Yan Qiong came back from riding quickly, "Master, there are rooms in both inns, enough to accommodate the brothers."
An inn in a small town cannot have hundreds of rooms, but there are still two inns with about a hundred rooms. With floors in the rooms, the one hundred rooms can barely accommodate 500 people.
I stayed at the inn in the middle of the afternoon. When it got dark, the inn prepared dinner.
Xia Jing took a bath in the inn and sat in the lobby to have her meal, feeling refreshed. Only then did she feel in the mood to look at the inn.
"Have you noticed that since entering the town in the afternoon, most of the people I saw on the street were women, children, old and young, and it was rare to see young and strong men." Yan Qiong glanced at the woman serving food in the inn and said to everyone.
own discovery.
"You didn't tell me I hadn't discovered it yet, but now that I hear you say it, it's really true when I think about it!" Quan Gen nodded.
Xia Jing's eyes rested on the women who helped serve the food. There were so many people staying in the inn today, and the happiness on their faces was visible to the naked eye, but the sadness between their brows could not be ignored.
When the dishes were all served, the innkeeper stepped forward and clasped his fists and said, "Dear guests, this is a poor reception. Now that the dishes have been served, please take advantage of them."
"Old man, come here!" Yan Qiong raised her finger at him.
"What orders does this guest have?" The shopkeeper came over with a smile.
Yan Qiong pointed to the women who had just served the dishes and asked: "We have been traveling for so many years, and this is the first time we have seen an inn waiter who is all a woman?"
After listening to his question, the smile on the shopkeeper's face faded a lot. Finally he sighed and said gloomily: "Since this guest officer has been outside for many years, he should know what the world has been like in recent years. In the past few years,
The annual drought has been raging, and the population has dropped sharply. In the past two years, military disasters have continued. I don’t know about other places, but in the area under our county’s jurisdiction, all the young and middle-aged people have been arrested. Now the only ones left in the family are the old, weak, women and children.”
Yan Qiong asked with confusion on his face: "When the conscription was the most stringent, one would be drawn from every three men. If it is according to the court regulations, one would be drawn from every five men. But what do you mean, do you here capture all the men?"
The shopkeeper frowned and nodded: "To tell you the truth, the three sons and one adult grandson of the young family were forcibly recruited. Now the inn has to be supported by the daughters-in-law. If the sons in previous years
At home, why does the inn need the daughter-in-law to come out and show off!"
Yan Qiong looked at the women in surprise, "It turns out they are your daughters-in-law. At first I thought they were the helpers you hired."
"I'm really ashamed. It's hard to maintain my family's livelihood. I really don't have any extra money to hire outsiders to do things." The shopkeeper clasped his fists: "Our town is on the main road from south to north. In the past, there were many caravans coming and going.
This inn can support the family's livelihood and prosperity. Nowadays, the world is difficult, and occasionally receiving passing guests can barely make ends meet for the family."
Xia Jing looked at the sorghum cakes in the bowl and the vegetables and pickles on the table, and believed that his words were true. The most eye-catching thing was probably the pot of game on the table, which may have been purchased by the shopkeeper from Orion.
"Shopkeeper, you can't let all the young and middle-aged people in your county be arrested, right?" Yan Qiong glanced at Xia Jing, wanting to know more about the situation.
After hearing this, the shopkeeper's eyes flashed with sarcasm. When he spoke again, his tone was as calm as ever: "That's not true. There are still young and middle-aged people, but these people are not ordinary people. They are powerful and wealthy people.
Some people have the right to exempt their children from military service, and some people are rich and can pay for military service with money."
Xia Jing laughed and said: "After listening to the shopkeeper's words, I have become interested in the political power of Yuzhou. I really want to know what this decision-maker thinks. If he comes up with such a way to kill the goose and lay the eggs, I'm afraid he will dig his own grave!"
The shopkeeper's face was sullen and his mood was complicated. In his heart, he hoped that these rebels would be wiped out as soon as possible. If the rebels were wiped out, even if the court implemented a three-digit draw, three of his three sons and one grandson would be able to come back.
But at the same time, he was afraid of being wiped out. The reason he was afraid of being wiped out was because his three sons and one grandson had all become members of the rebels. If the imperial court won and there was a big liquidation in the end, his sons and grandsons would not be well off.
die.
This worry is not common to outsiders, so no one knows the storekeeper's inner struggle.
After understanding the situation, the team wanted to prepare for departure tomorrow. Yan Qiong said to the shopkeeper: "Old shopkeeper, we are leaving early tomorrow morning. Can you please help your daughters-in-law prepare more dry food for us overnight?"
