On the tenth day of September, Cao Cao's troops arrived in Jizhou.
The west gate guard, Zhang Shun, saw Cao Cao's troops arriving from a distance. He hurried down to the city, pulled a horse, jumped on it, and galloped to meet him.
Cao Cao laughed and said, "My brothers, why do you need to talk about such false etiquette?"
Zhang Shun said quickly: "Brother, I'm here because I have something to report."
Let me first talk about yesterday's great victory over the Liao army: Li Ying was rescued from prison, the enemy general was killed in formation, Wen Da led the army to attack from a flank and won a great victory, beheading more than 2,000 people, capturing more than 1,000 prisoners, and the rest were all routed.
He also said that Li Jun exchanged Khitan heads for money and food, but he was afraid that Lao Cao would blame him, so he only said, "We will discuss it with the brothers," without mentioning that it was Li Jun's own initiative -
"At the beginning, there were only a few people who came, mostly city foxes and rats. Later, the news of the defeat of the Liao army spread. From last night to the present day, thousands of people came to exchange money and food. Now the city is in chaos. The rich Khitan people gathered to protect themselves. There were groups of people who came to the streets to kill Han'er, but Brother Li Jun ignored them and only ordered his brothers to guard the Daku and the city gate."
"It was also Li Jun who asked my younger brother to wait for his elder brother here. He wanted him to know this before entering the city and decide his whereabouts."
Cao Cao listened quietly to what he said. He was a little stunned at first, then remained silent for a long time, and then slowly said: "This plan is not the best one... but Brother Li Jun's hard work is really good."
With his wisdom, although Zhang Shun deliberately concealed it, he had already guessed the clues by saying "Li Jun asked the younger brother to wait for the elder brother", and he was also very aware of the plot behind it.
He lowered his head and thought for a moment, then considered: "You wait for brothers to follow you as brothers. When the hundred battles are completed, there is no need to say more about the wealth and splendor in this life, and the title of wife and child. It's just that in the history, it should be left in the end. Good name..."
At this point, he spoke faster and faster, obviously having made up his mind: "That's it! From now on, the soldiers and horses in your Jizhou City are the Chrysanthemum Army of the Liao Uprising. Wen Da, Zhou Tong and the five hundred elite cavalry are all Dial it in and have nothing to do with Wu's army! The Chrysanthemum Army is led by Li Jun, with Wen Da and Li Ying as deputy commanders. Li Jun is renamed "Naohai Shenlong" and Li Wudi, and you, Zhang, are called "Fanhai Yaksha" by the way. Zhang Tiedan and the other brothers all have pseudonyms..."
At this point, there was a smile on his face again: "When you and others gather the troops, attack Tanzhou in the west, Ping, Jing, Ying, and Luozhou in the east, and guard the Great Wall for my brother. I will lead the army myself and take another one." Another name, first take the two states of You and Shun, and then annex the nine states behind the mountain. When the opportunity comes, you will "lead your troops to surrender", and then return to your original name. During this period, all the bad things were done by people like Li Wudi and Zhang Tietang, and You Zhang Shun and Li Jun have nothing to do with each other."
The so-called Youyun Sixteen Prefectures are further divided into seven prefectures in front of the mountains, nine prefectures in the back, and seven prefectures in front of the mountains: Tan, Shun, You, Ji, Zhuo, Mo, and Ying. Their land is mostly plains, and is adjacent to the Taihang Mountains and the Great Wall in the north. The nine states behind the mountains include Xin, Gui, Ru, Wu, Wei, Yun, Ying, Huan, and Shuo, all of which are in the west of the Taihang Mountains and are mostly mountainous.
Among them, during the Northern Expedition of Chai Rong, Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou Dynasty, he recovered Yingzhou and Mozhou, among which Yingzhou was Hejian Prefecture. Now that the Liao soldiers went south, Mozhou was lost again, and the Song and Liao Dynasties were fighting fiercely in the Hejian Prefecture area.
Behind the mountains and to the north of Kyushu is the Great Wall. Therefore, if the land of the clouds is taken back, the Great Wall will be continuous and intact. For the country, it is like a courtyard wall. When it is successful, it can expand its territory and expand its territory. When it is frustrated, it can still keep the Kyushu intact. The importance of Youyun Sixteen States lies in this.
As for the four prefectures of Yunping, Jing, Ying, and Luo that Lao Cao claimed, they had been occupied alternately by the Khitan and Xi people since the Tang Dynasty. They were located within the Great Wall, to the west of Jizhou, and to the east by the Bohai Sea, from Qinhuangdao to Tangshan in later generations.
