Xiao Bei was still assembling. Her movements were very skilled. It seemed that what she was assembling now was not her first time.
Soon, something that looked like a tank appeared. To be precise, it should be an infantry transport vehicle. The wheels were made of rubber and did not have tracks.
Xiao Bei was very skilled in using screwdrivers and wrenches. There were many items in the box that did not need screws to fix.
"Xu Yilong, look, not all parts can be fixed with bolts when they are assembled. Because in that case, you will find that the other parts of the thing you are assembling are stuck and there is not enough space. At this time, you need to use parts that can bite into each other.
For these parts, we spent a lot of effort. We have to tell our ideas to brother first, and then let brother and sister figure out what should be specially made for that position. "
Xiao Bei was finally like a normal child at this time. Like many children, she showed off to others when she was working. Moreover, she was mumbling as she assembled. No one knew who she was talking to.
Using a part with grooves on both ends to fix the wheel and the small axle together, Xiao Bei muttered to herself and suddenly laughed.
"Xu Yilong, why do I feel that your name sounds like a girl's? Why aren't you called Xu Linglong?" Xiao Bei asked.
Xu Yilong was focusing on the thing that Xiao Bei was assembling. When she heard her words, she came back to her senses and became silent with a depressed expression.
When Xiao Bei was about to continue talking about her name, she cleverly opened her mouth first and asked, "The wheel you are holding looks familiar. It seems that the bicycle wheel sold in the capital is made of the same material as the one you are holding."
"It's not the same. The bicycle wheel is inflated, but mine is dead. Speaking of bicycles, I thought of something. Did you buy one? Remember, if you want to use it in Chang 'an City, you can choose those with thin wheels. If you want to ride it out, you have to buy one with wide wheels.
If you bring the bike over, I can help you modify it so that you can go uphill easily. That's because the gears at the bottom of the bike, to put it simply, is the lever principle. So you're asking, what's the use of this principle, right? "
Xiao Bei stopped what she was doing and took out a piece of paper from the side. On it was the assembly steps of the components. At this moment, Xiao Bei was still holding a component that was supposed to be used in one of the steps, but that step had already passed.
For a moment, Xiaobei was at a loss. She didn't think that saving a part was a good sign. While thinking about what went wrong, she said to Xu Yilong.
Xu Yilong didn't know about the difficulties Xiao Bei was facing now, and said, "I know, it's the power multiplied by the power arm, which is equal to the resistance multiplied by the resistance arm."
"That's right, so if the front and back gears of the bicycle can change their sizes at any time, then you can adjust the distribution of power at will.
But there was a problem in the middle, and that was that it had to be accurate. It couldn't just throw away a random part. For example, the small gear in my hand should be on the axle. Otherwise, this car could only move forward and not backward. Yes, that's right. If this set of modules wanted to move, it had to be on the gear.
So now you see, I have finished the assembly steps in front, but the gear wasn't put in. Do you know what to do? "
Xiao Bei finally found the problem with the instructions on the diagram. The gear in her hand was made of hard plastic. Because the requirements for precision were not high, she could easily put it on the axle, and then connect the axle with the gear on another module through it.
Xu Yilong kept nodding. Xiao Bei's words were difficult for him to understand.
He never thought that one day, children's toys would be like this. There were all kinds of parts. In his opinion, even if he was given the diagram, he couldn't assemble it. There were too many, and he didn't know how Xiao Bei remembered it all.
Hearing Xiao Bei's question, he hesitated and replied, "Do you have to take it apart and reassemble it?"
"That's right. I have to dismantle the first two steps now. According to the terminology, it's called rework. It's a very annoying thing. From now on, we know that we have to be serious when doing things. Otherwise, when we find out that we did something wrong, it will be more tiring to go back and correct it."
Xiao Bei frowned and started to dismantle it.
"You can ask others for help. Xiao Bei, can you teach me how you know how to look at diagrams?" Xu Yilong pointed at the assembly diagram and asked.
"You'll know when you see it often. The diagram you see now is very simple. You haven't seen the diagram drawn by sister. You'll feel your eyeballs hurt when you see it. To be honest, sister Xiao Zhu taught me.
