Delong

Chapter 400: The Country’s Destruction (18)

Immediately after learning that Cao Lin and the main force of Dongdu had suddenly appeared in Hanoi, Zhang Xing, the chief of the Dragon Gang, issued a military order, requiring the entire army to abandon Jijun and Liyangcang, and evacuate north and east to avoid the invasion of Hanoi. edge.

However, the execution of this order was obviously met with some resistance.

Some people are fascinated by the huge storage itself and are reluctant; while others are fascinated by the previous successful raid and the huge follow-up impact, thinking that the great master may not be unable to fight, and feel that the Eastern Capital has soldiers and horses. Vulnerable... As the saying goes, you have a great master, I also have a master, and there are four or five Chengdan, a dozen or twenty Congealing Dan, you can't make too much difference. As for soldiers and horses, Dongdu soldiers The horse and the Chulong army have confronted many times in the past few years. It is obvious that Wang Xiaoer's new year is not as good as every year, but the Chulong army is growing up day by day, so it is only as if the Eastern Capital's army is nothing, then if this is the case, try it once. Why not try?

This is opportunism.

Frankly speaking, Zhang Xing is not qualified to accuse others of being opportunists, because some of the things he himself has done are also suspected of being opportunistic...even, he is still half-nihilist, dogmatic, adventurist, and has no bottom line A flexibleist, and sometimes, like now, he can't even be called a capitulationist.

Because back to the matter itself, Chief Zhang resolutely reiterated the order and refused to leave any room for discussion.

Not only that, after the military order was issued, he quickly added a series of detailed supplements... For example, the last troops must destroy the bridge and block the road to delay as much as possible; another example is that all leaders are no longer allowed to use whale bones Ornaments and Mazars, black and white short cloaks are not allowed to avoid being targeted and cleared; for example, all vehicles and livestock are transferred to the war barracks, and the war barracks will be withdrawn first; all field soldiers are also withdrawn across the board. If the number is decisive and cannot be evacuated, it is allowed to unite with the officials of the original Ji County and the surrendered troops to occupy the city by themselves; the officials of the Ji County and the surrendered soldiers can go together if they are willing, and those who are unwilling do not force them; County officials and surrendered soldiers took flexible and independent measures to survive, and will not be held accountable for this matter.

The reason why it is so determined is actually very simple.

First of all, although he doesn't know the power of the Great Master, he has seen Fen Tiger as soon as he traveled, and he will never underestimate the power of the Great Master, especially when he planned to carry out the experiment of the Great Army Formation in the reform and failed. Secondly, Ling Xun cut off the reinforcements from the south bank, making it impossible for the Dragon Gang to gather all their strength to deal with the attack in a short period of time; besides, the most important point is that this time, the Grand Master did not come alone, but the Grand Master This kind of high-end combat power arrives together with a whole army, and there are many alchemy masters and alchemy masters in the army... The addition of several is definitely not a simple addition and subtraction, but constitutes a systematic and powerful Violent machine... This means that once the two armies face each other, it is likely to start from the strongest point of Cao Lin, the great master, and form a situation where one point breaks down and then the whole line collapses.

Zhang Xing didn't dare to gamble.

In contrast, the attitude of Zhang Bofeng, another great master who came to Hebei, can be put aside. Although this is also very important, we must avoid the edge first.

"Chief, such withdrawal is not an option."

Encountering this situation, Xu Shiying couldn't continue to stand on the sidelines. In fact, he came from Linqing Pass at the junction of Ji County and Hanoi County on a flying horse, and then outside Qingqi City on the south side of Zhiwei County in Ji County. I saw Zhang Xing.

It is worth mentioning that Wei County and Qingqi City are a full thirty miles west of Liyang. In other words, when Zhang Xing ordered an all-round retreat, he took the initiative to come in the opposite direction.

He was here to oversee the retreat, and by the way, to see the ice condition of the great river.

"How to say?" Standing on the embankment of the big river, Zhang Xing, whose clothes were blown by the south wind, turned his head and looked at Xu Shiying who was under the embankment.

