In just one day and one night, because of the invitation from his cousin Pingyu Jun Xiong Hu, Xiong Tuo, the Lord of Yangcheng, rushed from the Fenxingsai area to Changping and arrived at the military camp of Pingyu Lord Xiong Hu.
After learning about the arrival of Xiong Tuo, Lord of Yangcheng, Xiong Hu, Lord of Pingyu, personally went out to greet him. After all, although he and Xiong Tuo were cousins, they were essentially a relationship between a master and his subordinates, and some etiquette should not be taken lightly.
After seeing Pingyu Jun Xiong Hu, Xiong Tuo got off his horse and said hello to his cousin. Then the two cousins walked side by side to the commander's tent in the camp while chatting.
But when Xiong Tuo, Lord of Yangcheng, lifted up the tent and walked into the tent, he saw a flash of cold light in front of him, and a sharp sword was placed on his neck.
"Don't act rashly." The woman holding a sharp sword warned expressionlessly.
Hearing this, Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo was not surprised. He just glanced at Pingyu Lord Xiong Hu who was walking by him with a helpless look, and said angrily: "You can't persuade her to wait for me peacefully. Coming?"
"I persuaded her." Xiong Hu shrugged and said as if it had nothing to do with him: "But you know, Ajaan can be very 'stubborn' sometimes." After that, he turned to the woman. Said: "Okay, Ajaan, now Mr. Xiong Tuo is also your prisoner, let's sit down first and then have a good talk."
Hearing this, Xiong Tuo shook his head slightly, and then made a gesture towards the woman, Mi Jiang, whom he regarded as his biological sister, letting himself be slaughtered.
In fact, Mi Jiang didn't want to do anything. She just felt that she came as a Wei person. Although the two people in front of her were her brothers, they were also "enemies". If she didn't do anything, she would feel There is an inexplicable sense of dissonance.
Therefore, she "hijacked" Pingyu Lord Xiong Hu and Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo twice in order to hope that they would not treat her as their sister for the time being.
However, it turned out that this trick did not work. Neither Pingyu Lord Xiong Hu nor Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo took her abduction to heart.
No, they were clearly "captives being held hostage", but Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo actually invited Mi Jiang to drink and eat with them - Pingyu Lord Xiong Hu prepared a table of dishes to receive Xiong Tuo.
"You made your own decision, right?" After Mi Jiang sat down at the table, Xiong Tuo, Lord of Yangcheng, picked up a pot of wine and poured a glass for all three of them. He said with a smile: "According to Ji Run's character, he is absolutely perfect. I won’t let you come to plead for mercy.”
While talking, he looked at the sister in front of him from time to time, as if he wanted to judge how Mi Jiang was doing in Daliang.
The conclusion reached made Xiong Tuo very satisfied: compared with Mi Jiang's slightly sallow and rough face a few years ago, Mi Jiang now looks like a lady from a noble family. At least her complexion is better than before. Quite a few. It can be seen from this that this sister is also pampered and pampered in Prince Su's Mansion in Daliang.
I saw Mi Jiang kneeling and sitting in front of Xiong Tuo. After thinking for a while, he begged: "Master Xiong Tuo, I hope you can withdraw your troops and withdraw from this war against Wei."
"..." The wine cup in Xiong Tuo's hand that had been brought to his mouth paused for a moment, and then he drank the wine in one gulp.
After swallowing the wine in his mouth, he let out a breath, looked at Mi Jiang seriously and said: "A Jiang, I have mentioned it more than once. Although your father, Mr. Xiong Hao, is my uncle, I have always They all regard Lord Xiong Hao as their biological father, and their affection is far better than that of 'that guy' who once lived in Shouying..."
"Ahem." Pingyu Lord Xiong Hu coughed twice, interrupting Xiong Tuo's words, and reminded him in a low voice: "Young Master, be careful what you say."
It’s no wonder, after all, Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo’s words are indeed a bit treacherous, and he actually called the real biological father, King Xiong Xu of Chu, “that guy”. If this was tricked into Chu Dong by someone with intentions, let alone the nobles of Chu Dong. Using this as a basis to attack Xiong Tuo, I believe that even Chu King Xiong Xu would probably not feel comfortable.
However, Xiong Tuo ignored Xiong Hu, looked at Mi Jiang and continued: "...So you have to believe that in my heart, your sisters, even though they are not biological sisters, are better than biological sisters."
