Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

As the sky darkened, torches were lit, and the winding flames formed a fire dragon that flickered in the night wind, casting blurry shadows on the river.

People shouted and horses neighed, and the water made a sound of crashing into objects under the feet of the army.

The warhorse slowed down, stepped onto land at the knight's command, and then trotted carrying its master to the corresponding general's flag.

The troops were crossing the river and gathering. Thanks to the fact that Enhua City had been captured by Wanyan Loushi, a pontoon bridge was first built here to connect the two sides of the river, so that the more than 7,000 cavalrymen from the central army would not have to suffer the pain of crossing the river.

Several torches were lit all around, and the tall "Lu" flag was clearly visible in the firelight.

Red Hare was breathing out hot air, and its four hooves were lightly stepping on the ground. It would occasionally shake its head and snort loudly, obviously feeling refreshed from the long run. The wind was now making it feel quite cool, so it was in a good mood.

The sound of horse hooves was heard ahead, and several knights from the Left Guard came over with a few cavalrymen dressed as scouts.

The soldier in leather armor was an excellent rider. He jumped off his horse while holding onto it, knelt on one knee, clasped his fists, and spoke in Chinese with a slight Jurchen accent: "Your Majesty, I am a scout under General Pingdong. I have been ordered to report the military situation in the front. The Liao army has built a large camp thirty miles north of Dading Prefecture and seems to be setting up camp there. Wanyan Pingdong has already led his troops to attack the camp."

As he spoke, he took out a bamboo tube and handed it over. Xu Wen, who had abandoned his own troops and horses to be led by Su Yi and came alone to protect Lu Bu, hurried forward to take it, checked it and handed it to Lu Bu on the back of Red Hare. The majestic figure took the intelligence and looked at the Jurchen scout.

"When did it happen?"

"Today after noon."

"Go and rest aside first, and then you can guide the army."

Lu Bu nodded and waved his arm. The knight quickly saluted and walked aside, taking out some water and rations to replenish his strength.

He lowered his head to pour the document out of the bamboo tube, read it carefully twice, and then ordered to the side: "Tell the cavalry behind to cross the river quickly, and then tell Xi Sheng to lead the infantry to rush over."

He casually passed the paper aside.

Xu Wen stepped forward to take over the intelligence he had read, took out a fire stick and asked, "Your Majesty, does Wanyan Pingdong need any support?"

"No need." Lu Bu looked at the paper recording the military situation and said, "Wanyan Loushi is a good fighter. Since he dared to attack the Liao army camp, he must be confident. I believe he will not make any mistakes."

After a pause, he continued, "I just don't know how the Liao army's main camp is built. If it's bad, we can attack two more camps."

Xu Wen grinned and said with some longing: "I wonder if I will have the chance to lead the cavalry to attack the enemy camp."

"You bastard..." Lu Bu glared at him and couldn't help laughing: "Are you trying to get information from me here?"

"hey-hey……"

Xu Wen rubbed his hands, smiled obsequiously, and said nothing.

"Do your job honestly!" He drew out the sword from his waist and struck Xu Wen's shoulder armor with the sword and sheath. "If you have the ability, you can lead the army independently. Lead the Right Guard for me first."

"Here."

Xu Wen bowed his head seriously and saluted.

Under the cover of night, the cavalry gathered together under the light of the fire, and their black armor reflected the light, showing a hint of orange.

Before long, the order to continue marching was given, and the dragon-serpent formed by torches continued to move southward. The tranquility of the night was shattered by the sound of galloping war horses. The birds and beasts that should have appeared in the night disappeared, and even the pitch-black woods on both sides lost their terrifying appearance at this time, revealing the harmless trees.

Midnight.

The moonlight emitted a cool glow on the treetops. The Baiye Forest was as quiet as usual. The war horses formed circles. The Jurchen soldiers wrapped in felt slept in the circles without taking off their armor. There were night watchmen holding bows and arrows and moving stealthily in the forest.

At a certain moment, the sleeping figure suddenly sat up, glanced around, and lay on the ground listening for a while, then quickly stood up: "Something's going on."

"What happened to the girl?" Wulindatai wanted to turn over, picked up the iron knife and sat up.

"There is the sound of a large number of war horses."

General Mingyi listened with bated breath for a few seconds after receiving the reminder, then stood up suddenly and asked, "Where's the scout?"

As the words fell, more and more people woke up. The sound of horse hooves could be heard outside Bai Ye Lin. The galloping knight looked around and jumped off his horse at Wanyan Loushi in the middle. "General, His Majesty is coming from the north with cavalry."

"Let's go!" Wanyan Loushi raised his eyebrows, and his sleepiness flew away immediately: "Hurry up and go to welcome His Majesty."

He immediately mounted his horse together with his son, Wanyan Zonghan and Wulindataiyu, and galloped away with more than a hundred cavalrymen following the scouts.

The little lights of fire gradually got closer and bigger in the darkness. Figures in black armor could be seen vaguely in the flickering light. War horses came panting over. The stench of livestock sweat mixed with human breath, making the air nearby not so pleasant.

