On the night of February 13th and the afternoon of February 14th, two battles broke out at both ends of the battlefield in Hebei, hundreds of miles apart. Both were caused by the coalition's terminal military strength underestimating the enemy. However, this undoubtedly broke the invincibility of the main coalition force. There is a concept, and whether it is the lost troops or the broken generals, it has reached a point that cannot be ignored.
In fact, if we only use the Taiyuan Army and the Dongdu Army as the main bodies to measure, this can almost be said to be a severe injury.
Not to mention, the battle at the source of the Qingzhang River, the arrival of the Henan forces behind the deposed Dragon Army, the complete interruption of the food route, and the subsequent rumors in the direction of Dongdu that can no longer be concealed, each of which will have a negative impact on the coalition camp. It had such a huge impact that it directly gave some inexplicable flavor to the final outcome of this battle.
However, one thing to say is that in the evening of the 14th, because almost all key figures in the entire battlefield had not received relevant messages, the atmosphere seemed to have not changed.
This is especially true for Cheng Zhili, the governor of Pingyuan County who is far away in Pingyuan County.
Before the evening of that day, he had only received one real battlefield news, which was that a group of field soldiers defeated the Qinghe County soldiers who rebelled with the Cui family in Liting, and slaughtered Shi Huaiming... Yes, the camp had no information about the rear. The transmission is not very focused, and basically depends on the natural diffusion of the middle and lower classes.
Back here in Ender, it didn't rain that day, but it did get a bit gloomy from the afternoon.
Cheng Zhili quietly handled the matter in the county government... He was really handling the matter... A few days ago, Wei Xuanding, Chen Bin, and Dou Lide established a base camp in the west and unified the decision-making body. Pingyuan County is just around the corner. There was no need to run away. Many military affairs and logistics were sent and had to be done immediately without hiding it from Cheng Zhili. In addition, there were also general affairs of the county, not to mention other things, such as spring plowing and the settlement of criminal lawsuits. These daily affairs still passed through his hands.
But all this did not delay the whole county government to respond to Cheng Zhili with a subtle attitude in just a few days.
"Who's here?"
Cheng Dalang returned to his residence. Before he could get off his horse, he saw a dozen horses scattered under the pillars in front of the door, and he couldn't help but frown.
"Reporting back to Da Lang, first a few relatives and old friends came from my wife's side. They have been here regularly these past few days. Then my brothers from the village also came. There were more people, so it was chaotic." The old man who was waiting here was in charge. We met him early, took the reins of the horse, and explained a little. "The stable at the side door was actually not full, but the grumpy man who entered Teng didn't know it. He saw that the previous guest's horse was clean, so he threw the horse outside in a strange way. He didn't want to go to the hall and just made noise in the yard."
Cheng Dalang suddenly felt enlightened, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he bowed his head and entered the corridor room.
There was no way, if the "relatives" of his wife who was born in Qinghe Cui Shi could hit it off with the old brothers in his village, then Chen Bin and Dou Lide wouldn't have to fight.
As for the noise being too loud and attracting attention, I can't even care about it now.
"Dalang!"
"Brother!"
"Uncle!"
Sure enough, as soon as he entered the door, many people crowded in from all over the front yard. They called him all kinds of names, but most of them could be recognized as old brothers from Dengzhou and Qijun. They later moved across the river, including to the current Wudi County. It only lasted three years, but later the military merit field was moved to another place, and it lasted only one year, which did not affect Cheng Dalang's prestige among them.
"Why are you here?" After a brief exchange of greetings, Cheng Dalang asked with a smile as if nothing happened. "Has the land at home been plowed? Are you here to catch the autumn wind for no reason?"
"Da Lang!" A middle-aged man with bright eyes but an obvious limp looked around, watched the courtyard door close, and then came up to ask questions on the spot. "Let's just talk about the rumors in our village that the gang wants to take you? Is that true or not?"
"What are you talking about?" Cheng Dalang waved his hands in fear on the spot. "Where did the rumor come from? I just came back from the county government. Where can I be taken? Let's go in and talk about it after we sit down in the hall."
"You can't help but think about it. My eldest brother had military power before..."
