Chapter 9: The Bandits Assault the City

Soon, three carts of lime have been prepared in the form of spheres at the city wall

Child, let us escape quickly

Qin Changfeng's eyes were bloodshot: "Young Master, you must not! This matter arose because of me, Changfeng, and you must not risk your life for it. If you have any grievances, come at me instead!"

He is anxiously pacing back and forth

At this moment, the bandits once again shouted, demanding the surrender of the thief Qin Changfeng, threatening that if their demands were not met, they would personally enter the city to capture this thief. Their arrogant threats provoked anger in everyone present

Arrest them!

In Yangzhou, a barren land in the northwest, rain is a rare occurrence. Along the way, the local people use various pots, bowls, and containers to collect rainwater. However, today's rain is not a blessing for the city of Yangzhou

Outrageous

Liu Dahao was frightened: "Why is Lord Lu like this?"

Liu Zheng coldly laughed and said: "Could it be that I, Liu Zheng, would bring great disgrace to literature? It is known that most of the poems circulated recently are from my hand. Although I may be a dandy, what crime is there in that?"

Qin Changfeng shouted angrily and was about to take action

Just wait and see

The bandit finally shouted loudly, dividing his men into two groups: one group would take the main entrance, while the other would take the west entrance. Each man rode a horse, charging forward with great momentum

Liu Zheng shook his head with a smile: "As for Lord Lu, his inconsistency is truly not the demeanor of a gentleman"

At this moment, the crowd surged, and the saliva flowed incessantly

Everyone immediately burst into laughter

Therefore, there is no need to say anything

At that moment, several carts were pushed over, covered with oilcloth, resembling chunks of stone

The sound of weapons clashing came from outside, accompanied by shouts and the neighing of horses, creating a scene of chaos

Ah!

Continue

My son

Everyone was taken aback.

Qin Changfeng unexpectedly glanced at Liu Zheng

What if you win

Lu Zhengyi stood on the city wall and looked out, unable to help but frown and say: "The bandits are growing in number day by day. In just two days, they have already gathered a multitude of four thousand. What are we to do about this?"

Liu Zheng furrowed his brows

What treasures can this worthless stone yield

The Prefect of Liangzhou

These Liu family father and son, are they really of such caliber

He has just narrowly escaped from the gates of hell. Lu Zhengyi is indecisive and fickle, and is not someone suitable for collaboration.

Are you not spies sent by the horse bandits

Liu Zheng's mouth twitched slightly; this Qin Changfeng seemed to be quite an intelligent person, yet this guess truly made him want to laugh. Of course, he couldn't be blamed for it; people in ancient times had no understanding of such matters

What is this? I can't see it clearly

Such an offensive, for a small city like Yangzhou, is likely unable to withstand even a few charges

The advisors were all anxious, resorting to various insults and mockery

Since the young master of the Liu family has not yet devised a method for defending the city, he shall be executed on the spot

The envoy chuckled softly, recounting the messages that had come from Liangzhou as if they were treasured family heirlooms, clearly regarding the Liu father and son as a fallen noble family, intent on exploiting the local scoundrels and rogues for their own gain

At this moment, the city of Yangzhou is bustling with people.

Liu Dafu saw Liu Zheng instruct the fifty strong men sent by Lu Zhengyi to bring over a large pile of blue stones. Then they began to fire the kiln. He found this somewhat incomprehensible.

Qin Changfeng sat in a corner, his gaze subtly shifting as he observed everything, lost in thought.

Liu Zheng looked at the unpredictable Lu Zhengyi and suddenly said with a smile: "Do you not believe me, my lord? Well, how about we have a wager to see if you have the heart for it?"

This ... ...

Liu Zheng, however, laughed heartily and said openly: "My father donated money to obtain an official position, which is recognized by the Longyan Dynasty. Which rule have I violated?"

At this moment, those advisors also arrived, collectively pointing fingers at Liu Dahao and Liu Zheng, vehemently denouncing them for various offenses, mostly labeling them as debauched scions and prodigal sons, involved in buying official positions with money. Liu Dahao was seething with anger, yet he did not dare to retort.

