Chapter 4, The Heroes of Guitun

A Fei stood on the city wall, gazing into the distance, feeling his legs weaken slightly. He wanted to lean against the wall to change his posture, but unexpectedly, his left foot trembled first, followed by his right foot, initiating a chain reaction reminiscent of dominoes. First, his feet shook, then his calves, followed by his thighs, and then his waist... By the time his teeth began to chatter, the young Master Shi beside him finally noticed.

Without discussing whether what Old Wang from next door said is true or not, and whether they are indeed the tenants of the county magistrate's relatives, how could this Master Zhang, a prominent figure in the county, personally come to a remote mountain valley to meet his own tenants? Even if he knows his tenants, what obligation does he have to testify for them? He could simply say impatiently, "I don't know them." The local soldiers could immediately behead these two "Eastern barbarians" as a warning to others

At this moment, following his earlier instructions, the local militia had gathered in front of the yamen. Among them, about seventy percent were around fifty years old, while thirty percent were younger than Ah Fei. Each of them had sunken chests and protruding bellies, looking emaciated, with trembling legs. Upon seeing this, Young Master Shi shook his head repeatedly and requested the county magistrate to open the warehouse to collect all the weapons in the county. In total, there were only about ten spears and halberds, two knives, one shield, three bows, and two jars of arrows, most of which were heavily rusted. Finally, the county magistrate also took off the long sword he wore at his waist and presented it to Young Master Shi. Upon seeing this, Young Master Shi shook his head repeatedly and requested the county magistrate to open the warehouse to collect all the weapons in the county. In total, there were only about ten spears and halberds, two knives, one shield, three bows, and two jars of arrows, most of which were heavily rusted. Finally, the county magistrate also took off the long sword he wore at his waist and presented it to Young Master Shi.

It was not yet dark when the barbarian invaders indeed arrived. According to what Young Master Shi said, these invaders were not from Fuyu or the Wa people, but from Goguryeo— as for which ethnicity A Fei himself belonged to, he estimated he would never be able to figure it out. Goguryeo is fundamentally different from those other barbarian tribes; firstly, it is organized and has a government, and secondly, it has been officially conferred the title of king by the Han Dynasty, with the current king of Goguryeo named Bo Gu.

"You have actually read the Art of War," the young master said with a slight curl of his lips, "but in the end, you still stand firm."

However, immediately afterward, the constable said: "The older one is indeed Han, but the younger one is a foreigner. To be on the safe side, it is better to eliminate them completely."

While observing, the young master suddenly turned his head to look at him: "I saw you earlier holding a piece of deer skin; where has it gone?" A Fei replied with a bitter smile: "I don't know which soldier took it away." It was a joke; just a moment ago, he had been pinned to the ground by the local soldiers, and he immediately felt three or four hands rummaging through his clothing. Although they did not manage to find a single coin, could the deer skin he was holding possibly escape unscathed?

I can't believe it, this person is truly beyond praise, isn't this a bit too harsh for personal vendettas? Ah Fei quickly shouted: "My family has been farming in the county for seven generations, and I only know that I am a subject of the Han Dynasty, unaware of any foreign barbarians! I implore the county magistrate to see clearly and spare this humble person. Although I am young, I am willing to help defend the county and drive away the foreign invaders!"

As expected, Young Master Shi did not continue to question further; he merely turned to urge the county magistrate to entrust him with the military power of the city. The county magistrate, left with no options, dared not flee and was unwilling to die, so he could only pick up his pen and write a few characters, agreeing to his request.

Young Master Shi appeared quite composed; he glanced down at the city and suddenly stamped his foot fiercely: "Alright, open the city gates and prepare for battle!"

