Don't be a prince

Page 214

While the emperor's edict was still on the way, Li Chengqian of Bianzhou was sorting out the drawings drawn by Chang Tianhou and others.

The area of ​​the reed marshes is so large that trying to see the whole picture is tantamount to nonsense. Even the best draftsman cannot draw a suitable blueprint without enough time.But there are shortcuts to many things. For example, Li Chengqian is playing a jigsaw puzzle right now.

Qibai's soldiers don't have to risk their lives, they just need to draw the landforms and terrains they have detected within their own capabilities.There are too many drawings, and you can always meet the connecting places. With the scattered fragments, you can piece together the overall picture.

Although Bai Yujiao has been guarding outside, he knows that the prince has learned the art of war from Li Weigong, so he never questioned the prince's orders, but obeyed them unconditionally.Watching the reeds and the surrounding terrain gradually take shape under the prince's pen, he just felt that he was extremely stupid, and he was still worrying about the danger of the unfavorable terrain just a few days ago.

"Why are you getting so excited? Your soldiers can't do this kind of work. Surveying the terrain and drawing maps is the second priority. The most important thing is not to startle the enemy. So, this kind of work can only be done by a single person at present. You'd better think twice before acting."

Although Bai Yujiao's name has "Jiao", he is very humble and eager to learn. He naturally bows down to accept the prince's words.

After putting the graphics together, seeing that there was still a large blank area on the drawing, Li Chengqian looked at the sky-swapping monkey on the side.

Sky-Changing Monkey bowed and said: "Your Highness, the current investigation is already at the limit of our proficiency. In fact, the blueprints closest to the water thief's critical area were drawn by the general and a few masters. During the period, they were drawn twice Someone found out. Although I killed the water thief and pretended to be the scene of an accidental death, no matter how many there are, I'm afraid it will arouse the water thief's suspicion."

"Okay, since you have said so, there is no need to continue to investigate. The [-]% of the area that has been investigated so far is enough. Go down, let the brothers have a good rest, and do not plan to attack for the time being."

Sky-Changing Monkey took the order and left, which made Bai Yujiao on the side dumbfounded.

Glancing at the [-]% complete blueprint, Bai Yujiao said anxiously, "Your Highness, why are you procrastinating? The [-]% blueprint is enough for us to dispatch troops, and things will change if we delay!"

Looking back at the anxious Bai Yujiao, Li Chengqian tapped Bai Yujiao's helmet with the pen in his hand and said, "You, this is Gu. If someone else comes, your words will directly arouse disgust. Gu Naturally, there is a reason for Gu to do this, as long as you know that Gu is thinking of you Bianzhou government soldiers."

Bai Yujiao chuckled, clasped his fists and said, "The general understands naturally, Your Highness, don't be angry, since your highness finds it inconvenient to talk, the general will just not ask."

After finishing speaking, Bai Yujiao also cupped his fists and left.The matter of the map had already convinced him by the crown prince, so he naturally stopped talking.

It was only when the living room became empty again that Li Chengqian sat on a chair, staring at the drawings in a daze.

Now it's midsummer turning into autumn. Although it's not as good as winter, the fire attack can still work.I just don't know if Fang Shuo and the others can succeed.

Chanzhou is actually the Puyang of later generations. This place is not far from Bianzhou, and its geographical location is not so important.Because of this, their gunpowder weapons are the last to be supplied.However, what Li Chengqian wanted to rob was not Chanzhou's share of gunpowder weapons, but Molotov cocktails.Since gasoline was also listed as a dangerous substance by the emperor, it has enjoyed treatment similar to that of gunpowder.Molotov cocktails are also included in the supply of local weapons for exercises. Instead of letting them burn to nothing, it is better to collect them and use them to attack the reeds.

Not only Chanzhou, but weapons from Heze and Guide counties will also be concentrated.The Molotov cocktails in the three places were gathered together. If he could still suffer heavy damage when attacking the reed marsh, he would rather jump off the boat and drown himself.

Just when Li Chengqian was dreaming of the dream of victory without injury, a cold little hand covered his eyes.

This is Su Yuan's favorite game, but every time Li Chengqian would yell indiscriminately, and only when she was about to get angry would he call the right name.

