"Sir, this is the list sent by the armies." Xie Tanzhi presented a list to Li Jiangyao and introduced: "The first batch of soldiers who returned home to visit relatives, a total of 1,828 people, please Take a look."
Looking at the thin folded book, Li Jiangyao asked curiously: "There are so few? Only less than 2,000 of the 300,000 troops returned to Western Xinjiang?"
Xu Youchang said from the side: "I asked specifically, and the soldiers all had the same idea. The war was about to begin, and my brothers did not leave, but I returned to my hometown to reunite with my family. No one wanted to. What's more, the Holy King Your Highness is still here, which of the children of Xijiang can leave? Are you waiting to go home and be stabbed in the spine?"
Xie Tanzhi nodded: "Yes, this is the case in all armies. The generals originally designated many soldiers to return home on vacation, but they were rejected one by one. Most of the eighteen hundred people on the booklet He was injured and disabled in the battle, so he agreed to leave because he had no choice."
Hearing this, Li Jiangyao's eyes couldn't help but become moist. The people of Xijiang are honest. As long as they recognize you, they will follow you to the death.
He nodded lightly and said in a deep voice: "Then let's decide these things first. Frankly speaking, you happen to be going back to take charge of the overall situation in Western Xinjiang. Take them with you, and you can take good care of these brothers for me on the way. There are many military mansions. Take out the money and allocate some land to ensure that the disabled soldiers have a secure life."
"Please rest assured, sir," Xie Tanzhi agreed: "We have established various regulations on combat pensions long ago. No matter whether the soldiers are injured or killed in battle, the Zhenjiang Military Government will take care of it to the end."
Li Jiangyao nodded slightly and asked again: "How are things going when you come back to the Central Plains? I was busy fighting before, and I was delayed in the imperial capital for a long time, so I didn't care."
Xie Tanzhi smiled and said: "Everything went well. I followed Mr. Dong's advice and did not go to the Ministry of Household Affairs and the Government Office. Instead, I directly visited the big bosses. Everyone is very interested in restoring the Silk Road trade routes, especially the The profits from selling things to the Western Continent are extremely rich, and they have already planned this."
Xu Youchang also said: "The last time I attended Murong Xue's wedding, their old man talked to me about it, saying that we should resume trade as soon as possible. The Murong family is willing to contribute money and effort, and it is all up to you."
"The title of Protector General is indeed very useful," Xie Tanzhi nodded: "I have visited more than a dozen state capitals. As long as you raise the banner of the Suppressing Xinjiang Army, the local merchants will all warmly welcome you and express their full support for your idea. Support. The Zhenjiang Military Government came forward to form a business alliance to help merchants from the east and west continents connect business, and at the same time provide security and integrity guarantees along the way. The merchants feel that this method is very feasible and are willing to pay transaction commissions. I roughly After calculation, this will add tens of millions of money to the military government."
Xu Youchang said happily: "With such a large sum of money, not only will the military expenses for the war be sufficient, but it will also be able to supplement the people and help restore vitality to the ghost desert in Western Xinjiang."
"Frankly, you did a good job on this matter," Li Jiangyao told him: "Go back to Western Xinjiang, seize the time to promote the establishment of the alliance, sell Shengtang's goods as soon as possible, and introduce goods from the Western Continent. As long as Once the Silk Road trade routes are restored, all parts of Western Xinjiang will soon usher in prosperity."
Xie Tanzhi agreed and was about to stand up and leave when Yudala walked in and said in a deep voice: "Great Protector, I have something important to report for my humble duty."
Li Jiangyao motioned to Xie Tanzhi and Xu Youchang to stay and listen together, and then told Yudala not to pay attention and just report.
Yuduoluo nodded slightly and said seriously: "There are three things in total. First, because of the failure in the previous water battle, Lao Jianhua was very dissatisfied with Bao Yuchun and decided to take back some of his military power and transfer it to the former Xuanjia Army general Ye Rongcheng and Xie Guang's godson Xie Bao took over respectively. For a long time, there have been two factions within the southern rebels, one is the old Xuanjia Legion, and the other is the Kuohai Navy. The two factions fight openly and secretly, and there is never much harmony. This time, taking advantage of the naval army’s defeat, the Xuanjia-type troops were reused again.”
Li Jiangyao nodded: "The changes in the forces within the rebels require continued attention. When we launch a southern expedition in the future, we will inevitably take advantage of their contradictions."
Yuduoluo cupped his hands and said, "Please rest assured, Protector, I will pay more attention to you."
After that, he continued to introduce: "The second thing is related to Bao Xinyan. After he was ordered by Bao Yuchun to divide his troops to reinforce Jiuzi, instead of shrinking the defense line, he stepped up preparations for war and continued to spy and collect information about Yiling. The various intelligences in Shuizhai may have some agenda."
Xu Youchang was puzzled: "This Bao Xinyan is very courageous. He was not dominant in Yiling originally, but he became more active after the troops were divided. Do you really look down on Yang Li and Wen Lie?"
Li Jiangyao thought for a moment, shook his head and said, "I'm afraid it's not that simple. Maybe Bao Xinyan wants to imitate us and targets Yiling openly, but secretly aims elsewhere."
Xie Tanzhi agreed: "Battles across the Yangtze River often involve similar or similar combat strategies based on the terrain characteristics. Attacking in the east and attacking in the west is the proper intention."
