In fact, Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang didn't know that Liu Qi did this just to hide people's eyes, but his real intention was Zu Li.

Zu Li is connected to stability. The three counties of Jincheng and Wuwei occupy this place, which can not only expand the territory of Jincheng to the north for hundreds of miles, but also wedge a nail in the view of Anding and Wuwei, thus causing difficulties in the supply of Anding to the five counties of Hexi.

In fact, Liu Qi did not have the grasp of Zu Li, after all, Liu Bei was not confused, naturally knew the importance of this place, so he appointed Liangzhou Thorn Shi Wei Duan to lead the army to guard, this person was originally Liangzhou Mu, Weizhen Liangzhou for more than ten years, known as prestige in Liangzhou, and then Han Sui raised troops to attack, and had no choice but to defect to Liu Bei, was appointed by Liu Bei as Liangzhou Thorn History, Zhenbei General, originally with Liu Bei to attack Wuwei, and later because Liu Bei personally guarded Wuwei, and did not worry about Zu Li, he ordered Wei Duan to come here to guard.

However, Liu Bei didn't know that Liu Qi had secretly summoned Zhang Xiu to Jincheng, because Zhang Xiu and his uncle Zhang Ji were from the Zuli clan, and they had a very high prestige here. Zhang Xi, the lieutenant general in Wei Duan's army, is the same clan as Zhang Xiunai, Liu Shunai is Zhang Ji's general, and Zhang Xiu is the best of the general horn, in addition, there are many people in the city who are protégés of Zhang Ji and Zhang Xiu's uncle and nephew, so as long as Zhang Xiu raises his arms here, he will inevitably respond in groups.

"Bo Yuan, it's up to you to recover Zu Li this time." When Zhang Xiu secretly set off for Zuli, Liu Qi shook solemnly, and then said with a solemn expression.

Zhang Xiu hurriedly returned the salute: "The lord is kind to the last general, and the last general is about to think of doing something to repay the lord, this is the right time, embroidery dare not do his best?" Please rest assured, if you say that he is in other places, embroidery is not sure. But Zu Li is embroidered in his hometown, and with the influence of his uncle and nephew here, he will definitely be able to live up to his mission. ”

After saying goodbye to Liu Qi. Zhang Xiu rode alone, passing through Yunjie, Zhiyang, Jincheng, Yuzhong, Warriors and other places. Then he set foot on the land of Zuli.

Since he was young with his uncle Zhang Ji led the army to leave Zuli, he has not turned back for more than ten years, and now he sees the scenery is still the same, and the weather here is much worse than more than ten years ago, the people's lives are withered, and the sorrow is everywhere, so that Zhang Xiu can't help but compare the prosperity and stability of Jingyang.

"I, Zhang Xiushi, am a people of Zuli, but I have not brought any benefits to my hometown. Come here today, when the lord persuaded the old garden to avoid a war, I hope that in the near future, Zu Li can also be as rich as Yangzhou, and the people's faces are full of smiles, not full of sorrow. ”

Zhang Xiu sighed softly, disguised himself as an ordinary person, and entered the city gate.

Not long after Zhang Xiu entered the city, he went to visit his close friend Liu Shu.

Liu Shu is still like when he was a child. is a straightforward man, when Zhang Xiu asked about Wuwei's situation in recent years, Liu Shu did not shy away from talking about Wuwei's wars in recent years. It was not as good as before, the people were affected by the war, and they were exploited by the warlords, and they became more and more miserable, and said that Liu Bei was reckless and strong, and the weight of taxation was not much worse than that of those warlords, and his group of friends were all indignant when they talked about it.

