Li Hu walked through the gate on the west side of Gyeongju and walked into this city, which was narrow from east to west and narrow from north to south.

After the Eighth Route Army occupied Gyeongju, it set up the Gyeongju Camp in the mountainous area west of the state city as the garrison of the Second Regiment of the Xiangbing Army. According to the Yanzhou model, after Li Wenge annexed Gyeongju, he began to unify the resources and manpower of Gyeongju, and the establishment of the command office of the second regiment of the Xiangbing Regiment was only the first step; in the past month, most of the blacksmiths, carpenters, and other craftsman resources in the state have begun to be centralized and reorganized according to the battalion head system, and the Minfu Battalion has accommodated a large number of local displaced people, and there are about a dozen doctors in the ambulance camp, and some standing Chinese herbal medicines have also begun to accumulate stocks. The most crucial of these is the formation of the new battalion of the B regiment.

In accordance with the Eighth Route Army, the new battalion was organized with 500 troops in the 5 capitals and 10 teams, and the soldiers were mainly those Gyeongju soldiers who had not been added to the Yeoncheon Independent Regiment and some homeless people with better physical conditions and qualities. Yeonju's land policy had not yet been implemented in Gyeongju, so the enthusiasm of local farmers to join the army was not very high.

Li Hu is currently temporarily in command of this new barracks, and of course, he is "inspecting the school."

Li Hu has no expectations about when he will be reinstated, he just hopes that Li Wenge will not leave him in the rear this time, and after staying in the Eighth Route Army for so long, this former scholar is already completely familiar with the rules of survival of the army. In this group, no matter how many people care for you, it does not mean that you will be recognized by the group.

To be recognized, it can only be on the battlefield, this is the law of survival in the interior of the Eighth Route Army.

The care and love of this many. It didn't make Li Hu, who had been punished, rush to relax, on the contrary, it felt heavy and a little suffocating.

Everyone in the military knows about his relationship with Li Wenge, and this is especially true for him, and he needs to prove that he does not rely on this special relationship to gain a foothold in the army.

It's a pity that Li Wenge never seems to have any intention of giving him such a chance.

On the training ground, this inspection battalion officer had a black face from beginning to end, and those Gyeongju soldiers who were used to being casual had enough of the hardships of this face. Behind his back, he gave this young battalion official a nickname called Living Yama.

There was a distance of twelve miles between the camp of Gyeongju and the city of Gyeongju, and in order to facilitate the return and trip, Li Wenge equipped Li Hu with a horse.

This horse Li Hu has been useless, as an infantryman, he insists on walking.

When he walked through the city gate, the soldiers guarding the city gate saluted him, Li Hu did not speak, and after silently returning the salute, he continued to walk into the city with a standard stride. Came to the Assassin's Mansion.

After inspecting the official and passage orders in front of the gate of the Assassin's Mansion, he entered the gate of the Assassin's Mansion.

When he walked through the front hall, Jing Hai, who was the commander of the Gyeongju security camp in the north of the temporary inspection school, saw him and habitually stood upright.

Li Hu calmly stood up to Jing Hai and saluted with a flat chest, Jing Hai, who had always been inferior to Li Hu, sighed softly and returned the salute with a flat chest. Then he said softly, "Your Excellency is in the back hall." ”

Li Hu nodded slightly, ignored Jing Hai anymore, and strode past the second hall and walked towards the back hall.

In the aisle leading to the back hall, Li Hu stopped because he saw a person.

A man who should never be here at this moment.

Shen Chen, the Marquis of Du Yu of the Eighth Route Army and the commander of the Yan'an Regiment, was wearing a crimson officer uniform and was walking out of the back hall.

Behind him, he followed the commander of the Security Cavalry Regiment to seal Minda.

The two Zhaowu lieutenants left the back hall one after the other and walked out, leaving Li Hu, who was originally full of depression, to stay there on the spot. I can't take a step anymore.

At present, within the officer layer of the Eighth Route Army, which is basically composed of veterans, there is no one who does not understand what Shen Chen means.

If Li Wenge is the supreme existence in the Eighth Route Army, then Shen Chen is the actual number two person recognized by the whole army, just as Zhou Zhengyu is the nominal number two person in the recognized name.

