Walking slowly on the grassland, the cavalry on horseback looked around vigilantly and uneasily, like a group of moving voles.

In the center was a man of about forty years of age, with only a cloth towel on his head, and a gray robe with constricted sleeves and a cuff, and a long sword at his waist.

"Lord Lang Zhongling, there should be no Zhenbei cavalry in front, let's go quickly, as long as we pass Taining (now Zhangjiakou, Hebei), it will be safe." The leader of the cavalry who took the lead turned his head and said to the middle-aged man.

"Then let's hurry up." The man known as Lang Zhongling nodded and said, "The king is too tight, we have to go to Yan Country quickly and ask King Yan to send troops." ”

"Lord Lang Zhongling, do you say that Yan Guo can send troops? Since the death of Princess Murong, the relationship between our Dai Kingdom and the Yan Kingdom has become worse and worse, and there was a war in the first year of Jianyuan (343) ten years ago. The leader of the cavalry shook his head as he spoke, and his braids flicked around.

Listening to these words, and then looking at the braids that were flicking in front of his eyes, Lang Zhongling felt depressed for a while, and he really didn't know if Daiguo could escape this time. Since June, Beifu has frequently sent troops from Yanmen and Xihe counties in Bingzhou, defeated the Dugu and Baibu, and advanced into the clouds, and the situation of Daiguo has become more and more dangerous. When the acting king Tuoba Shiyi was about to lead the army south to aid Liu Kuren, Shuozhou in the northern province went out of Wuyuan and approached Shengle, which suddenly made Tuoba Shiyi unbearable.

Lang Zhongling was silent for a long time, and finally said: "I hope that King Yan can understand the truth of cold lips and teeth, if we finish representing the country, their Yan Kingdom will be even more sad." ”

"Lord Lang Zhongling. Yan Guo was not ambushed by Beifu in May and suffered heavy losses, but I heard that Yan Guo was now collecting cattle, sheep and good horses on the grassland, in order to redeem his captured soldiers. ”

"Tuobakan, how do you know?" Lang Zhongling asked in surprise.

"You don't know yet, many Xi and Khitan people, as well as the former Duan clan and Yuwen Xianbei old tribes, have run out of the area of Zuoleshui (now Shalamulun River) and Wuhou Qinshui (now Laoha River). Flee westward. It is said that in order to ransom the nobles and soldiers of Murong Xianbei. Yan not only sent more than 300,000 displaced people from the Central Plains. and he went about collecting oxen, sheep, and horses. The Xi, Khitan, Duan, Yuwen and other tribes not only had to raise their own cattle, sheep, and horses to redeem the nobles and soldiers who were captured by their accompaniment, but also were oppressed by the Murong family. Tuoba replied.

Seeing that Lang Zhongling motioned for himself to continue, Tuoba Kan continued: "Now that the Yan Kingdom has become a mess, the Xi people, the Khitan people are unwilling to be the unjust boss, and the Duan clan and the Yuwen clan are unwilling to die in vain. It is said that Goguryeo also had a different heart, not only rejected the Yan State's request for horses, cattle and sheep, but also gathered heavy troops on the east bank of the Maxiashui (now Yalu River), eyeing the tiger. It's all because this wolf in Beifu is too greedy and shameless, if he really occupies the grassland, I really don't know how we will be squeezed? ”

When Lang Zhongling heard this, he couldn't help but fall into deep thought. Tuoba Kan has always been the general of the Tuoba Department to guard the eastern region, and many of his subordinates are Xi, Khitan and Gaoche people. So very well informed about the east. Now the whole country is already busy. I don't have time to pay attention to the movements in the east, if I didn't have to go to Yan Country for help today, I overheard this. No one knew that the once tyrannical Yan Kingdom had become like this.

Beifu's strategy is really vicious, although the Murong brothers are the best among the people, and the few courtiers under him are capable, the chaos and recovery in the past few years are indispensable. It seems that this Yan Kingdom has gone in vain, and now there are not a few teeth left in Yan Kingdom, no matter how dead this lip is, no matter how cold it is, it doesn't matter.

Just as Lang Zhongling lowered his head and pondered, a horn suddenly sounded in the distance, which immediately caused the entire team to panic. Just as Tuoba Kan loudly commanded his men to quickly line up and prepare for battle, the heavy and dense sound of horses' hooves sounded from behind the hill.

After a while, thousands of cavalry rolled in from three directions like three long dragons, and the spearhead was directed at the five hundred horsemen of Tuoba Xianbei who were neighing at the horses. The rapidly advancing thousands of cavalry only silently moved their mounts, and there was no sound at all except the sound of horses' hooves. Tuoba Kan's face couldn't help but turn blue, and he secretly screamed in his heart that he might have encountered a well-trained regular cavalry.