After Lao Cao said what he said, Zhang Shun was stunned for a long time, and then he turned around - in this way, Li Jun not only avoided the reputation of the evil official, but also could show off his talents, and he could truly stand on his own.
He couldn't help but be overjoyed and bowed down and said, "Brother has good intentions. I thank him on Li Jun's behalf."
Lao Cao shook his head and laughed, thinking that your efforts to hide it were all in vain. If you thank me for him now, wouldn't you have completely exposed your identity?
He stood up and said: "Li Jun is for me, regardless of his reputation. How can I bear to let him have a cruel reputation and be criticized by ignorant boys in future generations? Besides, in this way, I am an army, but I have two names. , outsiders don’t know the truth and are increasingly confused, isn’t it wonderful?”
Zhang Shun nodded repeatedly: "Yes, this is killing two birds with one stone."
Lao Cao laughed loudly and patted Zhang Shun: "Brother, since I have acted like this, I will not enter Jizhou. You can guide Li Daguan for me! You must also think more about what you do at home. Don't be careless and underestimate the enemy."
Zhang Shun quickly agreed.
Lao Cao smiled and led his 4,500 fine cavalry, bypassing Jizhou and heading towards Youzhou.
Zhang Shun watched Cao Cao's army go away and suddenly patted his head: "Ah, but I forgot to tell my brother that the Khitan's younger brother, the king, was killed by his own bodyguard named Abulai. He said that the king had taken his woman by force. He was so angry. But after killing him, he surrendered with his head. Brother Li Jun saw that he was not a Khitan, so he made him a general in the army..."
I was going to chase Lao Cao, but after thinking about it more carefully, I realized that the matter was not important, so I gave up and flew back to the city to tell Li Jun in detail Lao Cao's arrangements.
After listening to what he said, Li Jun's eyes were already red, and he could not help but cry: "Those who are masters in ancient and modern times are able to reward according to their merits and recruit heroes. They are already called heroes. This brother of ours is not even named after me." , He is also very considerate, and we will never be able to repay such a benevolent and righteous Lord even if we die."
Zhang Shun and others listened with sighs and sighs, their loyalty to Lao Cao became perfect.
Li Jun wiped away his tears, cheered up and said: "Since my brother has promised me the power, how dare I disappoint him? General Wen, Mr. Li, you two are superior to my younger brother in martial arts, wisdom, and reputation. Just because of your time." My brothers are mostly in the navy, so Brother Wu has ordered my younger brother to take over temporarily. I am biased towards the two, so please forgive me."
Wen Da and Li Ying looked at each other, waved their hands and said with a smile: "'Hun Jiang Long', why do you have to be too humble? This matter originally started because of you, so you should be the main one. We brothers will definitely help you."
Li Yingben was rescued by Li Jun, and knowing that his family had never led an army, Cao Cao appointed him as Li Jun's deputy and was satisfied.
Although Wen Da had high self-esteem, firstly, as Li Jun said, the Chrysanthemum Army was based on the Dengzhou Navy. Secondly, after entering the city, he could not help but be moved when he saw Li Jun's ruthless methods. Lao Cao issued the order , naturally will not fight with him.
Li Jun added: "Since both brothers are willing to help each other, the first thing to do now is to establish the name "Chrysanthemum Army" so that things can be done later. Sister-in-law Gu, I will leave this matter to you and go to the city to hire someone. These embroiderers have sewed hundreds of chrysanthemum army flags to show their reputation."
Sister-in-law Gu nodded in agreement, and then asked: "Brother, it is not difficult to sew the flag, but does it need texture on it? Or should it just be embroidered with the words "Chrysanthemum Army"?
Sun Xin said: "Since we want to give a name, it is not appropriate to just embroider words, and many people are illiterate. In my opinion, if you embroider a huge chrysanthemum, you can naturally see it clearly."
Li Jun said happily: "Brother Sun Xin is thoughtful and worthy of being a general disciple."
Sister-in-law Gu was also happy when she heard the compliments about her husband, and said to herself: "In this case, we should decide on the pattern of the chrysanthemums first, otherwise you will embroider this way and she will embroider that, and it will be messed up."
Zhou Tong laughed and said, "What's so difficult about this? If it were any other flower, I wouldn't dare to tell you about it, but I know this chrysanthemum. It blooms in strands in all directions. It's the most difficult to recognize. All we have to do is find a butthole." If you are big, put more ink on that butt and sit on it with a piece of paper, wouldn't it be a good embroidery sample?"
