But taking a risk is taking a risk, and it does not mean risking one's life. Chang Yu was not stupid enough to lead seven people across the river with his eyes darkened to risk one's life.
Longmen County was changed to Hejin County in the second year of Xuanhe of the Song Dynasty because there was a ferry close to the Yellow River. Two days later, Chang Yu and his party arrived in Hejin but did not enter the city. Instead, they went straight to a small village at the foot of the mountain in the north of the city called Longmen Village.
Longmen Village was originally a small mountain village. Because it was close to the ferry, more and more people came here to make a living. The village became bigger and more lively. There was a constant flow of people coming and going every day, and the three religions and nine currents were mixed together. However, the ferry recently But it is very depressed.
It's said that it's snowing and the Yellow River has frozen, so many people don't have to go all the way to the ferry to cross the river. In fact, it's because the two sides are now at war with each other. There are officers, soldiers and rebel spies operating everywhere. The two sides are pretending to be businessmen to infiltrate each other. Fighting each other, there was no peace on both sides of the Taiwan Strait for a while, and the people did not dare to move around at will.
Two hundred miles south along the Yellow River from Hejin County is Puzhou (today's Yongji). I heard that tens of thousands of officers and soldiers were stationed there, and monitoring points were set up along the Yellow River. Hejin County is close to the Yellow River and there is Dadukou. Li Yan since He would not relax surveillance and stationed 300 soldiers and horses in Hejin. There were also secret informants at the ferry. In addition, there were many people of Jin Yiwei and Dongchang that he didn't know about.
In the evening, the door of a house on the northernmost hillside of Longmen Village rang softly. A big man inside winked at the house and asked, "Who is it?"
"Animal skin collector" someone outside the yard replied.
"A few days ago, they were all sold to Xu Laoer in the city. There is no chance." The big man held his feet and walked towards the door. The people outside said: "Oh, there should still be some unfurled tiger skins."
The big man breathed a sigh of relief, unplugged the door latch and opened the door. He saw seven or eight hunters standing outside and said, "You are here."
"It's difficult to walk on the snowy road. No wonder I'm late." Chang Yu raised his legs and stepped in. Looking around, he saw more than ten big men emerging from the house, corners, and huts, each with a hand in his hand. Still thinking about the guy.
"Look at this posture, you are very cautious." Chang Yu chuckled, and the man who opened the door laughed: "The blade of the knife licks blood, if you are not careful, your head will not grow." After saying that, he suddenly caught a glimpse of Qing Yi and couldn't help but frown: " Why is there a girl?"
"What's wrong, bitch? I can deal with you more than enough." Qing Yi was not good at words and would not refute after hearing this, but Chen Ruxin refused and retorted directly. The man was not annoyed and just smiled: "Brother, you are very angry. Yes, but in our line of work, it’s not enough just to be talented, you have to be tough.”
With that said, Chang Yu and others were introduced into the main room. There was a brazier inside which was very warm.
"Brothers, are you from Jinyiwei, Dongchang, or Zhou Zongbing?" As soon as they entered the room, the man asked. They were Ye Bushou under Li Yan. They received a secret order from Li Yan the day before yesterday to receive them. There was a group of people, and the scheduled time was supposed to be in the morning, but they waited until now.
"I heard that you are the most capable Ye Bushou under Li Yan. Who do you think we are?" Chang Yu said with a smile. The man's eyes swept around Chang Yu and the others, and then said: " You should be from Dongchang."
"What's the basis?" Chang Yu asked. "First, the Jin Yiwei people did not dare to call General Li by his first name. Second, your eyes were sharp and murderous, and although your demeanor was not domineering, you were very arrogant, and your words were very aggressive. You are definitely not Jin Yiwei. There are not many spies in the army who don't stop at night, they are only people from Dongchang."
Uh-oh... Chen Suole and others made low noises and cheers. Chang Yu was a little embarrassed. He thought he was hiding it so deeply, but people saw the flaw at once. It has to be said that these Ye Bu's eyesight is very poisonous.
When the man saw their reactions, he knew that he had guessed correctly. He thought that the attitude of the people in Dongchang had become much gentler. When he learned that Chang Yu and the others had not eaten yet, he asked his men to quickly get some food, "Everyone Haihan , wine can’t be obtained.”
"Is it possible that alcohol is prohibited here?" Chen Suole was startled, and Chang Yu gave him a straight look: "This place also belongs to Pingyang Mansion."
The man laughed: "Even if there was no prohibition on alcohol, you wouldn't be able to buy alcohol here. If people don't have food to eat, how can they make wine?"
Afterwards, Chang Yu chatted and learned that this man's name was Zhang Xian, an old subordinate of Li Yan, and a traitor who had surrendered to Ye Bu Shu for three years. It was said that Ye Bu Shu could survive for three years, so he was really lucky. This made him Chang Yu thought of Li Xingzu, who had followed him in the assassination of Li Laiheng in Taiyuan. He also refused to accept him, but he didn't know if he was still alive now.
