Li Qing's room, the light is a little dim, although the outside is hot and hot, but it is unusually cool, there are large wooden basins in the four corners of the room, which contains gray-white ice cubes, which Li Qing made a few days ago with the ice-making technology of the old bank, this cheap and practical way to spend the summer once launched, suddenly swept the entire Shazhou, some businessmen with a keen sense of smell immediately opened an ice drink shop, just like Li Qing was in general.

Li Qingduan sat on the chair, gently pinching the joints on his index finger, his eyes were indifferent, with a smile on the corner of his mouth, behind him, more than a dozen personal soldiers pressed their hands on the handle of the knife, vigilantly staring at the people who were a zhang away, especially Wu Xingsu, his eyes were on fire, he keenly felt that the arrow on his back was shot by this person, a zhang away, Li Fei Shouyu was curiously looking at the ice cubes in the basin, although the snow on the top of the snow peak was snowy, but it could be transported to Shazhou, how could this be done? His mind was full of questions.

Li Qing saw that he was staring at the ice cube for a long time and was puzzled, and couldn't help laughing: "That's just a small skill of carving insects, if General Lifei is interested, put saltpeter into the water and try it, you will know." ”

Li Fei Shouyu straightened up and said with a smile: "The governor has won the award, Shouyu is just a bandit leader, not a general." ”

After a pause, he said implicitly: "I have to rush back today, I made an appointment with my eldest brother, if I don't go back today, he will lead the army to kill me from the gap in Dunhuang and take me back." ”

Li Qing smiled lightly, "Brother Shouyu said it so seriously, since people are here, there is no need to keep that gap, I have already ordered to start filling it, I'm afraid Brother Ling won't be able to enter if he has the heart." ”

Li Fei Shouyu's face changed slightly, and he said hurriedly: "What the eunuch said about Shicai, don't you count the things you took last time in exchange for my mother?" ”

"That natural counts!"

Li Qing sneered, "But that's just to exchange for your wife, what about you?" Since Brother Shouyu came to Shazhou as a guest, how could I not fulfill the friendship of the landlord and stay with Brother Shouyu for a few more days. ”

Li Fei stood up and said angrily: "Governor, the two countries are fighting each other, is this your way of hospitality?" ”

"Bold!" Wu Xingsu behind Li Qing shouted angrily, and the brothers beside him pulled out their long knives one after another, surrounding Li Fei Shouyu, and Leng Sensen's blade pointed at him.

Li Qing didn't say a word, nor did he stop it, just looked at him quietly, they are not a country, he is not a guest, just as he said, a bandit leader, stalemate for a long time, Li Fei Shouyu finally sighed and said: "When the governor first came to Shazhou, my hospitality is not much better, so let's make a price!" ”

Li Qing immediately waved his hand, and all the guards retreated behind him, and then he smiled and said, "Sit!" Please sit down! Brother Shouyu can say this, which also shows that he is open-minded. ”

He took an empty cup, poured a cup of iced tea, and served it to the low table in front of him with his own hands, and then returned to his position and smiled: "Conditions!" There are only two, and Brother Shouyu can choose one of the two. ”

Li Fei Shouyu suddenly understood, I am afraid that Li Qing's arrest of his wife is just a bait, not to exchange for the robbed materials, it seems that now is his real purpose, he took a long breath, and said in a deep voice: "The governor might as well speak up." ”

Li Qing nodded, and said with a serious expression: "The first choice is that you return to the imperial court, and you are not to blame for the past." ”

"Wait!"

Li Fei Shouyu stopped Li Qing's words and said, "Let's return to the imperial court, I don't know if it's the meaning of the governor, or the meaning of the envoy, or is it really the meaning of the imperial court?" ”

"That's what I mean for now, but I'll intercede with the court for you."

Li Fei Shouyu lowered his head and was silent, his eyes showed a difficult and complicated look, and suddenly, he raised his head again and said, "What is the second condition?" ”

Li Qing stared at his eyes tightly, and said word by word: "The second one is, add another 30,000 yuan to redeem Brother Shouyu." ”

"Thirty thousand!" Li Fei Shouyu shouted: "From the beginning of the year to the present, we have only accumulated more than 30,000 yuan, and Li Dudu is too dark-hearted. ”

Li Qing suddenly relaxed, leaned back on the chair and laughed, but his eyes looked at the roof and said: "Business is naturally acceptable to both parties, then I will give one more step, at least 20,000 yuan, we will pay the money with one hand and release the people with the other." ”