"Two explanations." Xu Shiying answered with a dark face as he walked up, and he couldn't help turning his face to the side to hide from the wind when he walked to the embankment. "First, we are too many people, too scattered, and there is no time to retreat. As long as the opponent is determined to chase after him, even Jijun can escape, and we will be caught up in Weijun and Wuyang, not to mention the densely packed fields. Second, what if they chase after us, regardless of anything, and go straight to the general mausoleum? What if they continue to chase and chase to Dengzhou?"

"What you said makes sense." Zhang Xing nodded with his hands behind his back. "But the problem is that if we resist in Ji County, it will be even worse... Cao Lin and Dongdu's main force are here, and we don't know when this wave will end. Power."

"Of course." Xu Shiying nodded.

"Then what do you mean?" Zhang Xing immediately asked back. "Have you thought of something?"

"No." Xu Shiying paused for a moment, and then gave an answer with hands behind his back. "I just didn't know what to do, so I came to look for the chief... One idea I can think of is to withdraw first, and wait until the drift ice is over, let Henan soldiers and Dengzhou soldiers and horses cross the river from the lower reaches to join us and gather their forces Gathering together, the opponent will also stretch the battle line, divide troops layer by layer to occupy the city, and see if we can fight him."

"I mean the same as you." Zhang Xing also nodded. "The current situation is that it won't work if you don't withdraw, but it is nonsense to expect that withdrawal will solve the problem... You can only try to seize all opportunities when retreating, change the situation, and find opportunities to solve the problem."

Xu Shiying nodded: "Does the chief have any specific plans?"

"Yes." Zhang Xing answered immediately. "The first one is, as you said, mobilize the Henan troops immediately after the drift ice period, but it may not necessarily be necessary to gather together, harass the rear, and block the passage between Dongdu and this army. It may not be a good idea, because Cao Lin In a wave of aggressiveness, the biggest loophole is actually in the grassroots soldiers. If the morale of the soldiers and horses can be scattered and lose their combat power, then the grand masters will also be implicated in turn, and there may be a chance; the second is Try to adopt diplomatic means and make some negotiations with Beidi, Youzhou, Hejian, and Li Ding. From the current point of view, it may not be the only one that can have an immediate effect.”

"Zhang Bofeng..." Xu Shiying reluctantly nodded when he heard the front, but sighed when he heard this. "Even if Old Master Zhang is not on the same side as Uncle Cao, he is not on the same side as us. He is the head of the first family in Jin, a dignified master, and is naturally a dragon who is good at the world. How can he recognize us? Dethrone the Dragon Gang?"

"I don't expect him to be the same as us, but if the two great masters appear in the same place, they will restrain each other." Zhang Xing answered seriously. "I absolutely do not believe that they are in the same group. Taking ten thousand steps back, they are in the same group on the surface, and there must be differences and conflicts inside. Otherwise, the speed of the army is the most important, and the victory is the surprise attack. Why did Zhang Bofeng come with us when Cao Lin just crossed the river?" Send a letter to invite me, instead of following the letter to find me, come to capture the thief and capture the king, and take me? So, Zhang Bofeng can definitely use it."

Xu Shiying nodded, then fell silent for a while, blew the south wind, and continued to ask: "But we can't be lucky... In case, I mean in case, these methods are useless, the process of retreat Even the situation was even worse, Xue Changxiong also came, Li Ding didn't help us, and then Uncle Cao chased all the way to Jiangling, and then to Dengzhou, what should we do? Third brother, you What to do? What to do with the Dragon Gang?"

Zhang Xing glanced at the other party, and asked again: "If that's the case, what should you do?"

Xu Shiying was silent for a while, just stepped on the Liuhe boots lined with linen to press the gradually soft soil under his feet.

Zhang Xing smiled, instead of pressing the question further, he sighed with emotion: "Xu Dalang came to talk to me about this matter today, so it shows that he has the safety of the Dragon Clan in his heart. Only because of this matter, I will not abandon you."

Xu Shiying was at a loss for a moment: "What...abandoned me...I mean if we don't get the chance, what if the great master is more stable than anyone else, just kill us and drive us all the way to Dengzhou?"

