I became a saint by picking up corpses in Water Margin

Chapter 369: People's hearts are shaken, disaster comes

Song Jiang suddenly raised his head, frowned and stared at Wu Yong with a suspicious look on his face, "What do you mean, military advisor?"

"Does the Grand Commandant remember that at the beginning of last year, two Jin armies attacked Yang Chang from four directions?"

"Hmm? Explain it more clearly!"

"At that time, Shi Xiu and Dai Zong were ordered to assist. Dean Dai had to frequently travel to various places to spread news, while Shi Xiu mostly stayed in Jinying as a hostage. I heard that he took the initiative to ask to stay in Wenshui and met Shi Qian there."

Wu Yong was halfway through his words when he saw Song Jiang motioning him to sit down. He reminded him seriously, "Shi Xiu told me about this matter because I took the initiative to tell him not to go to the front line, lest he meet Yang Chang's men and get embarrassed. As for Shi Qian who was on his way to scout, Shi Xiu also refused to win him over. These are all trustworthy brothers, don't make groundless assumptions!"

"What the commander said is true. I also believe in Shi Xiu's character. I just associate the many coincidences recently and think we should be on guard against them."

"Coincidence? What kind of coincidence is that?"

Song Jiang was no longer drunk at this time, and his mind was full of thoughts about the reason.

Wu Yong leaned over and said in a low voice, "He said that Yang Chang bypassed the defense zone and suddenly appeared in the South Valley, then led Wu Song and others to easily break through the camp, beheaded Qin Ming, subdued Suo Chao, and captured Yang Xiong. Only he and more than 5,000 people escaped;

Also, less than half a day after we left Shexian, Yang Chang broke into the city with only 10,000 people, and later he escaped with 5,000 people. Don’t you think it’s too much of a coincidence?”

"If that's true, then he was the only one who said that. Even the soldiers that Yang Xiong sent to report the news were now under his command. However, Shi Xiu is a man of integrity and he doesn't have much friendship with Yang Chang. He won't betray me for a thief. If he was really bewitched by Shi Qian, he shouldn't have waited until now. This doesn't make sense."

"I might have thought of a reason."

"Please try to explain it."

Song Jiang was excited when he heard this. He stood up and sat next to Wu Yong, looking like a student seeking advice.

Wu Yong stroked his beard with one hand and tapped the table with the other, muttering, "Yang Chang is already very powerful. Since he was able to assassinate the Jin army marshal, if he were to sneak into the camp of Yang Xiong and Shi Xiu, would these two brothers be able to stop him?"

"What the military advisor meant is..."

"Could it be that they were threatened by Yang Chang? They first covered Yang Chang's entry into the South Valley to join the alliance, then cooperated with the Jin army to break through the West Valley Camp, and then helped them capture She County yesterday. Otherwise, how could both places collapse at the first blow? We have fought for so many years, and there has never been a time when it was so easy?"

"hiss"

On this midsummer night, Song Jiang took a deep breath and said through gritted teeth: "If so, he should be killed!"

"Taiwei, calm down."

Wu Yong was busy waving his feather fan, fanning his elder brother, and reminded him meaningfully: "These are all my guesses. It's best not to wrongly accuse him, otherwise it will disappoint the other brothers."

"What else can I say? Yang Xiong is in the hands of Yang Chang right now, and Shi Xiu can't keep him warm to begin with. I thought he was really loyal to me, but I didn't expect he was a spy for Yang Chang."

Song Jiang was so angry that he slammed his fist on the table, and then added: "This guy harmed Qin Ming and many other brothers. He was the first to chill everyone's hearts. Go find someone to bring him here."

"Captain, be careful!"

Wu Yong saw that Song Jiang was getting angry, so he interrupted him and reminded him: "Shi Xiu is a desperate man. If he shows his true colors here, won't you and I be in trouble? Moreover, if you really misunderstand him, won't you lose a general? In the Battle of Changping, the King of Zhao was suspicious of Lian Po, so he replaced him with Zhao Kuo, which led to a great defeat. The Grand Commandant must be careful."