"..." Mi Jiang nodded slightly. After all, she also understood how much Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo doted on the two sisters. If it hadn't been for this young master's protection, the two sisters might have died fleeing to Pakistan more than ten years ago. On the way.
"If it were anything else, I would definitely try my best not to disappoint you, but this matter..." Xiong Tuo showed a look of embarrassment on his face, shook his head and said, "I can't agree to this as a brother."
Hearing this, Mi Jiang felt a sense of disappointment in her heart.
"Is it really possible to just..."
She raised her eyes and looked at the two brothers in front of her. Her expressionless face showed a rare hint of sadness, which made Xiong Tuo and Xiong Tuo widen their eyes in surprise.
Especially Xiong Tuo, in his impression, this sister seemed to have lost her joy, anger, sorrow, and joy ever since she was hunted down while fleeing. He still remembers that Mi Jiang, who was only three or four years old, was holding her baby in her arms. My sister, Mi Rui, was sitting on the broken carriage, expressionlessly watching the murderer who tried to hunt down their sister and the guards sent by Xiong Tuo fight to the death, even though there were hundreds of corpses lying around, even though the blood was splashed on her young face. His face was expressionless, as if he were dead.
Thinking of this, Xiong Tuo sighed secretly and couldn't help but feel a little guilty, because he knew that 80% of the reason why Mi Jiang became like this was because of his relationship - because he was originally entrusted by his uncle, Runan Jun Xiong Hao, to treat Mi Jiang like this. After this uncle, who was like a biological father, committed suicide, he endured the grief in his heart and cut off his head, preparing to take it to Chudong to quell the civil war between Chudong and Chuxi. However, he never thought that when he held the bear in his hands, When Hao's head walked out of the study, he happened to be seen by Mi Jiang who was playing in the garden.
Taking a long breath, Xiong Tuo's tone became gentler: "Ajiang, Brother Wei can understand your desire to help Ji Run. In fact, Brother Wei also feels that that bastard Ji Run is indeed a good person. The choice of husband... However, Brother Yu can't help you this time. Brother Yu can only promise you that if the Kingdom of Wei really falls, I will try my best to preserve Ji Run and return Shangshui to him as a fief, waiting for me. If Ri becomes the king of Chu, I can also support his restoration, but this time..." He glanced at Mi Jiang, shook his head and said, "You have to understand, even if A Hu and I withdraw from this place for your sake, In this war, it was difficult for the Wei State to survive. Our side was only the "West Route Army". Lord Shouling Jingshe of the "East Route Army" had millions of troops under his command. On this road alone, Wei State could not protect it even with all its might. Can resist, let alone South Korea's army? Let alone Qin's army?"
"..." After hearing this, Mi Jiang remained silent.
Seeing this, Xiong Tuo, Lord of Yangcheng, poured a glass of wine for himself and Xiong Hu, and waited quietly for Mi Jiang to figure it out.
At the same time, he was also making calculations in his mind.
His promise to Mi Jiang was certainly not an empty mouth. Although he once had a very bad relationship with his brother-in-law Ji Run, and later it was slowly transformed into a complicated relationship of "both an ally and an enemy" through Mi Jiang, but it is undeniable that his relationship with his brother-in-law was very bad. Ji Run's talents are quite clear.
He couldn't help but imagine what it would be like after the fall of Wei and his brother-in-law Ji Run really joined his army.
After all, this brother-in-law was a very outstanding commander. When he attacked Chu State, Lord Shouling Jingshe, General Xiang Mo and many other well-known generals of Chu State also attacked Wei Gong Ji Run, who had far less troops than them. At a loss what to do, one can imagine how powerful this brother-in-law is.
Just when Xiong Tuo, Lord of Yangcheng, was daydreaming, he suddenly heard Mi Jiang say seriously: "Master Xiong Tuo, I hope you will also listen to me."
"..." Xiong Tuo was stunned for a moment, and then looked at Mi Jiang with great interest. He also wanted to hear what Mi Jiang had to say.
Under Xiong Tuo's gaze, Mi Jiang sat upright and said seriously: "Master Xiong Tuo, I would like to ask, for you, the fall of Wei will bring more benefits than disadvantages, or will the disadvantages outweigh the benefits?... My husband Ji Run, He is the son of the Wei State and is in charge of the "Smelting Bureau". Ninety percent of Wei's military armors are made by the Smelting Bureau... As far as I know, my husband has secretly traded with the young master over the years. Pearls, bronzes, pearls, lacquerware, ores and other items were exchanged from my husband for the weapons and food of the Wei State... Although my husband did not sell the finest weapons and armor of the Wei State to the Young Master privately, I believe that he sold them privately to the Young Master. The weapons and equipment should be among the best in Chu State..."
