Xu Kuangheng naturally did not dare to hide anything, and quickly told Li Yuan everything he saw and heard that day.
Ever since Li Yuan and Peng Shiyu swore an alliance in Linyuan City during the Western Expedition, and then Peng Shiyu assisted each other in defeating Langzhou, the relationship between Xizhou and Langzhou has become closer.
After Chen Jue led the army to the north, Peng Shiyu led his generals to visit Li Yuan in Langzhou City several times to express his sincere intention to follow him. He even took the initiative to bring a map and included the entire area east of Linyuan City. Under the rule of Wu Ping. Naturally, Li Yuan would not let him suffer. He sent a lot of money and food to the army, and opened up several routes for merchants from both places to pass. For a time, there was an endless stream of cars and horses, and the people were busy and happy.
But this honeymoon period seems to have only lasted until two months ago, when Li Yuan left for Jinling to welcome his bride and encountered the Shouzhou rebellion.
Xizhou first inexplicably ordered to prohibit the entry and exit of Langzhou merchants, and then cut off contact with Langzhou. When Langzhou heard the news at first, he didn't pay much attention to it. They were all concerned about Li Yuan who was far away in Jiangbei. It wasn't until Li Yuan returned not long ago that Xu Kuangheng sent an envoy to Xizhou because of a wedding banquet.
Unexpectedly, as soon as the envoy from Langzhou arrived at Linyuan City, he felt the extremely indifferent attitude of the barbarians. After finally arriving at the gate of Xizhou City, the invitation was taken away, but the envoy was stopped outside the city gate by the defenders. He had no choice but to return to Langzhou. Zhouzhou, as for Peng Shiyu, naturally he didn't even see his shadow.
Hearing this, Li Yuan couldn't help but frown, filled with doubts.
To be fair, since he made an oath with Peng Shiyu, he has not done anything to break the promise. Every time Peng Shiyu visits, the two of them drink and talk happily, and their congenial personalities have become increasingly deep. Moreover, since the alliance was formed, Langzhou has given Xizhou a lot of conveniences. Apart from the money and food Li Yuan sent each time, the tea and silk goods brought by the merchants have improved the lives of the local people a lot.
The Dongxi barbarians were seriously injured in the Battle of Jiashan, but Li Yuan's troops were strong, and the two states bordered each other. If Peng Shiyu broke the agreement for no reason, not only would he not get any benefits, but he might even get into trouble.
Therefore, until this moment, Li Yuan still did not believe that Peng Shiyu would make such a stupid and dishonest choice. After all, the impressions left by brothers Peng Shiyu and Peng Shigao on Li Yuan were too similar. They were both straightforward men who promised a lot of money. Like Peng Shigao, he didn't even return home, but he stayed with the King of Chu, Ma Xi'e. Surrender, no matter how much my father and brother persuade me, it doesn't work.
Li Yuan couldn't help but ask: "Sir, what do you think of the situation in Xizhou?"
Xu Kuangheng replied without hesitation: "Commander, Xizhou suddenly severed contact. Something must have happened. As for whether Peng Shiyu broke the contract, I can't say for the time being. I don't say how the commander-in-chief and his relationship are. I can only say that since the alliance, Xizhou has The state still got a lot of benefits. What's more, during the Western Expedition, a fire in Jiashan burned away the energy of the barbarian soldiers. How could Peng Shiyu have the confidence to break the alliance?"
Before Li Yuan could speak, Xu Kuangheng continued: "But Commander, one moment after another, now the Han army has penetrated deep into the Chu land, and our army has been retreating steadily. The imperial court has suffered successive defeats in the north and south wars, and the national strength has been greatly damaged. If - "
Li Yuan's face darkened and he said: "If Xizhou surrenders to the Han Dynasty, then when our army is fighting with the Han army, we can attack Langzhou from the rear. By then, our army will be attacked from both sides, right?"
"Commander is wise! Commander, don't forget that the Dongxi Barbarians have always been capricious. Ma Xichong, Ma Xie, and Liu Yan were all their allies! What's more, how Peng Shiyu destroyed Langzhou City in the past, Commander-in-Chief should know. .....”
"But all the erratic actions were done by Peng Shichou! Now his son Peng Shiyu is in charge, but I still can't believe it..."
Having said that, Li Yuan's chest was still churning. After Xu Kuangheng's inference, it seemed that he had indeed overlooked some details. At this time, he really had to be wary of Peng Shiyu, and he felt depressed for a while. After all, a war is imminent. It is not a good thing if there are fewer allies but more opponents.
Li Yuan had a headache and sighed: "The changes in Xizhou have not only made it impossible for Peng Shiyu to lead the army eastward, but I am afraid that he will also have to divide his troops to garrison the mountains. Alas! Do we really want to sit back and watch the Han army conquer Tanzhou City?"