"You are the one who doubted and you are the one who stopped me. So what do you think we should do?"

"Half of the 10,000 soldiers at Fengyue Pass are now under the command of Shi Xiu. Directly questioning him would lead to disaster. It would be better to find an excuse to transfer him away, take away his military power, and then conduct a thorough investigation. This is the safest way. What do you think?"

"This is a very clever plan."

Song Jiang nodded happily and agreed, "It is very risky to keep Shi Xiu here until his suspicion is resolved. So I will use the excuse that the Jin army is attacking here and I am worried about the injuries of Hua Rong and others. I will send him back to Xiangzhou tomorrow to take care of them and recruit another batch of soldiers for backup."

"This is best. Once Shi Xiu leaves Fengyue Pass, we can start investigating."

"Well, I'll let Pei Xuan do it."

"It's better not to. If we let Pei Xuan investigate, wouldn't the matter be determined? We can let the Xie brothers learn from the side."

After hearing Wu Yong's reminder, Song Jiang nodded and said, "It is not convenient for me to come forward in this matter, so let the military advisor inform them on my behalf."

"It is obligatory."

"Oh, how could this happen?"

"Once the Jin army captures and kills Yang Chang, all our troubles will be gone."

It was a depressing summer night in the tent, with insects chirping outside. The two of them endured their worries and did not fall asleep until the second half of the night.

The next morning, Song Jiang called Shi Xiu to instruct him on the task, while Wu Yong led the guards to guard nearby. Once Shi Xiu found an excuse to stay, they would rush into the tent and capture him.

However, to Shi Xiu's surprise, after hearing this, he said goodbye to Song Jiang and rode away on his horse, without even returning to the camp to take over.

The successive failures in Guxi Dazhai and Shexian were due to the fact that he escaped every time, and he was too embarrassed to stay with Song Jiang.

As for the 5,000 soldiers and civilians brought back, not all of them were his own troops. As the commander-in-chief of the imperial camp, it was reasonable for Song Jiang to reorganize the camps.

As soon as Wu Yong left, he found Jie Zhen and Jie Bao and gave them instructions.

How dare the two brothers not respond? After receiving the order, they led their own soldiers and went to Shi Xiu's camp to conduct a secret investigation under the pretext of visiting the troops.

The five thousand infantry and cavalry were divided into ten camps. The two brothers separated early in the morning and visited six camps in two hours, but they did not find any problems.

While waiting for the troops to receive supplies, Jie Bao pulled Jie Zhen aside and said softly, "I thought Shi Xiu was suspicious, but I didn't expect him to be so clean. I'll let him know about this later. I wonder if he'll blame the commander."

"So what if you know?"

Jie Zhen shook his head disapprovingly and sighed, "He and Yang Xiong have a deep brotherly love and are inseparable. Now that Yang Xiong has been captured, he has written a letter to persuade him to surrender. Do you think the general will be relieved?"

"But Shi Xiu is really passionate"

"We are not in Liangshan now, and Yang Chang has become famous for no apparent reason. You have to learn to understand the general."

"Of course I understand, but..."

Jie Bao suddenly stopped talking and looked around, then lowered his voice and said, "Brother, if we are fair, our achievements over the years are far less than Shi Xiu's, and even he was treated like this. How can we compare with our aunt and uncle sister?"

"Be careful!"

Jie Zhen covered Jie Bao with his hand and warned him in a deep voice: "Be careful not to let anyone hear this. The Grand Commandant has been very kind to us. Without his support, would you and I be able to be included in the Tian Gang? How many lifetimes of hunting would it take to become a commanding officer? And be granted marriage by the emperor?"

"Of course I understand, but isn't this a time of chaos? It's always right to think long-term. We are all relatives, right? Sun Li and his family are doing well, too. Even his cousins ​​are military commanders."

