Northern Dynasties

Chapter 1350 Feeding the Horses and Waiting for Change
Chen Qian's original intention was to make things difficult for Hou Andu, so he naturally would not easily listen to his persuasion. He still stubbornly stated that he would recruit volunteers from other places to counterattack Wuzhong.

Hou Andu naturally did not want Chen Qian to leave Kuaiji, especially to go further back.

Now Kuaiji is the front line in the battle with the Tang army, and he also needs Chen Qian to unify the people's hearts and minds in the territory. Once Chen Qian goes to other directions, Hou Andu's troops will be pushed to the front. When Chen Qian will fight back and whether he is willing to fight back is not something he can control.

"If Your Majesty is really anxious to counterattack, there is no need to mobilize troops from other places. The troops in Kuaiji are sufficient. Going to other places would be troublesome because of the transportation and the local tyrants are afraid of the enemy and would not necessarily obey the call."

He had been trying to persuade Chen Qian for a long time, but Chen Qian did not change his mind, so he decided to settle for the next best thing and said he could send troops from Kuaiji to help Chen Qian with his counterattack plan.

This was exactly the result Chen Qian wanted, but he still said with hesitation and embarrassment that Hou Andu had already made great contributions by defending the Qiantang defense line, and he was afraid that he did not have the spare energy to take on further combat tasks.

Hou Andu was naturally filled with anxiety due to his provocation, but in order to stabilize Chen Qian, he could only repeatedly state that the troops here were sufficient to undertake this task, and he repeatedly patted his chest to promise that he would live up to this plan!
Seeing that Hou An had been completely fooled, Chen Qian finally revealed his true intention: "We must be cautious in counterattacking Wuzhong. We must make sure that the attack is successful in one go to avoid a reversal of the situation. If we are forced to retreat by the Tang army, not only will our plan fail, but it will also expose the lone loyal man in Wuzhong. Therefore, the person who executes this must be a brave and valiant general who is second to none.

"Xiao Mohe fought hard with the enemy before, and pushed the Tang army outside the city, making it difficult for them to advance. He was really brave. Why not send him to sneak into Wuzhong now, contact the local people, and bring their families to the south, so that the loyal and righteous people will have no worries and can fight to the death in front of the enemy!"

Hou Andu was now thinking about stabilizing Chen Qian and letting him live here in peace. He did not doubt it after hearing this. When he heard that he was just going to sneak into Wuzhong to pick up some people coming south, instead of directly starting a battle with the Tang army, the risk was naturally smaller, so he nodded and agreed.

At the same time, he also put forward his own request: "Now Wuzhong has been occupied by the Tang army. They have many war horses, are flexible and agile, and have spies scattered throughout the countryside. If we want to sneak behind the enemy lines and take action, we also need elite cavalry. However, Kuaiji does not have enough good horses. I hope the king will understand this matter..."

Chen Qian was not surprised to hear that Hou Andu was still planning to take possession of the war horses under his command. He made this proposal in the hope of taking control of the Qiantang defense, but he also hoped that Xiao Mohe could successfully bring the families of the local scholars to the south. This would not only respond to the local scholars and allow them to maintain their determination to resist the Tang army, but also prevent them from making any further moves so that they could fight hard against the enemy when they really counterattacked.

Therefore, the condition proposed by Hou Andu was also a normal requirement. Since Chen Qian wanted to accomplish his goal, he would naturally not be stingy and refuse to lend horses. So he immediately expressed that he could give Hou Andu 500 horses for his troops to use.

When Xiao Mohe in Qiantang City received this order, he thought he had misheard. His mission was clearly to guard the city, and he was doing a good job. Why was he suddenly asked to go out to meet the families of the Wuzhong folks?

Although this order was accompanied by additional instructions from Hou Andu, telling him not to take this mission seriously, but to go north to investigate the Tang army's control over Wuzhong and see whether its rear was secure. As for the task assigned by King Linchuan, if things went smoothly, he could complete it. If there were any setbacks, he should return as soon as possible and ensure his own safety.

Although Hou Andu still gave Xiao Mohe great freedom to act, it was a bit unreasonable to suddenly send the city defending general as a scout captain when the two sides were fighting fiercely.

Although Hou Andu also arranged for Pei Zilie, an equally brave general, to replace Xiao Mohe, Pei Zilie was not more familiar with the local situation than Xiao Mohe. If any fierce battle broke out during this period, Pei Zilie might not be able to take charge of the defense.

But Hou Andu was very strict with his subordinates. He admired Xiao Mohe, but if Xiao Mohe dared to disobey orders, he would also be severely punished. Therefore, although Xiao Mohe was a little unhappy, he had to hand over the city defense affairs to Pei Zilie, and then led hundreds of elite soldiers to quietly leave the city, first take a boat to the upper reaches of the Qiantang River, and then go ashore to ride horses after arriving in Fuchun, bypass the front battlefield and go to Wukang.

Just as Xiao Mohe led his troops to infiltrate behind enemy lines, he did not know that one of their destinations, Shen Zhong's manor in Wukang County, had been targeted by the Tang army stationed in Wuxing.

