The city walls were closed, the moats were successfully diverted, but the soldiers were far from being done to build the city, and the next step was to build battlements, erect arrow towers, build barracks, deploy crossbow machines, and prepare to roll wood and stones...... It will take at least half a month to build the most basic defense facilities, and to build a complete fortification and completely turn Tucheng into a military fortress, it will not be difficult to achieve it in three months, Hu Li has already dispelled the idea, so he ordered each battalion to take turns to rest and recuperate, so that the trainees can breathe a sigh and recover their strength. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

"Good things, but unfortunately there are too few, if we don't build a few feet thick outside the wall, there is a fortified fortress, what are we afraid of. ”

The stone strips are built to open the door, and the blue bricks are built into the city tower, and Wei Qiang sighs again when he touches the smooth wall. Receiving the samples and the recipe for the mixture, the old man led a few craftsmen into the workshop, and after a few days came out, the recipe became more perfect, and the walls were stronger.

"Who says it's not, it's much stronger than the rice soup pot, and it's also trouble-free, and if it is to be passed out, the empire is afraid that it will go crazy. ”

Wei Qiang waved the cigarette pouch and scolded with a smile: "Don't dream, don't think crookedly, how shrewd Miss Yan is, everyone knows that the method of firing will not be easily leaked." ”

"Lord Overseer, the castle tower and battlements are about to be completed, and the remaining living soldiers are capable, should you beg the county lord to let us go back?" ”

Seeing that there were no idlers around, an old craftsman had the courage to intercede, and seeing that the war was about to start, the craftsmen really did not want to stay in Tucheng any longer.

"Don't worry, the county lord has already spoken, and after the completion of the work, he will go back with the Chamber of Commerce escort, and he will not break his promise. ”

"And when are we leaving?"

Wei Qiang inserted the cigarette pouch pot into his belt, and his old face was full of pride: "It's you who go, hehe, from the moment I accepted the appointment of the county lord and Miss Yan, I didn't plan to leave." ”

"With the war, the building will inevitably be damaged, we are gone, who will help the children to build?" Since entering the grassland, the young cadets are mostly called elders, and the two sides get along like family, and some craftsmen can't bear to leave at this time, but some people don't think so: "Staying? Wartime construction is tantamount to death, and fighting is not our business." ”

The craftsman argued in a low voice, Wei Qiang did not say anything to interfere, the risk of staying is indeed a bit big, whether he can hold the earth city, it depends on how many people Sunset and Cuihua will send to attack the city, most of the craftsmen have sons and daughters, there is no reason to stay and die.

"Lord Inspector, the commander of the legion ordered: The craftsman team should pack up and return to Jicuiguan with the escort team tomorrow. ”

The sound of the guards' report interrupted the quarrel of the craftsmen, the wages were settled on a monthly basis and were never in arrears, there were not many handover affairs with the students, half a day was enough time to take care of the luggage, and the thought of leaving the dangerous city tomorrow showed a smile on most of the faces, but some people were determined to stay.

"Those who are willing to stay, let them entrust their wages and their bounties to the brothers they know to bring back." Those who leave, there is no need to be embarrassed, it is only natural to collect money and work and go home. ”

Before Wei Qiang finished speaking, cheers sounded outside the city tower, and the craftsmen were busy looking out of the window, and the horse team on the grassland that could not be forgotten at a glance, like a black long dragon, was approaching Tucheng, and the cavalry patrol of the Second Army was the first to lead the way.

"Three cavalry battalions of the 1st Regiment are back. ”

The main forces of the two legions were assembled, the defensive forces of Tucheng were strengthened, and there was more confidence of victory, and there was jubilation everywhere in the city, but the atmosphere of the county lord's tent was heavy and a little depressing, and the captains of each battalion were sitting in a precarious position, and there was not the slightest smile on their faces.

"Desert assault, the student soldiers were reduced to nearly four standard teams, intercepted the witch soldiers, and the dead and wounded exceeded three standard teams, three full battalions when they left, and less than 6,000 student soldiers came back without injuries, and the commander had no way to ask the county lord to punish heavily. ”

Hua Zifei took off his iron helmet and half-knelt on the ground, Mei Ying had the heart to support, stretched out his hand and could not hide his anger, his arms froze in the air for a while, and the main force of the first army was reduced by nearly half, no matter how many enemies were killed and wounded, it was not good news for the next to hold the city.

"When a corps of cavalry returns to the city, the defense area must be redivided, and both cities must be defended by soldiers, please make a decision as soon as possible. ”

More than 5,000 people were killed and wounded, and Hu Liwan wanted to ask about the detailed battle situation, but he was afraid that there were other hidden secrets that would be inconvenient to make public, so he had to remind Mei Ying.

