Chapter 48 Thief Soldiers

Ying Yi didn't sleep for three days in a row.

However, he was physically strong and energetic, so it was nothing serious.

But as subordinates, Zhou Li and others had no reason to watch.

So starting from the fourth day, Ying Yi was still responsible for collecting food at night, but after delivering it to Xiaowangzhuang and then to Bibo Valley, Zhou Li and others took turns.

Time passes day by day, and Ying Yi is also counting the days. Eight or nine days have passed since the retreat from Ye County began. He didn't know what was going on with Yuan Tong. With two million taels of silver, I am not afraid that the intruder will not be tempted, but I am afraid that time is still urgent.

This is true for the intruder, and it is also true for Ying Yi himself.

The bandits are a bloated and huge thing, with hundreds of thousands and millions of them in Kaifeng. With the intruder's little ability, one can imagine the chaos. The more so, the more unpredictable the intruder's reaction will be. It might be possible to send a troop of troops immediately to seize military pay, but it might also be difficult to do so.

However, Ying Yi tended to the former guess.

On Ying Yi's side, three thousand soldiers and horses had just been recruited, and the training for a few days was still too shallow. If you want to go to the battlefield, you still can’t take action.

There was always a sense of urgency in his heart.

That night, Ying Yi led the team to continue to pick up supplies in Ye County. On the way there, he received a report from Zhang Shi, saying that a troop of troops was stationed near Ye County!

Ying Yi perked up and asked Zhang Shi: "Where exactly are they? How many people are there?"

"We camped near the woods not far from the south of the county seat. I don't know exactly how many people there are, but my subordinates judged from the traces on the road that it should be more than 10,000 people." Zhang Shi said solemnly.

"More than ten thousand people..."

Ying Yi took a deep breath: "It's a bandit from Kaifeng!"

Zhang Shi said: "My lord is wise. That army does not look like an official army. The traces on the road point directly to the north."

"Very good." Ying Yi nodded: "It seems that the food transportation cannot be done tonight. Allocate half of the manpower and I will take the escort carriage back to Xiaowangzhuang. I will leave half for you. Remember, keep a close eye on this place. I want to know where they are at any time about the movements of the tributary soldiers and horses."

"yes!"

On the way back, Ying Yi's thoughts were spinning. While he breathed a sigh of relief, he was also eager to try, but he also felt a headache.

He breathed a sigh of relief because Yuan Tong got the job done. He was eager to give it a try because Ying Yi couldn't wait to crush the stray thief. As for the headache, it was because the three thousand soldiers and horses under his command were all rookies and had not yet been trained to the full potential.

Back at Xiaowangzhuang, Zhou Li and others were called by Ying Yi. When they saw Ying Yi returning at this time, they knew something must have happened.

Sure enough, I heard Ying Yi say: "We didn't receive any detective reports at night, and there was a group of bandits stationed in the south of the county, more than ten thousand people. The matter of collecting food can only be temporarily suspended."

Night without harvest is another name for scout.

"I asked Zhang Shi to monitor at all times, and we must be prepared here to avoid all possible accidents." Ying Yi warned: "Once Xiaowangzhuang is discovered by the bandits, they will escape into the mountains and are not allowed to meet the bandits. Now. We have no weapons or armor, so we cannot fight."

Zhou Li and Zhu Bingkun couldn't help but nodded in agreement.

Ying Yi said: "I will go back to the mountain later to see the specific situation in the mountain. You two should keep an eye on it, don't be careless."

He added: "Zhang Shi will come to report at any time. If there is anything important, he will send people into the mountain to find me."

"Yes! Sir."

Ying Yi immediately entered the mountain and headed for Bibo Valley.

It was midnight, and there was silence in the Bibo Valley. I haven't seen you for a few days, and the appearance of this place has changed drastically. Under the dim moonlight, the prototypes of several workshops have been pulled up in the valley. Bibo Valley was temporarily built as an industrial base by Ying Yi. The importance of this place is self-evident. But now there is no protection in this place.

There is nothing we can do about it.

Ying Yi had already made a plan. He planned to send a hundred households to guard this place when the training of soldiers and horses reached a certain level.

There is a sequence for the construction of Bibo Valley. Build the workshop first, then the residential area. Because the current demand for workshops is even more urgent. So we still live in the simple wooden shacks we originally had. But Erniu and others still lived in the cave.

Ying Yi went directly to the cave where Er Niu lived without alerting anyone.

Wake him up.

Er Niu was shocked, but he was relieved when he saw it was Ying Yi.

Ying Yi didn't bother with him and immediately asked about the situation in Bibo Valley.

Because of military supply issues, the construction of Jinzihao Workshop and Huozihao Workshop was given priority. According to estimates, it will take up to seven or eight days before these two workshops can be initially put into use. The preparation of a minimum of 3,000 gun heads will take about ten days. In other words, it will take seventeen or eight days to get the gun tip.

As for the finished long gun, it will probably take a few more days.

This is closely related to Ying Yi's plan.

Bibo Valley is now on the right track. On the third day after Ying Yi came out of the mountain, Xiucai sent three officials to take charge of recording the various expenditures in Bibo Valley. Then one after another, within two or three days, the family members of the craftsmen were also moved here.

The fourth sister-in-law also took on the logistics responsibility. She recruited ten healthy women from the craftsmen's families to be responsible for the daily life and diet of the craftsmen.

Ying Yi was very satisfied with this and asked Er Niu: "What about opening the way?"

Erniu said: "We haven't started yet. The scholar said that everyone is here, but there are no tools. We have to wait for the workshop to produce tools."

Ying Yi knew it well, so he left Erniu and went to see the woman named Yuan who was imprisoned in a cave. Seeing that she was eating well and sleeping well, he left Bibo Valley with confidence and headed for Crescent Valley.

When the scholar was sleeping soundly, he was woken up by Ying Yi and was startled.

Then Ying Yi talked about the arrival of bandits from Kaifeng in Ye County, and the scholar suddenly woke up from his drowsiness.

"The thieves from Kaifeng... It seems that this area in Ye County is even more chaotic." The scholar's eyes flashed: "This muddy water is your best opportunity. You can hit it with a precise blow, and with your strength With courage, you will surely win a great victory.”

Ying Yi shook his head: "It's not that easy. The three thousand soldiers and horses have just started training. If they are not ready, they will not be able to go to the battlefield. Otherwise, they will die. Besides, they have no weapons and armor, and there is no way to fight. I just hope they can fight for a while. It will take longer, if you give me an extra month, I will be much more sure."

The scholar laughed: "Historically, wars cannot be concluded in three or two days. Don't worry, sir. Before the war, there are still temptations on both sides."

Ying Yi nodded slightly: "I think so too, but the battlefield is changing rapidly and no one can predict it. You must speed up and prepare the gun barrels as soon as possible. Once the gun heads come out, you can give me the finished product in three or two days. .”

"Don't worry, sir." The scholar said confidently: "A lot of suitable gun barrels have been prepared in just the past few days. Once the gun head comes out, it will be completed soon."

He said: "Because the Lord is generous and can be paid, the people are very enthusiastic. With the guidance of the craftsmen, the selection and preparation went smoothly."

As he spoke, he seemed to have remembered something, and suddenly said: "By the way, sir, there is one thing. If you don't come today, my subordinates will also go to Xiaowangzhuang tomorrow."

"Oh?" Ying Yi said, "What's the matter?"