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Zhao Dewang, the treasurer of the Chuzhou City Army's granary, was taken to the East School Yard and beheaded, while Guo Tianxu and Zhang Tian repeatedly threw several civilian officials in charge of the distribution of grain and grass in Chuzhou City into prison.

Early the next morning, Ma Xiuying watched hundreds of people from the baggage camp escort grain and grass on the road outside the city.

"Miss! This time, I, Shao Zhi, will personally send the grain and grass to the area of Shiguan Town, and then I will rush back to Quanjiao County with all my might, in case the Yuan army attacks while I am away! Shao Rong, who was standing on the horse, looked at Ma Xiuying and said loudly.

If it weren't for Zhu Yuanzhang getting Ma Xiuying's favor, Guo Zixing even intended to marry her to Shao Rong back then, which was also where Shao Rong was not convinced by Zhu Yuanzhang, but when the safety of the whole army was uncertain, he still resolutely united with the generals to urge Guo Tianxu to send out grain and grass.

It's just that I didn't expect Guo Tianxu and Zhang Tian to launch the official in charge of the grain depot in order to hide people's eyes, and completely pushed the charge of not distributing grain to the whole place, which has already been clearly seen in the hearts of the generals, but everyone has not broken it.

"General Shao, for your contribution to the transportation of grain and grass this time, Ma Xiuying thanked the soldiers at the front! It's just that this first batch of grain and grass is not enough to sustain the army for a long time, and I still need to raise it in the city, so I won't say much here, and I wish the general a smooth journey. Ma Xiuying also stood on the horse and said.

Shao Rong glanced at Ma Xiuying deeply and said loudly: "Miss, then don't pass here, Shao will go." Then he turned and led his horse and galloped towards the front of the convoy carrying grain and grass.

Ma Xiuying shook her head slightly at this time, and said in her heart: "If it weren't for Shang Yu's stirring like this, I would definitely still be under house arrest in the Shuai Mansion by Tianxu at this time, how can I have grain and grass to transport to the front, I just hope that Xianggong can come to An'an as soon as possible, so that Chuzhou can be attacked and retreated." ”

"Shang Yu's crime of holding the marshal hostage this time, how to exonerate him is debatable! He can't be hurt because of this, this Shang Yu's divine power can resist Shao Rong, if he grows up in a few days, if he leads the army to fight with the Yuan army, he will be able to raise the prestige of our army. At this point, I might as well go and see how this child is doing in prison. ”

At this time, the convoy transporting grain and grassland moved forward slowly, and hundreds of soldiers of the baggage battalion were guarding the vehicles with weapons, and hundreds of carriages were already getting farther and farther away in Ma Xiuyingdi's eyes.

In the underground underground prison, Shang Yu had been soaking in the water all night, and the smell in the prison was extremely unpleasant.

Several of the prisoners in the same cell sat half-dead in the water, looking at him, emaciated, and glazed eyes, and it was only when the prison guards came to deliver the rancid dungeon meal the previous evening that they jumped up like hungry wolves, ate the things, and sat back in the water again.

This water prison will only be taken in if you have committed a serious crime, and although Shang Yu thought that the prison would be very difficult, he did not expect to enter this kind of dirty water prison.

The warm current in his body had caused him to enter a wonderful situation when he fought with Shao Rong yesterday, but after Shao Rong finally agreed to urge the distribution of food afterwards, Shang Yu's whole body felt completely weak, and since he was put in the water prison, his body felt more and more cold.

At this time, it was only early spring, and Shang Yu was tired and hungry when the knee-deep dirty water made Shang Yu really want to eat it when the prison guards allocated him prison food, but after smelling that smell, Shang Yu almost vomited bile, because he had not eaten a drop of water since he entered the prison yesterday afternoon.

At this time, a jailer stood on a high place and sneered and looked down at Shang Yu in the water prison, and whispered to another jailer: "Brother! Someone from above said that this kid should die sooner, and it seems that this kid will have to starve to death without us having to think about it. ”

"Shhhh Be quiet, and don't let anyone else hear! We must not let this kid live to this day, and find a way to get something to eat and get this in. If the boy eats it, he will surely die. The other jailer looked down at the entrance above with some nervousness, and placed a small yellow paper bag in his companion's hand.

