While he was still hesitating, a noblewoman of the Ji clan hurried out of the shop and angrily shouted at Ma Lin, “Who do you think you are? He’s my slave. You have no right to order him around!”
Ma Lin glanced at her. “Didn’t you hear what we just announced? All Han people are subjects of my lord, not your slaves.”
“How dare you!” The Ji woman was furious. “Do you even know who I am?”
Ma Lin frowned. “It doesn’t matter who you are. Every member of the Ji clan must leave De County by noon.”
“You!” The woman gritted her teeth and lashed out at Ma Lin with her whip.
Accustomed to acting high and mighty toward the Han, she could hardly bear being humiliated by a lowly Han soldier.
With a swift clang, Ma Lin drew his saber.
Before the woman could react, her whip was sliced in two.
She stared at Ma Lin in astonishment. She had never expected a Han to actually dare fight back against her.
Ma Lin’s expression turned cold as he pointed his saber at her. “Try that again, and I’ll kill you.”
“What’s going on?” A Ji man hurried over.
He was the county commandant of De County and had been handling the handover with Lin Yang.
The woman spotted him and immediately found her support. “Uncle, they’re bullying me! Have them all killed!”
She was the county commandant’s niece, and her father also held a position in the army. She was well connected in the city and had grown accustomed to behaving arrogantly.
Ma Lin saluted Lin Yang as he approached. “Commander.”
Lin Yang nodded, then looked at the county commandant. “What is it? Are you dissatisfied with the orders from above?”
The man suppressed his frustration. “Of course not. It’s all a misunderstanding. Everything happened so suddenly that our people haven’t quite recovered yet.”
Lin Yang smiled. “Good. Then hurry and spread the order so there won’t be any more misunderstandings. Otherwise, if one of my men accidentally kills someone, that would be unfortunate.”
The muscles on the man’s face twitched, but he forced a smile. “I’ll notify everyone as soon as possible.”
He turned to the woman, his gaze stern. “Enough. Go back and pack your things. You’re leaving in an hour.”
The woman stamped her foot angrily. “Uncle!”
She already knew that the Ji clan was withdrawing. Her uncle had informed all the Ji people in the city as soon as he received the order.
She simply refused to accept it and could not believe that the mighty Ji army had been forced to retreat in the blink of an eye.
That was why she had come to the city gate to see for herself.
The county commandant was already frustrated and irritable. He roared, “Go back at once!”
The woman’s eyes immediately reddened. Knowing that further protests would do no good, she was about to get into her carriage when she noticed that the human footstool assigned to her was still standing there dumbly.
She immediately snapped, “You lowly slave! Come over here and kneel!”
Fang Da’s body trembled. Overwhelmed by the fear of enslavement, he was about to obey when a saber suddenly blocked his path.
Ma Lin glanced at him. “Didn’t you hear what I just said?”
Fang Da jumped in fright, his body shaking uncontrollably.
Ma Lin sighed inwardly. He remembered that things had been the same when they were in Sizhou. It was only after reaching Fengzhou that Fang Da had managed to straighten his back and regain his dignity.
His voice softened. “Go to the county office and gather there. Our officials will register your household there.”
He then looked at the other Han civilians nearby. “All of you, go there as well.”
This time, Fang Da said nothing. He turned and ran toward the county office, while the other Han civilians also hurried in the same direction.
The woman nearly spat blood. Trembling with rage, she turned to the county commandant. “Uncle!”
The county commandant waved her off. “Go back at once!”
With no other choice, the woman stomped her foot and climbed into the carriage.
Fortunately, the carriage driver was Ji, or she would have had to drive herself home.
Lin Yang looked at Ma Lin. “Go take care of things.”
Ma Lin nodded and quickly withdrew to handle matters elsewhere.
Lin Yang turned back to the county commandant. “My lord has said that not a single Han civilian may be left behind. I hope your Ji army will honor the agreement.”
“If we discover that any of your people deliberately kill Han civilians, I can’t say what might happen then.”
This was one of the reasons the Jinyang Army was eager to take control of the city: they feared that the Ji army might vent its anger by killing Han civilians.
The county commandant’s mouth twitched. “Naturally.”
With the Great Chanyu of the Ji still in the hands of the Jinyang Army, how could he dare make any other move?
In a village in De County, a group of ragged Han people were bent over harvesting wheat. Whenever one of them moved even slightly too slowly, he was struck with a whip.
“You filthy slave! Try slacking off again, and I’ll take your head!”
The beaten Han man let out a muffled cry of pain, but he did not slow down. He knew that if he stopped, he would suffer an even harsher punishment.
But after enduring prolonged hunger, his vision began to darken. Within a few moments, he collapsed to the ground.
The soldier was enraged. He stepped forward and lashed him several more times. “You filthy slave! Get up and keep working!”
“Don’t hit my father! Please, stop hitting my father!” A seven- or eight-year-old girl dropped her sickle and threw herself over the man.
The soldier did not care that she was a child. His whip continued to fall. “Get lost! Do you want to slack off too?”
As they listened to the sound of the whip and the child’s screams and pleas, the Han civilians nearby clenched their teeth. Suppressing their fear and hatred, they lowered their heads and worked even harder.
It was not that they were cold-hearted. If they stepped forward, the Ji army might very well accuse them of causing trouble and beat them to death.
“That’s enough. You’ll kill him if you keep going.” The officer standing nearby finally intervened.
Only then did the soldier stop. He spat at the motionless man. “Bah! Filthy wretch. He couldn’t have died earlier or later—he had to die when we’re busy.”
The officer’s expression was grave as he studied the sparse, withered wheat. This year’s yield would likely be even lower than last year’s.
Because of the drought, many rivers had dried up, leaving them unable to cultivate the land. They could farm less than half as much as before, and with the current yield…
“What’s wrong?” the soldier asked when he saw that the officer had fallen silent.
The officer shook his head. “This year’s harvest is even worse. I’m afraid many people will starve to death.”
“That won’t affect us,” the soldier replied indifferently. “Just don’t give the Han any food.”
The officer sighed. “There aren’t many Han left as it is. If more of them die, there won’t be anyone left to plow our fields next year. Are we supposed to farm them ourselves?”
The soldier was about to reply when a group of cavalry suddenly came galloping toward them in the distance.
“Why are cavalry coming here at a time like this?”
The officer frowned. “It’s General Rong. Hm? There seem to be Han soldiers with him too. What’s going on?”
Yun Ce looked at the Han civilians who had been beaten to the ground, his expression darkening. “What do you think you’re doing?”
Rong Hei tugged at the corner of his mouth. “The Han slaves refused to obey orders, so naturally they had to be beaten.”
A cold glint flashed through Yun Ce’s eyes. “Ha. From the moment my lord began negotiating with your Ji army, the people of Shangjing Commandery and Punan Commandery became my lord’s subjects. They are not your Han slaves.”
Rong Hei secretly clenched his teeth. The boy looked young, but his words were as sharp as knives.
Yun Ce dismounted and looked toward the civilians still working. He shouted, “Everyone, stop what you’re doing and come gather here!”
The civilians had no idea what was happening. They looked at the Ji soldiers, then at the Jinyang soldiers, unsure of what to do.
Yun Ce waved his hand, and the Jinyang soldiers quickly advanced into the fields, shouting, “Stop working! Come over here and gather!”
