In order to solve the supply problem, Yang Peng was forced to pull out the original backbone, and handed all the training of new recruits to his eldest brother Zhang Xiang. Zhang Xiang's characteristics are not outstanding and he doesn't talk much. But he has the best patience and can be "sincere" to anyone. Of course, there are times when he gets angry. For example, if you fail to complete the training task, Zhao Xiang's old face collapses, which is enough for you to drink a pot. He doesn't scold you, let alone hit you, he just tries to reason with you. Once he shows off his Big Brother style and starts talking from "Think about the past, when I was back then", he can talk from morning to night, making you automatically surrender.
Yang Peng often talks to his brothers: "The biggest treasure in our team is Big Brother Zhang Xiang. Without his support from behind, we wouldn't be where we are today. You can be like a man and a devil, and Big Brother's hard work is all Inside. You can scold me, but whoever dares to be disrespectful to big brother Zhang Xiang, be careful I turn my back on you!" Because of Zhang Xiang's comprehensive support, in peaceful days, Yang Peng slowly turned into a throwaway The shopkeeper stares at the map hanging on the stone wall all day long.
Time has entered early September, and it is the busy farming season in the Song Dynasty. After more than two months of continuous running, the six teams purchasing supplies finally raised enough food and salt for hundreds of people to last for two years. Zhang Xiang has not been idle in the past two months. In addition to regular military training, he also led new recruits to expand the secret camp. Because the original cave was halfway up the mountain, it was often inconvenient, so after research, Zhang Xiang led the new soldiers to dig a new cave at the foot of the mountain.
Yang Peng personally drew a sketch of the excavation plan, requiring it to be conducive to defense and retreat. As a result, this underground maze became one entrance, three exits, and four entrances. One of the cave entrances is hidden in the middle of a cliff, and six ropes are usually prepared as backup. In the event of an emergency, you can use these ropes to escape. Iron miners are very skilled at digging caves, and they completed the task in three months. Everyone usually moves around halfway up the mountain so that the outside world cannot see them. But the stored supplies are all in the cave at the foot of the mountain. All the bows and arrows originally stored in Baiyunding Cave have been moved here, and half of the sixty boxes of arrows have also been brought here. Baiyunding only left thirty boxes of arrowheads for emergencies.
The three-dimensional defense plan conceived by Yang Peng has basically taken shape. The core position is the crossbow originally equipped for the cooking squad. Now it has become the crossbow on duty in the secret camp, located in a bunker in the middle of the only passage into the cave. This bunker was not built, but dug out, and there were two people on duty 24 hours a day. There is food in hand and no panic in mind.
Yang Peng finally felt better when he saw the grain being stored in the warehouse. Unfortunately, God did not follow his wishes, and he was happy for only three days. Suddenly, a piece of news that made him furious came! That night, Liu Zhiliang came back from investigating outside, his eyes were red and swollen, and his face was ashen. He brought Yang Peng a piece of news that almost made him faint!
It turns out that Liu Zhiliang has always had a soft spot for Pialing Town. On the one hand, Yang Peng let the original eight brothers live and eat in the inn for half a month. Not only did they recover their health, but they also started fighting together, which led to today's situation. On the other hand, during his first temporary residence, all his things were brought back from Pingling Town.
Because of this, Liu Zhiliang would go to Pingling Town to visit the owners of inns and tailor shops whenever he had the chance. There has been no interruption for more than a year, and the fellow villagers in Pialing Town also like this young man very much. Although they don't know what Liu Zhiliang does, everyone is willing to get close to him and tell him any news. Last night, when Liu Zhiliang returned from Xintun, he took another detour to Pialing Town. He found that more than 20 households in the town had mourning hangings in front of their doors and there were cries of mourning! When he found the innkeeper and asked about it, Liu Zhiliang almost burst out of his lungs!
