After Shang Xin left, Ying Zheng felt relieved, but Feng Quji was not happy.
Even if 50,000 thieves were wiped out, there would still be 100,000 left, which would still be incomparable to the 50,000 city defense troops.
"Your Majesty." Feng Quji raised his hand, "Why didn't you just ask clearly what Li Zhao relied on to wipe out the rebel army?"
This question has been lingering around him. Again, it is impossible for Li Zhao to defeat the rebel army with the help of the Chang'an villagers, unless he has a big killer weapon. But hearing that Li Zhao's big killer weapon has been used up, this possibility is not high. .
He believed that Li Zhao had other weapons, even more powerful than the mass murder weapon, and it was this weapon that wiped out all 50,000 bandits.
In fact, his idea is very simple.
When the enemy is strong and we are weak, if such a weapon can be placed on the defensive city, the bandit army will not have to worry about defeating it.
Ying Zheng did not answer him directly, but looked deeply at Feng Quji and Taiwei, and answered the question: "What do you think of young Li Zhao as a person?"
Feng Quji didn't mince words, he raised his hands and said: "Greedy, but loyal."
"Lieutenant, what do you think?" Ying Zheng did not respond to Feng Quji and glanced at the Taiwei unexpectedly.
The Taiwei was startled and said quickly: "I think General Li is very good, very good." He was worried that His Majesty would think of him because he had just questioned Li Zhao.
But Ying Zheng had no expression on his face and had no intention of questioning him again. Instead, he examined him and asked again: "What about you?"
These words were very serious. They were words to question the two of them. Feng Quji didn't mind it at all, and replied cheerfully: "I am loyal to your Majesty."
But the Taiwei was different. He knelt down quickly, cursing himself thousands of times in his heart, scolding himself for questioning Li Zhao even though he knew His Majesty favored and trusted Li Zhao. Isn't this self-inflicted?
No, His Majesty doubted him.
He said timidly, "I have no doubts about Your Majesty."
There were drops of sweat dripping from his forehead.
In fact, the lieutenant was overthinking, but His Majesty still had no intention of blaming him.
Ying Zheng's face softened, he showed a hint of satisfaction, sighed, stepped back, and said solemnly:
"Now that things have come to this, it doesn't hurt to tell you."
"Do you still remember what official position Li Zhao held before he was named chief general?"
"Young Master!" the Taiwei replied quickly.
"Thousands of generals!" Feng Quji glanced cautiously at Ying Zheng and replied.
"Yes, a thousand-man general commanding an army of two thousand."
"But do you know that the two thousand troops are called the elite of the Tiger Army and have been hidden in secret?"
Ying Zheng has no doubts about the loyalty of the two people. At this moment, in order to make them feel at ease, it is necessary to speak out.
"Is there such a thing?" Feng Quji was surprised. The next moment, he seemed to think of something and shouted, his eyes widening, "Your Majesty means..." Realizing that his voice was too loud, he quickly lowered his voice, "Chang'an Township is destroyed. There were fifty thousand thieves, but Li Zhao secretly mobilized two thousand elites."
After Li Zhao destroyed the bandits in Saga Mountain, His Majesty made Li Zhao a general with a thousand men and gave him two thousand troops. He knew about this and also knew that His Majesty was interested in Li Zhao's big killer weapon, but he didn't know it later. , the two thousand troops seemed to have disappeared.
Now it seems that Li Zhao must have secretly trained the two thousand troops and created many deadly weapons for the two thousand troops to use.
From this point of view, it is not surprising that the army of 50,000 thieves was destroyed. After all, it was two thousand elites holding a powerful weapon in hand, and no one could defeat them.
Ying Zheng nodded. In fact, this was also his guess.
As for what Shang Xin said was the bandit army that Li Zhao led to destroy Chang'an Township, he filtered it out. Shang Xin was just a slave. How could he know the existence of two thousand elites?
