The spring rain on the 26th of the first lunar month came and went quickly. Although it came fiercely, it only soaked the surface and accelerated the melting of the remaining river ice. By noon, it had disappeared.
In the afternoon, Zhang Xing and others were escorted by Xu Shiying and others who took the initiative to greet them, and returned to the military camp at the junction of Wuyang County, Wu'an County, and Qinghe County. Then they entered a state of combat readiness and continued to carefully guard against attacks from A surprise attack from the southwest.
To be fair, thanks to the seven-day buffer period, the current situation of the Deposed Dragon Gang has actually improved greatly:
First of all, during these seven days, they continued to transfer large amounts of grain, cloth, gold and silver, and many war preparation materials eastward from the companion capitals of Yecheng and Liyangcang, and took the opportunity to publicize the fact that the Qilong Gang released grain and the imperial court prevented it.
Secondly, they completed the mutual separation between the war soldiers, the field soldiers and the civilians. The war soldiers who could fight in the field have completely withdrawn to both sides of the Qingzhang River, while the field soldiers have withdrawn to various towns to assist in city protection, while the civilians continue to Let Liyangcang's grain be moved... It is worth mentioning that in theory, the soldiers of Jijun around Liyangcang, who theoretically accepted Qu Tuda's order, still maintained cooperation or neutrality and allowed Liyangcang to be moved to the east by civilians. .
Thirdly, seven days, warm southerly winds and two completely different spring rains basically brought the flood season of the river to an end quickly. In terms of transportation across the river from north to south, at least the army was no longer completely blocked... Of course, compared with the freeze period After all, the river is an obstacle. For this reason, Zhang Xing, in his letter to Xu Shiying last night, requested that a floating bridge be built as soon as the river opens to ensure that he has the strategic initiative to travel between the two sides of the Qingzhang River.
Finally, and also very important, everyone's mentality has calmed down, and they are no longer as shocked and at a loss as they were when they first heard that Cao Lin came to Hebei.
I still have to thank Old Master Zhang.
However, not all the news was reassuring. That night, news came from Wu'an County overnight, saying that Wei Xuanding, Xie Minghe, Cui Suchen and others went south after the rain during the day, trying to use the original route at the foot of Hongshan Mountain in the south of Wuyang County. We were blocked when meeting up with Wang Xiongdan... The reason was that the rain that just passed seemed to become more intense as we got closer to the depths of Hongshan Mountain, causing some mountain collapses, so we needed to go back and take a detour.
Theoretically, this news is not something worthy of vigilance or attention, because landslides at the junction of mountains and plains are too common during heavy rains.
However, the words "Red Mountain Landslide" are a bit too sensitive for some people.
Then, the next day, the twenty-seventh day of the first lunar month, as several pontoon bridges were erected on the Qingzhang River, and everyone felt more and more at ease, another slightly weird news came. It turned out that yesterday afternoon, in Ji County Qu Tuda, the governor of Wei County, suddenly led thousands of core troops and left Wei County and headed west, towards Hanoi County.
Calculating the time, this should be the order issued by Cao Lin after returning to Hanoi. But if it was just to discuss the march, how could Qu Tuda be asked to take the core troops back? Isn’t it enough for one person to lead the personal guard? Why lead troops?
The war is imminent, why bother marching the troops for dozens of miles back and forth?
Therefore, many people, or almost all military generals who expressed their opinions, believed that this was a better sign - Cao Lin was probably preparing to withdraw his troops.
This is a quite rational inference, and Zhang Xing has no reason not to believe it, but he is still uneasy because he does not feel that he is so lucky. After doing something that stirred up a hornet's nest, he did not encounter a corresponding counterattack.
In fact, Qu Tuda thought so too. When he arrived at the camp north of Xiuwu City in Hanoi on the evening of the 27th, he quickly realized that something was wrong because the atmosphere in the military camp was not right, so he came to deal with it. People are not just a few Taibao.
"Lao Lu, what happened? Why are all the camps packing their luggage?"
Qutuda did not follow the instructions to settle the troops at all, but directly grabbed the army commander who came to guide and greet them. "If the whole army is going to move, why do you ask me to bring troops instead?"
