Upon hearing Yang Yan's shout, the Qiang soldiers inside the village did not react at all.
These Qiang soldiers, from the time they were old enough to understand, became slaves to a group of powerful chieftains. They spent their entire lives eating, drinking, and working under the control of those chieftains, and almost all of them lost the ability to think independently.
Therefore, in their eyes, whatever their leader said was law, and they naturally couldn't understand Yang Yan's talk of "rescue".
"Sigh... what a pathetic bunch!"
Seeing the Qiang soldiers in the village, Yang Yan couldn't help but sigh, his eyes filled with sympathy and helplessness.
Not only were they enslaved like livestock, but they also had to risk their lives to protect the wealth of those powerful chieftains. It was both pitiful and hateful.
Just then, Yu Jin rode up to Yang Yan's side and said, "Brother Yang, these guys can't be woken up by words alone. Let's get those people over here!"
Although Yang Yan was born into the Qiang ethnic group, his adoptive father was a martyr who sacrificed his life for the country, and he was also a sworn brother of Zhao Yun. In addition, he was highly skilled in martial arts and his status was not bad.
Generals like Yu Jin treated him with great courtesy.
"good!"
Yang Yan nodded, then waved to the back.
Upon seeing Yang Yan's gesture, five thousand soldiers emerged from the rear army formation, escorting more than two thousand Qiang civilians towards this direction.
Seeing the Han army's movements, the Qiang soldiers in the village assumed that the enemy was about to attack, so they quickly picked up their bows and arrows.
However, their target was the Qiang people walking among the Han army.
To the Qiang soldiers, the Han army must have wanted to use the Qiang people as cover to attack their camp.
Therefore, as long as those Qiang people are killed first, the Han army will lose its cover, and they will be more confident in defending the area.
Of course, the main reason is that those Qiang people had no direct relationship with these Qiang soldiers who were directly under the command of Ma Yi, so they naturally didn't care about the lives of those people.
However, as the Qiang people drew closer, the young men following the Qiang soldiers became somewhat uneasy.
Because many young and middle-aged people saw some familiar figures among those people.
"Father, Mother...?"
"Little sister?"
Many young adults also recognized their family members mixed in with the crowd.
In an instant, many of the able-bodied men in the camp also shouted anxiously towards the outside of the camp.
"Shut up, all of you! Anyone who shouts again will be executed on the spot!"
Just then, a Qiang soldier general, also holding a weapon, began shouting and cursing at the burly young men.
Upon seeing the Qiang soldiers wielding weapons and glaring fiercely at them, the able-bodied men in the village immediately shut their mouths and looked at their families outside the village with worried expressions.
"The Han people are using our people as human shields; they are truly despicable and shameless. Therefore, we must not let them succeed!"
The Qiang general shouted as he ordered his men, "Pass down the order: anyone who approaches the camp, whoever they are, shoot them on sight!"
"yes!!"
The Qiang soldiers responded loudly, immediately nocked arrows, and glared fiercely at the Qiang civilians.
The young men standing nearby wanted to speak up to stop them, but after seeing the fierce looks of the Qiang soldiers, they kept quiet.
They knew that if they spoke up to stop it, they would not only lose their families, but they themselves would also be doomed.
For a moment, the young men also looked at the Han army outside the village with hatred on their faces.
They seemed to believe the Qiang general's words that the despicable Han army had coerced their families and used them as human shields.
However, just as the group of young men made up their minds to defend the camp to the death and avenge their families, the Qiang people stopped 150 paces away from the camp.
The bows and arrows carried by these Qiang soldiers were ordinary short bows, mostly with bone arrowheads, and their effective range was at most one hundred paces.
At a distance of 150 paces, there is virtually no harm; anyone could easily dodge it.
Seeing this, the able-bodied men in the village breathed a sigh of relief.
Just then, a little girl stepped out from the crowd and shouted loudly into the village, "Brother... are you in there?"
Upon seeing the little girl, a young man in the village changed his expression. He was about to speak when he suddenly remembered that he was accompanied by a Qiang soldier, so he had to shut his mouth and looked at his sister with a nervous expression.
Although she received no response, the little girl still shouted at the top of her lungs, "Brother, the Han army has really come to rescue us."
They gave us food, helped us repair our house, and said they would give us a pasture and their own cattle and sheep.
Brother...please come back. Don't work for those bad people anymore. Let's go home and live a good life, okay?
"Is...is this real?"
Upon hearing the little girl's call, many of the able-bodied men in the village exchanged glances, their expressions shifting with a mixture of belief and doubt.
On the contrary, the girl's brother had no suspicions whatsoever.
When he was conscripted that day, his younger sister was already bedridden and on the verge of starvation.
Now, not only has her younger sister recovered, but her voice is also very loud, which must be because the Han army cured her illness, and she is also eating very well.
Thinking of all this, the young man loosened his grip on his weapon, and his gaze toward the Han army changed from hatred to gratitude.
Just then, a young woman arrived with a little boy beside the little girl.
“My husband, what she said is true. The Han soldiers are all good people. They also said that it is because of the oppression of those powerful chieftains that we are not able to eat or wear enough.”
"My husband, you can't be so blind to right and wrong. Don't work for those wicked people anymore, or my child and I will have no face to accept their kindness!"
Upon hearing the woman's call, another young man pursed his lips, his eyes even becoming slightly moist.
At the same time, more and more villagers stepped forward and called out to their relatives in the village.
Although the young men dared not respond to their families under the pressure of the Qiang soldiers, their hearts had already changed.
The initial hostility towards the Han army had completely disappeared, replaced by gratitude. Some even secretly resolved to escape the camp to find their families.
The Qiang soldier general seemed to have also noticed something was wrong with the group of young men.
He never expected the Han army to resort to such tactics.
This method of using emotions to undermine morale is even more terrifying than a sharp arrow.
Then, the Qiang general ordered, "Tell all these able-bodied men to retreat!"
He knew that the will to resist among these young men had been broken.
If the Han army attacks, they will not only be of no help, but may even take the opportunity to turn against us.
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