Water Margin begins as a captain in Yanggu County

Chapter 89 Trouble!
Su Wu went to die!

Standing at the door of the study, Cheng Wanli was filled with worries. Perhaps he was worried about Su Wu himself, or perhaps he was even more worried that the startup he had just invested in would come to an abrupt end.

Miss Cheng came out from the corner outside the study again, also with a serious look on her face.

"Father, where else in the world can we find such a loyal and righteous man..."

"I'm afraid he is really focused on making achievements and not caring about his own future..." Cheng Wanli didn't look like a man at this moment. Instead, he looked like the kind old mother at home, with a worried look on his face.

"Father treats him well, and he wants to repay you. He is not an ordinary warrior, let alone a reckless man. I know Su Wu. He is brave and resourceful. Father should not worry too much..."

The good girl comforted her old father.

"Yes, yes, he is very smart..." The old father also nodded.

"Recently, the Privy Council has received frequent memorials from father. He has also been writing to Privy Councilor Tong frequently. They all know that father has been very effective in training the troops recently. If he really has made great contributions this time, how could Privy Councilor Tong and the Privy Council not know about father's outstanding achievements?"

This Miss Cheng obviously also has expectations and aspirations.

The old father nodded again: "Yes, yes, our Dongping Prefecture's soldiers are very brave, maybe Su Wu can really return with merit."

"So, why should Dad worry so much?" the good girl said again.

The old father nodded again: "Well... don't worry, ah... don't worry... don't worry, don't think about it... it will definitely be a success, it will definitely be a success!"

Having said that, Cheng Wanli also walked forward.

Then I heard the good girl say behind me: "I don't know when the army will set out..."

The old father stopped walking and said, "Why? Are you still going to see him off?"

"Father, whether I see you off or not is secondary. This is the first time we go out to fight, so it is right for you to go and see us off. This is the only way to boost the morale of the troops!"

"Yes, yes, it's time to send it..."

Su Wu had already rushed back to the military camp at this time, and immediately summoned everyone to the meeting hall.

Su Wu sat in the middle, and everyone was present, waiting for Su Wu to speak. Many people were already rubbing their hands in anticipation, especially Lin Chong and Lu Da, whose faces showed some excitement.

Setting off is not that simple and requires a lot of preparation.

All he heard was Su Wu's command: "Du Xing!"

"I'm here!" Du Xing stood up.

"We should select about 500 men from the wing army, equip them with carriages... at least 100, and pack more food for the men and horses, as well as more arrows."

"Understood..." Du Xing nodded, but he also asked: "Captain, the army doesn't have enough 100 carts and oxen... We are going to help Qingzhou fight, so won't Qingzhou be responsible for our supplies?"

Su Wu replied, "It will take at least seven or eight days to travel six hundred miles to fight. Let's not talk about that. It's better to rely on ourselves than on others. We don't know what the situation is in the government office and the army in Qingzhou. We may not necessarily enter the city to camp. We should be prepared for any eventuality. We should also bring more things for camping! If there are not enough carriages and livestock, we can borrow them from the government office. If the government office does not have enough, we can rent them from the carriage and horse shop, or even rent them from the people's homes! Prepare enough food and fodder for men and horses, at least one month's supply. The army already has a lot of food in stock. You can calculate it. If it is not enough, take people to the street to buy it quickly."

Su Wu thought about many situations and decided that it was right to be cautious. When going out to fight, he could not trust others and could only rely on himself.

"Yes, sir!" Du Xing received the order again.

"You go and do it first!" Su Wu was also pressed for time.

Du Xing hurried out.

Lu Da nodded repeatedly when he heard this: "The way the governor planned things is really appropriate. It's just like what the veteran generals in the Western Army would do."

In fact, none of the people present had ever seen a real war, except Lu Da, who was a disciple of Xiaozhong Xianggong of the Western Army.

Not to mention the people present here, even in the whole of Hebei and Shandong combined, there are few people who have ever seen a real war.

