After stepping out of Yangliu County City, the Qingcheng County Sheriff and the High Priest joined the two thousand soldiers they brought with them, and ran non-stop without resting along the way.
At this time, the hearts of the two of them were overwhelming. Su Qi'an let them go, but the Dongshan Army that had already set off towards their territory was a thorn in their hearts.
They were worried that when they rushed back, the county would fall into their hands. If they wanted it back in the future, they would be really embarrassed.
The only thought they have now is that this group of Dongshan troops only ransacked the county and would have left long ago when the two of them returned.
Although there is a loss, it is still much better than having your home stolen.
Su Qi'an was able to release them, but this didn't give them a hint that the Dongshan Army that attacked the county would probably withdraw.
Su Qi'an is not a fool. There is no need to wait for the two armies to return for reinforcements and fight the Dongshan Army.
This kind of meaningless casualties is the most uneconomical thing.
The two of them could only think like this, and they galloped with two thousand soldiers. The journey that originally took half an hour was shortened to two quarters of an hour.
Looking at the county town that was less than half a mile away, Qingcheng County Sheriff stopped.
The county town in front of me is really too quiet, and the quietness is scary.
The two of them were nervous, fearing that their homes in the county would be stolen, so they sent out a small force to test.
If anything happens, they can respond immediately.
The two sat on horseback and watched in fear as the small army stood at the gate of the city and shouted.
The imaginary ambush did not appear. Several defenders and small troops on the city wall were exchanging something.
After a while, under the shocked eyes of everyone, the closed city gate slowly opened.
This scene made Qingcheng County Sheriff a little stunned. While he was in a daze, a small force from a distance came quickly and brought him even more confusing news.
Qingcheng County was not attacked by any foreign troops at all, let alone the army, not even the bandits.
The city is exactly the same as usual. There is no great danger. As for why the city gate is closed.
According to the usual practice, the city gate will be closed for half an hour at noon and evening every day to allow the patrol soldiers to change their defenses and rest.
And they were just in time for the evening, when the city gate was closing.
This news made Qingcheng County Sheriff unable to recover for a long time. Fortunately, the high priest beside him reminded him, and the stunned County Sheriff recovered.
The high priest frowned and said, "Do you think Su Qi'an deliberately deceived us? There was no such thing as an attack by the Dongshan Army?"
"What a crime it is to attack the county. How could he be so brave? He is probably doing this to deceive us and set up a trap to get us to sign the contract."
The high priest's analysis was reasonable, but Qingcheng County Sheriff's expression was calm. Based on his understanding of Su Qi'an, it was absolutely impossible for this person to do things that simple.
It's useless to say more now. The top priority is to enter the city. Only by seeing with his own eyes and interrogating them carefully before leaving to see if there are any loopholes, can he make a true judgment.
After making up his mind, the Qingcheng County Sheriff rode his horse straight to the county town without saying a word.
Soon, they entered the city. Everything they saw on the streets was consistent with the previous report. There was no commotion in the city.
When the patrol soldiers coming and going saw him, they also saluted respectfully, and there was no trace of panic after the war on their faces.
On the street, various vendors were shouting, not having the slightest influence after the war.
Except for the occasional commotion of fighting and fighting on the streets, Qingcheng County Magistrate did not see anything wrong.
Street fights in county towns are basically normal. It is impossible for any county town to guarantee that there will be no friction between civilians.
The street fight was quickly stopped by patrol soldiers, and both parties were taken away.
Qingcheng County Sheriff withdrew his gaze and returned to the County Sheriff's Mansion. He immediately summoned all the officials on duty that day, especially the patrol soldiers guarding the city, who were the focus of his questioning.
After two hours of interrogation, Qingcheng County Sheriff did not find out
There was nothing deliberate about it. The only thing that made him feel strange was that there were a lot of civilians and natives entering the city today, seemingly more than before. .
But this doubt was quickly explained. Today is a day for people from villages and towns outside the city to go to the city for the market.
Naturally, more people entered the city today than usual. It is impossible for a small matter like this to alarm a county guard.
After learning all the news today, Qingcheng County Sheriff waved his hand and motioned for several people to retreat.
His eyes flickered, thinking about something, but the high priest did not disturb him.
After a moment of silence, Qingcheng County Sheriff said, "This county always feels that something is wrong, but when I think about it carefully, there is no doubt about it."
"Although the county is fine, let's just assume that Su Qi'an deliberately deceived, but we still have to be careful. So, you go back quickly and summarize what happened today. We will sum it up to see if there are any flaws."
"In the future, we need to organize an outbound patrol team in our territory. It is best to cover all our territory. Patrol strongholds will be established every twenty miles. This way, if something happens in the future, Tucheng County troops will still be active, and we can be there at any time. Take control."
"If there's nothing wrong, just go back. I'll send someone to discuss it with you if you need anything."
Qingcheng County Sheriff's words were said lightly, and the high priest did not refute, nodded, and turned to leave.
But after leaving the county town, his expression changed instantly.
