In the north of Xiangyang, after the grain and grass in Xinye were burned, Ma Hong personally rushed to Xiangyang with his guards, reported to Liu Biao that the grain and grass were burned, and then asked Liu Biao for grain and grass. Ma Hong had a guard behind him, and there were only twenty-six guards. This escort team is well-equipped, and its personal qualities are considered to be middle and high-class, originally Ma Hong wanted it to continue to stay in Xiangyang to find out the news, and he didn't plan to gather this team, but since the last attack in Xinye City, Ma Hong has found that there are not enough people around him, so he asked Ma San to gather this team.

"Childe, there are still seventy miles from Xiangyang, I'm afraid I won't be able to get there today, there is a post station in front, why don't we rest there for the night?"

Martha said to Ma Hong. As his name suggests, Master Ma is tall and big, more than eight feet, a little taller than Zhuge Liang, nearly one meter nine tall, with a scar on his face, and half of the ear on his right head.

It was getting dark, and if he didn't speed up his pace, he wouldn't be able to rest at the post station in front of him, but Ma Hong let his team stop. Because there is a forest in front of it, it rained last night, and there are many footprints on the muddy path next to the woods, and these footprints are all new footprints, and the number of people who have passed through this path is at least forty people. However, the footprints of forty people showed no traces of horseshoe prints and wheels, which indicated that no caravans had passed here recently, which made Ma Hong suspicious. Without caravans passing by, there would not have been so many people passing on the border of this county, but why are there so many footprints?

"Martha, you find a brother to explore the way in front and see if there are any strange things in the woods." Ma Hong asked.

Ma Dahaha smiled and said, "Childe, you think too much!" Even if there is a tiger in this woods, my big sword can kill him for you. ”

Ma Hong frowned and said, "Give you a knife, are you sure that you can kill a tiger by yourself?" ”

Martha scratched his head a little embarrassed and said, "Childe, I was just bragging just now, it's true that I can hack two wolves to death." ”

Ma Hong turned his face away and ignored Ma Da, and said to another man: "Ma Qi, you go to the woods in front and take a look." ”

Ma Qi answered, and trotted towards the woods, where there were many bushes. Ma Qi entered the woods and soon disappeared. Ma Hong and the others waited for Ma Qi for a quarter of an hour (a quarter of an hour is equal to about fifteen minutes) in the same place, but they did not see Ma Qi come back.

Ma Da wiped the sweat on his face a little anxiously and said to Ma Hong: "Childe, you see that the seventh child has not come back yet, is he lost, or I will take a few brothers to take a look." ”

Ma Hong bit his lip and said, "No need to go, I don't think Ma Qi will come back." Listen, brothers, and retreat with me to the back slope, and be ready for the enemy to attack at any moment. ”

Ma San asked in confusion for a while: "Childe, what's wrong." ”

Ma Hong only said one sentence: "There are people in the woods who want my life." ”

Soon after the retreat, a group of robbers rushed out of the woods. The robber at the head carried a knife and scolded: "Damn, I didn't fall for it. ”

"Boss, what should I do?" The robber's younger brother asked.

"What to do? Rushing up and hacking them to death, of course. The robber boss scolded loudly.

The robber boss and his brothers chased after Ma Hong and the others, but they still slowed down, and when they arrived at the bottom of the hill, Ma Hong and the others had already climbed to the top of the slope to prepare for defense.

"Childe, I know the bandit leader, his name is Niu Guts." Martha said.

"Is it your former friend?" Ma Hong asked.

"I can't count as a friend, but I've met a few times, this bull gall is very ruthless, and no one on the road wants to see him." Martha said.

Ma Hong glanced at Martha and said, "Are you ruthless?" ”

"Harder than me." Martha nodded vigorously.

"Then you shout to him, see if he can let us go, if he can try not to do anything, the number of them can be nearly a hundred." Ma Hong Road.

