The desert is dark, and the red flag is half rolled out. The former army fought in Taohebei at night, and it has been reported that it has captured Gu Hun.

—————————— excerpt from the introduction

"In front of it is Baishuiyuan, which is the winter garrison of Shaxi, where in addition to the five thousand cavalry, there are also 1,500 Tuyuhun people belonging to Shaxi."

"Fifteen thousand? Didn't you say last time that Tuyuhun only brought 700 households from the Murong Xianbei Department to move west. How come there are 1,500 households here? Zeng Hua asked Gao Shenzhi next to him.

Zhen Pu squinted his eyes and stared at the faint smoke in the distance, and replied in a low voice: "I heard the old people of Tuyuhun say that when the Tuyuhun people moved west with their subordinates, they once stayed in the land of Shuofang River Meander (now the Hetao area), where the water is really beautiful and the grass is fertile, and Tuyuhun really wants to stay there. But at that time, Tuoba Xianbei had already become strong, and all the tribes inside and outside the river surrendered. Tuyuhun was originally a negative qi moving westward, of course, he couldn't stand the oppression of the Tuoba Department, and led the department to continue to move west. However, this time they have already collected hundreds of households along the way, plus hundreds more from the Hequ area, so there are already 1,700 households after arriving at Hehuang. ”

"After three generations of operation and reproduction of Tuyuhun, Tuyan and Yeyan, Tuyuhun has more than 5,000 households and thousands of strings. Sha Xi is the son of Tuyuhun, so it is divided into 1,500 households. ”

Zeng Hua couldn't help but sigh when he heard this: "Five thousand Tuyuhun households can be the king of hundreds of thousands of Qiang people, these three generations of Tuyuhun leaders are really not ordinary people!" ”

Di Pu turned his head and explained in a deep voice: "Tuyuhun can stand tall among the Qiang of the West Sea and claim to be the king. First, these hundreds of thousands of Qiang people are in their own way, and they are easy to be broken separately. Second, the strategy of the three generations of Khans of the Tuyuhun tribe was to divide and encircle the Qiang chieftains, give preferential treatment to high-ranking officials, and then unite to conquer the scattered Qiang tribes by force and drive the Qiang people to live and cultivate. Coupled with this Tuyuhun to Tuyan and then to Ye Yan, or perseverance, or bravery, or long-sleeved dancing, this is the scenery of Tuyuhun today. ”

"Yes, every glorious history is the result of several generations." Zeng Hua sighed, and after a while, he suddenly turned to Zhen Pu and said: "But decay and destruction always come suddenly, so that no matter how glorious history is, it can only be like a meteor." This is the law of history and our fate. ”

Zhen Pu nodded and continued: "Yes, we can't escape this fate, and it seems that this Tuyuhun can't escape today." ”

"There is no way, someone must be brilliant at the cost of the decay of others." After Zeng Hua finished speaking, he turned to ask, "What kind of person is Ye Yan?" ”

Zheng Pu Zema thought for a while and said: "Ye Yan's father, Tuyan Khan, was assassinated by Jiang Cong before his death, and asked him to assist his eldest son, Ye Yan1, who was only a teenager, to succeed to the throne. Ye Yan is a resolute person who remembers his father's blood feud to the death. When he practiced archery, he always tied a straw man as a target, saying that it was Jiang Cong, and cried whenever he hit it. In addition to practicing archery, Ye Yan also read "Poems" and "Biography", and longed for Zhou Li. After more than ten years of hibernation, he finally took revenge and chopped his enemies into pulp. ”

Speaking of this, Di Pu heard Jiang Nan, who had been silent next to him, trembling all over, and his teeth squeaked.

Zheng Pu turned his inquiring gaze to Zeng Hua, and Zeng Hua sighed softly: "He is Jiang Cong's son." ”

Hearing this, Zheng Pu's face changed greatly, stared at Jiang Nan for a while, and then turned his meaningful gaze to Zeng Hua, Zeng Hua didn't make a sound, just sighed.

Zheng Pu turned his head and continued to grow: "Later, Ye Yan declared that since his great-grandfather Yi Luohan was once named the Duke of Changli, then he was the son of Gongsun. According to the Zhou rites, the son of Gongsun can use the character of the royal father as his clan. So he changed his surname to Tuyuhun and gave up his original surname Murong, so there was Tuyuhun. ”

"It seems that Ye Yan is also a character. Jiang Nan, your father's death at his hands is not considered to have fallen your father's prestige. In these troubled times, who can enjoy the whole year in peace? But you will soon have a great revenge, and I hope God and your father will bless us. Zeng Hua patted Jiang Nan's shoulder and said.

Jiang Nan still didn't speak, just clenched his teeth and clenched his fists.

"My lord, what about the fifteen hundred Tugu Hun tribes in front of you now?" Zheng Pu asked.

