The rain in late spring comes and goes quickly. After a while of heavy rain, the clouds disperse and the air becomes fresh again.
Chiping City is located in the southeast corner of Qinghe County. It is connected to the port by a moat waterway in the south. You can overlook the river. It is also the nearest big city on the other side of the river after entering the river at the four gates. It has always been a hub for merchants and merchants, and it is an important hub between the north and the south. As for the ferry in the city
, just like Huankou Town, with many high-rise buildings and numerous shops.
However, since the Three Expeditions, wars have continued, businesses have declined, and those shops outside the city have long been idle. Last year, when the gang prospered on the other side, Cao Shancheng ordered them to be eradicated to prevent them from becoming targets for attacking the city or a place for the bandits to settle.
Fortunately, many high-rise buildings in the city are still there. Although it is bleak, it is enough for Cui Erlang to have a rare leisure time and sit on the high-rise buildings to look south... Of course, Cui Erlang is not looking at the river, but looking at the ripples caused by the rising spring water through the city wall.
A moat of sparkling living water.
After watching it for half a day, although it was not as poetic and picturesque as Mr. Zhang and Mr. Xie, the so-called "fresh rain and clear rain in the Zhulou on the river, and the spring water in the south of the city was full of literature" was not difficult for Cui Suchen to understand.
"Cui Erlang is so leisurely!"
Just when Cui Suchen was leaning on the railing and looking at the water until he forgot his feelings, there was a constant thumping downstairs. After a moment, the city guard and the county's prime minister, Sun Wanshou, walked up quickly with a serious expression. "Didn't I tell you yesterday?
? Mr. Cao Mansion knows that you are here and you are coming over today, why don’t you leave yet?!"
"What will I do if I leave?" Cui Erlang looked back and spoke in a calm but straightforward tone. "I don't know how many people in the city saw me coming and stayed here for many days. Now he is coming. I
But if he left, wouldn't he be asking for trouble? When the time comes, the debt will be settled on my dear friend, and the military situation is here, do you really think that Cao Shancheng dare not kill people? What kind of world is this? "
After hearing this, Sun Wanshou's tone softened somewhat, but he still couldn't hide his frown: "No matter what, he will arrive at noon, how are you going to deal with him?"
"Just meet him directly." Cui Erlang answered calmly. "He questioned him in every possible way. I just wanted to go eastward and was ambushed. I wanted to go south and was blocked..."
"That's all we can do." Sun Wanshou felt helpless, but he couldn't help but sigh along with what Cui Suchen had said before. "Actually...if there had been no such chaos, from the standpoint of the three of us, we might not be able to set up a building in this building.
Wine, singing praises of spring water, how did it end up like this?"
Cui Suchen was silent at first, but when he raised his head slightly and faced the bright spring sun above his head, he vaguely remembered the billowing water after the summer rain, and then he burst out laughing: "Even now, why can't we celebrate spring with wine?"
Sun Wanshou just shook his head.
In the afternoon, Sun Juncheng set up a banquet in a high-rise building in the south of the city to entertain Cao Shancheng, the governor of the palace who came to inspect, as well as Sima, the former supervisor of the Xuzhou camp who was blocked by the military, and Suchen, the second man of the Cui family in Zhengzhou.
Three people and one pot of wine, three vegetarian dishes, three meat dishes and one soup. The wine is ordinary sake sold in Dongdu. The vegetarian dishes are all seasonal vegetables. The meat dishes are nothing but bacon, fried fish and old duck. The soup is just a pot of mutton soup. For these three people
In fact, it is already very frugal.
Cao Shancheng was probably really hungry. He ate first after sitting down, but he wolfed it down with great eagerness, and even asked for a bowl of noodles. Cui Suchen still looked like he was swallowing water, but he also calmly poured wine and ate vegetables. Only Sun Juncheng
Clearly worried, he just sat there and watched the two people's behavior.
"Why did Cui Erlang abandon his official position and return home?" After eating for a while, Cao Shancheng suddenly stopped eating, put down his chopsticks and spoons, and came straight to ask, but his questions were a bit misleading.
"Because there is nothing to do." Of course Cui Suchen would not fall into the other party's trap.
"Why do you have nothing to do... You are the dignified Commander-in-Chief of the Xuzhou Camp. It is considered a military position. With the national crisis at the forefront, you should stick to your duties." Cao Shancheng said firmly.
