The Great Rebel at the End of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 027 Recruiting Soldiers

The wails and pleas for mercy on the stage gradually subsided, like candle flames being blown out by the wind, one after another going out.

When all movement ceased, Fan Zhengren and the others had been stoned to death by the enraged villagers.

Several corpses lay sprawled on the platform, their official robes stained with blood and dirt, their faces blurred beyond recognition. A strong stench of blood, mixed with the smell of dust, filled the air, making one's throat tighten.

Li Wanqing raised his hand to signal, and shouted, "That's enough!"

Then everyone gradually stopped.

At this moment, the overwhelming anger from before gradually subsided, and reason began to return little by little. Many people looked at the lifeless corpses on the stage, their minds went blank for a moment, and they came back to their senses.

Killing an official.

These two words were something I wouldn't have dared to even think about before.

But now, three high-ranking officials have died at the hands of the masses. Besides them, there are also the county constables, police officers, and yamen runners... These people who are usually high and mighty in front of the common people are now nothing but a pile of mud.

For a moment, many people felt a wave of fear wash over them.

Some were even more afraid, fearing being recognized by those around them and the potential repercussions from the authorities. Their expressions became unnatural, their feet involuntarily taking a slight step back, their heads glancing left and right, their hearts beginning to waver.

Just then, Li Wanqing's voice rang out again, loud and clear.

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"The public trial is now over! These corrupt officials deserved to die! Next, open the granaries and distribute the grain!"

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone who had been thinking of backing out suddenly brightened up.

The feeling was like being doused with a bucket of hot water, or like receiving a shot of adrenaline, making you feel alive from head to toe.

D.

Anyway, these corrupt officials were killed by everyone together, so it's impossible to tell who delivered the final blow. Everyone present participated; one more or one less wouldn't make a difference.

Moreover, the phrase "opening the granaries and distributing grain" acted like a shot in the arm, immediately stirring up everyone's emotions once again.

This year's harvest is so bad that we can't survive without food. Everyone's come to the county town, not only to see the public trial, but mainly to get the grain from the granaries. As long as there's grain to receive, who cares about anything else?

In an instant, the lingering fear of killing the corrupt official was completely forgotten.

In everyone's mind, only four words remained—open the granaries and distribute grain.

Li Wanqing was a man of his word; after making the announcement, he led everyone straight to the county treasury.

The county treasury had already made all the arrangements. According to the regulations announced by the rebel army, each household would receive one shi (a unit of dry measure) of grain, plus one hundred copper coins... silver coins were also acceptable, calculated at their value. Those receiving the grain would be checked against the household registers seized from the government; no one could receive more than their share or fraudulently claim it. If anyone dared to take advantage of the situation, Zhou Lun and his men would have weapons that were not to be trifled with.

Bao'an County has a total population of about 30,000, with the largest number of residents in the county seat, less than 20,000. If converted to households, the county has about 7,600 households.

Based on the amount of grain distributed to each household, a total of more than 7,600 shi of grain, plus more than 1,500 taels of silver, would be distributed.

In reality, even though notices were posted and the matter was announced to the entire county, not many people actually came to the county seat to witness the public trial and participate in the distribution of grain. Firstly, some towns and villages were far away, making travel inconvenient. Secondly, some people were afraid of future repercussions from the government and dared not come.

In the end, about two-thirds of the people in the county showed up.

Zhou Lun and Li Wanqing had previously robbed the Zhang family's caravan, captured the county town, and seized the county treasury, Zhang's rice shop, and several other businesses in the town, obtaining a considerable amount of wealth. The total amount of various grains was over 30,000 shi (a unit of dry measure), and the gold, silver, and valuables amounted to over 45,000 taels (another unit of dry measure).

The majority of the wealth belonged to Fan Zhengren, Zhang Xiuguo, and Shi Teng. As for the instructor and registrar who escaped, their entire property was confiscated; if their land and houses were also included, the amount would be even greater.

The distribution of grain proceeded in an orderly manner.

The people who received the grain and money were all smiles.

Although each household receives one shi (a unit of dry measure) of grain, which isn't much and wouldn't last long even if you ate as much as you wanted, it's a real benefit! And it's free!

