The medicine shops in Qingshui Town were sold out for several days in a row. Some shop owners realized something was wrong and fearfully asked the buyers what had happened and why such a large amount of detoxifying herbs were suddenly needed.
They all do business in Qingshui Town. Since the arrival of Xiao Heng's army, this place has become more stable. Even those sneaky thieves have no way to survive. It is no exaggeration to say that no one picks up things on the road. They don't want anything to happen to the imperial army, otherwise, the peaceful days that have finally come will be disrupted again.
Who would have thought that the soldiers, who had always been kind to the people, would be so secretive this time, and when asked urgently, they would even scold them.
This did not help to calm the people's doubts, but instead made them even more uneasy.
San Sheng went back and reported everything to Xiao Heng, feeling a little worried: "Your Highness, you said that we have to let everyone know that something happened here, and we have to cover it up. This is really too difficult."
Xiao Heng glanced at him with a smile: "Aren't you doing very well?"
The more you try to cover up something, the more obvious it becomes. This will make people more convinced that there is a problem with the food.
After he finished speaking, he exchanged a glance with Su Rong, both of them smiling: "Now, with the news from Cao Ruishen and the news they got from themselves, they should believe that something is wrong here."
Su Rong also became serious: "We should have made preparations early. Don't worry, Your Highness. Everything is ready."
Xiao Heng hummed.
That night, Mu Tong personally led an army of 100,000 to Yingwu Pass, ready to fight a decisive battle with the imperial army.
He also specially ordered people to print a lot of paper and distributed it to those who could read, asking them to recite the contents publicly in front of many people, accusing the imperial court of hypocrisy and giving the native army moldy food, so that all the native soldiers were seriously ill. The fact that Xiao Heng's army was now buying medicinal materials everywhere proved this point.
Yingwu Pass is a place where merchants gather because of its terrain. Where there are merchants, information flows especially quickly. Because Mu Tong spared no effort in letting his spies and various people who worked for him spread the news, for a while, the people of Yingwu Pass were in a panic, and almost half of the merchants in Qingshui Town ran away.
The people were all worried about their safety and ran away as fast as they could. Naturally, Mu Tong knew this.
Mu Tong sat in the big tent and drank a sip of wine. When he heard the people below reporting the news, he raised his chin with a smug look on his face: "I thought he was some great figure, but in the end, he is just an embroidered pillow? The previous Duke Chengguo was a figure, but it's a pity that they don't cherish him. Tsk tsk, didn't they send a useless grandson?"
He has always been a very arrogant person, fond of boasting. Everyone knows his temper, and when they hear him boasting, they can't wait to come up and join in the praise.
Mu Tong was even happier with the flattery, and ordered an attack on the city, with Shaqiao Post being the first to be attacked. If Shaqiao Post was captured, Zhennan Prefecture would be in their pockets, and by then Qingshui Town would naturally be no problem.
Mu Tong had a very good idea, and because things had been going very smoothly recently, he was very ambitious and insisted on leading the army himself. The people under him were helpless about this, as they were obedient to Mu Tong's words. Moreover, Mu Tong was a person who would prosper if he followed his orders. To go against him would be courting death.
The next day, Mu Tong launched an attack on Shaqiao Station and successfully captured it on the fifth day.
As soon as Shaqiao Posthouse was taken, everyone had a clear idea of the current situation of the imperial army, and they headed towards Zhennan Prefecture with full confidence.
However, changes also occurred in Zhennan Province.
Mu Tong left 15,000 soldiers to garrison Shaqiao Post and took the remaining 80,000 troops straight to Zhennan Prefecture. He thought that this time would be as smooth as the attack on Shaqiao Post. However, as soon as they entered the city, they were surprised to find that they encountered very determined resistance.
They were actually tricked into entering Zhennan Prefecture, which was full of imperial soldiers. As soon as they entered the city, they were surrounded and beaten. Not only that, many people hid on the roofs of their homes and threw stones at them. They fled in panic and finally met the main force led by Xiao Heng, who had been waiting for them for a long time.
Xiao Heng had a large number of men and strong horses, and was very good at using muskets. He didn't know where he got so many muskets from, and he armed a musket battalion. The muskets of the soldiers in the musket battalion were invincible, and they scared Mu Tong's vanguard troops to death.
Even Mu Tong's younger brother Mu Tuo was killed by the muskets of the musket camp.
Mu Tong was in disbelief when he got the news, but the imperial army was chasing them closely. They didn't even have time to catch their breath. As soon as their 80,000 men entered the city, they became prey to the enemy's attacks and were defeated one by one. He himself also faced Xiao Heng, the crown prince whom he had previously called a useless one.
Xiao Heng drew his bow and arrow, pulled the bow to its full extent at Mu Tong from a long distance, and then let go.
The arrow flew towards Mu Tong like a falling meteor.
Mu Tong also met Xiao Heng's eyes, which were a pair of eyes that were unexpectedly young but full of threat. He didn't know how to react at that moment. Then, the arrow arrived in an instant and suddenly embedded itself into his shoulder, causing him to fall off the horse to the ground.
Fortunately, his personal guards were all extremely brave. They rushed him onto horseback at all costs, gathered the remaining troops, and desperately escorted Mu Tong towards the west.
There are still 15,000 of them at Shaqiao Station, and Mu Tong finally got a moment of respite here.
After the military doctor came to check his injuries, he pulled out the arrow for him, but also clearly told him that he could never lift heavy objects again.
If he couldn't lift heavy objects, it would be even more impossible for him to pick up weapons and bows and arrows.
Mu Tong was furious.
He kept calling for someone to come over, Sixth Master.
The people below nodded in agreement and reminded him with some embarrassment that the Sixth Master had been ordered to arrest Miss Mu San and Mu Qinglu.
Mu Tong was furious.
If Sixth Master had not given false information, if Sixth Master had not said that Xiao Heng's army had eaten the defective food, how could he have underestimated the enemy and how could he have ended up like this? !
But now, he fell into Xiao Heng's trap because he underestimated the enemy and suffered such heavy losses!
It was two days later that he calmed down from his rage and asked his trusted generals what the situation was now.
His confidant sighed and shook his head: "Chief, we have suffered countless casualties, about 40,000 men."
Forty thousand people!
I don’t know whether these people are alive or dead, but most of them are probably dead.
Mu Tong's face suddenly turned as pale as a ghost.