Shengshichun

Chapter 380: Seeking Fortune in Danger (asking for monthly ticket)
Luo Zhao walked out of the barracks with the banknotes in his pocket. When he reached a place where no one in the house could see him, he looked back, then stopped by the mound and asked the soldier who had come to report earlier, "Is the previous news confirmed to be true?"

"It's true! I saw it with my own eyes!"

Luo Zhao's face was gloomy. He looked at his feet and sighed.

Xiqi was obviously his confidant. Seeing this, he took a half step forward and said in a low voice, "General Pingxi, please go straight to the main camp. We are just a defensive post along the border. It takes half a day to get from the main camp to us. In the past, it was good enough for them to come to the main camp for inspection three or four times a year. What are you worried about, General?"

Luo Zhao looked around and said, "General Pingxi is a royal family. He is the commander-in-chief. As long as he does not leave the northwest, he has the power to dispatch troops and kill generals. Although our area is remote and not in the eyes of the masters, this is a serious crime of treason. If the news leaks out and the main camp knows about it, we won't have enough heads to chop off."

The soldier was naturally a person who valued his life, and upon hearing this, he asked, "What should we do?"

"There are only two ways. Either we capture them and bring them to the main camp, or we inform the main camp, or we just go all the way. As the saying goes, wealth and honor are sought in danger, and you can't catch a wolf without sacrificing your child. With our status, I'm afraid we won't be able to wait for a promotion even after another eight hundred years. This is our only chance."

The soldier's mind began to waver. He looked at the silk shirt on Luo Zhao's body and said, "If we choose the former, then the general's past will be revealed. And if the two inside bite back and reveal that the general has colluded with them, the camp will definitely take action against you."

"That's right." Luo Zhao sighed with his hands behind his back, "In this case, we can kill them and take their heads to the camp to claim the reward. We can at least get a promotion."

"But, but they don't look so easy to kill!" The soldier couldn't help but touch his neck.

"That's right, one of the two Big Moon men is tall and strong, holding a murderous sword with a cold moon blade that has been stained with countless blood. The other one looks gentle, but he is sinister and seems to have a series of murderous ideas in the blink of an eye. If they start killing, it's unknown who will be killed first.

"Besides, even a fool can tell that these two people can show up at this critical moment. Don't they have some preparations behind the scenes?"

The more Luo Zhao spoke, the lower his voice became, and the soldiers could no longer stand.

He looked up and said, "General, do we have no other choice?"

Luo Zhao's face was as solemn as a brick: "Yes, there is no choice. Every path we can think of is in their plan. Now, let alone killing people, even if we send people out, they will probably be under their surveillance. Even before, when I toasted them with wine, they would wait until I drank first before they drank it."

The soldier was shaking his legs: "What should we do, General?!"

"At present, Dongzi's 100,000 troops are advancing towards Dayue in an orderly manner. They are elite troops, and they have reached a deal with Lian Yang. As long as we let Lian Yang enter the gorge leading to Dayue in the back mountain and join the 100,000 troops, it will be easy for them to overthrow the current King of Dayue and restore him as king." Luo Zhao frowned and asked him, "Do you still want to treat your two sons' illnesses?"

The soldier paused. Then he nodded heavily: "Yes, of course!"

"Then what will you choose?"

The soldier thought for a moment and said, "Since there is no way to retreat, we might as well face the challenge head on. The general just said that wealth and honor are sought in danger. This opportunity is rare!"

Luo Zhao nodded, then looked at him deeply: "So we have the same idea. But it's still easy for us to just agree to it. On the other hand, we also have to ensure our own safety."

The soldier hurriedly asked, "General, what do you think we should do?"

Luo Zhao said, "Let's delay them for two days and find out their background. Otherwise, they will think we are too easy to control. Secondly, we need to contain the firepower of the imperial court. I just got a piece of news. Lian Yang said that among the three sons born to the current emperor, one son disappeared and died young, one son was executed, and the other son was not a real prince. This means that the Yang family has no one to carry on the family line. This is explosive news. In the next two days, you will find a way to spread this news to the capital!"

After hearing this, the soldier was stunned at first, then his eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but give Luo Zhao a thumbs up!
"The general is brilliant!"

Luo Zhao stretched himself and put his hands behind his back again: "Go ahead."

"okay!"

The soldiers disappeared in a flash.

……

Pei Zhan walked into the camp in the twilight.

It happened that Du Mingqian's uncle Gao Changyuan was on duty as the commander of the border defense. After meeting Pei Zhan and his men, he reported the recent military situation from all parties on the way.

