The next day, the army marched again.
Under the insistence of the commander-in-chief, deputy commander-in-chief, and supervisor, the generals had to carry out the plan even though they were unwilling to do so.
Lan Yu dispatched Qingqi, who had previously inquired about the news, to set off one step ahead to clean the tents lost by the Yuan army and remove any traces.
Anyway, the soldiers did not know the specific location of the main force of the Yuan army. Only senior generals had seen the map. The only thing the soldiers could do was obey the orders.
Five days later, the army arrived at the previous camp of the Yuan people. After resting for most of a day, they continued to advance.
A few days later, the army arrived in the desert area.
Lan Yu ordered the well drilling team to drill for water, and then summoned the generals to cheer for everyone.
"The main force of the Yuan army is in the desert ahead. As long as we move forward, we will definitely find them!"
Lan Yu's tone was extremely firm. At this time, he had to be confident and calm enough to stabilize the hearts of the generals. "Everyone, the battle success lies ahead. The glory, wealth and glory are within your reach as long as you persist... "
Barabara...
After a big meal, the generals gradually regained their confidence. After all, everyone wants to win the battle and achieve great success.
The army rested for seven consecutive days, and after bringing as much water as they could bring, they advanced again.
Along the way, Lan Yu seemed to be a different person. She was polite to Li Qing and Li Jinglong, even with a hint of flattery. She was inseparable from the two of them, and even invited them to drink from time to time.
Li Qing understood that the reason why Lan Yu was so attentive was mainly because he was afraid of betraying him. Although it was funny, he also felt a little admiration in his heart.
In order to win, in order to win the battle, Lan Yu is really capable of bending and stretching.
However, he is a principled person and will not follow Lan Yu's path into darkness because of this. He cannot ignore the life and death of the 150,000 troops. As a supervisor, he has this obligation and responsibility.
In the evening, Li Qing deliberately found Lan Yu and said solemnly: "When even the sparse weeds are completely gone, you must return to a place with lush grasslands and sufficient water sources, and then report to the emperor for his decision."
"Don't worry, Li Jianjun, I won't act recklessly." Lan Yu agreed and said with a smile: "Two whole cups?"
"No." Li Qing was not in the mood and turned around and returned to his tent.
…
Ten days later, we completely entered the desert, with nothing but yellow sand as far as the eye could see.
There is no road, not even a point of reference. If we go deeper, the risk of getting lost is too great.
"Commander, we can't march any further."
"Three days, three more days," Lan Yu said, "If the main force of the Yuan army is not found after three days, the army will retreat."
Li Qing frowned. He was not optimistic about Lan Yu's persistence.
How far can an army with a large amount of equipment travel in three days?
The desert is endless, and it is simply wishful thinking to find the main force of the Yuan army within three days.
"Commander, I can understand your mood, but it is really not necessary." Li Qing shook his head, "You know very well that it is impossible to find the main force of the Yuan army in three days."
"What if?" Lan Yu held his shoulders and shook him, almost bewildered and said, "Just three days, this is my last insistence. I promise that if the Yuan army is still not found, I will retreat immediately without hesitation. !”
After a pause, he turned to Li Jinglong and said, "Deputy Commander Li, do you also want to go back like this?"
Li Jinglong looked troubled, pondered for a long time, and said: "Okay, just three days!"
He said, looking at Li Qing, "Li Jianjun, you have persisted for so long. It will take a few days. If you can't find it when the time comes, we can just go back along the original road."
"Not bad!" Lan Yu looked expectant, her eyes red, "Li Qing, why don't I beg you?"
Li Qing smiled helplessly, and then said seriously: "Commander, this is my final bottom line. If you still insist on marching in three days, don't blame me for being unkind."
After a pause, he said with murderous intent: "I dare to beat up even the prince and the prince, not to mention you, a marquis!"
"Okay, if I break my promise, you can beat me to death without even fighting back."
~
The army marched again, and three days passed by, but there was still no trace of the Yuan people.
Li Qing couldn't sit still, and even Li Jinglong, who was eager to make contributions, couldn't sit still. The two of them came to the commander's camp hand in hand, "Commander, it's time to withdraw."
"Okay, retreat!" Lan Yu nodded and sighed: "The army will rest for one night and will go back tomorrow. It is true that we cannot move forward any further."
Seeing that he was in a low mood, Li Qing comforted him a few words and turned back to the camp.
Li Qing also felt uncomfortable. This time the court spent so much money, but he didn't even see a shadow of the enemy. He was a little embarrassed to face Lao Zhu, even though the responsibility did not lie with him.
"Alas...!" Li Qing smiled bitterly, "What's going on?"
He picked up the wine bag, drank a few gulps, and calmed down a little. He pulled the blanket over him and fell asleep.
…
Fourth watch.
Li Qing was sleeping soundly when he was suddenly pushed and yelled at. His suppressed mood completely exploded, "Grandpa, push me!"
"Something happened!" Li Jinglong didn't care, and the muscles on his face were so anxious that he said, "Li Qing, Lan Yu... he ran away with others."
"Run away?" Li Qing repeated hysterically, and then his eyes widened, "Run away?!"
"Well, he ran away with his adopted son, his cronies, and horseshoes wrapped in cloth."
Li Qing trembled: "How many people did he bring?"