The Army Sima smiled bitterly when he heard this: "General Qu Tu, why bother embarrassing me, a Sima who is an assistant? Naturally, important matters in the army must be discussed with the commander."
"I will go see Zhongcheng, but now you have to tell me first that the whole army is packing up, why?" Qu Tuda did not let go at all.
"General Qu Tu..." The Army Sima became increasingly helpless and could only lower his head and move forward. "It's not that I don't want to answer. It's the commander who has given instructions to usher you in immediately. Please don't embarrass me, General Qutu."
Qu Tuda frowned slightly, then hesitated slightly as he followed the other person's words, and suddenly asked: "Old Lu, you talk about the coach, why don't you just say Zhongcheng and the emperor's uncle? Is it possible that Zhongcheng has not come back? There is someone else as the coach?"
"Not bad." The army commander paused, gritted his teeth and nodded. "It's true that Zhongcheng hasn't come back. It's someone else who makes the decision."
Qutuda narrowed his eyes, and then asked seriously: "Zhongcheng was injured? Did he go back to Dongdu directly? Do you want to withdraw the troops?"
The military commander was startled again, and then answered with a slight uneasiness: "That's what he said, but it's only half of it."
"The order passed by Duan Shangshu?" Qu Tuda asked again.
"Yes...yes!" Army Sima exclaimed.
"I'm going to see Mr. Duan." Qu Tuda nodded, then immediately abandoned the other party, held his sword forward solemnly, and went straight to the Chinese army's tent.
The Army Sima turned around after him, as if he wanted to say something more.
But Qu Tuda seemed to wake up and turned around again: "In this case, I won't delay Lao Lu, you are busy, and go take them for resettlement."
The military commander surnamed Lu was startled again and again, then finally nodded and said no more.
In this way, Qu Tuda, knowing that Cao Zhongcheng's trip was blocked, actually went back to Dongdu to borrow the black tower to save his life. He was already anxious and uneasy, but he went straight to the Chinese army's tent to find Duan Wei and ask for details.
Who did it? Is it Old Master Zhang, the Deposed Dragon Gang, or someone from Taiyuan, or are two or two of them or even all of them working together to do it?
How serious is Cao Zhongcheng's injury? Is it just going to be a downfall, or is it better to just warm up for a while?
And with this withdrawal of troops, wouldn't it mean that Hebei will be surrendered? It should be known that Qu Tuda had been in Ji County for a long time, and now he has come back, but he has clearly realized that the deposed Long Gang's raid on Liyang has really won the hearts of the people, and even ordinary officials and local powerful families have been shaken... At this time, if We cannot take advantage of the fact that the Deposed Dragon Gang has not yet integrated Hebei and carry out an absolute military attack. After a while, the balance of power will be different.
After integrating the Deposed Dragon Gang in Hebei, they will definitely be able to support a grand master, multiple masters, and more Cheng Dan and Ning Dan, not to mention a huge army built with the entire force of Hebei.
Although he was only leading troops and getting paid, after all, he had been in confrontation with the Deposed Dragon Gang for many years and had been stationed in Hebei for a long time. Qu Tuda was still unwilling to accept it.
With this uneasiness and unwillingness, Qu Tuda directly entered the Chinese army's tent, and then saw at a glance the empty main seat, as well as Duan Wei, the Minister of the Ministry of War, who was sitting on the side of the main seat behind a few cases and had a nervous look on his face. Yan Yan glanced at the lieutenant generals on his left and right sides, plus Li Qingchen who suddenly appeared here. Finally, his eyes fell on a tall figure standing behind Duan Wei with his back to everyone.
This man wears a warrior crown, black brocade clothes, gray hair, and a tall figure... He is definitely not Cao Lin, but he gives people an inexplicable sense of oppression.
The next moment, as the man turned around, Qutuda seemed to realize the current situation immediately, but soon he began to become suspicious, because he immediately realized that all his seemingly natural guesses and awakenings were actually more like It was a joke, there was no way he could figure out the current situation.
"General Qu Tu, please sit down." The man in black clothes, the British Gong Bai Hengqiu, couldn't help laughing when he saw Qu Tu Da. "You're the only one left."
Qutuda was surprised and uncertain. He slightly cupped his hands and responded. Then he lowered his head and sat down on the reserved seat. He quickly stopped thinking because Duan Wei had already started talking and he had to collect as much useful information as possible.
