Xie Bing and his men subconsciously believed that soldiers should eat this well when they were fighting. The Jingwei Army was different; many of them were recruits from other places.
In their eyes, Xie Bing was a true aristocratic soldier—good at fighting and well-fed. In any country, tens of thousands would rush to join the army, even if it was just for a meal.
Many people now have access to better logistical conditions, opening up new horizons for everyone. They've discovered that ordinary soldiers can live such good lives, eating better than the average merchant's family.
Many people were envious and jealous, but most were glad to have joined the Beijing Guard.
After they finished eating and drinking, the head cook instructed them not to defecate anywhere, as it would be troublesome for them to clean up. It was then that the Imperial Guards realized that the logistics department was also responsible for protecting water sources and collecting excrement.
The Imperial Guard discovered Xie Bing's logistical and combat capabilities, and that his military skills were very high.
There is also a group of promising young soldiers in the Imperial Guard. They were originally promoted by His Highness Feng Ning and were qualified to go to the battlefield first. Now that they have Xie Bing as their good teacher, many of them have begun to secretly learn from Xie Bing.
After finishing their meal, the group strolled around the back. There were ten miscellaneous mercenaries who had been lying in wait nearby for a long time, many of whom had not eaten for two days and two nights.
The soldiers who had just eaten were so picky about their food that it made the mercenaries envious and resentful. In these chaotic times, just having a meal to eat, especially a big piece of fatty meat dipped in sugar, is good enough.
In the Xiongnu kingdom, only nobles could afford to eat large pieces of fatty meat dipped in sugar.
Even soldiers from their home country eat soybean rice at most, and only occasionally do they get eggs and shredded meat, and the shredded meat is so thin you can see it on the other side.
Xie Bing not only gets to eat delicious meat, but he can even eat eggs as much as he wants. Just now, someone saw one of Xie Bing secretly throwing away an egg yolk because he didn't like it. The mercenaries were all furious with this pampered young soldier who knew nothing of human suffering.
To them, throwing away egg yolks was simply a luxury and a waste.
And what exactly does seaweed and mung bean soup taste like?
The mercenaries hid in the shade of the trees, not daring to move. After the group of pampered soldiers left, they squatted in place and hesitated for a moment.
As the soldiers watched the departing Xie Bingjing Guards leave, the leader realized that Xie Bing now had ample supplies, and with the unique geographical environment of the Southern Region, a large granary, he had no worries about food and drink.
Moreover, the military leader had heard that the new Tianjing had a group of officials specializing in agriculture, dedicated to researching yields. Now, they had not only discovered super rice, but also new fertilizers that could irrigate the fields. Even barren land could be fertilized. One mu (approximately 0.16 acres) could yield three to four shi (approximately 1.5 tons).
Even the best harvest in their Hun granaries was only 1.5 shi per mu, but the super rice cultivated in the new Tianjing achieved a maximum yield of 8 shi per mu.
This year's grain yield is an average of six shi per mu. In the new Tianjing, the southern region, and nine Jin territories, super rice has been planted. Although His Highness Feng Ning did not announce the yield to the world this year, the continuous supply of grain from the Yue Kingdom's border, which even Xie Bing dared not waste, proves that the logistics are excellent.
As long as the logistics are in place, God will surely win this battle!
Soon another mercenary said, "The Xie soldiers are treated too well. I just heard that their Master Xie even manages the hygiene, and the cooks are strictly controlled. No one dares to break the rules."
The other mercenaries chimed in, "If this continues, this won't be a war; it'll be like a vacation on the Vietnamese border."
"In other words, I don't think the Yue Kingdom can last long. The Yue army has started to plunder their own people's food, and the Yue king is still being misled by the second prince and is stubbornly refusing to see the truth."
"It seems our plan to break through Xie Bing's base by poisoning them won't work. They're too hygienic."
The head soldier was getting a headache from the constant chatter of his men.
The soldier leader realized that Xie Bing's side not only had the upper hand, but was completely overwhelming him. How could he overestimate himself and try to fight a losing battle?
The military leader then turned his attention to the Yue Kingdom.
Just then, the Yue Kingdom was in chaos, which gave them the opportunity to invade. Even if they couldn't take Xie Zhu's head, they could at least take Aba Na's head back and give the king an explanation.
The soldier leader immediately led his men to change course and head towards the main city of Yue.
As soon as the group left, two people jumped down from the tree; they were Qian and Kun, two secret agents.