"Since Brother Zhang is the most capable Ye Bushou under General Li, why was he posted here instead of in Puzhou?" Chen Ruxin asked curiously. Zhang Xian glanced at him and smiled: "It seems that you guys have been in the industry not long ago."
"Why do you see it?" Chen Ruxin asked with a frown.
Zhang Xian held back his laughter and said, "I'm sorry to be blunt, but you guys don't seem to know much about the spy business."
"Please give me more advice." Chang Yu knew that it was always right to listen to other people's experiences when entering the mountains.
"Our spies are active along the Yellow River for three hundred miles from Hejin to Tongguan. However, most of these three hundred miles are barren mountains and wild rivers. The Yellow River is so fast that there is no ferry. It is inconvenient for the bandits to cross the river and even if they cross the river, they can enter. What kind of reconnaissance is there in the wilderness?"
When everyone thought about it, it was true that what they wanted to scout was a place with a city. However, Puzhou was heavily defended and the counter-espionage force was even stronger. If the rebels wanted to cross the water directly to scout, they would be chopped into pieces as soon as they landed, so they still had to Take a roundabout way and cross the river elsewhere.
As for Hejin, it happens to be where the Yellow River enters the mountains to the north. The river is narrow, the water flow is slow and there is a ferry. It is close to Hejin City, so it is an excellent entry point.
After hearing this, everyone suddenly realized: "It turns out that this is the blade. No wonder General Li transferred Brother Zhang here. I guess this place must be full of bloodshed every day."
Zhang Xian nodded: "We have spies and spies throughout the ferry and nearby villages. Since two months ago, we have fought with thieves and spies thirteen times in this area, killing seventy-six of them!"
Wow, Chang Yu and others exclaimed: "The thieves are so strong in infiltrating, so will our brothers pass over there..."
"It's hard to move even an inch." Zhang Xian sighed: "Many brothers were killed during this time. I have personally crossed the river three times. The deepest one was thirty miles deep. I was slashed three times on my body. I killed six brothers at that time. I tried my best to escape." Coming back..."
What Ye Buzai has experienced is a career of licking blood with the blade of a knife. Chang Yu has also experienced it earlier. At that time, following an experienced old man like Li Xingzu, Ye Buzai had a narrow escape. At this time, the two armies were confronting each other, and the intruder regained his former carelessness. Being alert is naturally more dangerous.
"I don't know what mission you are on when you cross the river, but if you just cross the river like this, the thieves will reveal themselves, and the other party will be able to see through your identity with just one look." Zhang Xian said with certainty. Chang Yu and the others did not say anything seriously. Listen: "Your biggest flaws are your eyes and demeanor."
The eyes of spies are very sharp, but they all have a common flaw, that is, their eyes and expressions are very different from ordinary people. Because they need to be vigilant when conducting reconnaissance, they will look around and show alertness inadvertently, but really The veterans are all happy and angry.
"The eyes of those two brothers are too fierce. They can disguise themselves a little bit by pretending to be hunters. If they pretend to be business travelers or common people, thieves can see the flaws at a glance." Zhang Xian raised his finger and pointed at Wang Fuchen and Wu Mushan who were squatting in the corner to warm themselves. , the two of them were also brought by Chang Yu.
Chang Yu and others couldn't help but laugh, and Zhang Xian continued: "But after crossing the river, there is a vast plain on the other side. It would be too abrupt for you to pretend to be hunters. Unless you keep walking around the foot of the mountain, there is nothing to detect over there. What about..."
Zhang Xian is an experienced driver who talks a lot and likes to teach others his experience. Chang Yu and the others are also very open-minded. While eating their meals, they crammed in to attend this crash course on espionage. Unknowingly, it was getting dark, but here they were. There was a knock on the door, and the atmosphere in the yard immediately became tense. Everyone slowly pulled out knives and hid them in every corner, and some even went up to the roof.
"Who is it?" Zhang Xian asked in the yard while hiding his knife.
"Uh...I'm looking for someone, no, I'm here to buy animal skins, unhaired tiger skins..."
This was obviously a code for contact, but this person said it in one breath. People in the yard immediately became suspicious, wondering if the stronghold had been discovered by thieves who came to deceive the door. Zhang Xian was about to let a few people climb over the wall and prepare to attack from both front and rear. , but Chang Yu smiled and said: "Open the door, one of my own, I can hear his voice."
Zhang Xian was dubious, so he asked someone to open the door, but only saw a man holding a horse standing at the door. Chen Ruxin's sharp eyes were the first to see the man's face, and he suddenly became happy: "Damn it, why are you here?"