"General Qu Tu, this is what happened." Duan Wei said to Qu Tu Da casually. "There was a conflict at the Hongshan rally the day before yesterday, and several great masters and masters took action directly... And I am too lazy to cover it up, because you will all hear the news soon, and the whole of Hebei will know... It was Cao Zhongcheng who was the first He moved his hands and aroused the anger of the people. The movement almost destroyed Hongshan. Then, just because Zhong Cheng moved his hands and aroused public anger, Zhang Xing, Li Ding, Xue Changxiong and others left directly. The rest of us Everyone left in the evening, but Daoist Chonghe and Old Master Zhang who were present were worried about Zhongcheng and were afraid that he would catch up with someone else, so they asked everyone to leave. They wanted to guard Zhongcheng together, saying that they would not do it until yesterday. Will be released at dawn."
It was naturally the first time for Qutuda to hear this message, and many of the people here had probably heard this message before, but when they heard it again, they still couldn't help but feel a little confused.
The reason is very simple... To be honest, when an army of tens of thousands of people outside grows and the commander disappears, and then the deputy commander comes to the military camp with potential enemy leaders or political opponents, many people's first reaction is to Think about something like a mutiny to seize power. In this case, whatever the deputy commander tries to control the situation says must be analyzed from the perspective of authenticity.
Among them, the words about the coach are the most basic key.
But the problem is that Duan Wei's words sounded very ridiculous, but if he thought about it carefully, he couldn't make a fake thing at all, because he would know it when he went out and asked.
In fact, when Qu Tuda heard this for the first time, he was still thinking about the name Chong He, and then he felt that his brain was not enough.
Why did Taoist Chonghe appear in Hebei? ! What a coincidence? !
"Actually, I can understand Zhong Cheng." At this point, Duan Wei couldn't help but sneer. "That rally was basically made up of people from Hebei and Jin making accusations, saying that the two saints of this dynasty were the greatest thieves in the world, so the Wei Dynasty must perish... Zhongcheng also took action for this... It's really unbelievable. It’s his fault, throughout the entire gathering, Zhongcheng and I were like thieves in court, being pointed at our noses and judged for our crimes.”
Qutuda couldn't help but sigh, because he still had the same thought-this thing was too ridiculous, but also too real, because isn't this the current situation? He himself felt that the people in Hebei hated people like him.
But he didn't expect that these people would not give the Grand Master any face.
No, originally they were two great masters. One-on-one, they might have to give face, but after they clashed, two against one, there was no need to give face!
"I left first that night. Instead of coming back directly, I got the military order from Zhongcheng to go to Fukou to pick up the Jinwu Guards that Li Twelve Lang left behind before leaving Hebei. I arrived at the military camp around midnight, and things were still going well. It was considered smooth, so we rested directly. We rested until dawn. Suddenly, in the Hongshan Mountain next to Fukou Camp, there was a strong stream of light, wind and rain, lightning and thunder, as if real dragons were fighting. Thousands of people couldn't sleep. Get up and watch together."
Having said this, Duan Wei couldn't help but sigh.
"I'll tell you the truth, it was the battle between the great masters that caused the celestial phenomenon, because the flow of true energy was too obvious. I just don't know who fought with Zhong Cheng, or did the two join forces? In short, everyone watched helplessly, and the surroundings The tops of Hongshan Mountain were smashed one by one. The fighting lasted until noon, and the movement gradually disappeared. At this time, Cao Zhongcheng fell into the military camp, obviously seriously injured! He told me that he could not stay in Hebei any longer, and he must Returning to the Eastern Capital, he used the Black Tower to survive and asked me to come back quickly to take charge of the situation... Then he didn't dare to stay for a moment and ran away."
Qu Tuda, whose brain was damaged, remained silent throughout the whole process, and now he just waited quietly.
Sure enough, after Duan Wei finished speaking, he gave the most direct and final explanation: "General Qu Tu, this is the cause of the matter. It all happened in public. You can find people to verify most of them immediately. For a few, you can wait a moment. It can be verified in two days. Now let me talk about what happened next... After Zhongcheng escaped, other great masters were obviously chasing him. I can only speak for myself. When I saw them leaving, I led my troops back south. As a result, It was only then that I discovered that because of their great master's battle, the mountains had collapsed and the roads from north to south were blocked. Just when I was hesitating whether to go south alone, the British Duke suddenly came from the west of Fukou."
