NCCnovel Chapter 419 The mission must be achieved
Chapter 419 The mission must be achieved
Cheng Ziyun hurried home and saw Zhao Sheng chatting happily with his elder brother. He hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Commander-in-chief, something big has happened!"
Zhao Sheng saw Cheng Ziyun's nervous expression and immediately stood up and asked, "What happened?"
Although the air outside was freezing cold, beads of sweat were clearly visible on Cheng Ziyun's forehead. It seemed that he had been running all the way home to find her.
"Three days ago, our iron mine was closed for the holiday, leaving only the guards on duty. Zhao Yongqiang from the railway protection team hadn't been home for several years, so he went back this year. Xu Gang is on duty in Pingyang County."
Cheng Ziyun said anxiously, with a hint of haste in his words.
Seeing Cheng Ziyun laying the groundwork like this, Zhao Sheng couldn't hold back any longer and said, "Let's get to the point."
"The ? tribe, armed with several thousand men, suddenly attacked our iron mine outside Liangyu County. Upon hearing the news, the guards in Pingyang rushed to the scene with their weapons, but suffered over a hundred casualties and fled in disarray.
Afterwards, they also launched an attack on the railway protection team station ten miles away."
Cheng Ziyun finished speaking in one breath, his face full of anxiety.
After hearing this, Zhao Sheng roughly understood the situation.
"So Xu Gang from Pingyang County didn't go over to deal with this matter?"
Zhao Sheng frowned and stared at Cheng Ziyun.
Cheng Ziyun saw that Zhao Sheng was asking anxiously and quickly replied:
"When Commander Xu learned of the situation, he quickly organized the escort team and the brothers from two battalions of his regiment to rush to the road protection station overnight. Unexpectedly, they were ambushed by the enemy when they were almost there."
Zhao Sheng was shocked when he heard this and thought to himself that this was obviously an organized and premeditated sneak attack.
"How is Xu Gang?" Zhao Sheng's voice rose unconsciously, his eyes revealing concern and nervousness.
"Captain Xu was seriously injured. Of the ten thousand brothers who went there, as many as three thousand were killed or wounded."
When Cheng Ziyun spoke, his face was sad and his voice was trembling.
"It seems the enemy's weapons are pretty good."
Zhao Sheng had calmed down considerably by this point. Taking advantage of the New Year's Eve to launch a surprise attack, and even catching his new army off guard, it was clear that the weapons they used were extraordinary.
Cheng Ziyang listened quietly to the conversation between the two throughout the whole process, but just sat there in silence.
"It seems we have to go back immediately and organize people to take back the iron mine."
Zhao Sheng said to Cheng Ziyun in a firm and decisive tone.
He knew in his heart that the ? clan had taken over the coal mines in Nanshan and made a lot of money in recent days. Logically, they would definitely not set their sights on his iron mine, especially during the holidays.
It seems that someone is coveting the iron ore here and wants to use it to produce more weapons.
After the iron ore in Shanbei is mined, it undergoes simple smelting to obtain pig iron blanks which are then transported to Jing County.
To make sophisticated weapons, steel still needs to be forged again in a blast furnace to produce steel with better strength and toughness.
They occupied the iron mines and kilns in the north of the mountain for the sole purpose of selling them, and the quality of the weapons they produced was still unsatisfactory.
The only place in the Great Zhou that could produce good quality steel was Shangjun. The remaining craftsmen knew some smelting techniques, and there was a blast furnace there.
Who exactly had joined forces with the tribe to carry out this looting? Zhao Sheng still had no idea.
After saying goodbye to Li Xin and Cheng Jushu, Zhao Sheng did not take Li Shuya and the children with him. Instead, he and Cheng Ziyun's personal guards rushed to Luancheng overnight.
The next day, in Luancheng’s conference room.
Zhao Yongsheng, Zhao Yongqiang, Ma Biao and others rushed to the meeting, and Zhao Sheng personally presided over the meeting.
"Now that something has happened in Pingyang, our army can no longer openly participate in the railway protection team's affairs. We must first withdraw the remaining men of Xu Gang from Pingyang."
Zhao Sheng spoke with a serious expression and a heavy tone.
"Then the expressway without the escort will be blocked by them again," Zhao Yongqiang said hastily, looking somewhat frustrated. His eyes were filled with resentment and worry.
"The non-participation of the new army does not mean that the road protection team will be disbanded, and the coalition forces of the aristocratic families will be disbanded. This matter itself is a business with the aristocratic families. We will inform them of this news as soon as possible."
Zhao Sheng looked at Zhao Yongqiang's expression and knew that this boy had deep feelings for the railway protection team and was reluctant to leave.
"Today we are discussing how to control the coalition forces of the aristocratic families. It's not enough to just exist as a road protection team. We need to use their power to advocate for our rights."
Zhao Sheng looked around at everyone with a firm gaze, hoping that everyone could understand his intention.
After hearing what Zhao Sheng said, everyone understood what he meant.
This matter must not be let go so easily, and a proper solution must be found. However, Zhao Sheng did not want to bring the war to Dingzhou.
Originally, after the construction of Dingzhou New City was completed, Zhao Sheng wanted to use the Li family's military power in Weizhou to transfer 100,000 people back there, and then slowly return Weizhou to Yanzhou.
Even if Zhao Hui refused, Zhao Sheng would join him in governing.
However, all industries there will be withdrawn.
After three years of large-scale production, the investment in infrastructure has only paid off. If it can be maintained under control, it will definitely bring huge profits.
But Mr. Zhao didn't want to take greater risks.
Only the agriculture and the minerals invested in it will be retained permanently. In the Great Zhou, these are private properties, and no one will easily shake the rights they represent.
Because Zhao Yongqiang's railway protection team was recruited from outside, their weapons were relatively backward.
Although Xu Gang's army had completed all the equipment changes, it was inevitable that they would suffer some damage in the face of the enemy's sneak attack.
"Yongqiang, you've been familiar with the coalition's road protection team for so long. Can you form a team capable of fighting tough battles? I will equip you with brand new weapons. The other teams in the coalition will still rely on weapons purchased by the noble families for the time being."
When the meeting came to the topic of how to defend Pingyang County, Zhao Sheng turned to Zhao Yongqiang and asked.
"Commander-in-Chief, when the coalition first started, it was inevitably controlled by some people from the aristocratic families. As time went on, many people couldn't stand the life on the fast track, and most of them have left."
Zhao Yongqiang answered after thinking carefully in his mind.
"I recommend you to be the leader of the coalition forces. This time, you need to build a strong army in Pingyang. When you go to Pingyang in a couple of days, don't take any action for now, but instead re-establish rules for the remaining people."
Mr. Zhao's expression was serious and his words were full of anticipation.
"Set rules?" Zhao Yongqiang asked doubtfully.
"Yes, there are new rules and order, but they can only be the expressway guards. Such an army must accomplish its mission and deal a heavy blow to those who covet us in Bingzhou."
Zhao Sheng spoke in a sonorous and powerful voice, and every word seemed to hit everyone's heart like a heavy hammer.
In the conference room, Zhao Yongqiang kept thinking about what Zhao Sheng had said.
He was wondering how he could build a strong army in Pingyang, just as Zhao Sheng had said, and truly accomplish his mission...