"We received an urgent order from the general ten days ago, and have already arranged everything according to his instructions. All the sentries are under control, and we are just waiting for the general to arrive!"

Gao Changyuan was thirty years old and was Madam Du's youngest brother. He had made many military achievements during the attack on Dayue, rising from the lowest rank of centurion to lieutenant general. He had stayed in the northwest for thirteen or fourteen years and was familiar with the terrain everywhere. He was the one Pei Zhan had led before, and the emperor had mentioned this personally before the trip.

After he finished reporting the general situation, Pei Zhan and his party just entered the big tent.

Seeing that there were more unfamiliar faces coming in, he couldn't help but look at Pei Zhan inquiringly.

Pei Zhan pointed at Liang Zhi and Cheng Zhili and said, "You must know them. This one," he looked at Yang Yi, He Zhao and Chen Song, "is Mr. Yang, the counselor I personally invited, and his two loyal followers. Mr. Yang has been to Dayue and Dongzi and is very familiar with their royal family affairs. He is also familiar with the geography of the two states."

Gao Changyuan immediately bowed and greeted him: "That's great. We already know Dayue very well, but as for Dongzi, since the war between Dazhou and Dayue, the communication with Dongzi has been cut off. In addition, they have a new monarch, so we are even less familiar with them. We can only get information about Dongzi from passing merchants.

"Sir, you know Dongzi so well. That's really a great help!"

After saying that, he glanced at Yang Yi, who was dressed in cloth, twice without leaving a trace.

Everyone was used to this. Yang Yi returned the greeting with a bow and took out a neatly folded sheepskin map from his bosom. "This is a map of the territory of Dongzi that I drew myself based on the territory I have personally visited and the detailed descriptions of the Dongzi people. General Gao, please take a look and see if it can be used."

Gao Changyuan heard this and took the map with both hands. The sheepskin map was about an arm's length and an arm's width. When he unfolded it, a finely drawn topographic map appeared before his eyes. At first glance, the lines were evenly proportioned, and the place names were all in size. It turned out to be a map that conformed to the standard.

Gao Changyuan's eyes lit up, and he immediately placed it flat on the table, asked someone to light the oil lamp, and took a closer look. Although the Great Zhou and Dongzi had severed diplomatic relations in recent years, there were border areas between the three countries. Even if they were not familiar with the situation in Dongzi, as a border guarding army, they had to find a way to master the nearby mountains and rivers.

Gao Changyuan led the team to find the location of the border with Da Zhou. The topography was exactly the same as what they knew. The place names were also very accurate, and even many old place names that they had never heard of were written on it.

Then he looked at the border with Dayue. Ever since Pei Zhan entered Dayue, even though there were no Zhou troops stationed in Dayue, how could he not take the opportunity to go in and inspect the terrain so that he could have a clear idea of ​​the situation? Therefore, Gao Changyuan also had a good idea of ​​the border between Dongzi and Dayue.

After seeing this, his bent body couldn't help but straighten up, and the surprise in his eyes became more and more intense. He asked people to fetch all the files and documents related to the place name of Dongzi for comparison. When he raised his head, an expression of irrepressible admiration appeared on his face!
"Sir, I am sorry for being rude. Please forgive me."

Gao Changyuan bowed, which was a high etiquette for a general holding a military position.

Yang Yi held his arms with both hands: "General Gao, your words are sincere. General, guard the border and defend the country, be cautious and careful, this is the right way."

Gao Changyuan looked at Yang Yi again, nodded deeply, and said loudly: "Come here! Arrange housing for the generals immediately. Get a room for Mr. Yang near General Pei!"

Pei Zhan looked at him with a smile and took a sip of tea without saying a word.

That night the lights in the big tent stayed on until almost dawn. The next morning, Cheng Chili and Liang Zhi split up into the east and west wings and began to explore the checkpoints along the route.

Pei Zhan and Gao Changyuan discussed the battle situation based on the Dongzi map provided by Yang Yi and the Dayue map. At the same time, they sent an order to the Dayue royal court, asking the current Dayue king to stand up and cooperate with the Zhou army's border defense troops to keep an eye on the 100,000 rebels heading towards Dayue from Dongzi.

There are many mountains inside and outside the Great Wall.

The three rebel generals of Dongzi were named Jin He, Xiao Wei, and Wu Chengping. All three were members of the party of Jin Xu's stepmother, Empress Dowager Wu, and were from the Dongzi family. Wu Chengping was Empress Dowager Wu's cousin, while Jin He and Xiao Wei were both Empress Dowager Wu's sons and subordinates of Jin Xu's younger brother.

