Water Margin begins as a captain in Yanggu County

Chapter 143 I will be the vanguard! (Thanks to the leader [Mu Liu Qing Xi Yi Ye Zhou] for another reward.)
Su Wu went on the expedition and headed straight for the rear camp of Liangshan!
The march was very slow. There were 6,000 combat soldiers, with more than 3,000 left to guard the home, 3,000 auxiliary soldiers, and nearly 10,000 horses, which pulled the carts and stretched for six or seven miles.

There were six or seven hundred craftsmen and nearly a thousand apprentices. The tools were loaded on more than a dozen large carts. The craftsmen also rode in the carts while the apprentices walked on the road.

In the queue, there were rangers patrolling back and forth.

The general was in front, and some people leaned forward to look, wanting to see the general, but the carriages were like dragons, and there were thousands of people and horses. How could they see where the general was?

I heard that General Su would come to inspect from time to time. I waited and waited, but the general never showed up...

The apprentice Zhu Dalang glanced at his master sitting behind the carriage, then looked at the knight on horseback in front of him, took a few quick steps, and came behind the horse.

"Hello..." Zhu Dalang asked tentatively.

"What?" The knight turned to look at him.

Zhu Dalang immediately put on a smiling face and asked, "Where are you from, brother?"

"Yanggu." The knight seemed a little indifferent.

"I'm from Beijing, and my home is about seven or eight miles outside of Beijing..."

"Ok!"

"My surname is Zhu, and I am the eldest in my family. I have a crude name, Zhu Shitou."

"My last name is Ying, Yingtian. I'm the eighth in the big clan and the third in the small clan, so I'll just call you Sanlang."

"Third brother Ying..."

"Well, stand to the side of the horse, not behind it. The horse may kick you. You are a craftsman, so you don't have to follow the queue strictly. It's okay to stand a little further away."

"Oh, Third Brother..."

"What's the matter? Tell me."

"Third brother, what is war like?"

"What kind? Hmm..." The third brother was thinking, but he didn't know how to describe it. It seems that the third brother is not good at words. After thinking about it, he said one word: "It's killing people. Follow the team, stay close together, and kill the enemy."

"I heard that the general loves his soldiers the most and is always generous with his money..."

"That's right! I have saved more than fifty strings of cash...three heads under my account! Of course, there are also some I shared with my comrades..." When Ying San Ge said this, he felt a little complacent and proud.

"You have a great horse, so majestic!" Zhu Shitou said with some envy in his eyes.

"That is, a strong man rides on a horse and an inferior horse pulls a cart."

"Can this horse be ridden around on weekdays?"

"That won't work. The horses in the army are kept by the soldiers and are strictly guarded. But if you go home on leave, you can ask your superiors to borrow one for a few days. That's fine, but if it dies or gets injured, I can't afford the compensation... It's so precious. I didn't dare to ride it more than once after borrowing it. I just led it around..."

Although Third Brother Ying said this, he still had a very complacent look on his face. Even when he was walking on the road leading the horse, he was still the most handsome guy on the whole road.

He then asked, who among the common people had a horse?

"Ah? Is that so? What about during the war?"

"There is nothing wrong with marching and fighting. Even if there are casualties during military training, the general will not care. Just keep on galloping!"

"Oh……"

"Why? You want to join the army too?"

"I……"

"Just be a good craftsman..."

"Brother Ying looks down on people..."

"Haha... I'm not looking down on you, just wait and see. It's not easy to kill the enemy in the battlefield. After seeing this, you can decide whether to join the army. My general wants to recruit 20,000 soldiers, but there are still several hundred short of 10,000. You have a good figure and look like a good family. If you are willing to come, my general will take you..."

"I'm very brave!" Zhu Shitou still felt that he was looked down upon.

"Okay, okay, just watch and take a look!" Brother Ying San smiled and was actually very kind.

Suddenly, the leader in front of him turned around and shouted, "Stop making noise!"

Brother Ying San immediately sat up straight, put his hands behind his back, and whispered: "Go back, go back..."

Zhu Shitou quickly lowered his head, slowed down his pace, and returned to the side of the carriage.

After two or three days' march, they arrived at the place where they were cutting wood, setting up camp, and digging trenches. Both the combat soldiers, auxiliary soldiers, and craftsmen were busy.

The craftsmen were even busier. The master craftsman was directing things, the junior craftsmen were counting their tools, and the apprentices were moving things around...

It seems like a war is about to begin.

The cavalry came and went galloping, and there were even mighty generals with a hundred or so men who dared to go to the enemy's pass and draw their bows and shoot with arrows.

The enemy also fought back, and arrows rained down from the sky, but the general was not afraid at all. He just galloped back and forth, running around, laughing as he ran...

