Zhou Xing led Miao Jianye's small team and rushed outside the east city gate of Luoyi in a blink of an eye.
Facing the high-stretched suspension bridge, Zhou Xing shouted to the defenders on the city: "I am He Meng, the guerrilla deputy general of the Left Banner of the Xuanjia Army! This is Mr. Miao, the commander of Zhechong in Xiangzhou Prefecture. We are ordered by Commander Bao to Enter the city to report the military situation and let us in quickly!"
The captain of the garrison saw that there were only a dozen of them, and the one who called out was indeed wearing the uniform of a general of the Xuanjia Army. In addition, there was nothing unusual about the Xiangzhou soldiers and horses parked in the distance, so he did not doubt that there was fraud, so he He ordered his men to lower the drawbridge and open the city gate.
However, he still kept an eye on it and secretly ordered the soldiers to be on alert.
After the suspension bridge was stabilized, Zhou Xing and Miao Jianye started off one after another, urging their horses to cross the moat and move towards the city gate. However, just when everyone was about to enter the deep doorway, a sudden change occurred!
Zhou Xing, who was walking in front, suddenly turned around, faced Fang Miao Jianye who was behind him, and suddenly raised his right arm. Just listen to the sound of "peng", the bowstring rang lightly, and a poison-quenched sleeve arrow shot out.
At such a close distance, Miao Jianye had no time to react. He was hit by an arrow in the throat. He immediately fell backwards and fell heavily off his horse.
Zhou Xing didn't wait for the soldiers following him to react, and kicked the horse's belly hard. He accelerated forward and shouted, "The soldiers of Xiangzhou are rebelling! Kill them without mercy!"
Seeing the captain who fell from his horse and died, and then hearing the shouts of General He, more than a dozen soldiers suddenly panicked, and subconsciously, they drew their swords one after another.
However, they didn't know whether they should chase the murderer or turn around and run away.
Due to the distance and angle, the defenders above and below the city could not fully see how Miao Jianye was killed. They only heard the "guerrilla lieutenant" on their side shouting warnings, and at the same time they saw the other side all showing their weapons. How could there be any hesitation? The defenders immediately closed the city gate and fired arrows at the soldiers.
The incident occurred suddenly. Before all the suspension bridges on the moat were raised, three or five of the more clever Xiangzhou soldiers turned around and ran away. They desperately rushed out of the range of the archers at the top of the city and fled towards the headquarters camp.
At this time, Zhou Xing had already rushed into the city. He shouted, "Xiangzhou soldiers are attacking the city, everyone is on alert!" while galloping on his horse. The surrounding Xuanjia troops were confused about the situation for a while, so no one dared to step forward to stop him. Instead, they all hurriedly moved out of the way and allowed him to leave.
Just as Zhou Xing ran further and further away and gradually disappeared, a large number of the main force of the Xuanjia Army suddenly appeared on the road leading to the city gate.
The leading general was tall, with angry eyes. He was holding a pair of big copper hammers in both hands, and he was charging closer and closer with murderous intent!
When the guard captain saw it, it was the commander-in-chief Xie Bao who arrived in person, and his anxious heart finally calmed down. He quickly ordered his men to open the city gate again and let the main army out of the city.
The door opened and the bridge fell, Xie Bao took the lead and rushed out of the city.
At this time, all his attention was focused on the Xiangzhou Army waiting in the distance. He did not bother to pay attention to the dozens of corpses of the soldiers at the gate of the city, and he did not notice that Miao Jianye, the captain of Zhechong, was among them.
The Xuanjia Army followed Xie Bao, crossed the wide moat one after another, and quickly deployed on the plains. In less than a stick of incense, they formed a huge fish scale formation. The whole process was characterized by capable movements, precise positioning, and tacit cooperation, which showed that this was an elite regiment that was well-trained and had extraordinary combat capabilities.
In the blink of an eye, the military formations were arranged, and a majestic momentum rose into the sky.
Xie Bao rode his horse to the front of the camp and was planning to send someone over to ask the commander of Xiangzhou why he did not act in accordance with the general's order. But before Xie Bao could give the order, a strange sight immediately stunned him.
The large formation of Xiangzhou Mansion soldiers a few hundred meters away suddenly began to become restless.
It turned out that the soldiers of Xiangzhou Prefecture were all panicked because their captain Miao Jianye died inexplicably outside the city gate. Everyone was talking and making speculations. Some said that the general was attacked by assassins, some said that Lao Miao was accidentally injured by the defenders, and some said that the captain accidentally fell off his horse and died.
But the most common theory, and the most credible one, is that Miao Jianye was deliberately set up by Xie Bao.
This view can't help but make everyone a little uneasy.
Everyone doesn't know whether Xie Bao is just plotting against Captain Zhechong alone, or whether he is planning to plot against the entire Xiangzhou Army.
Obviously, these two are two different things.
Only dealing with Captain Miao is a fight between gods and has nothing to do with everyone. But if we deal with the Xiangzhou Army, every soldier will become a target.
This is a deadly business!
Just as the soldiers were feeling uneasy, the city gate in the distance opened again.
Xie Bao, who was like a demon god descended from the world, suddenly rushed out of the city with a pair of terrifying big copper hammers, and behind him were tens of thousands of black armored troops!
The Xiangzhou soldiers froze on the spot, dumbfounded as they watched the opponent prepare for battle, and even put up a standard attack formation. They couldn't help but become more and more panicked.
Xie Niang! The opposite side is like this, why don't you run and wait? Are you planning to stay here for the New Year?