"You must have guessed that she was a concubine, but you screamed nonsense. We don't have a woman named Shuangshuang in the East Palace."

With a smile, he dragged the angry Su Yuan to him and hugged him into his arms. Li Chengqian said with a smile, "Few people except you would dare to do such a thing. Ah Xue would do such a thing." Personality, but her hands are not as cold as yours."

Holding Su Yuan's hand, he passed the warmth of his palm to her.There is no need to say anything, as long as you feel each other's existence quietly, it is the best atmosphere.

"Today, the queen mother told us about the child again. Husband, we really have to wait a few years."

"The mother is in a hurry for a while, and it will be fine after a while. We are only 15 years old this year, how can we have a child so early. If we really want to have a child, we have to wait until we return to Chang'an. Now Outside, one after the single mother is enough for me to worry about, another one, do you want me to sleep well. "

Su Yuan giggled and leaned against Li Chengqian.She just felt that she didn't know how many good deeds she had done in her lifetime to meet such a husband.It was rumored among the people that the family of emperors and generals was the most ruthless, even her father was very ruthless.However, even though the husband is the prince, he can treat her like this.

The light outside the window gradually became dim, Li Chengqian helplessly patted Su Yuan's buttocks, and said, "Get up, it's time for us to have dinner, I don't know what delicious food my mother will make today."

Su Yuan stretched, then got up, took Li Chengqian's hand and walked towards the restaurant together.After cooking the fish on the boat, the eldest grandson did not have it fresh for two and a half days, but he really kept cooking.Only Li Chengqian, Li Tai brothers, and Su Yuanyan Wan were the only ones who were qualified to enjoy the queen's craftsmanship. Neither Xiuxiu nor Ashina Xue was qualified to sit on the table.However, there was a falling incident, and the eldest grandson also liked Xiuxiu and Ashina Xue very much, breaking the rules and letting them sit on the table.

After a sumptuous dinner, when he returned to his bedroom, Li Chengqian keenly found that there was an extra letter on his desk.

After making sure no one was around, he opened it and looked at it by moonlight.

It was a letter from the Alliance of the Lowly. After all, their delivery speed was not as fast as Hong Ling's, so that the letter was not delivered to him until now.

In the alliance's letter, the emperor's reaction before and after was introduced.When he saw the words "the emperor is getting thinner day by day", although he couldn't bear it, Li Chengqian still chose to harden his heart.Human beings are very strange creatures, they will review and admit their mistakes, but it is very difficult to correct them.As expected, even if he returned to Chang'an now, the emperor would still get angry, and after the "surprise" that the queen brought back to the emperor disappeared, he would still be splinted.

That being the case, why go back?I still have fun outside, whether there will be such a good opportunity to come out in the future is still unknown.

Thinking of this, Li Chengqian tore up the letter without hesitation, threw it into the brazier and burned it directly.

It's impossible to go back, how can you go back if you don't play enough?

After burning the letter, Li Chengqian only felt refreshed physically and mentally, and threw himself on the bed and began to sleep, not wanting to take off his clothes.The prince's image is the most important in the East Palace, now outside, who cares?

The next day, Li Chengqian did not start his "morning exercise" until the sun rose.Just after finishing archery practice, Bai Yujiao appeared on the archery field with a troubled expression on his face. At this moment, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

The team that was first dispatched to Chanzhou has returned. They not only snatched all the Molotov cocktails, but also took away half of the gunpowder weapons.If other sergeants dared to do this kind of thing, the supervisors would have used their knives long ago, but the princes with the crown prince in their hands can only beg for less, and they have to assign supervisors follow along.

They have to supervise the gunpowder weapons shipped out of Chang'an. If one is missing, their heads will be lost.In matters related to gunpowder weapons, the emperor obviously did not mean to despise.

"Well, it's not bad. There are three hundred Molotov cocktails? Gunpowder weapons can be used for the time being, so that's good. You, it's you, go back. Guaranteed that these weapons will be used to eliminate water thieves and benefit the people. Things are much better than you blowing up the empty space and burning the air."

Hearing the prince's casual words, the supervisor put a bitter face on his face, and almost knelt on the ground: "Okay, my prince, please do me a favor. If it wasn't for your personal soldier, the humble official would have ignored you a long time ago." The knife was drawn. I knew you were useful, so I allowed them to carry it. However, at least you let the officials supervise the whole process. The whole family is under the supervision of the Baiqisi. What went wrong is not the one who fell. A head!"