Speaking of helping, we have our own division of labor. I'm responsible for the transportation of troops, so I have to assemble the current troop carrier. They have their own places to be responsible for, but they still need other people's help to assemble the current vehicle. This can only mean one thing. "
When Xiao Bei's voice fell, she drew a finger. It was an index finger, not a middle finger. Zhang Xiaobao didn't teach his younger siblings to use body language to scold others.
"What's the problem?" Sure enough, Xu Yilong asked cooperatively.
"It means that my personal ability is poor. No matter how exaggerated other people's praise of teamwork is, you can't ignore the personal ability of forming a team. According to brother's words, that is … not afraid of a god-like opponent, but afraid of a pig-like teammate. "
Xiao Bei's two chubby little hands had already dismantled the front as he spoke, and reinstalled the extra gears just now. After waiting for a few more steps to complete, he clapped his hands and said, "Okay, only the box outside is left. I'll put the box together now."
The so-called box was the outer shell, and it also needed to be put together.
Xu Yilong looked at it enviously. She felt that even older people would like the things in front of her, let alone children.
After waiting for a while, Xiao Bei finally put the outer shell together and covered the internal parts just now. He pushed the cart back and forth with his hands and said to Xu Yilong, "Look, can we go now? Is it fun? My infantry transport vehicle is very useful. It can provide enough troops to the front, and at the same time, it can also be used as a temporary escort force. "
Xu Yilong looked at it a few times and suddenly felt that it was very normal. It was just that there were more parts inside, but a carpenter could also make a cart that could be pushed back and forth with wood.
Just as this idea arose, Xiao Bei stuffed four batteries into the cart, and at the same time, took out a wire and connected it to the reserved port of the cart with a copper plate with a bayonet. In his hand, there was a small box with a button.
Xiao Bei sat upright and put the cart he assembled in place. He turned his head and said to Xu Yilong, "Let me show you how we look like when we work together. Because they're not here, I'll say it with my mouth. You can understand it yourself, okay?"
Xu Yilong nodded, "Okay." He wanted to see what kind of tricks Xiao Bei could play.
"Ready …" Xiao Bei shouted, and then said, "1500 meters ahead, the enemy has formed a temporary blocking position. My Xiaoyuan Battalion's advance is blocked, requesting for support. I, Xiao Bei, am an independent mobile battalion. I was ordered to go and pull Xiaoyuan Battalion around the enemy's blocking position to achieve the purpose of penetrating in depth."
When Xiao Bei said this, he pressed the button on the box. Xu Yilong saw the cart assembled by Xiao Bei move forward by itself, and his eyes widened.
"Not good, there are enemy troops rushing towards my mobile battalion. My battalion drivers, pay attention to the enemy trenches in front. Set up the machine gun and sweep them all down. Beep, beep, beep … report, my mobile battalion broke through the enemy's small blocking force and met up with Xiaoyuan. Pay attention to the enemy pursuing soldiers in front, transport troops temporarily retreat and find another way out."
Xiao Bei released the button just now and pressed another one, and the cart began to move back.
Not good, there is actually no less than a brigade behind the enemy. Calling Brother Xiaohai, request for artillery support. Two-two-two-two high ground, three hundred to one thousand two hundred meters in front, cover the area. Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, haha, Brother Xiaohai's artillery is firing. You guys are having fun, hahahaha. "
Xiao Bei had already forgotten Xu Yilong who was beside him at this moment. He controlled the cart to move back and forth, and kept talking to himself.
This was the normal behavior of most children when playing games. Generally, you would give a girl a few dolls, a set of small kitchen utensils and shovels. She would play from morning to night, and she would have a lot of fun. The dolls could also eat a lot of meals.
If it was a boy, you would provide him with enough soldier models, and he would be able to fight a long and drawn-out battle.
Zhang Xiaobao had done such a thing before. When he was in the orphanage, he collected a lot of poker cards that were missing one, and then divided them according to red and black. One side represented the good guys, and the other side represented the bad guys. He spread them in the yard, on the steps, in the sandpit, and everywhere were poker soldiers.
When a soldier died, the poker cards would be turned over, and the final result would always be the good side winning. It seemed that the poker soldiers that represented the good guys were very strong, and there were more reinforcements than the bad guys.
So now, Zhang Xiaobao also provided the same game for his younger brother and sister. However, the things that represented the soldiers were no longer poker cards, but lifelike models. Each soldier was independent, and could even be loaded into a car.
If Xiao Bei and the others had the time and energy, they could set up tens of thousands of models to cooperate in a grand battle.
If Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan wanted to teach Xiao Bei and the others knowledge through such a game, they first had to immerse themselves in the game like Xiao Bei and the others.
They definitely couldn't stand aside and watch the children play. Then, as an adult, you would laugh and let the children's attention be on you. Then, as if coaxing the children, you would say, 'Are you playing this? Is it fun? '
If you said that, the children would be very angry. They would think that you were mocking them for being small. The battle that they had painstakingly designed was disrupted by you, and a feeling of not being recognized would fill their hearts.
There were two kinds of consequences. First, they would angrily push you away and not let you watch. Then, they would turn around and readjust their mood and continue playing by themselves. Second, they would simply stop playing and not care about the battle situation that they had created. They would turn around and find a place to sulk.
Every time Zhang Xiaobao, who knew this kind of child psychology, wanted to participate, he and Wang Juan would secretly observe from the side and analyze Xiao Bei and the others' deployment of the battle. Then, they would go over and provide support. Usually, they would be logistics and engineers.
The expression on their faces had to be serious.
However, there was one thing that had to be said first. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan definitely couldn't use Xiao Bei and the others' troops and tools. When they were needed to participate, they had to lead the troops themselves. This was because all the troops of the other party had already been arranged.
Therefore, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan also had a lot of toys. Usually, they would put them in a big box and take them out when needed. They would cooperate with Xiao Bei and the others and play together with them. They would also tell them the knowledge that they wanted to teach Xiao Bei and the others.
This was why Xiao Bei now knew so many battle terms and understood tactics.
Xu Yilong had already started to develop a situation where his IQ was gradually decreasing. Xiao Bei was only commanding a car, but he slowly felt the situation of the entire battlefield from Xiao Bei's words. Penetrating deep, dividing, encircling, advancing horizontally, setting up blocking positions to resist the enemy's reinforcements, and cooperating with the main force to annihilate the enemies in the encirclement.
Interfering with the enemy's logistics, setting up a pocket formation, luring the enemy deep into the encirclement, attacking reinforcements, surrounding three and missing one, digging tunnels, building trenches, protecting the medics, and so on.
Xiao Bei controlled the car and completely immersed himself in his own fantasy. He used all the war knowledge he had learned.
Xu Yilong listened to Xiao Bei's muttering and didn't dare to disturb him. He had a feeling that if he was really in a troop and his opponent was Xiao Bei and the other nine people, he would definitely be beaten silly by Xiao Bei and the others. Even if Xiao Bei and the others had never organized a real war, they were still better than him. He couldn't even analyze what Xiao Bei was muttering. Sometimes, he would be very happy when he figured something out.
After thinking for a while, he realized that he couldn't understand many of the methods Xiao Bei mentioned. Xu Yilong gave up on continuing to follow Xiao Bei's train of thought and turned to consider more important things.
That was the car controlled by Xiao Bei. This car was equipped with a motor, an electric motor, and a battery. It could move forward and backward. According to Xiao Bei, this was called a troop carrier.
It was indeed a toy and couldn't be used in a real war. If one stepped on it, it would definitely be flattened.
However, this thing could be made bigger. After the parts were enlarged, wouldn't it be possible to let the soldiers go up?
Moreover, Xiao Bei had just muttered that there were machine guns in the car. Once the enlarged car was sent to a real battlefield, the outside of the car would be iron, and there would be machine guns in the car. In the face of the enemies of the surrounding countries, what method would the other party use to stop this weapon that gave people a sense of power?
"Out of battery? Sure enough, as I said, the battery won't work after an hour. They also said that it can last for two hours. Liars. Well, that's it for today. I won't take the battery. I have to save it. "
Xiao Bei's car was difficult to move. He found that it was because the battery was out of battery. Xiao Bei put down the control box in his hand and breathed a sigh of relief. Only then did he remember that there was a person beside him.
"You … did you see everything just now?" Xiao Bei asked embarrassedly. At this moment, he realized that what he muttered just now was just his imagination. What if others heard him and laughed at him for thinking too much?
Xu Yilong didn't understand the child's thoughts and nodded honestly. When Xiao Bei was even more embarrassed, she said, "I saw and heard it, but there are many things I don't understand. For example, why is there a trench in front, but Xiao Bei's tracked armor doesn't move forward? Why does he have to wait for Da Nan's explosive soldier to rush over first?"
