North of Huaibei, near Pei County, Yuzhou, Longkang County, and Chimei Base Camp.

From the time his hometown was captured by the Red Eyebrows last year, until February this year, Huan Tan had been stranded in the Red Eyebrows Army for half a year.

Half a year ago, he was an elegant scholar with no fingers touching the spring water. Even though he had the temperament of a madman, he was just a madman who imitated the mad hermit. Now he was truly unkempt, covered in dirty short-striking clothes, and hung a hat behind him. He could skillfully cut cow grass and even ride onto the cows.

Huan Tan’s hand was no longer a piano symbolizing high-end moral integrity, but a bamboo flute with simple workmanship, which was blowing melodiously, and the old cow slowly carried him forward.

At this time, Liu Penzi would follow with a group of herdsmen, and the Red Eyebrow soldiers who were working also stopped their work and listened to Huan Tan's tunes with farm tools.

It’s no longer spring and snow, but it’s just like ordinary people who think it’s nice.

When he returned to the camp, Huan Tan no longer had to be taken care of like a prisoner. He even got a pen and did it himself or deceived Liu Banzi and the others to help cut the wooden slips and bamboo slips were already filled with the simple cowshed.

The Red Eyebrow's Daqu coach did not need or even reject scholars, but it did not prevent Huan Tan from entertaining himself. He asked Liu Banzi, who was equivalent to being a disciple, to help grind ink and copied the songs he heard when he was going out to herd cattle today on bamboo slips.

While copying Huan Tan, he shook his head and said, "If I had known today, I would have been begging for nothing to learn from Yang Ziyun. I would not have met someone who could not speak elegant language or Liang Chu's dialect, so I would have stared at him."

Huan Tanyou remembered that his old friend Yang Xiong was addicted to dialect studies for a while and took advantage of his position to talk to officials and scholars from remote counties.

Yang Xiong also said to him with a sermon: "The ancients said that when they heard the sound, they knew the wind, they understood their ambitions, and they understood their virtues. During the Zhou Dynasty, there were envoys from the throne who picked up dialects of the princes, and there were officials who picked poems to attack the countryside, so they gave them a stance and offered them to listen to them correctly, so they had a national style of poetry with three hundred poems... It's a pity that the king's traces were extinguished and the poems were lost, and the sounds and rhymes and folk songs were also extinct."

"Since the Han Dynasty, although Xiaowu established Yuefu, he collected poetry and recited it at night, and there were Zhao, Dai, Qin and Chu. Emperor Yuan and Emperor Ping also sent people to follow the world and read the transformation of customs. However, the collection of folklore must be based on knowledge of the rhyme. If the envoys of the court came to various counties, if they could not even understand the dialect of the people, how could they know the true meaning of the songs?"

Huan Tan will never forget Yang Xiong's words at that time: "So I collected dialects just to re-searching for the new room and prepare for the rule of the king! Junshi, you are proficient in music, will you go with me?"

Yes, at that time, Yang Xiong still wrote "The Drama Qin Meixin" and had unlimited expectations for Wang Mang's restructuring.

He was not afraid of jokes. Huan Tan was similar at that time. Who wouldn’t scholars hope to restore the rule of the three generations? After the establishment of the Xin Dynasty, Huan Tan became Wang Mang’s chief lord doctor and was responsible for sending field recruiting officials.

However, this is just selling dog meat with a sheep's head. The so-called field collection is just to collect auspiciousness from all over the country to make money for the Mang Dynasty. The real folk songs were not brought back, and only a group of flattery words were left.

Huan Tan said intimately: "I did not fulfill my duties back then, but now I have to pick up my pen, be patient and listen to the rumors. Ziyun, you have completed the dialect and rhyme. As for the field collection, I will leave it to me, the music official..."

However, when Liu Penzi asked him what he was doing, Huan Tan said with disdain: "I heard that the small slang in the countryside is quite interesting. Let's record it for now, so I can save you nothing to do..."

Before they finished speaking, they were called out by Chimei again and called out to work.

