Chapter 36: "Ghost Town" Broken Gold

All the migrant workers who had heard the rumors about Suijin Town were panicked and frightened, except for Song Zhenping and his two siblings, who were completely confused and didn't know why.

Song Liyun grabbed Song Dekui, whose expression was changing from happy to worried. "Uncle Kui, what happened in Suijin Town that made everyone so scared?"

Before Song Dekui could answer, a loud voice sounded behind Song Liyun, startling everyone.

"My men, drive all those cowards over here and keep them under guard for me."

Song Liyun turned around suddenly and saw the bearded general commanding the convoy standing behind her.

The other soldiers were shouting and driving the civilians who were hiding far away over.

"Sir, this place is not suitable for living! We would like to work somewhere else." A man stepped out from the group of laborers and pleaded bravely.

"It's not habitable! Who said it's not habitable? Aren't those of us who eat military rations human beings?

We asked you to come here to build a military camp, and you should be paid every penny of your wages.

"Now that you're here, don't even think about leaving. When you can leave, someone will take you back. If you try to escape, don't blame me for being subjected to military law." The bearded man shouted in a voice as loud as a bell.

Song Liyun frowned slightly. "What kind of place is this? How can you force someone to come here like this? Could you please explain it clearly in advance?"

She wanted to build a border village, but she didn't want to take her brothers to their deaths.

Before Song Liyun could go and question him, Song Dekui pulled her aside and whispered, "This is Captain Luo from the Zhenbei Army. He has a very bad temper. Don't provoke him.

I heard there's a gold mine in Suijin Town. Since there are so many people here, we're not afraid to go in and take a look."

Song Liyun was stunned: "Gold mine? Really? Uncle Kui, what are they afraid of if there is a gold mine?"

Song Dekui: “……!”

In front of Captain Luo and his soldiers, there were some things he couldn't explain clearly in a few words!

At this moment, everyone was silent, even their cries were suppressed in their throats.

Under the urging of the surrounding soldiers, they could only gather together, shivering as they crossed the boundary marker step by step, and stepped into Suijin Town like moths to a flame, seeking their own death.

After being frightened, Song Dekui became excited again.

He even told the story of that year to some people who didn't know the details, including the three siblings of the Song family.

Of course, he also heard it from others.

Through his narration, Song Liyun finally understood the origin of Suijin Town.

Suijin Town is the widely known "ghost town" in Yunzhou.

It is two hundred miles away from Qingping Town and one hundred miles away from Dilu Grassland. It is a small mountain town with a population of less than five hundred.

But ever since someone discovered gold sand in the Huangsha River outside Suijin Town more than ten years ago, this small town has become famous.

The gold sand here was brought in by mountain torrents and deposited in a river channel outside the town. The output is not large and it cannot even be considered a gold mine.

It is located in the mountains and difficult to manage, so the local government does not collect taxes, but allows people to collect them. The county government only collects high taxes every year.

As a result, the news that there was an ownerless gold mine here spread quickly, and people from all directions who wanted to make a fortune sneaked in.

At its peak, the town of 500 people grew to 5,000, and the miles-long river was filled with gold diggers.

Houses were also built in the town, and it was bustling with people everywhere.

Where there is gold, there are casinos, brothels and restaurants.

The town of Suijin is bustling with lights and wine, and even the county town to which it belongs, Qili, cannot compare in terms of liveliness.

Some people become rich overnight, while others work hard in vain.

Gold panning is an adventure. No one knows whether there is tempting gold in the handful of sand he owns, or whether he can leave Suijin Town after getting the gold sand.

There is only so much gold in the sand. Every grain of sand in the Huangsha River has been sifted countless times. The gold production is getting lower and lower day by day. When the income is not enough to cover the expenses, the gold diggers will lose their jobs.

Some people are unwilling to accept the outcome and just leave, hoping to make a final big bet.

So, one night in late autumn five years ago, a group of red-eyed sand workers, together with bandits and the Dilu grassland cavalry, evaded the border army’s defense post and sneaked into Suijin Town.

