Shen Lie's words were like pouring a ladle of cold water into a boiling oil pan, causing it to explode with a splash.
The officers of the Fierce Blade Legion suddenly changed their expressions. For a moment, they ignored the issue of military discipline and rules and asked Shen Lie what exactly he was talking about.
Shen Lie ignored Qiao Pingluo who was stunned and stunned. He pursued Lao Jianhua and met Li Jiangyao of the Zhenjiang Army, and then assisted him in guarding Metasequoia City. In the end, he captured and interrogated Zaire, etc., and told the officers Tell them all exactly as they are.
It was not until Shen Lie introduced Zaire's confession that everyone realized how serious the situation in the ghost desert in Western Xinjiang was. At the same time, they were also shocked by the deeds of Li Jiangyao and other Xinjiang Army soldiers who fought to the death to resist the enemy.
At the end of the story, Shen Lie said in a deep voice: "According to my judgment, the whole thing about Commander He coming to Liangzhou from the imperial capital seems very strange. I don't know about the military department, but I know the situation in the palace well. Emperor We will definitely not let Commander He travel thousands of miles while seriously ill. If it is true as the bandit Zaire said, the current situation is most likely caused by internal and external enemies colluding with each other in an attempt to join forces to harm Commander He. Therefore, I need to rush to protect him now! If this is true, then we can rescue Mr. He in time; if this is false, I, Shen Lie, will bear the responsibility for deploying troops and horses!"
All the officers did not speak when they heard this, but all looked at Qiao Pingluo.
Lao Qiao was sweating now. Although none of the officers said a word, it was more frightening than speaking directly. Their eyes were fixed on him, as if they could breathe out fire.
Qiao Pingluo knew very well that as long as he dared to say no at this time, these guys would probably kill him on the spot.
"There's nothing to say!" Vice Commander Qiao immediately made a wise choice: "Whether this matter is true or false, He Shuai's safety cannot be compromised! Whatever goes wrong, I, Qiao Pingluo, will handle it alone. Han Chang and Feng Jincai , Niu Bao obeys the order!"
The three officers shouted in response and walked out of the queue at the same time.
"I order you to immediately assemble the troops and horses of your headquarters and accompany Lord Shen to meet Commander He. The rest of you will start to prepare for war and reinforce Western Xinjiang at any time!"
-
Six thousand fire cavalrymen of the Fierce Blade Legion, led by Shen Lie, galloped eastward along the official road and reached the border of Liangzhou in only one day. Going further, we will reach Yongzhou.
Not long after they approached Liangjie Mountain, everyone saw many Shengtang officers and soldiers standing guard outside a valley ahead.
When Shen Lie saw this, his heart moved, and he quickly ordered the troops to slow down, and at the same time looked at the opposing officer warily as he walked over.
The two sides stopped at a distance of more than ten steps and informed each other of each other's identities. Only then did Shen Lie and others realize that the other party turned out to be a soldier from Liangzhou Prefecture.
The junior officer from the Imperial Army was also a little confused and couldn't help but said: "My lords, why did you know that something happened here so quickly? Can you show me your troops' marching instructions?"
"What happened? What happened?" Han Chang from the Blade Legion was impatient and asked without answering.
The colonel hesitated: "In the valley ahead, a group of soldiers and horses of your army were attacked..."
Hearing this, the blood in Shen Lie's body almost ran cold. Without saying a word, he immediately urged his horse to run towards the valley, followed by six thousand fire cavalry, who also roared away.
Everyone rushed across the valley entrance in one breath, looked up, and were stunned by the scene in front of them!
In the small valley, there were corpses scattered everywhere, as well as broken spears and damaged shields. The red blood was shocking.
Obviously, a very fierce battle just broke out here before.
The members of the Blade Army looked around and exclaimed repeatedly. Shen Lie had already seen clearly that all the corpses lying here were wearing the uniforms of the Blade Army, as well as the ones discarded in a pool of blood. The commander-in-chief's flag represents the identity of the commander.
Liangzhou Prefecture Primary School followed him and explained in a low voice: "Sir, judging from the degree of rigor mortis, these brothers should have been killed in battle for more than two days. The area is very remote, and our patrol also passed by this morning. I just discovered it. Captain Zhechong of Liangzhou Prefecture has received the report and is on his way here."
Shen Lie was about to speak when he suddenly heard someone in front of him exclaim: "Commander!"
He followed the sound and saw only a few soldiers lifting up a corpse on the ground. It was He Jingming, the commander of the Blade Legion!
In an instant, the sounds of crying and wailing came one after another, and countless soldiers and horses of the Blade Army rolled off their saddles and fell from their horses, and surrounded them crazily.
These hot-blooded men surrounded He Jingming, who was seriously injured and killed, crying, roaring, and jumping violently at the top of his lungs. Some kept beating their chests, some grabbed their hair with difficulty, and some clung to the soil on the ground with their hands. As if going crazy.
More people drew their swords out of their sheaths and put them on the necks of the Liangzhou Prefecture officers and soldiers, staring with red eyes: "Who did this?! Is it you?!"
The Liangzhou soldiers were so frightened by this scene that they almost peed their pants. The leader of the school cried, "It's none of our business... Oh my God! How could this happen?! It's Commander He!"
At this moment, the only one who remained calm was Shen Lie.
He calmed down a little, suppressed the grief and anger in his heart, picked up the trembling Han Chang, and said warmly: "Brother, now is not the time to be sad! We will definitely avenge Mr. He, but now, you must Control the troops, otherwise something big will happen if they mutiny!"
After saying that, he reached out and pulled up the other two officers who were also kneeling on the ground, and said the same words again.