Here they come, everyone make way

On this side of the city wall, there is already a profound silence

Lu Zhengyi waved his hand to stop those soldiers and looked at Liu Zheng, asking: "What is the method of betting?"

Surrender quickly!

What is this, adult?

Who is coming?

Lu Zhengyi looked at the envoy and asked, "Is this indeed the case?"

Liu Zheng quickly grabbed him and asked with a smile, "What does Lord Lu mean by this?"

ten thousand taels

Sir, it turns out this fellow is a donor official

This ... ...

Liu Dafu said a word, and Liu Zheng turned around and kicked him.

The lime ball, wrapped in oilcloth, was propelled outward by the force of the catapult

I hereby establish a military order!

This letter implies that it is strong enough, and it seems that the Liu father and son have offended the governor. It directly tells him to "act as he sees fit"! In other words, even if he kills the father and son, the governor Chen Ping will cover for him

This remark once again caused others to burst into laughter

Originally, others did not take it seriously

Sir, the enemy's momentum is unstoppable

Here, Liu Dahao and Qin Changfeng wanted to say something, but were stopped by Liu Zheng shaking his head

You you you ... ...

Lu Zhengyi calculated carefully

Liu Zheng cupped his fists and said in the rain: "Lord Lu, you may instruct the soldiers to use the trebuchet to launch the five zhang one chariot, but it is essential to wrap their hands and feet in sheepskin, as this object is highly lethal"

Lu Zhengyi snorted: "Do you dare to deceive me, you little wretches? Capture them all!"

The councilors exchanged glances, their sorrow unspoken

The night deepens

Young Master Liu, what is this thing

I, the entire Yangzhou, cannot rely on that young child. My lord, we must capture that Qin Changfeng and hand him over to the bandits in order to ensure the safety of Yangzhou

The envoy wore a smile that was full of meaning

Everyone was left speechless.

Because once it rains, the books lose their deterrent power like oil-splashed rockets, and the combat effectiveness of the bandits actually increases.

At that moment, suddenly a horse and a rider came galloping towards us

Everyone respectfully welcomed.

The rain has finally arrived

Sir, I have also heard that this young man is notoriously known as a prodigal son, having squandered the entire fortune of Liu Dafu's family. It is only after this that he purchased a county marquis title, intending to take up his post. How pitiful that Yinzhu is already impoverished, alas...

These garrison soldiers receive a monthly salary of only 10 coins, which amounts to half a tael of silver

At dawn, it is the second quarter of the hour of the rabbit

In three days, Liu Zheng was firing the kiln while observing the weather. Heavy rain was imminent; this was unavoidable. It all depended on whether his lime could be successfully fired.

Once everyone had left, Liu Zheng finally took a deep breath

Lu Zhengyi mobilized the entire city’s military and civilians to prepare for the defense of the city, with various rolling stones, cauldrons of oil, and arrows being sent in continuously

Four thousand bandits, as if arriving in a white hell

Lu Zhengyi angrily exclaimed: "As a dignified county marquis of the Longyan Dynasty, how can I, in such a vast Yangzhou, continue to engage in empty negotiations with those bandits? Where is the authority of the government? There is no need to discuss this matter further! As for that County Marquis Liu, he is also a colleague; to go back on his word is not the conduct of a true man like myself"

Child, what are you trying to do? Your father cannot understand it

At that time, if I am still unable to present some achievements, it would be a minor embarrassment, but Qin Changfeng's life may very well be at stake

Could this be your method of repelling the enemy

Time passes gradually

It is a great embarrassment! We have already prepared enough rolling stones!

Kill

In these chaotic times, a sum of ten thousand taels of silver is not a trivial amount

Lu Zhengyi ultimately could not resist the temptation of so much silver

What?

Liu Zheng shouted angrily, and before long, Lu Zhengyi arrived with a group of soldiers, exuding a fierce killing intent. Seeing that the visitor bore ill intentions, Qin Changfeng picked up a long knife and stood in front of Liu Zheng, ready to defend him.

Lu Zhengyi was trembling with anger

Liu Zheng smiled mysteriously, offering no further explanation

... ...

