The state, that is, today's Dunhuang, more than 4,000 households, with a population of nearly 20,000 people, is the next two subordinate counties, one is called Dunhuang County, where the state capital is located, and the other is Shouchang County, where the famous Yumen Pass is.

In the second year of Yonghui, Shazhou was promoted to the Governor's Mansion, which was under the jurisdiction of Hexi Jiedu Mansion, and was one of the eight Governor's Mansions, with a permanent garrison of 4,000 people.

The horizon gradually turned white, and the end of the Gobi Desert churned with purple and red morning glow, half-hidden behind the official road of poplar trees, projecting a thousand purple and red rays of light to the awakened earth.

The climate of the Tang Dynasty is warmer and wetter than that of later generations, the cattle and sheep on the Hexi Corridor are flocks, the products are abundant, the snowmelt of the Qilian Mountains brings a lot of water, rivers and lakes abound, Shazhou has reached the end of the Hexi Corridor, although it is relatively dry, most of it is the vast Gobi Desert, but there are also many lakes and rivers, some of the more famous, such as Daze Lake, Ganquan Water, Shenshui and Zhangye River, their existence provides water sources for animals, and also provides conditions for the growth of trees, so you can see large poplar forests everywhere, You can also see flocks of antelopes foraging for food, full of life.

A goshawk hovered in the sky, it let out a long roar, as if it had found something, far away, only to see a black line wriggling on the vast earth, the goshawk quickly swept over their heads, this is a team composed of more than a hundred carriages, nearly two thousand Tang army guards, vigilantly looking at the surrounding situation, a crossbow arrow shot through the air, the goshawk's long wings were retracted, dodged the crossbow arrow, and then rushed to the sky, turned into a small black dot, and disappeared in the distance in an instant.

This convoy is naturally Li Qing's team, they move very slowly, stop and go, after nearly 20 days of trekking, finally to the destination, after a night of walking, they are exhausted, only here is the official road east of Shazhou, the so-called official road, is just a little flat Gobi Desert, but there is no road.

More than ten miles, behind the poplar forest is Shouchang County, Shazhou, in the middle of the team, Wu Xingsu shook his arm that was longer than ordinary people, and put down the steel crossbow with a regretful face.

"Huh! Captain Wu, your arrows are still not as fast as eagles! ”

The one who spoke was a red-faced man, nearly forty years old, stout and stout, like a half-cut iron tower, he was the deputy general sent by Huangfu Weiming, the envoy of Hexi and Longyou Prefectures to escort Li Qing, named Chu Zhilian, starting from the state, he led 1,500 Tang troops to escort Li Qing and his party, although there is no Koubian in Tibet now, but the horse bandits in the Hexi corridor are infested, strong and ferocious, and must be very careful.

Wu Xingsu was unconvinced: "The wind speed here is too fast, I am not used to it, so I am slightly off one or two, if I come again, I will call this blackbird to fold its wings in front of the horse." ”

"Haha!"

Chu Zhilian laughed, "How can an eagle let you shoot twice." ”

"Why is Brother Chu so happy?"

Li Qing stepped forward from a distance and said with a smile, after more than 20 days of wind and sun, the skin on Li Qing's face became dark and rough, but his eyes were brighter and sharper, as if he was an extremely sharp shuttle.

When Chu Zhilian saw Li Qing coming, he hurriedly smiled and said: "It's boring and boring all the way, looking for some fun, but there is Shazhou ahead, and I can be regarded as a success." ”

Li Qing knew that he was a person with an anxious personality, and if he was allowed to march on horseback, I was afraid that it would be three days, but the curtain was pregnant, so he walked very slowly, which really made these soldiers feel miserable, so he said apologetically: "I am pregnant, so I can only walk slowly all the way, and I have wronged Brother Chu and my brothers." ”

"What are you talking about!"

Chu Zhilian's face was displeased, and he stepped forward and gently punched Li Qing's shoulder, "Do you know what sound is the most pleasing to our ears here?" Tell you, it's not the huqin, the leather drum, or the woman's **, but the cry of the baby when it is born, which makes people feel uplifted, and sees hope, forget it, you don't understand what I said now, and you will naturally understand it in the future. ”

Li Qing saw that he was frank and straightforward, and he had a very good impression of him, and he also patted him on the shoulder and smiled: "Along the way, although the scenery is magnificent, but Brother Chu has left the deepest impression on me, maybe we will have the opportunity to fight side by side in the future, I hope that Brother Chu will teach me a lot at that time." ”

"Brother Li is too polite."