Zhu Shitou was stunned for a moment, but his master scolded him: "Why don't you work faster?"

"Oh oh..." Zhu Shitou nodded. He had several ink cartridges with elastic threads in his hand. He walked away with them, but his eyes were still on the distant pass.

The general was amazing. He actually saw him shoot several people and made them fall off the wall.

After a few rounds, the general came back and headed straight back to the camp. He was wearing a mighty iron armor, but when he lifted his iron helmet, his face looked really small...

The hundred or so men passed by in a line, and the soldiers on both sides laughed and said, "Commander Li, you are really capable!"

"Commander Li's archery skills are getting better and better!"

"Commander Li, the general will praise you again in a moment."

The young Commander Li laughed heartily: "It was the general who asked me to go, to teach the bandits a lesson... Let's see if the bandits dare to come out and fight."

"Commander Li is so powerful!"

"Hehe..." Commander Li smiled and nodded left and right.

Commander Li rode his horse back to the central army tent which had just been set up.

After a while, he came back and asked his attendants, "The general asked me to go again, haha..."

"The General really likes you!"

"Commander Li, shoot more of them down!"

Commander Li had a helpless smile on his face: "I'm afraid the thieves won't show up. They were hiding just now. If we go again this time, I'm afraid they will hide under the battlements."

"These thieves are so cowardly..."

"I'm going!" Commander Li squeezed the horse's belly and the strong horse sped away.

A group of armored cavalry, no more than a hundred men, still rumbled loudly...

Zhu Shitou's gaze never left the group of armored cavalry and the young general.

The master scolded him again: "If you can do it, do it. If you don't want to do it, just go somewhere else..."

Zhu Shitou laughed and said, "Master..."

"Alas...your parents sent you to me, but you wanted to join the army. If you join the army, how can I tell your parents?" The master sighed and shook his head, but he was not really strict.

"Master, who was that man just now? He is so young, how come he became the commander?" Zhu Shitou asked.

The master did not answer, but only lowered his head to count the tools, hammer, chisel, saw, ruler, axe and plane...

"Master..."

"Alas... that man's name is Li Cheng, he's no more than seventeen years old, he was born into a hunter family in Yanggu County, he once went tiger hunting with the general, he became a personal soldier under the general, he's an excellent archer, he's always been very brave when he goes into battle beside the general, I don't know how many heads he's killed, he was promoted for his military merits, why can't he be a commander?"

The master still answered, but he also looked up at his disciple. Seeing the longing look on the disciple's face, he shook his head and sighed.

"Master, he is really only seventeen!"

"Seventeen, seventeen. His marriage was arranged by the general. He married Dong Huan, the maidservant in the general's family. The general had only one maidservant, and he married her to the young owner of Meng Niang's store..."

The master said, and the disciple thought...

"Come back to your senses..." the master shouted, and ordered: "We are still missing a small plane, go look for it in the frame."

"Oh oh..." Zhu Shitou nodded and went towards the carriage, but his eyes were behind him, seeing the young general with a hundred or so cavalrymen stopping their horses and laughing at the foot of the pass.

Then I heard the master shout, "Have you found it?"

"Coming, coming..." He answered like that, but only then did he go to look for it in the car.

"Hurry up! There's a lot of work to do and it's urgent. If you keep dawdling like this, I'll have to take you little bastards out to beg for food!"

"Here I come..." This time he really came back with a small planer.

"Alas... If you really want to join the army, you should wait and see... It's not that easy to join the army. It's not like being a craftsman for us, where we just work. But if you join the army, you really have to put your head on the belt..."

Master, kindly said.

"Master!" Zhu Dalang looked serious.

"What?" The master was annoyed.

"The storyteller's play says that a man should be like this! I suddenly remembered this sentence, a man should be like this!"

Zhu Dalang and Zhu Shitou seemed to be really possessed.

"Ouch!" Zhu Shitou suddenly covered his head and grimaced in pain.

The master scolded: "Bring that tree here, put it on the wooden horse, remove the bark, and saw it into three-foot equal parts!"

"Ah..." Zhu Shitou ran over and carried the small tree that the auxiliary soldiers had brought on his shoulders...

But looking over there, at the pass, the young general was very arrogant, with one hand holding a bow and the other holding an arrow, and he just asked those on the pass: "Rat, rat!"

There were also people speaking at the pass, but they were not speaking loudly. They only said to those around them, "It's a pity that my brother Hua Rong is not here. If he were here, he would never have allowed him to be so rampant!"

"Song Jiang, the chief of bandits, listen to me. My general is here to take your head. Wash your neck clean and wait for my general to take it!"

