The First Great Ancestor of the Five Dynasties

Chapter 166 The flood washed the Dragon King Temple

Twenty miles southwest of Puzhou City, there is a small town near Chaoyi County.

In the past year, Li Shouzhen ordered the forced conscription of young men and women into the army as laborers. Most of the men of working age in the town were taken away. The women, children, old and weak who were left behind either died or escaped. The originally peaceful and prosperous town quickly became dilapidated and decayed. Became lifeless.

The town was originally a military garrison, serving as a garrison to the southwest of Puzhou City, guarding the only place where the land route from Huazhou to Puzhou passed.

There has been no war for many years, and the town's role as a military garrison has gradually been abandoned.

After Li Shouzhen's rebellion, he believed that all areas from Huazhou to Chang'an were guarded by his confidant Zhao Siwan. The main threats he faced came from outside Tongguan in the east, and he did not care about an abandoned town at all.

Half a month ago, Zhu Xiu and Zhao Kuangyin came to the town and disguised themselves as ordinary people, leaving dozens of people by their side, and the rest were divided into more than a dozen small troops, scattered in the nearby mountains and forests to hide.

In a private house, Zhu Xiu moved the bed board into the earthen courtyard, lay down on his back, covered his face with a cattail leaf fan, exposed his clothes, and enjoyed the warm spring sun.

It was still a cold spring when we left Huazhou. It has only been a few days, but the winter cold has completely subsided, the temperature has quickly warmed up, and it even feels a bit hot under the spring sun.

The tranquility of the afternoon made people drowsy. Zhu Xiu wanted to take a nap, but as soon as he closed his eyes, there were muffled thunderous snores in the room.

Zhu Xiu covered her ears tightly in pain. Shi Xiangwen's loud snoring was really terrifying.

What's even more terrible is that this guy can fall asleep as long as he lies down. Regardless of time and place, he can fall asleep whenever he wants. If he is not woken up, he can sleep for three to five days in a row.

Zhu Xiu was very envious of this.

Shi Xiangwen slept soundly, but it hurt the people who lived with him.

If it weren't for the fact that the town is adjacent to Puzhou City, and rebels often pass by recently, Zhu Xiu would have moved out to live alone, and there would be no need to squeeze in with Shi Xiangwen and Zhao Kuangyin.

The courtyard door was pushed open with a creak and quickly closed again.

Zhao Kuangyin took off his waist knife, moved a maza and sat next to Zhu Xiu.

Zhao Kuangyin glanced into the room and said: "The imperial army has crossed Pujin Bridge, breached Pujin Pass, and set up Hexi Dazhai on the west bank of the Yellow River in the north of Puzhou City."

Zhu Xiu moved the cattail leaf fan, squinted his eyes under the sunlight, and said with a smile: "Let me guess, but Guo Shuai personally led his troops to attack Pujin Pass?"

Zhao Kuangyin nodded and said: "That's right! Guo Shuai secretly sent Liu Ci, the commander of the national army, to detour to Shangzhou to attack Wuguan. Li Shouzhen divided his troops and refused. Guo Shuai mobilized the army and pretended to attack Tongguan, but secretly attacked Tongguan from Fengling Ferry. Went to the north bank camp and switched defenses with Bai Wenke and others. Guo Shuai personally led the Tianxiong Army and the north bank troops to forcefully cross the Pujin Bridge, catching Li Shouzhen off guard!"

"Guo Shuai is as brave as before!" Zhu Xiu exclaimed, "How is the situation in Tongguan?"

"The imperial army broke through the Pujin defense line, Li Shouzhen was in chaos, and Wuguan was also captured by Liu Ci. They were detouring to the west of Tongguan, forming a two-sided encirclement, cutting off the connection between Tongguan and Puzhou City.

Li Shouzhen lost Pujin Pass and Yongfeng Warehouse, so he could only defend Puzhou City, which lasted for a year or half a year, and the city ran out of food, and the city would collapse without attack. "

Zhao Kuangyin shook his head and sighed: "As expected, Li Shouzhen seems to be powerful, but in fact he has no chance of winning. Guo Shuai uses his troops like a god. If he doesn't move, he will be defeated, but if he moves, he will be thunderous!"