As soon as the words fell, there was a hurried sound of horses' hooves in front of him, and several horses rushed to this side, stirring up dust in the sky, Chu Zhilian heard the sound of horses' hooves, and his expression immediately became nervous, "Not good, something must have happened ahead!" ”

He turned to Li Qing and said hurriedly: "This is the brother I sent to the front to explore the way, and I know from the sound of their horses' hooves that something must be happening. ”

While speaking, the galloping horse approached, and sure enough, it was the Tang Army scout who was looking for news in front, and a sergeant turned over and dismounted and reported urgently: "General, a horse bandit of about 1,000 people is besieging Shouchang County, please rescue the general quickly!" ”

"More than a thousand?"

Li Qingyileng, is this still a bandit? And why didn't the Shazhou Doulu army move, but let them attack the city?

But the situation is critical, and he is no longer allowed to think about it, so he immediately decided to Chu Zhilian: "The other party has a thousand horse bandits, and it is useless to have fewer people, without further ado, General Chu will lead his headquarters to relieve the siege first, and I will wait here." ”

Chu Zhilian nodded, "It's okay!" There are some things that I will explain to Li Dudu when I come back, and Li Dudu is here, and we must not go any further. ”

With that, he waved his hand and yelled, "Follow me!" ”

Fifteen hundred cavalry came out of the water like a long dragon, and the dense hooves of the horses stirred up a large area of yellow clouds, and quickly followed Chu Zhilian to rush forward, startling the birds in the poplar forests on both sides.

At this moment, Li Qing only had his own 300 cavalry and more than 100 soldiers left by his side, and he began to be faintly worried in his heart, if the horse bandits attacking the city fled to his side, wouldn't it be dangerous?

As soon as I arrived, I gave a dismount! ”

Li Qing scolded in a low voice, stood up and looked at both sides, and saw from a distance that there were sparkling waves in the south, as if it was a small river, he heard Chu Zhilian say on the road, there is a big river near Shazhou called Ganquan Shui, it is estimated that it is it, there is a sentry made of mud on the other side of the river, the scale is quite large, but it seems to have been abandoned, he beckoned Wu Xingsu to call and said: "You send two brothers to find a way to cross the river first, and I will come later." ”

Wu Xingsu agreed, immediately ordered the two brothers to explore the way, Li Qing turned off the horse's head, and came to the curtain in front of their carriage, at this moment the curtain and Xiaoyu moved to Li Jingyan's carriage, this carriage is wide, can accommodate seven or eight people to sit together, comfortable and luxurious inside, the wheel body is exquisitely crafted, although the road is bumpy, but also does not feel bumpy, the three women are each other's company, chatting all the way, and do not feel lonely, last night rushed the road all night, the curtain and Xiaoyu have been unable to support the tiredness, fell asleep, Li Jingyan changed his clothes, just wanted to sleep, But when he heard the sound of horses' hooves approaching, he couldn't help but lift his spirits and immediately opened the curtain.

Although Li Qing and her opened their hearts to each other in Qujiangchi, after all, the two have not been in contact for a long time, unlike Curtain and Xiaoyu who have been with Li Qing for many years, and their relationship is naturally mature, so along the way, the two rarely talk, even if they occasionally speak, he feels unnatural and dodges, as if Li Jingyan really came to enjoy the scenery outside the Saiwai.

The curtain opened, revealing a pretty face, but it was obviously thinner than when it set off, obviously tired all the way, that night she said that she wanted to abandon her identity with herself, and she only thought she was talking, but she really did it, at the moment of leaving the city gate, she was no longer Pingyang County Lord Li Jingyan, but the same as the curtain and Xiaoyu, just an ordinary girl, and her father, Li Lin is Zongzheng Siqing, he didn't understand the intention of his daughter's move, but he still promised his daughter to go with him, It's really pitiful for the hearts of parents all over the world! Thinking of this, Li Qing felt that the responsibility on his shoulders was even heavier.

The two looked at each other, Li Jingyan's face suddenly turned red, his eyes drooped, he didn't dare to look at him, and only said in a low voice: "Sister Lian'er doesn't feel very well, she has already slept." ”

In fact, Li Jingyan is still a few months old, but she took the initiative to call Lai'er her sister, in fact, she is showing her that she never wants to rob her of the position, she is a very smart woman, and she knows that no one can replace the weight of Lian'er in Li Qingxin, if Li Qing is a person who values the family, he would have married Cui Liuliu as his wife, so don't look at yourself Although she is the county lord, but the importance of his heart, I am afraid that I can't even compare to Xiaoyu.

