Sun Biao could never have imagined that he would meet his former comrades-in-arms in such a situation, and even more unbelievable was that the leader of this wolf-like army was none other than Liu Ce, who had often been bullied by him in the past. He was suddenly at a loss for words, feeling extremely awkward. Due to his notorious reputation in the military, where he would often rely on Deng Jia to do as he pleased, several old soldiers were extremely displeased with him, and Feng Chou hated him so much that she wished she could take him down with one swing of her axe.
Liu Ce saw Sun Biao and felt a little surprised, but he didn't say anything. He just looked at him with some deep meaning in his eyes, shook his head, and then handed him over to Qin Mo along with the quarry workers and villagers for arrangement...
"Alas..." Sun Biao followed behind the civilians, carrying stones and constantly shaking his head in sighs. This was truly a twist of fate. In just a few months, Liu Ce had already formed such a powerful team. Sun Cheng, Yang Fan, and the others were once targets of bullying, but now they could lead troops into battle. Looking at his own current situation, Sun Biao felt a sense of injustice and resentment...
Just as Sun Biao was still lost in thought, a mournful cry came from the foot of the mountain. Sun Biao and some villagers looked down to see more than 200 bandits with their hands tied behind their backs, either kneeling or standing, with over 100 robust men holding spears behind them, shouting loudly as they stabbed them to death one by one.
This scene frightened the people who were working, their legs all went soft, and a thought flashed through their minds: these fallen men, not even sparing prisoners, won't it be my turn next...
These civilians were getting more and more frightened, some timid ones simply sat on the ground crying loudly, which made the crowd even more panicked. Sun Biao's Adam's apple was rolling up and down, with a stone in his heart and cold sweat on his back.
"What are you doing?" Sun Biao asked a soldier guarding them, trying to calm himself down.
"What's it to you? Hurry up and move the stone blocks!" The soldier was a logistics soldier under Xu Hui, and because of Feng Xueyan, he had some understanding of the guy in front of him, who had a bad reputation. He didn't have a good impression of Sun Biao.
Sun Biao saw that the soldier didn't have a good impression of him, but he wasn't annoyed. He still had a smiling face and asked kindly. Some civilians who were moving stone blocks and logs also quietly stopped and listened with their ears perked up, after all, this concerned their own fate.
The soldier saw that the progress had slowed down, so he told them: "I say you guys are crying with a sad face, what's wrong? It's not you who was killed, everyone just needs to focus on moving the stones and wood, after finishing work, I'll find a place for you to rest, and there will be food for you."
It seemed that the soldier was not talking nonsense, and everyone's heart finally calmed down. Seeing these soldiers did not beat themselves like bandits, but occasionally helped artisans and civilians move stone blocks, they were completely at ease.
"My general said that the bandits are a scourge on the people, and it's not worth mourning their deaths. If they fall into our elite guard's hands, there's only one way out - death!" The soldier puffed out his chest as he spoke, proud of himself, although he was just an auxiliary soldier, but after all, he was also a member of the elite guard, and who knows when he would make a meritorious deed and be able to join the combat troops!
The people around were shocked when they heard the news, and immediately thought of the bandits' actions in the city. They felt that this was a great deed, and someone shouted "Good kill! These bastards!" Instantly, the enthusiasm for work increased greatly, and the progress accelerated. By the time it was late afternoon, everything was ready, leaving only Feng Ying and Gao Lao Han to deal with some remaining technical issues. The two men cooperated while bickering, and the resting workers nearby felt that their atmosphere was unusually strange...
In the Menghe Town Government Office, the two fugitives who were released by Liu Ce earlier were now kneeling in front of Jin Heng, crying and sniffling as they pleaded with him.
Jin Heng walked back and forth with his eyes narrowed, while Wang Xu stood beside him, pressing the scabbard of his knife with a cold smile on his face.
"What a joke, 100,000 stones! Is that stupid Jingwei Camp crazy? Daring to ask us for food!" Wang Xu disdainfully said, "General, give me 1,000 cavalry, and I'll go wipe out that Jingwei Camp. Whoever dares to show off in front of the Jin Family Army must have eaten bear heart and leopard gall!"
"You said they are for the quarry?" Jin Heng was not deceived by Wang Xi's words, although he was very bellicose, but also not a fool, many years of military career had cultivated his cautious good habit, if the opponent was elite government troops, then he would have to carefully weigh before making a decision.
"Yes, General, their leader said with his own mouth that there is no shortage of food, it's just to disgust us. Now more than 200 brothers are detained by him, and those strong stone workers are also forced to work as laborers, seemingly for the construction of some camp!" The deserter told Jin Heng Liu Ce's original words one by one, and added fuel to the fire at the same time.
"Three hundred men were defeated by over a hundred, and they collapsed at the slightest touch?" This was exactly what Jin Heng was worried about. Losing a small quarry was no big deal, but the key was that the "Jin Family Army" would lose face. Before going to war, it was essential to understand clearly whether the opponent's strength was worth fighting this battle. If the opponent was too strong, then it was better to be a tortoise and hide.
Jin Heng's face was filled with worry, and the fleeing bandit hastily said: "General, they have over a thousand men, while we brothers are just over three hundred. The remaining hundred or so people must be their elite troops."
Jin Heng nodded, that's right, over a thousand people fighting against three hundred, that's affirmative. As for the more than 100 people who should be the main force of the so-called elite guard, if over a thousand people have this strength, why haven't I heard of it in this area?