Everyone was stunned and dumbfounded. Wen Da jumped to his feet and cursed: "Fart, fart! Wen has been leading soldiers all his life. He has been leading the Butthole Army for a lifetime. You just kill me. You don't agree with this ridiculous idea."
The others also laughed and cursed. Zhou Tong touched his head and said with an awkward smile: "It's just an idea. If you have a good idea, just use your idea - but that asshole really looks like a chrysanthemum."
Jie Bao said with a strange face: "How about we change our names? I suddenly can't look directly at these two words."
Li Jun shook his head and smiled bitterly. He walked out of the hall and picked up a beautiful chrysanthemum in the flower garden at the door. He pinched it and handed it to Sister-in-law Gu: "Let's use this as a blueprint and find a good painter to draw it into an embroidery pattern. The flag will be in the middle." , then embroider this flower, it must be big, and embroider a few words underneath..."
He originally wanted to embroider the words "Chrysanthemum Army", but as he spoke, he suddenly remembered the chrysanthemum poem Le He mentioned before, and smiled slightly: "I'll embroider 'When my flowers bloom, hundreds of flowers will kill'!"
"Okay!" When Wen Da heard this, he smiled like a chrysanthemum: "This is good, elegant, and mighty. Others will know that we are rebels at a glance!"
Li Ying also nodded and said: "The flag is so wonderful, but I see that brothers in the army all wear chrysanthemums as nicknames in their ears. I think it's the flowering season now, so it's natural. However, once the flowering season is over, it's okay to go Where can I find flowers to wear? Since we are called the Chrysanthemum Army, and the chrysanthemums are mainly yellow, we might as well find some yellow cloth and wrap our hair, one to match the name of our army, and the other to make it look neat and tidy."
Everyone applauded after hearing this. Wen Da said with a smile: "With their heads wrapped in yellow turbans and chrysanthemum poems written on their flags, we are waiting for this chrysanthemum army to be considered a great collection of ancient and modern rebels."
At the same time, on the way from Jizhou to Youzhou, Lao Cao led thousands of people to ride horses slowly, occasionally chatting with his brothers.
Li Jun acted as a vanguard and became the head coach of one side. All the generals were envious. When Lao Cao talked about his methods, they were all impressed and couldn't stop talking about it along the way.
But Guan Sheng said with a smile: "Brother, his army is called the Chrysanthemum Army. Naturally, we also need a name. We might as well think about it in advance to avoid temporary setbacks."
After hearing this, Hu Sanniang nodded repeatedly and said with a serious face: "Brother Guan is right. The commander of our army, Wu Daguan, loves flowers and fragrance the most in his life. Why don't we just call him Baihua Army, but it is bigger than Chrysanthemum Army."
When all the generals saw their elder sister-in-law teasing their elder brother, they all lowered their heads and snickered. However, Lao Cao was a shameless man and laughed loudly and said: "General Hu is very good! I only have five famous flowers in my family. If we call it Hundred Flowers Army, we still need Let’s gather ninety-five more famous flowers, lest the handsome guy next to me doesn’t live up to his reputation!”
When Hu Sanniang saw that he had defeated an entire army, she immediately turned red with anger and said, "'Wu Mengde,' do you think that this general is disadvantageous with both swords?"
Cao Cao quickly clasped his fists and said, "Ah, General Hu's ability with two swords is rare in the world. How dare I offend you? My intention is to take this good brother to rob the Liao Kingdom's gold and jewelry shells and make a crown of hundred flowers." I give it to the general so that I can take advantage of the general's color."
When all the brothers saw him complimenting his wife in public, they couldn't help but be enlightened, and secretly said: "No wonder my brother married five people, and they are all in harmony. Han Wu only got two, and he was already overwhelmed. It turns out that the key is here!"
Those who were bold and thick-skinned, such as Shi Bao and Du Bo, shouted: "Since my brother has this intention, we brothers will take all the treasures of the Liao Kingdom and build a crown of flowers that is unparalleled and unprecedented." .”
Hu Sanniang was so ashamed that she realized that no matter whether inside or outside the house, privately or publicly, she was no match for Cao Cao. She said "Oh" and rode away.
Lin Chong looked at Lao Cao with envy and said with a smile: "Brother's romantic methods are truly unparalleled in Yu Nei. If I had my brother's skills back then..."
