The success of the first greenhouse planting put Shenxi at ease.
He ordered his men to plant potatoes and peppers in all three greenhouses that had been built.
She believes that the two crops can be harvested again in a few months.
Chenxi still longed for sweet potatoes and corn; during famine years, sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn were the three treasures.
Potatoes are still scarce, but once sweet potatoes and corn are also available and planted in larger quantities, the famine will be completely resolved.
While looking at her work, Shen Xi asked Qi Xiuwen, "Xiuwen, have you notified everyone who needs to be notified, Zhao Peng?"
"We've been notified that we're attacking Linchuan County. We can also have Zhao Peng tell Tao Feng that it's because of the enmity between the two sides, and since Linchuan County is Cao's territory, we can also say it's to help Tao Feng."
But attacking other territories would arouse too much suspicion from Tao Feng.
"It's good that you've been notified. We need about a month to prepare before we attack other places. Have Zhao Peng make arrangements within a month, and it would be best if he could control Tao Feng or be evenly matched with her."
Zhao Peng's current power is still far behind Tao Feng's. In another month, he should have his spies in Jianming Prefecture actively work together to suppress Tao Feng.
"Zhao Peng knows what he's doing, so there's no need for the commander to worry."
"Um.
"How long will it take for Xiuwen and Xiuwu to take Shanghe County?"
"Reporting to the commander, it should take about two more months. Shanghe County is not as easy to attack as Xiahe County. Xiahe County was caught off guard by Xiuwu, but Shanghe County is now prepared."
Furthermore, the men left behind by the Prefect of Yuzhang Prefecture, who were originally intended to quell the rebellion, will now clash with the Xiuwu forces.
"Let him fight well. Maybe after he's done fighting, he can come back with his troops and attack Qingshui County with us."
"good."
Meanwhile, Qi Xiuwu was deep in thought.
My brother's letter has arrived.
"Does the commander mean we should prepare half of the grain ourselves?" Feng Tao was quite surprised.
Qi Xiuwu nodded.
“My elder brother said in his letter that those aristocratic families should be investigated to see if they have any history of bullying men and women or committing all kinds of evil deeds. If so, they should be investigated and punished, and those who should be extorted should be extorted.”
"Uh." Feng Tao often mingled at the bottom of society and knew all too well how these powerful families harmed ordinary people.
Are there any good ones?
Yes, but no matter what kind of powerful family it is, with a large tree and many branches, it is inevitable that some of them will use the power of the family to do evil.
If we investigate, we'll definitely find something wrong.
In other words, almost all the powerful families here will be purged again.
"However, my elder brother instructed us to be gentle and not provoke strong resistance from these people. We just need to punish the culprits."
This is also Shenxi's opinion. When Shenxi was reading history, he learned that at the end of the Ming Dynasty, a region in the south was repeatedly occupied by rebel armies and imperial troops.
At first, everything was agreed upon to not disturb the local people, and that landlords and wealthy households could live as they pleased.
They did well at first, but it never lasted more than a year before they would rob what they wanted and kill what they wanted.
Finally, those landlords and wealthy households would spend money to organize people to resist and welcome the imperial army in.
The imperial army was no better, and in the end, in this protracted war, the local people, whether ordinary citizens or landlords and wealthy households, either died or fled, and in the end, less than one in ten people survived.
Chenxi didn't want the place he finally conquered to become a battleground of attrition, where even if he eventually controlled it, the population and economy would be so depressed that it would be unusable.
In the early stages of starting a business, population is still very important. Without people, who will produce goods? Without people, where will the army come from?
Nowadays, local powerful families, large and small, generally do not resist the army unless their foundations are shaken.
However, Chenxi also confessed that he would not return any of the things that the bandits had stolen. He said that if he had earned them through his own abilities, why should he return them?
That would be perfectly feasible to support half the number of soldiers.
Qi Xiuwu gritted his teeth and said, "Feng Tao, I'll give you a thousand men. Go and wipe out those two bandit dens ahead."
Remember, secretly keep all the money and food you get. We won't return them this time; just say the bandits have already squandered them."
Feng Tao nodded. Most of these bandits had blood on their hands, and many of them had the blood of ordinary people on their hands. They would show no mercy to them.
The picture seems a bit big, haha. It's basically the location, but you can make do with it.
"Yes, these two bandit dens only have two or three hundred people each. Our thousand men can wipe them out completely."
"Let's try to finish this quickly. The commanders are going to attack other places. When that happens, we can go to fight with them."
"Really?" In the nearly two months of fighting, Feng Tao had witnessed numerous battles, both large and small, and had grown considerably.
"Of course it's true. I reckon by then, you'll be able to lead troops into battle on your own."
Qi Xiuwu was proud of Feng Tao's growth, as he was the one who taught him.
"Alright, I'll lead the troops to beat up the bandits right away."
Normally, taking down a county wouldn't be so difficult, but Xiahe County and Shanghe County had too many bandit dens, which really gave them a lot of trouble.
“Take Yuanyi with you.”
"good."
Pei Yuanyi was a newly recruited valiant general by Qi Xiuwu during the attack on Xiahe County.
Pei Yuanyi came from a prominent family in Xiahe County, but his entire clan had been wiped out by bandits. He escaped thanks to his superior martial arts skills.
They organized more than a hundred people to fight against the bandits.
When Qi Xiuwu's troops arrived, Pei Yuanyi was caught in a pincer attack by two bandit groups and was already struggling to resist.
Finally, with Qi Xiuwu's help, the bandits were defeated.
Pei Yuanyi then followed Qi Xiuwu.
Feng Tao was naturally willing to bring Pei Yuanyi along. This fierce general, wielding a giant hammer, could smash a person's head with each blow, causing their brains to splatter. He was incredibly lethal.
Many bandits were immediately defeated and retreated upon seeing his bravery, which was extremely intimidating.
Xiahe County was once ravaged by bandits, and the official army has all fled to Shanghe County. Now, bandits and government troops in Shanghe County still occasionally clash.
With Qi Xiuwu's team added to the mix, it became a three-way battle.
Therefore, Shanghe County is more difficult to attack than Xiahe County.
Qi Xiuwu sent Feng Tao out, while he instructed his scouts to find out where the government troops were. He didn't want the government troops to get involved, as they might suffer losses if they did.
The scout quickly brought back the news: "Reporting to the general, the government troops in Shanghe County are still holed up in the south of the county town, and the bandits in the north of the county town are still not making any moves."
Qi Xiuwu raised an eyebrow: It seems that both sides have quieted down. Is it possible that they will temporarily unite to fight him after he launches his attack?
The government troops in Shanghe County numbered over a thousand, plus more than three thousand scattered troops from the surrounding area. The bandits, along with displaced people, numbered five or six thousand. If they were to join forces and attack him...
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