Xuanzhen North Fortress, Yehuling Shanfang Fort.
In the camp inside the Great Wall, the commander-in-chief Zhao Menglin roasted a sheep in the tent, and together with the two lieutenants, entertained Zhang Mingshi and Ma Xianglin.
Zhao Menglin, like Du Song, the commander-in-chief of Shanhaiguan, were both from Shaanxi, while Zhang Mingshi had a strong Shaoxing accent.
But the two men, whose accents are thousands of miles apart, because of their forthright and rough temperament, and in the atmosphere where military commanders cherish their military commanders, they can speak Mandarin that smells like oily noodles and pickled vegetables respectively, but they can still talk to each other. Very happy.
Zhao Menglin is 60 years old this year. During the Battle of Sarhu in another time and space, he was transferred to Liaodong as the commander-in-chief and became the deputy of Du Song, the commander-in-chief of Shanhaiguan, commanding the West Route Army of the Ming Dynasty's Four Route Army. The combat power of the West Route Army was quite strong, but it was a pity that in order to compete for the top spot, Jun Jun did not wait for the East Route Army Liu Qing and other three Ming armies to arrive and rush to cross the Hun River. During this period, Zhao Menglin tried to dissuade this famous Shaanxi fellow, but he did not stop him in the end. In the end, he and Du Song were killed in the Saarhu.
In this life, General Zhao is still rough and fine. Remember that when the entire battalion is on guard against Tatars knocking on the doorstep, he doesn’t drink much. He only persuades Zhang and Ma to eat meat while asking Zhang Mingshi for details. Ask about the pattern of firearms.
A veteran always has a sharp eye and a keen eye.
Not long after, Zhao Menglin noticed that although Ma Xianglin was sitting upright and calm, not as loose and loose as Zhang Mingshi, his whole body was as dull as a gourd, with an air of waning interest.
The white-haired commander-in-chief knew that since the time of Lord Jiajing, the empire's central court had treated military generals with indifference. This time, Ma Xianglin committed such a rebellious act. Even if there was an attempt to rein in the danger and return to the danger, if Sichuan and Shu were inseparable from Qin Liangyu's guarding, and Shanhaiguan was afraid of a mutiny by Shi Dian's army, how could Long Live Lord and the elders in the cabinet suppress him? The swordsman and the penman screamed fiercely about the heads falling to the ground.
Zhao Menglin then said in a friendly manner: "General Ma, I respect your Majesty for being good at fighting, and I also know that you, the general, are the bravest. If you only serve as a guard in an uninhabited place, you will be underestimating your talents. So be it, wait for this capture. The situation is over, Zhang Shen is stationed at Wanquan Right Guard. How about you, General Ma? Go east, pass Zhangjiakou, and go to Longmen Pass near Longmen Guard. The guerrillas there are old and sick, begging for rest, and the court allows him to go home. In fact, you are How about taking on the guerrilla duty?"
Zhang Mingshi and Ma Xianglin's eyes, following General Zhao's explanation, turned to the map of the Xunzhen military fortress hanging in the tent.
When the two of them saw it, they knew what was going on.
The two camps are not considered frontier places, but they are close to the Great Wall and are located on the east and west sides of Xuan Town. The Longmen Pass where Ma Xianglin is going is not far from Shanhaiguan in Ji Town.
Zhao Menglin was an old man in planning for the army, which not only gave Ma Xianglin the dignity of leading the guerrillas, but also separated him from Zhang Mingshi, two outsiders who had a close relationship. More importantly, Mr. Zhao was probably still thinking about his fellow Du Songshou. The thousands of Sichuan soldiers and guest troops held inside should return to Ma Xianglin's command as soon as possible.
Ma Xianglin once again secretly admired Zheng Haizhu's prediction.
Previously when she was at Jimingyi, Zheng Haizhu hoped that Ma Xianglin would be assigned to Wanquan Right Guard. When she arrived in Xuanzhen and found out that the actual strength of the battalion was somewhat stretched, she estimated that Zhao Menglin would transfer Ma Xianglin to the east.
