Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

Tread-tap-

Dewdrops on the grass leaves were shaken off, and war horses with horseshoes galloped through the grass. The prey in midsummer was the fattest and most diverse. Various beasts that had woken up from hibernation had regained their fat after resting and hunting in the spring, and were regarded as excellent prey by hunters. Herbivores that were good at running were even more favored, especially creatures called deer, which were especially loved by hunters here.

The war horses created a strong wind, and the knights on horseback looked at each other, made a gesture, and then approached the running and jumping stag in front of them from the left and right. The pair of antlers extended upward and forked like dead branches, thick yet elegant. While running, they looked like the gnarled branches of a big tree swaying in the wind, which was very spectacular.

hum-

The bowstring vibrated in the air, and the arrow pierced into the flesh with a sound of breaking through the air. The still running stag cried out and fell to the ground. Its body slid forward a distance due to inertia and then stopped. The deer, which had not yet completely died, was gasping for breath, with a stream of fluid in its abdomen, and the fur near its eyes slowly became wet.

Dedede——

The horse's hooves slowed down and approached. Yelu Yanxi, who was riding on the horse, was wearing luxurious armor and holding a hard bow wrapped with gold threads. He looked down at the fallen stag, smiled complacently, drew his arrow, and aimed the bow downwards at the deer's eyes.

whoosh-

"Your Majesty, you have great archery skills!"

The sound of cheers came as the sound of horse hooves faded. Xiao Fengxian and Xiao Delidi came forward, reined in their horses, and bowed in unison: "Your Majesty, you have shot such a stag on your first try today. This is really a good omen."

"Yes, its horns are symmetrical, its branches are dense, its body is strong, and its fur is shiny. This is a top-quality animal. Your Majesty just shot an arrow and hit the vital point. It can be said to be a master shot. This kind of male deer symbolizes the prosperity of the dynasty and is a good omen. I think our Liao Dynasty will prosper soon."

"Hahahaha..." Yelu Yanxi raised his head and laughed loudly, waving his hands: "My two beloved ministers, please don't flatter me like that. I was just trying out my skills. There are many fierce beasts in the hunting grounds in the south. I really want to hunt a leopard today."

"Your Majesty is blessed with great fortune, and all your wishes will surely come true." Xiao Fengxian flattered, looking up at the sky: "It's just that Your Majesty should be preparing for lunch at this time. Why not let the guards go look for the leopard after lunch, so that we can see Your Majesty's majestic appearance at that time."

"Alright." Yelu Yanxi nodded, and then pointed at the stag: "Then let's roast the stag for dinner today, and the two of you can enjoy the fun of hunting together."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

"Your Majesty, this delicacy has been made even more precious by your divine shooting skills."

Yelu Yanxi pointed at the two of them and laughed, then called the guards to drag the deer away, skin it and wash it, but the deer head had to be preserved. He was waiting to show the others this rare stag antler.

Soon the venison was placed on the fire. The aroma grew stronger and drifted in the wind. Yelu Yanxi pulled out a jeweled knife and slashed down at the roasted brown thigh.

……

puff--

Pulling the horizontal knife out from his abdomen, Tang Erhu wiped the blood off his face and spat to the side: "Damn it, there are all kinds of bastards in Shangjing. I rarely have the kindness to let you go home to save your life, but you insist on seeking death here. It's really hard to persuade the damned ghost, but you insist on finding a way to die by yourself." He picked up a piece of cloth and wiped the blade: "Remember to listen to advice in the next life."

"Commander, we've cleaned it up." Three scouts holding swords came over from behind, with five bodies lying in a pool of blood at their feet.

"Drag him aside and hide him." Tang Erhu waved his hand, then walked to the side of the warhorse and climbed on it, looking at the huge city in the distance: "It's time to go back and report to General Anbei. Shangjing is completely defenseless."

The three scouts quickly dragged the body to the woods and found branches to cover it. Then they mounted their horses. The four of them shouted, and the horses pounded the ground, running quickly to the north.

Du Fu originally regarded himself as a detachment and had not made much preparation for a strong attack on Linhuang Prefecture. However, his progress westward was smooth and he actually reached the vicinity of Shangjing City before Lu Bu. Now he felt a little bit tricky. He had no choice but to send sufficient scouts in all directions to prevent his whereabouts from being revealed. He led the army to hide near the Yong'an mountain fence, while Sun An and Ma Ling's infantry were making simple wooden ladders.

The sound of chopping wood continued to be heard. Du Fu stepped on the grass up to his calves, looked around and sighed: "We should bring some siege equipment..."

