The Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Mansion, which was the Suanni tribe and its affiliated tribes, had just turned defeat into victory. They were ready to take down the Bohai Commander-In-Chief's Mansion, which was secretly supporting the Tang army.
The battlefield was very bright. The Tang army could not adapt to the bad weather. Although there was an army that was very good at fighting in the forest, they could not withstand the cold of the snow, so their fighting strength was greatly reduced.
Just as they were about to defeat the Tang army of more than twenty thousand, the Tang army suddenly changed tactics at the critical moment. They used a small elite force to pin down the enemy and then set fire everywhere.
The thick smoke not only scared away all kinds of animals, but also made the Tang army lose the strategic initiative.
It was said that the commander of this army was a nephew of the Great Tang Emperor, Li Longji. He had been accustomed to a life of ease and ease, so he wasn't very familiar with war. For some reason, his fighting style had changed, becoming unfathomable.
It was impossible to continue north. That kind of cold would not be relieved by the change of season. Coupled with the cold of the late spring, one would die if one went.
If they wanted to head west, those high mountains would not be easy to cross, and even if they did, they would probably be met with fierce attacks from the Turks. They would not give the Great Tang an excuse to send a large army to pressure them.
There was no need to consider the south. That was the territory of the Tang army. The only place that could temporarily avoid the fire was the east. If they went down the mountain and ran to the coast, the fire could not reach the water.
After this consideration, the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Mansion began to carefully move toward the coast. Fortunately, the sea was still frozen where they were going, so the Tang ships could not get close.
Throwing away everything that was in their way and taking only clothes and food, the people of the Suanni tribe headed for the seaside. They no longer thought about taking down the Commander-In-Chief's Mansion in Bohai Sea, nor did they have any intention of wiping out the entire Tang army.
Li Xun, who had been staying by the seaside in the south, had been living quite comfortably for the past few days. Originally, he was worried that they wouldn't be able to win the war, but after seeing Zhang Xiaobao's follow-up plan, he knew what to do.
The hot air balloons on the fleet rose to avoid the smoke and were responsible for patrolling high in the sky.
"Your Highness, what do you think is so coincidental? Why do all the people in the hot air balloons on the fleet come from Yizhou? If it were people from Shuzhou who flew to such a high altitude, they would be frozen to death even if they were not scared to death. What a coincidence."
Li Xun did not see the plan in Li Xun's hands. It was not about the military, and there was very little about it. Most of it was about the construction after the war. It involved a lot of benefits, and Li Xun did not want others to know about it. Otherwise, he would not be able to benefit much.
Hearing Liu Jun's words, the team responsible for protecting Li Xun huddled close to Li Xun and rested. They had the same thought as Liu Jun, which was that this was a good idea. It just so happened that there were people in the fleet who were used to the cold weather.
Li Xun glanced at Liu Jun and curled his lips, "What coincidence? Do you think everyone is as stupid as you? Didn't you know it was cold when you sent the fleet here? It has already been prepared. No matter what the situation is, it will not be affected. Now, we don't need these 2,000 people. Go up the mountain and grab the things. Don't miss the roe deer, deer, and all kinds of game, including mushrooms and other mountain vegetables. "
Liu Jun wanted to see the plan in Li Xun's hands, but he knew that His Highness would never give him the chance, so he had to follow the order and arrange it.
When he came back, he worriedly advised, "Your Highness, should we get on the ship? If the people of the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Mansion also come to the coast and suddenly rush over from the north, Your Highness will be in danger."
"I'm just afraid that they won't rush over. It's better if they rush over. Xiao Bao and the others haven't seen if the new weapons they made are good. It's just right to use them on the enemy. The rest of the guards, don't be idle. Go and dig a hole for me. Think about how to avoid the explosion under your feet. Try to calculate the enemy's reaction. Go."
Li Xun gave another order. The guards didn't know what the Commandery Prince wanted to do, so they obeyed and really went to dig a hole.
Two days later, all the holes were dug. None of them were deep, only about half a foot. At this time, Li Xun asked someone to signal the fleet on the sea. The fleet immediately lowered a small boat. When they arrived, the guards saw many iron pancakes.
The people who delivered the iron pancakes were very careful when moving them, as if they could take people's lives at any time.
Liu Jun looked at them for a while. In the end, he still couldn't figure out what the iron pancakes could do. He asked Li Xun, "Your Highness, can those things kill the enemy?"
