Chapter 841: We're Fighting, Don't Be So Delicate
The massive train, laden with both passengers and cargo, swiftly traversed the Longmen Yellow River Bridge, arriving in Hejin County.
Beyond this point, the railway tracks ended.
The logistics soldiers immediately began unloading the train's freight cars, transferring the goods onto cargo ships.
The Hejin County seat nestled right against the Fen River.
This modest river had once been impassable, but several years prior, Li Daoxuan, with his small shovel, had diligently dug, scoop by scoop, a little each day. He had widened the channel and cleared the riverbed of silt, allowing this beloved "Mother River" of the Shanxi people to once again become navigable.
As the logistics soldiers toiled, moving the cargo, Hua Kui directed her special operations team to set up a camera, capturing the diligent efforts of the soldiers.
They then rushed at top speed to the market square in Hejin County.
Here, too, stood a massive "Divine Mirror."
After Hua Kui coordinated with Hejin County's Mirror Management Agency and secured the right to use the Divine Mirror, she, under the astonished gaze of the administrator, expertly switched on the tablet computer. She established a Bluetooth connection with her miniature camera, then opened the app and transferred the video from the camera to the tablet.
This video would soon be handled by the Heavenly Lord, who would distribute it to tablets across the land using "celestial" means—a process far beyond Hua Kui's comprehension.
The Mirror administrator couldn't help but exclaim, "So that's how the news broadcast is made! I only ever watched it, never realizing it went through such a complex production process."
After finishing the video, Hua Kui hurried to the dock.
The logistics soldiers had just finished loading all the goods onto the boats. So, Hua Kui joined the cargo ships, embarking north once more. Upon reaching Pingyang Prefecture, the river channel's widening had reached its limit, and boats could no longer navigate upstream beyond that point.
The logistics soldiers again moved the cargo off the boats, transferring it to horse-drawn carriages.
Hua Kui silently filmed, then used Pingyang Prefecture's "Divine Mirror" to process another news video, adding a voiceover: "As you can see, our logistics forces endure immense hardship to deliver supplies to the soldiers on the front lines. They travel vast distances, first by large train, then by big cargo ship, and finally by horse-drawn carriage..."
"We in the rear lines live lives of comfort and security, free from want—this is all thanks to the combined efforts of our front-line warriors and logistics troops. Happiness is hard-won, and we must cherish it."
The logistics team departed Pingyang Prefecture, continuing their journey north.
The further they went, the more desolate the landscape became...
Both sides of the main road grew increasingly bleak: ruined villages, parched fields.
Hua Kui began to feel uneasy.
Zhuge Wangchan ordered loudly, "Hoist the Five-Colored Heavenly Lord Banners!"
The logistics soldiers immediately hoisted three brightly colored banners at the front, middle, and rear of the convoy.
Hua Kui asked curiously, "Hmm? Why suddenly hoist the flags?"
Zhuge Wangchan chuckled. "We use these banners to declare our identity and deter petty scoundrels. Miss, beyond Pingyang Prefecture, there are no more Divine Mirrors available for processing videos."
"What? The prefectures further north have no Divine Mirrors?" Hua Kui was startled.
Zhuge Wangchan nodded. "The area north of Pingyang Prefecture is no longer under Gao Family Village's control; it's managed by the imperial court. Not only are there no Divine Mirrors available, but you won't find any of our factories either."
Hua Kui remarked, "No wonder this area feels so desolate. So, it's not our territory anymore."
Zhuge Wangchan's expression suddenly turned serious. "From here on, safety cannot be guaranteed; bandits may appear at any time. Please, Miss, you must not stray from the team. Stay close to the logistics unit."
Hua Kui jumped in alarm. "Oh dear, there will be bandits? And we have a hundred carts of supplies, so much military food... what if they try to rob us?"
Speak of the devil, and he appeared!
Just then, a howl echoed from the woods ahead, followed by a large group of
fellows dressed like mountain bandit kings, who burst from the woods, blocking the main road ahead. They shouted, "This mountain is mine, these trees I've claimed! If you wish to pass, leave your toll!"
Hua Kui gasped, "Oh no!"
She swiftly ducked behind the soldiers of the special operations team.
Li Daoxuan's special operations team, assigned to protect her, consisted of only twenty men, and even they seemed a little flustered now.
But then Zhuge Wangchan chuckled, "It seems you've forgotten, Miss, logistics soldiers are soldiers too. Don't underestimate our logistics team."
After saying this, Zhuge Wangchan pulled out a tin megaphone and yelled into it at the bandits blocking the road, "Don't you check banners before robbing? You dare rob a freight team flying the Five-Colored Heavenly Lord Banners?"
"What 'five-colored' this or that? We haven't heard of any such thing!" The road bandits didn't seem like seasoned outlaws; they were likely new, foolish thugs who didn't even know about Gao Family Village's unique Five-Colored Heavenly Lord Banners. "Hand over all your valuables immediately, and we'll spare your lives."
Zhuge Wangchan, enraged, merely laughed. "We're no pushovers! If you don't clear out, we'll wipe every last one of you out."
The bandits roared with laughter. "You dare to count? It's *our* turn! We'll count to three. If you haven't handed over your valuables by then, we'll slaughter you all!"
"One!"
"Two!"
"Three!"
Their answer came in a single gunshot: "Bang."
The bandit leader, blood splattering from his chest, toppled backward.
The muzzle of one logistics soldier's firearm still trailed a wisp of smoke, a look of disdain etched on his face. "Worthless fools," he muttered.
Then, the rest of the logistics soldiers each drew their firearms, using the freight cars as cover, and fired upon the bandit soldiers.
From the woods on both sides of the main road, a great number of bandit soldiers leapt out, one after another.
However, the logistics soldiers, as if by prior agreement, organized their defense: soldiers assigned to odd-numbered freight cars fired at enemies to the left of the road, while those on even-numbered cars fired at enemies to the right.
Muzzles spat fire, roaring in both directions.
In an instant, the logistics team's long convoy of freight cars transformed into a massive, fire-spitting dragon, roaring out in two directions...
The foolish bandits who had leapt out from both sides of the road fell one after another, shot down.
Hua Kui was terribly frightened at first, but after watching for a few dozen seconds, she suddenly grew excited. Braving the stray arrows shot by the bandits, she dashed to her miniature camera, quickly switched it on, and began to film!
"What a scoop! I just left the village and already caught a huge story!" Hua Kui exclaimed with delight. "If this gets on the news broadcast, the audience will surely cheer with excitement!"
The special operations team assigned to protect her turned pale with fright. "Miss, don't run around recklessly in the arrow rain! Hide behind us! Don't jump up and wave—it's dangerous, very dangerous! You are a disciple of the Heavenly Lord; if you get hurt, we won't be able to bear the consequences!"
A disciple of the Heavenly Lord?
Hua Kui was momentarily bewildered
before realizing: the News Department was personally taught by the Heavenly Lord, so she was indeed a disciple of the Heavenly Lord!
Twenty shields swiftly surrounded Hua Kui, forming a protective circle around her.
From within, her sweet, delicate voice could still be heard: "Soldier-brothers, please don't crowd around me like this! The shields are blocking my view; I can't see outside anymore. Would you kindly move back just a little? This little sister thanks you with all her heart."
Everyone was torn between laughter and exasperation. "We're fighting here!" someone exclaimed. "Don't speak in such a soft, delicate way! Be a little fiercer!"
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