"Big Belle!" The adjutant general walked up to Hauge and said in a low voice: "The humble post has just been cleaned up, and there are more than 700 horses and more than 50 fewer people!" ”

"Why is there so much less? Our own people or those Mongol barbarians? Hauge put down the half-eaten dry bread, his face was gloomy, he brought a total of two thousand fine horsemen this time, one person and three horses, but one day's effort, there was a loss of one-tenth of the strong war horses, counting the deaths in the first two days, the loss of horses has been almost two thousand, which is a very scary number.

"There are ours, there are barbarians, and there are more of ours!" The adjutant general's face was also ugly, but he knew very well that Hauge was generous, not the kind of evil Baylor who would take out anger on his subordinates who brought bad news, so he said truthfully: "The barbarian set fire to the wasteland, the grass is dry this season, is it a large piece when it is burned, you have also seen it, the road is scorched black everywhere, the war horses can only live on horse feed, they can't eat hay, and they are in a hurry, how can they not die?" The barbarians who led the way, their horses were local, and they were more able to endure hardships, but they died less. ”

"What a poisonous ploy!" Hauge scolded: "That's it, I don't care so much, anyway, as long as we catch up with those barbarians, their horses are ours, and now we can get back all the losses." He swallowed the dry bread in two bites, and said to the adjutant general: "Pass the order, let the soldiers eat faster, and save a little time!" “

"Yes, Big Baylor!"

Hauge poured a sip of water, flushed the bread in his mouth into his stomach, and was about to get on the horse when he found that the lieutenant had not left, and couldn't help but ask in surprise: "Doro, why are you standing here?" Don't go to the herald yet? ”

"Big Belle!" The adjutant general hesitated, but finally spoke: "When I just came over, there was a barbarian from Karaqin who said that he had a way to make the horse die less, I don't know whether to say it or not!" ”

"What's not to say then!" Haoge laughed: "There are still barbarians and barbarians, you bring him quickly, if the method is useful, I will reward him heavily!" ”

After a while, Doro came over with a Mongolian cavalryman, and seeing that he was supposed to be a small leader who was supposed to be a guide, Hauge nodded to him: "Say, do you have any way to make the horses die less?" ”

"Yes, Big Baylor!" The Mongol bowed and bowed: "The horses died a lot because the Chahars set fire to the wasteland and had no grass to eat, but they couldn't burn all the pastures, and if we walked a few dozen miles north, we could bypass the burned pastures." ”

"Bypass?" Hauge stared at the Mongol, his eyes widened, and there was suspicion in his eyes: "Isn't that a long way?" "Yes, but we are all cavalry, and each of us has three horses in rotation, and the Chahars have livestock and carts, and we are much faster than them, even if we go farther away!" Under Hauge's forced gaze, the Mongolian man was a little nervous, he lowered his head, Hauge did not continue to ask, but lowered his head to think. Seeing this, the Mongol hurriedly retreated silently.

"Doro, I think we should divide our troops!"

"Division?" The lieutenant looked at Hauge with some surprise, suspicion in his eyes.

"Yes, divide the troops!" A smug smile appeared on Hauge's face: "Doro, divide these two thousand cavalry in two, you follow one man and one horse in a straight line, give me the rest of the horses, and follow the route suggested by that barbarian to take a long detour, and then we-" At this point, Hauge slapped his palms sharply and made a "two-sided" gesture.

Baja Pool.

"Has it been ignited? How much grassland will be burned? Min Min asked in a low voice, different from the usual bright light, at this time she was reclining on the brocade couch, covered with a fur coat, looking a little lazy and haggard.

"Well, don't worry, Beji, I've already told you that the width of the burned grassland won't exceed fifty miles!" Fugu Heai smiled and comforted that after Lin Dan Khan was killed, he was the first nobleman in the Chahar tribe to stand up and show his allegiance to Liu Cheng, and his actions were richly rewarded - his original tribes were not swept away during the division, but also added a lot, and in the end his Zasak had a total of 2,200 accounts, you must know that the tribes like Gesang and Tokhtobuhua who contributed to Liu Cheng's efforts were only half of his. In addition, he also held the title of Jinong's advisor, and in fact, the internal affairs of many Mongol tribes under Liu Cheng's command, except for Minmin's dowry and the Great Khan's Hanluduo, were all decided by the collegial decision of Fugu Heai, Minmin, and Chesang.