"Because there is no one left in the Xuzhou camp." Former Cui Sima sighed. "One hundred thousand Xuzhou men have died again."
Cao Shancheng was slightly startled, and Sun Wanshou next to him was even more embarrassed - but he didn't know who he was embarrassed for?
Cao Shancheng was silent for a long time, and then continued: "Even the Xuzhou camp suffered heavy losses. This time, the imperial court also added Dongdu elite soldiers and many Guanxi garrison soldiers. The soldiers and horses are more powerful, and the position and status are more important.
, why don’t Cui Sima continue to perform his duties faithfully?”
"Not to mention that I didn't know at the time that the imperial court would recruit many troops. Even if I knew, I would have resigned faster." Cui Suchen said seriously.
"What does this mean?" Cao Shancheng's rough, messy eyebrows instantly raised.
"It's very simple." Cui Suchen answered frankly. "Because the Cui family is from a humble family, it is not enough to supervise the dignitaries of Zhudongdu and the high families of Guanlong... In the past, I could take this position because all the soldiers in the Xuzhou camp were descendants of Jianghuai.
Most of the generals are descendants of Jiangdong generals and Jianghuai generals and Nanchen surrendered generals. I, a Zhengzhou Cui family member who is half Guanlong and half Hebei, go to supervise them. It is in line with the imperial court's rules... Now that all the Jianghuai children are dead, I am still there.
If you are a supervisor and Sima, won't you be ridiculed for not knowing the rules?"
Cao Shancheng couldn't refute it.
After a long while, the prince, who had wasted half his life in the position of county magistrate, could only sigh: "The imperial court should not place important military and state affairs based on family background, so that those who are loyal to the emperor, patriotic and capable are limited by it, while those who are incompetent, cowardly and cowardly are restricted.
Hold its handle..."
After saying this, Sun Juncheng was obviously relieved, because Cao Shancheng had obviously lost his aggressiveness.
But soon, what the county magistrate did not expect was that the seemingly gentle Cui Erlang actually took the initiative: "How hypocritical are Mr. Cao's words?"
"What do you mean?" Cao Shancheng raised his eyebrows on a tall building in the south of the city and spoke in a serious tone, which almost startled Sun Wanshou. "My loyalty can be learned from the sun!"
"I'm not talking about this, but about Mr. Cao Fu's background." Cui Suchen's face remained as usual, but he could still reveal his hint of sneer. "Mr. Cao Fu kept saying that the court should not use family background to govern the military and state affairs.
It seems that most people fight against injustice for those of low origin, but I have been trapped here in Qinghe County for many days, and I have heard people mention it when I go around... It is said that Lord Cao Fu often said to people after he returned from the defeat in Pingyuan: 'We will wait for you.
Since the party under the order is a national soldier, it only hates the lack of strength. It is already very shameful that it cannot capture and kill the thief. How can it still listen to the thief's deception and prepare to surrender? Are we the kind of people they slaughtered? 'What does this mean?
"
Cao Shancheng became angry and gnashed his teeth: "Cui Erlang, officials and thieves are not at odds with each other, how can they be confused?! Besides, as a noble of a noble family, you are a minister of national military affairs who has entered the palace seriously. You don't want to serve the country, but instead
What's the point of speaking for thieves?"
"What's the truth? Lord Cao Mansion doesn't know?" Cui Suchen asked suddenly. "How can there be any intact eggs when the nest is overturned? The Cui family in Qinghe has not been able to serve for a long time, and there are many incompetent children. At this time, go to the east to find a new one.
It's just a symbol of peace, it's human nature, why should I set up a traffic jam first, and then attack and kill people on the roadside? Even a person like me who is about to return to his home in Henan has been detained till now?! Do I still want to give you a good look?
?!"
Cao Shancheng took a long breath after hearing this, still gritting his teeth: "I knew you were waiting for me here! Cui colluded with the thieves, and I am the chief officer of the county, can I still indulge in this? I can't understand the canonical punishment, and I have already suffered a lot.
Hate! Deeply hate!”
Sun Wanshou looked at his chief officer. His expression remained unchanged, but his heart was extremely complicated. He was relieved but also a little inexplicably depressed:
He breathed a sigh of relief because he realized Cui Erlang's high rank and took the initiative to lead the matter to the fundamental issue that Cao Fujun was most concerned about, which made Cao Fujun no longer able to explore the question in turn.
