Chapter 538 Massacre
On the skirt, not only were five phoenixes embroidered with precious colored gold threads, but the phoenix tails were also inlaid with many small and precious gems of different colors.
Wearing it, from a distance, it looks like a phoenix about to take flight.
This dress was embroidered by Nuan Xiang herself for three months. It was a dowry specially made for Xia Zihan.
Unexpectedly, Xia Zihan would give that dress to Princess Qinghui.
After Nuanxiang found out, although she was unhappy, she still listened to the princess's order and brought the dress.
When Princess Qinghui saw it, her eyes lit up as if there were two lamps inside. She jumped up from the chair, couldn't wait to take the clothes in her hands, and made gestures on her body.
The skirt is a bit long, and when Princess Qinghui looks at it, it drags to the floor.
Xia Zihan is older than her and half a head taller than her, and this dress, Nuan Xiang, is made according to Xia Zihan's figure. Princess Qinghui will naturally grow taller if she wears it.
But the bottom of this skirt, just where the phoenix tail is, is inlaid with many small gems and cannot be cut off.
Princess Qinghui held it in her hand, compared it again and again, and finally said with a pity look on her face, "This dress is beautiful, but unfortunately, I can't wear it, and I can't change it, and it's still a summer dress. I think I'd better forget it." Well, I’ll leave it to you as a dowry, Chu Yu. The bright yellow trousers that Qi Lan sent over yesterday is very beautiful. I think you can give me that one.”
"Did you already have your eye on that one?" Xia Zihan smiled and glanced at her, and then ordered Nuan Yu to take out the jacket Princess Qinghui mentioned.
Princess Qinghui chuckled, "Isn't that right? I wanted to ask for it yesterday, but Qi Lan gave me two pieces, and I can't be greedy. Otherwise, next time Qi Lan doesn't give it to me, I will It’s going to be a huge loss.”
This time, Qi Lan only brought four mats, gave two to Qinghui, and gave the remaining two to Xia Zihan.
Qinghui likes it very much, but look at Xia Zihan's, one is bright yellow, the other is bright green, they are both bright, and she likes them both.
But she already had two pieces, so she couldn't ask Xia Zihan for them again. However, she had this opportunity today, so she took the opportunity to ask for it.
The clothes were taken away by Princess Qinghui, and Nuanxiang found two new pairs of clothes from the large boxes of clothes she brought, "Princess, these two clothes are from last year, because they are too expensive. It had been hanging in the shop for two years but could not be sold, so the servant brought it. The princess had better wear it herself.”
Xia Zihan saw that the two clothes were good, and one was dark purple, suitable for older people. Xia Zihan ordered Chu Lin to send that dress to Zhuo.
The rest she kept.
In the afternoon, Gianzhuangtou came.
Xia Zihan had ordered the food from several estates of the Ma family in advance. When Tianzhuangtou came back from Tuihuai City this time, he told her that all the food had been bought and had been put into the warehouse she had set up in Tuihuai City. .
"Leave it alone, don't move it for now." Xia Zihan ordered the head of the farm.
The war in the south is urgent. There will be a great harvest this year, so there will be no shortage of food for the time being. However, once the war reaches the spring planting time next year and affects the people's farming, there will definitely be a shortage of food in the second half of next year.
She stored the food just in case.
Chu Jingqi was fighting on the front line, so she had to take care of food, horses, grass, cotton clothes and weapons for him. She wanted him to fight on the front line without any worries.
"How is the cotton I told you to harvest?" she asked.
"More than 30,000 kilograms were collected in Qing'an Town." Tian Zhuangtou said, "According to the princess's instructions, we have made cotton-padded clothes and trousers for village women in several villages in Qing'an Town, all of which are based on men's body shapes. A pound and a half of cotton and a set of cotton clothes and trousers cost twenty cents each.”
A village woman with clever hands and feet can make a whole outfit in two days. The salary of ten cents a day is quite a lot of money.
Xia Zihan frowned, "Thirty thousand kilograms of cotton is still a little short."
It's not that cold in the south. One and a half pounds of cotton makes a cotton coat and trousers. They are thin, but they are enough to keep the soldiers warm.
However, 30,000 kilograms of cotton can only make 20,000 cotton clothes and trousers, which is still short of 30,000. The Chu family army has 50,000 troops.
Xia Zihan thought for a while and then told the head of the farm, "Go to Qing'an Town in person to see if you can buy more. After the Qing'an Town purchases are completed, go to a place farther away. You must buy up to 100,000 yuan." Only a pound will do. Also, ask more people to do it and make it as soon as possible. The money is not bad here.”
This time Nuanxiang came back and brought back more than half a year's income from more than a dozen shops in Jiangnan, with more than 80,000 taels of silver, enough to make these cotton clothes and trousers and buy food.
As for the grass, Xia Zihan had asked Manager Zhang to hire someone to cut the grass as early as the second day after Chu Jingqi left.
There are now more than 30,000 horses in the Chu family army, and the hay they need is not a small amount. If the horses are not fed and hungry, the cavalry army trained by Chu Xuanyu will be compromised.
