The bonfire raised sparks under the starry sky, becoming brighter and brighter with the breeze blowing from time to time.
There are several such large and small bonfires, and the tents are also built around these bonfires as the center points, gathered into a circle.
Further outside, there are all kinds of goods, chariots and horses forming a circle and forming a barrier. They can not only isolate wild animals, but also use these chariots and horses as a basis to fight back when the enemy invades.
In spring, there is enough water vapor to form dewdrops. If you sleep in the wild without a tent, you will be woken up by the cold at night.
Fortunately, the caravan was well prepared and was able to accommodate everyone in the tents in batches.
This place is near Liaozhou. I just came north from Luzhou. It should be expected that I could reach Liaozhou city before night. However, due to various searches, extortion, etc., the speed of the caravan was also slowed down. A lot slower.
In addition, I didn't dare to take the trail, so I could only go along the main road, hurrying and slowly. After sunset, I could only reach here. It was still thirty or forty miles away from Liaozhou City.
The war between Jin and Liang has been quite fierce in recent years. Both manpower and various farms have been severely damaged.
And because Liang Jun besieged Luzhou for a full year last year, hundreds of miles along the Luzhou line have been captured and looted. Not to mention villages and towns, even prefectures and towns have few relics.
"The Romance of Fairy Wood"
In this world, outside the jurisdiction of the state capital, you can almost only rely on your own ability to protect yourself.
Therefore, the dealer of this caravan also complained very much about the leader who took the risk and was so unlucky to be stuck in such a wilderness.
At this moment, there was a large group of men sitting around the huge bonfire in the center, and they were all very noisy and happy.
These men all have weapons in their hands. Long and short ones are regularly distributed. There are also many hand crossbows, bows and arrows.
This caravan can be regarded as a big merchant. Not counting these guards, there are more than 200 people including the laborers and others. There are nearly a hundred horse-drawn carriages alone. Counting the mules, etc., it is also huge. It's a big swing.
Because of this, every time you pass a checkpoint, just searching will take most of the day, and this is still a case of giving benefits.
If I don't give you any benefits, I'm afraid I'll give you a card for most of the day...
There are about a hundred or so of these guards, all of whom are members of the caravan. Their job is to look out for routes, etc. They all seem to be well-trained and have some skills.
These days, there is no such thing as hiring a bodyguard. Even members of your own family may kill people and steal goods. Therefore, these businessmen usually recruit their own personnel for training and escorting goods.
…………
The team leader, who had been complained about by the banker, was a middle-aged man in his early forties, who looked very stable. He was sitting by the campfire, and someone else handed him the roasted and oily mutton, and he started eating slowly.
In fact, the reason why I stayed here tonight was because of the dealer's troubles. It was already afternoon when he set off from Luzhou City in the daytime. His original intention was to stay in Luzhou City for one day before setting off tomorrow.
But the little banker was greedy for time and urged him to leave Luzhou quickly. After leaving Luzhou and seeing the desolate surroundings, the banker regretted it and planned to go back again.
He was so stuck that he couldn't get up or down, so the leader of the group persuaded him to work hard and move forward first, and this was what happened.
Speaking of which, this caravan coming from the south has also been delayed because of last year's war. Finally, the war between Jin and Liang was stopped. After the new year passed, they planned to send out the goods they owed this year quickly, but It happened again that the Tang Dynasty conquered the Liang Kingdom... and then the time was put aside until now.
"Third Master, can you walk through Liaozhou before the sun goes down tomorrow?"
The man next to him who led the team called "Third Master" asked while gnawing on the mutton.
There is a word "Xie" on the small flags placed in the tents and carriage rooms behind them, indicating that this is the caravan of the Xie family in the south. The goods of these hundreds of carriages are mainly composed of tea, lacquerware and a little ironware.
Their destination is outside the customs.
Because thieves are now swarming around Luzhou. Whether it is the Liang soldiers and horses who were defeated and gathered in the mountains to cause trouble, or the horse thieves who have been famous for a long time, these caravans are very afraid.
Therefore, the speed of traveling has become a top priority.
"It should be possible. We will arrive in Liaozhou tomorrow to replenish supplies, and then pick up Xiaowu and the others. Going forward is Taiyuan. After Taiyuan, it will be Taiping."
It’s not clear what the third master’s full name is. I only know that he has been the bodyguard of the Xie family for generations. He is the third eldest son in this generation. After his father and brother were gone, the Xie family spent a lot of money to bring him back. Please come back.
The banker who ran the business this time was a thirty-year-old Xie family member. Although he was the head of the family, he only ran business in the south a few times. The few times he came to the north, he was still led by the old man of the Xie family.
Therefore, this mistake also included the element of random command.
The Xiao Wu mentioned by the Third Master is a member of the Xie family who went to Liaozhou to take care of things during the day. When they arrive in Liaozhou tomorrow, they just need to replenish supplies and then go on their way.
The person next to him nodded, and then he heard the third master say: "Bring some meat to those young couples...it's not easy to be out and about. They are all given money, so please take care of them."
The people next to them were stunned for a moment, and then they suddenly remembered that they had taken in such a young couple when they were passing through the Central Plains, and they were quite at ease with the caravan. There were hundreds of people there, and they almost forgot about it.
"That young man is quite knowledgeable. He must also have a good background. It may be useful in the future to form a good relationship."
After the man next to him picked up a few pieces of mutton and stood up, the third master reminded him loudly. After seeing that his subordinates understood, he continued to eat the mutton on his own.
This young couple is naturally Li Jing and Chi Meng.
Li Jing originally planned to go straight to Taiyuan, but in the end he changed his mind and planned to go all the way north from Liangjing, so as to see what Jin's current deployment was.
As expected, Jin troops were dispatched everywhere from the Yellow River to Luzhou, and people traveling from south to north were subject to strict searches.
It happened that the Xie family caravan met the two of them.
Adding a caravan is also very convenient. It not only avoids necessary troubles and harassment, but also can collect a lot of information in the name of the caravan.
However, in this caravan, the young couple Li Jing and Chi Meng are indeed very low-key.
