
There were so many people that he couldn't see what they were saying, but everyone's expression was extremely solemn, like a taut string.
But now, with his shouts, everyone turned to look at him and saw the people who had fled back into the city.
Immediately following, a chilling roar suddenly rang out from the spot:
"They will attack the city within two days. At that time, we will all be sent to our deaths to fight them. The fate of the Great Gan is already sealed. Now that righteous people have stepped forward, what are we still doing here?!"
"Are we just waiting to die with this incompetent court?! Let's go!"
As soon as the words were spoken, almost instantly, as if a string had snapped, countless people turned and ran away.
Soldiers followed behind, shouting, "Halt! Don't move! Anyone who tries to leave will be..."
"Go to hell! Get out of here! They're coming!" Another rough shout rang out.
The soldiers tried their best to stop them, even drawing their weapons, but to no avail.
After all, an emergency mobilization had been carried out since last night, and now there are too many people gathered here, including all sorts of people from all walks of life. And since this morning, some notices of unknown origin have inexplicably appeared among the people.
The riots had already started because of these notices, and now that people have disobeyed and fled, it's like lighting a fuse and it's all gone up in flames. They're not going to listen to anything now.
The chaos intensified, with everyone shouting and running towards the city. Soldiers chased after them, brandishing their weapons, but dared not actually draw their swords.
After all, times have changed. Under normal circumstances, they would have been suppressed one by one, but now that a formidable enemy is at hand, if a direct conflict were to break out with the people in the city, not only would it be impossible to defend the city, but internal strife would likely erupt within it.
The squad leader who had shouted "Rebellion!" stood there dumbfounded, too many people running past him, knocking him over. But he didn't dare to stop them, because it wasn't just one or two people, but a huge crowd.
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