With the support of local officials, Feng Xiaoci really got twice the result with half the effort when he heard about the enemy's situation. It only took five days for the latest movements of the rogues to be delivered to his desk.

According to the secret report sent back by the sentinels, after the failure of the plan to besiege Liyang, Gao Kaidao, Dou Jiande, Sun Xuanya and other thieves have dispersed. Among them, Gao Kaidao and Sun Xuanya led the elite of the department, together with Lin Shanhu, Shi Derui and other bandits, and slowly retreated to Juluze. And Dou Jiande had a holiday with Zhang Jin, so he refused to take refuge in front of the former enemy's house, and led the minions of the headquarters and most of the displaced people who came with him to cross Bowang Mountain, and retreated to Douzigang along the line of Dunqiu and Shalu Mountain. On the way, they were blocked by the county soldiers led by Wei Deshen of Guixiang County and Wei Zheng, the chief secretary of Wuyang County, and the two sides fought all day, and it was difficult to distinguish the winner. After nightfall, the displaced people saw that Dou Jiande had no hope of winning, so they helped the old and the young to "abandon the camp" and leave. Dou Jiande couldn't bear to chase and kill, so he took his descendants to take advantage of the chaos to go south, crossed the Yellow River and went to Liangshan in Dongping County.

"This surnamed Dou's behavior is so weird!" With the impression of commanding the bandits to retreat decisively before the arrival of the official army, Feng Xiaoci had a deep impression of Dou Jiande. "Based on this thief's behavior in Jijun, he shouldn't be so stupid, right? Why don't you go to the wilderness on the north bank of the Yellow River, but go to Dunqiu to touch the mold of the Yuan treasure? ”

"Didn't the old general forget what Master Zhang said that day?" Ying Yanglang stepped forward Zhao Yida and responded diligently, "Nearly 200,000 homeless people, if they are all brought to Douzigang, they will have to eat Dou Jiande poorly." Fight with Wei Deshen in a daze, and let the homeless people go away on their own. He Dou Jiande didn't have any notoriety, and he got rid of a big burden, why not do it? ”

"This insidious fellow!" Feng Xiaoci frowned, his face full of worry. "I only pity the people who got on the thief ship, their homes are gone, and the food that saves their lives is gone. After being separated, I don't know how many will survive! ”

"There are still wild vegetables in the mountains this season, so if you are diligent with your hands and feet, you will not starve to death!" Zhou Wen, the captain of the county military academy who came to deliver the secret report, shrugged his shoulders and was a little unimpressed by Feng Xiaoci's worries. "At present, the officials and gentry in their respective hometowns have almost been killed by Dou Jiande. Those homeless people have just taken up the ownerless fertile land, and as long as they survive the next winter, I am afraid that the days ahead will be more nourishing than before! ”。

"What if I can't make it? Didn't someone say hello and follow to take a risk? Feng Xiaoci glanced back and spoke, very dissatisfied with this person's attitude. It's just a small county military captain, but he pretends to be like a hairpin family. There is no sympathy for his fellow villagers in his heart, as if the other party is an ant, and life or death has nothing to do with him!

Captain Zhou was stunned by the old general's gaze, but he took two steps forward, holding a stack of secret newspapers in both hands, "Those thieves in the township are now gathered in Juluze." If the old general can quickly wipe them out, the people will be instigated by no one, and it will naturally be easy to settle down! ”

This sentence is also reasonable, hindering the face of Zhang Wenqi, Feng Xiaoci does not want to embarrass Captain Zhou in public. Stretched out his hand to take the secret report, flipped through it hastily, and asked indifferently: "Have you verified these news?" Are you sure the rest of the bandits went to Juluze? ”

"General, don't worry!" Captain Zhou nodded vigorously, and the tone of his voice changed with it, "The humble position personally walked with the footprints of the rogue, and went all the way to the Fei Township of Wu'an County. After determining that the target of the bandits was Julu Ze, they rushed back in the starry night! ”

Feixiang County in Wu'an County is more than 200 miles away from Liyang, and it takes five days to run a round trip, even if there are fast horses, the people on the horses have to be tired and half dead. Feng Xiaoci suspected that the captain who spoke was bragging, and raised his head to look at the other party again. Only then did this person appear that although he was dressed very neatly, his face had a blue-black color that could only be found in extreme exhaustion, and there were many cracks on his upper and lower lips, and as he spoke, beads of blood broke down the cracks.

