When he heard the military report coming from the scouts, Hou Tai hurriedly came from his residence.
"General Lu, what's going on? I heard there's something new?" Hou Tai asked.
Lu Biao glanced at Hou Tai who entered the door and said: "The scouts came to report that they found the movement of one hundred thousand cavalry of the Jie tribe on the edge of the grassland. They are now heading towards Xiguan and can be reached in three days."
"Then should we send a letter to the court for help?" Hou Tai asked hurriedly.
"Military reports still have to be sent out, but the imperial army has just withdrawn. Even if it asks for help from the imperial court at this time, the imperial court may not easily send troops for reinforcements. It requires a lot of labor and troops, and military supplies and food are very expensive. However, if a hundred thousand troops want to break through Xiguan, they will never be able to do so. It’s not an easy task, but there’s no need to worry too much,” Lu Biao thought for a while and said.
Hou Tai felt a little relieved when he saw that Lu Biao didn't seem to care about the 100,000 troops. However, something suddenly occurred to him, so he hesitated and asked: "Where is King Yan?"
"Don't worry, General Hou. I will send someone to notify King Yan. In addition, the enemy troops will arrive soon. Just in case, we need to send sergeants to prepare more rolling wood thunder stones and lime powder." Lu Biao didn't know about this hundred thousand troops. Whether there are follow-up troops behind you, so the more defensive equipment you have prepared, the better.
"General, I will send someone to prepare now." Hou Tai said and walked out.
"General Hou, wait a minute?" Lu Biao hurriedly stopped him.
"What else can you do, General?"
"There is no need for General Hou to do such small things personally. In addition, the mouth of the Juyang River is the only way to our Xiguan. After passing the mouth of the Juyang River, there is a long and narrow valley going south, leading directly to Daijun.
From Daijun, you can go directly to Zijingguan Pass in the south. Zijingguan Pass is the gateway to the south of Yancheng and cannot be missed.
I was worried that the enemy would take a detour south and go straight to Zijingguan. The garrison at Zijingguan was less than 10,000 people and had to be defended. I had taken people to check the terrain there before, and it was very easy for an ambush to happen on the side of the valley.
The general can lead his 10,000 troops to garrison and set up camp in the inner valley. He only needs to garrison without having to face the enemy. If the enemy enters the valley, he can order the ambushes on both sides to kill them with rolling logs, thunder stones, bows and arrows. "Lu Biao explained.
Hou Tai recalled carefully. He knew that there was a path going south here, but neither he nor Zhang Da had ever investigated the terrain on the spot before. He replied with some embarrassment: "The general has thought carefully, so he will lead people there immediately."
Hou Tai did not dare to delay and set off immediately with an army of 10,000. After Hou Tai left, Lu Biao immediately handed a letter to the messenger, ordering him to send it to Prince Yan's Mansion immediately.
In the letter, Lu Biao unceremoniously pointed out that the 100,000 Jie army was coming, and asked King Yan to mobilize all three crossbows and Zhuge Liannu in Yancheng.
In Prince Yan's palace, Wang Dayong heard Lu Biao's letter and couldn't help but cursed: "Hey, Lu Biao is so brave now that he asked the prince to give him all three crossbows. This is outrageous."
Zhao Bin looked at Dayong's appearance and smiled and said: "What if I don't give it to him? That is an army of 100,000 Jie tribe. If Xiguan is breached again, we, Yancheng, will not be the unlucky ones in the end."
"Ah? Really, Your Majesty?" Wang Dayong said with some reluctance.
"Oh, aren't they just some crossbow arrows? Once our invincible and heartless cannon reaches scale, these three crossbows won't be of much use. Hurry up and get ready. Besides, there isn't much gunpowder on hand. It's just a little bit. You Take it with you too, and use it for emergencies when necessary."
"Okay, let's get ready now." After talking and scolding, Dayong still knew that Lu Biao was his brother, so he didn't dare to delay. He loaded all the crossbows and crossbow arrows on the carriage and drove overnight Rush to Xiguan with supplies.
A group of more than two hundred people took advantage of the darkness and headed towards Xiguan. Wang Dayong sat down on the carriage transporting gunpowder, keeping all the torches away from the carriage for fear of a spark falling on the carriage.
"Team Wang, these three crossbows have brought down Xiguan, so what do we use in Yancheng?" A soldier sitting next to Dayong asked.
"You know nothing. If Xiguan is gone, do you think Yancheng can still be defended?" Dayong said disdainfully.
"Last time Xiguan was lost, didn't we just hold Yancheng?"
"Last time, the big leader of the Sand Wolf Tribe was too stupid. He thought that Yancheng would be able to fight whenever he wanted as before. But this time it's different. This time the enemy has an army of one hundred thousand. Do you know what the concept of one hundred thousand is? "
"With so many people, these dozens of three-bed crossbows may not be enough, right?" the soldier asked doubtfully.