"Xiao Wu, shut up." The same middle-aged man asked after stopping the others. "Da Lang, it's just a few words. Just make it clear. What's the point of not going to the hall, sitting or not? Let me ask you again, there are still people below who say you are going to rebel, right or wrong?"
"There's no such thing!" Cheng Dalang said helplessly as he stamped his feet. "This is also nonsense! I am famous and occupy a position in the Deposed Dragon Gang. If I rebel for no reason, how can I gain a foothold in this world?"
Many people crowded around and felt relieved.
"But what if there is a reason?" The lame middle-aged man still asked with a straight face. "Xiao Wu also said just now that the gang took away your military power and made you a county guard. Do you feel resentful in your heart?"
"Is being a county governor a bad thing?!" Cheng Dalang spread his hands with helplessness on his face. "Lao Teng, Xiaowu is not sensible, you are not sensible? What can anyone say? Three generations of my ancestors served as military commanders in Daqi, and it was only then that my father accumulated family wealth and became a county guard. It is a pity that he was not lucky enough to do this. Daqi disappeared within a few years. I have only been here for four years, and I have suffered several defeats, but I am still the governor of a county. This is all Chief Zhang's kindness, so there is no need to hold any grudges."
"So, Da Lang, you are not going to rebel? You are not being captured by the gang?" Teng Jin, the former leader of Da Lang's bodyguard, frowned and continued to ask, without being intimidated by the other party at all.
"No!" Cheng Dalang had no choice but to point to the sky in the courtyard. "Look at the three radiances and four emperors, I am sure that there will be no disaster or chaos here."
"That means there is no disaster or chaos. Do you have any thoughts in your own mind?" The lame man continued to ask, but was still not gagged by the other party. Not only that, he even took another step closer with crippled feet.
Cheng Dalang was completely helpless. How could he not know that it was okay to fool others with some words, but it was pure nonsense to fool these old brothers who had followed him for decades?
Thinking of this, he finally said seriously: "Lao Teng, since you asked like this, I will tell you the truth, and you can tell it to the brothers in Zhuangzi when you go back... I, Cheng Zhili, have never thought about going against it. I won’t fight back...but is there any trouble? Of course there is, but the trouble is that Chief Zhang is surrounded now."
At this point, Cheng Dalang took a breath, looked around, and then continued: "You guys, whether your surname is Cheng or not, are my uncles, brothers, and nephews. Don't you know what I have experienced in the past half of my life?" ? It was Chief Zhang who pulled me into the Deposed Dragon Gang. He also gave me the big leader. After the defeat, the battalion head was assigned to me by Chief Zhang. Later, when I didn’t care about military affairs, it was still Zhang. The chief changed my military post to that of county guard... In a word, the honor and disgrace of me, Cheng Dalang, are tied to Chief Zhang. It doesn't matter to me when he is here, I am not afraid of anything, and I feel at ease; when he is not here, Others don't know the relationship between me and Chief Zhang, and they don't know the trust between me and Chief Zhang. Instead, it leads to some unfounded doubts... So there is trouble, which started after people like Chen Bin and Dou Lide took power. Doubting me has caused a lot of rumors. But think about it, as long as I settle down, do things when I have something to do, and go when I have an opportunity, what can they do?"
From the lame man down, several backbones, including Lao Duguan who was following Cheng Dalang, finally relaxed after hearing Cheng Dalang's inner thoughts.
"Da Lang, don't blame us." Only then did Teng Laizi believe it. "You have your own ideas, and we also have ours. It's just that we are old brothers tied by the same rope. We swore an oath together back then and fought through life and death. So if you really want to rebel, don't care about us. Whether you are willing or not, and regardless of whether you have a good reputation or good results in the future, I will risk my life to go with you. The worst is that we will die together without a burial place! It is for this reason that I came here to ask a few questions today."
Cheng Dalang's veteran Ningdan strength made him feel dizzy now. He took several breaths before nodding: "How could I not know your loyalty? It's just that in this situation, life and death are still at stake in the front. You guys squeezed in and made it worse." I’m at a loss as well, and I want to give the truth to those people who doubt me, causing trouble for nothing... Let’s all go! I won’t let you fight in the autumn wind today. When the situation calms down, we can drink together again.”