"Oh ~!" Xiao Bei was relieved. He let out a long sound, smiled complacently, and explained.
"Because the enemy's trench. My wheeled car will get stuck in it. The tracked armor can rush over, but what if they don't want to live anymore and tie a lot of grenades together and hold them above their heads? When the tracked car goes over and explodes, the car will be finished, and the people in the car will be shocked to death.
Da Nan's explosive soldier will rush over under the cover of the armored car's machine gun and throw grenades into the trench. Don't you think so? A tracked armored car is very expensive. "
"But you just said that you want to end the battle quickly. If your armored car is waiting there, you will lose your speed advantage at the same time. How will you achieve tactical deployment?" Xu Yilong asked the key question.
Xiao Bei was stunned. His eyes stared at a place and thought for a moment. He patted his head and nodded, admitting, "Yes, I forgot. It should be under the condition of not caring about the damage of the car, quickly rushing forward, tearing apart the enemy's line of defense, and cooperating with other troops to complete the encirclement.
I didn't consider it thoroughly. You are very good. I believe that with you as my adjutant, my team will be able to reduce a lot of command mistakes during battle. I have decided now to allow you to join our army.
Now that you don't have any soldiers, I will transfer some of my soldiers and let you form your own direct troops. The number may be a little small, but don't worry. When we reach Yizhou, I will ask people to make more soldier models.
As for you, what you need to do now is to formulate the framework of your army. When the time comes, I will complete your formation of troops. Do you have any other requests? "
"Thank you, General. I don't have any other requests. Uh, can I have a mobile army? It's just … "Xu Yilong pointed at the car assembled by Xiao Bei expectantly.
Although he was much older than Xiao Bei, this kind of wired remote-controlled car was also very attractive to him. If it could be changed to wireless, the whole world would probably go crazy with it. With a remote-controlled car or plane, even an old man would be immersed in playing with it.
Xiao Bei said generously, "Yes. In fact, brother and sister's team has a lot of small cars. One is for us to play with, and the other is for the technical staff to constantly improve and design what should be designed so that it can be used in a real war in the future.
Later, I will teach you the use of a group of small cars on the battlefield. There is a tactical name called magnetic tactics. Using fast mobility to maintain a relative distance from the enemy and constantly consume the enemy's strength. However, first of all, we need to have sufficient technology, especially strong long-range firepower. "
Xu Yilong saw that Xiao Bei was willing to support some small cars and immediately became excited. When she heard Xiao Bei mention magnetic tactics, she became even more curious and asked, "Is magnetic tactics very powerful?"
"Very powerful. In a war story that sister told, magnetic tactics caused a lot of damage to the enemy. Moreover, because the enemy's technology couldn't keep up, they could only passively take a beating." Xiao Bei looked very helpless when talking about magnetic tactics.
"Is it because you can't think of a way to break this tactic?" Xu Yilong asked again.
Xiao Bei shook his head, "No, it's because when we used magnetic tactics, we didn't get any advantage from brother and sister. Now, I can't figure out what went wrong. At that time, when we were playing games with brother and sister, we distributed the money according to the same principle.
That is to say, if we have good weapons, then we have fewer soldiers. If we want more soldiers, then the weapons can't be too advanced. At that time, brother and sister wanted very ordinary weapons and then fought with us. In the end, brother and sister kept the ordinary allocated money and didn't use it.
We used all kinds of tactics, whether it was partial or overall, but we didn't get any advantage. Don't you think it's uncomfortable? Before brother and sister could counterattack, we admitted defeat. "
"Hehe." Xu Yilong couldn't help but laugh out loud. She reached out and touched Xiao Bei's head, "You are still young. When you grow up, you will definitely be able to beat Xiao Bao and Cuckoo. Let them use weapons that are not too different from yours. You still want to win? Didn't you see the sand table sealed in Hibiscus Garden? Using indigenous cold weapons against hot weapons, how much torture did those generals in the court suffer? "
"I know, I know. War is fought with people. Unless the weapons are really too powerful, it depends on the commander's commanding ability. Let's not talk about it anymore. Help me take apart the small car and put it back."
Xiao Bei began to dismantle the car. Xu Yilong helped at the side and carefully put the parts back to their original positions. Her heart was filled with pride.
