Chapter 104: The Northland (4)

It was getting late, and he couldn't go back to Lingzhou today, so Chen Cheng ordered to live temporarily in the abandoned village. He controlled his mount and entered through the breached barrier. The ramparts are made of trees and earth, about one foot high and three feet high, and four feet thick, which can be a good defense against wild beasts and rogues, but it also has a certain resistance to formed armies, but the attacker must be determined, and it is not difficult to break through such a defense.

There are many corpses near the breach of the wall, and judging by the costumes, they should be local villagers. There were broken farm tools and weapons walking on the ground, and the ground was large areas of brown and black, and it was clear that there had been a fierce battle here. But now both the defenders and the attackers were gone, leaving only the bodies of the dead emitting a foul smell on the ground.

Chen Cheng frowned, feeling that he seemed to be taking it for granted, and if he entered here rashly, he might be infected with an epidemic or something. But since the order has been given, it is better not to change it. Changing orders is never a good habit. For example, the change of the civil fort in the Ming Dynasty was caused by the emperor's diversion.

Of course, the current situation will not be so serious, but if the order is changed back and forth, it will reduce the prestige of the general.

Finding a fairly empty and clean place, Yang Hu, Yan Xing and the others first fed the horses, then went around the village, and found some millet and wheat near the collapsed kitchen and the buried stove. Because they were very close to the Huns, they didn't dare to make a fire, so they ate the millet directly with cold water.

The husking of millet was not done well, and there were many shell fragments inside. The hard shell will make your teeth squeaze in your mouth, and it will have a stinging sensation when swallowing, and it will be very uncomfortable to eat. Generally speaking, normal humans don't eat like this. Chen Cheng swallowed two mouthfuls without changing his face, making sure that he hated this kind of food too, even if he had a lot of things that were different from ordinary people.

After arranging the order of the vigil, Chen Cheng lay on a pile of straw and soon fell asleep. After sleeping for about four hours, he automatically woke up from his sleep without being urged by others, and then took over Yan Xing's vigil. Yan Xing whispered a few words to him, and then dived into the darkness.

Chen Cheng looked inside the village, then found a relatively tall tree and climbed up. It was already the middle of the night, and the bright moon was hanging in the middle of the sky. He sat on a thick tree trunk and swayed his feet from one to the other.

The moonlight shines on the land, and the scenery near and far is full of shadows. The night is not as noisy as the day, but if you listen carefully, you can still hear a lot of sounds. Many insects are flapping their wings inside and outside the village, and the Yellow River is flowing endlessly to the east.

Faced with this situation, Chen Cheng couldn't help but read two lines of poetry, "The falling moon is knowing that it is not known, and the river is far away and only hears the sound", after reading, he felt that the time was reduced by a few seconds,

A long time later, when the moon had set and the sun had not yet risen, Yang Hu, Yan Xing and the others had already woken up. They fed the mounts first, then pulled the horses directly and went up the avenue from the entrance of the village. The fence at the entrance of the village and the nearby houses had been burned beyond recognition, and Chen Cheng hurried past on horseback and caught a glimpse of a small hand sticking out of the adobe bricks.

He sighed in his heart, put a little effort on his legs, hissed long, and picked up the speed. The cavalry behind him also increased their speed, and it didn't take long for them to rush to the vicinity of Lingzhou. Lingzhou is less than four miles away from the Yellow River, and there are ferries on both sides of the Yellow River, and forts are built near the ferries to hoard troops and grain and grass.

It is said to be a fortress, but in fact it is a large Wu Fort, the wall is no more than two feet high, and at most five or six hundred soldiers can be stuffed in the middle. This kind of Wu fort was originally a hoarding of materials for transportation on both sides of the strait, but after hearing that the Huns were coming, it was hastily changed into a fortress. Therefore, the defensive power of the fortress can be imagined.

Chen Cheng revealed his identity at the ferry, and then took the ferry back to the east coast. The Yellow River has a wide water surface and is by no means comparable to the rivers outside the Guanzi City in western Liaoning. There are often large areas of wetlands and tidal flats along the shore, with reeds and other aquatic plants, and countless animals inhabit them. When Chen Cheng and the others passed by, countless flying birds were startled, flapping their wings and making loud sounds. In the dense flora, there are occasional toad calls.

The Yellow River near Lingzhou is seven or eight miles wide, and the current in it is so strong that it took the ferry half an hour to row from the west bank to the east bank. After Chen Cheng and the others went ashore, it took a little time to rush to Lingzhou City. A lot of stones and timber have been piled up on the top of the city, and many soldiers and civilians are carrying more supplies to the city.

When Xu Chao heard that Chen Cheng was back, he immediately rushed over. He asked, "My lord, have you ever met the Huns here?" Is Lian County still holding on? ”

"I've bumped into some," Chen Cheng said, "It's probably the tribesmen on the periphery, and it's not difficult to deal with." After encountering the Huns, we retreated, and the situation behind us is not clear. ”

Xu Chao sighed and said, "There has been no news for so long, I'm afraid it has fallen." ”

He said to Chen Cheng: "General Yang Qiu sent someone over, saying that General Cheng Yi's soldiers and horses will be able to reach Fuping today. ”

"I know, he's told me before."

Xu Chao asked: "Since General Chengyi has also arrived, why don't you garrison the army in Lingzhou?" This is also convenient for a decisive battle with the Huns! ”

Chen Cheng said: "Is there any local grain to supply the army? ”

"There are still 150,000 stones of grain in the treasury, and if you collect some from the people, you can have another 50,000."

