Huang Lie was angry and there was silence in the tent.
The messenger half-knelt on the ground with his hands clasped together, lowering his head, not daring to look at the anger on Huang Lie's face: "Every word is true."
Kacha —
The secret letter in Huang Lie's hand shattered.
This secret letter was sent by the commander who was gathering the remaining forces in Qianzhou. It detailed the causes and consequences of Yun Ce's wounding of the garrison commander and his defection. Although the two sides were hostile, the veteran general did not deliberately exaggerate and described the situation from a neutral perspective as much as possible.
But, this is of no use.
Huang Lie read through the entire article quickly and was still furious.
The veins on his forehead were bulging, the veins were thick and clear, and his back teeth were rubbing against each other, all of which showed the owner's current mood. Huang Lie took a few heavy breaths and kicked the annoying table away: "Yun Yuanmou, good!"
After the fury comes calm: "Well done!"
The subordinates said: "The thief should be killed!"
"Yunce is so ungrateful, he must not be let off!" Although they all disliked Yunce and knew that this guy was not the same kind of person as them, they really didn't expect that he would defect at this critical juncture with such an absurd excuse.
Everyone was criticizing Yun Ce.
There were even some young and energetic ones who said, "I am willing to lead my troops to capture him and tear him to pieces alive! Let the lord vent his anger!"
After saying this, several people responded.
Huang Lie raised his hand and pressed it in vain, with a look of unwillingness in his eyes: "What are you trying to capture? Don't you know that you have to look at the owner before beating a dog? Yun Yuanmou is nothing to be afraid of, but the people behind him have to be taken into consideration, so let's leave it at that for now."
When these words were spoken, everyone was shocked.
They also have some understanding of their lord Huang Lie's temperament. Apart from the time when he was conserving his energy and restraining his personality during the Dragon Slaying Bureau, he is not so easy to talk to in private, let alone swallowing the humiliation of being betrayed. What is Yun Ce's origin
For a moment, everyone had the same doubt.
They didn't have much interaction with Yun Ce, they only knew that Yun Ce was valued by the lord because of a letter of recommendation, and was given the position of chief rider as soon as he arrived. On the surface, the lord entrusted his own safety to Yun Ce, which showed that he valued him, but privately it was another story.
Before this, Yun Ce seemed to be a ranger.
He was just a ranger. What kind of background could he have that could make his lord, who held the national seal, commanded more than 10,000 elite heavy shield warriors, and had many powerful generals under his command, swallow the humiliation of betrayal? The people in the tent exchanged glances with each other, but unfortunately, no one knew the answer.
"A Yun Yuanmou is not worth your attention..." Seeing this, a counselor under the tent interrupted and changed the subject, "The biggest problem at the moment is food and fodder, which is imminent."
Huang Lie's advantages are obvious, but his disadvantages are equally obvious.
When slaying the dragon, you can also use moral blackmail to get food from your allies, or "sell" the refugees and bandits who follow you to your allies in the form of cooperation - in an era of frequent wars, a large population is the only way to restore people's livelihood and economy!
Huang Lie lacks everything except people!
These refugees and bandits didn't know they were being sold. They only knew that Huang Lie, as the leader of the alliance, was trying his best to find a way out for them. If they followed his arrangements, they could have their own land to farm and food to eat, and they would no longer have to wander around under cover of rain or shine. Therefore, they were very grateful.
This is a win-win-win business in which both the buyer and the seller and the product itself are very satisfied. From Huang Lie's perspective alone, he has won hugely!
Buyers, especially those who owned large tracts of land but lacked workers to cultivate it, were also very satisfied. They could exchange a little grain for a worker who could cultivate the land, and the land tax was 90%. Such cheap consumables could pay for themselves in less than a year.
Ever since the Dragon Slaying Bureau broke up, this business has been cut short.
Huang Lie's eyes turned red due to lack of food.
Compared with the food problem, Yun Yuanmou is not worth mentioning. Huang Lie focused his attention back, his eyes filled with hope: "Didn't I know from the palace eunuchs that Zheng Qiao built a large granary in Qianzhou? Have you found the location of this granary?"
"The location has been locked, and people have been sent to search for it."
The granary built by Zheng Qiao was very large. It was more like a group of granaries than a single granary. It was said that there were millions of dan of grain inside. This number might be exaggerated, but it was definitely several hundred thousand dan. It was just that Zheng Qiao was suspicious and kept the location of the granary a secret. No one knew the location except his confidants. Fortunately, there is no impenetrable wall in the world. The granary was too large and it was impossible to transport grain and grass into it quietly.
Following the clues, we finally found the correct location. As long as we follow the clues, we will find the correct location sooner or later.
Huang Lie was a little impatient: "How long will it take?"
The counselor said: "It should be in the next two days."
This time also needs to take into account the distance between Yan and Qian.
"Report—My Lord, there is an envoy outside the camp asking to see you!"
