Report to the Governor and the Commander-in-Chief to ask for an audience. "The Yamen servant came to the Hou Yamen to ask for instructions.
When Governor Liu heard that Zhang Huai was back, he hurriedly put down the bowl in his hand and said to the yamen servant: "Invite Mr. Zhang in quickly."
The officer retired.
Du Wanyuan, who was standing next to Governor Liu, frowned slightly and said, "Sir, don't you think that the commander-in-chief came back too quickly, and there was not even anyone to report the victory?"
Governor Liu stroked his beard and said with a smile: "Haha, Mr. Du is overthinking. The soldiers and horses of the Tiger Character Banner are all on the grassland outside Xinping Fort. Zhang Huai can capture Liu Heng directly when he arrives at Lingqiu, and he doesn't need anything. After a big battle, it’s normal to come back faster.”
He believed that the Tiger Character Banner had few soldiers and horses in Lingqiu, and Zhang Huai was leading soldiers from each family, so there would be no problem in taking down Liu Heng and other rebels.
Du Wanyuan, who was standing aside, shook his head and said: "Something is wrong, something is very wrong. Sir, please think about it. The Tiger-Character Flag has tremendous wealth. Will Mr. Zhang be willing to come back so soon? Even if Mr. Zhang is in a hurry to come back, I am afraid that other people will I also want to stay in Lingqiu for a few more days."
At this moment, Zhang Huai was taken to the back office by the government servant who had gone out before.
"I'm going to bow to you, the governor." As soon as Zhang Huai entered the back office, he knelt on the ground and lowered his head.
Governor Liu stood up, walked to Zhang Huai in a few steps, stretched out his hand to help him, and said in a warm tone: "Commander Zhang, please get up quickly. This time you have made great contributions to the imperial court. I will personally report to you." achievement."
"The lower official is guilty." Zhang Huai, who was kneeling on the ground, did not move.
Hearing this, Governor Liu's heart suddenly trembled. Thinking of what Du Wanyuan had just said, he subconsciously turned his head and looked behind him.
Du Wanyuan shook his head slightly at him, indicating that he was not sure either.
Governor Liu failed to help Zhang Huai up, so he let go of his hands and asked, "I wonder what crime General Zhang has committed that makes him unable to kneel down?"
Du Wanyuan, who was standing behind, also said: "Master Zhang, if you have something to do, stand up and say it. You don't have to kneel all the time."
Zhang Huai hesitated for a moment and finally stood up.
At this time, Governor Liu had returned to his previous seat and sat down.
"Master Zhang, just say whatever you want." Du Wanyuan said to Zhang Huaike with a smile.
Zhang Huai bowed to Governor Liu and said, "Xiaguan is incompetent. He failed to wipe out the rebels in Lingqiu. Instead, he lost more than 800 soldiers and horses. Xiaguan is guilty."
"What? Defeated?" Governor Liu was startled and asked immediately, "It's not that Lingqiu no longer has the soldiers and horses of the Tiger Flag. How could you still be defeated?"
Zhang Huai said with a sad face: "It's not that the Tiger Character Banner has no soldiers and horses in Lingqiu, but there are tens of thousands of soldiers and horses. The lower official only brought about a thousand people with him. When they met, they were defeated by the Tiger Character Banner's soldiers and horses. , only more than a hundred people escaped in the end."
"How could this happen?" Governor Liu's palms on the armrest began to tremble.
This time he failed to capture Liu Heng and other bandit leaders. He knew that Liu Heng and others would definitely not sit back and die, and would definitely send troops to attack the counties. It would not be long before Datong would fall into rebellion, and his fate as a governor would not be good. Where to go.
Even if he is lucky enough to hold Datong Fucheng and wait for the imperial army to quell the rebellion, he will be punished by the imperial court after the rebellion is suppressed.
Du Wanyuan, who was standing aside, asked hurriedly: "Master Zhang, what is going on? It's not that the soldiers and horses of the Tiger Character Banner are all on the grassland outside Xinping Fort, why did they return to Lingqiu so quickly?"
"We have all been deceived." Zhang Huai said with a bitter look on his face, "The Tiger Character Banner also has a troop of troops hidden in Lingqiu. The number of troops is only much larger than that of the troops on the grassland outside Xinping Fort. For a while, the official Without warning, we fell into the siege set by Liu Heng, and that's why we were defeated so quickly."
As he spoke, he looked at Governor Liu sitting in front of him.
Governor Liu grabbed the armrest of the seat with his palms and asked urgently: "Where are you going to the main barracks in Lingqiu with you? Recall them quickly, Datong City needs them to defend the city."
"Don't worry, sir. When the official came back, he had already instructed the deputy general Li Kaiyang to lead the main camp troops back to Datong Fucheng." Zhang Huai said.
Governor Liu breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That's good, that's good."
Du Wanyuan, who was standing next to him, said: "My lord, not only must we defend the city, but we must also immediately ask for help from the imperial court and ask the imperial court to send a large army to quell the rebellion."
"Yes, yes, yes, we need to ask the court for help." Zhang Huai said hurriedly, "The Tiger Flag carries a lot of cannons. Once they capture the surrounding counties, they will definitely come to Datong Fucheng. Given the situation in Datong Fucheng, they may not be able to Can withstand the bombardment of the Tiger Flag."
Governor Liu frowned and said, "Aren't there also cannons in the city?"
Hearing this, Zhang Huai had a bitter look on his face and said: "The cannons in the city have not been used for a long time. No one knows whether they can still be used. Moreover, as far as I know, the number of cannons in the Tiger Flag is less than fifty or sixty. There are so many The cannons in the city alone may not be enough."
"Since you know that the cannons in the city are in disrepair, why don't you go to the court and send new cannons." Governor Liu had a gloomy face.
Zhang Huai smiled bitterly.
He couldn't explain this, because even if he reported it to the court, it would be difficult for the cannon to be sent to Datong, and in the end he would only have a small amount of money.
Du Wanyuan knew about the intrigues of the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Industry, so he advised: "Sir, let's report it first and send the news about the bandits to the capital as soon as possible."
"Yes, sir, the reason why the official came here in a hurry is because he was worried that the Tiger Character Banner would attack Datong Fucheng before the imperial army arrived." Zhang Huai said.
Governor Liu also knew that now was not the time to blame Zhang Huai, so he said to his staff: "You write, and I will use my seal."
Du Wanyuan didn't waste time.
He walked to the desk nearby, flattened the paper, covered it with a paperweight, then picked up a brush and started writing the fold.
As a staff member of the governor's side, he had written a lot of Zhezi, so it was natural that he would not be troubled by Zhezi asking for help.
After writing, dry the ink stains on it and give it to Governor Liu for sealing.
After everything is done, it will be sent to the capital by a special person.
The day after Datong's request for help was sent away, Zhao Yutu led a group of cavalry to the grassland outside Xinping Fort.
On this grassland, the First Soldier Camp and the Fourth Soldier Camp of the Tiger-Character Flag are stationed.
Although Zhao Yutu was a high-ranking official of Tiger Character Banner and the director of the Logistics Bureau, he was still stopped outside the camp.
The camp has camp rules, and outsiders are not allowed to enter and exit at will. Zhao Yutu is an outsider to the camp here. He cannot enter the camp without the order of the general in the camp.
Everyone in the Tiger Flag has a bronze medal to prove his or her identity. Zhao Yutu handed his bronze medal to the soldiers guarding the camp gate.
After the soldier saw the bronze medal, he gave it to Zhao Yutu and said at the same time: "Mr. Zhao, please wait a moment, my subordinates will go in and report."
Zhao Yutu nodded and waited patiently outside the camp gate.
