"… Those grassland people are throwing corpses into the city."
The sky was hazy and the dark clouds were sinking. There was a canopy in the old courtyard, under which were stacked boxes of all sizes. There was firewood in the corner of the courtyard, and a stove under the eaves was boiling water. Tang Minjie, who was dressed like a strongman, was wearing a wide-brimmed hat and holding a teacup in his hand. He was sitting under the eaves and talking to Lu Mingfang in a low voice.
Lu Mingfang's attire was slightly better than Tang Minjie's, but he seemed relatively casual at this moment. He was a merchant who traveled extensively. Due to the sudden siege of the grassland people, he could not leave the Residence of the Clouds. His goods were also stuck in the courtyard.
"Throwing corpses?"
"There were heads, chopped corpses, and even internal organs. They wrapped them up and threw them into the city. Some were thrown with helmets. Anyway, when they landed on the ground, they stunk. They should be the leaders of the Jin soldiers who came to help. The grassland people killed them and made the captives dismember and pack them up. They left the bodies in the sun for a few days before throwing them into the city. " Tang Minjie took off his hat and looked at the tea in his hand. "Those Nüzhen little playboys were furious when they saw the heads …"
"Throwing corpses into the city, are they trying to spread a plague?"
"They can't." Tang Minjie shook his head. "The corpses were left there for a few days. It's not easy to clean them up after throwing them in, but it's just a little disgusting. Shi Liai's arrangement was very appropriate. The corpses were cremated on the spot, and the clothes of the people in charge of cleaning were soaked in boiling water. I brought some lime over and sprinkled it on the base of the city wall … They learned from our teacher. Even if the grassland people really dared to throw the infected corpses into the city, they would probably be the first to be infected. "
"… Have you figured out the situation outside the city?"
"I've asked around, but I'm not sure about the Jin either." Tang Minjie shook his head. "Shi Liai is as steady as a stinky stone in a latrine pit. On the second day after the grassland people came, he even sent people out to test the situation. I heard that they had the upper hand, but I don't know what they saw. Not long after, he called them all back and forced everyone to close the door. In the past two days, the grassland people have set up the catapults and let the Jin captives outside the city surround the catapults. They throw corpses and stones at the top of the city wall to counterattack, killing their own people one by one … "
Tang Minjie brought the teacup to his lips and couldn't help but laugh. "Heh … The brats are furious, but if Shi Liai doesn't say anything, they won't be able to move …"
Lu Mingfang took a sip of tea. "Shi Li's determination and judgment are not to be underestimated. He must have discovered something."
"Both sides have just started fighting, and he even had the upper hand in the first round. But now, he's like a turtle hiding its head in its shell. This way, there are many openings that can be exploited in the future. Heh …" Tang Minjie turned his head and asked, "What do you think about this side?"
"First, the goal of the Prairie people." Lu Mingfang said, "The Cloud Manor has sealed off the city. Now, news from the outside can't come in, and those inside can't go out either. According to the information we've pieced together, this group of grassland people is not without a plan. A few years ago, they had a conflict with the Jin people in the west, but they didn't gain the upper hand. Later, they turned their attention to Western Xia. This time, they took a detour to the Central Plains. After breaking through Yanmen Pass, they almost killed their way to Yunzhong on the same day. I don't know what they did, but they even made Shi Liai vigilant. These actions all show that they have a plan. This battle is not without purpose. "
Lu Mingfang continued, "Since they have a plan, what is it? First of all, the possibility of them taking down Yunzhong is not high. Although the Jin Kingdom has sent out hundreds of thousands of soldiers, it's not that there is no one behind them. There are still many nobles and veterans. It's not a big problem for them to gather tens of thousands of people. Not to mention that these grassland people don't have siege weapons, even if they are really talented, they can use magic to occupy Yunzhong, and they won't be able to stay here for long. Since the grassland people can complete the operation from Yanmen Pass to Yunzhong Mansion, they must be able to see this. If they can't occupy the city, why are they … "
He counted with his fingers, "Grain and fodder, horses, manpower … or more important materials. Their purpose shows how much they know about war. If it were me, I would first target the Grand Construction Institute. If I can't get the Grand Construction Institute, I can also think about the other places where military supplies are transferred and stored. The two nearest places, such as Red Hill and Wolf Hill, were originally built by Zong Han to store supplies and are heavily guarded. But to threaten Yunzhong and besiege them, those troops may be mobilized … But the problem is, do the grassland people really know so much about firearms and armaments … "
Tang Minjie looked at him quietly.
Lu Mingfang continued, "If we know the purpose of the grassland people, we can probably predict the direction of this war. We may be able to contact them, but we have to be very cautious and conservative. The more important thing now is that if the war between the grassland people and the Jin people continues, the Han people outside the city may have a chance of survival. We can plan a few routes in advance and see if we can save some people while the two sides are in a mess. "
Hearing this, Tang Minjie was silent for a moment, "Why didn't you consider forming an alliance with them? Boss Lu, do you have any inside information? "
"Teacher has said something."
"Hmm?" Tang Minjie frowned.
Lu Mingfang sat down and was about to say something when he suddenly realized something. He looked at Tang Minjie with a smile, "… You wanted to say this from the beginning?"
