Chapter 584 Before the War
Wuxi Prefecture, Xuanfeng County, and Tengcun.
Because it is adjacent to the mountainous area, Xuanfeng County was the worst hit when the Wuxi barbarians rebelled. Within just a few months, the number of Han people in the county dropped by more than 20%, and countless people were displaced.
The village of Teng suffered a devastating disaster.
On the morning of November 15th, it was almost dawn.
Walking among the ruins, smelling the faint stench of decay in the cool air, Sun Shaozong's eyes kept searching.
"grown ups."
At this time, Lu Jianxing came over from the entrance of the village with big strides and bowed to report: "The bones found in the village have been buried. There are a total of 172 bodies, including 93 adult men, 36 women, and 43 children... children."
"Judging from the various traces, a considerable number of women should have been abducted by the Tongxi barbarians."
Having said this, he stopped and waited for a moment. Seeing that Sun Shaozong had no intention of speaking, he took the initiative to ask: "Sir, do you think we should simply erect a monument first? If there are villagers coming back in the future, it would be good..."
"Don't worry yet."
Sun Shaozong shook his head slightly: "It won't be too late to erect the monument after we get out of the mountains."
According to the guide, Fujimura was originally on good terms with the barbarians in the mountains, and they even called each other brothers and uncles. But in the end, they still couldn't escape the war.
And according to Sun Shaozong's investigation just now, Fujimura not only did not escape the war, but was probably massacred by his friends in the mountains at the first moment.
Because according to the traces left at the scene, the other party was most likely the one who first shouted to open the village gate in a high-profile manner, and then raised the butcher knife to the unprepared villagers.
In this situation, it could only be that someone they were familiar with committed the murder at the beginning of the rebellion.
"grown ups."
At this time, another person rushed over, and it was Shen Lian who had been severely beaten by Sun Shaozong.
He bowed and reported: "The scouts have been deployed all around. Do you think we should camp outside the village, or..."
"Set up camp in the village, and don't light a fire. Notice everyone to assemble at 4 a.m. tomorrow and enter the mountain at 11 a.m."
"I'll arrange it right away! "
Shen Lian turned around and was about to leave, but he heard Sun Shaozong add another sentence behind him: "After explaining everything clearly, come back to the village entrance to discuss the matter."
"I obey your orders."
Shen Lian responded calmly, but his steps unconsciously quickened.
About two quarters of an hour later, Shen Lian hurried back, only to see that the camphor tree at the entrance of the village was already filled with officers above the rank of captain [eighth rank, with the Dragon Guard flag].
He stepped forward and saluted Sun Shaozong, then took a marching stool and sat next to Lu Jianxing.
Seeing that everyone was present, Sun Shaozong raised his chin, and Wang Zhen immediately took out two maps, placed one in front of Sun Shaozong, and gave the other to Lu Jianxing, Shen Lian and others to look at.
After everyone had passed the map around, Sun Shaozong said, "Our goal this time is Wuerzhai nearby. According to the guide, it's about 24-5 miles along the mountain road. If we set out early in the morning, it will take about three hours - that is, we can arrive around noon."
"The power of Wuer Village ranks third among the Tongxi barbarians, second only to Waleng Village and Duosi Village. There are about 600 adult men."
"Wu'er Village was built in the mountains. The terrain is easy to defend but difficult to attack. But because of this, the defense facilities built by the barbarians themselves are not very solid."
"There is only one mountain road leading in and out of Wuer Village , so we only need to send fifty people to set up guard posts along the road - and the remaining force we can use to attack the mountain village is 250 people."
"The overall shape of Wuerzhai is flat and round."
"At that time, I will lead the team to launch a surprise attack to open the gap. After that, Lu Jianxing and Shen Lian will lead the east and west routes to sweep the barbarians. Remember to be steady, accurate and ruthless, and don't let the other side organize an effective resistance."
"I will guard the gate of the village at that time. If there is any crisis in the east and west routes, I will go there to provide support in person."
"When there is no obvious resistance in the village, all tribes must not linger in the battle, but set fire everywhere in the village, poison the well water, and immediately withdraw from Wuerzhai."
"Then I will determine the next course of action based on the damage and the time taken for the raid."
"besides……"
"And then..."
Sun Shaozong spoke eloquently about the action to be carried out tomorrow, breaking it down into pieces. He drank two sips of water and waited for everyone to digest it before saying, "If anyone has any questions, please speak up now."
However, the people below looked at each other, and no one wanted to speak.
It seems that it is impossible to expect them to come up with some constructive suggestions.
"now that……"
Sun Shaozong sighed inwardly and was about to stand up and announce the disbandment.
"grown ups!"
Unexpectedly, Shen Lian stood up first and said with a folded hand: "There is something I don't understand."
Sun Shaozong raised his buttocks, then put them back down and said, "Speak!"
Shen Lian was not polite. He ignored Lu Jianxing's dissuading look and said loudly, "According to what I have learned, the Waleng Village is the leader of the Tongxi Barbarians. There are no less than 1,500 young and strong men in the village. There are also two villages around it. If we can't take it down in a short time, it will be easy for the barbarians to attack from both sides."
"So I understand why you didn't choose Waleng Village."
"But the Duosi Village is not only closer, but also has young and strong people like those in the Wuer Village. It is also built on a flat terrain, so it should be easier to attack than the Waleng Village."
"Why did you choose the faraway village over the nearby one, and chose the hard bone of Wuer Village instead of Duosi Village?"
Obviously, he had already privately inquired about the geography and situation of the surrounding area.
Based on this point alone, Shen Lian is much stronger than others.
However, the following statement is almost like a question.
Seeing that Wang Zhen beside Sun Shaozong had changed color, Lu Jianxing hurriedly stood up and explained in panic: "Sir, he just..."
"No problem."
Sun Shaozong waved his hand and said, "Since this is a discussion, we should speak freely."
Then, he stretched out his hand and tapped on the map, and asked, "Captain Shen, please take a look first to see if there is any conflict between the plan I just arranged and the terrain of Duosi Village."
Plans conflict with terrain?
Shen Lian was startled when he heard this. He quickly turned to another photo and looked carefully for a while. Suddenly, he said, "I understand! Duosi Village is near Tongxi River. It may not be that easy to poison the running water!"
“That’s right!”
Sun Shaozong stood up suddenly: "Our first battle is to give the barbarians a blow, and then play a deterrent and warning role. In order to maximize the effect, the best way is to destroy the foundation on which the barbarian settlements depend for survival!"
"As a result, the barbarians will naturally be forced to migrate in all directions, and in the process, spread the panic to more tribes!"
"And polluting water sources is one of the foundations for the implementation of this plan!"