Xie Baoduan sat on his horse and looked from a distance. He found that some of the Xiangzhou soldiers on the opposite side were quickly leaving their positions. There were more and more people and they were running faster and faster. At a speed visible to the naked eye, the large square formation of five thousand people melted and disintegrated in an instant, almost like ice cubes thrown into a brazier.
"You bastard! Are they going to run away?" Xie Bao cursed angrily.
Before, Xie Bao was still thinking about whether there was any misunderstanding in the current situation. In view of this, he decided to first arrange the army in formation and take precautions, and then go to Zhechong Captain Miao Jianye to ask for details.
If there is really a misunderstanding, the most you can do is scold the other party, and there is no need to take action.
But the performance of Xiangzhou's soldiers was really suspicious.
Without asking for permission, they marched their troops to attack the city. Then when they saw the Xuanjia Army, they turned around and ran away without saying a word.
No need to think about it, there must be something wrong with these beasts!
"Why are you running?"
"If you chase me desperately, of course I will run away! Why are you chasing me?"
"Nonsense! If you run away as soon as you see me, of course I will chase you!"
This unsolvable logic is about to be played out between the Xuanjia Army and the Xiangzhou Army.
Xie Bao was convinced that his judgment was correct and there was indeed something fishy about Xiangzhou's soldiers! At the same time, he was worried that the other party would escape back to the camp and stick to the stronghold, which would make it more troublesome to clean up, so he waved the sledgehammer forward without hesitation: "Boys, chase after me!"
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While Xie Bao was leading his troops in pursuit of Xiangzhou's soldiers like a tiger pouncing on its prey, Li Jiangyao led fifty Nilin spies and quietly approached the Ximen Guard Station of the Cavalry Camp next to the Imperial City.
This guardhouse is an independent compound, separated from the imperial city by only one wall, and only two to three hundred steps away from Jixianzhai where the prince is hiding. In the guard station, there is a 300-man black armor cavalry team stationed, which is responsible for patrolling and guarding the periphery of the imperial city.
Unlike the Xiangzhou soldiers outside the city, they could not be fooled simply by forging official documents, seals, and disguises. As long as the cavalry camp sends someone to contact their superiors to verify the situation, any trick will be exposed immediately.
Therefore, the only way to deal with this force is to rely on unexpected sneak attacks.
"Sir, it's as you expected," Xiao Wuzi reported softly: "Since the city fell into chaos in the afternoon, this cavalry camp has been unable to sit still. They have increased the patrol size from the usual fifty people per squad. There are a hundred people. In addition, manpower has been specially allocated to strengthen the security of the gates on the west side of the imperial city. Therefore, there are only sixty or seventy troops left in the guardhouse."
Li Jiangyao nodded: "Tell me about the specific situation and how it is deployed inside?"
Xiaowuzi continued: "The cavalry captain and seven or eight of his men gathered in the front hall on the first floor. Behind the front hall is a small dining room." As he spoke, he gestured on the ground: "The second floor of the small building is The officer's dormitory is empty now. On the third floor, which is the top floor of the guardhouse, there are two secret sentries there. They were probably sent by Di Xian earlier today."
"What about the rest?"
"On the left side of the small building are the stables and warehouses, and on the right side are two rows of military buildings. The remaining Xuanjia troops are concentrated in the military buildings to eat and rest."
Li Jiangyao thought about it carefully and ordered: "Okay, the situation is still very favorable for us. You divide your troops into two groups according to the plan. One group will go from the front to attract the opponent's attention and seize control of the gate; the other group will go from the front. Team, outflank from behind, and use all your strength to suppress the people in the barracks... As for the inside of the small building, leave it to me."
The spies of Nilin Division followed the order and started taking action.
Li Jiangyao walked alone to the courtyard wall closest to the small building. After looking around for no one, a kite jumped onto the wall and then quietly fell into the courtyard.
He sneaked all the way and quickly reached the downstairs of the guardhouse. After confirming that the surroundings were safe, he used his hands and feet to use his hands and feet through the brick seams, pillars and rafters. In just a few movements, he climbed up to the second floor gently, and then climbed through the window and entered the room. .
As Xiao Wuzi said, at this time, the officers of the cavalry camp were either out on patrol or gathered in the front hall downstairs to wait for orders. The huge second floor was quiet and not a single person could be seen.
But even so, Li Jiangyao still didn't dare to be careless at all.
He waited in the corner for a moment and listened carefully to what was going on downstairs, then continued to the third floor.
Seeing that he was approaching the third floor stairs, voices suddenly came from above. Li Jiangyao quickly leaned down and held his breath. The other party obviously didn't notice anything unusual here, and was still chatting leisurely. The topic was about the excitement in the city today, and he was unaware of the impending disaster.
Li Jiangyao took out a small, shiny bronze mirror from his pocket, carefully adjusted the angle, and could clearly see the invisible areas upstairs without being discovered by the other party.
At this time, the two subordinates who were specially arranged by Di Xian to serve as observation posts were all half-lying on the window sill, pointing at the firelight in the distance, unprepared for the stairs behind them.
Li Jiangyao exclaimed in his heart, "How good!" Then he changed the angle of the bronze mirror and explored other places on the third floor to see if there were any other enemies.
When he basically figured out the situation upstairs, the two secret guards were still chatting happily, and they showed their backs to Li Jiangyao carelessly.
Faced with such a good opportunity, how could Li Jiangyao, a hunter, miss it?