"Naturally, board the boat from Dengzhou and go to the Northland to avoid it." Zhang Xing answered frankly. "When he got on the boat and entered the East China Sea, he didn't dare to chase him. Otherwise, the governor of Dongyi came to take care of him. When he arrived in the north, he used the shell of the demon guard to hide. Even if Cao Lin drove us away, he would If you can’t stand, you will be taken care of by other great masters because you left the Eastern Capital Heita, and then we will make a comeback and clean up Hebei.”

Xu Shiying froze for a moment, and sneered in his heart, but he didn't show it on his face.

In his opinion, if that is the case, as long as Zhang Xing escapes to the Northland, the Dragon Clan will definitely split up, and Li Shu will definitely take the opportunity to rectify the situation. All of them are dependent on their families, how can they be willing to walk with Zhang?

Let’s go, actually, it’s okay, avoiding the edge, it’s not shameful for the great master to attack you, running all the way to find a place to stay; Li Shu wants to close the situation, it’s okay, this guy will definitely do it, and he’s qualified to do it, even Being able to do it generously... The problem is actually that, in Xu Dalang's view, if Zhang Xing leaves, these gangsters from Hebei and Henan tyrants will most likely not follow Zhang, and will defect to Li Shu next time. Even deviate from the Dragon Gang.

And once this happened, even if Zhang Xing came back, these people would no longer be enemies but friends.

Because the unity that the two sides have maintained has disappeared, a betrayal is enough to melt away the so-called organization that Zhang Xing worked hard to maintain and build in the past three years.

Thinking of this, Xu Shiying wanted to say something more, but suddenly, he reacted, and then shuddered on the spot: "What does the chief mean, even if you escape to the Northland, you will definitely not abandon me?"

"That's right." Zhang Xing stretched out his hand and pressed the opponent's shoulder with a half-smile. "Actually, I was still thinking just now that if it really gets to the point where Hebei can't gain a foothold, others will be fine, but I really don't know what will happen to you, Xu Dalang, especially if your soldiers and horses stay in Henan, so when you It is really possible to stay. And if you are really kept, it may not mean that there will be no good end between us... But since you came so quickly today, it shows that you have the overall situation in your heart, and it is I who The heart of a villain is the heart of a gentleman, so no matter what, I will bring you by my side so that there will be no result between us."

Xu Shiying looked at the other party with a sideways face, countless thoughts came up in her heart, but she put them away, just nodded, determined to do it and see.

After all, even considering the current situation, Xu Dalang has to admit that although Cao Lin and the Dongdu army are coming aggressively, the general trend is not in Wei, so it may not last for a long time. The opponent revealed many fatal flaws, and with Chief Zhang's ability and the current strength of the Dragon Gang, it is impossible to say that he can catch the opponent's flaws and then go up to the next level.

In this way, after the two left, while continuing to organize the retreat of the whole army, Xu Shiying, who followed Zhang Xing, traced the source to find Zhang Bofeng's whereabouts.

The day before, the letter sent by Zhang Bofeng was sent to Zhang Xing by sending a letter to the garrison troops of the Dragon Gang in Tangyin at the intersection of Jijun and Weijun. But the strange thing is that although there was an invitation in the letter, it did not Provided a place and time, and no instructions for replying to the letter.

Under such circumstances, when the entire gang was in a hurry and almost all the big and small leaders were scattered to organize retreats in various cities, Xu Shiying took the initiative to come to Tangyin to find Zhang Bofeng's whereabouts...but found nothing.

In desperation, Xu Dalang turned back again and met Zhang Xing in the Acropolis. The two discussed for a while and came to a conclusion—either Zhang Bofeng had just learned about Cao Lin crossing the river and was quite surprised by it, and went to inquire about it, or Wandering around wantonly, waiting for Zhang Xing's public reply.

The former can't be controlled, and the latter, after Zhang Xing hesitated for a while, he didn't make up his mind.

It is one thing to count on Old Master Zhang to cause trouble and hindrance to Uncle Cao, but when the opponent’s great master and army are overwhelming, responding to the invitation publicly is tantamount to asking for help publicly. This is not impossible in normal times, but when the entire army withdraws At that time, asking for help publicly is likely to intensify panic, cause chaos, and cause irreversible and serious consequences.