Teng Laizi nodded without saying a word, but directly turned around and prepared to go out and lead the horse back.
However, when he came to the side door that had just been opened, he leaned back on the steps and said, "Dalang, what do those people in the hall say?"
"What can I say?" Cheng Zhili smiled bitterly again and again. "I'm just as crazy as you, but not as straightforward as you. But every day, I'm afraid that I won't take care of them and will be directly dealt with by the gang... In fact, if I really want to deal with them, they have been dealt with long ago. Why today?"
Teng Jin smiled, stopped caring, and took the lead to go out. The others also saluted Cheng Zhili and left in a hurry.
Watching these old brothers leave, Cheng Dalang stood silent in the courtyard for a long time, until the sky turned completely dark. When the old governor ordered people to light the fire and the brazier, he just set off... but he did not come up to the hall... but crossed over. After entering the main hall where there were still guests waiting, he turned to the backyard, went directly into the flower hall, and then invited his newly married wife to come over.
Mrs. Cheng's natural surname is Cui. She is only in her early teens this year and is much younger than Cheng Dalang. However, unlike Cheng Dalang, who only died once when he was a real wife, Mrs. Cui is a widow who has been married three times... But this is really no one. Careless, because in the past five or six years, when Mrs. Cui was at her best, too many men in the world died, and it was too random.
Among them, Hebei is particularly exaggerated.
After hearing the message, Mrs. Cui rushed over quickly, and with just a bow, she sat down calmly and waited for her husband to speak.
Cheng Dalang was silent for a moment again, and then spoke slowly across half the table: "Madam, the current situation is critical, but as a husband and wife are of the same mind, since we are a couple, I should tell you my plans and thoughts!"
"Da Lang, please speak." Mrs. Cui's face remained as usual, as if she had expected it.
"Of the Cui family members in the hall, many of them often come with explanations. Overtly or secretly, they hope that I can rebel from behind and stab the front line, saying that they don't expect anything else, as long as the front line camp goes to If you take a step back, no matter the final result, there will be a middle man who will guarantee the bottom line." Cheng Dalang said. "But I will never agree to this under any circumstances... Not only that, I will also detain them later and send them to the county prison."
Mrs. Cui remained calm.
"The reason for not agreeing is very simple. It's not that I dislike Zhonglang Jiang's inferiority or anything, nor is it that I don't trust anyone. I haven't reached that point... I just feel that people themselves cannot rebel easily, especially those who come forward to rebel, because once they rebel, The reputation is ruined; the other is that if I want to rebel, those old brothers will inevitably be affected. But those brothers have worked hard for me and have lived a peaceful life for two years. I would rather die than let them die without a burial. Ground."
Mrs. Cui still didn't speak.
"Madam, do you understand what I mean? I can resist, but there are only two ways. One is that the coalition forces in front have won a big victory and pushed over. At that time, they may want to save those old brothers and those Zhuangzi who followed me and suffered. The situation has declined...but that is actually a surrender, not a rebellion; there is another way, that is, being really forced by Chen Bin and Dou Lide, one person runs to the front line and rebels single-handedly, so as to tell the world that It's Chen Dou and the others who are unkind and unjust, I was forced to do nothing, and it won't affect other people anyway."
Mrs. Cui nodded and finally said: "I understand your husband's intention, so how do you want to act now?"
"I want to go to the frontline camp." Cheng Dalang sighed. "I am under suspicion here. Not only Chen Bin and Dou Lide have always doubted me, but also my old brothers over there, and your family members and old friends always think that I have ideas, or they always think that they can shake me... and I don't want to involve anyone now... I just followed Chen Dou's request and went to the front line, under the eyes of those people, and then I made a decision."
"How can we make a decision when we get to the front line?" Mrs. Cui asked half a sentence.
"When we get to the front, if Chen Bin and Dou Lide can't control themselves and press too hard and really kill me, I won't just sit back and wait for death. I'll just run away instead. If they can control themselves, I'll just fight hard." Cheng Dalang smiled. "Of course, if the overall situation collapses, then I will escape back and take care of this place."