"You have a grudge against the rogue?" Feng Xiaoci immediately thought of what the county guard Zhang Wenqi said when he met him for the first time, and looked into the eyes of the lieutenant surnamed Zhou and asked.

A ray of cold light flashed from Captain Zhou's eyes, blazing like lightning in the night sky. "General Yu, my pavilion Tao Zhou's family is full, and only I am alive. If you can't avenge your parents, brothers and sisters in this life, Zhou won't be able to die! ”

"Did Zhang Jin do it? How did you escape? Feng Xiaoci didn't like the hatred that was about to come out of this person, frowned, and continued to interrogate.

"General Yu, it's Cheng Mingzhen, the thief who let go of his humble duties!" Although he didn't like to be investigated like a thief by Feng Xiaoci, Captain Zhou Wen still maintained the most basic politeness, bowed, and responded loudly. He once swore to heaven and earth that if he could take revenge, he would pay any price. Being suspected and interrogated, what is this grievance? In the past, Gou Jian once tasted gall on his salary, and finally tasted the shame of sucking sores in the snow. Now that the blood feud of the Guantao Zhou family has fallen on him alone, he can bear ten times more humiliation.

"Released you?" Feng Xiaoci's eyes looked Zhou Wen up and down, trying to find some suspicious clues from the other party's body. This was not the first time he had heard of the shocking move of the habitual bandit Cheng Mingzhen. Since crossing the Yellow River in the north, he has been stunned, and the actions of the habitual bandit Cheng Mingzhen are almost incompatible with other bandit leaders. In a way, the thief seems to be pursuing a traditional kind of justice, albeit with a very bloody approach.

Being stared at by Feng Xiaoci was extremely uncomfortable, and the muscles of Captain Zhou Wen's body began to tense. "For specific details, the humble post has already been reported to Zhang Junshou. Before the Cheng thief rebelled, he used to be a soldier in Guantao County. After falling into the hands of thieves, because he was greedy for life and afraid of death, he surrendered to Zhang Jincheng and took the initiative to sneak back to Guantao County to make internal responses for the thieves. Humble Jing happens to be the cousin of this thief, and Cheng Thief has always coveted his appearance and can't bear to make him sad. That's why after the city was broken, he pretended to be generous and let go of his humble post alone! ”

"Hmmm! This thief is simply acting! "I don't know how much Feng Xiaoci listened to Zhou Wen's words, anyway, the conclusions he came to were very different from the direction that Zhou Wen expected." How well do you know him? I'm talking about his past habits, preferences, and length of time leading troops, and his combat record? If you want to take revenge, you must know yourself and your opponent first! ”

"The old general has taught a great lesson!" Zhou Wen bowed down and clenched his fists again, "After escaping from his humble position, he has been looking for an opportunity for revenge." So every move of this thief is very attentive. Including some of his behaviors before the rebellion, they all inquired very clearly! ”

Feng Xiaoci was eager to understand his opponent, and when he heard Zhou Wen say this, he immediately became interested. He pointed to the stool not far away, and ordered with a pleasant face, "You sit down and say, about Cheng Thief, tell the old man everything you know!" ”

A touch of joy immediately jumped Zhou Wen's eyebrows, he took a few steps back, and reached the ground with a long stroke, "The humble general has no end to words!" If you can repay your family's revenge, even if you are a slave and a servant in this life, you must repay the kindness of the old general! ”

"Laugh and talk!" Feng Xiaoci shook his head resolutely, "The old man exterminated the thieves for the sake of the community. Asking you about the thief is also to understand the opponent. As for your family feud, if you catch a thief in the future, you can go and take revenge! If the old man doesn't stop him, you don't have to remember what kind the old man is! ”

The sycophant words didn't hit the right place, and Zhou Wen, who had a gray nose, was not discouraged. sat down with a smile, and talked about how Cheng Mingzhen "blended into" the government and became a captain, how he "pretended" to go out of the city to ask for his life for the people, how he disappeared for more than half a year afterwards, and then came back, how he colluded with his sworn friends Wang Ermao, Duan Qing and other thieves in the county government, and how he betrayed Guan Tao's bad deeds.