He could accept the first half of Qingcheng County Sheriff's proposal, as long as it cost him more time, but the second half made him quite uncomfortable and dissatisfied.
The high priest has no objection to establishing patrol teams and patrolling strongholds, but Qingcheng County Sheriff should not give his idea to him.
On the surface, the two territories established a joint stronghold and the patrol team could indeed have first-hand information, but his territory was not under the jurisdiction of Qingcheng County Governor.
The rules for the division of territory in Jiaozhou have been set a hundred years ago.
Liangren officials have their own territory, and the priest alliance also has its own territory, and the two do not interfere with each other.
This rule has been used for I don’t know how many years. Qingcheng County Sheriff broke it with just one sentence. What did he mean? Think of yourself as a state herd?
Especially the last sentence, what does it mean to send someone to discuss something with him? This does not completely treat oneself as a superior.
Regardless of status or territory size, the high priest is definitely superior to the Qingcheng County Sheriff.
Forget it in normal times, this time the behind-the-scenes plan to kill Su Qi'an was a mess.
Not only did he not let Su Qi'an die, but he got them involved.
Previously, when Su Qi'an besieged Yangliu County, he had such a good opportunity that he hesitated to send troops. But now it's better. Because Su Qi'an was assassinated, he forgot about it and became careless.
He took two thousand soldiers away, but in the end, the two of them were almost put under house arrest.
All these things have already made the high priest quite dissatisfied with the Qingcheng County Sheriff, but he did this in the end, did he really regard himself as his superior?
The high priest didn't get angry at the county magistrate's mansion, which would be considered a favor to him.
After leaving the county town, the high priest had made up his mind to let him do whatever patrols and liaison bases Qingcheng County Sheriff wanted to set up.
Don't get involved with him, he only has one principle, don't cross the line.
Once he crosses the line, he will immediately turn against you and expel him.
It's a joke that he, a dignified high priest, can be ordered around by county guards at the same level.
After the high priest left with a sulky expression, looking back at Yangliu County, with the bandits eradicated, the crisis in the county was finally resolved.
At present, Huo Cheng and other soldiers have not returned yet and continue to round up the escaped female assassin.
Regardless of whether Huo Cheng can catch this person, his official position will not be removed.
What the Ninth Princess said was mostly angry at the time. In that situation, Su Qi'an didn't know whether she was alive or dead, which naturally made the Ninth Princess angry. It's normal to be a little emotional.
After understanding that Su Qi'an was acting, the previous angry words naturally didn't count, and the ninth princess came to Jiaozhou in secret.
Su Qi'an had already greeted all his subordinates and told them to shut up. If he heard even half of the news about the Ninth Princess, he would be punished.
Conducted in accordance with military law.
Huo Cheng is not in the county seat now. Su Qi'an is in charge of the current Yangliu County City.
In addition to having several more batches of patrol soldiers in the city than before, Su Qi'an made some changes to Huo Cheng's strict management of the county.
At least make some strict iron rules flexible and have a bit of human touch.
A blindly high-pressure policy can only control things for a while, but not forever. Over time, the resistance from the bottom will be very strong, and it will not be good to provoke a popular uprising.
During the period of stay in Yangliu County, Su Qi'an was very busy. He and Wu Yong almost devoted themselves to revising the laws governing Yangliu County.
During this period, Chen Dao and Song Biao were sent from time to time to lead some soldiers in batches out of the city to encircle and suppress the remaining bandits.
Some of these remnant bandits are still determined to be thieves, and some will not shed tears without leaving the coffin. They always feel that they have fled into the dense forest, and when the storm is over, everything will be fine.
Then you can jump out at any time and run around to rob.
They were the ones Su Qi'an was waiting for, under the strong pressure of Chen Dao and Song Biao.
After ruthlessly killing several groups of bandits, the remaining bandits were finally suppressed.
In this siege, Chen Dao's performance impressed even Song Biao, a veteran soldier.
Chen Dao led a battalion of troops and not only killed more than a hundred bandits, but also marched straight in.
Three to four hundred soldiers chased the fleeing bandits, killing them all the way.
It can be said that they were so aggressive that they forced them all out of the Yangliu County border and killed another five hundred people.
It is no exaggeration to say that these bandits will be scared when they hear Chen Dao's name.
Who would have thought that such a powerful prince could not only be so bloody, but even crazy.
At once, he conquered all the soldiers from the three battalions that suppressed the bandits, especially Song Biao. He had never seen such a brave and powerful noble lord.
The appearance of Chen Dao changed Song Biao's bad impression of the powerful prince.
Seeing Chen Dao covered in blood, Song Biao rushed forward enthusiastically and gave him a big bear hug.
This hug not only represents respect, but also a kind of recognition.
Su Qi'an could somewhat understand Chen Dao's madness and ferocity. Perhaps it was due to the ups and downs he had experienced, the harshness of the world, and more of a feeling of blockage in his heart.
There is no harm in Chen Dao venting this emotion. Looking at the surrounding soldiers and the change in Chen Dao's eyes, Su Qian knew that the purpose of bringing Chen Dao out this time was achieved.
