We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

oil!

In ancient times, this thing should be called fierce fire oil.

Aside from the fact that it breeds mold, this energy source has no drawbacks. Of course, there is no "mold" in this world.

This thing has so many uses that the development of modern industry cannot do without it, and it is called the "blood of industry."

There is also oil in Northeast China, but it is located relatively far to the north. The closest one to Shanhaiguan should be the Liaohe Oilfield.

The farthest Daqing Oilfield is the largest oilfield in China, with an astonishing storage capacity.

Although there is oil in his territory, it cannot be mined for the time being. In this situation, these barrels of oil are extremely valuable.

"Put it away and place it separately. Never let it come into contact with open flames." Li Che instructed Qiu Bai.

Qiu Bai asked curiously, "Your Highness, what is this?"

"Once kerosene starts, it can't be extinguished. It can even burn in water. It must be stored properly."

Upon hearing this, Qiu Bai nodded repeatedly.

Wow, it can even burn in water. Is this seemingly insignificant thing so terrifying?

These barrels of oil were the final surprise; there was nothing else of note in the cave.

Li Che felt a little depressed in the cave, so he asked Qian Bin and other officials to record the transportation, while he went up with Hu Qiang, Qiu Bai and others.

As soon as I walked out of the cave, I suddenly heard shouts and screams coming from outside the village.

Li Che frowned: "What's going on?"

A personal guard hurried over and said, "Your Highness, we have discovered a hidden camp with remnants of the enemy still holding out."

A cunning rabbit has three burrows, and the same goes for bandits.

Hutou Mountain is Fan Chong’s base camp. In addition to the inner and outer camps, there is also a secret camp hidden inside the mountain.

If Wang Sanchun and others had not taken advantage of the fact that the village gate was not closed and launched a surprise attack, it would have been much more difficult to capture the village.

"Come on, take me to see it." Li Che said.

This secret village is located under a huge rock, with stone walls on both sides, only enough space for one person to pass through.

When Li Che arrived, several soldiers were rushing in with swords and shields in hand.

However, it was difficult to break in for a while because the bandits inside kept stabbing out with spears.

Seeing this, Li Che waved to Wang Laosi and said, "What is this place?"

Even though Fan Chong is dead, these remaining bandits still dare to resist, which shows that this secret stronghold is not simple.

"I don't know." Wang Laosi shook his head. "Hutouzhai is Fan Chong's territory. The leaders of other mountains can go to the hall for meetings and are not allowed to enter other places."

Li Che nodded, and saw that there were bandits in the secret camp still peeking out, and he immediately felt impatient.

"Okay, let them all retreat." Li Che ordered, "Then go and transport those light crossbows over."

If you can’t get in, then don’t fight.

I just got a new weapon, so I’m going to use it to test its power.

Soon, two hundred light crossbows were neatly placed in front of Li Che.

"Let each of you brothers take one." Li Che called to Qiu Bai.

The only ones Li Che could call "brothers" were naturally the fifty personal guards.

From the kidnapping of officials in the imperial capital to the bloody battle on the mountain road just now, these fifty people have been working by Li Che's side and are the group of people Li Che trusts the most.

Fifty guards stepped forward, one of them picked up a light crossbow and played with it curiously.

Li Che did not urge them, but would step forward from time to time to give instructions on their positions, until all fifty people were ready, and fifty light crossbows were aimed at the dark camp.

Li Che's mouth curled up into an arc, and he ordered: "Release!"

Whoosh whoosh—

Fifty crossbow arrows shot towards the dark camp like locusts, wood chips flew everywhere and screams were heard.

After a round of volleys, a cry for mercy was heard from the dark camp:

"Stop shooting, we surrender!"

Before Li Che could give any more orders, the door of the secret camp was pushed open from the inside.

Three bandits came out trembling, with crossbow arrows stuck in their bodies.

"Just the three of you?" Li Che raised his eyebrows.

"The rest were shot dead." Someone replied timidly.

In this kind of close-range street fighting, the light crossbow is still very powerful. If it fires a volley over a small area, even the strongest general will be turned into a sieve.

"Qiubai, take someone in to take a look."

Qiu Bai accepted the order and walked into the secret camp with several personal guards.

After a while, he walked out with a sullen face.

"What's wrong? What's inside?" Li Che asked.

Qiu Bai glared at the three bandits, then said, "Your Highness...why don't you go in and take a look yourself?"

Li Che looked at Qiu Bai doubtfully. From what he knew about Qiu Bai, he knew he was not the type of person who liked to keep people in suspense.

The fact that he could say that meant that the things inside were truly extraordinary.

Li Che raised his leg and walked towards the dark camp, and the others hurriedly followed.

The light in the village was dim and the air was polluted.

When Li Che stepped in, he saw the bodies of bandits all over the ground, all shot to death by crossbows.

Behind the corpses were a group of disheveled...women?

Li Che couldn't be sure, so he walked closer to take a look, and suddenly his expression became extremely ugly.

The women were tied to chains, naked, and some were lying on the ground motionless, lifeless.

Most of these women were pale and thin, and their bodies were dirty, with their skin covered in a mixture of dirt and unspeakable liquid.

Among them were several women with big bellies who looked like they were about to give birth.

When they saw someone approaching, these women did not react at all. They just stared blankly ahead, their empty eyes seemed to have lost focus.

Some people even instinctively spread their legs, as if they had long been accustomed to the manipulation of fate.

Obviously, these women were the bandits' sexual objects.

Seeing this scene, Li Che's body began to tremble slightly.

The next second, he suddenly turned around and rushed towards the three people kneeling outside.

"Fuck you, we're all poor people, and you're so mean to me, you bastard!"

Li Che kicked down the bandit closest to him, then squatted on him and raised his fist.

He punched the bandit in the face, breaking his nose and causing blood to flow from his mouth and nose, but he showed no sign of stopping.

Li Che could accept that the bandits could not make a living and had to rob houses, after all, people are selfish.

But he couldn't accept it. They were born into the same miserable family, but these beasts were wantonly exploiting their last bit of dignity.

Everyone stared at the somewhat crazy Li Che in amazement, and no one dared to step forward to stop him.

Finally, Qiu Bai hesitated for a moment, stepped forward and asked softly, "Your Highness."

Li Che turned his head suddenly, his eyes like a bloodthirsty beast.

Qiu Bai swallowed silently:

"Your Highness, why don't you take a break... and let me fight for you?"