A lowly soldier becomes king, I slaughter my way through the late Tang Dynasty!

Yunlian tilted her head, puzzled.

"Li Rui wrote to me earlier, saying that he was reviewing case files in Fengqiu County and did not go into the mountains to look for anyone."

Feng Yao paused, turning around in surprise.

"Check the case files? Why would we need to check the case files to find bandits?"

Yunlian's adorable little head had no idea what was going on.

Feng Yao pursed her lips, unable to understand either.

But I don't know why.

Tian Wu and Li Shouzhen led more than 20,000 people to live in the mountains, drinking dew and eating wild vegetables.

Feng Yao thought this was stupid; they couldn't find anyone at all.

But Li Rui sat comfortably in the county town, flipping through case files every day.

Feng Yao, on the contrary, believed that Li Rui was right to do so.

He opened his mouth.

Feng Yao was hesitant to tell Yun Lian what she was thinking.

Because this logic doesn't make sense.

If others heard this, they would only think that she was blindly confident in Li Rui.

Moreover, it makes her, as the Empress, seem overly dependent on Li Rui.

But ultimately...

She still believes in Li Rui!

……

at the same time.

In the mountains and forests.

Tian Wu was the commander-in-chief of the infantry in the capital, and Li Shouzhen was a high-ranking official in charge of a region.

Even these two important figures stumbled along, some steps deep and some shallow.

Traverse mountains and valleys through the vast forest!

We have to go into the mountains!

His Majesty is furious!

Even if they go into the mountains, it won't have any practical effect.

They also need to first make their stance clear and prove that they are doing their utmost to suppress the bandits.

Tian Wu was panting heavily and cursed more than once.

"Still no news?"

No, no.

"Go to hell! Get the hell out of here! If His Majesty beheads me, your whole family will be buried with me!"

On Li Shouzhen's side, there was even more profanity.

"Zhang Fu, you plague-bringing bastard, you lowly servant's dog, you better be able to fly!"

Otherwise, if Grandpa catches you, he'll rip your heart out and tear you to pieces!

At that very moment.

His subordinates came to report.

"Commander, we've spotted Li Rui. He's leading a hundred men and heading southeast."

Li Shouzhen was taken aback.

"Li Rui? Wasn't he holed up in Fengqiu for days? Why did he suddenly go into the mountains?"

The subordinate said he didn't know.

Li Shouzhen stopped and thought carefully.

at first.

He heard that Li Rui had gone into the mountains to search for a day, then returned to Fengqiu County and spent his days sitting in the county government office flipping through case files.

Li Shouzhen just felt that this silly boy was inexplicable.

But at this moment.

Li Shouzhen narrowed his eyes.

He recalled Li Rui's various performances on the northern battlefield.

This child is no ordinary person; in fact, he is extremely intelligent!

Could it be that……

What clues can you really find by checking case files at the county government?

Li Shouzhen licked his lips and gave the order.

"Follow them quietly, without alerting them."

Li Rui's side.

Zhao Kuangyin carried an old man on his back, panting as he climbed the mountain path.

"Old man, have we arrived yet?"

The old man on his back rubbed his dim, yellow eyes and shook his head repeatedly.

"No way, no way, it's at least another three miles."

Zhao Kuangyin immediately looked constipated.

He looked to his comrade for help.

But he found that his soldiers were either looking at the sky or the ground, and none of them made eye contact with him.

Zhao Kuangyin rolled his eyes.

They could only continue carrying the old man on their backs, huffing and puffing as they walked along the mountain path.

Li Rui smiled faintly and said to the old man.

"Old man, once we find that road, these three strings of cash are yours."

Looking at the bright orange copper coins.

The old man's dim eyes instantly brightened!

"Don't worry, General! I dug this tunnel from beginning to end back then, and I remember its location perfectly!"

Upon hearing this...

Zhao Kuangyin couldn't help but look at Li Rui.

At this moment.

He was truly convinced!

Zhao Kuangyin really didn't know how Li Rui's brain worked.

At first, drawing maps blindly and accurately locating river valleys was one thing.

Upon reaching the valley, instead of finding their way, they retreated to Fengqiu County to search through case files!

The results of it?