Zhu Xiu stretched his waist, put his hands on the back of his head, crossed his legs and said, "There are three main reasons for Li Shouzhen's defeat: first, the Hezhong Army won first and then lost. Li Shouzhen was arrogant and arrogant and underestimated the enemy; second, he relied too much on Zhao Siwan. and Wang Jingchong, once the two towns were shaken, the alliance of the three towns collapsed instantly. Thirdly, Li Shouzhen's rebellion was unpopular. Although his qualifications were high, he was unpopular, and it was difficult to convince the public with power alone."

Zhao Kuangyin nodded silently, seeming to feel something.

"But at present, Li Shouzhen is not without a chance. Puzhou City is tall and solid and difficult to conquer. It is not advisable to attack blindly. It will only increase casualties. If Li Shouzhen can hold the city and defend himself for a year and a half, the imperial army will be defeated. Contained in the river, Shu Jun and Tang Jun will not let go of the opportunity.

Once the two countries attack, the imperial court will be unable to do anything, and Guo Shuai will inevitably have to return to fight back the enemy. Li Shouzhen will have a turning point. He can break through to Chang'an, or leave Sanguan to defect to the puppet Shu Mengchang." Zhu Xiu shook his cattail leaf fan and smiled.

Zhao Kuangyin frowned: "I hope Guo Shuai can figure out a way to break the city and capture the thieves as soon as possible. When we were in Qizhou, the Shu army had already tentatively attacked Sanguan. If the delay continues, Meng Chang will definitely send a large army to attack."

Zhu Xiu turned over and said lazily: "Brother Zhao, don't worry. The sky won't fall. Even if it does, there will still be tall people holding it up. Small people like us can enjoy the shade under big trees, so we don't need to worry too much." many."

However, Zhao Kuangyin said seriously: "My dear brother, what you said is wrong! There is a saying that 'sacrifice one's life to go to the national disaster, and regard death as a return home'. A man was born in troubled times, and he should report to the emperor and bring peace to the people. Now that the orthodoxy of the Central Plains has been established, the hypocrisy Shu and the Puppet Tang Dynasty are still separated from each other. It is the time when our soldiers are serving their lives. How can we be lazy?

The wise brother is a hermit and a high disciple, who is idle and carefree by nature, but since he has joined the world, he should not play and tease the court in his words, but should still be in awe.It is taboo to say that the sky is falling or something like that and should not be said again in the future. "

Zhu Xiu sat up, cupped his hands and said, "Brother Zhao is right in teaching me. It's my younger brother who said something. What I mean is that Li Shouzhen shouldn't be able to hold on for too long. I heard that the Lord of Tang Dynasty, Li Jing, is currently at war with the Qian family of Wuyue. It is unlikely that we will take the initiative to fight against our country. The pseudo-Shu Mengchang may take the opportunity to invade, but as long as we guard Sanguan, it will not be a big deal."

Zhao Kuangyin smiled and said: "Your analysis makes sense. It's just that I always feel that your words are dissatisfied with the current officials and the court, and there is no sense of awe in your heart, so I remind you. It has been more than 40 years since the end of the Tang Dynasty. The world is exhausted, and people feel at ease. , in my opinion, it is time to set things right and return to unity.

In the future, you and I will both serve the imperial court, and we must not ruin our great future because of a small sin in words.I know that you had some conflicts with the officials when you were in Cangzhou, but you should not always harbor resentment because of this, so as not to cause trouble in the future. "

"Thank you, Brother Zhao, for reminding me. I will remember it." Zhu Xiu thanked him with a smile.

Zhao Da's words were sincere and he really thought about him. Zhu Xiu was still a little touched.

Zhu Xiureo said meaningfully: "Brother Zhao, in your opinion, can Liu Han Jiangshan really change the fate of the short-lived dynasty in the past and unify the nine states? Is the emperor of the Liu family really the master of that destiny?"

"This..." Zhao Kuangyin was stunned, not knowing how to answer, and fell silent.