The young general was even more rampant.

As soon as he finished shouting, the young general rode away. The rumbling sound gradually faded away, and many figures appeared on the pass.

Song Jiang said: "We should build a big crossbow, a crossbow! So that this brat can go there but never come back..."

Having said that, he was helpless. There were all kinds of talents in the village, but unfortunately there were no craftsmen who could make good weapons...

Just looking at the people around, they all had helpless expressions on their faces. Just now, hundreds of champions were galloping back and forth, and had exchanged several shots. They were in a dominant position, but they were actually at a disadvantage.

Wu Yong changed the subject and said, "Don't worry, brother. I think Su Wu doesn't really want to attack the camp. He just wants to provoke us to come out and fight. Just hang up the banner and ignore him."

Song Jiang nodded: "What the scholar said is reasonable. But... if he is trapped here for a long time, it will not be a good thing..."

Even if Su Wu besieged the city for a long time, how could those who escaped come back even if they got money and food?

Wu Yong also frowned, but he also came up with a plan: "Don't worry, brother. If this is true, Su Wu can't take care of everything in the 800-li watershed. Just try to return by water... just do it slowly, one truck at a time, one boat at a time..."

"If we are really helpless, this is the only way." Song Jiang nodded and answered, but he also knew that Su Wu's cavalry were not vegetarians, and the appearance of a large number of troops nearby must be detected.

Perhaps there is really only the method Wu Yong said, which is to divide it into countless pieces, one car, one car, one boat, and one boat, and transport as much as possible.

The more I think about it, the harder it is. How difficult it is...

Why is Su Wu so difficult to deal with? He is truly the reincarnation of a damned person, damn it!
Song Jiang came to ask angrily, "Why didn't he go to rescue the southeastern prefecture this time?"

"The method of besieging Wei to save Zhao, brother, if we don't fall into the trap, we will see how he explains to the court when the prefecture city is destroyed!"

Wu Yong said this with a smile, and it was this smile that made not only Song Jiang, but also the people around him feel a lot more relaxed.

……

Let’s talk about Yanggu County.

At this moment, Lin Mao and Yang Zhi from Jingyang Village were in the city, sitting in the old house of Yang Zongtie's family, both of them frowning.

Sitting right in the middle was Madam Meng.

Lin Mao said, "Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, the general kept sending letters urging us to come back, asking when we will return... Oh, sister-in-law, please don't make things difficult for us..."

Yang Zhi also said: "Yes, it is the time of the war, and there are not many soldiers in Dongping Prefecture. We have also been dispatched to help guard Yanggu County. Sister-in-law, if you stay in Yanggu at this moment, if something goes wrong, we will be killed!"

Meng Yulou's face was filled with sorrow. She bowed her head and said softly, "How could I not know? But I really have my own difficulties. Now is a critical moment for your future. If I go back, I will definitely ruin your future."

Lin Mao was so anxious that he just said, "Sister-in-law, what are you talking about?"

Yang Zhi even asked: "Sister-in-law, what is your reason? Please tell us so that we can know, and we can avoid the two of us... Alas..."

Meng Yulou just lowered his head and said nothing.

But someone came to the door and reported: "Madam, there is another general coming to see you!"

Yang Zhi stood up and said, "It must be General Huyan. Sister-in-law, please call him in quickly."

Meng Yulou nodded: "Please come in!"

Hu Yanzhuo came in with the gait of a dragon and a tiger, but he was also anxious. He walked in and was a little polite. He just said, "General Su has sent a new military order, telling me to enter the city to defend it, and also saying..."

"What did you say?" Lin Mao asked anxiously.

"Also...if Madam Meng doesn't want to return to Dongping Prefecture, she can stay in Yanggu County and let us take care of her..." Hu Yanzhuo said.

Meng Yulou raised his head slightly, but he felt guilty. He stood up and bowed to everyone: "Generals, it's not that I don't know how to deal with things, but your future is at stake. I... I really have a hard time explaining it. I dare not ruin your future. I apologize to you all!"

“I dare not, I dare not…” Hu Yanzhuo hurriedly bowed, and Lin Mao and Yang Zhi did the same.

The three of them were helpless, looking at each other, and Hu Yanzhuo bowed and said, "Then I won't bother you any more."

"Goodbye, three generals!" Meng Yulou bowed again.

As the three generals left, Meng Yulou sat down and had a cup of tea. It was Chunxiang ointment that made her shed a few tears.

Hu Yanzhuo and his two companions went out, leaving many other men surrounding the house.

An idea came to Hu Yanzhuo's mind, and he asked Lin Mao: "Brother Lin, who were the people you sent to protect this place?"

Lin Mao raised his hands and moved left and right.

