Zuo Mengeng and others retreated all the way to the Mystic Mountain in the south of the city before finally coming to a halt.
The accident occurred suddenly, no one expected that many people were injured in a hurry. Including the five people who died at the hands of the Tatars, half of the troops were damaged during this trip to Dengzhou.
Everyone was exhausted from running, and after stopping, they only had the strength to breathe.
But after a while, there was another slight sob.
Zuo Mengeng was standing on the edge of the hillside, watching the Dongjiang soldiers wreaking havoc on Dengzhou with blazing eyes. When he heard the cry, he immediately became furious.
"Why are you crying?"
Everyone was frightened and did not dare to look at him.
Zuo Mengeng was like a tiger, with an extremely stern tone.
"Since you come to be a soldier, you will go to the battlefield. When you go to the battlefield, there will be casualties. Either they die or you die. What is there to cry about?"
When the crying disappeared, Zuo Mengeng's voice became more and more deafening.
"They died in the battle with the Tatars. Such sacrifices were well deserved. Think about the people who were massacred by the Tatars. If they have the opportunity to avenge them, even if they die, they can hold their heads high and be respected by the world. What kind of person is this? They are indomitable heroes. We should admire and be happy for their achievements and contributions, but the last thing we need is sadness, let alone fear."
Everyone listened silently, and every word entered their hearts.
Apart from being recruits, these people are no different from the simple civilians of this era.
Even though ideological education has been carried out in the back camp, human growth requires a process.
To be blunt, they are still a long way from becoming real warriors.
Today's encounter with the Tatars was also the first time they faced the most powerful warrior in the world.
The sacrifice of all five against two was tragic, but what made Zuo Menggeng most gratified was that none of the five soldiers flinched or ran away.
Maybe they didn't have time to feel scared during the fight, but they certainly deserved any praise for fighting to the death.
"Qianzao, are all Tatars so powerful?"
A soldier had the courage to ask, but then quickly shrank his head, for fear of being lectured by Zuo Mengeng.
This soldier is called Li Erzhu, a soldier who trains very hard.
"Although these two Tatars are very powerful, they are definitely not the most powerful. When you go to the battlefield in the future, you will definitely see more powerful and cruel enemies."
Zuo Menggeng's matter-of-fact words made the soldiers involuntarily show frightened expressions.
This reaction made Zuo Mengeng very dissatisfied.
"What? Are you afraid? When a strong warrior hears that the enemy is very powerful, he should not have any fear. Because only by defeating the most powerful enemy can we prove that we are stronger."
Another soldier murmured: "It is said that if there are not even ten thousand Jurchens, they will be invincible..."
Zuo Mengeng asked back: "Didn't Yue Wumu fight the Jurchens at the beginning? Why did he win? Yue Wumu didn't have as good a weapon as us."
Real examples are the most convincing.
As soon as these words came out, everyone who was originally in low morale immediately became different.
Zuo Mengeng's words also reached everyone's ears at this time.
"This time we haven't beaten five against two. It's not because the opponent is strong, but because we are not strong enough. What do we have to do? Sweat more in peacetime, and bleed less in war. As long as we pay ten times or a hundred times If you train hard, there is no enemy you can’t defeat.”
The general is the soul of the army!
Zuo Menggeng's confident words and his bravery in killing two Tatars just now completely changed the soldiers' concepts.
For many armies, fear is the biggest cause of failure.
When an army is fearless, many incredible victories will become a matter of course.
While we were doing ideological education here, the situation under Dengzhou City had undergone new changes.
The garrison in the city finally reacted. Soldiers went up to the wall, the city gates were closed, and they were heavily guarded.
At the same time, boats from Shuicheng were dispatched to force the fleet from Dongjiang Town away. After the confrontation between the two sides, the situation finally stabilized.
Not long after, a group of people came out of the city and hurried into the military camp in Dongjiang Town.
"What should we do?"
Mao Wenlong plundered Denglai and completely broke the established plan here.
Now that Dengzhou City cannot be entered, it is certainly impossible to continue to pursue news about Xu Yaqing. Moreover, two Tatars were killed. I believe that Xu Yaqing will definitely learn about this matter soon.
Xu Yaqing could not have been unprepared when she was alerted.
But Zuo Mengeng felt that this might not be an opportunity.
"People like Xu Yaqing are threatening only when they are always hiding in the dark. Once exposed to the sun, they will be meat on the chopping board. If she learns that two Tatars were killed, she will definitely not be able to sit still. According to my guess, She is most likely to escape."
This analysis has been recognized by everyone.
Even though Xu Yaqing is now under the protection of Denglai Governor Wang Tingshi, once the news spreads that she is the leader of the Wenxiang Cult, even Wang Tingshi will not be able to escape death, let alone her.
Therefore, after Xu Yaqing realized that she might be exposed, the most important thing to do was to run away.
"Then after Dongjiang Town retreats, we will guard the four gates of Dengzhou and wait for her to come out."
After the discussion, everyone was no longer in a hurry and found a place to rest and wait for Dongjiang Town to retreat.
Liu Yiyuan could not calm down, so he walked to Zuo Mengeng and asked a worried question.
"Tell me, where did those two Tatars come from? Why did they leave by boat?"
