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Jiang Quan and his Forbidden Army officers wanted to rush into the encirclement of the Liaodong Frontier Army and participate in the rescue operation of the Liaodong Frontier Army. Naturally, they were strongly obstructed by the Liaodong Frontier Army, and a conflict soon broke out between the two armies.
Under normal circumstances, if there is a conflict between the two armies, considering that this is the territory of Liaodong Town after all, and considering that the Liaodong border army is more brave and good at fighting, the officers and soldiers of the Forbidden Army will often take the initiative to retreat.
But this time, the nature of the matter was extremely serious, and the Forbidden Army's attitude was particularly tough. The conflict between the two sides also intensified, and they soon began to push and curse each other.
When Ximen Sheng rushed to the scene and saw this situation, he took a deep breath again and finally suppressed the troubled thoughts in his heart. Then he quickly walked towards Jiang Quan, intending to yell to stop.
However, after seeing Ximen Sheng appear, Jiang Quan was the first to jump up. Not only did he slap a big hat on Liaodong Town, but he also shouted "catch the thief" and beat him up!
"Chen Zhao! The dignified elder of the imperial court! The example of all officials! How big of a deal is it to live and die in the hands of thieves? Why did your Liaodong Army prevent our imperial army from going to the rescue? Is it necessary to rebel? Or, this matter Was your Liaodong Army planning everything from beginning to end?"
When he heard Jiang Quan's loud accusation and saw Jiang Quan raising his finger to point at his nose regardless of his dignity in the army, Ximen Sheng's face suddenly turned darker.
At this time of complicated situation, Ximen Sheng was also very reluctant to break up with Jiang Quan. Although sending troops to deal with the five hundred forbidden troops under Jiang Quan was only a small matter, he had to be forced to divide the troops distractedly, and there were constant troubles afterwards.
At least, Ximen Sheng was not willing to go to war until troops from all walks of life in Liaodong came to Hujiazhuang to support him.
But Ximen Sheng also knows very well that if he wants to control the overall situation now, he must take a tough stance and must not retreat at will.
Therefore, Ximen Sheng immediately reprimanded him sternly: "You are just a member of the Imperial Army. What qualifications do you have to yell in front of me? Zhao Gechen and General He were kidnapped by thieves. It is certainly a big deal. I The general is equally anxious now! But this is Liaodong! Our Liaodong border army has the ability to solve all troubles!
At this moment, the general has sent out a large army to surround this dense forest, and the thieves in the forest are unable to escape! But if your imperial army acted on its own, disrupted the siege, caused loopholes in the general's arrangement, or even allowed the thieves in the forest to take the opportunity to escape, who should bear the responsibility? Is it you or this general? Are you imperial troops coming here to rescue or to cause trouble? "
Ximen Sheng was a veteran of the border army. When he suddenly changed his color, he was naturally so powerful that he immediately calmed Jiang Quan, making Jiang Quan subconsciously avoid looking at him and not dare to look at Ximen Sheng again.
Seeing that his stern reprimand finally suppressed Jiang Quan's arrogance, Ximen Sheng softened his tone slightly and said: "I also understand that you are the guards assigned to Zhao Gechen by the imperial court. If anything happens to Zhao Gechen, , you cannot escape the blame. Under such circumstances, you are naturally anxious and eager to be a savior!
But your Imperial Army is just a guest army. It is not only weak in strength, but also unfamiliar with the terrain and environment. Moreover, our Liaodong Frontier Army also has enough strength to cope with the current situation, so you only need to wait patiently and wait for the good news of the successful rescue of our Liaodong Frontier Army. Just fine! "
After Jiang Quan hesitated for a moment, he still couldn't help but said: "But... Zhao Gechen's whereabouts are unknown and his life and death are uncertain. We, the Forbidden Army, cannot just sit idle... Zhao Gechen's kidnapping by thieves is already a huge dereliction of duty by our Forbidden Army. If there is not even a chance to make amends, how should we explain to the court afterwards? In any case, our imperial army should participate in the subsequent rescue operations. The more strength we have, the more chance of victory..."
