The Black Eagle's words energized Gu Yun.
"Eagle," he asked in a low voice, "Are you sure you didn't see wrongly?"
The Black Eagle said, "I swear on my head that I can confirm this."
The Black Eagle was the most special among all the military units. Although it did not consume the most fuel, it was extremely difficult to maintain. The Lingshu Temple had to organize people to maintain the Black Eagle every year. All in all, it was definitely not cheaper than heavy armor. In comparison, heavy armor was much more common. Every army and even Kuai Lantu's guards had a few sets. However, in Daliang, the only "Eagle Tribe" that had formed was the Black Eagle.
Where did these mountain bandits' eagles come from?
Did they steal them from the Black Iron Battalion?
Gu Yun suddenly stood up and walked out in large strides. The Apricot Forest bandits' nest was tense. Fu Zhi Cheng, who had been stripped of his armor and tied up, knelt in the middle. When he saw Gu Yun, he hurriedly cried out, "Marshal! Marshal, I'm innocent! "
Gu Yun lifted his leg and gave him a kick right in the chest. Fu Zhi Cheng was a big and burly man, but he was sent flying by the kick. He spat out a mouthful of blood and rolled on the ground while coughing, unable to say a word.
"You're innocent?" Gu Yun said coldly, "Bastard, you're raising a nest of rebel soldiers right under your nose. They're equipped with heavy armor and light fur coats, and they're able to line up two miles of white rainbows. They even have 'eagles'. They're even more extravagant than my Jiangnan Navy in Daliang. You're really capable, Fu Zhi Cheng!"
Fu Zhi Cheng rolled on the ground in a sorry state. His shocked expression did not seem to be fake. He could not help but defend himself, "Marshal, I swear to the heavens that I don't know where their iron eagles came from. Even my Nanjiang Garrison doesn't have eagles!"
Shen Yi whispered, "Marshal, I interrogated them all night yesterday. General Fu himself could not explain the origin of the Purple Gold. He only admitted that he asked Jing Xu to contact them."
"What an idiot asking a tiger for its skin. He thinks he's raising a spotted yellow cat." Gu Yun stared fiercely at Fu Zhi Cheng for a moment. "Continue exploring. Bring me the map. Everyone, get ready to encircle and annihilate the rebels. I will temporarily take over the garrison in Nanjiang. Those who disobey will be punished according to military law!"
As he spoke, he stretched out his hand to hang the light leather armor, but when he reached for the bow, he touched nothing. Only then did he remember that he had already given the bow to Changgeng.
Gu Yun was slightly stunned and asked, "Where's Changgeng?"
Daoist Jing Xu quickly passed through the long secret passage in the mountain, where a person was waiting for him.
It was a tall man. His facial features looked like they had been carved by a knife under the gas lamp. There were deep wrinkles at the corner of his mouth. It was hard to tell his exact age or where he was from. In short, he was not from the Central Plains. His face was tanned, and his exposed skin was wrapped in a layer of weather-beaten color. His eyes were slightly blue, and he was staring at a huge sand table.
Facing this person, Jing Xu showed extreme caution. "Mr. Ya, will Gu Yun be the one?"
"Mr. Ya" raised his head and glanced at Jing Xu. "You may be able to trick him, but you can't stall him. The Marquis of Stability has been on the battlefield since he was a child. As long as he comes over to take a look, he will know that you flying in the sky and running on the ground have no combat power against the Black Iron Battalion."
Jing Xu was stunned. "Then …"
Mr. Ya raised a finger. "Remember I told you that the Black Iron Battalion was built by three generations of your country's efforts? It is one of the top armies in the world. It is a lethal weapon that is beyond our era. Don't think that you can fight them head-on. It will be like a giant beating a baby. What we need to do is to temporarily lure the tiger away from the mountain and stall them."
He tapped lightly on the sand table with his finger. "Gu Yun will be attracted by the flying eagles and heavy armor we placed on the surface. Although we won't be able to delay him for long, I just received news that Fu Zhi Cheng did you a favor. He pulled most of the garrisons to the apricot forest. Now, the internal defense of the garrisons in the southern border is empty. The people left behind don't even know that you have turned hostile."
Jing Xu's eyes lit up.
"Just like how you helped Fu Zhi Cheng to escort the Purple Gold, you just need to hide them in the transport box of the Purple Gold. The people in the Southwest Military Supply Office won't stop you, nor will they make a fuss. When the time comes, we can coordinate with them from the inside and outside." Mr. Ya made a cutting motion. "We can take down the Southwest Military Supply Office in less than a cup of tea."
