"Report, generals, it seems that the Eight Rakbu is packing up and retreating!" A sentry rode quickly into the council hall of Guancheng in the Star Gorge, with a puzzled look on his face. Pen ~ fun ~ pavilion www.biquge.info

Tang Zhen and Zhang Jue, who were standing in front of the map and talking in a low voice, glanced at each other and hurriedly looked over, and a smile also appeared on the corner of the mouth of Gundam, who was sitting on the side drinking tea. According to the speculation of the Ming army, after determining that Kublai Khan led his army south, it is very likely that Bara also led his troops to directly attack Kublai Khan's rear route, so as to avoid wasting all his few troops on the Xiongguan fortress of Xingxing Gorge. In retrospect, that speculation seems accurate.

"We can't take it lightly to prevent fraud." Gundam stood up and said in a deep voice, turning his head to look at the sentry, "Let the brethren continue to investigate, especially to find out which direction Yarai is heading." ”

"The old general is worried that Ya Ra wants to lure the enemy deep and take the opportunity to lure us out of Star Gorge?" Tang Zhen couldn't help frowning, after all, with the Ming army's generals' understanding of Ba Ra, such a complex attack method didn't seem to be in line with Ba Ra's character, and for Ba Ra, it was not a good thing to take down Xingxing Gorge, because this meant that he would have to face the Haidu army that was waiting for him, unless Ba Ra could lower his head and make himself a vassal of Haidu completely.

Zhang Jue also nodded, in fact, he was also thinking about whether to send troops to pursue just now, the defenders of the Ming Dynasty in Xingxing Gorge included the Tianxiong Army, the two brigades of the Shence Army, and the Tubo people who could be counted as two divisions according to the establishment of the Ming army.

What's more, the Ming Dynasty is not only these troops in Hexi, Liang Yanwu and Wang Jin are leading the other Shence army after recuperation and replenishment and the Tubo army that also has two divisions on the way from Dunhuang, for the Ming Dynasty, now the defenders of Xingxing Gorge are enough to deal with Haidu, and the remaining army can completely change the original task of rescuing Xingxing Gorge and lifting the encirclement, and turn to attack Ba Ra, or even chase Ba Ra to take the opportunity to kill the grassland.

"Eight Ra can be regarded as a generation of heroes no matter what, and he should not be underestimated." Gundam said in a deep voice, "And for us, the top priority is to defeat Haidu and untie the siege of this Star Gorge, so that we can directly enter the Western Regions at the same time as the victory of the Northern Expedition of the Ming Dynasty." ”

Stretching out his hand and pointing at the map, Gundam continued: "The reason why Your Majesty has gathered heavy troops in Hexi is not just to let us knock on the side during the Northern Expedition, but really intends to open up this as a second battlefield, taking advantage of the victory of the Northern Expedition and the complete chaos of the Mongol Tartars, to attack directly to the Western Regions." The importance of the Western Regions to the Ming Dynasty must not be repeated. ”

Zhang Jue and Tang Zhen both nodded. They even believe that if the Ming Dynasty is really allowed to choose between the Western Regions and the grassland, the Ming Dynasty is likely to choose the Western Regions. The existence of the Western Regions is the foundation for maintaining the rule of the Ming Dynasty in the entire western region. The Ming Dynasty had just obtained Tubo not long ago, and because of the Northern Expedition, the control of Tubo still needed to be strengthened, so in order to prevent Tubo from continuing to collude with the Mongols, the easiest way was to control the Western Regions and completely cut off the possible channels of communication between the two sides.

The reason why Tang Taizong insisted on sending troops to the Western Regions despite the opposition of Wei Zheng and other civilian officials, and even sent Li Jing, Hou Junji, Li Ji and other famous generals of the Tang Dynasty to take turns to ensure a complete victory, in the final analysis, was to prevent the Tubo and Turks, who had surrendered at that time, from re-contacting and communicating, so that Hexi was like an outstretched arm of the Tang Dynasty, and the Western Regions was like an open palm, completely controlling the stability of the entire western border of the Tang Dynasty. After the Anshi Rebellion, the Tang Dynasty's control over the Western Regions became weaker and weaker, and finally attracted the joint attack of the Turks and Tibetans, and even Chang'an was lost, the reason for which was that the loss of the Western Regions gave the two enemies who had been waiting for a comeback an opportunity to communicate and exchange.