"Haha!" After receiving His Majesty's affirmative answer, Feng Quji suddenly laughed, and the heart that had been suppressed for several days was suddenly released.
With 2,000 elite guards capable of killing 50,000 thieves, plus 50,000 city defense troops, the east gate is stable.
"Congratulations, Your Majesty. Congratulations, Your Majesty. These two thousand elites are truly the pinnacle of our great Qin's destiny. With them here, our great Qin is as stable as Mount Tai."
Feng Quji congratulated him. After realizing this, the Empress Dowager also expressed great joy and quickly congratulated him.
"Okay!" Ying Zheng showed a rare smile, waved his hand and said, "You will stay here and accompany me to see how the two thousand troops resist the enemy."
"How curious!"
Yes, not only Ying Zheng was curious, but Feng Quji was also curious. Two thousand troops killed fifty thousand troops. Their combat power was so powerful. What would happen if they faced a hundred thousand troops with a city wall for defense?
If they don’t think it will all be wiped out, they don’t know how much it can be wiped out.
This was good news. Suddenly, the three of them felt much relieved. They ordered someone to bring snacks and ate them with confidence, as if the crisis outside had nothing to do with them.
In a deep mountain two miles away from the east gate, there was a temporary camp. There were several people sitting in the camp, including Zhang Liang, Jia Xiong, Chen Sheng, Wu Guang and others.
Faintly, Zhang Liang is sitting in the main seat, Jia Xiong is sitting next to him, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang are sitting in the lower seat, followed by a group of Confucian scholars, followed by leaders and other figures.
"Can Cao Yang reach the west gate?" Zhang Liang asked a commander.
This commander is someone who spies on the enemy and is arranging spies to be deployed under Xianyang City to investigate.
The commander handed over his hand and said, "Go back to the military division. According to the spies' report, it's not."
"Not yet?" Zhang Liang stood up and stared at the commander, "What is he doing to eat? Several days have passed and he hasn't reached Ximen yet?"
The commander lowered his head and said: "According to the spies, General Cao has arrived in Chang'an Township, but why he has not arrived at Ximen for a while is unknown."
"You? You don't know such important information, are you worthy of Mr. Xiang?" Zhang Liang was furious, and he pulled out his sword fiercely, and was about to stab it out, but was stopped by Jia Xiong next to him.
"Military advisor, calm down. Now that General Cao has arrived in Chang'an Township, the matter is settled. Please note that the journey from Chang'an Township to Xianyang only takes two hours and does not affect our plan."
After hearing this, Zhang Liang calmed down his anger, but said harshly to the commander: "If you order the spies to investigate again, they must know Cao Yang's whereabouts."
"No!" The commander quickly agreed and backed away.
"Wait a minute!" Zhang Liang shouted to the commander. The commander stopped, turned around, and looked at Zhang Liang blankly.
"What's the situation in Xianyang? Are the defenses still in place as before?"
The commander thought for a while, but did not answer immediately.
In fact, he came to the camp this time to report the matter, but Zhang Liang's attitude towards him made him very dissatisfied, so he said: "It's still the same as before."
"Really?" Zhang Liang was cautious and stared at the commander sideways, and the commander nodded.
"Okay, go down!"
Zhang Liang waved.
The commander left. When he had gone a long way, his eyes showed resentment and he said to himself: "Huh, Mr. Xiang is really blind. He actually let him take command and let me wait until we are on a dangerous cliff. He is still so overbearing. I will not succeed." What can you do to me if you wish?"
"Hmph! The Qin army has gathered 50,000 troops at the east gate, so go ahead and fight! If you suffer a loss then, let's see how Duke Xiang punishes you."
It has to be said that the bandit army is not monolithic, and there are naturally contradictions.
"When you suffer a loss and beg me again, he will embarrass you."
Zhang Liang didn't know what the commander was thinking. At this moment, Zhengxie smiled and looked at Jia Xiong.
"General Jia, have all the details in the city been arranged?"