Looking at Zheng Pu's pre-determined eyes, Zeng Hua knew that the new strategist was still testing himself intentionally or unintentionally, maybe this was the "occupational disease" of the new strategists, right?

"Kill all the way, except for good horses, no people and animals are left. Ye Lixun, Xian Lingbo, you led the left and right flying feather armies to rush over in two ways, and the action should be fast. Even if you want to burn it cleanly, you also need speed. When we were done, we continued westward. Zeng Hua began to order, "Jiang Nan, you go to supervise them, and you must leave dozens of Tuyuhun people behind and let them escape." ”

"My lord, why did you leave the lives of these dozens of Tuguhun dogs?" Jiang Nan, who gritted his teeth, asked.

"As long as they spread the news of the annihilation of the entire army of the Tugu Hun tribe of Baishuiyuan in the river meander, the Qiang will naturally be ready to move. Tuyuhun in the West Sea, Hehuang, and River Meanders rely on equilibrium to maintain today's situation, on the surface it was strong for a while, but in fact it is like thin ice. And Bai Shuiyuan is the first of this thin ice to be knocked open, we go all the way west, all the way to burn and kill the Tuyuhun people or their supporters, attenuate their strength, the faster this thin ice will disperse! Zheng Pu took over and explained.

With an order, Jiang Nan and more than sixty guides rushed to the front, and Ye Lixun, Xian Lingbo and the two thousand flying feather troops behind them could only follow behind to watch the horse's tail.

Fifteen hundred Tugu Hun tribes are busy preparing for the slowly coming spring. The cattle, sheep and horses have been hungry for a winter, and it is time to take advantage of the fat spring grass to take a good look. Some of their young and strong people followed Sha Xi to Qiuchi to fish for oil and water, and the people who stayed in the camp were basically old friends, women and children, plus a small number of young and middle-aged people, although there was still some combat effectiveness, but they encountered two thousand wolf-like flying feather troops in an unsuspecting situation, and the result can be imagined.

When Jiang Nan was the first to rush into the Tuyuhun Baishuiyuan camp, the Tuyuhun woman who was standing there to clean up the sheep that had just been slaughtered straightened up when she heard the sound, looked at Jiang Nan who rushed into the camp in amazement, and watched the saber waved by Jiang Nan's right hand getting bigger and bigger in front of her eyes, and finally turned into a white light, and a coolness came from her neck. When she fell, she found that more and more cavalry were rushing behind Jiang Nan.

The two thousand flying feather troops rushed back and forth in the Baishuiyuan camp, and when they saw the people fleeing in a panic, whether old or young, male or female, they would immediately go up with a knife; When he saw a tent and other flammable places, he threw a torch over and immediately ignited a raging fire. I saw Bai Shuiyuan screaming everywhere, and the flames were soaring into the sky.

Zeng Hua, who was riding a horse and standing in the distance, quietly watched the killing in front of him, while Zheng Pu stood beside him on horseback, also quietly listening to the screams one after another, watching the red light flash in the white water source.

Di Pu quietly glanced at Zeng Hua, who was standing in front of him, only to see that his face was as silent as water in the whirring wind, and he couldn't see any joy, anger and sorrow in his slightly narrowed eyes.

Hearing that the screams were getting less and less, and the fire was slowly starting to get smaller, Zeng Hua turned his head and said to Zhen Pu and dozens of guards: "Okay, the white water source is already quiet, we should move on." Let's go! ”

When Zeng Hua and the others rode around the camp and came to the west of Baishuiyuan. After a while, I saw Jiang Nan riding a horse and running over with sixty guides. Walked up to him and hurriedly reported to Zeng Hua: "My lord, there should be no living Tuyuhun people in this camp, Ye Lixun and Xian Lingbo swept back and forth three times. Among them, more than 200 fast-moving Tuyuhun people rode north, and I led 300 horsemen to chase them, shooting more than 100 people, leaving more than 30 people to let them continue to flee north. Ye Li Xun and Xian Lingbo had already packed up and came over immediately. ”

After a while, Ye Li Xun and Xian Lingbo came over with two thousand flying feather troops satisfied. Walking up to him, Ye Lixun also opened his mouth to report: "My lord, we have cleared all the population, cattle and sheep in the camp, captured about 3,000 good horses, and replenished a batch of arrows, weapons, grain and grass, and all the rest that we could not take away were set on fire with the corpses. ”

Zeng Hua saw that there were indeed one or two more war horses around the Feiyu Army, and there were a few packages and swords, guns and arrows on them. Looking up at the camp in the distance, dozens of fires were rising in countless puffs of black smoke.

"What about the casualties?" Zeng Hua turned around and asked.

"Thirty-nine brothers were killed, and fifty-one wounded. We buried the dead alive, and I told them to support each other and take care of each other, and rode back to the city of Tangchang. Xian Lingbo added.

