Mother, I have returned to the throne.

After half an hour.

After listening to Song Yuan's plan, Huo Jianchuan took thirty or forty people and followed Lin Yaodong away.

Seeing the group's backs gradually disappearing, Song Yuan immediately prepared to drive over.

Time is tight and arrangements must be made in advance.

Just as Song Yuan was explaining the thoughts in his mind one by one, Situ Jing beside him couldn't help but shake his head secretly.

I said this guy had bad intentions.

Do you listen to these plans?

This little bastard is even worse than a bandit!

It seems that his story of tricking the Third Prince might actually be true.

Which good person has so many sinister tricks in his mind?

When Song Yuan finished making all the arrangements, Situ Jing thought of Song Yuan's previous arrangements and immediately came forward: "Why did you choose Commander Huo just now? Don't you know that Commander Huo is not very mobile?"

As a former general of the Huben Army, Huo Jianchuan fought bravely on the battlefield with tremendous momentum.

But in the end, he died on the battlefield and returned to the imperial city, but one of his legs was broken by his own people.

Now when I walk, I stumble and fall.

It's a bit hard to bear for others to see it.

But this was exactly the effect Song Yuan wanted. With just one sentence, he dispelled Situ Jing's concerns: "Let me ask you, if you were Zhao Huaian, would you be afraid of a cripple?"

"You don't say it, maybe I really can't do it!" Situ Jing's eyes lit up, hesitated for a moment, and immediately nodded!

From the outside, a cripple doesn't pose any threat to him. Zhao Huaian must be arrogant and would never be wary of a disabled person, right?

"Since you already have a plan, why bother with this? As for me, I'm a woman, so I won't arouse suspicion from those who are looking for Huaian. Why don't you add me and a few experts to the team and capture the leader first!"

"If we catch Zhao Huaian, won't that put an end to everything?"

Situ Jing continued to ask, and this time even her aunt beside her nodded.

To outsiders, Song Yuan's arrangement was really unnecessary.

Now that you have captured Zhao Huaian, are you still afraid that his subordinates will not surrender?

"I have my concerns about this!"

Song Yuan frowned secretly and explained his worries: "Knowing yourself and your enemy will ensure a hundred battles. What worries me most now is the strength of Zhao Huaian's men. The plan you mentioned may be a good idea, but if it fails, those who follow Old Man Lin will only die. This is clearly a risky move!"

"Also, the bandits are all desperate criminals, their heads are tied to their belts. They are originally for their own selfish interests. The saying of "capture the leader first" may be appropriate in the army, but in the mountains and rivers, do you think they will take Zhao Huaian's identity into consideration when their own interests are threatened?"

"Also, there's another major reason why I agreed to this. Although the palace soldiers I recruited previously went through a martial arts exercise, they were missing a most important condition... They haven't seen blood yet!"

"On the battlefield, if they tremble at the sight of blood and lose their lives in vain, that would be a huge loss!"

"This time, suppressing the bandits is secondary; training is the most important thing. I want my men to complete this training and completely transform and be reborn!"

Song Yuan gave three reasons in a row. After hearing this, the two women nodded and accepted his explanation for a while.

Even Situ Jing, who was usually the most stubborn, couldn't find any reason to defend herself at this moment.

In the end, she could only raise her eyebrows with a bit of arrogance: "Alright, you bastard, you have some truth in what you said. This time, I will forgive you and not bother with you!"

"Come on, Song Yuan has always been quite smart. You're the only one who thinks he's so stupid!"

Xiao Yi, who was standing by, saw Situ Jing like this and immediately exposed her disguise with a smile.

Then he raised an eyebrow at Song Yuan and said, "You are the only one who thinks he is a fool. In the eyes of others, he is clearly a tiger that eats people without leaving any bones. If you don't believe me, you can go out and ask. Who in the entire imperial city doesn't know how cunning this guy is?"

"Whether he's cunning or naive, I just don't trust him!" Situ Jing crossed her arms and continued, "No matter how powerful he is, can he still lead the troops on the battlefield?"

In Situ Jing's understanding, Song Yuan had never been exposed to military strategy and tactics.

Although he learned military tactics from General Zhao's son for a few days before leaving the imperial city, he still had to sharpen his sword before the battle.

If Song Yuan could command the battlefield in such a short time, wouldn't General Zhao be a military god?

Fortunately, Song Yuan didn't care about this and waved his hand casually: "This kind of thing doesn't matter. Whether you believe it or not, I just want to remind you!"

"We are weak and limited in numbers now. When we go to the battlefield, we need to consider more than just winning or losing!"

"In my opinion, every one of my brothers is a valuable asset that cannot be lost. Sometimes, casualties must be taken into consideration. This is what I need to consider as a general!"