Qu Tuda immediately looked at Bai Hengqiu again.
Bai Hengqiu smiled and finally spoke: "The matter is very simple... I knew that several great masters were going to gather, and I set out to go to the party to monitor. Unexpectedly, several great masters actually took action, which directly caused the celestial phenomenon. , couldn't help but go to watch the battle. As a result, when people passed by Fukou, several great masters had already left, but bumped into Duke Duan... Only then did they know that Zhongcheng had been seriously injured and was being chased to Dongdu. , so I simply came south here with Mr. Duan to help deal with it."
Qutuda was silent for a moment, suppressed many thoughts, and asked a key question: "What does Mr. Bai mean? Does he want us to withdraw our troops?"
"No." Bai Hengqiu said with a smile behind his hands. "What I mean is that since Zhong Cheng is recovering from his injuries, it won't delay the suppression of the bandits. It just so happens that the rest of the army will follow me north to attack the Deposed Dragon Gang!"
Duan Wei also nodded immediately: "What I mean is that I am ready to entrust the entire army to the British Duke."
We still have to seize the opportunity to seize power and annex it. No wonder we let ourselves bring the core main force over!
The specific details of the truth are meaningless. The current situation is that Cao Lin was probably injured and fled to the Eastern Capital, and Bai Hengqiu came and wanted to annex the last elite soldiers of the Eastern Capital... and wanted to annex them. The most important thing for such a large army is to quickly pull the troops away from the Dongdu control area and away from Cao Lin, who relies on the Black Tower.
Because whether it is Old Master Zhang or Taoist Chonghe, they are unlikely to be controlled by others and listen to anyone for a long time.
In this case, it didn't matter whether he really wanted to depose the Dragon Gang or not. If he couldn't do it, he would just turn to the Shangdang.
At this thought, Qutuda looked around, looking down at Luo Fang and others who were silent and pale, and suddenly asked a straightforward question: "I wonder what the British public education is like?"
"Me?" Bai Hengqiu thought thoughtfully. "I should be just one breath away from reaching the Grand Master, right? But, General Qutu, what's the point of asking this?"
Qu Tuda was stunned for a moment, and then quickly explained: "It's because the Deposed Dragon Gang has the master Xiong Bonan, and there are countless masters of Chengdan, and their cultivation is improving faster and faster. The subordinates are worried that if the British Lord If your cultivation level is insufficient, it will be difficult to deal with it. The so-called marching north to force the Deposed Dragon Gang is bound to fail."
"I thought General Qu Tu was worried that I wouldn't be able to convince everyone in the army today." Bai Hengqiu smiled again after hearing this, and then slowly shook his head, his words becoming more and more straightforward. "Actually, let me tell you, why is repairing the second best? The current situation is that the Wei Dynasty has fallen, Cao Zhongcheng is seriously injured, and I don't know how long I can rely on the Black Tower to survive. In other words, the Cao family can no longer give any of you any political commitments. Well, whatever they promised is unlikely to be fulfilled, and now, the only ones who can promise your army a future, whether soldiers or generals, are me, Bai Hengqiu, and the deposed dragon thief Zhang San.
"So, at this time, you can either follow me and find another world; or you can be awakened by the Deposed Dragon Gang and be defeated by the river; or you can return to the Eastern Capital and wait for death... But if you ask me, returning to the Eastern Capital is worse than being defeated. Give it to the Deposed Dragon Gang! Moreover, since I am here, how can I allow you to bring your troops back to the other side of the river? What does General Qutu think?"
When the words came to this, everyone in the tent changed their expressions.
Qu Tuda was silent for a moment again, stood up and raised his hands, and saluted Duan Wei seriously: "Mr. Duan, can you tell me how everyone here chose?"
"Except General Zheng who promised to follow the British Duke in advance, no one else has chosen yet, and they don't even know the whole story." Duan Wei was as casual as ever. "We're all waiting for you... After all, you and General Zheng have each led four or one of these troops. How can we dare to speak clearly before you come?"
Qu Tuda immediately looked at Zheng Shanye, who just lowered his head and remained still.
