When the envoy from Hamis arrived near the Great Ming's embassy in Benghazi, what greeted him was a celebration of the Kunlun slaves of Benghazi – a large number of them were attacking Benghazi's so-called army, while Benghazi's army, under Saif's command, was launching a fierce counterattack.
Strangely, no one was attacking the Great Ming's embassy in Benghazi, which should have been the primary target. Chen Hao, the plenipotentiary ambassador of the Great Ming to Benghazi, and all the Ming soldiers had become mere onlookers.
The envoy from Hamis managed to push his way to Saif, bowing and saying, "Your Highness, the King has ordered you to quickly surround the Ming people's embassy and capture them, to force the Ming people to withdraw from Benghazi."
However, Saif, still reeling from the farce, pointed to the chaotic scene of Kunlun slaves before him and shook his head, "Tell me, it's descended into this chaos, how am I supposed to surround the Ming people's embassy? How am I supposed to capture them?"
The envoy from Hamis stared blankly at Saif – wasn't *he* the First Prince of Benghazi? Wasn't Hamis's order given to *him*, not to me? So, with things having gone so disastrously wrong, he had the nerve to ask me what to do?
While silently complaining, the envoy explained the situation to Saif, "Your Highness, the Great Ming's forces stationed at the military base in Benghazi port have already marched out, their target is Benghazi city. As you know, Benghazi city is very close to the Ming people's military base, and they will reach the city walls soon."
"If we cannot successfully surround the Ming people's embassy and capture these Ming people, then the Ming army outside the city will have no reservations and will attack the city with full force."
"If the city gates are breached, then His Majesty the King, who brought our Benghazi nobles and ministers to observe the battle near the city gates..."
Saif's expression immediately turned grim. His already sour face, as if he had eaten three pounds of rotten dog feces, became as if he had eaten five pounds of rotten dog feces upon receiving this news.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Saif simply grabbed the envoy from Hamis and shouted, "I f***ing know what you're talking about! I know what needs to be done!"
After releasing the envoy, Saif turned to his attendants and ordered, "Send someone to tell those bastards that as long as they break into the Great Ming's embassy, all their past crimes will be forgiven, and the wealth within the Ming people's embassy will be divided among them. If they refuse to obey my orders, they will be executed immediately..."
Before Saif's words had finished, a rumbling thunderclap echoed from afar. The Kunlun slaves, caught in the chaos, were all startled into stillness by the thunder.
After all, it was broad daylight under a clear sky; there was no reason for thunder to inexplicably strike.
Therefore...
Saif glanced in the direction of the thunder, his face changing drastically. He shouted, "Guards! Mobilize all troops, return to the royal palace with me immediately!"
Hearing Saif's order, the envoy from Hamis was startled and quickly reached out to stop him, "Your Highness! His Majesty the King has already taken our Benghazi nobles and ministers to the city gates, and his order to you is to immediately seize the Ming people's embassy, otherwise, our Benghazi..."
Before he could finish, the envoy from Hamis's head flew off.
Saif glanced at the dead envoy, whose eyes were still wide open. He casually handed the knife to an attendant and sighed, "Benghazi is finished! Benghazi's army can't even defeat the Great Ming's embassy, let alone the Ming army outside the city?"
"His Majesty the King, before completely taking the Great Ming's embassy, rushed to the city gates with the nobles and ministers. Isn't that like forming a team to deliver themselves as targets to the Ming army?"
"If I don't run now, our Benghazi will be completely doomed!"
Saif's words seemed to be an explanation to the deceased envoy, or perhaps an explanation to himself.
It had to be admitted that Saif's brain, normally no bigger than a walnut kernel, did not fail him as usual. Instead, he made a correct decision – Gu Xiangming, the leader of the Great Ming's military base in Benghazi port, was an officer trained by the Great Ming Army Command Academy. His most accustomed and favorite tactic was carpet bombardment.
Or rather, officers trained by the Great Ming Army Command Academy were all staunch advocates of carpet bombardment tactics.
Therefore, upon arriving at Benghazi city, Gu Xiangming ordered the artillery to commence shelling.
And Hamis, the King of Benghazi, happened to arrive at the city gates with the nobles and ministers of Benghazi, intending to inspect Benghazi's defenses.
