Daqin arrests alchemists, what does it matter to me as a qi refiner?

When Zhang Lun led his troops to about fifty or sixty meters away from Yang Ling, Yang Ling immediately ordered the cavalry to charge. Although Yang Ling's men were exhausted, they were elite after all. They quickly formed a battle formation and charged towards the Iron Buddha Tu on the opposite side. go.

Zhang Lun couldn't help but snorted coldly when he saw this: "This kid is looking for death!"

As Tiefu Tu accelerated, the distance between the two sides became shorter and shorter, and Zhang Lun determined that Yang Ling's troops would definitely be annihilated.

Zhang Lun even fantasized about how he would deal with Yang Ling after all Yang Ling's troops were wiped out. Either escort him back to the Southern Song Dynasty, chop off his head, or capture him alive.

While Zhang Lun was thinking, the distance between the two sides had shortened to about thirty meters.

Seeing that the two sides were about to collide, Yang Ling's troops suddenly divided into several columns, forming a column and sprinting forward. Yang Ling and his bodyguards were at the front of the column. When the two sides touched each other, only a bang was heard. Continuously, blood splattered and countless corpses flew into the air.

The impact of Yang Ling's men was far greater than that of Tiefu Tu. They instantly tore apart Tiefu Tu's defense line and rushed towards Zhang Lun in the middle of Tiefu Tu.

Zhang Lun was frightened by Yang Ling's sudden counterattack. By the time he reacted, he was already surrounded.

Zhang Lun hurriedly raised his sword to resist, but he faced Yang Ling's men who were fully armed and fierce. Zhang Lun had just knocked down several enemies, and then Yang Ling's spear pierced his chest.

Zhang Lun looked at Yang Ling with wide eyes, his face full of disbelief. He couldn't figure out how Yang Ling dared to violate military discipline and actually commit evil tricks in such a fair competition.

Zhang Lun lay on his back, bright red blood flowing from the wound. Gradually, Zhang Lun's breath became weak, and signs of life quickly disappeared.

Zhang Lun's men were defeated by Yang Ling's men and fled one after another. Yang Ling ordered his troops to pursue the defeated troops.

This battle went so smoothly that Yang Ling felt a little unreal.

"Commander, our rebels have taken control of the entire mountain." Chen Qi said excitedly.

Yang Ling shook his head and said, "No, the people here do not entirely belong to us. We must rush to the towns below as soon as possible, otherwise it may be difficult for the people to join us again."

Chen Qi nodded repeatedly when he heard the words: "The commander is wise, the general will now immediately order the troops to continue attacking downwards and strive to capture the remaining hills."

"No, let's go back to the city first."

Chen Qi couldn't help frowning when he heard this and said: "Commander, we have an absolute advantage now, why don't we take the opportunity to conquer a few more villages so that we can recruit more soldiers in the future?"

"What do you know! These people have evil intentions now. If we forcefully recruit them, it will definitely annoy them, and it may be counterproductive. So we can't force them to follow us for the time being." Yang Ling explained.

Chen Qi suddenly realized: "The last general is so stupid that he almost made a mistake!"

"I don't blame you, let's go." After Yang Ling said that, he turned around and boarded the carriage.

Chen Qi, along with his brothers, escorted Yang Ling's flags and food supplies, and returned to the city along the original route.

When Yang Ling led his army back to the city, the people in the city were already ready. They cheered and lined the streets to greet Yang Ling, as if they were welcoming a victorious general.

Yang Ling entered the government office amid the support of everyone, then sat on a chair and accepted everyone's kneeling.

After the people all stood up, Yang Ling asked with a smile: "Dear fellow villagers, I was out today and failed to distribute relief food to everyone in time. Do you ever resent me?"

After hearing this, everyone replied in unison: "The commander-in-chief is benevolent and loves the people. We are so grateful!"

"Commander, you are our patron saint. Without you, how could we live and work in peace and contentment, and how could we have famine due to lack of food."

Yang Ling nodded and said loudly: "Since no one is hungry now, we must seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to completely regain the lost territory!"

"Take back the lost ground!" Everyone shouted in unison, and the atmosphere was extremely enthusiastic.

Yang Ling then ordered Chen Qi: "Chen Qi, please immediately send someone to inform the people in the county and tell everyone that our rebel army will hold a celebration banquet at noon tomorrow!"

"I humbly obey my orders!"

At the beginning of the morning the next day, the sun was shining brightly and the whole county was immersed in joy. The people put on new clothes and laughed happily.

The county magistrate Wu Dashan and the chief bookkeeper Li Dafu had sad faces. They looked at Yang Ling in the yard worriedly.

"Brother Li, do you think this celebration is a good omen?" Wu Dashan asked in a low voice.