There was a large amount of Purple Gold in the Southwest Military Supply Office. As long as one person stood there with a torch, even the gods wouldn't dare to take a step forward, let alone the Black Iron Battalion.
"There are millions of catties of Purple Gold there. Once it's burned, even the Marquis of Stability won't be able to bear the crime." Mister Ya gently flicked the gas lamp hanging on the sand table, causing his eyes to flicker in the darkness. A mysterious smile appeared on his lips. "You'll have a lot of room to negotiate with the Imperial Court."
Their plan was very thorough. However, there was another force in the land of Nanjiang that hadn't emerged yet.
Changgeng in the apricot forest received the second wooden bird before the Black Iron Battalion's army moved.
The first one was released by Changgeng as soon as it flew over. Shen Yi didn't even have the chance to touch it. Seeing the second one fly in, General Shen's saliva flowed three feet long. He eagerly moved forward and rubbed his hands. "Your Highness, look at this … Let me open it for you, okay?"
Chang Geng happily gave it to him. The wooden bird was so real that when he held it in his hand, other than the fact that it felt different from a real bird, there was basically no difference between it and a real bird.
Shen Yi held the divine bird in his palms and felt that his heart was about to melt. "It can even nod its head and peck at me!"
"…" Gu Yun, "Mom, don't embarrass yourself, okay?"
With the magical bird in his hand, what was the Marquis of Stability?
Shen Yi ignored him and touched the back of the wooden bird with an intoxicated expression. He carefully looked for the mechanism on the wooden bird's stomach.
Shen Yi, "Then I'll open it."
Changgeng, "Wait, you have to shake it first …"
Before he could finish speaking, Shen Yi had already pried open the mechanism on the wooden bird's stomach. The small bird's stomach actually hid a secret mechanism. As soon as the lid was opened, a ball of paper shot out like a cannonball and hit General Shen's tall nose. It almost made his nose bleed, and then it impatiently covered General Shen's face.
Shen Yi, "…"
The bird's stomach, which wasn't even the size of a palm, contained a piece of paper that could cover the entire wall.
"You have to shake it first," Changgeng finally had the chance to finish his words. "Because the space in the bird's stomach is limited, sometimes they will use 'sea pattern paper' …"
When Shen Yi heard this, he ignored the hot tears that were still in his eyes and said in a muffled voice, "Oh, sea pattern paper! I know, it's a paper made with a special technique. No matter how big a piece of paper is, it can be squashed to the size of a pill. The ink won't fade, and it will return to its original state after a long time! "
There was nothing in the world that could stop General Shen's hobby of explaining. His body was disabled, but his will was strong, and his nose was bleeding.
"Why didn't you smash his mouth open?" Gu Yun thought without any sympathy and snatched the sea pattern paper that was like a lethal weapon.
It was a drawing of an "eagle armor". From the two wings to the golden box, and even the mask and armor, everything was drawn in detail and lifelike. There was a bold "Ge" character at the bottom of the drawing.
"This is the eagle in the hands of the bandits?" Although Gu Yun wasn't a long-armed engineer, the various armors were half of his body. He was very familiar with them and could tell the difference between the eagle on the drawing and the Black Eagle at a glance. "This is too much of a skimmer."
Shen Yi covered his nose and came over to take a look. He said, "I think it's at least lighter than the Black Eagle. It's probably to save fuel."
"A kite is more fuel-efficient," Gu Yun muttered. However, before his voice died away, his expression suddenly changed. "Wait!"
Although this flying eagle armor was embroidered pillow, the designer undoubtedly understood the eagle armor. How could he not know that this armor had no combat power? The other party hung the eagle armor high up in the air, undoubtedly to lure the tiger away from the mountain.
The problem was, where was the "mountain"?
To beat a snake, one had to hit its weak point. Where was the Nanjiang garrison … or even Gu Yun's weak point?
Gu Yun suddenly turned around and walked towards Fu Zhi Cheng. "Where do you usually let the bandits send the Purple Gold?"
Fu Zhi Cheng's face was covered in blood. He looked at Gu Yun in confusion for a moment before he realized something. His expression wavered. If he admitted to secretly transporting the Purple Gold, wouldn't he be committing the crime of rebellion?
At this moment, Changgeng said softly behind Gu Yun, "General Fu, you have to think carefully. Governor Kuai has already died in your hands. With Lord Sun of the Ministry of War as a witness, your crime of rebellion will be committed no matter what. For a person who is bound to die, what's the difference between dying in the capital and dying here?"