Gan said, "Should we report this to the marshal?"
Kun replied, "Don't make any unnecessary moves. We just need to observe and see how things develop."
"Mo Ce and his companion wrote that they had arrived in Lu with the people their master wanted, and would be in Tianjing in two days."
“He is the young master of the Wu Shang family,” Gan said. “Although he is a descendant of the Wu Zhou ruler, he is not trusted by military strategists like the Wu Zhou ruler.”
They left the mountains a year ago to join the Western Guard, secretly contacting their master to fulfill a promise made to Emperor Wu Zhou and his successors. Unfortunately, Emperor Wu Zhou was murdered, leaving only his wife from the Northern Region to uphold the promise for him.
However, that nobleman from the northern region seemed to be trying to match his son with his master.
Gan Shenzhong said solemnly, "We must all prioritize our master's wishes. No matter who has the last laugh, we should not make decisions for our master in advance."
Kun nodded, and the two used their lightness skills to hide again.
At the same time, Zhang Ju passed by. He wiped his sweat with his sleeve, wanting to find the main camp. Unfortunately, the marshal was constantly on the move, and her troops were also setting up camps everywhere. Moreover, the camps were of different sizes and specifications, making it difficult for him to distinguish which was the main camp several times. Sometimes, after showing his token once to enter a camp, he couldn't find anyone, and he had to show his token again to go to another camp.
So, after going around in circles, he quickly approached Jiguang Island with Xie Bing's directions.
"I never expected that our army would have such a strong advantage on the border with Vietnam, and that we would have occupied most of the land." Zhang Ju had just arrived at Jiguang Island when he found Xie Bing and requested to see Marshal Xie.
Xie Bing told him to wait until evening, when the marshal would lead a group of men passing by Jiguang Island, and then he would be able to see her.
Now, the entire Mingbao fortress in Yue is guarded by Xie's soldiers, making the rear area safer than their own home.
The border defenses of Yue have completely collapsed, and King Zheng Fu of Yue has begun drafting a surrender document, deciding to hand over the remaining firearms.
Zheng Fu secretly sent the letter out, but it was intercepted by the people of Aba in the blink of an eye.
Aba tore up the letter as soon as he received it. This was the seventh time Zheng Fu had written a letter of surrender but failed to send it.
Zheng Fu was pacing anxiously in the palace. He knew that his country had been used as a bargaining chip by Aba Na in negotiations with the new Tianjing. He had thought Aba Na would lend him a hand, but the damned fellow was eager to kick him to the curb first.
Zheng Fu was filled with regret. He thought how much better it would have been if he had directly used firearms to negotiate with Lord Xie. Now that half of his forces had been breached, there was no way to turn the tide.
Meanwhile, chaotic forces were also causing trouble in the main city, and the Vietnamese people, unable to survive, fled the main city with their families to Jiguang Island.
Some soldiers tried to stop them, but soon the Vietnamese people rose up in rebellion, turning the main city into chaos.
Even if Zheng Fu still wanted to surrender, it was too late.
After Aba intercepted the surrender document, he sent his own troops to immediately attack Minburg to buy time.
"Does Feng Ning really think Xie Ying can break through the city?" Aba sneered. "Cooperating with me is more beneficial than harmful, yet she doesn't even consider it!"
A note from the author:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2022-01-26 20:42:38 and 2022-01-27 20:21:09!
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Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 172 Xie Lanzhi's Influence on the Overall Situation
He has already chosen to submit, but the other party has not yet responded, which means they want to continue to place their bets.
Perhaps they simply don't care and are just waiting for Yue to be conquered so they can reap the benefits? But can she actually do that? Aqina is waiting behind the scenes to reap the benefits of Yue; he won't give them up easily.
He was waiting for Aba and Xin Tianjing to both suffer heavy losses so he could jump out and steal the credit.
Aba had reached his limit and immediately sent his men to resist with firearms. Although he did not have cannons, he used gunpowder to make explosives, which were quite powerful.
The army of Aba began to clear the main city of order, stormed into Mingbao, and engaged in a fierce battle with Xie Bingjing's garrison. In terms of cold weapons, both sides were elite and neither gained an advantage. Firearms were different; they could take down the other at long range.
Xie Bing's army mostly used cannons. One cannon shot could kill more than a dozen Xiongnu soldiers. After the Xiongnu soldiers fired their guns, seven or eight Xie Bing's guards fell, with the damage ratio almost one to one.