"Don't let your imagination run wild. Have you forgotten about these dozens of miles of camps? Even though they are doing well now, if these 100,000 Jin troops come to attack, it will be difficult for them to survive. Don't forget that there are only 10,000 people in She County!"

"Brother, don't forget Yang Chang. I heard that his martial arts are unpredictable. Qin Ming was powerless under him. The Jin army also failed repeatedly before. If they can't defeat him this time, what will they do?"

Faced with his brother's questioning, Jie Zhen was speechless.

It's not that he hadn't thought about this, but after all, the two had betrayed Dengzhou for several years, and the relatives had no contact at all. If he went back to Yang Chang with a flattering face, he was worried that Yang Chang would not accept him, and secondly, it would make Gu Dasao angry. He had no choice but to go all the way. While Xie Zhen was thinking about how to answer, suddenly a military leader came up and reported that a Jin cavalryman had broken through the gate and knocked down two of his soldiers. He was still arrogant and intimidating when he was stopped, and now it was arousing the public's excitement.

"Is this true? You stay and continue to entertain the troops. I'll go over and take a look."

"I don't need to rush to entertain the troops. I also want to see who is so arrogant. If you can't explain why, I will skin the golden dog!"

Seeing Jie Bao's indignant face, Jie Zhen hurriedly reminded him: "You can go with them, but remember not to be impulsive. They have 100,000 Jin troops, so they are naturally very confident. Let's not cause trouble for the general."

"Oh"

"A little faster!"

Jie Zhen urged them to hurry towards the pass.

The north side of Fengyue Pass is narrow. The armies of both families were stationed in the south of the pass at this time, and Song Jiang's troops camped close to the pass, which was equivalent to cutting off the retreat of 100,000 Jin troops.

Of course, if Song Jiang dared to have evil intentions, the 100,000 Jin troops would turn around and counterattack, just like releasing water from an upside-down bottle.

Fengyue Pass is equivalent to the mouth of a bottle. A small exit will create great pressure. Once Song Jiang cannot withstand the offensive, his retreat will be blocked by the pass, becoming a stumbling block on his escape, so Wu Shi is so relieved.

When the two brothers arrived at the pass, they realized that they were messengers from the Jin Kingdom, and from the Marshal's Office of Nianhandu. No wonder they were so arrogant and spoke so domineeringly.

Some of the 3,000 soldiers led by Jie Zhen and Jie Bao have been with them since Liangshan. However, the two men who were knocked down just now are old soldiers who have followed them from Liangshan until now. Their banditry has not been completely eliminated. If they are asked to just admit defeat and endure it, it will affect their morale.

Jie Bao understood the psychology of the old soldiers, so he said under pressure that in his defense zone, no matter who passed by, they had to abide by the rules. He also used the example of Wu Shi and others entering the pass, and asked the injured soldiers about the purpose of the Jin soldiers' visit in front of them, and if they could not give a reason, they would be detained.

The Jin soldier also knew the situation and when he saw that the Xie brothers were generals and not soldiers, he immediately said that he was delivering a message for Nianhan. However, in order to vent the anger of the wounded soldier, Xie Bao kept asking about the content of the message.

The Jin soldier felt guilty and wanted to escape urgently, so he took out the military certificate he carried with him to check, but it was all written in Jurchen characters. How could Jie Bao recognize even a single word of it?
After a while of arguing, the Jin soldiers had to inform Shangjing that something big had happened, but they refused to say what it was.

Xie Zhen decided to stop while he was ahead, and immediately decided to let the Jin cavalry enter the pass, and he also rushed to tell Song Jiang.

After hearing this, Song Jiang frowned and shouted, "Why are you doing this? If Wu Shi holds on to us and leads his troops to attack us, who can stop us?"

"Forgive me, Commander. Those cavalrymen were rude and arrogant. If we do nothing after we arrive, it will be hard to explain to our brothers."