In addition to the strong hatred, in his words, the relevant situation of Cheng Mingzhen was described quite accurately. Including Cheng Mingzhen, who was born in the Great Sui General's Sect, has strong martial arts and is proficient in the art of war. and Cheng Mingzhen's rebellion was taken by the female bandit Du Juan, and he did private things such as the other party's son-in-law regardless of shame.

For the bandits who can defeat Yang Shanhui with more than 3,000 rogues, Feng Xiaoci has always attached great importance to it. So he kept interrupting Zhou Wen's narration and asked him some relevant details. And because Zhou Wen saw the hope of revenge, he was also patient and carefully answered the other party's questions. Where there is no need to lie, absolutely do not lie. Even about the feud between the two families, he did not completely put the blame on Cheng Mingzhen, but took the initiative to admit that the hatred originated from a "misunderstanding".

This relatively peaceful attitude was obviously more appreciated by Feng Xiaoci than the previous attitude full of hatred. The old general carefully asked everything he cared about, then turned the topic back to the military situation, patted the secret report in his hand, and encouraged with a smile, "You have done a good job, I will carefully read these pieces of information tonight." You go back and rest first, Zhang Junshou over there, I will send someone to ask you for credit! ”

"Old General!" Feeling that Feng Xiaoci had no intention of sending troops immediately, Zhou Wen's mood suddenly became impatient again, and he stood up and saluted with his fists. "If the thieves are given time to integrate in the giant deer ze, it will inevitably be even more difficult to exterminate in the future. Taking advantage of their unstable foothold......"

"Military affairs, Captain Zhou doesn't have to worry about it!" Feng Xiaoci waved his hand and lukewarmly rejected Zhou Wen's proposal. When it came to the safety of tens of thousands of brothers, he didn't want to start it rashly without any preparation. The terrain near Juluze is complicated, and now it is the time when the autumn flood is coming, if he is led into a trap by the other party, his reputation and the face of the imperial court will be ruined there.

Touched another soft nail, and green smoke rose from Zhou Wen's body. But he is only a county military captain, and his official position is 108,000 miles away from General Youwuhou. And those connections in the court at home don't seem to be very effective. Anyway, since the accident of the Zhou family, those dignitaries who used to have close relationships with each other suddenly turned cold. Zhou Wenzuo sent nearly a hundred letters one after another, but he didn't get any response.

Without the capital to have a hard top with General Wuhou You, Zhou Wen, who was red-eyed, could only get up and say goodbye. I had just swallowed the blood foam bitten out of my gums, and I heard the old man Feng Xiaoci muttering behind his back: "This matter is so strange!" What are these bandits going to Juluze to do? Could it be that there has been a big deal there lately? ”

Like grabbing a life-saving straw, Zhou Wen immediately twisted his head back, arched his hand to Feng Xiaoci, and said loudly: "General, do you know what they are going to do?" The bandit surnamed Cheng and the female thief surnamed Du are about to get married, Zhang Jin said that the Guanglvlin post, please go to watch the ceremony! ”

"Oh?" Feng Xiaoci raised his eyebrows lightly, "Can the surname Cheng have such a big face?" ”

"He has been attacking frequently recently, which has made the giant deer group of thieves skyrocket. Zhang Jin said that he just took the opportunity to give him a wedding banquet to demonstrate to thieves from all walks of life! Zhou Wen nodded and added through gritted teeth.

At the wedding banquet, the surname Cheng actually wanted to marry a wife in a beautiful way. , If the wedding is not turned into a funeral, the descendants of the Zhou family are not worthy of the surname Zhou!

Note 1: That is, Shuibo Liangshan in the Song Dynasty. In the Sui and Tang dynasties, this place was close to Juyeze and Jishui, and it was a famous bandit den.