"This" shopkeeper had a look of embarrassment on his face.
Yan Qiong added: "Of course, I know that food is tight nowadays and the price is easy to negotiate. We can't let you suffer."
The shopkeeper waved his hand hurriedly, "My guest has misunderstood. I don't mean that. It's okay to ask the women at home to help make dry food overnight, but I don't have enough food on hand. It's hard for a clever woman to make a meal without rice!"
Yan Qiong obviously didn't expect the shopkeeper to answer like this, and couldn't help but look at Xia Jing.
Xia Jing put down her chopsticks and said: "Nowadays, there is a shortage of food everywhere. It is normal for the shopkeeper not to be able to come up with so much food. Later we will collect some food and give it to the shopkeeper. We hope that the shopkeeper can help us make dry food so that we can carry dry food tomorrow."
On the way."
Their team of 500 people went out and did not have a special logistics team to transport food, but each of them had more than ten or twenty kilograms of food tied to their horses, just in case of unexpected situations.
After things were arranged and Xia Jing had almost eaten, she took Ye Fei back to the room first.
Three days later, Xia Jing and her party arrived in Yangxia, which was only a few days away from Yuzhou City.
At this time, Li Chengmu was leading troops and troops were stationed outside Yuzhou City to confront the main force of the rebels in Yuzhou City.
The main force in Yuzhou City is one hundred thousand, and Li Chengmu's troops outside the city are also said to be one hundred thousand. In terms of soldiers and horses, the two armies are evenly matched.
On the city wall of Yuzhou, Lu Leshan, the most powerful general under Qin Lang, stood on the wall and looked from a distance.
At a glance, the imperial troops and horses outside the city are overwhelming, with flags flying. Under the yellow flags, standing are Li Chengmu and his generals.
Looking at the neatly arranged and impressive troops and horses, Lu Leshan was lying in his heart if he said he was not envious and fearful.
As a general who leads troops in battle and is the most powerful general under Tan Lang, his reputation is not unearned. He could tell at a glance that the imperial army outside the city was not simple.
He also knew that soldiers are more expensive than finesse, and the number of troops outside the city was equal to that of his troops in the city. Now even if there is a city wall to resist this advantage, Lu Leshan can't help but look a little solemn.
"General, this army is probably the elite of the imperial court. I'm afraid there will be variables in this battle!" The staff member stood on the city wall and noticed Lu Leshan's face. He had no choice but to tell the truth.
No one knows better than them the quality of their own troops and soldiers.
The few who can fight are mostly civilians brought here to be used as cannons and newly recruited soldiers.
If the elites of the court outside the city want to attack by force, even if they are protected by the city wall, they are afraid that the outcome will be only 50-50.
"They set up this formation when they arrived. Do they want to storm the city?"
Lu Leshan was a little confused by the confusing behavior of the imperial soldiers and horses outside the city.
After listening to his words, the staff pointed to the stationary queue outside the city and said: "Back to the general, I can't say for the moment. Maybe they are just observing our reaction. They should not attack recklessly until they understand the situation.
city!"
Lu Leshan nodded, but he really couldn't figure out why the newly crowned prince of the Yu Dynasty didn't stay in the capital to enjoy the blessings. Why did he have to go out and take risks as a rich man? He was really not afraid of being naive enough to kill him with one shot.
?
He probably had some understanding of the new crown prince. He used to be incapable of showing off his talent in the capital, but then he fled to Lingnan and was trained by the royal family. How is his instinct now?
Lu Leshan was unsure, not to mention that there was a queen in the capital that he was even more afraid of.
It is said that the recovery of the Gyeonggi region was led by this new queen. A housewife is more courageous and capable than the great men in the court.
What a great achievement it is to regain the lost ground with one single effort.
What is the land of Gyeonggi?
That is the belief of the people of the world, it is the place where dragons thrive, and it is the center of the world's political culture!
The recovery of the Gyeonggi region represents that Dayu's vitality has not been exhausted and there are signs of revival!
Lu Leshan turned around and looked at his soldiers and horses with complicated eyes. They were a mixture of good and bad, including people of all walks of life from all walks of life, but there were no powerful ministers with overwhelming power.
Of course, if there was a former powerful official, then his position would be gone, because he thought that he was just a refugee and could not match the powerful officials in terms of scheming and power.
Thinking too far, Lu Leshan restrained his wandering thoughts and looked at the team with no standing posture and sluggish momentum. He regretted not training them properly before.
