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It's already winter October. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 infoAfter resting in Beiping for more than a month, Zhu Di finally moved. Half a month later, Cangzhou received a spy report that the Yan army had gathered 300,000 troops, left Beiping, marched to Liaodong, and had reached Tongzhou. The Shanhaiguan area has entered a state of emergency combat readiness.

Shen Ruoyu nailed the map to the wall, then leaned on the head of the bed, and stared at the map for five days in a row, motionless.

Shanhaiguan is heavily guarded. However, this does not mean anything. Last time, King Yan used almost the same means, not only rescued Yongping from Wu Gao, but also served Duoyan Sanwei and Ning King Zhu Quan, who were stationed in Daning outside the gate.

and went to Shanhaiguan. King Yan likes to engage in these strange halls.

But is it really exactly the same this time?

He couldn't figure it out; I can't figure it out at all.

In the evening, the third brother walked in with dinner and saw that the lunch was still in place.

"General, have you lost your soul? I didn't eat anything. ”

Shen Ruo glanced at him, but still didn't move. "You're a general."

The third brother closed the door and sat down.

"Brother, I think you should go back to Texas right away."

Shen Ruoyu turned his face to look at him.

"What for?"

The third brother said in a low voice: "What are you pretending to be stupid." If you don't have anyone here, you don't know. In this Cangzhou city, on the surface, you are the left deputy general, and you are the biggest here; In fact, the eight of us who are really willing to listen to you. ”

"Eight? Up to seven. Shen Ruoyu had a toothache when he thought of Gu Shenyu.

"That's it. But in Texas, at least after the first battle of Jinan, the 20,000 horses of the general's line are now willing to listen to you. ”

Shen Ruoyu sneered: "I said third brother, do you have a fever?" Listen to my, they are all the general's people, and they follow the general all the time. I'll go back to the general, and it's still just the seven of you, plus one who has nothing to do. ”

"It's still different. After all, 20,000 people treat you as their own, and you feel comfortable. If you say it sounds good, you are a guest, but if you say it is ugly, it feels no different from the enemy envoy. Under the weather. ”

"Nothing uncomfortable. If Cangzhou were to leave General Xu alone, he would feel that his weight would be out of balance. Now it just so happens that there are really General Ping and Marquis Wu, Cangzhou has the two of us, and Dezhou has the Great General, Wei Guogong and Tie Shangshu. ”

The third brother said: "But there is still an imbalance in the number of troops. Although there are two guards in Cangzhou, in the final analysis, the number of troops under General Xu Kai alone was originally 30,000, and now it is 30,000, and it will only get smaller and smaller. There must be 200,000 people. The old department of the Texas general was 20,000, and the new 110,000 were mobilized, plus the 110,000 brought by Wei Guogong before, there were more than 200,000 people. In the final analysis, Cangzhou is the weakest. ”

Shen Ruoyu smiled: "Yes, third brother, if you say that, I can't go." ”

The third brother said: "Brother, I mean, you should at least go to the general to get some soldiers." Even if you plan to squat here, Cangzhou is not enough to have such a small number of troops; You don't have soldiers in your hands, and you can't do it. You hurry back, you have to get on his tens of thousands of horses, and then bring them back. ”

Shen Ruoyu pondered for a moment.

"There's a bit of a truth to what you're saying." He said. "Let me think about it."

The third brother muttered: "You'd better think quickly and decide as soon as possible, the sooner the better." ”

The next morning, Shen Ruoliao told Xu Kai that he planned to leave for a few days and go to Texas to manage the general to ask for soldiers.

What does Deputy General Zuo want to do, of course Xu Kai has nothing to say. In addition, he also felt that the Cangzhou defenders were a little weak. Shen Ruoyu patrolled the city with him for a week, and finally took a look at the city defense; Then, he took his leave of the city and headed south straight for Texas.

Shen Ruoyu rushed to Dezhou with eight of his own people in the afternoon of the same day, explained the situation to Sheng Yong and Xu Huizu, and expressed his intention to ask for soldiers.

