The already sparse streets were even more sparse at this time.
Within a moment, the war horse stopped at the government office.
In front of the Yamen, a large number of soldiers gathered and guarded, looking nervous.
"General Ren, the leader is waiting for you!"
As soon as Ren Jiguang arrived, his personal guards took him directly into the mansion.
"Okay!" Ren Jiguang took long strides and left regardless of his fatigue, feeling very anxious in his heart.
As the defense envoy of Jingzhou, he only had 6,000 soldiers and horses under his command, while Lao Huihui Ma guarded the area with more than 10,000 soldiers, and he was still an old camp that traveled all over the country.
Once Ma Shouying died of illness, not to mention whether he could control these ten thousand people, he simply couldn't resist Zhang Xianzhong who was eyeing him in Yuezhou.
Thinking of this serious consequence, he couldn't help but be frightened.
After a while, he was brought to the ward, full of herbal smell.
On the bed, Lao Huihui looked haggard and thin, coughing continuously, and his voice sounded extremely uncomfortable.
Everyone in the room was attentive and did not dare to disturb him in the slightest.
"Rongguang, you are here!"
Lao Huihui raised his head, looked at Ren Jiguang who had come from afar, and showed a smile.
"You are sick, I should have come a long time ago." Ren Jiguang said hurriedly.
"After a lifetime of fighting, my body has long been exhausted. Now that I can die on my bed, I am considered a blessing."
Lao Huihui was like an old bellows, breathing heavily, resting for a while, and then replied.
Ren Jiguang frowned and leaned closer: "I'm afraid you don't know that the King of the West has announced that he will go to Bashu to establish his empire. Hundreds of thousands of troops are watching, and Jingzhou is in danger."
"Huhuhu——"
Lao Huihui breathed heavily and said, "I heard about it."
"When he goes to Bashu, he will definitely have to pass through Jingzhou. You are afraid that you will not be able to resist him when he comes."
"Or maybe I'm worried that he will annex my tribe."
"That's right!" Ren Jiguang nodded, with a heavy face: "If something goes wrong in Jingzhou, I won't be able to explain it to Prince Shun."
"hehe!"
Lao Huihui chuckled lightly and said: "When a person dies, he is like a lamp going out. He can no longer care about what happens after him."
"The fight between King Chuang and King Xi, let them go!"
With that said, Ren Jiguang was kicked out.
After leaving the government office, Ren Jiguang had mixed feelings.
The spring rain was blowing on his face, and the cold wind was howling. No matter how thick his cotton robe was, it couldn't stop the wind from coming in. He stretched as much as possible and said melancholy:
"The mountains in Yulin at this time must have been closed by heavy snow!"
Living in a foreign land, he was extremely envious of his colleagues who returned to Guanzhong.
Although the South is good, it is not my hometown after all.
His military camp is outside the city, and inside the city is Lao Huihui's territory, so they don't interfere with each other.
"drive--"
The cold rain hitting his face could not dissipate his sadness.
Hundreds of personal guards followed closely, not daring to relax for a moment.
Suddenly, the muddy ground shook, and hundreds of war horses roared towards them, instantly surrounding them.
Ren Jiguang reined in his horse and stopped, looking at the sudden group of soldiers and horses, and said in a deep voice: "Who are you?"
"Brother Jiguang, we haven't seen you for a long time and you don't even recognize me?"
Among the riders, a man suddenly walked out. He was tall and tall, with red lips and white teeth, a handsome face, and was wearing white armor, just like a character walking out of a painting.
Ren Jiguang was suddenly startled: "How come, Li Dingguo, why are you in Jingzhou?"
"Lao Hui Hui? Impossible!"
"Ha ha ha ha!"
Li Dingguo held the spear and laughed and said: "Lao Hui Hui never helps each other, so I will never look for him."
"You have occupied Chengtian Mansion?"
Ren Jiguang squinted his eyes and guessed.
"It's almost the same!"
Li Dingguo nodded, and then said: "Ren Jiguang, you and I are fellow villagers, and I won't bully you, one on one."