Qin Ming of Qingzhou is like this, as are the bandits in the mountains, Song Jiang, and Wu Yong. Who has ever seen a war?
Not to mention those government soldiers or those bandits.

Even between the Song Dynasty and the Liao Dynasty, there had been no war for nearly a hundred years since the Treaty of Chanyuan.

In Shandong and Hebei, even the elderly people in their seventies and eighties have never heard of war.

This time, it was actually the first time for everyone.

It was also the first time for Su Wu to command two thousand men to go to the battlefield. This was not some martial arts fight, nor was it about capturing bandits, nor was it like the last fight against Dong Ping. In fact, he was still nervous, so he prepared himself with increasing caution.

Hearing Lu Da's words, Su Wu was also modest and only replied: "Commander Lu should also give more advice."

Lu Da nodded: "I was thinking of reminding the governor earlier, but now it seems unnecessary."

Su Wu nodded and said: "We should hurry up and summon Envoy Yang to the army."

Lu Da stood up and said, "I will send someone right away."

By the time Su Wu had finished preparing everything, it was already the afternoon of the next day. Su Wu did not choose a time, even if it was in the afternoon, he would just gather the men, horses and supplies and set out.

Go straight east out of the city, this time taking the official road, which is the only road that can accommodate large vehicles.

Two thousand new troops and five hundred auxiliary troops marched through the city streets in a mighty procession. Their footsteps made a clattering sound. Their military uniforms and hats were neatly arranged, and even the red scarves on their chests were very bright.

The good guys all have tall and straight postures, and they walk with high spirits, while their flags and banners stand tall against the wind.

Just for the sake of this appearance, Su Wu spent a lot of thought on it. The external image of an army was also something Su Wu attached great importance to.

At this time, countless people flocked to the street to watch.

"What a well-organized and powerful army!"

"Our Dongping Prefecture's Su Dujian has been training his troops recently. Now it seems that Su Dujian is really a good general."

"Is that so? There was a big thief in Liangshan, but as soon as Su Dujian took office, the Liangshan side immediately stopped the activities. Have you heard of any crimes committed by the Liangshan thieves recently?"

"Yeah, even robbery is rarely heard of..."

"Superintendent Su is really very powerful!"

Even at the entrance of Meng Niang's store, many people came out to watch.

Madam Meng and Dong Huan watched from afar as Supervisor Su rode towards them on horseback. She wanted to shout, but nothing came out.

However, Supervisor Su saw Meng Yulou and tilted his head while on horseback to nod as a greeting.

At this point, Meng Yulou called out, "Take care, Chief Supervisor!"

Su Wu nodded again and smiled slightly.

Dong Huan, who was standing by, suddenly got the courage from nowhere and shouted, "Li Cheng, you must come back!"

Su Wu also heard this, and he looked at Dong Huan, then turned around and looked at Li Cheng, the head of the personal guards who was following him.

Li Cheng's face turned red and he didn't dare to look back.

Su Wu said: "Someone is calling you."

"Oh..." Li Cheng turned around and left.

"Just say something back to him..." Su Wu said again.

Li Cheng nodded in confusion and replied seriously: "Don't worry!"

In this way, the cavalry had already passed.

The person standing at the door of the store did not turn back for a long time, just watching from afar.

As soon as the army arrived at the gate of the government office, the prefect was seen standing upright in his official uniform, with a crowd of officials and clerks behind him.

Su Wu, who was leading the horse, was a little surprised. He reined in his horse slightly, dismounted and bowed: "Thank you, sir, and all your colleagues for coming to see me off."

The old man walked down the stairs and came to Su Wu. In front of everyone, he pulled Su Wu's hand and said, "General Su, you are going 600 miles to fight the bandits. You must be very careful!"

Cheng Wanli no longer said that he must return victoriously with merit.

"Don't worry, sir. I will return victoriously with merit. If I don't, I will have no face to return!" These words are not necessarily meant for Cheng Wanli alone. There are many people here today, and all the officials are here, so everyone has to listen.

Let everyone know what a peerless general Su Dujian is who is ready to face death with indifference!