Li Xun had already moved some distance away from the boat. She worriedly watched as the iron pancakes were placed into the holes that had been dug. She nodded her head and introduced, "Those things are called landmines. Do you know about cannons? Cannons are used for active attack while landmines are used for passive defense. "
"So it's the same as cannonballs. One explosion will kill people?" Liu Jun also began to retreat. He knew the power of cannonballs.
"That's natural. After stepping on it, as long as you raise your foot, it will explode. There's also a trip mine and a hanging mine. The psychological deterrence is far greater than cannonballs. You must be careful. Don't go over after you bury it. Otherwise, even if you have several lives, it won't be enough to kill you."
Li Xun only knew about this kind of weapon. He had never seen it in detail, but when he introduced it to others, he seemed to know it very well.
Liu Jun didn't doubt Li Xun's words. He also didn't doubt the authenticity of the weapons sent by the Zhang Family and Wang Family. He pulled Li Xun back and hid, afraid that he would accidentally step on one. Even though he knew that the place where the landmines were buried was very far away from him.
A guard stood in front of Li Xun, his body faintly blocking that direction. He curiously asked, "Young Master, why did you ask them to catch all kinds of wild animals and collect mountain vegetables?"
"Of course it's to make money. In this mountain, Xiao Bao wrote in his letter that there are many kinds of resources, especially minerals. When the time comes, it won't be easy for us to occupy them. However, other resources won't be a problem. Animals will run. No matter how big the mountain fire is, it will start from one direction.
Most of the animals will run away. Some will run further west, and some will run to our surroundings. Xiao Bao and the others can't continue to pay. Otherwise, the imperial court will think that they want to stretch their hands too far. Sometimes, it will make people jealous. "
Li Xun had been with Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan for a long time. In addition to the teachings of his family, he understood that what the Zhang Family and Wang Family needed to do now was not to build up one place after another. What they needed to do now was to avoid making others unhappy. This "others" referred to his imperial uncle.
The guard nodded in agreement. "That's right. The Zhang Family and Wang Family have made enough money now, and the power they control is not small. If they still want to occupy a place everywhere, they don't know what's good for them. But how can they make money by catching animals?"
The other guards also had the same idea. Now, there was no one in Gongji Province who did not know about the Zhang Family and Wang Family. The members of the imperial family who had gone to various places knew about the sphere of influence of the Zhang Family and Wang Family. If the provincial governors who were in charge of a region did not know about the Zhang Family and Wang Family, they would really have seen a ghost.
The Zhang Family and Wang Family had been in the limelight for a long time. It was time to hide.
Li Xun understood that his imperial uncle could not do without the Zhang Family and Wang Family. As long as the two families acted appropriately from now on, they could still maintain a balance.
In particular, Xiao Bao's letter stated that in the future, when they expanded and occupied territories, the Zhang Family and Wang Family would not participate and would let others do it. In this way, more people would have too much power to cover up the Zhang Family and Wang Family.
More people would occupy the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Mansion and the Bohai Commander-In-Chief's Mansion. His imperial uncle had to find a way to maintain a balance. Compared to the Zhang Family and Wang Family, which were easier to control, the new territories that the Tang Empire occupied in the future would be more troublesome.
With one less worry in his heart, Li Xun's expression became more natural. He said to the people who still could not figure out why they had to catch so many wild animals and collect wild herbs.
"Can the wild animals here be seen south of the Yellow River? I think it's impossible, so we'll catch a few live ones and send them to the capital to raise. As for the rest, we'll kill them and directly make them into cans here. Then, we'll sell them to other places. A can of braised roe deer meat can be sold for ten strings of coins, and people will fight to buy it. "
"Why is that?" The army officer did not understand for a moment.
"Things are valuable when they are rare. What is identity? Being able to wear clothes that others can't wear and eat food that others can't eat is called identity. I think ten strings of coins for one is cheap. When the time comes, we'll definitely sell them at a higher price. If we entertain guests at home and can't take out a few cans of roe deer meat, it's shameful. "
Li Xun suddenly felt that he had become smart. Everyone else was a fool. No matter whether they were really stupid or pretending, at least he felt comfortable in his heart.
"So, all the animals here can be sold for a lot of money?" The army officer thought about it and was very excited. He wondered if he should catch a few more before leaving and show them off when he returned to the south of the Yellow River or even further south. It would be good even if he could let his family have a taste. This was a treasure. Many animals had never seen it before, let alone eaten it.
