At night, in Langzhou City, Wuping Jiedushi Mansion Office.
The tall man sitting in charge of the case is Quan Wuping Liu Yan. After many years of fighting on the battlefield, Liu Yan's face had already gone through many changes. At this time, he was writing a seal with a pen. The generals were divided into two rows and stood silently in the hall. But at what seemed like a serious moment, there were two graceful beauties beside Liu Yan, one on the left and one on the right leaning against each other with smiles on their faces, wearing half-shouldered clothes that made them look very happy. After all, some generals couldn't resist this fragrance, so they had to take a sneak look and felt their blood surge.
Everyone was waiting quietly for Liu Yan to write the last drop of ink on the watch. After the last drop of ink, a general standing at the front of the right column finally couldn't help but stood up, cupped his fists and said: "Commander, before sunset, the Tang army suddenly After retreating ten miles, the general will think that there must be a trick, so please don't underestimate the enemy!"
"Oh?" Liu Yan slowly raised his head and said expressionlessly: "What's the trick? The Tang army has been attacking the city for seven consecutive days, but our Langzhou is impregnable. It must be that the Tang army was tired of horses and retreated to rest! Zhou Zhou Xing Feng, you said that I underestimated the enemy, but I stayed up day and night to abide by my duties!"
After saying that, Liu Yan smiled jokingly, hugged the beauty next to him tightly, and rubbed her roughly with his big rough hands, which made the two women squeal again and again, and the generals quickly lowered their heads and did not dare to look directly at her.
As a well-known wise general under Liu Yan's command, Zhou Xingfeng had always been full of schemes and unfaithful advice. At this time, he was so anxious that he gritted his teeth and continued to persuade: "Commander, the Tang army was eager to break the city. Even though there were casualties, they did not stop for seven consecutive days. Why did Du Du retreat to rest and recuperate today? The Art of War says that all warriors must use the right combination to win by surprise. With such an abnormal move, I am afraid that the Tang army will make moves at night! Please order the Commander-in-Chief to re-arrange the defenses and step up patrols at night. Don’t be greedy. Enjoy yourself for a moment, but you will suffer great disaster!"
Since the Tang army launched a large-scale siege of the city, the offensive has become increasingly fierce. Liu Yan, as the commander-in-chief of Langzhou, appears calm on the surface, but after seven consecutive days of fierce fighting, how can he not be worried in his heart? Previously, the Tang Army's arrows kept flying day and night, which made him tremble in fear even when he was sleeping. Now, for him, he wished that the Tang Army could retreat as soon as possible, even if one day was enough to catch his breath.
As the saying goes, "shooting the first bird with a gun", Zhou Xingfeng's words were not only harsh, but also seemed to take away Liu Yan's moment of comfort. An unknown anger then emerged: "Zhou Xingfeng, I respect you for your support." Gong, I have been very patient with you on weekdays, but why have you repeatedly made rude remarks and disturbed the morale of our army? The soldiers in Langzhou have sacrificed their lives, and the Tang army has been unable to advance, but it is you, why are you so afraid of the Tang army?"
Seeing Liu Yan's roar, his face flushed, all the generals in the hall stood in silence and remained silent, but Zhou Xingfeng still tried hard to persuade him: "Commander, how can you be afraid of the enemy? This time the Tang Dynasty attacked me, it was full of troubles." Tens of thousands of troops! There is an endless supply of food and supplies. But now the waterway to the north of Langzhou has been cut off, and it is surrounded on three sides. It is now an isolated city! And the reinforcements from Dongxi have not come yet. It will never last long if this continues! The Tang army suddenly Withdrawing the siege, our officers and men have been exhausted for many days, and they must have neglected their precautions at night, fearing that something unexpected might happen! Your loyal words are offensive to your ears, so please think twice, Commander-in-Chief!"
As soon as he finished speaking, unexpectedly, the three people beside Zhou Xingfeng, Wang Kui, Pan Shusi and Zhang Wenbiao, seemed to have reached an agreement. They looked at each other for a while, then each stood up and said in unison: "loyal words are hard to hear. Please think twice, Commander-in-Chief! Loyalty is offensive to your ears, please think twice, Commander-in-Chief!"
The generals' continuous chorus echoed throughout the hall in an instant, which undoubtedly added fuel to the fire!
Seeing this, Liu Yan became furious, pointed at the audience and yelled: "Are you going to rebel? Zhou Xingfeng is such a disgusting boy, how come you have lost an inch? Get out of here! Don't you dare to say more words if you don't know what is good or bad?" In short, I will kill you without mercy! Get out!" The two beauties beside him quickly stretched out their jade hands and gently stroked Liu Yan's uneven chest, as if these generals had disturbed their good time, charmingly From time to time, his eyes glanced down the hall with resentment.
After all the farce came to no avail, the generals walked out of the office one after another. Everyone's face looks calm, but their thoughts are hidden in their hearts.
