Chapter 291 Assassination

Shen Zhao stared at the man, "I won't hold the soldiers and people under you accountable, I will find you, I want to ask you, if the people starve to death, whose head will be held responsible?"

The soldier was still a little unconvinced, "Isn't it just a piece of land? The general just looks down on our Fengjia Army who just started out."

"Stop flattering me." Shen Zhao said in a deep voice, "No one looks down on you, it's you who despise yourself. The prince and princess handed Qingyun Guard and Fengjia Army to me, I treat them equally. If it was Qingyun Guard that stepped on the farmland, I would still hold them accountable."

"Then just make up for this year's harvest."

"It's easy for you to say, who will make up for it?"

"We will make up for it ourselves."

"Stop talking nonsense all the time." Shen Zhao said coldly, "Military pay is calculated per person, we can't let the soldiers fight on an empty stomach, in the end, the silver still has to be made up by the prince and princess."

Shen Zhao held the knife at his waist, "Some of you garrison soldiers joined the camp a few years ago. Those who joined the camp in the early years know that in which year could the military camp eat real white flour steamed buns? They were all steamed buns mixed with bran. Where do the steamed buns come from this year? They are distributed by the people in the rear from the rations! The prince and the princess still eat steamed buns in the rear. Have you ever seen a master who can do this?"

The soldier was stunned, "I..."

"Stop talking nonsense, now tell me whether you obey or not?"

The soldier gritted his teeth, "I obey."

"Obey, thirty military sticks." Shen Zhao said: "Come here, call the team that trampled on the farmland and watch their captain being punished."

The captain was stripped of his armor under the scorching sun, surrounded by the team that trampled on the farmland. Watching the military sticks fall on the captain again and again,

the Fengjia Army was considered a soldier who rose to heaven in one step.

From the Ganzhou garrison that had never been on the battlefield to the Fengjia Army that had driven out the Western Jue and had not yet suffered a defeat, what a great honor it was.

With enough honor and favor, the people below would easily become arrogant, so we had to use both kindness and force.

Those soldiers dared to be complacent in front of the Qingyun Guard. If Shen Zhao did not control their temper, the military discipline would be in chaos, and they had to be punished.

The military sticks fell on Qianzong again and again, and the soldiers behind him said nothing, and some even turned their faces away.

Shen Zhao watched for a while, and saw Xiao Chuan standing not far away, as if he had something to say, so he walked over, "Can't stand it anymore?"

Xiao Chuan glanced at the other end, "It's really worth a deal, General, I have something else to do."

The two walked into the tent, and Xiao Chuan raised his chin and pointed, "I caught someone."

The man turned around, in his forties or fifties, with a dark face and patched clothes.

"Where did the refugees come from?" Shen Zhao asked.

Xiao Chuan smiled and said, "You are not an ordinary refugee."

Xiao Chuan gestured, and the soldier immediately stepped forward and splashed water on the man's face, then wiped it with his patched robe, revealing a plump and clean face.

"General, have you ever seen such a plump and clean refugee?"

Shen Zhao circled around the man and looked at him. The man wanted to retreat but was firmly suppressed by the soldiers.

Xiao Chuan said, "This man is not simple. He is the famous Prince Lu."

Shen Zhao looked at Xiao Chuan, "Marquis Xuanping sealed the city and prohibited entry and exit. How did he escape?"

Xiao Chuan kicked Prince Lu on the back, "Our general is asking you a question."

Prince Lu was kicked to the ground. He must have been beaten on the way to be captured. He held his head and shouted, "Don't hit me."

Shen Zhao sat down with a big horse and a golden sword, "Either you talk nicely, or I will torture you."

Prince Lu is a coward. He tells everything when he is scared.

At the beginning, Xuanping Hou supported the crown prince openly, but secretly supported the seventh son Li Yanchang. Prince Lu lent the land to Xuanping Hou to raise private soldiers. No matter who came to power between the crown prince and the seventh son, he was a meritorious official.

