But now, beacon towers on the east, west, and north sides are all burning smoke, which shows that the war situation is not optimistic!
Everyone felt extremely heavy-hearted.
Seeing that everyone had arrived, Han Zhongyu spoke directly.
"I have already ordered the government officials to evacuate and reassure the people. Those who can be evacuated have been evacuated, and those who cannot be evacuated are being prepared for war."
The situation in Tai'an Prefecture is dire. Eighteen, you should take Yu Shu and the others back to the capital first!
Zhou Yi'an, everyone has seen your hard work during this time. Thank you for your contributions to Tai'an Prefecture.
Your place is full of the elderly, weak, sick and disabled, so you need to make arrangements. If you need people, have Liu Qiang take a few people to help you move them away. You should also be careful.
Xie Tianqi, you and Liu Xiaodong should go back to your hometown and bring your family over. It would be best to send them to Jinyang.
Once you've settled in, you'll have to come back. The civil officials, who are powerless to even kill a chicken, can leave, but you can't!
You all know the terrain here. If the enemy crosses Tianshui, we will have no city to defend. Therefore, we must all prepare for the worst. If reinforcements don't arrive, we will be the last to arrive.
Upon hearing this, Xie Tianqi and Liu Xiaodong said in unison
"Your subordinate obeys and will return as soon as possible."
After Xie Tianqi and Liu Xiaodong left, Zhou Yi'an also spoke up.
"I won't trouble you with my side. I have enough manpower. I'll go to Jinyang first to find an empty courtyard to settle those people in. I'll come back to help you here!"
"You are no longer a court official, you don't need to come back. Grand Tutor Zhou only has one son..."
"The rise and fall of a nation is the responsibility of every citizen!"
Even a young woman understands this principle, yet I, a grown man, am not as good as a young woman!
When war breaks out, not everyone can take up arms and go to the battlefield. We also need people to manage resources in the rear!
"Don't worry about me, I'll be back as soon as I've settled everyone in."
After Zhou Yi'an finished speaking, she went back.
Xuanyuan Che lazily slumped back in his chair.
"I am the Prince of Great Qi. If none of you leave, why should I leave!"
The emperor guards the nation's gates, the monarch dies for the state, soldiers are buried on the battlefield, and children sacrifice themselves for the country.
"We men of the Xuanyuan family still have this much courage!"
Han Zhongyu disagreed
"What good is your frail body if you stay here? Stop causing trouble and get out of here today."
Yu Shu, you should go back to the capital with him and stay there for a while.
"Take Jinyu and the others with you."
Xie Yushu said
"I will make sure Jinyu, Haitang, and Yumin are settled in."
But I won't leave.
"I am a first-rank princess of the Great Qi Dynasty. My house, my land, and my hundreds of people are all here. I cannot abandon them and flee for my life."
"The battlefield is not a marketplace. You are a woman, and there is no need for you to get involved in the war."
Listen to me, go stay in the capital for a while first!
"Han Zhongyu!"
You don't need to persuade me anymore!
If we hold the city, we live together; if we lose, we die together.
Having received the emperor's bounty, one should be loyal to the emperor. Yet, deserting in the face of battle, how will one face one's elders and fellow villagers in the future!
Alright, enough talk. Everyone, get your families settled and get ready for battle!
After Xie Yushu finished speaking, she went to the county school to pick up Chu Jinyu and they returned to the manor together.
Seeing that Xie Yushu and Xuan Yuanche had made up their minds, Han Zhongyu stopped trying to persuade them and began writing letters home.
Upon returning to the manor, Xie Yushu immediately had Qu Xiaodie and Sun Chongren gather all the workers and brief them on the border war and the situation in Tai'an Prefecture.
Settle their wages and let those who can go back to their relatives go back to their hometowns; those who can't should go hide in the nearby mountains.
Then a large meeting was convened for all the staff of the resort.
Chu Jinyu, Xiao Haitang, Xie Yumin, along with the elderly, children, women, and masters from various farms, were all transferred to Jinyang to stay with the Liu family for a while.
They also ordered Xie Zhong to lead fifty guards to protect their safety.
Besides these people, only Xie Yushu's secret guards and bodyguards remained in the manor, along with the more than one hundred镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) they had later trained to transport goods.
Including Xie Yushu and Qu Xiaodie, there are a total of 218 people.
Xie Yushu first called out the names, and then carefully looked at each person. The oldest was twenty-four or twenty-five years old, and the youngest was seventeen or eighteen years old.
Young and vibrant!
But she wants to take them to the battlefield; she's really not human!
Although Xie Yushu's heart was breaking, she still steeled herself and spoke.
"Brothers!"
I'm very sorry, but I left you here because I wanted to take you to the battlefield.
On the battlefield, the odds were against us, but we had the chance to keep the enemy north of Tianshui and protect the people south of Tianshui.
But if we don't go, and the enemy attacks, the city in front of us will soon be a river of blood!
I can lead you to retreat and escape, but the fact that we can stand here safely right now means that at this very moment, 20,000 soldiers at Hangu Pass are using their flesh and blood to hold off 100,000 Tatar cavalry!
When they fall, the city defense troops of Tianshui will take their place; when the city defense troops of Tianshui fall, Tai'an Prefecture will have to take their place.
No one deserves to die, but when it comes to the greater good of the nation, someone has to die to defend our dignity with their life and blood!
"Would you rather stand before the people of Tai'an Prefecture, swords drawn, and fight alongside me, or hide in the back and eke out a living?"
"Kill the enemy! Kill the enemy! Kill the enemy!"
"Princess, from the day we followed you, our lives belong to you. Whether it's going through fire or water, we will obey your orders without hesitation!"
"That's right! A real man should live with his head held high. Hiding in the background is for women and children. If the steppe Tatars dare to invade, we'll beat them to a pulp!"
"We all have two shoulders and one head, so who's afraid of whom!"
"Yes! Hit him!"
"Good! That's spirited! You're Xie Yushu's soldier!"
Nanxing! Open the armory.
Everyone, equip yourselves with hidden darts, and immediately put your crossbows on the table.
Check your best weapon.
Be ready for battle!
Wang Wu led his team to coordinate supplies and logistics.
Liu Zhuoyuan and Liu Zhuoxuan compiled statistics on the anti-inflammatory and hemostatic medicines and bandages in the pharmacy and formed a medical rescue team.
Aunt Su, why don't you take a few cooks and set up a kitchen team?
Xiaodie, take some people and activate all the mechanisms in the manor.
The self-destruct mechanisms in the vault and the secret room were also activated!
Prepare for the worst.
"yes!"
After Qu Xiaodie and the others left, Xie Yushu went to the armory and picked out a longsword. Although she had learned to wield a broadsword for a while, she was best at swordsmanship.
She has practiced Tai Chi and Tai Chi sword for many years! However, she has practiced swordsmanship relatively less, but when she is on the battlefield, she feels that she is more comfortable using a sword.
However, on the battlefield, life and death can be decided in an instant. In addition to the sword, he also casually picked up two daggers and tucked them into his waistband.
With all the necessary preparations made, the rest is up to fate!
An hour later, everyone was ready, and the group locked the mountain gate and went to Tai'an Prefecture together. Now, only by working together as one can they possibly overcome this difficult time!
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