"You should return to your seat, and after the military affairs team has reviewed the detailed battle report and reached a conclusion, you will reward and punish the crime. Mei Ying endured her sadness and sat back in her handsome position, the tears flashing in her eyes made the generals and colonels in the seat feel sad, she was silent for a while before she regained her composure, and asked Hua Zifei: "How many students died in battle, how many were seriously injured?"

"Three thousand five hundred and seventy-one people were killed and three hundred and twenty-four seriously wounded. ”

The captains who stayed to build the city all stared at Hua Zifei, it is said that the wounded are far more than the number of people killed in battle, how can a cavalry battalion of a regiment be killed in battle to reach a full battalion, but the seriously wounded are only half of the standard team of about 300 people, completely contrary to the familiar rules of battle, I have never heard of similar examples.

"The seriously wounded either died with the enemy, or they did not want to drag their brothers down and chose to commit suicide, only those who were wounded and fell into a coma survived, and the lightly wounded never left the battle, and the minor wounded became seriously wounded until most of them died in battle, because the number of dead in battle was far greater than that of the wounded. ”

The lieutenants who stayed behind all lowered their heads, and even Hu Li's face changed, the cavalry battalion of the first corps was definitely elite, compared with the second corps that still complained about the construction of the city, there is no need to judge who is strong and who is weak in combat effectiveness, and what is even more unbelievable is that Hua Zifei only took less than three months to train the cavalry of the third battalion, which had no obvious advantage, into an elite general who is not afraid of death.

"How's the enemy?"

Mei Ying wanted to know what kind of battle the First Army encountered, but she was worried that Hua Zifei's command was really wrong, so she asked about the enemy's situation politely, Hua Zifei signaled Fang Zhenhai to introduce, and as soon as he stood up, Hu Li's hand was already slammed on the table.

"The county lord asks, which round will you answer!"

Hua Zifei reported to the Chinese army for the reason that the three lieutenants were all left in the Chinese army because of the dispersion of the soldiers, Mei Ying's face was obviously gloomy, and her eyes swept back and forth from the three of them, and finally stayed on Fang Zhenhai's face.

"Then you say, it's simpler. ”

Mei Ying's cold tone undisguised her dissatisfaction and anger, cold sweat oozed from Fang Zhenhai's forehead, and he didn't know where he angered the county lord, how dare the military intelligence report talk nonsense.

"The mercenaries marched in three ways, the middle road is the main force, the original strength is 23,000 people, after the repeated assaults of the soldiers, the existing strength is about 10,000, the north and south roads each have 15,000 people, and the total strength of the three roads is between 40,000 and 50,000, staying at the edge of the grassland to rest, should be waiting for replenishment of supplies and troops, and it is expected that the attack will not be launched within half a month. ”

Fang Zhenhai paused slightly, took a breath and then reported, Hu Li and the captains' expressions changed, Hua Zifei regarded the suppression of bandits as training, and there would inevitably be casualties among the students, and 18,000 mercenaries were killed and wounded, and the losses of the cavalry battalion were completely acceptable.

"30,000 Wu soldiers tried to raid the Second Army Corps, and Hua Yue Biao unexpectedly encountered, after the three battles, Yue Biao lost more than half of his troops, and the Wu soldiers were killed and wounded no less than 2,000 people, and the military flag was also taken by Hua Yue. After entering the grassland, we have been blocked and harassed one after another, with more than 9,000 casualties in more than 10 battles, and have now retreated to the edge of the forest, and should be waiting for reinforcements, and will never arrive within half a month. ”

After Fang Zhenhai's report was completed, the captains were all excited, and in addition to the training of the soldiers to suppress bandits, they killed more than 30,000 enemies, and bought the first army more than half a month of time to perfect its defense.

"More than 30,000 dead and wounded? Tell me, what is the number of deaths that can be confirmed?!"

"Your Highness, more than 15,000 mercenaries died, and about 7,000 witch soldiers, because it was a surprise battle, it was difficult to examine the corpses one by one, but the number of enemies killed would never be less than 20,000. ”

Four thousand for twenty thousand, not counting the horse bandits killed, Hu Li's beard was shaking, and the captains almost cheered, but when they saw Mei Ying's still gloomy face, they all closed their mouths in amusement.

"The standard battalion students are worthy of being my royal elite, loyal and brave, and have brilliant results, but the leader of the team is far from enough to offset the crime!"

Nearly 4,000 students were killed and seriously injured in the battle, which made Mei Ying's heart drip blood, even if she put aside the emotions of the school soldiers, it was difficult for her to accept it. Can follow her into the grassland in danger, whether it is a conquest or a city, the loyalty of the soldiers can not be doubted, although there are many imperial troops, but loyal to her at present there is only this one, not only to win the victory of the grassland war, but also the backbone of the future control of the empire, one more person dies, there will be one more pit on the way to inherit the throne.