Fu Zhi Cheng had never seen such a cultured, refined, and noble person like the Fourth Prince. At first glance, he might suspect that this young man couldn't even lift a water vat. However, at this moment, he had no doubt that if he didn't cooperate, the "scholarly" Fourth Prince would do as he said and kill him.
Gu Yun said in a timely manner, "If you are tactful, you still have a chance to redeem yourself."
Fu Zhi Cheng's lips trembled for a while before he said in an unsteady voice, "I didn't set up another place for the Southwest Supply Depot. I directly let Jingxu send the Purple Gold to the Southwest Supply Depot. Not a single drop was moved to my fu."
Gu Yun straightened up.
"Marshal!" Fu Zhi Cheng suddenly shouted and stopped him. "In this life, I have killed people, set fires, and dug graves. I have done all kinds of immoral things. However, when I was ordered to guard Nanjiang, I have always been cautious and conscientious. I have never been disloyal! I thought that I didn't let the Emperor down, but now I have fallen into such a situation. I don't know what the other brothers will think if they know! Marshal, what do you think! "
Gu Yun looked at him deeply.
For a moment, Fu Zhi Cheng thought that he had touched Gu Yun.
However, Gu Yun was neither moved nor angry by him. There seemed to be an impenetrable mask on his face. He turned around and left. "What do you care about what I think?"
"Jiping, take the Black Eagle and go ahead. You must take over the Southwest Supply Depot before the bandits. Xiao An —"
The Black Iron Battalion soldiers who had followed Changgeng in the center of Shu answered and stepped forward.
Gu Yun: "Lead a garrison of Nanjiang and pretend to attack the mountain where the bandits gather."
Xiao An: "Yes!"
"Wait," Gu Yun said, "Paint their armor black and sprinkle some ink on it. It doesn't have to be particularly realistic. Be clever."
He had learned this from the Liao Ran monk. Xiao An was stunned at first, but then he immediately understood Gu Yun's meaning and ran away happily.
The three bandit leaders of Nanjiang had finished counting their subordinates. Taoist Jing Xu looked at the silent bandits and for a moment, he had the heroic feeling of a magnificent army with thousands of men and horses.
He cupped his fists towards the sky and said loudly, "The garrison officers and soldiers in steel armor run amok with great momentum. The Black Iron Battalion is like a ghost crow descending from the sky, awe-inspiring overseas. Daliang's soldiers are so strong. However, in less than ten years, the Fujian and Jiangnan navies have rebelled. Why?"
"If it weren't for the fatuous ruler and the traitorous ministers running amok, why would we be like moths to a flame and fight with our lives on the line? Today, you and I have been forced into a desperate situation. Our lives are like a thousand catties treading on thin ice. If we retreat, we will only die. If we don't die, there will be no chance of survival. Are you willing to swear a blood oath with me and work together for a great cause? We will enjoy blessings and endure hardships together! "
The bandits had been fighting and robbing for their whole lives, but the number of words they knew was less than the number of fingers they had. They were suddenly encouraged by Taoist Jing Xu's cadence and became hot-headed, as if they could already see themselves becoming nobles.
Jing Xu took the wine cup handed over by a subordinate next to him, drank it in one gulp and threw the cup on the ground, "Success or failure depends on this!"
The bandits drank the wine that boosted their courage and smashed their cups. They filed out of the secret room that extended in all directions.
Jing Xu looked back at Mr. Ya. This mysterious foreigner was once his contact from Nanyang when he helped Fu Zhi Cheng smuggle the Purple Gold. He had lived in the Central Plains for many years and was extremely shrewd.
Mr. Ya listened to Jing Xu's "rewarding speech" without any change in his expression. The gas lamp elongated and deepened the wrinkles on his face. He stood in a half-lit and half-dark place, looking like he was holding a specious and sarcastic smile.
Jing Xu had taken ten percent of the Purple Gold from Fu Zhi Cheng for the first time. He had wanted to sell it through Mr. Ya and exchange it for gold and silver so that he could sleep on it every day. Since then, Mr. Ya had been persuading him to keep the Purple Gold and move it to a safer place regularly. Then, he began to accumulate weapons and armor little by little.
Mr. Ya had told him that the weapons and money could not be stored in the same place.
From the looks of it, this unfathomable foreigner seemed to have anticipated this situation.
The suspicious bandit leader Jing Xu suddenly had a question in his heart. He thought, "Is this Mr. Ya really just a smuggler of the Purple Gold?"