Among the three Blade Army officers leading the team, Feng Jincai was the oldest and the most mature and stable. After listening to Shen Lie's words, he also understood that what the other party said was reasonable, so he tried hard to restrain his great grief, began to restrain his subordinates, and ordered everyone to line up and assemble.
After a period of commotion, the six thousand Fierce Blade Army rearranged themselves neatly. Although everyone was still crying, there was no more sound. In addition, about a hundred people suffered from severe physical discomfort due to excessive grief, and they gathered on the ground next to the queue to rest.
Feng Jincai gradually returned to normal, and ordered a team of troops to take over the defense of Liangzhou Prefecture soldiers here, sealing off and guarding the entire valley. In addition, he arranged for manpower to sort out the bodies of his fallen colleagues, search for and treat survivors.
After everything was arranged, the three leading officers came to Shen Lie and asked for instructions on the next step.
When Shen Lie saw this, he couldn't help but be secretly convinced, and sincerely admired He Jingming for his skill in commanding the troops.
The soldiers of the Blade Army had a deep relationship with their commander. Because of his death, almost everyone was heartbroken and in pain.
But at the same time, despite the grief and anger, the entire army was still able to maintain good discipline. The leading officer was also calm and rational enough to know that he should respect the authority of the highest-ranking officer on the scene.
Shen Lie nodded slightly and said solemnly: "Everyone, the matter has come to this. The only thing we can do, and what we must do, is to track down the murderer and seek revenge for He Shuai!"
The three of them did not speak when they heard this, and stared at him in silence.
Shen Lie sorted out his thoughts and continued his analysis: "In the territory of Shengtang, openly attacking the imperial army and assassinating the second-grade meritorious general is not murder, but rebellion! It is my duty to detect the murderer, and you are soldiers, shouldering the responsibility We are responsible for the important task of protecting our country. We can only perform our duties and do our part well. This is the wisest move. Now, I order you to return with the bodies of the commander and brothers. The base camp of the Fierce Blade Army, waiting for new instructions from the court."
Han Chang originally wanted to ask Shen Lie where he was going, but the strict military discipline forced him to swallow the words that came to his lips.
The officer Niu Bao, who had remained silent, looked serious: "Master Shen, our brothers believe your words and know that both Western Xinjiang and the imperial court are in danger now, so we obey your orders. But... if the imperial court cannot seek justice for He Shuai. , if the treacherous villain is allowed to go unpunished, then the Fierce Blade Army will have no choice but to take action and rely on its own strength to avenge He Shuai!"
-
An hour later, the large group of soldiers and horses of the Fierce Blade Army quietly left the valley with the commander's body.
Soon, two groups of people came outside the valley.
The first to arrive was Captain Zhechong of Liangzhou Prefecture. He rushed here in a hurry, and when he heard that it was He Jingming who was attacked, his legs trembled with fear. As the top local military official, he must bear the blame for such horrific things happening within his own jurisdiction.
Not to mention whether his career can be saved, his head may not be stable.
Immediately afterwards, Shen Lie's men also arrived.
On the day of the hostage exchange, Nilinsi had a fierce battle with the Turkic Blood Guards of Kunli Mingtai, but they still failed to retain the fake princess Yinas. When the battle was over and all the Turks fled, they turned their heads and took a closer look, only to find that their boss Shen Lie was also missing.
Nilin spies panicked and immediately divided into two teams. One team followed Shen Lie in the direction he might have gone, while the other team stayed near Zijin Pass to wait for Chang Shi.
The team of Nilin Si Feiqi who was temporarily staying at Zijin Pass suddenly received news yesterday that their leader suddenly appeared at the headquarters of the Fierce Blade Army, so they quickly formed a team and almost chased him back and forth.
Without saying much, Shen Lie selected a few masters from his subordinates who were good at investigating and handling cases, and ordered them to look for useful clues together with Feng Jincai, the Blade Army who stayed here to take charge of the aftermath. At the same time, another special envoy was dispatched to accompany Captain Zhe Chong back to Liangzhou Mansion to present the case to the Liangzhou Governor, and immediately launched a state-wide search to keep an eye out for any suspicious persons.
He made a preliminary judgment for everyone.
Although He Jingming's guard only numbered about a hundred or so people, they were definitely considered the best among the best. The quality of these guards is probably much higher than that of the troops that Li Jiangyao broke into the Turkic camp. In addition, all the officers and soldiers of the Blade Army are willing to fight to the death for the commander, and their combat effectiveness cannot be judged simply by their numbers.
In other words, if you want to completely annihilate such a force, even if you have the advantage of ambush and sneak attack, you can't be foolproof without two or three thousand troops.
Moreover, looking at the valley in front of us, no body of the attacker was found except for the guard soldiers. This shows that the opponent can not only eat the entire guard, but also have the energy to deal with the aftermath.
Such an armed force with a size of several thousand and carrying a large number of wounded will be very conspicuous no matter where it goes, so as long as you pay attention to the inquiry and search, you will definitely find their clues.
"Especially the main force coming from the direction of the Imperial Capital, be extra careful!"
Shen Lie finally gave special instructions.
After hearing this, Captain Zhe Chong hesitated to speak.
Shen Lie noticed something was wrong and cast his piercing gaze on the other party: "Whatever you want to say, say it boldly!"
The captain was slightly startled: "Well...seven days ago, there was indeed a troop coming from the direction of the imperial capital to Liangzhou."
"Which troop?"
"The vanguard camp of the Xuanjia Legion is fully equipped with a total of three thousand heavy cavalry."
"Ah!" Everyone around them exclaimed at the same time.
Shen Lie's eyes were filled with murderous intent: "Who is leading the team? What's the mission here?"
The captain stammered and replied: "Yes...it's Qian Niu Zhonglang General Xu Youchang...Xu Youchang is leading the team. The tasks specified on the march execution are the annual routine attack drills of the Xuanjia Legion."
