Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 232 Bicycle Blitz
"Brother Zihou~"

Li Erfeng looked at the red egg in her hand with a puzzled expression. "This is...?"

"We've got a baby, let's celebrate!" Lin Dao, carrying a basket, distributed "Renrenxi" (a type of herbal drink) to everyone.

Everyone was shocked.

This is a divine being; even divine beings have children?

"Congratulations!" Li Erfeng was the first to recover. "To ward off disaster and evil spirits!"

He beamed with joy, “My son Chengqian was born last year. After we return to Chang’an, I will definitely host a banquet to invite Brother Zihou to see what his physique is like.”

Lin Dao laughed at these words.

It's not like I'm cultivating immortality, so where would I get this "natural talent" from?

Besides, history books clearly describe what Li Chengqian was like.

With a father like you around, being your son, especially your crown prince, is something only a mentally ill person could handle.

After Li Erfeng became emperor, she could no longer go to the battlefield.

They used all the tricks and cunning they had on the battlefield on the Crown Prince.

Lin Dao smiled without saying a word, and his smile was also strange.

Seeing Li Erfeng made him uneasy.

He also wanted to ask, "Where is your child?"

The generals stepped forward, took the red eggs, and offered their congratulations.

They were all very skilled, which eased Li Erfeng's embarrassment.

The custom of giving red eggs is not from abroad; it existed as early as the Jin Dynasty.

It certainly existed during the Sui and Tang dynasties as well.

Amidst laughter and cheerful chatter, Wang Junkuo, who was on duty outside, rushed in.

"King Qin!"

“A man claiming to be the deputy envoy of the Duke of Song came looking for us.”

"The Duke of Song?" Li Erfeng frowned. "Minister Xiao has gone on a mission to Dou Jiande. Could something have happened to him?"

The deputy envoy was brought in and hurriedly began to report, recounting how Li Shentong and the others had been captured and taken back.

Something really did happen.

Li Shentong and Princess Tong'an were not saved, and Xiao Yu was even killed in the process.

All the generals were furious.

Various accusations and insults came one after another.

Dou Jiande's entire family, clan, and even ancestors received warm greetings.

Li Erfeng wept bitterly, stamping her feet and pounding her chest, displaying...
Quite excited.

Lin Dao, standing to the side, watched him silently.

He noticed that Li Erfeng had a wide range of facial expressions, but her eyes seemed to have little movement.

It's the kind of expression that keeps changing on your face, and even tears are streaming down your face.

But his eyes remained calm and still, and he was even looking at the red egg in his hand.

Lin Dao took out paper and pen and wrote it down.

"Uncle~~~"

"Aunt~~~"

After shouting passionately for a while, Li Erfeng raised her hand and wiped away her tears.

With a fierce expression and a glint of malice in his eyes, he shouted, "Dou Jiande! Utterly shameless!"

"A person who breaks their word is a true villain!"

"We will avenge this!"

The generals shouted and yelled for revenge.

Lin Dao, who had been watching from the sidelines, finally spoke up, "When will we send out troops?"

The shouting stopped abruptly, and everyone looked over.

"Since we want revenge and to rescue the hostages, we must send troops as soon as possible, the sooner the better."

Lin Dao put away his pen and paper. "The location is clear. Head straight to Mingzhou."

"Brother Zihou."

Li Erfeng gave an awkward laugh, "Such an important matter requires us to return to Chang'an first and listen to Father Emperor's decision."

Li Shiji added, "Dou Jiande has 200,000 troops, and his fighting strength is not bad. We should take a long-term view."

The other generals also spoke up, expressing various difficulties.

Overall, Dou Jiande's territory and strength far exceeded those of Wang Shichong.

Going to war with such a powerful force requires careful consideration.

Lin Dao ignored everyone else and focused only on Li Erfeng.

"You do not dare?"

One sentence was enough to break Li Erfeng's defenses.

He suddenly sprang to his feet, his face flushed.