Mrs. Cui nodded, turned and left without saying a word. After a moment, she came out again and brought a pot of wine and two glasses. Then she put it down again, poured it on the table, took a glass for herself, and said calmly:
"Dalang!"
"Madam, please speak." Seeing this, Cheng Dalang felt uneasy, but he could only bite the bullet and deal with it.
"The situation is critical, you are caught in it, and you have many worries and thoughts. You will leave it to fate in the future. As your wife, I actually have an idea that I hope Dalang can remember." Mrs. Cui held the cup. Explain carefully.
"I'll do my best." Cheng Dalang also took the initiative to hold the cup.
Mrs. Cui put her hand around the other person's arm, as if making a cup of wine, and then said clearly: "I only want one thing for you, Da Lang, there are many difficulties, swords and swords, you must survive, I really don't want to marry again." .”
As he said that, he closed his eyes and drank it all in one gulp.
Cheng Zhili's heart wavered, but he quickly lowered his head and drank it all in one gulp.
While Cheng Zhili was drinking, the information flow on the huge front was finally disturbed again. Several messengers from Zheng Shanye's tribe on the east side galloped into the center of the vortex, bringing the first bad news, which was the defeat of Ji Zengliting. .
One thing is that Zheng Shanye sent more messengers, not only Bai Hengqiu and Duan Wei, but also Xue Changxiong and Qu Tuda.
Now, I couldn't hide the information even if I wanted to... Of course, there was no reason to hide it. This was serious military information... But Zheng Shanye undoubtedly overstepped his authority.
It was almost dark, but those with higher cultivation levels in the camp could still see that the clouds in the sky were thickening, as if a spring rain was coming.
"Which house is the Deposed Dragon Army attacking again?"
Luo Shuku was sitting on a lookout in his camp, looking at the moon-shielded sky, his expression wandering, until he was interrupted by some movement for a long time.
"It should be Bai Hengqiu in person." Bai Xiandeng, who was standing aside, blurted out, but he immediately noticed Luo Shu's absence.
After all, the camp is now surrounded by water, and the locations of each family are clear. Now that you know the location, you will naturally know which house it is.
"The morale of the deposed dragon army has not dropped to an unbearable level." After thinking this, Bai Xiandeng took the initiative to start the topic. "I don't know what the outcome of this battle will be..."
"The result should be nothing to say." Luo Shu came back to his senses, obviously a little restless. "No matter what the current subtle situation is, broadly speaking, the Taiyuan Army is still using the Grand Master to overwhelm the army for a surprise attack. Firstly, the people of the Deposed Dragon Gang do not have the ability to attack and win, and secondly, they are surrounded in a hurry and have limited food... I estimate that it is also There are only a few days left.”
"This is inevitable, then what?" Bai Xiandeng asked seriously. "Can Zhang Xing and Xu Shiying go out?"
"If you really want to escape alone, you may not be able to escape, but the result will not be much better." Luo Shu frowned and turned back. The southeast wind blew, making his hair messy. "Don't look at it. Bai Hengqiu seems to be having a hard time maintaining the camp now. Once the Deposed Dragon Gang collapses and people's hearts fall, he can immediately control the situation. And based on his decisive attitude towards the Deposed Dragon Gang, the rumors are It’s true that the Dongdu Army has gone back, but the Taiyuan Army will definitely supervise us to defeat the large corps of the Deposed Dragon Army... You think, if all the essence of the Deposed Dragon Gang here is lost, and the large corps is caught up and defeated, Even if people like Zhang Xing and Xiong Bonan survive, what will happen?"
Bai Xiandeng thought for a while, nodded repeatedly, and shook his head again: "The Deposed Dragon Gang didn't make any mistakes, right? If they had escaped that day, they wouldn't have been able to set up a large formation in the field, and I'm afraid they would have fallen into the situation you just said, Chief... …”
"Cao Lin is not dead and Taiyuan is not moving. It is the biggest mistake to directly take the risk and rob Liyangcang to loose food." Luo Shu sneered. "Zhang Xing is seeking his own death... I looked down upon him that day."