Zhang Xiu saw that Liu Shu was credible, so he explained his intentions to Liu Shu. Unexpectedly, Liu Shu agreed: "I have heard that Chu Gongren governs the country with benevolence and righteousness, and the people under his rule live in Kangtai." It can be said that the night is not closed, and the road is not forgotten. Recently, I heard that the Duke of Chu issued the Juntian Order in Lingju, only a county in Zhangye, tens of thousands of followers, such a grand occasion, extremely rare, this can also be seen in the name of Chu Gong's benevolence and righteousness, forgiveness is not for himself, but for the hometown of the father and old to find a clear road, so please rest assured that is, a certain will contact a confidant and friend, and persuade the assassin Lord Shi to surrender, hehe, brother and a certain have been separated for many years, today to get together, it is not easy, don't leave today, we two joint night talk, a good plan. ”

Zhang Xiu naturally couldn't ask for it, and immediately readily agreed.

After that, Zhang Xiu secretly contacted Zhang Xi of the same clan, and Liu Shu also contacted Wang Ran, the captain of Lixin, Sima Liu Ao, Liu Ao, Gongcao, Liu Bingyi and others, and conspired with them to persuade Zu Li.

Early the next morning, these people came to Wei Duan's official residence with Zhang Xiu, who was dressed as a small soldier, and discussed things as usual.

At this time, Gongcao Liu Bingyi suddenly stepped forward and said: "Lord Assassin Shi, the last general heard that Duke Chu led an army of 50,000 to leave Zhangye, and after arriving at Lingju, he only ordered Ma Chaotong to turn 20,000 people back to Yunwu, but I personally led the army through Yunjie, Zhiyang, Jincheng, and Yuzhong, and came directly in the direction of the warriors. ”

Wei Duan couldn't help but be shocked when he heard this, and asked in surprise, "Is this really true?" ”

"It's true, the last general is seeking safety, and has sent spies to verify in many ways, and it turned out that this is indeed the case, now that the army of the Duke of Chu has arrived in Yuzhong, it will reach the warriors in a few days, how should we behave, and please show Lord Assassin Shi."

Liu Bingyi's expression was very respectful, but he sneered in his heart, because of the other party's trust, he can now be said to be fully responsible for the reconnaissance of intelligence, and all the news was obtained by him as soon as possible, so Wei Duan could deceive the other party at will.

Of course, Liu Bingyi didn't say it too outrageously this time, because Liu Qi's army did come in the direction of Yuzhong, but his army has only arrived in Jincheng now, and it has been garrisoned to rest and no longer advances.

Wei Duan naturally didn't know that his subordinates had betrayed him, but he said without any hesitation: "What else is there to say about this matter?" Naturally, we had to immediately deploy our forces for defense, and then ask for help from Duke Qin and Anding Taishou. ”

After finishing speaking, Wei Duan was ready to take pen and ink, and prepared to write a letter to Liu Bei and Hao Zhao for advice.

But at this moment, Liu Bingyi stepped forward and said: "Chu Gongren governs the country, the people under his rule live and work in peace and contentment, the order of Juntian, there are countless living people, and the soldiers under the command of Chu Gong are strong and strong, Chu Gong has been fighting for eight years, and he has not been defeated in his life, does Lord Assassin Shi think that your commander's ability will be the opponent of famous generals such as Zhou Yu and Cao Hong?" Will your bravery be the opponent of famous generals such as Sun Ce, Tai Shici, Zhao Yun, and Zhang Fei? Even they are constantly defeated by the hands of Duke Chu, how can Lord Assassin Shi dare to say that he is undefeated? Besides, there are many wars in Liangzhou, the people are miserable, and they are eager for peace. ”

Unexpectedly, Wei Duan was furious and said: "I am entrusted by the Duke of Qin to lead the army to guard Zuli, how can I betray and be that unrighteous person?" Although Liu Qi's army is strong, there are still 10,000 elite soldiers in my ancestral city, and the grain and grass can be supported for a year, as long as we hold on for a few days, the reinforcements of Hao Zhao can arrive, and then ten days and a half months, Qin Gong's army in Wuwei can arrive, although Liu Qi is capable, but he may not be able to capture my Zu Li, Liu Gongcao, you are also subject to the grace of a certain encounter, and now at the time of life and death, do not say to repay the country with death, but confuse the hearts of the army, it is really an unforgivable sin. ”

