Chapter 8: Brothers United in Times of Crisis

  General Li's body had just fallen to the ground when the officers around him immediately felt a chill in their hearts. Before they could even rein in their horses and think of what to do next, they heard a thunderous shout of "Kill!" erupting from behind them, followed by the rumbling sound of footsteps shaking the earth, which left this group of government soldiers pale-faced with shock.

  The general died, and suddenly the dragon was headless, not knowing where to go or what to do, only feeling terrified in his heart. Among them, a few timid ones saw that the situation was unfavorable, left their positions, whipped their horses and fled. This seemed like a wake-up call, suddenly awakening the frightened government army. Suddenly, the formation dispersed, and the defeat was like a mountain collapse. They escaped so hastily that fathers and sons couldn't take care of each other, and brothers ran in all directions.

  Shi Jin saw that the government army's formation was collapsing, and they fled in fear. His anger not yet dissipated, he would not let them live. At this time, he also ignored his injuries and charged at the government soldiers, killing them. In an instant, he cleared a circle around himself, and no one dared to approach him. Before the government army could disperse, the sound of their cries for help had already been drowned out by Shi Jin's battle cry.

  At the forefront were three good men, one wielding a Bi Xue Bai She Dao, another dancing with a pair of Yao knives, charging at the very front with an even more ferocious expression, like a fierce god's envoy wielding a Zhen Ba Hu Kou gun.

  Three men riding in a hail of arrows, with momentum like overturning the Yangtze River, were followed closely by hundreds of brothers, each one frenzied, seeing the government army advancing and killing. Like a flood, the fleeing government army gradually disappeared, knives cutting into flesh, blood and bones flying everywhere.

  The cries of agony still echoed in my ears, and the scene of wailing and crying was even more difficult to describe. The government soldiers were killed until their hearts were broken, each one regretting that they could not escape into the ground. However, after a short while, more than half of the officers were brutally slaughtered by knives.

  Shi Jin had already exhausted his strength, and when he saw that it was the three heroes of Shao Huashan leading their brothers to rescue him, he couldn't help but relax. The heroes rushed past him and chased the government troops southward. Chen Da wielded his zhangba tiger spear with ease, striking down the fleeing soldiers one by one, each blow landing squarely on their backs.

  Those who died immediately had their skeletons trampled and broken by the crowd, while those who were only injured were hacked to death by the subsequent rioters.

  Chen Da said this and that, and later chased out of Hou Zhuang for several miles before calming down and stopping. Firstly, the government troops were defeated and suffered heavy casualties, so it was not worth pursuing them further. Secondly, he was also afraid of being driven to madness and creating unnecessary trouble.

  The tragic fate of the slaughtered officers and soldiers made the villagers from both the east and west villages feel a chill in their hearts. Just then, they heard the sound of gongs and drums coming from the front village, while the sound of gongs and drums from the rear village suddenly stopped. This stark contrast made them suddenly realize that something was amiss. The bandits had come to rescue their leader, and Dalang's life was in danger. Once he killed Dalang, they would be no match for him, like fish on a chopping board.

  At this moment, the Zhuang Ding of Dongzhuang village gripped their weapons tightly and couldn't calm down. A slightly older clan leader on the roof also beat the wooden clapper and shouted loudly: "What are you standing there for? Put on red cloth headscarves and go out to fight!"

  In an instant, Dongzhuang Village was stirred up from near to far, and the news spread like a wave on the houses. Before long, hundreds of people in the village, armed with sticks, clubs and pitchforks, poured out of Dongzhuang Village like a red tide.

  In front of the village, west of the village, one look, and the heart can't help but be more restrained, they followed suit, each rushing out of their homes, people gathering in the streets and alleys, like a crimson stream converging into a river, the raging river gathering into an ocean. Silently and stealthily, at each village entrance, they gathered and grew stronger, together using the cover of night to quietly surround and attack.