Jia Xiong's face trembled, a ruthless look was born, "It has been naturally arranged. As soon as our rebel army arrives, the east and west gates will open."
Zhang Liang nodded with satisfaction, but smiled strangely and said, "In addition to these two gates, the south gate must also be opened."
Jia Xiong frowned, unable to understand what Zhang Liang meant, and asked, "Why did the military advisor arrange this?"
You must know that there are not many agents that he arranged to sneak into the city. It is already difficult to open the east and west gates at the same time. Opening another south gate will definitely cause unnecessary impact. This is not the main reason. The main thing is that the agents who sneaked in are all his. If the people he cultivated were found to be destroyed, it would be a great loss to him.
"No need to ask further, my military advisor has made his own arrangements."
Jia Xiong was very unhappy when he heard this. He risked his treason just to win the favor of Duke Xiang, but now he kept it from him. This was because he didn't believe him.
That night, Jia Xiong was preparing to take a rest. Zhang Liang sent someone to find him and led him to his tent. Zhang Liang changed from his dignified appearance during the day and smiled in a flattering manner.
"I hope the general won't mind what happened during the day. This is just a last resort for the wife."
Jia Xiong felt a little relieved after hearing this, but asked: "Why?"
"This is Zifang's plan. Zifang cannot trust Zhang Mo."
Zhang Mo is the commander who spy on the military situation.
"Oh! Commander Zhang is known as Gui Mozi, and he has great spying skills. How can I not trust him?"
Zhang Liang did not explain, "This is Zifang's intuition. He must be unreliable, so I asked you to find out more so that I can make a decision to attack the city."
Jia Xiong nodded and secretly said that Zhang Liang was being cautious, but he had already placed his hope on Zifang, so naturally he did not give it up. Soon, he sent someone to sneak towards Xianyang.
Two hours later, it was reported that the city defense army concentrated all 50,000 troops on the east gate, leaving the other three gates empty.
"Sure enough, Zhang Mo just can't believe it." Zhang Liang said angrily, but then he began to think deeply and murmured, "That's not right! Cao Yang's whereabouts are not concealed. It is impossible for the Qin army not to know, so why did they abandon Ximen?"
"Is General Jia's information accurate?" He looked at Jia Xiong suspiciously.
Jia Xiong glared, "My people are absolutely reliable."
"Maybe they looked down on General Cao, so they took charge of defending the east gate."
This is Jia Xiong's guess, but this guess is futile. Fifty thousand troops is not a small number, and even if he looks down upon it, he will not despise it to such an extent.
"No." Zhang Liang fell into deep thought and suddenly retorted to Jia Xiong, saying, "Please, General Jia, please send someone to check Cao Yang's whereabouts immediately and inform me as soon as possible."
Jia Xiong also thought this was a problem and immediately sent someone to investigate.
Two hours later, the spies came back and reported that no trace of the 50,000 troops was found in Chang'an Township, and there were no traces on the road from Chang'an Township to Ximen. The 50,000 troops seemed to have disappeared out of thin air.
"How could this be so?" Upon hearing this, Zhang Liang was shocked and turned pale. He thought of a possibility that Cao Yang was killed.
Jia Xiong was also shocked, having the same idea as Zhang Liang, "As far as I know, Li Zhao has been in Chang'an Township these days. Could it be that he used a big murder weapon."
Zhang Liang's heart was pounding, thinking of Saga Mountain and the terrifying scene in the sand dunes. Cold sweat broke out behind him, and he was filled with hatred.
"Li Zhao, it's Li Zhao again."
"If he ruins my good deeds several times, this person must die."
Jia Xiong also showed his sternness. He also hated this person, but when he thought of the 50,000 troops disappearing out of thin air, he was afraid. He stepped back and asked, "Commander, Li Zhao has a powerful weapon. We can't act rashly."
"Of course!" Zhang Liang's face turned sinister, "This is why I asked you to open the south gate."
