In Wei Ci's previous life, when Her Majesty established the Jiang Dynasty, there was constant turmoil in the early days of the country's founding. There were natural disasters everywhere, and the remnants of the Red Lotus Group took the opportunity to stir up trouble and revive. Although they did not cause much damage, they brought a certain gray haze to the new dynasty and made people panic.
There were even some bold rebels who spread rumors that the Empress was a temptress, and they even tried to assassinate her several times.
Even the death of His Majesty had something to do with the Red Lotus Group if one got to the bottom of it.
Every time he thought of this, Wei Ci felt that he could not control his emotions.
"But …" Qiguan Rang was slightly hesitant.
Wei Ci's thin lips parted slightly, and there was a tinge of coldness.
"The battlefield is chaotic, and the rebels intend to open the city for the Red Lotus Group. Isn't it normal for the troops to die in the chaos?"
If they did not deal with such unstable people as soon as possible, were they supposed to stay for the New Year?
Qiguan Rang had wanted to leave them for Jiang Pengji to deal with, but Wei Ci's words made sense.
The more unstable elements were left, the more risks there would be. It was better to eliminate them completely.
Wei Ci thought of something and said, "Previously, my lord promised An Cui that after the war, she would give him 10% of his wealth and manpower … Wen Zheng has already screened the captives. Keep the useful ones. It's better to get rid of the others who are stubborn and extreme … "
Wei Ci did not want Jiang Pengji to get involved in something as damaging as killing captives. It was better to leave this to An Cui.
Based on An Cui's abilities and the Red Lotus Group's suicidal style, the latter would definitely step on the former's bottom line.
When An Cui was done with this group of people, what awaited the Red Lotus Group would be killing the donkey after it had outlived its usefulness.
Wei Ci did not feel the slightest pain in his conscience to leave this hidden danger to An Cui.
Qiguan Rang keenly noticed that Wei Ci had stressed the words "stubborn and extreme."
When choosing captives, most of them were strong, young, and healthy. The old, weak, sick, and disabled were not considered. But Wei Ci had made his attitude clear — he did not want those with "ideological" problems. Their physiques and limbs were in good condition instead.
This abnormality made Qiguan Rang curious, but it also made him a little more vigilant.
Wei Ci knew that Qiguan Rang was suspicious, so he explained, "The teachings of the Red Lotus Group were inherited from a certain evil cult during the period of the Sixteen Kingdoms … Wen Zheng is well-read, so he naturally knows how many evil cults caused trouble in the early days of the Great Xia Dynasty's unification of the Sixteen Kingdoms. They had risen from the ashes several times, fanned the flames, instigated the common people, and caused chaos … They had to guard against the Red Lotus Group. If there's something wrong with your brain, don't take them. "
This reason could indeed convince Qiguan Rang.
Let's not talk about the distant lands. Just the Buddhism and Daoism, which were now on equal footing, had believers all over the five countries.
The Red Lotus Group could not be compared to these two giants. However, the three were all religions, and they could vaguely see each other's shadows.
Although Buddhism and Daoism were not forces in the traditional sense, their influence on the general trend of the world could not be ignored.
If the Red Lotus Group could have such a large number of believers and incite trouble everywhere, it would indeed be quite annoying.
Qiguan Rang nodded in agreement.
"Alright, I'll remember this."
This battle could be considered an unprecedented victory. There were a total of more than 23,000 captives. The others were either killed on the spot or died from serious injuries. Those who were still breathing were transported to the military base for treatment. The women's camp temporarily transferred a large number of people, but they were still very busy.
Qiguan Rang sent people to clean up the battlefield, clean up the corpses, search for those who were still breathing, and retrieve the arrows that could still be used …
Although his lord was a local tycoon, fighting a war was too costly. He had to save as much as he could.
In the following days, the busiest place would probably be the medical district.
Those with superficial wounds would be fine after they were cleaned and bandaged. After their injuries were healed, they would be able to jump around and receive military merits.
Those with broken hands and feet, abdominal cavities opened by barrels, broken bones embedded in internal organs, and large pieces of flesh cut off … The doctors could do nothing about such serious injuries. They could only do their best. Whether the patients lived or died was up to fate.
There were also some who could not endure it and died from the pain.
In fact, the large number of casualties did not occur on the battlefield, but after the war.
Too many people died from serious injuries.
Even if they survived, if the wound came into contact with dirt during the healing period, it would easily fester, making the wound unable to heal, and they would die.
Fortunately, it was still winter. The temperature was not that hot and humid, and the probability of the wound becoming inflamed and festering was greatly reduced.
However, the death rate was still higher than the survival rate.
On the other side, Jiang Pengji ordered people to rest for a day before setting out to attack Fenghu County according to the plan.
Coincidentally, the day before the attack on Fenghu County was the New Year's Day.
Before setting out, Jiang Pengji had already ordered people to buy enough pigs and sheep from the people with money or rice grains of the same amount.
On the day of the New Year's Day, the soldiers in charge of the kitchen slaughtered the pigs and sheep.
The pig's blood was collected and condensed into blood clots, which were prepared to be used as food.
The internal organs were processed and the stench was removed. They were cooked with ingredients and spices and made into cooked dishes.
The pig bones were boiled into a thick white bone soup. The soup base was spices. The smell of the bone broth was so strong that it could almost drift into Fenghu County.
As for the other pork and mutton, the various parts were divided.
Some were directly boiled in plain water, while some were added with black fungus and stewed into a pot of stew. Just looking at the color made people salivate.
Dry fried pork ribs with salt and pepper, dry fried pork shreds, kung pao pork cubes … or cut the pork into minced meat and wrapped it into meat buns …
In addition to these, there was also some raw meat and cut bamboo sticks. The soldiers could skewer the meat themselves and roast it over the fire.
As for the rice prepared by the kitchen, it was cooked with the meat broth that had been prepared beforehand.
"It's the Children's Day. Everyone, eat to your heart's content."
Those were Jiang Pengji's original words.
The march was tough, but such a sumptuous meal was rare even during the New Year.
The soldiers formed groups of three to five and ate their New Year's Eve dinner around the bonfire. There was a rack on the bonfire and a pot was hooked. In the pot, all kinds of mountain products and meat pieces were cooked. The fresh and tender soup made a gurgling sound … When the hot soup and rice entered the stomach, the whole person felt warm.
In contrast, Fenghu County was deserted.
There were strong troops stationed outside the city. Even though it was New Year's Eve, almost no one celebrated.
The most pitiful ones were the soldiers guarding the city. They squatted on the high city wall. The thin and shabby clothes on their bodies did not have much resistance to the cold. Their stomachs were empty. They were so hungry that they were in pain. They were singing the Empty City Stratagem … Many people could not help but look into the distance. There was the camp that Jiang Pengji's army had set up. They could not see anything else, but they could see the leaping and burning flames.
They sniffed hard. There was a faint aroma of food in the air.
Even though they were so far away, they seemed to be able to hear the lively sounds coming from there.
"It's so good …"
A soldier guarding the city murmured in a low voice with deep envy. He simulated the taste of delicious food in his mind …
The more he thought about it, the more saliva he secreted. Finally, he swallowed his saliva in big mouthfuls. The sound of thunder rumbled in his stomach.
In Fenghu County, the leader of the Red Lotus Group, who was guarding the city, received a report from outside the city.
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