"..."
Yangcheng Jun Xiong Tuo drank a glass of wine and said nothing.
Because as Mi Jiang said, even if Zhao Hongrun secretly smuggled Xiong Tuo to Xiong Tuo, they were all eliminated by the Wei State, that is, the weapons and equipment that had been used for two or three years. However, in the Chu State where iron smelting technology was not developed, these The weapons and equipment are top-notch, at least Xiong Tuo doesn't think they will be inferior to Chu Dong's regular army.
In particular, Wei's military hand crossbows, even if they were obsolete, gave Xiong Tuo the urge to replace archers with crossbowmen.
"...This is my husband Ji Run, who can support and help you when he is still the son of the Wei State. But if the Wei State is no longer here, even if my husband leads the crowd to you as you said, you will What you got was just a conquered Wei Gongzi. Do you think you can still get those sophisticated Wei weapons by then?" After a pause, Mi Jiang continued: "As far as I know, you are in Chu The status of the country is not strong, and the nobles of Chudong are still unwilling to accept you. You only have a poor Chuxi. If you lose the support of my husband, do you think you can compete with the two young masters, Xiong Wu, Lord of Guling, and Xiong Sheng, Lord of Liyang? To contend?"
Listening to Mi Jiang's words, Xiong Tuo, Lord of Yangcheng, was a little surprised. He never knew that this sister actually had such eyesight. After all, in his heart, Mi Jiang and Mi Rui were both the same. Stay away from people outside politics.
But it is undeniable that Mi Jiang's words are very reasonable and worthy of Xiong Tuo, the Lord of Yangcheng, to think deeply.
On the side, Pingyu Jun Xiong Hu had a strange expression on his face when he heard this, and secretly muttered in his heart: Isn't this what I said when I persuaded her the day before yesterday...
After secretly glancing at Xiong Tuo and seeing the latter looking thoughtful, Pingyu Jun Xiong Hu lowered his head and drank to prevent Xiong Tuo from seeing through his guilty conscience of "collaborating with the enemy".
After a long time, Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo nodded and said: "Ajiang, what you said makes sense, but it is not enough to convince Brother Yu... I hope you can also understand Brother Yu's difficulties. Ji Run and I privately It is not that no one in Chu Dong knows about the transaction. If I make no progress on the "West Road" this time, but Mr. Shouling Jun Jingshe wins many battles, some bastards in Chu Dong will use this as a handle. , causing Brother Yu to miss the throne." After saying that, he raised his head and glanced at Mi Jiang, and said seriously: "A Jiang, you are no different from my sister, and I won't hide it from you. Unless the Wei State can hold on to the last inch of its territory, it will not be destroyed. Otherwise, I will never withdraw from this war. Because withdrawing from this war is equivalent to giving up the throne on my own, do you understand?"
After hearing this, Mi Jiang said seriously: "Wei will not fall!"
"Your words alone are not enough to convince me." Xiong Tuo, the Lord of Yangcheng, said in a deep voice: "Maybe Ji Run didn't tell you the exact situation, so let me tell you, just on my side of Da Chu, the Wei State We have to face millions of troops. On the South Korean side, it is said that there are about 200,000 to 300,000 troops. I don’t know yet about Sanchuan and Qin’s side, but last time, Ji Run annihilated Qin’s 200,000 troops in Sanchuan. I believe this time Qin's army attacking Wei also numbered nearly 200,000. The total number of troops in these three countries alone has reached 1.5 million. How many troops does Wei have?... The disparity in military strength is one problem, and command is another. , the commander-in-chief of our great Chu is Lord Shouling Jingshe, and his generals include Lord General Xiang Mo, Lord Diyang Xiong Shang, and many kings and city lords of Eastern Chu, and South Korea is also composed of heroes from South Korea. Veteran General Kang Gong Han Hu personally led the army... You don't know Han Hu. Let me tell you, he was a Korean hero who once supported a country when Korea was in crisis... In contrast, Wei Guo's What kind of commander did Bian send? Like Ji Zuo, the king of Nanliang, and Shaohu, all these unknown people who came out of nowhere? Wei Wei, who has been unknown for more than ten years, but has only emerged in the past two years General, do you think Wei has a chance of winning?"
