Xipinggang was originally a small mountain village with only more than 20 households, the small river flowing from west to east passes through the village, this sweet and clear river is about six meters wide, about two meters deep, the name is called Xikengyuan, the source of the river comes from the west circle slightly C-shaped, the elevation is more than 800 meters above sea level of the majestic mountain, the Xipinggang village with an altitude of nearly 400 meters is located in the southeast opening of the ring mountain range.

Although Xipinggang Village is picturesque, with more than 300 acres of high and low mountain paddy fields, and the ancient trees outside the village are towering and full of flowers, the nest of the bandit leader Lu Chengrong is not in Xipinggang Village, but in the Fengshui treasure Yinzhu Temple, which is one point eight kilometers west of the village.

It is rumored by the locals that the Hidden Pearl Temple was built in the Ming Dynasty, and it was the grandson of Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty who disguised himself as a monk and escaped from the pursuit of his uncle Yongle Emperor, and sneaked into the temple where he hid his practice, so it was named the Hidden Pearl (Zhu) Temple, which is the same as the Hidden Pearl Temple, one of the three famous temples in Nanchong, and the place where Emperor Jianwen once settled.

Wu Ming was not interested in the history of the Ming Dynasty, but was interested in the Yinzhu Temple on the high platform in the west of the village, which was one point eight kilometers away from the hermitage mountain, and he stood on a tall platform formed by abrupt boulders, and used a telescope to carefully observe the Yinzhu Mountain with a rugged cliff on three sides, a strange rock on the other side, and only a rugged path in the east that can lead to the temple on the top of the mountain, and the Yinzhu Temple on the mountain that can only see a corner of the main hall, and looked at it for nearly 20 minutes. Eight years ago, the Yinzhu Temple on the top of the mountain became the bandit cave of Lu Chengrong, the largest bandit armed force in western Zhejiang.

Luo Zhuoying and others stood on the left and right of Wu Ming, also holding a telescope, carefully looking at the bandit cave at an altitude of more than 600 meters in front of them, while looking at the pine trees on the mountain, the scenery is beautiful, Huang Wei, who has been to the Yellow Mountain several times, even said that its scenery is no less than the Yellow Mountain, which is known as "the first strange mountain in the world", and the steepness is even better.

At the top of the mountain, at the front end of the naturally formed raised platform, the forty-seven-year-old bandit leader Lu Chengrong and a group of large and small leaders were also overlooking Wu Ming and others on the edge of the village in the east

Lu Chengrong has a square face and long hair, a dignified appearance, slender eyebrows, a tall nose, if it weren't for his dark complexion, and the clothes and pants on his body were the military uniforms of the Beiyang Army ten years ago, people who don't know the details will definitely think that he is a government official or a child of a family when they meet him, and they will never get him involved with the heinous bandits.

In contrast, the big and small bosses around Lu Chengrong are much worse, although they are all named with swords and guns, their expressions are grim and their cheeks are clenched, and they look extremely brave and fierce, but compared with the immovable eldest brother Lu Chengrong, no matter how much they look or temperament, they are all compared.

At this time, anyone could see the anxiety and helplessness in Lu Chengrong's sunken eyes.

Early yesterday morning, the sentry posts under the mountain had disappeared silently, and at noon, Lu Chengrong, who had received an urgent report, sent three groups of people and horses, a total of 18 people, to quietly go down the mountain to check the situation, who knew that the road was still a meat bun and a dog and no return, the only thing that was certain was that the sentry posts and hidden piles in the village, together with more than 20 households, old and young, had been controlled by the officers and soldiers who suddenly arrived without warning, and the retreat hidden under the northwest cliff and covered by dense trees was also blocked by a large number of officers and soldiers who suddenly appeared. The iron cable plank bridge erected above the deep stream has been removed by the officers and soldiers who have touched it in, and only nine large iron chains are left, and a small group of guards behind the deep stream has disappeared.

According to the report of the "creeper" of the three masters who quietly sneaked out to reconnoitre, at least one company of officers and men built four strong fortresses on the antler post, where the hidden retreat at the bottom of the mountain must pass, and on the fortress built with logs and stones, there were 12 Czech machine guns, and on the stone ridge more than 30 meters behind the machine guns, there were also four mortars with muzzles pointed directly at the mountain, and the number of officers and men was by no means less than 100, and the military uniforms on their bodies and the pot helmets on their heads were all colorful and green, and it was difficult to distinguish them from the surrounding woods and grasses. If they don't move, they won't be able to see that they're human.

The report of the three masters frightened all the bandits on the mountain, and no one could guess how this group of officers and soldiers avoided the triple eyeliner set up on the periphery, suddenly appeared around the lair, and blocked all the retreat routes with great familiarity like an old horse, let alone where this group of officers and soldiers came from, why they acted so quickly and vigorously, and had so many machine guns and mortars.

Lu Chengrong's biggest worry is not the danger he is facing now, but his wife and two children in Xipinggang Village under the mountain, and more than 50 people of all ages and younger sisters who have been hiding in the town above the south and changed their surnames and hidden for eight years.

After being silent for a long time, Lu Chengrong raised the telescope again and stared at the entrance of the village one point eight kilometers below. The last one was locked onto the high platform formed by the boulder at the entrance of the village, standing in a row and holding up the binoculars, also looking at his group of officers.

"Zanxu, look at it, those people's military uniforms seem to be the Central Army, but the officers and soldiers around the high platform are all wearing steel helmets and wearing strange looks, what is going on?"

