(7)
Bai Feng waited quietly while thinking about what Wu Yi would discuss with him tonight.
Night came soon, and the conditions of the patients in the hospital camp who drank the medicinal soup improved a lot, and they believed they would be cured within a few days. After nightfall, Murong Yan and Zhao Xiaomei went out for a walk and talked about certain topics with each other. When they came in, they looked at Bai Feng from time to time, and then snickered at each other. Bai Feng naturally didn't know what they were talking about, so she could only respond with a self-deprecating smile.
"The time is up, let's go to Brother Wu's place now!" Zhao Kuo stood up and said.
"Where to go?" Murong Yan asked.
Bai Feng replied: "Go to the commander's camp, and Yan'er and Miss Zhao will stay here to rest."
"No! I will follow you wherever you go!"
"Why can't I go?" Zhao Xiaomei asked.
Zhao Kuo said: "My little sister and dad's health has just improved, so it's better to rest more. As for Miss Murong, it depends on Brother Bai's wishes..."
"Then Yan'er, please come with us."
Bai Feng walked in front carrying an oil paper lantern, followed closely by Zhao Kuo, Tuoba Yan, and Murong Yan. After passing several camps, they finally arrived in front of the commander's camp. Wu Yi in the camp saw the fire outside the tent, lifted the door curtain, and found that it was indeed Zhao Kuo and his party, so he welcomed them in.
In the center of the camp was a huge hand-drawn map with many words marked on it, the most conspicuous of which were the several red arrows pointing to one place from different directions. Two people were arguing on both sides of the map, and the man in the middle wearing fine black armor was holding his chin with his left hand, as if he was seriously considering the thoughts of the two beside him.
"Vice General Li, we're here." Wu Yi said respectfully to the man in black armor.
"You are the young heroes who have eliminated the 'Three Black Wind Evils' from Yangcheng!" After Vice General Li finished speaking, he looked in the direction of Murong Yan and asked, "Why is Miss Murong here too?"
Murong Yan, who was hiding behind Bai Feng, made a face with her tongue sticking out at Vice General Li, and replied playfully: "I want you to take care of it!"
"Yan'er, don't be rude!" Bai Feng said.
"But he just likes to be nosy!" Murong Yan said coquettishly to Bai Feng.
When Lieutenant General Li saw the two people in front of him, he couldn't help laughing and said: "Hahaha, Miss Murong is still so fond of joking. However, this time it was all thanks to Miss Murong that the epidemic in the camp was under control!" "Things like this are entirely Li's fault. Miss, you don't care about the faults of others, so please forgive me!"
Murong Yan deliberately turned her head to the other side and replied proudly: "Humph! It's good that you know!"
"Vice General Li, let's talk about business. Why did you call us here late at night?" Zhao Kuo said extremely nervously.
"Well, that's actually what happened. We are almost running out of food and grass, so continuing to defend here is not the way to go. We were just discussing some good offensive strategies."
"Then...is there any result?"
"A strong frontal attack is really a bad idea. Abandoning the stronghold and fleeing will only increase future troubles. So I would like to ask you, as representatives of the people, to put forward some suggestions..."
Tuoba Jin was the first to make suggestions, saying: "As a common people, of course we want to return to a safe place as soon as possible and live a peaceful life!"
"But if we don't kill that group of thieves now, they will become more rampant and powerful in the future. The people will not be stable for too long." Zhao Kuo replied calmly.
After hearing this, Murong Yan said with a sad look on her face: "Wouldn't that mean many people will die..."
Everyone was silent, and the slight laughter and laughter disappeared without a trace.
"Why don't we divide our forces first to protect the people and retreat to Yangcheng..." Bai Feng said.
Zhao Kuo reminded Bai Feng and said, "Brother Bai, the enemy will take advantage of the lack of troops to attack the camp in large numbers!"
"I came up with a plan - it's called 'Leading the Snake Out of its Hole'."
"Oh?" Everyone said in unison.
Bai Feng continued: "The rule of victory in war is to maximize one's own advantages and minimize the enemy's advantages. The thieves have more than a hundred cavalry, and their total strength is slightly better than ours. They have the advantage in encounters. Absolute advantage. To weaken their advantage, the only way is to attract the bandits to besiege us. At this time, the excellent defenses of the Han army will come in handy."