Zuo Mengeng knew what he was worried about.
"Do you think these two Tatars came from Dongjiang Town?"
The Tatars are far away in Liaodong. If they want to reach Denglai, besides traveling by land through western Liaoning, Shanhaiguan, Jifu, and Shandong, it is faster to take the sea route.
But Houjin didn't have any advantage at sea, and Liaoxi and Dongjiang Town wouldn't let them go, so they would definitely not be able to get through.
This time when the two Tatars were about to leave, Dongjiang Town came to plunder again. It was hard to believe that it was a coincidence.
Zuo Mengeng knew some historical information, so he understood what was going on.
"Mao Wenlong has never stopped communicating with Donglu. It is normal for Donglu to have people coming from his defense area."
Liu Yiyuan was shocked.
"Are you saying that Mao Wenlong collaborates with the enemy?"
Zuo Mengeng explained: "It's not collaborating with the enemy, but negotiating peace with the Donglu."
Liu Yiyuan did not calm down, but became even more difficult to understand.
"He's crazy, isn't he afraid of being reviled by everyone in the world?"
Zuo Mengeng said some secrets.
"Not only him, Governor Yuan is also negotiating peace with Donglu."
Afraid that he would continue to ask questions, Zuo Mengeng added.
"The court knows."
Liu Yiyuan almost doubted the world.
"When the Governor Yuan was summoned, he boasted that the Liao Dynasty would be peaceful in five years, but he dared to negotiate for peace. This...isn't this a breach of trust in the world and a loss of the country's prestige outside the territory? This is a way to die!"
Zuo Mengeng was calm and asked: "So what if we can't defeat the Donglu? Also, who told you that the peace of Liaodong in five years is the peace of Liaodong? If Liaodong is calm, isn't it peace?"
Liu Yiyuan was stunned.
"Can I still make this annotation?"
Mao Wenlong withdrew his troops that day and returned to Dongjiang overnight.
But the impact of this incident was very large.
There was a lot of controversy in later generations as to whether Mao Wenlong had ever plundered Denglai.
Not to mention that Zuo Mengeng has now personally experienced it, so he naturally knows it is true. One thing that happened immediately was enough to confirm this.
Chongzhen angrily issued an order to dismiss Wang Tingxian, the governor of Denglai, from office and remove him from office for the people.
If Mao Wenlong had not looted Denglai, why did Chongzhen dismiss Wang Tingxiao from office and serve the people?
And in the end of the Chongzhen dynasty, there was no further imperial examination.
In the Chongzhen Dynasty, except for those officials who were convicted and executed, many other people basically experienced ups and downs countless times.
Wang Tingshi was dismissed from office at this time and was never reinstated, which is enough to prove that Mao Wenlong's robbery of Denglai was true.
From the time Mao Wenlong plundered Denglai to Wang Tingshi was dismissed, more than ten days passed.
Zuo Mengeng has been lurking outside Dengzhou City, waiting for Xu Yaqing to escape.
In the end, what awaited was the team where Wang Tingzhan sadly resigned.
On the hillside outside the west gate of Dengzhou, Liu Yiyuan felt numb as he watched the motorcade meandering out of the city.
"What should I do? Do you want to take action?"
Hou Qingchun grinned.
"Why do we do this?"
Even though Wang Tingshi was dismissed from office, he was still a high official in the imperial court.
If something unexpected happened just after leaving the job and leaving the city, the court would definitely investigate.
Zuo Mengeng didn't have a good idea, so he had to say: "Follow me for the time being and use the camera."
So, everyone followed the convoy quietly for many days.
Zuo Mengeng didn't know that Xu Yaqing had discovered his traces.
Xu Yaqing learned about the killing of the two Tatars on the third day after Mao Wenlong plundered Denglai.
After all, the Jurchens had a peculiar appearance and were very easy to recognize. This matter was widely spread in the city.
Although Xu Yaqing didn't know who did it, she also understood that she had been exposed.
Originally, as Zuo Mengeng thought, she was prepared to escape quickly.
She never thought that she was not ready yet. The imperial decree came and Wang Tingshi lost his official position for the people and lost all his power.
There was a lot of commotion in the house for a while, and Xu Yaqing couldn't find a chance to leave. I had to get into Wang Tingzhan's car and follow him out of the city.
Xu Yaqing was not an ordinary person after all. Although she didn't know who was targeting her, she quickly made arrangements.
The convoy traveled westward for three days and arrived near Jiaohe River in Laizhou. While resting in Haicang County, the maid finally took a chance on Wang Tingzhen's absence and got closer to Xu Yaqing.
"There are more than ten riders following us all the time. They should be the ones targeting us."
Xu Yaqing squinted her eyes, revealing her murderous intent.
"Let Xue Ji take action. Even if he cannot kill this group of people, he must still hold them back."
The maid was more concerned about Xu Yaqing's situation.
"How do you get away?"
Xu Yaqing's expression became even colder.
"What's the difficulty? Wang Tingzhen has lost his official position, and a phoenix with no feathers is worse than a chicken. Do I still have to accompany him back to his hometown?"
The maid was a little worried.
"Will it cause trouble?"
Xu Yaqing laughed when she heard this.
"We've already done such a big trouble as the rebellion, so what else do we have to be afraid of?"