Although Shen Chen is still only a six-rank lieutenant in terms of official rank, and the official is only a regimental commander, he also checks the position of Duyu Marquis of the Eighth Route Army, which is second only to Li Wenge's command position in the army, and can take charge of the command of the whole army under certain circumstances. Regarding the word "inspection" in front of Shen Chen's position, this army ignored it from top to bottom, and everyone knew that it was only a matter of time before Shen Chen removed those two words.

What's more important is that at present, all military operations in this army from a squad to a battalion to a regiment and even an army are under the command and planning of Shen Chen. The only exceptions are the recent Battle of the Ten Trees. And these military operations. So far, not a single failure has been recorded. Whether it is for the Eighth Route Army or the Zhijia Army as a friendly army, everyone understands. Where Shen Chen is, it means where the main direction and strategic focus of this army are; This is especially true for the Dingyan Army, which is the enemy army of the Eighth Route Army.

At this sensitive moment when the strategic deployment of the Northern Expedition was in full swing, Shen Chen's sudden appearance in Gyeongju was indeed shocking enough.

Seeing Shen Chen, Li Hu's first reaction was: Is the most important military operation of this Northern Expedition about to be launched from the direction of Gyeongju?

He stood mechanically and saluted the two Captains of Zhaowu.

Shen Chen stood still, looked at him gently, and returned the salute with a flat chest.

Fine Feng Minda walked up and just glanced at Li Hu from the corner of his eye, but he was full of doubts and distrust.

Li Hu watched the two walk out in a daze, and only after a while did he regain his steps and walk to the back hall.

After shouting "report" at the door, Li Hu stood there waiting for Li Wenge to summon him.

"Come in—" Li Wenge, who was pacing the room with his hands behind his back, casually ordered.

Gao Shaoyuan, the governor of Gyeongju, who also held a lot of other positions, sat on the side drinking tea, but his eyes fell on Li Hu's body unabashedly.

Li Hu walked in silently. Walked behind Li Wenge and stood still.

Li Wenge turned around, looked Li Hu up and down with triangular eyes, and slowly spoke: "How is the training of the recruits?" ”

"It's slow, these soldiers can't make it!" Li Hu replied dryly.

Li Wenge nodded, and then he said, "Have you thought about it?" Once the army sets out, you will have to stay and deal with the military situation in Gyeongju alone, can you handle it? ”

Li Hu was stunned, and only after a while did he say: "I am still willing to go to the front, even if I am a small soldier!" ”

Li Wenge looked at him and took a few steps back and forth. As if he had finally made up his mind, he said indifferently without the slightest emotion: "You have seen Shen Chen, and you have also seen the fine seal, since the Northern Expedition has them, naturally you will not be needed!" ”

Li Hu was speechless. Li Wenge said the truth, with Shen Chen and Xi Feng here, as well as a large number of officers and veterans who have been in battle for a long time, there is indeed no shortage of people like himself in the front.

Li Wenge stood in front of a picture of the Guanzhong Mountain River Sheji, and beckoned: "Come and see!" ”

Li Hu inexplicably walked behind Li Wenge. His eyes looked at the map of administrative divisions in amazement.

"That's Lingzhou—" Li Wenge pointed to a city on the bank of the river in the northwest corner, "there is a Shuofang army there, with a strength of about five or six thousand to seven or eight thousand, which is a soldier who can go to the battlefield, and there are also some baggage soldiers and people, about three or four thousand people; There will be no more than 2,000 elite soldiers in the regular army, and at present, with the strength of our army. Naturally, there is no need to be afraid of him. However, once the main force of our army goes on a northern expedition, these troops will pose a threat to the empty Gyeongju. The owner of Lingzhou is Feng Jiaqilang, who is vicious and obscene, but he is a good hand at leading troops to fight, and he is also well-known in this place in the northwest. Despite this, firstly, Lingzhou is far away from here, and secondly, the mountains and rivers are blocked, and it is difficult to transport heavy supplies and grains, so it is unlikely that the Feng family will send troops to fight us. If it is forcibly attacked. It is equivalent to not wanting grain and grass in the rear, crossing the mountains with elite troops, relying on plundering and robbery to maintain army consumption, so that there can not be many soldiers, but as long as they come, they must be elite soldiers. ”

Li Hu silently looked at the direction of Lingzhou, still puzzled in his heart, but he knew that Li Wenge would not tell him this for no reason, so he secretly worked hard in his heart. He forcibly wrote down every word that Li Wenge said.

