Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

Chapter 1112: War smoke everywhere
There was an unchanging cold wind between heaven and earth, dark clouds obscured the sky, and in the slightly dim sky, a dozen generals sat in the room looking at the geomancy map.

"The thief Lu has already led his army into Danzhou. There is no news from the front yet, but we can't just wait here forever." Xiao Gan said calmly, looking at a group of Han and foreign generals in front of him: "The troops were a little insufficient at first, but now we have the help of General Zhang and can split them up, General Zhang Qing."

"Your humble servant is here. Your Majesty, please give me your instructions." Zhang Qing was standing at the front position on the left and took a step forward after hearing the words.

"You have come a long way, so I should have given you a rest. However, the situation does not wait for anyone. I can only ask General Zhang to go with me to the battle." He stretched out his hand and tapped the map: "Keep their troops out of Jingzhou."

Zhang Qingyi clasped his fists and said, "King Xiao, there is no need to do this. It has been decided that our two armies will join forces. This is our responsibility."

Xiao laughed dryly, then turned to the other side: "Xiao Dili, you are responsible for defending the city. Collect food and grass as soon as possible. Don't let the army run out of food."

A wealthy man walked out from below and said, "I will obey the king's orders."

Xiao Gan nodded and took two steps forward: "I will leave two thousand soldiers for you to guard the city, and the rest will follow me to aid Danzhou...", then frowned and looked outside the door.

There was a noise.

……

A moment ago, outside the city.

In the cold wind, there was still snow on the ground, and dozens of riders roared and rushed towards the Zunhua city gate.

"Get out of the way——"

"Get out of the way!"

The shouts came from afar. The people entering and leaving the city gate were stunned for a moment, and then hurriedly made way. The cavalry coming from afar didn't even look at them and galloped in quickly.

The people who were dodging at the city gate and on the streets looked at the cavalry from afar, cursed "Bah, bad luck!" and slapped the mud that splashed on their bodies.

The cavalrymen who had galloped into the city stopped at the government office in the city after watching all the way. The figures on their horses fell off the saddles, some staggered and fell directly to the ground, some knelt on one knee and took a long time to stand up.

"It's General Alu."

"General, be careful. I'll help you."

A scream came from the guard at the door, and two soldiers with spears hurried forward to help up the figure who was sitting on the ground and gasping for breath.

"Hurry... take me to see the king." A weak but firm voice was heard. The two soldiers did not dare to delay and hurriedly carried one of the men on each side.

A'lu was panting and stumbling forward, his heavy steps treading on the bluestone bricks in the garden. A series of heavy sounds rang out in the slightly silent government office.

crunch--

The tightly closed door opened, and everyone in the room looked over. A-lu, who was staggering, broke away from the two soldiers who were supporting him, stepped forward and knelt on the ground with a thud, hitting the ground with his head: "I am incompetent and failed to defend Danzhou. Please punish me, Your Majesty."

The atmosphere in the room became oppressive. Xiao Gan's face changed drastically. He walked up to him and said, "Two days ago, you were still saying that although the situation was critical, there was no worry of the city being destroyed. How come it fell so quickly?"

A'lu raised his head, his rough face was covered with dried blood mixed with sweat and dust, his lips moved a few times: "I thought I could hold out for a few days, but Lu Bu came so fiercely, and my generals fought desperately. In just half a day, he climbed to the top of Miyun City. I couldn't resist and had to lead the cavalry to break through."

He lowered his head and said, "It was just that the Qi bandits' cavalry blocked the road outside the city. I fought desperately to escape, but the soldiers who came back..."

Xiao Gan closed his eyes and clenched his fist. After a while, he punched his thigh and said, "Hey!" "You ruined my plan."

"I am incompetent!" the kneeling general shouted.

There was no sound in the hall. Xiao Gan put his hands on his waist and walked a few steps. He looked back at A-Lu who was kneeling on the ground with a somewhat unfriendly look: "You bastard..."

"King Xiao!" Zhang Qing, who was in the crowd, stepped out and interrupted him with a bow. "This is not the time to talk about this. If the Lu thief takes Danzhou, he will immediately march towards Jingzhou and Pingzhou. Shouldn't we send troops immediately?"

"That's right." The commander in charge of the tent, Bai Yanjing, stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, now that the dense clouds have fallen, Xingtang can't stop the Qi army. We should make plans early."

Xiao Gan took a deep breath, looked at the figure lying on the ground, walked over and kicked him: "Get out of here, you will be punished for the defeat, and we will settle the score after the battle."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" A'ru bowed again, stood up, smiled gratefully at Zhang and Bai, then lowered his head and stepped back.

