"Good! If Your Excellency is not afraid even when you are in deep danger, how can we retreat!" The county magistrate and the county constable echoed loudly.
The commander of the city defense battalion even drew his sword to show his determination.
It's not that they were truly so passionate and loyal; it's just that there were too many people outside.
If this drags on, and the city gates are breached, their families will be inside the city.
Moreover, this riotous attack on the city must be reported to the imperial court.
This is a golden opportunity for them to make a name for themselves and achieve great things.
Nobody wants to stay in this position forever without making any progress!
Now that the county magistrate has borne most of the risk, if he doesn't dare to take a gamble, he'll be a coward and a laughingstock!
In this way, arrangements were made secretly and quickly on the city wall.
Sure enough, less than half an hour later, the mob outside the city gates began attacking the city again.
Thirty-odd followers of the Maitreya sect, leading a hundred or so brainwashed newcomers, charged ahead.
The remaining people followed behind, shouting encouragement and putting on a show of force.
This time, the soldiers on the city wall didn't pour boiling oil; instead, they threw rocks.
They could actually shoot arrows, but it was too dark to see anything at night, and they knew most of the people were ordinary folks, so they couldn't bring themselves to do it.
Not all members of the Maitreya sect are weaklings; some of them are truly capable.
They hastily cut down trees, tied them together to make ladders, and placed them on half of the city wall, intending to use them to jump onto the wall.
At that moment, a group of more than a dozen people suddenly emerged from behind the mob and charged in like tigers among sheep.
Almost in the blink of an eye, he rushed forward and cut down seven or eight Maitreya sect members with his sword.
Before the followers of the Maitreya sect could understand what was happening, the city gates were suddenly flung open.
The city defense soldiers, the county magistrate, and the Li family caravan also rushed out and immediately surrounded the Maitreya sect followers.
The tide turned, and the followers of the Maitreya sect panicked, loudly urging the people to submit.
"Charge, everyone! There's plenty of food in the city. Charge if you want to live!"
As a result, an even louder sound from the copper basin suddenly rang out from all directions, deafening everyone in the dark night.
Li Jiaren stood on the roof of a makeshift carriage and shouted loudly to the people.
"Fellow villagers, I am the magistrate of Fengshan County! I know that you have been incited and misled tonight, and you only want to grab some food for your families."
"I'm telling you now, you don't need to rob me anymore. Tomorrow I will open the granaries to distribute grain for disaster relief! As long as you put down your sticks and don't help the wicked, your crimes today will not be investigated!"
"Don't help the bandits oppose the imperial court and Tianwu! The people opposite you are also fellow villagers of Fengshan, with parents and relatives. We should face this natural disaster together, not fight to the death here!"
The hundreds of ordinary people were honest and law-abiding citizens; they wouldn't have done this if they weren't trying to survive.
To be honest, even they who stood there cheering felt weak in the knees and lacked confidence.
At that moment, someone in the crowd immediately threw down their stick and shouted in agreement.
"Lord Li is a good official; if he says he'll distribute grain, he will definitely distribute it. I'm not going to fight anymore; I have elderly parents and children at home!"
As he spoke, the man left the group and ran to the side.
The others had no idea what to do, but seeing someone take the lead, they all threw down their sticks and ran away like a swarm of bees.
The followers of the Maitreya sect were furious, but they were surrounded and had no time to care.
Li Jiaren remained standing on the roof of the vehicle, shouting, "Fellow villagers, you are all subjects of Fengshan County. I am the county magistrate, and I will not harm you! Quickly drop your weapons, and I will forgive and forget."
"The warehouses will open tomorrow. If you're afraid of retaliation from the Maitreya Cult, you can take your families and go into the city to hide! I'll guarantee your safety! Don't take any chances, step back quickly! Step back! Be careful not to get hurt!"
More and more people retreated, and soon only about a hundred people remained to resist.
Li Jiaren waved his hand toward the city gate, and more soldiers poured out to carry out the final encirclement and slaughter.
With victory in sight, everyone inside and outside the city gates breathed a sigh of relief.
Suddenly, a tall commoner rushed out from the crowd and leaped onto the roof of the carriage.
Two veterans stood guard under the carriage and swung their knives at the newcomer, but he easily dodged them.
Seeing that the man's long knife was about to fall on Li Jiaren, the county magistrate on the city wall was so frightened that his eyes almost popped out of their sockets.
Li Jiaren had been waiting for this person to appear.
After observing for so long, the so-called hall master never showed up.
They either ran away out of fear of death, or they hid among the people, secretly controlling the siege.
At this moment, he calmly drew a knife from behind him and swung it with all his might.
With a clang, the man's knife broke in half and smashed onto the roof of the car.
Li Jiaren's longsword continued its trajectory, severing the attacker's arm.
The man screamed and fell off the carriage. He was held down by the veteran, who then severed his Achilles tendons and tied him up.
Li Jiaren, covered in blood, stood on the roof of the car with his sword across his body, shouting, "The Master of the Maitreya Church has been captured! Fengshan will surely win!"
The scene inside and outside the city gate seemed to have been frozen in time. No one expected that the frail county magistrate, who was supposed to be powerless, would be so brave!
But this only lasted for a moment. Soon, everyone inside and outside the city was shouting wildly, "Fengshan is mighty! Fengshan is mighty!"
Especially the soldiers of the city defense battalion, their eyes gleaming with fervor.
Undeterred by danger, they slay the villains and fight a bloody battle!
Who wouldn't like or respect such a virtuous and benevolent official?
Even the ordinary people who had retreated couldn't help but shout along.
How could they be so bewitched that they followed these so-called monks and started causing trouble?
With such a virtuous official, how could the people starve to death?
Soon, the followers of the Maitreya sect were all captured.
Some died, some were captured; Fengshan achieved a complete victory in the siege.
Li Jiaren was escorted through the city gate, where he was greeted by the entire city's populace.
Some people kowtowed, while others offered the best food and drink from their homes; the scene was as lively as daytime.
Even the usually proud wealthy households and minor branches of aristocratic families lowered their heads and stepped forward to pay their respects.
Li Jiaren agreed to all of them, but did not stay for long.
The people outside the city needed to be resettled, the opening of the granary needed to be discussed, and a letter needed to be sent to the Lu family at the border to remind them to take precautions.
Of course, the most important thing was to submit a memorial to the imperial court.
With natural disasters and man-made calamities combined, the imperial court must devise a response.
Otherwise, once a single spark ignites a prairie fire, it will not be easily extinguished...
Even when the sun is high in the sky, in this small border town, the laziest man will go out to work and earn a living.
Just then, the sound of rapid hoofbeats suddenly rang out outside the gate of the Prince's Mansion, causing a commotion in the front yard.
Soon, the head steward of the Prince's mansion brought a messenger to the study to report the news.
"General, General! The Empress of Xindu has passed away!" The steward, panting heavily, shouted as he entered the courtyard.
Although news had already reached the capital that the Empress had died, it was simply being kept secret.
But only General Lu and his strategist knew this news; everyone else was kept in the dark.
Everyone panicked when the head butler shouted at them.
Today's update is here!
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