And the reason for frustration is that Sun Wanshou is actually very convinced of his former subordinate and current boss Cao Fujun, because the other party has indeed shown unimaginable responsibility in the chaos, while others are in a mess, including him, the county magistrate, who is powerless.
At that time, it almost turned the tide and saved the situation in Qinghe.
However, it may be that he has been in the middle and lower levels for too long, and has not been able to find talents for too long. In fact, this person has always had strong emotions, and this emotion is not towards the emperor and the emperor's uncle in the east capital who are out of his reach, but towards the emperor and his uncle in the east capital.
It was against everyone else in the bureaucracy... After all, the emperor and his uncle promoted him and recognized him, but the bureaucracy was the direct target of suppressing him.
After the defeat of Ma Lianhe, he even took the defeat of Hejian Camp into account, and the target of his resentment also expanded to other people in Hebei.
It can't be said that he has a problem, nor that he shouldn't have emotions. It's just that in this overwhelming situation, this state cannot last long.
If he himself can't hold it, others can't hold it either.
However, in the face of Cao Shancheng's attack, Cui Suchen was still not afraid: "No matter how much you feel you are relying on Mr. Cao, no matter how much you hate him, you should have a certain amount of restraint. If you go too far, you will only embarrass yourself... I am honest today."
Wait, it’s true that the Qinghe Cui family’s big and small houses went to the plains, but they were just seeking peace, but because of your actions, they were pushed to the opposite side. Twenty-six and twenty-seven are all ignorant, and they saw the sword and stick company.
I don't even dare to come back. In Jiangling, I was just flattened and rounded by people like Zhang San. I have already reported my family's property, property, and even the number of practitioners and people one by one. You are stopping me.
Or was it pushed over?"
Cao Shancheng was furious: "Cui surrendered to the enemy, and you still blame me for my strict enforcement of the law?"
"If you really enforce the law strictly, you can just raid the Cui family's mansion in Wucheng!" Cui Erlang showed no mercy. "You know it yourself, you can't raid it! There's not one person there who doesn't even know me."
I don’t know if it’s the Grandmaster or the former Governor of the Eastern Qi Dynasty who is in charge! Why bother if you have to poke me when you know you are incapable of doing anything?!”
There was silence for a moment on the tall buildings in the south of the city.
After an unknown amount of time, Cao Shancheng slowly stood up and said to Cui Suchen: "Where righteousness lies, you must go there knowing you cannot go there... Cui Erlang, there is some truth to this. I think you are doing this."
No one from a rich family will understand until the day he dies. On the contrary, the thief on the opposite side, Zhang Sanlang, although he is a friend and enemy, he still has a certain aura in his actions!"
At this point, the person ignored the other person's reaction and pointed at the other person again, turning to look at his own county magistrate:
"Sun Juncheng, I know that you didn't say something last time, and I also know that you wanted to treat him preferentially and protect him. Don't you just think that the collapse of the Wei Dynasty was all caused by the saint's lack of virtue? Isn't that right?
I feel that the Wei Dynasty is the Wei Dynasty of the saints, and the court is only the court of the saints. He abandoned it, so why should we work so hard?
"And I am not going to tell you any big truths today, I just want to ask you, if Xue Changxiong's Guanlong general is so domineering and ignorant, and the leader of the family, he has no responsibility for the situation of the Wei Dynasty.
?
"If meat-eaters... do not need to be meat-eaters, if everyone who eats official positions and salaries obeys the law and is loyal to the country, don't say that in this case, the saint will never act recklessly. Even if the saint's mind wavers, he will never let the world be like this.
It’s unbearable!”
After saying this, this man, who was recognized as one of the most knowledgeable and loyal county guards in Hebei Province, turned around and went downstairs.
Sun Juncheng felt uncomfortable and extremely angry at the last question - of course he found it difficult to accept that the other party was still defending the tyrant who abandoned the world, but he also knew very well that if he questioned other bureaucrats and generals based on their loyalty and duty,
Cao Shancheng is definitely the most qualified person.
After the three campaigns, Cao Shancheng in Hebei and Zhang Xuguo in the east were like this.
However, when he thought of the current situation and the almost destined outcome of this county prince, Sun Wanshoufu felt sad again and could only hide his face in silence.