You wouldn't believe it! Ah Fei knows that it's difficult to fabricate something that has no basis, especially with Old Wang from next door, who has watched him grow up. If he were to say that a scholar happened to teach him to read out of a sudden whim, and if Old Wang, with his questionable intellect (given his consistent behavior, it's certain he lacks sense), were to question it, that would lead to significant trouble. It would be better to concoct a legendary story that no one can verify and that no one would believe. Young Master Shi would definitely not believe it; if he doesn't, he would delve deeper into questioning. However, with the barbarians approaching, he would inevitably lack the time to interrogate. Thus, if Old Wang's intellect is indeed questionable (which is certainly the case based on his usual performance), and if he were to voice doubts, that would lead to considerable trouble. It would be better to fabricate a legendary story that no one can verify and that no one would believe. Young Master Shi would definitely not believe it; if he doesn't, he would delve deeper into questioning. However, with the barbarians approaching, he would inevitably lack the time to interrogate. Therefore, for the time being, his own head could be kept safe.

Young Master Shi revealed a somewhat sarcastic smile: "Some do not believe."

When Ah Fei first arrived in this noble era, his understanding of the customs and social interactions was extremely limited. However, on the other hand, the original owner of this body, that true thirteen-year-old boy from the mountain valley who had never left, likely knew even less than the time traveler. Thus, in a moment of panic, he called out the name "Master Zhang," which, in retrospect, nearly led him down a path of no return

Fortunately, it is not yet necessary for Lord Zhang to intervene; for the time being, a constable from the county office has helped by providing testimony: "They are indeed tenant farmers from the impoverished area in the west of the city, and I recognize them."

Very well. At that moment, Young Master picked up a bow and handed seven arrows to A Fei

"Is that deer one you hunted? What weapons do you use?" Young Master Shi immediately inquired

A Fei recalled having read in a book that Goguryeo began to continuously invade the northeastern commanderies starting from the reign of Emperor Huan, and it was only when the Gongsun clan dominated Liaodong that they temporarily submitted. However, they later assisted Cao Wei in attacking Gongsun, and ultimately rebelled against Cao Wei, suffering a great defeat at the hands of Gan Qiujian. Of course, by that time, it should no longer have been Bo Gu as king, but rather his son or grandson who was in power, which A Fei completely could not remember.

They soon arrived at the North City Gate, where Young Master Shi assigned soldiers to defend the city and kept A Fei and Old Wang from next door by his side. Although A Fei had no understanding of warfare, he had at least seen pigs run even if he had never eaten pork. Based on the superficial knowledge he had gleaned from ancient texts, it seemed that Young Master Shi was quite knowledgeable about military strategy, assigning tasks in an orderly manner.

The military text states, "If there are five, then encircle them; if there are ten, then attack them..." Ah Fei felt his heart racing wildly, estimating that his heart rate had surely reached 180 beats per minute, and was heading straight for 200. He wondered if he would die of fright before the Goguryeo people could kill him.

The incoming Goguryeo troops were indeed not numerous; the claim of "over 100,000 men" was completely exaggerated. Even when combined with the forces from the surrounding areas, there were only a few thousand, merely dozens of times more than the defenders within the city. Moreover, each soldier was fully armored, with nearly half being cavalry. The spears were generally rather short, measuring just over three meters, not reaching the length of eight feet.

Thus, I still have a bit of an impression of this constable, as he, after making a fruitless trip, momentarily lost his senses and actually took a liking to the old dog belonging to the neighbor, Old Wang. However, when he swung his stick, he missed the dog and instead, at a command from Ah Fei, the hunting dog lunged and bit his thigh. Fortunately, Old Wang's dog was ultimately too old, probably not much younger than Old Wang himself, with most of its teeth nearly gone, so it did not inflict any serious injury on the constable. In the end, Old Wang handed over two rabbit skins he had kept as a form of apology to settle the matter.

Are you afraid?" Young Master Shi smiled at him淡然.

The place where I originally lived was called "Qiong Diao," which truly lived up to its name, as it was impoverished beyond measure. Under the pressure of the soldiers, A Fei barely lifted his head to glance at the constable, and indeed, there remained a faint impression in his original memory.