Seeing this appearance, Qu Tuda understood clearly. He just nodded, turned around and raised his hands to the rest of the people in the seat: "Everyone... I'm in a mess. I really don't know what to do. Can you let me follow the rules of the Deposed Dragon Gang? , what will you do based on your opinions? Everyone here is a leader in the military. If many of you return to the Eastern Capital, then I will cross the river with everyone. Regardless of other things, I will protect the Eastern Capital for the saints. And if you all There are many people left, so I will stay here with everyone to help the British public and find a future."
Duan Wei sneered on the spot, and the British Duke also half-smiled, seeming to despise Qutuda, whom they valued most... But that was not entirely the case, Duan Wei was like this, the British Duke was more interested in the "rules of the Deposed Dragon Gang" There was some weird reaction.
"Of course I want to go back to assist my adoptive father! I also ask the British Lord to return my troops and horses to me!" At this moment, Luo Fang, who had been suppressing his emotions, actually spoke, almost with a ferocious look on his face.
"No." Duan Wei answered simply. "It's okay for you to go back by yourself, but not a single soldier will fight with you... I am the Minister of War, and Cao Zhongcheng is not here. Naturally, I will be the one to dispatch and use them. The soldiers and horses must be handed over to the British Lord."
Luo Fang couldn't bear it on the spot, so he stood up and gritted his teeth and said something.
However, no one heard it.
This master of Chengdan was almost roaring and talking wildly in the tent, but no one around him heard him. Even the sound of him banging the table was not heard... And after a moment, Luo Fang's expression changed drastically after he realized it, and he immediately He sat back down... This time, everyone heard clearly.
"Who else wants to leave?" Bai Hengqiu, who remained motionless, continued to ask with a smile.
Everyone was trembling and then looked at Xue Liang.
Xue Liang looked around, swallowed, and replied with a trembling voice: "Of course I want to go back and serve my adoptive father."
Bai Hengqiu nodded, not caring: "What else?"
No one said anything anymore.
Luo Fang, Xue Liang, and many other officers looked at Ji Zeng, the Seventh Taibao, but the latter just sat still and turned a deaf ear. This made Luo and Xue feel like they were struck by lightning.
What's even worse is that if Ji Zeng doesn't move, the others will naturally not move either.
"It turns out that only two of them were planning to return to the Eastern Capital." Bai Hengqiu couldn't help but laugh. "Then I..."
"British Lord, I want to go back to the Eastern Capital." At this moment, another person stood up directly, interrupted Bai Hengqiu, and made the most unmistakable statement. However, it turned out that he had just crossed the river today and had been silent since then. Li Qingchen.
Bai Hengqiu was stunned for a moment: "Isn't Li Twelve Lang dedicated to dealing with the Deposed Dragon Gang?"
Li Qingchen's face turned pale and he responded seriously: "It's true that I wanted to deal with the Deposed Dragon Gang, but I never thought of dealing with Cao Zhongcheng... I was the one who suggested that he come to Hebei, but he fell into the trap of the Grand Master and was lost. I captured the last mobile troops in Dongdu... No matter what, I want to go back and see Zhongcheng. If he wants to deal with me, let him deal with it. If he wants my help, I will try my best to help him!"
Bai Hengqiu was silent for a moment and nodded: "This makes me speechless. Li Twelve Lang will leave now."
Li Qingchen stood up without saying a word and stumbled away. Luo Fang and Xue Liang wanted to get up and catch up, but found that they could not move at all.
At this time, the British Duke glanced at the dozens of the last elites of the Eastern Capital in the tent, turned around and came to the main seat, and made a proud announcement: "Since you have entrusted your lives to me, although I am not talented, I still have some calculations." With ambition, all kings will share wealth and honor! Don’t waste time, assemble your army quickly, and set off northward!"
"A fight between real dragons and gods?"
Almost at the same time, Li Ding stood beside a washed-out road at the foot of Hongshan Mountain, ten miles away from Fukou, looking at the local residents and officials who had just arrived through the landslide in front of him, with a slightly strange expression. "Yesterday's shower was caused by a fight between real dragons and gods?"
Not only that, the expressions of Wei Xuanding, Xie Minghe and others behind him also changed drastically.
(End of chapter)
