Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

The weather in the first month of the year was nice and there was no rain.

On the road, pedestrians heading north to escape the war were carrying packages and shouldering loads. There was an endless stream of people helping the elderly and the weak along the way. From time to time, someone raised his hand to wipe the sweat from the journey. It was extremely cold at this time, and many people had "white smoke" coming out of their heads. If they were blown by the wind, they would fall ill and it would be a waste of time.

After all, there is no village in front and no shop behind. If you get sick, it's like half of your body is buried in the ground.

At noon, people on the official road stopped to rest. Some of them sat on rocks and the ground was shaking slightly. People with good hearing heard a roar in the distance and shouted, "Something is coming. Get out of the way."

In the distance, dust rose into the sky. Dozens of carts pulled by mules and horses were running on the wide road, followed by soldiers in scarlet clothes marching quickly behind them.

"It's officers and soldiers!"

"Great! The court finally..."

"What's good? Don't let these bastards rob you. Run!"

Countless people stood up and ran towards the leafless forest beside the official road. Someone fell to the ground and screams and cries for help were heard. Everyone was busy trying to escape. Those who were looking for someone were pushed all over the place and ran back screaming, knocking over other people's burdens. The scene became chaotic in an instant.

"Hurry up--"

A young man wearing a Fan Yang hat, armor and a red battle robe kept urging the team forward. His name was Wang Xun and he was the vanguard of the Eastern Army this time. The horse he rode was a rare fine horse in the Song Dynasty.

This was a reward given to his father Wang Bing by his mother-in-law when he was ordered to go to war. The mother-in-law saw that his horse was too short, and she also got one for her son. It is said that they were all good horses captured in Western Xia. Now he is riding a war horse and keeps shouting at the convoy to move forward quickly.

"Speed ​​up, Jiangning Mansion is approaching!"

Wang Xun kicked the warhorse lightly and rose and fell with the horse. The cart pulled by mules and horses was loaded with soldiers who followed him as the vanguard this time, and the infantry following behind were the replacements. Using this method, the speed of travel increased a lot.

The war horse was galloping in the wind, and the scarlet battle robe fluttered in the wind outside the armor. He didn't even look at the panicked people on the left side of the road, but just kept on walking.

Just before sunset, the vanguard let out a long sigh of relief as he looked at the Song flag flying over Jiangning Prefecture. Fortunately, his efforts were not in vain. Jiangning Prefecture was still in his hands. In this way, the natural barrier of the Yangtze River would not be blocked, and his father's army would be less in danger of being sniped.

At that moment, the vanguard dismounted tiredly and went into the city to pay a visit to the prefect of Jiangning Prefecture. His original intention was to know how far the enemy army was from here, but he didn't know after asking around.

"Going south?!"

"Yes, the enemy army is now fiercely attacking the military prefectures around Hangzhou. An envoy from Xiuzhou said that Fang La's army is eroding the border counties of Xiuzhou. I'm afraid they will attack the prefecture government in the near future. We request reinforcements from the imperial court."

"Then we will march to Xiuzhou immediately."

Wang Xun stood up quickly, then remembered something and said, "The army will arrive soon. Please make preparations to welcome them. The old lady is also in the army, and Tan Zhongguan is on the other side, perhaps entering from Taiping Prefecture."

The prefect thanked him quickly.

Wang Xun did not delay any longer and hurried out to take his troops and the three thousand vanguard soldiers to replenish food and water, and then drove straight to Runzhou, preparing to pass through Changzhou and go to Suzhou.

The clouds in the sky changed their shapes, and from afar it looked like a scene of war and iron cavalry rushing towards you.

Early January.

Fang La's army divided its forces into several groups and attacked Qu and Wu states, while another group from Yue state attacked Ming state. Many soldiers, civilians and officials from various states fled, and many places were lost at one time.

Fang La did not stop in Hangzhou. He first ordered Deng Yuanjue to lead his followers to sweep the surrounding areas, and then ordered Fang Qifo to lead an army of 70,000 to attack Xiuzhou, intending to take control of this coastal area as well.

The torrent rolled northward. Fang Qifo, the most powerful general under Fang La, captured Chongde County, which was located at the junction of the two states, in just one day. He then divided his troops into two groups. One group of 10,000 people attacked Huzhou as a test, while the other group...

In the cold and restless air, soldiers surged and filled people's vision.

The flags fluttering in the cold wind covered the sky, and the rustling sounds exploded above people's heads.

With swords and spears waving and shouting, the rebel soldiers wearing turbans and cloth clothes swarmed towards the top of the city.

The captured battering ram smashed into the city gate, and dust flew up in the air with a loud bang.

Arrows crisscrossed in the air like locusts. As stones and battering rams were smashed down, screams rang out among the civilian-clad rebel soldiers.

The black smoke was blown high into the sky by the wind and then dispersed in the wind, swaying, turning and rising.

All the county towns in Xiuzhou were captured, but Jiaxing, which stood in front of the rebel army, remained standing.

"Hold on, hold on, hold on, and throw the stone down! No need to aim, just throw it down! Throw it! Don't stop!"