"Oh! Great, it would be much easier if that were the case. ”

"Miss! The marshal and the right deputy marshal urgently summoned you to the marshal's mansion to discuss something. A soldier of the Marshal's Mansion stopped Ma Xiuying not far in front of the Yamen in Chuzhou and said.

"What do they do?" Ma Xiuying immediately stopped and asked with a hesitant face.

I thought to myself, "Do they still want to put me under house arrest like they did last time?" Now that the generals in the city have not listened to their orders, how can they still act like this? ”

"Miss! A letter was sent from the front that Gaoyou was besieged by the army of the Yuan Dynasty and asked for help from Chuzhou, and Marshal Du and the right deputy marshal were urgently ordering the generals to go to the Shuai's account to discuss the matter. The soldier said with a somewhat anxious face.

Ma Xiuying's face immediately changed after hearing this, and she didn't care about going to Yahou Prison to visit Shang Yu, so she immediately rode her horse and galloped in the direction of the Marshal's Mansion.

"Zhang Shicheng is now facing the Yuan army, and I don't know who is the commander of the Yuan army, if he can't rush to the aid as soon as possible, once Zhang Shicheng is destroyed by the Yuan army, then the next target must be my Chuzhou, at this time the area of Lai'an County is undecided, and our army is not able to help, but how is this good?" Along the way, Ma Xiuying thought of this, and couldn't help but worry about the future of the entire army in Chuzhou.

After entering the Shuaifu, Ma Xiuying was a little stunned, only to see a man dressed in cloth kneeling on the ground with an anxious face and appealing about the situation in Gaoyou, Taizhou and other places.

"My King of Great Zhou implores the Marshal of Chuzhou to send troops to Gaoyou and Taizhou to help, if he can send troops this time, my king is willing to advance and retreat together with the Chuzhou Righteous Army in the future, and never regret it!"

"This is the situation map of several Yuan armies faced by my Great Zhou, as long as Marshal Guo sends a group of men and horses, one of them will be contained in the area of Xuyi and Tianchang. So that it cannot encircle our army, I am willing to cross the river with your army to attack Jiqing at the same time after defeating the Yuan army, hoping that the marshal can agree. ”

This person was embarrassed, but when he heard his voice, he made a loud sound, without the slightest sign of timidity, and his hands also held up a ball of silk, which should be the battlefield map sent by Zhang Shicheng.

Seeing Ma Xiuying coming, Guo Tianxu, who was sitting in the handsome seat, seemed to be relieved, if he didn't seize the opportunity for such a major event, it would be difficult to find an opportunity to put Zhu Yuanzhang in danger in the future.

"General Lu, please get up quickly, you can take the risk of coming to Chuzhou from Gaoyou, and it is really admirable to be loyal to your lord King Zhou. But my Chuzhou is weak, and now I can make the army and civilians a little more clothed, this time I have to discuss the troops, can you please go to the city post house to rest, I will make a decision as soon as possible after consulting with the generals, do you think it's good? Guo Tianxu sat on the handsome seat and said to the man kneeling on the ground with a solemn face.

"Lu Zhong obeys Marshal Guo's arrangement!" Lu Zhong breathed a sigh of relief when he heard this and stood up.

This time when Lu Zhong set off from Gaoyou, the Yuan army was only a thousand miles away from Gaoyou, which was called from all over the fine tax Yuan army, and the marshal turned out to be the prime minister of the Yuan court.

"Someone! Take General Lu to the post house to rest. Guo Tianxu exchanged glances with Zhang Tian, who was standing on the right side of the generals, and then ordered his soldiers to take Lu Zhong down by himself.

After Lu Zhong went down, Guo Tianxu raised his head and glanced at the generals after the handsome case, and then asked in a deep voice: "Although Zhang Shicheng has not been in trouble for a long time, he is also a member of my Han family. ”

All the generals were silent, and now there are only 50,000 soldiers in the entire territory of the Chuzhou Righteous Army, and you have to count the prisoners that Zhu Yuanzhang obtained and incorporated on the front line, and the war is going on in the Lai'an area, and the result is not yet known.

