Da Niu stared at the approaching person for a long time. He couldn't figure out why this person had been smiling at him for so long without saying anything. He wondered if the person was foolish.
Should he tell them to leave now? Would it be too late?
Or perhaps, he should just let it be, to avoid appearing foolish.
"Tell me clearly, why have you come here!"
Da Niu sat on a makeshift chair and asked leisurely.
"Your Majesty?" The Yellow Turban soldier was stunned for a moment, then asked tremblingly.
Da Niu's identity was too peculiar. He wasn't exactly an emperor, but it was definitely inappropriate to treat him with ordinary courtesy.
"Yes, speak your mind freely!" Da Niu's face was flushed. As a descendant of poor farmers, he never imagined this day would come. "Have you been oppressed too much by those corrupt officials? I will definitely help you!"
After all, Da Niu was also such a person. The Yellow Turban soldier thought for a long time. So this was the topic. This was a topic he was familiar with, and the conversation would surely unfold.
"Your Majesty is right. I was originally a commoner, but the corrupt officials were brutal and unjust. They took my land, killed my family, and burned my home. I beg Your Majesty to uphold justice!"
The Yellow Turban soldier shed a few insincere tears. "I implore Your Majesty to send troops to help this humble servant reclaim his land!"
"Don't worry, this matter is on my shoulders," Da Niu patted his chest and said enthusiastically. After all, they were fellow farmers with similar experiences!
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" the Yellow Turban soldier said hurriedly. "Here, I have..."
Before he could finish, Da Niu quickly interrupted, "What's your name, brother? I will definitely help you. This matter is entrusted to me!"
"Your Majesty, my name is Er Niu!" the Yellow Turban soldier blurted out. "Perhaps we should discuss the reason for my visit first."
"Why the rush? Just call me brother. Don't worry," Da Niu patted the Yellow Turban soldier's back. "Have something to eat first, and then we'll talk about revenge. No problem, we are all people like you here."
For a moment, Er Niu felt the gazes of those around him become much kinder. Before he could react, he was pulled into a tent. "Just eat something. After we kill the emperor, we will definitely help you!"
Da Niu raised his wine cup and said excitedly, "They are definitely no match for us!"
Er Niu stared at the murky wine in his hand, his scalp tingling. He was a prominent figure among the Yellow Turbans; how could he drink this?
"Brother, hurry, have you never seen such good stuff before? Don't be afraid, we have plenty of it!" Da Niu said eagerly. "And so much food, eat up!"
Er Niu looked at everything on the table, his expression contorted. After a long pause, he managed to squeeze out, "Thank you, Your Majesty... Thank you, brother!"
"What are you being polite for? Eat up!" Da Niu patted Er Niu's shoulder and shoved wild vegetables into his mouth.
Er Niu chewed with difficulty for a few bites before swallowing. He hurriedly cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, brother. Now, let's discuss how I can help."
"Brother, don't be so formal. I'm a farmer, and I don't understand such fancy words. Just tell me what you want us to do!" Da Niu smiled honestly. "We're all brothers, what's there to be afraid of!"
Er Niu looked for a long time, then made a resolute decision, saying, "Brother, actually, I am a man of the Great Teacher Zhang Jiao. I have come to form an alliance with you for my lord."
Da Niu froze on the spot.
"Great Teacher?"
"Zhang Jiao, who is he? Isn't the only enemy I have Emperor Ling? Now I have another one."
Da Niu rubbed his hair and said helplessly, "I don't know who you're talking about. I just want to kill the emperor!"
"And then?" Er Niu eagerly pressed. Such an honest Da Niu, if he were to declare himself emperor, wouldn't he be easily manipulated?
"Then the land will be ours, and we can farm it without anyone collecting rent!"
Er Niu stood there dumbfounded. What kind of ambition was this? With such little aspiration, how could he fulfill his mission from Zhang Jiao?
After a long pause, Er Niu handed the package to Da Niu. "This is a letter from my lord. Please write a reply and give it to me to take back!"
Da Niu nodded gently and sat alone, drinking tea. His gaze towards Er Niu had clearly cooled considerably!
"Brother," Er Niu quickly changed his address, "Your Majesty, don't you want to be the sole emperor?"
"No, why should I?" Da Niu was puzzled. "What's so good about being emperor? I still eat two bowls of rice every day, don't I?"
His rhetorical questions left Er Niu stunned. What kind of logic was this? He thought that one couldn't eat more food, yet so many people longed to be emperor.
"Your Majesty, why don't you consider it? Being emperor means others will obey you, being above ten thousand people, how glorious is that?" Er Niu said with forced explanation. "Or, our lord can help you?"
"Help me? What does he want?" Da Niu became wary. "I don't have anything to give him."
