The intensive sound of horse hoofbeats brought a panic to the escapees, because they also combined with the encounter with Guo Jingke just now, guessed that this wave was probably Cheng Dalang's cavalry, and Cheng Dalang's armored cavalry had given this wave in the past two days.
The bandits coming from Qinghe brought extraordinary psychological pressure.
This is completely different from facing his former colleague, the horse dealer.
As a result, even among Zhang Jinscale's personal soldiers, some began to flee in the dark... It was really easy to escape at this time, just join the group of deserters who passed by.
"Big boss."
Among the sparks and ashes, the leader of the soldiers was thirsty, but he still looked at his leader. "Can you ride a horse now?"
Zhang Jinscale, half of his face darkened, nodded awkwardly...his body memory and a period of adaptation allowed him to operate the horse by himself.
"But don't ride your horse now." The leader of the soldiers said seriously. "Dismount your horse and follow the deserters that just passed behind you. As long as you can return to Gaotang, you may have to do it all over again... We were defeated in a confused way.
.”
Zhang Jinscale realized something. In fact, after waking up from his previous sleep, he felt like he was gradually waking up.
This kind of sobriety does not mean that the leader of the Qinghe Bandit Army gradually got rid of his miscalculations about the battle and gradually gained a correct judgment on the battlefield... Until now, he still firmly believes that this battle was Cao Shancheng's.
Handwriting... It was another deeper awakening. He gradually realized that he should not have been in that strange car before, should not have coveted territory and manpower and stretched the army to the level of 40,000 to 50,000 people, and should not have followed suit.
Kill people at will.
Riding in that kind of car makes you forget all your proudest horse-riding skills;
Coveting territory and manpower, and wantonly expanding the army, they have completely lost their true control over the army. When it comes to winning, they don't know how to win, and when they lose, they don't know how to lose;
And wantonly killing is the reason why many old brothers and many true heroes are alienated from him.
It's like suddenly waking up from a dream and returning to the state before the rebellion. Looking at the performance after that, no matter how you look at it, you feel something is wrong.
However, it seems that I woke up a little late, but it doesn’t seem like it is too late.
"Big boss, hurry up!" The leader of the soldiers dismounted directly and helped the opponent down. "There are not many officers and soldiers, otherwise they would not have set fire, so we will definitely not be able to capture all the prisoners. Our core soldiers are all from Qinghe, your hometown.
As long as people escape, they will definitely return to Qinghe, and as long as the big leader returns to Gaotang, seizes the city and the weapons and property gathered before, he will definitely be able to gather another two to three thousand soldiers. This is no better than two months ago.
Is the situation strong?"
Zhang Jinheng was helped off his horse by the opponent's true energy. He nodded on the hot field and planned to escape according to the opponent's arrangement.
However, before he left, he couldn't help but look back and said sincerely: "Jia San, although you are from the North, when you return to Gaotang, I will definitely make you the second leader!"
The leader of the soldiers surnamed Jia was not polite. He just nodded and got on the opponent's horse. Then he ordered the entire army to form a unit and took the initiative to meet the horse's hoofbeats.
There were two moons above the head, and there were countless firelights around them. After a moment, the two soldiers and horses, who were actually in a hurry, met each other and realized what the other party was.
It was indeed Cheng Dalang and his cavalry who came, and Cheng Dalang was a well-known tycoon in Dengzhou, Jeju, and the Bohai area in the lower reaches of the river. He was recognized as having cultivation, means, and vision; and what greeted him was Zhang Jinscale.
Jia Yue, the hero of the Northern Wilderness, wandered from the Northern Wilderness and wandered around Hebei for only two or three years. Since he had no interest entanglements with the locals, he easily exchanged his skills for a confidant position with Zhang Jinscale.
Frankly speaking, at this time, Cheng Dalang was terrified.
Because in order to succeed in the battle, ensure the advancement of the infantry in the middle, and to show his loyalty, he gave all his armor and cavalry to Zhang Sanye. This resulted in only a few hundred light cavalry behind him. He fell behind and lost an unknown number of people along the way. But on the opposite side was
The famous Beihuang Jia Laosan came towards him with a number of soldiers two or three times his own.
It seems that I have to show my real skills and strike hard.
"Jia Yue!"
Cheng Dalang jumped out of the horse and waved his long spear. Duanjiang's true energy rose along the long spear by half a foot, which was astonishing. "I have heard your name a long time ago and know that you are a capable hero of the Northern Wilderness. How can you fight with a
The thieves who massacred the city are still young? I thought that we had a chance two years ago and allowed you to fight in a duel. If you can support me for twenty rounds, I will allow you to take people away, so why not?"
Jia Yue paused for a moment, with a look of helplessness and fatigue on his face, and then he actually turned over and dismounted, abandoned his weapon under the horse, half-kneeling and saluted with his head raised: "Cheng Dalang, I know your cultivation level, and I also know that your skills are not as good as others.