"Oh! They.

Li Qing said absent-mindedly and casually: "That.

As soon as the words came out, he felt that it was inappropriate, and immediately changed his words and smiled awkwardly: "What I mean. How did you know it was me, and you immediately drew the curtains. ”

Li Jingyan also smiled and said, "Gong is stupid to say this, won't I take a look through the crack in the window first?" But I really didn't look at it, I heard the sound of horses' hooves and no one stopped me in front of the car window, so I knew that it could only be a male. ”

"That's right, otherwise these families would be useless."

Li Qing's face suddenly changed, and he stared straight at the car window.

"Gong, what's wrong with you?" Li Jingyan asked in surprise.

"Not good! Fooled. Li Qing slapped himself on the head, fell off the horse and left.

His brigade is only ten miles away from Changshou County, how can those horse thieves not know that they are still attacking the county seat, waiting for the Tang army to slaughter them? No way!

The thoughts in Li Qing's mind turned quickly, his nearly 200 carriages carried tens of thousands of yuan, as well as grain, grass, and daily necessities, and came in a vast stream, these horse bandits made a living from this, how could they not know, how could they not be red-eyed.

He immediately understood that attacking the county seat was just a bait, the purpose was to attract the Tang Army's brigade to the past, and their real target must still be his own 180 carriages full of money and grain, such cunning horse bandits!

"Wu Xingsu!"

Li Qing shouted loudly, "Send someone to call General Chu back immediately, and all the belongings are gone, all the people cross the river and hide in the earthen fort, hurry!" ”

He rode back and forth in the convoy and shouted, "Destroy all the wagons, tear off the tarpaulin covering the money, and cut all the ropes that string the money!" ”

Li Qing guessed correctly, as soon as they arrived, a large number of birds were startled in the poplar forest at the other end of the official road, and the sound of horses' hooves suddenly rose, and there began to be horse bandits dressed in black rushing out of the woods, more and more people, and finally there were seven or eight hundred people, their clothes were variegated, and the horses were mottled, and they wielded all kinds of weapons, long swords, war knives, spears, and even the Mo knives used by the infantry were also carried on their shoulders, but each expression was the same, greed, fierceness, and the excitement of smelling femininity.

This is the largest horse bandit in the Hexi Corridor, about 3,000 people, mainly composed of fleeing Tang soldiers, local Qiang people, Hu people from the Western Regions, and fugitives pursued by the government.

Because of their existence, greatly affected the trade on the Silk Road, the big merchants had to go together, and they also needed to be escorted by officers and soldiers, but the small merchants did not have such good luck, killing people and goods happened from time to time, they had already stared at Li Qing's convoy near Liangzhou, from all kinds of signs, they judged that the destination of the convoy was Shazhou, and when the convoy was about to arrive in Shazhou, they made a move to attack the west, and Li Qing was fooled for a while.

The river was deep and turbulent, one zhang deep and ten zhang wide, and at this time, the soldiers who had been sent to explore the road ran to Li Qing

"Governor! There is a bridge 500 paces ahead. ”

There was a faint black shadow in front of him, Li Qing hurriedly looked back, a small hill not high blocked the view, but the dust rushing to the sky, the thunderous sound of horses' hooves and the screams almost shook people's hearts, listening to the sound about four hundred steps away.

There are more than 300 soldiers and family members under him, and he is not afraid to fight hard, but there are so many family members and children, since the other party can think of such a poisonous plan, how can he fight hard with himself? It's a pity that Li Siye is not there, and Nan Jiyun is not there.

"Wu Xingsu, you take two hundred brothers to resist with cold arrows for a while."

Li Qingyi waved his hand, "Follow me for the rest!" ”

The remaining more than 100 soldiers and family members escorted more than 20 carriages full of families and families to speed away in the direction of the small bridge.

"Gong, Sister Lian'er fainted!"

Suddenly there was a shout of Xiaoyu behind him, Li Qing grabbed the reins, and rushed to the carriage, the window was the anxious eyes of Xiaoyu and Li Jingyan, and the curtain next to her fainted on the soft couch, her face was unusually pale and sweaty, maybe the carriage was running too fast, and the bumps were too hard to move the tire gas, but at this time the speed of the car was no longer slowing down.

"Frightened geese, light rain, you hold the curtain in your arms, you can slow down the bumps."