"Nearly fifteen thousand people!" Li Jinglong said solemnly, "The generals are all his adopted sons and confidants. They only took three days of food and grass and galloped forward."
"Have you sent someone to chase him?"
"I have sent a team of light cavalry to chase, but..." Li Jinglong said bitterly, "Lanyu has been stunned. Even if he catches up, it is impossible to pull him back. After all, he is the coach, and those fifteen thousand people And if you obey him absolutely, this will cause big trouble."
Li Qing suddenly felt a chill in his heart. Lan Yu used a conspiracy this time and only brought three days of supplies, just to let the army go to meet him.
If you chase them, you may get everyone involved. If you don't chase them, Lan Yu's fifteen thousand people will be buried in the desert.
"Damn, fifteen thousand people!" Li Qing's face was ferocious, "Lanyu is so damn cruel!"
"What should we do now?" Li Jinglong was young after all. When faced with this kind of thing, he had no idea at all and kept urging Li Qing to make up his mind.
Li Qing didn't know what to do. This was a dead end. No matter what he chose, he couldn't afford the consequences.
The people participating in this war are all the best of the best. If they are just abandoned and left to fend for themselves, no matter how much Lao Zhu trusts him, he still has to chop off his head.
Calm down, don't panic... Li Qing forced himself to calm down, "Is there anyone left behind by Lan Yu?"
"He left an adopted son." Li Jinglong said hurriedly, "These are what he just told me."
"Where are the people?"
"Outside the account." Li Jinglong replied, and shouted outside the account, "Vice General Liu!"
The curtain was raised, and a burly man hurried in. He cupped his fists and said, "See Deputy Commander Li, Supervisor Li."
"Stop doing this!" Li Qing said angrily: "Why didn't you report it earlier?"
"The commander-in-chief gave the order to die, and the general also followed the order." Lieutenant General Liu was neither humble nor overbearing.
Li Qing was so angry that he cursed his mother. After a while, he said, "Deputy Commander Li, you just stay here and watch. I'll go after him."
"Don't, don't be impulsive. Lan Yu has fifteen thousand people. He doesn't want to come back. Can you persuade him?" Li Jinglong grabbed him and was so anxious that he almost cried, "Brother Li, I am so upset." Very, if you leave again, I...I..."
oops……!
Li Qing was anxious and angry, and couldn't help but beat his chest. With these two things on the table, he was really unlucky for eight lifetimes.
"Supervisor, deputy commander." Vice General Liu clasped his fists and said, "The commander-in-chief only has enough food and grass for a few days. If we delay for a long time, something unexpected may happen. The top priority is to march as soon as possible."
Li Qing gritted his teeth and said, "Have a meeting!"
He alone could not make the decision on such a big matter. Li Jinglong, who could barely make the decision, was in chaos, so he had to call all the senior generals together to make a decision together.
A quarter of an hour later, the coach camped and all the generals gathered.
Li Qingyan explained the matter concisely and concisely, and the generals couldn't help but be shocked.
After a moment of noise, all the generals came to an unexpected consensus: advance the army and rescue the commander!
Without him, there is an ironclad order in the army: If the commander is in danger and does not rescue him, he will be killed!
Lan Yu is the coach, he is an honorable person, and more importantly, he is an honorable relative.
Regardless of the fact that Duke Chang Mao of Zheng was his nephew, just his status as the wife-uncle of Prince Zhu Biao was enough to make the generals fearful.
If such a person dies, no matter how good their reasons are, they will inevitably go to the guillotine.
The general trend was changing, and Li Qing's will could not change anything at all, so he had to hold his nose and admit it.
At dawn, the army set off again.
Fortunately, the Sapphire Demon was stunned, but not crazy yet. Every one or two miles, he left one person as a signpost to guide the army.
It took more than ten days for hundreds of thousands of troops to join Lan Yu with their baggage.
Lan Yu has lost a lot of weight, his lips are dry and cracked, and he is a little depressed. In order to drag the army into the water, he traveled too far, and has already run out of food and grass for three days. These days, he relies on eating horse meat, Drink horse blood and live a hard life.
When he saw the army coming, he laughed heartlessly.
But he didn't laugh for long before Li Qing's fist arrived.
Lan Yu kept her word and didn't fight back, letting Li Qing do it.
Finally finding the coach, Li Jinglong calmed down and persuaded Li Qing, "Now is not the time to settle accounts. We have to go back quickly. The sky has been filled with yellow sand these days. It's too late. I'm afraid the mark we left will be gone."
Lan Yu touched the corner of her mouth and asked, "Do you use people to mark it, or do you use canvas to mark it?"
"Canvas, canvas is more obvious than people!" Li Jinglong said angrily, "We are not as cruel as you, using people as marks, the desert is so dangerous..."
"You can't go back." Lan Yu interrupted, "The wind and sand are so strong that, except for people, all other marks will be buried by the yellow sand. If you don't believe it, you can try it!"
"You don't need to say anything." Li Jinglong said angrily, and immediately led a group of light cavalry forward to look for the mark.
Half a day later, Qingqi returned, all of them looking ugly.
Lan Yu was right, and the mark left behind only lasted for more than a hundred miles, and could not be found again.
Li Qing's heart sank. The situation he was most worried about had happened.
The army is lost!