"Hey! It is against Genghis Khan's Zaza to set fire to the wasteland! Min Min sighed: "I don't know how many people will starve to death this winter because of this!" “

"Madame! Now we should not be worried about how many people will starve to death this winter, but the cavalry of the Eastern Captives is behind us, at most three days' journey, that is what we should be worried about! Chesan raised his head from the map and sneered: "Whether or not people will starve to death is something that only the living need to consider, if we are caught up, there is no need to think about the winter, the dead do not need to eat!" “

"Master, we have already set fire to the wasteland, if the Jurchens continue to chase, what will the horses eat?" He had already seen that the atmosphere in the tent was a little wrong today, and there was already a lot of meaning in his tone.

"Horse feed, grain, dried horse meat, whatever! This is war, what is the loss of some horses, as long as they can catch up with us, everything lost can be compensated! Chesang's tone was cold and frightening, he turned his head to Min Min and said: "Madam, I once again ask you to take the guards first, and go to Ningxia quickly, you must know that you are pregnant, this is the blood of Lord Jinong, and tens of thousands of people and horses are not as important as the child in your womb!" “

"Children and subordinates are important!" Min Min's voice was not loud, but it was very firm, and it could even be said to be stubborn.

"No, the tribe is not as important as the blood of adults!" Chesan retorted: "The adult has no brothers, no nephews, no relatives, and this child is his only bloodline. In this dangerous world, it is dangerous for someone who has no kinship, because as long as he dies, no one will avenge him. And as long as we have children, even if adults have an emergency, we will continue to unite around children, so that those secret enemies will be a little jealous. As for these tribes, we all know that almost all the people who can fight are already on the side of the adults, and even if we lose these old and weak, it will not have much impact on the strength of the adults! ”

"Cessan, I'm disappointed to hear you say such things!" Min Min sighed and gently stroked her slightly bulging lower abdomen: "As you said, my husband has no brothers, no uncles, and no grown sons. Since he is leading his army, who else will guard the tents, the sheep, and the household for him but my wife? Shall I abandon my wives and children for the sake of my own life, when the warriors of the tribe go on an expedition and entrust their wives, parents, and young children to me? If so, what kind of face do I have to face them when they return from the expedition? How can my husband be qualified to let them kill for himself? ”

"But Madam, Lord Jinong, he is not only the leader of the Chahar and Tumut tribes, he is also the Ningxia general of the Ming Dynasty, you don't need to do this at all-"

"I see what you mean, Master Chesan!" Min Min interrupted Chessan's words, her face full of pride and pride: "If I were a young lady of a Han official, there would be no problem in doing so, and no one would accuse me." But I am the daughter of Batur Taiji, the descendant of Tuhuan, Yexian, and Ashi Timur, and the blood of the Golden Family flows in my body, although I am not as good as Manhaidu, but my husband has handed over his people to me, and I must return them to him intact! ”

Hearing this, Chesang knew that it was impossible for him to convince the other party, and it was impossible for Minmin Begi to be no less mindful of than herself, and it was impossible not to see the stakes, but she still insisted on doing so, and it involved honor and faith, and the two could not be argued. He sighed and said, "In that case, then I won't say more, but I hope that Madame will allow me to leave here with the monks tomorrow morning!" ”

"Master, you're doing the right thing!" Min Min smiled and approved: "Those lamas, scriptures, and ritual weapons of yours are very important to my husband, you must ensure your safety, and I will send three hundred cavalry to protect you tomorrow!" ”

"No need!" Qiesang hurriedly shook his head, most of the young and strong men in the tribe who were suitable for fighting followed Liu Cheng to Mobei, and there were less than two thousand people who could stay and put on armor to fight, if he had to take three hundred people with him, if there was a case, I am afraid that Liu Cheng would blame himself when he came back.

