With tens of thousands of people involved, Ning Ye dared not be careless at all. After all, this was the first time he had ever experienced such a large number of people. Moreover, it was still unknown whether he could defend such a large scene with only a few hundred men under his command.
Although Lin Changhe had left behind all the local soldiers before leaving, they only numbered a little over a thousand.
Given the vast disparity in strength between us and the enemy, it's hard to say that we can only rely on Zhang Zihe to conduct research together. Of course, we also brought over Li Ping'an, Lin Changhe's former personal guard.
The more than 1,000 people in Qingyuan County are all under Li Ping'an's command, and he himself is said to dislike the bustling capital and prefer to stay here.
Lin Changhe naturally made things very convenient for him, directly handing over the command of the troops here to the other party, which shows how much he trusted him.
When the three of them gathered together, Li Ping'an remained as honest and unassuming as ever, simply watching the two of them without making any comments.
Fortunately, Ningye also told her everything he knew.
After hearing this, Li Ping'an frowned deeply. "Young Master Ning, are you sure these people are really coming for us?"
Zhang Zihe said, "Judging from the map, there is no place around us that would be worth mobilizing so many people. The only possibility is Shanyin Pass, which is right here besides us."
Zhang Zihe didn't continue speaking, because everyone knew that if they wanted to get to Shanyin Pass, Qingyuan County was the only way. If they just gave way to the other side, what difference would they make from the rebels?
At this point, Qingyuan County was basically caught in the middle, facing a dilemma. Even if it wanted to solve this problem, there was almost no way to do so.
After realizing this, Li Ping'an decisively said, "Sir, I'm not very capable, but I'm quite obedient. As long as you say so, I'm willing to do anything. I just hope that this place can be peaceful."
“Brother Li, we’re all brothers, there’s no need to speak like that. We’re all in the same boat, so who can be any better than the other?”
“Hey, I know Young Master Ning won’t stay here long. He’ll definitely go to a place that’s more suitable for him in the future. But this place has always been my home. I really don’t want anything to happen to him.”
Ning Ye nodded seriously. "In that case, I hope you can lead your people to hold the city walls and never abandon the city no matter what happens. I hope you can do this."
Li Ping'an clasped his hands and said, "Please rest assured, young master, even if we fight to the last soldier, even if we die on the city wall, I will never retreat a single step."
Ning Ye patted Li Ping'an on the shoulder and said, "Sometimes, if things are really beyond our control, we can arrange for people to leave. After all, it's not your fault."
After saying that, Ning Ye could only hand over Qingyuan County to Zhang Zihe and Li Ping'an, while he led his men out of the city. After all, it would be a waste to use cavalry to defend the city.
Before leaving, Ning Ye met with Shen Yuanzhi and asked, "I don't know exactly how many people will come, but I'm certain that they won't let Qingmei Village go either. Do you think we should defend it or just take people and leave?"
After a slight hesitation, Shen Yuanzhi said directly, "Even if you retreat, where can you retreat to? This is already the border. Are you going to flee beyond the pass? Are you just going to abandon the homeland we built with our own hands?"
"Oh, so what do you want to do?"
“If you don’t mind, young master, I am willing to lead the villagers to resist. Just distribute some weapons and I will be able to stop them from defending Qingmei Village. Whoever comes will be sure to be defeated.”
Ning Ye stared intently at Shen Yuanzhi, "Do you know who those people are? If you really fight them, you might not even have a chance to regret it."
Shen Yuanzhi said excitedly, "Young Master, I will never regret it, and neither will anyone else. We have already escaped too many times, and we really don't want to escape again."
Ning Ye sighed and said, "You can go to Zifeng about weapons, but that's all you can offer. He probably can't provide anything else."
“This is enough, young master. Just give us a chance, and we can prove to you that we are not just people who rely on you.”
So Shen Yuanzhi immediately led the people he had recruited to collect their weapons, and soon distributed each weapon to everyone.
Shen Yuanzhi stood on the high platform and shouted, "Everyone, a group of thieves has their eyes on us. They are traitors and rebels, and we just want to live here peacefully. What should we do if someone refuses to let us live?"
The gathered crowd did not respond; their gazes remained somewhat bewildered, for the event had unfolded far too suddenly.
Shen Yuanzhi said again, “You have already experienced the days of wandering and hardship. If you want to experience it again, then I have nothing to say. But if you are not willing, then pick up your weapons and join me in protecting the village. I believe that none of you are cowards.”
A few men picked up the gleaming steel knives from the ground, their eyes gradually hardening. Once someone took the lead, everyone else followed suit and began picking up their weapons.
"It's impossible for you to rely on the soldiers to protect us. The only hope is to protect yourselves. Here are the friends you've just made, the homes you've just bought. Life here is better than anywhere else. If you think all of this can be destroyed, then you can leave. You don't need to follow me."
After saying this, Shen Yuanzhi stepped down from the platform. He had other things to prepare and couldn't just sit there waiting for the other party to arrive.
Soon everyone followed behind Shen Yuanzhi. Just as Shen Yuanzhi said, when you can't rely on anyone else, the only person you can rely on is yourself. And now there is someone willing to lead them together, which is already very rare.
When everyone is united in purpose, the power that can be unleashed will probably surprise everyone.
On the other side, after a day of rapid marching, Ning Ye finally saw the so-called huge army, which probably numbered more than 10,000. With the miscellaneous troops and laborers behind them, the total number was probably as high as 40,000.
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