After hearing what Bai Feng said, Vice General Li felt like he had received some good advice, but he still had doubts in his heart and asked, "But the risk of doing this is too high!"
"Vice General Li, I haven't finished speaking yet." Bai Feng said: "War means risk. There is no war in the world that can guarantee victory in advance."
"Brother Bai, please continue."
"I request Vice General Li to divide one hundred troops and twenty horses to escort the people back to Yangcheng!"
"This..." Everyone present was shocked.
Bai Feng continued: "At that time, I will ask Governor Xu to order the recruitment of troops and bring back more reinforcements!"
"But there is no need to dispatch more than a hundred soldiers to protect the people..." Vice General Li said.
"To make the bandits think that we have no intention of fighting and only want to retreat, we must have enough troops to retreat to Yangcheng. Only in this way will the enemy mobilize their entire army to surround us, and then we will have the opportunity to completely annihilate the bandits. !" Bai Feng cupped his hands and said: "In order to allow the camp to resist for at least half a day, I propose to start withdrawing to Yangcheng in three days. Three days should be enough to strengthen the defenses, right?"
Vice General Li held his chin and asked Wu Yi after a moment of silence: "Wu Yi, what do you think?"
Wu Yi replied: "I think this is the best way at present!"
"Okay! Let's use Brother Bai's strategy. We will start strengthening the defenses tomorrow and the entire army will be ready for war!"
After some discussion, everyone looked at Bai Feng with admiration. Who would have thought that this commoner boy had extraordinary military talents?
Afterwards, Zhao Kuo and his party left the commander's camp and walked on the night road to prepare to go back to rest. Bai Feng still walked at the front holding an oil paper lantern, looking up at the starry sky, thoughtfully.
Murong Yan suddenly stepped forward, took Bai Feng's arm with both hands, and said, "Brother Feng, you are so amazing! You convinced them all, but I couldn't understand some parts."
"Why don't you tell me what Vice General Li said about 'what happened last time'?" Bai Feng asked.
"What happened last time was actually about me going out to collect medicine... That 'bad guy Li' didn't let me go outside, and he even told me that I'm a prostitute and couldn't take risks. I replied that there would be no risk, and he He called me 'nonsense'. Then he tied me up with a rope. Thanks to Old Man Han, he helped me untie the rope..."
Zhao Kuo interrupted: "Then Dr. Han was punished with ten lashes for disobeying military orders. He is still bedridden."
"So... that Adjutant Li is a bad guy!" Murong Yan pursed her lips and said slightly unhappily.
Bai Feng sighed and said helplessly to Murong Yan: "Yan'er, you can't just joke around in the military camp. Let's go and apologize to Dr. Han tomorrow."
"All right……"
The next day, Bai Feng, who was awakened by the noise outside, walked out of the camp half asleep and wanted to find out. Several soldiers outside were working together to carry a log that was two or three people long. One of the soldiers accidentally sprained his foot and was in severe pain. The carrying work had to be stopped. Bai Feng did not expect that they would start strengthening the fortifications early in the morning. The lethargy he felt just now was gone forever, and now he just wanted to do his part. Just as he stepped forward to greet the injured soldier, Murong Yan happened to pass by.
"Brother Feng, what's wrong with him?"
"He seems to have sprained his ankle. Yan'er, come over and help him take a look! I'll help them move the wood."
"Okay, let's go find Old Man Han together later."
A moment later, Bai Feng joined the moving procession. But the weight of the wood was far beyond his imagination, which forced him to move forward with difficulty. When the soldiers accompanying Bai Feng saw the young man's predicament, they all talked to him to distract him so that Bai Feng would not have to suffer too much.
"You must be the young hero Bai who came up with the strange plan! The news has spread throughout the camp!"
"Now we can finally kill all those thieves!"
"I didn't expect Bai Shaoxia to be so young..."
Although Bai Feng could barely hold back a few words in response under heavy pressure, it was obviously easier than before. After a few people moved to the designated location, Bai Feng and Murong Yan went to find Dr. Han.
Doctor Han was lying on his side in his tent, and every movement he made seemed very painful. Murong Yan stepped forward to help him sit up, but as soon as she touched his back, Dr. Han wailed: "Ouch! It hurts...it hurts...let me do it myself."