Li Dafu nodded bitterly and said: "I think it is a blessing rather than a curse. If it is really a good omen, then we should be happy."

Wu Dashan sighed and said, "I hope it goes as you wish. If it weren't for the deep blessings, then we would be miserable."

Hearing this, Li Dafu glanced at him contemptuously and said: "You! You are just worried. Our commander is young and wealthy, and has superb martial arts skills. Who can bully him?"

After hearing this, Wu Dashan sighed secretly in his heart: "I hope it's as you said, but it's hard to say whether it's a blessing or a curse."

While the two were chatting, they heard loud gongs and drums and firecrackers blasting outside the house, making it very lively.

"What's going on? What's this?" Li Dafu asked in surprise.

Wu Dashan said with joy on his face: "Could it be that our commander-in-chief has returned in triumph?"

"It can't be wrong!"

Soon, the sound of gongs and drums became closer and closer, and then Yang Ling led his men into the county government office slowly.

"Welcome to the commander-in-chief for his triumphant return!" Everyone shouted in unison.

Yang Ling waved his hand and said, "No courtesy!"

Everyone thanked him and stood up. After Yang Ling glanced around, he pointed at the food on the table and said to everyone: "Thank you for your hard work. Let's eat quickly!"

When everyone saw the sumptuous banquet on the table, their eyes suddenly lit up. They had been starving for a long time.

However, no one was in a hurry to sit down at the table. Yang Ling saw this and smiled and said: "Everyone, I have specially asked people to buy a lot of mutton and pork to reward all the warriors. You may wish to have a try."

"Thank you, Marshal, for the reward!" Everyone shouted in unison, and then began to sit down to eat and drink.

When Li Dafu and Wu Dashan saw this, they couldn't help but swallow their saliva.

"You two might as well come and taste the delicious food." Yang Ling greeted with a smile.

Li Dafu and Wu Dafu quickly raised their hands and thanked him: "Thank you so much, Commander, I am ashamed of my humble position!" Although they were polite, they walked straight to the table and sat down without slowing down at all.

Yang Ling picked up the wine bowl and gestured to the two of them: "I would like to toast you two with this glass of wine. I would like to thank you for holding on to your position and keeping the city intact while I was away."

The two of them quickly picked up their wine bowls and said in unison: "The commander-in-chief is trying to kill us, and those in humble positions will follow the commander-in-chief to the death!"

After saying that, the two of them drank up the white wine in the bowl.

After Yang Ling also drank the wine in the bowl, he continued: "I will host a banquet for you tonight. In addition to rewarding the brothers, I also want to announce three important things."

Everyone quickly stopped eating and drinking and listened.

Yang Ling continued: "The second thing is about city defense and public security. Due to the huge number of people in the city, city defense is not enough to maintain normal order. Therefore, I decided to form a force and assign fifty sergeants to each gentry or merchant. As for the specific establishment, I will write to Master Qin Tian later to send staff to make detailed plans."

Yang Ling's proposal immediately aroused everyone's approval. After all, they were all from farmers and did not know how to manage a city, so they were very supportive of the army.

Yang Ling continued: "As for the third thing, it is to speed up the promotion of farming. Starting from tomorrow, each household must first submit 10 kilograms of rice to the government for statistics, and then use money to buy it. If it is not paid overdue, there will be a fine of silver 20 taels, and their qualifications for farming will be cancelled.”

"Ah!" Everyone present was stunned when they heard the fine of 20 taels of silver. We must know that in ancient times, the most valuable things for farmers were land, property, and houses. This kind of fine was very painful.

Wu Dashan frowned and asked: "Commander, according to convention, each household should pay 50 kilograms of rice to the government first, and then the government will count it. This is in line with the rules, otherwise many people may not be convinced!"

Li Dafu added: "Commander, as far as I know, bandits are rampant in the north now, and the people don't have much rice accumulated in their hands. This fine of silver is too heavy!"

Yang Ling smiled and shook his head and said: "You two don't know. Since ancient times, wars have been fierce and dangerous. Now the situation in the north is unpredictable. You must not underestimate it. That's why I decided to fine you 20 taels of silver!"

Li Dafu and Wu Dashan were silent after hearing this. They knew Yang Ling's temperament, and since they had made a decision, they would never change it easily.

Yang Ling continued: "Of course, the silver fine is to prevent some people from being corrupt, so I can only deduct these 20 taels of silver from the government books."

Everyone was relieved when they heard this. After all, everyone didn't have much idle savings. If the fine was deducted, they might not even have enough to eat, so this punishment is fair.

"Commander, what about other supplies?" Wu Dashan continued to ask.

Yang Ling smiled and said: "The distribution of other supplies will still follow the original policy, but I am prepared to reduce the price of food by 5%."