But for some reason, after taunting him, Luo Shu immediately darkened his face.
"Gong Shen really admires his family." Bai Xiandeng seemed not to notice the change in the other party's mood, but continued talking. "After riding here alone this afternoon, I have been asking about the situation of the battle and looking around for news."
"It's normal for him to support the Deposed Dragon Gang." Luo Shu sighed. "How many days have it been since I took over Youzhou? The top and bottom can't rule in unison. Not to mention those people, even after my brothers have a clear vision, don't they all feel that the general trend lies with others? Let me tell you, it's better to fawn over those in the army. Compared with people in Hengqiu, Gongshen still remembers his friendship with the Deposed Dragon Gang at this time, and is actually a loyal person."
"That's what I mean." Bai Xiandeng also smiled, and then suddenly changed his color. "Then, manager, are we just going to do this? Do we expect Gongshen to turn the situation around?"
"Otherwise, are you looking for death? The Grand Master is right across the street!" Luo Shu stood up and jumped down from the observation deck. "It's raining, go back early!"
Bai Xiandeng could only keep up.
However, when the two returned to the Chinese military tent and were preparing to gather their generals for a surprise visit, Zhang Gongshen suddenly returned and brought back a piece of information from Feng Wuyi's camp.
"It's just a defeat, but the Seventh Supreme Protector actually died like this?" Under the torch, Bai Xiandeng couldn't believe it. "Is this a deliberate move by the Deposed Dragon Gang?"
"It's hard to say. When Zheng Shanye heard the news of the defeat at the front, he retreated for dozens of miles with the defeated soldiers. The words he asked from the defeated soldiers' mouths meant that the news of the defeat and death was correct." Zhang Gongshen told it seriously. "The specific details will probably be clear tomorrow... Mainly the Dongdu Army, everything was shaken."
"From the perspective of the Dongdu Army, of course it will be shocking. This is one of the three generals who came out of the Dongdu Army this time, and the Dongdu Army is already a little disorganized." Bai Xiandeng smiled. "But it won't delay the overall situation."
At this point, Bai Xiandeng became unconfident, and turned around and asked, "Manager, is that so?"
"Who knows?" Luo Shu sat in the shadows, half-smiling. "Who knows? Anyway, we'll just watch."
The topic was about to be interrupted. Suddenly, Bai Xiandeng asked out of curiosity: "Gong Shen, it's normal not to give us the military information, but Zheng Shanye actually directly passed the military information to Feng Wuyi?"
"It may not be from Zheng Shanye." Zhang Gongshen thought for a while and gave an interesting answer. "It should have been someone in the camp who received the letter and immediately went there to spread it. Mr. Feng is a friendly person, but the people below him are chaotic. Everyone likes to go to his camp to talk..."
Bai Xiandeng suddenly understood, and Luo Shu couldn't help but "tsk".
That night, the coalition camp was undercurrent due to the loss of troops and generals on the front line of the Dongdu Army. Especially in the Dongdu Army camp on the other side of the river, there were obvious connections and arguments, so much so that Bai Hengqiu had to go there in person to appease people. Of course, after the night attack of the Deposed Dragon Gang came to an end, as the night grew thicker and the soldiers were tired, the camp still fell into passive silence. By this time, the spring rain finally started to fall, but it was very indifferent. If it were not for a person with advanced cultivation, the sound of raindrops hitting the tents and wooden sheds would hardly be heard.
"What's up?"
Without any light source, in the southwestmost area of the Dongdu Army camp, Qu Tuda suddenly turned over in the tent and asked this sentence in advance.
"General! The old brother from Ji County on the Western Front has sent us military information!" Along with this voice, a trace of fire appeared in the tent,
Immediately afterwards, a scrawled letter was also delivered to Qutuda's hands.
But the man took the letter, and without waiting for the light in the tent, he relied on his true energy to intensify his eyesight to read it. After just a few glances, he finished reading the scrawled letter, but he sat still on the couch.
After a long time, the general who was theoretically second only to Duan Wei in the Dongdu Army finally spoke: "Has all the news from the east been spread?"
"yes."
“Send this news from Simeon as well.”
"yes."