"You lead the incoming troops into the forest."

Wanyan Loushi gave orders to his subordinates, and then went against the direction of the troops' advance with a few generals. He first saw Feng Tai, who was the vanguard, and greeted him before continuing to gallop towards the big flag with the word "Lu" on it.

Soon he arrived at the center of the army. Seeing the figure on Red Hare, he quickly threw off the stirrup, approached and saluted with his fists: "I pay my respects to your majesty."

"There's no need for so much formality when marching and fighting." Lu Bu waved his hand on his horse and looked at the generals in the light of the fire: "From the looks of it, you guys...the raid on the camp went very smoothly."

Wanyan Zonghan stood up straight and smiled when he heard this: "The Liao dogs have become weak and there is no need to be afraid of them."

The soldiers on both sides continued to move forward, and Lu Bu urged the horses: "Get on the horses first, and go to your side to rest for a while."

The three generals Xu Wen, Yu Cheng and Wei He followed behind Red Hare, scanning the darkness around them. It was difficult to see far in the night environment, which always made people feel uneasy.

"Your Majesty, please come this way."

Wanyan Loushi and his men turned around and mounted their horses, urging them to walk on the side. As they rode, Wanyan Zonghan laughed, "Your Majesty, why did you come here in person? Although the terrain of Zhongjing is flat, it is still hard work."

"You may have forgotten that I am also a warrior, and marching and fighting are common to me."

Amid the flattery of several people around him, Lu Bu spoke casually on his horse and glanced at Bai Yelin: "Did the Liao spies not find this place?"

"Your Majesty, we haven't found any enemy scouts within five miles." Wanyan Huo Nu leaned over and replied, "I have been leading the scouts from the south and have fought many battles with the Liao army's scouts. I can be sure that they are not close to this place."

"In that case, this place is safe." Lu Bu nodded on his horse and glanced at the four generals: "You went to rob the camp once, but did you find out why the Liao army set up camp near Dading Prefecture?"

"This... uh..."

Wanyan Zonghan spoke quickly. After saying two words, he saw the emperor looking at him and suddenly became nervous. He looked at Wanyan Loushi and then at Wulinda Taiyu. Seeing that they showed no sign of speaking, he continued, "I think the Liao dog is in a dilemma now. Perhaps when they sent out their troops, they intended to go north for a decisive battle. However, I see that the morale of their army is not high. The generals and soldiers have no fighting spirit and will collapse if they are touched.

If we return to Dading Prefecture at this time, the already low morale will be completely destroyed. Not to mention how many people will desert, it would not be surprising if there is a mutiny."

In the dark night, Red Hare snorted loudly. Lu Bu reached out and stroked its mane, his tiger eyes narrowed slightly: "You are right. In my opinion, I am afraid that the enemy's commander is not qualified to lead so many people."

After a pause, the corners of his mouth curled up: "Not everyone can be like the Marquis of Huaiyin."

The generals around him who were listening to his words nodded.

Wanyan Huonu and Wulin Datai wanted to look at each other, and noticed the confusion in each other's eyes. After looking at each other for a few breaths, the latter winked at him and glanced at his father.

Wanyan Huonu shook her head slightly, but she couldn't bear the pleading look in the other person's eyes, so she leaned closer to Wanyan Loushi and whispered, "Dad, who is the Marquis of Huaiyin?" Wanyan Loushi first glared at him fiercely, then looked at Lu Bu who was thinking about something on his horse, and said softly, "I told you to read more Han books, but what did you read?"

"I just forgot about it for a moment..."

"Early Han Dynasty, Han Xin." After saying these four words, Wanyan Loushi closed his mouth and didn't want to say another word. He pursed his lips a few times and finally couldn't help but said, "After the war, copy the Book of Han and give it to me."

Wanyan Huonu's eyes widened immediately. She wanted to say no, but couldn't stand her father's sharp gaze, so she could only nod frustratedly. She turned her head and looked at Wulindataiyu with resentment. The latter turned his head away, pretending not to meet his gaze, which made the young Jurchen general very angry.

The sound of horse hooves was crisp as they stepped on the mud and weeds as they entered the Baiye forest. The forest was noisy for a moment, then quieted down with the military order of "Dismount and rest."

Lu Bu looked up at the moon that was shifting in direction, stretched out his hand to wrap around his scarlet cloak, and looked at the soldiers around him: "Everyone, take a rest, get enough energy, and go to greet the Liao army tomorrow."

The people around laughed softly, then formed a circle around the horses and went to sleep in the middle. Soon, snoring sounds could be heard in the area.

Early summer.

This was the first large-scale rapid march by the Qi army since entering Zhongjing Road. The separation of the cavalry and infantry enabled the army to reach the vicinity of Dading Prefecture at the fastest speed.

However, for the Liao army, the failure of the scout confrontation and the perfunctory war preparations of the soldiers meant that Xia Mo did not obtain enough intelligence. They were just thankful that they had not yet encountered the Qi army moving south. They continued to reinforce the military camp and sent more cavalry back to Dading Prefecture to urge them to transport some defensive equipment.

