Mo Tao nodded: "That's right. To be honest, Zhang Chengyan had already decided to launch a full-scale attack on Longcheng last night."
Lu Tu's mind was racing. He hadn't expected such a large army to come to his aid; it was beyond his expectations.
But it didn't matter; he had become accustomed to all sorts of unexpected events after a long period of combat.
Lu Tu looked at Mo Tao and asked, "I want to know where Zhang Chengyan's army got so much food and supplies?"
Mo Tao explained, "They were all plundered from Qingzhou along the way."
When he finished speaking, the temperature in the entire room seemed to drop several degrees, and everyone, including Lü Tu, looked at Mo Tao with icy expressions.
“These heinous beasts, they themselves are peasant rebels, yet they still plunder the people’s wealth. What’s the difference between them and those leeches in the Great Yu court?” Nie Yun was so angry that he cursed on the spot.
Mo Tao could only lower his head in shame, after all, he had been involved in these matters.
Lu Tu naturally wouldn't care about his feelings. Since he had done these things, the moral condemnation he was suffering now was what Mo Tao deserved.
Tuoba Yue asked, "Brother, what should we do now?"
Everyone present knew about the plan Lü Tu had devised, but the sudden arrival of 200,000 troops and a large amount of food caught them completely off guard.
Most importantly, Lu Tu's side has at most 4,000 men, of which 3,000 are newly joined Shence Army soldiers. Not to mention their combat strength, they can only be treated as new recruits.
Lu Tu waved his hand: "Let me think about it. You all go back and rest first. Nie Yun will take 300 men and a large number of detonators to support Liu Hong. Right now, we must hold Luanshigang."
"Yes, sir!"
After saying this, Lü Tu gave Xiao Zhong a wink, and the latter left without making a sound. Xiang Ze and the Feng brothers, on the other hand, stayed in the house and took on the responsibility of guarding Mo Tao.
Upon entering his empty house, Lü Tu poured Xiao Zhong a glass of water and said, "Mr. Xiao, let's consider this hypothetical scenario: if we were besieged in the village, how long could we hold out with our current resources, assuming the city falls?"
Xiao Zhong seemed to have already considered this problem, and blurted out, "At most 60 days, and that's because our population is small. If it doubles, we can only last 30 days or even less."
Upon hearing this, Lü Tu nodded: "In that case, we must keep the war outside of Luanshigang. If we are surrounded by them, they will also plunder our autumn harvest, and then we will only have one way out: death."
"This is the situation, my lord."
Lu Tu took a deep breath, got up and went to the window, looking at the southern sky: "What exactly are these bastards trying to do? I don't believe they have such great ambitions, wanting to unify the world. It doesn't make any sense at all."
Indeed, Lu Tu had also anticipated that the Red Turban Army would remain in a corner of the country. After all, these peasant uprising armies would never abandon the capital to attack the northern border; this was highly unusual.
"Mr. Xiao, you should go back and rest. I'll think of something myself."
Xiao Zhong knew he had no good ideas, so he could only nod in agreement and get up to leave.
With a belly full of thoughts, Lü Tu tossed and turned until dawn, then quickly ate a few mouthfuls of thin porridge and headed to the wooden house where Zhao Qingyao and Prince Duan were.
"This humble general, Lü Tu, the Commandant of Wuchuan, requests an audience with the Princess and Prince Duan!"
After a moment of silence, Zhao Qingyao's cold voice, tinged with seriousness, came through the room: "General Lü, please wait a moment."
After an incense stick had burned, the palace maid invited Lü Tu inside. At this time, Prince Duan also came out, and the two of them entered Zhao Qingyao's wooden house together.
Zhao Qingyao stared intently at Lü Tu: "General Lü, what is it?" From the way Lü Tu had spoken earlier, she could tell that he must have something important to say.
Lu Tu didn't mince words and directly explained the situation of Zhang Chengyan's Red Turban Army.
After hearing this, Zhao Qingyao and Prince Duan, like Lu Tu and the others from the previous night, exclaimed in surprise.
Prince Duan frowned and said, "Where did these guys find so many men? Do they think all the people in the world are going to rebel against our Great Yu?"
Zhao Qingyao was much calmer than Prince Duan. She stood up and personally poured Lü Tu a cup of tea: "General Lü, what are your thoughts?"
Lu Tu shook his head: "Princess, Prince Duan, you two have been staying in my village for a long time and should be quite clear about my situation. I only have this many people, while the other side has an army of 500,000 and a large amount of food. The difference in strength is too great."
The two exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of panic in each other's eyes, but neither spoke, waiting for Lü Tu to continue.
"If they really attack, I may have no choice but to surrender in order to protect the people and you two."
Upon hearing this, Prince Duan stood up in shock: "This won't do, General Lü! Didn't you just say that they seized a lot of grain from the people along the way? They will surely massacre the city!"
Lu Tu nodded: "Then I will have to take my family with me and flee for my life. Don't worry, I will arrange the best horses to take you to the capital."
Upon hearing Lu Tu's words, Zhao Qingyao could no longer remain calm. She stood up and asked in a concerned tone, "General Lu, please don't say discouraging things. Even if they are numerous, they are just a rabble. They are no match for you, the mighty God of War of Wuchuan."
Lu Tu shrugged helplessly: "Your Highness flatters me. The numbers are a hundred times smaller. I've never fought a battle like this before, and there's nothing I can do about it."
Prince Duan slumped down, his forehead covered in fine beads of sweat: "What should we do? Second Sister, shall we run away now?"
Zhao Qingyao glared at him: "What's the panic? General Lü's family is still in the village. Besides, where can we escape to? Right now, all the roads to the capital are blocked by the Red Turban Army. Do you think you can escape to Huai Shuo? Do you think Zhao Wuyou wouldn't dare to kill you?"
"This won't work, that won't work, are my second sister and I really going to die here? If anyone can resolve this crisis, I'll risk my life to ask my brother for a marquis title!"
Zhao Qingyao nodded: "Yes, I'd like to too. I wonder who has the ability?"
Their eyes kept glancing at Lü Tu's face.
Lu Tu saw all of this, but he wouldn't be so foolish as to say it. He wouldn't believe a single word of such empty promises.
If the two of them could manage to get Lu Tu a marquisate, would Ye Qingyu have mobilized the Shence Army to put them under house arrest?
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