Li Shimin faked his death? Then I will be powerful enough to conquer the world!

At this moment, Qin Ruzhao was wearing a black chain mail, a cloak with his name written on it, and a Tang Dynasty sword hanging at his waist.

The black horse under his crotch was tall and strong, with its four hooves digging the ground and neighing, as if it was also excited about the upcoming battle.

The 3,000-battalion vanguard troops he led were all elite among the elite.

The soldiers wore light cowhide armor painted with golden dragon patterns, which symbolized the glory of the Tang Dynasty.

They held sharp spears in their hands, carried strong bows on their backs, with feathered arrows in their quivers, and had muskets and short knives on their waists for close combat.

Everyone lined up neatly behind Qin Ruzhao, like a sharp blade ready to strike.

From the moment he received the imperial edict, Qin Ruzhao did not dare to delay for even a moment. He quickly assembled his troops and embarked on the journey to pursue the four kings of India.

As they continued to chase forward, the scene before them made everyone gasp.

At this moment, the bodies of Indian people were lying in all directions.

Some had their heads and bodies severed, others had mutilated limbs. Their blood dried on the ground, coagulating into shocking dark red patches and emitting a disgusting stench of decay.

The houses on both sides of the street were burned down by the raging fire, leaving only charred ruins, swaying in the wind.

Occasionally, there was a crackling sound from unburned wood.

Qin Ruzhao pulled the reins hard, and the warhorse raised its front hooves high and let out a long neigh.

He looked at the scene in front of him, his brows furrowed tightly.

Have they been here before? Why have they all been killed here?

During their subsequent journey, they passed through several small countries and saw such horrific scenes in all of them.

Towns were reduced to ruins and corpses of civilians were scattered all over the ground.

It was not until they arrived at the Old Ye City that Qin Ruzhao looked at the tall and thick city walls, the tightly closed city gates, and the Indian soldiers standing ready on the city walls, and he suddenly understood.

He couldn't help but snort inwardly, "So these Indians have actually learned the art of war, and are actually using the strategy of fortifying the city and clearing the countryside."

This cruel strategy of "fortifying the walls and clearing the fields" prevents the enemy from obtaining supplies and support during the attack by burning houses, slaughtering civilians, and transferring food, thereby achieving the goal of delaying time and consuming the enemy.

Under normal circumstances, given the weak combat effectiveness of the Indian army, Qin Ruzhao would be fully confident in adopting a steady and cautious strategy.

He could command his troops in an orderly manner, capture the cities around Jiuye City one by one, cut off their food supply and reinforcements, and then trap the Indians in Jiuye City, letting them lose without a fight due to hunger.

But at that time, the surrounding towns had already been cleared out by the Indians, the food was burned or moved, the people were slaughtered, and the entire area fell into a dead silence.

The food stored in Old Ye City now is enough to last for one or two years, even if it cannot last for three to five years, but he does not have that much time.

His Majesty's decree was urgent, and he only had one month to complete the task of pursuing the four kings of India, and then use the remaining three months to rush back to Chang'an so that he could report before the New Year.

Therefore, the Indians could delay time by relying on the strategy of fortifying their cities and clearing the countryside, but they were tightly bound by the rope of time.

In desperation, Qin Ruzhao could only order his troops to set up camp on the spot and wait for the arrival of the logistics troops.

He looked towards the direction of Old Ye City with some reluctance in his eyes.

It’s a pity that the Qianwu cannon was not brought here.

Otherwise, I must let these Indians see what the true power of the Tang Dynasty is, and let them know how tragic the consequences of provoking the Tang Dynasty will be!

The latest Qianwu cannon was so powerful that a single shot could bring down a solid city wall. With the Qianwu cannon in hand, conquering Old Ye City would be a piece of cake.

Three days later, Li Jingyou and his logistics team finally arrived at Qin Ruzhao's camp after a long journey.

Along the way, they rode non-stop, and both the people and the horses were exhausted to the extreme.

Seeing the fluttering "Qin" flag from afar, Li Jingyou's tense nerves instantly relaxed. He breathed a sigh of relief and secretly congratulated himself: "I finally didn't fall behind. I finally caught up."

Li Jingyou received the best education since childhood and was proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, painting, military strategy and tactics.

He has an elegant temperament and his eyes reveal a sense of intelligence.

However, this time when he joined the army to fight, it was the first time that he truly witnessed the cruelty of war.

Along the way, he witnessed too many deaths and the shock in his heart was beyond words.

Inside the big tent, Li Jingyou collapsed in a chair, exhausted. He picked up the food on the table and wolfed it down. As he ate, he said to Qin Ruzhao, "Brother Qin, you've been moving too fast. You've been charging ahead, and I've been trying my best to catch up with you."

The journey was so tiring that even His Royal Highness the Crown Prince felt exhausted.

Having witnessed too many deaths along the way, he was shocked at first, but as the number of corpses increased, his heart gradually became numb.

At this moment, Li Jingyou was only thinking about having a good meal and then a good sleep to completely eliminate the fatigue of the past few days.

When Qin Ruzhao heard what Li Jingyou said, he slowly shook his head with a serious expression.

"Your Highness, the tragic scenes you witnessed later were not caused by our Tang army."

Li Jingyou suddenly stopped stuffing food into his mouth. He was stunned for a moment, then put down the food in his hand, raised his head, and looked at Qin Ruzhao with a puzzled look.

"Brother Qin, what do you mean? If it wasn't us, could it be that the Indians themselves did it?"

Qin Ruzhao looked serious and nodded slowly, "Your Highness, it was the Indians themselves who did it."

"They adopted the strategy of fortifying the city and clearing the countryside in order to slow down our march and buy time."

"Your Majesty has issued a decree requiring me to bring you back to Chang'an safely before the end of the year. However, we only have one month left, and given the current situation, I'm afraid it will be difficult to complete the mission."

"If the Four Kings of Tianzhu are still not captured by then, Your Highness, you will return to Chang'an first."

Hearing this, Li Jingyou shook his head firmly.

"Brother Qin, this is my first time going out for training. If I don't capture the Four Kings of Tianzhu, how can I, the Crown Prince, have the dignity to return to Chang'an?"

Li Jingyou knew very well that this expedition was not only to complete the task assigned to him by his father, but also to prove his ability.

He longed to achieve great success in this war and win the respect of his soldiers and the love of the people.

Qin Ruzhao looked at Li Jingyou, his heart full of worry.

He had a terrible guess in his heart, but he hesitated, not knowing whether he should tell His Royal Highness the Crown Prince now.

If this speculation is true, the situation they face will be even more serious.

He was worried that Li Jingyou was young and energetic and would not be able to withstand the blow, which would affect the entire battle situation.

However, thinking that there was still a month left before the deadline, there was no need to rush. He secretly made up his mind that in a month, no matter what the situation was, he would send someone to safely return His Royal Highness the Crown Prince to Chang'an and never let His Majesty worry.