He wanted to say that if I had this method, my wife would be much happier. However, when he said the words, he thought of the past between the couple and he became confused for a moment.
Lao Cao saw that his expression suddenly turned lonely and knew that he was thinking of sad things again. He sighed, took Lin Chong's hand, held it in his own, and whispered: "Brother Lin, the past is gone, and this lingering fragrance remains in my heart. It is enough to soothe the wind and frost of a lifetime."
He shook his hand and said: "My brother-in-law has a spirit in heaven, and I hope you will always be happy. Brother, you are also a man in his thirties. This is just a battle. I can say something for you as a brother. Family member, please don’t reject it blindly. Firstly, it will prevent my brother-in-law from feeling uneasy. Secondly, your martial arts skills are enough to start a sect, so how can there be no one to pass it on to you?"
Lin Chong wanted to say no, but when he raised his eyes, he saw that Lao Cao's eyes were full of concern, worry, and expectation. His heart suddenly warmed up, and he choked with sobs: "Little brother...just follow my brother's orders."
Among all the heroes, those who knew Lin Chongjiu showed expressions of surprise. Guan Sheng said happily: "Brother Lin, if you can let go of your worries, it will be a happy thing. Even Guan will feel happy."
Hu Yanzhuo teased: "Of course you are happy. When Coach Lin has a son, your son will be able to learn swordsmanship from you with peace of mind, right?"
Cao Cao was surprised to hear this, and after asking, he found out that Guan Sheng had a young son, named Guan Ling. Although he was young, he was extremely talented in martial arts. He could master all kinds of moves once he was taught them, and became good at them once he practiced them. Guan Sheng was deeply proud of him. , often boasting that there are successors to his family's sword skills.
However, somehow, this son fell in love with Lin Chong. His family lived very close to each other on Liangshan Mountain. Every day, Guan Ling moved a small bench and sat in front of Lin Chong's door, waiting hard for him to come back from training and hug him. The legs are not loose when they are held together, and it is a bit more affectionate than meeting my own father.
He also refused to practice swordsmanship with peace of mind, and pestered Lin Chong to teach him marksmanship. Although Guan Sheng was happy that his son had learned another unique skill, he was a little jealous from time to time.
After hearing this, Cao Cao burst into laughter, pointed at Guan Sheng and said, "Do you know why my son is so affectionate with others? It's because you love to imitate your ancestors and read the Spring and Autumn Annals with a straight face every day. You must be strict with children, but Brother Lin is gentle." He is a kind man, how can children not like him?"
After Guan Sheng heard this, he suddenly thought deeply and thought carefully about it. Although he loved his son very much, the relationship between father and son really taught him a lot.
Hua Rong heard the lively chat here, rode up to catch up and said with a smile: "Brother Wu couldn't be more right. Coach Lin always encouraged that little Guan Ling, but you, the old man, always hit and scolded. Not to mention being a son, even if you are raising a puppy, you still have to be close to Brother Lin - but besides that, there is another reason, but it is more crucial."
Guan Sheng asked curiously: "What is that?"
Hua Rong raised his face and said proudly: "You are handsome with a gun! Look at Zhao Zilong, look at Jiang Wei, look at Luo Cheng, look at Coach Lin, look at Xu Ning, and look at me! Those who use broadswords are all reckless men, Xiao How can a child want to be a reckless man?"
When Tang Bin and Xu Ning heard this, they nodded their heads and both said: "Brother Hua Rong's words may sound simple, but they actually make sense! Teacher Shi, what do you think?"
Shi Wenggong smiled and said: "Sure enough! And not only the gun, but also the halberd is handsome. You look like Lu Bu, Tai Shi Ci, Xue Rengui, Guo Ziyi, Wu Erlang, Fang Qifu, and me!"
Hua Rong immediately leaned out and stretched out his hand to shake his hand: "Teacher's words are absolutely correct. Spears and halberds are used by handsome and romantic people. Teacher's nickname is 'Shenqian'. He also prefers to use halberds, and he is the leader among them."
Hua Rong has always been steady, but it was rare to see him joking at this moment, and Shi Wengong couldn't help but laugh.
Lu Fang and Guo Sheng looked at each other. They didn't dare to interrupt easily when the bosses were talking, but they also puffed up their chests at the same time, showing a proud look.
Guan Sheng's nose was filled with anger as he pointed at Lin Chong and said, "Not to mention anything else, Coach Lin is now using a snake spear, and Xu Ning is also using a hook and sickle spear."