In Xiaxi Village in Wukang, Shen Zhong sat in the hall with a serious expression, and his clan members stood on both sides. A young man in his twenties was kneeling in the hall with his arms tied and a terrified look on his face.

"Now that our hometown has been invaded by the bandits, I have repeatedly warned you to be careful and stay at home, and not to cause trouble outside. However, there are still evil people who do not listen to good advice and cause trouble. In order to avoid bringing disaster to the whole family, whoever causes trouble will bear the consequences himself!"

Shen Zhong slammed the table and snorted angrily.

Not long ago, his family's Chen Ma Lan Ge was exchanged for money in Yixing cloth market, and he was still praising Tang Jun for being a benevolent and righteous army. But now, after seeing Tang Jun's many evil deeds in Wuxing, he no longer praised benevolence and righteousness, but directly called them a group of captives. After hearing this rebuke, all the Shen family members in the hall lowered their heads, while the young man who was kneeling in the hall and tied up tightly banged his head on the ground, shouting: "Uncle, it's unfair, I really didn't take the initiative to cause trouble, it was, it was that the villager Zhou and his family who stole the green seedlings on the slope of my family, and the family came to ask for an explanation and accidentally injured Zhou's father..."

Although Wuxing has fertile land, it is not everywhere good farmland. Some sloping land is difficult to irrigate, so it is still necessary to plant some moisture-retaining crops so that they can be cultivated directly in spring. This is the situation of the young man's family, but the villagers cut off the moisture-retaining crops, which is indeed a bit annoying.

"You still have the nerve to say you are innocent? Even if Zhou Shi harmed half an acre of your young crops, is it worth it for you to go to his house and beat and kill his father? Not to mention taking his wife and children into your own home! Even if you have done these evil deeds, if no one else asks about it, that's your own luck. But Zhou Shi's son surrendered to the enemy and made meritorious deeds, and now he has returned home to be held accountable. You should bear the consequences of your own evil deeds yourself, and you should not let your clansmen bear this risk together!"

Shen Zhong said with a look of resentment, deeply disgusted with this greedy and cruel young man in front of him. After scolding the young man, he ordered: "Send this boy to the captive camp, and return Zhou's wife and children together, and give a few hundred coins as compensation."

"Uncle, please spare my life, please spare my life..."

When the young man heard that Shen Zhong was going to send him to the Tang army camp, he became even more panicked and kept wailing and begging for mercy, but the tribesmen who disliked his noise blocked his mouth and dragged him out.

"This boy has bad luck and has provoked strong men. You should also take this as a warning and never get into trouble easily!"

Shen Zhong gave the clan members a lecture, then waved his hand to signal them to disperse. He then called the servants and ordered them, "The guest is going to the enemy camp to be punished. It is uncertain whether he will live or die. His only new wife is at home. I am afraid she cannot take care of the family business. Go to his house quickly to collect his property and store it inside the house. Return it to him when he is ordered to return."

A servant bowed his head and said yes, then hurried out. Shen Zhong called another confidant to come over and whispered, "If there is any reply from King Linchuan, you must report it immediately. This matter concerns the life and death of a family, and must be kept away from the eyes and ears of others, and must not be leaked to the outside world!"

He was worried that the Tang army would abuse their power in the country, so he secretly wrote to Chen Qian, hoping that he would come back as soon as possible. Only he and a few of his family members knew about this, and the rest of the clan members were still unaware of it.

But his so-called confidentiality was just self-righteousness, and the clues related to it had already fallen into the eyes of those who were interested.

When Shen Keqing, a relative of Shen Zhong, was sent to the Tang army camp, he was afraid of being punished and abused, so he shouted: "General, please spare my life, General, please spare my life! I have something important to report to you. My uncle Shen Zhong intends to rebel and disturb the king's army..."

Shen Zhong was one of the few aristocratic celebrities in Wuxing, but because he did not follow Chen Qian, the Tang army did not take action against him, but just kept a close eye on him. When his nephew reported that he was plotting something illegal, naturally someone quickly reported the situation to the commander, Ruo Feng.

After Ruo Feng got the news, he immediately interrogated Shen Keqing and asked, "How do you know that Shen Zhong intends to rebel? When will he rebel and what is his specific plot? Tell me quickly."

"I don't know, I don't know. It's just that my uncle is a stingy person. He has to measure the rice for the thousand mouths in his family. But recently, all the cattle and horses in his stables have been well fed day and night to strengthen their strength. So I guess he must have a hidden plan! Dai Gong only needs to send soldiers to secretly investigate and monitor him, and his traces of the thief will surely be revealed soon!"

The young man Shen Keqing quickly lowered his head and said.

Ruo Feng was a little amused after hearing this. He thought that the young man had already obtained solid evidence, but he didn't expect it to be just such a small detail. However, he had to admit that this detail did make people a little suspicious.

He also knew that some powerful people in Wuzhong had been secretly contacting Chen Qian in Qiantang Jiangnan recently, but he had not yet grasped the specific personnel and solid evidence. Since this guest Shen provided a more suspicious clue in order to save his life, he might as well monitor him as well.

If Shen Zhong really had this crime, then he would be dealt with immediately. It just so happens that his family's manor covers a large area and has a good location. If the Japanese military headquarters can be established here, it will naturally develop rapidly.