Sheng Yong immediately replied briskly: "No problem." You can take my 20,000 old troops with you. They know you well. ”

Xu Huizu shook his head and said, "It's not that easy. If not, you need to tell the general first, how many men and horses do you need, how many cavalry, how many infantry? ”

Shen Ruoyu had already thought about this issue in Cangzhou.

"Eleven thousand two hundred. Half cavalry. ”

"Half cavalry? Are you sure? ”

"Sure."

Xu Huizu and Sheng Yong looked at each other.

"Okay. General Rong will discuss it with me and tell you later. ”

A moment later, Xu Huizu sent someone to find him back. When Sheng Yong saw him, he said:

"General Shen, I have decided, the headquarters of 11,200 people, including 5,600 cavalry, will be handed over to you to bring; In addition, Lord Xu will hand over 11,200 men, including 5,600 cavalry, to you. So you have in your hands twenty-two thousand four hundred men, half a horseman. What do you think? ”

Shen Ruoyu was taken aback and looked at Xu Huizu.

“…… I, the two guards of the Yulin Forest, are a total of 11,200 people. I've only taken that many soldiers with me at most. ”

Xu Huizu said: "Nonsense; How can you be the governor of the Twelve Guards, with a total of 70,000 men under your command, how can you only bring 11,200 soldiers? 20,000 people is not a piece of cake for you? When He Fu was a former general and exterminated the Daogan Meng rebels, he was just a governor, and he was not as high as your current position. The merits of leading hundreds of thousands of troops have never been too many. ”

Shen Ruoyu thought for a while and said, "Okay; Then I'll give it a try. ”

Xu Huizu added: "Also, General He Fu was originally just a commander of the Jinwu guard. Therefore, in the future, you don't have to take out the forbidden army again, you can only mix in the forbidden army for the rest of your life, as an excuse for your own lack of interest. ”

Shen Ruoxiao's cheeks suddenly turned red and nodded.

Sheng Yong smiled: "When do you plan to return to Cangzhou?" ”

Shen Ruoyu said: "Time is very tight. The day after tomorrow. Tomorrow I will recognize the soldiers first, and then I will load the grain truck. ”

Sheng Yong said: "Yes, go back early." Be careful, maybe King Yan suddenly appeared under Cangzhou City unconsciously. Seeing that his appearance this time is so suspicious, there will be any possibility of keeping it in order. ”

The next day, Shen Ruoyu received two guards from Sheng Yong and Xu Huizu. He took the roster, counted all the commanders, thousands and hundreds, distributed rations and water on the road to the soldiers, handed over the food book, and said nothing else. He didn't know what to say.

In the early morning of the third day, Shen Ruoyu gathered more than 20,000 people, lined up, and finally ordered the roster once, ready to set off. However, as soon as he finished ordering, suddenly Sheng Yong's heralds ran over out of breath.

"General Shen, General, please come over now!"

Shen Ruoyu ran into Sheng Yong's barracks, and Xu Huizu Tiexuan was there. The three of them looked solemn.

"What's wrong?"

Sheng Yong opened his mouth and said:

"General Shen, everything is ready, are you about to go?"

Shen Ruoyu nodded puzzled. "yes, I'm leaving."

Sheng Yong said: "No need to go. Cangzhou has fallen. ”

Shen Ruoyu frowned. "What...... What the? ”

Sheng Yong said: "I just received a battle report. The Yan army attacked Cangzhou City last night, and the city was broken. The defender Xu Kai was executed, and the 30,000 defenders were wiped out, leaving only 3,000 remnants left, surrendering to the Yan army, and being defeated by the Yan general Tan Yuan——"

He paused and looked at Xu Huizu and Tie Xuan.

"Tan Yuan, the Yan general, was buried alive overnight."

Shen Ruoyu stood motionless, looking at the three people in silence.

Sheng Yong sighed and said, "It stands to reason that King Yan's move should not be unexpected. In my opinion, I still look for the reason from myself. Cangzhou's city defense is so weak, I'm afraid that among them, paralysis is the fundamental. Did General Shen feel this way before leaving? ”

Shen Ruoyu still didn't move, and he didn't make a sound. He had one thing on his mind. And this matter was then brought up by the general.