This man can't go hungry, and Ma can't go hungry either.
On Xia Zihan's side, Chu Jingqi and his son were planning conscientiously, while in the south, the war was becoming more and more tense day by day. Less than a month after Chu Jingqi left, news came that Ningwu City had been lost. Ao Tianchen took the second prince, who was still injured, and retreated to the next city of Nanyang under the protection of a group of soldiers.
More than half of the 50,000 soldiers and horses of the Second Prince were killed, leaving only 20,000 soldiers and horses. In addition, the 20,000 soldiers and horses of the Jiangnan General Military Mansion who had supported them in the past were also wiped out. Even General Cheng also died. This time Ningwucheng fell.
When this battle report came, the whole capital was panicked. Even the ministers in the court were panicked and asked the emperor to send more troops.
"They have muskets. I heard that the dark energy produced by the muskets is made of fine iron. However, our soldiers and horses are all made of flesh and blood. They are no match for their muskets. Even if we send more soldiers, we will only die. That’s all.” Some are big. The minister objected fiercely, "On the other hand, in the capital, many people have fled recently. The Soldiers and Horses Division and the Flying Tigers have to send more people to patrol at night. We can't let the refugee incident a few years ago happen again."< br>
In the past half month, there have been many people fleeing to the capital every day. However, these people are not refugees, but people who come here for relatives, dragging their families, as well as carts of luggage and property.
After entering the capital, they either went to live with relatives, or rented a small house under the introduction of relatives, but they did not bring any chaos to the capital.
But these ministers are all people who have experienced the refugee incident. They are also afraid of the refugees, so they feel uneasy every night.
Just in case, the emperor issued an order and ordered the army to send more manpower to strictly guard the four gates of the capital and not let a single refugee enter the city.
However, the refugees who had fled could not be ignored, so the imperial court sent ministers to settle them in a small town one day away from the capital.
In the capital, in addition to the Flying Tigers patrolling at night, the Bingma Division also sent a thousand soldiers to patrol day and night.
At the end of October, news came again from the south. Chu Xuanyu and Chu Jingqi, father and son, led 50,000 soldiers and horses. One rushed to Nanyang City, and the other detoured to the back of Ningwu City. One after another, they secretly trapped the Japanese pirates in Ningwu City. in.
A few days later, Xia Zihan received a letter from Chu Jingqi.
The letter said that he took fifty secret guards and sneaked into the city from a secret intersection in Ningwu City in the middle of the night. He secretly put poison in the Japanese pirates' food, which fascinated the Japanese pirates who were guarding the muskets. All the muskets were stolen, not even a single bullet was left.
The next day, the Japanese pirates discovered that their weapons had been stolen, and the whole group was in chaos.
Taking advantage of this chaotic situation, Chu Jingqi and Chu Xuanyu and his son sent troops, one behind the other, to attack the Japanese pirates.
The Japanese pirates lost their muskets and their combat effectiveness was reduced. They were forced by the Chu army to escape from Ningwu City and retreated to Wanfeng City.
In this battle, the Chu family's army won and the lost Ningwu City was recaptured. However, the Chu family's army also paid a heavy price, with 50,000 troops and over 10,000 casualties.
The dead body was placed outside Ningwu City and burned for three days and three nights.
However, more people died from the Japanese pirates. More than half of the Japanese pirates' 70,000 soldiers and horses were killed, and only 30,000 soldiers and horses were left to flee to Wanfeng City.
Ningwu City had long been devastated by Japanese pirates, and all the young men were killed without leaving a single one alive.
Women were all treated as slaves by the Japanese pirates, and countless women were raped and died under the Japanese pirates.
The elderly and children were not spared. Many people died and almost the whole city was massacred. The remaining ones were also some lucky ones who hid well and were not found by the Japanese pirates.
Every big house in the city had been turned upside down by the Japanese pirates, and all the gold, silver, jewelry, food and clothing inside had been removed by the Japanese pirates.
Some even set fire to houses, almost destroying the entire city.
It's truly outrageous and outrageous.
After Xia Zihan read this letter, although he was happy for Chu Jingqi, who had won the battle and regained the lost land, he felt choked when he thought that all the Dasheng people in Ningwu City had died at the hands of the Japanese pirates. I feel very sad and want to kill someone to vent my anger.
Of course, the people he wanted to kill were Japanese pirates.
"Princess, what's wrong? You don't look good." Si Cao, who was waiting nearby, saw that her face suddenly turned pale, so he quickly took a big pillow, put it behind her back, and helped her lie down, "Princess, Just lean back for a while and I’ll give you a cup of hot tea.”
"Yes." Xia Zihan leaned on the big pillow, unfolded the letter, and read it from cover to cover.
Hey, in a war, the people suffer the most.
Ningwu City was destroyed and so many people died. Wanfeng City is probably in the same state. The people inside who didn't have time to escape are also in danger.
Even if some of the people in the two cities escaped, there would probably be tens of thousands of them.
With so many innocent lives, this Japanese pirate really deserves to die.
(End of chapter)