Unless Han Mo had absolute confidence in his ability to defend Mingzhou City.
Otherwise, at this time, to protect himself and clear his own name, this was the most Han Mo should do.
Even if Li Yueyang were in Han Mo's position, he would make the same choice.
Moreover, he might even do it more decisively than Han Mo.
"I will trouble you to make a trip to the arsenal for me!"
After taking a deep breath, Li Yueyang finally made up his mind.
The arsenal catching fire was something for which he was undoubtedly guilty. However, compared to the hole that could never be filled, this guilt was undoubtedly much smaller, at most, it would only be a demotion and retention.
If he were a little luckier and someone could speak up for him, perhaps, in the end, he would only need to change his post to live such a leisurely life again.
As for whether Mingzhou City could be defended, this was actually not a big deal for them.
After all, the entire southeast was already in a state of chaos. This city that could not be defended was not just Mingzhou City.
Furthermore, as long as they did not have any evidence in Han Mo's hands, even if Mingzhou City fell, Han Mo and Wang Bing would have to bear the responsibility with him.
Although doing so was indeed very dangerous, for him, this seemed to have become the best solution for now.
"My lord, you must think clearly. Once this fire starts, the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in Mingzhou City..."
After taking a deep breath, Qiu Renjie asked seriously again.
"At this point, how can there be so much? Please rest assured, I have prepared 5,000 taels of gold for you, as well as a large ship going directly to Champa. After this matter is over, you can leave first!"
"Since that is the case, I will not say anything more. Take care, my lord!"
Seeing that his mind was made up, Qiu Renjie no longer said anything more, got up and cupped his hands at Li Yueyang, then turned and walked out.
"Sir, oh sir, please do not blame me for being heartless. Who told me to sit in this position?"
Seeing Qiu Renjie turn and leave, Li Yueyang let out a long sigh of relief.
"Come here! Go find Liu San for me!"
"Yes!"
Just as Li Yueyang was hastily deploying troops, Han Shizhong and Li Bao had already led their men to set up defenses around the arsenal.
"Stop! Who are you people? Don't you know this is the imperial arsenal? No one is allowed within three hundred paces!"
Seeing dozens of fully armed soldiers directly approaching the perimeter of the arsenal, Liu Zhenguo, the commander of the local troops defending the arsenal, was truly startled.
"We are subordinates of Lord Han Mo of the Southeast Military Commissioner's Office. Our lord's horse was stolen, and we are now under orders to block all routes in and out of the city!"
Li Bao said in a deep voice.
"I, I..."
Liu Zhenguo's mouth twitched. Could this excuse be any more ridiculous?
A lost horse led you to block the roads at the arsenal?
The arsenal was located in the eastern part of Mingzhou City, and it was at least half an hour's journey from the west gate, south gate, or east gate!
Moreover, there were soldiers guarding everywhere in this area. What kind of stupid thief would run here!
"Alright, didn't you say no approaching within three hundred paces? We'll take one step back!"
After hearing Li Bao's nonsense, the soldiers behind him almost burst into laughter.
However, it was precisely this one step that made Liu Zhenguo, who held several hundred soldiers, speechless with distress.
"Someone, immediately report this matter to the Prefect!"
After gritting his teeth, Liu Zhenguo still took a deep breath and said.
"Yes!"
Hearing Liu Zhenguo's words, a soldier quickly mounted his horse to report to the Prefect's office.
"Halt! Without my lord's written order, no one is allowed in or out!"
But before he could run a few steps, Li Bao shouted directly.
"Charge through!"
Although Li Bao had warned him, Liu Zhenguo still ordered with a dark expression.
"Damn it, you don't know what's good for you!"
Seeing the soldier charging on horseback, Li Bao chuckled, did not dodge, and directly picked up a cudgel, quietly waiting for the warhorse to arrive.
Three hundred paces was not enough to allow the warhorse to reach its maximum speed, but a horse was still a horse!
The soldiers around him were truly sweating for him.
"Hah—"
When the warhorse was less than ten paces away from Li Bao, Li Bao suddenly turned, swung his cudgel with all his might, and directly smashed it towards the warhorse's head.
"Bang—"
After a loud bang, the warhorse didn't even have time to cry out before Li Bao directly smashed its head with one blow, along with the horse's faceguard.
As for the soldier on the horse, he was even more miserable.
Their horsemanship could only be described as barely riding; to say they were proficient was definitely false.
Faced with such an emergency situation, the person was already scared silly, how could he possibly know what to do next.
When he fell off the horse, his eyes rolled back, and he had already fainted.
"You don't know what's good for you! If you're not convinced, come at me!"
"You wait for me!"
Now Liu Zhenguo understood that these people were here to cause trouble.
However, looking at Li Bao's fierce appearance, if he were to send more people to their deaths, let alone whether he was willing, even the soldiers behind him were already a little intimidated at this moment.
After all, these people had not seen blood for many years, and they had never seen such a fierce character.
It was fine to bully ordinary civilians usually, but when they encountered a tough character like Li Bao, they were all no match.
"Lord Han, what are you planning to do in the middle of the night?"
Just as Li Bao and his men were wreaking havoc, Han Mo had already led his men to the outskirts of the Mingzhou Prefecture Office.
Seeing Han Mo directly charge over with his men, Li Yueyang also came to the prefecture office to wait.
"I am truly sorry, Lord Li. I just received news that some villains are leading an army straight towards Mingzhou, so I wanted to ask Lord Li to accompany me to the arsenal!"
Hearing Han Mo's words, Li Yueyang's pupils couldn't help but shrink. As expected, they were not here with good intentions.
However, there was still no movement from the arsenal, which made him feel a little uneasy at the moment.
"Lord Han, is your news reliable?"
"The news has been confirmed. General Wang's side is already on high alert. As soon as dawn breaks, the army will enter the city! I think it's getting late, why don't we head straight to the arsenal!"
Seeing Li Yueyang's feigned composure, Han Mo couldn't help but sneer.