The current military governors of the Song Dynasty have never had tens of thousands of soldiers under their command.
However, there are nearly 50,000 people under Lao Cao's command, not counting Liangshan and Gaotang Prefecture. If word spread, it would be shocking.
Therefore, the imperial court mobilized troops in two directions. Mu Hong and other five teams went to Daming Mansion, and they all asked him to take more than a thousand people each. Wu Song, the three who came to Bianjing to participate in the southern expedition, only took more than 3,000 people, most of the troops The horses, with various names such as villagers and guards, are still hidden in various states.
These more than three thousand people were all carefully selected, and they were specially selected to be heroes who were agile, good at walking, and brave enough to kill. This time as a vanguard, it was considered that the people were fully utilized. They traveled sixty or seventy miles every day, leaving the large group of people behind. After traveling for more than twenty days, they arrived in Yangzhou.
It was mid-February of the second year of Xuanhe (1120). Cao Cao and his entourage were walking along the river. Looking around, they saw a scene of early spring. There is a saying:
The river is on its side, the glaciers are disappearing, the stinging insects are beginning to stir, and all things are recovering. The treetops and fields are already dim and green, and the hills and mountains beside the water are newly blooming with plum blossoms.
When Yan Qing saw that the plum blossoms on that tree were blooming just right, he couldn't help but become very interested. He rode up the hill and broke off a lot of flower branches. When he came back, he divided them among his brothers and put them on their temples.
When the plum blossoms were handed to Cao Cao, Cao Cao did not accept them. He only looked at Dao Mo in front of him in a daze. Wu Song looked at him and reached out to take the flowers for him. He asked in a low voice: "Brother, what's on your mind?"
When Cao Cao was called by him, he came back to his senses, shook his head, and told: "But I accidentally remembered the past, haha, I remember that when I was fighting against Dong Zhuo, all the princes did not want to make progress, and they sang and sang every night. After going deep, he was ambushed by Xu Rong and almost died. Most of his soldiers were also killed. He had no choice but to take Xiahou Dun and go to Yangzhou to recruit troops. With the help of Chen Wen, the governor of Yangzhou, and Zhou Xin, the prefect of Danyang, he recruited 5,000 troops. This is the way."
Wu Song smiled and said: "In this case, isn't this my brother's blessed land?"
Cao Cao glanced at him and sighed: "What a blessed place! Those five thousand troops probably didn't want to go north. They rebelled at night and set fire to my tent. They all came to kill me. I killed dozens of them before I was shocked." We dispersed at dawn, and most of them escaped, leaving only 500 people who did not rebel."
Wu Song didn't expect his brother to have such an experience in his previous life, so he couldn't help but grinned and said: "Fortunately for my brother's ability. If it were someone else, even if he escaped with his life, I'm afraid his ambition would be shattered."
Cao Cao smiled when he heard this and said: "My husband, since I am determined to serve the country, I should be unyielding and become more courageous the more setbacks I get."
After saying that, he took the plum blossom in his hand and put it on his head.
At this time, Yan Qing finished dividing the plum blossoms and rode back. He heard Lao Cao's words of "unyielding despite perseverance" and thought he felt something after seeing the plum blossoms. He smiled and said: "Brother said it well, these flowers are covered with frost and snow, and they are shining. Shenghui is exactly the reflection of our generation."
Lao Cao was too lazy to elaborate, so he laughed and said, "Xiao Yi's words are right, it's exactly the truth."
Looking at the scenery in front of me, although thousands of years have passed, it still seems to be exactly the same as before. On a whim, I improvised a poem of seven rhymes and chanted:
"The spring breeze and clear water cover the stone bridge, and the misty rain is full of emotions like the wicker branches.
The original intention is unforgettable and the old dreams are picked up, and the old tears are endured to cultivate the new sword.
Thousands of miles of Yangtze River are full of waves, and the tide is rolling.
Wait until all the worries are gone, and the plum blossoms are blooming everywhere. "
After hearing this, everyone, although most of them didn't understand what it meant, cheered in unison. Wu Song heard the best "Look at Er Cao" and said with a smile: "Brother, do you miss Xiao Man?"