A Fei glanced left and right, discovering that nearly all the guards within his line of sight, including Old Wang next door, had collapsed to the ground. He too felt the urge to collapse, but his knees were shaking violently, shaking to the point that he could not change the rhythm, and he simply could not bend them.

The fabrication was already concocted on the way to the county office. He hurriedly replied: "When I was ten years old, I entered the forest to gather firewood and encountered an old man who was about to freeze to death, so I saved his life. That night, I dreamt that the old man brought me several books to read, and upon waking, I recognized some characters and understood some discourse"

"You have the blessing of the immortal in your dreams; surely nothing will go wrong, right?" The sarcasm in Young Master Shi's gaze grew increasingly pronounced. "Are you certain that we cannot win this battle?"

A Fei could no longer speak, and could only nod—though it might just be his chin trembling

Young Master Shi found himself at a loss and had no choice but to distribute these shabby weapons. Ah Fei, watching from the side, noticed that the Young Master’s initial expression was one of great ambition, as if he had his own command and could defeat the barbarian invaders with a single encounter, thereby gaining fame throughout the world. However, this expression quickly vanished, replaced only by helplessness, frustration, and uncertainty, ultimately transforming into a profound sense of tragic heroism

Ah Fei also tried to extract information from Young Master Shi, and after much effort, he finally learned that the place he was in was indeed the Korean Peninsula. This was the easternmost commandery of the Eastern Han Dynasty—Lelang Commandery, which had a mix of various ethnic groups, including Han and non-Han, with more than ten counties. The commandery seat was called Chao Xian, which is likely the future city of Pyongyang. At this time, the governor, like the local county magistrate, also bore the surname Zhang. Young Master Shi's father had previously been appointed as a postal supervisor at his request and had just resigned not long ago, but he held considerable prestige throughout the commandery.

In an era when information was extremely underdeveloped, it was particularly easy to fabricate stories. A Fei was aware that his manner of speaking did not quite resemble that of a genuine poor country boy—would a poor boy really care about the issue of the era? Would he use terms like "subjects of the Han Dynasty"? However, he had already noticed that Young Master Shi was quite curious about him. If he did not express himself in a certain way, he would be unable to further pique Young Master Shi's curiosity, which could very well lead to dire consequences.

Young Master Shi immediately ordered the local soldiers to release A Fei and Old Wang from next door, instructing them to follow him. After exiting the county office, they hurried along and soon arrived in front of a large house. Upon calling out, more than twenty strong men rushed out from within—presumably the laborers Young Master Shi referred to, who were left in the county's warehouse. He commanded these laborers to awaken the townspeople and block the east, west, and south gates of the county with wood and stone. Once this was completed, they were to guard the three gates, after which he turned and rushed back to the county office.

Young Master Shi led the local soldiers and A Fei directly to the north gate of the county town. Along the way, he inquired about A Fei's name. A Fei provided his name, stating that he did not have a surname—whether this was because his parents had forgotten their family name or because their ethnic group had not yet developed surnames is known only to heaven.

Although their family are tenants and do not have to pay rent directly to the court, all land rent is paid to the landowner—Master Zhang. As for whether Master Zhang pays taxes to the state, no one knows. However, their family still has to pay the poll tax, which is a head tax. Therefore, the county officials have come to Qiong Diao a couple of times—the poll tax is collected once a year. However, it is estimated that the area is too poor to extract even half a copper coin, so even the officials are too lazy to make the trip.

The little person can use a bow and arrow

"You child," the young master slightly bent down, looking at A Fei's face, "Have you studied with someone?"

Thus, this constable unexpectedly stood up to testify today without anyone pressuring or urging him, which inevitably stirred a warm current in A Fei's heart: "There are still good people in this world... If it were me, I would dare to let the dogs bite me, and at this moment, I would firmly assert that these two are undoubtedly spies from the Eastern Yi!"