The three hundred men lying in ambush on both sides of the valley and the Angi guards transporting the goods were comrades who had fought side by side. But now, they had no choice but to draw their swords against each other. They were the lowest level of ordinary people. They had no choice but to obey the orders of their House Master. Even if they were good friends, they had no choice but to fight to the death.
After a fierce battle, there were seventy to eighty corpses lying on the ground. Most of them were from the Angi House while the Deqin and Saye Houses were in the minority. Some of the Angi House guards saw that they couldn't protect the goods and threw away their weapons to escape.
Because this was the territory of the Pyu Imperial Court, the guards of the two houses didn't dare to stay for too long after the robbery. They quickly left with the goods and disappeared into the valley.
After they were safe, the leaders of the two houses opened up all the goods. But they didn't find any precious gems. They were all local specialties and ordinary gems. They weren't particularly valuable. This made the leaders of the two houses very angry. The Angi House had already mined many precious gems. But they didn't bring any with them. This made them very disappointed.
"Search all the corpses. They might be hidden on the corpses."
A guard said loudly.
Everyone began to search the corpses but they still didn't find anything.
"A dozen people ran away just now. They must have hidden the gems on them. If I knew, I wouldn't have let them go."
A guard said regretfully.
In order to reduce casualties, they didn't stop the rest of the Angi House guards when they saw them running away. They only wanted the goods and didn't care about the lives of the guards. In the end, they didn't find any precious gems. So they guessed that the gems were on the guards who ran away.
Of course, these precious gems were not with the guards who had escaped, but with the spies. There were only one or two spies, and they disguised themselves as passersby. The gems were hidden in the interlayer of their clothes. Even if they accidentally encountered bandits, it would not be easy for them to be discovered. Bandits were not interested in poor people who did not have money.
The dozen or so guards of the Angi Family who had escaped quickly returned to the Stone City of the Angi Family and told the news of the goods being robbed to the master of the Angi Family.
In one day, three caravans were robbed and lost a lot of goods. This made the Angi family's patriarch very angry. The three caravans had three hundred to four hundred people, and more than two hundred people were killed or injured. This was a very heavy loss.
Fortunately, the spies who were responsible for escorting the precious gems were not in trouble. These spies were the hidden members of the Angi family. Although these people were surnamed Angi, they all hid their original surnames and disguised themselves as other surnames. Except for the Angi family's head and three to five core members, the rest of the Angi family did not know about the existence of these spies, so they could ensure the safety of these spies to the greatest extent.
"Fortunately, the most valuable gems are with the spies. Otherwise, we would have suffered a huge loss this time."
The head of the Angi family looked at an elder beside him and spoke.
The elder's face was ashen. This time, three caravans had been ambushed, and his son had also died in this accident. He only had one son, so one could imagine the pain in his heart.
"Patriarch, it seems that our previous worries have come true. Someone is targeting our Ang Family."
The elder said with a pained face.
The head of the Angi family frowned and said, "This is all caused by the gem mine. Our gem mine can produce precious gems. The value of this treasure is too great. It's impossible for others not to be tempted. If it weren't for our good relationship with the Tang dynasty, maybe our nest would have been breached. Alas!"
Although they had obtained a huge fortune, the head of the Angi family was also full of worries. Gems were good things, but they also needed to be alive to spend them. If they could not keep their lives, what was the use of having so much money? Judging from the current situation, although their family had obtained the best gem mine, they had also been targeted by countless greedy people. This time, they had lost hundreds of people, and the next time, the loss might be higher. The population of the Angi family was limited, so how could they afford such a loss?
"Patriarch, we can't go on like this. We have to think of a way. We can't let this kind of thing happen again."
The elder said sadly.
In the previous caravans, there were 50 people escorting them. For safety, there were more than 100 people this time. But even so, something still happened. Even if the number of escorts was increased to 300 or 500 next time, the effect would be the same. Therefore, this method could not work. But if the Angi family wanted to develop, trade was necessary. Without trade, they could not earn a lot of money. Without money, they could not recruit people on a large scale. If the family could not develop, the gems they owned would belong to others sooner or later.