"Alright, now immediately assemble and line up and move on. From now on, Jiang Nan and the guide will continue to lead the way in front, all the people will change horses and not people, day and night, I will rush to the periphery of Shazhou before dark tomorrow! ”

"Yes!" The crowd shouted in unison.

As the night began to darken, the cavalry of the two thousand Flying Feather Army began to line up in three rows, divided into two groups, the front and the rear. As Zeng Hua raised his right hand and passed the command down one by one, more than 2,000 riders and more than 5,000 mounts quickly started and converged into a stream of iron, rolling westward, and soon disappeared into the night.

The 2,000 Feiyu army marched all the way, first from Baishuiyuan along the southern foot of Xiqiang Mountain all the way to the west, then bypassed Xiqiang Mountain, and then turned to the north and went straight to the source of the Tao River. After a night of rushing running, I came to the source of the Tao River, where I easily cleaned up a Tuyuhun hardcore Qiang tribe.

Under the guidance of Zheng Pu and his guides, this Qiang tribe of less than 1,000 households was wiped out under the sabre of the Feiyu Army. However, this time, the Feiyu Army did not set fire except for killing people, so except for the corpses in the camp at the source of the Tao River, there was no fire like Baishuiyuan.

Zeng Hua ordered to hastily clean up, rest for another hour, and then continue to set off and go straight to Shazhou.

Ye Yan looked at the endless crowd in the camp and listened to the bustling bustle of the entire camp, and felt very relieved in his heart. From his grandfather Tuyuhun to his father Tuyan, and then to his own hands, three generations of decades of hard work, Tuyuhun finally not only gained a foothold in this western land, but also became more and more prosperous. His 40th birthday is actually a test of Tuyuhun's power and his prestige. After he released the news last year, as far as Xihai, Hehuang Zhuqiang, as far as Bailanqiang and even Dangxiang Qiang, all the leaders rushed to prepare heavy gifts and personally came to Mukechuan in Shazhou to celebrate his birthday.

Seeing that Tuyuhun was far more prosperous than his grandfather and father in his hands, Ye Yan couldn't help but feel proud. My grandfather's story was known more from the legends of the people, but my father had seen it himself.

His father was brave and brave, and he was known as "Xiang Yu", so he stood out from the sixty brothers and inherited the throne. He led more than 1,000 cavalry to the east and west, descended to the east and the Hehuang Zhuqiang, and the Bailan tribes in the west, and also took the lead in dispersing the thousands of Baimaqiang people, forcing the chief Jiang Cong to pretend to surrender. It's a pity that the domineering father died at the hands of this villain.

At that time, he was only a teenager, and the general Pu Ba Ni and others escorted him and fled to Bailan Mountain, and told his father before he died: "It doesn't matter if I die, just bury it." The key is to quickly escort Ye Yan back to Bailan Mountain. The water and grass are fertile, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and the people are cowardly and easy to control. Ye Yan is only a teenager, so he must tell him not to rush to take revenge, gather strength first. ”

Ye Yan has always followed his father's last words, not only killed the enemy Jiang Cong, but also eliminated Tuyuhun's internal and external troubles to the lowest point, watching Tuyuhun prosper day by day in his hands, Ye Yan felt that he had the face to meet his grandfather and father.

However, Ye Yan still felt a little regretful that his favorite son Sha Xi might not be able to catch up with his birthday. A few **** sent an urgent letter, saying that Yang Chu, the enemy of his in-laws, was imprisoned because of civil strife, and secretly sent someone to ask for help. In the letter, Sha Xi also mentioned that if he had the opportunity, he would get more benefits in Qiu Chi by the way.

The child has grown up. He has four children, Sha Xi is the biggest, and he is also the most promising, and he has the greatest expectations on him, he should have understood his intentions for marrying Yang Chu at the beginning. Although the water and grass are fertile in Xihai and Hehuang, they are too remote and too far away from the Central Plains. Now that the Central Plains is in turmoil, who doesn't want to reap the benefits of this fat place. Although Tuyuhun is now famous in the west, it is still too bad compared with those forces in the Central Plains. If you can occupy Qiuchi, then Tuyuhun's tentacles can reach into Guanzhong and Hanzhong, and if you wait for the opportunity slowly, you will definitely reap a bumper harvest. In this way, Tuyuhun will be even more brilliant.

Ye Yan knew that the foundation of the world could only be laid through the hard and unremitting efforts of several generations and more than ten generations. Ye Yan knew that he couldn't finish everything, so he felt most comforted now that Sha Xi could make a difference.

"Khan, the ceremony is about to begin." The Confucian official Zheng Gu came over and said.