There are now 300,000 people in Red Eyebrow, about 10,000 people in one battalion, which is controlled by the three elders. Each battalion is placed in a county. The basic work of ordinary people is basically hunting, digging wild vegetables, rummaging through every hill to fill the belly, and then eating the place where they stay is clean like locusts.

The red eyebrows rose from Haidai, turned to Qingyan, Taishan, and then went to Huaibei, Yuzhou, so the people from all directions were mixed. In order not to be hungry, men, women, and young and old had to go into battle.

During the break of work, Huan Tan happened to inquire about folk songs from various counties.

"The song over there?"

Today, when a man with a slump from Yanzhou was asked, he gave Huan Tan a blank look: "When you are hungry, how can you have the interest to sing?"

But others say that before joining Red Eyebrow, this person has a famous voice, so there is no mountain song or sing that he can't sing.

Huan Tan glanced at Liu Penzi who followed him all day long. Liu Penzi could only hand over the food in his bag with a bitter face. His brother was doing some accounting work in the Red Eyebrow Army. He was reluctant to eat more food every month, so he gave it to his younger brother. Huan Tan claimed that these were all "suppressions" that Liu Penzi needed to hand over as his disciples, and he was not hesitant to use them.

After a few bites of food, the man in Yanzhou seemed to be energetic. He stood up and tightened his waist. He shouted and sang, "Why is filial to brothers? He has a lot of wealth and is glorious."

"Why do you use etiquette and righteousness to serve as an official? History books are used to serve as an official."

"Why be cautious? Be brave and be in charge of the official position."

After singing the song, he looked at Huan Tan and smiled coldly, turned around and left.

"Master, he is ridiculing you." Although Liu Penzi had never been to school and had not even changed his reputation as a young man, he was caught by Chimei. However, his brother and Huan Tan both taught some knowledge, so he could understand the meaning of the song.

Huan Tan gave him a blank look: "You think I can't hear it?"

The meaning of this song is that from the former Han Dynasty to Xinmang, the so-called people seeking filial piety and brotherhood among the people is ultimately nothing but wealthy. For example, the great mercenaries who are valued by Wang Mang and abused the five equality and six possessions, which makes the people live in dire straits; those who are bullied and good at calligraphy are respected in the court, such as many great Confucian and civil thieves who are punished by the fifth ethics; those who are contrary to the way and are brave are noble in officials, such as Wang Yi, the god of war in Kunyang, and Han Wei, who died in the Huns, are brave and brave, but have no great use in the country.

It is better to be stronger than to be together in the years, and it is better to be together in the good deeds. The people are already quite dissatisfied with the filial piety and integrity system, and it is difficult to choose a good official. Just now, the man from Yanzhou deliberately sang this song in front of the cultural person Huan Tan and slapped him in the face!

"Just treat it as eating and feeding the dog." Huan Tan cursed, but he was very happy.

This is the real folk voice. They sing what they like and sing what they hate. They sing what they hate. They whine without any illness, do not pretend to behave, and write my heart with my mouth. This is what Huan Tan wants to find after experiencing the demise of the new dynasty.

Sometimes he thought that if he had fulfilled his responsibilities and put these blood in front of Wang Mang, perhaps...

It's a pity that there is no if.

At night, in the cowshed, there was nothing to do, and there was no woman. Huan Tan was idle and said his words when he was dictating Liu Penzi's poems for 300 minutes.

"Shi Gong Tai said that three hundred poems are probably what sages do when they are angry, but this is not the case."

Huan Tan said: "The style of the fifteen countries is small and elegant, and is mostly collected from the folk. The "Dongshan" in Feng Feng said that when I returned to Dongshan, I was worried and unhappy. I wrote about the soldiers who went to war for many years, and when they returned home, they were filled with sadness and joy. The "July" in Feng Feng wrote according to the seasons, from the beginning of the year to the end of the year, from farming and silkworm raising to hunting and chiseling ice, the whole poem is full of the suffering of folk labor. The hungry sings their food, and the hard sings their affairs. They cannot be done by themselves."

