My daughter was sold, I want to divorce her and go back to my parents' home to escape the famin

255. Support has arrived to raid the herdsmen

The scene inside the Duke of Protectorate's Mansion was busy and orderly, however, the situation outside the mansion was quietly changing.

In the south city, the herdsmen outside the city finally launched a small-scale attack, but they were all stopped by Gu Jinxuan.

But the herdsmen's small actions completely angered Gu Jinxuan. He led a team of people to kill the herdsmen who attacked the village outside Nancheng, and then hung the bodies at the border to dry in the sun, trying to intimidate the herdsmen.

At the same time, the second batch of food sent by Lin Qingxue and others was almost eaten up, and the third batch of food had to be sent to the imperial city as soon as possible.

In the military camp outside Nancheng, Gu Jinxuan sat on the main seat looking at the topographic map, while Wen Bo and Wen Su stood guard beside him.

"Wen Wen, when will the letter to the imperial city be delivered?" Gu Jinxuan rubbed his nose and said, his tone sounding a little nervous.

"Master, even if we gallop to the Imperial City, it will take at least five days. Add to that the preparations for the Imperial City to transport food, and the journey through mountains and rivers to reach the South City. It will take at least forty to fifty days."

Wen Du calculated the time briefly before saying that this was already the fastest time. You have to know that the road is long and there are many bandits blocking the way and robbing people. Anything can happen.

"Wensu, how long can the food in Nancheng last?" Gu Jinxuan nodded slightly, turned to look at Wensu next to him and asked.

"Master, if we save a little, we can eat for three months. This includes the grain grown in the villages near South City. Those villagers don't need our support, and most of the wealthy merchants in the city have food in stock. This should be enough for at least a month! The food is mainly supplied to the soldiers in the barracks, the guards of the City Lord's Mansion, and some of the civilians in the city."

Wen Su thought for a moment before speaking. What he didn't say was that if the people were unwilling to give up their own food, or if they didn't eat sparingly, they could only last for a month at most.

"I understand. You go and handle this matter and hold on for a while as soon as possible," Gu Jinxuan nodded slightly. He was not panicked, but he was annoyed because the herdsmen came every now and then to show their presence, which made him feel very annoyed.

However, Gu Jinxuan had no way to catch all the herdsmen every now and then.

The herdsmen are nomads on the grassland. They run around everywhere and stop to set up camp wherever they find suitable. It is difficult for them to find places where the villagers and herdsmen are attacked.

Lin Qingxue, who was far away in the imperial city, had no idea about Gu Jinxuan's headache in Nancheng. After receiving Gu Jinxuan's letter, she immediately went to find the Duke of Protectorate and Gu Jinyu to discuss countermeasures.

When Lin Qingxue rushed to the study of the Duke of Protector's Mansion, the Duke of Protector and Gu Jinyu were discussing important matters in the study. The aroma of tea was wafting in the air, but the two of them had frowns on their faces, and the atmosphere was solemn.

Seeing Lin Qingxue come in, Gu Jinyu immediately stood up to greet her, her eyes full of concern: "Sister-in-law, is there another incident in South City?"

Lin Qingxue's face was solemn as she handed over Gu Jinxuan's letter. "Jinxuan said in the letter that the second batch of food could last less than two months, but transporting the third batch would take at least 40 to 50 days. Furthermore, the route is full of dangers due to the rampant bandits. Now, the herdsmen are frequently harassing us, and the situation in Nancheng is critical."

The Duke of the Protectorate took the letter, glanced through it quickly, and sighed heavily, "What should we do? Food is of paramount importance and must not be cut off. But how can we guarantee our safety along the way?"

Gu Jinyu pondered for a moment and said, "Father, I think we can split into two teams. The first team will go ahead and deal with the bandits along the way, and the second team will be responsible for transporting the food. With the first team in front, I think the second team will be much safer."

Lin Qingxue nodded slightly and added, "Jinyu's idea is fine. How about this! I'll ride ahead with Huaiyuan, Xiaotao, and twenty secret guards. Jinyu and the Second Prince will escort the grain behind us. Father, please keep an eye on the Firearms Department. Jinyu will assign people to the escort agency and the granary."

"No," Gu Jinyu shook her head and said, "Sister-in-law, you don't have to go this time. Stay in the Imperial City! I'll take Huaiyuan and the secret guards and leave first. Let the Second Prince take Xiaotao and follow behind to transport the food. Sister-in-law, we can't all leave the Imperial City. The Firearms Department is at a critical juncture."

After hearing what Gu Jinyu said, the Duke of Protectorate thought for a moment and concluded that his youngest son was right. He said seriously, "The eldest son's wife should stay at the mansion! Second son, you take a batch of pistols and black lumps from the Firearms Department. The remaining pistols and black lumps can be taken to the South City by the Second Prince. His safety along the way will be guaranteed."

