Chapter 9: Bandits Attack the City
"Son, what are you doing? How come your father can't understand?"
When Liu Dafu saw Liu Zheng order the fifty-year-old man sent by Lu Zhengyi to fetch a large pile of bluestone and then start firing it in the kiln, he was a little confused.
What kind of treasure can be burned out of this broken stone?
Qin Changfeng couldn't help but say, "Sir, if it's about rolling stones, Yangzhou will definitely be prepared... Could it be that you want to use hot stones to attack the bandits? That's a good idea!"
Liu Zheng's mouth twitched. Qin Changfeng looked quite smart, but this guess really made him laugh. Of course, it was not his fault. How could people in ancient times understand this?
"Just wait and see!"
Liu Zheng smiled mysteriously without further explanation.
Lime burning is not difficult. It is difficult to know but easy to do. People in ancient times naturally did not understand it. But with a little guidance, burning becomes easy.
Fifty people quickly started to work according to Liu Zheng's instructions. However, due to time constraints, Liu Zheng used the countercurrent calcination process. This calcination method produces ash faster and is prone to over-burning and under-burning, so the control of the temperature must be very precise.
So, needless to say.
The first two batches all failed.
"Son, let's run away!"
After Liu Dafu said something, Liu Zheng turned around and kicked him.
"continue!"
Time passes by little by little.
There are still three days left, and Liu Zheng is observing the weather while firing. Heavy rain is coming, which is inevitable. It all depends on whether his lime can be fired successfully!
at night.
Qin Changfeng sat in a corner, watching all this with slightly moving eyes, not knowing what he was thinking.
…
At this time, the city walls of Yangzhou were crowded with people.
Lu Zhengyi mobilized all the soldiers and civilians in the city to prepare to defend the city. All kinds of rolling stones, oil pots, and arrows were sent continuously.
The night deepens.
Standing on the top of the city wall, Lu Zhengyi could not help but frown and said, "These horse bandits are getting bigger and bigger. In just two days, they have gathered 4,000 people. What should we do?"
"Sir, you must be cautious! How can my eight hundred soldiers be a match for the horse bandits?"
"How can my entire Yangzhou depend on that little boy? Sir, we must arrest Qin Changfeng and hand him over to the bandits in order to keep Yangzhou safe!"
Several counselors around him were extremely anxious.
"shut up!"
Lu Zhengyi angrily shouted, "I am the county marquis of the Longyan Dynasty. How can I, as a governor of such a large state as Yangzhou, always be in collusion with the bandits? Where is the prestige of the government? There is no need to talk about this matter any more! Besides, the county marquis Liu is also a colleague. How can I go back on my word? How can I be a man?"
The councillors looked at each other in dismay, unable to speak a word of grief.
At this moment, a man and a horse suddenly came galloping.
"Liangzhou Prefecture Order!"
Everyone greeted him respectfully.
The messenger glanced at Lu Zhengyi and smiled slightly: "Is it a personal letter from the governor, sir?"
Lu Zhengyi did not dare to neglect: "Please ask the special envoy to read it out!"
"Here is a father and son of the Liu family, who are about to take office as Marquis of Yinzhou County. Liu Dahao donated money to get the position, but I am afraid he is not good at governing. His son is a playboy, who indulges in sensual pleasures and women, causing the family to fall into ruin. The poetry meeting is a great disgrace to civility. Please help Marquis Lu to observe their character and correct their behavior. If you have no choice, you can act according to your own will! Marquis Lu, do you understand?"
The envoy smiled meaningfully.
Everyone was stunned.
Lu Zhengyi's face also turned dark.
Are the Liu family father and son actually this kind of people?
The hint in this letter was strong enough. It seemed that the Liu family father and son had offended the governor, and they told him to "do as he pleased"! In other words, even if he killed the father and son, the governor Chen Ping would cover it for him!
Everyone burst into laughter.
