Chapter 222 Zheng Wenshu

"Grandma Chen, are you alright?"

A young man with a limp in the group hurriedly helped up an elderly person who had fallen beside him.

The young man was thin and frail, and although he was dressed in rags, he had an air of gentle scholarly refinement about him.

After being helped up, the old woman patted her clothes and thanked the man, saying, "Shuwu, Grandma is alright."

The young man breathed a sigh of relief, helped the old man up, gritted his teeth and caught up with the group. They had barely escaped the clutches of the Tartars and could not afford to fall behind on the way.

Lin Changning rode at the very front, with soldiers on both sides maintaining order in the ranks.

Lin Changning turned his head and looked around. There was no unusual activity in Yongzhou City, which was occupied by the Tartars, but for some reason, he felt a little uneasy.

After leading the refugees for a day, some of them finally couldn't hold on any longer.

These elderly people are starting to lose their strength and are beginning to fall behind. Although they have brought a cart, those elderly people with serious injuries or difficulty moving are placed on the cart and pushed around.

However, the number of handcarts was far from sufficient.

The Tartars in the city only give them a little food each day, and it is already quite remarkable that these people have managed to survive this long.

Lin Changning frowned as he watched the increasingly long queue, and finally ordered a break.

The soldiers set up camp on the spot, while the civilians gathered in groups. They had brought back enough food on this trip, and after distributing the rations to the soldiers, Lin Changning planned to rest for the night.

We'll continue our journey back to Datong tomorrow.

While encamped, Lin Changning's heart pounded wildly, as if something was about to happen that night.

"Wan Jin, you and Lu Shan each lead a team and head towards Yongzhou City. I have a feeling that the Tartars might launch a surprise attack on us tonight."

Wan Jin hurriedly stuffed half a cake into his mouth, swallowed it with water, and nodded: "Yes, Commander, I'll take men there right away."

Lu Shan tucked the pancake into his pocket, sat up abruptly, cupped his hands in greeting to Lin Changning, and went with Wan Jin to mobilize troops.

The third prince of Tatars was not someone to be easily fooled. The tendons of all the men they sent back had been severed, rendering them almost incapable of fighting. In the two encounters in Daxing, it was clear that the third prince was not someone to be trifled with.

This must have been a difficult situation for them to swallow, especially since they were leading a group of refugees who were already starving. Even with a cart, it was still difficult to take care of everyone.

Therefore, it would inevitably slow down their progress. If he were the third prince, he would probably launch a surprise attack on the second day, so that he could get the slaves and also gain some spoils of war for free.

Lin Changning slowly tore the pancake in his hand, put it in his mouth, and then squinted his eyes as he pondered.

While they were eating the flatbread, a soldier suddenly walked over with another person.

Lin Changning looked up with some confusion at his soldier and the thin, unkempt man behind him.

"What's up?"

The soldier cupped his hands in greeting: "Commander, this man said he had something important to report, so I brought him here."

After the soldier finished speaking, he slightly stepped aside, revealing the young man behind him.

The young man's face was covered in grime, and he wasn't particularly tall; he looked like a skinny skeleton.

Lin Changning couldn't help but look at the young man: "What do you need to report?"

The young man bowed to Lin Changning with a respectful attitude: "Your Excellency, I am Zheng Wenshu. I suspect that the Tartars will launch a surprise attack tonight, so I have come to remind you."

Lin Changning looked at the man with a half-smile: "In the end, the idea that there would be a surprise attack tonight is just your guess. What evidence do you have?"

The man seemed a little anxious, and his attitude became even more respectful: "I dare not deceive you, sir. It's just that during my time as a slave in the city, I've roughly figured out the Tartars' character. Most of them are cunning and vengeful. You recently cut the tendons of all their prisoners. Based on my understanding of the Tartars, they will surely come to take revenge tonight."

Lin Changning looked at the man with interest and patted the seat next to her: "Well said, sit down. Feel free to share any other insights you may have."

The man hesitated for a moment, looked at the piece of land that Lin Changning had photographed, and then bowed respectfully to Lin Changning and sat down.

Lin Changning turned her head to look at the man beside her, preparing to listen to what else he had to say.

The man lowered his eyes and picked up a twig to write and draw on the ground. After a moment, he said, "Sir, please take a look. This is a simple topographical map of our area. If the Tartars attack tonight, the best ambush point is three kilometers ahead."

The man turned his head to look at Lin Changning's somewhat serious profile. Seeing that the man did not show any dissatisfaction, he continued to explain, "Sir, you can set up an ambush and traps in this valley, and then have the refugees set up camp outside the valley. You can lead your soldiers to ambush above, and just wait for the Tartars to fall into the trap. This battle will surely be won!"

Lin Changning stroked her chin. This person's idea coincided with her own. She had originally planned to set a trap not far ahead, but not inside the valley. The Tartars weren't stupid; it would look strange if everyone camped outside the valley.

Lin Changning pointed to the valley and said, "How can you be sure that the Tartars will definitely fall into the trap?"

The man paused for a moment, seemingly realizing he had been making some assumptions. If the Tartars didn't go into the valley, or even went directly to the sides of the valley, it could turn into a counter-encirclement.

The man lowered his head and clasped his hands in apology: "It was my oversight, please forgive me, sir."

Lin Changning waved his hand. Although the method was still somewhat inappropriate, it was good that he had the intention. Lin Changning broke off a tree branch and circled it in a grove outside the valley.

"If we want to set up an ambush, this is the best location."

The man was somewhat puzzled: "Sir? What is the solution to this plan?"

Lin Changning smiled and said, "Spring is already halfway over. When I came here, I saw that the wild animals here were plentiful, especially the wasps in the mountains."

A thought flashed through the man's mind: "This forest is a wild bee forest!!!"

Lin Changning smiled but didn't say anything. When he arrived, he had noticed the buzzing noise in the forest at midday and the many beehives hanging on the trees. He later asked a soldier nearby and learned that the forest was called Wild Bee Forest.

It used to be a place where a family kept beehives, but it was later abandoned, and the bees reproduced freely here, which later attracted a lot of bumblebees.

The bumblebees feed on honeybees, and over time, more and more beehives appeared in the forest. Ordinary people rarely went in. It is said that two years ago, several children were stung to death in the forest because they were greedy for honey.

Setting a trap in a valley would be too obvious, but it might not be so in a wild bee forest.

They knew there were bees in the forest, but the Tartars might not.