(Easter egg at the end of the chapter, floor plan of Tianma Castle!)
On May 11th, the sun rises high.
Zhao Yanxun arrived at Tianma Fort, where a large number of troops were already stationed.
Excluding the troops responsible for food escort and various logistics work, the number of troops that can be directly used in combat has reached two thousand.
When these two thousand soldiers were mobilized from various places to Tianma Fort, they also cleared out the zombies they encountered along the way, further reducing the density of zombies in Yuanyang Mansion.
As the soldiers garrisoned, it was definitely unrealistic to move them all into Tianma Fort, so Zhao Yanxun divided the army into three groups and placed them in three directions north of Tianma Fort.
Tianma Fort serves as a transfer station for large quantities of grain and grass. All military rations are stored here and supplied to the front line.
The three armies were led by Fang Sheng and Wang Cheng, two Qianhu, and Gao Zhengan, the deputy Qianhu.
Among their three groups, Fang Sheng's group who went forward the most was only twenty miles away from Tianma Castle.
At this moment, accompanied by Qin Hao and officials from the Treasury Management Office, Zhao Yanxun walked into the gate of Tianma Fort.
At the rear, there were more than a hundred guards led by Chen Yuhe. They did not follow him into the fort because Zhao Yanxun would go to the front line soon.
As for the inside of the fort, after several months of renovation, the ruins of Tianma Fort have been completely removed, and the interior has been completely renewed.
Seeing Zhao Yanxun come in, the soldiers guarding inside shouted to pay homage: "See you, Your Majesty!"
"Everyone get up!"
After the soldiers stood up, they all looked at Zhao Yanxun with reverence, and the enthusiasm in their eyes could not be suppressed.
Standing at the south gate of Tianma Castle and looking north, you will see two rows of houses.
The building of the house looks rough, and the building materials are logs with a diameter of more than ten centimeters, built with a simple mortise and tenon structure.
These houses have piles driven underneath and raised about one meter, obviously to prevent moisture.
There is no doubt that the six large houses in front are the converted grain depots.
Stepping forward, Zhao Yanxun came to the outside of a grain warehouse. There were four soldiers holding handles up and down the steps.
"See you, my lord!"
After waving his hand to signal the four people to get up, Zhao Yanxun said calmly: "Open the door!"
The door opened naturally, Zhao Yanxun stepped up the steps and saw clearly what was going on inside.
Inside the grain depot, there are all grains in sacks, and the bags are stacked very neatly.
Packing in sacks makes it easier to allocate grain, and sacks can also be reused.
Zhao Yanxun entered the grain warehouse, and Qin Hao and officials from the warehouse management office also followed.
"Are there detailed records of food entering and exiting every day?"
Standing behind Zhao Yanxun, Zhang Yang carefully replied: "Report to Your Highness, everything is recorded in detail, and the situation is summarized every night!"
Half a month ago, Zhang Yang was a clerk in a warehouse in Yuanyang.
After the Tianmapu Grain Depot was built, the Warehouse Management Office appointed Warehouse Ambassadors to subordinate officials, and dozens of people self-recommended themselves to apply.
The reason why Zhang Yang stands out is not only because of his own ability, but also because his boss Chen Hanzhi also helped a lot.
The Chen family was the front of the old elite of Yuanyang, so their words naturally had some weight, and it was no problem to promote them.
Walking to the food, Zhao Yanxun patted it twice, and then said: "Treasury Management Office and Dianbook Office, these two yamen are in charge of money and food. You must be careful when doing things, don't hurt yourself!"
"Your Highness's teachings should be engraved in my heart!" Zhang Yang answered with his waist raised.
Of course he had to keep it in mind. If something happened, he might be killed.
Continuing to check, Zhao Yanxun discovered that the seemingly simple grain depot also had hidden mysteries inside.
For example, the inside was set on fire, and the outside looked like a wooden wall, but the inside was all covered with mud, forming four mud walls.
"Is there mud on the top?" Zhao Yanxun asked.
Qin Hao quickly replied: "Back to your lord, the roof was waterproofed twice, with dirt sandwiched in between to insulate it!"
I nodded, this design is indeed good.
"How did you arrange the guards at the grain depot?" Zhao Yanxun then asked.
"Reporting to the prince, each grain depot has been designated with dedicated personnel to guard it day and night..."
"Except for soldiers who are dedicated to guarding the grain depot, no one is allowed to come within three feet of the grain depot!"
"On weekdays, full-time soldiers are responsible for transporting food in and out..."
Qin Hao talked eloquently, from guarding to setting fires to preparing for battle in Tianma Fort. He took this opportunity to talk about it all.
After listening, Zhao Yanxun nodded and said: "This arrangement is extremely appropriate, so I can rest assured!"
After walking around the grain warehouse, Zhao Yanxun pointed to the townhouses against the wall in the distance and asked, "Is that a military camp?"
"Your Majesty Mingjian, this is the military camp. We live next to the wall. If something happens, we can return to our fighting position faster!"
Then Zhao Yanxun continued to visit. Tianma Fort was renovated and there were indeed many eye-catching features.
At this moment, a Pegasus came outside the fort gate and was stopped by the flag officer guarding the fort gate.
"I am the messenger from Jingdong County, and I have an urgent delivery for the prince!"
After checking the waist tag, the flag officer on duty took the bamboo tube containing the letter and rushed into the fort.
At this time, Zhao Yanxun had walked around Tianma Fort and happened to be not far from the south gate.
He quickly stepped forward, and two feet away from Zhao Yanxun, the flag officer holding the letter knelt on the ground, held up the bamboo tube with both hands and said: "Your Majesty, this is an urgent delivery from Jingdong!"
An urgent delivery from Jingdong? There is a plague in Jingdong now. The news inside must be related to the epidemic.
At this time, Qin Hao had already stepped forward, took the letter from his subordinate, and carefully handed it to Zhao Yanxun.
Zhao Yanxun opened the bamboo tube and took out the letter. He threw the bamboo tube away and started looking at it.
This letter was written by Wang Hexian himself, and it described the cause of the epidemic in detail.
Zhao Yanxun never thought that this epidemic was caused by humans.
Before the war started, Zhu Jinzhang taught him a lesson and caused him certain losses.
Zhu Jinzhang, Zhu Jinzhang, you really can come up with such vicious methods... Zhao Yanxun cursed in his heart.
If you shoot him with an arrow, he will "poison" you in return, which can be regarded as reciprocity.
"Where's the pen and paper?"
"I'll go get it right now!" Zhang Yang replied quickly.
Zhao Yanxun said directly: "Take me there!"
So Zhang Yang did as he was told and took Zhao Yanxun all the way to a small room, which can be understood as Zhang Yang's office.
Zhao Yanxun took a pen and paper and started writing on it. It was indeed written for the Chief Secretary and the Privy Council.
The content is very simple, which is to prevent spies from the north from causing damage from all aspects. It emphasizes food security and water source security, and emphasizes that all localities must implement the curfew and air separation system.
After the letter was written, Zhao Yanxun sealed it together with Jingdong's urgent message and ordered it to be sent directly to Yuanyang.
Next, Zhao Yanxun met Jingdong's messenger and asked him to convey his instructions to Jingdong.
On the one hand, we must do our best to cure the sick people; on the other hand, we must carefully interrogate the captured spies and try our best to get them to reveal their accomplices.