Liangzhou City, the weather is about to enter winter. The cold wind picked up, blowing up waves of wind and sand, constantly splashing on the ancient city wall.
"The military advisor's plan has been completed!" Dong Wen, wearing a thick robe, walked into the palace in surprise.
"Report from the front line, Chao Yi has fled and left the city!"
On the contrary, after Dong Wen finished speaking, Sima Xiu remained silent.
"Military advisor, what's wrong?"
"The plan is so smooth, but something doesn't feel right...or maybe I'm overthinking it."
"The military adviser also said that this time, it was mainly to cover the internal forces in Shuzhou. Not only that, but also forcefully forced away a Shuzhou general."
"My lord, where did Chao Yi go after he left Shu?"
"The spy reported that he went to Lingzhou. Damn it, if he comes to seek refuge, I, Dong Yi, Xiaoyi and Bo Yuntian, won't care at all."
Sima Xiu sighed, "That Chao Yi is indeed a general. It's a pity that my lord killed Ding Shu, the king of Bingzhou, so he will not join me in Liangzhou."
After just saying that, Sima Xiu suddenly thought of something else and was about to speak——
"Lord, military advisor, some people in Liangzhou say that Shuzhou is about to attack Liang. They have entangled the Fuxun tribe outside Yuguan and are working together to attack Liangzhou in one fell swoop." A general came in hurriedly and interrupted Sima Xiu. meditation.
"This is impossible." Dong Wen sneered, "It's just a divorce plan for the children of Shuzhou. Fuxun tribe? Those are people from Liangzhou. Military advisor, this method is a bit clumsy."
Sima Xiu nodded, thought about it, and didn't take it to heart.
Unfortunately, not long after, another general entered the palace with an anxious look on his face.
"My lord, military advisor, something bad is going on. People from the Fuxun tribe are plundering the town's granary."
Due to the relationship with the Fuxun tribe, the Liangzhou border area is not tense, so there are not too many troops fortification. The assembled armies were all placed on the line with Shuzhou.
Both Sima Xiu and Dong Wen frowned when they heard the news. Naturally, the big cities cannot be captured, but the granaries in these small towns will be used as military supplies when the time comes.
"Military advisor, something is wrong with this."
Sima Xiu thought for a long time, "No matter what, my lord will send people to help the tribe first and confirm clearly. Of course, the Qiang people who are robbing the grain must be surrounded and suppressed immediately."
"Military advisor, there were rumors coming from the border... that the Fu Xun tribe has formed an alliance with Shuzhou."
"Rumors stop with the wise. The real intelligence should come from within the enemy's army." Sima Xiu turned his head and looked in the direction of Shuzhou for a moment.
…
About two days later, the people who went to search for the tribe had not brought back any news. Instead, Shuzhou finally sent back a piece of information.
After taking the mailbox, Sima Xiu did not open it immediately. Instead, he picked up the letter box and heated it a few times on the candlelight. After confirming the color change of the bamboo tube, he took out the letter roll with confidence and slowly opened it.
Dong Wen next to him looked very expectant. The internal agent in Shuzhou is the only disciple of his own military advisor. Needless to say, he is very capable. I am afraid that the intelligence collected will be more detailed.
After reading it, Sima Mao turned his hand and handed it to Dong Wen. For a moment, there was a long hesitation on his face, and finally he fell silent and closed his eyes.
"The civilian thief used thunderous means to kill more than fifty members of the wolf tribe at night as a warning to others... Military advisor, Chao Yi's reputation as a traitor has been confirmed."
"The following line... Yingye Pearl?"
"The Yingye Pearl was obtained by King Fu Xun from a small country in the Western Region. It has become the treasure of the clan. The Yingye Pearl, the treasure of the clan... appeared in the palace of Shuzhou some time ago."
"Military advisor, could your disciple have seen it wrong?"
Sima Xiu shook his head silently, "I hope so too. But the luster of the Yingye Pearl is natural, and there may not be a second one."
"That is to say, the Fuxun tribe gave the Yingye Pearl to the civilian thief. It is very likely that they have secretly formed an alliance with Shuzhou?"
Sima Xiu didn't answer, "Master, I always feel something is wrong——"
"Commander, we don't have time." Dong Wen's face became extremely cold, "Commander, please don't forget that there are almost no heavy troops on the border of Liangzhou. If the Fuxun tribe comes to attack, we, Liangzhou, will be in disaster!"
…
Liangzhou border.
A long team of three thousand people, after plundering, immediately rushed to a remote place.
"Are there any detectives behind?"
"General Chao, we have sent people to ambush. If any Liangzhou scouts follow, they will definitely be killed."
Chao Yi nodded and glanced at the recaptured carriage. On top of the carriage, in addition to a small amount of food and grass, there were nearly a thousand pairs of Liangzhou robes and armor, many of which were stained with blood.
"Chao Song, you take two thousand people and transport the grain and grass back to the camp. The rest of the people will follow me and put on the robes and armor of the Liangzhou County soldiers and go to meet King Yudang."
This time, the military advisor's counter-intentional plan turned out to be a secret. There are many things to do at first glance, but in fact, there is only one thing, and that is to provoke a war between Liangzhou and Fuxun tribes.
However, after just finishing this matter, he would leave immediately and hide in another place as a Qi army cooperating with Chai Zong.
In fact, earlier, news came out of Shuzhou. Many of his clansmen were beheaded and their homes ransacked, and they were assigned to Nanlin County to work as coolies to open up wasteland. It is said that the young master of Bingzhou was also sent out of Chengdu and given to a poor family to raise.
Chao Yi didn't believe it, and he didn't send someone to find out the news immediately, so he went to question his lord.
The secret letter he received that day contained only two paragraphs.
The previous paragraph is about the arrangements after leaving the walled city. In the latter part, his lord only added one sentence.
Chao Yi, I swear by the sun and the moon that I will live up to you.
…
A few days later, when the general assigned by Dong Wen was about to take his people to the Fuxun tribe, unexpectedly, as soon as they entered the border, they were ambushed and killed by the roaring Fuxun tribe. Most of them were killed. This shocked the Liangzhou people. The general hurriedly took half of the remaining troops of the battalion and fled towards Liangzhou.
"Military advisor, let's not talk about Ying Yezhu for now. The people sent to Fu Xun tribe were ambushed and killed as soon as they got close! The damn Fu Xun tribe has already surrendered to Shuzhou!"
Sima Mao closed his eyes bitterly. He was determined to leave Liangzhou and investigate for himself. But how could he leave under such circumstances.
He just felt that there would always be omissions in the news brought back by the scouts.
"Military advisor, please don't say anything. Shuzhou's attack on Liangzhou is about to begin. We should make preparations early. Someone, please inform Dong Xiu of Anzhou to immediately mobilize 20,000 troops to guard the Liangzhou border!"
Dong Wen gritted his teeth, feeling extremely angry.
"My lord, please don't be anxious. I'll ask the internal agents from Shuzhou to conduct a detailed investigation to confirm the matter of helping the tribe. Don't forget that this is probably a trick of the Shu people."
"Military advisor, we have no time to wait! Didn't the previous intelligence say that the civilian thieves want to gather generals and prepare to attack the cold? The common thieves really dare to attack in winter. Don't forget about the tiger barbarians in Shuzhou!"
Sima Xiu was silent for a long time and sighed, knowing that in this situation, he could no longer dissuade the lord in front of him. One clue after another points to the betrayal of the Fuxun tribe.
…
