When the drizzle started, Dou Xiaoniang once again clearly noticed the difference in climate between Huaibei and Hebei... Although they are both plains and crisscrossed by river networks, the temperature gradually rises in summer and the precipitation steadily increases.
The amount and humidity of the air still made her and the Hebei Knights in her subordinate team feel obvious discomfort.
There is no other way. As a ranger, you can't hide in cities and camps like a large organized unit. Instead, you have to carry a raincoat all day long, sweating and getting wet, and just go back and forth in the wilderness.
Especially this kind of drizzle, where I don't know whether I should wear a raincoat or not, is even more difficult to bear.
In desperation, Dou Xiaoniang could only use her own Lihuo Zhenqi to bake, so that her body could avoid moisture. As for her subordinates who did not have this level of cultivation, they did not have such good luck. Within a few days, several people were killed.
The number of personnel was reduced and they were transferred to the rear for rest and rotation.
Under this situation, Dou Xiaoniang could only think of Chief Zhang's words that day in Liyang, but she felt that the right path was for everyone to build a foundation.
However, back to the present, this errand is coming to an end, and you can take a break, because Dou Xiaoniang got news on the way that Chief Zhang is actually in Dangshan in front of you. The leader of this trip, Manager Xie, directly made the decision to turn around.
, this also saves her from continuing to travel across states and counties with her people.
Arriving at Dangshan Mountain, Dou Xiaoniang immediately realized that this place had turned into a large military camp. Just by looking at the flags and accents in the valley, she knew that at least fifteen or six battalions had arrived and should still be gathering, as if they wanted to borrow
With the special mountain-shaped wrapping on both sides of Dangshan Mountain, it is like a city-like structure, and a large army is stationed here... This kind of terrain, coupled with the rain in early summer, the fog is gradually increasing, blocking the smoke, so as long as no enemy comes directly, the most is
It's just that they knew there were troops stationed here.
In this situation, coupled with the dozen or so battalions on the front line, even though Dou Xiaoniang did not know the whole situation, she also realized that the gang was really ready for a big war.
I just don’t know if Xiao Su, who used his teacher’s name as a leader, has come? Has he been bullied because he is an outsider?
"How many battalions of your army are here?"
Among the patrol team, the most excited person was not the member of the gang, but a young officer who was obviously dressed differently from everyone else in the gang. He didn't even have armor, but was wearing a brocade uniform with a red seal and a gold seal.
He is wearing a small carved warrior crown and a long sword with a gold and silver silk handle. He is always releasing body-protecting energy to protect his clothes from rain... It is obvious that this is a senior military attaché of the Wei Dynasty.
, and of noble birth.
This point directly led to the patrol team's rejection of this person. Even if this person came up and said that he was here to surrender, Xie Minghe and General Manager Xie also recognized this person's surrender and value, and turned around to greet him personally.
It is impossible to change the attitude of the patrolmen.
For example, now, no one pays attention to him at all. Even Dou Xiaoniang, who is usually quite serious, seems to be wandering. This makes this person feel excited but also a little nervous.
However, it's not that no one understands him. Xie Minghe, who is at the front of the team, knows that this person's clothes are not to show off, but to survive... What this surrendered person named Bai Youbin is most afraid of now is the Gang or Huai
The people of Youmeng killed him indiscriminately... Think about it, even if you have the cultivation of Dan Dan, you will not die for a while, but you are in the enemy's territory and the rain is pouring. Once you are injured, there will be no good results.
Eat, so I use this method to show my identity.
However, understanding is understanding, but Xie Minghe also ignored the other party... The reason is very simple. First, it is up to Chief Zhang to decide the outcome of this person. It is difficult to disclose military information without an explanation; secondly, Chief Xie went around a lot.
After returning from the war, although he learned some information from various places, he himself did not know how many soldiers there were at this time.
But that's it. In the dull situation, Youqi had already welcomed the Daxingtai documents brought by Chief Zhang, made a handover, and then retreated on his own. Xie Minghe, led by the leaders who came out to greet him, moved there.