"What else do you want to say? What's the point of their dignity? As the commander of an army, you need to have a long-term vision and a big picture view!"

"I know now."

Jie Zhen responded with her head lowered like an elementary school student.

Wu Yong patted him on the shoulder and comforted him softly: "It's good to know. The commander didn't want to blame you, but 100,000 Jin troops are no small matter. Go back and understand it well. Don't do it again."

"Yes, I'll take my leave."

Seeing Jie Zhen clasping his fists and turning around, Song Jiang hurriedly approached Wu Yong and asked in a deep voice, "I haven't finished teaching him a lesson yet, why did the military advisor send him away?"

"I have a bad feeling."

"what?"

"It's a big deal to go to the capital!"

Hearing Wu Yong's reminder, Song Jiang's eyes widened, and then he swallowed his saliva and asked tentatively: "Military Advisor, do you want to say that Wu Qimai has passed away?"

"Yang Chang's words are very certain, and Nianhan sent someone to deliver the message. This is very likely."

"No way, absolutely impossible."

Song Jiang refused to admit it, waving his hands, and then turned around to question: "Even if Yang Chang was an unrivaled martial artist, even if he completed the assassination in Shangjing, how do you explain that he rushed back to Hedong before the Jin intelligence arrived? Did he fly back?"

“I just can’t figure this out, but…”

"But what? Tell me now!"

"The messenger has already rushed to the Jin camp. We can confirm whether my guess is true by the Jin army's subsequent performance."

Wu Shou held the feather fan behind his back and walked step by step to the door of the big tent.

At this moment, Song Jiang was already panicking. He hurried forward and asked, "How do we confirm this?"

"If the Jin army does not move, then this matter has nothing to do with the Jin emperor. If the Jin army suddenly withdraws its main force, it means that Wuqimai is very likely to die."

"Yes."

Song Jiang suddenly woke up and murmured, "The crown prince of Jin was killed by Yang Chang. If the emperor was also killed by Yang Chang, there would be chaos in Jin. At this time, we should focus on stabilizing the internal situation. The frontline troops will shrink their defense."

"Since ancient times, the succession of the throne has always been accompanied by blood and rain. The Jin people were even more so when the elder brother succeeded the younger brother. If Wuqimai really died, his brothers and nephews would definitely seize the throne. Wushi has so many soldiers and horses that it would be too conservative to say that they would retreat to defend themselves. They will also participate in the seizure of power."

When Wu Yong said this, Song Jiang was so frightened that he broke out in a sweat and sat down on the ground like a deflated ball.

"Captain, what's wrong with you?"

"They can't leave. What will we do if they leave?"

Song Jiang grabbed Wu Yong's arm like a helpless child.

Wu Yong squatted down and helped him up, and said softly, "Don't be nervous, Taiwei. This is just our guess. It may not be that bad. Maybe it's a good thing? For example, the Kingdom of Jin wants to confer a title on Wushi?"

"that's true"

Song Jiang's mouth corners slightly raised, and he thought to himself that I can't scare myself.

At this moment, Jie Zhen suddenly came back. He came running over, panting, and said, "Captain, Military Advisor, the Jin army camps near us are in the process of dismantling their camps and reorganizing their troops. Did I cause trouble?"

"The military advisor was right."

Seeing Song Jiang in such a state of despair, Jie Zhen's heart sank, and he quickly clasped his fists and said, "Don't worry, Commander. I will go and apologize."

"Don't get excited."

Wu Yong interrupted and tried to appease him, "It may be a normal transfer. Go and inform your people quickly. Don't act rashly. If you cause any other trouble, your apology will be useless."

"Yes, I'll go right away."

As soon as Jie Zhen left, Wu Yong comforted Song Jiang and said, "This is a God-given opportunity. Wu Shi should not give up everything. Salihe is still in Shexian. Withdrawing some troops will not affect the overall situation. Instead of guessing here, why don't we go and confirm it?"

"That makes sense, get your horses ready!"

(End of this chapter)