gnovel Chapter 25 He who wins the hearts of the people wins the world
Chapter 25 He who wins the hearts of the people wins the world
The west gate of Xiayi.
There were many vehicles, and ordinary people gathered, creating a sea of people.
Today is the day to leave Xiayi and retreat westward. Many people who are willing to leave with Liu Bang have come to join him.
Of course, not all the people of Dangjun could be concentrated in Xiayi. People in other places would follow the army to evacuate and meet up with Liu Bang on the way.
Even so, nearly 20,000 people gathered in Xiayi. A crowd of over 10,000 is quite impressive; the sight of nearly 20,000 people assembled and ready to go was truly spectacular.
Liu Bang, riding a tall horse and escorted by elite troops led by Tian, arrived at the city gate. After several days of recuperation, Liu Bang was no longer seriously injured and could ride a horse again.
Liu Ying rode on a magnificent warhorse, following closely beside Liu Bang. His legs were short, so he could only raise the stirrups a bit, which looked somewhat awkward. Fortunately, his horsemanship was superb, and he controlled the horse as if it were his own arm.
Lü Ze rode alongside Liu Bang.
Xiahou Ying drove the carriage, while Liu Le, who could not ride a horse, could only ride in the carriage and follow behind Liu Bang.
"Greetings, King Han!"
"Greetings, King Han!"
When the people saw Liu Bang and his entourage arrive, they hurriedly paid their respects. Some bowed deeply, while others bent over, and so on.
Although their etiquette differed, their affection for Liu Bang was the same. Liu Ying noticed this and was quite surprised that this old rogue, Liu Bang, was so popular.
As the saying goes, "He who wins the hearts of the people wins the world." Liu Bang was able to win the world precisely because he won the hearts of the people.
Liu Bang clasped his hands together, bowed slightly on horseback, and said in a roundabout way: "I, Liu Bang, am not capable enough to protect you all. I can only lead you to retreat and apologize here."
"Your Majesty, please don't do this."
"We deeply admire the benevolence and virtue of the King of Han."
The people were deeply moved, some with tears in their eyes.
"Xiang is a tyrant. If he attacks, we will certainly not escape. The King of Han has not abandoned us. This is a great act of benevolence. We can never repay him even if we die ten thousand times."
"There are few in the world as cruel as Xiang Yu; there are few as benevolent as the King of Han. It is our honor to be able to retreat with the King of Han."
Many people praised Liu Bang but didn't forget to criticize Xiang Yu.
Their love and respect for Liu Bang were genuine, while their insults towards Xiang Yu were filled with hatred.
Liu Ying listened with a sigh: "Later generations keep trying to whitewash Xiang Yu, praising him as a great hero, but no one mentions that Xiang Yu massacred cities and killed innocent people indiscriminately."
If Liu Ying hadn't traveled back to the end of the Qin Dynasty and learned about Xiang Yu's brutal massacre of cities, she would have truly believed that Xiang Yu was the great hero praised by later generations.
"Thank you, my lords." Liu Bang clasped his hands in a salute again. "The journey to the west is thousands of miles long. Those who can walk will walk, and those who cannot will take a carriage. Rest assured, I will not leave anyone behind."
"Thank you, Prince Han!"
"The King of Han is benevolent and virtuous!"
The people were extremely grateful.
"Let's go!" Liu Bang waved his right hand and gave the order.
The people moved about in an orderly fashion, those who could not walk using vehicles. Some of these vehicles were oxcarts, some were horse-drawn carts, and when there were no animals left, people pulled or pushed them.
Regardless of the method used, not a single civilian was spared.
Of course, there were also a large number of supply wagons carrying food and clothing.
The army stood guard on one side.
Nearly 20,000 civilians, plus 3,000 soldiers, making a total of more than 20,000 people, marched along the road like a long dragon, which was extremely spectacular.
Lu Ze had good organizational skills. Despite the large number of people, there was no chaos, and the entire team was well-ordered.