"It may not be easy." Yuan Lang frowned, with a worried look on his red face. "We were on a long-distance raid, and we didn't expect the situation here. I thought we were going to fight in Ningzhou, but we didn't expect that they would surrender."

"Let's wait and see what happens." Sun An tapped his palm with his whip. "If it doesn't work, we'll fight the Liao army outside the city first to delay their main force, and then send scouts south to find the king and ask him to hurry north."

"I have sent cavalry to look for the king." Holding the whip, Du Fu walked in front with his hands behind his back. In his sight, the soldiers of the cavalry and infantry quickly tied up a wooden ladder. "Now I hope the Liao people are still spineless and just open the gate and surrender."

"…After all, we are in the capital."

Wanyan Loushi's voice floated softly, causing several cavalry generals to sigh in unison.

"Yes, after all, we are in Beijing."

Soon, a scout ran into the forest.

……

Linhuang Mansion.

The sunlight poured down, and the soldiers standing at the city gate reflected the luster of metal. The spotless iron armor looked as shiny as cast silver. Every scale of the armor flickered in the sun, as if carrying silent majesty and solemnity.

The people entering and leaving the city would glance at the man standing in the sun from time to time, with an indescribable expression on their faces. Ever since the emperor returned to the capital, the soldiers on duty at the gate have all been dressed like this. It's just that I heard that these soldiers bought their armor with their own money, and a set of armor cost from thousands to tens of thousands of strings of cash. I don't know how many were sold. I only remember that for a period of time, many Khitans in the city were quite indignant.

The emperor must have made a lot of money...

This armor is so bright, it must be the most expensive one.

Muttering to themselves all sorts of things, even though the people frequently looked at the shining armor, no one dared to stare at it for long. They were all murderers without blinking an eye. If they got angry with someone and killed him, where could they go to seek justice?
When they were defeated by the Jin army in the fourth year of Tianqing, they had not forgotten the good things those defeated soldiers did in Shangjing City.

The sound of horse hooves could be heard from behind. Many people turned their heads curiously and saw a thin warhorse running quickly, as if it had been running for an unknown amount of time. White foam appeared on the horse's mouth, and a figure was lying on it, weakly rising and falling with the horse's bumps. When he looked at the city gate, he showed a happy smile.

"Stop! What are you doing!"

The officer guarding the gate stepped forward, shouted loudly, and drew his scimitar to point it at the oncoming riders.

The figure on the horse struggled to stand up, and the warhorse slowed down its pace. The figure on it said something, but the general didn't hear it. Just as he was about to scold, the horse foamed at the mouth and fell to the ground. Fortunately, the horse had no strength left and fell while almost walking, but the person on the horse was unlucky.

A big face hit the ground first, then slid forward more than two feet. When he raised his head with a grin, half of his face was covered with blood from being scratched on the ground.

"I'm Xiao Yu, the son-in-law of the emperor. Please report quickly that the governor of Yongzhou has surrendered to the enemy and the city has been lost. The Qi enemy troops will arrive soon!"

The general stood there in a daze.

Not knowing where he got the strength from, Xiao Yu stood up all of a sudden, grabbed his shoulders, leaned close to him, and started cursing: "Damn it, you idiot, what are you dawdling about, didn't you hear what I said to you? The Qi army has reached Yongzhou and can come at any time!" After two violent gasps, Xiao Yu's legs went limp and he quickly hooked the man's shoulders.

The general subconsciously reached out to help him. He heard the rumbling sound of the man's abdomen. He opened his mouth but didn't know what to say. Xiao Yu struggled to stand up: "Quick, take me to find Tabuye who stayed behind."

"Oh...Oh!" The man reacted and nodded quickly, then he supported Xiao Yu and walked quickly towards the city.

This guy himself said that he wanted to find the adult who stayed behind, so he shouldn't be a spy or a liar.

……

Near Yong'an Mountain.

Tang Erhu and other scouts who went out stood respectfully in front of Du Fu and others, listening to the whispers of these leading generals.

"No warning..."

"Maybe we acted too quickly and Shangjing hasn't reacted yet."

"No, it's impossible. It's been a long time since we captured Changchun Prefecture. Even if we were slow to react, we should have cleared the countryside. Why are there still civilians walking around outside?"

"Could it be a trap?"

The sunlight shone through the gaps between the leaves onto Du Fu's face. The mottled light and shadow made him look a little uncertain. The grown-up man thought for a while and waved his hand, "Stop arguing."

The voices fell silent, and Yuan Lang, Wanyan Loushi, and Sun An fell silent instantly.