Seeing the supervisor's miserable appearance, Li Chengqian scratched his head helplessly.After all, this is also his responsibility, because this incident has deceived others, and he feels uncomfortable.

"Okay, then you will follow Gu for the time being, and go back after the water thief's crusade is over."

After waving away the supervisor, Li Chengqian looked at Bai Yujiao who was hesitant to speak.

Bai Yujiao hesitated for a long time before saying: "Your Highness, you have not only sent people to Chanzhou, but Heze and Guide County have also sent people. You will not gather all the Molotov cocktails and gunpowder weapons in these three places. Bar."

"That's natural. A war that can be won with weapons is not prepared to be filled with human lives. Besides, no matter how hateful these water thieves are, they are our own people. Just kill the villain at the head. What about the rest? You can't hurt the killer. Although it's not the time when the sky is dry and the things are dry, but with the Molotov cocktail, the fire attack can still work.

When fire attack is used, especially when it is used with the power of Molotov cocktails, if it is not handled well, it will harm others and yourself.How to use it, you have to learn from the Heavenly Monkey and others, and the things you need to prepare are not the same.Go down and prepare, when the Molotov cocktails from Heze Guide County are also delivered, we will send troops! "

Only then did Bai Yujiao understand why the prince had to delay for a few more days. The Bianzhou government soldiers were fortunate enough to be led by the prince to fight against water thieves this time.

Arching their hands together, Bai Yujiao left together with Sky Monkey, shoulders and backs.

Putting away the list of gunpowder weapons and Molotov cocktails, Li Chengqian turned around and went back to the house to start planning the battle.He participated in the two battles in the grassland, but he didn't have the opportunity to personally plan anything. Now besides himself, the queen's wife is the biggest in Bianzhou, so why don't he come here?

The pro-leader who went to Heze Guide County also successfully robbed a large number of gunpowder weapons and all Molotov cocktails.Gathering so many weapons, Li Chengqian felt sorry for his opponent.To tell the truth, if he wanted to kill, there would be no one alive in the reed marsh.The reason for such a big fanfare is that his goal is to kill fewer people, not only the soldiers and relatives, but also the water thieves.Unlike the external, internally, no matter which side wins, the losers are their own people.

On the No. 15 day when the group arrived in Bianzhou, all the preparations were finally in place. The 1 government soldiers in Bianzhou and the [-] pro-leaders merged into an army of [-] people. , leaving the port, and gradually surrounded the reed marshes on the north bank of the river in a circular shape.

Three thousand troops, while approaching the shore, quickly landed and began to block the road on the shore.Completely cut off the water thief's retreat.

Li Chengqian didn't know why Bianzhou was almost helpless against these water thieves until he saw the reed marshes with his own eyes.

The area of ​​the reed marshes is extremely wide, with an area of ​​more than ten hectares. Aren't water thieves able to hide as much as they want?In addition, the internal waterways are criss-crossed, and the water thieves have lived in it for these years, and I don’t know how many traps they have set up. It is not something that Bianzhou’s troops can do if they want to conduct a thorough sweep.

Li Chengqian, who was fully armored, stood on the deck of a ship, looking at the reeds in front of him with a lot of emotion.The time and place are favorable, and the water thief is occupying them. The remaining people and the two sides should be almost the same. For the sake of their invisible home, the water thief will not be caught without a fight.

It was the end of summer, the location was favorable, the reeds were swaying, the people were harmonious, and the water bandits were all occupying the side. Facing such a situation, ordinary generals would probably have nothing but their hands.But the prince Li Chengqian is different.

Looking back at the incendiary bottles and gunpowder weapons carried on the transport ship behind, Li Chengqian only felt that he was a person from a certain country in later generations who wanted to implement the three-light policy of burning, exploding, and scaring. all questions.

Chapter 341 Battle

Holding a large shield, Bai Yujiao stood on the right side of Li Chengqian, looked at the extremely quiet reeds in front of him, turned his head and said, "Your Highness, we did not block the news of the crusade against water thieves as you ordered, but only blocked the Molotov cocktails." and gunpowder weapons. You should know that water thieves have been trapped in the reed marshes, and it is impossible to live for a long time. In any case, they must maintain communication with the shore, and the ships passing by the harbor must be mixed with The figure of the water thief. Is it not good to scare the snake before the soldiers and horses come out?"