"The commander-in-chief is kind, and I humbly thank the commander-in-chief for his kindness for the common people!" Li Dafu and Wu Dashan said in unison.

"Tomorrow, I have drawn up a draft. You guys can see if there are any changes that need to be made." Yang Ling said and handed the newly written draft to Li Dafu.

Li Dafu quickly held the draft in both hands and read it carefully.

After a while, Li Dafu raised his head and said: "The commander-in-chief's draft is very detailed and there is no need to modify it."

Yang Ling nodded and said: "Well, since there is no doubt, then you should hurry up and implement it!"

Li Dafu and Wu Dashan quickly bowed and agreed, and then couldn't wait to say goodbye and leave.

Yang Ling returned to the table and sat down, picking up the wine glass and sipping the wine. Now that the situation in the rebel army was stable, he could finally settle down and enjoy life.

At this time, Yang Ling suddenly remembered that Zhang Qing had said before that he had a way to get gunpowder, and couldn't help asking: "Zhang Qing, do you know where I can get gunpowder?"

Zhang Qing remembered that Yang Ling had said that he wanted to make firearms before, and immediately replied excitedly: "Commander, I know a few businessmen who make money from the gunpowder business. They must have gunpowder on their hands. It's just that I am worried about rashly asking them to buy it. Gunpowder is easy to detect.”

Yang Ling thought for a moment and then nodded: "Well, we shouldn't take the initiative to contact the vendors. You can find an opportunity to test their attitude. If they are willing to sell to us, we will find a way to buy it from them."

"As ordered!"

Yang Ling chatted with Zhang Qing some more and returned to the post house to rest after dinner.

The next day, Yang Ling got up and washed up. Just as he was about to go out, he saw Wang Qinian hurried over to report: "Commander, it's not good. An enemy army has broken through the city wall and entered the city!"

"What's going on?!" Yang Ling's face suddenly changed when he heard this. He remembered that he was fine last night, so how could he be attacked by thieves so quickly.

"Commander, after the city wall fell, the brothers guarding the city wall resisted desperately. As a result, they were outnumbered and defeated by the thieves. The thieves successfully captured the city wall."

"This is unreasonable! Send the order, everyone is on alert!" Yang Ling roared.

Yang Ling quickly rushed to the moat outside the city with his soldiers.

The gate tower on the northwest side of the city was already crowded with defenders. Everyone was waiting with bows and arrows in hand, and the thieves were seen swarming into the city.

"Commander, you are here!"

Seeing Yang Ling coming, Deputy Lieutenant Ma Yunlu came forward and saluted: "I have been ordered to lead my brothers to prevent the thieves from entering the city. However, the thieves are so numerous that we cannot resist them. Please rescue me, Commander-in-Chief!"

Yang Ling waved his hand and said, "Don't panic, I'll call for reinforcements right away!"

Although this county town is not big, there are more than 4,000 defenders. If the regiment training troops arrive, they can still stop the enemy from attacking the city. It's just that the husbands, old, weak, women and children in the city are hiding in their homes and have no hope at all.

Yang Ling turned around and ordered: "Pass my order. Each department is divided into ten teams. Each team is responsible for guarding the east city gate. Their task is to guard the city gate and delay time at the expense of themselves. The west city gate will be guarded by Liu Daniu and the civilians. If encounter If a strong enemy comes, take shelter and wait for reinforcements!"

Liu Daniu quickly handed over his hand and said in agreement: "I humbly obey my orders!"

Yang Ling turned around and told Ma Yunlu: "You and your women will guard the south city gate. If the bandit army dares to charge at the city gate, you must resist it."

Ma Yunlu replied with a blushing face: "I obey my orders!"

"Others, follow me and go to the north gate!" Yang Ling called on the soldiers to rush towards the north gate.

When they came to the north gate, they saw brightly lit fires on the city wall, and many defenders were carrying sandbags and rolling logs.

"Commander, the city gate has been lost, and the enemy is about to attack the city. I humbly request that five hundred warriors be mobilized to participate in the battle!" Deputy Lieutenant Han Jinlong stood up and said loudly.

Han Jinlong is in his thirties and has a strong appearance. He had defected to Yangling a few years ago and is now appointed as the guard of the North Gate. He is responsible for guarding the North Gate and dealing with the enemy troops pouring in from outside the city. .

When Yang Ling saw Han Jinlong guarding the north gate, he sighed to himself, this Han Jinlong indeed has extraordinary courage. You must know that there are more than 600 soldiers at the north gate led by Han Jinlong, including more than 200 cavalry. If the city gate is lost, the defenders in the city will basically not be able to escape destruction, because after the rebels capture the city, it is absolutely impossible The remaining troops of the defenders were left behind. (End of chapter)