Li Wenge patted twice on the map: "Although the Feng family is dangerous, after all, it is a guest army, and it is far away from Gyeongju, even if the Shuofang army comes, it will be the end of the crossbow." It's not too much of a threat! ”

said. He pointed his finger to the southwest of Gyeongju: "This is Ningzhou, and Zhang Jianwu, the assassin of Ningzhou, has nearly 3,000 strong soldiers in his hands. I've been eyeing Gyeongju for a long time. We Pingqingzhou didn't inform him, he was very dissatisfied! This Northern Expedition, if the Feng family does not move, it will be fine, if the Feng family makes a slight move, this person is afraid that he will take advantage of the topic to lead the troops to the north, from Ningzhou to Gyeongju, the official road is only more than 100 miles, basically there is no barrier, so once this person sends troops, the situation in Gyeongju will be in danger overnight......"

After all, he has been with Li Wenge for more than two years, and under the influence of his ears and eyes, Li Hu can understand these things in the grand strategic pattern. What he didn't understand was why Li Wenge wanted to treat these things to himself, a grassroots officer who was still guilty.

Li Wenge patted the map again, and said in a heavy tone: "In this Northern Expedition, Zhi Linggong, Wei Xun, and Zhi Yuqing will lead the Right Route Army, I, Shen Chen, and Xifeng Minda will lead the Left Route Army, and Brother Zhou and Lu Xun will sit in the old camp of Fenglin Mountain. Only in Gyeongju, the civilian officials have Han Senjun and Kochiju, so they don't have to be careful, but in terms of armament, there is a lack of a person who can take charge of the army to govern ......"

"I need someone to sit in Gyeongju, Lingwu in the north, and Jingning in the south, to guard the back road for the Northern Expedition!"

Li Wenge turned around, his eyes fell on Li Hudi, and asked softly, "Are you—okay?" ”

Li Hu looked surprised and opened his mouth, but he didn't speak.

Li Wenge waved his hand: "You don't have to answer in a hurry, you must think about it, although the person who is in charge of Gyeongju this time is only guarding the rear." But if nothing happens, if something happens, nine times out of ten you may face an attack by an enemy army several times your size, and you may even be attacked on both sides. In addition to those box soldiers, there are only those recruits in the new barracks who can't do it for the time being. Whether it is expanding the army or training troops, they must manage and coordinate by themselves, and the same is true for building city defenses. In addition to Fenglin Mountain, the old business came to 800 wooden guns. At the moment, I can't come up with anything more, just a little belongings, to see the territory of eight counties in a state for me, this burden is not something that can be taken casually......"

Li Hu finally began to understand what Li Wenge meant.

Staying in Gyeongju, there is also a fight.

However, this battle is really not easy to fight......

On the front line, there was Shen Chen's dispatch and command, Li Wenge personally commanded, and the cavalry of Xifeng Minda as scouts and horses. The task of the grassroots officers is nothing more than to lead the soldiers under their command to charge and fight, everything is properly arranged by the superiors, and there is military merit by beheading, and it is clearly understood that it is clean and neat, and the real merit cannot be erased by anyone, and everyone can see it.

But in Gyeongju, it is necessary to take on the responsibility of heaven and earth, with hundreds of ineffective soldiers and 500 recruits. To deal with the thousands of troops of the Shuofang Army and the Ningzhou Army at the same time, the difficulty of this matter is much higher than the previous one.

Of course, the Shuofang army and the Ningzhou army may not come, but once they do, then Gyeongju will face a battle of life and death.

Li Hu hesitated.

The reason why he wants to go to the front is very simple, he needs enough military merits to prove himself and pay tribute to Li Wenge. He also proved himself to the officers and soldiers of the whole army who were prejudiced against him.

Now, Li Wenge has given him a chance to prove himself......

If you can't fight, Gyeongju will be safe, but you still have no military merits to make.

If there is a fight, Gyeongju will suddenly be in danger, and at that time, not to mention military exploits, it is unknown whether he can even save the state city and his own life......