"Yes! We have to think of a way. We have to think of a way! "
The head of the Angi family paced nervously in the room, looking very nervous.
"By the way, we gave half of the gems to the Tang dynasty. Did they transport these gems away?"
The head of the Angi family suddenly asked.
"No! They seem to have put the gems in their camp and sealed them in wooden boxes. "
The elder said.
"There are so many precious gems. They can't keep them in their camp all the time! They have to be transported away. It's better for us to hitch a ride and follow the Tang dynasty in the future. We can transport the gems to the Tang dynasty and sell them. I heard that Chang 'an is far more prosperous than here. We should be able to make more profits. "
The head of the Angi family said.
The elder frowned and said, "In that case, we don't have to worry about our safety. But how can the Tang dynasty protect us for free? I'm afraid they have to give us a lot of benefits!"
The head of the Angi family nodded and said, "Of course. As for how much benefits we have to give them, we have to negotiate with them. As long as they don't ask for too much, everything will be easy. I think they are quite easy to talk to and won't make things difficult for us. Of course, we can't go too far."
The elder nodded to show his approval.
"By the way, withdraw all the people recently. Don't let others take advantage of us. In addition, send more people to all the shops in the family. Tell all the family members to pay attention to safety and don't leave the street easily. The shops should be well defended. I'm afraid that someone will do something desperate."
The head of the Angi family said.
Since the caravan could be ambushed, the shops of the Angi family must have been exposed. It was also very likely that these guys who refused to give up would go to the shops of the Angi family in a fit of anger if they couldn't get the precious gems they wanted. Although it was harmful to others without benefiting themselves, it was entirely possible for a crazy person to do such a thing.
The elder nodded and left with a sad face. The head of the Angi family asked people to prepare gifts. He was going to visit Ang Lee again and put forward some of his ideas. If they could reach an agreement, the situation of the Angi family would be much better.
In the Deqin family's secret chamber, the Deqin family's patriarch's expression was somewhat ugly. He had spent so much effort, but in the end, he only obtained some ordinary goods. The value of these goods wasn't enough to offset the loss of manpower, so he was naturally very dissatisfied. Of course, the Angi family's losses were even greater. They had lost more manpower and goods, but the Deqin family's patriarch didn't think so. What he wanted were precious gems. As long as he didn't get these gems, he wouldn't be satisfied. In the beginning, he even suspected that his subordinates had embezzled the gems. After asking around, he realized that he had wronged them.
"I really didn't expect that old man Angi still had a trick up his sleeve. He actually hid the most precious gems. Hmph, he added so many people. If he doesn't sell the gems as soon as possible, how can he feed so many people? I don't believe that he can hide the gems at home all the time."
The head of the Deqin family roared angrily.
An elder said, "Patriarch, from the situation we have obtained, the precious gems of the Angi family have been successfully transported to the shop. The fine and soft materials obtained have also been transported back. However, there is no clue as to the specific transportation route for the time being. We are investigating it closely."
The head of the Deqin family frowned and said, "What the hell? Our people have infiltrated the Angi family for many years. We have a clear understanding of the Angi family's situation. How could such a thing happen? It seems that we have underestimated Angi's old man."
"Patriarch, you don't have to worry. We will definitely find out. If it doesn't work, we will swallow one of the shops of the Angi family. As long as we capture everyone in the shop alive, we will naturally be able to interrogate them."
The elder said.
The head of the Deqin family shook his head and said, "Wishful thinking. How can this matter be so easy? These shops are on the streets of the big cities. These cities are not our territory. We can't deploy too many people. Their shops have already been prepared. I'm afraid it will be very difficult for us to succeed. Don't worry, take your time! As long as we investigate carefully, we will definitely be able to find a flaw. "
"Patriarch is right. I will arrange it now."
The elder of the Deqin family said.
