Troubled Times: Start with 800 Dead Soldiers

A gentleman makes a decision before taking action. Xiong Hui quickly sent his cronies to investigate near Qingzhou Mansion.

Before the army arrives, intelligence comes first!

The informants who were first deployed in Qingzhou Mansion were all selected from the soldiers. These people were extremely loyal to Xiong Hui, and they were all locals. Their accent was very similar to that of Qingzhou. They had no tattoos on their faces and were inconspicuous among the crowd.

Over there, she was preparing to intercept the birthday card. Here, Su Xia began to look forward to Salmon Island.

Salmon Island is very big, and there are more than a dozen small islands going north, almost reaching the Liao Kingdom in a series.

Judging from the map, Salmon Island has a radius of three hundred miles, but it is rarely developed and has no cultivated land.

According to Su Xia's estimation, even if no high-rise buildings are built in the future and farmland is retained, at least 10 residents can be accommodated.

Now, there are only 800 people on the entire island. There is a lack of women, gender imbalance, lack of arable land, and lack of buildings. What Su Xia wants to develop, but all of this requires money first.

And Grand Master Cai’s birth date is like the first pot of gold prepared for him.

Su Xia, who was meditating on the plan, issued the first order.

Among the troops in this prison camp, he wanted to find 20 strong warriors who had served in the Forbidden Army.

It was not difficult to find twenty of the 800 people. Su Xia read their ultimatum resumes one by one, and then interviewed them one by one.

Seeing the tattoos on their faces, Su Xia couldn't help but feel a little sad. Most of these soldiers were excellent soldiers, but they were reduced to a desert island.

The leader among the 20 people was very impressive. Although he was already a prisoner, he still had an upright spirit. He was eight feet tall and had a straight figure.

Xiong Hui introduced Su Xia: "Sir, this person was Zhao Wenhui, the commander of the Tianwu Army under the Imperial Palace. He was in charge of the Imperial Guards of each capital under the Tianwu Army. He fought with the Liao Kingdom and made many military exploits and was promoted. To General Mingwei.

(Capital Commander: a senior officer, the name of the commander of the army, Tianwu Army: an elite force under the Forbidden Army responsible for guarding the capital, and other names such as the Japanese Army)

Look at his strong body and strong arms. Su Xia first asked: "Have you ever been a commander?"

Zhao Wenhui cupped his hand and said, "Returning to your lord, I, the villain, Zhao Wenhui, once served in the Tianwu Army."

"What crime did you commit? Coming here?"

"Sir, my subordinate was assigned here because he offended someone."

"Who offended?"

"I offended Hu Shiwen, a close associate of Grand Master Cai and the envoy to Xuanfu in Hebei Province. At that time, I was serving as the commander of the Tianwu Army and was suddenly transferred to Hebei Province to garrison troops..."

In fact, Su Xia knew Zhao Wenhui's details a long time ago, so she just said this to stimulate his hatred towards Master Cai.

Therefore, he interrupted: "Zhao Wenhui, none of this is recorded in your case file. It is written in the case file that you refused to obey the Privy Council's order."

"My lord, everything I said is true. This is purely a false accusation. My grandfather was a general in the imperial court for the third generation and did not receive an order from the Privy Council at that time."

"I believe you, but the court doesn't believe you. Taishi Cai doesn't believe you. To tell you the truth, we all know that you offended Hu Shiwen, a close associate of Taishi Cai and the envoy of Xuanfu in Hebei, who was assassinated and sent to the army. It was Hu Shiwen who secretly colluded with the Privy Council. Luo Zhi The crime caused your wife and children to be separated, your whole family to be confiscated, your parents to pass away from excessive grief, and there will be no turning back from now on."

Su Xia explained Zhao Wenhui's experience. Zhao Wenhui's face was already filled with tears and he clenched his fists. It was obvious that his emotions had been ignited by Su Xia.

"The family is ruined and the general is alone. I wonder if the general dares to do something?"

"Sir, tell me, everyone on Salmon Island does not admire your character. I have fallen to this level, what else can I not dare to do?"

