Tang Hong, the captain of the Third Brigade, sat in the main position, Kong Xiaodong, the deputy captain, sat in the second position, and then Li Xiu, Kong Xiaoxian, Wu Dong, Dian Xiaozhong and others.

In terms of seniority, Chen Mu was the latest person to be promoted to lieutenant, so he sat at the back.

Tang Hong thought for a moment, but his eyes were on Chen Mu, who was sitting at the end.

"Chen Mu, you are the most powerful in our group, what do you think should be done? To chase or not to chase? ”

Tang Hong actually threw this problem to Chen Mu.

When Tang Hong was thinking about it just now, Chen Mu was also thinking about this question - how to get the maximum benefit for himself. If you are now a lieutenant of the 3rd Brigade, then it is relatively easy to consider this question. Now that I'm just an inspector, I have more things to think about. It is necessary to ensure not only Tang Hong's interests, but also his own interests.

In Chen Mu's heart, he now has to face four problems:

The first question is do you want to speak?

Should we put down this opportunity to speak, and prevaricate on the grounds that we are young and unfamiliar with the art of war? This thought flashed in his mind, and Chen Mu quickly denied this idea, because everyone knew that he was Tang Hong's person now, and at this juncture, Tang Hong asked him to speak by name, because he wanted to seek support, if he didn't speak, it would smell like demolishing the stage.

This is absolutely unacceptable. Even if it is not said well, as long as the thinking is consistent with Tang Hong, it is better than not saying it. And also can not and dilute the mud. For example, "Whether to chase and kill the enemy army depends on Tang Xiao's words, if you say to chase, I will chase." ”

This is appropriate to say when there is no dissident in the account, and if there is, then the sentence is very annoying. didn't solve the problem, and threw the problem back to Tang Hong. As Tang Hong, he will feel that Chen Mu is not transparent enough, and the upside is very limited, and he is only suitable for being a thug, not a general.

The second question is what is Tang Hong's thought?

If you have to speak, you can't get the chief's thinking wrong, then it's not a matter of tearing down the stage and going against the tune, it's simply a matter of drawing a clear line with the chief, turning against each other, and moving closer to the Kong brothers. That's a big problem.

Chen Mu thought about it for a while, Tang Hong's main idea was to make meritorious contributions, and then win the task of rebuilding the third division, so as to improve his status among the gate lords. If you stay in the city now, you can guarantee that you will not die. But letting the enemy run away without any loss like this will probably also leave a negative impression of "cowardice and incompetence" on the peak. Therefore, Tang Hong should want to kill out.

In fact, from the words of Kong Xiaodong and Kong Xiaoxian, Tang Hong's ideas can also be reversed. The Kong brothers didn't want Tang Hong to do anything, but it was what Tang Hong wanted to do.

The third question is how to fight, in fact, this is a technical problem.

This is also the question that Chen Mu scratches his head the most. Because he used to be a businessman, although he was a soldier and fought in a war, but the era was different, and he was only a small squad leader at that time, and he had not participated in such high-level decision-making.

Technical issues require experience and knowledge, and Chen Mu lacks experience and knowledge in this regard, and even lacks the common sense of cold weapon combat. In this case, if you have to say it, you should say it less, and the more general it is, the better. One principle to keep in mind is to be consistent with Tang Hong's thoughts.

The fourth question is what Chen Mu is most concerned about, what benefits he will gain and how to avoid risks.

This question is actually an extension of the third question. But Chen Mu is not the commander of the Third Brigade, so he can't be the master himself. In this regard, there is a sense of being constrained. In this case, it is really difficult to take the initiative to reap the benefits, so focus on risk avoidance. For example, try not to leave the city.

After thinking about this, Chen Mu tentatively said a word, which had the effect of digging deep and snooping, to see if Tang Hong wanted to kill him.

Chen Mu hugged his fists and said: "Let the enemy escape from under our noses, and the last general will not be angry in his heart." ”

"Well, have a backbone, keep talking." Tang Honglang said.

Obviously, Chen Mu's guess was right, and Tang Hong affirmed this ideological direction.

Chen Mu had an idea in his heart, raised his hand and pointed to the outside of the tent and said: "After more than ten days of rest and recuperation, many wounded in our army have recovered, and now we have nearly nine hundred people. At this time, while the enemy army is retreating, there is no formation to speak of, but we can pursue it in layers. ”

Tang Hong looked left and right, with a slight smug look in the corners of his eyes: "How do you think it should be leveled?" ”

"Let the experienced general personally lead the troops to chase down the enemy, but if you come across a narrow area, do not pursue it again to prevent you from being ambushed. Let some more people stay and guard ......" Chen Mu's words were not finished.