Liu Ying rode his warhorse to inspect the surroundings and learn about the situation. He found that most of the people were women and children, with no elderly or able-bodied men.
This was the chaotic end of the Qin Dynasty, and the elderly were the most vulnerable to death. The most common deaths were among the elderly, especially in Dangjun, a place of constant warfare, where it was even less likely that any elderly person would survive.
As for able-bodied men, they were either killed or escaped. Those who were neither killed nor escaped were captured. They were either conscripted into the army or enslaved and forced into hard labor.
Therefore, only women and children survived.
Moreover, these women and children had few personal belongings, and some were dressed in rags, like beggars.
This is normal. Dangjun was a battleground on all sides and was plundered countless times during the chaos at the end of the Qin Dynasty. If there were any valuables, they would have been looted long ago. There would be no valuables left.
They are incredibly fortunate to have survived.
After an hour's journey, Lü Ze gave an order for those on foot and those traveling by carriage to take turns. This would speed up the journey.
At noon, they took out their dry rations and ate as they walked. In the evening, they found a deserted area with trees and water to set up camp, erecting their tents for shelter from the wind and rain. Since the number of tents was limited, they had to huddle together, a situation the people accepted without complaint.
For them, having a place to stay is enough.
Dinner was hot, but it was just coarse rice with wild vegetables.
Even so, the people ate with great relish, thanking Liu Bang for providing them with a hot meal.
Raw rice is rice with the husk not completely removed; almost half of the husk remains. Therefore, eating raw rice is a tough test for your digestive system.
Unfortunately, the shelling technology of this era was very primitive, requiring manual pounding.
Therefore, the Qin Dynasty punished women who committed crimes by making them "chong," which meant pounding rice. This was the most severe physical punishment for women at that time.
Liu Bang and his high-ranking officials, as well as the army, did not eat coarse rice, but rather polished rice, which is rice that has been completely hulled. What everyone can enjoy in modern society became a privilege in this era.
According to Qin law, only those of the third rank of nobility, when they were granted a meal of fine rice, were entitled to eat glutinous rice. Those below the third rank could only eat coarse rice.
Liu Bang was a heavy drinker; he couldn't be happy without wine and couldn't enjoy meat without it. For a time, the air was filled with the aroma of meat and wine. The people, smelling the food and wine, didn't find it inappropriate; on the contrary, they thought it was only right, since Liu Bang was the leader.
Liu Ying ate the meat with great relish, observing the reactions of the people, and exclaimed, "The people are truly simple and honest!"
In modern society, Liu Bang would certainly be labeled as someone who didn't care about the people and abused his privileges.
At night, the army patrols to maintain order.
The group continued their journey the following day.
Around noon, a retreating force caught up with Liu Bang and joined him.
More and more teams arrived and joined together, and the team quickly grew in size.
In the end, the number of civilians and soldiers exceeded 100,000, forming a truly long dragon that stretched for tens or even hundreds of miles, a truly magnificent sight.
"How do you plan to settle them?" Liu Ying asked, riding alongside Liu Bang.
"We'll see when we get to Xingyang." Liu Bang pondered for a moment. "If all else fails, we'll settle them in Guanzhong. Guanzhong is sparsely populated and desperately needs people; they can be settled there easily."
Last year, Xiang Yu entered Guanzhong and massacred its inhabitants, causing countless deaths and injuries. The region desperately needed reinforcements. Going to Guanzhong would indeed be a good option for these people.
Traveling westward, day and night, the journey was severely hampered by the presence of the local people, taking almost ten days to reach Yu County. Without their presence, it would have taken only three days.
Even so, Liu Bang had no intention of abandoning the people and wanted to retreat with them. Liu Ying naturally agreed with this.
"I dare to report to the King of Han: There has been a massacre." Lü Ze, with a solemn expression, rode up to report to Liu Bang.
"Who?" Liu Ying's face darkened.
"Defeated soldiers." A murderous intent surged across Lü Ze's face.
"Defeated soldiers?" Liu Bang's expression was unfriendly.