"A few soldiers, why did you come to my courtyard?" When the old woman saw a soldier walking towards Du Wen's hiding place, she stepped forward to greet her and asked at the exit.

The soldier stood in front of the bamboo basket and stopped, turned to the old woman, and asked, "Have you ever had a single woman in your house?" ”

The old woman smiled calmly, shook her head and replied, "I am the only old woman who lives in a good life, and no one has ever come." ”

The soldiers in the courtyard glanced at the old woman, turned around and picked up the bamboo basket with his spear, and searched inside.

Du Wen's hiding place was only a few layers of bamboo baskets in front of her, and after a while, she was picked open by the soldier, afraid that she would be able to see herself without two more layers.

Du Wen stared at the soldier tightly behind the bamboo basket, clenched her hands into fists, and had no choice but to strike a desperate blow.

Seeing that Du Wen's hiding place was about to be exposed, the old woman had an idea, picked up a piece of gravel and threw it to the other side, shouting, "Look where you run." ”

When the soldier in the courtyard heard this, he hurriedly turned around and shouted, "What's the matter? ”

The old woman gasped, pointed to the front, and replied, "The wild cat that came from nowhere, and often came to steal food, and saw that I did not kill it." ”

The soldier glared angrily, turned to continue searching the basket, and the rest of the soldiers came out of the house and fanned out in front of the old woman.

"Let me ask you, who are you in your family?" A monkey-faced soldier stepped forward and pushed the old woman and asked loudly.

The old woman almost fell, glared back at the soldier, and replied, "I am the only one in the house." ”

"Hmph, that's nonsense." The soldier pointed his spear at the old woman and asked, "Why are there two pairs of chopsticks on the table when there is only one person?" ””

The old woman's face changed slightly, then she recovered, and said without hurrying: "Today is the third anniversary of my son's death, my son was killed in battle in Ma Ting three years ago, I want to have a meal with him." ”

After hearing this, the soldier who had stayed in the courtyard stepped forward and pulled away the monkey-faced soldier, his voice softened, and asked, "Who is your son?" ”

"The surname is Tian, and the word is Chu."

"Tian Chu ......" The soldier looked at the old woman, nodded his head, and said, "I know that this person was together before, but he never saw him later, but he died in the battle. ”

The soldier beckoned to the others and shouted, "Go, the woman is not to be seen here." After saying this, he bowed to the old woman and walked out of the courtyard with several other soldiers.

The old woman followed and saw her off, closed the courtyard door casually, and listened to it behind the door for a while, before running back to the bamboo basket and calling Du Wen out.

"Thank you for helping me." After Du Wen came out, she thanked the old woman, and the old woman patted her chest and said repeatedly: "It's really dangerous, I'm scared to death." After speaking, he pulled up Du Wen, looked back at the door of the courtyard, and hurriedly walked into the house.

Cui Yan is thinking in the house, calculating the time, the reinforcements of Qibo should also be coming, when the reinforcements come, he will take Jiangzhou in one go, and then continue to march south, and seize Jingzhou, I am afraid that the Liang will be exhausted, if he wins these two states and makes a contribution, who else can compete with him for the throne?

"The Three Princes." Han led Chi Fei, and the two walked in in a little panic and called.

Cui Yan came back, saw Chi Fei coming, smiled, greeted him and asked, "The marshal is here in person, but there is news from Qi Bo?" ”

"Back to the third prince, yes......" Chi Fei glanced at Han after speaking.

"Haha, but my father sent troops here?" Cui Yan laughed.

Chi Fei paused, and said: "It is the Qi State that has sent troops, and has broken through Wenshun Mansion, and the King of Shang has ordered Wei Ke to lead his troops to resist the enemy, and sent an edict ordering us to hold on to Yanshun Mansion and not go out of the city to meet the enemy." ”

"What?" Cui Yan was stunned, waiting left and right to finally wait for the news, but he never expected it to be such news.

"Didn't the Qi State form an alliance with us to attack Liang?" Cui Yan sat down on the chair and looked at the two of them with a questioning expression.

The two looked at each other and were silent.

In the Jiangzhou garrison mansion, Situ Hao sat in the first place in the living room, and Yuanhang was on his side, and more than 20 people sat on each side, and the generals in important positions in the army gathered here.

Situ Hao glanced around and asked loudly, "Can all the camp masters be here?" ”

Fu Yashi got up and replied, "Marshal, you're all here." ”

Situ Hao nodded and said: "The Shang Kingdom violated the realm and deceived into our land, and the Holy Dragon Yan was furious, and the Thunder Division went to Jiangzhou to resist the enemy. The battle of Duping recaptured Jiangzhou, drove the enemy in Tiancang, now our army has many generals, grain and grass are ready, it is a good time to send troops, the commander decided to send troops to Yanshun Mansion, today to convene everyone to come, is to discuss this matter. ”

"The last general obeys the orders of the marshal." A loud voice sounded in the living room, and all the generals got up and replied in unison.