Killing, looting, and bloody plundering for a whole day and night turned Suijin Town into an Avici Hell.

When those who escaped went to Qili County to report the news, no one believed that the Di Lu would come to kidnap people, and they even beat the person who reported the news as a madman.

It was several days later that the government reacted. Suijin Town was already covered in blood and the town was deserted, leaving only a hundred or so residents who had escaped into the mountains and forests to save their lives.

This tragedy caused the Wu Dynasty to lose up to 3,000 people. For a country where population is wealth, the casualties were more than those in a major war.

Moreover, the Dilu cavalry was colluding with bandits and robbers, making the border defense useless.

The whole country was shocked and the emperor was furious. He ordered the Zhenbei Army to fight against the Di Lu to capture the person, and punished the government to arrest the fugitives.

The lax border control allowed the entry of Dilu cavalry, and the government's poor management and inability to suppress the bandits allowed the bandits to collude with foreign enemies.

Several officials, both high and low, were beheaded, and the Marquis of Zhenbei, who was the commander-in-chief of the Zhenbei Army, was also demoted by imperial decree.

The Zhenbei Army has been guarding Yunzhou for twenty years. Although it cannot be said to be flawless, it has had its share of battles with the Dilu Royal Court, with both sides winning and losing, but has never suffered such a big setback.

Zhao Yanjiao, the Marquis of Zhenbei, personally led his troops into the Dilu grassland and fought several battles with the Dilu royal court. Both sides suffered hundreds of casualties and also brought back some people.

Unfortunately, those Wu Dynasty people who were kidnapped either died on the way or were sold to various tribal pastures on the grassland, and very few were found.

After several battles, the Zhenbei Army gave an explanation to the imperial court, but the feud with the local government became deeper and deeper.

These were all official disputes, and even with the influx of impeachment petitions, they could not save Suijin Town from its tragic fate of becoming a "ghost town."

Five years have passed, and walking in the sun-drenched town of Broken Gold still makes people feel creepy.

Song Liyun calmly looked at the situation in the town.

The town is actually not very big. Apart from the neat and decent buildings in the center, the edges are almost all wooden houses and earthen walls built randomly by sand workers.

No one has taken care of it for five years, and the wooden house, which has experienced bloody events, is leaning to one side.

The weeds growing among the ruins were knee-high, and now their leaves were yellow and dry, rustling in the wind, making them look particularly creepy.

In broad daylight, a wild dog would occasionally jump out from the house, baring its fangs at the group of strangers who suddenly broke in.

The tragedy of Suijin Town was caused by gamblers and bandits, and ultimately it was the Di Lu people who crossed the border.

The bandits and gamblers want money, and the Di people want slaves. Abducting thousands of strong laborers at one time is a huge fortune.

The Zhenbei Army was not wrongly penalized for their mistake.

This is indeed a flaw in the entire Yunzhou defense line.

Yunzhou is mountainous, and the defenders are mainly stationed at various mountain passes and intersections, only briefly mentioning the natural rivers flowing into the grassland.

In particular, the Huangsha River, which is a hundred miles away from the border, did not appear within the search range of the border outposts.

Led by bandits, the Di Lu people chose the dry season and easily entered the Wu Dynasty along the complex river channel of the Huangsha River.

It was just such an inconspicuous river that brought shame to the Zhenbei Army.

Now the Zhenbei Army is building a garrison at the mountain pass outside Suijin Town, garrisoning a hundred people.

With the river route, the Zhenbei Army can also enter the grassland along the Huangsha River.

This ordinary river channel, which originally flowed with golden sand, became a sheathed steel knife. Once it was unsheathed, it could penetrate directly into the heart of the other side of the Dilu grassland.

The notorious Suijin Town suddenly became an important military pass.

Of course, this information is not known to ordinary people like Song Liyun. They only know that people are needed here to build houses and barracks.

(End of this chapter)