Ximen Sheng still shook his head and said: "Now we only need the Liaodong Frontier Army to cope with the situation! Of course, if your forbidden troops are needed later, I will seek support from you as soon as possible! When the rescue is successful, I will I will also share the credit with you Imperial Army, so don’t worry!”
Hearing Ximen Sheng's relief, Jiang Quan was still a little hesitant, reluctant to give Ximen Sheng an accurate answer.
But Ximen Sheng was unwilling to waste time like this. Seeing Jiang Quan hesitate to speak, he couldn't help but ask the question that concerned him the most, saying: "I would like to ask you, when you return to the camp to summon the forbidden army, can you Did you leak the news to others that Zhao Gechen and General He were kidnapped? Did you send a fast horse messenger to report the news to the imperial court?"
Jiang Quan was slightly stunned and replied: "At that time, I was only thinking about gathering people to rescue Zhao Gechen as soon as possible. Although I didn't deliberately spread the news, I didn't deliberately block the news...
General Ximen, you also know that there are too many forces from all parties gathered in Zhao Gechen's camp. They saw the imperial army leaving the camp one after another. The Liaodong camp not far away is also frequently mobilizing troops. Maybe they will find something, but it should not be there yet. If you receive accurate information, you will only speculate and spread various gossips...
Moreover, I was indeed too impatient at the time and forgot to send a messenger to inform the imperial center of the news..."
Hearing Jiang Quan's answer, Ximen Sheng secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that the current situation was still controllable.
But the next moment, Jiang Quan suddenly thought of something, his expression changed drastically again, and he said: "If it weren't for the reminder from General Ximen, I would have forgotten such an important matter! This matter is of great importance, and we must send out the emergency response immediately. Messenger Ma must report it to the imperial center, otherwise if there is an accident in the future, we Forbidden Army soldiers who conceal the information without authorization will definitely be punished with an additional penalty!"
After saying that, Jiang Quan turned around and ordered his imperial guards to send fast horses to report the news to the imperial center.
Seeing Jiang Quan's reaction, Ximen Sheng's expression changed drastically again, and he quickly stopped him and said, "This is absolutely impossible!"
If this matter is reported to the central court, the situation in Liaodong will undoubtedly be completely out of control. This is what Ximen Sheng least wants to see.
Hearing Ximen Sheng's attempt to stop him again, Jiang Quan naturally became more and more dissatisfied and said, "General Ximen, what kind of reasoning do you have? It's just that we are not allowed to participate in the rescue. Why are you preventing us from reporting the news to the court?" ?”
Having said this, Jiang Quan looked at Ximen Sheng with suspicion, and asked: "What are your intentions in Liaodong Town...?"
Ximen Sheng had already secretly suspected that this kidnapping was directed and staged by Zhao Junchen from beginning to end, but the current situation was too complicated and it was not the right time to investigate the truth.
If all this was planned by Zhao Junchen, then Jiang Quan and the Forbidden Army officers under Jiang Quan must also be involved!
Therefore, seeing Jiang Quan shouting to catch the thief again, Ximen Sheng became even more angry.
But on the surface, Ximen Sheng still put on a reasonable look and advised: "Jiang Baihu, in my opinion, this matter, whether it is public or private, should not be reported directly to the central court!
Think about it, if you report this matter to the central court like this, you will definitely be held accountable in the future. If we can quickly rescue the kidnapped Zhao Gechen and General He, this matter can be covered up and treated as nothing more than a crime. If it didn't happen, then your decision to report the truth to the central court is asking for trouble?