Situ Hao pressed his hand down, motioned for everyone to sit down, and said in a pause: "The State of Qi has sent troops to attack the Shang State in the northeast, and the Holy Lord ordered our army to immediately send troops to attack Yanshun Mansion, and the State of Qi will be attacked on both sides, and this time the State of Shang will be destroyed." ”

"Marshal." Fu Yashi stood up and saluted, and said: "It's about to enter winter, the country of Qi is in the north, and it is cold, so you need to prepare things to keep out the cold as soon as possible before you can go deep into the hinterland." ”

After hearing this, he looked at Fu Yashi. If this matter is ignored, if the cold really rises, the soldier's combat power will be reduced by half.

Situ Hao nodded again and again, and ordered Lin Ziyu to be responsible for collecting winter clothes, and the Qin Dynasty stayed in Jiangzhou to hold on, waiting for the soldiers to come from the back hall. Ordered Sun Ke to escort grain and grass with the army, Duanmulong, Gu Xin as the main and deputy vanguard, Fu Yashi as the military staff, the whole army for one day, and send troops to Yanshun Mansion early tomorrow morning.

The crowd dispersed, and the voyage went alone to the bamboo forest, and came to Yilan to sit down in front of the grave.

The cold wind gradually rose, Yuanhang lifted his collar, stretched out his hand to wipe the tombstone, and said softly: "Yilan, tomorrow Xianggong will go to avenge you, you have a good rest, and wait for Xianggong to return." ”

The bamboo leaves were rustled by the wind, as if Yilan knew and should sail away. Two lines of tears flowed down his cheeks, and the voyage fell into deep memories.

On December 18 of the second year of Yinwen, the army of Liang, under the command of Situ Hao, sent 280,000 troops from Jiangzhou and began to crusade against Shang.

"Report." The soldiers shouted outside the door, and inside the room, Cui Yan and Han Yu sat with sad faces.

"Come in." Han Yu turned around and called, and the soldiers outside the door pushed the door in, and Shi Li said: "My lord, the Liang army has passed the Tiancang Pass and is heading straight to Yanshun Mansion. ”

"Bang dang." Cui Yan held the teacup in his hand unsteadily, let go and dropped it on the table, and looked at Korean with a panicked expression.

"The third prince is not surprised." Han Yu's heart also trembled, and he comforted Cui Yan on the surface.

Turning to the soldiers, he commanded: "Quickly go and inform Marshal Chi that the whole city is on guard and ready to resist the enemy." ”

After the soldiers retreated, Han Yu turned back to Cui Yan and said, "Three princes, now that Liang Qi is attacking at the same time, I'm afraid it's not good." According to my wishes, you should return to Qibo as soon as possible, persuade the king of Shang, and quickly send envoys to make peace with the state of Qi, and cede the city to stabilize the state of Qi, otherwise our kingdom of Shang will cease to exist. ”

Cui Yan had already intended to leave Yanshun Mansion, and when he heard what Han said, he nodded hurriedly and said, "If that's the case, you stay here to help Marshal Chi defend the city, and I will immediately go back to Yibo to persuade my father." ”

Han Yu nodded and said, "Once the Qi country is stable, please send troops to help quickly." ”

"Okay, okay." Cui Yan was worried that the Liang army was besieging the city, so after speaking, he got up and ordered his subordinates to prepare to leave for Yibo immediately.

The army of Liang was not in a hurry, and arrived at Yanshun Mansion in one day, Situ Hao stationed the camp fifteen miles outside the city, and led a team of men and horses to explore the city with Yuanhang.

A few miles outside the city of Yanshun Mansion are empty places, and it looks like a lonely city in the desert to the cold eye. The official road is getting wider and wider, and there is no forest to cover it, so Yuanhang and others can only wait and see Yanshun Mansion from afar.

"It seems that the city can only be besieged and stormed." Situ Hao stared at the city and said in a deep voice.

"Well, there is nothing around, and as soon as the army comes, it will be in the enemy's field of sight, so it can only besiege the city and storm it." Yuanhang observed the terrain, but there was nothing to be done.

"Let's go back to the camp first, besiege the city early tomorrow morning, and attack the city at the right time." Situ Hao glanced at Yanshun Mansion again, and returned to the camp with everyone.

On the tower of Yanshun Mansion, Chi Fei and many generals patrolled back and forth. Soldiers stood on the tower with spears every ten meters and watched the city, so close that there were almost no dead spots under the city, and they would be discovered if there was any movement.

"Marshal, the enemy army has been encamped fifteen miles away, and I am afraid that the city will be attacked tomorrow, so we only need to defend it to the death, and we must not go out of the city to meet the battle." Korean followed Chi Fei and walked and spoke.

"I know." Chi Fei stopped, looked at Han Yushen and nodded, and said, "Now in the northeast of the Shang Kingdom, there is a Qi army criminal, and there is a Liang army here, so we can only hold on." ”

"The third prince has returned to Qi Bo to persuade the king of Shang to make peace with Qi, so that he can send troops to support us."