Li Fei Shouyu's eyes suddenly flashed with an imperceptible light, and he nodded slowly: "Okay!" I agreed to this condition, and the first condition forgave me for not obeying my fate, so I sent one of them back to inform my brother and ask him to prepare the money and goods, and deliver them at the foot of the snowy mountain. ”

Li Qing struck with both palms and said decisively: "A word is a certainty, as you said, we will trade tomorrow, but today I will wronged you first." ”

After Li Fei Shouyu was taken down, Li Qing was pacing back and forth with his hands behind his back, sketching every detail of the action in his mind, he suddenly turned to Wu Xingsu and said: "Invite the two generals, Li Siye and Tian Zhen, and say that I have something important to discuss." ”

Tian Zhen is Li Qingwei before the governor of Shazhou, the actual top general of the Doulu Army, a native of Chengdu County, is a Guoyi Captain, nearly forty years old, born tall and mighty, good at using a Mo knife, was originally a lieutenant of the Longyou Army, experienced in a hundred battles, because of his uprightness and Huangfu Wei Ming did not like it, was demoted to the Doulu Army, but he was deeply regarded by Li Qing, and he was promoted to his own deputy general with Li Siye.

About a quarter of an hour later, Tian Zhen and Li Siye hurried from the barracks to Li Qing's official office, these two are Mo Dao generals, although it is the first time to meet, but they pity each other, the two entered the room, like two black towers, and suddenly blocked the front of the gate through the wind and rain.

The two of them saluted Li Qing at the same time, "See the Governor!" ”

Li Qing smiled and waved his hand, "No need to be polite, two generals, please take a seat!" ”

Si Bi quickly put slush on the two big men with a big bowl, and Li Qing made a gesture of invitation and smiled: "

！ That's what made me a fortune. ”

Tian Zhen looked at the slush for a long time, and suddenly said: "Could it be that the governor is the proprietor of Chengdu Wangjiang Restaurant?" ”

Li Qing was surprised, "How does General Tian know?" ”

Tian Zhen laughed, "I'm from Chengdu, how could I not know, that year's slush business war, I happened to go home to visit relatives, so I know." ”

Li Qing smiled happily and said, "In this way, he is not an outsider." ”

At a glance, he saw that Li Siye was looking at the slush in a daze, and couldn't help laughing: "Presumably Siye is the first time to eat it, I am an authentic little Li Ji slush, and even the emperor can't compare to it." ”

In a moment, the two of them ate the slush cleanly, the two wiped their mouths and exhaled, Si Bi came up to take away the empty bowl, Li Qing gave Wu Xingsu a look, and immediately a few personal soldiers carefully brought a large wooden platform, Li Qing smiled and said: "I have eaten something, now it's time to get down to business." ”

The two generals stood up at the same time, looking at the big wooden platform, their expressions were generally serious, only to see the mountains and rivers piled up with mud and stones on the wooden platform, Tian Zhen pointed to a city made of wood and exclaimed: "Is this Dunhuang County?" And this," he cried excitedly, pointing to a crescent-shaped pool, "this is the crescent spring!" His eyes went downstream, his eyes became more and more surprised, and he exclaimed: "There are even sweet spring water and big snow mountains on it." ”

He raised his head and stared at Li Qing suddenly, his eyes full of admiration, "Du Du, this is the first time I've seen this kind of map in my life, but did Du Du invent it?" ”

Li Qing smiled and didn't answer, this is naturally a sand table, he ordered someone to make it in ten days, but it was still quite crude, and the accuracy was not accurate, it was barely usable, he saw that Li Siye was silent in thought, so he smiled and asked, "Does Siye know?" ”

Li Siye nodded, but shook his head again, "I only heard that Han Ma Yuan has 'made a mountain of rice', but I haven't seen the real thing, is it from where the governor got the inspiration?" ”

Li Qing was stunned, this sand table was originally a commonly used thing in later generations, he really didn't know that the Eastern Han Dynasty horse aid had been used, he couldn't help but smile embarrassedly, and changed the topic: "I invited the two generals to come to discuss the matter of leveling the bandits." ”

Li Siye and Tian Zhen glanced at each other, and couldn't help but be stunned: "Doesn't the governor want to exchange peace with him?" ”

Li Qing shook his head and sneered, "My original intention of arresting their old lady was to lure them in and annihilate them in one fell swoop, but they proposed to exchange, if I guessed correctly, they actually had no intention of exchanging, it was nothing more than people who exchanged people back first, and then took back the money and things, otherwise why bother with Li Fei Shouyu coming in person, just to paralyze me." ”

Tian Zhen's lips moved, and she whispered: "Just doing this, I'm afraid it will damage the reputation of the governor." ”

Li Qing patted him on the shoulder and thanked: "I know that General Tian is worried about my reputation, it doesn't matter, kill the horse bandits, and pick out one or two hundred heinous ones, and cut off his head in public on Hexi Road, I'm afraid that by then I will become a Buddha of ten thousand families." ”

"I agree with the Governor's idea, and I must not be soft on these bandits."

