Time has unconsciously reached the end of the sixth year of Chongzhen, after a short stay in Henan, the peasant army of Shaanxi quickly diverted to Shanxi under the intervention of Mao Wenlong.

Henan was able to be temporarily peaceful, but the good times did not last long, and the imperial court was already aware of the harm of the civil uprising, and also in order to be able to quell the civil unrest in Shaanxi, Shanxi, Sichuan, Henan and other places as soon as possible.

Chongzhen ordered Chen Qiyu to be the governor of the five provinces to preside over the encirclement and suppression of civil unrest in other places. The governments of Shaanxi, Sichuan, Shanxi, and Henan began to assemble their officers and troops and stand by at any time.

The clarion call for counterinsurgency was blown on the land of the five provinces, and the imperial court was determined to completely quell the rebellion, and the tense atmosphere made the people of the five provinces feel worried.

Under such a general trend, Ye County was not spared, and it was the beginning of the lanterns. According to the usual people of Ye County, this is the time for the family to be leisurely.

There is no curfew in Yexian County, and Mao Wenlong has always encouraged the people to have fun at night. In ancient times, there was nothing to entertain, like the monotonous days of sunrise and sunset, Mao Wenlong didn't like it the most.

Tonight's Yexian is different from the past, it has just been a new day, and the city has been quiet, which looks particularly gloomy. There are hardly any pedestrians in the quiet streets.

At the entrance of an important street there are soldiers of the Dongjiang Army, checking the occasional passerby. Since the sudden arrival of the Fusang Sect last time, Qingfeng, who was in charge of guarding the city, no longer dared to be careless.

Red or white paper lanterns hang outside the gates of every house, dimly lit and swaying under the eaves. Make a main street in the city look like a ghost town.

The city was very silent, with a lantern guarded by soldiers every short distance, and in addition to the fixed guards, there were also active patrolmen patrolling the city walls.

Due to the decision of the imperial court, now the whole of Henan has begun to become tense, and Mao Wenlong does not dare to be careless, and the necessary defense still cannot be left behind.

The entire Yexian City was completely shrouded in darkness at the moment, but the lights in Mao's Mansion were still bright.

After Mao Wenlong and Hong Chengchou had dinner happily, the two were invited to the meeting hall in the front yard.

In the hall, Liu Guangzuo, Chengzuo, Adou, and Chen Jisheng are all there, and Hong Chengchou's original six old generals are also present at the moment. The four of them are at the head of the three people, the big cow, the big bear, and the big tiger.

Mao Wenlong and Hong Chengchou entered the hall, and everyone immediately stood up to greet them. Mao Wenlong smiled and responded to everyone one by one, and then walked to the first place with Hong Chengchou and sat down under the gaze of everyone.

Hong Chengchou sat next to Mao Wenlong, and now he seems to be Mao Wenlong's military. Although he has a military position in the army, he has never participated in it, but he often gave Mao Wenlong a lot of opinions during deliberations.

Mao Wenlong swept over everyone with a gentle gaze, and then after a little consideration, he opened his mouth and said, "This will call everyone here, I believe you all already know what to discuss." Yes, it is the time for Yexian to expand, but now is the time when the imperial court is preparing to deal with the civil unrest on a large scale, so I want to hear what everyone thinks. ”

Chen Jisheng was the first to stand up and say: "General soldier, the expansion of our Ye County is imminent, and we will not be able to accommodate more people without expansion." Without more people, there would be no more soldiers and horses, and without more soldiers and horses, we would not be able to face the army of the imperial court or those rebels. ”

"Therefore, the subordinates believe that we must expand immediately, at least take the whole of Xuzhou or Guide. In the future, we will have a foothold in Henan, and we can have greater development. ”

Mao Wenlong did not respond to Chen Jisheng, but turned to look at Hong Chengchou beside him, the meaning was obvious, and he wanted to hear his opinion.

Hong Chengchou only groaned slightly, and then said to Mao Wenlong: "Expansion is imperative, and now is a good time. We should take one or two cities before the official army has yet to move, so that we can recruit troops, recruit more people, and grow more food. ”

Mao Wenlong nodded, and he also agreed with him, since taking Ye County, the Dongjiang Army has been holding back for three years, and it is time to expand.

But instead of rushing to conclusions, he cast his gaze on the people in the hall again, and then exclaimed, "Does anyone have any other opinions?" ”

"Nope!" Everyone was unanimous in their voices, the expansion had been seen for all to see, and there was nothing to dispute.

