"My son, stop it!" The old woman quickly stepped forward and held down the man's arm, "I told you not to come out, but you didn't even listen to your mother's words?"

"Mom, don't blame the child for being unfilial. Everyone can kill Han dogs. Today, I bumped into a general. One life is exchanged for another. I am worth it."

After saying that, the man broke away from his mother, rushed up with a knife, and struck Zhou Mo in the head.

Zhou Mo frowned, quickly stepped aside, and ducked behind the man, then flew up and kicked him on the butt.

The man was too excited, used too much force, had one arm, and had poor balance. Zhou Mo kicked him so hard that he fell forward.

He jumped on the loom and smashed it into pieces, scattering long and short wooden strips all over the floor. He was so painful that he couldn't stand up for a while.

Ma Di hurriedly picked up a fallen piece of wood and hit the man on the head twice.

Zhou Mo quickly pulled out the dagger from his boot and pressed it against his lower back.

The man felt a chill in his waist and did not dare to struggle any more.

"Stop! General, please stop!" the old woman cried loudly.

"Mom, stop crying. I blame me for being old and not flexible, so I fell into their hands."

He turned around and glared at Zhou Mo: "Han dog, kill me quickly!"

Zhou Mo didn't say anything and let the man keep cursing loudly. Ma Di untied a shuttle of twine from the loom and tied his hands and feet tightly. He also tied the old woman's hands.

"Han dog, kill me if you dare!" The man struggled and cursed.

"Don't worry, I will make it happen for you." Zhou Mo said, "But if you want to die more happily, just tell me, what is your name? What is your background? Why did you assassinate me?"

"Bah! Do you want to torture me? Han dog, you will not die easily."

The old woman said: "General, let me tell you..."

The man's eyes were about to burst, and he said excitedly: "Mother, I can't say it. It's not a pity that my son should die. Mother, you must not say it."

Zhou Mo originally thought that this old woman's identity was suspicious, but when this man said this, his curiosity arose.

He picked up a ball of twine, pinched the man's nose, and stuffed his mouth tightly.

"Say." Zhou Mo pointed at the old woman with a dagger.

The old woman said: "General, have you ever heard of Haute Couture?"

Zhou Mo said: "The king of Yue Yi who rebelled against the imperial court has been crowned."

The old woman said: "Gao Ding is my second son, and this one-armed man is named Gao An, who is my eldest son. I am a Han woman, and I come from the Hu family in Anding, Yongzhou."

"My son Gaoding was betrayed by the Yanniu tribe and died in a foreign land. His gang members were scattered and fought with each other. The Gao family lost power. In order to take refuge, my son and I returned to this old house in Shanyingba."
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Zhou Mo paused, a little surprised, and then said: "Your son was right just now. Once your identity is revealed, I will never spare you."

The old woman said: "General, please listen to me. It's not too late to use the knife again. I know that you came all the way and passed by the village. Not only did you do nothing wrong, but when you saw the villagers were poor and hungry, you even gave away meat to the villagers. I knew you were

I have a benevolent heart, so I say this."

"I have a benevolent heart towards ordinary people. But don't blame me for being ruthless towards you remnants of traitors."

The old woman said: "I am already over seventy this year, and it is not a pity to die. However, if the general is really kind-hearted, please listen to the old woman's words."

Zhou Mo slowly lowered his hand holding the dagger and said, "Please speak."

"Since the decline of the Han Dynasty, the tribes in the south have killed Han officials, expelled the Han people, and established themselves one after another. They shouted slogans, saying that the southerners would no longer be exploited by the Han people, and their lives would get better and better."

"But the fact is that the chiefs exploited their own people more ruthlessly than the Han Dynasty. The more the Han Dynasty became independent, the more my son became the king, it only enriched my family, the Gao family, and the lives of the people were far worse than before.

.After my son’s death, the gang members started fighting each other, and the situation became even more unbearable.”

"After I was destitute, I returned to my old house and saw that the Shanying Dam, which used to be full of vitality, was now in ruins. The people were hungry and had no choice but to eat and no clothes to cover their bodies, so I felt remorseful."

"The general came all the way, and what he saw and heard along the way, he naturally understood it, and I don't need to say more. My dozen or so dilapidated looms, because my son drove out all the Han people, no one can repair them anymore, and they have been reduced to

Kuchiki can be regarded as a witness to Nanzhong over the years."

"And my stupid eldest son. His brother was killed by the Han and he lost his wealthy life. Therefore, he hates the Han to the core. But the mother who gave birth to him and raised him is also a Han."

"General, can you imagine? My eldest son is very filial to me. His arm was thrown away in order to save me from Yulangguo. He hates the Han people the most in his life, but the people he loves and respects the most

He happens to be a Han Chinese, maybe that’s why he is so stupid.”

"General. The men of Beishui are now defending the city and resisting the Han army, but most of them are not bad people by nature, but most of them are fools like my son. They should not die in vain."

"Old woman, I have a good reputation in this country. I want to go to Beishui County as a general to persuade them to surrender. If I succeed, I can avoid a big war. If I fail and die, it will be considered as a small repayment of my evil deeds.

His sins brought harm to the people."

"The only condition is that the general can forgive my son's reckless behavior and not kill him."

Zhou Mo fell into deep thought.

If it were for personal gain, he would not hesitate to kill this reckless man Gao An.

But Yu Gong, he thinks that the old woman's plan can be tried.

Ma Su leaned towards his ear and whispered: "General, you must remember the strategy of attacking the heart."

Zhou Mo got off the donkey along the slope and put the dagger in his boot: "Forget it, let's give it a try. Call someone in and take them back to the camp."

Zhou Mo and his group of more than 30 people escorted the old woman, mother and son away. As soon as they went out, they took a few steps and were seen by locals. However, they were surrounded by three floors inside and three outside, blocking the road.

When they saw the old woman being tied up, they were all very angry, so they stepped forward regardless of the danger.

The old woman's status in their minds is obviously extraordinary.

In the end, Zhou Mo ordered people to untie the mother and son, and the old woman explained in various ways in the local language. The people's anger gradually subsided, and they stopped blocking the road and dispersed on both sides, allowing Zhou Mo to take them away.

……

A few days later, Zhou Mo led his army westward and approached Beishui County.

The army formed an array to the north of Beishui. Zhou Mo and Chen Dao were in the center, holding down the formation. Zhang Yi and Fu Xu were stationed one in the east and one in the west. At the same time, they built pontoon bridges from two shallow water areas to prepare to cross the river.

On the south bank of Beishui River, there are deep ditches and high fortifications, and thousands of barbarian soldiers are waiting. They do not have enough bows and crossbows to effectively harass Zhou Mo's army in setting up a pontoon bridge. They can only wait for the opportunity and attack again when Zhou Mo's army is halfway across.

Just when the battle between the two sides was about to break out, a small boat took several people across the river and anchored on the south bank.

A thin old woman, leaning on a cane, got off the boat and walked tremblingly towards the barbarian military formation.
Chapter completed!