"Hahaha, don't be nervous, I'm from the Central Plains too!"
The man holding the hatchet heard the lieutenant's words and immediately laughed loudly:
"I didn't expect that Qin really unified the six countries. I can be considered a Qin person, but my ancestors fled to Chu to avoid the war. Later, Chu also went to war, so I came to Xiouyue to live in seclusion;
After the death of our ancestors, we ran around here and there, and were eventually taken in by the Paiyi tribe. We married this Paiyi woman. After more than thirty years, we never imagined that the outside world had changed so much! "
After saying that, he raised his head and glanced at the team, and then said sincerely: "It's inevitable that I will be a little excited when I meet an old friend for the first time. I hope that for the sake of being from Qin, you will let my wife and children go!"
When he learned that the other party was from Qin, he gave up the idea of using force to rescue his wife and children. One was that these people were also not simple, and the other was that fighting with force would inevitably hurt his wife and children.
Therefore, the safest way is to show goodwill to the other party first and then adapt accordingly.
When the captain heard the heartfelt words of the man with a hatchet, he was slightly startled for a moment. Then he thought about it carefully and realized that the man with a hatchet did have the characteristics of a Central Plains man. He was taller and bolder than the Xiou people he met before.
"Xiao Yue, come here!"
The new member of the team, named Xiao Yue, was from Baiyue. Hearing the captain's words, he quickly put away his dagger and came to his side.
But I heard the captain lower his voice and said, "What do you think of this man?"
"He has no tattoos on his body, his hair is not cut, and his nails are slightly yellow. It should be caused by long-term martial arts training, and it doesn't look like he was soaked in poison."
"In other words, he is not from Xiouyue?"
"no!"
"Then can his words be trusted?"
"It's better to believe it than to disbelieve it."
"good!"
The captain nodded, and then waved his hand to signal everyone to put away the daggers and let go of the hatchets. The man was young.
"Hahaha, I didn't expect to meet an old friend here, what a blessing!"
The captain laughed and stepped forward to hold his hands.
When the hatchet man saw that his wife and children were out of danger, he responded with a smile: "You are all guests, and you are not being treated well. Please come to the house to talk!"
After that, he said to the middle-aged woman: "Ayi, go and bring our wine and meat to entertain these distant guests!"
"good."
The woman named A Yi smiled slightly, and then walked towards the kitchen with her daughter and son.
The captain rolled his eyes and immediately said to Xiao Yue, "Xiao Yue, why don't you go help my sister-in-law!"
"Oh, go now!"
Xiao Yue reacted for a moment and immediately chased after the woman.
The hatchet man smiled knowingly, pretending that he didn't know anything, and led the captain directly into his thatched cottage.
Soon, the woman brought some pickled game and fruit wine and enthusiastically placed them in front of the captain and others.
The captain raised his head and glanced at Xiao Yue, found that he nodded slightly, and immediately said with a smile: "Then I won't be polite!"
"please!"
The hatchet man raised his hand to signal, and everyone rushed in, sitting on both sides of the bamboo mat, eating meat and drinking wine.
Originally, they were not allowed to drink when they were on a mission, but after half a month of toiling in the jungle, they even forgot the taste of wine. Now that they received the captain's order, they were naturally filled with joy.
Seeing that they were enjoying their meal, the hatchet man said with a smile: "I'm in a hurry today. I didn't have time to get some fresh game for you to taste. It's really hard for you!"
"It doesn't matter. We've eaten a lot of game in the mountains these days, but we haven't drank any wine. We're starving to death!"
"That's right, what's so good about game is that it's better to drink wine!"
"Hahaha, good wine, good wine!"
Everyone laughed and drank the fruit wine in the bamboo tube, and praised the wine profusely.
The hatchet man also took a sip of the wine and said with a smile, "This wine is a fruit wine I personally brewed based on the Qin State's brewing method and the unique fruits in the mountains;
This wine is spicy and strong, not inferior to the local spirits of Qin, and is most suitable for us Qin people! "
As he spoke, he suddenly remembered something, slapped his forehead and said, "By the way, I almost forgot to introduce myself. My name is Li Xiong, from Hanzhong!"
"Zhang Rang is from Shangjun County!"
"Sunda, Julu man."
"Ning Ze."
As everyone introduced themselves, Li Xiong became familiar with everyone instantly.
After a while, he curiously asked everyone: "Why did you come to this barren mountain today? Didn't I hear that you are fighting with Xiou?"
When the captain named Zhang Rang heard this, he couldn't help but said a little discouraged: "Yes, we are fighting with Xiou, but unfortunately those Xiou people were like mice, and disappeared in a flash;
It’s not easy to find their base camp in this land of high mountains and dense forests, so I could only explore bit by bit, but I didn’t expect to find Xiongtai.”