The five hundred Tuoba cavalry quickly dispersed under the roar of Tuoba Kan, stretched out their bows and arrows, and surrounded Lang Zhongling. Tuoba Kan was nervously observing the changes on the battlefield, in order to wait for the opportunity to escort Lang Zhongling out of the siege, he knew the importance of Lang Zhongling's identity and mission, and he had already planned to send Lang Zhongling out even if he and these five hundred sons died on the grassland.

Due to Tuoba Kan's idea, the five hundred Tuoba cavalry just scattered and prepared to use bows and arrows to meet the Zhenbei cavalry that was rushing over, and instigated their mounts to be eager to try, wanting to use a part of the cavalry to entangle the Zhenbei cavalry before choosing the best time to rush out from the right direction.

The Zhenbei cavalry on the opposite side seemed to see through Tuoba Kan's thoughts, and when the three long dragons rushed to the Tuoba cavalry group not far away, they actually turned in the direction of the horse's head, and the three long dragons that rushed straight over turned into three whirlwinds, grazing past the side of the Tuoba cavalry, and at the same time, thousands of arrows flew out one after another, shooting directly at the Tuoba cavalry. When the Zhenbei cavalry was running, they were castrated, and they actually surrounded the Tuoba Xianbei cavalry into a huge rope sleeve that was connected from end to end.

When Tuoba Kan saw this, he knew that he had met a master, and the other party refused to stop fighting with him, and continued to maintain high-speed maneuvers, only taking advantage of the number of people and bows and arrows to shoot

, never give yourself the opportunity to create a melee, nor give yourself the opportunity to win the meeting.

That Lang Zhongling also saw this clearly, he had been in Daiguo for many years, and naturally knew the "catty" of this cavalry engagement, and now the enemy and us are very obvious, they are surrounded inside, and the Zhenbei cavalry pulled up a big *** outside, like a pack of wolves, unhurriedly slicing the flesh from the arrows that flew from the flying one by one, and then waited until their side broke up first.

Come to think of it. Lang Zhongling's heart moved, it was better to gamble. So he shouted, "Stop! Stop it all! More than a dozen entourages around him were stunned at first, but under the supervision of their master's gaze, they also shouted: "Stop!" Stop it all! ”

More than a dozen people shouted loudly at the same time, and it spread throughout the battlefield at once. Tuoba Kan was stunned for a moment, and hurriedly ran to him and asked, "Lord Lang Zhongling, why are you doing this?" ”

"Tuoba Chief, you listen to my orders." Lang Zhongling said loudly.

"Yes, sir!" Tuoba Kan hesitated for a moment and finally decided, then turned his head and yelled at his subordinates: "Stop!" ”

After the Tuoba Xianbei cavalry stopped archery resistance. Another trumpet. Thousands of Zhenbei cavalry suddenly turned outside. After a while, he stopped more than a thousand feet away from Tuoba Xianbei, surrounded by a big ***, holding a bow and arrows in his hand, silently looking at the Tuoba cavalry who was surrounded in the middle.

"Under is Xu Qian, who is acting as a national commander, I don't know which general in Beifu is opposite?" Xu Qian rode out and asked.

At this time, a person walked out of the cavalry team in the north of the town. With a look of smiling on his face, he replied to Xu Qian in a very awkward official language: "I'm not a general, I'm Zhong Cunlian, the avant-garde left captain." ”

"Captain Zhong, can I meet General Zhenbei, I have something important to report to him." Xu Qian said in a deep voice, Tuoba next to him was in a hurry, and he stepped forward to ask, but Xu Qian shouted in a low voice: "This is the secret order of the king's land!" Tuoba Kan was stunned for a moment. The Adam's apple shook up and down twice. In the end, he didn't speak.

"I'm Captain Zhong Cun, not Captain Zhong," Zhong Cunlian still calmly corrected the mistakes in Xu Qian's sentence. It seems that now is not a battlefield, but the first meeting of friends. But Xu Qian and Tuoba Kan both knew in their hearts that this was the real warrior of a hundred battles, and there was no way to affect them in life and death, honor and disgrace, only the enemy in front of them interested them the most.

"I can't promise you to meet the general of Zhenbei, but as long as you go back with us, I will definitely report to the general, and then the general will decide. How is it? Zhong Cunlian continued.