Taking this grain home, mixing it with the family's stored grain, and cooking it slowly with wild vegetables, should be enough to last two or three months. Moreover, there was one hundred copper coins, which saved many people from their dire straits. With these, many villagers had hope for survival.

Near the county granary, Zhou Lun also set up a recruitment office.

He publicly recruited villagers to join the righteous army, with simple rules: first, they had to be able-bodied young men; second, they had to be hardworking and reliable; and third, they had to be bold young men. As long as they met the requirements and were willing to come, he would accept them! However, he would not accept thugs, hooligans, or hooligans.

The terms offered were very generous; anyone willing to join the rebel army would receive three taels of silver as a resettlement allowance on the spot. Registration was done, and the money was paid immediately, without delay.

Such favorable conditions immediately attracted many people.

Especially those audacious young men who picked up stones at the public trial and beat the corrupt officials to death—since they had already killed officials, what was wrong with joining the rebel army in rebellion?

Furthermore, Li Wanqing, who calls himself "Shooting the Sky," is so righteous and loyal, always keeping his word and treating everyone in the village as one of his own. With such a good elder brother leading the way, how could many young men not be tempted?

Moreover, while adding one hundred coins to each bushel of grain might provide temporary relief, it's not a long-term solution. The drought is already so severe; who knows what next year will bring? Once the grain runs out, and the government sends in another corrupt official like Fan Zhengren as magistrate, will there be any hope of survival?

Why not take a gamble and just follow Li Wanqing?

Even if they die, with these three taels of silver as a resettlement allowance, plus the allocated grain and one hundred coins, their family can survive a few more days. Besides, who can say for sure what the future holds?

Wasn't Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, originally a rebel leader?

If the Zhu family could rule the country, why can't others?

She Tatian is a hero, and so benevolent. Following such a leader is something I'd be willing to do. If things really work out, I might even get the status of a founding hero, which would benefit my descendants and completely turn my life around!

There are quite a few people who think this way.

Some, who were all alone and had no ties, voluntarily joined the rebel army.

For a time, the county warehouse was bustling with activity, and the recruitment office was equally crowded.

Zhou Lun personally oversaw the recruitment of soldiers, registering each and every villager who came to join him and distributing resettlement allowances. His men were so busy they didn't even have time to drink water.

After a whole day of work, the distribution of grain and the recruitment of soldiers were completed, the rebel army swelled from just over one hundred men to eight hundred and thirty-six men.

They managed to assemble a small group of men.

With recruitment complete, the next step is reorganization and training.

But given the current situation, let alone uniforms, we can't even gather enough weapons.

We could barely manage when there were around a hundred people, but now that the number has suddenly increased to over eight hundred, it's a huge problem.

The rebels' varied attire was manageable, but their weapons were a major problem. Although they had captured the county town, there were very few usable weapons left. Apart from the standard equipment issued to the constables and yamen runners, such as iron rulers and waist knives, the rest were just old junk that had been sitting in the county treasury for who knows how many years.

After picking and choosing, rummaging through boxes and cabinets, they managed to gather a portion, which was only enough to equip a hundred people.

The remaining recruits had no weapons at all.

Moreover, these new recruits must undergo initial training. At the very least, they must be trained in the same way as the nineteen young men who fled, first learning to distinguish left from right and front from back, and how to obey orders. Otherwise, a mob of rabble is simply unusable.

Zhou Lun was prepared for this.

Aside from ensuring his rebel troops are well-fed and clothed, the most important thing right now is to begin training.

He entrusted the training to Wang Tieniu and Li Shoutian. They had training experience in the Grand Canyon, so he could simply follow their methods.

The organization of the troops was carried out according to the agreement previously reached between Zhou Lun and Li Wanqing. Based on the initial nineteen able-bodied men plus villagers from Liwang Village rescued from prison, suitable individuals were selected to serve as squad leaders, captains, and platoon leaders—these were the basic-level officers. Wang Tieniu and Li Shoutian each led a battalion, known externally as centurions. Li Wanqing was the commander-in-chief, and Zhou Lun was the deputy commander-in-chief.

The scaffolding was barely erected.

Although it was simple, at least it looked like something.