It turns out that the owner of the tailor shop has a son and a daughter. The fifteen-year-old son attends a private school in Yingzhou, and the thirteen-year-old daughter usually helps out at home. All in all, the tailor shop's family of four is still at the upper-middle level in Pialing Town, and their life is pretty good. What's worse is that my eldest son was caught working as a laborer on his way home from vacation today! However, after all, he has been studying for many years and has many ideas. I escaped in the middle of the night six days ago and returned home. When the old couple heard that the arrested laborer had escaped again, they knew something was wrong and hurriedly hid their son in a small cave in the back mountain.
Unexpectedly, the afternoon before yesterday, fifteen men in black suddenly came to Pingling Town and broke into the tailor shop to arrest them. Because they didn't find the shopkeeper's son, those bastards were going to take the old tailor away to make up for his debt. During the tug-of-war between the two sides, the thirteen-year-old daughter rushed out to reason with the men in black. Not only did this not help, it actually caused disaster! Fifteen bastards tied the old couple to the gate, dragged the little girl to the street, stripped her naked, and then raped her to death in public!
The half-grown boy who was hiding in the back mountain heard his sister's heart-wrenching cries. He couldn't bear it anymore, so he ran home from the cave and fought fifteen beasts with a hoe. In the end, he was shot to death by random arrows! The old tailor and his wife had already committed suicide by biting their tongues when their daughter was brutally murdered. In this way, a family of four who were based on loyalty were wiped out! Snap!
Yang Peng was so angry that he smashed a big hole in the long table with one palm. Then he roared: "Who are those bastards? Where did they come from?"
"Brother, don't worry, the origins of those beasts have been found out!" Liu Zhiliang took a deep breath, and then said: "They are all subordinates of Cui Futing, a big boss, and they are currently repairing the road on the front line of Niuxintai." This Cui Futing was not created by man!"
It turns out that the big boss, Cui Futing, made his fortune by exploiting commissions from contract workers. He was originally just a labor and accounting clerk for a Khitan contracting team. Later, he relied on the Khitan Ye Qi Helong to set up the Yihexiang Cabinet. Through bribery, he contracted Yingzhou from Yingzhou from the Khitan. roads, mining, road construction, bridges, highways and other civil engineering projects in the Yingzhou mining area.
At its peak, Yihexiang had more than 10,000 tenants. Cui Futing subcontracted the project to medium and small batches. Each small batch usually had 20 workers. When the young boss goes to Yihexiang's big counter to settle the account, he must give one layer of his wages to Cui Futing. In less than three years, Cui Futing went from being penniless to having assets of 2 million taels of silver at that time.
Cui Futing himself cannibalizes people without spitting out their bones, and his subordinates at all levels follow the same example. They are all inhuman bastards! He obtained an iron ore mining right from the Khitan people, and then subcontracted it to a young boss named Lu Qixiang.
The job assigned by Lu Qixiang was four cents for each cubic meter of iron ore dug, while the money he paid to the miners was nine copper cents for each cart of coal dug. Not to mention, Lu Qixiang always holds various celebrations every month, and workers must follow them. It’s useless if you don’t follow the gang, he has already deducted it from your wages!
It is said that a strong laborer can earn ten danzi a day, which is about forty-five copper coins a month, but in fact this is far from the case! Less than one-tenth of one can get one or twenty copper coins a year, and he still owes money. More than half of the workers could only afford to eat, and the remaining workers had worked hard for a year. As a result, they were not able to offset the food expenses and instead owed Lu Qixiang food money!
Therefore, people who find that they have been deceived or forcibly captured will try their best to escape. For this reason, Lu Qixiang maintained fifty or sixty nursing homes to deal with escaped workers. According to villagers familiar with the situation, Lu Qixiang once executed ninety-seven workers in public by the Taizi River on the charge of gathering a crowd to cause trouble!
The fifteen miscellaneous people who appeared this time were Lu Qixiang's men, who specialized in road construction and maintenance, and another little leader named Qiu Wancai! According to Liu Zhiliang's reconnaissance across the river, Lu Qixiang and Qiu Wancai are now responsible for repairing roads in the Niuxintai area, with more than 130 workers under their command. But Qiu Wancai supported more than fifty thugs!