To be fair, Xiong Tuo also had such misunderstanding because he did not know certain things about Wei. However, it is undeniable that Wei generals such as Nanliang King Ji Zuo and Shao Hu did not have much fame in this world.
"..." Mi Jiang remained silent.
Seeing this, Xiong Tuo, Lord of Yangcheng, sighed slightly and advised: "Don't blame Brother Yu for being unkind, it's just that I don't see even a glimmer of possibility for Wei to survive. If I withdraw my troops, Wei will still lose in the end. , when the time comes, I will be caught by Xiong Wu, Xiong Sheng and others, miss the throne, and even lose everything I currently have... Since the Wei Kingdom is always going to perish, why not speed up its demise? Obtain enough military merit in this battle, and all the merits will protect you and Ji Run. When I become the king of Chu in the future, I can also support Ji Run to restore Wei and help him become the king of Wei... Isn't this better? Is it safe?”
"..." Mi Jiang was speechless.
After all, what Xiong Tuo said makes sense: Even if Xiong Tuo withdraws his troops, will it be possible to save Wei from being destroyed? If Wei is eventually destroyed, won't even Xiong Tuo be defeated by Chu Dong? The aristocratic accusation?
She pinched the hem of her clothes anxiously. She didn't know what to say about Yangcheng Jun Xiong Tuo.
In fact, she didn't know how to talk at all.
"Is this the only way it can be? Do I have to persuade "him" to abandon Wei and join... hmm?"
Suddenly, Mi Jiang suddenly thought of something, and her slightly confused eyes regained some of their energy.
She raised her head and said to Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo: "He will not defect to you, Mr. Xiong Tuo."
At this time, Xiong Tuo thought he had convinced his sister and was drinking from a wine glass. Hearing this, he couldn't help but be startled: "What?"
"I mean, Mr. Xiong Tuo, you are wrong. He will never defect to you." Looking at Xiong Tuo, Mi Jiang said seriously: "Because my husband is the son of the King of Wei and the son of the Wei State. , According to my understanding of him, he will stand with the armies of all countries until the last moment in this battle, and die on the battlefield guarding the country and his people. The country will be destroyed while the people are still alive!"
"..."
The face of Yangcheng Jun Xiong Tuo, who was holding the empty wine glass, finally changed slightly.
To be fair, his rejection of Mi Jiang's sincerity had his own selfish motives to a certain extent, because he was very aware of the talents of his brother-in-law. "Wei Gongzi Run, who conquered the South, the North and the North, swept Han, Chu and Qin", how could he be an ordinary person?
In Xiong Tuo's mind, the threat from his brother-in-law Ji Run was far greater than that of Guling Lord Xiong Wu and Liyang Lord Xiong Sheng - the latter two were only allowed to lead Wei Gongzi Run's horses.
Therefore, Xiong Tuo was very eager to take advantage of Wei's national crisis to take his brother-in-law under his command.
I have to say that his idea was good, but he overlooked one thing: would his brother-in-law really defect to him? Even if he promised to support his restoration in the future?
Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo couldn't help but be a little shaken.
After all, as Mi Jiang said, if Wei Guo fell today, it would do great harm to him. The only consolation is that it is possible to take the opportunity to take the brother-in-law under his command, but if even this cannot be achieved... …
Xiong Tuo's expression became solemn.
After a long while, he turned to Pingyu Lord Xiong Hu and asked: "Ah Hu, what do you think?"
Pingyu Jun Xiong Hu glanced at Mi Jiang and saw that she was looking at him with pleading eyes, and his heart softened.
After thinking for a while, he said in a deep voice: "Young Master, this time we are using troops against Wei State. We are on the west road, but Lord Guling Xiong Wu and Lord Liyang Xiong Sheng are following Lord Shouling Lord Jingshe's army. This is very strange." To a large extent, it has explained the attitude of the Chudong nobles."
Hearing this, Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo's eyes flashed with anger.
Yes, this indeed illustrates the attitude of the Chudong nobles.
Although the title of "Coach of the West Route Army" is quite prestigious, what is the actual situation? The Chudong nobles asked Xiong Tuo to attack Shangshui County of Wei State. This was clearly out of good intentions.
If he, Xiong Tuo, lets the enemy go, then those Chu Dong nobles will use this as a reason to make him miss the throne; and if he, Xiong Tuo, is ruthless, the forces he leads his army to attack are also his private allies.
He suffered losses from both sides, but nothing compared to Guling Lord Xiong Wu and Liyang Lord Xiong Sheng, who followed Shouling Lord Jingshe to earn merits comfortably.
