Like Li Shun, Liu Yuanzong was also waiting for the return of the embassy team, but after waiting for half a month, there was no sign of anyone returning.
He knew that this was impossible. During the period when the army was supplying in Qinhan City, he smeared laxatives on the lids of the army's drinking buckets. , only three-quarters of the water would shake above the lid, allowing the laxative to soak into the water, eventually causing the drinker to start having diarrhea.
Horses also need to drink water. Even if a horse's resistance is stronger than a human's, there will always be problems. What's more, he has already added a "horse weed" to the horse's hay that makes the horse weak and diarrhea.
This grass is a common grass in desert bushes. It is slightly poisonous, but it looks like the grass that horses eat, and horses love to eat it, so often caravan merchants find their horses have diarrhea , weak condition, but do not know why.
Liu Yuanzong didn't know about this kind of grass at first, but he learned about this kind of grass from an experienced guide because he had been on a mission to Beiliang. Since Li Shun wrote to Pingcheng to ask for help, Liu Yuanzong quietly collected a lot. Mixed in the horse's hay. Because the amount is not large and the shape is not much different, ordinary veterinarians can't see the reason.
With the dual protection of laxatives and horse weeds, the army should start to show signs of diarrhea and weakness on the first day of entering the desert, and completely lose the ability to move on the second afternoon or the third day, and finally can only return to find a way to heal. .
He even prepared the doctors who were diagnosed with "acclimatization". As long as he delayed for a while, it would be after mid-July.
The desert in July can roast people alive. It is not the time for the army to march. No one wants to walk in the desert where the eggs can be scalded. The horseshoes will also hurt the horses.
With a little more delay, the King of Northern Liang will be able to pull out his hand to settle the chaotic situation in the country, and the Northern Wei Dynasty will have a little more fear.
But why...
Could it be that He Mulan was so stubborn that he had to cross the desert even if the entire army was suffering from diarrhea
Or is there any other reason
Liu Yuanzong felt uneasy in his heart and began to make noises.
***
Diannong Duwei Mansion.
"Feng Heng! Feng Heng!" Liu Yuanzong burst into Feng Heng's mansion angrily, shouting the name of his best friend. "I know you are in the mansion, and your family has said it!"
"What to do, what to do..." Liu Wenji hid behind Feng Heng's bookcase, eager to make a hole in the wall, "My grandpa must have found it!"
Feng Heng didn't expect to be able to hide it for long, just like Liu Yuanzong couldn't hide anything from him, but Liu Wenji was afraid that his father was so afraid, and seeing him bumping around like a headless fly, Feng Heng pointed to the inner room of the study, yes Nephew Zhu Shi said: "You hide first, don't have anything..."
"late!"
Liu Yuanzong stepped into the study like a god of vengeance.
"what!"
Liu Wenji jumped up in fright.
"Oh my God!"
Feng Heng looked at Liu Yuanzong and then looked outside.
"You didn't come in over the wall, did you?"
He knew that a quarrel was inevitable, so he went out and screened the next person before returning to the study.
For a moment, it was as if the previous scene of Feng Heng interrogating Liu Yuanzong was repeated again, giving Liu Yuanzong a sense of absurdity.
He looked at Liu Wenji, who was almost digging a hole in the ground, and snorted coldly.
"I said how Feng Heng managed to get so much, it turns out that you are eating inside and out!" He savagely gouged out his son with his eyes.
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Liu Wenji shivered and shrank his body even smaller.
"Brother Liu's words make me sad. How can I use words like 'eating inside and out'." Feng Heng stood in front of Liu Wenji. "The friendship between you and me, am I still an outsider?"
"What the hell did you do? Both Ku Cao and Liang Cao said that you brought someone to replace the hay, and it was just two days before the army left. There is still water, what the hell..."
Feng Henghan frowned.
"If it weren't for me doing my hands and feet to restore the original state, your death is coming! Yuan Fang, the chief clerk beside General Hua, found out something was wrong, and found me in private, asking me to find a way to cover it up for you, otherwise once it was exposed in public, Your whole family's lives are in danger!"
"How is it possible, my hands and feet are not at all..."
"Master Yuan really didn't find out what you did, but he is not a fool. The leopard thing is so reckless, they have already suspected you."
"Master Yuan is sure that the food and forage must be compromised, and he has written a letter to the Bailu official. As soon as something happens to the army, the officers in Wancheng will arrest your whole family and bring them into the capital. Brother Liu, Hua Hua Mulan is a warrior, and she won't be sloppy, and she won't show any tricks to you, once the military general gets angry, the only way to go is to kill!"