Li Jiangyao thought for a while and told Yuduoluo: "Continue to strengthen the intelligence intensity in the upstream direction. Not only keep an eye on Bao Xinyan, but also check other places to analyze the enemy's intentions in many aspects. In addition, inform Wang Wenlie as soon as possible. , ask him to remind Yang Li. Be careful."
"There is also the Suzaku Corps on the Jingxiang Defense Line," Xu Youchang added: "It is necessary to inform Ma Hongjie. After all, Bao Xinyan is not far from them, and they also need to pay more attention."
Yuduoluo agreed, and then said: "The third news comes from the imperial capital. Report to the Great Protector, we have found out the real culprit who attacked you in Xifeng Mountain and killed Miss Lianji."
Hearing this, Li Jiangyao quickly asked: "Who is it?"
"The second son of the Duke of Zhenguo, Cheng Xi." Yuduoluo replied: "After repeated verification and verification by secret agents, Cheng Xi was on vacation in the imperial capital on the day of the incident. After he received the news that you were leaving the city, he led Luo Yongtao, a subordinate of the White Tiger Army. The others followed to Xifeng Mountain and went up the mountain via the back mountain trail. While you and your brother Shuxuan were injured in a fierce battle, we decided to launch a sneak attack."
Li Jiangyao said coldly: "So, the killer leader who was almost killed by me that night was the second young master of the Cheng family."
Xie Tanzhi frowned and asked, "Sir, how should we deal with this matter?"
Li Jiangyao asked, "What do you think we should do?"
Mr. Xie, who had always been polite, humble and kind, now had a frosty mask on his face and gritted his teeth and said: "I think it's easy to deal with this, so I'll take that thief's life!"
Li Jiangyao couldn't help but be a little surprised by this answer.
If these words came from the mouths of Xu Youchang, Du Jian and others, it would be normal. I didn't expect Xie Tanzhi to be so angry, so he couldn't help but curiously said: "Lao Xie, I thought you would say 'stop haste and use patience. Make a plan and act later. After all, Cheng Xi’s sister has just become the queen, and she is deeply involved..."
Xie Tanzhi waved his hand: "Not to mention the queen, not even the emperor! My lord, in order to save me, you broke into the Turkic camp alone and, under siege by powerful enemies, forced Tanlironya and the others to hand over the antidote. I This life is given by you, and your life is more important to me than anything else! Cheng Xi dares to attack Daduhu, which is a direct challenge to the entire Zhenjiang Army. You can ask whether hundreds of thousands of soldiers will agree. promise?"
Xu Youchang shouted from the side: "I will definitely not agree!"
Li Jiangyao looked at his good brother's indignant look, smiled helplessly, and turned to ask Yuduoluo: "How is Cheng Xi doing now? I heard that he was promoted to the general of the Forbidden Army, and he has been very prosperous recently."
Yuduoluo replied calmly: "Cheng Xi is dead."
"Dead?!" Li Jiangyao and Xie Tanzhi were stunned when they heard this, but Xu Youchang was not surprised.
Yuduoluo bowed his hands and saluted, and explained calmly: "Please forgive me for my sins. I humbled my position and acted on my own. I have ordered the Imperial City Branch to sanction Cheng Xi. Not only him, but also the killers who participated in the attack on the Protector that night were all executed, and no one escaped the net." "
Li Jiangyao was dumbfounded and didn't react for a long time. Xu Youchang said loudly from the side: "You can't blame Yuduoluo for this. It was my idea to kill Cheng Xi. If he didn't send people to do it, I would pick people from the First Army to do it. Anyway, I can't allow that. Guy lives.”
Xie Tanzhi saw that Li Jiangyao's face was a little ugly, and quickly came to the rescue for the two of them: "Xu Shuai and Yuduoluo did the right thing. Sir, once the precedent of sneak attack and assassination on you is set, I am afraid that more opponents will follow suit in the future. We must put a stop to this situation. Fortunately, the Intelligence Department took action. If the White Robe Army knew the whole story, maybe the whole Cheng family would not be able to escape."
Li Jiangyao sighed softly: "Oh, I don't blame them. I also understand that everyone wants to take revenge because they care about my safety. It's just..."
He raised his head and said seriously: "There are some words that I have been holding back in my heart and have never told you. Today I just use this matter to talk to you. Come on, Yudala, sit down too."
Facing three brothers and comrades-in-arms, Li Jiangyao continued: "When I was a child, I particularly liked a saying: Those who knew me said I was worried, and those who didn't know me said what I wanted. You tell me, why did I fight alone to resist the Turks? , and now he leads you to put down the rebellion, and even if you are misunderstood and framed by the emperor and the court, you still have no regrets?"
Xu Youchang and the other three looked at each other without speaking. It's not because they don't have the answer in their minds, but they all know that the answer they think of is definitely different from Li Jiangyao's.
No one can really guess the Great Protector.
Li Jiangyao was silent for a moment and said quietly: "Everything I did was not to be loyal to the emperor and serve the country, let alone to be a high-ranking official and rich in salary, or even for the common people in the world. In my eyes, what kind of emperor and what kind of things are there?" The imperial court, the state of the Holy Tang Dynasty, and the country are all unimportant."
"What I do is for one person."