Then, the information from Zhongjing Prefecture was delivered in the early morning along with the returning cavalry.

“…ran away?!”

Xia Mo stood up, staring with eyes wide open, still unable to believe it. She quickly walked over to the cavalry and grabbed the man opposite by the shoulder: "Are you kidding me? How could the guard run away without fighting a single battle? Was he on business outside the palace and you didn't meet him?"

"My lord, they really ran away..." The cavalryman smiled bitterly, "The city gate guard told me that they left yesterday at noon with 500 soldiers as guards and 23 carriages."

"Damn it..." Xia Mo let go of his hand with a dark face and slammed the table hard.

bang——

Xia Mo clenched the hand that was touching the table, took a breath and looked at the soldiers.

"Have the city defense equipment been transported out?"

"It's being loaded. By the time I leave the city, more than half of it will have been loaded. It will be shipped out of the city before noon and will arrive at the army tomorrow at the latest."

"Okay, you did a great job, you go down first."

The soldier quickly bowed and retreated.

"This cowardly bastard!"

Her cheek twitched, and Xia Mo covered her left face with one hand. She paced back and forth in annoyance, muttering to herself: "This bastard wanted to run away earlier, but I stopped him. I thought he would wait until I and the Qi army fought a decisive battle before making a decision, but this birdman actually ran away without caring..."

He glanced at the items on the table, walked over irritably, and pushed them to the ground with a sigh.

Bang-bang——

Dang clang——

The chaotic noises attracted several Xi guards to look, and when they saw that their king was losing his temper, they immediately shrank their necks.

They heard a few more sounds of things breaking in the big tent, looked at each other, and then shrugged their shoulders. They had been Xia Mo's personal guards for several years and knew that their king needed to vent. At worst, they would just go in and clean up the mess later.

Soldiers were walking back and forth in the military camp, the voices of patrolling soldiers shouting to maintain order could be faintly heard, the sound of things being smashed in the big tent faded, and the sound of the Golden Bell alarm in the distance became clearer.

"What's going on? Why is there a warning sound?"

As soon as the sounds of smashing and throwing things stopped, Xia Mo strode out of the tent. His half-swollen face looked a little funny, but no one who was watching dared to laugh out loud.

Squinting his eyes to look at the direction where the golden bell rang, Xia Mo's face was full of ferocity as he spoke: "Blow the horn, and send troops to aid the left camp."

He took two steps into the tent and said, "Put on my armor!"

……

Flags with images of ferocious beasts were held high in the sky, and cavalrymen roared into people's field of vision.

The earth made a rumbling sound, and the galloping horses' hooves swirled up the black soil and grass on the ground. The figures of horses of various colors carrying black armor on their bodies were like rolling waves, sweeping everything away, and circling the camp.

The soldiers in black armor kept drawing their bows at an angle. Arrows spun and fell with a "swoosh" sound, and pierced into the wooden fences, watchtowers, and shields. A series of "dong dong" sounds made the soldiers of the Liao army lower their heads, and they just held their shields mechanically. Occasionally, screams were heard, and the fallen figures were wailing.

"Speed ​​up, detour——"

Feng Tai roared, looked at the camp full of barricades and gave up the idea of ​​charging. He turned his gaze to a farther direction and commanded the thousand cavalrymen behind him to gallop to the side.

Further north, Lü Bu, riding on the back of Red Hare, stopped on a dirt slope and carefully watched the reaction of the Liao army camp. He frowned and said, "Order the generals of each army to lead the cavalry to circle the camp repeatedly and shoot all the arrows in their hands. Xu Wen!"

The young man who was following Lu Bu instinctively clasped his fists on his horse and said, "I am here!"

"You go and lead a thousand wolf riders to attack together with other tribes. Tell Du Fu and Wanyan Loushi to run for me and run as far as possible."

The general over there responded with his scarlet cape fluttering in the air, and his big hands holding the reins trembled: "I want to see if you can still keep your composure now that the door is blocked."

Wuwuwu——

The sound of trumpets rang out rhythmically in the air, and generals wearing armor of various colors led their cavalry in several teams and ran towards the Liao army camp over there. Arrows fell into the pit like raindrops, and each arrow caused a burst of panic in the Liao army camp.

Many Liao army soldiers who still had some blood in their veins roared angrily, went to the defending generals and wanted to kill them, but were then scolded back.

"Everyone stay in the camp, don't rush out at will!"

"Ring the golden bell to sound the alarm and wait for the king's instructions!"

Commands were issued one after another from the commanders of each camp. Golden bells rang everywhere as the Qi cavalry surged. Xia Mo, who was wearing armor and riding on a war horse, subconsciously reined in the running horse.

I looked around in confusion, not knowing where to go first.

"Why are you all warning me... Why don't you just beat me up?"

……

At the same time, southwest of Dading Prefecture.

Han Shizhong sighed helplessly at the river in front of him, turned around to look at the expressions on the soldiers' faces, and waved his arms: "What are you standing there for? Cross the river——"

More than a thousand cavalrymen took off their shoes and skirts, and slowly crossed to the other side of the flowing river. (End of this chapter)