"Sir, all the bandits in the forest have retreated."
The soldiers who went to investigate in the forest returned with their men from the forest and came to General Xu to report.
"Are you sure you read it correctly? Are they really all retreating?" General Xu asked again worriedly.
The soldier who came back said with certainty: "Don't worry, sir. I led people to search the forest. It was true that there were people hiding in the forest before, but now they have escaped."
"Okay, don't flatter yourself. Did those bandits escape? That was an active retreat." General Xu said with a dark face.
The dignified governor's own army was ambushed by a group of unworthy bandits in the Daliang Mountains. If word spread, he, the commander of the Fubiao Battalion, would only become a laughing stock in the mouths of others.
The soldier lowered his head, but he didn't expect his flattery to be slapped on the horse's hoof.
General Xu didn't intend to get serious with the soldier, so he said, "Go and find Xu You. I want to see him."
"Yes." The soldier agreed, turned and left.
Not long after, a general with a helmet and armor came over, knelt down on one knee in front of General Xu, clasped his fists, and said, "My lord, my subordinate is back."
General Xu looked at Xu You in front of him and said in a deep voice: "What's going on? I didn't ask you to lead someone to protect Mr. Zhang, so why did you leave Mr. Zhang alone?"
"I know my mistake." Xu You confessed in a low voice.
"Xu, let me go quickly, otherwise I will tell the governor what you did to me when I return to Datong." Zhang Wenhe cursed.
At this time, he was still being escorted by two soldiers.
General Xu ignored Zhang Wenhe and scolded Xu You in front of him: "I think you were careless this time. I will spare you this time. If there is another time, I will definitely punish you for offending you."
"Yes." Xu You responded.
General Xu added: "Mr. Zhang will be left to you. You must protect him and not run around to prevent him from falling into the hands of bandits. Do you understand?"
"I understand." Xu You solemnly agreed.
Zhang Wenhe, who was on the other side, heard that something was wrong and said, "What do you mean, Xu, that you would be so kind to arrange for someone to protect me?"
General Xu turned around and said with a smile: "Mr. Zhang is the governor's capable staff. I will protect you, but Mr. Zhang don't run around. You should have seen what happened just now. This group of bandits on the mountain." It’s not simple, even the officers and soldiers are not afraid.”
"That's because you are incompetent." Zhang Wenhe sneered.
General Xu said calmly: "I didn't expect this group of bandits on the mountain to be so brave and dare to ambush them halfway, but it doesn't matter. I brought more than 700 people this time. Even if there are some losses, as long as we capture the bandits When I return to Datong, I will still be victorious."
"Hmph." Zhang Wenhe snorted coldly.
He knew that what the other party said was right. No one cared about the death or injury of some soldiers. As long as the bandit's stronghold was successfully captured and the bandits on the mountain were wiped out, the credit would fall on the Fubiao camp.
General Xu said at this time: "Let go of Mr. Zhang. Xu You, you take people to protect Mr. Zhang. As for these people..."
As he spoke, his eyes fell on the men who had been following Zhang Wenhe from Guojiazhuang, and he said lightly: "Take them with you and don't let these people run around. If these people dare to disobey, I will kill them." You are allowed to behead him."
"The little ones don't dare. The little ones don't dare."
Several men from Guojiazhuang hurriedly knelt on the ground and begged for mercy.
General Xu was too lazy to pay attention to these people. He waved his hand impatiently and said at the same time: "Take everyone away. Don't be an eyesore here."
"Yes." Xu You agreed, walked up to Zhang Wenhe, and said respectfully, "Mr. Zhang, please stay with me and don't run around."
Zhang Wenhe snorted. Although he was dissatisfied, he knew that he was now under the eaves and had to bow his head.
The lesson he just learned made him understand that it was unwise to confront General Xu at this time, and he would have to settle the matter with him when he returned to Datong.
Shortly after Xu You left with Zhang Wenhe, a military general from Fubiao Camp came to General Xu and said, "Sir, the sneak attack just now cost us nearly a hundred people, most of whom died in our own hands because of panic. Here, only thirty or forty people were actually killed and injured by bandits with cannons and cannons."
General Xu nodded with a dark face.
"Sir, should we continue going up the mountain?" the general asked.
General Xu said, "Although we have lost a lot of people, our strength is still there. If we retreat at this time, we will not be able to explain to the governor when we go back. Also, the two general flags that Lord Wu took away are still in front, and the bandits on the mountain are If we were really strong, we wouldn’t let the two general flags in front go up the mountain, so let’s continue going up the mountain.”
"General, I understand. I will arrange for the whole army to set out in a group right now." The general agreed, and then said, "Do you want those dead and wounded in the army to stay here? Or take them up the mountain with you."
General Xu thought for a while and said: "Leave one person from the general banner to take care of it, while the rest continue to go up the mountain."
"General, I'll make arrangements now." After saying that, the general turned and left.
The army was ambushed on the mountain road, with the sound of firecrackers and shouts. Wu Huai, who went up the mountain first, naturally heard the noise from behind and guessed that the army behind him might be ambushed by bandits.
However, he was not worried that the army behind him would suffer.
In his eyes, the bandits in Daliang Mountain were just lambs waiting to be slaughtered. Even if these bandits set up an ambush to ambush the army, they would still be the longevity prince eating arsenic and seeking death.
A group of grass bandits who occupy the mountain as kings do not catch his eye at all. He believes that as soon as the army arrives, this group of bandits will be wiped out.
Now he knew that the bandits not only did not escape, but instead lurked on the way up the mountain, this made him relieved.
There are dense forests in Daliang Mountain. The biggest difficulty in suppressing bandits is not the bandits themselves, but that it is difficult to find the bandits once they hide in the mountains. But now the bandits in the mountains have not escaped or hidden in the mountains, which has become the reason for his meritorious service. Chance.
Wu Huai believed that even though he only brought two soldiers and horses under the general banner, he was confident that he could win in a single battle even if he faced several times as many bandits.
The most important thing is that as long as he is the first to rush into the bandit's stronghold, most of the valuable things in the bandit's lair will fall into his hands.
And, he had his own sources.
I know that the original batch of goods worth several thousand taels of silver from Xu Ji Company was robbed by bandits from Daliang Mountain.
Although the goods were not transported to Daliang Mountain and it was unknown who they were sold to by the bandits on the mountain, all the money should be in the bandits' dens in Daliang Mountain.
As long as he captures the bandits in Daliang Mountain, he will not only be able to make meritorious service to the governor, but also get thousands of taels of silver for free. Even if he gives some away, the final amount won't be less than a thousand taels.
This much money was enough for him to live on his own for two years.
"Sir, from the sound, the army seems to have been ambushed. Do you want me to go back and take a look?" the soldiers beside Wu Huai asked in a low voice.
"No need." Wu Huai waved his hand and said immediately, "Send the order and hurry up the mountain. We must first attack the bandit's lair."
"Yes." The soldier agreed and ran to deliver the order.
The sound of gunshots coming from the direction behind him let Wu Huai know that the army behind him was not far away from him.
At this time, what he was worried about was not the safety of the army behind him, but whether the army would catch up and invade the stronghold before him.