Feng Heng saw that Liu Yuanzong finally showed a hint of fear, and then he said more vigilantly: "Do you think Li Shun was attacked by a leopard by accident? If Hua Mulan is a fool, how could Emperor Wei let him send him to Beiliang?"
"...So you changed the food and grass, and let everyone hide from me..." Liu Yuanzong glanced at Liu Wenji: "Nizi, what have you done!"
"I... I went to ask Uncle Tielian a few times. Knowing that they had painted something on the lid of the bucket, I brought a group of brothers to replace all the lids."
Of course, such a large project cannot be completed by Liu Yuanzong alone. Liu Yuanzong did not have the ability to put laxatives on all the water bladders and water bags. He only used his hands and feet on the big buckets used for cooking. As long as there were helpers, it would be impossible to keep it airtight. No matter how loyal Liu Yuanzong's family was, they were beaten by the young master. Scared **, also said it out.
After all, they are also afraid.
As long as you know which parts have moved your hands and feet, and then change back to the original class without moving, the workload will be much less, and it will be more hidden.
There are also small ears like Liu Wenji. When Liu Yuanzong left, when he was in office, and when he was in the mansion, Feng Heng knew very well, and he concealed it from top to bottom, which made the guard general become blind and deaf.
It was also Feng Heng who surrendered to Hua Mulan first, otherwise with such an action, the egret official could find out what was going on, and Liu Yuanzong would be out of luck.
"Brother Liu, why are you so confused!" Feng Heng shook his head, "We are now going forward together as if we were tied to Wei's car, we must not jump or stop halfway, otherwise we will be trampled on like dirt on the ground. In the past. If Li Shun dared to do this, Lord Liang must have given him a promise, but if you do this, who can protect you?"
"Once Beiliang and Wei start a war, the city of Qinhan will be in dire straits again. Now, as soon as I close my eyes, I will recall the fire that filled the sky at that time, those refugees who were still humbly greeting you just a moment ago. became a mob…”
There is a huge shadow hidden in Liu Yuanzong's heart, and he may not be able to get out of it in this life.
"My point of view is the same as before. If it really turned out to be like that, it would be our dereliction of duty. If we have done everything we should have done, done our best, and in the end we are destined to be like this, then we have a clear conscience." Feng Heng shook his head. "Wei State has been appointed by Heaven, and since Foli Fah's succession to the throne, he has never lost a single one. The road is like a broken bamboo. No matter what, this battle is inevitable. What you should do is to enrich the official warehouse and take care of yourself more and more. That day, as many people as we can protect."
"Bei Liang's refugees or Xia's refugees, as long as everyone has food to eat, they won't become such beasts. And General Hua has promised me that if Beiliang and Wei ever get into a fight, The army will first protect the city of Qinhan, so that the people will not be affected..."
Feng Heng patted Liu Yuanzong on the shoulder, "Brother Liu, you are too tired, it's time to unload your burden. We are standing behind Wei Guo, and the situation will not be worse than when Helian Bobo was under his command. "
When Lizi Garden was first built, I don't know how many people died and how many women were harmed.
At that time, I have survived, and there is no reason why I can't survive it now!
"I... I'm ashamed!" Perhaps the word "too tired" completely shattered his heart, and the guard general actually cried like a child.
"I'm really ashamed! I didn't protect my wife and children, I didn't protect the people, and now I almost hurt the whole family!"
"Grandpa, that's not your fault, none of us blame you, even if Adi... Adi won't blame you..."
Liu Wenji wiped away tears.
"I'm useless. If I have martial arts like General Hua, I can protect my whole family, and I won't let the refugees block the way home..."
The father and son seem to be more useless than anyone else. You and I cry one sentence at a time, which makes Feng Heng laugh and cry.
War takes away all good things.
How could he not know.
But can this kind of thing really be stopped by means of conspiracy and tricks
As long as human beings are not satisfied, war cannot be avoided one day.
"I just hope..."
Feng Heng muttered to himself.
"Everyone around me is fine."
***
Because of Feng Heng's help, He Mulan's line should not go too smoothly.
It was already the end of June, and the weather was terrifyingly hot, but it had not reached the hottest dog days. Because of the instructions given by the guide and the envoy of Bei Liang in advance, everyone in the Hu Ben army was shrouded in cloaks. Except for the eyes and nose, all other parts are wrapped in the cloak.