"Let me tell you, how could the Qin army appear in this barren mountain? It turns out you are lost!"
Li Xiong smiled and sighed.
"get lost?"
Zhang Rang said in surprise: "You said we are lost?"
"Yes, if you don't get lost, it's impossible to find this place. Besides, I happen to know a little bit about the whereabouts of the Xiou people!"
"Is this true?!"
"We are all from Qin, am I still lying to you?"
Li Xiong frowned and asked.
Zhang Rang scratched his head in embarrassment and said with a smile: "There was a misunderstanding just now, please forgive me!"
As he spoke, he raised the wine bottle in front of him and said solemnly: "I can't speak, everything is in the wine."
"So do we!"
Seeing Zhang Rang drinking and apologizing, everyone also raised their wine bottles to apologize to Li Xiong.
When Li Xiong saw this, he immediately smiled, waved his hand and said, "You don't need to be like this, we are all our own people!"
"Brother Li, can you tell me where they are?"
"Don't worry, don't worry, they can't run away for a while, I will definitely help you, come on, drink first!"
Hearing this, Zhang Rang hurriedly raised his hand to stop Li Xiong from pouring the wine, and said with a serious face:
"Brother Li, wait a minute, you can drink wine at any time, but we must find these Xiou people as soon as possible, otherwise it will be difficult for us to do business when we get back."
"Yes, Brother Li, the military situation is as important as a mountain, and there is no time to delay!"
Xiao Yue on the side also echoed.
Li Xiong was happy and immediately said with a smile: "In that case, let me tell you about it. There is a family of hunters on the north side of my Sour Fruit Mountain. They usually go to the forest and see many strange places. I often chop wood on the mountain. Chai occasionally negotiated with them and heard many secrets in the mountains;
This morning I went to the mountains to cut firewood as usual, and met the hunter again. According to the hunter, his hound suddenly barked early this morning. He thought it was being touched by some prey, so he immediately went to hunt with his bow and arrow. The result was that When I walked to a cliff, I saw thousands of Xiou warriors near Feiying Stream. It was so strange! "
"What?! Thousands of Xiou soldiers?"
Zhang Rang was surprised when he heard this.
Everyone couldn't help but look at each other.
But Xiao Yue was the first to react and said, "Where is this Flying Eagle Stream? Why have I never heard of it?"
"Flying Eagle Stream is a secret passage in a ravine twenty miles away from here. In summer, it is filled with groundwater, like a small stream. In winter, the stream dries up, forming a secret passage. Except for the mountain people who have lived nearby for a long time, ordinary people know it. It’s hard to know, I just don’t know what these Xiou warriors are planning to do.”
"Impossible. There is a beacon tower less than five miles behind me. How could I not detect their presence? Why is there no movement at all despite such a large-scale troop movement?"
Zhang Rang said in disbelief.
Li Xiong glanced at him, shook his head and said: "Whether you believe it or not, this is the truth. I imagine that the hunter will not lie to me. We have been friends for many years. Starting from his father's generation, our father's generation are all friends. And, look at you They are so confident that the beacon tower must have been destroyed by them."
"You mean, we have a traitor here?"
"I don't know, but these Xiou people must have big plans!"
"this"
Zhang Rang paused for a moment, then calmed down in an instant, and continued to ask: "Brother Li, where does the secret passage of Feiying Stream lead to?"
"Let me think about it."
Li Xiong picked up the wine glass, took a sip, and fell into deep thought. After a long while, under the anxious eyes of everyone, he said thoughtfully: "When I was young, I was playful, and I explored the secret passage with my hunter friend, heading north. It seems to be Yangjiao Mountain, and going south, it seems to be the Xiang River. As for the other forks, I can't remember clearly."
"Yangjiao Mountain, Xiangshui River."
Zhang Rang thought about it for a while, but didn't think of the connection between the two places.
At this moment, Xiao Yue on the side slapped his thigh, jumped up in shock, and shouted, "No! Our army's food and grass area is at the foot of Yangjiao Mountain. They are going to sneak attack on our army's food and grass!"
"What!?"
Everyone was shocked and their scalps were numb.
These Xiou warriors actually slipped away under his nose. If they succeeded, Chen Ping might have their skin ripped apart by cramps.
"team leader!"
Everyone looked at Zhang Rang.
Zhang Rang's expression changed, and he raised his hand and said, "There's no need to say anything. We have to go back quickly. If we wait any longer, we may be too late!"
"good!"