"Sir, this fellow turned out to be a donor to get his position!"
"Sir, I also heard that this boy is a well-known playboy who squandered all the money of Liu Dafu's family. He bought a county marquisate and planned to take office. It's a pity that Yinzhou is so poor. Alas..."
Lu Zhengyi looked at the special envoy and asked, "Is this true?"
The special envoy chuckled and counted the news coming from Liangzhou in detail, as if he knew them all by heart. He seemed to regard the father and son of the Liu family as bastards from a wealthy family that had fallen on hard times and wanted to become officials and bully the people in the countryside.
"How can this be possible? How can this be possible!"
Lu Zhengyi's face darkened, and he said angrily: "Follow me to catch these two father and son. This guy almost ruined my plan!"
As he said this, he took a hundred soldiers and rode towards the quarry on horseback.
At this time, Liu Zheng was staring at his kiln of lime with red eyes. He had tried dozens of times in the past two days. However, he failed every time. This made him feel that it was not so easy to rely on modern technology to make a comeback after traveling back in time. The sky was getting brighter and the weather was getting more and more humid. He was afraid that it would rain heavily in the morning.
If he still couldn't produce some results by then, it would be embarrassing, but Qin Changfeng might lose his life.
He was in a panic.
There was the sound of weapons knocking against each other outside the door, people shouting and horses neighing, and there was chaos everywhere.
"Who is coming?"
Liu Zheng shouted angrily, and saw Lu Zhengyi leading a group of soldiers, full of murderous intent. Qin Changfeng saw that the newcomers were not friendly, so he picked up a long knife to protect Liu Zheng .
"What is this, sir?"
Liu Zheng frowned.
Lu Zhengyi snorted, "You dare to bully me? Catch them all!"
Liu Dahao was terrified: "Why is this happening, Lord Lu?"
Qin Changfeng shouted angrily and was about to take action.
Liu Zheng quickly pulled him back and asked with a smile, "What does Lord Lu mean?"
At this time, the councilors also arrived and pointed at Liu Dahao and Liu Zheng angrily, accusing them of various crimes, mostly being playboys, prodigals, and buying official positions with money. Liu Dahao was furious, but did not dare to refute.
Qin Changfeng looked at Liu Zheng in surprise.
Liu Zheng laughed loudly and said frankly: "My father used money to buy an official position, which is recognized by the Longyan Dynasty. Which commandment did he violate?"
"this……"
Lu Zhengyi was suddenly speechless.
Liu Zheng sneered, "Is my poetry a disgrace to the culture? You know, most of the poems that have been spread recently were written by me. Although I am a playboy, what crime have I committed?"
"you you you……"
Lu Zhengyi was so angry that he was shaking all over.
Liu Zheng smiled and shook his head: "It is Lord Lu who goes back on his words. This is really not the style of a gentleman!"
"presumptuous!"
"How dare you insult my Lord?"
"Quickly surrender!"
"Are you spies sent by the bandits?"
The counselors were all anxious and started to curse and ridicule.
Liu Zheng looked at the uncertain Lu Zhengyi and suddenly laughed, "You don't believe me? Well, how about you bet with me if you have any ideas?"
"I will issue a military order!"
"If we fail to successfully repel the enemy tomorrow, my father and I will be executed on the spot!"
Everyone was shocked when they heard it.
Qin Changfeng's eyes were red: "Master, you must not do this! This matter was caused by me, Changfeng, you must not sacrifice your life. If you have any problems, come to me!"
He shouted loudly.
With a wave of the long sword, the whole place was in chaos.
Lu Zhengyi waved his hand to stop the soldiers, looked at Liu Zheng and asked, "How do we bet?"
Liu Zheng laughed loudly, casually took out the ten thousand taels of silver from the package, slammed it on the table and chair next to him, and said proudly: "If I lose, I will donate ten thousand taels of silver to build Yangzhou!"
"What?"
"Ten thousand taels?"