What's more, as you just said, Zhao Gechen is a dignified cabinet minister and a role model for all officials. For a big shot like him to be kidnapped by gangsters and become a prisoner, it is undoubtedly a scandal and will seriously damage his reputation. Due to the prestige of the government and the public, after Zhao Gechen successfully escapes from trouble, he must hope that this matter can be completely covered up. If you report the news to the court like this, you will definitely offend Zhao Gechen greatly. This is not a good thing... "
Jiang Quan hesitated again, but in the end he firmly shook his head and refused Ximen Sheng's persuasion, insisting: "No! Although what General Ximen said makes sense, the premise is that Zhao Gechen and He Zongbing can succeed in a short time. Get out of trouble, but if this takes too long, or if... there are some accidents that no one wants to see, then our officers and soldiers of the Forbidden Army will not report the knowledge, which is an even greater crime! We dare not bear such a low-level position risk!
As for whether Zhao Gechen will blame us for damaging his prestige after he escapes from trouble, that's even less important! What's more, we are all from the Forbidden Army and directly belong to the Grand Governor of Wuyuan Pass in the Beijing Camp. The Grand Governor of Guan and Zhao Gechen have never dealt with each other very well. If Zhao Gechen wants to make things difficult for us afterwards, I am afraid that the Grand Governor of Guan will not agree! "
In this way, Ximen Sheng and Jiang Quan fell into a dispute again.
*
"What did you say? Say it again!"
Just when Ximen Sheng and Jiang Quan were arguing again, in the Wu family's camp in Shanhaiguan, Wu Shilin, the commander-in-chief of Shanhaiguan, immediately changed his expression after hearing the report, and he quickly stood up to ask questions.
Guan Ning Cavalry, who was in charge of reporting the news, quickly replied again: "Your Majesty, Commander-in-Chief, according to reports from spies, just over two hours ago, Zhao Gechen and Liaodong Commander-in-Chief He Yu led dozens of Liaodong Cavalry together. After leaving the camp and heading north, it seemed that they had agreed to go hunting in Chilin Mountain, which was more than ten miles north.
But two hours later, the accompanying Liaodong cavalry and Jiang Quan, a hundred households of the Forbidden Army, hurriedly returned to their respective camps. Then Zhao Gechen and the two camps in Liaodong Town began to mobilize troops frequently. First, Liaodong Town Suddenly two thousand soldiers and horses were sent out of the camp to go north, and then five hundred forbidden troops from Zhao Gechen's camp came out and also went north;
Not long ago, Liaodong Qianhu Shicheng returned to the Liaodong camp again. Subsequently, the mobilization of soldiers and horses in the Liaodong camp became more frequent. Not only did they send a large number of fast horse messengers, but they also sent two teams of soldiers and horses to closely monitor us. Camp with Zhao Gechen! "
After hearing the report, Wu Shilin's brain suddenly raced, his expression changed, and he began to think about the truth behind all these abnormal situations.
But in the end, Wu Shilin still couldn't think clearly, so he simply gave up thinking and asked again: "Besides these trends, is there more news? Even rumors!"
The Guan Ning cavalryman who was responsible for reporting the news hesitated for a moment and then replied: "Because there was too much noise, various forces also speculated. Some said that Zhao Gechen and Mr. He had completely fallen out, and some said that the Liaodong cavalry was going to fight with the Forbidden Army. During a competition, some people even said...that Zhao Gechen and Mr. He were kidnapped by bandits..."
Wu Shilin's expression became more solemn, and he turned to Wu Yinglin, the special envoy of the Wu family, and asked: "Fourth uncle, what do you think?"
After Wu Yinglin thought for a moment, he shook his head and said: "These speculations are not reliable! If Zhao Junchen and He Yu have completely fallen out, I am willing to believe it, but with their personalities, even if they fall out, They won't go to war like this! If there is a contest between the Liaodong Iron Cavalry and the Forbidden Army, it is not feasible. With the strength of the Forbidden Army, it is just humiliating itself, not to mention the reaction of Liaodong Town is too great... As for that Zhao Junchen and He Yu were kidnapped by gangsters, which would be even more funny..."