On the main peak on one side of Mangdang Mountain is the Juyi Hall that looks like a cliff.
Arriving in front of the huge "righteousness" flag that almost stretched out from the cliff, many people in the hall knew that Manager Xie Minghe was coming, so they swarmed out to greet him. Only Zhang Xing and a few others were seen. Xie Minghe's temperament was there.
, didn't care, and after a brief exchange of hands with Li Ding and others, he followed Xiong Bonan, Xu Shiying and many other acquaintances into the hall while chatting and laughing, but saw Zhang Xing standing in the hall, and then reached out to hold someone in the seat,
He was talking strangely there, and the man being held was obviously nervous, with sweat covering his forehead. From time to time, he would look back at the tall Qin Bao behind him... Manager Xie was not surprised by the strangeness, and did not say a word, but went straight up to look for him.
Let’s look at the seats.
Bai Youbin, on the other hand, became more excited when he saw Li Ding; and at a glance he saw Xu Shiying's too-long sword, and was frightened again; he finally suppressed many thoughts, and when he came to the hall, he saw
The situation inside made me nervous... Even though someone pointed to a seat, I didn't dare to sit down. I didn't sit down until everyone else was sitting casually and it was not easy to stand out. However, I still stared at the person in the middle who was holding the person's hand seriously.
, prick up your ears to find some useful information.
"Old Zhao, you know the rules. Don't look around. I'll ask and you'll answer, okay?" At this time, Zhang Xing held the hand of the person in front of him, and the ice energy was slowly released.
While the opponent nodded, he also tremblingly used the red Lihuo Qi to hold the opponent's hand in a stalemate.
"Didn't the Jianghu say that you went to Dongyi? Did you go there? When did you come back?" Zhang Xing asked out of curiosity.
"I did go, I just came back a month ago." The man tried his best to answer.
"Why come back?"
"Knowing that Mr. Zhang has become a big deal, I want to use the incense on Mangdang Mountain to find a way out..."
This is too false. If you really want to find yourself, why don't you go to Hebei? So Zhang Xing said nothing, and the ice energy in his hand accelerated, while Qin Bao also held down the man's shoulders behind him.
As soon as he became angry, the man immediately changed his words and corrected: "I really want to defect to Mr. Zhang, but I also know that I was a little unhappy with Mr. Zhang and Mr. Qin around here that day, so I haven't been able to make up my mind.
I only came here today because I knew that Du Po Zhen, leader of the Du Alliance, had lost Huaixi and was in trouble in Xuzhou... I thought he might be short of men and could accommodate me, a person who used to go to Huaihe in the old days, so I came here."
Zhang Xing laughed: "So, do you think I can't tolerate others?"
The man was sweating profusely, but he didn't dare to extinguish the energy in his hands, and he didn't dare to take the initiative to exert force, so he could only deal with it randomly: "I feel that I am not the material for big things, and I am afraid of ruining the situation of Mr. Zhang, so then
The sin is too great."
"Then you're not afraid of ruining Lao Du's situation?"
"If it's broken, it's broken." The man responded awkwardly. "Anyway, Leader Du has lost his foundation one after another, so there's nothing wrong with him..."
This is complete nonsense, not to mention the big bosses and leaders around, even Bai Youbin laughed, but I don't know who is laughing, or Du Po Zhen, who always wants to remain independent, but has been hit repeatedly.
.
“Why come to Mangdang Mountain?”
"I wanted to find some old connections here. I originally wanted to find the leader of the great sage Wang Zhenwang, but when I got to Dengzhou, I found out that he had gone to sea. I also heard that although Chef Fan became a leader, he was not a leader.
I still take good care of my brothers on Mangdang Mountain, so I came here..." As he said this, the man couldn't help but glance at the dark-faced Fan Liuchu, who was expressionless.
"Why are you coming back now?" Zhang Xing nodded and continued to ask, but he seemed to be asking a repeated question.
"Because I know that Leader Du lost Huaixi and went to Xuzhou." The man continued to repeat the answer, but he was obviously a little uneasy, and the Qi in his hands was a little unstable. As soon as he finished speaking, he was forced to double by the Ice Qi.
arm.