"Oh, why are you so stupid? Do you think these three crossbows are used to kill those small fish and shrimps? The prince said that this special girl is used to snipe the main generals. Just watch, as long as that is bullshit If the Khan of the Jie tribe dares to show his face, I will send him to see the Lord of Hell with a crossbow."
"The King's team is still great."
"Hahaha, that's right, look at that old boy Sharjun, if the prince hadn't stopped him, I would have shot him to death with a crossbow. Unfortunately, the body of that bastard was not found in the end. He probably took the mountain road and ran back to the grassland. ”
Because the journey at night was relatively slow, it was not until dawn that Wang Dayong and others arrived at Xiguan.
Lu Biao was surprised to see Dayong's arrival: "Hahaha, Dayong, I didn't expect you to escort the three-bed crossbow!"
"You kid, except the prince and me, who cares about your life and death?" Wang Dayong said angrily.
"Okay, okay, I know Brother Yong is the best to brothers. Let's go inside and talk." Lu Biao said and was about to pull Dayong to the meeting hall.
But Dayong did not move. Instead, he looked around at the buildings in the pass. When he saw a room in a corner, Dayong stopped and turned to Lu Biao and said, "What is that room for?"
Lu Biao looked curiously at the room pointed by Dayong and asked in confusion: "Why do you ask this? Do you want to sleep?"
"Why are you sleeping? Ask someone to vacate that room for me. I want to put things there."
"Put something? What thing?"
"Don't worry about this, just ask someone to clean it up."
"Mysterious, what are you doing?" Lu Biao asked again.
"Why do you talk so much nonsense? Just clean it up if you are told."
Seeing that Dayong really didn't want to talk, Lu Biao stopped asking and ordered people to clean up all the debris in the house.
Dayong ordered people to gently move three large wooden boxes into the house, and asked the soldiers to guard them every step of the way. Then he followed Lu Biao to the meeting hall.
In the meeting hall, after several captains and generals surrendered, Lu Biao spoke.
"I said, Lu Biao, you're good. Now you have become a general guarding one side, with 50,000 troops. That's okay! It seems that I will have to call you General Lu in the future, Dayong." Dayong teased with some jealousy.
Lu Biao looked outside the room, and then whispered back: "Okay, stop making fun of me, it's not like you don't know, this is all the prince's arrangement.
The prince is in a very bad situation right now and has offended too many people, especially the Xue family and the Zhang family. Ever since the prince developed a method of salt training and violated their interests, they have always regarded the prince as a thorn in their side. Zhang Da let the Jie people into the customs. , it is clear that it was the Zhang family. "
In fact, anyone with a discerning eye can see that this matter is related to the prince and the Zhang family, but Zhang Da is already dead, and there is no direct evidence to prove that it was the Zhang family. In order to protect Hou Tai, Zhao Bin asked him to keep silent about the matter. When asked, he said he didn't know and blamed Zhang Da alone.
Whether it is Zhao Bin or Emperor Zhao Wuji, they all know that the final result of this matter is that there will be no result. If the Zhang family and the prince are really proven guilty, it will be counterproductive and may catalyze the Conflict, the Zhang family is likely to rebel in order to protect themselves.
"Now that we control these 50,000 troops, Yancheng and the prince have the most basic guarantee. Even if the prince really ascends the throne one day, if he wants to attack the prince, he must think twice." Lu Biao continued.
While the two were talking, the word "report" came from outside the hall.
"Come in!"
"Report to the general, the scouts have sent the latest news. The Jie tribe's army has entered the Shanggu Plain and will arrive at the mouth of the Juyang River tonight."
"I know, keep asking."
"Yes" the soldier responded and exited the meeting hall.
Wang Dayong looked at the leaving soldiers and said calmly: "Where is the mouth of the Juyang River?"
"To reach Xiguan from the grassland, you need to pass through the Shanggu Plain, which is a canyon plain between the Yanshan Mountains and the Taihang Mountains. In the valley, the Yang River flows from west to east, so that the water and grass are luxuriant, and after the Yang River flows through Juyang, it It merges with the Sanggan River coming from Daijun in the south, forming a large lake here. This place is only seventy or eighty miles away from Xiguan, and the cavalry can reach Xiguan in half a day."
In order to let Dayong clearly understand the location of Juyang, Lu Biao also told the geographical location of Shanggu.
"Then what is General Lu's countermeasure?"
"Hahaha, there are cliffs on both sides of Xiguan, and the valley in the middle is long and narrow. A hundred thousand troops can only attack in steps, which is extremely beneficial to our defense. Not to mention that the Jie tribe's Khan only has an army of one hundred thousand, or two hundred thousand, and this general can't We won't let them take Xiguan." Lu Biao said proudly.
"Okay, it's hard for you to travel all night. It's better to take a rest first. There might be a big battle tomorrow." Lu Biao stood up and said.
"Okay. Then get some sleep first so that you can have enough energy to kill those Jie clan barbarians tomorrow."