At this moment, one of his men suddenly reported, "Boss, I saw people in black armor heading to the place where the eagles were parked!"
The doubts that had just sprouted in Jing Xu's heart were instantly drowned by ecstasy. "Mr. Ya was right. They were fooled. Use the Rainbow Arrows. Every moment we can stop them is a moment longer! Let's speed up according to the plan! Quick! "
At this moment, a group of low-key carriages escorting the Purple Gold were quietly approaching the supply depot in the southwest. At the entrance, the leading man pushed his bamboo hat up slightly to show his face to the captain of the supply depot. "It's me."
The fewer people who knew about the smuggling of the Purple Gold, the better. Therefore, the people who delivered the Purple Gold to Jing Xu's side and Fu Zhi Cheng's side were their trusted subordinates. The captain of the supply depot was in charge of liaising with the bandits in the Southern Xinjiang garrison. Fu Zhi Cheng asked him to keep it a secret every time he delivered the Purple Gold.
As usual, the captain of the guard did not question his subordinates in front of them. He waved at them with a calm expression and let them in. Then, he led them to the warehouse of the Purple Gold with ease. However, on this day, the captain of the guard took two steps and asked, "I remember that you just delivered a batch a few days ago. Why is there another batch so soon?"
The bandit who was escorting the Purple Gold hid his entire face under the bamboo hat. He said in a muffled voice, "This is between Sir and Boss. How would I know?"
For some reason, the captain of the guard felt uneasy. As he searched for the key, he said, "I won't hide it from you. Sir took away more than half of our men to go with him yesterday. No one knows what happened."
The bandit in the bamboo hat stared intently at his actions of opening the warehouse. He subconsciously licked his lips and rudely urged, "We're all errand boys. We don't know either. Open the door quickly!"
The captain of the guard's hand that was twisting the key suddenly paused. He frowned and turned his head. "Why do I feel that you're so …"
His voice suddenly stopped because he saw a bandit three steps away holding a small crossbow and pointing it at his throat.
The guard captain sucked in a breath of cold air. The bandits immediately knew that they had been exposed, so they might as well go all the way. The leader waved his hand, and the short arrow on the small crossbow immediately drilled into the guard captain's throat like a viper's tongue. The guard captain, who was prepared to shout loudly, finally didn't have the chance to exhale.
The bandit in the bamboo hat suddenly took a step forward and used his shoulder to support the captain's fallen body. He reached out to grab the key on the door of the warehouse.
His heart was about to burst out of his chest. As long as he opened the door, tens of thousands of Southern Jiang soldiers and three thousand Xuan Tie Ghost Crows would all be choked by him.
At this moment, he heard a sharp cry. The bandit in the bamboo hat did not recover from his extreme excitement. He subconsciously looked back and saw that his subordinates all had frightened faces. Only then did he feel that something was wrong with his arm. The hand that was holding the key had been pierced by an iron arrow that fell from the sky. The explosion had left only an inch of flesh connected to his arm!
His half-broken hand tightly held the key to the warehouse. He could not turn it, but it was also blocking it.
The bandit finally let out a scream that did not sound like a human's voice.
In just a moment of delay, the Black Eagle had arrived. Shen Yi, who had not put away the bow in his hand, directly landed on the roof of the Purple Gold warehouse. He took out the Xuan Tie Tiger Tally from his arms. There was a rope hanging under the Tiger Tally. He gave Daliang the first order to beat the drum as if it was a buy one get one free.
He stood tall and straight. The eagle armor and black wings on his back were like clouds. He said to the stunned Southern Jiang garrison in the southwest supply depot, "The Xuan Tie Tiger Tally and the order to beat the drum are both here. I am under the order of the Marquis of Stability to take over the military power of the southwest supply depot and arrest the bandits. The supply depot is now under martial law. Kill the bandits on the spot!"
The three bandit leaders of Southern Jiang did not know that the situation had changed. At this time, they were divided into three groups. They led their subordinates out of the ground and went to the southwest supply depot while rubbing their palms.
At this moment, Jing Xu suddenly heard a crisp sound of metal and stone, as if a heavy object had rolled down from the mountain with rocks. He subconsciously raised his head.
A head wrapped in heavy armor rolled down from the hillside.
He hid the heavy armor in the Purple Gold escort car and wanted to sneak into the southwest supply depot.
Jing Xu froze.
The black iron armor of the Southern Border's garrisons were looming all over the mountains and plains. Dense arrows were aimed at them from the top of the mountain, and the other half of Jing Xu's team was still in the secret passage at the bottom of the mountain.
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