"People in this world think that poetry is elegant, but because the times change, the folk slang of the past has become the elegant language today."

"As for "Fao Sandalwood", "Super Rat", "Xiang Rat", "Nanshan", "Zhulin", etc., the words are simple, either satirizing the nobles for gaining nothing for nothing, or exposing the insatiable greed of the princes."

Huan Tan's understanding is very different from the previous interpretation of poetry and politics, and the satirical metaphors. It is straightforward. Liu Pengzi moved his butt uneasy: "My family used to be a marquis, the manor was big, and there were hundreds of servants, so they were also gained without any effort and were insatiable?"

Huan Tan never considered the emotional feelings of his disciples: "At least Chimei thought so, otherwise why would he hate you and the royal family of the Liu family?"

These words made Liu Penzi silent. This kind-hearted child would probably be sad all night.

That's right, the Han princes and princes can match the Dukes and Bozinan and the nobles of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period.

However, the common people of the Yin and Zhou dynasties only dared to resist in songs, but now the Red Eyebrows directly rose up and captured the forts on the Huaibei Plain like a ruined nobleman's head.

But what after that? Have they, the Red Eyebrow Army, really welcomed the paradise?

The next day, Huan Tan and the others woke up in the noise, and there was a person who looked a little similar to Liu Penzi. He was touching the red eyebrows on his forehead, but he was wearing a Confucian uniform. He was Liu Penzi's brother Liu Gong.

Although Red Eyebrow still despises cultural people, she also needs to know how to settle accounts and read. Liu Gong is working at the camp to listen to the orders of the Hou.

He found Liu Penzi and immediately handed him the things in his arms. They were some food and clothing, which were the most scarce things of Red Eyebrows today. Liu Gong saved it a little bit: "My brother, I'm leaving."

Liu Penzi was a little panicked. They had been in Huaibei for too long, so long that Liu Penzi almost thought that Chimei was going to stay here for a long time: "Where are you going, brother?"

Liu Gong said: "Fan Giant was gathering the three elders of the 30th battalion, and ordered at least half of them to travel west. I was called on the name and wanted to follow the army."

The 300,000 red eyebrows include the elderly, weak, women and children in the army, but the proportion is not large. Because of the weak constitution, they either died in their hometown or on the road. At least 200,000 men were transferred, half of them... That would be at least 100,000 people!

Huan Tan realized something sensitively. When Liu Gong came to meet Liu Penzi a few times ago, he said excitedly that Chimei was interested in a peace talk with Emperor Gengshi of Nanyang. If he could be successfully recruited, the Han emperor would definitely redeem them, the children of the Liu clan detained by Chimei.

At that time, Huan Tan said sarcastically: "You are not Chongling Liu, but Chengyang Liu, and there is nothing to do with each other. For Liu Xuan, you are just a passerby. Do you still want him to call you "Uncle?"

At that time, Liu Gong still retorted with his neck red, but now he had tears in his eyes. It seems that this journey to the west is mostly not a surrender, but a red eyebrows are going to join the green forest fire!

Liu Gong bowed heavily to Huan Tan: "My brother, please ask Duke Huan to take care of him!"

"What are you saying?" Huan Tan said unhappy: "It's clear that he is taking care of me for this half a year."

Liu Gongchang bowed and left. Liu Penzi looked at him with tears in his eyes, turned his head and asked Huan Tan: "Master, will Red Eyebrow win?"

Huan Tan had a calm face: "No matter whether you win or lose, it's a good thing."

"If you win, you can go to Nanyang for food with the remaining 200,000 yuan, so you can avoid starving to death here."

Huaibei is almost gnawed by the Red Eyebrows. Although the Red Eyebrows finally remembered farming after spring, the seeds sown can only be harvested in autumn. Who can survive that? Moreover, the soil quality of Haidai is very different from that of Huaibei. A Red Eyebrow soldier is a good farmer in his hometown, but he may not be able to grow much grain in the first year after he came here.

"And if you lose..."

Huan Tan said with slightest, "Your shackles have been untied, wouldn't it be good?"

