dead in winter

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"How about the military reserves?"

"Back to the general, when our army withdrew from Qingzhou, we had already escorted the food and grass back, and with the hospitality of the folks in the city, we can keep our army alive for more than a month." Guo Jingrui answered, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes became worse, and he said sadly

Wen Shuojing said lightly, "How is the food for the lieutenant soldiers? Was there any shortage?"

"This..." Guo Jingrui and Dian Huai looked at each other, hesitated for a moment, and Dian Huai said honestly, "General, you also know that my harvest has not been good in recent years, and there has been a famine or a plunder. Li... ah, I have been fighting for a few years, and now I can only maintain the most basic food and weapons replenishment. It is extremely difficult..."

Where Dian Huai's voice paused, Wen Shuojing naturally knew it well. The food he ordered everyone to serve was only rough vegetable soup accompanied by a few vegetables, and there was no meat at all. This is the case with the general, let alone the soldiers below. up

Wen Shuojing looked thoughtfully at the dense forest not far away, without saying a word, Mingshu stepped forward and handed Wen Shuojing a letter, "Master, it's from Shangjing"

Wen Shuojing took it over and opened it. The words on the envelope were timeless and elegant, with a cool style, lingering and tortuous like a clear spring stone, but without losing its own unique charm. After examining it carefully for a moment, Wen Shuojing gently put it in his arms and closed it. good

A faded red string looms at the open neckline, and the emerald green jade pendant flashes past

All the soldiers looked at each other in blank dismay, not daring to come forward to ask for a while, when Wen Shuojing raised his head again, his eyes were deep and said, "Order, send soldiers to find the blacksmith in the town, and there is also a clothing store. I need to make a new set of armor." , although it is spring now, it is easy to catch wind and cold under the alternation of seasons, so the soldiers must not make any mistakes..."

"In addition" he paused, "There are many mountains and forests on the edge of Wuzhou, and there are a lot of medicinal materials in the mountains. I will give you a list later. I will send a team of soldiers to collect herbs in the mountains tomorrow morning. After cooking, order the soldiers to drink them all. "

"As for meals, the cooks should buy more meat, and serve meat to the soldiers!"

"Yes!"

Surrounded by mountains and forests, Qingshui Town is located at the junction of Qingzhou and Wuzhou. It is not only a fortress, but also a famous medicine town. There are many medicines growing in the nearby mountains. Although serious diseases cannot be cured, it is still possible to keep fit

Wen Shuojing ordered the soldiers to collect herbs, and at the same time asked Mingshu to look for farmers who usually went to the mountains to dig herbs. With the combination of both sides, they paid for their labor while paying their wages. They were happy to see the success of the job, which made a group of young farmers flock to Actively sign up

It was getting late at this time, and after the various tasks were issued, the meeting ended here, and Qu Hongqi did not show up until now

Wen Shuojing didn't care. Although Qu Hongqi said such hurtful words, to Wen Shuojing, he deserved everything. Besides, he was not greedy for power, so he couldn't imagine why Qu Hongqi paid so much attention to it. reputation

In the final analysis, the two have different philosophies. Wen Shuo Jing means concentric master to indulge in the mountains and rivers, a couple for life, and Qu HongQi means high power and status at your fingertips.

Wen Shuojing lit the lamp and sat in front of the table. The guard at the gate had been replaced by Mingshu. Mingyue didn't follow this time, and he stayed in Shangjing to protect Wen Shu.

He took out the envelope from his pocket, and there were only a few words in it, most of which were business-like summaries. At the end, he only asked about his recent situation, expressed his concern, and advised him to proceed carefully

Through the thin envelope, one can imagine how the young man on the other side of the picture wrote these words tremblingly with a blushing handsome face, and couldn't help chuckling

Mingshu outside the tent has sharp ears and eyes. Hearing the vague laughter inside, he couldn't help touching his nose and looking at the dark sky, sighing in his heart.

"Love really makes people lose their wits"

Wen Shuojing opened the second page, on which was the production method of the crossbow. This type is a new and improved type. Not only is the overall lightness, the shooting stability is also greatly enhanced, and the power has been increased by a full five times. Each crossbow is equipped with ten pieces. Arrow feathers, the production materials are simple, not to mention that they can be produced in batches, and it is also very fast to get started

If they take advantage of the burning of the Xiongnu's granary to make them overwhelmed, they can be produced in a very short period of time. If these bows and crossbows are used in the ambush of the Longevity Valley later, they will surely emit a lot of energy

Moreover, Wen Shu mentioned in the letter that the arrow feathers of bows and crossbows need to be carefully polished to maximize their sharpness, so that they can kill the enemy with one blow. The piercing ability is enough to pierce an elk instantly. It is not difficult to break the thick sebum layer of the Xiongnu

Wen Shuojing tightly grasped the drawing of the bow and crossbow in his hand, his eyes were clear and shallow. Wen Renjing was very happy that the bow and crossbow could be used this time, and even made a decision to use it as a secret weapon in the future. If an extremely lethal crossbow is used to conquer various countries, it may not be possible to unify the countries...

Thinking of this, Wen Shuojing felt that after the battle, the blueprint must be destroyed, even if Wen Renjing was furious, he would not be afraid...

The country does not need things like wars that waste people and money, let alone weapons with great benefits like bows and crossbows...

There was a sound of footsteps outside the house, and Ming Shu stopped him before the camp, the man whispered a few words, Ming Shu then opened the curtain and walked in, "Master, General Qu is outside."