The process of firing lime is, in fact, not difficult. It falls within the category of knowing the difficulty but finding it easy to execute. Ancient people naturally did not understand this. However, with a little guidance, the firing process becomes straightforward.

Liu Zheng laughed heartily, casually taking out a banknote worth ten thousand taels of silver from the package, and with a bang, slapped it down on the nearby table and chair, declaring proudly: "If I lose, I will donate ten thousand taels of silver for the construction of Yangzhou"

At night

Adults must exercise caution! My eight hundred guards are no match for the horse bandits

When those lime balls fell to the ground with a bang, or disintegrated into lime powder in the air and fell into the water, the entire area outside the city was instantly enveloped in a thick white mist, and the temperature rose sharply. The lime, falling into the eyes of the bandits and onto their bodies, combined with the pouring rain, transformed this ordinary white stone into a deadly killer

Fifty individuals, under Liu Zheng's guidance, quickly got to work. However, due to time constraints, Liu Zheng employed the countercurrent calcination process. This method of calcination produces ash more rapidly, making it easy to encounter issues of over-burning and under-burning. Therefore, precise control over the firing conditions is essential.

Although the crowd does not know what this is, upon hearing of the success, they all celebrate with joy. However, time does not permit them to rest; to achieve success in this lime project, at least three furnaces must be successfully completed!

Lu Zhengyi could no longer wait and shouted angrily

They all began to mock, finding the matter utterly absurd

Just as the bandits were fifty zhang away from the city, Liu Zheng shouted.

Lu Zhengyi's expression also darkened.

Lu Zhengyi was instantly rendered speechless

Lu Zhengyi pondered for a moment and said, "If you cannot repel the enemy, do not blame me for handing over Qin Changfeng"

Liu Zheng coldly laughed and said: "If I win, I hope to hire fifty soldiers for two hundred taels of silver to escort us to Yinzhu, and provide protection for a month!"

Lu Zhengyi hetushucom .com also felt a twitch in his eyelid

Shut up!

Good

Although Lu Zhengyi did not believe it, he still gave the order for the sake of ten thousand taels of silver

Young Master

Laughter erupted from the crowd

With a single sweep of the long knife, chaos ensued throughout the venue

Several advisors around me are in a state of utter panic

If we cannot successfully repel the enemy tomorrow, my father and I will face execution on the spot

How can this be reasonable, how can this be reasonable

At this moment, Liu Zheng was staring intently at his kiln of lime, his eyes bloodshot. Over the past two days, he had attempted dozens of times. Unfortunately, each attempt ended in failure, leading him to feel that returning to this time and wanting to rely on modern technology for a comeback was not as simple as he had thought. As dawn approached, the weather grew increasingly humid, and it seemed likely that a heavy rain would pour down early in the morning

It hurts!

On the second day at midnight, the furnace was finally successful!

He spoke and then led a hundred soldiers, riding swiftly towards the stone quarry

He let out a fierce shout

The messenger glanced at Lu Zhengyi and smiled slightly: "Is this a private letter from the governor, my lord?"

Qin Changfeng, unable to contain himself, remarked: "Young Master, the words of Rolling Stone will surely be prepared for in Yangzhou... Do you intend to use heated stones to attack the bandits? That would indeed be a good method!"

Outside the city, the bandits have already begun to boast, with people shouting and horses neighing, displaying extreme arrogance

In this calculation, it can be said that there is no loss at all

The first two furnaces all failed

This is to inform that the Liu family, specifically the father and son, are about to assume their positions as the candidates for the county of Yinzhu. Liu Dazhao has donated silver to obtain his official post, but he is feared to be inept in governance. His son is a debauched young man, indulging in pleasures and leading the family to financial ruin, resulting in a disgraceful display at poetry gatherings. We kindly request County Magistrate Lu to observe their character, correct their behavior, and if absolutely necessary, to take appropriate measures. County Magistrate Lu, do you understand

Lu Zhengyi did not dare to be negligent: "I kindly request the envoy to read it aloud!"

Lu Zhengyi's expression darkened, and he angrily said: "Follow me to capture these two father and son; this fellow almost ruined my important matter!"

Throwing stones

How dare you insult the esteemed one