Several men came forward.

Hu Yanzhuo asked, "Did anyone come in and out of this place recently?"

"That's not a lot. Apart from a few shopkeepers in the cloth shop, there isn't anyone else."

"There is another one, a doctor."

"Doctor?"

"Which doctor? Where doctor?" Hu Yanzhuo asked again.

"Which one...the doctor from Fushengtang, his surname is Zhang. I even questioned him a few questions."

Hu Yanzhuo waved his hand and said, "Let's go to Fushengtang! You can come with us. Go and recognize the person and see which Doctor Zhang it is."

Everyone walked quickly there. Fushengtang was not far away. A group of soldiers rushed in like wolves and tigers, frightening the servants and apprentices so much that they bowed their heads in a daze.

"Which doctor is surnamed Zhang? Come out!" Hu Yanzhuo shouted, just in a hurry, just to be quick.

A middle-aged doctor came out and bowed deeply: "Greetings to all...Generals."

"It's him!" The man next to Lin Mao pointed.

"Go inside and ask you some questions." Hu Yanzhuo went in quickly and found an empty house to enter. The soldier followed behind him with the doctor Zhang.

The doctor was not frightened, but his face was full of sorrow, and he seemed to know why.

Hu Yanzhuo turned around and asked, "Tell me, what happened to Madam Meng?"

The doctor looked helpless and bowed: "I dare not intentionally deceive you, but I have received a large sum of money and made a promise, so I cannot speak nonsense..."

"You're asking for a beating!" Yang Zhi really waved his fist to threaten.

"Generals, even if I didn't say I was going to be beaten, if I did, I would have offended Lady Meng. How could I not know who Lady Meng was? What can I do?"

Doctor Zhang apologized repeatedly and his words were very blunt.

Hu Yanzhuo thought for a moment, looked at Doctor Zhang, and suddenly raised his hand to touch his belly, and asked: "I'm not trying to embarrass you, but you see me... am I right?"

The doctor had no choice but to neither nod nor shake his head. He just closed his eyes and left.

Hu Yanzhuo immediately understood the situation: "Let's go and send a letter to the general! Madam Meng is pregnant."

Lin Mao and Yang Zhi were shocked. Yang Zhi spoke the fastest: "Why are you hiding even though you are pregnant?"

Hu Yanzhuo scolded him, "What do you know, you bastard? There are some tricks to this. You don't need to ask too much or think too much. Just tell the general and he will make the decision."

"That's right, that's right. I was talking too much. I was talking nonsense." Yang Zhi nodded repeatedly. Lin Mao just sighed and left. Although he didn't understand, he knew that this matter was serious.

After everyone left Fusheng Hall, a team of fast horses galloped away.

As soon as Su Wu received the letter in the army, he understood it at a glance, nothing could be clearer.

"Stupid... stupid..." Su Wu sighed, but he was helpless.

I am also completely certain of one thing: Tong Guan, Cheng Wanli, and that Cheng Xiaoniang...

Meng Yulou had to hide, for fear that people would know that her concubine was pregnant, which would ruin Su Wu's marriage and his good future.

It was also Su Wu himself who was unaware. Meng Yulou was pregnant, so there should have been many reactions, big or small, but Su Wu didn't notice anything at all.

What to say?

Really hide it? Trick Cheng Xiaoniang into telling you?

Su Wu shook his head and wrote a letter, saying only... Never mind, just a few words of comfort first. Ultimately, Su Wu could not escape this matter.

After thinking about it, I decided to wait until the war was over and then go meet Miss Cheng.

After all, you can't really be a Su Wu who hides his head and shows his tail. You should solve your own problems by yourself.

Li Cheng came to report from outside the door: "General, General Qin is coming soon."

Su Wu stood up and walked out of the tent. Qin Ming was just getting off his horse. When he saw Su Wu coming out, he dismounted and ran over: "Brother, you want to kill me!"

Su Wu smiled and stepped forward to hug him: "You came so quickly."

"It's five or six hundred miles, how long do I have to dawdle? Even if my brother's military order arrives, I won't go home. I'll just load all my belongings into the car and leave, for fear that my brother will have to wait for a long time!"

Qin Ming spoke excitedly.

Su Wu glanced at the Qingzhou soldiers who were slowly entering the camp. There were more armor and horses, so he smiled and said, "Prefect Murong has been very generous lately."

Qin Ming smiled and said, "That's right. After that, the prefect treated me differently than before. Now that bandits are everywhere, the prefect is even more worried that the soldiers under my command are no longer useful..."

"Thank you for your hard work in coming all the way here." Su Wu patted Qin Ming's arm.

