Xuanzhen, northwest of Huailai, on the river valley east of Tietou Valley.
Zhang Cheng watched as more than ten riders were approaching gradually. Ten of them were his bodyguards at night. The leader was Niu Sheng. There were four others that he didn't recognize.
Liu Quan saw the person coming here and hurriedly rushed to greet him. The four riders on the other side ran in front of Liu Quan. They reined in their horses and stopped. They turned over and dismounted and fell to the ground. Niu Sheng and others rode their horses to guard the surroundings. Especially the big monkey, whose face was shaking uncontrollably.
A moment later, Liu Quan led a man to Zhang Cheng. When the man saw Zhang Cheng, he immediately knelt down and placed a cloth bag with his hands, which was still dripping with blood.
I only heard him say in a deep voice: "Zhao Liang from Xiaoxiao Valley pays homage to the general. Here is the head of Hu Sihai, the head of Beiliang, presented by Zhao Shihu at Muzhaojian. Please check it with the general."
Zhang Cheng looked coldly at Zhao Liang who was kneeling on the ground, waved his hand, and Sun Dashan stepped forward, took off the cloth bag and opened it, and suddenly a head appeared inside.
Although the head was stained with blood, it could still be seen that he was young, probably no more than thirty years old. There was a fresh cut on the right side of his face, which still couldn't hide the handsomeness on his face. .
Sun Dashan took a few glances at the head, then turned to Zhang Cheng and said, "General, it is indeed the old thief Hu Sihai from Beiliangtou."
"Zhao Shihu, where are you now?" Zhang Cheng asked in a deep voice.
Zhao Liang was still kneeling on the ground and replied: "Without the general's permission, Zhao Shihu is still waiting outside Tietou Valley."
…………
Outside the Xiyu Gate of Tietou Valley, there was a strong middle-aged man with a naked upper body with exposed veins and a few finger-thick iron bars on his back.
He was walking into the valley gate kneeling step by step. Behind him, there were thirty-seven men, all like him, naked and carrying iron bars, kneeling before moving forward. However, they all only had one iron bar on their bodies.
Although the spring breeze was not as cold as the winter wind, it was still extremely cold when it hit the naked bodies. Some of them were shivering, but they still insisted on kneeling and worshiping all the way.
After entering the Xiyu Gate, I knelt down and walked for more than 500 steps before arriving at the meeting hall of Tietouyu. Dozens of armored sergeants stood on both sides of the gate, looking majestic and solemn.
They exuded a strong murderous aura that could only be possessed by the elites of hundreds of battles, which made Zhao Shihu and more than 30 people feel a little scared.
I heard Zhao Shihu's rough voice shouting outside the hall door:
"Zhao Shihu, the fleeing army from Longmen, mistakenly believed that the evil bandit Hu Sihai was instigating him, and accidentally attacked General Zhang's sergeants. Now he regrets it, and specifically kills the evil bandit Hu Sihai, and stands on a tree to plead guilty.
I beg General Zhang to disregard his past grievances and allow Zhao Shihu to serve under his command. He will definitely retaliate with death. He will never regret it for the rest of his life. Heaven and earth serve as a warning. If he has second thoughts, he will be willing to be punished by thousands of arrows piercing his heart! "
Zhang Cheng sat steadily on the Taishi chair in the middle of the hall. He just felt that the chair was so damn comfortable. He was wondering if he could ask old man Shi Tiegen to add some simple springs and make cotton pads to transform it into a sofa. Wouldn’t it be more comfortable!
When Zhao Shihu outside the hall shouted for the third time, Zhang Cheng waved his hand, and Chen Zhong standing next to him shouted loudly: "Open the door!"
"Squeak..."
The door of the Tietouyu Assembly Hall was opened. Zhang Cheng sat majestically in the Grand Master's chair. In front of him was a large iron table. There are no sergeants on duty at night.
"General Zhang Cheng of the Xuanzhen guerrilla guard on the North Road sent word that Zhao Shihu of Muzhajian Village had arrived." Chen Zhong, still standing beside Zhang Cheng, shouted loudly.