The Western Regions determined the decline of the Tang Dynasty to a certain extent, and it must also determine the life and death of the Ming Dynasty to a certain extent, so for the Western Regions, Ye Yingwu and the Ming Dynasty are bound to win.

"What does the old general mean, let's just ignore the eight rakes?" Tang Zhen looked up at Yutu, but this time his gaze was no longer on the grassland, but on the Western Regions. The land that once witnessed Zhang Qian's difficult trek, and the land where the Han and Tang Dynasty soldiers were once bloody.

"Isn't it also a good thing to let Bara go to the steppes in the hinterland of the Mongolian Tartars to make trouble?" Gundam smiled and asked rhetorically, "What we need to worry about now is Haidu on the other side." ”

"There is nothing to worry about in the sea," at this moment, a young but loud voice suddenly came from outside the door, and the scolding of the guards at the door could be faintly heard.

"Who is coming, speaking wildly?!" Seeing this stranger walk in, the guards hurriedly took a step forward, in this council hall are the highest level of the Tianxiong Army and the Shence Army, if there is any mistake, their heads on the neck can not afford this responsibility.

Gundam waved his hand to tell the guards not to be so nervous, after all, the Star Gorge was actually still surrounded by the Mongol Tartars, and it was impossible for anyone without some skill to come in, and they didn't get a report from the guards outside the gate, and nine times out of ten they were carrying tokens and there were 100,000 urgent things to report, similar to those sentry spies.

Zhang Jue and Tang Zhen also turned their heads with interest, the man walked in, and before he entered the council hall, he casually lifted his cloak, revealing his cheeks full of wind and dust, sure enough, it was a young man, but the rolling wind and dust of the Western Regions made him look much more mature than the last common young man, if you just look at this move, you can't imagine that this person is still young.

"Jinyi Wei Ma Tingyou, I've seen all the generals." Before the young man could enter the door, he smiled and bowed his hand. He had almost put on the swords and guns in the hands of the guards, but there was no fear on his face, but he looked very relaxed.

It's like a person who has gone through nine hundred and eighty-one hardships and finally returned to a safe place.

Although they hadn't seen Zhang Jue and Gundam, the leaders of the Six Gates and the Jinyi Guard, it didn't mean that they hadn't heard of these thunderous names. Not to mention Tang Zhen, who originally started with Ye Yingwu.

Taking a step forward at the moment, Tang Zhen carefully looked at the young man standing outside the door with a smile on his face, opened his mouth slightly, and couldn't help but smile and arched his hand: "Brother Xiang Ji, I haven't seen you for two or three years, Brother Xiang Ji has become more and more prestigious, the younger brother is clumsy for a while, and he didn't even recognize Brother Xiang Ji, please don't be surprised!" ”

Ma Tingyou said with a smile: "Brother Han Xiao is still as polite as ever, I can't imagine that the weak scholar who was powerless at the beginning has now become a general with a sword, and he also commands thousands of troops and horses, which is more than a thousand times more majestic than that." ”

"Haha, Brother Xiang Ji is modest!" Tang Zhen stretched out his hand to ask the guards to retreat, and made a gesture of please, "Our Northern Expedition armies, who doesn't know that if there is no help from the Six Gates and the Jinyi Guard, one by one in this land that has not been set foot in hundreds of years will be blind!" If it weren't for you who redrew the maps of most places and solved the trouble of not knowing the way, wouldn't this army of all walks of life come all the way, wouldn't you still have to rely on the maps of the Tang Dynasty to move forward by yourself! ”

With Tang Zhen personally proving that both Gundam and Zhang Jue had a smile on their faces, it was no wonder that Ma Tingyou was able to walk directly into this hall unimpeded, after all, as the commander of the Jinyi Guard, the imperial order card in his hand was the highest level among the various levels of tokens and identity certificates in the Ming Dynasty, even if the guards ate the bear's heart and leopard gall, they did not dare to stop it.