Li Xun nodded and said, "The money earned from this will be used to recruit people from other places. Don't think that a large part of the forest will be burned down. As long as the ashes are nurtured for a year, they will be able to grow food. After plowing and plowing, when Xiaobao and the rest deliver new food, they will be specially used to cultivate seeds."
"Seeds? New? Is there food that hasn't been seen before? "The army officer tried to guess what the new seeds looked like.
"Of course, if Xiao Bao says there will be, then there will be. Moreover, the output will be very high. Even if people don't like to eat it, it can be used to feed more animals. It can also be brewed into wine. After purification, it can be used as firewood."
Li Xun once again put the future matters on himself. He felt that he had participated and was also the organizer. Even if no one gave him credit, he thought that he could get a share of the credit.
Now the people around him were silent. They all thought about the future and whether what His Highness said was true.
*****
In Jili Province, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan no longer bothered to think about the situation in Blackwater's Commander-In-Chief's Mansion. The two people's energy was more focused on science and technology. Now they had written down all kinds of ideas and passed them to the craftsmen from all over the country.
It included all kinds of aspects. For some aspects, the two people understood more thoroughly and developed faster. For those that they didn't understand, they gave a general idea and let the craftsmen figure it out by themselves.
After meeting Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan, the craftsmen who didn't have a high status obviously improved a lot. In addition to being given official titles, the treatment they received was also incomparable to before.
According to their own abilities, they were evaluated. The higher the rank, the more salary they could receive every month. At most, they could receive 200 strings of coins a month.
Under the temptation of money and the promotion of official positions, the craftsmen worked very hard. If they were interested in a certain aspect, they would dive into it and study it. They wouldn't give up until they had some results.
The leaders in charge of various fields, according to Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan's request, had to gather together once every ten days to discuss their own achievements and areas that they didn't understand. They could get inspiration from other people's fields and cooperate with each other.
More Taoists were also invited. They had nothing to do, so they refined pills. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan didn't eat their pills, but they appreciated their persistence. They personally refined several kinds of pills for them. After using both fire and water methods, the Taoists saw a new world.
On this day, after reading the report on the progress of the industrial revolution, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan stayed in the room to discuss new things.
"There are still many Taoists from all over the country who haven't come. Think of a way to trick them. People like them are very useful if we use them well. They already have a lot of knowledge, but they lack a guide. We can't let them continue to pretend to be gods and ghosts. We have to get them into scientific research."
Zhang Xiaobao had lost weight recently. He was busy with the matters of the bank and managing the accounts at home. He also had to learn physics and chemistry from Wang Juan and guide the other craftsmen. In addition, he couldn't fall behind on his younger siblings' homework. He didn't have a regular schedule and lost a few pounds.
Wang Juan also didn't have it easy. She had to teach various theories to the craftsmen. Many theories required more theories to support and reason.
Just the calculation equations of chemistry and physics gave her a headache. It wasn't that she didn't know, but that the craftsmen didn't have a good foundation. She began to explain various symbols, but it involved a very important problem.
That was the Dao of Heaven. Many craftsmen were more rigid and insisted that the sky was round and the earth was round. In fact, the meridian line had already been measured. Although it wasn't so accurate, it showed that they already knew that the sky wasn't round and the earth was round.
Thinking of this, Wang Juan was very helpless. When she heard Zhang Xiaobao say that he wanted to recruit a large number of Taoists, she said worriedly, "If all the Taoists come, the local people will lose a spiritual pillar and will inevitably believe in Buddhism.
Speaking of Buddhism, Buddhism is very useful. It involves a philosophy, which has the same effect as Confucianism, Legalism, and so on. It can strengthen people's hearts, persuade people to do good, and have an effect on mental illness.
However, I am very opposed to this Buddhism. I don't see any other effect besides collecting money. Not all the people who believe in Buddhism are kind people, and not all the monks in the temple are compassionate. I am worried that Buddhism will rise again. "
Zhang Xiaobao frowned. He was really afraid that what Wang Juan said would happen. Once a religion was formed, there would naturally be people to perfect it. As long as there was a philosophy, it couldn't be completely eliminated.
Not to mention the ignorance of the people now, even in the era where he and Wang Juan lived, it was the same. Many corrupt officials took out a lot of money and sent it to the temple, thinking that they could get the protection of the Buddha Lord because of what they did.
The temple really accepted it and never asked where it came from. In the end, it became a profession.