After a while, Zhao Kuangyin smiled bitterly and said: "My wise brother asked this, but my foolish brother really didn't know how to answer. It can only be said that although there are no outstanding officials in today's government, they are at least adults and will not be manipulated by others. There are four major patrons in the court. We have important ministers, and there are mainstays like Guo Shuai, Gao Shuai, and Fu Shuai in the army. As long as the officials work diligently and love the people, and do not make mistakes or make big mistakes, the country will become increasingly stable."

Zhu Xiu grinned, shook his cattail leaf fan and said leisurely: "My little brother has the same idea."

As a senior government official, Zhao Da's views and ideas are very representative.

It represents the general perception of a group of noble and heroic officials.

The country in the Central Plains has been in chaos for too long, and too many people have died. Not only the people are suffering, but the officials and nobles are also suffering. Everyone's life is like a piece of grass.

Everyone longs for the coming of rule.

It's a pity that the person who becomes the emperor is still Liu Chengyou, a vicious and crazy guy at heart.

Zhu Xiu looked at Zhao Kuangyin and saw his shining eyes full of expectations for the new dynasty.

For 22-year-old Zhao Kuangyin, the young Liu Han Dynasty is as full of vitality and unlimited possibilities as him.

He is a rising star in the army after the new imperial court's distinguished achievements.

He has an ambition to join the army to serve the country and immediately gain fame and wealth.

The Zhao Kuangyin in front of him, like many aspiring young people, hopes that in many years, he can become a pillar minister of the court and realize the highest ideal of life of serving the emperor and managing all the people.

Zhao Kuangyin was stared at by Zhu Xiu's shining eyes for a long time. He raised his palm and waved it in front of his eyes: "Xiandi? Xiandi? Why are you so distracted?"

Zhu Xiu came to his senses and made a fuss.

The courtyard door opened a small gap, and a figure flashed in, walked quickly to Zhu Xiu, and whispered: "Qi Shao Langjun, a team has entered the town, about twenty people, looking for a place to stay."

"What's the matter?"

"They claimed to be a group of cloth traders. They were originally going from Huazhou to Sangquan to sell cloth. However, the ferry was blocked and they had to wait."

Zhu Xiu frowned, thought for a while and said, "Is there anything strange?" "These people are all tall men with sharp eyes, carry weapons with them, and are very organized in their movement, unlike ordinary people."

Zhu Xiu and Zhao Kuangyin looked at each other in surprise, and immediately stood up and said: "Tell our people to be more vigilant, to coordinate secretly, and to obey my orders."

The sergeant responded and left in a hurry.

"Let's go over and take a look." Immediately, Zhu Xiu woke up Shi Xiangwen, and the three of them left the Tuyuan.

In the center of the town, only one wine shop was still open for business. When Zhu Xiu and the others arrived, the only four square tables under the wine shop's tarp were already full.

Several mule carts were tied up outside the wine shop, loaded with boxes and bundles of coarse cloth.

There were several men carrying knives patrolling around the outside of the wine shop. When they saw Zhu Xiu and others arriving, they became visibly nervous and secretly increased their vigilance.

Zhu Xiu and Zhao Kuangyin exchanged glances. This group of people had unusual backgrounds and were not cloth traders at all.

There were only two people sitting at one of the tables. One was a dark-faced young man in his 20s, with a thunderous voice, a strong back, and a rough appearance. His rough voice could be heard from a distance.

The other man was in his 30s, with handsome appearance and calm demeanor. Although he was dressed in a burlap robe, he could not hide his nobility.

Zhu Xiu glanced at them and smiled secretly in his heart. These people's acting skills were really poor, so they could only deceive the villagers who had never seen the world.

"Be careful! These people are all warriors with extraordinary skills! Especially the two sitting alone!"

Zhao Kuangyin tightened his grip on the handle of the knife and reminded in a very low voice.

Seeing him staring closely at the swarthy young man, Zhu Xiu whispered, "Brother Zhao knows this person?"

Zhao Kuangyin shook his head slightly and whispered: "Some of them look familiar, but I can't remember where I've seen him before."

People in the wine shop also saw Zhu Xiu and the others standing outside. The handsome man frowned and secretly gestured to warn his men.

The black-faced young man glanced at us and said indifferently: "Boss Fu, don't be nervous. No one in this stupid place will know us."

The handsome man whispered: "These people don't seem to be ordinary people here, so be careful."