Su Xia said calmly: "At the beginning of next month, the Qingzhou magistrate will send a birthday gift worth 10 taels of silver. I want you to take these brothers who are from the Forbidden Army to get this ill-gotten wealth back, take it from the people, and use it." Yu Min!"

Before he finished speaking, Zhao Wenhui was already shocked and looked at Su Xia dumbfounded.

Su Xia had long been mentally prepared for this. After all, Zhao Wenhui had served in the army for three generations.

He was asked to snatch this birthday card, even though it was the ill-gotten gains of his enemy.

But in his mind, this was something done by bandits. I was a military general, how could I do such a thing?

Zhao Wenhui looked troubled: "Sir, this,, this matter, I cannot accept my orders. I am free to practice martial arts. Be loyal to the emperor and serve the country..."

Su Xia said slowly: "Have General Zhao forgotten how his family was ruined? Thank you for your loyalty to the king and the country! These 10 taels of silver are the people's support for the people of Qingzhou Prefecture. Qingzhou has suffered from famine for many years.

Fortunately, you have also served as the commander of the Tianwu Army. Your good skills in marching, setting up formations, and attacking cities and territories have been in vain. You have been a man in vain! "

Zhao Wenhui closed his eyes tightly, shook his head and said: "Sir, I know you did this because of the food and salary issue for the thousands of brothers on the island, but doing so will also make you unjust! I can't..."

Seeing his indecisive look, Su Xia shouted: "Thankfully you were once the commander-in-chief of the Tianwu Army, so you can't tell the difference between being so indecisive!

If I have a right path in my heart, I will go there even though there are thousands of people. I, Su Xia, don’t care about this black gauze hat at all. If I have a righteous heart, I will not hesitate to be broken into pieces! "

After Su Xia finished speaking, her eyes widened with anger.

As soon as he finished saying the word "shattered to pieces," two lines of hot tears suddenly burst out of Zhao Wenhui's closed eyes.

After a moment, Zhao Wenhui suddenly knelt down on one knee and said, "Sir, I was worried just now. Now that you have made up your mind, I am willing to lead my brothers to do it!"

......

Outside Gaoqing County, Qingzhou Prefecture, in a tea shed that had just been set up, several informants reported to Su Xia in turn:

"Sir, our brothers are keeping watch day and night. They set out from Qingzhou Prefecture six days ago. The escort team has twenty carriages and horses and forty escorts. Each of the escorts holds a sword. They have guarded various goods for the Qingzhou Prefecture many times. , most of the members are strong soldiers from the army in the state capital, and each of them can be worth ten."

Another informant reported to Su Xiahui: "Sir, there is news from within the Dengzhou Prefecture that the birthday package escorted to Master Cai this time is a birthday gift worth 10 taels of silver, consisting of thousands of taels of gold and a batch of treasures. It is leaving the city. Sometimes there are military escorts.

The leader of the escort team was a lieutenant of the Xiang Army who was blind in one eye. His name was Guo Wuji. He was nicknamed One-eyed Dragon because he only had one eye left. He was originally a rural soldier in Qingzhou Prefecture. He killed wolves with his bare hands when he was young. He was later sentenced to death for fighting and killing. He was exiled to Qingzhou to serve as an army auxiliary. Because of his ruthlessness and ability to beat, he was favored by the Qingzhou magistrate and promoted to the capital.

Although he is the head of the capital, he does not lead troops. He only looks after the house and the courtyard of the prefect's family. This time, he and forty bodyguards will escort the gift worth 10 taels to Bianliang, Tokyo. "

After Su Xia and Xiong Hui heard the report, they waved their hands to signal them to leave.

Xiong Hui on the side asked carefully: "Sir, do you have any ideas?"

Su Xia stared at a dirt road leading to Gao Qingcheng and said: "The informants are very careful in their intelligence, but these people must keep it strictly confidential. After returning to Shamen Island, they must stay on the island with peace of mind. Once this matter is revealed, it will be a shocking case. , according to common sense, this batch of treasures should arrive in the near future, notify Zhao Wenhui and ask them to prepare for battle!"