From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

Shouhou finished reading this short message with a complicated expression. Looking at the familiar handwriting of his relatives on it, he couldn't help but feel a little sad.

His brother was obviously not very aware that the southern landowners had raised troops to rebel, nor was he aware that his younger brother had been forcibly recruited into the army and became a rebel soldier.

The enthusiastic elder brother also wanted to bring his younger brother to the village to enjoy a real life after liberation.

However, Shouhou himself also knows how difficult it is for him to escape from the army after he has been drafted into the army. Once he is found to be a deserter, the ruthless landowners will never be stingy with bullets.

Although he had read it countless times in the past two days, Shouhou was still looking at the letter blankly at this moment. Looking at the free life described by his brother vividly, an indescribable complex emotion suddenly arose in his heart.

Thinking about the pain he suffered at the training ground during the day, and then looking at the scars covering his entire arm, infinite sadness and grievance immediately surged into his heart, turning into tears from the corners of his eyes and streaking down his cheeks.

Slender Monkey was not the only one who fell into melancholy. More than 20 soldiers in the entire barracks stood there with dull eyes, as if they had just woken up from a sweet dream.

Listening to Slender Monkey read the letter, they felt like they were listening to a bard singing an epic song in a tavern, with an air of unreality.

Own land, only 20% tax, free life, no oppression from landlords...

Any word here will be regarded by these serf soldiers as a dream that they must pursue throughout their lives; apart from heaven, they can't think of any place that can meet all these requirements.

And now, a letter from Propriano tells them that they no longer need to go to heaven to find such a paradise, their destination is Corsica.

"Is this... is this true?" After a long silence, a soldier whispered the question that everyone was concerned about.

The thin monkey nodded firmly, held up the letter and said:

"My brother is an honest man, and he spent a lot of effort sending this letter. There is no need to make up a story to deceive me."

The soldiers swallowed one after another, imagining that they were living in that paradise town.

"Ahem..." Thin Monkey coughed twice again, walked to the middle of the crowd, and motioned for everyone to come over:

"Brothers, you all heard it, Propriano, there is literally everything we want."

An older soldier nodded in agreement, but then frowned and said:

"But... it will definitely be difficult for us to escape there. There are dozens of miles to travel, and there are still people of the old men everywhere. It will be difficult, too difficult not to be caught."

All the soldiers lowered their heads in frustration. During the past few days of training, they gradually understood the current situation in Figari Town.

More than 10,000 troops are stationed here, and the entire town is almost made up of gentlemen. There are inspection teams patrolling around the town day and night, and the foreign instructors have strict regulations on their schedules. In this case, any soldier who wants to escape must carefully consider whether he is favored by the goddess of luck.

Just when everyone was at a loss, Shouhou suddenly pointed to a line of words on the letter paper and explained to the illiterate soldiers:

"Look here...my brother said that Governor Bonaparte and his army want to turn Figari into a second Propriano, which means..."

"you mean…?!"

Although Thin Monkey didn't understand what he meant, the soldiers instantly understood what he meant - if they can't go to Propriano, then turn the town of Figari into Propriano.

The soldiers looked at each other wordlessly, communicating with their eyes only this bold idea that could lead to death.

Turn Figari into Propriano? That meant expelling all the local emperors. In normal times, these soldiers would not even dare to think of this idea.

Soon, a cowardly young serf in the corner voiced his weak objection:

"But, don't we still have to fight the governor's army?"

All the soldiers rolled their eyes speechlessly, while Skinny Monkey sighed, put his hands on the shoulders of the young soldiers, and said earnestly:

"Brother, think about it carefully. We fight desperately for the old man. What's the benefit of that? The old man won the battle and held a grand celebration banquet. Can you go up and share even half a glass of wine? After the war is over, you will still be you. , Master or Master, are you prepared to sacrifice yourself to continue being a slave? You shouldn’t be that cheap, right?”

"I...I..." The young soldier blinked hard a few times, and soon lowered his head, acknowledging Shouhou's words.

