Zhou Xiaowu scratched his head sheepishly: "That's not quite right, Brother Xiang. Actually, the time when we were following you was the happiest time of our lives. By the way, Brother Xiang, what brings you here this time?"
Xiang Ze didn't mince words and said frankly, "I am now following General Lü Tu, the Commandant of Wuchuan. I came here today because I don't want to see my brothers make any more pointless sacrifices."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Xiaowu and the other soldiers beside him were all stunned.
"Brother Xiang, are you asking us to become rebels?"
Zhu Zhaozhou, standing to the side, showed no mercy, saying, "You are the rebels now. After you surrender, you will become the Wuchuan border army."
Upon hearing this, the Red Turban soldiers around him all raised their eyebrows and glared angrily at Zhu Zhaozhou.
Seeing this, Xiang Ze sighed softly. He knew that Zhu Zhaozhou was a tough and unyielding general, otherwise he wouldn't have been valued by Lü Tu. But one should know when to speak.
At this point, completely erasing the other party's so-called legitimacy is just like slapping them in the face in public.
As expected, Zhou Xiaowu snorted coldly upon hearing this: "Then may I ask Brother Xiang, what official position do you currently hold under Lü Tu?"
"Commander of the Vanquishing Army".
Zhou Xiaowu sneered, "Then why would I give up being the vanguard of the Northern Expedition to follow Lu Tu and become a lowly captain?"
These statements were within Xiang Ze's expectations. Faced with Zhou Xiaowu's change, Xiang Ze patted Zhu Zhaozhou's arm, signaling him to shut up and let him handle it.
Then, in front of thousands of Red Turban soldiers, he spoke loudly and respectfully: "General Lü is a hero rarely seen in the world. How can a villain like Zhang Chengyan compare to him? Brothers here, we all come from poor backgrounds like me, Xiang Ze. Are you willing to continue following Zhang Chengyan and slaughtering ordinary people like us?"
Upon hearing this, all the Red Turban soldiers present fell silent. Although the words were not spoken loudly, their meaning resonated deeply with them.
Everyone present had participated in the looting along the way to some extent. At this moment, when they thought of these places, they all felt a faint sense of guilt. This is very normal. Any normal person would feel this way. It's human nature.
Unbeknownst to them, the atmosphere of the entire Red Turban Army Vanguard had changed. Zhou Xiaowu had not expected that Xiang Ze could change the morale of his entire army with just one sentence.
"Brother Xiang, it's not that I don't want to agree, it's just that I can't surrender!" Zhou Xiaowu slapped his thigh.
Xiang Ze nodded: "I know, Zhang Chengyan kidnapped your family to blackmail you, but you also have to think about it. You've risked your life for him, and he treats you like this. Is this kind of bastard worth the brothers risking their lives for?"
This statement was like a bombshell, exploding on the already demoralized mindset of everyone due to their defeat.
The scene, with thousands of people, was completely silent, with only the occasional snorting of horses in the background.
It must be said that Xiang Ze was, after all, a former leader of the Red Turban Army, and naturally possessed the qualities of a leader. Not to mention, he had learned a great deal from being around Lü Tu all this time.
He keenly observed the soldiers' change in mentality and continued to speak loudly: "I, Xiang Ze, was one of the original veterans of the uprising, but why did I leave? It's because I couldn't stand those scheming, despicable bastards!"
Don't look down on me just because I'm now a lowly captain under General Lü. That's because General Lü has only been in power for less than a year. Don't you think about why I, Xiang Ze, admire General Lü and am willing to follow him? It's because he treats his soldiers so well!
Besides, even if you don't want to surrender, that's fine too. Just as Deputy General Zhu said, you're a bunch of rebels! But brothers, don't forget why we rebelled in the first place. Wasn't it just to have enough to eat and a roof over our heads?
General Lü can give us all these things, and we won't have to do that thing that would cost us our heads and our entire clans. Why wouldn't we all be happy with that? Even if we take a step back and say that you are unwilling to surrender and continue fighting, ask yourselves honestly, do you have any chance of winning?
"Let me tell you the truth, your 8,000 soldiers were only facing 500 of our elite troops, and you were already in such a state. If it weren't for General Lü's benevolence and our past relationship, those 500 men could have annihilated you all in a real fight. Do you believe me?"
His words were powerful, reasonable, and well-founded, leaving the entire Red Turban Army utterly speechless with rebuttal.
Everyone knew that what Xiang Ze said was true, especially since they had made a rough prediction during their fight that the opponent's numbers were not many at all, which became the last straw that broke the camel's back.
Seeing that Zhou Xiaowu was no longer speaking and his eyes were full of hesitation, Xiang Ze knew that there was only one last sentence to help him make up his mind.
"Xiao Wu, I know you're in a difficult position, but you need to think this through. You know Zhang Chengyan better than I do what kind of person he is. If you go back to report with such a defeat, do you think he'll forgive you?"
Upon hearing this, Zhou Xiaowu's expression changed drastically. He gritted his teeth and said, "Damn it! I'll listen to Brother Xiang. We've already suffered a defeat, brothers. If we go back to report, I'll be the first to die, and then you'll all be used as cannon fodder. Let's do the damn thing and join the imperial border army!"
These words immediately resonated with those around them. These soldiers of the Red Turban Army, despite being on the battlefield, were essentially cowardly peasants. Who would willingly choose death if they could at least survive?
Zhu Zhaozhou watched in stunned silence. How could this be different from what he had imagined? He had originally thought it would be a long and complicated process, at the very least involving drawing his sword and fighting the enemy, and finally using his prestige as a veteran general of Wuchuan to persuade a large number of rebels to surrender.
But now he was persuaded to surrender by Xiang Ze with just a few words? He really underestimated Xiang Ze's prestige in the Red Turban Army. What shocked him even more was that Xiang Ze, who was not a very important person under Lü Tu, even had more leadership qualities than himself.
This really left Zhu Zhaozhou speechless, and he felt a sense of inferiority. He had served as a soldier in the Wuchuan border army for thirty years and thought he was already an outstanding individual. However, there were many people under Lü Tu who were more capable than him.
Xiang Ze said loudly, "Xiao Wu, congratulations on making the best decision of your life. I can assure you that no one will be harmed after you surrender, provided that you obey orders!"
Zhou Xiaowu slapped his thigh: "Great!"
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