"Okay, okay!" Yang Peng laughed angrily: "These damn bastards are really impatient and dare to act recklessly around me! Shi Liancheng, notify the brothers above the deputy squad leader to come over to me immediately for a meeting !" The meeting only had two contents. The first was to listen to Liu Zhiliang's briefing. Before Liu Zhiliang finished speaking, the whole cave was already turned upside down! This was Zhao Jinxi's first time to participate in a formal combat meeting, and it was also his first time to hear about such an unprecedented tragedy! For a moment, she became very powerful, and she immediately took out her crossbow and slapped it on the conference table: "What are you guys still doing here, why don't you hurry up and kill them!"
"Sister, sit down!" Although Zhang Xiang was so angry that he had blue veins on his head, he could still keep his composure: "Since everyone has convened a meeting, there will naturally be a charter. Let's not talk about Cui Futing for now, Qiu Wancai has one There are more than fifty people. We need to make a careful calculation and not act hastily." "Brothers, be quiet!" Yang Peng pointed at the map and said: "If we want to get to Niuxintai on time, the biggest problem we face is the Taizi River. ! The retreat route is also very difficult, because we must capture the culprit alive this time!"
"So I ordered: Zhang Xiang will lead the first squad and the communications squad to arrive at the Sanjiatai front line in the southeast of Pingling Town within three days. Your main task is to help us cross the river when we retreat. This is the top priority ", there must be no mistake!" "The third team of Duan Zhixian and Liu Zhiliang took all the equipment and set off immediately after the meeting. The target was Zhengjiaji. On the one hand, they set up a front station, and on the other hand, they searched for the crossing point and raised two boats as backup. Cheng Shijie and Zhou Dayong's second squad will follow me. The cooking squad is responsible for the defense of the secret camp, but now we have to make three days' worth of dry food immediately! Dismiss the meeting and prepare separately!"
Yang Peng knew that this time was different from the past. The previous times were ambushes. This was the first frontal attack by a small force. With the addition of several new warriors, I don't know how coordinated the battle will be. To be angry is to be angry, and to be angry is to be angry. Once engaged in combat, commanders at all levels must be calm-minded. Everyone worked separately, and Yang Peng was alone in front of the map, thinking hard, and kept making gestures on the map with his hands. Maybe he was so involved that he didn't even know when Zhao Jinxi came in or how he sat next to him.
Zhao Jinxi was also very engrossed in watching, but she didn't look at the map, but stared at Yang Peng for a moment! What Yang Peng was worried about was not how to annihilate Lu Qixiang, but about a hundred-household team of the Yingzhou Khitan army! The straight-line distance from Yingzhou to Niuxintai is only more than twenty miles, and the distance along the road is only more than forty miles. In other words, once the battle starts, it must be resolved within an hour. If the fight becomes a stalemate, the Khitans can arrive at the battlefield in an hour if they ride out on horseback.
Although the brothers under his command are not a mob, they are still far different from the well-trained Khitan army. A head-on confrontation will definitely end in disaster. After carefully planning for a long time, Yang Peng realized that he had too few available soldiers. After arranging reinforcements for one squad, only one squad and a crossbow squad of 20 people were left to attack. In terms of firepower density, it's pretty good. Three crossbows are enough for the opponent to drink a pot.
With a bang, Yang Peng suddenly punched the table, causing Zhao Jinxi to jump in fright. Only then did Yang Peng realize that there was a beautiful woman sitting next to him, and he was immediately unhappy: "Hey, when did you come here? Why didn't you follow Big Brother? Do you know the consequences of disobeying military orders?"
"Who disobeyed the military order? Who disobeyed the military order?" Zhao Jinxi straightened his chest and pushed it directly into Yang Peng's chest: "I have been ordered by Big Brother to come here to be your personal guard!" "Be my guard." ? Are you kidding me!" Yang Peng didn't believe Zhao Jinxi's words. Based on his skills, he might be safer if he didn't have a personal bodyguard. Zhang Xiang is so cunning and scheming, how could he possibly do something like this!