She looked forward to the day when the small car in front of her became bigger, forming an absolutely superior mechanized army and rampaging in the enemy camp.
*****
What Xu Yilong didn't know was that small cars like Xiao Bei's toy had already started to be manufactured in the Ministry of Works.
Moreover, they weren't making toys and didn't have any remote control devices. There could be wireless telegraphy, but wireless remote control was too difficult for the people in the Ministry of Works.
The car made by the Ministry of Works also had a motor, but it was twice as big as Xiao Bei's. The battery used was also different. There was no place to place a machine gun on the car, and the wheels of the car were very suitable for uneven roads.
At the filming site of the Ministry of Works, Li Longji had just finished a set of scenes. When he was resting, there was such a small car under his feet.
"Explosives are placed on top of this car, and then it is sent forward? It can't be controlled and can only be detonated at a certain distance? If it doesn't meet the enemy, how can it be stopped? "
After listening to the technician's introduction, Li Longji began to evaluate the small car.
The purpose of making a small car was to place explosives on top of it. When it was close to the enemy, the people behind would use a telegraph-like device to select a frequency band and send a signal to the receiving device on the car. The signal receiving device would be connected to the battery circuit and detonator. The moment the signal was received would be the time of the explosion.
The main purpose was to prevent their own people from taking the risk of rushing forward when the artillery at the back couldn't catch up. The small car could go very far, exceeding the throwing distance of a grenade.
The technician said helplessly, "There's no other way. If we use a remote control device, we need a very long wire. For example, if it runs 200 meters away, we need at least 200 meters of wire. If it gets caught on something, it will be very troublesome. If we only let the small car move 50 meters, it would be better to throw a grenade.
Now, we are researching on the grenade launcher. The main problem is the primer for the grenade. If we can make it, we can even make artillery shells, let alone grenades. The problem is that if we add primer to the grenade, the cost of making it is too high.
Xiao Bao called us last month and scolded us. He said we didn't put in enough effort to form a team during our research. He said we felt grenades are not as long as artillery shells and are not important. That's why we didn't research on adding primer to the grenade. "
When the technician was speaking, he felt wronged. This was because the Ministry of Works' research institute was rarely scolded, especially by such a harsh tone.
"Then is what Xiao Bao scolded us?" Li Longji asked.
"Actually … … Yes, we felt grenades have a shorter throwing distance. If it is a few dozen meters away, we can also use guns to shoot. Also, the weight of a grenade can be exchanged for the weight of a lot of bullets. It is not as convenient to carry as grenades."
The technician wanted to explain or shirk responsibility, but he suddenly remembered Zhang Xiaobao's style of doing things and didn't dare to find excuses for himself.
Li Longji pondered for a while. "Do it as soon as possible, but be careful. How much is the cost of the small car under my feet?"
"30 strings of bursts. The entire set will cost 30 strings of bursts. Xiao Bao sent us a telegram a few days ago and asked us to make dozens of big ones. This big." The technician measured the length of the car. It was about 1.5 meters long and 70 centimeters wide.
Li Longji followed and asked, "Xiao Bao wants to use it to blow up the city walls? Why don't we use artillery to bombard them? "
"It's not blowing up the city walls. It's for the little guys to sit and play with. We are currently solving the problem of the battery pack's storage capacity and the amount of electricity that can be delivered per unit of time." The technician replied.
"We are going to war soon, and Xiao Bao still wants to make toys for Xiaobei and the others? Just do it. Who knows what they are thinking? " Li Longji couldn't figure out what Zhang Xiaobao was thinking, so he wanted to stop him. However, he also considered the possibility that Zhang Xiaobao might have some ulterior motive. If he were to stop him, it would be too late. Thus, he nodded.
"Your Majesty, we can start filming the next set of scenes. You need to change your clothes. This set of scenes will show that you support agriculture. You need to wear a bamboo hat on your head, change your clothes into rough linen, and preferably straw sandals on your feet. We have also prepared a hoe for you. Do you want to start?"
The 'director' in charge of filming carefully came over and said awkwardly.
Li Longji had been filming the scenes in the school next to the research institute. He personally held a book and taught others as if he really knew. Now, he needed to change it to the agricultural aspect.