"With our equipment, it would be a piece of cake for us to storm the stronghold directly. However, losses are inevitable, and that's my real concern!"

After hearing what Song Yuan said, Situ Jing was finally speechless.

Only then did he realize that the biggest difference between him and Song Yuan was that he could never consider as many aspects of a problem as the other.

With the strength of Song Yuan's men and the fine horse under his crotch, it is indeed not difficult to win.

After all, they were well-equipped and completely crushed those bandits.

But if this were really done, even if ten bandits died and one person died on our side, it would definitely be a loss for the original investment.

However, thinking of his previous self-boasting, Situ Jing was still unwilling to admit defeat.

He just tilted his neck and said something.

"When you win, come teach me again!"

……

Go halfway.

Following Huo Jianchuan's instructions, the twenty or thirty people behind him hid in the dark.

His mission was different. Huo Jianchuan's purpose of showing up was to make Zhao Huaian let his guard down.

These twenty or thirty people were there to set up an ambush.

Of course you have to hide your body!

When Huo Jianchuan leads the large group of people away, these twenty or thirty people will go straight to the mountain stronghold. That will be the critical moment for them to show their power!

At that moment, Huo Jianchuan followed Mr. Lin all the way to the outside of the mountain village.

On the way, he didn't forget to remind her: "When you see Zhao Huaian later, old man, remember, don't say anything nonsense. When the time comes, don't say anything if you can. I will handle everything!"

"General, is this really possible?" Lin Yaodong's face was a little nervous. After all, he was putting himself in danger, and anyone would inevitably worry.

Huo Jianchuan's expression turned cold, and he nodded, "Don't worry, as long as you don't talk nonsense, I promise it will work!"

Just as the two were talking, there was a strange movement in the woods beside them.

Huo Jianchuan raised his eyebrows and immediately saw through these guys' backgrounds.

They are clearly bandits guarding the stronghold!

Thinking of Song Yuan's instructions, Huo Jianchuan simply pretended not to see it and helped Lin Yaodong down from the carriage in an orderly manner.

The two of them huddled together, looking around with anxious expressions on their faces.

It didn't take long for the wait to continue like this before a noisy sound of footsteps could be heard all around.

I saw several bandits coming forward, and the leader was showing off his power.

"Old man, are you here to redeem the young master of the Lin family?"

"Yes, yes, yes!"

The two of them nodded hurriedly, their faces pale.

However, that was Lin Yaodong's real reaction, while Huo Jianchuan was pretending.

"Did you bring the ransom?"

The bandit leader's eyes lit up and he grinned.

The two of them nodded quickly!

Seeing this scene, the other party waved his hand with satisfaction: "Take the person away!"

The younger brothers behind them immediately came forward, surrounded the two of them on the left and right, and carried them towards the mountain stronghold.

Qingniu Mountain is steep and easy to defend but difficult to attack.

On the way in, Huo Jianchuan glanced around and secretly praised in his heart.

In such a terrain, if a strong attack is launched, even the elite under his command will inevitably suffer casualties.

Just as Huo Jianchuan was hesitating, the group finally arrived at the mountain village.

With just one glance, Huo Jianchuan's gaze was focused on the main hall. He saw the bandit leader Zhao Huaian, who was a burly man with a face full of stubble and a ferocious look.

The eyes glared, and the voice of the married couple followed.

"Old man, bring the things over here!"

As he was speaking, a bandit came forward and snatched the wooden box from Lin Yaodong's hand.

When they opened it, everyone's faces changed.

What kind of ransom is in this?

It was clearly just some small change and a few banknotes here and there, but when added together, it was just a drop in the bucket!

Seeing that Old Man Lin dared to cheat, Zhao Huaian's face suddenly darkened, and he said fiercely: "This money, add up to more than 10,000 taels? Old man, I think you won't cry until you see the coffin!"

"Grandpa, please understand!"

Faced with such a threat, Lin Yaodong immediately knelt on the ground and explained tearfully, "This money is all I have. I have so little time, and I really can't raise more money. I beg you to be merciful and let my grandson go!"

"You old bastard, do you think I can't do business with you?" Zhao Huaian glared at him, looking as if he wanted to eat someone.

"Whatever number I say is what it is. There's no room for bargaining!"

"Stop pretending to be pitiful. It's not like that. Let's say I have 15,000 taels of silver, which is half the ransom according to the amount we agreed on before. I'll give you half of your precious grandson, too. How about that?"

hum...

When Old Man Lin heard this, he couldn't help but tremble. He felt his eyes go dark and he almost fell to the ground.

Seeing that the time was almost up, Huo Jianchuan stepped forward and said, "Master Zhao, how about we make a deal... As long as you release my brother, I'm willing to share a fortune with you!"

"If this thing can be accomplished, the profit will definitely be much more than 30,000 taels!"