After Mao Wenlong heard this, he was no longer hypocritical, and made a conclusion directly: "Very good, then the expansion matter is decided like this." Now let's talk about how to expand and where it's best to do it. ”

After a pause, Mao Wenlong said to Chen Jisheng: "Tell me about the current situation in the barracks, as well as the soldiers and horses we can use now. ”

"Qiqi General Army, now we have the original Dongjiang Army of 10,000 and 20,000 new soldiers. 10,000 of them, after recent training, have fully reached the standard of being ready to go on the expedition. And the remaining 10,000 recruits can stay in Yexian County to defend, and they can also be competent. "Chen Jisheng is like a few treasures, one by one.

Mao Wenlong nodded and said: "That is, the number of soldiers and horses that can be mobilized is 20,000, can you take the whole of Xuzhou?" ”

Chen Jisheng immediately had a proud look on his face: "It is more than enough to take Xuzhou, but it will be a little reluctant to take the Guide Mansion." ”

Mao Wenlong looked at Hong Chengchou again, and the latter nodded knowingly and said: "It is indeed feasible to take Xuzhou with 20,000 soldiers and horses, but it is easy to attack the city and difficult to defend the city." Our purpose is long-term development, not to grab and leave, so we should only take Xuzhou first, and the rest should wait until it is stable in the future before expanding! ”

Hong Chengchou's proposal was finally recognized by everyone, and Mao Wenlong also made a final decision. Ordered Chen Jisheng to prepare for the expedition from tomorrow, and he was also the commander of the expedition.

In fact, with the current strength of the Dongjiang Army, there is really no problem at all to take Xuzhou. It can be said that it is very easy, but as Hong Chengchou said, it is easy to attack the city and difficult to defend the city.

Especially Mao Wenlong doesn't want to be a thorn in the side of the imperial court at present, so naturally he can't be too active. And even under such a premise, he must try his best to lead the spearhead of the court to Li Zicheng.

In order to survive in the cracks, Mao Wenlong did not dare to be greedy for merit, and he worked steadily step by step, which was the best strategy.

The matter has been discussed, everything is going well, Mao Wenlong picked up a cup of tea, the faint fragrance of tea was refreshing, and he used it

His lips smacked slightly, and he looked thoughtfully at this azure Xuanyao Dark Dragon Cup, admiring the exquisite

Precious art.

After Chen Jisheng and the others saw it, they immediately retired, and Mao Wenlong watched them leave with a smile.

The conference hall suddenly fell silent, leaving only Mao Wenlong and Hong Chengchou relatively silent, each holding fragrant tea lightly, and the conference hall also fell silent.

Mao Wenlong's mind was obvious, he was waiting for Hong Chengchou to speak first, Hong Chengchou had been hesitating just now, as if he had something to say but couldn't say it.

At this time, Mao Wenlong has already driven everyone away, but he still doesn't see Hong Chengchou speak, obviously, his words may be very important next.

Hong Chengchou looked at Mao Wenlong from time to time with the corner of his eye, and when he saw his expression, he coughed lightly after a little hesitation and said, "I want to know how you plan to do it in the future, especially in the face of the imperial court?" ”

Mao Wenlong's hand that put the teacup paused slightly, and then naturally put it down, looked at Hong Chengchou and said, "Then what do you want me to do?" ”

Hong Chengchou did not respond to Mao Wenlong, but looked at him quietly, and after a long time, he exhaled, as if he had let go of something in his heart. Then he nodded and said, "I see!" ”

Mao Wenlong frowned, with a trace of doubt on his face: "What do you understand?" ”

Hong Chengchou didn't have the slightest entanglement, he chuckled and said: "If I can, I will remove my position in the army in the future, and I will concentrate on teaching and educating people for the people under your rule, okay?" ”

Mao Wenlong suddenly got up and walked back and forth in the hall, and after a long time, he sighed and said, "You have decided? ”

Hong Chengchou also got up and walked in front of Mao Wenlong, nodded firmly, and said, "I've decided!" ”

A look of pity flashed in Mao Wenlong's eyes, but he didn't try to persuade Hong Chengchou. In Cao Ying's heart in Han, although Hong Chengchou joined his command, he could never forget the damn loyal monarch thinking.

Rather than let him do things reluctantly, it is better to let him choose for himself, and let him be a teacher for the time being, as he is now.

A smile appeared on Mao Wenlong's face, nodded and said, "Since you have decided, then do whatever you want, you can do whatever you want, I will never stop you." ”

Hong Chengchou looked at Mao Wenlong, suddenly hugged his fists and saluted, and then said with a smile: "Thank you for the success of the general army." ”

As the night deepened, the bright candles in the council hall were blown out by the subordinates, and the Mao Mansion gradually calmed down, and one by one fell asleep.