Murong Yan was so horrified by Dr. Han's miserable condition that she shed tears and said, "I'm sorry, Old Man Han. It's all my fault that you were beaten by that bad guy."
Dr. Han has white beard and hair and looks like a wise old man. He replied: "I want to thank you! Miss Murong, if you hadn't brought the medicine back in time, the epidemic in the camp would have continued to worsen."
Seeing that Dr. Han was seriously injured, Bai Feng asked, "Doctor Han, we will escort the people back to Yangcheng in two days. Seeing that you have difficulty moving, why don't you go with the people..."
"No!" Dr. Han shouted loudly: "I am a military doctor. If you escape from battle, you will be beheaded!"
"But..." Bai Feng knew how stubborn the old man was, so he swallowed what he wanted to say.
Doctor Han continued to face Murong Yan: "Miss Murong, I know you have talents beyond ordinary people. Old man, I have nothing to thank you for. This book is what I have learned throughout my life, and it will be useful to you and people in the future." It's helpful, take it!" Doctor Han handed the classics in his hand to Murong Yan, and then said with a dry laugh: "If I die, I will have an heir, hahaha..."
Murong Yan cried loudly, like a little tearful person, and said: "Old man, I can't let you go..."
"There is no such thing as a feast that lasts forever. If you look at it more openly, you can live a happier life." Dr. Han replied.
In the following time, everyone worked together to completely eradicate the threat from Yangcheng. Finally, the day came when the plan was implemented. The weather was sunny and perfect for marching! Vice General Li ordered Wu Yi to follow Bai Feng and retreat to Yangcheng, both for safety reasons and to maintain contact with Yangcheng, because only the two of them knew how to use the messenger pigeon.
After arriving in Yangcheng, Bai Feng immediately asked Prefect Xu for a conscription order. What is unexpected is that nearly 200 people are willing to sign up, including many children around the age of fifteen. Of course, it was impossible to send children to the battlefield, so in the end only more than 150 militiamen were recruited. Only a few of them were equipped with weapons issued by the army, and most of them used the sickles and pitchforks they used for home work as weapons. And those wearing armor are even rarer. Even the Chinese armor worn by Bai Feng was borrowed from Prefect Xu.
All this is due to the wars and massacres that Yangcheng has suffered for many years. Although its business and trade can vaguely see the prosperity of the past, its military strength has long been riddled with holes and is extremely weak.
It took Bai Feng and his party half a day to set out from the military camp in the early morning to reach Yangcheng, and it took a lot of time to organize the troops and horses. By the time they set out to reinforce Lieutenant General Li, it was already dusk. The blood-red sunshine shone on the soldiers, as if indicating that they would return in blood. Bai Feng decided to only let Tuoba Yan go with him among his companions. Under the north gate of Yangcheng, the soldiers were ready to go.
Zhao Kuo and the others looked very excited when they looked at Bai Feng, who was dressed in military uniform. Only Murong Yan looked worried.
"Brother Bai, Brother Tuoba, I wish you a safe journey!" Zhao Kuo said.
"Brother Bai, brother, ask A-Bian to make delicious food for you when you come back!" Tuoba Guang continued.
"Little sister, look at Bai Shaoxia, he looks like a general!" Zhao Wei pulled Zhao Xiaomei beside him, who seemed to be having an awkward moment, and said.
Only Murong Yan walked up to Bai Feng alone, took off the copper bell at her feet, gave it to Bai Feng, and said: "This copper bell was left to me by my mother, no matter how far away it is, who rings it?" I can hear it. If you are in danger, just ring it three times. No matter where you are, I will come to find you!"
"This guy is saying something incomprehensible again." Bai Feng said in his heart. But seeing Murong Yan's eyes full of love and ready to burst into tears, it was very beautiful and moving. He wished that time could stop here, but his other self didn't allow him to do so. He must keep his promise, defeat the bandits, and restore peace to Yangcheng.
"You will come back, right?" Murong Yan said to Bai Feng, who was still thinking.
"Of course!" Bai Feng tied the copper bell on her right waist, raised her right hand, stroked the girl's cheek, and said, "I will definitely come back."
After saying goodbye to his friends one by one, Bai Feng put on his helmet and mounted his horse, looking like a general. He took his reinforcements with him and embarked on a battlefield full of malice and blood.