Jia Xiong thought for a while and suddenly asked: "What does the military advisor mean by sneaking into the city secretly to prevent Li Zhao from having the opportunity to launch a deadly weapon?"
Zhang Liang raised the corners of his mouth, smiled slightly, and said no more.
Jia Xiong understood what Zhang Liang meant, but he was confused and asked: "Our army has a large number of people, how can we sneak in secretly?"
Zhang Liang gave a strange smile, "Stalking in the east and attacking in the west, hey! Li Zhao has a powerful weapon, doesn't our army have the same?"
Jia Xiong's eyes lit up. He knew the rebel army's great weapon, but he was just unlucky enough to see it.
I heard that it was as powerful as Li Zhaozhi's killer weapon.
Li Zhao returned to Xianyang City and quickly went to the army to check. He saw 50,000 troops gathered at the east gate. When he asked, he found out that it was His Majesty's order, so he didn't ask any more questions.
But I always felt uncomfortable in my heart. Fifty thousand people gathered at the east gate. What about the other three gates? Wouldn't it give the bandit army an opportunity to take advantage of? Even though fifty thousand people were killed, they still had one hundred thousand soldiers left. One hundred thousand troops could be distributed everywhere.
But since His Majesty had already made a decree, he couldn't question it, so he went to Zhang Han and asked about the weapons sent by Achao.
Ah Chao worked intensively to manufacture weapons in a secret base, and the first batch was sent to Chang'an Township. Later, except for landmines, all the products were sent here.
"Don't worry, General. The secret weapon you ordered to send is well hidden and has not been exposed."
This is what Li Zhao ordered Ah Chao to tell Zhang Han. Before the rebel army attacks the city, the location of the secret weapon must not be exposed.
"Ten thousand grenades, five thousand anti-aircraft guns, and ten thousand artillery shells."
"Two thousand elite troops are equipped with machine guns and 100,000 rounds of ammunition."
Zhang Han reported the number of weapons, and Li Zhao nodded. Ah Chao tried his best to produce so many in a short period of time, which was hard for him.
With these things, even if there are hundreds of thousands of thieves, they will not be afraid.
Li Zhao was very satisfied, and he led Zhang Han to inspect the city defense army.
Fifty thousand people were gathered here, but they couldn't help but feel nervous, and most of them looked depressed.
It's no wonder that there is an uproar in the city now, which seriously affects their hearts. There are still 100,000 troops watching covetously outside. Looking at the city wall with low defense, it is not surprising that they feel like this.
Li Zhao could only say a few words of comfort and acted as the shopkeeper, but before leaving, he took away three thousand troops.
Although the bandit army besieged the east side, the other three gates had to be defended. Three thousand troops, one thousand for each gate, although a little shabby, were better than nothing.
He planned to issue grenades and anti-aircraft guns to these soldiers so that they could defend themselves if rebels appeared here.
After arranging all this, Li Zhao straightened up and asked Zhang Han about what he had asked Zhang Han to investigate before.
"Have you noticed the doctor, Ling, and the people delivering potatoes?"
Zhang Han's face became solemn after hearing this. He looked around and lowered his voice and said: "General, I will find out something suspicious and you need to make a decision."
"Say!" Li Zhao frowned.
"Ever since these people started delivering potatoes, the number of people entering the city has always been greater than the number of people leaving the city. And every time the potatoes arrived, guards came to meet them, and carriages were also prepared, which looked very mysterious."
"Oh!" Li Zhao looked serious, "Do you know where the extra people will be sent?"
"They were sent to the east and west gates. The people I sent secretly investigated. They usually act as merchants and call for business near the two gates, but at night they put on guard uniforms and strike up a conversation with the city gate guards."
Li Zhao frowned even more tightly.
These people are very suspicious.
"There is another thing that is even more strange. Starting from this morning, merchants have appeared one after another at the south gate, selling things to the city gate defenders more openly and at very low prices."
(End of chapter)