Then, Gu Xiangming let Hamis witness what was meant by the "artillery carpet bombardment" tactic, where "caliber equals justice, range equals truth." The shells hurled towards the city gates of Benghazi were like a boundless swarm of locusts, seemingly endless and never-ceasing.
What was even more fatal was that after just ten rounds of artillery salvoes, the city gates of Benghazi were breached, and the collapsed "city wall" directly crushed and killed more than a dozen Benghazi nobles and ministers.
The disadvantage of a small country with a sparse population was vividly demonstrated at this moment.
If more than a dozen nobles and ministers of the Great Ming were crushed, while not entirely without impact, it would have been minimal. Even if dozens of nobles and ministers were killed at once, Emperor Zhu could easily find replacements.
However, for a country like Benghazi, small and with few people, the death of more than a dozen nobles and ministers essentially meant the collapse of Benghazi's court.
This was especially true since the dozen or so nobles and ministers killed included the so-called Chief Executive Minister Ali and Chief Financial Minister Marcus.
The loss of Ali meant that the entire Benghazi court would descend into a leaderless state, while the loss of Marcus meant that Benghazi lost its ability to allocate resources.
Losing both Ali and Marcus... the entire Benghazi court would come to a complete standstill!
But Hamis no longer had time to consider solutions, because the Great Ming army outside the city launched an offensive the moment the Benghazi city gate wall collapsed!
Hamis stared blankly at the unfolding events, murmuring, "This is not normal, this is not normal!"
In fact, it wasn't just Hamis who found the scene surreal; even Gu Xiangming, the leader of the Great Ming's military base in Benghazi port, found it somewhat unbelievable. Even though he had prepared himself mentally, Gu Xiangming hadn't expected the Benghazi army and city defenses to be so incompetent!
If all the countries in Western Kunlun were as brainless as this idiot Hamis...
Gu Xiangming suddenly saw an opportunity for promotion, a raise, and even a noble title!
Of course, just as Hamis was too late to figure out how to deal with the ensuing chaos in Benghazi's court, Gu Xiangming also didn't have time to consider what noble title he might receive in the future.
This was because the Ming supervisor was strictly forbidden from leading the charge, and due to the high casualty rate from leading the charge, they were no longer issued firearms. However, Ge Xiangjun, the supervisor of the Great Ming's military base in Benghazi port, picked up an iron bar used to pry open ammunition boxes and directly led the charge!
"Damn it! That bastard is stealing my thunder again!" Gu Xiangming cursed furiously. "You wait to be confined! I will definitely impeach you, you scumbag!"
Despite his cursing, Gu Xiangming couldn't help but instruct his personal guards, "Quick, catch up to the supervisor and ensure his safety!"
...
To be fair, although the Kunlun slaves were clumsy and not very bright, they had one major advantage: strong short-distance explosiveness and speed. And being fast meant messages traveled quickly.
Even before Gu Xiangming's Great Ming army could consolidate their gains at the city gates, the news of Benghazi's city being breached had reached the vicinity of the Great Ming's embassy in Benghazi, and then spread throughout Benghazi city as if it had grown wings.
After the news spread, the reactions within Benghazi city were truly mixed, with some rejoicing and some grieving.
Antoine, the only remaining dignitary in Benghazi's court, was astonished to find that not only were Benghazi's Chief Executive Minister Ali and Chief Financial Minister Marcus dead, but why was Hamis, the King of Benghazi, also nowhere to be seen?
Compared to Antoine's astonishment, Great Ming merchants like Prince Xuan were laughing heartily because they had won their bet – "My Lord Wang" had taken down over two hundred Kunlun slaves with just a dozen or so retainers. Although more than half of them relied on their hidden flintlock guns, it perfectly demonstrated that "My Lord Wang" had foreseen the enemy's moves and commanded effectively!
Even if he couldn't get any first or second-class merits, he should at least get a plaque for bringing glory to his ancestors!
"My Lord Wang" had not only pre-booked a prominent position in the ancestral hall but also reserved the treatment of a dedicated page in the genealogy!
Even "My Lord Wang's" own father had to step aside!