There were also various black-hearted businessmen who would rather spend tens of millions of yuan to the temple for stability than spend millions of yuan to do something practical.
Of course, Taoism was the same. There were also various sects from foreign countries. There was no leader who really had no selfishness.
"Ah! It's very difficult to suppress. Although it's not easy to become a monk now, and there are various tests, so what if you pass the test? Buddhism was passed down from India, but the ones who really perfected it are actually us China people. That kind of sophistry makes people feel very helpless. I've experienced it more than once. "
Zhang Xiaobao became more and more depressed the more he thought about it. He rubbed his temples and complained.
"Then let's get Li Longji to destroy Buddhism again and return to the secular world." Wang Juan gave an idea.
"It's useless. Back then, the Four Olds were so powerful, but what happened in the end? Buddhism is in the human heart. As long as someone wants to use it, as long as someone still believes in it, it will never be destroyed.
Actually, the most important thing is the spiritual sustenance of a person. If everyone only believes in themselves and doesn't look for other spirits, then it's simple. But this is impossible, right? "
Zhang Xiaobao could guarantee that his heart wouldn't change, but he couldn't make everyone in the world think the same way as him.
Wang Juan also understood. "The reason why people don't believe in themselves is because many people can't summarize a set of systematic theories related to the spiritual aspect. Think of a way. Even if you can't destroy it, you have to limit it and suppress it. Keep a portion of it and use it as a tourist destination in the future.
In fact, many of the money earned by the temples back then wasn't all spent by the temples. My party still has its ways. Just like how there are always underworld gangs, if we really want to fight, we can get rid of them in an instant. What kind of money can we use to supplement the tax? I've decided to write a letter to Li Longji and ask him to deal with Buddhism. "
"Alright, we won't kill them, but we have to limit them as much as possible. For example, Buddhism has to pay taxes, and the land that belongs to each temple has to be rented. Do you think that you can live a comfortable life just because you can recite a few lines of scriptures?
Of course, we have to continue supporting those that we should support. For example, we have to make sure that they don't forget to add the imperial authority when they propagate their teachings. If a religion can't serve the ruler, then there's no need for it to exist. The ruler is too much of a failure. "
Zhang Xiaobao had also made up his mind to give them a sweet date after giving them a slap. Not only Buddhism, all the other sects in Great Tang had to be treated this way. They were not to believe in Tubo at all. Otherwise, it would be troublesome in the future.
*****
While Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were busy, Xiaobei and the others were not relaxed either. They were already officials in Jian 'an County, but they hadn't been appointed.
It wasn't that they didn't want to, but they didn't know how to.
Although they had learned a lot from their brothers and sisters, they were at a loss when it came to applying what they had learned.
When they were clamoring to be appointed, Zhang Xiaobao didn't stop them. He just asked them to take out a proposal according to their official position.
Xiaobei and the others were immediately stunned. Usually, when they saw their brothers and sisters doing things, they didn't take out any proposal. It was as if the two of them had come up with an idea long ago. They actually asked for a proposal.
Hence, Xiaobei and the others decided to learn more. They didn't want to learn from their brothers and sisters. They felt that it was too big and impractical.
Carrying their spring vacation homework in their backpacks, Xiaobei and the others formed a team and set off in the direction of Yiying County.
"Making a proposal is a very difficult thing to do. Cheer up, otherwise, we'll never be able to become an official." Xiaobei grabbed the straps of his backpack and walked in the middle of the team. He kept muttering. It was unknown whether he was telling others or encouraging himself.
They were looking for Craftsman Yan's younger brother and learning from him every day in the yamen. They wanted to learn the skills before the end of the holidays, make a proposal, and become an official. Of course, they had to finish their homework.
When they arrived at the yamen and began to participate in the daily matters, Xiaobei and the others realized that things weren't as simple as they thought. At first, they thought that there weren't many things to do in the yamen. The most interesting thing was to ask for cases.
If a citizen wanted to complain, they would beat the drum at the entrance of the yamen and be led in to ask about the case. Then, the bad guys would be punished and the good guys would be protected.
In the end, after five days, the little guys were dumbfounded. There were cases, but they weren't good or bad people. For example, there were two neighboring families. One family's fence was blown down by the wind, and the other family's chickens were crushed to death.
Normally, the family whose fence was blown down should compensate the family whose chickens were killed. However, the reason the fence was blown down by the wind was because the drainage ditch of the family whose chickens were crushed to death flowed past the fence. The flock of chickens kept digging under the fence.