"Brother, what are you talking about? How could I not know that if I follow you into battle, I will definitely make contributions. The last time I saved Weizhou, I was promoted to guerrilla general. If I make contributions with you again this time, I will definitely move up to the next level, cavalry general, haha...brother, you will be promoted even higher by then."

Qin Ming said with a smile, looking around, and said: "Brother, this time I have learned a lot. I have been a general for so long, but this is the first time I have seen such a tall ladder. This ladder is really well made. It seems that this time, the bandits will be defeated!"

Su Wu also looked over and said, "You are here. I should be gone for ten or twenty days. Come, let's talk in the big tent."

The two of them entered the tent and called for more people to come. Su Wu really had to leave for a while.

Xu Guanzhong, Wu Song, Lin Chong and others were all in the big tent. Lu Da was still guarding Dongping Prefecture, and Zhu Wu was also guarding the house with Lu Da.

Then Su Wu spoke: "General Qin has arrived. Now we have more manpower, the camp has been built, and the siege equipment should be slowly built. Everyone, the bandits have sent out several troops earlier, most of them went south and east, and finally one went north. Don't worry about the east and south, but the bandits going north are very elite, with different armor and weapons, and many horses. I will take Brother Lin Chong and Shi Jiadalang, and two thousand light and heavy cavalry, to the north to attack the bandits head-on. Here, Mr. Xu will be the leader, and Erlang, General Qin, Master Luan and others will be the assistants. Mr. Xu and I have explained the strategy and tactics, and you all follow his orders."

"Order!"

The generals stood up and bowed.

Su Wu nodded, looked around, and said, "It's just one thing. The bandits in the stronghold cannot come out, and the bandits outside cannot go back. You guys should block them here and prevent the bandits inside and outside from meeting each other."

Xu Guanzhong nodded and said, "General, rest assured. With your support, I feel confident. I will just follow your plan and will not make any mistakes."

Qin Ming also said, "Brother, I will follow the military orders."

Wu Song patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, brother. No matter where the thieves come from, I will kill them all without leaving a single piece of armor."

Su Wu nodded, feeling much more relieved. He had to do this kind of thing eventually. Now that his business was getting bigger and bigger, with more and more people under his command, the things he had to do were becoming more and more troublesome, and the battlefield situation he encountered was becoming more and more complicated.

It is impossible for Su Wu to take care of everything and do everything personally.

It is time to give enough trust to the people under your command, and it is also time to give them the opportunity to truly stand on their own.

It is also to pave the way for the future. The future will be even more like this, the battlefield will be bigger, the war situation will be wider, and all the military advisors and generals will have to be deployed one by one.

Su Wu shouldn't be the only one to take care of everything.

Su Wu said nothing more, and stood up: "I'll leave now..."

Having said that, Su Wu stood up and left, and everyone followed to see him off.

Two thousand light and heavy cavalrymen and six thousand horses, carrying people, armor and food, rumbled away from the rear camp.

Xu Guanzhong issued the first military order in the central army: "Send cavalry to patrol everywhere, so that there will be no news between the enemy camp and the outside, and the enemy can't easily find out the general's whereabouts. Outside the enemy camp, trenches must be dug everywhere, and chevaux de frise must be placed, leaving only a few ways in and out, so that the land route to this mountain stronghold is blocked!"

Everyone just bowed and said, "Yes, sir!"

On the wall of Liangshan Stronghold, Song Jiang was gazing at the situation from afar. Over the past few days, he became more and more frightened the more he looked at the situation.

Just look at the government army’s large camp, with its towering ladders rising one after another, seemingly several feet taller than the camp wall.

The stone cannon cart was also very tall and large. It was being built and tested at the same time. At first, people thought it could not hit very far or high, but after a day or two, they saw that it could throw a stone weighing dozens of kilograms a hundred or two hundred steps with ease.

The trees around were being cut down more and more. There seemed to be carts pulling large logs from afar. It seemed that no one knew where the government troops had cut down the trees...

Today we saw another large army of four to five thousand men coming from the north. It was obvious that the government troops were mobilizing their forces.

I also saw many knights leaving the rear camp, but I didn't know what their plan was.

Song Jiang asked Wu Yong: "Scholar, do the government troops really intend to storm this pass?"

Wu Yong also frowned, feeling uncertain, but he said, "Our pass is dangerous... the government troops will never be able to attack it."

Song Jiang said: "Just look at the increasing number of ladders. The scholar doesn't know that Su Wu's men are also climbing the wall one after another, and they are very brave."

Wu Yong knew that Song Jiang was thinking of the day when he came to Qingfeng Mountain, so he said, "Don't worry, brother. The pass here is not comparable to that of Qingfeng Mountain. The wall of Qingfeng Mountain is neither very dangerous nor very high. Our pass is different..."