Sitting on the chair nailed to the deck, sipping tea, Li Chengqian said: "There is no need to be too vigilant against them. I have asked you before. You have organized several times to attack the reeds, but they all failed. That's right." Bar."

"His Royal Highness is right, the last general will embarrass Bianzhou and Tang Dynasty!"

Although Bai Yujiao felt ashamed, he still had to nod his head.As for the specific number of water thieves in the reed marsh, it was actually found out through several trials.At the beginning, he tried to enter the reed marsh with a small number of personal guards to investigate the situation, but the fact that the boat was sunk by others was already a familiar joke among water thieves.But fortunately, the people in Bianzhou are more reliable, and they didn't make trouble for him.Otherwise, even if he was the governor of a state, he would commit suicide with his sword in shame.

"Since you have lost several times in front of the water thieves, even if you gather so many troops this time, I guess they still have nothing to fear. A proud and arrogant attitude will always lead to various omissions and unexpected things, such as... ..”

Before Li Chengqian could finish his words, the soldiers on the side of the boat became tense, and suddenly a shirtless man floated up on the water in front of him. Seeing that the river around him became bright red, he knew that it was probably over.

A few government soldiers with bows were about to shoot arrows when they were slapped by the veterans around them.Obviously, the flat river is not as calm as it seems.

With the first one, there was the second one. In just a short while, more than 20 corpses "floated" on the river, all of whom were stabbed in the throat, heart and other vital parts, and died instantly.

The soldiers on the ship's side were in a hurry to salvage the corpses. Obviously, these dead were all water thieves. The inexplicable sinking of their boat before was probably caused by them underwater.

Naturally, the prince's boat does not need to salvage the corpse.However, when a hand broke through the water and grabbed the boarding board, the soldiers were still taken aback, and the man who looked like a water ghost was allowed to board the ship after asking clearly.

The one who boarded the boat was Liu Mang. Although this guy looks like a bear, in fact, besides his strength, he is also flexible enough.Changtianhou's figure looks suitable for swimming, but it just can't match him.

Liu Mang, who was covered in rotten water weeds, had a particularly strong smell. He spat out the reed stick in his mouth, and knelt on one knee on the deck to report: "Your Highness, the water thieves under the water should be cleared out. , It is estimated that there is no escape, the area is lush with aquatic plants, it is easy to be entangled, the brothers of the assault team have lost two, and the water thief has little chance."

Li Chengqian nodded and waved Liu Mang down.Since all the old members of the attacking team had suffered casualties, even if there were still three or five lucky ones under the water, they shouldn't continue to hunt them down.In his mind, the value of personally leading the team cannot be estimated.

Watching the shirtless figures appearing on the river and boarding the nearest boat, Bai Yujiao pointed to the team members in surprise and asked, "Your Highness, is this the team? Isn't the team all around Chang'an?" Why are you better at water than the most powerful boatman you will ever see?"

Li Chengqian said indifferently: "The place where the pro-leaders are stationed is near the Weishui River. In addition to the normal training on weekdays, Gu also requires them to practice water skills. Anyway, the pro-leaders are lonely soldiers, and they must be proficient in everything up and down the mountain. ah."

Bai Yujiao cupped his hands to express his admiration, but he still couldn't help complaining in his heart. It is estimated that even the emperor's Xuanjia army may not be as good as the prince's personal leadership.There is nothing to say about rich people's military training methods other than envy.

The boat is getting closer and closer to the reed marshes, and from a long distance, you can see the faint figure in the nearest mud.

Putting down the teacup, Li Chengqian nodded to Bai Yujiao.The next moment, wooden shields were erected around the warship to protect the ship tightly, and in the gap between the shields, heavily armed soldiers shot back with arrows.

An arrow from the reeds hit the wooden shield, and fell powerlessly on the deck. After handing the shield to the guards, Bai Yujiao picked up the arrow and brought it in front of the prince, saying, "Your Highness, this is what they used. Bows and arrows are all earthen bows and arrows, at most they can only shoot wild animals, and they are powerless against thick wooden shields, let alone armor."