Shi Wengong smiled lightly: "Snake spears and hook sickle spears are also spears. Isn't a three-pointed two-edged sword not a knife?"
Du Bo grinned widely and said, "What the instructor said makes sense."
Shi Bao couldn't hold it back any longer. Hearing this, he laughed and said, "That's right, Du Jun is the one who wields the gun! You see, brother Du Bo is a model."
Hua Rong and Xu Ning both looked at Du Bo. Hua Rong said with a bitter look on his face: "Why don't we forget about the snake spear?"
Hearing this, Du Bo's face was full of grief and anger. Shi Bao laughed loudly and rode his horse to catch Du Bo and said: "Old Du, I advise you not to get together with these pretty boys. I am a man who only needs to be extremely arrogant." Seeing your true colors, you might as well switch to using a broadsword, Li Shuai, are you right?"
Li Tianrun smiled lightly: "I can handle both swords and guns. I am handsome and mighty, and we complement each other."
Shi Bao was about to scold him for being shameless when Hu Yanzhuo suddenly shouted: "Swords and guns are nothing. Now there are ten generals, five wielding spears, four wielding swords..." He turned to look at Qin Ming and said, "There is also a wolf fang wielder." The stick is so vulgar, if you ask me, a real husband should use a double whip!"
Qin Ming rolled his eyes strangely: "I didn't want to say anything, but if you said that, Qin would have to say that only the mace is a real hero. You are looking down on me, Qin Ming. Let's look at Duan San." Mother, speak!"
For a while, everyone was quarreling non-stop. Cao Cao stopped everyone and said with a smile: "You are not careful when you speak. You just praise what you use. What result will the quarrel have? Among my brothers, there is a real one. An honest man will never lie in his life. If you want to decide who is better, just ask him, after all, which weapon is the most powerful and beautiful."
After hearing this, some of the heroes shouted loudly: "Who is this brother?" Some of them understood and said with a smile: "Brother said it well, let Jiao Ting say it."
Everyone looked at Jiao Ting: "Oh! 'Shameless' Jiao Ting is indeed one of the most straight people in the world! Brother Jiao Ting, tell me, which weapon is the most powerful and beautiful?"
Jiao Ting had been staring at the clouds in a daze, and only now did he come back to his senses. He slowly looked at everyone with an expressionless face: "You ask me? Are you willing to obey what I say?"
Everyone said: "Whenever you speak, it must be the truth. Who dares to disobey?"
After hearing this, Jiao Ting smiled slightly, pulled out the double iron swords from his waist, and said without any doubt: "If we talk about the most powerful and beautiful weapons in the world, they must be the double swords."
After hearing this, all the brothers exploded the pot, and Shi Bao shouted: "I said, where can a truly straight person come from in this world?"
Jiao Ting remained calm, suddenly turned his head, raised his voice and shouted: "Sister-in-law! Sister-in-law!"
The heroes all stopped talking, each one dumbfounded.
Within a moment, Hu Sanniang came on horseback: "Brother Jiao Ting, why are you calling me?"
Jiao Ting said slowly, "Sister-in-law, I would like to ask you, which of the weapons in the world is the most powerful and beautiful?"
Hu Sanniang didn't hesitate, patted the scabbard and said matter-of-factly: "Of course it's a pair of swords! Otherwise, what else could there be?"
Jiao Ting nodded and looked at everyone: "What do brothers say?"
Hu Sanniang's beautiful eyes turned around and she looked at everyone curiously.
Everyone said in unison: "Double swords!"
Hu Sanniang was happy and said with a sweet smile: "Jiao Ting, you silly brother, couldn't my sister-in-law lie to you?"
Everyone said in a daze: "Jiao Ting is actually not stupid, we are the ones who are stupid."
Hu Sanniang looked at them puzzledly, but without going into details, she turned to Lao Cao and said with a smile: "Marshal, the last general just galloped his horse forward, and suddenly he thought of what our army should be called."
Cao Cao wondered: "What?"
"West Wind Army!" Hu Sanniang grinned: "When the west wind comes, the chrysanthemums bloom. We are the mothers of the Chrysanthemum Army, so naturally we should be called West Wind."
Cao Cao recited it silently twice, nodded and said with a smile: "Wonderful! Our army will be called the West Wind Army!"
There is a branch of teaching: the west wind blows all over the sky, and the ground is full of the fragrance of chrysanthemums. My brother has always been with me, why should I say goodbye to my old glory!
(End of chapter)