Seeing that Gu Jinyu and the Duke of Huguo did not agree with her going, Lin Qingxue did not force her. It was not that she had to go, but she suggested it because she was worried that they did not have enough manpower.

"Okay, then I'll stay in the Imperial City. Don't worry, Jinyu. I'll be in charge of the Firearms Department, the Escort Agency, and the Granary. They'll be the same as they were before you left."

Lin Qingxue responded with a smile, her tone was very serious, and Gu Jinyu and the Duke of Huguo also believed her.

The Duke of Huguo nodded in agreement. "Very good, my eldest daughter-in-law, I'll leave these to you. Jinyu, prepare your men and horses immediately and set off for Nancheng at any time. As for the Second Prince, you must ensure that the grain transportation goes smoothly."

"Yes, father," Gu Jinyu responded seriously, and then he took the order and left.

After leaving the Duke of Protectorate's Mansion, Gu Jinyu went to discuss the grain transportation with the Second Prince, and the Duke of Protectorate went to the palace to talk to the Emperor about Gu Jinxuan's letter.

After Gu Jinyu discussed with the Second Prince, he went to the Firearms Department to get thirty pistols, some bullets, and two hundred black pills, and then returned to the palace.

Gu Jinyu selected twenty secret guards from the Gu family's secret guard camp and called Gu Huaiyuan. He gave each of them a pistol and a large amount of bullets, and also gave each of them six black bullets. He went to the camp outside the city to collect twenty-two war horses.

After everything was ready, Gu Jinyu waited for news from Lin Qingxue, and then set off for South City.

As for the Second Prince, after seeing Gu Jinyu off, he went to the escort agency and asked for a hundred escorts. He also brought twenty secret guards with him and called Lin Xiaotao. The group went to the granary in a mighty manner.

After this period of food preparation, seven of the ten warehouses of the granary were filled. This time, the second prince took the food from five warehouses, loaded it on the carriages and iron carts developed by the Firearms Department, and prepared to send it to the imperial city.

As for Lin Qingxue, she went to the warehouse of the Firearms Department to check the number of pistols and black lumps, kept one-fifth, and loaded the rest into boxes in the truck bed and had someone send them to the Second Prince.

Immediately afterwards, Lin Qingxue asked Wen Nuan to send a letter to Gu Jinyu, telling her that they could set off.

After receiving Lin Qingxue's confirmation, Gu Jinyu set off towards South City with the secret guards and Gu Huaiyuan.

Gu Jinyu walked for a day, and the second prince was also ready to set off. With Gu Jinyu and his group leading the way, he believed that they would reach South City smoothly.

At the same time, a whole month had passed in Nancheng, and Gu Jinxuan still hadn't figured out a way to deal with those herdsmen.

In the military camp, Gu Jinxuan was still worried about the problem of the herders. He knew very well that simple deterrence could not completely solve the problem. He had to find the herders' lair and deal them a heavy blow.

"Wen Du, Wen Su, we can't stay passive like this any longer. Go find more local people, especially those who are familiar with the grassland terrain. We need to draw a detailed map of the grassland and find the herders' strongholds."

Gu Jinxuan said with a firm look in his eyes that he had to vent the anger in his heart. This was not done rashly or impulsively, but was the result of careful consideration.

Gu Jinxuan didn't want to stay in Nancheng all the time. He missed his wife and children in the imperial city. He wanted to go back as soon as possible, otherwise the twins would really not recognize him as their father.

Wen Wen and Wen Su took the order and left. A few days later, they brought an old man over 70 years old. The old man was named Amur. He was a native of the grassland and knew every inch of the grassland like the back of his hand.

"General, I heard that you are looking for the herdsmen's stronghold. I am willing to help. Those people are doing evil things on the grassland, and we ordinary people have suffered greatly from them." Amur's voice was hoarse, but his eyes were firm.

Gu Jinxuan quickly stood up to greet him. "Old man, thank you for your help. Do you know where the herdsmen who attacked us are mainly gathered?"

Amur slowly sat down, picked up a branch, and began to draw on the ground. "General, look, this area is rich in water and grass. Most herders like to set up camp near here. There is a valley here in particular. The terrain is dangerous and easy to defend but difficult to attack. It is an important stronghold for them."

Gu Jinxuan looked at the sketch on the ground and gradually formed a plan in his mind. However, he knew that this operation was full of dangers and the entire army could be wiped out if he was not careful.

But for the peace of South City, he had to take a risk. He had confidence in himself and his soldiers.

Gu Jinxuan carefully looked at the sketch drawn by Amur on the ground, and kept deducing the attack plan in his mind.