Zhao Jinxi ignored Yang Peng's words at all: "Believe it or not, I came here under orders and followed you every step of the way. I did not violate military orders." "Haha, I understand!" Yang Peng suddenly slapped his head: "Good on you. Zhang Xiang actually did this to me!" It turned out that Zhang Xiang was ordered to find a ferry, so Zhao Jinxi found him and asked to join the offensive force. Zhang Xiang suddenly thought that his brother liked to rush to the front, which was not something a commander should do. Simply give him a burden so that he won't ignore it. So he gave Zhao Jinxi a temporary order, and he came over with confidence.
Yang Peng and Zhang Xiang knew each other well. They were both "Mongolian doctors" and everyone knew the folk remedies they prescribed. So after being stunned for a moment, Yang Peng saw through Zhang Xiang's treacherous plan. But now it is a fait accompli, Zhang Xiang's conspiracy has been a great success! Stop talking about the preface and get back to the main story.
After a day and night of climbing over mountains and ridges, Yang Peng led a large army and finally arrived at the back mountain of Zhengjiaji in the evening of the next day. This was the scheduled rendezvous point, but Duan Zhixian was the only one here. Seeing Yang Peng arriving, Duan Zhixian quickly stood up and reported: "Report to the head, we have found a place, the water depth is less than fifty centimeters. You can wade directly through the water, no ferry is needed!"
"God help me!" Yang Peng was overjoyed when he heard this: "Give me the order, let everyone rest and eat dry food on the spot, and wait for the next order!" Yang Peng took Cheng Shijie and Duan Zhixian to Qianshan where Liu Zhiliang was, because there he could overlook the Taizi River from a high position. . Of course, Zhao Jinxi naturally strictly followed Zhang Xiang's orders and never left his side. After giving Yang Peng a headache, he continued to have headaches.
"Brother, come and see!" Liu Zhiliang saw Yang Peng coming and shouted in a low voice: "Across the way is the Niuxin Terrace. I sneaked over to take a look this afternoon. During dinner, all the little heads and black-clothed The thugs were all concentrated in the house next to the river in the courtyard with lights. Because the work shed was right in the middle of the courtyard, the workers had no chance to escape even if they wanted to."
Bai Shujie stared across the river and asked casually: "How many are there specifically, and what are their weapons and equipment?" Liu Zhidian nodded and said, "In order to guard the workers, Lu Qixiang actually got a crossbow. It was placed in the northwest corner of the courtyard wall. Go up, specifically to monitor the door of the labor shed. As for the other people, there are about forty people in total, less than fifty. They all have long knives, and no long guns were found."
Bai Shujie said in a deep voice: "Shijie, in an hour, you will lead the second squad to go west along the Taizi River and set up an ambush around ten miles away. Once the Khitan arrives for reinforcements, you will immediately send someone to notify me and give me Block for ten minutes!, which is what you usually call about a quarter of an hour. If no Khitan comes, you will immediately withdraw and join us at the specified time."
"Zhixian, I'll leave the crossbow on the wall to you. You must not let him shoot an arrow!" After giving Duan Zhixian instructions alone, Bai Shujie said sharply: "The other soldiers in the third squad will be commanded by Liu Zhiliang, and the crossbow group will follow me. Take action and follow my orders to launch an attack!" Under Zhao Jinxi's reminder, when it was the third watch, Yang Peng shouted: "Inform brothers to check their equipment, don't make any noise, and follow me across the river!"
Duan Zhixian was right, the river water was only submerged above the knees. Although the river bed was rough and uneven, everyone held hands and there were no accidents. It is early autumn now, and the river water is quite chilly at night. But it's still bearable and doesn't affect crossing the river. Besides, the military orders fell like a mountain, and everyone was thinking about the upcoming battle, and they were not in the mood to think about the river water issue at all.