"So much?" Chen Cheng pondered for a while and said, "Then I'll ask General Yang Qiu and General Cheng Yi to come over." ”

Xu Chao's face was overjoyed, and he saluted: "The lord is wise!" ”

Chen Cheng smiled: "If I don't agree with your opinion, will I be dumbfounded?" ”

Xu Chao said curtly: "How can the lord be unconscious? ”

In Fuping City, Cheng Yi, who had a handsome face, was dressed in iron clothes, and said to Yang Qiu with a smile: "Brother Yang, since you sent troops to attack Yuanwei, we haven't seen each other for a long time. ”

Yuanwei belongs to Wuwei County, very close to Anding, where Chengyi once hoarded grain and grass. A few years ago, Yang Qiu marched along the Yellow River, passed through Anding, and attacked the Yuanwei, looting the 100,000 stone military rations stored inside. Later, Cheng Yi sent someone to contact Ma Teng, and almost cut off Yang Qiu's back road. After that war, their relationship was not very good, although they had not been good until then.

Yang Qiu said unhappily: "How long ago was that?" Now that the Huns are overwhelmed by the army, it is better for you and me to abandon our previous suspicions. ”

Cheng Yi said sympathetically: "You said that if you abandon the previous suspicion, you will abandon the previous suspicion?" You have to return the 100,000 stone of military rations to me first!" ”

Yang Qiu said angrily: "Are you here to help me defend against the Huns, or are you here to settle old accounts with me?" ”

Cheng Yi snorted and said, "Settle the old accounts first, and then deal with the Huns!" ”

Yang Qiu pulled out half of the matching sword with a "pout", and shouted: "Do you think I'm afraid that you won't succeed?" ”

Cheng Yi also pressed his hand on the hilt of the sword, and said angrily: "You have a sword, don't I have it?" ”

Yan Zhong couldn't stand it anymore on the side, and persuaded him: "Both of them are the pillars of Liangzhou, and now that outsiders have called, it's better to get along in harmony first and be unanimous with the outside world." ”

Cheng Yi glanced at Yang Qiu and said with a smile: "For Mr. Yan's sake, I'll endure this breath first." Mr. is right, now that the Huns are committing a big attack, it is clear that they don't take our Liangzhou princes seriously, and they have to teach them a good lesson. However, there is one thing to say, during the period of sending troops, the military rations have to be supplied by the north. ”

Yan Zhong said: "This is as it should be. ”

He turned his head and said to Yang Qiu: "General Yang understands the righteousness and will definitely not oppose it, right?" ”

Yang Qiu inserted the sword back into the scabbard and said, "Of course! ”

Yan Zhong breathed a sigh of relief and said, "I just received a message from the prince and the marquis, asking us to move the army forward and garrison it in Lingzhou, what do the two generals think?" ”

Cheng Yi smiled: "It's up to the host, I have no opinion." ”

He heard about Yang Qiu's surrender of Lingzhou to Chen Cheng, so he made sarcastic remarks. Yang Qiu just didn't hear it, and said to Yan Zhong: "If the army comes forward, then the decisive battle with the Huns is inevitable, do you want to think about it again?" I sent letters to Cheng Yin and Zhang Heng, why don't you wait for them to come over? ”

Cheng Yi sneered when he heard this, and said, "Zhang Hengchengyin, they have all gone to Jincheng, where can I have time to come and rescue you?" That is, I saw the friendship we made, so I kindly brought the troops here. ”

Yan Zhong said to Yang Qiu in surprise: "The general doesn't even want to defend Lingzhou? Do you want to put the Huns down in Fuping City? ”

Yang Qiu said as a matter of course: "The Huns are used to luring the enemy deeper, so why not use this trick?" ”

"..........", Yan Zhong turned his head and asked Cheng Yidao, "What does General Cheng think?" ”

Cheng Yi smiled: "Yang Qiu doesn't care about his own territory, what else can I say?" ”

Yan Zhong thought for a while and said, "Then I'll take someone to Shouling Prefecture, and the two generals will do their own thing." ”

Before Yang Qiu could speak, Cheng Yi hurriedly said: "Then I will also go to Lingzhou with Mr. Yan to face the Huns, and General Yang Qiu will sit in Fuping." ”

"What do you mean by that?" Yang Qiu shouted: "The Huns are menacing, we avoid their edge and attack their laziness, this is in line with the art of war!" ”

Cheng Yi laughed and said: "We don't know what the art of war is, we only know that if the Huns gain a firm foothold in Lingzhou, then Beidi County and even the entire Liangzhou will be in danger." ”

He said to Yan Zhong: "Mr. Yan has not been in Liangzhou for a long time, and probably does not know that there are hundreds of thousands of acres of fertile land on both sides of the Yellow River near Lingzhou now, which can harvest millions of stones of grain every year. If the Huns occupied such a treasure land, they would not retreat even if they were killed. ”

Yan Zhong said in surprise: "I know this is a plain, but is there so much land in Lingzhou alone?" ”

He said to Yang Qiu: "General Yang is so generous and gave up such an important place to the prince? ”

Cheng Yi said with a smile: "Although there is a lot of food in Lingzhou, he can't receive much, so he can naturally give it away." ”

Yang Qiu snorted, but did not refute, it seemed to be a tacit acquiescence.

Yan Zhong suddenly understood a little, and couldn't help but look at Cheng Yi a few more times, and said in his heart: Cheng Yi is so clear about the affairs of the Northland, I am afraid that the person who came is not good.