Xu Kuangheng thought carefully for a moment and said calmly: "The commander-in-chief has forgotten that the personal army has expanded to 10,000, and most of them are cavalry, and the roster of soldiers does not need to be reported to the court..."
As if a bright light lit up in his confusion, Li Yuan tapped his forehead and suddenly realized: "Sir, you reminded me!"
Li Yuan immediately called the soldiers outside the door and ordered: "Call Lin Sichang and Wumute to come quickly!" Suddenly he added: "Let the weapons supervisor Hu Gui come together!"
Seeing his soldiers running away quickly, Li Yuan breathed a sigh of relief and said calmly to Xu Kuangheng: "Sir, as for the matter in Xizhou, I want to send an envoy again, but this time I need to send troops and horses to accompany them. You see how......"
...
In Linyuan City, a large number of barbarians are rushing out from the city gate, busy chasing a group of people in front of them who are running lifelessly towards the hillside. The legs and feet of these barbarians have always been strong and agile. Although they can obviously not keep up with the speed of the people in front, they are still I hated my parents for giving me two missing legs, so I chased him into the forest while screaming for my life.
Peng Shiyu was riding a bay-red horse and was leading more than a hundred guards around him to run away. The sound of the howling wind mixed with the shouts of killing was really heart-breaking.
After sneaking into the forest, he couldn't help but look back, but he was still overwhelmed by the large group of barbarian soldiers who were coming towards him. Thinking of everything he had experienced recently, Peng Shiyu felt a sharp pain in his heart, so he had to continue gritting his teeth and walking along this extremely familiar road. The mountain road continued to run.
In the evening, after all, the manpower could not keep up with the horses' hooves, and it seemed that the pursuers behind him had made no sound. Peng Shiyu led his guards and rushed up a hidden hillside.
The vegetation here was quite dense, and after giving the order not to light a fire, he breathed a sigh of relief. At this time, his body finally felt sore, and Peng Shiyu had no choice but to dismount and sit on the ground, resting for a while.
"Brother, let's drink some water first! We are all riding horses on this trip, and the pursuers probably won't be able to keep up!" This voice was sweet and clear, obviously coming from the mouth of a young girl.
Peng Shiyu turned his head and saw that although the girl was also wearing a rough Dongxi leather armor, she still couldn't hide the delicate inches of skin exposed. At this time, she was looking at him nervously with her lips pursed, perhaps. After running for a long time, her cheeks were obviously flushed, and a thin black mole at the corner of her mouth looked even more beautiful in the sunset.
"Qingying, this trip has been really hard on you. You have never suffered such a serious crime since you were a child..."
Seeing his little sister Peng Qingying, her hair was dirty and messy, and her hands had a few blood stains. At this time, she had no time to wipe off the sweat from her forehead, but carefully held the water bag and came forward, which made Peng Shiyu look at it for a while. Sad.
Peng Qingying shook her head disapprovingly. After smiling seemingly relaxedly, she stuffed the water bag into her brother's arms. Then she took out a half-length silver ribbon from her cuff, lowered her head and gently held Wu Yun's arms. like hair.
Peng Shiyu sighed softly, picked up the water bag and drank a few sips. His slightly chapped lips suddenly regained a touch of warmth. He could see his eyes looking confusedly at the thin sunset in the distant sky, with mixed feelings in his heart.
Then she suddenly put down her water bag and walked up the hillside. Upon seeing this, Peng Qingying hurried over and stopped directly in front of Peng Shiyu. She frowned slightly and whispered: "Brother, what are you doing! The sun has not set yet. It would be bad if the pursuers saw it!"
As a native of the Dongxi barbarian tribe, and having played the role of leader for most of his life, Peng Shiyu has always had the habit of climbing high to observe the overall situation and ordering the entire army wherever he goes. Now, after being reminded by his little sister, he suddenly came back to his senses, and then He smiled to himself: "I forgot, now I am no longer the governor of Xizhou, but a sinner of Dongxi!"
Peng Qingying bit her lip, her eyes suddenly turned red, and she murmured: "Brother, don't talk like that, I know you were framed... It was all that hateful Tian Hongyou! He not only murdered grandpa, Even the three brothers will not let go! If the eldest brother had not saved me this time, I am afraid that the younger sister would not have escaped death..."
Although he was bathed in the cool breeze and warm sunset in the mountains, Peng Shiyu's mood at this time was darker and colder than falling into an ice cellar. He gritted his teeth and wiped away the tears from the corners of Peng Qingying's eyes. He endured the pain and said: "Qingying, stop crying. ! As long as I, Peng Shiyu, don’t die, I will definitely avenge this blood feud!”
"Yeah! But brother, we only have so many people left now. Will Tang Jun really help us when we get to Langzhou?"
A tall figure wearing golden armor appeared in his mind. Peng Shiyu nodded firmly and said softly: "I will definitely..."