Liu Bingyi did not retreat, but said coldly: "Lord Assassin Shi's words are wrong, the last general is not not to serve the country, if you say to serve the country, Qin Gong and Chu Gong are both relatives of the Han family, and Qin Gong has the fault of attacking Xuchang, and Chu Gong is by supporting the Han family, if you say to serve the country, wouldn't it be better to serve Chu Gong?" What's more, Lord Assassin Shi was originally recommended by Duke Wei, but now he is serving under the account of Duke Qin, can he be loyal? Besides, Lord Assassin Shi disregarded the safety of the people in the city, and put the people in fire and water for the sake of so-called loyalty, how could he bear it? The civil affairs of the Duke of Qin and the Duke of Chu are all seen by the people of the world, and there is no need to say more about which is better or worse, but Lord Assassin Shi said that the last general confuses the army's heart, isn't it chilling? ”

Wei Duan was even more angry when he heard this, and said sharply: "Liu Bingyi, it seems that you are now determined to rebel, and you dare to slander the Duke of Qin like this, if you are not killed today, how will you order the three armies and restrain the people?" ”

immediately ordered the left and right: "Drag Liu Bingyi out and behead him, order the three armies, and strictly enforce the law and discipline." ”

The left and right pro-soldiers respected the order, and they were about to step forward to capture Liu Bingyi, but unexpectedly, Zhonglang drove Liu Shu aside, drew his sword, cut down those pro-soldiers with lightning speed, and said loudly: "Liu Gongcao just said a few fair words, and he was punished by this, and the Lord Assassin Shi was unfair, which can be seen, and now the Duke of Chu is practicing benevolent government, and the people of the world are all eager to do so, only such an unkind man, for the sake of fame and fortune to prevent the people from taking refuge in the Ming Lord, and put the people in dire straits. ”

As soon as Liu Shu said this, there were immediately Zhonglang generals Zhang Xi, Lixin Captain Wang Ran, and Sima Liu Ao of the Left Army responded.

Seeing this, Wei Duan immediately laughed, and said in a deep voice: "It seems that a few of you are colluding today and deliberately rebelling, but how will you be willing to be restrained by you?" Where is Koji? It can be used to capture traitors. ”

After that, he saw a cold snort, rushed with a knife, and went directly to Wang Ran, the captain of Lixin.

Wang Ran saw that the movement of the koji performance was slow, so he didn't care at all, and waved the sword in his hand to meet him, but he didn't expect the movement of the koji performance to suddenly speed up, and he took Wang Ran's head with lightning speed.

Wang Ran couldn't help but be taken aback when he saw this, and hurriedly tried his best to dodge, but after all, he couldn't completely dodge, and was slashed above the shoulder blade by the other party.

Lu Yan snorted indifferently and kicked Wang Ran to the ground, and Wei Duan's own soldiers from the left and right rushed over and captured him. After that, Lu Yan turned around slowly, waved his knife again, and went away at the stunned Liu Bingyi.

Today's events are obvious, Liu Bingyi is the leader of this group, as long as this person is captured, he will be able to wipe out the traitors, and Liu Bingyi is just a literati, and he is powerless to stop the knife that Lu Yan is determined to get, Zhang Xi, Liu Ao, and Liu Shu were all shocked by Lu Yan's fierce and domineering knife, and they didn't dare to make any moves, so they could only watch Liu Bingyi being killed.

But at this moment, a short spear suddenly swung out unpredictably, blocking a knife from Lu Yan with a sonorous sound, which shocked Lu Yan's arm a little numb.

Lu Yan's face turned a little pale, and he slowly looked at the person holding the gun in front of him, and said in a deep voice: "Who are you?" (To be continued)