"Order the troops immediately." Xiao Gan turned his head and glanced at everyone, his expression solemn: "Now send another messenger to inform Zhang Xuanfu of this matter."

Someone responded and went out. Soon a fast horse came out. Xiao Gan talked to everyone about the battle before sending the generals away. He returned to the backyard and stood quietly for a while. He overturned a table with a knife, then put on his armor and went to the military camp.

……

The sky gradually darkened, night fell, and we moved far to the north of Pingzhou.

The cold wind blew on Bian Xiang's face, the flags above his head became one, and a scout with a red flag was running towards him in the army.

"General, the front is the border of Pingzhou. There is a troop of soldiers heading towards us not far away. The flag on their banner is the Chinese character 'Han'."

"Han?" Bian Xiang muttered, and touched the iron helmet on his head in confusion, feeling the cold touch: "Who is this?"

A military clerk came forward and said, "General, the enemy army has a supervisor named Han Minyi, who was a staff member of the former Liaoxing Army Jiedushi. Perhaps this is the person you are talking about."

"Zhang Qing's staff?" Bian Xiang turned his head to look at him, his eyes rolling: "Is there anything special about him?"

The clerk thought for a moment and shook his head: "I don't know, but I think that to gain Zhang Qing's trust, he must be either extremely capable or very loyal."

"Then never mind." Bian Xiang waved his hand, poked the horse's neck with his finger, and smiled: "No matter who he is, just kill him. Tell Lu Zhishen to move faster. We finally have a battle, so don't forget how to kill people."

During this period, they traveled from the north due to military orders. If they had not spent a long time in the north in the past two years and were accustomed to how to run in such weather and terrain, they might have only traveled half the distance by now.

These generals had all heard about Zhang Qing's affairs before they went to war. After surrendering, this man secretly communicated with the Song people, which made these generals, who could not tolerate any sand in their eyes, hate him to death. Now that they met him, they were naturally happy in their hearts, as they finally had a way to vent their anger.

"Send a message to Qin Ming, tell him to follow behind Lu Zhishen, and when Lu Zhishen comes into contact with the enemy, attack from the side and cut his team in two." Bian Xiang squeezed his horse's belly and waved his hand, saying, "The rest of you, follow me and keep an eye out for any surprise attacks from the opposite side."

The messenger cavalry moved around issuing orders, and the army's formation changed as it moved. It wasn't long before the messenger cavalry returned.

The troops in front have already engaged the enemy.

……

wow——

The sea water hit the hull, and the soldiers rowing the boat were shaken for a moment, then returned to calm.

The salty sea breeze with water vapor clung to their faces, damp and cold, and soon the faces of these naval soldiers became numb. "Get ashore, hurry up."

"Come on, follow me and take up the high ground over there, quick, quick, quick!"

Sailors wearing water jackets walked ashore carrying spears and crossbows. Some of them took out their drinks and took a sip. They shivered and felt warmth spreading from their stomachs to their bodies.

"I'm in Pingzhou again."

Wei Zhaode stepped on the rough beach with his combat boots, looked down at the dried seaweed, and crushed it with his foot: "I should have killed Zhang here last time."

"It's not too late now." Li Bao came over holding the hilt of the sword at his waist, took a breath of sea breeze, and exhaled a long white breath: "The most important thing is to hang up those who dare to rebel this time."

More and more people were coming ashore. Hu Yanqing, who was wearing iron armor, stood in the distance and shouted for a while. He looked at the two people standing still on the beach and became very angry. He walked closer and shouted, "Don't hide there, you two. Hurry up and restrain these bastards, otherwise you will be in trouble when you meet the rebels later."

The two looked at each other, and Wei Zhaode shrugged: "Okay, we can't stop for a moment."

"Even if you want to be lazy, you have to wait until the rebellion is put down." Li Bao laughed.

The personal soldiers from the rear brought over several divine arm bows and distributed them. Not long after, a scout ran out and headed north.

On the Xinmao day of the twelfth lunar month, the Qi navy landed on the southern coast of Pingzhou and soon entered the villages and towns around Macheng, causing a huge shock. Zhang Jue had to send out more troops and ordered them to wipe out the Qi troops that had entered the country as soon as possible.

However, not long after, the news that Bian Xiang led his army to defeat Han Minyi reached him. Zhang Jue had no choice but to order the soldiers in the front to hold their ground while rushing to recruit able-bodied men. At the same time, he sent fast horses to the west to send a message to the Song army, hoping that they would arrive quickly to help resist the Qi army's attack.

……

In the dark night, countless pairs of footsteps stepped into Jingzhou, forming a long team that began to gather.

