The track is in his own hands, and the carriages transporting rewards from the imperial court are also stranded in Qinzhou. Even if nearly 100,000 new troops are all returned to Bianliang, the transportation capacity is more than enough.
But Zhao Xi did not take away all the new troops. There are 50,000 new troops. It cannot be said to be invincible. Looking at the world, there is really no one who can compete.
Moreover, the new war with Xixia has just ended, and border protection cannot be relaxed for a moment.
Although Di Qing originally belonged to the Western Army and had been away from the Western Army for many years, it is not certain how long his reputation will last. He also needs to be left with some usable troops.
Zhao Xi only took away less than 70,000 new troops.
The princes of the court chose to report the father's illness together with the court reward, which means that the news should not have been leaked at this time.
This way the new army moved forward without flying the king's flag to show off their power. It was just like an ordinary rail transportation trip.
The trip to Qinzhou went smoothly without any accidents.
At this time, Zhao Xi also focused all his thoughts on the court structure and tried his best to imagine possible situations.
He made many unexpected assumptions, but none of them turned out to be true.
In the face of strength, all conspiracies and tricks are in vain. This is not because Zhao Xi is arrogant. After so many years, he is still confident. Even if he evaluates himself at the minimum, there will be no accidents in the succession of imperial power.
Even if my father doesn't survive his return, nothing unexpected will happen to the succession.
Ahead is Jingzhao Mansion, which means that in two days, they can enter Bianliang.
Along the way, in order to hide their tracks, the entire convoy did not add supplies at any station.
Most of the tracks were laid in parallel with the official roads. Zhao Xi's original design was to avoid duplication of construction, so that the official roads and tracks could enjoy the same supplies from the station, without increasing the imperial court's support.
Maweipo is a large post. Whether it is an official road or a track, Mawei Post is a supply point for the west exit from Jingzhao Prefecture.
The New Army consisted of more than 50,000 people, so fighting along the way would consume a lot of money. It was still at least two days' journey from Bianliang, so the entire convoy stopped at Maweiyi to prepare for some supplies.
"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was captured in Haoshuichuan. Now that you have used the track to escape back, do you still have the nerve to ask for supplies?"
"You really dare to lie and kill a hundred thousand people in battle? Shouldn't the Xixia people just stand still and let you kill them? Should the infantry kill a hundred thousand cavalry? Do you think the whole court is a fool?"
While he was talking, the soldiers at the post station burst into laughter.
"Stop pretending! Xixia has sent envoys to Bianliang! The bullshit new army has a high salary and is already being fed to the dogs!"
"This time, in order to exchange for His Highness the Crown Prince, we have to exploit military equipment again. We should let their new army bear the burden!"
Originally it was a matter of supplies, but Zhao Xi didn't pay much attention to it. Even the soldiers in the guard camp didn't come forward and just let any new army leader ask for it.
But Zhao Xi still heard the roar of laughter and the sarcasm one after another at the inn.
"You were captured? How come you didn't even know about it? This matter..."
The more Zhao Xi thought about it, the less simple it became. He still overestimated the court's ability to keep secrets, and was overconfident in Neiyuan.
Obviously, such rumors will not come to nothing.
Now, my father is seriously ill. If there are any more rumors that he was captured or died in battle...
How dare they!
"Cao Lin, take control of the inn, destroy it when it needs to be destroyed, arrest it when it needs to be captured, and find out the source of the rumors!"
"In addition, all the convoys will stop at all the inns ahead. After stopping, the inns will be controlled as soon as possible. If there are conditions for screening, then the inn personnel will be screened. If there is no time or conditions, they will all be arrested or even executed on the spot!"
A convoy that can transport 100,000 troops does not care about bringing in more people.
As for the inn, Zhao Xi knew that he really couldn't be merciful at this time.
The function of an inn is to welcome people and send them there. Likewise, it is a transfer point for many messages and the starting point of rumors.
No matter who it is, the purpose of spreading such news at this time is self-evident.
However, is this useful? The mantis is just a chariot. With the current situation, who can stop him from inheriting the throne?
Is it useful? I am not really captured...
Zhao Xi suddenly felt a little wary.
"Zirong, is there a sand table in Gyeonggi Province?"
"Your Highness, when Gyeonggi Province was laying tracks, Mingzhong measured part of the terrain, and there was no sandbox for Gyeonggi Province."
"Your Highness, what's wrong?"
Surprised by Zhao Xi's move, the instructors and commanders of the entire escort camp became a little nervous.
Even Li Jie ran to his resting place and started writhing.
"This is the first stop after passing Qinzhou. It is close to the Qinzhou front line. Some people even believe that Haoshuichuan was defeated and I was captured."
"Further forward, it is not surprising that there are rumors that I died in the battle. The key is, if after such publicity, some articles are made on our return convoy, if it really leads to the fact that I was killed..."
Zhao Xi somewhat admired this operation.
First, it created public opinion, causing soldiers and civilians, and even some officials who did not know the truth, to doubt whether Haoshuichuan would win or lose... The country's ability to defeat Xixia really didn't have much credibility based on past examples.
Then, on the way back to Bianliang, I played a big game...
Once you die, everything can change.
As for the court, the world belongs to the Zhao family. As long as the emperor is still the Zhao family and the interests of all ministers are not harmed, even some loyal ministers will not be able to go against the general trend.
Well played!
There is no doubt that the track is in his own hands. Although the road guards on the entire track are from miscellaneous soldiers from the imperial court, Zhao Xi believes that the combat effectiveness of the road guards is definitely not inferior to that of the Western Army.
In other words, it is impossible for the other party to destroy the track to achieve its goal.
Besides, there is no way to determine one's own life or death.
The only way left is to stage an ambush.
The war on the Western Front had just ended, and no one would have thought that when they returned to Bianliang, they would bring back 60,000 to 70,000 new troops... Consolidating border defense should be the top priority, and even Qinzhou would not be able to let go of the new troops like this.
It should be said that what the other party really did not expect was the combat power of the New Army... To consolidate border defense, it is not necessary to leave all the New Army in Qinzhou.
What's even more unpredictable is that in this battle against Xia, our own battle loss ratio was not high. One hundred thousand Xixia cavalry were killed. According to previous examples, the loss of soldiers of the state and dynasty was at least twice as much.
In other words, due to the need to consolidate border defense, there will not be too many troops to escort him back to Bianliang.
Judging from various aspects, Zhao Xi can be sure that the princes in the court had no objections and the detailed report of this victory was not leaked.
What is also certain is that the news should have come from the inner garden. Moreover, the other party has a military commander involved, and he is a military commander who has never had contact with the New Army.
These are not the most important things now. Now we need to deduce, where will the other party ambush the convoy?
"Your Highness, the escort battalion will escort His Highness from the national highway back to Bianliang. We will continue to move forward along the track!"
When Lu Gongzhu said these words, Zhao Xi suddenly felt a familiar feeling, which seemed to be similar to an event in later generations.
However, Zhao Xi was not prepared to avoid it. Again, in the face of absolute strength, all conspiracies would be in vain.