In the middle of the month, Li Xiao received an order to return to his post as governor of Shandong. At the same time, Hong Chengchou also received an order to return to Beijing to report on his duties.

This military action planned by the impatient emperor finally ended with both sides returning to their starting point. In addition to heavy casualties on both sides, no one gained an inch of land.

The acting commander-in-chief of Liaodong, Yuan Chonghuan, finally had his code removed from his head. Zhu Youjian issued an order, and Yuan Chonghuan officially became the commander-in-chief of Liaodong.

The defeat of the war forced Zhu Youjian to accept the fact that both sides stayed at the status quo.

After receiving the order, Li Xiao left Jinzhou and returned to Shandong by boat.

He is not worried about Jinzhou's defense. Jinzhou's city defense projects have not stopped in the past few years. There are also more than a dozen docks outside the city, forming a defense group with Jinzhou as the core. This kind of position is far from Liguan Town.

That kind of place can be compared. According to Yuan Chonghuan, if not thirty to fifty thousand Tatars died, they wouldn't even be able to touch a single brick of Jinzhou city.

When we landed in Dongying, it also started to snow in Shandong. It was not as cold as Liaodong, and the large snowflakes turned into water when they fell on the ground. The water soaked the soil and turned into mud. The weather was so wet and cold that it was indescribable.

It was uncomfortable. Walking on this muddy road, Li Xiao missed the coldness of Liaodong very much.

At least when it snows in Liaodong, the weather is extremely cold. The north wind blows on the face like a knife, and the ground is frozen as hard as stone. Snow will never turn into water when it falls to the ground.

The wheel sank into a pit again. The dirt road in Shandong is really nothing to say. A small pit is three meters long, and a big pit is five meters long. The pits are connected with pits, and pits are within pits. You have no objection to them anyway.

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The soldiers shouted slogans and pushed the cart out, but Li Xiao could only ride on the war horse. Riding on the horse and drinking the wind in the cold weather could freeze someone to death. Everyone put on yellow-green military coats, each coat was only made of cotton.

Weighing only eight pounds, it felt like there were two lumps of lead on my shoulders when I wore it.

The advantage of a thick military coat is that it resists wind. This thing is designed to deal with the cold winds in Liaodong. After the ears of the cotton hat are put down, the coldness in the Shandong Peninsula is nothing.

There were people in front who were filling the pit with rocks and other stuff. They were working in the cold weather, with their hats pinned to their belts. There was white steam coming out of their heads, and mud and water all over their bodies. Some of the tougher ones even wore their military coats.

It's easier to work if you take it off. Even so, the team can only move ten or eight miles a day. Fortunately, Shandong is a densely populated place, so the team will not sleep on the streets. Sleeping in the wild in this weather will be everyone's nightmare.

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"If we keep going like this, we might be able to go to Jinan during the Chinese New Year." The bad roads made Li Xiao very helpless.

"There is no way, we are carrying so much luggage. We can't get up quickly even if we want to!" Sun Chuanting, who was sent by Sun Chengzong to greet Li Xiao, said helplessly in frustration.

This time, Li Xiao brought two companies of new firearms, as well as a large amount of fixed ammunition.

There are a lot of people in Shandong, and there are also a lot of bandits. The land has been annexed year after year, and those who are not willing to be exploited by the landlords will naturally think of robbing. How high can you expect the people in a place where 108 Liangshan heroes have come from?

ideological consciousness?

There is a big difference between the bandits in Shandong and the bandits in Guanzhong. Because it is close to the sea, it has a certain source of weapons. Weapons smuggling is very common in these days, and the sea is full of smuggling boats. The biggest smuggler Chen Hailong was killed.

, there are a large number of small smugglers popping up in various places, and with Li Xiu's few boats, even if they are exhausted, they still can't catch them.

Among the smuggled items, matchlock guns from Japan have always been in demand. Their practicality is much better than the expensive Japanese swords.

The bandits in Linhai, Shandong Province, who had a little money in their hands, wanted to buy a few matchlock guns to show off their appearance. Since the time when Chen Hailong ruled Shandong, weapons smuggling has not stopped. In addition, the generals of the Ming Dynasty often sell some gunpowder privately.

The proliferation of matchlocks has become an inevitable trend. So much so that the bandits are too embarrassed to go out without a few matchlocks to show off their appearance.

In terms of weapons modernization, they are already far ahead of their counterparts making noise in Zhongnan Mountain.

Then there is the courage. After all, they have been to the Liangshan Mountains in Shuibo. After the bandits in Shandong have realized some hot weapons, they are not ordinary courageous. If there are not enough people to escort them, the food and fodder of the officers and soldiers will often be robbed.

The military households in the local area have been decayed for many years, and they cannot even match the fighting strength of the bandits.

Taking advantage of the chaotic period when Li Xiao took office, military camps in several places were robbed. In addition to knives and guns, gunpowder was the bandits' favorite thing.

When Li Xiao and his men fought against Dorgon at Dahu Mountain in Montenegro, Ao Canghai was not idle either. He led his men to sweep around, and at least now there are no bandits within a hundred miles of Jinan City. So far,

Ao Canghai's military strength can ensure social security in this hundred-mile area.

There is no way, the bandits in Shandong are not only tough, but also very cunning. It really means that when the enemy advances, we retreat, when the enemy retreats, we advance, when the enemy is tired, we harass, when the enemy is trapped, we attack. As long as Ao Canghai leads his men out, the bandits will definitely

Hiding far away in the mountains.

Ao Canghai retreated after a round of sweeps with no results, and these guys came back to fight again. Not only that, there were often traps and ropes on the road. As for trivial matters at night, villagers stealing things from the army was commonplace. Those who are brave

Sometimes, he even dared to sneak attack the sentry.

When Ao Canghai was furious to death, these guys went back into the mountains and disappeared. After all, the bandits were all natives and were extremely familiar with the terrain. Ao Canghai and the others were the standard foreign population.

After continuous battles, the soldiers were exhausted. These guys came out of the mountains to shoot black guns, which made Ao Canghai lose his temper at all.

Li Xiao could only forcefully pluck the latest production equipment of the two companies from Yuan Chonghuan's hands. The priority equipment was given to Ao Canghai. After the Battle of Dahu Mountain in Montenegro, Liaodong should stop for a while.

"That has to be done as soon as possible. Shandong's top priority now is to suppress bandits. If the bandits are not suppressed, living and working in peace and contentment will be a joke." Li Xiao looked at the dark team and shook his head helplessly.

In Li Xiao's eyes, Shandong was simply in ruins, with shabby officialdom, numb villagers, greedy landlords, and bandits who committed all kinds of evil and specialized in robbery.

No wonder Zhu Youjian repeatedly said that he must take good care of Shandong. This damn mess is a mess, a mess that couldn't be worse.

The two people were talking when suddenly several cavalrymen came running up on the official road. When they were a hundred or ten meters away from Li Xiao, they were stopped by the soldiers. After a while, Roasted Chicken handed Li Xiao a letter with a lacquered letter.

Li Xiao.
Chapter completed!