The two hundred strong men of the Jiang Clan were actually tricked by the clan leader. They were asked to prepare sufficient tools to pave the way and gather in Stone City. As for what they were going to do, the clan leader didn't tell them. He just asked them to make sufficient preparations as soon as possible and didn't allow them to reveal their whereabouts. They weren't even allowed to tell their family members so that their family members wouldn't know where they were going.
Because they were asked to prepare tools to pave the way, these strong clansmen all thought that they were going to build a mountain road or plank road on some mountain. But this was a good thing. Why did they have to be so secretive? They didn't understand this at all. After arriving at Stone City, they saw an outsider strutting around in front of the Grand Patriarch. They didn't understand how an outsider could be so arrogant.
These strong clansmen with ropes, axes, hammers, and chisels were all talking to each other about what they were going to do next. Were they going to pave the road? But why did they have to be so secretive? The sky was about to darken. There was no need to pave the road at night! Wasn't it good to pave the road in the middle of the day?
"Did the clan leader ask us to come so late to pave the road? But why at night? Isn't it good to pave the road in the middle of the day?"
"Pave the road? Who said they were going to pave the road? How do you know they are going to pave the road? "
"What else can we pave the road for? Look at the tools we have on us. Aren't they just tools to pave the road?"
"Maybe the road is broken somewhere and they want us to pave it overnight. That way, it won't delay the traffic during the day."
"I think they gathered us here temporarily. Let's eat, drink, and rest for the night. They will pave the road in the morning tomorrow. Who would pave the road in the middle of the night?"
"It might not be pave the road. The tools we have prepared can be used for many other things besides pave the road. They can pave the road, mine stones, and cut down trees! "
"Pave the road? That's a wicked death. We can't do that."
"It's possible to mine stones. The Stone City of the main village hasn't been repaired for many years. It's time to get some new stones."
"There's no need to gather people in the middle of the night to pave the main village! Why are they being so secretive? They can't even tell their families. "
"That's right! No matter what they are going to do, they can't not tell their families! There's no need to hide the main village! "
"Yeah! Today's matter seems quite strange. Not only did they gather everyone in the middle of the night, but they also didn't let the family know what they were going to do. They must be going to do something secret! "
"Did you see that? There's an outsider beside the Grand Patriarch. One look and I can tell that he's not from our Jiang Clan. It seems that the reason why we've gathered so late is related to this outsider. "
"An outsider actually dares to sit on the same level as our Great Clan Leader? Could he be someone sent by the Imperial Court?"
"It doesn't matter. Whatever the Patriarch wants us to do, we'll do it."
A group of able-bodied clansmen were having a heated discussion. These were all young and strong men. They seemed to have an inexhaustible amount of energy and stamina. When they were chatting, they were very passionate.
"Brother Duan, did you see that? These are the elites of our Jiang Clan. Two hundred of them are here. "
The Grand Patriarch said.
Duan Jianhan nodded with satisfaction and said, "Good, they're all good. I'm relieved to see them. It's getting dark now. We can set off after a short rest."
The Grand Patriarch nodded and said, "Brother Duan is right. We'll have to trouble Brother Duan later. I'll let the Fourth Elder assist you."
Because the Grand Patriarch was too old, he definitely wouldn't go personally. However, if Duan Jianhan were to lead the team, these young clansmen would not be convinced. Therefore, he let the Fourth Elder lead the team temporarily. The Fourth Elder was only fifty years old. He wasn't very old and his body was quite good. He was completely capable of walking on the mountain road. With the Fourth Elder around, if there were any problems, it would be easy to deal with them in time.
Ang Lee's team moved very slowly. Because of the large number of transport vehicles, the road wasn't suitable for transport vehicles. Therefore, it was impossible for them to move faster.
At dusk, Ang Lee's team hadn't reached the Jiang Clan's Stone City. They were still a dozen miles away from the Stone City, but they could already see the distant Stone City through the binoculars.
The team was exhausted. The horses pulling the carriages were also very tired. Ang Lee ordered the team to stop and prepare to set up camp. If the team was small, they could stay in the Stone City for a night. However, there were too many people. If they entered the Stone City, it would seriously affect the order there. Moreover, if they were rejected, they would lose face.
After the team stopped, the soldiers began to prepare to set up the tents. They went to the nearby river to get water. They also picked up dried branches nearby and prepared to cook.
The scenery here was quite good. At dusk, it wasn't cold or hot. A very comfortable breeze blew from the sky and blew the fragrance of flowers not far away.
There were a lot of flowers here. Although most of them were wild flowers, the smell was quite attractive. It was said that wild flowers were more fragrant than domestic flowers. It seemed that this was not a lie. Most of these wild flowers were very small, but the smell was very fragrant. It was a sweet smell that made people feel very comfortable.
It was said that living in the mountains could make people live longer. This was true. The air quality in the mountains was the best. Breathing the fresh and sweet air every day would be of great benefit to the body. Therefore, people who lived in the mountains were most likely to live a long life. For example, among the patriarchs of the Jiang Clan, the oldest was almost eighty years old. In the Tang dynasty, it was very difficult for a person to live to seventy or eighty years old. It was very good for most people to live to fifty or sixty years old. Many people could only live to thirty years old. Even the emperors who lived in the palace could only live to twenty or thirty years old. There were countless people who died before they grew up.
On the contrary, people who lived in the mountains would live very long lives. In many mountains with good scenery, there would be many people who lived to seventy or eighty years old.
Good mountains and good water were the most nourishing. The importance of green mountains and clear water was far more important than gold and silver. This was the main reason why people in the mountains lived longer. Although the emperors in the palace had a high status, the environment in the palace could not be compared with that in the mountains. The emperors who lived in the palace often lived shorter lives than the people in the mountains.