Kong Xiaodong said coldly: "If the enemy army didn't run far at all, how do you know that Alando didn't prepare cavalry in the west?" What shall we do if we have chased them ten miles and before they have entered the valley the enemy's cavalry will come diagonally and kill them? ”

Chen Mu said: "The last general is young and lacks combat experience, so I also asked Deputy Lieutenant Kong for advice." ”

"Tell me a fart!" Kong Xiaodong scolded angrily: "You shouldn't go out at all!" ”

Tang Hong waved his hand: "Xiaodong, Chen Mu is young and heroic, even if some words are inappropriate, you don't need to be angry with him." And I think that Chen Mu is right in saying that experienced generals should be sent to personally lead the troops to hunt down and kill the enemy. Even if the enemy has a trick up our sleeve, we can flee quickly. After all, Jiuquan is ours, as long as we leave some soldiers to guard it, we will always have a way out. ”

Kong Xiaoxian sneered: "If you talk about the people with the most combat experience in our Third Brigade, I don't think anyone would dare to compare with Tang Xiao." Could it be that Tang Xiao plans to go out of the city to pursue in person? If that's the case, I'll not be afraid of it! Out with you! ”

Tang Hong and Kong Xiaodong had something to say, but Kong Xiaoxian didn't give them a chance to speak.

Kong Xiaoxian said loudly: "If we fall into the enemy's ambush, then the enemy will definitely take advantage of the victory to attack Jiuquan." And in my experience, if you want to withstand the onslaught of the enemy army for a day and night, you must leave at least 500 men. In this case, the number of people who went out of the city to pursue this time was at most four hundred. If Tang Xiao is willing to lead the team, I will carry the flag for you! ”

Tang Hong stood up abruptly and glared at him: "Okay, I'll go out, you and your brother will go with me!" ”

Kong Xiaoxian: "My brother doesn't need it, let him stay and guard the city." ”

Tang Hong: "No need, now the highest combat power is Chen Mu, let Chen Mu guard the city." ”

Kong Xiaoxian: "Chen Mu is too young and inexperienced. ”

Tang Hong: "I'll leave Li Xiu to him!" ”

"Then ......" Kong Xiaoxian hesitated slightly.

Tang Hongzhong was shocked: "Okay, there is no need to say it again, from now on, carry out the captain's military order, if anyone refutes it again, it will shake the morale of the army and kill!" ”

That's the benefit of being a chief.

In the end, people can use the rank to crush you. Because of this, many people would rather be the head of a chicken than a phoenix tail.

Although the Kong brothers have Kong Tuo's support, if they are killed because they "shake the morale of the army", Kong Tuo will have nothing to say in the future. At this time, Tang Hong can also leave an impression of an "iron fist" on others.

Faced with this result, Chen Mu was quite satisfied. Although it may not be possible to defend the city, it is much better than being counterattacked by the enemy. On this Gobi Desert, arrows are flying indiscriminately, and you may not know when your life will be gone. Defend the city, so that you can see the situation clearly, climb high and look into the distance, and know the enemy's arrangement. I couldn't hold it, so I jumped out of the city and fled. After all, he has more than six grades of combat power, and jumping on the city wall, as long as he doesn't hit the ground first, it's basically fine.

Thinking of this, Chen Mu also straightened the helmet that he had just bought from the equipment depot. For this helmet, Chen Mu gave the lieutenant who looked at the treasury two taels of silver. And promised that in the future, when he returned to Luoyang after the war, he would take the captain of the treasury to Wanhualou.

To make a long story short, Tang Hong, Kong Xiaodong, and Kong Xiaoxian brought almost all the people around them who could fight, and left two captain-level officers in the city, namely Li Xiu, the general of the Third Brigade, and Wu Dong, the supervisor of the Seventh Regiment. The combat lieutenant left only Chen Mu alone. Tang Hong specially instructed Chen Mu to guard the West Gate.

Then the top door stone was removed, and the west gate was opened, ready to go.

Before parting, Tang Hong pinched Chen Mu's shoulder, his eyes gloomy: "After we go out, remember to block the city gate." If the enemy counterattacks, prepare a hanging basket for me. None of the others. ”

Hearing this, Chen Mu felt a chill down his spine.

Tang Hong's heart of the Kong brothers did not die. And he himself was invincible.

If the enemy army is really retreating, Tang Hong will lead people to make meritorious contributions.

If the enemy army set up an ambush, he Tang Hong ran back and went to the city by himself, while the Kong brothers could only confess in the vast Gobi.

Or perhaps, the Kong brothers also escaped, but died under Jiuquan City.

The reason: you can't open the door, otherwise the enemy will break in. And hanging baskets are also a truth.

The words are spoken by the living. Some martyrs were wrongfully deserted, which seems to be not uncommon in history, not to mention that this does not deprive the martyrs of their reputation, but the process of death has been slightly changed.

Chen Mu nodded: "Understood." ”