Zheng Gu, who is almost sixty years old, is a great Confucian in Longxi County, famous in Qinzhou and Liangzhou. Ye Yan was devoted to Confucianism and hoped to use the Confucian Zhou etiquette to control his subordinates. Although he knew that it was impossible to be in Tuyuhun now, he still couldn't stop him from being dedicated to Confucianism. He sent someone to "invite" Zheng Gu in order to instruct him to study Zhou Confucianism.

When Zheng Gu first came, he was disdainful of Ye Yan and only wanted to die quickly. But later, seeing Ye Yan so humble and learning, he slowly turned his mind away. After instructing Ye Yan to the first and second, he found that the leader of the Western Fan Turen was actually "quite wise", so he couldn't hold back the "tireless teaching" that was bubbling up, and stayed in Shazhou with peace of mind.

You look at Old Master Zheng, now he is proud, and he is quite a bit of a deification of the Tuyuhun chieftain is the Dehua Xiqiang hundreds of thousands of people, so that they have embarked on the "civilized road" of knowing etiquette and righteousness.

"Khan, starting from today to the third day of the Khan's birthday, a total of eight days of ceremonies, one is to kiss, two is to respect the past, three is to enter the sage, four is to enable, five is to protect Yong, six is noble, seven is a master, eight is a protocol, and the secret Khan uses eight to rule the king and control the people."

Seeing that Ye Yan nodded with great satisfaction, the proud Old Master Zheng continued to say: "At the daily sacrifices and banquets, six grains are eaten, six animals are used for meals, six clear are drunk, one hundred and twenty products are used for shame, eight things are cherished, and twenty urns are used for sauce, which is in line with the Zhou ceremony." "I don't know where Old Master Zheng tossed it like this, where did Ye Yan get these things for him.

Ye Yan arched his hand to Zheng Gu and said, "Hard old master!" Ye Yan knew that it was impossible to establish a retro system of monarchs and ministers with Zhou rites now, but today he hoped that everyone could fully understand the system of official position, state governance and etiquette.

Then, Ye Yan was in front, and Old Master Zheng followed behind him with high spirits to start the day's grand ceremony. At the end of the day, not only were these leaders as the protagonists as tired as dead dogs, but even the more than 1,000 sergeants of the battalion who were playing tricks in the ceremony were also as tired as monkeys, and even the thousands of Tuyuhun people who were cooperating with each other kowtowed together felt that there was no place in their bodies that was not sore after returning to their respective tents after nervously eating dinner, which also made them fully realize the power of Zhou Li.

Night finally came in the hope of everyone, and everyone rubbed their sore knees and joints, thinking of the days of seven more days, and couldn't help but feel a little worse than death. The night was getting deeper and deeper, and everyone fell asleep to the low sound of cursing.

Although everyone was not satisfied, Ye Yan fully realized the high taste of being a monarch, which was really a wonderful feeling! Ye Yan was very excited and talked with Zheng Gu for a long time, but in the end, the elderly Zheng Gu couldn't hold on anymore and reluctantly ended the conversation.

When the excited Ye Yan fell asleep easily, less than five miles south of Mukechuan in Shazhou, in the thick night, a cavalry quietly appeared, led by Zeng Hua.

He looked at the sky and couldn't help but feel a little anxious. It's late at night, and it's the best time for a night attack, and if it's over, it's dawn, and then all wishful thinking is over.

Zeng Hua turned his head to Jiang Nan and Xian Lingbo beside him and said, "How did you do this Ye Lixun?" Why didn't he send a message to say that he had arrived at the appointed location? He looks like this, even **** can't catch up with the heat! ”

As he was talking, a herald ran over from a distance: "Report, the left battalion has arrived at the designated position." ”

"Good! Jiang Nan, you and Xian Lingbo took three hundred elites, followed the guide, and went straight to Ye Yan's big tent, and the success or failure is all up to you. ”

Jiang Nan responded, and the long-awaited Xian Lingbo and others raised the broken oxtail flag, and quickly disappeared from everyone's eyes.

Zeng Hua waved his hand, and the cavalry of the right battalion behind him also followed slowly and gently, quietly approaching the Mukechuan camp. After a while, less than two miles away from the Mukechuan camp, I finally saw several fires suddenly lit up in the center of the camp. Zeng Hua knew that the time had come.

He drew his saber and shouted, "Light up the flag with Lao Tzu!" ”

The guards behind him immediately unfurled the rolled flag, and the blue and yellow and red star flags suddenly fluttered behind Zeng Hua!

"Warriors! Do not be stingy with your courage, and do not have mercy on your enemies! Victory is yours! Kill! After Zeng Hua finished shouting, he took the lead in rushing towards the Mukechuan camp with his saber. More than 1,000 cavalry behind him suddenly shouted in unison: "Kill!" They brandished their sabers and instigated their mounts, slowly spreading into a half-moon shape and rushing towards the Mukchuan camp.

Note 1: Ye Yan was only ten years old when Tuyan died, and later died young at the age of thirty-three