Cao Cao said: "Who can miss my son? Don't you miss Ah Xiao?"
Li Kui listened to them talking about their children, and walked up to him and shouted: "I miss my Agua too. Now that I have a child, I know how kind a parent is. I thought about how I beat someone and ran away in the rivers and lakes, but how was my mother?" Worrying."
When Cao Cao heard what he said, he said happily: "Tieniu is becoming more and more sensible. Now that your eyes have been cured, I have enjoyed your blessing. However, even though I am filial, I am afraid that I still care about your brother." , when you return this time, you go to pick him up and do some business in Qingzhou. In the future, you will go out with me to send troops and horses, and I will have a son to fulfill my filial piety."
Li Kui laughed after hearing this and said: "If this is very good, Tieniu has saved a lot of money in the past two years, so he bought several hundred acres of land and gave it to his brother. He also asked him to become a landlord and live happily for half his life."
While they were talking and laughing, suddenly there was a loud shout in front of them. Cao Cao listened carefully and felt that it was very familiar: "Failed, defeated, our army is defeated."
Cao Cao looked solemn, leaped his horse onto the mound, and his brothers followed closely behind him. He looked down and saw hundreds of officers and soldiers, all dressed in Song army uniforms, throwing away their helmets and armor and rushing towards him, shouting: "We are defeated." Defeated, let’s go and go.”
Cao Cao couldn't help but laugh: "The officers and soldiers I saw coming from the south to the north all seemed to be cast from the same mold. It looks like this kind of people. Without me, how can we deal with the Jin people in the future?"
Among the group of defeated troops, there was an official with a gray beard, wearing a robe of a third-grade civil servant, with a visor on the outside. He looked nondescript, with a scabbard hanging from his waist, but the sword was lost somewhere. He was riding a big horse. The donkey was running for his life. When he raised his head and saw Cao Cao and others, he waved his hands and shouted: "Hurry up, hurry up, I have been defeated by the bandits, so I am chasing after you."
When Cao Cao heard this, he thought that this old man was not a bad person, and he knew how to ask me to escape with him. He smiled and said: "Don't be afraid of him. We are the vanguard sent by Privy Tong to suppress Fang La."
When the old man heard Tong Guan's name, his face was filled with anger. He glared and shouted, "What skills can Tong Guan's men have? Don't try to show off your strength indiscriminately. It's all in vain if you die." A soldier's name is his life, and he doesn't feel at ease even if he is a ghost."
Wu Song laughed and said, "Don't panic, old man, just wait and see what we can do."
With a wave of his hand, more than 3,000 people rushed out from behind the mound, formed a formation on the road, and shouted in unison. It was like spring thunder exploding in the clear sky. The defeated troops were caught off guard. Those in front stopped quickly, while those behind were still going forward. He rushed forward and suddenly fell into pieces. The big donkey was also frightened and screamed wildly. The old man hugged the donkey's neck tightly for fear of being thrown off.
At this time, only a mile or two away, more than a thousand thieves were chasing after them with shouts. Among the thieves, there were two recognition flags. On one side was a big book: Taibai God Zhao Yi, and on the other side it was written: Giant Spirit God Shen Ze.
Cao Cao shouted: "You sergeants, don't panic. Quickly go behind our army's formation and see how our army kills the enemy."
When the old man heard this, he was shocked and shouted quickly: "Don't underestimate the enemy. These two are the generals under Lu Shinang, the puppet privy envoy among the thieves. They are among the 'Twelve Gods of Jiangnan'. They are highly skilled in martial arts. Don’t underestimate him.”
Wu Song chuckled and said: "The twelve gods in the south of the Yangtze River have no choice but to become the twelve dogs in the south of the Yangtze River when they meet us." After saying that, he picked up the euphorbia and was about to go into battle.
Niu Gao quickly grabbed his bridle and begged: "Second brother, what kind of knife should you use to kill chickens? Let me wait until my younger brother catches the two enemy generals, and we can inquire about news from the south with him."