Song Jiang frowned and sighed, and consoled himself: "There aren't that many ladder trucks..."

"Yes, after counting them, there are only seven or eight. This kind of ladder truck is very difficult to build..." Wu Yong replied.

"Or..." Song Jiang had something to say.

"Don't worry, don't worry. It's the method of surrounding Wei to save Zhao. Just be calm." Wu Yong replied.

Song Jiang nodded slowly and asked, "I wonder how the armies are doing..."

"Don't worry, brother. I think there will be news soon. Although Su Wu can block the land route, he will not be able to block the water route." Wu Yong seemed to have become Song Jiang's psychologist.

"Scholar, if we win again this time and the government troops retreat, will there be no worries about surrendering?" Song Jiang asked with a firm tone amidst his trepidation.

"If Su Wu retreats again this time, there will be no problem in recruiting us." Wu Yong said with certainty, which further relieved Song Jiang's anxiety.

"I heard that there are more and more ships on the Jeju side, and I'm afraid there will be naval battles." Song Jiang continued.

"Naval battle is the best. Now, our advantage lies in naval battle! We will definitely defeat the officer's army and never return." Wu Yong said.

Song Jiang finally felt relieved and his mental illness was temporarily cured, but it would relapse again tomorrow and he would need Wu Yong to treat him again. Even if he was treated every day, it would relapse every day.

Two days later, I looked at the government army camp and saw another four or five thousand soldiers arriving and marching into the camp.

On the wall of the fortress, Song Jiang looked at them with a frown on his face, and his illness came back. He just asked, "Where did these government troops come from?"

"There are words on that big banner: Suo. Suo Chao, the vanguard of Daming Prefecture." Wu Yongyong answered.

"Alas... I'm afraid the number of government troops will increase..." Song Jiang said softly.

"Brother, Gao Qiu's 130,000 troops are no more than this. In front of us, there are only 10,000 or 20,000 people. What's that?" Wu Yong tried his best to make himself look very relaxed and even had a smile on his face.

Song Jiang's generation is always such a cautious person...

"That's right, the number of soldiers is not important." Song Jiang felt much more comfortable again.

Even with the cooperation of these two people, Song Jiang would always become a little flustered when encountering problems. After asking Wu Yong a few questions, he would calm down and cooperate very well.

When Suochao entered the army, he had his acquaintances, and Luan Tingyu was the one he knew best, so it was Luan Tingyu who came to greet him.

Suo Chao smiled and asked, "Where is my brother?"

Luan Tingyu smiled and said, "The general went to another place to fight the day before yesterday. He may be back in ten days."

"Oh, how come I'm still slow no matter how hard I try? Even though I have the order from the Privy Council, the transfer of materials is still delayed... I came quickly on the way, but I'm afraid that if you keep me waiting for a long time, you might think I'm unhappy."

Suo Chao explained.

"It's okay, it's okay. You've come at the right time. Please come in, General Suo. Everyone is waiting for you in the central army tent." Luan Tingyu made an invitation.

Suo Chao quickened his pace and entered the big tent, then listened to Luan Tingyu's introduction one by one.

Erlang was the most delighted among them, and he just said: "I heard that my brother and the vanguard of Daming Mansion swore an oath of brotherhood, but I was not there that day, so I have never seen it. Have you ever seen my brother?"

"The reputation of Wu Jia Erlang is now well-known. It is said that he is the most fearless and will not give up until his death. I think the title of vanguard should belong to Wu Jia Erlang. Erlang, I am polite!"

Suo Chao laughed and bowed.

"Alcohol is not allowed in the army, otherwise I would have drunk a lot!" Wu Song was really annoyed.

"It's okay, it's okay. We'll have plenty of time to drink tomorrow. Today is my first time here, so please tell me about the situation of this war." Suo Chao began to get into the state.

Xu Guanzhong will explain it slowly.

It is said that Su Wu went north for four days. Halfway along the official road, he saw from afar a group of people with flags and banners coming towards him.

Just looking at the words, the word "Zhang" stood tall, and a ranger also reported: "General, the soldiers in front of us are those of Zhang Qing, the general manager of Dongchang Prefecture. He also knows that the general has arrived, so he just stopped on the official road to make way, saying that we should go first."

Su Wu laughed when he heard this. Zhang Qing, the man without feather arrows from Dongchang Prefecture, was quite polite. Of course, Zhang Qing was nominally under the command of Su Wu, deputy commander-in-chief of the two armies in Jingdong, so it was normal for him to be polite.

But just with this one action, Su Wu really developed a good impression of Zhang Qing. He had heard of this man's name but had never met him in person.

