In front of the slope at the corner of a river bend, there is a temporary camp of men and horses.

The soldiers on the riverside were busy fetching water and drinking horses, and several sheltered tents in the camp were full of campers resting and eating, and around a small tent in the center stood a dozen armed guards, obviously guarding the big men inside.

In the small tent sat several burly and sturdy generals in military uniforms, some of whom were still eating barbecue meat on Hu cakes, and some had finished eating and were sipping the buttermilk in clay pots.

"My lord, there are still fifty or sixty miles away from the closure of the city, but it is less than an hour before it gets dark, and even if you arrive at night, it will be late at night. The sons and daughters are already exhausted, why don't you rest for the night and continue on the road tomorrow morning? ”

After one of the generals finished eating, he looked at the chief general sitting above and made suggestions.

The main general did not answer immediately, but turned his head to look at a middle-aged man next to him who was dressed in military uniform but had a literati temperament, and his eyes showed the meaning of inquiry.

The middle-aged man put down the wooden fast and the knife in his hand, swallowed the food in his mouth before he spoke: "The military behavior is only listened to in the name of the prince of the river, and if the public asks about his humble duties, it is the safest to dare to enter the town as soon as possible." ”

When the main general heard this, he couldn't help but look puzzled, frowned and said: "Yesterday, Li Xianhe sent a message, and the army of the Duke of Hanoi was still in Liangzhou, and it was also sparse and difficult to form a formation in Qinzhou all the way through. There has been no obstruction so far, and presumably the defense will be weak in the lockdown.

After several days of working day and night, the people and horses are indeed tired, why does Hongye blindly urge to move quickly? Is there anything I need to be afraid of? ”

This main general's name is Wang De, who was knighted as the Duke of Hejian County, and he is also a general from Wuchuan who has made great achievements. And this middle-aged man is named Han Bao, although he is not a military general in the town, but as early as when Daxingtai was guarding Xiazhou, he was cited as a staff member, and after He Bayue was killed, he urged Daxingtai to go south to take over the army, and now he is also one of the important staff members of the Taiwan government, and Daxingtai's henchmen.

With such a pair, they led the men and horses straight to Qinzhou under the condition that Duguxin unified the army to the west and the town of Qinzhou was empty, which naturally had a deep meaning, and it was inevitable that they had obtained the instruction of Daxingtai.

Although Wang De was born in a martial arts, he was meticulous and meticulous, although he was the main general of this trip, he also fully respected the opinions of Han Bao, a confidant of the big line.

When he saw that Han Bao had a cautious attitude that he couldn't understand, Wang De couldn't help but secretly doubt in his heart, could it be that there were other key factors in this trip that he didn't know?

After Han Bao heard this, he said with a straight face: "The army of Hanoi is stationed abroad, and from common sense, the defense of the town must be empty. However, one of the people left behind in Qinzhou today is Li Boshan, and the situation cannot be predicted.

Li Boshan was so demonic when he was in the old Taifu, and the past deeds must have been heard by the prince of Hejian, and there were other people who were treated by the lord well, if it weren't for the ...... Alas, in short, this trip is not to be missed, it is best not to give it too much time to adapt, otherwise I am afraid that there will be more variables. ”

When Wang De heard this, his brows furrowed even deeper.

He originally thought that Han Bao was so nervous because he was worried that Dugu Xin would have other arrangements, and he was also full of jealousy of Dugu Xin, who was far more senior than him, but he didn't expect that it was just because of a young man like Li Tai.

As the fastest rising star in the country in recent years, Wang De has of course heard of Li Tai's reputation and deeds, and even when Zhao Gui was slapped in the face in Baishui last year, he was on the scene, on the one hand, he disdained Zhao Gui's embarrassing performance, and on the other hand, he was not angry with Li Tai's behavior of stepping on their Wuchuan old man's position.

It's just that there is little intersection between them, so he doesn't bother to express any attitude, in short, he has heard of Li Tai but he doesn't have much cold, and he doesn't dislike it, but he definitely doesn't have any sense of closeness and friendliness.

At this time, hearing that Han Bao proposed that the men and horses continue to drag their tired bodies overnight because Li Tai stayed in Qinzhou, Wang De was a little disapproving, so he said in a deep voice: "Halfway through the journey, the goal is already in sight, and the possibility of further variables is very small. Moreover, even if the city is closed down, it will need Jingwang Shili to solve it. Rest for the night, and hit the road at dawn. ”

Hearing Wang De say this, Han Bao didn't say anything more. He knew that Wang De was in a bad mood, not only because he made a big fuss, but also because of the mission of this trip. Dugu Xin has a merit in pacifying Liangzhou, but Daxingtai is a little unparticular about the fact that the meritorious service is not rewarded and the advance team stops his way back.

Of course, Wang De was not Duguxin's cronies, otherwise he would not have been sent to carry out this task. But the relationship between them is also very delicate, there is no lack of conflicts of interest and status comparison between them, but in addition to this, there is a sense of sameness.

Han Bao was not from the town, but he didn't think there was anything wrong with Daxingtai doing this.

In the battle of Heqiao in the old year, Dugu Xin and others abandoned the army and fled, and directly abandoned Daxingtai on the battlefield, which made them, the vassals of the overlord, feel that these old party of Wuchuan and the old people of Yiyi were unstable factors, and they must be checked and balanced to ensure the stability of the overlord's rule.