As for French merchants like Senal, they felt a sense of relief after narrowly escaping death, with many not even daring to believe that the war had already ended.
It had ended before it had even officially begun?
Of course, for the Great Ming and French merchants in Benghazi city, the war was over, but for the Great Ming army, it meant a new journey was about to begin. The Benghazi army was of course not a concern, but how to handle Benghazi city and the subsequent aftermath was crucial.
For this reason, Gu Xiangming, the military commander of the Great Ming's military base in Benghazi port, and Ge Congjun, the supervisor, had a big argument.
Gu Xiangming glared fiercely at Ge Congjun, "My Lord Supervisor, if you dare to lead the charge again next time, I, Gu, will not just impeach you!"
Ge Congjun smiled indifferently and said, "The supervisor leading the charge is an old tradition of our Great Ming army. You can impeach me if you wish."
After saying that, Ge Congjun changed the subject, "In any case, I do not approve of large-scale construction of ossuaries. After all, Benghazi will soon become French territory. Who are you building such a large ossuary for? Moreover, it's still uncertain whether His Majesty will want Benghazi."
Gu Xiangming blinked and asked, "His Majesty will not want Benghazi?"
Ge Congjun snorted, "Otherwise? This broken place, Benghazi, is so hot it can kill dogs. Even the fairest person who comes here will be tanned into a charcoal briquette. Damn it, if this place is designated as Great Ming territory, where will we find people to migrate here?"
Hearing Ge Congjun's words, Gu Xiangming also fell into deep despair.
Was the land area of Western Kunlun large? Yes!
Was the land of Western Kunlun fertile? Fertile!
But compared to Western Kunlun, which could kill dogs with its heat, weren't the territories of Nurgan Administrative Commissioner's Office, Jiaozhi Administrative Commissioner's Office, Lanfang Administrative Commissioner's Office, Jiugang Administrative Commissioner's Office, and even the not-yet-fully-pocketed India, and the already enfeoffed Qin and Jin states, even more appealing?
Currently, the Great Ming had not even fully digested these territories, and many were still sparsely populated. Where would the Great Ming find so many people to migrate to this broken place, Western Kunlun?
This was very frustrating!
What was even more troublesome for Gu Xiangming and Ge Congjun was how to deal with the Kunlun slaves in Benghazi city.
Because after the Great Ming army began the assault, that idiot Hamis and his son Saif, seeing that the situation was not good, directly fled with a large sum of gold and silver jewelry. As a result, the Kunlun slaves in Benghazi city became utterly lost.
Then, the Kunlun slaves in Benghazi city began to surrender en masse.
Later, most of Gu Xiangming's army was used to guard these surrendered Kunlun slaves, and he even borrowed many retainers and attendants from the Great Ming merchants and French merchants in Benghazi city.
And this, in turn, meant that the number of troops Gu Xiangming had available to pursue Hamis was drastically reduced.
Although he didn't have to worry about Hamis completely escaping, it was still a regret not to have captured Hamis and his son Saif directly, wasn't it?
Therefore, according to Gu Xiangming's plan, it would be best to build ossuaries for all these Kunlun slaves. After all, the Kunlun slaves were not very bright, and without the suppression of large attractions like ossuaries, they might make the same mistakes as Hamis.
As for selling these Kunlun slaves as "piglets" for labor...
The deterrence of selling "piglets" was ultimately not as strong as the deterrence of ossuaries.
However, Ge Congjun disagreed with Gu Xiangming's proposal, not only because the Great Ming needed a large number of laborers but also because Benghazi was so hot that building large-scale ossuary attractions might cause epidemics. Epidemics could arise not only from the decay of corpses on the battlefield after a major war but also from the gathering of dirty Kunlun slaves.
It was precisely because of this that Ge Congjun and Gu Xiangming argued incessantly, with neither able to convince the other.
Finally, the Great Ming ambassador to Benghazi delivered a decisive blow, ending their debate: "All the deceased will be made into ossuaries. Scattering more lime should prevent epidemics. If that doesn't work, they can be completely sealed with lime and cement."
"As for the living...
"First, they will be classified based on the severity of their injuries. Those with minor injuries will be kept as laborers."