The messenger was naturally Zhang Yongqing's man.
This is also Huang Lie’s only ally at the moment.
Huang Lie was in a good mood: "Please come in quickly!"
Previously, Huang Lie and Zhang He attacked Wu Xian's forces, and Chen Tang sent people to help. Huang Lie's side received the news earlier and learned that Gong Xichou was among the reinforcements. Seeing that the situation was not good, he took his people and ran away at night without notifying his allies.
As a result, Zhang He was beaten by Wu Xian's troops.
When Zhang He learned the whole story, the relationship between the two families cooled down for a while, but now they are on the same boat. If they don't cooperate with Huang Lie, the only result will be swallowed up by Chen Tang and Wu Xian. In desperation, they can only fight at the head of the bed and make peace at the foot of the bed.
Because Huang Lie faced the same food problem, Zhang He also had it.
Although he had Yi Ru as his backing and the food line was not long, the most critical food line was cut off by Chaoli Pass! The Chaoli Pass mountain range stretched endlessly, dividing Yanzhou into two. Food had to pass through this place to be transported from inside the pass to outside the pass.
Who is in charge of Chaoli Pass now
In Chen Tang’s hands!
Wu Xian and Chen Tang, the brothers who are in cahoots with each other, control this place, which is equivalent to strangling him by the throat. Is there any way for him to survive
Zhang He was willing to open up a new grain transportation route so that he would no longer be controlled by others, but this route was not easy to take.
Firstly, most of his elite troops were brought out by him, leaving only a small number to guard Yiru. If he used force to open a path to the Liguan Mountains, there would not be many people that could be deployed, and force would make too much noise, take a long time, and be easily discovered.
Secondly, the detour route for transporting grain is unsafe and takes seven or eight times as long as the original route, which is also a failure.
The only way is to capture Chaoli Pass.
So, Zhang He needs allies.
His spies also heard that Huang Lie had discovered the granary treasure house left by Zheng Qiao, which contained countless grains, and he might be able to "borrow" some for emergency use. So he took the initiative to send an envoy to show his goodwill.
Huang Lie also knew what Zhang He was planning.
While cursing inwardly, he continued to entertain warmly.
Just as Zhang He needed him as an ally, he also needed Zhang He's full support. Zhang He might not be good in other aspects, but he had superb medical skills. As the imperial physician, he also participated in the research of the Wu State Gu disaster in detail and had a lot of experience.
It can be said that he is an expert in this field.
Zhang He also developed a prescription to slow down the collapse of the Heavy Shield Warrior, greatly increasing the service life of the Heavy Shield Warrior.
This alone was enough for Huang Lie to regard him as an ally.
For a while, the atmosphere between the two sides was friendly.
until-
On the second day, the spies who explored the granary brought back news.
Huang Lie was impatient: "Quick, give me the news!"
He did not notice the slightly changed expression on the counselor's face.
He opened the letter and read ten lines at a glance. The half-curved corners of his lips suddenly stiffened and then gradually lowered.
Snap—
The table was shattered with one blow, and wood chips flew everywhere.
Huang Lie angrily scolded: "Chen Youli! What a Shen Youli! I worked so hard, but he got the fruits!"
The messenger happened to be on the side.
"What made Mr. Huang so angry?"
Huang Lie also knew that this matter could not be concealed for long, so he simply said directly: "My people found the granary, but it was an empty granary. After interrogating the common people nearby, we found out that this granary had been visited by someone a long time ago, and the grain had been transported for half a month!"
Good news, the granary is real, and the hundreds of thousands of stones are also real.
Bad news, the granary has been emptied by the little rats!
How clean will it be
If any rats live in there, they will starve to death!
There really was nothing left for them.
The messenger was furious when he heard this: "Mr. Huang, are you serious?"
Isn’t this an excuse for Huang Lie to keep the food for himself and refuse to lend it to others
Huang Lie suppressed his anger.
"Of course it's true. Do you suspect I'm lying?"
"I dare not!" The messenger cupped his hands. "I will pass this message to my lord as soon as possible. I will take my leave now."
Without food, some plans will have to be brought forward.
For example, attacking Chaoli Pass.
Qianzhou and Yanzhou are vast territories, but they have been ravaged by wars one after another. What can be sifted out after the soldiers have passed through them again and again? How long can they hold out? When they really run out of ammunition and food, the envoys dare not think about what will happen.
Huang Lie did not stop the messenger: "Go slowly."
The two families were in a gloomy mood, with the food crisis looming over their minds.
On the contrary, Shen Tang was much more relaxed.
As soon as she opened her eyes, someone brought her food.
The hand that was eating paused: "Who?"
Chen Tang's base camp is located in the border area, with one of the longest food transportation routes among the coalition forces. It is exhausting to transport food once, and taking into account the consumption of the cooks, the food transported to the front line will be greatly discounted. The only thing to be thankful for is that they can still be self-sufficient.