"Brother Xiangji, come, let me introduce you, this is the old general of the Tianxiong Army, and this is the supervisor of Zhang Jue of the Tianxiong Army." Tang Zhen said with a smile, obviously Ma Tingyou's arrival at this time also made him breathe a sigh of relief, with the commander of Jinyiwei personally in charge, not to mention how to fight, this news communication must be much more convenient than before, for the Ming army, which has an absolute advantage in equipment, can accurately grasp the whereabouts of the Mongolian Tatar army, in fact, half of the possibility of victory has been determined.

Ma Tingyou nodded: "The old general of the Tianxiong Army single-handedly suppressed Luzhou, and Zhang supervised the defense of Chengdu Mansion, all of them are my first-class generals in the Ming Dynasty. ”

"The horse commander praised it falsely, praised it falsely." Gundam stroked his beard and said, "Fortunately, I will be happy." ”

Zhang Jue also solemnly bowed his hand to Ma Tingyou.

Jinyi Guard and Six Doors are directly under the Ming Dynasty Royal spy organization, and the Praetorian Guard together constitute the main force of the royal family, although the commanders of these three departments do not have a clear official rank, but no one dares to underestimate it, after all, what they hold in their hands is the real power of life and death, and it is also the last line of defense to maintain the imperial power of the Ming Dynasty and the majesty of the dynasty.

If it is really calculated, the commanders of these three organizations actually enjoy the treatment of the first level of Shangshu in the DPRK, and they are at the same level as the generals of the main army, and they naturally dare not slack off.

What's more, Ma Tingyou is a real slave from Long Yuanrong, even if he is a courtier like Tang Zhen who has been from Long for a long time, when he sees Ma Tingyou, he has to call him "Brother Xiangji", which shows Ma Tingyou's seniority. The so-called four big irons in life, Ma Tingyou and Ye Yingwu are classmates, they also prostitutes together in Willow Lane, Thirty-six Flower Street, and they once fought side by side with Ye Yingwu on the battlefield, and finally shared the spoils of the whole world with Ye Yingwu.

"I don't know why Brother Xiang Ji suddenly appeared in Xingxing Gorge, but what does Your Majesty command?" Tang Zhen asked with some confusion. It was only half an hour before the withdrawal of Ba Ra's army, and Ma Tingyou appeared here, unless there was an urgent matter, it was impossible for him to come so timely, and it was impossible for Ma Tingyou to come out in person, plus what Ma Tingyou said just now, "The sea is not to be afraid", naturally made Tang Zhen feel that Ye Yingwu had already made a plan.

Ma Tingyou stretched out his hand and pointed to the west: "A certain person is not from the Central Plains, but from the Western Regions." ”

"What?!" Not only Tang Zhen, but also Gao Gao and Zhang Jue couldn't help but be stunned.

Immediately walked to the side of the map, Ma Tingyou said with a smile: "A few months ago, a certain envoy to the Chagatai Khanate was secretly sent by His Majesty's order to persuade the Jara to send troops into the grassland, and the stirring Mongolian Tartars were not at peace, and then entered the Cyriji Department as an envoy of the Han family. As long as Cyrijibe secretly exerts his strength, it is impossible for Haidu to be undefeated! ”

Zhang Jue and the others all showed a look of surprise on their faces, they didn't expect that they were fighting bloodily with the Mongolian Tatars in front, but in fact, the world had already been turned upside down behind the Mongolian Tatars. It seems that the Haidu allies, who are united in their hearts, have become like this. And His Majesty and the imperial court's strategy for the Western Regions has finally been revealed.

By constantly creating contradictions and troubles, the Ming Dynasty cultivated a Ba Ra in Haidu's army who was alienated from Haidu, which was actually equivalent to constantly weakening Haidu's strength invisibly, making Haidu from a great khanate to a point where it could only compete with a group of small tribes. At that time, even if the Ming Dynasty does not send an army, the entire Western Regions will not be able to threaten the existence of the Ming Dynasty.