, knowing that you have won a complete victory in this battle, so you are willing to surrender, but you must ensure the safety of my soldiers."
Cheng Dalang was startled for a moment, then he was overjoyed, and was about to dismount to help the other party, but just as he was about to dismount, he remembered something and hesitated: "Jia Sanlang, were you involved in Tu Qingquan's matter?"
"No! I am from the Northern Wilderness. I have no stakes. I have been doing military law beside Zhang Jinscale since the beginning. I only kill leaders who violate his military orders for him!" Jia Yue almost blurted out, but as soon as he finished speaking, he
He was startled for a moment, and then immediately asked, "Are you really a member of the Deposed Dragon Gang, clearing the door for the rebels?"
Cheng Dalang chuckled. Since he admitted it, he didn't deny it. Instead, he stepped forward and helped the other person up: "In that case, we are brothers from now on. Come with me, and I will take you to meet your true heroes in the North."
...However, if any of these soldiers want to massacre the city, I'm afraid your fellow countryman will have some tricks... How about you come with me?"
"I knew that day that Zhang Jinsheng was going to be harmed by the Qingquan incident!" Jia Yue was stunned at first, then shook his head. "But I have done my best to be benevolent. Why don't you surrender now?"
Cheng Dalang became even more delighted.
Let's talk about it. How could this wealthy man from the East have been conducting personal reconnaissance for days, but he didn't know that Zhang Jinsheng's people, not to mention the periphery, were actually two to three thousand well-equipped soldiers, and the core force was usually divided into three groups. Among them were not Qinghe children.
They are just deserters with military experience, plus heroes with cultivation on Hebei Road. Considering Zhang Xing's political commitment, the posture of Li Shuijun, coupled with the experience of this battle and the future situation, let him Cheng Dalang
Come to take charge of Po Tai, in fact, it is impossible to retain too many troops.
In this case, recruiting a few thousand core troops is the most important and natural way to expand our strength.
In fact, after Cheng Dalang collected the troops and turned around, he heard that Zhang Xing had also surrendered another group of soldiers from King Qinghe's Second Division, and he was even more convinced that this battle, no matter how chaotic it was, was already over.
A complete victory.
Only Zhang Jinscale left.
But there seems to be nothing that can be done. Forty thousand people collapsed overnight. Zhang Jinheng was among them. Where to find him? At dawn, the armies began to clean up the battlefield on a large scale. When collecting prisoners, some surrendered.
The soldier informed him of the relevant matters, but it was hard to say that Jia Yue was wrong at that time.
Because it is so in line with feudalist values!
Isn't it a classic feudal moral model?
Not to mention, this Mr. Jia seems to have a strange relationship with Mr. Zhang.
"Aren't you Zhang Xingyi?" Jia Yue finally couldn't hold back and spoke to the young man who was surrounded by a group of generals. Although the other person's face was covered with black ash that he hadn't had time to wipe off, Chaoyang
Even though he was just rising, he could still recognize him. "How did you become Mr. Zhang?"
"You recognize me?"
Zhang Xing naturally remembered the information he saw in Jing'an Terrace, so he didn't panic... In fact, he still sat there and ate the roasted wheat ears calmly.
delicious.
"Don't you recognize me?" Jia Yue was extremely speechless, but as a descendant, he did not dare to move forward under the gaze of a group of people. "We took a boat together from the north of Hebei...you went to join the army.
, I went to explore the world... After the Second Expedition to Dongyi was defeated, I heard people say that all the five armies were wiped out, and not a single person was left alive. I thought you were dead... How did you become Mr. Zhang?"
"During the second expedition to Dongyi, I encountered a real dragon. I was so frightened that I couldn't remember many things." Zhang Xing was quite grand. "As for why he called himself Zhang San, it was mainly because he didn't want to be under Li Silang in his life.
...I have to suppress him no matter what, so I call myself Zhang San!"
As he said that, Zhang Xing sucked the ears of wheat and pointed out whether there were any black-faced people in the seats, but Li Ding, who couldn't help but black-faced at this time... The latter was very sure that the other person seemed to be Zhang San before he saw him.
, and he has always known that this guy comes just by talking.
But at this time, the people around me seemed to agree with it, as if they had heard some secret, and they were afraid that this statement would spread in the future... There was no way to refute the rumor.
"Where am I from?"
After Zhang Xing finished explaining, he continued to ask out of curiosity, "Where did the Seven Guards and Seven Towns come from, the east or the west of the Northland? Are there anyone else in the family?"
In fact, until just now, everyone below Li Ding was a little surprised, but there was not much additional reaction, because Jia Yue's words were consistent with Zhang Xing's usual self-narration. He came from a poor family in the North, even a peasant family, and came to Hebei to make a living.