"Looking at what happened in Changchun Prefecture and Ning Prefecture, the Liao officials have asked Linhuang Prefecture for help, but for some reason, there has been no response." Du Fu slapped the tree trunk hard with his whip hand: "Since the Liao people don't care about it, then the reaction of Linhuang Prefecture is probably not fake."

He glanced at the faces of the generals: "This is an opportunity!"

Sun An, Ma Ling and others looked excited.

As the figure moved, Du Fu's voice rang out in the forest: "Order, gather the troops and charge directly to Linhuang Prefecture. Hold the spears in your mouth, remove the bells from the horses, and lower the flags to give the Liao emperor a surprise!"

Orders were passed down one after another, and thousands of figures around began to move, gathering towards the erected flags. Only the rustling sound of footsteps could be heard.

The whistling arrows made a sharp sound in the air, and the raised flags were instantly taken down. The soldiers and horses, led by the generals, swarmed forward. To the north of Linhuang Prefecture, at the foot of Yong'an Mountain, the army with the most victories in the world was sweeping towards the south like an inky tide.

The city over there is like a sand castle in stagnant water, and the years are still peaceful.

……

The light from the sky falls on the roof tiles.

Yelu Tabuye, the governor of Shangjing, was over 40 years old and had a shaved head with only a circle of hair left from the ears to the back of his head. When someone informed him that Xiao Yu was coming, he was talking about the affairs in the city with Lu Yanlun, the palace guard in charge of the Linhuang troops.

"...Xiao Yu? He can actually come back?" Tabuye looked up at Lu Yanlun in surprise. Seeing that the Han palace guard's face also changed, he waved his hand and said, "Let him in quickly."

Xiao Yu, who had been waiting for a long time, was informed and was helped into the door by the guards outside. The two people who were not very clear about the battle ahead looked at his embarrassed appearance and stood up in shock: "Why does the prince consort look like this? Did the commander-in-chief lose?"

"You don't know?" Xiao Yu slightly widened his eyes, and his weak body suddenly stood up as if he had the strength.

Yelu Tabuye and Lu Yanlun looked at each other, then looked at him in panic: "What should I know?"

The dishevelled figure swayed, and Xiao Yu, enduring hunger, looked at the two and spoke quickly: "The army was defeated a few days ago. The Qi army has already conquered Huizhou, Longhuazhou, Yongzhou, and is now heading straight for Shangjing. Didn't you know? Didn't the Privy Council receive the Marshal's request for help?"

"Where did this request for help come from? The Privy Council is calm and there is no news at all." Yelu Tabuye couldn't help but take a step forward, bumping into the corner of the table with a bang. His face twitched, and he covered his waist and asked, "Are you serious?"

"Why would I lie to you!" Xiao Yu couldn't help but frowning, and took a step forward, but he was too weak and his knees went soft and he was about to kneel on the ground. Lu Yanlun reacted quickly, stepped forward and grabbed him, and immediately felt a sour smell rushing into his nose.

"Right Guard General Li Ji, Northwest Route Recruiting General Si Qiong Yao Nayan, and Consort Taizhen were all killed in the battle. Marshal Yelu is nowhere to be found. Grand Tutor Xiao Gan and Yelu Xiangwen also retreated and no one knows where they went. The front military prefectures all knew about these things, so after the battle, they all opened the city gates and surrendered to the Qi army. How come there was no news of this in the capital?"

Taking a deep breath, Xiao Yu spoke as if remembering something: "Where's His Majesty?"

Yelu Tabuye and Lu Yanlun's eyes twitched, and the latter said softly: "We are still in the hunting ground."

“…It’s time to wait.”

Lu Yanlun pretended not to hear and felt that Xiao Yu was not able to stand steadily, so he simply helped him to sit down aside. Seeing how weak he looked, Yelu Tabuye ordered someone to bring some food and drinks.

"Let's not discuss this matter anymore. The Privy Council is now controlled by Xiao Deli. This guy... is really a disaster for the country and the people." He said, looking at Lu Yanlun: "Lu Dianzhi, please gather the troops and quickly deploy defenses at the South Gate. I will send someone to notify His Majesty immediately."

Lu Yanlun nodded: "I will mobilize the troops right away."

He turned around and left the Liaison Office, leaving Xiao Yu and Yelu Tabuye in the house with uncertain expressions.

I can always have a meal today...

A certain prince consort thought.

……

The soaring eagle spread its wings and flew across the blue sky, uttering an eagle cry.

The soldier who had raised his head withdrew his gaze and looked out of the city in boredom. The scenery that remained unchanged every day seemed very...

The thoughts in his mind stopped, and a black line appeared in the distance. The soldier tried to lean forward, and a figure riding a war horse jumped into his sight.

"Where are the troops from?" (End of this chapter)