Yes, what can you gain from going through life and death for the masters? Even if you win the war, can you, the low-level serfs, take a bite of the fruits of victory?

Instead of letting this humble life become a consumable that the gentlemen sneer at, why not just give it a try. Freedom and rights have always been earned by oneself.

The more than 20 soldiers living in this barracks asked themselves, they were never willing to use their lives to pave the way for the masters to seize power and rebel.

They looked at each other again. This time, judging from the firm looks in each other's eyes, they had made up their minds and could no longer tie their fate to those landlords.

However, the problems before everyone are still very real and serious.

"But what can we change with just a small group of us." Although a thoughtful soldier had decided to resist the old men, the current situation still worried him.

The thin monkey sat down on the edge of the bed, held his chin in his hands and pondered for a while, then gritted his teeth and said confidently:

"No, it definitely shouldn't be just a small group of us. We can understand these principles, but others cannot understand..."

Squeak...!

Before Skinny Monkey could finish speaking, someone saw the wood door at the entrance of the barracks being pushed open with a harsh creaking sound.

Everyone was suddenly startled, and everyone looked at the door warily and suspiciously.

The thin monkey sitting beside the bed shrank his pupils, and quickly reached for the iron dagger on the bedside table with one hand.

If those foreign instructors and landlords discovered what they were plotting, everyone present would definitely be tied to a pillar and skinned alive the next day.

The person who came quickly got into the door regardless of the attention of everyone, and closed the door behind him.

Through the dim candlelight in the barracks, the soldiers finally saw the man's face clearly.

He was not one of those vicious foreign instructors, but a serf conscript who lived in the barracks next door. Like Slender Monkey, he was a platoon leader who commanded more than twenty people.

Since they were all in the same formation during training, the soldiers were somewhat familiar with his appearance.

He didn't seem to hear the conversation in the barracks just now. Seeing everyone looking at him, the platoon leader was also very confused.

But he didn't talk nonsense and got straight to the point.

Under the sharp sword-like gazes of the soldiers, he licked his dry lips and said slowly:

"Guys, have you heard about Propriano?"

"you!"

The thin monkey jumped up from the bed all of a sudden, with an expression of surprise and joy on his face, and a tone that was half surprised and half ecstatic:

"Sure enough, what we can think of cannot be thought of by others!"

After being stunned for a moment, the soldiers immediately realized what the platoon leader meant. They immediately lowered their guard and looked at him in surprise and disbelief.

"You mean?!"

The platoon leader was also stunned, his lips kept trembling, he did not expect this scene at all.

But looking at the smiling expressions of the soldiers in the barracks, he immediately understood what was going on.

All the soldiers present now fully understood that the desire for freedom and liberation has never been the preserve of a few people, but a trend that unites thousands of people.

As for whether this trend can finally wash away the shackles and humiliation on their bodies, they believe that they will know soon.

…

At the same time, in a tall stone house just a few hundred yards away from the soldiers' barracks.

This house was Master Justin's temporary residence when he was hunting. It was built quite luxuriously and spacious enough to accommodate more than twenty southern landowners to live here temporarily.

At this moment, a grand and extravagant banquet is being held in the house as usual. In order to win people's hearts, Mr. Justin treats all of you regardless of the cost in terms of living treatment.

Brandy imported from France, fresh salmon kept fresh with ice cubes, and top-quality tender steaks, these delicacies that even gentlemen rarely enjoy are regular guests at Mr. Justin's banquets.

Mr. Justin was still sitting at one end of the long table, which was a symbol of his status as the master and leader. He squinted his eyes and drunkenly looked at the gentlemen who were devouring their food, enjoying the feeling of being surrounded by stars.

Next to him was Sir Robert. This gentleman seemed not to be interested in the delicacies on the table. He just sipped the brandy in the glass.

"Mr. Justin" Sir Robert swung the wine in the glass, stared at the small vortex formed in the crystal glass, and said in a low voice:

"I have news that I must tell you."

"Oh?" Master Justin suddenly became energetic, and his ears moved towards Sir Robert.