The man was shocked and quickly exerted his strength, but he only felt that the other party's true energy was as deep as the sea and the abyss, and he could not push it at all. Instead, the soreness and numbness at the intersection of the two true energy on his arms was steadily going up.
Increasingly horrified.
It should be noted that he claims to have a relationship with Zhang Xing, Qin Bao, and Du Pozhen, but he does not come to look for the former, only the latter. This is because he had a grudge between Mangdang Mountain and Huanshui that day.
There was no grudge between the two, but it was the latter who had little stake in it that day.
Coupled with the situation at this time, he was captured as a spy, and he was in Daxantai, which had spread across dozens of states and counties. If he died, he would really die.
Thinking of this, he finally had no choice but to admit: "I am from Dongyi... I fled to Dongyi in embarrassment that day. After staying for a few years, all the money I had was used up. I could only work as a retainer for the nobles of Dongyi. I was the governor of Dongyi.
My subordinates found me and took me to see the Grand Governor. He told me that there was an opportunity here and asked me if I wanted to come back to Huaibei and find a background with Alliance Leader Du..."
"Are you a Dongyi spy?" Zhang Xing thought thoughtfully.
"How can I be considered a Dongyi spy?" The man finally collapsed. "I am a Central Plains person who has been with Huaishang for half my life. My reputation and experience are all here. Now that I know the opportunity has come, I can't wait to come back. As for the Dongyi people, he
With this statement, at most it is just a statement. Unless the Dongyi people can really attack Xuzhou and take advantage of it, how can they be regarded as spies? Daxingtai, please make a clear decision and give me, Zhao Xingchuan, a way to survive!
"
Zhang Xing nodded: "If I didn't give you a way to live, I would have killed you long ago... How could I not give you a way to live?"
That person was Zhao Xingchuan, who was drinking together in the Juyi Hall that day and escaped afterwards. He was overjoyed when he heard this. Regardless of the cold energy that had reached his shoulders, he tried his best to respond: "If that's the case, please just ask Mr. Zhang
Order!"
"Don't worry, let me ask you one more thing. Boss Lou died in this hall that day. Boss Han was Chen Ling's man. Qin Bao, Fan Liu and I were all here, but you went to Dongyi. That week
Where is the boss? He called himself Zhou Yi in the hall that day, which was obviously a pseudonym, but I don’t know where he came from?" Upon seeing this, Zhang Xing stopped caring and just asked what he wanted to ask.
"Don't Mr. Zhang know?" Zhao Xingchuan was stunned for a moment, but his anger was almost on his neck, so he didn't care much and gave the result directly. "Zhou Yi is from Dengzhou, and this statement is indeed not false.
It’s just that he joined the True Fire Cult later... Just ask your own leader Cheng Dalang and you will know his background! As for where he is now, whether it is south or north, east or west, I don’t know...
…”
Zhang Xing nodded, without comment, and continued to ask: "Since you came here to get a teaching from the Dongyi people, would you like to get a teaching from me and go to the northwest for a trip?"
Even though Zhao Xingchuan had been mentally prepared for a long time, he was a little confused at this time: "Northwest...where?"
"Northwest, Chen Ling has created a small separatist situation in the northwest. I'm afraid he hopes that a capable Jianghuai old friend will find him so that he can relocate there." Zhang Xing followed the temptation. "Besides, I'm not asking you to be a spy. According to the
You have your own explanation. I will give you an explanation, and you will also leave an explanation. Unless my troops attack the northwest and gain all the advantages, it will be your own business in the northwest... How about it?"
Zhao Xingchuan felt that his arms were completely numb and even his neck felt cold. He just responded quickly: "It all depends on Mr. Zhang!"
Only then did Zhang Xing let go, but then he called Fan Liuchu: "Take him to rest. I will go back to Baima tomorrow and take him to Hebei on the way."
Zhao Xingchuan regained consciousness, stood up in embarrassment, bent over and coughed twice, and then left with Chef Fan.