The wind and sand in the desert will fascinate the eyes, and the horses' feet are also wrapped in cloth towels, not to make them silent, but to fear that the horseshoes will burn the horses' hooves.
Yueying is a BMW with Dawan bloodline. In this environment, other horses from the north are obviously uncomfortable. Even Dahong is weak. Only Yueying is full of energy and incomparable. Everyone in Shenjun Can't open eyes.
Even He Mulan had to control it carefully, otherwise once it ran crazy, it would rush all the way, causing Na Luohun and others to be scared to death, and they all chased after her, for fear that she would be plotted against her.
Because the group went to Guzang City along the desert oasis, they inevitably met many businessmen who came and went.
Some of these merchants got the news in Qinhan City, and deliberately chose the caravan that set off with the Wei envoy, while others encountered them occasionally while resting in the desert oasis.
There are many basins and oases in the desert, and this kind of thing is very common. After the leaders of many caravans begged He Mulan, He Mulan kindly agreed to the request of the caravan to follow them.
These caravans also employ many skilled tradesmen, and walking together also increases their strength.
He Mulan even asked Gai Wu to bring the Lushuihu people to pick up the job. In order to please He Mulan's apprentices, these caravans more or less hired some Lushuihu people as bodyguards.
He Mulan only allowed the caravans to follow them, but would not separate armed forces to protect them. However, these Lu Shuihu Tiantai troops were different. Now supplying them would have been troublesome. If you go to the team, you can monitor every move of each caravan to prevent spies from mixing in; secondly, you can increase your income, reduce the burden, and at least have fewer mouths to eat.
Thinking about it this way, He Mulan felt that she was really smart.
Most of these caravans were merchants from Wei State and Beiyan to sell silk and other items to Beiliang and even further west, especially the people of Wei State, because they belonged to the same country, they all trusted the Hu Ben army very much, while Beiyan people tended to Hire the Lushuihu people, and then follow the Huben army closely.
There were also merchants from Shanshan (Gu Loulan), Gaochang, Qiuci and other countries in the caravan. When asked, it turned out that most of them were selling fine felt, benzoin, Hu powder and beautiful jade to Wei. Other states and counties are particularly popular.
What made people wonder is that these countries generally believe in Buddhism. He Mulan saw many people wearing monk robes, and then asked if they were monks who went to the west to study Buddhism, or monks who came back to Beiliang after preaching. There are also women with braided hair, leather clothes and trousers, men with deep eyes and high noses. Gai Wu and their facial features are very similar, and they are often mistaken for the blood of the Western Regions, although he keeps explaining that he is Lu Shuihu. people.
Both Shanshan and Gaochang people were friendly to Wei people, because Wei people defeated Rouran people. Rouran used to have a vast border from east to west, and they made a living by looting. Businessmen from Shanshan and Gaochang were repeatedly robbed by Rouran horse thieves, which can be described as miserable.
Rouran was broken, Xia Kingdom was also destroyed, Western Qin returned to Wei State, Beiliang became a minister to open up the borders, the business route from the Western Regions to Wei State was smooth, and merchants came and went more frequently.
The embassy went to greet the princess of Beiliang, and naturally brought a lot of betrothal gifts, so the marching speed was not fast, but now bringing the caravan, it is not a drag, because most of these merchants have already sold the goods, and they are easy to carry. of gold, silver, silk and other items returned to China.
Yuan Fang was like a fish in water, he spent every day in the caravans of various parties, trying to figure out how good the price of the things that were freed up in He Mulan's mansion could be sold.
Most of her things were given by Tuoba Tao, and they were all precious things, and each of them was a fine product.
He Mulan didn't care about these mundane affairs, and left it to Yuan Fang to toss. Suddenly, one day, Yuan Fang came in with a golden utensil and pointed to one of the signs for He Mulan to see.
"Lord, look, is this the mark that Li Shun branded Zheng Zong's gold!"
He Mulan himself didn't know how many of these things he had squeezed, so he naturally recognized it.
"It's this, what, haven't I finished pinching it yet?"
"No... This is from the King of Beiliang after Gaochang's envoys contributed to the donation of treasures!" Yuan Fang said with a heavy face: "Li Shunde's gold ware belongs to the royal family of Beiliang. It's not that the King of Beiliang wants to frame it. He kept his back, because he wanted to frame us, so he deliberately gave Zheng Zong and Lu Shuihu the gold..."
When He Mulan heard that Li Shun had been bribed by the Beiliang royal family, she suddenly had the urge to draw her sword.
"He really dares to communicate with foreign countries!"