"Boss, what do you mean?"
The followers beside Jiang Yan asked in confusion.
"What brothers Yue said is right. When these guys speak, every word is overly clear and standard. The reason for this is that these people are not from the Central Plains at all. If my guess is correct, these bastards are either from Western Xia or Liao!"
"I can smell the sheepish scent of Western Xia people, even if they bathe 800 times and use all the perfumes in the world!"
As soon as Jiang Yan finished speaking, his subordinates immediately made a judgment.
"If they are not from Western Xia, then they are the Han soldiers from the sixteen prefectures of Yan and Yun!"
Yue Fei also chimed in.
"Forget it, no matter which bastards they are, this time, they must be made to know my might!"
Having hunted geese all his life, only to be pecked by a goose this time, Jiang Yan felt extremely humiliated, and so did the followers behind him.
"It's almost Hai Shi, but these people still show no signs of departing. Could it be..."
"Let's wait a bit longer. I don't believe they can just keep stalling us like this."
Jiang Yan also became resolute.
If these people were all Liao people from the sixteen prefectures of Yan and Yun, as they guessed, then what was about to happen tonight would likely be even more bizarre than anticipated.
"What time is it now?"
In Neihuang County, a hundred miles away, looking at the sparse stars in the sky, Han Mo suddenly asked.
"It's less than a quarter of an hour until Hai Shi!"
Looking at the hourglass used for timing, Zhe Yourong said softly.
"Who do you think we are facing this time? Burning the Changping Granary, especially at this moment, no matter whether they can succeed or not, the price they will have to pay afterward will be absolutely tragic!"
As Han Mo spoke, his voice was unusually low. It was less like talking to Zhe Yourong and more like questioning himself.
Although the entire Hebei forbidden army system was almost rotten, after Xu Churen's almost brutal emergency measures, a part of the elite had been assembled.
On such a major matter, neither Tang Ke nor Xu Churen dared to be the slightest bit careless.
Each Changping Granary was garrisoned by at least 1,000 soldiers.
Before entering the Changping Granary to garrison, these soldiers had been given the strictest military orders: approaching within 300 paces of the Changping Granary without cause at night, without military orders, could result in them being shot on the spot!
Under such circumstances, burning a Changping Granary would be an almost impossible task, unless they had sufficient insiders.
But the problem was, such dereliction of duty could implicate the entire family, big and small, if things went wrong.
Did anyone in this world dare to do such a thing?
Even if someone did, the cost of bribing them would likely be an astronomical sum.
Who was it, and for what reason, was so determined to do such a thing?
"If it were personal grievances, I find it hard to believe that someone could go this far..."
After a moment of silence, Zhe Yourong said softly.
"If it's not personal grievances, then it must be national hatred and family feuds... The Liao people?"
As soon as this thought popped into his mind, Han Mo couldn't help but tremble all over.
A chill rose from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head.
"You mean, the Manichaeans colluded with those Liao people?"
Zhe Yourong's voice involuntarily rose by 8 decibels as she spoke.
Han Mo gasped for breath. This idea was simply too shocking.
Han Mo's mind rapidly flashed through the history of Fang La's rebellion recorded in the Song Shi.
Wasn't it when the Jin and Song dynasties were preparing to form an alliance that Fang La initially raised his rebellion?
Moreover, the timing of Fang La's sweeping through the southeast coincided precisely with the time agreed upon by the Jin and Song dynasties for their joint attack on Liao.
With just a small Manichaean sect, even if they had been developing in the southeast for decades, could they really contend with the state apparatus?
It should be known that even during the darkest and most corrupt period of the Song dynasty after Fang La's rebellion, the hearts of the people across the land still belonged to the Zhao clan!
The entire Fang La rebellion lasted for more than two years from start to finish.
Over two million civilians died or were injured. Such a large-scale rebellion, if there were no schemers fanning the flames from within, could it really be done by a small cult?
However, if the Liao people were involved behind the scenes, then everything would make sense.
Otherwise, with those ordinary people who were holding hoes before, could they defeat the imperial army that was suppressing the rebellion?
The Song army was indeed not good at field battles, but when it came to defending cities, both the Jin and Liao people were far inferior to the Song army.
Without the support of strong military power, and connecting a group of disorganized rabble, how could one possibly break through a military stronghold like Hangzhou? Han Mo found it difficult to imagine how such a battle could be fought!
As he thought about it, Han Mo could only manage a wry smile.
Even though he found such a thing absurd, at this moment, he had to admit that it seemed to be the only explanation for all the coincidences and illogicalities.
"Besides this explanation, there seems to be no other reasonable explanation..."
After a long while, Han Mo finally calmed down.
"Then what do we do now?"
"We can only hope that Jiang Yan and his men can stop them..."
As he said this, Han Mo could only give a helpless wry smile.
He should have thought of this earlier. In the face of home and country, the Song people could fight and die, but could the Liao people not pay any price?
Although he didn't know who the person directing behind the scenes was, Han Mo could vaguely guess that there was a greater conspiracy brewing behind this matter...
"Do you guys feel like it's suddenly eerily quiet in this inn..."
On the roof opposite the inn, Jiang Yan asked in a low voice.
"Otherwise, shall I go in and take a look?"
Yue Fei hesitated and said softly.
"Be extremely careful. If you startle the snake now, all our efforts will be in vain..."
Jiang Yan whispered his instructions.
"Don't worry, I'll be careful!"
After Yue Fei finished speaking, he disappeared into the night with several quick movements, as agile as a civet cat that hunts at night and rests during the day...