If you send troops to leave the country at this time, Zhang Shicheng who galloped thousands of miles to help Gaoyou, it would be child's play, if the back road was cut off by the distant army, the whole army would be annihilated, and the troops in Chuzhou were empty, how could they hold it?

Zhang Tian did not speak at this time, but stood at the head of the generals and waited for someone to respond.

"Marshal! If the left deputy marshal can take the entire territory of Lai'an County in advance, the last general can lead the army to the Xuyi area to contain the Yuan army, but at this time, our army has failed to conquer Lai'an, and we must not divide the troops, otherwise it will inevitably shake the foundation of our Chuzhou, and I hope the marshal will think twice. A general with a face as black as the bottom of a pot walked out of the generals loudly and said to Guo Tianxu.

"General Hu, you are the general of the navy in our army, how can you lead the army forward, besides, Lai'an County has not been attacked for a long time, how can this matter be done?" Guo Tianxu was happy when he heard this, but he deliberately refused.

When Zhang Tian heard this, he coughed before he walked to the middle of the handsome hall, saluted Guo Tianxu and said, "Marshal!" Our army has very few troops, most of them are in front with the left deputy marshal, what General Hu said is extremely reasonable, if he takes Anxian in the future, he can take advantage of the victory to attack Xuyi and Tianchang, even if he fails, he can also return to Lai'an, but this will definitely bring all the Han people in Xuyi and Tianchang back to Chuzhou. ”

"At present, there is enough grain and grass in Chuzhou, but the regrettable thing is that the population is sparse, and there are not many young and strong people, so we cannot expand the number of military personnel. I suggest that the marshal pass on an order as soon as possible, urging the left deputy marshal to take Lai'an County as soon as possible, and then lead the troops to help Zhang Shicheng, the king of Zhou. When he said this, Zhang Tian had a smug look on his face.

Guo Tianxu nodded after hearing this, then looked at Ma Xiuying and said, "General Ma, this marshal summoned you here to discuss this matter, what do you think of what General Hu and the right deputy marshal said?" ”

Ma Xiuying frowned after hearing this, she didn't give out food and grass before, but this time she asked the soldiers in front to fight to take down Lai'an County, how could she not vaguely guess what they were thinking, but it was not good to stop it.

After thinking about it, Ma Xiuying said: "Marshal, this matter must not be, that Zhang Shicheng once accepted the Yuan Court's recruitment in Taizhou, but he reversed it again within a month, and attacked Gaoyou a year ago, and then called the king, this is his own trouble." ”

"My Chuzhou righteous army can only protect itself now, if it is against the Yuan court army, this is not the best time, as long as the Yuan court is in command, the army factions will obey the order, we will never be able to rescue Zhang Shicheng, but will suffer heavy losses, I hope the marshal will think twice!"

What Ma Xiuying is worried about is that at this time, the Chuzhou Righteous Army is initially forming combat strength, and it is simply unable to help others, not to mention that it is separated from Gaoyou by a Yangzhou Mansion, and the lone army goes north, if the Yuan Army of Yangzhou Mansion cuts off the back road of the Chuzhou Righteous Army, plus the enemy on both sides, it will be in vain to send tens of thousands of troops to death.

"General Ma, what about your plan? You can't let Zhang Shicheng be destroyed by the Yuan army! Otherwise, the next step will be for our army to face them, what is your best strategy? Guo Tianxu asked with a smug look flashing in his eyes.

"If this is according to the opinion of the last general, a small group of elite soldiers can be sent to infiltrate the rear of the Yuan army, set up an ambush in the place where the Yuan army's grain and grass pass, cut off its grain route, and disturb its military morale, which can also help Zhang Shicheng to a certain extent. That Gaoyou and Taizhou City are high and rich, and they should be able to hold for half a year. The Yuan army lacked food and grass, and it would not be able to maintain its combat strength, and then it would inevitably collapse without a fight. Ma Xiuying had no choice but to come up with this method.

Ma Xiuying's subordinates are active in various places, such as Na Miao Yu is a representative figure, on the surface is a civilian, but he robs the money of rich families in various places to supply the food and salary needs of the righteous army, although he has not done much in the past two years, but there are still hundreds of people in various parts of the south of the Yangtze River, if you have to deal with the Yuan army, these people can be used.