"Be careful. We are not in a hurry to go ashore. According to the blueprints drawn by the Monkeys, the reed marshes seem to be covered by reeds. In fact, there are waterways in many places, dividing a lot of land. We just need to With the help of these waterways, the encirclement can be gradually narrowed."

While they were talking, the arrows from the reeds unknowingly decreased a lot until they disappeared.It wasn't until the arrow disappeared for a long time that the shield array was released.At this time, there was no one in the reeds in the front.

"Put the Molotov cocktail on, and as we gradually shrink inward, we don't want any hiding places within sight."

Before Bai Yujiao took command, the Sky-Changing Monkey on one side raised the flag in his hand, just changed the color and waved it a few times, and the team members scattered on each ship began to exchange flags with each other.In the end, only a dozen Molotov cocktails were thrown into the reeds.

Molotov cocktails can really show their power when there are flammable materials.

Now that the weather is getting colder, some reeds have already started to wither and turn yellow, and even if they don't turn yellow, the lit Molotov cocktail will dry them out and ignite them.

Seeing the reeds burning with his own eyes, especially after some flames spread on the water, Bai Yujiao was so excited that he didn't know what to say.Bianzhou also distributed gunpowder weapons and Molotov cocktails, but like Zhengzhou, they did experiments and demonstrations in open space.Now that it is used in actual combat, it is immediately discovered that the power of the Molotov cocktail is really extraordinary.

There are also three other directions that are also burning. Although the area of ​​the reed marsh is large, it is gradually shrinking under the continuous flame erosion.

A gust of wind blew by, and the soldiers on the leeward side hurriedly put on their masks, and the sails also lowered.Hoist the water-soaked sails.These are all preparations before departure. If you don’t understand why the prince gave these orders before, when the soldiers saw a few water thieves coughing in pain in the reed marsh, they crawled out of the mud pit where they were hiding and were shot down by arrows. After the boat hidden in the reed marsh was also set ablaze, he had no choice but to try his best to recall the prince's orders and try to follow them all.

Seeing that the boats surrounding the reed marshes followed orders in unison, Bai Yujiao scratched his head in distress.When the Ministry of War issued the military training plan to various places, it also issued documents on semaphore, but after reading it, he felt that it was moaning without illness. How could it be useful when it was obtained in combat?Even if he is the governor, when he leads troops into battle, he will usually be at the forefront. Orders are passed on by orderly soldiers, is it worth using this thing?Once the order is wrongly passed on, the consequences will be unimaginable. How can oral order be so happy?

As for the real large-scale battle, the semaphore is even more tasteless. The two armies cannot see each other, so how to pass the news?

However, he never expected that what happened today would slap his face.The battle to encircle the reeds was neither large nor small, and because it was a battle on water, it was the environment where the messengers could not run to deliver orders.Bai Yujiao felt ashamed as he watched the orders from the main ship being rapidly transmitted to all the ships in a circle.As far as he knows, the prince is only 16 years old now, but compared with him, a middle-aged man, he has the demeanor of a famous general.

The boat did not touch the shore, but slowly approached the interior through the extra wide waterway cleared by the water thieves.The outermost round of arrows just now almost emptied the water pirates' inventory, so that the fleet approached the next reed field again, and only sparse arrows shot out from the inside.

Because the boat entered the waterway and was not as stable as it was on the wide river, Li Chengqian simply stood up and threw the teacup aside.Seeing this, Bai Yujiao had no choice but to move and put the guards beside the prince.

He was obviously the governor of a state, but Bai Yujiao only felt that he was just a spectator now, and he didn't need to care about anything except holding up the shield to defend the prince.He was planning to go back and copy a semaphore document with the governor of the neighboring military state, and when he was studying this thing carefully, he was suddenly slapped on the head by the monkey.

The next moment, an arrow flew past and hit the boat. When Bai Yujiao turned his head, the tail of the arrow was still vibrating.

The sergeants with shields gathered immediately and surrounded the bow of the ship firmly without leaving a single gap.

"Oh, a decent four-stone bow, a decent arrow, if this arrow hits your head, tsk tsk, Gu will burn incense for you."