But who knew that both of them died, and Xuanping Hou also lost interest in the throne because of the death of his two sons.

Prince Lu and Xuanping Hou were grasshoppers on the same rope, but even a couple would fly away when faced with a disaster, let alone people who came together for the sake of interests.

Now that the army is at the gates of the city, Prince Lu has absolutely no idea of ​​sharing the hardships with Xuanping Hou, so he secretly escaped from the secret passage with his treasures when the city was closed, but he was caught red-handed.

Shen Zhao thought, "Since he crawled out from the secret passage, we can use it."

Xiao Chuan nodded, "Send someone in to find out the situation in the city first. I always feel that Luzhou City cannot accommodate Xuanping Hou's 70,000 soldiers and horses."

He did it right away, and sent someone to sneak into Luzhou City through the secret passage that day.

Luzhou and Weizhou are 600 miles apart, and it takes more than half a month to march, but it only takes three days to go ten miles at a time.

The sun made the ground hot, and Changliu followed Shen Yu with an umbrella.

They had just inspected the Weizhou granary, and there was enough food, so they could support it even if they had a tug-of-war with Xuanping Hou.

But the people suffered from the hard work of the soldiers, which was why they were eager to capture Luzhou.

If everything can be settled within the year, they can start to rectify the states next year.

Enrich the country, strengthen the army, and recruit talents.

They are now on this road.

Shen Yu seemed to have imagined the grand occasion of peace and prosperity in the country and full corn warehouses.

The situation where the rich have vast fields and the poor have nowhere to stand will no longer exist. ①

Changliu poked Sixi's arm and whispered, "The princess seems very happy."

"Open your umbrella, don't let the princess get sunburned."

Sixi pushed Changliu, but his face was a little worried. He felt that the princess didn't look good today, and wondered if she was exposed to the heat. After returning home, he hurriedly arranged for people to bring melons and fruits to relieve the heat.

Shen Yu was bent over the desk calculating accounts, with an abacus beside her.

The hard work of the army was a waste of money and labor, and even with wealthy merchants like Beilin and Lu as support, every penny of silver had to be carefully calculated.

"Princess, eat the melon first to cool down." Si Xi said.

Shen Yu didn't even raise her head, "Call Chang Liu in, you and him share the food, just leave a piece for me."

Chang Liu was greedy and ran in happily. He sat on a small stool and ate with his mouth full of juice. "This melon is so sweet, Princess, why don't you eat it?"

"I'll finish the calculation first." Shen Yu fiddled with the abacus, "You guys eat it."

In addition to supplying food and wages for the troops, the granary in Weizhou can still have a small part left, which can be used for post-war subsidies.

The tea on the table has dried up. Si Xi picked up the teapot and found that it was empty, so he went out to call the maid to serve tea.

The maid brought the tea into the room, and Si Xi tested it with a silver needle before serving it.

The cup was full of tea. Shen Yu reached out to take it. As soon as she touched the teacup, she heard Chang Liu shouting.

"Princess, be careful!"

Shen Yu suddenly raised her head and saw Chang Liu throwing the melon and rushing towards her.

She subconsciously slapped the edge of the table with her palm, and the chair leaned back to avoid the cold light in front of her, but she saw the maid's sleeves flicked, and white smoke rushed towards her.

Shen Yu hurriedly turned sideways to cover her mouth and nose.

In this moment, Chang Liu had already fought with the maid, shouting, "There is an assassin! Come quickly!"

Si Xi rushed forward and hugged the female assassin's waist from behind.

The assassin was very skilled. While fighting with Chang Liu, she could also find time to stab Sixi in the shoulder with a backhand knife.

The guards rushed in, and there was a crackling noise in the study. The assassin was finally subdued. In order to prevent suicide, the guards removed her jaw and pressed her to the ground and struggled desperately.

① From Volume 2 of "Continuation of Zizhi Tongjian"