When the convoy left Gyeonggi-do, Luo Weiran couldn't help sighing when he saw the imperial army guarding the official road. Now it is easier for people in Gyeonggi Province to go out, and they can let them in with some money. If they want to come in, unless they are people sent by the imperial court to contact them or messengers who convey military information, no one can get in. All the official roads connected to the outside of Gyeonggi-do were blocked. It was said that it was to arrest the Mongolian and Yuan spies who had mixed into Gyeonggi-do, but in fact it was to prevent the news of the collapse outside from spreading in Gyeonggi-do.
Now that the emperor is not in the court and the crown prince is young, once the Gyeonggi Province becomes chaotic, the situation may be difficult to control.
"Is that how it came out?"
Luo Weiran said with some disappointment: "I don't know how much wealth Sanjinhou left Gyeonggi-do, it was so easy and simple."
Wu Yiyi smiled and said: "I'm not a wanted criminal by the court. Why can't I come out without a portrait? Few people in the court have time to think about me. First, they must be busy dispatching troops to meet the emperor. The second is to deceive the people and block the news, and the third is to make preparations for the emperor to pass away and the crown prince to succeed immediately, at this time, who has the heart to think about other things."
"The prince succeeds to the throne..."
Luo Weiran said: "This throne, in fact, it doesn't matter if it doesn't succeed. I went out a while ago and heard that four governors have announced that they will no longer accept the imperial court's restraint and no longer recognize the imperial court's decrees. The reason is that they suspect that the crown prince has already The reason for being kidnapped by Xu Xiaogong and others is reasonable."
"nine."
Wu Yidao corrected the number Luo Weiran said: "I just got the news yesterday that there are six in the south of the Yangtze River, two in the southeast, and one in the northeast. That's not counting three in the northwest and four in the southwest. Twenty-eight rivers and mountains in the Sui Dynasty, More than half of the people who are not subject to imperial orders... The roads in the Northeast are still stable, but it will be soon. Don't forget that there is still a prince in the Northeast who has not been very reconciled. The Northeast will not survive either."
"In addition, the generals of the Six Guards in the south of the Yangtze River elected Pang Ba as the leader and announced the establishment of the National Defense Army. They have already issued a statement saying that they want to protect the country against rebellion and assist the prince. Even the emperor directly omitted it. It's just that the rebels they want to fight The thieves are not Southwest Luo Yao, nor Northwest Gaokaitai Wang Yiqu, but Xu Xiaogong and Liu Enjing from Chang'an City."
Luo Weiran drank the wine in the glass, with a sad look in his eyes, "I never imagined that I would see such a powerful empire fall apart. I thought that the Sui Dynasty would continue to prosper, and another A hundred years, two hundred years, three hundred years, or even a thousand years."
"I didn't think about it either."
Wu Yiyi said indifferently: "But sometimes you have to think about what you should think about. Maybe you will think why I didn't find it difficult at all because I changed so quickly. Preparations for killing. From the day I made it possible for Tong Tian Xing to actually do it, I knew that the emperor would kill me sooner or later. And just because I have Tong Tian Xing, I am better than others in many things. I knew it earlier, and to be honest, it was earlier than you, the commander of the Ouchi Guards Department, might have known."
Luo Weiran nodded, he did not deny this.
He had never underestimated the ability of a businessman, let alone a businessman like Wu Yidao.
"I just didn't expect that you would choose him in the end."
Luo Weiran said: "In any case, it doesn't seem very wise to put your wealth on him. This world is in chaos, there will be countless heroes, and people with deep roots can be found everywhere. Why do you choose? A guy with such a shallow foundation? And how do you know that he will definitely go on this path?"
Wu Yiyi smiled: "Ever since he bought the dilapidated yard in Chang'an City and turned it into a workshop, I knew that he would go on this road sooner or later. Maybe he was just worried when he built the workshop , but there is no doubt that he did not prepare late, and prepared more than anyone else."
"What does this have to do with that tailor's workshop?"
Luo Weiran asked.
"The relationship is too big."
Wu Yidao took out a long wooden box from behind and handed it to Luo Weiran, about one meter long. Luo Weiran reached out to take it, opened it and looked with surprise in his eyes: "What is this?"
Wu Yidao took out a short gun from his cuff and put it on the table, saying: "When he saw this thing for the first time in Prince Yi's mansion, he was moved. But later he was sent to Jiangnan by the emperor, so He gave a piece of this thing to my daughter Yinyu, and asked Yinyu to bring it back to the capital. Before that, he asked me to let the merchants in Dongchu invite a few craftsmen who could make this thing from the other side of the sea, and recruited many Apprentice. The workshop in Chang’an City is only for making clothes on the surface, but it is actually studying how to improve this thing.”
"The fact that he let Hongxiu Zhao put on beautiful clothes at the expedition ceremony with such fanfare is not because he thinks that making clothes can make a lot of money, but just to deceive people. This trick is so beautiful that even the emperor has no doubts. This paragraph For a long time, the workshop has been rushing to make long guns, which are more powerful than short guns and have a longer range, but the output is limited, and all the things I need are from the merchants of Eastern Chu. I bought it, so there are not many, it can only equip a few hundred people. But... I have moved the workshop to Huangyang Road, and it will not take long for production to resume."
Luo Weiran was taken aback, looked at the long gun in his hand and muttered: "He started preparing to rebel so early?"
"No."
Wu Yiyi said lightly: "As I said just now, when he first prepared this thing, he didn't necessarily prepare it for rebellion, but because he was worried about the future. He was not sure how it would be used, but he knew it must be He will use it. That guy... but he is an outlier who always prepares for the future wherever he goes, he asked someone to make two sets of glasses in Yongzhou, one pair was given to Pei Yan and the other was dedicated to the emperor."