"So, Xianglin, this time we must go out to the fortress to perform this scene together and earn military honors for Mr. Zhao. Only then can he and Governor Cui go to the court to get your people back."
Zheng Haizhu's decisive words rang in Ma Xianglin's ears.
"The general will listen to the arrangements made by the boss." Ma Xianglin cupped his hands and said to Zhao Menglin, his tone still a little distant.
Zhang Mingshi's eyes flashed, and he calmly said: "General Xiao Ma originally wanted to follow the humble position, but Mr. Zhao values him, and the humble position should not hinder his future. However, he is a bare general, and he is a bit shabby. The humble position is bold. Ask, sir, can you give him one or two small flags to carry?"
There were only twenty people with two small flags. Zhao Menglin thought about the young and strong Shenji battalion brought by Zhang Mingshi and the combined machine guns of both young and old, so he did not think that he would give Ma Xianglin some soldiers to defend his Xuanfu position. , it will be a loss-making transaction.
He then smiled and said: "What's wrong with that? It's just that I don't know the route Xianglin leads his troops. Let me let my lieutenant lead you around the camp and you can choose it yourself. yes."
…
In the winter in Saibei, the sun sets very early.
When we just handed over the application, the sun was already slanting very hard, and the cooking started in the camp.
Amid the noise, bursts of snow particles suddenly rose up from the west. Twenty or thirty men and horses came riding on the snow. Reflected in the sunset, they looked like they were stepping on golden waves.
"Hey, the one who beat up Ma Tatar is back." Zhao Menglin's lieutenant stopped and said to Ma Xianglin beside him.
Suddenly he realized that something was wrong, and he touched his nose awkwardly: "General Ma, Ma Tazi, his horse is very different from your noble family name."
Ma Xianglin smiled nonchalantly: "If I have a nickname, it should be Ma Manzi, not Ma Tatarzi. By the way, brother, where does this Ma Tatarzi come from?"
After the deputy general saw this gentleman coming out of his tent to patrol the camp, he suddenly became friendly and hurriedly explained to him: "They are bandits. After Grandpa Taizu and Lord Yongle drove the Mongols out of the Great Wall, there were still some northern captives left in the north of Yulin. , although they are not popular, at least they still have the skills of riding horses and wielding swords. After a few generations, they all became bandits. We people in Shanxi and Shaanxi call them Ma Tatars."
Ma Xianglin understood and followed the deputy to the team that had slowed down.
The first person jumped off his mount, holding a knife in one hand and a small bundle stained with blood in the other hand.
"Lieutenant General Yu humbly went to raid the lair of the Ma Tatars and beheaded three or four of their bosses and dozens of minions. These were their ears. What the brothers brought back later were the money the government wanted. , report to the boss."
"As expected of you, the battle will be won quickly," the deputy general patted the man on the shoulder, "Mangui, you are in luck. General Ma asked the master to ask you to go to Longmenguan Fort. That place is more comfortable than Shanfang Fort. Well, Ma The general’s mother is Qin Xuanfu of Sichuan and Shu.”
Ma Xianglin stepped forward and said warmly: "I'm Shili Ma Xianglin. He first arrived in Xuan Town and took up the position of guerrilla at Longmen Pass."
Mangui dropped the bag full of human ears, put the knife into the scabbard, clasped his fists in return, looked at Ma Xianglin, and asked angrily: "Have you ever had any dealings with me before, your honor?"
"No, it's just that I heard from my brothers in the army that you are very skilled."
After a few breaths, Man Guiliang opened his voice and said, "Which bastard told you this?"
Ma Xianglin was stunned.
He thought that he had been in the army for a long time and was used to seeing rough soldiers, but he did not expect that his opening, which could not be said to be malicious at all, would receive such a response like a firecracker.