Wu Shilin nodded and asked: "Then what should we do now? Should we sit tight on the Diaoyutai and wait patiently for more accurate news? Or actively participate in it?"
After Wu Yinglin thought for a moment, he replied: "Of course we have to take the initiative to participate! If we just wait blindly, once something major happens, we will be late and miss the opportunity! Only by taking the initiative to participate can we try our best to take the initiative! We now have two thousand Guan Ning cavalry, even if something big happens, at least we can protect ourselves and not suffer any loss!"
After hearing Wu Yinglin's suggestion, Wu Shilin finally made up his mind and said: "Okay! Send my order to the general to assemble all the Guan Ning cavalry immediately. Let's leave the camp and rush to the north to join in the fun and see what happened!"
*
Just when Wu Shilin summoned Guan Ning's cavalry to rush to Chilin Mountain to join in the fun, in Zhao Junchen's camp, as all the Forbidden Army soldiers were dispatched without warning, all the forces in Liaodong gathered in the camp were in panic. Everyone is speculating.
And because Jiang Quan did not deliberately conceal the news when he led the Forbidden Army soldiers to leave the camp, the news they received must be more accurate.
Therefore, Liaodong Governor Wang Shizhen, Governor Fang Zhenshan, Liaodong Regiment Training Commander Ling Huguang, Liaodong Branch Training Commander Song Dahe and others also quickly gathered in Wang Shizhen's camp to discuss countermeasures.
Wang Shizhen's expression turned pale and he asked in a trembling voice: "Is the news accurate? Zhao Gechen and General He were actually kidnapped by bandits of unknown origin while hunting?"
As the governor of Liaodong, this incident is enough to completely ruin his future. When the time comes, dismissal from office will be a minor matter, and his life and fortune may be affected.
The most important thing is that the entire situation in Liaodong may fall into long-term turmoil because of this!
Therefore, Wang Shizhen naturally could not accept the news at the first time.
What's more, this news is indeed too ridiculous!
The dignified cabinet minister and the illustrious frontier general were kidnapped by unknown gangsters?
Who believes it? Who dares to believe it?
On the other side, Fang Zhenshan said with a grimace: "I'm afraid this news is not false, otherwise it would not be able to explain the unexpected and unusual movements of the Forbidden Army and the Liaodong Frontier Army!
And you also know, Governor, that because of the conflict between the Liaodong Cavalry and the Guanning Cavalry a few days ago, Zhao Gechen put Li Shijie, a thousand households in Liaodong, under house arrest during the investigation, but this time the soldiers of the Forbidden Army came out in full force, and even continued Li Shijie could not be cared for in custody. Jiang Quan, a hundred households in the Forbidden Army, directly entrusted Li Shijie to the custody of Xiaguan... When Xiaguan took over Li Shijie, he also inquired about the relevant information from him! "
While speaking, Fang Zhenshan looked extremely flustered, but his eyes were full of deep thought.
An important minister of the imperial court was suddenly kidnapped by a gangster of unknown origin... This kind of plot unfolded, which made Fang Zhenshan feel like he had seen it all.
At the same time, Fang Zhenshan also vaguely felt that Jiang Quan, a member of the Imperial Army, had entrusted Li Shijie to his custody for some other reason.
With He Yu, the commander-in-chief of Liaodong, being suddenly kidnapped, the entire Liaodong town was in chaos and leaderless. As a direct descendant of the Li family, a general for generations, Li Shijie had extremely extensive connections in Liaodong. Under such circumstances, there was no doubt that It can play a decisive role!
Especially before Jiang Quan left the camp, he said something seemingly casually and meaningfully - "If something happens to He Yu, then who will take over the position of Liaodong Commander-in-Chief in Liaodong Town in the future?" , this Li Shijie will definitely play a decisive role, so Governor Fang must take good care of this person!"