"There are more than 50 followers around me, and there are many young and strong lamas, and besides, there are no Mongols who rob lamas!" Speaking of this, Chessan lowered his voice: "Madam, I still hope that you will consider my previous suggestion, and I will also get some reinforcements as much as possible!" ”

"You already know my answer!" Min Min smiled and nodded, "No matter what, I'm very grateful to you!" ”

Looking at the back of Chesan leaving, Fugu Heai's face became more and more ugly, as the first Chahar nobleman to sell himself to Liu Cheng, his four sons were all in Liu Cheng's expeditionary army, and his own and even the interests of his family had long been inseparable from Liu Cheng. Whether it was for the benefit of his own family or out of loyalty to Liu Cheng, there were some things he had to say.

"Min Min Beji!" Pointing to the white whiskers under his chin, he said: "I have a total of six sons, one died at the hands of the Jurchens, one died under the city of Ningxia, and the other four followed Lord Jinong, my beard is as white as the snow on the top of Bogda Mountain, and the trees on the graves of my brothers are the thickness of bowls, even if I die, I have no regrets." What the living Buddha of Qiesang said is right, Lord Jinong can't live without you, let alone the child in your belly, Min Min Beiji, although my servant Gu Heai is old, but he can still ride a horse and bend a bow, please leave this place to me, you hurry up and go to Hexi! ”

Hearing Fugu Heai's words, Min Min's face showed a look of emotion, but she still shook her head firmly: "No! Grandpa Gu, everyone has their place in the war, and this is my place! Think about it, what would the Ministries think if they didn't see me tomorrow morning? Will they flee in all directions and join the Jurchens? ”

In the face of Min Min's rebuttal, Fu Gu Heai couldn't help but be gloomy, as Min Min said, when the Great Khan Abnai was still young, Min Min, as the wife of Jinon and the adoptive mother of the Great Khan, had unquestionable authority over both the Chahar and the Tumuts, plus the 1,000 cavalry selected from her dowry, Hanludo, both strength and prestige were enough to suppress potential disgruntled elements in the tribe. But once she leaves alone, those servants will definitely leave with her, and it will be difficult for an old man who is not far from death to complete this arduous task.

"Servant Grandpa!" Seeing that Fugu Heai's expression was gloomy, Min Min knew that although his words had worked, they had also dampened the other party's self-esteem, so he comforted softly: "Don't worry, if things develop to the point where things can't be done, Min Min will naturally get out alone, I'm still young, I hope to see my husband's banner covering all the land under the blue sky!" ”

"In that case, then the old man won't say much!" Fu Gu Heai sighed: "But I think we should let all the tents be light, throw away all the things that are not necessary, speed up the pace, and the direction of the march should not be west, but south!" ”

"It's good! Divide a group of people to continue westward, set fire to the wasteland along the way, and the brigade to the south will not burn the wasteland! After a little thought, Min Min agreed to Fugu Haai's suggestion, and according to the original plan, the two tribes of Tumut and Chahar would cross the Yellow River westward and enter the Yinchuan Plain, where they would rely on the danger of the Yellow River to resist the Houjin army. But according to the information of the scouts, the Jurchen's pursuers are only a few days' journey, and if they continue to the west, they will definitely be caught up before they see the Yellow River, so he can only turn south and cross the border wall into the territory of the Ming Kingdom, so that the road is much shorter, but Liu Cheng is currently in Mobei, which is still the scope of Yansui Town, and may not let so many Mongols enter the border wall.

Early the next morning, Min Min led the old and weak of the Chahar and Tumut tribes, abandoning many items and old and weak livestock, and turned southward. Most of the subordinates of the two tribes had participated in Lin Dan Khan's western expedition a few years ago, and they knew that the situation was critical, and if the Houjin army was allowed to catch up, the lives of the old and weak would not be guaranteed, and the women and children would become slaves of the enemy, and the end would be worse than death. Therefore, the speed of their movement was a few points faster than before, and two days later, it was only half a day's journey from the side wall, and the abandoned beacon tower of the Ming border army could already be seen on the top of the hill in the distance, and everyone felt relieved. (To be continued.) )