The island is not large, and you can vaguely see dozens of low houses scattered in the corner of the island, which is the only village on the island, Flying Fish Village. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info

The captain put me down and sailed away.

I looked at Sain standing on the deck from afar, praying in my heart that this foreign swordsman with great martial arts skills was not there to serve the Qing army.

I spent some money in the village and asked an old fisherman to carry me to Dinghai Island.

The fishing boat was at sea for more than two hours, and finally the shape of land appeared in front of it.

The area of Dinghai Island is very vast, far from being comparable to a small island like Feiyu Village.

In the distance, there is a guard tower on the beach almost every half mile.

Just as he was about to approach the shore, a small boat suddenly approached.

The Qing sailors on board waved flags and ordered the fishing boats to be checked.

I revealed my forged identity and revealed my tokens and official documents.

The officer on the ship patted me on the shoulder vigorously after careful inspection, and sighed: "The army is asking when this batch of supplies will arrive, and it turns out that it has been shipwrecked. Alas, your kid is really fateful, I will take you to see General Meng, he is the head of the guard of Zuo Shuai's personal soldier 'Blue Feather Guard'. You tell him the truth as it is, and he will take you to see Zuo Shuai. ”

After the ship docked, the officer took me to a fort located on the south side of the island and said, "This is the Blue Feather Guard's station, so I won't go in." "After that, I stepped forward and introduced my identity to the guards.

The guards didn't dare to slack off, and hurriedly took me in.

A large clearing within the fortress,

Hundreds of blue-feathered guards dressed in cotton armor and blue cloaks were practicing energetically, looking ready to enter a combat state at any time. Their armor was topped with a large puff of blue feathers, making these warriors look even more noble and mighty.

Behind the square is a large courtyard with several wide stone steps.

One of the stone steps was bustling with people, and occasionally there was the clashing of weapons and shouts of cheering.

It was the idle, panicked Blue Feather Guards learning from each other.

The main building of the residence had three floors, and the officer said that it was so lively from morning to night, and the chief of the guard, Meng Fang, received visitors in a very secluded office on the top floor.

Walking up the third floor, I noticed that the building was strangely quiet, and there didn't seem to be many people working.

In the simple but functional office of the chief of the guard, I met the legendary chief swordsman under the command of Zuo Shuai.

He was about forty years old, of medium stature, and of very ordinary appearance.

As early as on the way here, he imagined more than a dozen appearances about Meng Fang in his heart, but none of them were similar to the featureless face in front of him.

But just as Meng Fang looked at himself, the eyes that drooped slightly from the corners of his eyes suddenly shot at him like two sharp swords, making him feel terrible that he was being seen through his body.

The chief of the guard was obviously in a bad mood at this time, but after seeing me salute him, he politely bowed his head and asked, "Who are you, and what is the matter with me?" ”

I briefly recounted what had happened, and handed over the official document and token.

Meng Fang frowned after hearing this: "It turns out that you have been shipwrecked, no wonder it has not been here for so long, I will report this matter to Zuo Shuai immediately." Speaking of this, a pair of sharp eyes suddenly shot at me: "The coastal area is controlled by the Taiping Army, how did you come here?" ”

My heart came, and I deliberately added oil and vinegar to the things that had been arranged in advance.

After hearing this, Meng Fang said dumbly: "You look honest, I didn't expect to be so fond of bragging." By the way, what's next for you? "Still, the way he looked, he believed me.

I said with a sad face: "Since I have come out of my hometown, I don't want to go back if I don't do something earth-shattering!" After a pause, he suddenly knelt down and said, "General, I'm ...... Can I stay with you? ”

Meng Fang laughed: "You want to follow me? Do you know that our Blue Feather Guard is no better than other armies, and we can't stay without some ability. ”

I smiled and said, "I know a lot of things!" ”

"Oh, what are you going to do?"

I recounted the previous repulsion of the pirates, and in it deliberately exaggerated my exploits.

After hearing this, Meng Fang shook his head and smiled: "It's really raw melon eggs, interesting, interesting!" Okay, for your sake, I'll think about it. By the way, something unusual has happened to the Suzaku Mountain Fortress in the past two days. You go there with the officer Gao Qiu at night to see if the villagers on the island are playing ghosts. ”

I wondered, "What does it mean to be unusual?" ”

"Haunted." Meng Fang said two words simply and concisely, and I was stunned on the spot.

The rules on the island are very strict, especially the members of the Blue Feather Guard, if they are fine, they are not allowed to walk around.

I inquired about the situation on the island from the idle people in the fortress, and came up with a rough outline.

This Dinghai island has a large area, in addition to more than 50,000 Qing soldiers, there are more than 100,000 aborigines.

The castles and fortresses on the island are all ready-made, and they were all built by the previous generations of Taishou.

According to the special topography of the island, there are nine large and small cities on the entire island.

The largest of these is the main city in the center of the island, which is now the seat of the Qing army's central army.

In addition, the eight slightly smaller acropolis are arranged on the eight sides of the main city in the Bagua direction, and are guarded by eight generals respectively, forming a posture of arch guards.

On the periphery of the eight acropolises is a ring of topographical watchtowers or fortresses, guarding all the main roads leading to the island.

The island attacking troops must first break through the blockade of the defensive chain of the outer islands, and even if they can land on the shore, they must deal with the surprise attack of the outer fortresses, and even if they have 100,000 troops, it is difficult to attack the main city in the hinterland.

However, I got one definite news, that is, the commander Zuo Zongtang and the chief military sent by the imperial court are really at odds, and each side has strong enough troops to compete with each other, and the remaining neutral factions of the eight acropolis.

My Blue Feather Guard is undoubtedly the man of coach Zuo Zongtang.

In fact, the dispute between the Manchus and the Han in the court has been going on for a long time, although the Qing emperors of the past dynasties seem to be enlightened and advocate the Manchu and Han families, but after all, they are Manchus, and they have been secretly using Manchu nobles to suppress the Hanchens.

Now that the East Road Expeditionary Force has been newly defeated, Zuo Zongtang's power has been greatly weakened, and the director Jun Zongzhen no longer has to worry about anything, so he simply shows his banner to fight against him.

If it weren't for the Taiping Army, which would cross the sea to attack at any time, the two sides would have already torn their faces.

This piece of information is very important to me, because if there is internal strife within the Qing army, it will greatly benefit me.

I spent ten days on the island, so I took the opportunity to find out the enemy's information and then make a calculation.

The night was dark.