Obviously, Jiang Quan knew the importance of Li Shijie very well, but he still handed Li Shijie over to Fang Zhenshan's custody.
If Jiang Quan's approach was not approved by Zhao Junchen, Fang Zhenshan would not believe it anyway.
The combination of these signs made Fang Zhenshan secretly guess that there might be another truth behind all this!
He Yu may have been kidnapped, but was Zhao Junchen really kidnapped? Or is this all just a setup directed and performed by Zhao Junchen?
Before that, when he heard that Zhao Junchen wanted to compromise with Liaodong Town, Fang Zhenshan vaguely felt that something was wrong, because according to his understanding, Zhao Junchen had always been unscrupulous and would never give up until the goal was achieved, and would never compromise easily. .
And today's shocking change undoubtedly confirmed Fang Zhenshan's speculation.
Once we make good use of the current situation, it no longer seems impossible to completely divide Liaodong Town!
Thinking of this, Fang Zhenshan began to think secretly again - if all his speculations were true, then what purpose did Zhao Junchen want to achieve by handing Li Shijie this important chess piece to him? How can I use this chess piece to satisfy Zhao Junchen?
While Fang Zhenshan was thinking deeply, Song Dahe urgently suggested: "According to my opinion, our top priority now is not to stay here and make random guesses, but to set off immediately to find out the truth! If Zhao Gechen is really kidnapped by gangsters, We must also try our best to rescue!"
At the same time, Linghu Guang nodded after hesitating for a moment: "That's right. If Zhao Gechen and Mr. He were kidnapped by bandits under our noses, all of us will be punished by the court and must be confirmed as soon as possible. News, and then go all out to rescue and make amends!"
Hearing the suggestions from Song Dahe and Linghu Guang, Wang Shizhen nodded repeatedly and said: "That's right. What the two commanders-in-chief said makes sense! Immediately summon all the troops and horses, and we must set off quickly and rush to Chilin Mountain!"
Following Wang Shizhen's decision, Song Dahe and Linghu Guang immediately got up and took action.
After Fang Zhenshan thought for a moment, he decided that he should wait and see what happened. After all, he was still unable to determine the truth. After leaving Wang Shizhen's camp, he immediately sent someone to further monitor Li Shijie.
Whether public or private, he must make good use of this chess piece!
*
At the same time, Ximen Sheng and Jiang Quan were still arguing over whether to report the news to the court.
Just when neither of them could convince the other, a Liaodong cavalry hurried to Ximen Sheng to report the news, saying that the Guanning cavalry, Liaodong regiment training, and Liaodong branch training all came out in full force to come to Chi Near Linshan to investigate the truth, but now they have been stopped by the Liaodong border army.
Under such circumstances, the Liaodong frontier army naturally clashed with the Guanning cavalry, Liaodong regiment training, and Liaodong branch training!
However, whether it is the Guanning cavalry, the Liaodong regiment training, or the Liaodong branch training, they all have an unusually firm stance, so it is difficult for the Liaodong frontier army to stop them for too long.
In this way, the truth about the kidnapping of Zhao Junchen and He Yu will soon be discovered by all parties, and the information blockade will be completely ineffective. With the involvement of all parties, the situation in Liaodong will be completely out of control!
At this time, the Liaodong frontier army in Hujiazhuang only had less than 5,000 troops. In addition to the 3,000 Liaodong cavalry under the command of General He Yu, there were also 2,000 troops belonging to the private guards of various generals, as well as the Hujiazhuang troops. Troops were stationed on the nearby West Road of Liaodong Town.
Although these five thousand soldiers and horses are the largest force in Hujiazhuang, there are too many forces gathered in Hujiazhuang at this time, and it is naturally more difficult to completely control the situation.
Not only do they have to send heavy troops to surround the kidnappers in the dense forest, but they also have to block nearby roads to prevent news from leaking. They also have to suppress the Forbidden Army, Guanning Cavalry, Liaodong Regiment Training, and Liaodong Branch Training at the same time. It can be said that they are stretched thin.
