Yun Tian stared at Lü Tu with a half-smile: "Are you short-handed?"
"Urgently needed!"
Yun Tian nodded: "Sun Meng and his companion have already come once today. I only rewarded them with money and provisions, not with military merits. Lu Tu, listen to my command!"
"Your subordinate is here!"
"In recognition of your numerous meritorious deeds over the past few days, I hereby promote you to squad leader, granting you command of 150 men, and bestow upon you 200 military slaves. You must perform well and continue to fight the enemy, and do not disappoint my expectations!"
"Thank you very much, Commandant!"
What appeared to be a reward from Yun Tian was, in Lü Tu's view, more of a test.
He couldn't possibly be unaware that the two villages under Lü Tu's jurisdiction had a total population of less than 500, yet he deliberately gave him 200 military slaves.
While their strength may seem to have increased significantly, it is actually all due to hidden costs. Even though the military slaves have no human rights, they still have to be fed. Without food, these slaves could rebel at any time.
Furthermore, these military slaves were all bestowed by Yun Tian, and there must be a mixed bag among them, with countless spies infiltrated. Lu Tu's situation will only become more and more difficult in the future.
But this was something Lü Tu had anticipated. His desire to overthrow Zhou Taishan inevitably meant making enemies. The entire border army was a complex web of relationships, and countless eyes were secretly watching Lü Tu with hostility.
Yun Tian waved his hand: "You may all step back."
"yes!"
Lu Tu glanced at the twenty-odd military slaves. Their expressions were complicated. They could imagine what life would be like after being demoted to military slaves. But the only thing they were fortunate about was that they had survived. Better to live a miserable life than to die.
Once outside, Lü Tu led Nie Yun and the others out of the city under the watchful eyes of many people.
At this time, there were already more than 100 people waiting outside the south gate. Zhou Tong handed a document to Lü Tu: "Captain Lü, this is their slave status document. Please keep it safe."
Lu Tu nodded, not taking the opportunity to make things difficult for Zhou Tong. Zhou Taishan had been demoted three ranks and was no longer a captain.
As a member of the Zhou family, Zhou Tong must have offended others while guarding the city gate. Now that his tree has fallen and his followers have scattered, there are plenty of people coming to retaliate against him, so Lu Tu doesn't need to lift a finger.
Lu Tu's sharp eyes swept over the 200 military slaves present. Their average age was around 20, and they were all men, dressed in tattered clothes and unkempt, looking like a branch of the Beggars' Sect. They were the kind of people who could start working if given a broken bowl.
He sighed softly. Yun Tian was indeed cunning and shrewd, using this method to limit his development. It seemed that there was quite a lot of dissatisfaction with him among the border troops!
With a wave of his hand, he said, "From now on, you must obey my orders, or you will be punished according to military law!"
The slave soldiers replied in unison, "Yes, sir!"
Taking this group home, it was only a little over 30 miles, but the soldiers couldn't walk for long. Some fell behind, and others complained of being tired.
Lu Tu didn't tolerate it and threw his riding whip to Nie Yun: "Anyone who dares to fall behind, give them a good lash! If you can't even keep up, you're just wasting food!"
He was still unaware of the background of these military slaves, so naturally he wouldn't show them any mercy, especially since he wanted to use this method to eliminate any spies among them.
Sure enough, just as Nie Yun finished disciplining a few soldiers who were complaining of being tired, someone deliberately stirred up trouble, saying, "Before we came, we heard that Captain Lü was righteous and generous, but how come it's not like the rumors? We haven't eaten for three days, so what's wrong with walking a little slower?"
Lu Tu gave Nie Yun a look, and Nie Yun immediately understood, drawing his long sword and stabbing the man to death on the spot!
Everyone present tensed up, no one expected that Lü Tu would kill so readily without the slightest hesitation or waste of words.
Nie Yun reprimanded, "Don't forget your place! You're just a bunch of slaves who've made a mistake! Do you even deserve to talk to us about reason? Anyone who utters another word will be sent down to keep him company!"
Seeing this, everyone shrank back in fright, not daring to say another word, and quickly quickened their pace to catch up.
Before long, the group returned to the village. The villagers, who were on patrol, spotted them and immediately called Liu Yang and the others to greet them.
Liu Yang looked at the long line behind Lü Tu with a puzzled expression, feeling a little dizzy for a moment. He stepped forward and asked in a low voice, "Brother, who are these people?"
"These are military slaves, a reward from the captain. Have someone distribute some thin porridge to them later, but don't let them eat their fill."
"I know what to do."
Liu Yang jogged a few steps to Nie Yun's side, and the two were discussing something.
He led the slave soldiers to the vicinity of the trenches, where the villagers were already waiting. After all, Lu Tu had not yet returned, and they were still waiting to eat meat.
When the crowd saw the military slaves, they all showed disgust. The world was not peaceful, and these military slaves represented chaos.
Lu Tu dismounted and looked at the soldiers and slaves, saying, "Before it gets dark, there are some felled timbers over there. You should quickly build up your sheds, or you'll be sleeping in the wilderness."
Even though military slaves had no human rights, they couldn't help but feel emotional when they heard this. At least military slaves in other countries had food to eat and a place to cover their heads.
But when I followed Lu Tu here, it was a godforsaken place. There was nothing there, and I had to make everything myself on the spot.
But they dared not complain, since Lu Tu was truly capable of killing people without hesitation. They could only sigh helplessly as they carried over the felled timber, while Lu Tu led the villagers to eat meat.
Suddenly, two stark contrasts emerged in this place: on one side, villagers from two villages were feasting on meat; on the other side, hungry and cold military slaves were working.
They wanted to ask Lu Tu for permission several times, but they held back after seeing his frosty expression.
With Nie Yun leading men and whips to supervise, it took an hour to finally set up more than a dozen tents.
The slave soldiers sat helplessly on the ground piled with withered grass, watching helplessly as Lü Tu led the villagers to devour pot after pot of delicious meat.
At this moment, Lu Tu stretched after finishing his meal and came to them: "Want some meat?"
The slave soldiers dared not look at Lü Tu, keeping their heads down and remaining silent.
Lu Tu demanded sharply, "Are you all fucking stupid? Speak up!"
"think!"
Lu Tu nodded: "That's right, people always need to have some pursuits, but this meat is what we got through hard work and fighting bravely. It's impossible for you to get it for nothing."
Upon hearing this, everyone's eyes dimmed considerably, turning a grayish-brown hue.
Lu Tu clapped his hands, and Nie Yun led his men to bring over three large pots. Although there was no meat in them, they were several pots of millet porridge cooked in the broth from the horse meat they had just cooked. Even though the aroma was very faint, there was still some oil in them.
The aroma was like a craving, tantalizing the taste buds of the slave soldiers and making them swallow their saliva incessantly.
"I have your slave documents in my hands. From today onwards, your lives belong to me, Lü Tu. There is only one way out for you if you follow me, and that is to work hard and kill the enemy!"
"As long as you listen to me, you'll have food to eat!"
"You all better be damn smart and listen to my orders, eat!"
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