At the same time, in the secret chamber of the Sayer family, the head of the Sayer family was also very angry. They had mobilized so many people and even lost five or six of their family members. In the end, they did not obtain the precious gems they wanted. This made them very disappointed. They felt that their efforts were in vain. He even suspected that the people of the Deqin family had secretly hidden the gems they found.
Of course, the Patriarchs of the other four families were the same. They didn't get the precious gems they wanted, they only got some ordinary goods. Compared to their own losses, these gains were too little. The only thing that made them feel better was that the Angi family had suffered heavy losses. This made them feel a little better. Everyone hated the rich, and the Patriarchs of these small forces were no exception. They didn't get any benefits from the Angi family, so naturally, they were very angry. They made the Angi family suffer heavy losses, so naturally, they felt a little better.
After leaving the secret chamber, the head of Angi Clan didn't go directly to Li An's residence. Instead, he went to the study. Behind the cabinet in the study, there was a secret chamber. There was a secret passage under the secret chamber. Inside the secret passage, there was a treasure room where a large number of precious gems were stored. On the other side of this treasure room, there was a long secret passage, which led directly to an inconspicuous house in the city. There were only two spies of Angi Clan living in this house. They took away the precious gems from the treasure room and then stealthily went to the store of Angi Clan. They put the gems in the store as guests and then took the gems back to the treasure room. Because they were well hidden, very few people knew about their existence. Therefore, these spies had never been found out by outsiders. Even many elders of Angi Clan didn't know about the existence of these spies. Only the head of Angi Clan and the closest people knew about them. In addition, the shopkeeper only knew about their identities, but didn't know where they lived. That was to say, he didn't know about the secret passage and the treasure room. Therefore, these spies had never been found out by outsiders. Even many elders of Angi Clan didn't know about the existence of these spies.
After choosing several precious gems in the treasure room, the head of the Angi family stepped out of the treasure room. Under the protection of more than ten family elites, he went to Ang Lee's residence to discuss cooperation with Ang Lee.
Since he took the initiative to talk about cooperation, he naturally had to show his sincerity. Therefore, he took out a few precious gems from his collection and gave them to Li An first. Then, he had the nerve to ask for a meeting. It was like visiting relatives in the modern world. He couldn't go empty-handed! He had to buy some small gifts first before he had the nerve to visit his relatives.
"Assistant Minister Li, the head of the Angi family has sent you some gems."
Chen Long smiled and handed a pair of cat's eye stones to Ang Lee.
Ang Lee said with a smile, "This old guy is quite sensible. He knows that he needs to give some benefits when asking for help."
"Assistant Minister Li, this old fellow is at his wit's end. His family has lost two to three hundred people in a single day, and all their goods have been robbed. It's obvious that they're being targeted. Are we really going to help them? We can't do it without enough benefits. "
Chen Long said.
Ang Lee said with a smile, "Don't worry! This old guy is very shrewd. Since he needs our help, he will definitely give us enough benefits. Otherwise, he should know that we won't help him. "
After the head of the Angi family came in, he looked at Ang Lee very nervously. He didn't even dare to breathe loudly for fear that he would do something wrong and make Ang Lee unhappy.
"One who is unaccountably solicitous is hiding evil intentions. Speak! What's the matter? "
Ang Lee said bluntly.
The head of the Angi family said nervously, "I have a proposal. It's like this …"
The old guy told Ang Lee his idea. His meaning was very clear. He wanted to rent a shop in Chang 'an to do business, but the way back was very dangerous. He wanted to go with the army of the Tang dynasty. Anyway, the army of the Tang dynasty had obtained half of the precious gems. They couldn't keep them in the stone city of the Angi family. Of course, they had to ship them away. There were too few rich people here. How could they compare with the nobles in Chang 'an City? Only by shipping these gems to Chang' an City could they obtain the greatest benefits. This was obvious. The master of the Angi family was quite smart. He understood this very well and planned to expand his business to Chang 'an City.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
