coobybook Chapter 738 People’s Heart
Chapter 738 People’s Heart
Chapter 738 Public Sentiment
"Sigh..." Ma Kangsheng sighed and said with a grumble, "Please don't take offense, Mr. Cao. To be honest, I am a hereditary centurion, and I should be loyal to the country. But the court is really too outrageous!"
When we joined the army to fight, let alone military pay, we couldn't even get enough to eat! Each person only got three ounces of rice a day, with no meat at all. We were starving all the time, how could we possibly fight a war?
Do you know what Lord Wang's dog eats every day?
Cao Huachun gently shook his head.
Ma Kangsheng said angrily, "You don't know, do you? The dogs in the War Dog Brigade eat meat every day! I only found out after I joined the Volunteer Army. Since we brothers joined the Volunteer Army, we have never gone hungry. We even have spare money to go to restaurants to satisfy our cravings!"
"Oh?" Cao Huachun asked, "Is the Volunteer Army paid very high wages? Or is their discipline poor?"
“Old sir, you’re new to Hanshan and don’t know much about it! In Hanshan, what soldiers would dare to harm the common people? Besides, as long as the people of Hanshan don’t violate the public security regulations, even the police wouldn’t dare to mess with them!” Ma Kangsheng said with a smile, “The Volunteer Army’s pay is very high. An ordinary soldier receives ten taels of silver every month! Before, when I was working for the imperial court, I was a centurion and only received ten taels of silver a year!”
Cao Huachun nodded, a bitter smile playing on his lips. Indeed, for most people, serving in the army and risking their lives for Wang Wenzhou's concubine was no different from serving the emperor. It was all about pursuing a better future.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Cao Huachun invited Ma Kangsheng and others to dinner. While eating and chatting, Cao Huachun also gathered a lot of information.
After finishing his meal, Cao Huachun paid the bill, bid farewell to Ma Kangsheng and the others, and walked down the street in Hanshan, sighing repeatedly.
Cao Huachun knew Wang Wenzhou was wealthy, but he never imagined that Wang Wenzhou's concubines would be so extravagant. The pay of the volunteer army was astronomical for Ming soldiers. An ordinary soldier received 150 taels of silver a year, not only that, but also holidays. Even more outrageous, there were female soldiers in the volunteer army, and according to the army's rules, male soldiers were not opposed to marrying female soldiers.
That's why, according to Ma Kangsheng, these surrendered soldiers from the imperial army are now determined to serve Hanshan. They all want to make a name for themselves in Hanshan and then marry a beautiful female soldier. Actually, you can't blame them. Ma Kangsheng is a little better off, after all, he is a hereditary centurion, his family is somewhat wealthy, and it wouldn't be difficult for him to find a wife.
But it's difficult for ordinary soldiers. As the saying goes, "Good men don't become soldiers. If a family has money, who would want to join the army?"
Cao Huachun sighed repeatedly, no wonder Mu Yiyun was able to defeat Sun Chuanting's army of over 100,000 in just three days. A generous reward always brings forth brave men; a salary of 150 taels a year would likely motivate anyone to fight with all their might.
"Beep beep..." Just then, a sharp whistle suddenly rang out.
Cao Huachun looked up and saw two burly men running ahead, followed not far behind by two female mounted police officers on horseback.
Cao Huachun was visiting Hanshan for the second time and knew that Hanshan had a female police team. Wang Wenzhou, that lecherous man, had too many tricks up his sleeve. Only Wang Wenzhou could think of something like this.
At this moment, a guard walked up to Cao Huachun and whispered, "Chief Supervisor, these two are our men. Should we leave?"
Cao Huachun shook his head. Although he knew that the two fleeing spies would recognize him, he trusted the loyalty of his men.
Cao Huachun was very puzzled. The agents he brought with him to Hanshan this time were all elites from the Western Depot. How did these two expose their identities?
"Fellow villagers of Hanshan, please help catch them! This is outrageous! They're urinating and defecating in public!" A policewoman said, her face flushed with anger.
In fact, even without the female mounted police officer's signal, Hanshan residents were already chasing after the two bandits. Ever since the Hanshan Heroes' Gathering, almost everyone in Hanshan has practiced martial arts, and they are always happy to help criminals who violate public order regulations.
Li Feng glanced back and saw that, damn it, more and more people were chasing him. He was very confused; how had he exposed his identity? Since arriving in Hanshan, he believed he had been extremely careful in his actions and had been very discreet in gathering information. For some reason, he had just finished urinating and hadn't even pulled up his pants when a female mounted police officer not far away pointed at him and shouted.
Li Feng was an experienced agent of the Western Depot; otherwise, he wouldn't have followed Cao Huachun to Hanshan. Li Feng reacted quickly and took off running. It would have been better if he hadn't run; the more he ran, the more the female mounted police chased after him, and with each whistle of the female mounted police, more and more Hanshan residents followed behind.
"Bang!" Li Feng was not paying attention and had just turned around when he was punched in the face by a Hanshan villager who suddenly rushed out from the side.
Li Feng felt dizzy and collapsed to the ground.
Li Feng's companion tried to rush forward to help, but he was knocked to the ground by the Hanshan villagers who had arrived after only a few steps.
Not far away, Cao Huachun watched in stunned silence. He truly hadn't expected the elite troops of the Western Depot to be so utterly defeated. No wonder Mu Yiyun had routed Sun Chuanting's 150,000-strong army in just three days. These people of Hanshan were no ordinary people; just as Ma Kangsheng had said, the people of Hanshan were all elite soldiers!
"Thank you all for your help! Please help us take these two scoundrels to the Butcher King's Mansion to await the Lady's interrogation." A female mounted policewoman hurriedly bowed to the people who had come to help and thanked them.
The people smiled and didn't take it seriously.
Someone asked, puzzled, "According to the rules, shouldn't this kind of bastard be sent directly to the reserve team of the labor camp?"
The female mounted police officer explained, "Madam said that recently many imperial henchmen have infiltrated Hanshan, so we cannot let our guard down. Whenever we catch a criminal, we must first escort him to the Butcher Prince's Mansion so that he can review him."
"Madam, you've worked so hard! I wonder when Master will return?"
"I heard that the treacherous officials around the Emperor have placed you under house arrest!"
"This is outrageous! Our lord has fallen for the tricks of those treacherous villains; we, the people of Hanshan, cannot stand idly by!"
"Yes, yes, yes! Everyone, come with me to the Pig Slaughter King's mansion to plead with the lady to send troops to rescue Lord Wang!"
The female mounted policewoman shook her head with a wry smile and said loudly, "Fellow elders of Hanshan, please do not cause trouble for the Madam! She has already said that our lord is currently trapped in the capital, and we cannot act rashly. If we send troops, our lord will surely be killed!"
"Yes! Madam is very thoughtful. No matter what, the master must not be harmed!" The people nodded in agreement. They were truly grateful to Wang Wenzhou and were afraid that he would lose his life.
With the help of several civilians, the female mounted police officer escorted the two barbarians away.
Cao Huachun was utterly bewildered. He truly couldn't understand why Wang Wenzhou enjoyed such high prestige among the people of Hanshan! After all, Wang Wenzhou's reputation was truly terrible; he was not only a mad dog butcher but also a womanizer. How could the people of Hanshan love and respect such a scoundrel?
Cao Huachun already knew the reason for Sun Chuanting's defeat. Now he also wanted to find out how Wang Wenzhou had misled the people of Hanshan and deceived them.