Zhao Shihu was seen struggling to cross the slightly high threshold and entered the hall. He lay down at the door without saying a word, kowtowing.
Seeing that the time was ripe, Zhang Cheng had basically subdued Zhao Shihu, so he stood up from the Grand Master's chair. When everyone saw Zhang Cheng standing up, how could they dare to continue sitting there? They all stood up.
At the same time, all the armored sergeants standing in the hall turned around in unison, all their eyes focused on Zhao Shihu. A "clang, clang" sound of armor leaves shaking echoed throughout the hall.
After Zhang Cheng stood up, he slowly walked to Zhao Shihu and looked at him quietly. Zhao Shihu did not dare to raise his head, but lowered his head lower.
Upon seeing this, Zhang Cheng bent down, stretched out his hands to help Zhao Shihu up, and said, "Zhao Zhai Master, please get up quickly."
Zhao Shihu, who was kneeling on the ground, heard that Zhang Cheng still called him "Zhao Village Master", so he didn't dare to get up. However, Zhang Cheng stretched out his hand and lifted him up vigorously. He didn't dare to resist, so he had to follow him, with his face on his face. Full of fear.
He stood up with fear on his face. The bigger the smile on Zhang Cheng's face became, the more frightened he felt in his heart.
Zhang Cheng looked at Zhao Shihu and said to him in a deep voice: "Zhao Shihu, you wanted to intercept and kill my soldiers on the official road, but you were actually deceived by Hu Sihai's man. Now you have repented. I, general Why are you so stingy?"
Looking at the frightened Zhao Shihu, Zhang Cheng continued: "You will be exempted from the punishment. I have a mission for you. Do you dare to go?"
Here, Zhao Shihu had a confused look on his face. When Zhang Cheng helped him up, he felt that he had forgiven and accepted him, but the words "Master Zhao..." made him immediately feel confused.
But later when Zhang Cheng called his name again and said that he was not so stingy, he felt a little at ease, but he was always uneasy. He thought: Even if he had made up his mind to follow the general Zhang Cheng in front of him, what else could he do? Hesitantly.
With this in mind, he took a step back, with a "plop", and fell to the ground again, with his head bent, and said in a deep voice: "General, I, Zhao Shihu, am a rough man. Although I am usually a bit cunning, I do it to survive. Brothers can have enough to eat;
Since I have come to seek refuge with the general today, I will never have any second thoughts. I will kill and behead according to the general's will. If the general doesn't abandon me and takes us in, I will not retreat even if I am driven. ;
Zhao Shihu of Huanjian is willing to be by the general's side, always at his service, and willing to go through fire and water for the general without any hesitation! "
Zhang Cheng looked at him and said in a deep voice: "Although Hu Sihai from Beiliangtou has been conferred, there are still bandits gathering in his stronghold. If we don't take advantage of the situation and eliminate them, they will eventually endanger the place.
General, I am sending you to lead the army to flatten the head of Beiliang. Do you dare to go? "
Upon hearing this, Zhao Shihu knelt down on one knee, cupped his fists and saluted, "General, please sit down here and wait for the news. Shihu will definitely be back before dark."
"slow!"
Zhang Cheng stopped him, turned to Chen Zhong and said, "Chen Zhong, take Baiqi and go with Brother Zhao."
After Chen Zhong accepted the order, Zhang Cheng further ordered: "Sun Dashan, please arrange for some men and carts to accompany you. Chen Zhong, there is no need to keep the Beiliang head. The old bandits in the village can be dealt with on the spot, leaving no one behind.
Other bandits, military households and civilians who were captured nearby can be brought back, and all the materials such as money, grain and grain in the stronghold can be brought back to Xiaoxiaoyu. "
…………
Zhang Cheng looked at the retreating figures of Chen Zhong and Zhao Shihu and ordered Liu Quan: "Prepare food and drinks to celebrate Zhao Shihu's success tonight."