"Okay," Xu Qian gritted his teeth and said, then turned his head to Tuoba Kan and said, "Tuoba head, for the sake of the king and the country, you just listen to me, put down your weapons and surrender." ”

Tuoba Kan's face turned from black to blue, and finally turned red, and he said hatefully: "Okay, just listen to Lord Lang Zhongling." Boys, lay down your weapons. ”

A few days later, according to Zeng Huadi's order, Xu Qian was sent to Guangwu City in Yanmen County (now in the south of Dai County, Shanxi), where Zeng Hua was waiting for him.

As soon as he entered Yanmen County, Xu Qian felt that the northern county of Bingzhou, with its undulating mountains, towering peaks, and ravines, had now become a large barracks. Now it is almost a city of 100 miles, a fort of 50 miles, and tens of thousands of Zhenbei infantry troops are stationed in these military fortresses built by mountains and rivers, constituting a huge defense system. In July, Liu Kuren led the Dugu and Baibu coalition forces south to Yanmen to avenge the blood shame, but they had nothing to do in front of these castle fortresses in Yanmen and Xihe County. In addition, most of the people here have been migrated south, and there is basically no human population for hundreds of miles, and there is no way to get provisions.

When Liu Kuren returned to the clouds in a huff, those flying feather cavalry who always came and went without a trace came out, chasing after them like wolves, and even swept through the clouds with a roar, leaving Bai and Dugu exhausted and suffering heavy losses.

"Meet the General!" Xu Qian saluted respectfully in the hall of the Yanmen County Guard's Mansion and said, the eyes of dozens of Beifu generals on both sides fell on him like dozens of pairs of knives, but Xu Qian turned a blind eye and looked as usual.

"It turned out to be Mr. Xu, please take a seat." Zeng Hua, who was sitting in the middle, said loudly, his voice was hearty, which made Xu Qian's heart feel less depressed and nervous. Xu Qian sat gracefully under Zeng Hua, and then watched the guards serve tea and snacks like water under Zeng Hua's greeting.

It seems that this Zhenbei general is really like the legend, when it is normal, it is polite and virtuous, gentle and peaceful, but when it is "abnormal", it is fierce and cunning, greedy and arrogant.

"Mr. Xu, I heard that you want to see me, I don't know what you are doing?" Zeng Hua looks very normal now.

"General, I was originally sent to the Yan Kingdom on the orders of the king of Dai this time." Xu Qian lowered his head and hesitated for a moment, and finally said frankly, because he was going east, people could figure out what they were doing even with their toes? "Later, I met Captain Zhong Cun, so I simply came to see General Zhenbei, because I had some questions in my heart, and I hoped to get the general's guidance."

"It's okay to ask Mr. Xu to speak up." Zeng Hua nodded and said calmly.

"Dare to ask why the general attacked my country for no reason?" Xu Qian raised his head and asked.

"I didn't send troops to attack the country. The two counties of Yunzhong and Wuyuan were originally under the jurisdiction of Shuozhou, and our army only went to take over, and had no intention of fighting with the king. On the contrary, it is in the clouds and the five plains.

Tingfadu. Meet the sword soldiers of the king. I also ask Mr. Xu to tell the acting king. Zeng Hua replied solemnly.

Hearing this, Xu Qiandi's face suddenly turned red, and he sneered for a long time before he spoke: "These places were originally separated from the Central Plains and the imperial court, and they have become a wild and chaotic place. How could the imperial court do such a thing now? ”

"In the past few years, the Central Plains has been turbulent. People from all over the world have been displaced and suffering greatly. On behalf of the king, guarding the place and pacifying the people, it is our model to be a courtier, and the edict and reward of the imperial court have arrived in Chang'an, and I ordered them to send them quickly. However, no amount of rewards can be used to recognize the great achievements of the acting king. Zeng Hua sighed, and in his tone, he didn't know how much reverence he had for the acting king Tuoba Shiyi, who he had never met.

Xu Qian was dumbfounded, is there still this truth in the world? while sending troops to seize other people's territory. On the one hand, he also asked the court to reward others for their meritorious service in defending the land.

looked at Xu Qiandi's expression. Zeng Hua continued to say with reverence: "Zeng Mou is not able to respect the position of the general of Zhenbei, and he is trusted by the imperial court to pacify the northern regions. worries day and night, lest he fail the trust of the court and the people. Now Shuozhou, and the state government office is ready, since it should take over the jurisdiction, perform its duties, and do its best as a minister. I also asked Mr. Xu to tell the acting king that a few years ago, because of the collapse of the imperial court, the outline was often chaotic, which made the traitors and thieves arrogant. Today, the Tao is circulating, all the people are at peace, and all hearts are one, and I also ask the king to fulfill the minister's way and continue to be a model for us. ”

Hearing this, Xu Qian finally understood, and he turned countless circles in his heart, and he understood Zeng Hua's abacus. Conquering Yizhou in the west, collecting Liangzhou in the north, recovering Guanlong, striking Liangzhou in the west, passing through Heshuo in the west, merging the state in the east, and attacking Yanwei, which thing is not the banner of the imperial court fluttering in the wind? Although the territory and benefits laid down are all returned to Beifu, no matter from any point of view, Zeng Hua has taken full advantage of the righteousness, just like a good courtier who has worked hard for the people of the world for the Great Jin Dynasty.

