"My niece was just about to discuss this with my third uncle."

As Wei Xiyin spoke, she handed him the city defense map in her hand, "I'm afraid that when the time comes, my third uncle will be needed to lead the troops and go to war with my niece."

Wei Mingyuan took the blueprint and nodded, "Of course. If you want to pacify Zhongshan and recapture Yizhou, my uncle will certainly not stand idly by."

Wu Niang did this not only for her family, but also for the people of Yizhou.

The weather outside is bad, monsters are rampant, and fewer and fewer people are alive.

It is his duty to recover Yizhou and maintain peace in the area.

Wei Mingyuan opened the blueprint and immediately saw the problem. His expression turned serious and he said in a deep voice, "This defense map is obviously incomplete and has many loopholes."

Zhongshan State was a fiefdom and an autonomous state in China, and its seat of government was different from that of other counties.

As the residence of King Zhongshan, Zhongren County has three lines of defense including moat, gatehouse and arrow tower.

The military camp was stationed not far from the city gate.

The city defense structure hand-drawn by the scout clearly only marked the gatehouse and the distribution of troops outside the city. There were only a few simple sentences about the situation inside the city, which were vague and glossed over.

"There's nothing we can do. Scouts can't enter the city, so we can only observe with our naked eyes."

Wei Xiyin wasn't surprised. His third uncle had been leading troops for many years and had seen all sorts of defense maps. "But you can ask Yuanwu directly about the city's defense structure. Even if the city has been renovated, the changes won't be too significant."

That's true.

Wei Mingyuan put down the defense map in his hand, thought for a moment, and said, "Even if we know the city's defense structure, the disparity in manpower is huge. We also have to consider factors such as weather, rear supply, and the monsters that move everywhere. It is definitely not easy to defeat the enemy with a small force and capture Zhongshan."

Wei Xiyin smiled and said, "We will just be supporting and providing supplies. The Zhongshan army will be responsible for being the vanguard. As for the disparity in troop strength, it depends on how capable Princess Zhongshan is and how many people she can incite to rebel."

If she were the Princess of Zhongshan, she would definitely want to kill her enemies with her own hands and avenge her dead mother and brother.

This matter cannot be delegated to others.

The princess was of orthodox birth, had a title and a fief, and her status was higher than that of illegitimate sons such as Yuan Sanlang.

She had a legitimate reason to do so. As long as she exposed Yuan Sanlang's crime of poisoning his mother, except for Yuan Sanlang's confidants, she believed that most of the Zhongshan army would only recognize whoever came to power as their leader because all the direct descendants of the King of Zhongshan had died out. It was not true submission.

This is not a war. If both sides suffer losses, even if Zhongshan is recovered in the future, it will be a useless effort for her.

Where can we find the army then?

Wei Xiyin mentioned the explosives in passing, "My niece's two subordinates have modified the flying fire. It has become extremely powerful and can directly blow open the city gates and walls."

My third uncle probably doesn't know about this yet.

"Uncle San might as well go to Shilin Village with your niece and take a look, then we can formulate tactics and strategies." Then call the princess and Yuanwu to hold a meeting together.

Of course, Chu Yu and Qu Qi will also participate. Such an important matter cannot be done without advice from a strategist.

Wei Mingyuan looked surprised and readily agreed, "If there is such a divine weapon, we should go and take a look."

He immediately stood up and said earnestly, "But on the battlefield, underestimating the enemy is paramount. Intelligence is equally important. Wait a moment, I'll have Lieutenant General Shi send another team of Wei Family Army scouts to Zhongshan to gather information."

Most of the troops were civilians recruited in the later period. Although they had the help of Zhang Yuanyan in training, they were not as professional as the Wei Family Army. When it came to gathering intelligence, the Wei Family Army was more suitable than the scouts in the fort.

Wei Xiyin was eager to do so and agreed repeatedly, "Niece, I will listen to your uncle."