Tang Minjie's eyes also showed a hint of a sinister smile, "When I see the enemy of my enemy, my first reaction is that we can be friends. When the grassland people besieged the city, I thought about opening the gate for them, but it was too difficult. As for the grassland people's actions, I thought about one thing. Teacher pretended to be dead a few years ago and went to Western Xia before he showed up. Maybe the grassland people's actions have something to do with teacher's arrangement. I was a little surprised that you didn't inform me to make arrangements … "
He said with sincere eyes, "Opening the gate is risky, but letting me do it should have been the best arrangement. I thought you didn't trust me on this matter anymore. "
Tang Minjie said this frankly, with a smile in his eyes. Although he was ruthless in his schemes and sometimes seemed crazy and scary, he was usually honest in front of his own people. Lu Mingfang smiled, "Teacher didn't arrange any task related to the grassland."
"Tell me, I understand." Tang Minjie took a sip of tea. His eyes behind the teacup became a little dangerous because of thinking. "If teacher didn't participate, the grassland people's actions are decided by themselves, it means that there are some very far-sighted strategists among the people outside the city … This is very dangerous."
His words obviously showed that he had already taken the grassland knights outside the city into consideration. Then he turned his head, "By the way, you mentioned teacher's words just now."
Lu Mingfang nodded, "When I went back to the southwest, I also considered teacher's actions before he showed up. After all, he went to Western Xia and seemed to attach some importance to the grassland people. After I talked with teacher for a while, we talked about this matter. What I'm considering is that the Western Xia is relatively close to us. If Teacher has arranged some backup plan over there, we'll be able to more or less have an idea of what's in front of us. But Teacher shook his head. He didn't leave anything in the Western Xia.
"… This doesn't seem like teacher's behavior." Tang Minjie frowned and murmured.
"Teacher said something later that left a deep impression on me. He said that the grassland people are the enemy, and we should just think about how to defeat them. This is why I said we must be cautious in our contact. "
Tang Minjie lowered his head and pondered for a long time. When he raised his head again, he also deliberated for a long time before saying, "If Teacher said this, then he really didn't want to play the game of befriending far away and attacking near ones with the grassland people … This is very strange. Although the Wu Dynasty fell because they played too many tricks, we can't say that we relied on schemes. When I was learning from teacher, he repeatedly stressed that victory is calculated by accumulating every minute. He went to Western Xia but didn't make a move. What is he thinking … "
Lu Mingfang smiled, "Teacher didn't say that he formed an alliance with the grassland people, but he didn't explicitly say that we can't use him. If you have an idea and can convince me, I'm willing to do it. "
Tang Minjie shook his head and said, "Teacher's idea may have a deeper meaning. I'll ask him carefully next time I see him. Now that there is no clear order, let's act according to the usual situation. If the risk is too high, we don't have to put all our eggs in one basket. If the risk is small, we'll do it. Boss Lu, you said that we must save people. As for how to get in touch with them, let's wait and see. If there is really a big shot in this group, we can pay more attention to them. "
Lu Mingfang nodded.
Tang Minjie came here with doubts in his heart. They had been besieging the city for 10 days. Such a big event could have been a chance for him to fish in troubled waters. Lu Mingfang didn't make a big move, so he wondered if there was some big move that he couldn't participate in. Now that his doubts were dispelled, he felt a little better. He took two sips of tea and couldn't help but smile.
"By the way, Boss Lu."
"Yes."
"Do you think it's possible that when teacher went to Western Xia, a group of blind grassland barbarians offended Domineering Blade's wife, so teacher simply wanted to kill them and be done with it?"
"… You're saying this … You're not considering the bigger picture."
"That's true." Tang Minjie smiled. "If it's true, I'm afraid few grassland barbarians can survive in front of Domineering Blade's wife."
He paused for a moment and continued, "Moreover, if those grassland barbarians really offended teacher, it's not easy for teacher to retaliate in a short time, so he will only leave more backup plans."
Now he really understood that if Ning Yi really hated those grassland barbarians, he wouldn't choose to let them go. Perhaps he would make friends with the distant and attack the nearby, open the door to do business, show goodwill, and rope them in. Although it was strange that Ning Yi didn't do anything, Tang Minjie just kept his doubts in his heart. There might be a very interesting answer in this, so he was a little curious.
At this point, the two of them had a rough idea of what to do next. Lu Mingfang was ready to go to Chen Wenjun to inquire about the news. Tang Minjie seemed to have something else on his mind. Before he left, he wanted to say something but stopped. Lu Mingfang asked, "What?" Then he said, "Do you know Luo Ye in the army?"
"Yes, Madman Luo. He is an old man who followed Wu Ruiying to rise up. It seems … he has been asking us to find his sister. What's wrong? "
"…"
"Is there a clue? Alive? Dead? "
"… Forget it. I'll tell you after I confirm it." Tang Minjie hesitated for a moment and finally said so.
Lu Mingfang nodded. "Okay."
Since Tang Minjie didn't say anything, he didn't ask. He had seen all kinds of things in the Northern Region for so many years. The shame of Jingping had passed for a long time. The first batch of Han slaves who went north were basically all dead. Whether this kind of news was good or bad, the process alone was enough to destroy a normal person's life. Before the arrival of complete victory, he just needed to swallow it all. There was no need to chew it carefully. This was the only way to keep people as normal as possible.
The two went out of the courtyard and went in different directions.
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