If it were someone else, they probably would have started a fight on the spot.

"Why don't you dare!"

He is indeed shrewd, but he is only twenty-one years old and not as composed as he will be a few years later.

"Since you dare to do it, then send troops to attack Dou Jiande."

Lin Dao said with certainty, "You will win."

Historically, Dou Jiande's defeat was strategically due to his abandonment of Ling Jing's sound advice and his initiative to launch a decisive battle.

Tactically, they underestimated the small number of Tang troops, believing that a mere few thousand Tang cavalrymen were not a threat.

As a result, they were completely overwhelmed by Li Shimin's fierce charge.

Even more outrageous, Dou Jiande himself was captured alive, leading to the collapse and disintegration of his entire power.

This battle also gave rise to a famous saying.

'Li Shimin wields a bow, Yuchi Jingde wields a spear; who in the world can stand against them?'

The victory in this battle had a certain element of chance and chance.

The situation is different now; directly confronting Hebei head-on would be extremely difficult.

Lin Dao's words stirred Li Erfeng's heart slightly. "Brother Zihou, are you willing to help me?"

"can."

It's only the third year of the Wude era, and Xuanwu Gate will have to wait another six or seven years.

Let alone fighting the Turks, the Tibetans, the Western Regions, or India, we haven't even conquered Hebei and Jiangnan yet.

Lin Dao didn't have that much time to wait.

Li Erfeng asked again, "Brother Zihou, how can you help me?"

In front of Lin Dao, he never spoke of being alone, thus revealing his status and position.

Instead, address each other as equals, showing sufficient respect.

All for the sake of obtaining the help of this divine being.

"How many troops do you think would be needed for a surprise attack on Mingzhou?" Lin Dao countered.

Li Erfeng fell into deep thought.

After a moment, he raised his head and said, "At least ten thousand elite troops."

A raid of a thousand miles cannot be accomplished without elite troops.

Moreover, considering the garrison in Mingzhou and its vicinity, there must be at least 10,000 troops.

Li Daoxuan added, "It can't all be cavalry; we also need elite soldiers, otherwise it will be difficult to attack a city."

Li Shiji chimed in, "Not everyone can ride a horse, and it's difficult for infantry to carry heavy loads for a thousand miles." Feng Deyi added, "Even if we don't bring laborers, we still need military supplies and provisions."

Tens of thousands of troops, carrying heavy military supplies and provisions, marched thousands of miles to attack the fortified city.

This isn't a surprise attack; it's a rapid suicide mission.

"If Dou Jiande defends the city," Li Junxian said with a troubled expression, "the Xia army will surround it from all sides, and the city will be trapped..."

But then the entire army would be wiped out.

"If Young Master Lin lends a hand, the city will surely fall."

Cheng Zhijie and the others all glanced at Li Junxian.

Li Junxian suddenly realized that he had forgotten how Luoyang had fallen.

With that massive iron hammer there, no city could withstand it.

"Marching, logistics, breaching the city."

Lin Dao concluded, "I will solve these three problems. Do you dare to go?"

Just as Li Erfeng opened her mouth to speak, Li Yuanji jumped out and shouted, "Second brother, this is clearly going to our deaths!"

The statement cannot be said to be wrong.

Traveling thousands of miles to raid the stronghold of a powerful enemy is indeed too risky.

Under normal circumstances, Li Erfeng wouldn't have gone.

Yes~
"you shut up!"

Li Erfeng scolded, "Don't say another word."

With Lin Daozai present, who had performed miracles, Li Erfeng's confidence swelled rapidly.

The most important regions in the north are Guanzhong, the Central Plains, and Hebei.

Now that she has the chance to eat it all in one go, Li Erfeng is willing to take the risk.

Li Yuanji was not convinced and wanted to say something more.

Fortunately, Li Daoxuan quickly came over and pulled him away, instructing him not to speak recklessly in the army and to obey the commander's orders.

Li Yuanji was furious and made a mental note of it.