Dugu Xin pacified Liangzhou this time, and his prestige was even greater, and the new Liangzhou assassin Shi Ning was under his command, and almost the entire Longyou was in the hands of one hand. If it is allowed to develop again, although there is no name of separation, there is already the reality of separation!

Moreover, now that the reorganization of the six armies of the hegemon has been fruitful, whether it is an external attack or an internal defense, it is no longer only the old departments of these towns that rely on it, and it is also a matter of course to restrict it, which can not only maintain the stability of the country, but also take care of its reputation and reputation.

But Han Bao also knew in his heart that if he could not achieve the expected effect this time, it would intensify the contradiction between Duguxin and other Longyou forces and the overlord. Although Wang De didn't care about Li Boshan, the young man, he still couldn't rest assured after all, and suggested that Wang De might as well send a team of scouts to the direction of the upper lockdown to investigate if there were any abnormal signs.

Wang De did not refuse this, and after sending out scouts, he ordered the camp guards to set up camp. The officers and men of the battalion could not help but be grateful after receiving this order, the last time they slept well and ate a full meal was a few days ago when they had not yet opened their doors in Wonju.

Han Bao chatted with Wang Deqian for a while about the steps after arriving at the city, and then got up and walked into his tent and fell asleep.

I don't know how long I slept, Han Bao heard the shouts of his attaché in the misty lake, turned over from the felt, walked out of the tent, and saw a personal soldier under Wang De's tent standing outside his camp, his heartstrings tensed sharply, and he asked quickly: "What's the matter?" ”

"The lord has asked Han Shi to enter the account as soon as possible."

The pro-soldier hurriedly crossed his hands and whispered, Han Bao didn't dare to slack off after hearing this, glanced at the dark night sky, and walked quickly to Wang De's tent.

At this time, in Wang De's big tent, several generals and commanders had been called, and seeing Han Bao entering, Wang De said to him in a deep voice: "None of the scouts sent out during the day have returned to ......."

"So there are still not weak troops left in Qinzhou?"

Han Bao was also shocked when he heard this, knowing that a complete scout team also has a clear division of labor, each performing its own duties, and the mobility must be guaranteed. If you want to completely intercept a scout team of more than ten people, it will take at least several times the number of rangers to do it.

Wang De sent more than one scout team, and after the first team did not deliver the echo message at the specified time, he sent several more teams one after another, but all of them disappeared without exception.

This meant that their group was restricted, and there were at least a thousand cavalry active around them to completely outflank and intercept the scouts they sent.

And these thousands of people must at least be proficient in horsemanship, not inferior to the most elite soldiers under Wang De's command, after all, the ones who can serve as scouts are definitely not the old, weak, sick and disabled!

"Could it be that the Duke of Hanoi knew about this and sent his elite soldiers to the town in advance to garrison?"

A general said apprehensively.

Wang De and Han Bao all shook their heads when they heard this, they had arrived in Yuanzhou many days ago, and they left for the south as soon as they received the news of the battle report delivered by Li Xian, and it was impossible for Dugu Xin to grasp their whereabouts in advance and send elite soldiers to intercept them. Moreover, Li Xian's reports are uninterrupted every day, and it is impossible for thousands of elite cavalry to hide from the army.

If it weren't for Liangzhou's return to the division, it would have to be Qinzhou's left-behind force. But how many troops were left in Qinzhou, they also knew that there was no such organization, unless something happened during this period of time.

"Hongye, do you think this could be Li Boshan...... But where did he gather strong troops? ”

Although Wang De still can't believe it, it is clear that this is the most likely scenario.

Several scouts have all disappeared without a trace, this is obviously not a lucky coincidence, it can only be said that the other party has already grasped every move of his group clearly, and has enough strength to deal with it.

Han Bao was in no mood to care about Wang De's refusal to follow his advice before, just looking at the other party's defensive countermeasures with such confidence, there was no difference between them arriving half a day earlier and half a day late.

"The only way to do this is to be still. Sticking to the camp and waiting for the dawn can be seen whether Li Boshan did it. ”

Han Bao sighed secretly in his heart, and replied in a dry tone.

When Wang De heard this, he didn't have a better idea for a while, in such a situation where the enemy was in the dark, and any more action would only expose more flaws, so he passed this order to the whole battalion.

The most innocent was the battalion full of soldiers, who thought they could have a good night's sleep when they stopped at night, but they ended up standing in the camp fence with knives and guns and blowing the cold wind all night.

Finally managed to survive until dawn, but fortunately there were no accidents outside the camp, and soon the rangers who had gone out to investigate rushed back, reporting that the scouts who had not returned the previous night had been bound and abandoned in a valley miles away. Although each of them was somewhat damaged, it did not affect their lives, and the people who abandoned them here even thoughtfully covered them with a layer of felt cloth to keep them warm.

After taking these scouts back to the camp, Wang De and Han Bao made a little inquiry, and they were all embarrassed. After a long while, Han Bao proposed: "The men and horses can enter Xu, but Hejian Gong and Bao should go to Shangfeng City to meet Li Boshan first, so as not to breed misunderstandings." ”

After hearing this, Wang De lowered his head and was silent for a long time before nodding a little stiffly.