As soon as the people left, the surrounding atmosphere relaxed slightly. Zhang Xing also greeted Xie Minghe, and then he and Qin Bao sat down respectively. As soon as they sat down, Li Ding, who had taken the second seat before, frowned and asked: "What about this?"
Is it useful to send someone to the northwest? This person is obviously dishonest, but he is just a little succumbing to the current situation."
"I was afraid that he would leak information, so I did it casually." Zhang Xing answered frankly. "In this situation, we can't let him go south?"
"Is fighting still possible in the south in this situation?" Xiong Bonan suddenly interrupted. "According to the intelligence, the Jiangdu Forbidden Army followed our advice and left along the Huai River."
As soon as this topic came up, everyone was talking about it. Bai Youbin wanted to speak immediately, but he swallowed it again. But he suddenly came to his senses. He should first see the war willingness of these gang leaders before speaking.
...If everyone agrees that they are not prepared to fight, but I take a stand and instigate a war, I am afraid I will be beaten and killed for showing sincerity.
In this world, you need to survive first.
Sure enough, Bai Youbin listened carefully and quickly understood something, that is, most of the people in the Juyi Hall still wanted to fight, but it seemed that there had been discussions and decisions before, unless the Forbidden Army took the initiative to invade,
Otherwise, there would be no big fight... So everyone thought that this battle was really going to be impossible, which made them feel a little regretful and helpless.
The only thing worth noting is that Chief Zhang, who is theoretically his brother-in-law, doesn't seem to pay much attention to this discussion, but is rather lost in thought.
"It's useless to talk about this." Finally, Xu Shiying, who was obviously calm, or more relaxed, stopped the discussion. "Even if he really can't fight, we have to be prepared..."
As he said that, he looked at Zhang Xing, as if to respect the chief, and asked the latter to speak.
"Not bad." Unexpectedly, Li Ding looked at Zhang Xing first and said, "So I still want to go to the front and see the terrain with my own eyes... If we really want to fight, we will have to make preparations in a hurry, but if we want to plan smoothly,
, a hundred scouts can't compare to seeing the battlefield with your own eyes."
"This is natural." Zhang Xing also came to his senses and responded seriously. "Let the King of Heaven go with you, just in case. Moreover, you and I, Xu Dalang, Shan Dalang, it is best not to leave the army.
Together; when we get to the front line and are separated from the army, don't even gather any three people easily."
Bai Youbin has been in the army for many years, and he almost immediately understood that the king of heaven is Xiong Bonan, not to mention that this is the highest level of force, and the other four should be the commander-in-chief responsible for fighting the war, at least they have the right to allocate part of the main force.
general.
Among them, the rest were just that. He also knew who Xu Dalang and Shan Dalang were, but Li Ding, who had just surrendered, actually had the command authority, was a bit shocked.
Li Ding and Xiong Bonan each nodded and did not mention it. Xu Shiying simply took the initiative to ask what she wanted to ask: "Is the chief going back to Baima?"
"Not only Baima, but also Jiyin, Xingyang, Liyang, and Jiangling. Let's take a quick trip to see the logistics and check the defense in the north." Zhang Xingyi said.
Xu Dalang and other high-level officials also agree that it is inevitable to concentrate troops in Huaibei, but they must also guard against Hebei and Dongdu. In fact, in addition to being forced to keep important members such as Chen Bin, Wei Xuanding, and Dou Lide in Hebei, the gang was also forced to keep
A considerable amount of protective troops were deployed for defense and strategic deception...but this was still unsafe. Therefore, Zhang Xing went north to Baima and Jiyin to check the logistics, and he deliberately showed up in the following places to frighten the Hejian Army and the
Dongdu is even less likely to touch the Jin troops and horses.
"This is Bai Youbin, General Ying Yanglang of the Forbidden Army... His father Bai Hengjun died during the military uprising in Jiangdu." Xie Minghe finally spoke and pointed at Bai Youbin. "I came here specifically to surrender."
When everyone heard his name and his father's name, they couldn't help but have different expressions.
