More than 30,000 troops marched day and night and took two and a half days to arrive at the Protectorate.
It is said that it is a military city, and it can be described as a military city. Looking at the traces on the city wall, you know that this Dufu is at least several decades old, or even longer.
The soldiers patrolling the city tower had sharp eyes. Even if they knew Su Qi'an's identity, they did not relax at all. They shouldered a heavy responsibility.
Behind them, there are hundreds of thousands of people living in the Duhu Mansion. The population of a Duhu Mansion accounts for about one-fifth of the entire Ganzhou.
No matter the geographical location or the importance of the Protectorate, there was no room for the patrol soldiers to be careless. After a strict review, Su Qi'an was finally able to enter the city.
Entering the city, you will see a lively market in front of you, with various vendors selling their goods in their own areas. People on the street are walking in twos and threes, stopping from time to time to talk to the vendors.
Among these people, there are also a large number of foreigners, that is, people from the Western Regions. These people have white or yellow skin, tall and big noses, a pair of blue eyes, and their heads are wrapped in similar towels.
The local people are not surprised by these people. The Duhu Mansion is not only the central military town of Ganzhou, but also the center of exchanges connecting the Western Regions.
Before the war broke out, basically everyone who came to Ganzhou to do business would come to the Duhufu. After all, there was one-fifth of Ganzhou’s population here. Compared with other military towns, such as Tiannan, Longquan, Wuwei, etc., the population was much larger. Around 40,000 to 50,000.
Not only that, even the military forts built nearby were much more numerous than other military towns.
There are at least ten military forts around the Protectorate, and each military fort has as many as seven or eight thousand people and as few as two or three thousand people, plus the population of a military town.
This is also the influence of the Duhufu. After all, it is the center of Ganzhou and has the strongest population and strength.
Although there were conflicts and wars on the border, these people from the Western Regions were not driven away. They accounted for less than one tenth of the population, and since the war broke out, they have been the targets of key surveillance. Under heavy surveillance, these people have turned over. Can't afford to make too much of a fuss.
As they entered the city, Zhao Shen walked and explained while Su Qian nodded slightly.
Behind him, except for Xie Cang, Tong Zhan and the direct team, the rest of the 30,000-strong army did not follow him, but were arranged to station in specialized positions in the city.
It is not far from the Protectorate's Mansion in the city, only separated by two or three city districts, and can accommodate a hundred thousand people. This Protectorate City is not like other military cities, which only have four directional city districts, but ten. The city lord is responsible.
In order to communicate better and deliver news quickly, many roads have been built between each urban area. After so many years of construction and expansion, these roads are extending in all directions and are extremely complex.
Even old people who have lived in the city for many years may not necessarily know every road in the city. Each urban area is equivalent to a county.
The Duhu City is equivalent to the construction of ten county towns. It can be said that there is a city within a city. Such a large project took 40 to 50 years to complete.
It is also thanks to the successive emperors of Daliang that the policy they have always adhered to has been implemented and completed. The establishment of the capital city is equivalent to a clear spring appearing in the endless desert. No matter how bad the external environment is, as long as there is a city If you protect the city, you can live with peace of mind.
This is also the reason why the people of Ganzhou are proud to live in the protective city.
After so many years of construction and improvement, Ganzhou Protected City has not only achieved the goal of accommodating the lives of 100,000 people, but also achieved self-sufficiency in the city without the need for funding from the court.
Although this is only in normal times, and does not include the various construction costs required to protect the city due to its age, it is a great miracle to be able to guarantee the daily expenses of a hundred thousand people in the city.
From Zhao Shen's introduction, Su Qi'an also felt deep admiration in his heart. It took several generations of hard work to achieve the prosperity of the capital city. It's no wonder that the soldiers on the city tower looked tense. Such hard-won achievements would not be achieved in exchange for Everyone will cherish it.
If it weren't for the fact that he was anxious to see Wang Zhenshan, Su Qi'an would have asked Zhao Shen to take him to visit this majestic protective city.
The crowd walked all the way, and under the leadership of Zhao Shen, they finally arrived at the Protectorate's Mansion.
Compared with the majestic power of the Duhu City, the Duhu Mansion appears to be relatively ordinary, probably similar to an ordinary county government. Two soldiers stood at the door, watching Zhao Shen approaching, and hurriedly greeted him, making an invitation. It seems that the news was received in advance.
Su Qi'an walked in and went straight to the middle hall. It was such a coincidence that when they arrived at the middle hall, they got the news that Wang Zhenshan had led people to leave the Duhu Mansion and headed for the border half a day ago.
It seemed that he was leaving for negotiation. Before leaving, he left a letter to Su Qi'an.
The general meaning of the letter is to ask Su Qi'an to stay patiently in the capital city for a while. If you don't know anything about the city, you can ask Zhao Shen. When he resolves the peace talks, he will return as soon as possible to have a drink with Su Qi'an.
Reading the letter, you can feel Wang Zhenshan's confidence in this peace negotiation.