Walking over, pulling out the arrow with difficulty, Li Chengqian looked at Bai Yujiao who was sweating on his forehead, and suddenly laughed.

In all the boats around, not one or two were shirtless, and in terms of status, he was undoubtedly the most noble prince, but the arrow shot towards Bai Yujiao in a daze.The reason could only be Bai Yujiao's flamboyant bright light armor.

Li Chengqian wanted to laugh out loud after looking at the unupgraded armor of the Sky-Changing Monkey, and at the "nostalgic" style armor on his body, but he had to hold back considering Bai Yujiao's face.

What kind of "feather fan scarf. While talking and laughing, masts and sculls fly into ashes and smoke", such a scene will only appear in the rear of the battlefield. On the battlefield, don't everyone wear it as thick as possible? How to wear it in a low-key manner?As for some guys dressed in white clothes and white armor, they are actually eager to do meritorious service, begging the enemy to target themselves so that they can show themselves.

After an arrow was shot, there was no movement in the reeds. In addition, the boat advanced a lot, and now it was impossible to predict the position of the archer.However, there is no need to be precise about the position, as long as you know the general direction.

The arrow shaft pointed to the right side, and the Sky-Changing Monkey smiled, took out three smoke arrows from his quiver, and shot them together.

The next moment, as long as those around saw the smoke signal, they poured out the gunpowder weapons in their hands.

The roaring sound continued, and the quiet reeds became lively like a festival in later generations.

After some bombing, without the need for Molotov cocktails to appear, the large swathes of reeds have changed beyond recognition.My master almost died, so the general will naturally risk his life.Without anyone's orders, Bai Yujiao's generals jumped out of the boat and walked ashore through the muddy water.Not long after, three dead water thieves were found from the fallen reeds, as well as three bows and arrows of the former Sui Dynasty.

Looking at the mess, full of mud pits and gunpowder smoke, Bai Yujiao said with emotion: "This is not a battle, it is clearly a siege. In the face of the power of gunpowder weapons, the bravery of water bandits is useless." .”

After patting Bai Yujiao's armor, Li Chengqian said: "The lonely idea is to save one death. Since we can win with weapons, why are we so foolish to take our lives? Besides, water thieves are guilty. Not all of them are killed, they are all productive forces, even if they are enslaved, they can still contribute to Datang, and if they die, it is really a waste of life.”

As soon as he finished speaking, several boats suddenly appeared from the reeds on the innermost side, and many people also emerged from the reeds on the land. Divide the momentum.

But with such an aura, it's okay to frighten merchants, but if the government soldiers are frightened, it's just a joke.There was no need to issue an order, the military ship at the front headed forward without hesitation, and the soldiers on the rear ship also put down their pedals and went ashore to fight.

Knowing Bai Yujiao's thoughts, the local government soldiers have rarely had the opportunity to go to the battlefield. Now that they finally have the opportunity, experience and experience are the best.Because of this, Li Chengqian did not order the use of gunpowder weapons.

The battle was extremely brutal. On the narrow river and among the messy reeds, people fell to the ground screaming from time to time, but most of the people who fell to the ground were from the water bandits.No matter in terms of military quality or equipment, the water bandits have no way to compare with the Fubing.What's more, the soldiers led by them were also scattered and participated in it.For them, such a battlefield is simply trivial, and they can completely take care of some young soldiers under the premise of self-protection.

Seeing how many water thieves who fell to the ground and howled and lost their combat effectiveness had no one to make up their swords, Li Chengqian had no choice but to give an order that no one would be left alive.

These water thieves who dare to fight will be black sheep if they keep them.Besides, instead of letting them scream and wait to die, it's better to give them a good time.For people in one's own country, even if they are water thieves, it is appropriate to talk about benevolence and righteousness.

Chapter 342 It Takes a Hard Fist to Encourage Security

Although the local government didn't care about the semaphore or anything, they kept the new battlefield health regulations in mind.They are all brothers of life and death, and they can not only save themselves, but also save Pao Ze's life more often.

Standing on the boat, Li Chengqian did not sit idle, but opened his bow and shot arrows, using his superb archery skills to support some weak soldiers.Water pirates don't always use harpoons and sticks. After so many years of operation, many of them have serious weapons. Among the water pirates fighting fiercely, there are many people wielding horizontal knives.