When Bai Youbin knew that the critical moment had come, he immediately stood up and handed over his hands, and then gave a serious explanation: "Chief Zhang, all the heroes of the gang, you are not here to avenge your father...Cao Che was so devastated that he sought death.
Lu, my father and son kept in mind the kindness of the great Wei Dynasty and tried their best to fall into that situation. It was only God's will and there was no resentment... To this day, it is just because Sima Huada has the will to be independent and dominates the army.
Fu, since I offended him, I was afraid that I would end up dead without a burial place, so I escaped and just wanted a way out."
Everyone was relieved when they heard that they were just avoiding trouble, not asking for troops... After all, they wanted to fight, but no one was willing to fight for a loyal minister and filial son of Cao Che.
It was Li Ding, who still did not abide by the order within the gang, and asked again: "Bai Erlang came from Xuzhou, and the Forbidden Army's trip is false. Can you tell me the cultivation level of all generals, troop allocation, and logistics quantity?"
"It's natural." Bai Youbin responded immediately. This was his biggest asset for this trip, but he couldn't hesitate at all.
In this way, Li Ding couldn't wait to ask questions, and Bai Youbin answered all questions. The two sides met for twenty or thirty times in a row before stopping.
"How?" Zhang Xing waited for a moment and looked at Li Silang who was thoughtful. "Do you have any ideas?"
"Of course I have ideas, but I still have to go to the front line to take a look." Li Ding's reply was appropriate.
Zhang Xing nodded and looked at Bai Youbin: "Where's General Bai, what do you think? Can we start a fight?"
Bai Youbin hesitated and replied: "I don't know."
"If there is a fight, do you think we can win?" Zhang Xing continued to ask.
Bai Youbin opened his mouth to speak, but decided to keep a low profile: "I am just a general. How can I know the outcome of an army of 70,000 to 80,000 people?"
Zhang Xing nodded without comment, but continued to ask: "Then do you think we should fight?"
Bai Youbin suppressed the impulse caused by his usual temperament before the Jiangdu Military Revolution, and just laughed: "Chief Zhang is joking. If you don't know the outcome, how can you say whether we should fight or not?"
Zhang Xing also laughed, but then turned around and shouted into the side room of Juyi Hall: "Yu Wenshu, look, General Bai is much more cautious than you... Unlike you, who always says "Sima Hua" when he sees me
Da Ke Po has caused many people to think that you are out of your mind for revenge."
Bai Youbin looked over there in shock, and saw an old friend of Jiangdu walking out of the side room. It was Yu Changnan who had come to "deliver the order" before.
Yu Changnan walked over with no expression on his face, bowed his hands in front of everyone, and said simply: "Chief, please forgive me for being blunt, General Bai actually thinks that we should fight, and he can fight! And he wants to fight more than anyone else! However, when people encounter great changes, they often have reverses.
The old becomes the new... For example, my temperament was relatively reserved and quiet before, but after the drastic changes in Jiangdu, I felt that I was pedantic before. General Bai usually has an impulsive personality, but after the drastic changes in Jiangdu, it is normal for him to be cautious."
Zhang Xing nodded and looked at Bai Youbin again: "Is this really the case?"
Bai Youbin let out a long sigh and saluted again: "As Yu Sheren said, how can you give up the revenge of killing your father lightly? I just know that no one can shake the current situation. If I insist on saying more, I'm afraid it will only end.
I disobeyed all the heroes and caused dissatisfaction."
"In that case, please sit down. I don't say whether we can fight in this battle or not, but we need to make complete preparations. Please stay here with Yu Wenshu to make detailed arrangements for this battle." Zhang Xing raised his hand to signal. "
If we really want to fight, you two must have a miraculous effect."
Bai Youbin was very determined, bowed again and again, and returned to his seat.
But Yu Changnan came to ask proudly: "Chief, the intelligence of General Bai and I can both complement and confirm each other. I wonder if the chief has the judgment to fight this battle?"
"Judgment can't be called that." Zhang Xing thought for a while and gave the answer. "However, I do feel that this battle will have to be fought longer... because Sima Huada can't control the imperial army, nor can he control himself.
, the Imperial Guards themselves can’t control themselves.”