Li Kui shouted: "I have been traveling for days and it is easy to encounter an enemy. If you cannot defeat me, wouldn't it be a loss of strength? I will go with you."
The two of them got off the mound and stood proudly in front of their own formation. At this time, the defeated soldiers crawled around to the back of the formation, fled hundreds of steps away, and bravely turned back to watch the battle. Only the old man The son had just calmed the donkey, but before he could follow his subordinates in, Li Kui became agitated and screamed: "Get out of here, get out of here, my grandpa splashed blood all over you when he was fighting, don't scare you to death again."
The old man was presbyopic, and he could only see vaguely the generals on the mound. At this moment, Niu Gao and Li Kui came in front of him, and he could see clearly. He saw that these two men were about eight feet tall, with bodies as strong as ghosts and as black as coal. He had a big face, thick eyebrows, a steel beard like a needle, and a heavy weapon in his hand. He couldn't help but said happily: "Ah, from the looks of it, they are two good men who can fight."
After hearing this, Li Kui turned from anger to joy and said with a smile: "You, my father-in-law, can see that we are two good men with extraordinary eyesight. We might as well get close to each other."
Seeing the bravery of the two of them, and seeing the more than 3,000 people arrayed neatly, the old man immediately lost his fear, stroking his beard and said: "My surname is Xu, and my two names are Churen. I chose them in cursive. My official residence is in the Xianmo Pavilion." I am a bachelor and the governor of Yangzhou. But I don’t know the names of the two generals, and who are they?”
Niu Gao saw that he spoke politely and refused to let down his grace. He straightened his back, pretended to touch his long beard and said: "It turns out that it was Xu Zhizhou who was in front of him. It's easy to talk to him. The two of us are from Qingzhou." General, I am Niu Gao, a partial general, known as the 'Qingzhou Poet' and nicknamed 'Black Wind Tiger'. This is my brother Li Kui, known as the 'Qingzhou Poet' and nicknamed 'Black Whirlwind'. Haha, today's war is dangerous. , It’s not a coincidence, otherwise my brother would have to make peace with this old gentleman like you.”
The old man was even more surprised when he heard his name as a poet, immortal, and poet. He looked up and down and said, "Oh, I'm disrespectful! Unexpectedly, the two generals are actually geniuses with both civil and military skills! How wonderful, how wonderful that there are two generals here. I am here." Yangzhou will definitely be worry-free."
Li Kui and Niugao were very proud to see him being respectful. They looked at each other and could see each other's proud expressions: "Thanks to you and I, I have learned the ability to write poems. Otherwise, how would these sour men admire me so much!"
He couldn't help but wanted to show off a few words, but the bandit soldiers had already rushed forward. When he saw many officers and soldiers forming a formation to block the way, he quickly stopped within an arrow's throw and formed a random formation in a chaotic manner.
Two thieves rushed to the front of the formation angrily, and one of them shouted: "Hey! You are so brave, don't you know the Twelve Gods of Jiangnan? How dare you block my way."
Niu Gao laughed loudly and pointed his four-edged iron mace: "Hey! Don't you, a young man in the world, recognize that I, the 'Qingzhou Poet Saint' and the 'Qingzhou Poet Immortal', are two geniuses with both civil and military talents? Why don't you surrender quickly after meeting these gentlemen?" , Could it be that you dare to resist?"
The person on the other side who was shouting was none other than "Taibai God" Zhao Yi. Taibai is also the star of Venus, and the war disaster among his masters. Zhao Yi took this as his nickname. He had the best temperament to kill. When he saw that Niu Gao was even crazier than himself, he became furious. Angry, without saying much, he flew straight to Niu Gao with a flying horse and a spear. Niu Gao showed no fear and went forward with his mace.
These two flattering rivals were the only ones to see them:
A spear danced left and right, and a double mace swung up and down. The cold light of the gun dance is majestic, and the strong wind of the mace is heavy.
Here is the Black Wind Tiger in Shandong, and over there is the Taibai God in Jiangnan. The Taibai god is good at fighting fiercely, and the black wind and hungry tiger are about to pounce on people.
besides
(End of chapter)
