The Record of Righteousness

Taifeng 28th year, late August.

Kun River burst its banks and flooded for nearly a month, and Shandong was completely reduced to a barren land.

Thousands of hectares of fertile green fields and thousands of miles of flat farms were swallowed up by the raging floods and turned into an orange ocean.

Millions of people died in the floods, and nearly a million people became refugees and migrated everywhere.

Hundreds of thousands of houses collapsed, and countless chickens, ducks, cattle, sheep and livestock were washed away. Whether they were wealthy local tycoons or tenant farmers who barely earned a living, they all went bankrupt and left their homes to survive.

For a time, millions of people became victims of the disaster, and even finding a place to stand became a luxury.

The Ming court just kept sending troops to the important towns around Shandong to prevent the White Lotus Sect from invading. It closed the city gates to the refugees who came to escape, ignored them, and let them fend for themselves.

After the White Lotus Sect moved its headquarters to Jinan, it suffered heavy casualties from the flood. It was unknown whether only one or two tenths of the 100,000-man army remained.

The surging water and the cut-off of the southern grain route meant that the White Lotus Sect’s own grain and grass were probably washed away by the flood and were in danger.

Although the White Lotus Sect had taken control of the entire Shandong Province, it was a mess with many holes.

Because the victims were cut off from survival by the Ming Court and attacked Jinan, Shandong changed hands.

The White Lotus Sect was afraid of following the Ming Court’s previous experience, and was deeply afraid of the hundreds of thousands of refugees and disaster victims.

These refugees were difficult to control, and there was not much grain and grass in the sect, so there was no way to help these refugees.

If these refugees were desperate and caused trouble, Shandong might change hands again.

The White Lotus Sect discussed for a long time and made a decision.

This decision was even more inhumane, and there was no mercy in dealing with refugees and disaster victims.

The general idea was to conscript the stronger victims into the army, and as for the unstable factors such as the old, young, sick and disabled, they were all slaughtered. After killing them, the White Lotus soldiers collected their corpses and dragged them all to the treasury where food and grass were stored.

For half a month, the White Lotus army camp was always filled with the smell of meat.

The soldiers' eyes were bloodshot and their mouths were drooling. Some soldiers were even crazy and mentally confused. They killed several colleagues and were executed.

Now, Jinan City.

The sky seemed to be covered by a layer of gray curtain, and the drizzle of rain fell, gradually turning into heavy rain.

The bean-sized raindrops hit the muddy water with a crackling sound, helping the flood of Kun River. The two intertwined wantonly and wreaked havoc on people, animals and all things in Shandong.

Under the city of Jinan, waves of victims came to the city tirelessly, trying to get money and food aid from the White Lotus.

Unexpectedly, what they got was not the mercy of the White Lotus Sect, but a bloody massacre.

The White Lotus Sect would not waste these bones, and dragged these skinny corpses covered with mud into the treasury where food and grass were stored.

At this time, the prefectural government office had become the White Lotus Sect's lair, with strict security, bright lights, and groups of soldiers patrolling with lanterns.

In the hall, the White Lotus Sect's leader, the Saint, sat on the highest seat, and below her were the two Dharma protectors on the left and right, standing in the front. The leaders of all levels stood behind the Dharma protectors, and the five hall masters had to stay in the various prefectures and could not participate in this discussion.

The Saint's snow-white eyelashes moved slightly, and her ethereal voice echoed in the hall.

"Mo Dharma Protector, our army originally had 100,000 people. I asked you to count the troops a few days ago. Did you find out?"

Mo Qingqiu was originally the head of the Tutang Hall. It was natural that he had some skills to be able to serve as a Dharma protector.

He took two steps forward and stepped out of the line. His expression was no longer relaxed, but unusually serious. He clasped his fists and said in a deep voice:

"Saintess, because of the breach of the Kun River in Mingting, according to the count by my subordinates and the five hall masters, more than 40,000 soldiers were lost, and 50,000 to 70,000 soldiers were washed away by the flood and disappeared. Most of them died. Now, even if the victims are forced to serve as soldiers, the total number of soldiers in each state is only 70,000, and the number of soldiers who can fight against the Ming army is only more than 50,000..."

When these words came out, all the leaders present took a breath.

Of the 100,000-strong army, only about 50,000 can fight now!

And the remaining 20,000 troops are all victims who were forced to come, and their combat effectiveness is far inferior to that of the 50,000 veterans!

The Saintess frowned and shouted:

"Silence!"

The hall was quiet again. Everyone was afraid that the Saintess would vent her anger on them, and they did not dare to offend the Saintess.

The Saint closed her eyes and took a deep breath. After exhaling the foul air, she asked:

"How long can our army's food and grass last?"

Mo Qingqiu said a little naggingly:

"The water came too fast. Our army's stored food and grass had no time to move. It could have consumed my 100,000 troops for more than half a year, but..."

The Saint waved her sleeves and asked neatly:

"How long can the remaining food and grass last now? You can tell me!"

Mo Qingqiu looked reluctant and gritted his teeth and said:

"One month!"

The Saint was not too surprised. It was estimated that she had expected this day.

The other leaders had no idea about the true situation of the food and grass in the sect. This was a top secret. Now they heard in public that the food and grass could only last for one month. They dared not speak, and the look in their eyes was all shocked and worried.

Mo Qingqiu said:

"Don't worry too much, Saint. I have arranged some meat for the soldiers to relieve their urgent needs."

The Saint nodded expressionlessly, and the other leaders knew what was going on and kept silent.

Everyone present knew exactly what kind of meat was being given to the soldiers!

The Saint said coldly:

"Today, I have summoned all the leaders, big and small, for no other reason."

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