He was well aware of the difficulty of the mission. Not only did he have to deal with the complex terrain of the grasslands and the valleys that were easy to defend but difficult to attack, but he also had to be wary of the herdsmen's elusive guerrilla tactics.

But he had no intention of backing down and was determined to teach these herdsmen who had harassed him a severe lesson.

"Temperature, immediately select three hundred elite soldiers. They must be strong, experienced, and familiar with mounted combat. Also, prepare plenty of dry food and water. Remember to bring some black lumps; they might prove effective in a critical moment."

"Wensu, lead a team of men to patrol the villages outside the city. If you encounter any herdsmen, kill them on the spot. No need to leave them alive."

Gu Jinxuan arranged the tasks in an orderly manner. Wen Dou and Wen Su were sent out to carry out the tasks. As for himself, he naturally stayed in the military camp.

"Yes, General!" After receiving the order, Wen Wen and Wen Su quickly turned around and left to carry out their respective tasks.

Gu Jinxuan looked at Amur again and said respectfully, "Old man, we still need you to lead the way for us this time. I wonder if you can handle it?"

Amur straightened his back and said with a hearty smile, "Don't worry, General. Although I'm old, I can walk on the grassland with my eyes closed. I'm willing to sacrifice my life to help eliminate these evils!"

Although Amur is also a herdsman, he is different from the Heping faction and those herdsmen who burn, kill and loot. His grandfather's generation was accepted by the villagers, and then the whole family moved to the village to live.

"Thank you very much," Gu Jinxuan bowed solemnly to the old man and expressed his gratitude.

Amur sat for a while and then was taken away by Wen De. He still needed Amur to bring a saw to them!

On the way to transport grain, Gu Jinyu and the Second Prince's teams were moving forward cautiously, one in front and the other behind. Although Gu Jinyu and his team were leading the way, the Second Prince and his team still did not dare to be careless.

Along the way, they encountered harassment from several groups of bandits, but they were easily repelled by Gu Jinyu and the secret guards.

When pistols and black lumps were of no use, those bandits were not martial arts masters, so there was no point in using a butcher knife to kill a chicken.

In the grain transport team, Lin Xiaotao was riding on horseback, looking ahead with concentration. Next to him was the second prince who was also riding on horseback.

"Second Prince, we will reach South City in a few days. I hope everything goes well for Prince Gu," Lin Xiaotao said with a smile.

The Second Prince nodded. "Yes, this grain transport mission is extremely important and must not go wrong. With my second cousin here, I feel much more at ease."

"Second Prince, Nancheng is just around the corner. We must be vigilant and not let anything go wrong at this moment."

Lin Xiaotao said with a serious face that he had been traveling all the way and encountered many robbery teams of all sizes, but most of what he saw were the corpses of those people. They were all dealt with by Gu Jinyu and his group who were walking in front of them.

"That's right," the second prince nodded and called the secret guards to make everyone more vigilant.

Fortunately, their luck was pretty good. Until the grain transport team entered the south city, they did not encounter any robbers or bandits.

After handing over the food to the Lord of Nancheng, the Second Prince and his companions rested in Nancheng for two days, and then returned to the Imperial City with Gu Jinyu and his party.

It's too dangerous outside, the imperial city is safer. This time, no one had time to bring the gadgets back from the South City.

On the other side, Wen Wen was ready for everything. He led 300 elite soldiers to form an orderly formation. Everyone had a determined look in their eyes and high morale. Led by Amur, they came out of the barracks and headed towards their destination - the valley.

Wen Wen, riding a sturdy black horse, gave a pre-battle mobilization speech in front of the team: "Brothers, we have been on the defensive and suffered from harassment from the herdsmen. Today, we will take the initiative to attack and let them know that we are not to be trifled with! For the peace of South City and for our families, kill!"

"Kill! Kill! Kill!" The deafening shouts of killing gushed out of the soldiers' throats like a raging torrent, resounding through the sky, as if it was about to break through the sky.

The passionate shouts echoed in the air for a long time, startling a group of birds that were originally perched on the branches.

They were frightened by the sudden noise, flapping their wings, screaming and flying away into the distance, disappearing into the horizon.

The team marched towards the grassland in a mighty manner. Along the way, Amur, relying on his familiarity with the terrain, led everyone to avoid many potential dangers.

When they approached the herdsmen's stronghold, Gu Jinxuan ordered the team to stop and sent several scouts to investigate the situation.

The scouts came back and reported that there were indeed a large number of herdsmen stationed in the valley. They seemed to have sensed the danger and increased their vigilance. The entrance to the valley was heavily guarded, and lookouts were also set up on the hillsides on both sides.