"Wang Xu, lead the troops and horses, follow me to retake the Caishi Canyon!" Jin Heng immediately gave the order after calming his mind.
Wang Xiu held up his fist and said: "General, do you need a cow knife to kill a chicken? Moreover, the city cannot be without a general to guard it! Give me 2,000 soldiers and horses, I will definitely flatten that Jinwei Camp, let him see the power of my Golden Family Army!"
Jin Heng thought for a moment and also made sense, so he pressed down his desire to go to war and agreed to Wang Xie's request.
"I'll give you 2,000 more cavalrymen. There are currently 700 troops in the city, and I was going to send them to General Gao's main camp in two days. For now, I'll lend you 200 horses for the vanguard riders. Be careful not to make any mistakes. I'll also assign 200 archers to you. Since their formation is so tight, let's use arrows to disrupt it. I want to see if the Imperial Guard can remain calm in the face of a hail of arrows! You can set out now!"
Overall, Jin Heng's strategy is very mature. From the brief conversation with the messenger, it's clear that the Jingwei Camp lacks long-range output capabilities. Although his own archers are also mediocre, they can still manage within a 20-step range, and as for those cavalrymen, they are all elite, ensuring that this trip will not encounter any unexpected events.
"Yes! I'll set off right away!" Wang Xi excitedly took the wooden plaque from Jin Heng's hand and led the troops to deploy the soldiers.
Inside the quarry...
"Yes, I'll go right away and ensure the task is completed!" Sun Cheng mumbled a response to Liu Ce's words while chewing on an oil pancake, then turned around and left. Today's battle didn't give him a chance to take the stage, Yang Youhuai had stolen the show, and his soldiers were already grumbling. How could he let this opportunity slip away?
Watching Sun Chengbu leave the gorge, Liu Ce's eyes were firm, and he turned to look inside the stone yard. There, over a thousand laborers were gathered in large circles, holding bowls of white rice and eating hastily...
"Damn, it's so satisfying! I haven't eaten this full in a long time." Sun Biao threw down his bowl and chopsticks after finishing three bowls of rice, and began to pick at his teeth with a thin wooden stick. This was the most satisfying meal he had eaten in two months. He glanced over at Xu Hui, who was busy leading the auxiliary soldiers, and couldn't help but feel a sense of unease. "He's only been a soldier for a few months, and yet he can lead hundreds of men. What's so special about this pretty boy?" Sun Biao thought to himself, feeling more and more uneasy. He looked over at the soldiers again, and although their martial arts skills were far inferior to his own, years of experience in the military had taught him that these people had hidden strengths like giant waves, capable of swallowing everything in their path.
"Liu Ce that kid, how did he train his troops? If I could lead such troops to march and fight, it would be great!" Sun Biao's heart was filled with mixed emotions as he looked at Feng Xuan and Yang Kai in the distance, and couldn't help but feel a surge of envy.
"After eating, take them to a safe place and fight later, I'm afraid they'll get in the way." Feng Chouyun finished his last piece of flatbread and threw down a sentence to Xu Hui before leading his troops up the mountain...
"General, I think we've cooked too much rice this time." Qin Mo gazed at the large pot of continuously boiling millet porridge and potatoes, mixed with diced cured meat, shaking his head.
Liu Ce smiled and said, "War is a deceitful way. Do you still remember the medicine used by Mr. Ye for the bloated belly of the mule in the village a few days ago?"
Qin Mo Dao said, "Huang Dan Cao, Ye Xian Di has done quite a bit of research on various medical techniques and pharmacology..." As soon as he got to this point, his eyes widened in surprise, "You're saying..."
"Huangdangcao is just a laxative for treating bloating, but I once accidentally discovered that if mixed with boiling water, it becomes a deadly purgative. The other day, I personally administered the medicine to a mule, and within an hour, it was dead, bleeding from its anus. If this can happen to a mule, what about a human..." Liu Ce smiled sinisterly, making Qin Mo's scalp feel numb.
"It's too terrifying!" This was Qin Mo's most genuine thought. The young man in front of him just didn't play by the usual rules.
Liu Ce saw Qin Mo's expression and adjusted his thoughts, saying: "Sir, don't be surprised, as long as we can win and let the soldiers suffer fewer casualties, I, Liu Ce, don't mind being a villain!"
"With this, one link after another, the outcome of this battle is basically already set in stone, just waiting for Jin Heng to arrive!" Qin Mo felt that now it was almost a sure thing, Liu Ce's arrangements were not to be underestimated, even if it were an official army, they would likely fall into his trap.
"Scatter the fake weapons all over the place, and throw in some long spears and broken shields. Make it look as chaotic as possible!" Liu Ce gave the order again. Since they were putting on a show, they might as well do it thoroughly and avoid giving away any flaws. Then he kicked over a large pot of boiling hot porridge, spilling millet soup all over the ground...
After everything was set up, Liu Ce and the others climbed up to the ambush point on the mountain cliff, quietly waiting for the bandits to arrive...
In the distance, more than 4,000 people and horses were rushing towards the quarry in a flurry. At the forefront of the cavalry was Wang Xie, wearing chain armor, riding alongside him on a black horse was a man with a sinister appearance, named Gao Fan, also clad in chain armor. If Han Feng were here, he would undoubtedly recognize this person as the murderer who killed Wang Tong...
The quarry's valley gradually appeared before the bandits' eyes, Wang Xu raised his head to look at the sky, which had already darkened somewhat, probably around dusk, and in half an hour at most, night would fall...
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