"If you win, you can leave naturally."
Ren Jiguang's expression was solemn.
He had also heard about Li Dingguo for a long time.
In the fourteenth year of Chongzhen's reign, he pretended to be an official, and with 20 light cavalry, captured Xiangyang, and gained more than 100,000 military supplies stored by Yang Sichang, the great scholar of the Ming Dynasty Supervisor.
From this, Zhang Xianzhong turned from defeat to victory, and his momentum was like a rainbow.
"good!"
Ren Jiguang reluctantly agreed. He looked at the young general in front of him and couldn't help but said: "If we die in the hands of the famous 'Little Yuchi', we will die without regrets."
Because he dared to fight and fight hard, Li Dingguo was called "Little Yuchi" and "the enemy of ten thousand people."
"It's the same below."
Li Dingguo clasped his fists and smiled handsomely.
The war horse under his crotch was breathing hot air and snoring, obviously full of fighting spirit.
The two stared at each other, observing the flaws.
"Huh, Li Dingguo, I'm going to kill you——"
But he said that Ren Jiguang had been observing for a long time and did not find any flaws. He secretly felt bad luck and had no choice but to take the lead and roar.
Hearing this, Li Dingguo laughed and said: "General Ren, Li's head is right here. Come and get it quickly."
Saying that, he put his legs on the horse and started to run.
"Click——"
Back and forth, regardless of victory or defeat, the weapons rubbed against each other, making a harsh sound of wear and tear.
"good!"
Li Dingguo became more and more excited. He rubbed his wrist and said, "General Ren is indeed well-deserved."
"Hmph! You're not bad either."
Ren Jiguang responded with his wrists trembling.
"continue--"
Li Dingguo took the lead at this time, the spear in his hand flashing with cold light.
Ren Jiguang's scalp was numb, he suppressed his heart palpitations, and rode away.
"Dang——"
The two horses staggered away in an instant, and Ren Jiguang saw that there was no weapon in his hand.
"I lost!"
Ren Jiguang said calmly: "Kill me, I will not betray King Shun."
"When did I say I was going to take your life?"
Li Dingguo watched with interest and chuckled: "General Ren, you only need to persuade your army to surrender. I will not force you to surrender."
Ren Jiguang was stunned and couldn't help but ask: "How many people from your army have come?"
"Right before your eyes!"
Li Dingguo said without hesitation: "There are still soldiers and horses coming, but most of Lao Huihui's subordinates have been persuaded. If your army surrenders again, Jingzhou will change hands today."
"Good idea!"
Ren Jiguang smiled bitterly: "It seems that my departure from the camp today was also your plan."
"That's right!" Li Dingguo said with a smile: "If you stay in the military camp for a long time, it will be difficult to capture you."
“I’m convinced!”
Ren Jiguang nodded helplessly.
Immediately, Li Dingguo subdued 6,000 intruders with hundreds of cavalry.
The next day, Lao Huihui died of illness, and all his troops joined the Western Army.
Huguang was suddenly in great turmoil.
Zhang Xianzhong arrived in Jingzhou a few days later.
"Dingguo, you did a good job."
Zhang Xianzhong nodded with satisfaction and said: "As soon as we get to Jingzhou, the Yiling Road is just around the corner. Our passage to Shu will be officially open."
"This is what a child should do." Li Dingguo said modestly, holding up his hands.
"Father, after taking Jingzhou, why don't we just take Xiangyang and monopolize Huguang?"
Sun Kewang stood up and said in a deep voice: "Huguang is as rich as Bashu. It connects the two Guangxi and goes east to the south of the Yangtze River. Why go west?"
"What do you know!"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Xianzhong immediately retorted: "Huguang is surrounded by Ming troops everywhere, how can we build our business with peace of mind?"
"Li Zicheng had Guanzhong, and he occupied Bashu. When the situation changed, he followed the example of Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty, and naturally took over the country."
"I have never seen anyone who could unify the world in Huguang. Back then, there was only one Chen Youliang, and he was still a dishonest and unrighteous man."