They actually managed to find clues in the case files!

A dusty old business history book from Fengqiu County contains a sentence.

"In the second year of Tianfu, Zhang Jun, a merchant from Hua, hired seven hundred men to clear the mountains."

Translate it.

The second year of Tianfu, which is 902 AD, forty-three years ago.

A merchant from Huazhou named Zhang Jun hired seven hundred strong men to carve out a mountain road.

Only this one sentence was recorded.

But Li Rui realized it instantly.

This is a clue!

He immediately issued a public reward to find the laborers who had worked with Zhang Jun to carve out the mountain road forty-three years ago.

Although it has been a long time, given the lifespan of people in ancient times, not many of them would have survived to the present day.

But not many doesn't mean none.

With a large sum of money, they quickly found the person!

The old man on Zhao Kuangyin's back is fifty-nine years old this year, and he was one of the laborers who carved out the mountain road.

"General Li, are you short of men in Dingzhou?"

Zhao Kuangyin licked his lips, full of anticipation.

Li Rui was taken aback, then asked with interest.

"You want to be with me?"

Zhao Kuangyin nodded repeatedly.

"Yes, when I first heard of General Li's reputation, I thought it was an exaggeration, but now it seems that the general's abilities are unparalleled throughout history."

"If the general does not mind, Yuan Lang is willing to serve you, seeking only to achieve merit on the battlefield and protect our country."

Yuanlang was the courtesy name of Zhao Kuangyin.

At this time, Zhao Kuangyin was far from being the Song Taizu recorded in history books.

He was just a naive and patriotic young man with a passion for his country.

Li Rui was overjoyed at his decision to serve him.

Zhao Kuangyin was a rare military genius of his time!

Although he is still young and needs to hone his skills, his talent is undeniable and will definitely be a great asset!

Li Rui was not worried at all that this person who had become emperor in history would betray him in the future.

As long as I don't die young like Emperor Guo Rong of the Later Zhou Dynasty.

Zhao Kuangyin would never have had the opportunity to be crowned emperor.

At the same time, Li Rui firmly believes...

With his abilities, he was perfectly capable of managing Zhao Kuangyin, a man of great talent and ambition.

And make him completely convinced!

"I have no objection to Yuen Long volunteering, but will your father agree?"

Zhao Kuangyin grinned when he saw Li Rui nod.

"General, rest assured, my father intends for me to go out and gain experience."

The matter was thus settled.

after a while.

The old man on Zhao Kuangyin's back suddenly pointed to a big tree and said.

"Yes, yes, this is it!"

He walked over shakily and searched around the big tree.

Then, pointing to a piece of bluestone, he said excitedly.

"General, look! These are the marks we made to avoid getting lost."

The character "Zhang" is carved on the bluestone, which is covered with moss and has been around for a long time.

"Where is the road?"

The old man smiled mysteriously and pointed to a plain, unremarkable earthen slope.

"Right there on that steep slope, there is an extremely hidden cave entrance leading underground."

Zhao Kuangyin strode forward, drew his long sword, and cut down all the bushes and tree roots.

Sure enough, a hole in the ground was revealed!

He suppressed his excitement, nodded to Li Rui, and said in a low voice.

"This road is underground? No wonder the 20,000 Imperial Guards couldn't find it no matter how hard they searched."

The old man exclaimed in surprise.

"This is a mine shaft, so of course it's going underground."

Zhao Kuangyin clasped his hands in greeting.

"I'll go down and take a look!"

"Wait a minute."

Li Rui quickly stopped him.

Zhao Da has high martial arts skills, but he's a bit reckless.

Does anyone know what's going on inside?

In case the bandits were prepared and had set up an ambush.

It's ridiculous that the mighty Emperor Taizu of Song would die here.

Zhao Kuangyin knew what Li Rui was worried about, but he had just joined the army and was eager to prove himself.

"General, do not worry, someone has to go down into this cave first."

Li Rui laughed.

"Someone has to go down first, but it can't be one of my people."

Zhao Kuangyin was taken aback, not understanding why.

Li Rui turned around and spoke softly to the silent, dense forest behind him.

"Isn't it inappropriate for Commander Li to have followed us all this way, waiting to reap the rewards?"