The second daughter heard the order, hurriedly hugged the curtain in her arms, and covered her with a mattress, suddenly, the screams had come from behind, Wu Xingsu's first round of arrows had been successful, it seems that this group of horse bandits is not only cunning, but also quite methodical, and the money they used to lure the enemy did not interfere with their pursuit, first robbing people, and then taking money.

.

Only a hundred steps away from the small bridge, the intercepted Tang soldiers have been in close contact with the horse bandits, fighting together, but the horse bandits were not stopped, they immediately divided their troops into three ways, one way and the Tang army tore apart, the other two roads or so outflanked, the nearest place is less than three hundred steps, the Tang army of Wu Xingsu is entangled, and there is no way to return to help.

There were four or five hundred horse bandits galloping from Li Qing and them, and you could see their wolf-like fierce eyes, and you could see their faces distorted by overexcitement, so hideous that they scared the children into tears.

Sweat had already flowed down Li Qing's forehead, and at this fatal moment, the carriage suddenly stopped.

"What's going on!" Li Qing roared and rushed up, only to see that the carriage in front had arrived at the bridge, and the coachman seemed to be stupid, desperately pulling the carriage to the bridge.

"Bastard!" Li Qing scolded and whipped him hard, 'Smack! With a thud, a bloody streak immediately appeared on his back.

"Get off! They all got out of the car and ran across the bridge. ”

The bridge immediately became a mess, more than 200 old people, women and children jumped off the carriage, some were already scared to the ground paralyzed, by the family members running, shouting, crying into a loud one, a group of maids and maids carrying the soft couch also mixed in the crowd, the dignified Tang County Lord Li Jingyan was also like ordinary people, while guarding the curtain on the soft couch, while running with everyone.

The horse bandits who saw the women were even more furious, and the smell of their bodies wafted in the wind.

"Bow and arrow shooting!"

The remaining 100 soldiers opened their bows and arrows to shoot at the horse bandits, the first dozen horse bandits were shot to the ground, the back horses could not dodge, and they were tripped over a few horses in a row, and the momentum of the rush was stagnant, detouring to both sides, some horse bandits with bows and arrows followed the backfire, the arrows flew wildly, and the horses of more than a dozen carriages were shot, which stimulated the wildness and pulled the empty cart and rushed forward.

The blockage of the horse bandits' attack bought time for the women and children to escape, and in just a moment, all the women, children, and old people ran to the other side of the bridge, and Li Qing's heart was slightly settled.

"Leave twenty brethren to tear down the bridge, and the rest of the bows and arrows to cover it."

The small bridge has been decayed, and there is almost no need to dismantle it by manpower, the war horse galloped past, and the resonance caused by the roaring iron hooves made the small bridge 'squeak and rattle' and shook violently, and it was about to fall, and the more than 20 Tang soldiers behind saw that the situation was not good, and they were so frightened that they crawled backwards and fled, 'Boom! With a loud bang, mixed with the neighing of war horses, the wooden bridge collapsed with a bang, fell into the river, and was immediately swallowed up by the rushing water.

The horse bandits were hindered by the abandoned carriage, a little slower, more than a dozen horse bandits who had already gone to the bridge urgently reined in the reins, and almost fell into the river with the broken bridge, but were shot by the Tang army on the opposite bank like a rain-like crossbow, the war horse neighed, more than a dozen horse bandits were shot down with people and horses, or fell into the river, or planted at the bridgehead, the horse bandits did not have shields, they retreated one after another, hiding behind the carriage.

At this time, a loud horn sounded in the distance, like the first ray of sunlight breaking through the dark clouds, washing away all the gloom and blood, and more than a thousand Tang cavalry galloped along the sweet spring water, like the wind galloping, and the black armor glittered in the sun.

Seeing that the reinforcements of the Tang army had arrived, the horse bandits blew a long whistle, left behind the besieged 200 Tang troops, turned around and returned to Li Qing's convoy, no one could grab it, but the money could not be left behind, the horse bandits swept by the carriage loaded with money, as if leaning over to catch the fat sheep, one person grabbed more than a dozen pieces of money and flew away, but most of the ropes that strung the money had been cut, the money was scattered all over the place, it was too late to get off the horse and take off the pants and tie the knot, the chasing soldiers had arrived, and finally, the horse bandits had to flee in embarrassment with a rope.

Li Qing looked at the horse bandits roaring away, and cast a shadow in his heart, he encountered this turmoil at the beginning of his arrival, did it indicate that his career was not smooth.