Lin Dao brought over a large number of bicycles from the modern world.

"The official road from Luoyang to Mingzhou should be navigable by bicycle."

“Heavy infantrymen who can’t ride horses can ride this.”

"This is much simpler than learning to ride a horse."

Li Erfeng, who had fallen several times while riding it herself, was overjoyed. "Good stuff! I'll organize people to learn it right away!"

Learning to ride a bicycle can take as little as ten minutes to an hour if you're fast.

If it's slow, three to five days is fine.

The main thing is not being afraid of falling; then you'll learn quickly and master your balance.

The burly men from Guanzhong under Li Erfeng's command, with their height and long legs, could basically learn how to do it after a few falls.

Furthermore, Lin Dao also added baskets to the front and back of these bicycles to hold military equipment and supplies, and they could also be used as seats when needed.

More time is spent learning how to perform simple repairs, replace parts, and reassemble a broken chain, among other routine maintenance tasks.

He originally wanted to order a batch of 28-inch bicycles, but the new ones cost several hundred yuan.

At such a high price, it would be better to renovate those abandoned shared bicycles.

"King Qin."

Yuwen Shiji came over and reported to Li Erfeng, who was riding a bicycle.

"People from Chang'an have arrived. They are from the Eastern Palace, Consort Yin, and Consort Zhang."

Li Erfeng frowned. "What brings you here?"

"Land grabbing".

"They came with an imperial edict."

Li Erfeng was very dissatisfied with this.

The land that the soldiers had just conquered was immediately coveted by the powerful and wealthy of Chang'an.

This is not a good thing!
Turning his head, he saw Lin Dao not far away, who had taken out a book and pen and was writing and drawing.

He pedaled his bike over and asked, "Brother Zihou, what are you doing?"

"Record."

"Give a score".

Having finished recording, Lin Dao put away his paper and pen. "When should we send out troops?"

"tomorrow."

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking.

The blitzkrieg in Mingzhou has officially begun.

Nearly four thousand cavalrymen, each with two or even three horses, set off first.

Following closely behind were five or six thousand elite infantrymen.

They followed along, riding bicycles with their front and rear baskets strapped with packed military equipment and supplies.

The departure was very crowded, and the bicycle bells kept ringing, making it quite a lively scene.

At the beginning, the cavalry was fast and left the bicycle troops far behind.

But at noon, the cavalrymen began to rest and feed their horses.

The subsequent bicycle teams gradually caught up.

They carried dry food and water bottles, eating and drinking as they rode.

The sound of tires rolling over the road was continuous.

On their first day of camping by the river, the cavalry and bicycle units were surprisingly at almost the same speed.

Li Erfeng's eyes were shining.

"This is wonderful!"

As a general and commander-in-chief, he had a great fondness for bicycles.

Unlike horses, they are not delicate.

When feeding them bean cakes and grass, you have to add salt and eggs.

Most of the water in the cavalrymen's water bags was actually given to the horses.

If you get even a minor illness on the road, it'll be another whole mess of trouble.

Bicycles don't have these problems.

As long as you have the strength, just keep using the stirrups.

Strength is something you can regain the next day after eating and sleeping.

Of course, some were damaged along the way.

I had learned basic repair skills before, so I could fix what I could.

If it really couldn't be repaired, as Lin Dao instructed, we just threw it away and got into our companion's car to leave.

It's just that nobody can bear to throw them away.

Li Erfeng then saw the soldiers carrying bicycles all the way to the camp.

When they arrived at the campsite, Lin Dao took stock and provided them with new vehicles and spare parts.

After the meal, the cavalrymen continued to tend to their horses.

Tang Jun, from the bicycle unit, was not in a hurry to rest either.

Instead, they worked one by one, inflating the tires and performing inspections and maintenance.

Overjoyed, Li Erfeng looked towards the riverbank not far away, where Lin Dao was directing people to install a pontoon bridge.

"Brother Zihou, just how many more good things do you have up your sleeve?"

(End of this chapter)