The more people liked to enjoy life, the shorter their life expectancy. The more the emperors enjoyed life, the earlier they would die. Living in the mountains not only made the air sweet and the water good, but also forced people to exercise. The road in the mountains was not very good, so people had to climb the mountain often. Climbing the mountain itself was a very good way to exercise the body. The exercise effect of climbing the mountain was better than going to the gym. People who lived in the mountains all day generally had very good physical fitness. They would not get sick at the slightest wind or grass. They had a very strong physique.
The smoke from the chimneys in Stone City quickly floated up. Ang Lee had just prepared some firewood. After all, there were too many people. He needed enough firewood, and this would take a long time to prepare.
Ang Lee looked through his binoculars and found that there were hundreds of smoke from the chimneys in Stone City. Because there were too many of them, it was impossible to count them normally. It could only be said that there were a lot of smoke. This was enough to show that there were a lot of people living in Stone City. There were at least a thousand people.
The Jiang Clan in Stone City was indeed cooking. Because they were all families, each family cooked their own food, which caused a lot of smoke. The people here were very simple, but they did not like to trouble others. They all lived small lives. This way, they could reduce a lot of conflicts. When big families gathered together to eat, in theory, they could save a lot of firewood and be more economical. However, this would cause too many conflicts and raise too many lazy people. Since they were all eating together, there would be no motivation to work.
The big pot of rice in the future was the best example. Everyone ate from the same pot. It was the same no matter how much they worked. So, why would they work hard? Why not be lazy? If everyone was lazy, the whole group would be wasted. Slowly, no one would be able to eat, and everyone would starve.
This was not the most terrible thing. What was more terrible was the imbalance caused by favoritism. When everyone worked together, there would be some people who worked more and some who worked less. There would be a lot of unfairness, and those who worked more would be unhappy. When it came to eating, those who worked less might get more food, which would make those who worked more unhappy. In short, the big pot of rice would cause a lot of problems.
The Jiang Clan did a very good job. Apart from building roads and bridges together, everyone worked as a family unit. Although they kept in touch with each other, they basically did their own things. No one would rely on anyone else, which ensured the efficiency of work.
At this moment, the Clan Leader's family was the first to cook. They stuffed steamed buns into the hands of every strong man, two steamed buns each. This was not for them to eat now, but for them to leave immediately. They would eat the buns as they walked, so that they could save time and arrive at the predetermined location in the middle of the night.
"Everyone, tonight, Brother Duan and I will lead you to carry out a mission. This mission is confidential, and no one is allowed to spread it. Absolutely not."
The Fourth Clan Leader said very seriously.
"Fourth Clan Leader, what are we going to do? Why do we have to be so secretive? "
"Fourth Clan Leader, this has never happened before. Why do we have to be so secretive?"
"Are we going to war with the Ge and Lu Clans again? Are we going to war with these things? "
"Fourth Clan Leader, what is going on? Tell us so that we can have a better idea!"
Several clansmen asked.
The Fourth Clan Leader said, "Don't ask so many questions. This is a joint decision made by all the Clan Leaders. It's for the benefit of the Jiang Clan. Don't ask any more questions. Let's go!"
After that, he urged everyone to hurry up and go to the mountain road under the Ge Clan's jurisdiction.
Duan Jianhan also set off with a few confidants. They also prepared some tools and clothes that could represent the identity of the Lu Clan. They were going to shift the blame to the Lu Clan and disturb the peaceful environment here.
A team of two hundred people could be considered mighty. In the dim light of dusk, they could not be seen clearly from a few miles away. However, Ang Lee had binoculars, so he easily found the team that was going out.
"What are these people going to do in the middle of the night? They seem to be carrying tools."
Ang Lee said.
Chen Long also saw them and said, "Assistant Minister Li, I'll take a few people and follow them."
"Well, take a few more people and follow them quietly. Don't let them find out."
Ang Lee warned.
Chen Long nodded and said, "We have binoculars. We can follow them from afar. They can't see us, so we won't be found out."
Because the behavior of these Jiang Clan members was too strange, they had to go and see what was going on. Since they were already here, they had to be interested in everything here. They absolutely couldn't let go of any strange phenomenon.
The speed of the Jiang Clan was very fast. These were all young and strong men. They usually climbed up and down the mountain, so their physical fitness was very good. The four clan leaders and Duan Jianhan were riding horses, so they wouldn't slow down the speed of the group.
Although they moved very fast, Chen Long's team was not slow either. These soldiers had been patrolling for many years, so their physical strength should be about the same as the strong men in the mountains. These men carried a lot of tools and items, while Chen Long's team was light. They did not carry as many items as the strong men. Naturally, they would not be at a disadvantage in terms of speed. They followed behind without any pressure.
However, Chen Long did not expect the team to move so far. They walked for more than twenty miles. Fortunately, they prepared two groups of people. One group would follow on foot in front, and the other group would ride horses three hundred meters behind. This way, when they retreated, they could leave quickly. If there was anything they needed to inform Ang Lee, they could also quickly inform him on horseback.
"These guys are really good at running. They have already walked for more than twenty miles!"
Chen Long felt a little tired. He thought it was a good job, but he did not expect it to be so tiring. Who would have thought that these guys would walk so far? Moreover, it was a rugged mountain road. If they continued to walk, Chen Long would not be able to keep following.
"They won't keep walking, right? If so, we can keep following them! "
A soldier said.
"No, they won't keep walking. They didn't prepare food and tents for a long journey. It must be a short journey. Everyone, hold on a little longer. Let's see what these people are doing sneakily."
Chen Long said.
He could tell from the attire of these people that they were not going to travel far. A team like theirs that carried a lot of supplies was a real long journey.
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