You people still lack craftsmen like those in Central Plains, this stone city is truly built with stones.

  To say grinding, it's just like that, and it didn't reach a particularly smooth level, which also made it easier for Zhao Xi and others to climb.

  It's likely that from Yongzhou to Guangyuan, Nong Zhigao had made arrangements for a sneak attack, knowing that the imperial army had not yet been dispatched, and the entire city of Guangyuan was not on high alert, or rather, there were no guards patrolling.

  Nong Zhigao was a leader who fully accepted the culture of the Central Plains, including the construction of this city, which was also strictly laid out according to the layout of the cities in the Central Plains.

  The dwellings in the city are similar to those of mountain villagers, all being two-story stilt houses, and even livestock have places for feeding.

  Only in the center of the city was a large stone mansion.

  The stone blocks of the house are much smoother than those of the city wall. Zhao Xi and several others also had expected this.

  No one was on guard, and they never thought of disturbing others. The seven of them slipped along the wall root, walking in the shadows towards the main house...

  "Your Highness, why not kill Nianzhi Gao directly?"

  Things have been done, done very cleanly, without disturbing anyone.

  Ke has already reached the lair of Nong Zhigao and even visited his bedroom, but the Crown Prince only asked to find evidence in the form of letters.

  It seems like no one understands, so Cao Lin spoke up.

  "Why kill him?"

  Your Highness's words... isn't the purpose of the southern expedition to get rid of Nianzhi Gao?

  "In short, if we don't kill Zhuge Liang, what will happen?"

  "They will inevitably gather their tribesmen and the discontented Tusi, regroup and fight against the imperial army."

  This is true and will definitely end up like this.

  "What's next?"

  Guidance is more effective than explanation in making people understand the truth.

  "Then it will be defeated again, with countless deaths and injuries..."

  At this point, Cao Lin stopped talking, he wasn't a fool. Gao Jingxian, Chong Yu and Zhe Kexing also paused for a moment, all of them trying to understand.

  "The grudge between us has been settled, and the imperial army cannot do what those barbarians did, killing people just because they are taller than the axle of a cart. To truly bring peace to Guangnan, some things must be done."

  "In the Former Shu period, Zhuge clashed with Meng Huo. From another perspective, this was very beneficial for the Former Shu to gain a foothold."

  ……

  It's been seven days, and there is still no news from the Crown Prince. Yu Jing can't hold on anymore, and Di Qing also can't hold on anymore. They are just hesitating about whether to report to the imperial court or not.

  Zhao Xi's letter has already said that he needs two weeks. The problem is that this waiting is too anxious.

  "The scholar, Gongzheng believes that delaying for seven days and half a month is no different from concealing the crime of false reporting. Reporting to the imperial court on this matter would be of no benefit..."

  Lv Gongzhu understood the training goals of the Imperial Guard and was optimistic about the Crown Prince's long-distance expedition.

  The key is that if the Crown Prince's trip is known to the court, it will inevitably have a great impact on the Crown Prince's reputation. It's not just a problem for the Crown Prince to get along with the ministers after ascending to the throne, but also may cause difficulties for the old ministers in the future.

  The main responsibility for deceiving the imperial court lies with Yu Jing and Di Qing...

  "The Crown Prince has the authority to make decisions on the spot, which is higher than ours. The Guard Corps' long-distance raid is based on the battlefield situation and does not need to be reported to the imperial court!"

  Han Zhen spoke briefly, his words were concise and clear in meaning. The Crown Prince is the supreme commander of the royal army. Since there are letters left behind, it means that orders have been given, and no one can disobey them.

  Everyone is clear that if the commander of the guard unit had gone to Guangyuan alone, no one would have worried. Now it's His Highness the Crown Prince who personally took the risk... this pot is too heavy for anyone to carry.

  "What do you think, Han minister?"

  Yu Jing is not deceiving Di Qing, he really has no other choice. Now, among them, Yu and Di are the highest level of literary and martial arts respectively, this statement is truly instructive.

  "Scholars, now is the time to make a move. Whether it's reporting to the imperial court or being trapped in the city, there's no benefit either way. Currently, we have sufficient troops and supplies, and morale is high. I suggest sending troops to Guangyuan, regardless of whether the emperor succeeds or not, dispatching troops will be beneficial!"

  If Your Highness has succeeded, it will only be necessary to meet halfway. If Your Highness has not yet succeeded, sending troops from Guangyuan can also attract Nianzhi Gao's attention to the king's expedition on this side.

  It's better to send troops as soon as possible even if the Crown Prince is trapped, rather than waiting until news arrives.

  Zhao Xi made a few quiet turns in Guangyuan City and escaped at the fastest speed after leaving the city.

  Some things can't be taken lightly, perhaps recently Niu Zhi Gao won't look at these letters again, they can only think that Niu Zhi Gao could have discovered them back then and would have pursued them to the death.

  Going with the flow is much faster than coming, and in just a few days, it seems that we will soon arrive at Mingyin Prefecture. However, I keep running into people hurrying along the road from time to time.

  Generally, they come with the current and go against it, or they all hide during the day and come out at night. This is strange.

  This behavior seems very similar to Zhao Xi and them.

  "Your Highness..."

  "Let's mess around tonight and see what happens."

  Always brushing past like this, it's really frightening.

  Zhao Xi and his group are currently in a place under the jurisdiction of Yongzhou Left River Road, but in fact, the Yongzhou government's control is also just that, basically in a state of autonomy. With the bandits causing chaos, it's purely chaotic at this time.

  "What? The royal army has been dispatched?"

  "Your Highness, it is indeed so. The two men said as much. They came from Yongzhou to serve the Nong people."

  The previous order has not been withdrawn, which means the command Zhao Xi said that no one can be killed is still in effect. Cao Lin still needs to explain... It's impossible to just let the details go like this.

  "If we meet such a person again on our way, kill him without hesitation! It's better to kill the wrong person than to let him go!"

  Zhao Xie thought of Di Qing and Yu Jing sending troops, probably because they couldn't wait for his return.

  Perhaps there are also worries that they will be caught by Niu Zhigao and his troops, and even if they send troops over, they can still intimidate them.

  In fact, at this time, if they have not yet succeeded, sending troops will only increase the difficulty of their actions.

  Forget it, they were all kind-hearted. One letter of guarantee couldn't really reassure everyone, but it did provide a pretext for Di Qing to send troops.

  Otherwise, judging from the thoughts of those literati, I'm afraid they will have to wait for you to die of old age.

  Yongzhou has always been governed only within the city of Yongzhou itself. Beyond the city to the west, even if nominally under national rule, no governor has ever exercised authority there.

  Thereafter, Zhao Xi no longer hurried on his journey and instead began to plunder and kill the local villagers.

  Still lurking in the daytime and emerging at night, but now it's for killing people, not just traveling.

  They killed all the way from the mountains to the rivers. As long as they encountered those who were active at night and dormant during the day, they would directly attack without asking any questions.

  Your Highness said, it's better to kill by mistake than to let one escape!

  But Zhao Xi's mind was on the manganese mine.

  This place is already within the borders of Mingyin Prefecture, and Zhao Xi needs to use these black stones to shut the mouths of all the civil and military officials in Guangnan, so they won't gossip with the imperial court.

  At the same time, it's also best to let them see that this so-called barbaric land is not necessarily without profit.

  It's gotten to the point where I reckon no one would be willing to give up this crappy place.