Sheng Yong said: "Now I can only rejoice, fortunately, you are blessed with a great life, and you suddenly thought of running back to ask for soldiers." One step at night, now even you are in the Yan army camp. ”

Tie Xuan said: "If you had thought of it earlier, and came back two days earlier to ask for troops, maybe Cangzhou would have been able to hold out until now, and our troops here could still rush to support." ”

Sheng Yong said: "It is true; But it's useless to think about that now. At least I haven't lost it with you. Or—"

Xu Huizu said: "Let's think about what to do next." The Yan army pulled Cangzhou and will continue to move south immediately. Where will they go next? Texas? Jinan? ”

"He probably won't go to Jinan again." Sheng Yong said.

Tie Xuan said: "I think, it's better for me to rush back to Jinan immediately, just in case." ”

Xu Huizu nodded: "I'll go to Jinan with Lord Tie." ”

Sheng Yong said: "This is the best." With Grandpa and Tie Shangshu here, the Yan army will never dare to invade Jinan again. On the Texas side, there is me and Ruo Xiao - or, he bypasses Texas and Jinan and goes directly south? ”

Xu Huizu thought for a moment. "Quite possibly. He knows that there is Lord Tie in Jinan, and there are you two in Texas. On the siege of the city, he has already suffered your losses once, and he may not want to come again. I think that King Yan will go straight south, and it is unlikely that he will entangle the city with you again, and it is very likely that he will choose an open area for frontal field battles. ”

Sheng Yong said: "The area at the junction of Hebei and Shandong is a thousand miles of wilderness, which is very suitable for the Yan cavalry field battle. It was difficult to tell exactly where the Yan King would choose to fight. ”

Shen Ruoyu said: "It's best for us to take the initiative and find a way to lead him to the location we have chosen to fight." ”

Xu Huizu thought for a while and said, "Yes, I can't give him this initiative." So what do you think is the right place to choose for this battle? ”

Shen Ruoyu said: "Dongchang-I think." ”

"Dongchang?"

Shen Ruoyu nodded. "Let our army turn its back to Dongchang City and face the enemy in the west, then there are fuss in the south, horse cheeks in the north, and canals in the west. And Dongchang City is high and deep, and it has been a place that is easy to defend and difficult to attack since ancient times; There are Linqing, Guanxian, Xinxian, Chiping, Gaotang towns in the vicinity, all of which are in a hundred miles apart, each of which is heavily armed and defends each other, and there are also Yanggu, Dong'e, and Dongping under the rule of Yanzhou in the south to contain the enemy; The periphery is more with Jinan and Texas. If the Yan army can be blocked and start a war here, then they will be encircled by us, and our army will be in the rear, retreating freely, and there will be a chance of victory. ”

Xu Huizu looked at him: "Have you already thought about it?" I don't even have a map to look at. ”

“…… Not really. I don't have much to do in Cangzhou, I look at the map every day, and I have already memorized it......"

Xu Huizu smiled slightly, turned around, and looked at Sheng Yong: "I also agree; Dongchang is the best choice. We closely followed the movements of the Yan army, and once he left Cangzhou, we had to chase him all the way and try our best to drive him to Dongchang to fight us. ”

Sheng Yong nodded: "Then it's decided; Grandpa, Sima Xianggong, the two rushed back to Jinan as soon as possible. I will immediately send someone to inform the two generals of Zhending's Ping'an and Wu Jie. The imperial army did not only defend the city; If King Yan wants to fight in the field, let's go in the field. This time, we must block the Yan army in Dongchang, attack from all sides, and repair him well. ”

Xu Huizu said: "That's right; And also. If you don't, I'll give you the 10,000 horses, and you can keep them. I will leave another 70,000 for Texas, and you will be 220,000 troops; Divide 20,000 to defend the city, and the other 200,000 to Dongchang to meet the enemy. I will take 20,000 to Jinan, plus the existing 10,000 defenders in Jinan, it is still 30,000, and like last time, King Yan will not dare to come. ”

Sheng Yong said: "That's fine. In this case, it would be more convenient for me and Ruo Xiao to divide the 200,000 soldiers equally, 100,000 each. ”

"I-" Shen Ruoyu was just about to speak, Xu Huizu frowned and said:

"What are you? 200,000 people should have been brought by you; The general helped you take care of half of it, what else do you want? ”

Sheng Yong also smiled: "That's it; I am a dignified general, and I was originally a general, so I don't need to lead troops directly; It's good now, in order to take care of you, not only to lead the generals, but also to help you lead the troops. If you are few, my 20,000 old departments are familiar with you, and I will give them to you this time; You mix them into the 80,000 soldiers, and the soldiers will soon be acquainted. Let's talk about the ugly things ahead: your 100,000 soldiers first promise to give me a non-landing to Dongchang; One less, and you will be beaten with five sticks; Ten less, fifty sticks for you. ”

Shen Ruoyu's face was flushed: "I understand......"

Throughout the day, Shen Ruoyu worked with Sheng Yong and Xu Huizu to hand over the other 70,000 soldiers and horses left by Xu Huizu. Sheng Yong gave him a total of 112,000 soldiers, still 12,000 cavalry, and the new additions were all infantry.

It was late in the day when he could return to the barracks to rest. Zhong Kexi brought him dinner as always, stayed by his side, and watched him eat.

Shen Ruoyu took two bites, raised his head, and looked at the loyal little orderly beside him.

"Have you all eaten?"

"Also...... Not ...... yet"

"Bring your food, and we'll eat it together."

"This ...... This ......"

"Go! I have something to tell you. ”

Zhong Kexi ran out in a panic, quickly ran in with food, and closed the door.

Shen Ruoyu glanced at his lunch box, frowned, and put the rice in his hand on the table.

"I said Zhong Kexi, what's wrong with you? I told you not to cook it for me alone, everyone eats the same thing. Didn't you change it a long time ago, why did you get water in your head today? ”

Zhong Kexi said: "I didn't do it today, it was Lord Lan who did it." ”

Shen Ruoyu was stunned for a moment.

"Lan Zhengjun?"

"Yes. He said that when he went out on the expedition, he was the new recruits who cooked, and he should do it according to his seniority. ”

"What about yours? What about himself? How many different meals does he cook by himself? ”

“…… Three kinds. ”

Shen Ruoyu was a little helpless. He pursed his lips.

"Come on, let's change, let's change—I just want to eat you, okay?"

Zhong Kexi couldn't resist him, so he had to rely on him, looking at him while eating.

"What are you looking at me for?"

"General, why do you have to let him come with you? Wouldn't it be better to let him go to the front of the infantry. ”

Shen Ruoyu looked at him carefully and sneered: "You have also learned to observe words and emotions now?" ”

Zhong Kexi smiled a little embarrassedly: "I entered the barracks, and the first thing I learned was this." ”

"My mother, if you are allowed to become an official in the court, I will not die." Shen Ruoyu shook his head. "I was about to ask you. What do you think of this person, what do you guys talk about in private? ”

Zhong Kexi hesitated.

"If you feel embarrassed, don't say anything. I didn't think I asked. ”

Zhong Kexi said: "A few of us think ...... Felt ......"

Shen Ruoyu waited for a while, but there was no result.

"If you are so grinding and chirping in front of me in the future, I will let you take off your pants and stand upstairs in the city, do you believe it or not?"

Zhong Kexi said: "It's because we think that everyone thinks that Lord Lan is actually very good......

Shen Ruoyu didn't find this answer strange. He smiled.

"This person, with his skills and skills, let him enter the striker, and soon he will be able to make countless contributions. But he is a commander from the third grade, and I will stuff him underneath, and he will bring a guard of 5,000 soldiers. I don't have a place for him right now. It's better to let him be a flag captain, and I can look at him so well. ”

He suddenly realized something, raised his head, and looked directly at Zhong Kexi.

"Did he tell you anything? Well? Happily, you've been just a soldier until now. There are also five of them, not orderlies, but they don't have any ranks. I've been forgetting about it. I can understand the grievances you feel in your hearts. What did Lan Zhengjun tell you about this? ”

Zhong Kexi shook his head: "General, I didn't mean that. None of them meant that. I know in my heart that if it weren't for you, I would still be burning fire and sweeping the floor in the left guard of Yulin, and being bullied everywhere. If I can go back alive in the future, I will definitely be much stronger than before. If not, it doesn't matter if there is a title; My eldest brother is promising, and my second brother takes care of my father and mother at home, and my family can't count on me. ”

Shen Ruoyu said: "Your eldest brother is a flag school; I just need to say hello to the general, and I can put you on the bench now. You have been following me, born and died, and I should give you some benefits for your life. It's just that you, the calm and the pacification, don't bring troops, or continue to follow me, as a general of the left and follow the herald. Do you understand? ”

"General, I really don't need ......"