"So, now the Mongolian Tatars outside the Star Gorge have become a plate of loose sand?" Gundam couldn't help but sigh with emotion, looking at Zhang Jue and Tang Zhen, who had not yet come back to their senses, "I didn't expect that we were still thinking about how to hold on to this Star Gorge, but I didn't know that the enemy outside was already vulnerable!" ”

Ma Tingyou said in a deep voice: "What Your Majesty means is that after the Battle of Xingxing Gorge, whether the Xili Jibu is attached to the Ming Dynasty or shamelessly betrayed, it will completely become a traitor in the eyes of the tribes in the Western Regions, and it will not become a climate at all, and after the strength of Haidu is weakened, it will definitely not stay in the Western Regions, and then the entire Western Regions will have an open door waiting for us to go." ”

After a pause, Ma Tingyou's gaze swept over the faces of several people; "It is estimated that His Majesty's will will will return soon, in short, there are only four words, take the Western Regions!"

――――――――――――-

Ye Yingwu walked quickly into the big tent of the Chinese army, and the generals led by Zhang Shijie were already waiting here.

"Your Majesty!" Zhang Shijie and others hurriedly bowed.

"Excuse me," Ye Yingwu said in a deep voice without waiting for them to bow down, "The war is urgent, these etiquettes are ignored for now, to make a long story short, where are the Mongolian Tatars now?" ”

If there were officials from the Imperial History Observatory here, I am afraid that they would have been unable to stand up and emphasize the importance of etiquette, but it is a pity that there are a group of outright martial artists standing here, Ye Yingwu said that regardless of etiquette, it really happened to their hearts.

A small delay on the battlefield can decide the outcome of the battle, the life and death of hundreds of thousands of people, where can you take care of these?

Zhang Shijie immediately stepped forward and said: "Yesterday, three teams of sentry cavalry disappeared near the left side of Fenshui, and His Majesty dispatched the cavalry of the Praetorian Guard to search, and finally rescued a team of sentry horses, and it has been determined that the Mongolian Tartars have four thousand to five thousand foot horsemen have crossed Fenshui, and considering that the left wing of the Mongolian Tartars is now in Shizhou, and the right wing is in Taiyuan Mansion, so the last general thinks that it can be determined that this team is the vanguard of the Mongolian Tartars, and the other teams of sentry cavalry should also have encountered the ambush of the Mongolian Tartars, and the number of people is estimated to be around two or three thousand. In other words, nearly 10,000 Mongolian Tatar strikers are already approaching here! ”

Before Zhang Shijie finished speaking, Yang Bao, the general of the Divine Guard, had already stood up and arched his hand and said: "Your Majesty, in the past three days, more and more Mongolian Tartars have appeared in our periphery, and today we have found ten teams of sentry spies, mainly cavalry, galloping back and forth, if you are not prepared for it, I am afraid that you will not be able to intercept it at all." ”

"I'm afraid that these people who serve as sentry cavalry are already the most powerful cavalry of the Mongolian Tartars or the cavalry of the cowardly Xue army, otherwise it would be impossible to deal with it so badly. Therefore, we must not take it lightly, the appearance of such a dense number of Mongolian Tatar sentry cavalry shows that the main force of Mongolian Tatars should not be far away. Ye Yingwu bowed his head slightly and said in a cold voice.

In recent years, with the intensification of the war with the Ming Dynasty, the Mongolian cavalry suffered heavy losses, even on the frontal battlefield of the main army of the Ming Dynasty, it was difficult to encounter the Mongolian cavalry that had given Ye Yingwu a headache in the battle of Xiangyang, once they were all recruited Jurchens, Hui Hui and Tang Wuren to supplement the cavalry ranks, so that although the Mongolian army could still maintain its original size, it had a significant decline in the army's morale and will, otherwise the Ming army would not have been able to advance all the way.

After a pause, Ye Yingwu's voice suddenly raised: "The generals will listen to the order!" ”

"The last general!" Zhang Shijie and the others hurriedly said.

"According to the original plan, prepare to meet the enemy!" Ye Yingwu Huoran slapped the table, his eyes had already turned to the outside of the big tent, a ray of sunlight poured in, and the big drum outside was beaten again.

"Obey!" In the sound of drums, all the generals agreed loudly at the same time.

Ye Yingwu pursed his lips, but he made Longcheng Fei, and did not teach Hu Ma to do Yin Mountain, this time he must drive the Mongolian Tartars back to Tianshan!