Even though Zhang Qing has no feather arrows, he is still a capable man. He has a unique skill of flying stones. Whoever he hits will fall off his horse. It is really more useful than other people's arrows. It is also a long-range blunt weapon. It does not matter whether you have armor or not. If it hits you, you will either die or be injured.

In the story, he once used flying stones to hit fifteen Liangshan generals in a row. No matter whether it was Hu Yanzhuo, Yang Zhi, Suo Chao or Dong Ping, they all fled in panic. Even Lu Da was injured by him.

It's really amazing.

Su Wu rode his horse forward, and Zhang Qing's army of four to five thousand men all moved to the side of the road to make way.

Su Wu just looked at the big banner. When he approached, Zhang Qing spoke first: "Greetings, General Su."

Su Wu looked in the direction of the sound and saw that the man was not on his horse, but standing on the side of the road, bowing.

All that could be seen was the scarlet tassel hidden by the turban, and his sturdy figure with wolf-like waist and ape-like arms. He was marching without armor, which made him look even more sturdy. His arms were swollen and full, and it was unknown how much strength was put into them.

Su Wu, who was standing beside him, reined in his horse and dismounted as well: "Master Zhang, I am honored to meet you."

"I just received the general's order and led my men to Liangshan. I didn't expect to run into the general on the way. It's true that hearing about him is not as good as meeting him in person. Meeting him in person is even better than hearing about him. I only heard that the general was fighting bandits everywhere. He killed thousands of bandits and left no one alive. Now I am under the general's command, but I was not allowed to meet him in the past. Please forgive me!"

Zhang Qing's words were just polite talk, but there was a hint of joy in his eyes and brows.

Su Wu liked this man even more. He stepped forward and grasped his arm, saying with a smile, "I have heard that you have a special skill, which is really amazing. It's all about the strength of your arm. The rumors are true. Since we met halfway, the Liangshan camp is temporarily safe. Brother, divide the troops into two. Brother, take the cavalry and follow me. The infantry and auxiliary troops will go to Liangshan first. How about that?"

Zhang Qing did not expect Su Wu to be so easy to get along with, and even put his arm around him and praised him. Naturally, he was delighted: "I have great martial arts skills, but nowhere to use them. The general values ​​me so much, how dare I not serve him and make contributions in the battlefield?"

Since the noble person values ​​you, then you should show your abilities and let him take you seriously. Whether it is to make a contribution or to be promoted, now that the opportunity has come, how can you not seize it?

Who in the army doesn't know this? In front of General Su, he is the favorite of Secretary Tong, and Secretary Tong is in Dongping Prefecture. It's time to show it.

If you miss this opportunity, you may never have it again in your life.

"Okay, that's it. Brothers, just go and give the orders." Su Wu gave the military orders.

Zhang Qing turned around and shouted, "Ding Desun, take the infantry and auxiliary troops and quickly go to Liangshan's main camp. Gong Wang, quickly gather the cavalry, take some food, and follow General Su to the rear."

They were the two deputy generals under Zhang Qing, Gong Wang, the Flowery-necked Tiger, and Ding Desun, the Tiger Shot with an Arrow. In the story, they should have been among the 108 Liangshan generals.

The two of them were busy. Su Wu's army was still moving forward, but Su Wu was not in a hurry and just waited by the roadside.

Zhang Qing came and asked, "Where are you going, General? Are you going to fight the bandits?"

"Zengtou City, defeat the bandits!" Su Wu nodded.

"Okay, okay, just beat the thieves!" Zhang Qing was overjoyed. If he wasn't going to beat the thieves, all these skills would just be used for performance. If it was just a circus, how could people remember it seriously?
Then he said: "Just meet the thieves, I will be the vanguard!"

Seeing Zhang Qing eager to try, Su Wu nodded immediately: "Okay, when the time comes, let Zhang the chief steward be the vanguard."

Zhang Qing was even happier, because he felt that General Su was not lying, and really thought highly of him and valued him. He bowed and said, "Thank you, General!"

Just look at the cavalry gathering over there. There are not many of them, about 500, and there are not many horses either, about 500 exactly.

Su Wu waved his hand and jumped on his horse: "Let's go!"

Zhang Qing rode back and waved to Gong Wang, asking him to follow the rear team. He mounted his horse and followed General Su in the front.

Su Wu asked, "This time, three troops were dispatched, and you may be the last one to leave..."

Although Su Wu seemed to be asking casually, he actually discovered that Zhang Qing's subordinates were indeed a bit... shabby.