Martha nodded, stood up, opened his voice and shouted, "Niu Gall, do you remember me?" How did you get my idea? ”

Niu Dan saw an old acquaintance standing on the top of the slope, so he also opened his throat and shouted: "Maozi, it turned out to be you kid, you are not dead yet!" ”

"Yes! It's my brother who just went into the woods, what did you do to him. ”

"What's the matter, of course it's hacked to death, I'm good at hacking people, but I don't want to cut you, as long as you tie up your son-in-law, I can promise to let you go."

Ma Hong snorted coldly, this bull guts actually knew that he wanted to ambush himself, and it seemed that he was instructed by someone.

"Cow guts, you bastard, dare to cut my brother, Lao Tzu will cut you." Martha scolded with a big sword.

Ma Hong said: "Don't waste your tongue on him, tell him that if he has the ability, let him call." ”

Ma yelled: "Niu Guts, if you have a kind, hit it, don't call me down there." ”

Ma Hong asked Ma San to check the arrows, not counting the dead Ma Qi, Ma Hong's guards still have twenty-five people, twenty-five people each carry twenty arrows, and there are also five hundred arrows, at this time, it is not difficult to occupy the high and low to defend against the offensive of a wave of robbers who have no military literacy.

"Martha, you take seven brothers to guard the back slope."

Ma Hong instructed Ma Da, and when Ma Da and Niu Bile were talking just now, Ma Hong had already seen a small leader with one or twenty people walking around the back slope.

A small slope that can be climbed by a horse is not steep, this small slope is 100 meters high, there are many low bushes and rocks on the small slope, and the area of the top of the slope is not large, about 30 square meters.

"Lian'er, you stay behind, don't look down." Ma Hong said to Lian'er.

Lian'er nodded nervously.

At the bottom of the slope, a dark-skinned man said to Niu Guts: "Brother-in-law, if you let me take thirty brothers, I will be able to go uphill and chop them." ”

Niu Dan laughed and said: "Lao Du has already taken twenty brothers to fight from the back mountain, I will give you fifty brothers to fight from the front, you and Lao Du who cut off Ma Hong's head, the position of the second brother will be whose position in the future." ”

As soon as the dark-skinned man heard Niu Guts's words, he was afraid that Lao Du would rob his head, so he hurriedly ordered fifty brothers and rushed up the slope.

At the top of the slope, Ma Hong looked at the robbers who rushed up and smiled slightly and ordered: "Disperse, stand two people every five meters, and when they reach the range of the bow and arrow, shoot me fiercely." ”

Ma Er jumped on a big stone beside him, untied his bow and arrows, and guarded Ma Hong's side, Ma Hong leaned on the stone and drank, patted Lian'er's head hiding behind the stone with one hand, and smiled slightly: "Don't be afraid." ”

"Ma Er, did you see that little boss? Tell the brethren not to shoot him but not to shoot him, but to those behind him. Ma Hong patted Ma Er's hand holding the bow, and he was not afraid that Ma Er would shoot the arrow.

Ma Er answered yes and passed the order to everyone. Ma Er is a taciturn person, but very reliable, more reliable than Ma Da, who likes to play mouth cannons, although Ma Er is only seven feet tall, but his martial arts are stronger than Ma Da, his archery skills are very good, he once served as a soldier, and he is still a centurion.

An arrow deflected, and Ma Er shouted, "Shoot!" ”

Ma Hong took a sip of wine and stood up, picked up his bow and arrows and did not shoot arrows, because he had a wound on his arm and could not shoot arrows, but he could still shoot one or two arrows when necessary.

A robber is a robber, not a soldier, if a soldier is under such an offensive, he may still be able to attack, but robbers are a group of people who have no military qualities, as soon as they see that the enemy is attacking fiercely and their own people are falling, they do not dare to continue to rush forward, once they hesitate on the battlefield is death. In the past few months, Ma Hong has fought wave after wave of bandits and robbers, and knows their habits well. It is not difficult to torture a hundred bandits with twenty well-armed convoys.

The dark-skinned man shouted, "Brothers rush with me, and I will reward him with a horse to cut off Ma Hong's head." ”