The makeup artist was in place and had to make him look like a farmer who was hoeing crops in the afternoon. The only thing was that the color of his skin was slightly darker, there had to be sweat on his head, his sleeves were rolled up, and there had to be some mud on his arms. Actually, when people were farming, the men were usually shirtless to prevent their clothes from being worn out. However, the Emperor couldn't be shirtless, or else the people from the Ministry of Rites and the Censorate would be excited.
After Li Longji changed his clothes and had the makeup done, he looked at the hoe and ordered, "Change it. It's obvious that this is a new hoe. Change it to an old one. When filming a movie, even if you are lying, you have to be more professional. It won't do if you don't have the basic qualities."
"Yes, yes, yes, we didn't consider it thoroughly. Your Majesty, come with us. The people from the research institute have opened up some vegetable fields on the left. It just so happens that they didn't have time to clean up the weeds there. You can go and hoe it."
The director was very good at choosing the location.
Gao Lishi didn't go to the construction site in the palace today. Instead, he came along to watch. He still had a few scenes and added two lines. One line was, "Your Majesty, you personally teach, you will inspire the students of the Ministry of Works." The other line was, "Your Majesty, you personally farm, you will inspire the people."
In the end, Li Longji changed it. Otherwise, it would seem too fake. He changed it to, "Your Majesty, the students of the Ministry of Works have already seen what you said last time. Why don't you talk more about it later?" "Your Majesty, there is a place in front that you didn't hoe. There are still edible wild vegetables. I will collect them for you and make your favorite wild vegetable soup."
This was much better than the previous one. It felt more natural and showed that the Emperor wasn't that amazing. There were also places that the hoe couldn't hoe. At the same time, it also showed that the Emperor didn't necessarily eat delicacies. There was still wild vegetable soup.
That was the way things were. It was a movie, so of course it was a lie. If it was real, it would be called a documentary.
Li Longji came to the uncleaned field with the hoe in his hand. He pondered for a moment and said, "Find me two more children."
"Your Majesty, why are you looking for children?" The director was also a rookie. To be honest, Zhang Xiaobao was much better than him as a director. Moreover, he could write his own script, act as an actor, and win all kinds of awards for the male lead. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to fool people.
Li Longji slammed the hoe into the ground and said in a deep voice, "I don't intend to give the commoners the idea that I am doing farm work every day. Find two children and a group of commoners. Or you can act as commoners yourselves. After that, you can stand by the side of the field and watch me.
When I am weeding, don't move. Just watch. When the two children come over, one of them curiously asks, 'I heard that you are the Emperor. Why did you suddenly think of weeding today?' The other child keeps nodding his head with a curious expression.
At that time, I will stop and use one hand to massage my waist. I will say to the two children, 'Yes, I am the Emperor. Today, I am working in the field to tell the commoners of Great Tang that I, the Emperor, value you very much. Although I am not good at this kind of work and my waist hurts, I believe that you will do a good job. You will be a hundred times better than me. It is because of you that I can eat my fill.'
Then, I will look at the commoners and say to them, 'Don't always look at me as a joke. Come down and help me hoe this field. At the same time, I will also give you a scene. After you are done with your work, go back and do other things.'
This is what I plan to do. Listen to me and get down to the field to help me hoe the weeds. You will do it skillfully. If you don't know how to do it, don't give me a scene. What do you think? "
Everyone who heard Li Longji's words widened their eyes. Gao Lishi cooperated and shouted, "Talent! Your Majesty, this subject never thought that Your Majesty would have such talent. This subject agrees. We will do as Your Majesty says."
The flattering voices of the others also sounded in Li Longji's ears.
Li Longji narrowed his eyes in enjoyment. Suddenly, an idea popped up in his mind. He asked the people around him, "Say, if we find someone to play the role of Xiaobao and pretend to be a fool and follow me around, I can teach him from time to time. Would the effect be better?"
The people who heard Li Longji's words not only widened their eyes, but their mouths were also wide open. They looked as if they were frozen in a photograph.
After a while, Gao Lishi softly persuaded, "Your Majesty, why don't you get someone to act as Xiao Bao? If you get someone to act like Xiao Bao, even if he doesn't go crazy, the commoners will go crazy. The merchants of Great Tang will all commit suicide by banging their heads against the wall. That is too fake. No one will believe that Xiao Bao is that foolish. "
"Is … is that so?" Li Longji was clearly depressed. "I can't even take advantage of this. Since Xiao Bao can't act like a fool, who can?"
