The reaction of the people in Hanyi City was completely beyond Li Hong's expectation. There were not even those who resisted and shouted. Walking on the streets of Hanyi City, which had been completely calm, the people in groups of three or three were just in awe, looking at them from a distance. , not even a glare.
This has to make Li Hong curious. Do they, who are closer to the royal city, have no sense of belonging to Goguryeo? How can one be so kind
You casually walked around several blacksmith shops and wine shops, and even sat inside to buy a drink. No one objected to you. No matter you were wearing the clothes or armor of a Tang Dynasty soldier, no one treated you as an outsider.
The common currency here is naturally the same as that of the Tang Dynasty, but it is still mainly old money Kaiyuan Tongbao. Most of the new money has become the collection of wealthy people. Few people are willing to spend it, and they all count on the old money. Let’s talk after it’s over.
"This Liu Rengui is more anxious than me. He left before dawn without even saying goodbye to me. It's really rude." Li Hong walked struttingly on the street, looking at the people in Shanyi City, curling his lips. said.
"Liu Rengui came here before dawn. You haven't gotten up yet, so he didn't disturb you. He asked the servant to tell you that the military situation is urgent. Please don't blame your highness." Hua Meng said beside him.
"Okay, it doesn't matter. Take a look at their barracks in Goguryeo. Are the students from Hongwen Hall who came with us ready?"
"Everything is ready, just waiting for your order to set off." Hua Meng was very surprised. He brought several students from the Hongwen School from Chang'an, but they were of no use along the way. They don't know how to fight, and His Highness doesn't know what to do with them.
Li Hong looked at Hua Meng's puzzled face and didn't bother to explain to him. He would only know when the time came to see if he could see it, and he would have to find a few local blacksmiths to do it.
In fact, Goguryeo's army was also very mixed. There were both Goguryeo people and soldiers from Mohe, Xianbei, Mahan, Fuyu and other ethnic groups. It can also be said to be a mixed army.
And their weapons were naturally influenced by the Tang Dynasty. They basically inherited the characteristics of the weapons of the Tang Dynasty. Although the quality was not as good as the weapons of the Tang Dynasty, there was not much difference in appearance.
Iron weapons were mainly used, but there were still many bronze weapons. As for the armor on the soldiers, it was far from comparable to the armor of the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty. There were even fewer horse armors on the war horses. A group of war horses , that is, only war horses above the guard level have real horse armor to wear on the horse god.
Looking at the broken copper and iron, Li Hong understood the current situation of Goguryeo more thoroughly. Iron weapons can become the main weapons of Goguryeo, Silla, and Baekje precisely because, although the Korean Peninsula is rich in mineral resources, Only the most primitive material, bituminous coal, needed for steelmaking in this period, was missing.
Everyone in the previous life knows that although the country called North Korea is very poor, its mineral resources are extremely rich. Nowadays, Datang has carried out coal mining to a large extent, and most of it is compared with the anthracite coal of Goguryeo. Come on, the quality is still a lot worse.
This is also the reason why Li Hong summoned the students from Hongwen Hall and agreed to Li Zhi's proposal to attack Liujing. Although the gold reserves are not abundant, non-ferrous metals such as iron and copper can provide more to the Tang Dynasty. wealth.
When talking with his father Long in the camp that day, Li Hong thought about it. War itself is actually a disguised plunder of resources. If he conquers Goguryeo and doesn't do this kind of thing, he will always feel that this trip to Goguryeo Okay, it seems like something has been lost.
When Li Zhi, escorted by Liu Renyuan, entered the city of humiliation, His Highness the Crown Prince had already led two hundred personal guards and a few students from Hongwen Hall into the deep mountains and old forests.
The natural environment of green mountains and green waters, as well as the cattle, sheep and horses between the hillsides, still made Li Hong greedy for rest. It cannot be said that there are no good things in this poor place. It seems that it is easy for him to have preconceived notions. Got into a misunderstanding.
As for those students from Hongwen Hall, they were still chattering while eating. From the mined minerals, they began to analyze where there would be more gold, how to mine it, and how much manpower was needed. How can it be refined in large quantities without being discovered by others.
Li Hong listened boredly for a long time and said angrily: "This is already my territory of the Tang Dynasty. Who are you afraid of being discovered? The first is gold, copper, iron, and then the coal here. See Is that the sea? If you use water transportation, you can reach Dengzhou in Henan Province in less than two or three days. The most important thing now is to visit these places well. There’s no big problem, you just need to stay in Dengzhou and wait until everything is done before you can go back.”
"Do you really mean what you said?" A student with a complexion similar to Zhang Fei stood up and said.