When Queen Mother Wu was alive, she used King Donglaozi to expand her power, and several families also took root in the court. Even though Queen Mother Wu lost power and died, Jin Xu succeeded to the throne, but still failed to completely eliminate the power of several major families. In recent years, Jin Xu has also been trying his best to compete with the major families.

Otherwise, during the years when Da Zhou and Da Yue were at war, Jin Xu, who had a grudge against the Duan family for killing his sister, had no reason not to intervene and join forces with Da Zhou to kill Da Yue. Nor would these families still exist and control the army more than ten years after Jin Xu came to power, and would they still choose to collude with Lian Yang, a stray dog, to this day.

When Gao Changyuan discovered from the northwest that Wu Chengping and others had led their troops to defect to Dayue, he had already contacted the King of Dayue and had been keeping them under surveillance. In order to avoid any additional casualties in advance, he had not yet launched a direct attack.

In other words, the situation in Dayue is almost under control at all times. The latest news shows that Wu Jun is circling back into Dayue in a zigzag pattern.

If they have two routes next, one leads to the Dayue Imperial City, and the other leads to the border between Dayue and Da Zhou.

Go straight into the big moon, and you will have the opportunity to quickly seize the big moon and use it as a base to attack outward.

If you choose the second route, you can defend the fortresses of the two countries, attack northward to seize the imperial power of Dayue, and go south to defend against the offensive of Da Zhou.

If the Wu army does not change its route, then it is more advantageous for them to choose the second route, after all, this is a good strategy. But the premise is that Lian Yang must cooperate with them. Because Lian Yang is the leader, if he is not there, the Wu army will not be able to control Dayue, and if a fight really breaks out, it will only be a waste of soldiers from both sides.

The main responsibility for monitoring Wu Jun was the border defense forces led by Gao Changyuan.

The main purpose of the 5,000 men led by Pei Zhan was to capture Lian Yang, and the important thing for both sides was cooperation.

While Pei Zhan and Gao Changyuan were closely deducing the movements of Wu's army, Yang Yi had already sent Chen Song to contact Jin Xu without disturbing others.

The Northwest Camp is only five or six days away from the capital of Dongzi by fast horse, but since Jin Xu took the initiative to pass the message to Yang Yi, he naturally arranged for someone to meet him at the agreed fortress, so this time can be shortened.

Pei Zhan had discussed with Yang Yi on the way here that this battle must be fought quickly and decisively.

It didn't matter if Lian Yang couldn't be found, he would show up at a critical moment. Once Wu Jun had determined the destination route, Lian Yang would show up and join them.

This is also the reason why Pei Zhan asked Gao Changyuan to just keep an eye on Wu Jun's movements and not to act rashly for the time being.

In this case, of course, you need to pretend to be "searching".

The route Liang Zhi was responsible for finding was the western route, which was also the direction of the border between the two countries where Wu Jun was estimated to be heading.

When the sun was at its highest point in the sky, Luo Zhao raised his hand to prop up the small awning and looked at the quiet and withered hills in the distance. Then he put it down, thought for a moment and asked the people around him: "Where is Liu Gui?"

"Liu Gui has been going to the post house to receive letters these days and has not returned yet."

Luo Zhao paused and turned back to the courtyard.

Tea was brewing in the room, and the steam from the tea warmed up the dry coldness unique to the northwest.

Lian Yang and Lian Yi were sitting at the side of the round table. They turned around and asked him, "How is it? Did Brother Luo get the latest news?"

Luo Zhao shook his head and sat down on the empty stool: "This place is remote and sparsely populated. If you don't take the initiative to look for it, it will be difficult for the news to reach your ears."

Lian Yang bowed slightly, and then took out a piece of paper from his bosom: "I have received news that Pei Zhan has sent Liang Zhi from the General's Mansion to lead troops to search along the western line. According to their pace, they will arrive here tomorrow at the latest.

"Brother Luo, have you not made up your mind yet?"

Luo Zhao quickly took the paper from his hand and looked at it. Then he looked up in surprise and said, "You haven't left the camp in the past few days. How did you receive this news?"

Lian Yang and Lian Yi looked at each other and raised their lips slightly: "How can I dare to go to Liangshan without San Er San? There are many things I can do to surprise you, Brother Luo. So, Brother Luo, are you willing to help me? Have you decided?"