As Li Longji spoke, his eyes began to look around, and the people around him lowered their heads.
*****
At dusk the next day, the red clouds were reflected in the sky. In the distant mountains, a few flocks of birds in the forest were frightened by Shui Yun's family, and they flew in all directions, drawing vivid lines under the sunset.
Xiao Bei hugged his brother and said that he wanted to eat something good. He kept talking about the hardships of the past few days. The other eight children surrounded him and added a few words from time to time.
Xu Yilong had a reserved expression and stood beside Xu Jian. She was telling her grandfather that she had been too conceited in the past, and that she had finally seen the power of Xiao Bei and the other nine.
"Go take a bath first, change your clothes, and then eat," Zhang Xiaobao said to Xiao Bei.
"I'm done bathing and changing. Brother, I'm exhausted from the past few days. I need a lot of nourishment," Xiao Bei shouted.
"Okay, I'll make you a fat pork shoulder." Zhang Xiaobao agreed.
"Let's … let's make some vitamins. Make some braised potatoes." Xiao Bei immediately changed his mind.
Thus, Zhang Xiaobao took away the braised potatoes and steak that night. Together with Wang Juan, he held a knife and fork to accompany his younger siblings for dinner. There were many candles on the table.
The maidservants and odd-job workers who followed Xiao Bei's nine bodyguards handed over all their work for the time being and enjoyed a good dinner. Buckets of water were drawn from the nearby river and heated up. After taking a nice bath, they each went to sleep and didn't care about anything else.
During this period of time, they were the most tired and needed to relax and rest.
After Xiao Bei and the others had eaten their fill, they went to bed early. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan asked people to bring over the Chen family from Tonghua County, who hadn't eaten for the entire day.
The oldest man in the Chen family, Chen Mutong, looked even older at this moment. There wasn't the slightest bit of redness on his face. He looked like a lamp that had run out of oil and could die at any time.
The skin on Chen Guanghou, Chen Guangliang, and Chen Guangchun's faces were also sagging and drooping. Their eyes were sunken. The children in their family no longer had arrogant expressions. Each and every one of their eyes was filled with fear.
Zhang Xiaobao looked at them without the slightest bit of sympathy in his heart. Colluding with the enemy with selfish motives would inevitably cost the lives of the Tang people. What they exchanged for was not cattle and sheep, but the flesh and blood of their own soldiers.
After sizing up the Chen family for a while, Zhang Xiaobao slowly opened his mouth. "I don't need to say more about what you did. Even if you turn yourselves in, the reduced punishment won't let you live. However, I'm a kind person and don't want to kill you, so I need you to do something first."
"Do it, do it. We'll do anything to leave the Chen family a line of descendants," Chen Mutong said in a hoarse voice. When he raised his head to look at Zhang Xiaobao, his eyes were full of pleading.
"You'll personally come forward and transfer the transaction with Duoshi to my people. I'll directly send people to seize it for fear that Duoshi's people will be suspicious. After this is done, you won't be killed. I'll find a place for you to go mining. The women in your family will be responsible for cooking in the mining area.
After 30 years, I'll release the three youngest children in your family. They'll be in their thirties by then, and it won't be too late to find a wife to continue the Chen family's line of descendants.
As for the others, they'll die in the mines. They can die of exhaustion, old age, or sickness. When I announce to the outside world, I'll say that I killed you. Do you have any objections? "
Zhang Xiaobao left them a way out. Instead of killing them directly, it was better to create some social value.
"I don't agree," Chen Yaozu shouted because he wasn't the youngest child.
His father suddenly covered his mouth and said to Zhang Xiaobao, "Don't worry about him. He'll go straight in and work. He wasn't involved in the transaction with Duoshi at all, so it won't affect our transfer. I'll be in charge of this matter, and I'll make Duoshi trust the person who takes over later. "
Zhang Xiaobao nodded and waved his hand again. Someone from the side came over to take the Chen family people away.
After waiting for the others to leave, Zhang Xiaobao took out a map and spread it out. He called out to Wang Juan, "Help me give some advice on what kind of resources to trade for Duoshi's things."
Wang Juan came over. "If you ask me, we'll trade for livestock. If we can trade for food, that's fine too. I don't think they'll give us any information. At the same time, it'll easily arouse suspicion."
"Then let's send them more medicine to treat their illness," Zhang Xiaobao followed.
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