On the top of the city wall of Jiaxing, the military commander Wang Ziwu was running and shouting with a group of soldiers. In his field of vision, the bandit army outside was so powerful that it was spreading over with the momentum of ants biting an elephant to death, almost occupying all the vision outside the city.

The large flag with the word "Fang" fluttered in the wind, making it difficult to tell where the enemy's center was.

"avoid--"

While running, Wang Ziwu roared and threw himself towards the parapet on the side. His personal soldiers holding shields also fell on their backs beside him, with the shield covering him. Arrow rain fell with the sound of "swooshing".

crackling-

The hard arrow hit the ground. Wang Ziwu pushed the shield away, stood up with his back bent, and shouted: "Where are the archers? Are you waiting to die and go to a brothel? "

"Archers prepare—"

The low-ranking officers shouted loudly, and rows of archers raised their bows and arrows. With a shout, the bowstrings vibrated with a "hum", and blood splattered below.

At the foot of the city wall, a commander of the government army came running over with disheveled hair, arrows stuck in his armor, and blood still flowing from his wounds: "Commander-in-chief, we can't hold on! There are too many enemies, surrender!"

"fart!"

Wang Ziwu was furious and drew out his sword. A cold light flashed and the commander fell to the ground, twitching, covering his neck with his hands.

The Xiuzhou commander looked around and shouted, "If anyone else talks nonsense and destroys the morale of the army..." He swung his sword and a string of blood splashed on the ground: "It's this person!"

The soldiers on the city wall were startled, then they roared in unison, picked up stones and threw them down. The officers in the back who were caught in their sight shuddered and roared to command the archers to shoot arrows.

At the moment when the sun was moving westward from the highest sky, the sounds of shouting and killing on the city wall reached its peak, and countless people tried their best to defend this government seat.

Countless figures kept falling from the top of the city, covering the area below with a thick layer of color.

Just like the red glow on the clouds in the west.

On the plain, Fang Qifo, wearing a suit of black hammer armor, rode a white horse. He sighed as he watched his soldiers being beaten back several times. He looked up at the sun in the sky and waved his whip: "Sound the horn! Retreat!"

He pulled the reins and turned his horse's head. The generals around him were looking at him. The burly man opened his eyes wide and looked back at the top of the city again. He gritted his teeth and said, "Rest well tonight, and fight again tomorrow!"

The sound of the golden gongs echoed under the city. The rebel army was retreating like a swarm of ants. Many Song soldiers on the city walls watched them retreat and murmured, "... survived." The weapons in their hands loosened and they collapsed to the ground, unable to move.

Wang Ziwu was also leaning on his spear and breathing heavily on the top of the city wall. The soldiers around him could rest, but he could not. He had to mobilize the city defense materials to the wall, and also collect the arrows and stones from under the city. There were still many things to do.

……

The sun was setting in the west, and the red light shining obliquely shone on the mountains, forests, and people, making the crimson even deeper.

"Tsk..."

Crouching on a high place, looking down at the bandit army in the distance, they were densely packed all over the field. As he scanned the field, he could hardly see any gaps. Reaching out and touching his chin, the young man looked tangled: "It's not easy to deal with. There must be 50,000 of them..."

Behind him, the soldiers of the vanguard army squatted there in silence, but many of them took a breath and looked at their own vanguard officers nervously.

A deputy general came up and looked into the distance: "Vanguard, do you want to fight?"

"What are we fighting for? What are we going to use to fight?" Wang Xun squinted at him and shook his head. "There are too many enemy troops. Although they are blocked in Jiaxing, their morale from the previous victories is still there. If we go up with 3,000 people, I'm afraid we can only make a splash and let the enemy know that there are reinforcements."

The hand holding the scabbard tightened: "It's not good to alert the snake. If it retreats into the snake hole, it will be troublesome to lure it out and kill it later..."

The deputy general didn't say anything, but just looked ahead quietly, the sound of his breathing ringing in his ears. The young general in front finally grasped the scabbard tightly.

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"Order——"

Sonorous——

The sound made many people subconsciously grasp the weapons beside them, and they looked at the pioneer with dry mouths.

"Send the scouts to follow the bandits and find out where the enemy is. Send another team to notify the army in the rear to hurry into Xiuzhou. They are taking the canal and should be there by now."

Licking his dry lips, he murmured softly, "Damn, the commander here is quite capable, with so many people..."

He stood up from a half squat and looked deeply into the distance: "Hold on."

He waved his hand and began to retreat with the vanguard troops beside him.

The crimson figure quickly disappeared into the dim space.

……

The next day, we arrived at the port under the jurisdiction of the Huating Maritime Customs in Xiuzhou.

The ships were docked at the shore one after another. Many sailors, urged by their captain, hurriedly pulled the cargo onto the ship. "Hurry up! What if the thieves attack us if you are slow?" "Be careful or the thieves will come and catch you!" The roars and scoldings reached their ears, causing Li Zhu and others who had just arrived to frown.

"Brother Li..."

