The moment when Guo Ning went on a killing spree, the dim sun was setting at the end of the wilderness to the west.
By the time everyone left Gaoyang Pass, it was completely dark. There are no particularly high hills around the open field. We have walked a long way. Occasionally, when we look back, we can still see the flickering firelight in Guancheng and hear the noise coming from that direction.
Yu Jingchun felt more and more frightened as he recalled the situation just now. One of his companions tried to light a torch to illuminate the situation. He was afraid that Xiao Haohu's subordinates would see the light and pursue them, so he immediately shouted to stop.
He complained in his heart about why he had the bad luck to bump into Guo Ning, worried about the chaos after Xiao Haohu's death, and wanted to return to Yujiazhuang as soon as possible. So he ran faster and faster, and before long, he was far away from Guo Ning and others.
Under the thick darkness of night, several vague figures flickered and disappeared.
This situation made Wang Shixian a little stunned.
He turned around, wanting to remind Guo Ning, but saw Guo Ning walking back, reaching out to help a staggering partner of Wang Shixian.
Previously, the station where Wang Shixian and others were stationed was also attacked by Xi's army. Wang Shixian's subordinates were caught off guard and most of them died in battle. The remaining three people, including Wang Shixian, were all seriously injured and captured. Wang Shixian himself was barely holding on, but his two subordinates were already staggering and could hardly walk.
Wang Shixian hurried over and took care of one with Guo Ning.
Wang Shixian's subordinates are all Wanggu people from the Gongchang Mansion area. This tribe is often considered to be close relatives of the Mongols, and is known as the "White Tartars". But in fact, the ancestors of the Wanggu people were a part of the Uighurs. In recent hundreds of years, they have merged with Shatuo, Xixia and other tribes and even many Khitans and Han people. Their ancestry is quite complicated.
People like Wang Shixian have lived in the Han area for generations, followed Han customs, and their appearance is almost the same as that of Han children. The person being supported by Guo Ning has a typical Mongolian appearance, with protruding cheekbones, small eyes, a flat nose, and a thick beard.
Guo Ning asked him: "Is it serious?"
The man could understand, but he probably couldn't speak Chinese, so he just smiled at Guo Ning to express his gratitude.
The four of them walked for a while, and Guo Ning stopped walking and said, "Let's rest for a while. You guys wait for me."
This is the Sanjikou embankment where Guo Ning had been waiting.
Guo Ning placed the two wounded men and sat down by the roadside. He climbed to the top of the embankment and took down the dry food and drinking water he had left before the action. There wasn't much food, so everyone was so hungry that they each took two bites and ate them all.
While Wang Shixian was devouring the food, Guo Ning began to remove his armor.
"Liu Lang, is this safe?" Wang Shixian was a little worried.
"Don't worry, they didn't act rashly just now, and now it's even less likely that they will pursue Qi Ye..." Halfway through Guo Ning's words, he made a slightly larger move to remove his armor, probably touching a wound somewhere, and took a few deep breaths of cold air. .
Wang Shixian paused and asked again: "Xi Jun is like a mad dog. He will always react tomorrow and the day after tomorrow... They can do anything! How should we deal with it next?"
"Even a mad dog has to have a leader. The first thing this group of people have to do is to decide on a new leader or two who can cope with the situation... However, when that time comes, the situation will be completely different."
"how do I say this?"
"Xiao Haohu is ambitious, ruthless, and has ulterior motives. How could Tu Shanhang, the governor of Anzhou, not know this? Taking Xiao Haohu as the commander of the capital is just a helpless move by Tu Shanhang. Xiao Haohu's death will end in The happy one is Tu Shanhang. After the news of his death reaches Wocheng County, Tu Shanhang will immediately send people to Gaoyang Pass to appease, integrate, and even divide and conquer this Xi army... By then, this A group of people have too much time to take care of themselves, how can they take care of us?"
Wang Shixian hesitated for a long time.
Seeing that Guo Ning couldn't grasp the leather strap behind his right shoulder, he diligently stepped forward to lend a hand and help him untie each part of the armor one by one, then roll it up and tie it into a small bundle.
This green velvet armor should be of the highest quality made by famous craftsmen from all over the world when King Hailing conquered the Song Dynasty in the early years. It is indeed used by the elite of the imperial court. The row of armor plates on the right side of his armor was hacked by Tang Gudai with a heavy knife. The entire row of armor plates was slightly dented, but none of them was broken.
Of course, the huge impact can still cause damage. Under the dim moonlight, all three of them saw that Guo Ning's right upper arm was black and blue, which was caused by blood accumulation and severe bone contusion.
When Guo Ning was injured at first, he was still able to muster the courage to kill Xiao Hao and Hu Yidao. By this time, he could no longer lift his right arm and could only hang it by his side.
Wang Shixian was an experienced soldier. On second thought, he realized that when Xiao Haohu's men surrounded Guo Ning, his right arm had no strength left.
Being able to build up momentum and frighten the enemy is really a blessing.
Wang Shixian couldn't help holding his forehead and sighed: "This is the second time, Guo Liulang!"
"Yes, this is the second time!" Guo Ning also sighed.
"What the second time?" a Wanggu soldier asked curiously.
It turned out that when Wang Shixian retreated from Dingzhou to Baozhou with a large group of defeated troops last year, a small group of Mongolian light cavalry pursued him for a long distance. Guo Ning's troops were stationed in Baozhou at the time. Seeing that the Paoze men suffered heavy casualties, he led others to help in the battle.