"What is this?" Xiaobei, who wanted to be an impartial official, counted with his fingers but couldn't figure out how to judge this case. In the law, there were no specific rules in this area. If the case was judged according to the law, one side would definitely be at a disadvantage.
The chicken farmer could be judged to have destroyed the foundation of the neighbor's house, but the one who complained was the chicken farmer, not the family who crushed the chicken. If the person who fell down the fence harmed the neighbor's poultry, the chicken farmer wouldn't be convinced.
"Can we judge one family first, then the other? This way, one case will become two cases, and each family will be judged separately?" Xiaobei thought hard for a long time before asking Second Yan.
Second Yan shook his head and patiently explained to Xiaobei and the others, "Being a parent official doesn't mean that you can just figure out the case. What you need to do is to adjust the relationship between neighbors. The law is nothing more than human feelings. If everything is judged according to the law, then it's enough to have a person who is proficient in the law and has a special knife and pen."
"Then how should we judge?" Xiaobei humbly asked for advice.
Second Yan and Weiwei smiled and asked the two families below, "Li Si, your chickens were crushed to death. Do you want me to judge your neighbor, Li Fangcheng?"
"County Magistrate Yan, yes." Li Si, who was asked, glared at Li Fangcheng angrily and replied.
Second Yan then turned to Li Fangcheng, "Do you feel wronged that Li Si destroyed your fence?"
"That's right. Lord, you have to judge for me," Li Fangcheng said.
Second Yan nodded, "Then I will judge. Li Fangcheng, there is a ditch next to your fence. Did you not know about it? Why didn't you report it if you knew? Today, you crushed a chicken. Who knows, tomorrow, you might crush a neighbor's child. Many chickens don't return to the nest after laying eggs. There are children who go and pick them up. I think you are planning to crush Li Si's child one day. Do you admit to your crime? "
Li Fangcheng was dumbfounded when he heard this. It was just crushing a chicken. How did it become murder?
Second Yan turned to look at Li Si, "Li Si, don't you know that wherever the ditch passes, the foundation of the house will be unstable? You tried to frame someone's house. I think you want to cause your neighbor's house to collapse. Do you admit to your crime? "
Li Si was also frightened. Why did he become a homicide case when he came over to talk about the chicken's death?
"Guards, take these two into custody. After I finish writing the case, send it to the provincial middle school. Then, I will go to the capital and behead them after autumn." Second Yan's voice continued.
Xiaobei turned and nudged Xiaoyuan, "Is there such a thing? Do we need to behead them? "
Xiaoyuan thought hard and shook his head. He whispered, "No, he is making a judgment blindly."
Xiaobei and the others knew, but the two commoners below did not. They did not understand the laws of the Tang Empire. The most they knew was that a life for a life and a debt must be repaid.
Seeing that the death of a chicken would cost two lives, the two of them were afraid. Li Si was the first to speak, "Sir, I won't sue. I won't sue, okay? My chicken was just about to be killed for meat. I still have to thank Li Fangcheng. I will fix the ditch later. "
Li Fangcheng quickly followed, "Sir, I am willing to compensate for the chicken. I have long wanted to fix the fence, but I don't have the time. I will fix it later."
"That won't do. The two of you must have resentment in your hearts for coming here today. When the time comes, I will have to work hard on this case," Second Yan said with a straight face.
"Sir, we don't have resentment. We don't have resentment. Actually, the two of us are fine. I will go back and clean up the chicken, make two dishes, and drink with Brother Fangcheng."
Li Si promised. Li Fangcheng continued, "That's right. I will go and buy wine. Brother Li Si's chicken is delicious. Sir, I won't trouble you."
The two of them came to an agreement. They wiped their cold sweat and walked out of the yamen with a look of lingering fear.
Seeing the two of them leave, Second Yan chuckled and said to the nine children, "Did you see that? As long as there is no injury or death, as long as the loss is not too great, don't judge if you can. If you judge one of them, the other will definitely bear a grudge. If you judge both of them, it will not be easy for you to get along with your neighbors in the future. Who knows what will happen?
As an official, you have to judge the situation. It is better to let go of a quarrel than to make a case. Don't think that you can judge casually just because you have learned a lot of law. That kind of official is definitely not a good one. "
Xiaobei and the others were shocked. They nodded and finally understood that it was not easy to be an official. They decided to learn from him and become a good official after they learned.