"It's a day sooner or later. Do you want to be a herald now and rise to command in the future, or do you want to stay as your orderly soldier and then become a commander overnight? The results are all the same, depending on which process you prefer. ”

Zhong Kexi blushed and said, "That's still-the first one......"

"Don't tell anyone about this; Especially the surname Blue. ”

"General, what about the five of them? And the third brother—"

"That's what I'm worried about. What should you do, what do you do, what do you do. ”

Zhong Kexi put away the tableware and was about to withdraw, but Shen Ruoyu stopped him again.

"You give these things to Lan Zhengjun to wash. Isn't he willing to do this work to fulfill him? By the way, call the third brother to me. ”

The third brother walked into the barracks, looked at him, and closed the door.

Shen Ruoyu was silent for a moment and said:

"Third brother, last night, the Yan soldiers raided Cangzhou City, and the son broke from time to time, do you know?"

The third brother said: "I know; Otherwise, why don't we rush back today? ”

"Yan General Tan Yuan, buried all 3,000 soldiers alive, do you know this?"

The third brother was stunned. "Yes, everybody knows. That red-faced general must be on fire again, and it is indispensable that King Yan will turn around and scold him. ”

Shen Ruoyu said coldly: "What is the difference between King Yan and the living Hades? He was able to kill in Xiongxian and Huailai, tens of thousands; Three thousand people count as a bird to him? ”

The third brother said: "After all, it's different. The defenders of Xiongxian and Huailai swore to die and refused to surrender. But these 3,000 people in Cangzhou are all surrendered soldiers. Based on my understanding of King Yan, he has always been both soft and hard. is absolutely cruel and ruthless to those who resist and are unyielding; But it has always been very good for the officials and troops who welcome the surrender. Brother, we are really blessed with a great fate, rushing back in this gap to ask for soldiers; Otherwise, now you and I don't know whether to live or die; If you are alive, I don't know if life is better than death. ”

Shen Ruoyu looked at him and was silent for a moment.

"Forget it; Not to mention King Yan. I came to you to ask you to help me keep an eye on Lan Zhengjun. Zhong Kexi has just reported some of his situation, in short-"

He stopped. The third brother smiled secretly.

"Brother, are you jealous?"

Shen Ruoyao was silent. The third brother smiled:

"Don't pretend to be in front of me. I could see early in the morning that you were trying to suppress him at every turn. You say, if he is really better than you, you will be jealous; But where can he compare to you? Can you afford it? ”

"Less;" Shen Ruoyu said coldly: "Are you willing to help me with this?" ”

"It's not a question of whether I'm willing or not; How can I help you? What is the level of Lord Lan's martial arts, and the scheming of others, I am willing to help you, but I am afraid that I don't have that ability. ”

"You only need to help me keep an eye on one thing," Shen Ruoyu said, "to see if he has any thoughts of escaping; As soon as you have any clues, you tell me immediately. ”

"Escape? Unlikely; Isn't he bent on avenging the Liangguo Gazette? ”

Shen Ruoyu said: "Are you really stupid or pretending to be stupid?" Have you forgotten what you just said? ”

The third brother nodded and said, "Yes, yes, general, you are wise, you can't hide anything from you; Then again, I can't beat you one out of ten, you are really not afraid that I will mess things up and miss your military plane, then my third child will never say anything, I always have more eyes everywhere, add a pair of eyes, and help you stare at that kid; The third child's errands, especially this kind of stealing chickens and dogs, is the old business, you can rest assured. ”

"Is it the same old business that you contradict yourself? -- Go out and close the door. After Shen Ruoyu finished speaking, he lay down lazily, closed his eyes, and no longer paid attention to the third brother.