After a long while, Cui Suchen finally stood up slowly, turned around and leaned on the railing to look into the distance. However, he rarely lost his composure and spoke. He seemed to be answering Cao Shancheng who had left. Some seemed to be explaining to Sun Juncheng, but it was also possible that he was just talking to himself.
Self encouragement:
"There are tens of millions of people in the world. No matter how few people go to justice, how can there be only one person? However, the road is long and obstructive. Those who are slow-tempered may not be able to go far, but those who are impatient often travel fast but the distance is short.
Besides, it’s better to stop and see the situation clearly than some people who are so blinded that they even get in the wrong direction!”
At the end of the sentence, it was not a rhetorical question, but a conclusion.
The spring water in the south of Chiping City flows continuously, with sparkling waves and a shape like a scroll. It flows straight south to the big river, and further down the river is the boundary of the plain.
At noon when Cui Suchen saw Cao Shancheng and easily provoked him but rarely felt anything from his heart, tens of thousands of troops in the plain began to leave the Banxian camp in a mighty manner, crossed the Mamian River, and marched westward.
Come.
Due to the large number of troops that were launched at one time, there were a total of 30,000 to 40,000 soldiers, plus baggage, craftsmen, and auxiliary troops stationed in the fields. It was impossible to calculate the number. The momentum was astonishing.
In addition, the army has always had a trivial system, with many rules for dividing camps and routes, so only large armies of soldiers marched on the official roads, so that the roads were paved, and auxiliary soldiers were forced to follow them from the fields and trails.
It is said that all the people in the world were born in Longmu. When the army was fighting the first life-and-death battle at the foot of the Calendar Mountain, they and the hostile Qilu officers and soldiers agreed that they would rather walk in the swamp than avoid the flooded fields. Today, spring
The seedlings are blooming and the fields are clear in all directions. Naturally, we are more careful and line up on the long path.
Viewed from a distance, it looks like the confluence of hundreds of rivers heading westward, unstoppable, and also like the arrangement of longitude and latitude, dividing the four fields like a chessboard.
Just as Bai Sanniang said, Zhang Xing is confident on the surface, but in fact he is extremely unconfident in his heart. He has always felt that he is a rebel who is chasing a duck, and his gang is a ragtag group. But today, he is riding a yellow gelding, and he is a little bit unconfident.
Standing on a gentle slope next to Douzigang, looking at this scene from a distance, I saw that the greenery in my eyes complemented the ranks of the armies. Even though I had always been guilty, it was rare for me to feel majestic.
Then he looked back at the people around him and said:
"Everyone, who can seize this land and support this army to advance westward? If we give you another three to five years to repair the system internally, enter Hebei from outside, consolidate the eastern territory, and then integrate the old land of Qi in the east, why?
Can’t we have a showdown with Guan Long?!”
The people around him had already seen the same thing, but few of them tried to cater to him.
In fact, in the evening of that day, the eight battalions that started on the western front, led by Xiong Bonan, Wang Shuyong, and Xu Shiren, had already headed straight to Gaotang City and set up camp on the spot.
Xue Wanbi knew that the critical situation was coming. As early as when he found out about the advance, he had already sent a series of rescue messages to his back, asking Cao Shancheng to come to the rescue. He asked Cao Shancheng to ask Qu Tuda, Wuyang, Wu'an, and Wei County troops to come to the rescue. Cao Shancheng did not
Dare to neglect, rush directly from Chiping to the preset location, which is Boping County directly behind Gaotang in the defense line of Zhangnan-Licheng-Gaotang-Chiping, and then fly in all directions here, demanding
The counties came to the rescue.
One day later, of course, before the replies from the counties arrived, the red flag with the word "Deposed" had already arrived at the foot of Gaotang City.
The houses and trees outside the city had long been cleared away, and Zhang Dalongtou was not polite. He only accepted the young seedlings with a pity mentality, and asked the troops to camp around the city, completely surrounding Gaotang City.
The next day, the water in the moat was cut off easily.
At this time, Cao Shancheng finally got good news - both Wei County and Ji County would definitely send some reinforcements. It is conceivable that under the political pressure of these two counties, Wu'an, Wuyang, and Xiangguo
They also have to hold their noses to help.
There is a relatively complete defense line in front, and there is a strong point in the defense line, Gaotang, led by Xue Wanbi. If we can gather reinforcements, although we dare not say victory, the army will definitely be short of food. As long as we hold on for a few days and force the opponent to retreat, we can