Very soon, someone passed the message to Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan.
After reading the contents of the letter, Zhang Xiaobao smiled. "It seems that to be a bad official, you have to be more capable than a good official. Once you become a good official, you will be more impressive than an ordinary good official."
"Isn't that so? This is good too. We can let Xiaobei and the others learn from others since we can't teach them directly. Do you really intend to let them become officials in Jianan?"
Wang Juan was also very happy. It was indeed not easy to find such a good official. These two brothers were really capable. The elder brother was greedy for money and did research. At the very least, they could govern the place well and then be greedy.
She would rather have such an official than be an honest official who had nothing to do with the people. Thinking of the appointment that Xiaobei and the others got from Li Longji, Wang Juan asked Zhang Xiaobao again.
Zhang Xiaobao looked in the direction of Jianan and nodded. "Once they have learned enough, let them go. There are not many people there. It's fine to let them go there and play. Even if they have to fork out money to let the remaining people live a good life, I will still give it to them. There's no need to repay me."
"You can just spoil them."
"What do you mean by spoiling them? Let them experience more. It's better than learning from us. There are many experiences that need to be experienced by oneself."
Zhang Xiaobao shook his head and stopped thinking about his younger siblings. He picked up the map on the table and looked at it again. He asked Wang Juan to analyze where there were more mines.
*****
Half a month passed quickly. Xiaobei and the others had not finished their vacation and continued to learn from Yan Er.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were still waiting for the people they sent out to discover North America and return safely.
Li Xun ended his leisurely days. As the weather warmed up, the seawater gradually melted. He was a little emotional when the people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office did not attack. He wanted to take the initiative to attack.
Li Xun carefully looked at the map that was drawn up on the spot. Beside him, the military officer had a serious expression.
"They are now gathered at the coastal line. They know that I am here, but they don't come to attack. What do you think they are planning?"
Li Xun pointed at the map. That was where the people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office were. They had already determined the other party's location through the hot air balloon.
Liu Jun came closer and thought about it carefully before saying, "Could it be that he's recuperating from his injuries and is preparing to take us down in one fell swoop after the injured people have more or less recovered?"
"Recuperating? I don't think so. I suspect that they know that we have gunboats here and don't want to put themselves in a dangerous place. It seems that we need to let the gunboats leave. Pass down my order. Let the gunboats sail to a place where people can't see. The hot air balloon in the sky continues to rise. "
Li Xun thought about it and issued an order. Liu Jun's mouth moved. He wanted to persuade Li Xun not to put himself in a dangerous place, but in the end, he did not say anything. He also knew that Li Xun's temper was not easy to change. He could only wait for the people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office to attack and protect them.
As the fleet retreated, Li Xun also pretended to leave. He sent all the prey to the fleet, including wild vegetables and other things. Then, he set up camp and slowly retreated.
He was right. The reason why the people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office did not attack them was that they were afraid of being attacked by the gunboats in the sea. After the gunboats retreated, Li Xun also pretended to leave. He immediately reorganized his team and chased after Li Xun.
Li Xun had the hot air balloon responsible for reconnaissance. He found the situation early and took a detour to ambush them. When the people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office were about to enter the minefield, he suddenly rushed out.
However, not many people rushed out, only about 300 people. It was obvious that they were the kind of people who stayed to cover the rear.
The people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office were stunned at first. Seeing so few people, they ordered more than 2000 people to continue to charge towards the 300 people.
They did not know that there were deadly things buried underground. As soon as they entered the minefield, those who were not smart enough were blown up into the sky. Booming sounds were heard one after another.
Those who were stunned by the explosion thought that the gunboats were coming back. Therefore, they fled in all directions. Some ran back, some ran in other directions, and some even pretended to be dead on the ground.
Apart from the people running towards the back, who were fine, the people running in other directions stepped on the landmines one after another. Amidst the explosions, there was a heart-wrenching sound.
This completely shocked the people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office. They looked around blankly, hoping to find where the enemy was attacking so that they could escape in advance.
Li Xun saw the opportunity and ordered the others to bypass the minefield and attack the people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office. The gunboats in the sea also turned to the north and attacked the gathering place of the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office.
Due to the high mountains and dense forests, the hot air balloon, which could not play a big role, also began to gather and fly towards the camp of the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office.