At this time, Xiong Bonan, chief of military law, and Xie Minghe, chief of foreign affairs, who had quickly turned back from Yecheng, arrived. Several people discussed for a while, and finally decided that the first priority is to withdraw the troops and not make redundant actions.

Xiong Xie and Xiong Xie both went to work separately - Xiong Bonan accepted the task of urging the soldiers to retreat quickly after the end of the soldiers, while Xie Minghe took another letter from Zhang Xing and headed north again. See Li Ding, please don't make trouble for the latter.

Therefore, the public response to Old Master Zhang was temporarily shelved.

In this way, on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, Cao Lin, with the power of a great master, forcibly crossed the river that was already considered to be in the flood season, which actually caused the effect of a surprise attack. On the eighth day, all the soldiers in Ji County were withdrawn from Ji County, and at the same time, there were still a steady stream of garrison soldiers and civilian husbands who were evacuating.

Among them, most of the warehouses in Liyang, which had not been transported, were abandoned without hesitation.

This decision is really surprising.

In fact, on this day, people like Xue Changxiong didn't even know what happened, and Li Ding only knew about Cao Lin's massive counterattack because of Zhang Xing's letter.

Of course, the Jijun officials and the newly surrendered officers and soldiers stayed behind. These people who had just surrendered for less than half a month, with the cooperation of the Dragon Gang, took control of the entire Jijun calmly, and then still presided over the food delivery work, and then Mainly with a kind of apprehension, but with a very complicated state of mind, waiting for the arrival of the Eastern Capital army.

However, an interesting thing happened.

The Dongdu troops did come, but only a few thousand people from Qu Tuda's group, and only controlled the small half of Ji County on the west side of Qishui River, and entered the prefectural Wei County, and then only sent envoys to the east of Ji County. The former colleagues and subordinates of the department issued orders to guard the city, maintain law and order, and coordinate military supplies.

Then it doesn't move.

The legendary big troops and grand masters were not seen at all.

This actually caused the whole Ji County to fall into a certain kind of daze. In just twenty days, they surrendered and surrendered again, and indeed experienced a vigorous food distribution movement, but in fact, when they turned around, But I was shocked to find that almost all positions and jobs of almost everyone have not changed.

It seems that the Dragon Gang has never been here at all.

Of course, the food and cloth in every city and village clearly reminded everyone that this was not a dream, but that the current situation was too weird.

And Zhang Xing, who had already retreated to Yecheng, immediately came to his senses after discussing with the dozen or so leaders who had gathered here—someone must have gone to chat with Uncle Cao to reminisce about the old days.

"Old General Zhang." On the hillside to the north of Xiuwu City in Hanoi, Cao Lin called the thin but tall man in front of him completely different from other people. "So, did you deceive Li Twelve Lang, or did Li Twelve Lang deceive me?"

"What did Li Twelve Lang say about me?" Grandmaster Zhang Bofeng, who seemed to be in better spirits, twirled his beard and smiled, obviously curious, and his robe was billowing in the wind.

"He said that if I came to Hebei to attack the Dragon Gang, Old General Zhang would never take advantage of others' danger and cut me off. He also said that your Excellency disapproved of some of Zhang Sanlang's actions and thought he was bold." Cao Lin looked at Looking at the other party, he looked puzzled. "is that so?"

"Yes." Zhang Bofeng thought for a while, then nodded immediately. "That's right."

"Then the old general wants to live up to his own words?" Cao Lin frowned slightly. "Deliberately deceive Li Twelve Lang and me?"

"I'm an old man who is dying, why would I lie to such a kid? What are you doing to lie to you?" Zhang Bofeng spread his hands in response.

"Then why did the old general come to Hebei and persuade me to postpone the march?" Cao Lin became more and more serious. "Isn't this just reneging on what you promised?"

"So that's how it is." Zhang Bofeng was only startled for a moment, but immediately came to his senses, but smiled again while twisting his beard. "So that's how it is, Cao Zhongcheng, it's like this. Li Twelve Lang was passing by Nanpo that day, looking for me specifically, and he asked me honestly... I asked my opinion on the situation in Hebei and Zhang Sanlang earlier, of course I answered that way; later on He also asked me if I was in cahoots with the British public, intending to lure you to leave Dongdu so that I could deal with you? And my reply was that I had never had any cavalry with anyone, let alone the slightest intention of being an enemy of Cao Zhongcheng. Do a round of siege?"