The black-faced young man glanced at Shi Xiangwen with his peripheral vision and sneered: "What a big guy! But it must be useless. I, the Black King, can handle it with three punches and two kicks."

The handsome man smiled helplessly, shook his head and said nothing.

These two people were Li Chongjin and Fu Zhaoxin who were disguised and wanted to sneak into Puzhou City to find out the whereabouts of Fu Jinzhan.

The two groups of people inside and outside the restaurant were staring at each other, wary of each other. Shi Xiangwen shook his head, patted his stomach and said in a muffled voice, "I'm hungry and I want to eat."

As he said that, Shi Xiangwen walked into the wine shop smelling the fragrance.

With a crash, the men sitting under the tarpaulin stood up and looked at him warily.

Fu Zhaoxin's eyes were deep and he signaled his men not to act rashly.

Li Chongjin looked at Shi Xiangwen with interest.

Zhu Xiu bravely stepped forward and bowed, "I'm sorry for you two brothers, can you sit at the same table together?"

"This" Fu Zhaoxin hesitated.

Li Chongjin said carelessly: "Sit down."

"Thank you!" Zhu Xiu bowed his head and pulled Shi Xiangwen to sit on the bench.

Shi Xiangwen, who was huge, sat alone on one side, while Zhu Xiu and Zhao Kuangyin sat on the other side.

The store owner came over to ask what to eat, and Zhu Xiu casually ordered a few side dishes.

Li Chongjin picked up a plate of black pickles with his chopsticks, turned his eyes to Zhao Kuangyin, and said fiercely: "Why are you, a fair-faced and big-eared man, staring at me?"

Zhao Kuangyin clasped his fists and said calmly: "I'm sorry because I look familiar to you."

Zhao Kuangyin looked away and stopped looking at him.

"Looks familiar?" Li Chongjin's expression changed slightly, and he and Fu Zhaoxin were both surprised.

Just now they said that no one would know them in such a remote place, but now someone appeared and said they looked familiar.

Could it be a spy sent by Puzhou City?
Zhu Xiu became nervous. Could this group of people be Li Shouzhen's soldiers?
The atmosphere in the wine shop suddenly became stagnant, and everyone stared.

Li Chongjin was the first to lose his composure, banged the table, pointed at Zhu Xiu and angrily yelled: "Your eyes are rolling, I don't look like a good person!"

Zhu Xiu was pouring tea, when his hands trembled, the tea spilled out and wet the table.

"Uh" Zhu Xiu was speechless. This fierce guy with a face darker than Shi Converse seemed to be deliberately stirring up trouble.

There is a bamboo forest to the west of the wine shop, and there are several sounds like birds chirping.

Zhu Xiu and Zhao Kuangyin looked at each other and were convinced that this was the secret signal from the Tiger Camp, indicating that the brothers were ready.

Li Chongjin waved his hand, and there was a clanging sound of drawing swords. The men at the other three tables surrounded Zhu Xiu and the other three, with more than a dozen bright long knives pointed at them.

Zhu Xiu sneered, and just about to signal Shi Xiangwen to take action, she heard the black-faced fierce man pointed at the bamboo forest outside the window and said maliciously: "You kid, come with me. I want to search you and ask you a few questions." "

Zhu Xiu glanced at the bamboo forest and blinked: "Where to go? Are you sure!"

"Stop talking! Let's go!" Li Chongjin's big black-haired hand twisted Zhu Xiu's arm and pulled him out of the wine shop.

Fu Zhaoxin suddenly said in a deep voice: "Just ask clearly, don't be impulsive!"

"Don't worry!" Li Chongjin laughed and dragged Zhu Xiu into the bamboo forest.

Fu Zhaoxin clasped his fists towards Zhao Kuangyin and said, "Please be patient. We are just asking some questions and will not hurt anyone's life."

Zhao Kuangyin smiled slightly: "Your Majesty, you should take care of yourself first."

Fu Zhaoxin frowned, and looked at the giant man who was devouring it.

Shi Xiangwen was fussing with a bowl of steamed buns in mutton soup. Except for Zhu Xiu, who looked up when he was dragged away, he had no other reaction.

(End of this chapter)