But even if he knew this, what could he do?
He drank glass after glass of wine.
Suddenly, he asked: "Ajiang, is Ji Run really confident that he will hand over the Han army to Nanliang King Ji Zuo and hand over Shouling Jun Jingshe to Shao Hu to deal with him? ... What can he do to these two people? evaluate?"
Mi Jiang was stunned and explained: "As far as I know, 'Nan Liang King Ji Zuo' is my husband's third uncle. It seems that he was once a political opponent who hindered King Wei. Later, he was defeated in the civil war and was exiled. Seventeen years..."
Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo was stunned when he heard this and frowned slightly.
Xiong Tuo was no stranger to King Zhao Yuansi of Wei, and he was definitely not a merciful king.
However, Ji Zuo, who once hindered Zhao Yuanxi from becoming the monarch of Wei, was not secretly sentenced to death after he provoked civil strife and was defeated, but was simply exiled. What is even more incredible is that after seventeen years of exile, he was recalled to Wei. He also appointed this person as the commander-in-chief of the Wei army in the "Hanoi Battlefield".
What does this mean? This means that Ji Zuo, the King of Nanliang, was a talent that King Ji Si of Wei was unwilling to kill!
"It seems that he is not an unknown person..."
After touching his chin and thinking for a moment, Xiong Tuo, Lord of Yangcheng, asked again: "What about Shao Hu, the coach of the Wei army over there in Song Dynasty?"
Mi Jiang shook his head when he heard this and said: "The commander-in-chief of the Wei army in Song Dynasty is not General Shao Hu, but King Yu Ji Ji."
"Ah? Who is that?" Yangcheng Jun Xiong Tuo had a puzzled expression on his face.
Seeing this, Mi Jiang simply explained: "He is my husband's fifth uncle, and he is also the one who defeated Ji Zuo, the king of Nanliang."
"..."
After hearing this, Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo's expression suddenly became solemn.
Nanliang King Ji Zuo (Zhao Yuanzuo) was a figure who was once an enemy of Wei King Ji Si, but survived the defeat and even became the commander-in-chief of a Wei army.
Ji Ji, the king of Yu (Zhao Yuanji), defeated the men of Ji Zuo, the king of Nanliang.
Frowning, Xiong Tuo, Lord of Yangcheng, asked Xiong Hu, Lord Pingyu: "Ah Hu, on the battlefield in Song Dynasty, how is Lord Shouling Jingshe's battle going?"
"The momentum is overwhelming." After Xiong Hu finished his answer, he added: "But I didn't hear that the commander of the Wei army in Song Dynasty is King Yu Ji Ji. The one currently commanding the Wei army is Shao Hu."
"General Shaohu is the chief of the Zongwei of King Yu Jiyi." Mi Jiang interjected from the side.
"..." Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo was stunned for a moment, and then he looked at Xiong Hu, feeling a hint of conspiracy.
After a long time, Xiong Tuo narrowed his eyes and said with a half-smile: "It seems that Lord Shouling Junjingshe's 'powerful force' is not as simple as what we have seen..."
"This is just a guess." Xiong Hu frowned and said, "Lord Jingshe has an army of one million Chudong troops under his command. Even if the Wei army has any conspiracy, in front of a million-strong army, I'm afraid..."
"But it's enough for me to place a bet." A cold light flashed in his eyes, and Yangcheng Lord Xiong Tuo said in a low voice: "Ah Hu, do you think I should make a bet? Xiong Wu is the legitimate son, and I am a concubine. , if nothing happens, unless that bitch Queen dies, it will be difficult for me to win the throne... I am thinking, is this an opportunity? What if Lord Jingshe is defeated and millions of Chudong's troops are wiped out? ?At that time, how can the Chudong nobles resist my will? I will inherit the legacy of my uncle Xiong Hao..."
Apparently having guessed Xiong Tuo's plan, Lord Pingyu Xiong Hu looked horrified, swallowed subconsciously, and whispered, "What if...what if we lose the bet?"
Xiong Tuo, Lord of Yangcheng, licked his lips and said in a deep voice: "If the bet loses, you and I will lose everything, and Chu Xi will continue to become Chu Dong's vassal; but if the bet wins... the king's capital Shouning will be the vassal of Chu Dong from now on. You and my city!"
Perhaps because the stakes were too high, Pingyu Jun Xiong Hu sweated profusely and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with his sleeves.
But Xiong Hu must admit that this is indeed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.