Li Hong was not frightened, but Haidongqing Xiaoqing next to him was frightened. He was so frightened that his wings were half-opened, and his bird's eyes were staring at the student coldly.
Li Hong threw away a piece of grass that he had been chewing for a long time and said with a smile: "Of course I am serious. If you are willing to stay and mine, that would be the best. I can't ask for it. If you don't want to, I won't force it. Wait a minute. After the battle, you can go back with us."
"What should we do with these?" When another student heard that he was going back, he immediately held a stone in his arms and refined it. At least half a tael of gold was obtained.
"Naturally, let those who are willing to stay here work with other craftsmen of the Tang Dynasty. After the gold is restored to a bright color, it will be transported back to the Tang Dynasty by water." Li Hong explained to them patiently.
Hua Meng, who was next to him, felt it was unnecessary and directly ordered them to stay. If it couldn't be done, he told Shangguan Yi. Even if they didn't dare to disobey him.
Li Hong was too lazy to pay attention to Hua Meng's disdainful look, and continued to ask with a smile: "From your point of view, how long will it take for the mine here to be completely built and to be able to mine stably?"
"It will take about half a year, but once this place enters winter, there will be no way to work. Sir, maybe it will be possible this time next year." Hongwen Hall students are still more willing to call Li Hong sir.
"Then are you willing to stay here until next year? Wait until the mine is completely able to operate smoothly before going back?" Li Hong asked with a half-smile. The sun shone on his face through the gaps in the leaves, making his face not white. The skin looks much fairer.
"Sir, we are willing to stay. But... the students..."
"Say what you have to say, no matter how hesitant you look." Hua Meng urged anxiously.
Your Majesty has been in Humiliating City for two days, and His Highness the Crown Prince is still enjoying the sightseeing tour. In his opinion, even piles of gold are more important than His Majesty's summons.
Therefore, in order for His Highness the Crown Prince to rush back to Humi City as soon as possible, Hua Meng had no choice but to urge the student to speak quickly.
"Why are you anxious? I'm not anxious, so why are you anxious? Wouldn't it be better if things here are properly arranged? Do you want me to go back and do it again?" Li Hong glared at Hua Meng angrily.
"I don't dare." Hua Meng became honest and stood on either side of Cheetah, turning into two mummies.
"Go on, what are you worried about?" Li Hong smiled, motioned for the student to sit down and continue eating.
"Sir, the students are not afraid of death, but are just a little worried. If our army of the Tang Dynasty withdraws, even if we mine the mines here, will it be cheaper for the people of Goguryeo? How can you guarantee these things, sir? Can you transport it back to my country?"
"The City of Shame will become our garrison base, protecting everything of our Tang Dynasty in Goguryeo. As long as the things of our Datang Dynasty are lost, even if a cow in the mine is lost, the king of Goguryeo can be Double the compensation to us, so you don’t have to worry about this anymore.”
In order to make these students, who were more intellectually enlightened than other people in the Tang Dynasty, willing to stay here, Li Hong had to be patient and solve their doubts.
After all, if they feel uneasy and the mining volume of this mine does not meet the standard, it will be a waste of manpower and material resources, and it may even be a disaster for the winner between Silla, Baekje, and Goguryeo in the future. Wedding dress is gone.
After hearing Li Hong's words, several students felt at ease. If the army of the Tang Dynasty is stationed in the city of humiliation, then this is the territory of the Tang Dynasty, and there is no question whether it will be robbed by foreign barbarians. thing.
So several students nodded in unison and said: "Sir, that student is willing to stay and mine this mine."
"That's okay. Now I will leave some soldiers for you to protect the safety of your exploration of the minerals during this period. In a few days, more craftsmen and people will come over, and someone will help you to mine this mine. When the time comes, you will be the first batch of heroes." Li Hong stood up, walked to the students, patted their shoulders with satisfaction, and then hurried down the mountain, following the creek he came from. , walking on the way back and forth.
The mountains here are not high, but there are many dense forests. If you want to avoid getting lost, the best way is to follow the creek all the way up or all the way down. This way you can safely find where you came from without having to identify the direction. path.
A hundred soldiers and the students were left behind to continue searching for bigger mineral deposits, but he needed to rush to Humiliating City, otherwise, Father Long, who had been waiting for two days, would probably be beaten.
And they were far away from the city of humiliation now. If they wanted to rush back as quickly as possible, it would probably take several hours. By the time they arrived at the city of humiliation, it was already the dead of night and everything was silent.
Shangyi City had been completely controlled by the Tang army. According to the requirements of the city defense troops, Hua Meng had no choice but to throw His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's token onto the city tower. After being inspected, he slowly opened the city gate and walked in.
(End of chapter)