Liu Penzi cried, "It's good now. Herding cattle is not a tiring task. I would rather be a Muer forever, and I hope Red Eyebrow can win and my brother will be safe."

What a good boy. Huan Tan was a little soft-hearted at this moment. He didn't say anything sarcastic, but said: "Don't worry, Red Eyebrows will win. Judging from the rumors from all sides, the Green Forest Gengshi Emperor Liu Xuan..."

As if he remembered someone who was underestimated by his mistake, Huan Tan touched Liu Benzi's hair bun and smiled at his mouth: "Just a villager!"

...

On February 20th, the Red Eyebrow Army set out.

Huan Tan took Liu Penzi from a distance to watch these red eyebrows soldiers who left their hometown, dressed in rags, and the only bright color was a smear of red clay on their foreheads.

Huan Tan remembered that the county they were in was called "Long Kang". The Book of Changes says that the upper nine is, and the Kanglong has regrets. The upper nine is the highest and the most prosperous one, so it is called Kanglong, which is a natural phenomenon.

Although Huan Tan had never seen the giant Fan Chongfan who commanded the Red Eyebrow, he and his men did have a strong and masculine aura.

The wives, children, elderly and weak who accompanied the Red Eyebrow Army did not follow the west this time, but they all gathered to see each other off. There were tens of thousands of people in the camp, and half of the left-behind people were occupied. Some were children held in their arms by their mothers and some were gray-haired elderly people. When the young and strong left, they also had to bend over to find wild vegetables to find food.

But they watched their father, brother and son leave, but did not cry. It was like the legendary Qin army went on a war in ancient times. They encouraged each other to prepare food for them, and even took off their clothes and put them on their children.

But his children refused to accept it and said, "When they conquer the city, they will naturally get food and clothing."

It was not only Liu Xuan's arrogance that forced Fan Chong to start the war, but also survival.

Of course, there are also locals who have not escaped, standing further away, looking at the group of outsiders who occupy their hometowns with disgrace. Among them, not only the remnants of powerful landlords, but also ordinary farmers. Red Eyebrow thought he was doing justice, but in the eyes of people in Huaibei, Red Eyebrow was a group of locusts, uninvited intruders, destroying the disaster of their homeland, and looking forward to them leaving early every day.

Red Eyebrows are mostly walking, dressed in different clothes, without decent flags, or large cloth with various patches on one side but without any handwriting.

The Red Eyebrow soldiers under the banner walked around and sang a song, allowing Huan Tan to remember the song for the rest of his life, the Red Eyebrow Wind.

"Go out of the east gate and ignore your return."

"Come in the beginning, I feel sad."

"There is no bucket of rice storage in the ounce, and there is no hanging clothes on the rack."

There is not much food in the rice jar. Looking back at the clothes hanger, how can you not be sad?

As a husband and father, facing such an extremely poor scene, listened to the child's hungry cry, turned his head, stomped his feet, and drew his sword to the east gate!

However, the mother in the house held the corner of her clothes and cried and begged him not to leave: "His family wishes wealth, but the lowly concubine is willing to feed the porridge with you."

What's more, there is heaven above and children below. Please don't leave!

My husband did not look back, just like the Red Eyebrow soldiers who were leaving, they didn't look back at each other, and only made a sound and threw down a sentence.

"It's too late for me to go! It's hard to live long after gray hair."

This world-breaking and wanting to feed the porridge together but failing to do so, why should we live such a difficult life? Should we survive until the day when we die in gray hair? We should have rebelled long ago!

This is the reason why they joined Red Eyebrow, but in order to survive, they have to take away the power of others to survive. Those who survive will sometimes suffer. When will this expedition end?

But this time, Fan Chong finally found a new enemy after Xinmang fell! He felt more comfortable when he fought against the powerful and nobles in Nanyang and the fallen Green Forest Kings.

The men went out of the east gate, and 100,000 red eyebrows, heading west!

Only the ending sound of a song is left, echoing in the Huaibei land.

"Duh! OK!"
Chapter completed!