The two of them came out of the study together.

Ningshuang bought the girl a new sun hat. The original hat had been worn for a long time. The girl often walked outside, and the brim of the hat was wet with sweat and slightly yellowed. It was no longer usable.

She saw the girl and the third master talking in the study, so she went to Uncle Wu with a small ice pot to get the key and saltpeter to make ice.

Uncle Wu was in charge of everything in the house, especially saltpeter. Because the house needed to make ice, Mingjingtang specially delivered some saltpeter and stored it in the warehouse.

This way, when the clan leader and Wu Niang need ice, they don’t have to go to Mingjing Hall to get it.

Uncle Wu handed her the key, thought for a moment, and then instructed, "Get two. It looks like the Third Master will be going out soon."

How can it be bad for Wu Niang's reputation if her niece enjoys the cool air while her elders suffer from the heat? If it gets out, it will bring bad reputation to Wu Niang.

"Yeah." Ningshuang quickly responded.

When the uncle and niece came out, everything was already prepared.

Wei Mingyuan touched the cool ice pot and said, "A few days ago, the Wei family army found a water source, and Mingjingtang also sent a batch of ice to the county camp. Everyone has never seen ice in such a hot summer, so it's very rare."

His soldiers were stationed in the northwest all year round and were used to living a hard life.

After returning to the fort, Mingjingtang distributed food, clothing, supplies, and ice. Not to mention in today's world, even in the past, I have never enjoyed such a good life.

Hearing him mention the water source, Wei Xiyin asked, "Is the water you found enough?"

Wei Mingyuan's expression relaxed. "It's enough for now. Wu Niang can go to the cave and take a look. A lot of water has been brought back. The water level in the deep pool has dropped a bit. Your uncles are trying to measure the deep pool."

The deep pool looked small, but after several days of transporting water back and forth, at least several hundred barrels of water were filled, and the water level only dropped a little. Mingjingtang then dared to use the water to irrigate the crops.

Food is very important. The population of the fort is increasing, and we must find ways to increase production.

Wei Xiyin casually agreed: "If I have time, I will go and have a look."

But deep down I was thinking, who knows when I’ll be free.

She didn't know how the repairs were going in the county town. She also hadn't had time to read the letter Gong Liulang brought back. She also had the mutant zombies captured in Shilin Village and the subsequent construction of people's livelihoods, etc...

Now the trip to Zhongshan State is on the agenda. Once the second group of scouts return to gather information, they will deploy their troops and begin operations.

She doesn't have the time.

"Oh, right. One of the two men from the Ten Directions Sect died," Wei Mingyuan said. "He refused to confess, so Shi Le took him outside in the sun for two days. The pretty boy couldn't stand the heat and died of heatstroke."

Wei Xiyin paused.

I almost forgot about the Ten Directions Teachings.

“The remaining Taoists have seen this move.”

Wei Mingyuan looked up at her and said, "The confession was just submitted earlier. I was about to open it when Uncle Wu sent someone to fetch it, and I didn't have time to check it."

Wei Xiyin: “…”

After a while, she spoke shamelessly, "My niece thinks that since we can see the explosives at any time, it doesn't matter if we go there later..."

A hint of smile flashed across Wei Mingyuan's eyes, "Then it's up to Yi Wuniang."

The two of them temporarily changed their route and headed to the four-bedroom mansion.

It’s very close, with an armory in between.

The two were not talking about business, but chatting about the situation at home.

Wei Mingyuan walked and said, "Gu Qiu has returned home. He's stubborn and insists on practicing martial arts. The temperature outside is too high. The women in the camp can exercise in the morning, but Gu Qiu needs to go to school in the morning..."

"She's a good martial artist and is willing to learn, so I stayed home and taught her myself."

Wei Mingyuan was not a talkative person, but when he talked about Wei Guyiu, he talked for a long time.

He didn't stop even after entering the fourth room.