The disgraced official I took care of was actually Zhu Houcong's childhood friend.

Chapter 218

Although the gentry and their slaves numbered over 20,000, they did not believe that their 20,000 men could fight against the large army before them.

They're not even on the same level. Once the fighting starts, they'll collapse without even making contact.

Moreover, these gentry never intended to engage in direct conflict; their original plan was simply to force Zhou Chu and the Imperial Guards to retreat. Now, seeing that Zhou Chu seemed to be serious, they all chickened out, and many gentry were subtly backing away, seemingly looking for an escape route.

With so many people, if you don't plan your route in advance, you won't be able to escape.

"Gentlemen, I have already given you a chance. Since you did not cherish it, then you may all stay."

After saying this, Zhou Chu raised the military tally.

"All troops, form ranks! Capture everyone alive! Anyone who dares to resist will be killed without mercy!"

As soon as Zhou Chu said this, the 20,000 soldiers drew their swords. These troops stationed in Jiangnan Province usually did not carry other weapons except for training, but waist swords were a must.

This troop deployment wasn't originally intended for the battlefield; waist knives were sufficient.

"kill!"

The scene of tens of thousands of soldiers wielding swords and shouting was truly astonishing. Even though these soldiers were far inferior to the Tiger Legion and the Black Tortoise Legion, their sheer numbers made the whole scene incredibly impressive.

Especially those gentry and wicked servants who were originally arrogant were now in a panic. These people were not united and could not even be considered a mob. Many of them saw that the situation was not good and began to flee in a panic, without thinking of any way to escape.

However, there were too many of them, and they were standing too close together, which led to a stampede.

Zhou Chu, watching from the side, kept shaking his head.

These soldiers wouldn't let them off just because they backed down, since Zhou Chu hadn't given them orders to stop the attack.

So the 20,000 troops, under the command of their generals and a group of centurions, began to quickly encircle these people.

Those who had already escaped were pursued by separate squads.

In just a short while, one or two thousand people ran out, while the rest were quickly surrounded by the army due to the crowding and trampling.

Zhou Chu gave Chen Zhao a wink, and Chen Zhao immediately understood. He then led the Imperial Guards to begin the pursuit of the gentry and their wicked servants who had escaped.

The Imperial Guards arrived on horseback, far faster than the infantry and the gentry. With their cooperation, most of the scattered gentry were quickly captured, while a small number continued to flee.

During the pursuit, anyone who dared to resist, whether they were imperial guards or soldiers, was not spared and was killed without mercy, resulting in a bloodbath.

Those gentry who hadn't managed to escape were terrified when they saw this. They quickly covered their heads and crouched down, fearing that any action they took might cause a misunderstanding with the Imperial Guards or the army and result in their being killed.

After killing more than a thousand people, no one dared to flee or resist anymore. They all followed suit, squatted down, covered their heads, and waited for the Imperial Guards to deal with them.

"Take them all back to the military camp."

Zhou Chu rode his black horse to the group of people, glanced around, and then spoke.

At this moment, these gentrymen became incredibly obedient. The blood of more than a thousand people made them realize reality, made them sober, and made them understand a truth: in this world, in the end, might makes right.

The gentry, who had been incredibly arrogant in the face of Zhou Chu, now didn't even dare to look him in the eye, for fear of being noticed.

At this moment, these nearly 20,000 people were as docile as a flock of sheep, and were driven into the military camp by Zhou Chu's men with little effort.

It wasn't that Zhou Chu insisted on bringing these people to the military camp; it was simply that there wasn't enough room for so many people elsewhere.

Only the military camp could accommodate them, so Zhou Chu ordered that each soldier who had participated in the battle should take on one and keep an eye on them one-on-one.