Cao Lin was slightly taken aback, and immediately realized that Li Twelve Lang was so frustrated that he was so bold that he used his own doubts and the urgency of time to set up a verbal trap between the two masters, specifically to lure himself to Hebei Province. To deal with the Dragon Gang, so that the current situation has formed.

However, before Zhang Bofeng himself admitted that he had no collusion with Bai Hengqiu, it seemed that it was not worth mentioning.

Of course, Cao Lin soon realized another problem - if Zhang Bofeng had never hooked up with Bai Hengqiu, how could it be explained that the land of Jin was almost completely controlled by the British Duke?Almost all of Zhang's children are consistent with Bai's?
As if he could see Cao Lin's thoughts, the tall and thin Mr. Jin Ge smiled and continued: "The reason why I am like this is because I am old. If it weren't for the obvious collapse of the Wei Kingdom, there would be a little more blessing from the earth." , a little bit of life, almost three years ago, he was about to die... how can Zhang's children, who are in several counties in the east of the river, care about it?"

Cao Lin was completely stunned.

That's right, it's not that Zhang Bofeng has no stand, and it's not that the Zhang family has not merged with the Bai family, it's just that Mrs. Jin Ge is old, and I don't want to make troubles these few years, that's all.

But if this is the case, the Duke of England's idea of ​​trying to get himself out of Dongdu to deal with it, is he thinking too much, or is there another helper?
After thinking for a while, Cao Lin suddenly said: "The old general just advised me to postpone the march, saying that he wanted to consult with Zhang Sanlang face to face, but I kicked out the Dragon Gang and Zhang San and fled directly... Do you want to fight with Zhang Sanlang?" Discuss what?"

"Discuss his "benefits of the world" and "benefits of the world", as well as his "Law of the Dragon." Zhang Bofeng said one thing. "The old man is old, and he has already looked down on the battlefield in the world. This time he is very quiet, but he just wants to see the thoughts and demeanor of the younger generation... I don't think much of Zhang San's thoughts, but even In this way, he is also one of the few young people in the world who has his own ideas, and besides, the way is different, so it is not necessarily who is right and who is wrong, and the stones from other mountains can be used to attack jade, so it is worth seeing."

"The mountains and hills in the world are row upon row, so it's not just a mere Zhang Xing?" Cao Lin thoughtfully. "Even if he built a mountain, it was only a small hill. Since the old general came to Hebei from the southern slope, and asked for a stone from another mountain, why not take this opportunity to gather heroes from Hebei and discuss it together? The place and time will also be discussed." It's up to you to decide, and I'm willing to attend, if there are benefits, it will be a great honor."

Zhang Bofeng couldn't help laughing: "If Cao Zhongcheng is willing to sit with me and discuss the Dao, it would be a great honor at that time. I'm afraid, your Excellency just wants to use my hand to gather the heroes of Hebei, and then take the opportunity to catch them all at once?"

Cao Lin also shook his head and laughed: "Master Zhang thinks too much, let alone you, who would dare to make trouble? Even people like Xue Changxiong and Xiong Bonan are not easy to deal with... If you are not at ease... Why not invite the British prince of Taiyuan to come to the meeting? It is natural and appropriate for all parties to contain it."

Zhang Bofeng's heart moved slightly, and he instinctively sensed Cao Lin's thoughts, but after thinking about it for a while, he felt relieved: "That's right! With this old man around, who would dare to make a mistake?!"

Cao Lin restrained his face slightly, and asked again: "When and where?"

"Red Mountain." Zhang Bofeng thought for a while and gave a definite answer. "The main thing is to talk to Zhang Sanlang. It would be better if Mr. Cao and Mr. Yingying are willing to come... Seven days will be enough... I will invite Zhang Sanlang face to face."

Cao Lin narrowed his eyes and nodded: "Before this meeting, I promise not to move."

(End of this chapter)