Second, he conquered the Eastern Barbarians to escape, and then carried his corpse back to the West, where he continued to hang out in the Eastern Capital until today.
The only problem is the name, but that's not a big deal. It's more common for country people to change their names when they go to the city.
Didn’t the governor who built the Tower of Babel change his name as soon as he became prosperous?
But when you ask this question, it seems strange... Do people really forget all this? Even if they are injured and can't remember it for a moment, it's been two or three years and they still can't remember it?
Only at this time, it seems that this Mr. Zhang has succeeded in exchanging his great name for strength, and everyone in the hierarchy recognizes his identity as a superior. No matter how weird he is, they can only hide it in their hearts.
Li Ding may not have to hide it, but he has a lot of thoughts about Zhang Xing, which is not bad at all.
This was really painful for Jia Yue. Hearing this, the man became even more cautious: "You really don't remember?"
"If I remember." Zhang Xing frowned. "You still have to stand there?"
Jia Yue then suppressed his suspicion, but he still felt a little strange, so he could only respond in a low voice: "You were actually born in Guanhai Town, your father is from Hebei, and your mother is from Guanhai, but they both died young, and he is your uncle
He raised you up as a middle-level protector of Tieshan Guard among the Seven Guards of Dangmo, so your boy actually hung out with Tieshan Guard in Guanhai Town... We all actually went to school with Tieshan Guard.
Practice, and then find the boat from Guanhai Town and Tingtao City..."
Zhang Xing thought about the distribution map of the Seven Towns and Seven Guards in the North, and he knew it clearly... It can only be said that it is not unexpected, and there is no hidden information. The middle-level guardians are not high-end people under the special system of Demon Guards.
, it’s just more convenient to practice. The only thing worth noting is that the Seven Demon Guards of the North are a remnant of the system from the Black Emperor’s period. It has evolved to this day and is already a system that integrates religion, military, politics, tribes, and gangs.
He has a special system and his background naturally inevitably leads him to think about the Black Emperor.
"Your uncle's name is Huang Ping. You also have an aunt, a cousin, and a cousin... Your uncle also sent a message before, saying that if he sees you again, he will definitely beat you to a lameness!" Jia Yue continued. "
I just thought you were dead and didn’t dare to reply..."
Zhang Xing nodded, ignored it, and asked seriously: "In that case, Brother Jia, have you participated in the Qingquan Massacre?"
Jia Yue recalled Cheng Dalang's previous gesture, and was startled and shook his head repeatedly.
"Help me sort out the soldiers who participated. I want the officers to be killed on May 1st and the soldiers to be killed on 11th to set the record straight." Zhang Xing calmly ordered, but then glanced at the others. "Do you have any different opinions?
?”
Everyone below Li Ding was silent.
"Well, the three leaders Niu, Zhou, and Guo are going to help." Zhang Xing nodded, his expression unchanged. "After killing the people, take out two hundred more, and give them to Commander Niu Da together with the surrendered cavalry, and take them back to Puyang.
Then, after the inventory of the ordnance is completed, send the number of Sanyi to Jiyin."
Niu Da was overjoyed, Guo Jingke was relieved, and Xiao Zhou was also enlightened.
After Zhang Xing finished speaking, he wiped his mouth and turned to look at Cheng Zhili, who was standing silently: "Cheng Dalang, don't be idle. Use your local connections to talk to Fangxian Lieutenant and Cheng Xiaowei."
Let’s work together to handle this matter officially for Fourth Master Li! We must also make preparations from the political arena to make a clear statement to Chishiro and the others!”
Cheng Zhili nodded repeatedly: "I know. The officials have taken care of the official who is in charge of the official seal. They have carefully planned and captured some of the heads. They insist that this matter was defeated by me with the assistance of Li Shuijun's army and the soldiers from Bohai, Dengzhou and Jeju."
If you are a bandit, you must use the name of the Deposed Dragon Gang on the road, and make it clear that it is Mr. Zhang who is here to clean up the rebels!"
"We must also establish the dignity of your side." Zhang Xing did not hesitate at all. "You have done what you promised me, then I must do what I promised you... As soon as Li Silang leaves, you will be deposed here.
As the leader of the Dragon Gang, you take over the power of the Putai military, but after all, this army was built by Li Silang, so Lieutenant Fangxian and Lieutenant Cheng also have to join the gang, and it is inevitable that they will be your deputy as the leader... You
Do you have any words?"
"I am only grateful to you two!" Cheng Dalang did not hesitate and swore directly to the sky. "I am more willing to join Mr. Zhang to depose the Dragon Gang, cut off the violent Wei, and stabilize the world!"
Zhang Xing nodded. Cheng Dalang is a smart man. After fulfilling his political commitments, he will make up for various things by himself without saying anything. So he only looked at Cheng Mingqi. Li Ding also looked away from Cheng Dalang and glanced at Fang Yanshi.