"General Ma, this marshal agrees with this matter, but Deputy Marshal Zuo still needs to lead the army to fight after capturing Lai'an, so the two-pronged approach can get miraculous results! I wonder if the right deputy marshal can agree? Guo Tianxu immediately agreed with Ma Xiuying, but he still insisted on ordering Zhu Yuanzhang to go north to meet the large Yuan army after taking down An.

"Marshal, I agree with this matter, but I just need to send a few brave generals to help, so that Deputy Marshal Left can worry about it." Zhang Tian was overjoyed in his heart and immediately said.

After Shang Yu received the food sent by the jailer, he felt a little strange in his heart: "Why did the second prison meal here change to such a meal?" Could it be that Mrs. Bigfoot asked to send it? ”

He was holding a large bowl of rice in his hand, with some vegetables and some meat on it, and it didn't smell bad at all, and his whole body was already extremely weak, although he had some doubts in his heart, but because he was too hungry, he picked up his chopsticks and prepared to start eating.

But he was too slow now, and he reached back with a big black and thin hand, and snatched the sea bowl away.

"Got it, haha! Finally ate what a human can eat. ”

Hearing the shouting of the person behind him, Shang Yu smiled bitterly on his face, but he didn't expect that before he could eat, the food was snatched away, he turned around, and found that a person was holding a bowl and grabbing the food with his hand to his mouth, and there were two people next to him competing for the food in the bowl at the same time.

"Bastard! That's a meal for the new prisoners, and you dare to take it? The jailer who stood on it and looked down immediately burst into a rage when he saw that the food had been taken away by the prisoners who had been in prison for a long time.

Shang Yu's body was already a little cold and shivering, he hadn't eaten for a day and a night, and he had been soaking in water for so long, but he still felt a little sad when he saw the three people snatching food, and said in his heart: "It seems that I am very likely to starve to death here!" ”

"Ho-ho-ho!" The bowl of rice was quickly divided among the three of them, who ignored the jailer's angry scolding, but at the end of the meal, the three of them suddenly pinched their necks and made a hoarse voice, but they were speechless.

"I said it all, don't rob it, who will complain about it yourself?" The jailer said with an ugly face.

Shang Yu was a little surprised when he heard this, and looked at the three people, only to see that the three people suddenly fell straight into the water, and no longer responded.

"You actually poisoned the food?" Only then did Shang Yu understand that the food was poisonous, and he was robbed of the food because he was unwell, and he inadvertently escaped.

"Boy, you just understand? It's too late, you won't survive tonight anyway, but luckily I have some room left, and you can rest assured that I'll be in prison and feed you in no time. It's hard to do, and you don't have to blame me. As he spoke, the jailer took a large set of keys from his waist and prepared to open the cell door to feed Shang Yu poison himself.

Shang Yu only felt that his eyes were dark, and he said in his heart: "I didn't expect Guo Tianxu to be so vicious, he actually asked me to take poison and die in prison, at this time, my whole body is weak, it is difficult to stand in the water is good, how can I resist the harm of this jailer?" ”

"Suicide by taking poison, your kid is blessed, there is no abnormality in the appearance of expensive broken intestines and drinking, the seven orifices will not bleed, but it is very painful, but burying the whole corpse is a hundred times better than being taken to the execution ground and cutting off the head."

The cell door opened, the jailer had already stepped into the water, he completely ignored the smell of the water in the water, grabbed Shang Yu's shoulder, and with the other hand opened a small paper bag in his hand, and said with a smile: "Don't be afraid, it's just a little pain, you can re-enter the reincarnation, you will definitely be a rich man in the next life, and you have to be grateful to me as a prison master." ”

After that, he pulled Shang Yu's head and forcibly pried his mouth open, ready to pour the poison into his mouth, but Shang Yu was about to resist but his whole body was weak, and he saw that the paper was tilted and was about to pour it into his mouth.

"It's better to die under Shao Rong's knife, it's more crisp! Broken intestines are highly poisonous and tasteless, but they make the five intestines and six organs break and die of pain! Guo Tianxu, I, Shang Yu, will not spare you even if I am a ghost! I will eat your flesh and eat your blood before I can rest. Thinking of this, Shang Yu closed his eyes angrily.