Chi Fei sneered and snorted: "If it can be peaceful, it will be done at the beginning, why did the Qi State invade the border at this time, I am afraid that it would have formed an alliance with the Liang State earlier." ”

Chi Fei's words were suspicious in everyone's hearts, but no one wanted to say it, and they all hoped that it wouldn't be so.

The early morning sun shone on the city, the battle flags fluttered lazily in the breeze, and except for the occasional snoring of war horses, hundreds of thousands of people did not make a sound.

The world is unpredictable, more than ten days ago, the merchant army besieged Jiangzhou City. Now it is strictly guarded in the city, and it is the turn of the Liang army to besiege the city in a big way.

"Marshal, all the ministries are ready, do you want to attack the city?" Duanmu Long held a silver gun and looked sideways.

Situ Hao's face was expressionless and asked, "What happened to the rest of the doors?" ”

"Back to the marshal, all the gates are in place, and the city can be attacked at any time." Fu Yashi was on the other side of Situ Hao, responsible for conveying Situ Hao's military orders and coordinating various departments.

"Beat the drum to attack the city, pass the order, and those who ascend the city first will be rewarded with one hundred taels of silver, and the official will be promoted to one level." Situ Hao gave the order to siege the city.

The drums of war sounded, and the horses neighed. Ten thousand people shouted and rushed forward, and the black-pressed Liang army outside Yanshun Mansion rushed forward.

"Shoot the arrows!" An order was given from the city tower, and the rain of arrows poured down like a tide, shooting at the Liang army one after another.

The Liang army had already prepared, and the soldiers raised their shields above their heads, like a shield wall for a while, and the soldiers did not stop below and rushed towards the city.

The shouts of killing were deafening, and the sound of fighting could be heard in the city. Du Wen walked from the house to the courtyard and listened carefully.

"Xianggong is here, it's Liang Jun who called." Du Wen's face showed joy, as if she saw the voyage outside the city, and jumped up happily.

"Come inside, it's dangerous outside." The old woman rushed out of the house, picked up Du Wen and walked into the house.

"Auntie, I'm leaving." Du Wen stopped, broke free of the old woman's hand and said.

"Where did you go, I didn't hear a fight outside the city." The old woman wanted to stretch out her hand to pull Du Wen again, but Du Wen dodged away and said lightly: "Don't hide it, my father-in-law is outside the city, and I want to look for him." ”

"Silly boy, they are fighting, how can you find it in the chaos, besides, the sword has no ......eyes," the old woman frowned, and there was no place for her wrinkled forehead now.

Du Wen bowed sideways and said, "Thank you for saving your life, when my father-in-law comes, Wen'er will be grateful." Now that I'm leaving, take care. After speaking, she turned around and ran to the courtyard gate, the old woman chased two steps and stopped, standing in the courtyard and looking at Du Wen. Du Wen opened the courtyard door, saw that there was no one outside, turned around and smiled at the old woman, and went out.

The old woman chased after the door again, waved at Du Wen's back, and shouted, "Take care of the child." Du Wen turned around and waved her hand and hurriedly ran away.

The Liang army attacked the city from all sides, and the battle at each gate was fierce. The merchant army relied on the tall and strong city of Yanshun Prefecture, and there were many rolling wood and thunder stones in the city, and they resisted stubbornly. Although the Liang army was brave, they could not go to the city, and the corpses under the city walls had been piled up more than a meter high.

Chi Fei stood on the south gate, and saw that although the Liang army was numerous, the pressure on his side was not great, so he calmed down in his heart, and commanded the soldiers to throw rolling logs and smash the siege Liang army down.

For a whole morning, the Liang army suffered countless casualties, but no one went to the city, so Situ Hao had to order the army to be collected, the whole army rested, and surrounded Yanshun Mansion to death.

Not far from the entrance of the alley, Du Wen saw a merchant trotting all the way towards the east gate. Du Wen turned her mind and shouted loudly: "This soldier, come over quickly." ”

The soldier was tired from running, and when he heard Du Wen calling him, he stopped and gasped, and asked, "What's the matter?" ”

Du Wen smiled and said, "The soldiers are fighting hard, I will prepare some dry food and bring it in case you don't need it." ”

The soldier thought about it, felt hungry in his belly, and came up to him and asked, "Where is it?" ”

"It's in the alley." Seeing him take the bait, Du Wen turned around and walked into the alley, and the soldier followed him without suspicion.

Entering the alley, Du Wen saw that there was no one around, so she turned around and attacked the soldier. The soldier didn't expect this woman to attack him, so he reacted and hurriedly drew his knife to meet the enemy, but before the knife could be drawn, Du Wen had already kicked him in the chest and fell on his back.

Du Wen followed, and before he could get up, he kicked him in the head again, and the soldier fainted directly.

Du Wen dragged him to the wall, reached out and took off his military uniform, tore his clothes into pieces, wrapped his chest well, and changed into his military uniform.

After changing into his uniform, Du Wen was just about to leave, when the soldier woke up and lay on the ground looking at Du Wen. Du Wen shook her head and sighed, "Since you woke up, you can't blame me." Then he drew his saber and struck the soldier with one blow, looked around, and ran towards the south gate.