"Invite him in." Wen Shuojing turned over a page of military manual and said indifferently

"Yes"

Qu Hongqi stepped forward, looked at the unparalleled handsome man under the candlelight, and said in shame, "Yueqing, I made a slip of the tongue, I shouldn't have slandered you like this, I..." He bowed his head fiercely, and sat on the warm table dejectedly. On the soft cushion opposite the twinkling scene

The camp was lit with the smell of agarwood, and all the supplies around were simple, Wen Shuojing finally raised his eyes and said, "It's okay, it's difficult to control you, I don't blame you"

Seeing that Wen Shuojing's attitude was the same as before, Qu Hongqi heaved a sigh of relief, and said with a wry smile, "You also know that I have studied military books for more than [-] years, but I have never actually been on the battlefield.

At the beginning, I was so conceited that I thought I could plan a strategy and turn the situation around, but as a result, I was beaten and retreated at the beginning of the battlefield, and I lost [-]% of the country... Alas, I am sorry for the country, I am sorry for the people, and I have failed Your Majesty's expectations ..."

"It's useless to talk too much. If you make a mistake, you will correct it." Wen Shuojing turned the page again and said, "The soldiers are suffering, and they don't have enough food and clothing. How to solve this problem is what you should do now."

Qu Hongqi nodded in a deep voice and said, "I know, but the national treasury has been short for many years, and the Secretary of the Ministry of Household Affairs has been biting his tongue. I can't help it, but what can you do?"

"It is true that the national treasury is empty, but the Minister of the Ministry of Finance is old, and His Majesty has ordered him to retire and return to his hometown. The current Minister of the Ministry of Finance is His Majesty's person, so he will naturally allocate funds. The enemy is now, even if the treasury is emptied. Subsidize the soldiers, if the soldiers are cold-hearted, we will be useless as generals..." Wen Shuo nodded and said

"Hahaha, that's true. The old Hubu Shangshu finally got off the horse. I think he has been involved in the embezzlement of funds in the past few years. I guess he knew the seriousness and handed in his resignation letter on his own!" Qu Hongqi laughed heartily.

"The homes of all the ministers whom His Majesty beheaded were ransacked, and a lot of priceless objects were seized.

What you said is that the Secretary of the Household Department has a lot of corruption. His Majesty Nian left his life and gave him enough dignity after he dedicated himself for decades, but all his savings and other officials' property over the years It was confiscated, so the treasury still has enough power to support the army."

Wen Shuojing closed the book and wrote the word "forbearance" on the rice paper

"A group of soldiers led by Old General Lin has been besieging King Jing's private army in the outskirts of Yanzhou border for more than a month, and the winner must be determined soon. In this way, we need to step up our pace..."

Qu Hongqi nodded

In the distance came the cry of the nightingale, the rustling of the wind-blown grass and trees, in the silent night only Wen Shuojing’s camp was still lit, other soldiers patrolling, those sleeping, the ear ringing softly

Wen Shuojing sat in the same position calmly, while Qu Hongqi was still talking with thick nerves, as if he was having a headache about how his sister should persuade her to go back tomorrow morning...

The sound of footsteps has come to the rear, only the sound of the surrounding wind can be heard

Something's wrong, it's too quiet...

Ming Shu outside the door didn't respond at all, Qu Hongqi also realized it, his handsome long eyebrows were frowned, the two looked at each other, and immediately continued to talk without changing expressions, Wen Shuojing would occasionally say a word, the two of them were not salty or not. Chatting about ordinary things, listening to the footsteps behind the tent

It's too obvious, Wen Shuojing frowned, as if he wanted us to hear it on purpose...Wen Shuojing ignored one point, that is, although the footsteps kept ringing, they always lingered in one direction and never moved, no!

After realizing this, Wen Shuojing's pupils shrank, he suddenly raised his head to look above his head, and said sharply, "Back!"

The moment the camp tent was torn open, a dozen masked black-clothed dead soldiers jumped down from above. Their tactics were vicious, their coordination was excellent, and their moves were deadly.

They were obviously here to assassinate Wen Shuojing alone. At this time, Qu Hongqi was thrown in a corner, and a dozen dead soldiers surrounded Wen Shuojing, all working together, the sharp blade slashed across his face, and a strand of hair The silk is easily cut

Wen Shuojing turned around and took out the Longquan sword, with the scabbard pointing upwards, he put his arms against the scimitars of the five dead men, held the sword in his right hand and swung away the other dead men, then turned around and rose into the air. The clothes are like a blooming green lotus, and the layers are really beautiful

The tent instantly collapsed to the ground, and the soldiers who were still sleeping not far away were suddenly awakened, and they took up their swords and ran out. Seeing the figures fighting fiercely in the midair, they were speechless, and then ran up angrily to reinforce

Qu Hongqi's face was ugly, he was not armed, and the moment he retreated, he grabbed a pillar of the tent and used it as a spear, and shouted loudly

"Who are you? Why did you come to assassinate?" No one answered his question. Those dead men seemed to have taken a stimulant, and they grabbed Wen Shuojing and did not let go. Qu Hongqi was so angry that he flew over the trees beside him. And up

Wen Shuojing parried calmly. He has strong martial arts skills. Although he can withstand the siege of these dead men, he has just recovered from serious injuries. These people seem to come here at the right time and want to put Wen Shuojing to death.

A bead of sweat streaked across his face, and the dullness in his chest became more and more intense. Qu Hongqi asked loudly below him. Unfortunately, this is a group of dead soldiers. Asking them will not give any answer.

……

To be continued