"Then he sent the craftsmen who can make glasses to the workshop in Chang'an City, and then started to make clairvoyance... and the two pairs of glasses dedicated to the emperor and Pei Yan were just his way of concealing the eyes. You know such a pair How much do glasses sell in Chang’an City? Three hundred taels of silver for a pair and you are not allowed to bargain! Both the emperor and Pei Yan thought he was just greedy for money, and they offered two pairs of glasses first to ventilate the emperor and Pei Yan. The purpose of clairvoyance."
Luo Weiran was stunned for a long time, then heaved a long sigh: "He really is a different kind..."
"More than that."
Wu Yiyi said with a smile: "He declared it to the outside world from the very beginning. He discussed with Aunt Xi that the money earned from the clothing business would be shared equally between Hongxiu Zhao and him. In this way, all the money accounts would go to Hong Xiu Zhao's side. And Hongxiu Zhao secretly transferred all the money outside of Gyeonggi Province, if I hadn't gone to find Mrs. Xi, I would have hidden it from me."
Luo Weiran was silent for a while, and then said seriously: "He's not an alien, he's a pervert!"
Wu Yidao nodded: "That's right... That's why I chose him. I like such a pervert who can look far behind. What's more, I have a daughter... You should know that I have always been able to do anything with Yinyu." No. She fell in love with that idiot, so how can I help others and end up fighting with that idiot on the battlefield?"
Luo Weiran was stunned for a moment, then laughed loudly: "Yes, after all, this is the point."
…
…
northwest
Hexi Road
After another day of fighting, the corpses on the west bank of Luoshui were covered with a thick layer, and the corpses became denser from one hundred and fifty steps away from the river, and the color of the earth could no longer be seen when they reached the river. The bloody water slowly flowed under the corpse, and finally merged into the big river. The water about two meters wide beside the river was red, and it did not return to its original color for a long time.
The fierce red battle flag was thrown on the ground, and it was covered with holes pierced by feathered arrows.
A few crows flew down from a distant tree, pecking at the dead man's eyes.
A few hundred meters away from the shore, the soldiers who retreated from the last charge today supported each other and walked back. They seemed to have no strength to walk, and everyone looked expressionless, not even rejoicing for the rest of their lives after the catastrophe. Because they all know that death may just be one day sooner or later.
The rebel navy blocked the river, and the archers standing on the big boat could easily cover the river bank, but they could only rush forward against the rain of arrows, and then fell to the ground without accident. The pontoon bridge built at the beginning has long been smashed by the navy's big ship, and it is becoming more and more unrealistic to cross the river. Only once, about a thousand warriors familiar with water swam to the opposite bank, trying to snatch some centipede clippers back but were discovered by the rebels. Without support, the team of more than a thousand people persisted for two hours. It was not until dawn that the last person fell.
Before they set off, the emperor walked up to them tremblingly and promised himself that he would not abandon them. However, when they were fighting alone on the east bank, the comrades on the west bank could only watch helplessly but were unable to rescue them. Soldiers on the west bank are crying, soldiers on the east bank are bleeding.
The reason why they didn't surrender was because they felt that since the emperor had said that he would not abandon them, he would never break his promise, thinking that he was the emperor, the emperor who kept his word.
In the golden light of the morning sun, they still waved their knives and shouted. During the fight, I looked back from time to time, hoping that my companions had appeared behind me.
But no.
The team that swam over did not bring reinforcements until the last one, because the reinforcements were blocked by the rebel navy on the west bank. All night long, the soldiers on the west bank did not give up their rescue efforts. Too many people died, but they still could not cross such a wide river. The corpses were spread out on the east bank and on the west bank.
When the last soldier on the east bank watched the west bank fall, all the soldiers on the west bank knelt down, streaming blood and tears together.
That day, the emperor sat in a wheelchair watching that scene, silent.
Another day's offensive finally came to an end when the sun was setting, and the soldiers dragged their legs back to the camp. The strategy of the rebels is not to take the initiative to attack, but they will never let them cross the river. Just like this day after day of fighting, people have become numb in death.
A general sat down on the stone, took off his iron helmet with some difficulty and threw it aside. The blood soaked the long hair, dripping down the hair continuously.
"General, bandage it up."
The soldiers came over and tore off his clothes, but there was no wound medicine.
"Don't ask for a fight next time... After all, you are a woman."
The soldier's voice was a little trembling, and then he helped the general untie the armor, the clothes inside were soaked in blood, the wound was on the shoulder, and a feathered arrow was still stuck there. The soldiers cut open her clothes with a knife, but there was only blood on the skin that should have been white and tender.
"Will go back."
She lowered her head, pulled out the dagger, stuffed it into her mouth and bit it. The moment Feather Arrow was pulled out from his shoulder, the sound of teeth rubbing against the dagger made my heart ache.
"Can you really go back?"
While bandaging, the soldiers said: "No one believes that they can go back... Listen, General, someone on the other side has started singing again."
She spit out bloody spittle and listened to the songs sung by the rebel soldiers on the other side.
It is the most widely sung song by the people of Hebei provinces, and its name is Wangxiang.
"I heard that two generals from the Martial Arts Academy died in battle yesterday."
The soldier hesitated for a moment, but did not continue.
She suddenly picked up the dagger and carved a horse character on her left arm: "If someone dies and the body is collected, at least people will know who I am."
Blood flowed down, scalding her heart.