Zhang Qing immediately explained: "General Rong reported that Dongchang Prefecture has not seen war for many years, and there has been no military deployment. We only went to gather people from various counties, and it took a long time to gather them. We are still waiting for the preparation of food and fodder, and we are procrastinating. We are short of money and food. This is my fault."

Su Wu did not blame him. Zhang Qing was telling the truth. Qin Ming and Suo Chao were of course different. The current situation in other prefectures was mostly like this, and it was even more so in Dongping Prefecture in the past. It was not easy for Zhang Qing to gather four or five thousand people.

Su Wu nodded and said seriously: "From now on, the matter of commanding the army should not only be handled by Zhang Zongguan alone..."

The reason why Su Wu said this was that he wanted to use people. Even if his subordinates were not his direct descendants, there should be some elite soldiers. Those who could not be used would be a motley crowd.

Zhang Qing also answered seriously: "I will obey the general's instructions."

Su Wu said again: "I know it's not easy for you. You are short of money and food, and you have difficulty in manpower. It's not easy to recruit generals in the prefectures. Don't worry. If you win this time, I will teach you to take back more money and food. This way, you won't be like a clever woman who can't cook without rice."

Zhang Qing was stunned. General Su was so kind? He even gave money and food?

No wonder, General Su’s reputation as a man of great righteousness is spread everywhere. Is it really true?

"Thank you, General Su. If I get money and food, I won't waste a cent of it. I will use it all on the army. If I manage the army well, I will serve you again!"

Zhang Qing was obviously embarrassed at this moment. He felt uncomfortable because he had shown his cowardice and General Su looked down on his men.

Looking at the troops under General Su's command, they were truly incomparable. Even with the comparison, Zhang Qing felt even more uncomfortable.

"Okay, I've been waiting for your words. This time I will make sure you return with a lot of money." Su Wu was not lying, as everyone carried the colorful sedan chair.

Someone has to carry it.

Just let all the Han army generals know that as long as they follow General Su, even if they have never met before, even if they meet for the first time, as long as they have the ability, General Su is really a man of great righteousness and he will never lie.

Just look at this colorful sedan chair. As it is being carried, more and more people are carrying it. General Su must have a lot of support.

General Su was even more welcoming and hospitable. While riding on horseback, he introduced his men to Zhang Qing.

Zhang Qing bowed with his left hand to greet, and then bowed with his right hand to greet.

In fact, I feel even more uncomfortable in my heart. General Su has such a good army!
Besides feeling uncomfortable, I was also holding back my strength because the soldiers under my command were not good-looking, so I had to try harder in the battle to let the general know that I was a hero, not a mediocre person.

After marching for another day or two, the scouts ahead kept reporting back that the fighting in Zengtou City was raging, with six or seven thousand Liangshan bandits taking turns attacking.

The defense of Zengtou City was probably in danger. However, Zengtou City was also brave and killed many people from Liangshan, but it also suffered heavy losses.

Su Wu had expected this, but now Liangshan's land combat capability is much weaker and it is difficult for them to take down Zengtou City easily.

If it was the Liangshan in the story who came to fight, the battle in Zengtou City would not be that difficult. Although there were people like Shi Wengong and Su Ding in Zengtou City, the battle was not actually that stalemate.

It can also be seen that Zengtou City’s military strength is actually not very strong.

Just ask who is leading the bandits?

It was actually Zhu Tong and Lei Heng!

In fact, it was not surprising. After one more day of marching, the people of Liangshan would have stopped attacking, simply because Su Wu had arrived and was not slow in coming.

According to the previous strategy of Song Jiang and Wu Yong, Su Wu should not have come to Zengtou City, but should have gone to save the prefectures in the east and south.

Therefore, Zhu Tong and Lei Heng were somewhat confused at this time. They just withdrew their troops into the camp and didn't know what to do for a while.

When Su Wu arrived outside Zengtou City and saw the battlefield, he actually praised: "The bandits are improving so fast!"

Why?

Outside the Zengtou City Fort, there were chevaux de frise everywhere, and trenches were dug crisscrossing everywhere, trapping the Zengtou City Fort tightly, leaving only a few ways in and out for easy advancement.

This is the correct way to open a siege, earthwork.

This time, the Liangshan bandit army did a really good job.

How could Su Wu not boast?

Even he himself had learned that it should be like this. He thought that the scene outside the rear camp of Liangshan should be the same at this time.

Su Wu watched for a few times and just gave the order: "Set up camp!"

No matter where the army goes, setting up camp is the first priority.

(Brothers, Happy New Year! I owe another chapter, thanks to brother [Mu Liu Qing Xi Yi Ye Zhou] for another 100,000 points reward. I will add more chapters after I take a break. Thank you all brothers for your enthusiasm and support, I will try my best!)

(End of this chapter)