"My lord wants nothing. Don't worry, he will definitely help you!" Er Niu was anxious and no longer cared about formalities, speaking in a hurry.
"That's impossible. I remember borrowing one coin from an official back home, and in the end, I had to repay over ten taels of silver. I, Da Niu, am not stupid!" Da Niu shook his head and was about to leave.
Er Niu stared as Da Niu hurried away, intending to argue, but Da Niu had already moved far away.
"What do you think you're doing?" More than a dozen bare-chested, muscular men surrounded Er Niu. "You want to make a move against our big brother, did you even ask us first!"
In an instant, the crowd lifted Er Niu and prepared to throw him out. Er Niu kicked his legs wildly, unable to utter a word.
When he landed on the ground, Er Niu patted his pocket and sighed inwardly, having lost his package again. He wanted to go back to search for it, but thinking of the dozen burly men, his heart softened, and he quickly retreated.
"I said I shouldn't have come, but they insisted. Now look, not only is my package lost, but I might lose my life when I go back!"
"Those good-for-nothings might even mock me, saying I didn't do my job properly. But what does that have to do with me? They didn't even give me a chance to speak!"
"They want to join forces to deal with Emperor Ling, and then cooperate from the inside to deal with Ye Feng? Impossible, I'd better just escape!"
Er Niu cursed all the way, not realizing that someone outside was overhearing everything.
Accompanied by a cold laugh, "Where else do you think you're going? Or will you stay here?"
"Who are you? Come out! I am from the Great Teacher. Be careful, he might take action against you!" Er Niu quickly threatened. "Come out!"
The voice sounded extremely trembling, but Er Niu heard a clear laugh. "Where is the package Zhang Jiao gave you?"
Er Niu could vaguely see the person's face, but he was sure he was no match for them. He quickly retreated.
"Still trying to escape? Do you think you still have a chance?"
The person chuckled coldly and rushed forward with a spear, but their movements were somewhat clumsy, clearly a weapon found at the last minute!
"Don't come any closer!" Er Niu sat on the ground, his eyes darting around. "Wait, I'll give you whatever you want!"
"If you had thought of this earlier, why would I have to waste my breath? Then take it out!"
The person stood confidently with the spear, staring coldly at Er Niu.
"Alright, I'll give it to you!" Er Niu grabbed a handful of sand and suddenly threw it. The person quickly closed their eyes, but it was already too late.
"Good kid, come out quickly, I can spare your life!"
Er Niu heard the cold voice and tightly covered his mouth. He heard the voice pass by his ear.
"Good boy, come out quickly, I won't make a move!"
"I see you, caught!"
With a shout, Er Niu looked up and saw a tiger licking its paw in front of him. Being struck by it would be disastrous.
But he couldn't move, or he would surely die!
The fierce tiger slowly approached, its whiskers almost brushing Er Niu's face!
"Good kid, caught!"
The person roared, and Er Niu looked up again to see the spear pierce the fierce tiger through and through. If that had landed on him, the consequences would have been unimaginable!
Er Niu trembled several times, then tiptoed out of the bushes and crawled towards another patch of shrubbery. Before he could react, the figure of the person flashed past.
"Good kid, you actually escaped!" the person chuckled, passing by Er Niu in a few steps.
For safety, Er Niu didn't know how long he stayed put before hurriedly trying to leave.
"Got you?" a cold laugh erupted beside Er Niu.
Er Niu knew he had no chance of survival, so he spoke righteously, "Who are you? Who sent you!"
"That's none of your business. I, Er Niu, am telling you clearly today, you dream of getting the letter. I've already dealt with it. Neither you nor the people behind you will get it!" Er Niu said coldly. "One day, someone will avenge me!"
"Very well, then you wait for the people behind you to avenge you. Don't worry, I will definitely find the letter," the person drew out a bright dagger. "Even if you swallow it, I'll find a way to get it out!"
This remark, however, made Er Niu's face change, and he trembled. He still wanted to go to the underworld with his body intact, not wanting his ancestors to think he was unfilial!
"Scared? Good!" the person sneered. "Then I'll slowly peel the skin off your body while you're alive. You will surely die!"
"You beast, I'll kill you!" Er Niu cursed, struggling to resist. "Die!"
But Er Niu, who had long been scared out of his wits, was no match for the other person. Soon, he was firmly held in their grip. "You want to resist? You're not even a match for me with one hand!"
"Please, give me a complete corpse!" Er Niu struggled a few times, but he didn't move at all in the other person's grip. His body went limp, and he knelt on the ground, begging desperately.
"How sure are you that I'll let you go? Are you that confident?" the person sneered!
"I have what you want in my hand!" Er Niu swallowed hard and said hurriedly!