.
Cheng Mingqi was the quickest to react, and immediately stood up and saluted: "I will never let you down in the honor of Mr. Zhang San and Mr. Li Li. From now on, I don't care whether the officials or the people are right or wrong. I only want to listen to what you two say."
Cheng Dalang smiled and said nothing, while Zhang Xing nodded with satisfaction.
Then, Fang Yanshi also looked at Li Ding and chose to salute: "Since Fang has received great kindness from Li Shuijun, why not?"
Cheng Dalang smiled again, but remained silent.
Zhang Xing didn't care, he just nodded again, then stood up and looked around.
It turned out that at this time, the sun was rising, the wind was blowing, and although the fire had subsided, the smoke and dust still remained. In the surrounding wilderness, the colors of black, yellow, and green merged together, and the sounds of people, horses, donkeys, and wind were mixed together, which actually corresponded to the current dilapidated and chaotic situation.
However, Zhang Xing knew very well that this was just the beginning and no one could stop it. In the next few years, the turmoil in the eastern border, Hebei, Central Plains, Jianghuai and other places would only get bigger and bigger. Guanlong, Jiangdong, Jingxiang,
Bashu will also gradually loosen its grip and cannot avoid disaster.
So from a long-term perspective, last night's victory and the smooth succession of the Po Tai army are just a small test, the beginning of everything.
"Why did Zhang Jinsheng run away?" After watching for a while, Zhang Xing suddenly became angry. "We caught him and his body was broken into thousands of pieces. Who dares to underestimate the Deposed Dragon Gang?!"
Li Ding was too lazy to pay attention, while everyone below Cheng Dalang chatted and then went about their own business.
Let’s not talk about how to deal with the aftermath here in Douzigang. I will only say that Zhang Jinsheng escaped alive, but he kept an eye on it. At dawn, when he realized that the defeated troops were heading towards Dongguang, he made a prompt decision and took the initiative to choose
He left the team and headed southwest... Obviously, he was planning to return to Gaotang quickly according to Jia Yue's reminder.
Not to mention, along the way, there was chaos and broken troops everywhere, and no one paid any attention to him. After Zhang Jinsheng regained his clarity, he quickly snatched a horse, but the horse galloped faster and faster.
Then, sure enough, two days later, he arrived at his hometown, Gaotang City, that afternoon.
In the past few months, he had used this as a base to hold a stalemate with Cao Shancheng, the magistrate of his hometown, E County... Even when he went to get food and weapons from Putai, he was planning to play a big game. After trying to supplement logistics, he defeated Cao Shancheng.
Capture Yi County and then advance north of Qinghe.
"Open the door!"
Zhang Jinscale came to the city and saw that the city was quiet and the flag remained unchanged. He was finally relieved and called the door directly. "It's me who's back!"
The guard on the city stuck his head out, wondering: "Why is the big boss here? Several gangsters on horseback came here this morning, and they only said that the front was defeated and you were dead... I only took it as nonsense!"
Of course it’s nonsense, but it’s not completely nonsense either!
Zhang Jinheng was about to have an attack, but after this defeat, he made up his mind and became calm. He gritted his teeth and responded: "A defeat is a defeat, but I am doing well, and the soldiers and horses are just scattered...Open the door quickly! Get ready."
Accommodate the defeated troops!"
The guard immediately responded and then disappeared.
After waiting for a long time, the door still didn't open. Zhang Jinsheng's patience almost disappeared... If he hadn't been running away for days, he was too exhausted, and the weak water zhenqi he cultivated had no similar use, he was almost ready to climb the city.
However, the door finally opened, and Zhang Jinheng was about to rush in.
But at this moment, the man didn't know what was going on. He suddenly stood on his back and hesitated in front of the door.
"Fire the crossbow! Shoot with both men and horses! If you escape, send your best horses to chase!"
As if he realized that the ambush had failed, a series of crisp orders suddenly came from the city gate above his head, and then a thin figure wearing a warrior's crown and full armor flashed out.
Zhang Jinsheng wanted to run away at first, but for some reason, when he heard the sound, he reined in his horse and saw the figure, but he felt relieved. He actually stopped where he was, sat on his horse and pointed towards the city head and smiled:
"Cao Shancheng! I knew it was you! If not you, who in Hebei could defeat me? Come on, come on, I'll give you this head and make you a county magistrate!"
The people on the city didn't bother to pay attention at all, but a moment later, crossbow arrows suddenly rained down from the top of the city. They first shot down Zhang Jinsheng's already exhausted war horse, and then focused on shooting at people. In just an instant, they shot down Zhang Jinsheng.
Zhang Jinheng, who was also extremely exhausted, was ejaculated into a honeycomb.
During the whole process, not even the cavalry was dispatched.