Zhang Shun couldn't help but look at the backbone of his group and glanced downwards. Unlike Cangzhou, there were no servants or guards here. The only two clerks had hand knives hanging from their waists, looking outside from time to time.

Assistant Li narrowed his eyes, and subconsciously stopped stroking his beard. He glanced at the dock obscurely. Mr. Jin Jian finally spoke hesitantly: "Let's go down and take a look."

Several sailors immediately lowered the wooden ladder. The clerks standing over there saw what was happening here, and they whispered a few words to each other reluctantly, and then someone walked over.

The people who got off the boat were waiting here. They couldn't help but frowning when they saw the ship clerk who brought the knife over. The man had a guarded expression on his face without any concealment, and his hand was holding the hilt of the knife. Although everyone knew that this guy probably didn't know martial arts, he just felt uncomfortable when being treated like this.

Looking at him again, with one foot in front and one foot behind, as if he was ready to turn around and run at any time, the ominous feeling in my heart became more serious.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?"

Hearing the question, Yang Lin stepped out first and handed over the official certificate he had prepared: "We are merchants from Liao, and we come here to import some goods."

"Stand!"

The clerk pointed the knife at Yang Lin, looked at the frozen man opposite him, then looked at the knife, turned the blade and pointed it upwards: "Put up the receipt. In addition, there are port entry and berthing fees of three taels per ship per day, and the ship tax is one in twenty."

"One out of twenty? Why don't you grab it?" Shi Qian immediately jumped up and said, "Other places have one out of thirty, why is it here..."

Yang Lin quickly grabbed him and signaled him to shut up. The flea on the drum looked at the clerk with dissatisfaction, shook his hands, squatted down and sulked, but his pair of thief eyes were rolling around, wondering whether he should pick up his old business and do a business that would not lose money.

"Don't be upset, this is my first time doing business and I'm not familiar with the rules."

Yang Lin stretched out his hand to grab a money bag and tried to move closer. The knife was pressed, and Jin Baozi had no choice but to put the official receipt on the knife surface, and then put the money bag on top. The clerk took it back, opened the money bag, and looked at the maritime trade official receipt. His expression eased a lot, and he muttered, "From the Liao Kingdom? It seems that there is a war over there too..."

"Excuse me."

Yang Lin took a step forward, and the clerk let out a "hmm?" and pointed his knife at him. Jin Baozi was annoyed and wanted to chop him with his knife, but he still took out a few pieces of silver from his waist with a smile on his face and showed them to him.

The man's eyes lit up, he looked around, and lowered his knife. Yang Lin then approached him, put the silver into his hand, and said, "What happened? Why is it so..."

Before he could finish his words, the clerk over there sighed, "Hey...", thought about it, and his eyes suddenly brightened.

He took the money first, then looked around and said in a low voice: "It's because of those vegetable-eating demons that are causing so much trouble. I heard they even reached Jiaxing a few days ago. You guys are just too late."

Behind Yang Lin, Li Zhu and the others looked at each other in surprise. They winked at Ma Lin, who also came forward and took out some silver and money and gave it to him cryptically: "Sir, we really don't know anything in the north. Please explain it in detail."

The clerk's nervousness was gone at this moment. He hung his knife on his waist, looked at the group of people, and said, "You have learned the Jiangning accent very well." Then he curled his lips and said, "You are also unlucky. If you had come here last year, it might have been fine, or it would have been fine later. But you came here now. I am afraid you can't buy anything, and you have to pay a lot of money."

He immediately told the news he knew, and at the end he smacked his lips: "If I didn't have old people and children to take care of, I would have abandoned this job long ago. Who would dare to stay here any longer?"

Several people pretending to be Liao merchants looked at each other and said, "I see. Thank you for your help."

The clerk nodded and said, "Since you are sensible, I advise you to leave quickly if you want to die. This is not a place to play."

"Thank you for the mission." Li Zhu bowed from behind with a faint smile on his face: "We have to support our family, so we have to do this for you."

"Alas..." The clerk shook his head: "It's not easy."

He weighed the purse in his hand, then turned and left. On his way back, he was grabbed by his companion, and the two of them were whispering to each other, mostly about money.

Li Zhu and Zhang Shun looked at each other when they saw him walking away. Yang Lin, Ma Lin, and Shi Qian also came over with solemn expressions on their faces and whispered, "Manager Li, what should we do? Jiangnan is in chaos."

Assistant Li stroked his beard and looked at Zhang Shun, then at Ma, Yang, and Shi. He spoke thoughtfully, "This does arouse my interest. If possible, let's see what Fang La can do. You know, this guy used to... hehe——"

The other people looked at each other and smiled, with Zhang Shun smiling the brightest. He was half a party involved back then, so he naturally knew what Li Zu meant.

Li Zu was the leader of their group. Zhang Shun went back to the boat and selected fifty veteran soldiers to accompany them. He then hid the weapons and armor in wooden boxes and carried them off the boat.

It was a time of chaos here, and they had enough money, so they pushed their heavy boxes out of the port in broad daylight. (End of this chapter)