Li Ding was stunned, Yu Changnan pondered, and Bai Youbin was delighted. In fact, many people present reacted, but it seemed that most people were used to Chief Zhang, but a few people just nodded curtly.
Facts have proved that Zhang Xing's mysterious statement still has some truth... On April 26, Zhang Xing had just left for Baima, and the Imperial Army had just left Xuzhou City. In the afternoon, a real battle occurred on the Huaibei front line.
battle.
It must be noted that there was no premeditation in this battle. It was not that the main combatants like Liu Heifu deliberately went deep into the Huai River line to launch an attack, nor was it Shan Tonghai who received Zhang Xing's secret order to launch a systematic attack in private, but that a forbidden army actually appeared.
A conflict occurred with the army within the front-line defense zone of Liaobang.
The specific location is in the small town at the foot of Panshi Mountain, dozens of miles west of Xuzhou City, on the north side of Suishui River.
Obviously, the Forbidden Army did not feel that they were provoking or anything. As the flankers and rearguards on the northwest side of the main force of the Forbidden Army, they walked for a day in the rain, because most of the rain gear in the towns along the way was used by other flanking units in front.
The capture made them naturally focus on the town on the other side of the Suishui River. In the afternoon, they came to a pontoon bridge and a team general took the initiative to lead a team of people across the river to the small commercial market town on the other side that looked very prosperous.
"Get" the rain gear, and another team of people followed immediately.
In response to this, the gang leader Shang Huai'en, who was stationed behind Panshi Mountain next to this market town, ordered a counterattack without any hesitation. This leader, who was considered to be Chief Zhang's direct confidant but had always had a poor record, couldn't wait to prove that he was the same person.
, the other party's behavior of crossing the Suishui River to plunder was enough to make him confident... Although there was no expressly agreed limit, Shang Huaien, who was directly assigned to this place by Shan Tonghai, had sufficient reasons to believe that his defense zone included this town.
.
However, the result of the battle was a bit embarrassing for Shang Huaien, and the process was quite ugly.
The gang dispatched more than half of the battalion, 1,400 to 500 men, and about a dozen teams. However, because Shang Huaien was greedy for victory, he ordered the troops to be divided into two sides to encircle them.
It took so long for the Forbidden Army to regroup that even though the army was outnumbered and outnumbered, it was unable to quickly capture the two groups of Forbidden Army that had crossed the border.
Not only that, Shang Huaien ordered only one team of people to be responsible for cutting off the pontoon bridge to retreat. Instead, the reinforcements from the other side quickly crossed the river and broke through the bridge head, forcibly picking up the two teams of people who were trapped.
The battle was fought like this because the Forbidden Army lacked cavalry and no masters of elixir condensation were in charge. Otherwise, the army would probably have made a big joke.
The battle itself can only be regarded as a so-called friction. As long as the senior generals on both sides still have sense, they will not make any decisions based on this. However, the battle process and results spread by themselves among the army. The originally nervous Forbidden Army was naturally
The morale was greatly boosted, and they couldn't help but start to look down upon the army. The army battalions at the front were also very angry and deeply ashamed.
It is said that Liu Heifu scolded his mother on the spot. When Shan Tonghai learned about the specific battle situation later, he directly sent his envoys to scold him. Moreover, this was only the reaction of the leaders above. The sergeants and officers below would also become angry and arrogant.
These changes can easily lead to a rapid increase in the number of similar frictions.
So soon, the two sides began to compete with each other, and some people began to take the initiative to cross the border to carry out provocative battles or targeted attacks... There was no way, this was the chaos of war, two huge armies of tens of thousands of people were gradually spreading among dozens of people.
It goes without saying that there is no way to enforce orders and prohibitions on a front that is miles or even hundreds of miles long. Even the changes in the battlefield atmosphere are driven by various complex factors, so that they appear to be all kinds of strange.
All in all, on the afternoon of April 29, when Dou Xiaoniang, who had returned from rest, returned to the front line, she encountered a non-targeted ambush on the north bank of Suishui River, which left her at a loss.