He wears green velvet armor and holds a long knife, fighting back and forth to cut off the rear. Because of his extraordinary bravery, the Mongolian cavalry did not dare to approach for a while. Seeing that his armor was sharp, they asked the soldiers nearby: "Where did this man come from?"
How could the soldiers know what the Mongols were saying?
At his wits' end, Wang Shixian happened to be among the rebels. Wang Shixian can speak Chinese, Jurchen, Mongolian, and Xixia. He immediately replied loudly: "This is the small army in front of Emperor Jin. There are two hundred thousand of them. They will be here soon." !”
The Mongols penetrated deep into the hinterland of the Jin Kingdom with a small number of troops. They had already achieved great results and were unwilling to take risks easily. After hearing these words, they took the initiative to withdraw their troops. Thousands of defeated soldiers escaped.
Guo Ning and Wang Shixian met at that time. When Wang Shixian saw this pair of green velvet armor in Gaoyang Pass, he knew that Guo Ning was coming, and he was immediately overjoyed.
At this time, Guo Ning packed up all his belongings and went to the embankment to bow to Wang Shixian.
Wang Shixian couldn't help but stepped forward and grabbed Guo Ning's arm: "Liu Lang!"
"What else?"
The two of them stood at a slightly higher place, and the lights on the Gaoyangguan Walled City became more eye-catching.
Looking from a distance, many light spots trembled horizontally, which should be people holding torches running back and forth. Obviously what Guo Ning said was correct. The three hundred people in Xi's army had fallen into chaos. Perhaps, there was an internal strife breaking out. It was unknown.
Wang Shixian gritted his teeth, pointed at the light and said: "I know Liulang looks down on them and thinks they are bandits. But after all, there are three hundred people, and they are all capable of going into battle and dare to fight! Why send them to Tu Shanhang? In your hand?"
He looked at Guo Ning's expression and continued: "I still have some friends in Xinqiao Camp, and I can also persuade the Yu family to ask them to help... Fifty people will be enough! Tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, There will be some leaders from all over Anzhou gathered at Gaoyang Pass. Liulang, you will surely be able to overwhelm them with your majesty in killing Xiao Haohu. When that time comes, you will be the commander of Anzhou!"
"Then what?"
"What?" Wang Shixian asked in shock.
"What's the use of gathering all these rabble in one place?"
"Why is it useless? Liulang, you might as well think about this situation..." Wang Shixian was about to say more, but Guo Ning paused on the ground with the long knife in his left hand, stopping his words.
After a while, Guo Ning said slowly and authentically: "Tu Dan, the governor, tried to unite the stragglers in the vicinity two months ago. At that time, few people responded. Why? Because everyone was killed by the Mongols inside and outside the Great Wall. I am so frightened. We are all people who have died once, and no one wants to be driven by the court again to go to the front line to fill ravines and fight against the sword!"
Having said this, Guo Ning shook his head: "Then why did some people become interested one after another later? It's because in the past few months, the true results of last year's war in Xijing have gradually become impossible to hide from others, and many news from Mongolia have also been revealed. Gradually spread to Anzhou. Many people have understood from this that the battle between Dajin and Mongolia will become more and more fierce. Those who have no strength at hand and cannot see the future clearly will inevitably be crushed into powder. Only smart people can They were able to navigate the chaos that followed, just like Shi Mo Ming'an, Liu Bolin, and Guo Baoyu."
Shi Moming'an, Liu Bolin, Guo Baoyu and others are all imperial officers who have defected to the Mongols since last year. Among them, Shi Moming'an is also the guard general of Fuzhou, and his status is not low. I heard that these people were highly valued by the Mongols and enjoyed great wealth and wealth. Their former colleagues, bosses, and subordinates who were scattered all over Hebei were inevitably moved.
However, after all, these people are traitors, and most people think about it in their hearts, and few people mention it as freely as Guo Ning.
For a moment, Wang Shixian was silent.
Guo Ning continued: "This is Xiao Haohu's plan. He is interested in the status of the commander of Anzhou. Of course, he is not doing his job for the Jin Dynasty, but he hopes to gain the attention of the Mongols at some point. As for Brother Shixian, you..."
Wang Shixian forced a smile and said, "What about me?"
"I heard that the leader of the Wanggu people, Alagosi, was now crowned the King of Peking by Genghis Khan. He promised to marry his daughter, Princess Alhai, and agreed that the two families would intermarry for generations and call each other Anda. What kind of favor is this? Come to think of it, the situation of the war If there is any disadvantage, if Brother Shixian comes forward to defect to Mongolia, the future will be brighter than that of Xiao Haohu. In this way, the defeated soldiers near Anzhou will be more willing to support Brother Shixian than Xiao Haohu. So, Xiao Hao and Hu Cai have to deal with you, right?"
Wang Shixian's expression changed. He opened his mouth, but couldn't speak.
"Brother Shixian, don't think of me as a fool, and don't think of me as a cover. I understand all of this... I just don't want to be the weakling at both ends of the head."
Guo Ning stared at Wang Shixian's ugly expression and couldn't help but laugh, very relaxed and happy.
His eyes reflected the light of distant lights, shining brightly in the dark night: "I have never thought of taking refuge with the Mongols. I have never thought of it before, and I will never think of it in the future!"