The soldiers were wearing black armor with fur coats on the outside. The wind at night was three times stronger than during the day. A bonfire was lit, and the bulky figures were walking in neat rows in the military camp.

"Your Majesty." Xu Wen brought the hot wine and placed it on Lu Bu's desk. "It's cold tonight. Drink some strong wine to drive away the cold."

"Is everything arranged in the army?" Lu Bu did not refuse. He reached out and picked up the wine cup. The warm wine passed through the container into his palm and he took a sip. "Tell the cooks that the soldiers in the army also need to ward off the cold. Ask them to make more hot soup for the people below."

Xu Wen nodded and said, "Yes."

"Who's on duty tonight?"

"General Wang De and Lieutenant Han Chang's troops."

Lu Bu nodded and said, "We are now in Jingzhou. Xiao Gan will definitely not let us easily reach his city. I ask you to be careful along the way."

Xu Wen said softly: "Your Majesty, don't worry. General Wang and General Han have already sent hundreds of people to patrol outside. There should be no problem."

In the quiet night, the soldiers who had eaten and drunk their fill fell asleep, snoring sounds coming one after another. Bonfires illuminated the surroundings of the military camp. The makeshift wooden fences were driven into the frozen soil, with rows of sharp wooden spikes installed on them, pointing at the darkness.

From the northeast, a figure on horseback came galloping. The night watchman heard the sound of horse hooves and hurried forward to take a look. After exchanging a few words with the man, he waved his hand to release the defensive antlers and let the man in.

Lu Bu had already taken off his clothes and was preparing to go to bed. When he got the news, he quickly put on his cloak and came out. He looked at the scout whose shoulder was still bleeding. A guard was bandaging him. The scout spoke in a deep voice, and Lu Bu narrowed his eyes slightly.

Soon, Xu Wen and Su Yi brought Wang De, Han Chang, Han Shizhong and Yang Zaixing into the military tent.

"Your Majesty, is there any trouble?"

"Xiao Gan led his troops to ambush in the distance, and was discovered by scouts."

Lu Bu glanced at the figure being bandaged and said, "Let me repeat this to you generals."

"Yes. There are five of us in total. We were found in a dense forest twenty miles northeast. Except for me, the rest were killed." The scout's voice was a little low and bitter: "Even I managed to escape by lying on my warhorse."

Several generals breathed a sigh of relief. Yang Zaixing scratched his head and said, "Fortunately, we found out early. Maybe Xiao Gan would retreat if he found out that our scouts were here?"

Han Shizhong shook his head: "No, if this guy doesn't attack tonight, there will be no chance tomorrow."

Lu Bu turned around and walked to his seat and sat down: "I think so too." He pulled the cloak he was wearing with both hands and said: "But there is no need to call the whole army to fight him. You guys have to work hard tonight. If I were Xiao Gan, I would know that I have been discovered and I might launch a few hours earlier, so you don't have much time to wait."

He glanced at the four generals and said, "You wait five miles outside and ambush them. When Xiao Gan's troops come, stop them."

Wang De stepped forward and bowed: "Your Majesty, rest assured, I will give Xiao Gan a feast tonight."

Soon after, all the soldiers ran out of the barracks quietly, and each found a quiet and secluded place to lie in ambush.

The cold wind blew at night. At midnight, the whimpering wind swept across the field. Some soldiers who were cold pulled their warm clothes tighter, then widened their eyes and whispered, "Wake up, something's wrong!"

A rustling sound was heard among the team. Only a few miles ahead, from afar, dark shadows came into view under the moonlight.

There was a long line of people holding flames every few feet, spreading towards this side.

The sound of the horses' hooves was a bit dull, obviously wrapped in thick cotton cloth, and it was impossible to tell how many people there were for a moment.

"Finally here." Han Chang excitedly grabbed a handful of snow from a nearby stone and rubbed it hard on his face: "Pass the order down, everyone hold it in and don't make a sound."

There were rustling sounds in the darkness; it was the soldiers carrying orders running quickly. An old soldier skillfully put his hands under his armpits to warm them, and watched the approaching troops with half-squinted eyes.

The cry of the night owl echoed between heaven and earth.

Han Chang reached out and picked up his precious bow, licked his dry lips, and held an arrow.

Boom boom boom——

Soldiers wearing fur coats passed by one after another. When they had walked past almost one-third of the team, Han Chang suddenly shot an arrow.

squeak--

The whistling arrows made a piercing sound in the dark night.

"kill--"

All around, people shouted loudly, long arrows flew out with the sound of bowstrings, and the sound of horse hooves added to the chaos.

Except Zhang Qing, all the names that appear in this chapter are historical figures.

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(End of this chapter)