"The imperial troops and horses have excellent weapons and equipment. I heard that they are all made of fine steel and are equipped with the entire army. If our team can be equipped with such sophisticated weapons and equipment, the combat effectiveness can be increased by at least 20%!" The staff looked at the sophisticated equipment of the team outside the city.
His eyes were red with envy.
Lu Leshan's face was solemn, "In this battle, it seems that we can only defend Yuzhou City and not leave. No matter how they cause trouble outside, we can't leave the city!"
——
At the same time, Li Chengmu and others outside the city were also sitting on horseback overlooking the Yuzhou city wall.
On the high city wall, a man was standing there surrounded by several people to observe the enemy's situation. Needless to say, the man standing on the city wall must be the rebel general guarding Yuzhou City. His name was Lu Leshan!
Long Yutian looked at the closed city gate and said: "It seems that the rebels have no intention of leaving the city to fight. Why don't we set up camp on the spot and observe for a few days?"
"What the supervisor said makes sense, and then there will be a labor supervisor." Li Chengmu nodded in agreement.
On the second day, when the sun rose in the east, more than a dozen horsemen rushed out of the barracks outside the city, and they stopped when they were out of the range of bows and arrows.
"The Crown Prince ordered all rebels to abandon their weapons and surrender immediately. If they surrender voluntarily, the court will not hold them accountable for being thieves or bandits. After surrendering, they will be treated as ordinary people. They can also join the army to serve the country and strive for glory for the family.
, fight for a family legacy for future generations!"
More than a dozen people shouted together, with great momentum. Let alone the city, at least the rebels standing on the city wall listened attentively and were wondering whether there was an opportunity to take advantage of this matter.
Lu Leshan heard this as soon as he climbed up the city wall and couldn't help but be surprised: "What do these imperial soldiers and horses want to do? Or what does this prince want to do? He would not be so naive as to think that standing outside the city like this and shouting just a few times would do anything.
Can you persuade our team to surrender?"
In the civil war, no matter which side, everyone has the experience of persuading them to surrender. If they can succeed, they will regain the enemy's troops at the minimum cost, which is a good thing in every aspect.
But facts have proven that many times the rear areas do not do a good job in logistical support, which leads to delays.
Especially before the Yu Dynasty, the soldiers at the front were fighting to the death, and the captured enemy soldiers were being guarded. However, because they focused on governing the country with benevolence, they managed to control the prisoners and let them go. As a result, the prisoners who were released had no ability to survive.
Back to my old job!
Repeatedly, the rogue bandits in Dayu's territory could not be wiped out no matter how hard they were suppressed, and the rogue rebels could always reappear.
The staff did not take it seriously, "If they want to shout, let them shout, even if their throats are broken, it will be useless!"
——
There were more than a dozen horsemen outside the city. They all worked hard and shouted for a while. Then a dozen more horsemen came out from the camp behind to replace them, so they could run back to rest.
By going back and forth like this, everyone won’t be too tired!
Everyone commented on whatever they thought of. For example, some put themselves in the shoes of the rebels and advised them to turn around and find relief. Some helped them look forward to a better life in the future. Some talked about how impressive the current compensation for the soldiers was. As for others, they shared their thoughts.
My own funny daily life.
Not to mention, in the next few days, the rebels at least did not have the same hatred towards the imperial troops as before.
"Jianjun, is this really not a waste of effort? Is it beneficial to us?" Li Chengmu expressed a little doubt.
Long Yutian smiled and stroked his beard, "From the initial resistance by the people on the city wall, to now the city wall's acquiescence, this is progress."
Li Chengmu was silent. It's true that at the beginning, the rebels on the city wall were very resistant. Now they don't drive them away, and they still think that their performance is progress.
"Supervisor, the rebels in the city are staying behind closed doors in the city without fighting. They obviously want to consume our morale and food, while they themselves are conserving their strength. What do you think we should do next?"
"The confrontation between the two sides is about patience and strategy. Now we have to maintain a peaceful attitude and let the enemy's mentality collapse first, then we will win easily."
Of course, it is not easy to make the enemy's mentality collapse, but whether to attack the city or not, let's wait and see for a few days.
When Xia Jing was fifty miles away from Yuzhou City, she encountered Ye Bu Sui on her side, the same Ye Bu Suu who Li Chengmu had sent out.
After learning the latest battle situation in Yuzhou City from Ye Bushuang, she did not expect that the rebel general was a cunning and cunning man who stayed behind closed doors.
Xia Jing said to Ye Bushou: "You go ahead and inform His Royal Highness, we will be there soon."
Then he asked Ye Fei to pass on the order, and the team moved forward at full speed, trying to reach the outside of Yuzhou City before dark and join the team of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!
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