Now the same is true for sending troops to Yunzhong Monan, although these territories have begun to break away from the Central Plains since the end of the Han Dynasty, and they have not even recovered when the Jin Dynasty established the capital Luoyang. But morally speaking, the Jin family, which inherited the authority of the former Han and Wei dynasties, had the right and responsibility to recover these lost territories. Now that Beifu is using this banner to recover the five plains and the lost land in the clouds, I am afraid that the people and public opinion of the world will say that Beifu is doing the right thing, and if there is a little resistance on behalf of the country, I am afraid that there will be suspicion of ill-intentioned and territorial splitting. However, the righteousness of this world is not your own Beifu!

Xu Qian thought of this, the anger in his heart was indescribable, the donkey's temper came up, and he straightened his neck and said: "Now on behalf of the west of the country and the hometown of Wusun, east to the west of Beji, north to the soft and high car, south of the Yanmen in the clouds, control the strings on the horse warriors in the millions, the general is so forcible to take the plunder, I don't know if you have asked me the warriors of the country?" ”

"Haha!" Zeng Hua couldn't help but raise his head and laugh, but Pu next to him said gloomily: "I'm afraid this is all a scaring thing." At present, there are only hundreds of thousands of descendants of the Daiguo, and they are divided into dozens of departments, such as the Helan Department under the Yin Mountain, the Bai Department in the south, the Dugu Department, etc., in addition to the ten surnames of the Tuoba royal family, there are seventy-five surnames with different surnames, plus thirty-five surnames from all over the Quartet, the relationship is very complicated, so the Daiguo is not so much a country as a tribal alliance. ”

"Back then, after my Beifu drove the Dugu Department out of Yanmen and Xinxing Prefectures, the king of your family had to make peace with my Beifu in a reluctant voice; When Beifu gathered heavy troops in Bei Bingzhou, I heard that the king of your family was worried day and night, and he contacted various departments everywhere to collect soldiers and horses. As the right-hand man of the acting king, Mr. Xu should know why? ”

||See blood.

"Daiguo looks very powerful, but the foundation of its establishment also means that it can't fight a long-term war with the strong and stable Beifu, as long as it fights for a few years, my Beifu can withstand it, I don't know if the Daiguo Tuoba family can have the ability of the Murong family of the Yan State and persist in the internal and external troubles?"

Hearing this, Xu Qian finally knew that the beating of people in Beifu was planned and prepared, and he would definitely not find Shangdaiguo for no reason, he must have thought about it, and then set his goal. Moreover, Beifu's use of troops is extremely sinister, but his exhaustive troops are very different from usual. Tens of thousands of flying feather iron horsemen roared out, not fighting against the Dai army who were waiting for the battle, but swept through the Dugu and Baibu, plundering the population, cattle and sheep, burning the camp tents, and looking like driving people to collect the land. When Liu Kuren, the commander of the contemporary southern line, received the alarm and turned around, the Feiyu cavalry roared away with the booty and retreated to the Yanmen West River.

From June to August, the southern part of the Daiguo suffered heavy losses, and it was almost impossible to sustain it, and the different opinions within the Daiguo were getting bigger and bigger, Tuoba Shiyi was really a bit similar to Murong Jun now, with internal and external troubles. And Xu Qian also knows that as long as there is an official defeat in Daiguo, then the day of its collapse is not far off.

Xu Qian was completely speechless, and he couldn't talk about it anymore. Within two days, Zeng Hua took the imperial court's edict and reward Xu Qian with him, and let him go back to Shengle.

After listening to Xu Qian's relay, Tuoba Shiyi knew that after the heavy soldiers in Zhenbei ambushed the Yan army, they did not plan to let themselves go, and were ready to pick up the grass and beat the rabbits, and clean up with themselves. Excuses, as long as there is a heart to hit you, what excuse can't be said?

Tuoba Shiyi couldn't help but be furious, tore up the edict of the Jiangzuo court, went to all the titles of the Jin family, and claimed to be Da Kehan (the meaning of the gods, the meaning of heaven), acting as the king, and officially started a war with Beifu.