Qin Feng's movement was not fast. He walked a mere two hundred miles, but it took three days.
Anyway, the northern army has not arrived yet, and with the fierce battles between Sun Bo's vanguard and the Gusu City defenders, both sides need time to recover.
Even if Qin Feng rushed to Gusu City, he would just wait there.
So Qin Feng was not in a hurry. Along the way, he took Zhao Yulong with him to appreciate the scenery of the south.
Gusu City is an important town in the south of the Yangtze River, so the whole journey is filled with beautiful scenery in the south of the Yangtze River.
It's the New Year, and it's still freezing cold in the north. Although it's cold in the south of the Yangtze River, it's far less cold than in the north.
And along the way, Qin Feng rarely saw frozen bones on the roadside.
This shows that life in Jiangnan is good, at least the people have enough rations and firewood for winter.
If it weren't for the fact that the wealthy families in the South had always threatened the imperial rule, this battle would have been inevitable, and Qin Feng would naturally be unwilling to attack the South.
"did you see it?"
Qin Feng sat on the horse and looked at the stream beside the road, feeling full of emotions.
"We have gone all the way south. After walking so far, the further south we go, the fewer people will freeze to death on the roadside and starve."
"Especially after entering the boundaries of Gusu City, you will almost never see any starvation."
"Life in the south is much more comfortable than in the north."
"Of course, this is also due to the climate in the south. Even when it is cold, it is not as severe as in the north."
"The northern soldiers are tough and tough, while the southern soldiers may seem thin, but they are resilient."
"If the north and the south work together, our prosperity will not be far away."
Hearing this, Zhao Yulong couldn't help but be confused.
"Brother Qin, from what you said, it seems that you are not determined about this war..."
Although Zhao Yulong is Qin Feng's subordinate, he regards himself as a "brother" more often.
Except when there is a war, he will not listen to Qin Feng's advice in private. If he has a different point of view, he will point it out on the spot without hesitation.
Zhao Yulong is the queen of the generals and is loyal to Daliang. In his opinion, the southern border is a traitor to the party, and anyone who rebels against the party should be killed!
If Qin Feng had sympathy for the Southern Territory, Zhao Yulong would definitely refute it on the spot.
Qin Feng did not hide his true thoughts.
"The southern border is rich. This is the consensus of the whole world. And isn't our goal to let the people live a good life?"
"The people are not guilty, the fault lies with the clan."
"I do feel pity for the Southern Territory, but only for the people, so there is no need to be suspicious."
Hearing this, Zhao Yulong secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Qin Feng was the backbone of the Southern Expedition. If he was merciful to the wealthy families in the south, then this battle would not have to be fought.
However, for the sake of safety, Zhao Yulong still raised his concerns.
"This is a civil war, not a national war."
"The enemies we have to face are powerful families, not foreign enemies."
"It's better to say that Gusu City has already relocated most of the people in the city."
"If we capture Gusu City and continue to attack the important towns of other city-states, I wonder if Brother Qin will be restrained because of the people in the city."
Qin Feng did not answer in a hurry, but slowly turned his head and looked at Zhao Yulong with deep meaning.
It is undeniable that Zhao Yulong is an extremely excellent general and a natural talent.
It is precisely because of this that neither Xu Mo nor Ning Hu can compare with Zhao Yulong.
With Zhao Yulong by his side, Qin Feng seemed to have received a reassurance.
but……
No one is perfect!
Zhao Yulong also has his own problems, that is, he pursues perfection too much, hates evil, and is loyal to Daliang.
Even if they are as close as brothers, if one day Qin Feng and Daliang turn against each other, Zhao Yulong will probably side with Daliang.
But this is just Qin Feng's speculation. It's not convenient to draw conclusions because it hasn't happened yet.
Qin Feng's eyes once again turned to the beautiful mountains and rivers in the south.
"Didn't I say that before?"
"The fault lies with the clan, not the common people."
"If there is a war to come, and the wealthy families in the south use the people as hostages and shields, they really need to find ways to deal with it in advance."
"Slaughtering people is what foreign barbarians do. As a member of the Celestial Empire, I, Daliang, naturally cannot go along with the wild beasts."
"Besides, the southern border itself is my territory in Daliang, but it is only threatened by the wealthy clan."
"If you would rather kill the wrong person than let him go, even if it is morally untenable, it will not be tenable."
After hearing Qin Feng's answer, Zhao Yulong already had the answer in his heart.
After all, Qin Feng would never ignore the life and death of the people just to attack the city.
This point is undoubtedly contrary to Zhao Yulong's philosophy.
If possible, Zhao Yulong also hopes to win the city without any blood, but the reality is cruel. If he can defend the country of Daliang, the necessary sacrifices are still acceptable.
Even if one day, Zhao Yulong's life could be exchanged for Daliang An'ing, he would sacrifice his life without hesitation.
"Brother Qin, I hope you can come up with a countermeasure."
Hope... is hope because the chances of it happening are extremely slim.
The people in the southern border were coerced by the wealthy and had no choice but to become human shields.
At that time, you will have to face the dilemma of killing or not to kill.
Should we give up this war for the sake of the people, or should we not stick to trivial matters to achieve great things?
In fact, Qin Feng and Zhao Yulong both knew it in their hearts.
From beginning to end, Qin Feng only had the people in his heart, and he always stood on the side of the people.
Whether it was in Kyoto, fighting openly and secretly with the powerful children, or developing Beixi County, consolidating the northern border, isolating Daliang and Beidi, and minimizing the occurrence of wars.
In the end, it's all for the people.
On the other hand, Zhao Yulong has the same goal as Qin Feng, which is to create a prosperous world.
The difference is that Zhao Yulong allows sacrifices and is able to accept necessary losses.
The two of them didn't speak any more and just walked on in silence.
By the time we arrived at Sun Bo's station, night had fallen.
Sun Bo was already waiting at the gate. He was not wearing armor, he was dressed in cloth, and he had a sword stuck beside him.
It was obvious that Sun Bo was ready to die as an apology.
"King Qin, I have been defeated in consecutive battles and have no face left to live."
"If you want to kill or cut into pieces, I will never complain at all."
Seeing that the former general now had disheveled hair and looked like an old man in his dying years, Qin Feng felt somewhat unbearable.
But a defeat is a defeat, and you will still be punished if you deserve it.
Qin Feng clasped his hands behind his back, looked at Sun Bo, and said in a deep voice: "This king will be fully responsible for this southern expedition."
"Whether it is battlefield command or personnel transfer, everything is based on the king's order!"
"General Sun, you have been defeated in consecutive battles and have lost nearly 90% of your troops. No matter how many excuses you have, you cannot escape the blame."