This is also the real reason why Ximen Sheng has not directly sent troops to suppress Jiang Quan and the Imperial Army under Jiang Quan's command just now, but is being very reasonable!
Under such circumstances, after Ximen Sheng heard the news, he felt unable to cope and had a splitting headache, but he could not think of a better way to reverse the situation.
Seeing the change in Ximen Sheng's expression, Jiang Quan on the side suddenly suggested: "General Ximen, I have a proposal here that can help you control the situation, block the news, and also make Guan Ning cavalry, Liaodong regiment training, and Liaodong I've settled down for the time being, but I wonder if you want to know?"
Ximen Sheng took a deep look at Jiang Quan and felt that Jiang Quan's next suggestion must be unkind.
But Ximen Sheng didn't have much to do at this time, so he had to say: "Oh? What do you suggest? Let's hear it!"
Jiang Quan whispered: "Beizhi has been following Zhao Gechen, and he undoubtedly represents Zhao Gechen in the eyes of outsiders. Therefore, as long as Beizhi comes forward in person, he can use Zhao Gechen's name to order Guan Ning Cavalry, Liaodong regiment training, and Liaodong branch training immediately You are not allowed to go out when you return to the camp! And General Ximen Ginseng, you can also express the same attitude in the name of He Zongbing!
In this way, after all the forces saw the common attitude of Zhao Gechen and General He, they naturally did not dare to act rashly. They could only return to the camp and wait for more news, which would at least bring the situation under control in the next three days! "
This was indeed a way, but Ximen Sheng knew that Jiang Quan's willingness to actively cooperate with him at this time must have other motives.
So, Ximen Sheng asked: "What good does this do to you?"
Jiang Quan replied: "Beizhi is willing to cooperate with General Ximen Shen to control the situation and block the news, but the premise is that General Ximen Shen will promise Beizhi one thing, which is to let Beizhi and the Forbidden Army soldiers under Beizhi participate in the subsequent rescue operation! That's it! As a result, I can give an explanation to the central court after my humble job!
In addition, I will only cooperate with Ximen Ginseng General for three days at most! If after three days, Zhao Gechen and General He are still unable to escape smoothly, then the humble post will report the news to the imperial center, and General Ximen will not be able to stop them! "
After thinking for a moment, Ximen Sheng nodded slowly and said, "Okay! I'll do it as you suggested!"
In this way, Ximen Sheng and Jiang Quan finally reached an agreement.
As a result, both of them looked relaxed and thought they had achieved their goal.
In Ximensheng's opinion, after three days, various Liaodong border troops in Liaodong will rush to Hujiazhuang to support him, and the force he has at his disposal can at least double!
By that time, the troops were no longer stretched thin, and Ximen Sheng had the capital to forcibly suppress all forces and could fully control the situation. Naturally, Jiang Quan's support and assistance was no longer needed.
Then, whether he falls out or breaks the contract, Ximen Sheng will not hesitate at all!
At this time, Jiang Quan thought of Zhao Junchen's evaluation of Ximen Sheng.
"Ximen Sheng's image in both the government and the public has been mixed. He has been criticized for many years and has been called the 'constantly defeated general'. However, he has always been able to remain unaffected. He is undoubtedly a person who is good at forbearance... This is also why he and He The biggest difference between He Yu and Yu is that He Yu rarely tolerates forbearance and has always had a tough attitude. Once others violate his taboos, he will be strongly counterattacked. However, Ximen Sheng is good at forbearing, so he is willing to compromise in certain situations. ...So, as long as we create a situation where he has to make compromises, we can successfully achieve the planned goals!"
But now, just as Zhao Junchen expected, Ximen Sheng has temporarily compromised out of consideration for the overall situation!
Jiang Quan also successfully completed the task assigned by Zhao Junchen because of Ximen Sheng's temporary compromise!
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