The rooster crowed, driving away the night and ushering in the day, and as soon as dawn broke, there was a burst of trumpets in the barracks in the back mountain.

30,000 new veterans gathered in the school field under the leadership of the generals, and Chen Jisheng put on his helmet and armor, rode on horseback and ran around the whole army, and then stopped directly opposite the soldiers.

The war drums resounded throughout the school field, and the rhythmic and dull drum sound made people feel excited!

When the drums gradually subsided, Chen Jisheng dismounted, and he shouted loudly: "The general army has decided that today will send troops to fight in Xuzhou, and the great time for the brothers to make contributions has come." ”

The 30,000 soldiers at the bottom were all excited, and only when they joined the army could they have military merits and the opportunity to be promoted and make a fortune only when they went to the battlefield to kill the enemy.

Now, the opportunity has come, and the soldiers are naturally excited!

Seeing the expressions of the soldiers below, Chen Jisheng looked very satisfied, and then whispered to Liu Guangzuo beside him to take the 10,000 recruits away, leaving only the veterans who were ready to go to battle.

In this way, some people are happy and some are worried, especially those recruits, after this period of devil training, they all feel good about themselves.

They all think that they can also go on the expedition, and they can also make meritorious contributions, be promoted and make a fortune!

When Liu Guangzuo began to carry out Chen Jisheng's orders, the recruits who were about to be taken away began to be dissatisfied, and then gradually became agitated.

Chen Jisheng suddenly tightened his eyebrows, stopped Liu Guangzuo viciously, and then directly singled out the 10,000 recruits, and yelled fiercely: "Are you unconvinced, very good, now give you a chance, who is not convinced to stand up." As long as you can defeat the Dongjiang army, Lao Tzu allows you to go out with the army. ”

This loud roar directly quieted the 10,000 recruits for a moment, and then there was an even bigger commotion. There are always those who are not afraid of death who will be the first bird.

No, not long after Chen Jisheng's words fell, more than a dozen recruits rushed up, indicating that they were willing to accept the challenge.

Chen Jisheng agreed to them with a cruel smile, turned around and yelled at the original Dongjiang army: "You come out with more than a dozen people to fight them alone, if anyone loses, whoever stays, and is not allowed to follow the army to fight." ”

After giving the order, Chen Jisheng turned around and left, not stopping for a moment at all.

Hula!

Suddenly, more than a dozen big men with smiling faces rushed out of the Dongjiang army column. Abuse of recruits like this is the most popular pastime for veterans.

There was no superfluous nonsense on both sides, and as soon as they came up, they immediately scuffled, and a dozen people fought with their bare hands against a dozen people in full view of everyone.

As a result, there was no suspense, and the Dongjiang army completely defeated those recruits, who were beaten one by one with blue noses and swollen faces, lying on the ground wailing and wailing.

At this time, Chen Jisheng, who had just disappeared, suddenly appeared at some point, holding a horsewhip in his hand. Without saying a word, as soon as he came up, he gave a headless and brainless jerk at the recruit lying on the ground pretending to be dead.

While pumping him, he roared angrily: "Let you be good at yourself, and tell you to play dead to Lao Tzu!" ”

Chen Jisheng's ferocity directly deterred those recruits who were still in the impetuous period, and no one dared to show any dissatisfaction, and the remaining recruits were obediently honest.

Seeing that no one objected or was dissatisfied, Chen Jisheng asked Liu Guangzuo to bring everyone down. The dozen or so birds were then carried down for healing.

After the little farce, after Chen Jisheng's lecture, the veterans began to go back to get their weapons, and then came to the school again to gather.

The generals who went out with Chen Jisheng this time were Li Jie, Fan Kaiming, Cheng Zuo, and A Dou. In addition, the rest must stay to protect Ye County.

The army was soon assembled, and Chen Jisheng took them out of the barracks and headed for the east gate.

The people in the city said goodbye, and Mao Wenlong was already waiting outside the East City Gate, along with him were Hong Chengchou and those generals who had to stay.

When he said goodbye, Mao Wenlong didn't have so much nonsense, he only asked Chen Jisheng to be too in love, not to be impulsive, and to focus on the overall situation.

Chen Jisheng naturally agreed, and in front of Mao Wenlong, he directly made a military order in front of the whole army to show his determination.

Mao Wenlong looked at the majestic and imposing soldiers of the army, and he was very satisfied and relieved. As long as Chen Jisheng doesn't make a dead end, it is only a matter of time before he takes Xuzhou.