Zhao Shen on the side looked at the letter in his hand, his heart dropped, and he comforted Su Qi'an.
"Lord Overseer, I have also seen the letter. This time the Protector is out, I believe the peace talks will be extremely smooth. It is estimated that the Governor will be able to see the Protector in a few days."
"Please rest assured, Mr. Governor, even if there is any change in Saktu, any conspiracy method is absolutely vulnerable in front of the Protector. If nothing else, he claims to have a hundred thousand soldiers. As a result, he is fighting with us. After a battle, it was like losing one's armor. After the war, we roughly estimated that there were only 40,000 to 50,000 people in Saktu, maybe less than that."
"Think about it, even the leader of the Yuezhao Kingdom did not have a hundred thousand soldiers when he was the leader of the alliance of all countries. How could a small Hui Xie have a hundred thousand soldiers even if he got funding from Da Rong? Now look at it. There are still many ingredients to brag about.”
"Hey, it would be a lie to say that I have no regrets. It's a pity that I couldn't catch up with Lord Protector. Otherwise, I must teach this ignorant Saktu a lesson at the negotiation table. The power of the Celestial Dynasty can also be offended by him. ?ridiculous."
When Zhao Shen sighed, Su Qi'an said nothing, his eyes flickered, until Zhao Shen finished speaking, he seemed to notice something and suddenly said.
"Vice General Zhao, are you sure that the troops Saktu fought in these battles with you were only 40,000 to 50,000?"
Zhao Shen nodded and said, "Yes, Saktu unified Huixie, conquered Yuezhao, and even later controlled the countries in the Western Region and took the position of leader of the alliance, he only had 40,000 to 50,000 troops, not 100,000 troops at all."
"What's wrong, Lord Overseer, is there any problem?"
Su Qi'an did not answer Zhao Shen's question, but asked other questions, but they were all irrelevant, such as when the border trade between the two sides was closed before the war, and whether the year when Sachs unified back to evil and endured silently, Normal trade.
Zhao Shen answered one by one, naturally it was normal trade, and the border trade between the two sides was closed three months before the war started.
This seems normal to Zhao Shen. After all, no one would have thought that Saktu would have such great ambitions and tolerated it for a year. However, during this year, nothing was found wrong, and trade between the two parties naturally continued normally.
Until Saktu took the position of alliance leader, Wang Zhenshan felt bad about the situation and closed the trade channel three months in advance.
This move was wise, as it stopped Saktu's infiltration in time. Even if Saktu sent people to infiltrate, Zhao Shen was not afraid. Ganzhou is vast and sparsely populated, and the establishment of seven military towns all occupy the best geographical locations. .
And if it really infiltrates, how many people can be infiltrated? I'm afraid the military fort militia to which the military town belongs can handle it.
It can be said that with their strength, they are just waiting for work, and are not afraid of the so-called penetration. Therefore, Zhao Shen does not understand the purpose of Su Qi'an asking these questions.
After Su Qi'an asked, he was silent for a while and said to Zhao Shen.
"Vice General Zhao, now that the Protector is away, I am ordering you as the governor. You are willing to obey the order."
Although Zhao Shen didn't understand, Su Qi'an was the governor sent by the imperial court after all, and it was natural for him to obey the orders of the governor. He nodded solemnly.
"Okay, next, I order you..."
Listening to Su Qi'an's series of orders, Zhao Shen's face showed more confusion than solemnity.
He said, "Master Overseer, do you really want to do this? Is it making a fuss out of a molehill? If things don't develop according to Master Overseer's plan, we are all sinners in Ganzhou. If the Governor knows about this, I'm afraid it won't be easy to explain. ah."
"If you want to protect all of you, you have to do this. I have given the order, and I will bear the consequences. If you are afraid, I can replace you with someone else."
Su Qi'an's tone was serious, without any pretense. Zhao Shen was also aroused by Su Qi'an's words.
He cupped his fists and said seriously, "What are you saying, Lord Overseer? The general is not someone who is afraid of death and takes responsibility. Since the Lord Overseer is so sure, the general will accompany the Lord Overseer."
"Okay, Vice General Zhao, please remember that no matter what happens to the Duhufu, we must hold on until we come back. The longer the Duhufu lasts, the more beneficial this peace negotiation will be to us."
"Stop talking nonsense, I will immediately pursue the Protector-General. This time, my life and that of the Protector-General will be entrusted to your hands. I will go ahead and take my leave!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Su Qi'an turned around and left. After a while, horses were galloping on the street. After a while, the city gate opened. Su Qi'an and Xie Cang, together with an army of 30,000 men, pursued towards the border of Ganzhou without stopping.
At the same time, Zhao Shen, who stayed where he was, murmured softly, "Master Governor, this is too much fun for you. I hope everything will go according to your ideas. Otherwise, you will die hundreds of times to atone for your sins." "
Then, Zhao Shen came back to his senses, called to his men, and said loudly, "I have received the military order from the Governor. The troops from the seven military towns including Longquan, Wuwei, and Tiannan will allocate half of their troops to march westward with the Governor."