Everyone nodded and immediately stood up from their seats.
Li Xiong was startled by everyone and said quickly: "Don't worry, don't worry, the secret passage of Feiying Stream is not easy to walk. Although it is only a few dozen miles away, it will definitely not be reached until nightfall. You still have time." Rush back, maybe it’s still too late!”
"Thank you, Brother Li. I will repay you tomorrow!"
Zhang Rang did not dare to delay and immediately surrendered to Li Xiong.
Li Xiong couldn't force them to stay, so he spoke again: "Let's not talk about anything else. I know a shortcut that can get you out of here quickly. Although I can't help you with anything specifically, it can save some time!"
"Okay, thank you!"
Without saying a word, Zhang Rang immediately led everyone out of the thatched house with Li Xiong.
"Throw all your luggage here, leave only your weapons, and let's go!"
As soon as he left the room, Zhang Rang shouted loudly.
Everyone immediately agreed to throw all the things they carried with them here, one to lighten the burden, and the other to repay Li Xiong's kindness.
Although these things are insignificant to them, no one except people from the Security Bureau can own these things, and they can be robbed outside, which shows how extraordinary they are.
Li Xiong is a person who knows things well, so he naturally saw that these things were unusual, and immediately solemnly handed them over and called Zhang Rang and others to follow him.
After about half a stick of incense, everyone came to a familiar beacon tower. They grabbed more than ten war horses from the Qin army at the beacon tower and rushed towards the temporary camp of the Security Bureau like flying.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Chen Ping was discussing military affairs with Han Xin in the tent.
I saw Han Xin pointing to the map on the wooden stand and saying with great satisfaction: "This time I go south, I will make my name great for you!"
"Stop bragging. Young Master asked us to come here to solve problems, not to fight!"
Chen Ping, who was sitting in his seat reading the newspaper, couldn't help but cast a sidelong glance at Han Xin when he heard what he said.
However, Han Xin was not angry at all. He turned around with a smile and said, "Chen Ping, what problem do you think the young master wants us to solve?"
"Of course it's the chaos in the South China Sea!"
"Where is the chaos in the South China Sea?"
"Does this need to be said?"
Chen Ping raised his eyebrows and curled his lips disdainfully: "Don't think you are the only smart one. Who doesn't know that Zhao Tuo and Ren Xiao are involved?"
"No, no, no, you only know one, but not the other!"
Han Xin shook his finger.
"What's the meaning?"
"Young master knows that Zhao Tuo and Ren Xiao are up to something, yet you still allow them to continue with their plans. Why?"
"What exactly do you want to say?" Chen Ping frowned.
Han Xin smiled hoarsely: "Of course I want to borrow their heads to scare the generals in the South China Sea!"
"Don't you think about it, what kind of punishment will they get if the young master directly demolishes them? I imagine that for the sake of stability in the South China Sea, Your Majesty will spare their lives and let them serve their crimes!"
"so what?"
"So, I guess the young master will be destroyed together with Xiou and them!"
"this"
Chen Ping was stunned: "So, Young Master will start a big war next?"
"Otherwise, why do you think the young master asked me to come to the South China Sea? Isn't it just to succeed Ren Xiao and Zhao Tuo and conquer South Vietnam?"
Han Xin asked with a smile, then raised his hand to pour a cup of hot tea and handed it to Chen Ping: "I will have to rely on Director Chen for more help in the future!"
"Ah!"
Chen Ping snorted, put down the newspaper in his hand, took the teacup in Han Xin's hand, blew on it, and said, "Is it really okay for you to ask Ke Bei to rescue the old general? Don't let the young master carry the old general's burden when the time comes. Damn the infamy!”
"Don't worry about this, Ke Bei has trained with me for so long, he still knows how to execute orders!"
Han Xin said confidently, then suddenly thought of something and asked doubtfully: "Why are there no news at all about the teams you sent out? I'm still waiting to show off my skills!"
"You only have two thousand soldiers, how can you show off your skills?"
Chen Ping said a little funny.
Han Xin said with disdain on his face: "It's just a barbarian from Xiou, two thousand is enough!"
"Okay, don't brag too much and make it difficult for the young master to get off the stage."
Chen Ping shrugged helplessly and was about to get up to check the map on the wooden stand.
The team Han Xin mentioned just now is also what he is worried about.
However, the next moment he stood up, a report suddenly came from outside the door: "Director, urgent military situation!"
"Um?"
Chen Ping and Han Xin were startled at the same time and couldn't help but look at each other.
Immediately afterwards, the latter took a step forward and asked in a deep voice: "What happened? Tell me quickly!"
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(End of chapter)