The two sides entered a heated phase.
The mercenaries lying in ambush nearby were overjoyed and even sent messengers to inform the others that Aba and Xie Zhu had finally started fighting.
I haven't seen Xie Zhu yet.
On the battlefield, the mercenaries were searching for Aba Nayu and Xie Zhu, while Zhang Ju was also looking for Xie Lanzhi.
Their soldiers fought tooth and nail, but their commander was nowhere to be seen.
Aba Na had already left the city. He knew that Xie Lanzhi's purpose in conquering Jiguang Island and having Zheng Xiu settle refugees there was not only to repeat the old trick of supporting a puppet, but more importantly, to control the Yue Kingdom.
He desperately wanted to control the Yue Kingdom, but he had to run into a damned tyrant. Even Feng Ning couldn't persuade him, and that damned woman was no exception!
The thought of Xie Lanzhi ruining his plans filled him with rage. He had initially intended to peacefully share the Yue Kingdom with Xin Tianjing, but Xie Lanzhi had directly led an attack on Yue, intending to seize it entirely. She hadn't given him a chance at all.
The wife of the new master in Tianjing followed suit, showing obedience and gratitude towards her master.
Aba couldn't figure it out no matter how she thought about it, and finally concluded that Feng Ning had ulterior motives. She wanted to use Xie Zhu to conquer Yue Kingdom. Even if she didn't conquer Yue Kingdom, Xie Zhu would die for his country, and Feng Ning would have one less enemy. It would be a win-win situation for her.
He and Xie Zhu were locked in a power struggle, and if Feng Ning were to harbor malicious intentions, both he and Xie Zhu would die!
Unable to get a response from New Tianjing, Aba could only secretly pin his hopes on Xie Lanzhi.
Strangely, no matter how he disguised himself, he was always recognized by the Imperial Guards along the way. They would chase him to the outskirts, and then the Imperial Guards would stop chasing him and keep him firmly under control near the main city.
At this point, Aba Na finally realized the seriousness of the situation.
Someone forbade him from leaving the main city; no matter where he went, it was as if he were being driven back through a giant net.
Xie Zhu seemed to have disappeared; no matter how hard he searched, he couldn't find her.
Human intervention is separating him from Xie Zhu!
"Who on earth has such ability?!" Aba had heard a little about the military strategies of the Central Plains. He had been ambushed in battle before, but never before had his every move been calculated by others.
It's as if there's a pair of eyes watching you all the time.
A chill ran down Aba’s spine.
Just then, the mercenaries arrived near the main city and discovered a Xiongnu soldier circling around. He was then chased back to the main city by the Imperial Guards.
The soldier leader immediately took out a portrait and compared it with the portrait, confirming that the Hun soldier was indeed Aba Na.
"Found it!"
"Strange, why isn't he hiding in the main palace? What is he doing outside at this time?"
"Boss, should we be wary of the Imperial Guard?"
"Try to avoid conflict!" the soldier leader said. "Moreover, this group of Imperial Guards is a bit different from the ones we've encountered before. They're organized, disciplined, and like wolves that have smelled blood."
“Look at our friendly soldiers who have fallen to the ground, they don’t even care about them.”
The mercenaries watched helplessly as Xie Bing fell unconscious from excessive blood loss, and was eventually dragged back by the second wave of Jingwei soldiers.
Ten mercenaries, dressed in Xie Bing's clothes, sneaked into the main city amidst the chaos. They then skillfully changed into Xiongnu uniforms. Since they were originally Hun people, they dressed exactly like the Xiongnu soldiers and directly followed a Xiongnu reinforcement to deal with Aba Na.
Aba was driven back again. Upon seeing his army, he immediately issued an order: "Immediately annihilate the outer guards of the capital!!"
"Yes!" The Xiongnu soldiers, armed with firearms, had just left the city and wiped out half of the Imperial Guards. However, the next second, cannonballs rained down from the sky and wiped them all out.
The Huns with firearms were always the first to be attacked, and their shells hit their mark every time, as if they had eyes.
At this point, the Hun soldiers finally realized that there might be some artillery turrets nearby. Xie Bing was cunning and treacherous, and his tactics were as unpredictable as their marshal's. He might have built a watchtower somewhere to keep an eye on their movements before firing his cannons.
Furthermore, since they couldn't see any wheels within a hundred paces, the Xiongnu soldiers concluded that it must have been a catapult-fired cannon. And it was an old-fashioned catapult!