  At this time, the divine strategist Zhu Wu drove back the government troops, retrieved the demon sword, and rushed to Shi Jing's side in one arrow-step. At this moment, Shi Jing's face was as pale as gold paper, his whole body covered in bloodstains, and there were still fine streams of blood flowing from the wound on his right leg where the arrow had struck. Zhu Wu looked at him with a heart that wasn't quite right, saying: "Brother, you've suffered..." His heart had a thousand words to say, but how could he express all sorts of emotions in one moment? He was choked with emotion and couldn't speak.

  Shi Jin propped himself up with his stick, forcing a smile to reassure Zhu Wu, not wanting him to feel too guilty and uncomfortable. But he didn't know that this smile looked extremely painful in Zhu Wu's eyes.

  At once, Zhu Wu took off his own clothes and put the small jacket inside on Shi Jin's body. After Zhu Wu tore a piece of cloth to simply bandage the wound, he lowered his head and saw that Shi Jin's waist was soaked with blood, wrapping something, looking at the half-coagulated blood plasma, some doubts arose in his heart.

  Shi Jin saw his gaze pause at his waist for a moment, and then he suddenly remembered something. He trembled as he untied the package, once again revealing Shi Taigong's pale face. Zhu Wu took one look and thought to himself that it was too late after all. The flames of anger in his heart had nowhere to vent, causing him to let out a heavy sigh, and with a fierce thrust, he stabbed the two demonic knives deep into the corpse of the official soldier at his feet.

  Shi Jin held the severed head in his hands, carefully examining it. It was still his father's face, the same one that had said that morning: "Wang Jin will surely get a good job when he goes to work for Governor Zhu..." with such kindness and love.

  The last bit of self-deception was shattered. Father is really gone. Suddenly, the pain of losing his father surged again, and the weight of a thousand pounds of sorrow fell on him, making it impossible for him to hold on any longer. The last thread of energy was exhausted at this moment, and he collapsed onto Zhu Wu's body.

  This sudden change was unexpected by Zhu Wu, his heart skipped a beat, and he hastily supported Shi Jin, checking his breath and finding that he still had some air left, but had only fainted. Only then did he calm down. He immediately ordered the soldiers standing guard beside him to move the corpse away and clear out the blood-soaked ground. Zhu Wu supported Shi Jin as he lay down, instructing people to find a box to store Taigong's head in, and wanting to gather his troops at once to return to Shaohua Mountain.

  At this time, Yang Chun suddenly shouted loudly in the distance, and his voice came over, making Zhu Wu jump. Yang Chun's voice roared: "Tight wind! Tight wind!"

  Zhu Wu immediately stood up and mounted his horse. He looked around and saw several hundred black objects, vague and indistinct, rustling and whispering as they approached from three sides to surround him.

  San Zhuang Ding Zhuang heard the thieves shouting loudly, obviously they had been discovered. The sneak attack failed, so he simply staked his life, grasped his weapon and charged forward. For a time, relying on their numerical superiority, the morale was quite strong. They shouted and killed, rushing towards the thieves.

  At this moment, Liu County Magistrate, hiding in the small jujube forest, was so frightened by Zhuang Ding's anger that his legs went limp and he urinated. His heart racing with anxiety, his hands and feet trembled uncontrollably, making it impossible for him to take a step forward. Fortunately, the two county guards had some experience in fighting and were not too embarrassed. They hastily supported the magistrate and fled in a hurry, hoping to escape from the Zhuang's house.

  Chen Da chased the government soldiers south for a long time, and Zhu Wu couldn't be summoned in time. Seeing that the enemy was strong and we were weak, they were about to charge over on horseback, he felt extremely anxious. He picked up his pair of knives and hastily ordered several close brothers to protect Shi Jin's body and carry him into the backyard of the Shi family compound. He himself led a group of brothers, steeled themselves for death, and guarded the gate of the courtyard, ready to fight to the death. At this moment, on Yang Chun's side, there were already sounds of clashing knives and swords, fierce fighting, and it was clear that they had already engaged in battle.