Next to him, Li Siye said in a deep voice: "I don't know what the governor has planned?" ”

Li Qing smiled slightly, and pointed to a mountain on the edge of the sand table with his index finger: "This mountain is called Qingyang Mountain, located in the upper reaches of Ganquan Water, about eighty miles southeast of Daxue Mountain, the scouts I sent judged that the nest of the horse bandits is in this mountain, and after a while, Lifei Shouyu will send someone back to report the news, and I have asked Bai Xiaode to send his scout team to follow it, once it is confirmed.

Speaking of this, Li Qing casually pulled up the 'Qingyang Mountain' and sneered: "They want to rob me of my money and food, I will go to his lair, if they rush to rescue, I will turn around and catch him off guard." ”

.

The scout team sent by Bai Xiaode consisted of about fifty people, and the first officer was a lieutenant, surnamed Duan, about twenty or seven years old, his eyes were sharp, his nose was like a knife, his lips were slightly upturned, and his originally fair and delicate skin had become dark and rough in the yellow sand of the Western Regions, but he looked confident and strong.

He was originally a human being, two years ago Ming Jingke Jinshi, but he threw his pen from Rong, went to Anxi to join the army, and served the country, speaking of which, people who are familiar with Tang history must have guessed who he is, I don't play dumb riddles, this person is the famous Tang Dynasty general Duan Xiushi.

Duan Xiushi, the word is successful, he has made great contributions, awarded the history of Jingzhou Thorn, knighted the king of Zhangye County, and then took charge of the military and political affairs of the northwest for four years.

But at this time, he had just joined the army for two years, and he was appointed as a scout lieutenant because he knew Tubo because he knew Tubo, and this time he was one of the three thousand soldiers who supported Shazhou.

At noon, he received an order from Bai Xiaode, asking him to lead his team to follow the person sent back by the bandit leader to report the news, fifty people to monitor one person, this is not difficult, just follow from a distance.

Daxue Mountain is 100 miles away from Shazhou, in fact, it is the remnant vein of Qilian Mountain, it is also the boundary mountain of Datang and Tubo, after Daxue Mountain, it also enters the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the altitude gradually increases, all the way to the south, the mountain range stretches for thousands of miles, countless peaks are covered with snow, all year round, but the snowmelt at low altitude brings a lot of water, and the lakes and rivers are continuously replenished, and the sweet spring water flowing to Shazhou is also generated.

Tang Gaozong Longshuo three years, since Tuyuhun (now eastern Qinghai) was destroyed by Tubo, the power of Tubo was pushed to the Helong area, Tang and Tubo in the Hexi corridor to Qilian Mountain as the boundary, Qilian Mountain stretches for thousands of miles, is a natural barrier to prevent the invasion of Tubo, but its south and north are the two mouths of Tubo's march.

To the south, the Tang Dynasty placed the Longyou Jiedu Mansion, and Chen Chongbing prevented the Tubo from breaking into the Longyou and threatening Chang'an, but in the twentieth year of the Kaiyuan Dynasty, the Tubo were captured

After the stone fort city (now Xining), the Tang Dynasty was in the battle situation in Longyou

In the north, bypassing the Great Snow Mountain, Shazhou, the gateway to the Western Regions, first appeared in front of him, and the capture of Shazhou also cut off the connection between the Western Regions and the Yuan, and the importance of its geographical location can be imagined.

After the Snow Mountain, he entered the territory of Tubo, Duan Xiushi led his men to hide all the way, moving very slowly, and then walked eighty miles to the southeast, at this time it was almost dark, sure enough, the messenger looked at the roadside for a while, and went up to Qingyang Mountain from a small road.

From behind a huge rock, Duan Xiushi's tall body flashed, he nodded silently, and quickly drew the place where the messenger went up the mountain with charcoal on a piece of white paper.

The task has been completed, and after another quarter of an hour, it is estimated that the person has entered the depths of Qingyang Mountain, and can no longer see them, Duan Xiushi waved his hand lightly, and led his men to leave Qingyang Mountain, running along the turbulent sweet spring water to the way home.

