Xie Ming

The sun and the moon rotated, and in a blink of an eye it was November 15th. After noon, the sky over Guide was covered with leaden clouds.

Soon, heavy rain came with thunder and lightning.

The rain continued to pour down until the evening.

Inside the government office in the city, Xiao Lang stood with his hands behind his back under the eaves of the front hall.

The yard was filled with the sound of rain pouring down, creating a mess with water splashing everywhere.

"Commander-in-chief, this is indeed an opportunity, but..."

"Alas, after all, it is difficult to guarantee the safety of the place where other troops are stationed, General!"

"It's too risky."

"In my humble opinion, let's just forget it."

"We don't compete for one day's success, that's what you always say."

"Look."

Xiao stood in front of him, feeling very nervous and unable to make any decisions.

Later, Qi Gang had already stood up and approached, and with a worried look on his face, he began to persuade him.
Hua Hua Hua——

During this time, the two of them hesitated.

Suddenly, a rider came from outside the door in the rain.

When the man dismounted and waded through the water to cross the courtyard, his straw raincoat and hat were difficult to use in the heavy rain, and he looked in a mess.

"General——"

"General!"

Sun Peizhong waded through the water, his boots filled to the brim, one step deep and one step shallow, and he was willing to brave the heavy rain to get here.

Seeing his posture, Xiao Lang was also surprised. He quickly moved aside and led the man to the eaves in front of the hall.

"Hmm? Peizhong?"

"Hey, it's raining so hard, why did you come all the way from Tuocheng?"

"Long Court? Long Court?!"

"Go, get two dry clothes from the back, and then... get a bowl of hot ginger tea."

"Don't let him catch a cold."

It goes without saying that Xiao Jingchuan felt sorry for Peizhong, and he shouted a few words and gave urgent instructions.

After all, it is autumn now. The seasons wait for no one, and the autumn rain can bring cooler weather. Don't get sick again.

"Hi!"

"General, it's okay. There's no need to go through so much trouble."

"I, I just need some hot tea."

Peizhong was touched by the words and smiled innocently, then he untied the rope of his raincoat.

Taking advantage of the situation, Qi Gangjiao took off his hat, shook off the water, and pushed it aside temporarily.

"Pei Zhong, you came back today, is there something wrong in Beidi Tuocheng?!"

As he spoke, Xiao took another step back and asked Peizhong to sit down at the table. He took the kettle from the small stove, poured a bowl of hot water and handed it to him.

"Ah, thank you, thank you General." Peizhong leaned over and hurriedly held the tea.

"Well, no, no, everything is normal in Takujo."

"General, Minglu escorted several trucks of military equipment to Tuocheng this afternoon. I heard about it from him as well."

"It is said that Wu Sangui invited you to a banquet in Kaifeng, in the north?"

"Alas, General, I can't agree to this!"

"Isn't this clearly a Hongmen Banquet?"

"You are the commander-in-chief of the three armies, and you are responsible for the overall situation. You can't just take this risk without thinking."

Sun Peizhong didn't play tricks and went straight to the point.

Hearing this, Bian Zai Qigang also agreed with a wry smile.

"Haha, did you hear that, General? Peizhong meant the same thing."

"Let's take a long-term view." Qi Gang said again.

But when he heard that the two generals had the same idea, Xiao shook his head as if he was filled with deep resentment.

After hesitating for a while, he replied.

"Oh!" a long sigh.

"Why are you two so afraid of wolves and tigers?"

"It's just a one-man show."

"According to my idea, if it succeeds, it will be a good story, huh? Haha."

Xiao Fu had his own ideas and refused to listen to the advice.

Instead, he just makes fun of things without any reason.

Upon hearing this, Peizhong was anxious and hurried to repeat the words.

"Hey, General, this kind of thing is very dangerous, we dare not joke about it." "Wu Sangui, humph!"

"What kind of a beast is he?"

"He is a traitor who has raised an army to rebel and has gone back on his word."

"How can you trust even a single word he says?!"

"Besides, we fought a good battle with his army in the western corner of the capital, under the city of Baoding."

"It's possible that this thief baldy wants to use this as an excuse to get revenge."

"General, we can't go. We will definitely be fooled if we go."

Peizhong gave sincere advice and continued persuasion.

Hearing this, Xiao was also filled with emotion and sighed. He pondered for a while, then pulled over a small stool, sat under the eaves in the rain, and explained his feelings.

"Alas, Peizhong, I understand your worries."

"But, after all, half a year has passed, and times have changed."

"How can it be as absolute as you say?"

"Listen to me."

"This, according to the current situation, is that in Shanxi, the rebels and the Qing troops are fighting fiercely."

"Ajige was on his way westwards but encountered obstacles, so he hurried back to urgently send reinforcements."

"At this point, the southwest of the capital is empty, which is a real report."

"You know this news!"

"So, if we deduce from this..."

"Lege, who is under Ajige's command and guards the south of the Jin River, will definitely want to mobilize Wu Sangui's troops to go north to provide assistance."

"It's about filling the troop quota. It's not hard to guess and it's reasonable."

"Then, in this case, compared to Henan, does it make sense that Wu Sangui had no time to look south?!"

"This time, Qiu Maohua and Xie Sufu will mediate."

"They sent an envoy to come and say they want to hand over the Kaifeng city."

"In my opinion, this is about 80% true!"

"Think about it, the war in the northwest is tense. If Wu Sangui is really going back north, it is not impossible for him to do a favor before he leaves."

"Pei Zhong and Qi Gang, you two both know that Kaifeng is an important town."

"The walls are thick and high, the city walls are wide and the moats are deep."

"This time, it was Wu Sangui who deliberately communicated with the emperor and sent a favor."

"We can defeat the enemy at their own game without losing a single drop of blood."

"If you miss this opportunity, you will regret it later."

"Even if the defenders of this city are reduced in number, we can still capture it in a short time."

"Let's talk about the current situation. After all, the North and the South are still in the process of making peace."

"Large-scale warfare is also inappropriate and difficult to end."

"I'm not easy to deal with in the court either."

"So, if you have the land, why not occupy it?"

"It may be difficult to subdue Wu Sangui, but even if it doesn't work immediately, leaking some information to disrupt the Jiannu army in the south of the Yangtze River and causing them to fight among themselves is also a ready-made method!"

Xiao Lai told him what he was thinking.

"But, alas!"

"Yes, Qi Gang, you are the one who makes the connection. You should have a definite idea of ​​where to meet, right?!"

"It can't be in Kaifeng City?!"

Peizhong was extremely worried, and seeing that he could not persuade the enemy, he had no other choice but to inquire about the details so that he could make preparations in advance.

"Oh, that won't happen."

"It is said that the target is south of Kaifeng, in Zhuxian Town."

"This place is more than 40 miles away from Kaifeng City. Although there are no large cities around, it is currently within the enemy's garrison range."

"East of Tongxu"

Qi Gang told the truth about the situation.

However, upon hearing this, Peizhong couldn't help but frown again and hesitated to change the subject.

"Zhu, Zhuxian Town?!"

"It was chosen there!" Peizhong muttered worriedly.

"Oh, General Yue Fei of the Southern Song Dynasty, the fourth Northern Expedition."

"Zhuxian Town is the last battle."

"From this conversation, perhaps we can also see his heart."

Xiao Jingchuan suddenly reached out his hand from outside the eaves, caught the raindrops in his hands, and continued to talk to
(End of this chapter)