"this……"
At this moment, the crowd was in an uproar and drooling.
Lu Zhengyi's eyelids also twitched.
In such troubled times, ten thousand taels of silver is not a small sum.
"What if you win?"
Lu Zhengyi finally couldn't resist the temptation of so much silver.
Liu Zheng sneered and said, "If I win, I hope I can use two hundred taels of silver to hire fifty soldiers from you to send us to Yinzhou and protect me for a month! "
Lu Zhengyi made some calculations.
The monthly salary of these soldiers was only ten cents, which was half a tael of silver.
By this calculation, it’s not a loss at all.
"good!"
Lu Zhengyi thought for a moment and said, "If you can't repel the enemy, don't blame me for handing Qin Changfeng over!"
Only after everyone left did Liu Zheng breathe a sigh of relief.
He knew that he had just walked through the gates of hell. This Lu Zhengyi was indecisive and erratic, and was not someone he could work with.
"My son..."
"Young Master!"
Liu Dahao and Qin Changfeng wanted to say something, but Liu Zheng stopped them by shaking his head.
At midnight on the second day, I finally succeeded in making one furnace!
Although everyone didn't know what it was, they were celebrating when they heard that they had succeeded. But time didn't allow them to rest. If they wanted to succeed in this lime production, they needed to succeed for at least three furnaces!
It was 2:15 am, when the sky was just beginning to brighten.
The rain finally came.
In the barren northwest of Yangzhou, rain is a rare thing. Along the way, the common people use all kinds of pots, pans, and bowls to collect rainwater. But today's rain is not a blessing for Yangzhou City.
Because once it rains, the oil-spraying rockets will lose their deterrent effect, and the horse bandits' fighting power will become even stronger.
"My lord, the enemy is unstoppable!"
"The young master of the Liu family has not figured out a way to defend the city yet, so he should be executed on the spot!"
Outside the city, the horse bandits had already started clamoring, with people shouting and horses neighing, and they were extremely arrogant.
"Catch them for me!"
Lu Zhengyi couldn't wait any longer and shouted angrily.
"Come on, come on, everyone make way!"
Just then, several carts were pushed over, covered with tarpaulin, which looked like pieces of stone.
Everyone laughed.
"Master Liu, what is this?"
"Is this your way of repelling the enemy?"
"It's a laughing stock! We have prepared enough for the Rolling Stones!"
They all laughed at it, thinking it was ridiculous.
Liu Zheng clasped his fists in the rain and said, "Lord Lu, you can tell the soldiers to use a catapult to throw out a 50-meter-long cart, but be sure to wrap their hands and feet with sheepskin, because this thing is very lethal!"
This made the others burst into laughter again.
Although Lu Zhengyi didn't believe it, he gave the order anyway for the sake of ten thousand taels of silver.
Soon, three carts of lime balls were ready on the top of the city wall.
At this time, the horse bandits shouted again, asking them to hand over the thief Qin Changfeng, otherwise they would go into the city to capture him themselves. Their arrogant threats made everyone angry.
"kill!"
The bandits finally shouted loudly and split into two groups, one to attack the main gate and the other to attack the west gate. One man and one horse, they came in full force.
With such an offensive, even a small city like Yangzhou would not be able to withstand a few charges.
"catapult!"
Just when the bandits were fifty feet away from the city, Liu Zheng shouted.
The lime ball wrapped in oilcloth flew out under the force of the catapult.
No one else took it seriously.
However, when those lime balls fell to the ground with a thud, or directly scattered into lime powder in the air and fell into the water, the entire outside of the city was immediately filled with white steam and the temperature rose sharply. The lime fell on the eyes and bodies of the bandits, and with the heavy rain, this ordinary white stone immediately turned into a deadly killer!
"ah!"
"it hurts!"
"What is this? Why can't I see clearly?"
The four thousand horse bandits seemed to have arrived at a white hell.
There was dead silence on this side of the city.