"Commander of the first regiment, you come to tell me, how many students died in battle when they suppressed bandits?"

"Lord Yu, three hundred and twenty-six were killed in the battle, and seventy-four were seriously wounded. ”

The lieutenants faintly sensed that something was wrong, and the county lord was going to hold the general accountable, but the cavalry battalion had clear and brilliant results, where was the general's crime?

"That is to say, three thousand four hundred and ninety-five apprentices, either killed or seriously wounded in battle with the mercenaries and witches!

"The main thing is to train the cadets, and at the same time to guard against enemy attacks and fortifications. ”

Hua Zifei's answer was very brief, but Hu Limo knew why Mei Ying was angry, strictly speaking, the first army seized the fighter plane and won the battle, but it undoubtedly deviated from the target task, and in fact disobeyed the order of the county lord.

"Smack!" Mei Ying smashed her fist on the armrest of her mount, stood up and reprimanded sharply: "Training, is it for you to take the student soldiers to the assault station?! Vigilance, is it for you to take the student soldiers to intercept the witch soldiers? ! The main force of the army is tired and tired to build the city, that is, to reduce casualties with the fortress of the fortified city, you are a veteran of the empire, but you take the student soldiers to the field battle, and attack the enemy's strengths with your own shortcomings, resulting in heavy casualties among the student soldiers, what a merit!"

Quiet, so quiet that it makes people panic, the military tent Hua Zifei and the three captains all knelt on the ground, although they felt wronged, but they did not dare to defend themselves, the crime of disobedience in the army was not small, not to mention that the county lord's reprimand was not unreasonable, the training was less than three months, and the strength was only three battalions.

"Staff Military, let the commander of a battalion play the role of a staff member, deprive the captains of each battalion of command, without asking for instructions in advance, and without reporting afterwards, what is the intention of monopolizing the military power?!"

"County Lord-" Hua Zifei and Hu Li spoke at the same time, glanced at each other and didn't dare to say anything further.

The reason why the Dugu royal family only organized the corps during the war was to prevent the generals from supporting the army and giving the military power to the captains of each battalion.

"The three of you are the captains I personally appointed, but you don't dare to fight openly and hand over the command, are you greedy for life and afraid of death or have other plans?!"

"We have no two hearts, please Your Highness to be clear!" Hua Zifei and the three captains did not dare to be silent anymore, and at the same time expressed their hearts, Hu Li also knelt down and pleaded: "County Lord, fifteen standard teams are scattered to suppress bandits, and it is more convenient for the captains of each battalion to stay in the commander's tent to be transferred, but it is not a transfer of military power, although Hua Zifei changed the military system without authorization, in fact, the command of the army was divided into three people, and there is no suspicion of supporting the army and self-respect." ”

"Your Highness, please be clear!"

All the lieutenants knelt down to plead, and Hua Zifei didn't dare to raise their heads, which made Mei Ying's anger a little less, and she sat back in her chair with a snort.

"Get up, I trust the loyalty of the First Captain and the three lieutenants. ”

"Your Highness. ”

After the generals sat down, Mei Ying spoke again: "It is difficult to distinguish people's hearts and minds, and it is based on national laws and military regulations that only punish evil deeds, and there is no charge of punishing the heart. Hua Zifei was removed from the post of commander-in-chief, and he was still the commander of the army, Ouyang Xuan and Liu Xindong were each demoted by one level to temporary acting lieutenants, and Fang Zhenhai was appointed to the guard battalion. ”

Hua Zifei was dismissed from the position of commander-in-chief, but Mei Ying did not appoint Hu Li as the new commander-in-chief as expected, and the generals and colonels then understood that the county lord was going to unify the army by himself.

"The Qiu Xingchen battalion of the first regiment has another task, and the other battalions will defend Nancheng after they are established, and the military affairs team will replenish the missing soldiers from the tribe as soon as possible. The second army corps defended the northern city, and the third army corps defended the ancient village. ”

"The Chamber of Commerce escort team, tomorrow to escort the wounded soldiers and craftsmen back to Jicui Pass, after entering the customs, it will be led by Excellence, obeying the command of Yan Ning. ”

Mei Ying divided the defense areas of each legion, and looked at the two legion commanders with a sigh of relief: "Leading the troops to fight, you are the veteran generals, how to improve the defense facilities, how to transfer troops to meet the battle, I will not interfere, but remember not to go out of the city without authorization." I want to defend the city for the longest time with the fewest casualties, rather than losing the walled city soon after killing and wounding a large number of enemies. ”

"Obey His Highness's military orders!" (To be continued.) )