"Pass to the back: Check your equipment quickly, step lightly and prepare to go up the embankment." Yang Peng pulled Zhao Jinxi by the waist and ran up, and the brothers behind him naturally followed suit. A few guys slipped and fell a few times, but it was nothing serious. Yang Peng climbed up the river embankment and saw the railway near the river. Across the road is the so-called "Tai Zi", which is just a flat piece of land with relatively high terrain. This is a nearly square courtyard with a wall of 150 meters on each side, forming a large courtyard.
Except for a few sporadic dim lights in the courtyard, everything was pitch black. Because the enemy's crossbows were on the side of the road, Yang Peng had to take his troops to take a detour. Duan Zhixian was left in place, waiting for the opportunity to capture the enemy's crossbow. At around 1:30 in the middle of the night, Yang Peng had already touched the root of the southernmost courtyard wall. He looked up and saw that the wall was not very high. It looked like a wild beast, less than 1.6 meters. Yang Peng slowly poked his head out, and there was indeed a row of brick houses next to the southernmost wall. There were two men in black chatting at the door. They must be the guys on the night shift.
Yang Peng lowered his voice and ordered: "Liu Zhiliang and I went in first to kill the sentries. When the others heard Liu Zhiliang's greeting, they climbed over the wall from here. The two crossbows of the crossbow group were set up on the wall, specifically for attacking. Enemies rushing out." After saying that, he pulled Liu Zhiliang up the mountain. When he saw Zhao Jinxi still wanting to follow him, Yang Peng glared and growled: "What nonsense! Just meet us here!"
Yang Peng and Liu Zhiliang took a detour up the hillside and then touched the base of the wall. Fortunately, for the sake of insulation, the house is not high. Yang Peng climbed to the roof without much effort, and then pulled Liu Zhiliang up again. He crawled to the position near the gate, and now he was looking down at the two men in black below. Originally, Yang Peng was going to use darts, but now the two people were directly below, and the darts could only hit the top of the head. This could only guarantee a fatal blow, but it could not guarantee that the enemy would not make a sound.
Jump down and restrain the enemy in an instant! There is no other way! Yang Peng made a gesture to Liu Zhiliang, then pulled out a two-handed crossbow and flew down. The two hand crossbows hit a man in black on the top of the door! "Pfft!" This is probably what a ripe watermelon sounds like. Liu Zhiliang did the same thing, finishing off the other man in black, and then slowly placed the two corpses on the ground.
Yang Peng's two-handed crossbow opened its nose to guard the door, while monitoring the left and right side doors. There was no sound in the room, and the slight snoring was still very even. Liu Zhiliang walked to the courtyard wall with his hands and feet, and called on the soldiers to climb over the wall one after another.
All personnel were divided into three groups, led by Yang Peng, Liu Zhiliang and Zhao Jinxi respectively, and watched all three gates to death. Yang Peng then pushed open the door and stepped in. The five warriors behind him filed in and dispersed in all directions.
There is actually a kang inside, with the heads facing out and the feet facing in. One next to another, they are arranged neatly. On the walls on both sides of the door, long knives were hung neatly. Eighteen on each side, thirty-six people in total. Yang Peng waved his hand, and the two soldiers quickly gathered all the long knives on the wall and took them outside.
Leaving four soldiers at the door to monitor the dreaming bastards, Yang Peng first came to the door of the room on the right controlled by Zhao Jinxi. The situation is exactly the same, Zhao Jinxi has taken control of the situation. This room is small, with only four people in it, but there are six hand crossbows.
"Whoosh!"
There was the sound of an arrow from the room controlled by Liu Zhiliang, and then a scream was heard, followed by a chaos, and then a soldier was helped out. Yang Peng didn't know what was going on, so he quickly shouted: "Listen up, you bastards in the room. Now come out one by one with your hands on your head. Anyone who moves will be beaten to death!"
After a period of commotion, all thirty-six people in the room controlled by Yang Peng came out and squatted in the center of the yard. From the room controlled by Zhao Jinxi, four guys were also escorted out to watch alone. Only Liu Zhiliang controlled the room. Two people were dragged out with ropes, a man and a woman.
What happened after all, let’s see what happens next.