Sir Robert gently placed the wine glass on the table and said slightly dissatisfied:

"You may have to pay attention to the morale of your army. I heard from my subordinates that they have caught no less than thirty soldiers trying to escape or rebel today."

Master Justin smiled awkwardly, but did not take these words to heart. He just patted his chest and said:

"Ah, I also know about this. Don't worry, these damn beasts will be tied to the pillars in the center of the training ground and starve to death. This is enough to deter those dissatisfied Mudlegs."

Hearing this, Sir Robert frowned even more tightly, shook his head and said:

"No, no, no, Mr. Justin, maybe there is a simpler and more effective way, such as exempting these serf conscripts from taxes for one year. Many people will support you gratefully."

However, facing Sir Robert's suggestion, Master Justin laughed as if he had heard a joke, and even attracted the attention of the landowners who were devouring their food:

"Oh! Friend, of course a gentleman like you won't understand. Look at these delicacies on the table. If the serfs don't pay taxes, how can we have these delicacies to enjoy? Besides, I know these better than you Mudlegs, if you exempt them from taxes for one year, they will definitely ask for exemption for the second year. Once this gap is opened, it cannot be closed. "

Sir Robert glanced at Master Justin with a slightly sullen look, and moved his lips as if he wanted to say something else.

But Master Justin laughed directly, raised his greasy palm and patted his shoulder, and interrupted confidently:

"Friend, you have to know that these mud-legged people are as weak as hares and moles. Most of them can be honest for a whole year with just two whips. When it comes to training serfs, you will never find anyone more professional than me. Yes."

After hearing this, Sir Robert sighed softly, raised his glass and drank the light layer of brandy in it.

After all, this army was formed by the landlords, and he did not have much say. Moreover, aiding the landlord group was the decision of the adults behind him. Sir Robert did not have the power to threaten the landlords into submission by canceling aid.

Seeing Sir Robert finish the wine in the glass in silence, Master Justin quickly poured him another half glass of wine himself.

"By the way, Mr. Justin." Looking at the amber color reflected by the crystal clear liquid in the cup under the candlelight, Sir Robert suddenly said:

"There's something else I need to tell you."

Master Justin put down the bottle and looked at Sir Robert expectantly.

Sir Robert lowered his voice, trying not to let anyone except the two of them hear:

"My lord plans to come to Corsica in the near future, of course, after the war is won."

Hearing this, Mr. Justin was suddenly surprised and couldn't help but grin from ear to ear:

"Your master?"

Until now, he had not known Sir Robert's true identity, but judging from the fact that Sir Robert could easily provide equipment and supplies to arm more than 10,000 soldiers, this gentleman definitely had a lot of background.

Correspondingly, Sir Robert's superior must also be a big shot without a doubt.

"Yes, My lord, my superior." Sir Robert played with the wine glass in his hand and said slowly:

"If you can end this war as soon as possible while ensuring victory, my Lord will be very happy. After all, he does not want to waste too much time on Corsica."

Master Justin frowned slightly and said hesitantly:

"But...you also know that a protracted war is more beneficial to us. If we can confront Bonaparte's army for several months, this war will almost be won."

Sir Robert just glanced at Justin lightly and said in a tone that left no room for argument:

"Although I also prefer a protracted war, my lord can't wait any longer. After all, Corsica is just a small pawn in the overall situation. We can't spend several months here."

Although Master Justin would not pay too much attention to the opinions of Sir Robert, the intermediary agent, since the other party had moved out the mysterious big man behind him, Master Justin knew that he still had to give the other party some face.

After a brief hesitation, Mr. Justin nodded heavily twice, then frowned and asked:

"By the way, friend, I still don't know who your lord is. I don't know anything except that he is a baron."

Sir Robert chuckled twice, took a sip of brandy, shook his head and said:

"After the war is won, you will naturally know."

I'm sorry that I had a fever the day before yesterday when I was in Nanjing and preparing to return to Wuhan, so I didn't update for the past two days. I took ibuprofen for two days and felt better. I will try my best to catch up on orz in the past two days.