The sun had already set, the sky was dim yellow, the sky, a white cloud band gradually began to turn gray, the water vapor on the ground began to condense, the woods behind them were filled with mist, the banks of the sweet spring water were shrouded in mist, the air was fresh and cold, the clear moon slowly rose into the western sky, casting black shadows on the rocks.

After about ten miles of galloping, Ganquanshui was like a husband who had lost his temper, and his wife's sneer slowly became softened.

"Everyone, stop!"

Duan Xiushi raised his hand and said, "Eat some dry food and drink the horse, rest for a while before leaving." ”

This is the place where the water flows most gently, and everyone jumps off their horses and steps their riding boots directly into the cold water, and the men and horses drink the sweet water together, like a group of people who have lived in the wasteland for a long time and suffer from thirst, and drink the elixir and jade liquid.

Suddenly, a scout exclaimed, "Captain Duan, come and see!" ”

Duan Xiushi heard the sound and left, only to see that in the half-light and half-dark twilight, there were several piles of horse manure next to a rock, but beside the horse manure, he saw countless footprints, he was taken aback, picked up a stick and picked it up to the horse manure, it was still fresh, no more than an hour at most, and those footprints were the same, that is, an hour ago, a group of people on horseback passed here.

"Who are they?"

Duan Xiushi straightened his waist, and was suspicious, could it be a horse bandit? Probably not, the horse bandits generally do not take this road, and should go all the way north, over the snowy mountains.

He searched left and right again, and suddenly he saw a series of clear footprints on the shore, and disappeared into the grass fifty paces away, and in the grass he seemed to see something faintly, but the fog was so thick that he could not see clearly.

"Come with me!"

He let out a low shout, ran quickly to the shore, and rushed into the grass in a few steps, he stopped suddenly, his pupils narrowed sharply, and in the grass lay quietly a leather boot, nailed to iron palms, the boots had been worn by stones, this is the boot often worn by the Tibetan people, to be exact, it is a military boot of a Tibetan soldier.

A thought rose from Duan Xiushi's mind, "Tubo scout!" Could it be that he found the Tibetan army scouts? ”

He immediately made a decision, handed over the map of Qingyang Mountain to the two brothers, and instructed: "You go back now, give this map to General Bai, and tell him that we may have found the Tubo army scouts, but we are not sure, and we need to chase them for confirmation." ”

The two soldiers agreed, took the drawings, galloped on their horses, and galloped in the direction of Shazhou, Duan Xiushi saw them go away, waved his hand lightly, led everyone across the river, and chased down along the horseshoe prints, night had fallen, they were lonely in the vast world, and gradually disappeared in the thick night fog.

At night, in the gallop of war horses, Duan Xiushi led a group of Tang troops, standing insignificant on a flat round hill, they all looked at the dawn slowly appeared, the sky was clear, cloudless, the sun came out, the sun was faint, but it was very clear, the wind had turned to the east, the fog was blown away, and the surrounding vast and desolate land was bathed in the cold light.

The horseshoe prints disappeared in this area, with intuition, Duan Xiushi felt that the target they were chasing was nearby, his sharp eyes were swimming around, from the distant mountains to the river, and from the river to the forest, suddenly he found that there was a black shadow in the green shade in the distance moving rapidly, the direction was coming towards them, getting closer and closer, Duan Xiushi stood up from the horse's pedal, and built a pergola above his bright eyes with his long slender hands, he saw it, he saw it clearly, what he saw was not a shadow, nor a black spot, Rather, it was a group of horsemen, numerous, about forty or fifty horsemen, and the tips of their spears glittered in the morning light, like little twinkling stars in the sky.

It's been a hundred steps, it is indeed the Tubo army, not only did they not slow down, but they raised their swords and spears, shouted loudly, and rushed towards their side, which was also a scout team, but Duan Xiushi suddenly remembered a rule of the Tubo army, 'After the scouts, there must be a brigade,' He immediately woke up, is the Tubo army coming? Are you going to sneak up on Shazhou? Sweat began to appear on his forehead. The underwear was already soaking wet.

"No! You have to go back and report it quickly. ”

But it seemed that it was too late, and forty or fifty horsemen rushed out behind him, adding up to a hundred horsemen, twice as many as himself, and they wanted to kill themselves, it must be so!

Duan Xiushi waited quietly, all the Tang troops slowly drew their swords out of their sheaths, put their arrows on their crossbows, and when the Tubo army was still fifty steps away from him, Duan Xiushi suddenly drew his sword and shouted, "Brothers, rush out and report the news!" ”