All of a sudden, the people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office were in chaos. After all, a defeated army was different from an army that was ready to attack the enemy. When Li Xun ordered the troops to rush over, he sent a signal to the 2,000 people who were hiding in the mountains at the beginning to form an encirclement.
Not many people were killed by the landmines in the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Mansion. The main reason was that the effect was too shocking. They died inexplicably, and those who ran back were under a lot of psychological pressure. They directly messed up the formation of their own side.
When the enemies from three directions converged here, the people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office no longer had the courage to fight. They left some people to cover the retreat while the others ran further north with the old and the young, hoping that the Tang army would give up chasing them if they ran far enough.
"Go after them. We won't kill those who surrender." Li Xun shouted loudly. He wanted to take the lead but was protected by others. He also shouted along with Li Xun.
Those who stayed to cover the retreat and those who were hit by the mines surrendered first because they did not want to die. Li Xun left some people to tie them up and watch them while he continued to chase with the rest.
The people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office were unable to form a formation because of the chaos. Plus, there were the old and the young in the team, so they could not increase their running speed. The more they ran, the more anxious they became. The more they ran, the more tired they felt. Cries came from the team from time to time.
The old people who could not run gave up first, followed by the women and the children. The cries and shouts of those who were willing to stay resounded over the beach and the woods.
Li Xun did not chase fast. Every time he got close, he would slow down and watch the old people and the women. There were no children, who were all carried by adults.
The chase lasted for half a day. The people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office wanted to hide after a certain distance, but they could not hide from the hot air balloons flying in the sky. What was more, they thought that they had run out of the Tang army's sight, but in fact, they were still within the range of the Tang army's telescope.
Li Xun commanded his people to chase for another half an hour. Finally, he could not run anymore. The main reason was that he did not have to catch up with the enemy at one time. Without the thought of fighting to the death, people were easy to slack off.
"Stop, stop, don't chase, wait for them to run back. If they had run to the north earlier, I really wouldn't have been able to do anything. But who asked them to give me time to arrange? Rest, rest, then face the enemy. Bring the captured people here, the best thing to do is to attack their minds."
Li Xun gasped and put his hands on his waist. He really could not run anymore. Shen Jun had been left behind. Compared with Li Xun, Shen Jun was much worse. After all, Li Xun had received training from Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan.
In fact, the people from the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office could not run anymore, but they had to. If they did not run, they would lose their lives. When they found that the pursuers behind them were silent, they cautiously stopped and temporarily reorganized.
Many adults were listless, while the children were tired of crying, resting or sitting on the ground in a daze, waiting for the arrival of an unknown fate.
A large number of things were thrown away in the process of running away. Only a few people still had jerky and pancakes. They sent people to look back and found that the Tang army really did not chase, so they began to gather up the edible things to fill their stomachs.
Eating a mouthful of dry things and finding unmelted snow as water, the people of the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office had a very difficult time eating.
After they finished eating, they felt even more tired after running for so long. Suddenly, they heard the sound of killing coming from the north.
They struggled to stand up and looked at the road that should have been their escape route. They saw a dense crowd of figures on the hillside in the north.
The monarch of the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office looked at the less than 10,000 people around him and then looked at the thousands of vigorous Tang soldiers in front of him. He could not summon up any fighting spirit for a while.
When the other party was less than a hundred steps away from them, they all had helpless expressions on their faces.
"Where did you run from?" The monarch of the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office wanted to know why he died. He knew that he could not survive in any case. After all, he had sent people to plot against Li Longji.
A person stood out from the opposite side and shouted at the top of his voice, "Run, why don't you run again? Do you think you know to run north and we don't know to ambush you first? Well, I'll let you know what's going on.
When our Highness retreated, he began to order people to take boats to the ice over there. At that time, the ice had not melted. He sent us to go around the ice to your back. We thought you could launch an attack a few days ago, but we didn't expect you to wait for so long. We almost ate up all the food we brought.
Now you are surrounded on all sides and have been on the road for such a long time. I wonder if you still have the strength to fight. Surrender. Our Highness said that those who surrender will not be killed. Except for you, the leader, everyone else will be spared. "
Hearing his words, the people of the Blackwater Commander-In-Chief's Office finally understood what was going on. For a moment, they regretted. If they had not been worried that they would freeze to death in the north, they would not have been surrounded today.
As the other side said, they had no strength to fight. They all looked at the monarch and wanted him to make a decision. If they fought, they were not afraid to fight to the last person.
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