Although she said that, two opposing forces were fiercely battling in Fu Rong's mind: one saying it was impossible, and the other saying to believe her.
Just then, Wei Yao gradually lost ground, and several more people seized the opportunity to leap into the tent.
Fu Rong felt like a machine with its strings stretched taut, poised to go, but a thin thread was pulling at his movements, making him unable to move.
Wei Yao's eyes widened as she stared at the motionless Fu Rong, shouting angrily, "Fu Rong, what the hell are you doing—!"
In a moment of distraction, he was kicked hard to the ground, almost unable to catch his breath. When he managed to get up, all the assassins had already rushed into the tent.
"Fu Rong, you'd better pray that the general is safe and sound, otherwise..."
Wei Yao turned around, about to follow him in, but Zheng Quchi called out from behind: "Brother Wei, you can go in, but you'd better take precautions first."
Wei Yao paused, then turned around in surprise and confusion.
"What do you mean by that, Madam?"
Zheng Quchi slowly took out two handkerchiefs from her crossbody bag. These were handkerchiefs she usually kept for washing her face and wiping her hands when she went out. It's not wrong for a girl to be particular, right? She wet them with snow water and then handed them to the two of them.
She gestured for him to cover his nose and mouth: "Go inside, don't stay too long."
They listened to her earnest explanation, not understanding why, but still obediently did as she said.
When they lifted the tent flap, they found it shrouded in mist. Realizing something was wrong, they quickly covered their hands with the damp cloths even more tightly.
Upon closer inspection, all the assassins who had rushed in earlier were lying sprawled on the ground, while Yuwen Shengjing, inside the cage, leaned against the side, his eerie eyes half-closed as he listlessly looked at them.
Wei Yao and Fu Rong were completely stunned.
"...What's going on?"
Zheng Quchi had anticipated this, so she didn't follow along to join the fun. She just called out from afar, "Cover your mouth and nose properly. If you have nothing to do, come back out. We'll talk outside."
Wei Yao and Fu Rong came out, both looking at Zheng Quchi with blank expressions.
Zheng Quchi explained, "Before I came out after hearing the noise, I was worried that he might escape from prison, and I was also worried that others might take advantage of the chaos to hurt him. So I thought that I had enough sleeping pills from the Kezhu tribe, so I simply turned the entire tent into a fog cage. That way, if anyone who didn't know the situation forced their way in, they would just faint and no one could escape."
After hearing this, the two of them were surprised for a second, and then stunned for the next second, because she could think of such a comprehensive solution in the face of an unexpected situation.
"Your wife is wise."
"It was thanks to Madam's foresight that we were able to deal with this group of assassins so easily this time."
The two men immediately relaxed and felt a deep sense of admiration.
"It's just better to be prepared. In a little while, you can lift the curtain, spread some sleeping smoke, and when it's about time, go in and tie him up..." She paused slightly, looking at them with a subtle gaze: "You... saw the general?"
The two were taken aback; how should they respond?
Remembering that the lady had told them not to see the general for the time being, the two immediately said in unison, "We didn't see him clearly."
It would be a lie to say they didn't see anything, but at the time, the room was shrouded in white mist, and everything was hazy, as if seen through a veil. They could only vaguely see the general's figure and movements, and nothing more.
But even that brief glance put their minds at ease.
The general's clothes had been changed and washed, and his face seemed clean. Although he was in a cage, there was a fire to warm him, and there were blankets and carpets, making everything warm and comfortable.
The seven assassins were captured. This time, they were fortunate enough to protect all the important personnel and prevent their attackers from truly succeeding. However, this incident also made Zheng Quchi realize one thing: their camp's defense system was too weak, which was undoubtedly a fatal weakness for them during their preparations for war.
The following day, Zheng Quchi made a major decision in front of everyone.
"Relocate the camp?"
"Yes, since this place has been almost burned down anyway, it's better to rebuild it than repair it. Besides, the camp's defenses are inadequate and it's too easy for someone to sneak attack it."
Fu Rong glanced at Wang Zebang, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Madam, but we don't have any spare manpower..."
“Who says there isn’t? Most of the time, people in Wubao stay at home during the winter. Gathering them to work will solve our problem and also help them get through the winter.” Zheng Quchi had already thought of this.
Wei Yao had to remind her of something: "But what ordinary people know about building these things?"
“Others may not understand, but the people of Wubao certainly do. Before I came here, I read some geography about Wubao. The local residents have been building defensive fortifications for generations, and the most famous defensive fortification is Wubao. Wubao has passed down this kind of craftsmanship for generations. As long as they have the basics, it will not be a problem with guidance.”
Unexpectedly, the lady had such a thorough understanding of the local culture of Wubao. When they first entered this camp, it was only a temporary stop. The construction here was indeed very simple, far from the standard of Changxunpo. However, they did not bring any craftsmen with them this time, so they could not renovate it and could only make do with it.
But now that this battle has taken place, it is likely that the conflict will continue for a long time to come, and reconstruction will be very necessary.
Since the lady has considered all aspects, Wang Zebang said, "Then I will go and talk to the local magistrate about this matter."
Zheng Quchi agreed: "Okay, I will also take the time to select a camp site in the next two days. You should collect all the usable and not badly damaged items in the camp. Most importantly, you must guard the supplies that my caravan brought. I feel that our camp is not safe anymore, so you need to assign trusted confidants to handle this matter."
"Please rest assured, Madam, I will find the traitor as soon as possible. The same mistake will never be repeated." A hint of murderous intent flashed across Wei Yao's face.
"Then let's decide on this for now and split up to take action."
——
There are two main types of campsites: temporary field campsites and long-term garrison campsites.
Now that they want to change the temporary location to a permanent one, they naturally need to be more cautious in choosing a location.
Zheng Quchi already had relevant experience in this regard, and she also made a special trip to nearby villages to learn more about the surrounding terrain and historical heritage from the local residents of Wubao, in order to analyze in more detail the best location to choose from.
After some investigation, she finally had a new idea for building a brand-new "Xuanjun Camp". This time, she was not going to build a traditional camp, but a military fortress-style building complex.
Simply put, it combines the battle fortress and the camp fortress into one unit.
Local residents told her that Wubao was once a strategically important border town, and that many battles, large and small, had been fought there over the decades, with more victories than defeats, thanks to the defensive fortifications of Wubao.
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