As soon as Lu Chengrong opened his mouth, he asked the most resourceful second master, Zhang Zanxu, among the brothers.

Zhang Zanxu, who was not tall and slightly thin, put down the binoculars and turned to his eldest brother worriedly: "Yes, it is the general uniform of the Central Army, it seems that the surrounding officers and soldiers are all elite, with a large number of Czech machine guns and hand-held machine guns, this distance can be seen clearly, standing on the high platform is a lieutenant general, four major generals, a colonel and several lieutenant colonel majors...... Big brother, looking at this formation, there are no less than two regiments of officers and soldiers surrounding us, and I am afraid that they will not rest until they achieve their goal. ”

The sun was like fire, the mountain wind was hunting, and the surrounding brothers were drenched in sweat, but no one wiped it, no one dared to say anything big, and they all looked at their main backbone, Lu Chengrong.

Lu Chengrong handed the telescope to the personal guard behind him, withdrew his gaze from the bottom of the mountain, stared into Zhang Zanxu's eyes, and asked in a low voice:

"Why hasn't the Liao family sent a message until now? Where did Lu Zhongxiu go to invite the elite of the Central Army? ”

Zhang Zanxu thought for a while and said his speculation: "It is estimated that they are not the local officers and soldiers in Quzhou, and it is very likely that as soon as they enter the ground in Quzhou, they will go straight to our place...... It may also be the elite of the 18th Army, the main force of the Central Army, which is resting in Changshan, otherwise it is difficult to explain why so many generals came. ”

A group of big and small leaders around him very much agreed with the analysis of the second master, and one by one shouted and talked nervously, and the leaders who had recently gone down to the mountain to understand the situation began to talk about many rumors that the 18th Army was stationed in Quzhou and then drove to Changshan.

After listening to the discussion of the brothers, Lu Chengrong's slender eyebrows jumped a few times, and he took the telescope from the guards again, carefully observed the group of generals on the high platform at the entrance of the village in the east, and suddenly said:

"Zanxu, take a closer look, the tall man standing in the middle, with the colonel's collar on his collar, is it Wu Ming, the brother-in-law of the former Commander Fang? Haven't you met him twice? ”

Everyone was taken aback, and those who hoped for a telescope immediately raised their binoculars, and their hands without telescopes set up a pergola and looked out with their necks, but the generals and colonels on the high platform at the entrance of the village in the distance had already turned around and gathered under the big camphor tree under the high platform to drink tea.

"Look to the south, the officers and soldiers are starting to cut down trees! What are they going to do? ”

"It's like going up the mountain, and a dozen of them are carrying cannon barrels on their backs!"

"Are they going to mount their guns on the hill to the south to bombard us?"

"Look at the north at the foot of Bailuo Mountain, the trailhead under Mabei Ridge, look...

"There are more than 30 officers and soldiers, four machine guns, and cannon barrels!"

"There must be shells in the wooden boxes on the backs of the back!"

On the platform in front of the Hidden Pearl Temple, Lu Chengrong quickly observed a circle of the mountain, beads of sweat the size of beans dripping out of his broad forehead and temples, but his heart became colder and colder.

After pondering for a long time, Lu Chengrong pulled Zhang Zanxu under the big tree behind him, and asked for advice with anticipation word by word:

"Zanxu, it looks like we're really planted! Wu Ming is a ruthless man, he didn't shout, he didn't appease, and he didn't use the ultimatum, it seems that he is going to destroy us! For the sake of the four hundred brothers on the mountain, and for the sake of the families of your two brothers in the upper town, I want you to go down the mountain and meet with Wu Ming and a few generals to see if you can surrender? ”

"I heard that although this Wu Ming is ruthless, he is extremely trustworthy and moral, so even if I die at the last time, I can save the other brothers and save the bloodline of you and me!"

Zhang Zanxu's eyes welled up with tears, nodded and said in a low voice:

"Big brother just don't say it, I also have to go down the mountain, Wu Ming is by no means an ordinary person, he calculates every step to death, and he doesn't leave us any life.

Speaking of this, Zhang Zan pointed around: "If my estimate is correct, after his two teams of officers and men climb the two high mountains in the north and south, they will launch an attack on us, and the left and right sides plus the four guns in the west, the total number of mortars in the three directions will never be less than fifteen or sixteen." The distance is more than two miles, our machine guns can't hit them, but their guns can easily hit us, really let them climb to the top of the surrounding hills, condescendingly bombard us, how many people are not enough to blow up, want to pull a cushion on the back of the death is delusional! ”

Lu Chengrong's gums were gritted loudly, and finally lowered his head in frustration: "Get ready, bring more silver tickets and small gold bars from the two major money houses in Quzhou, and tell Wu Ming and those generals that I, Lu Chengrong, am the leader of the bandits, and I am willing to resist my fate, as long as they promise to let my brothers go, I will immediately ask the brothers to put down their swords and guns, and offer all the treasures, even if I cut off my head and pickle it with lime to show the public, as long as I spare my brothers, I Lu Chengrong will not have a word of complaint, and I will be grateful to him under Jiuquan!" ”

"Big Brother ......"

The tears in Zhang Zanxu's eyes finally flowed, and he immediately squatted on the ground, holding his head and crying bitterly.

The surrounding brothers were all stupid, I don't know what the boss said to the second brother, the second brother would be so sad and desperate, but he vaguely guessed that a huge disaster was coming.