After returning to the camp, Wang Kui, the eldest brother of Liu Yan's "ten brothers", patted Zhou Xingfeng on the shoulder and whispered: "Second brother, have you seen this? I have told you a long time ago, Liu Yan This man has little talent, is greedy for money and lust, and is definitely not an enlightened master! You are so foolish and loyal! Why bother wasting your words to arouse his suspicion?!" (Note: "Ten brothers" refers to the subordinates of King Ma Xi'e who once served in Langzhou. Wang Kui, Zhou Xingfeng and ten generals, He Jingzhen, Zhang Fang, Pu Gongyi, Zhu Quanxiu, Yu Wenqiong, Peng Wanhe, Pan Shusi and Zhang Wenbiao. After deserting Ma Xi'e, the "ten brothers" joined Wang Kui and Zhou Xing Under Feng's leadership, Liu Yan was appointed to take charge of Langzhou.)
Seeing Zhou Xingfeng sighing and saying nothing, Zhang Wenbiao said angrily: "In the face of a powerful enemy, we don't think about ways to defeat the enemy. Instead, we indulge in beauty and punish loyal ministers! Such mediocre masters are even worse than Ma Xihe! The second eldest brother Brother, why don't you do the opposite! Today, Liu Yan has murderous intentions. We, the good men, would rather die on the battlefield than be that brat who succumbs to death! Anyway, sooner or later, Langzhou won't be able to defend it, so it's better to capture Liu Yan and Langzhou is dedicated to the Tang army, and the ten of my brothers have done a great job! The Emperor of the Tang Dynasty will definitely give you a generous reward!"
Wang Kui sneered and said: "Old Shi, do you think that you will have a good ending if you sacrifice the city? My brothers and I betrayed the King of Chu in the past and left us with infamy. Now that Ma Xi'e has surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, how can the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty keep me?" wait?"
"Brother is right." Pan Shusi, who had always obeyed Wang Kui's advice, raised his head and said solemnly: "The story of Lu Fengxian's three slaves in the late Han Dynasty. How can heroes like us repeat the same mistakes and be ridiculed by the world? Even if we want to rebel , and don’t surrender to others anymore!”
Immediately afterwards, all the generals in the tent seemed to be incited, and the scene was boiling. Only Zhou Xingfeng remained silent.
After a long time, Zhou Xingfeng looked at Wang Kui's proud expression and suddenly said, "Brother, do you want to be independent?"
After hearing this, some of the generals shouted: "Second brother, the eldest brother is our brother's own eldest brother! Who else has the qualifications to be the master of Langzhou except him? Besides, the soldiers and horses of Langzhou are 70% or 80% more restrained than our brothers." , this matter has great potential!”
Seeing Zhou Xingfeng hesitate to speak, Wang Kui's face was gloomy, and then he pretended to refuse and said: "Hey! Brothers, don't talk nonsense! I, Wang Kui, have never had great ambitions. I only want to enjoy a few more days of wealth with you." Er! Even if I want to stand on my own, it’s not up to me, Wang Kui, to make the decision! I think the second child is suitable!"
Zhou Xingfeng was startled. He turned his head and looked around, and found that everyone was looking anxiously at him. He quickly waved his hands and said, "Brother is joking! How can I have such delusions? It's just that, eldest brother, now is not a good time to be independent." . The Tang army besieged the city, and it was difficult for Langzhou to hold on for long. If the city was destroyed, how would we deal with it?"
Wang Kui seemed to be very satisfied with Zhou Xingfeng's answer, and said with a friendly smile: "Don't worry, second brother! Do you know where the seal Liu Yan wrote tonight is sent?"
"Brother, please give me some instructions!"
"Taking advantage of the Tang army's retreat today, Liu Yan wants to send a horse to deliver a message to Kaifeng!"
Zhou Xingfeng thought for a moment, shook his head and said: "I'm afraid that the distant water cannot save the nearby fire, and there has been a rebellion in Yanzhou recently, and Guo Wei has too much time to take care of himself, how can he send troops to help?"
Wang Kui smiled faintly: "Guo Wei naturally has no time to come to help. Liu Yan has become a frightened bird. This move is just to leave a way out for himself."
Suddenly his expression changed, and he said coldly: "I want to capture Liu Yan, and I will order him to be sent to the Tang army's camp together with the seal! My second brother, this time the Tang army attacked Langzhou, but it was in the name of attacking Liu Yan." Refusing to return the throne and secretly communicating with the Zhou Dynasty! Why don't we follow the trend? But we will only sacrifice people, never the city."
Zhou Xingfeng asked doubtfully: "How can the Tang army stop without offering the city?"
Wang Kui raised his eyebrows and said with a mysterious face: "There is enough food left in the city to supply for several months. Even if the Tang army wants to continue to attack the city, we will just hold on! When the Tang army withdrew from the siege, scouts came into the city to report that the Tang army went north to attack Xuzhou. The troops and horses were completely wiped out in Shuyang! This incident will definitely shock the government and the public. I predict that within ten days, the Tang army will attack our Langzhou without leaving our army! So we sent Liu Yan to give the Tang army a face, right? Anyway, we sent Liu Yan there. There is a result, hahaha!"
At this time, Zhou Xingfeng suddenly realized that Wang Kui and others had already prepared to rebel against their master and stand on their own! But why are they both sworn brothers, but he is always the last one to know?
Zhou Xingfeng watched with cold eyes the people in the tent, who had already gathered around Wang Kui to discuss strategies. Thinking of Liu Yan in the city and Tang Jun outside the city, I felt inexplicably uneasy in my heart...