In contrast, it is more cost-effective to follow the army's Northern Expedition, earn military merits steadily, and do not have to take any risks......

Li Hu's face was a little red......

He was despising himself. despise one's own cowardice and hypocrisy......

It turns out that my so-called strong and motivated are just such a simple psychological trick......

Follow the eldest brother and earn military merit without taking risks, this is what he really thinks......

He raised his head suddenly: "I am willing to stay in Gyeongju, please give an order!" ”

This is the first time he has called Li Wenge "adult" face-to-face, not "big brother"!

Li Wenge breathed a sigh of relief, turned his head to look at Li Hu, and was speechless for a while!

"Accompany Deputy Lieutenant Li Hu, I am willing to stay in Gyeongju, please give an order!" Li Hu repeated again.

Li Wenge pondered for a long time. Finally pointed to the case: "There is an appointment order there, fill in your name in the blank, you are the guard of the Qingzhou Soldiers and Horses Town, and you have the right to ban the soldiers in the city!" ”

Li Hu walked over and picked up the order to examine it, picked up the pen and filled in his name in the blank space.

He walked back again. Li Wenge did not look back. He turned his back to Li Hu and said lightly: "From now on, you will be promoted to Zhaowu Deputy Lieutenant." I'll go and change my uniform in a while......"

Li Hu replied in a daze.

"The enemy is outnumbered, and you are allowed to act cheaply, and when necessary, you are allowed to save people and lose land; As long as you ensure the safety of civil officials such as Gao Daren Han and Han in the army, even if you lose six of the eight counties, it is not a fault. But you remember, the two counties of Luoyuan and Huai'an are the passages for our army to return to the division, and we must not lose anything, even if we lose the state capital when necessary, we must keep Huai'an and Luoyuan ......"

"Yes......" Li Hu replied, still a little dumbfounded.

On the tenth day of the fifth month of the third year of Guangshun, in a barren mountain more than 20 miles northeast of Luoyuan County, Gyeongju, in a mountain col covered with dense vegetation on all sides, 1,000 infantry of the Yanchuan Independent Regiment of the Eighth Route Army formed two large phalanxes. Each soldier carried a standard wooden gun as a weapon, a two-piece green military uniform suitable for mountain marching, and a forty or fifty pound marching backpack on his back, on which a standard iron sapper shovel was strapped.

Li Wenge wore a purple two-section military uniform and a felt hat on his head and walked up a high slope.

"Soldiers—"

The little Eighth Route Army envoy shouted at the top of his voice.

"From the state city to here, we have walked for five days, one hundred and eighty miles of mountain roads, and we have come a——"

"There are still two hundred miles in front of you!"

"We will cross the steep mountains, we will cross the rapids of the river......"

"We have only one goal in front of us, and that is to unify the ...... of Wancheng"

"From now on, we will embark on an unprecedented march, we will go on an expedition like never before......"

"I tell you plainly, we won't return to the division until we conquer Tongwan City-"

"Everyone here, including General Ben, will not have a chance to turn back and give up-"

Li Wenge raised his head, pointed to the cavalry moving in the distance, and said: "They are your comrades-in-arms and robes, but in the next few days, they will also be your most vicious and tenacious enemies......"

"Whoever it is, if you're going to run away, I want you to assure you that they won't hesitate to kill you—"

"If you want to go home alive, there is only one way, and that is - follow me -

"To the north—" Li Wenge raised his right arm and stretched straight to the north.

"You will find that you have no other choice!"

With a faint sneer, the envoy of the Eighth Route Army glanced at the soldiers standing in the col.

The veterans of Guanbei looked as usual, and the recruits of Gyeongju were as earthy......

"To the north—" Shen Chen pulled out the ground level knife at his waist and swung it into the air, shouting.

"To the north—" Jing Hai raised the wooden gun in his hand and shouted.

"To the north—" The veterans of the Eighth Route Army shouted as they waved their weapons in their hands. "To the north—" The soldiers shouted lazily and in varying tones.

"To the north—" The shouts of more than a thousand people resounded through the valley, and flocks of birds were awakened by the tsunami-like shouts of the mountains, and flew away from the branches of the trees they roosted on......