It doesn't matter if the food transported from the rear is slower or less.
Counting on my fingers, the new batch of food has not arrived yet.
"Which living Bodhisattva will deliver food to us?"
When it comes to food, who would complain about having too much
Ning Yan said with a strange look: "Zhang Yongqing!"
"puff-"
Chen Tang almost spit out a mouthful of corn porridge.
After coughing for a while, he asked, “Who???”
Did she hear it right
Ning Yan said: "It is indeed Zhang Yongqing's troops."
Chen Tang: “…”
This matter started with Jiang Sheng's observation of the stars last night. Although he cut off Zheng Qiao's head and perfected the way of a scholar, this did not take effect immediately and required a certain amount of time of seclusion and sedimentation.
Jiang Sheng was not anxious at all about this.
As steady as an old dog.
The perfect state of the scholar's way is different from the initial state. He needs to explore it bit by bit, and take it out for a walk whenever he has time. Last night, he calculated that the northwest is auspicious, and going in that direction will make you rich. In order to calculate more clearly, he carefully updated several generations of content and calculated that there is a grain team there.
If you go too late, they will run away.
Jiang Sheng took people there to verify the truth without saying a word.
Chen Tang asked, “Why didn’t I hear the news last night?”
If Jiang Sheng wanted to mobilize troops, it would be impossible without her permission - even if she was sure to send troops, the process still had to be followed.
Ning Yan said: "I have asked the lord."
Chen Tang: “???”
How come she has no impression at all
Wait a minute, she seems a little vague
Because Gong Xichou had pulled her over to serve as a sparring partner to help her consolidate her realm, Chen Tang and him fought each other without using their martial arts, and in the end both of them were injured, their bodies sore and not a single piece of good flesh remained. The amount of exercise exceeded the limit, so she took a hot bath and went to sleep. In the middle of the night, it seemed that someone was calling her.
Since he had no ill intentions and was one of her own, she wasn't on guard.
I vaguely remember saying to Hanhu: Go, go.
After saying this, she turned over while hugging her beloved silk quilt.
Chen Tang: “…”
Is that the time
Jiang Sheng got permission and also dragged Xun Zhen and his son along. One should not forget friends when good things happen. They actually caught a grain transport team that received the news and was preparing to retreat. The number of people was not small. Chen Tang's almond eyes were stunned: "He doesn't know that Chao Liguan is in my hands?"
Did you know that we still take this food route
Ning Yan also found out this.
When Zhang He sent the last batch of grain through customs, Chaoli Pass was still able to pass. Later, Chaoli Pass changed hands, Kang Shi cut off the relevant communications, and Gu Chi strictly investigated spies, which made the news between the two places lag behind than normal. The new batch of grain was halfway through when Yiru received the news and hurriedly sent people to intercept it.
As a result, he ran into Jiang Sheng who was trying to take advantage of the situation.
After fighting for half the night, they finally got the food.
"… This is good news. Xiandeng didn't kill all the people and food teams, right?" When Chen Tang learned that Ning Yan said "no", she was filled with evil thoughts. She smiled and said, "That's good. Tunan, have Xiandeng tie up a few leaders and send them to Zhang Yongqing, and then tell him—"
She clasped her hands together and said, "Thank you for the gift from the living Bodhisattva!"
Ning Yan was amused by her teasing: "Yes."
When Zhang He received the news, he was so angry that he had a cerebral hemorrhage!
"By the way, where is Wu Zhaode? Talk to him about the deployment of troops. Huang Lie and his men might become desperate."
Chen Tang took people to find Wu Xian. Although Wu Xian had been very obedient recently and said that he would listen to Chen Tang's opinion on all arrangements, Chen Tang did not conclude that Wu Xian had given up his desire to compete. Once there was a chance to narrow the gap between him and himself, this beast would strike back at the first opportunity.
Wu Xian’s camp was arranged outside Chaoli Pass.
Set up camp here and arrange military defense lines.
If you encounter an enemy attack, use a whistle arrow to notify them.
"Dawei wants to meet Dayi? You are father and daughter, can't you meet in private?" Chen Tang didn't like to make a big fuss. She had her own strength and didn't worry about safety issues. She was meeting an ally, so she only needed to bring a team of personal guards. But Zhao Wei insisted on going with her.
Zhao Wei said: "This won't work."
Chen Tang asked, "Why?"
Zhao Wei said softly, "I don't want my father to be in a more difficult situation."
Chen Tang was surprised: "Is Wu Zhaode so stingy?"
Are you on guard against even this
Zhao Wei looked worried: "Lord Zhaode had previously beaten my father with a stick in public. Although a brave warrior is physically strong and is not afraid of such minor injuries, a beating of the stick would damage my father's prestige in the army. Who doesn't know that my father has fallen out of favor now?"
Chen Tang: "I just don't know..."
Is there such a good thing