"Alas... sometimes you need some luck to accomplish something. If you don't have that kind of luck, there's no need to force it." Cheng Wanli changed his words.

"It would be the best if I have that luck. If I don't have that luck, I will still make contributions when I have the opportunity to create!" Su Wu's eyes were sharp and full of righteousness again.

Just look left and right.

"Great, great, the governor is a true hero!"

"Generals like the Dujian are rare in the world!"

Su Wu bowed and greeted everyone around him: "Thank you very much, I am leaving now, bye!"

Having said that, Su Wu turned around, got on his horse, and continued walking.

The officials on the left and right waved from afar: "The governor will surely return victorious with meritorious service!"

"Everyone is waiting for the good news that the governor has returned triumphantly after his meritorious service..." In Dongping Prefecture, there hasn't been a war for over a hundred years. When has there ever been such a grand scene of an expedition?

Even seeing such a scene can't help but make people excited.

Seeing that everyone around him was shouting, Mr. Cheng turned his head and glanced around.

Everyone was stunned. What's going on? Mr. Cheng looks a little unhappy? Is it not okay to say nice things or auspicious things?
Perhaps Cheng Wanli was thinking that with so many people in front of him and hearing so many inspiring words, when he goes to the battlefield, Su Wu will inevitably only want to make achievements...

"Go back!" Cheng Wanli waved his hand, his face darkening, and said, "Everyone go back to work. There are so many errands in the government office. Today, the government office will take care of them one by one..."

Everyone's faces turned dark.

As long as Su Wu leads the army again, they will be out of the city gate soon.

There was a car waiting at the city gate, and there were many soldiers guarding the gate, but no one drove the car away.

There is no need to guess any more, Su Wu left with a smile on his face.

No one got out of the carriage, but they just waited until Su Wu rode his horse to the side of the carriage.

There was a voice in the car: "Dujian, please be careful on the way."

"Thank you!" Su Wu rode his horse over.

The two of them didn't say anything extra, let alone actually meet each other.

So the army left the city and headed east.

Although it is called a large army, it is not actually a large army. With only two thousand people and five hundred auxiliary soldiers, it does not seem very large, and the front and rear armies do not stretch for many miles.

Just keep on moving, cook when the time comes, and camp at night.

This is also the first time to camp outdoors.

Su Wu took Lu Da with him and walked around, which was also a form of training.

The most basic thing is how to choose a camping site. After several days on the road, Su Wu verified them one by one, and he was also learning it himself.

For example, how to place food and grass, how to set up the tent, how to arrange the camp, how to prevent fire, how to get water, where to bury the pot...

These are also what Su Wu needs to learn.

It's true that having Lu Da in the army really helps a lot in getting twice the result with half the effort. Lu Da is the only one who has actually been on the battlefield and is familiar with these things. In this respect, Lin Chong and Yang Zhi are far behind him.

During the camping period, how to arrange the light and dark sentries, how to formulate patrol methods, how to send out scouts, how to formulate passwords, etc.

Lu Da was really very familiar with it. Su Wu followed beside him, asking questions frequently and learning everything.

This is how marching and fighting are done in this era.

Su Wu couldn't help but sigh in his heart. Lin Chong was an officer of the Tokyo Imperial Guards, and Yang Zhi was also a commander of the Palace Front Department. In fact, they didn't understand these practical and combat things very well.

Obviously, in the entire Song Dynasty, the only army that could really fight was the Western Army.

While Su Wu was learning, he also took notes with charcoal pencils and booklets.

Lu Da watched from the side and really praised: "The Supervisor is in charge of everything, big or small, and he is involved in everything. If he were in the northwest, he would definitely be a good general. Mr. Xiao Zhong would definitely be able to look up to the Supervisor!"

Obviously, in Lu Da's view, Su Wu's attitude was actually rare, especially for a superior to ask questions to his subordinates without any hesitation, which was even rarer.

Su Wu also laughed: "Since I have become the one who leads the army to fight, I must live up to the trust of my brothers. How can I act recklessly?"

Lu Da bowed and said, "It makes me feel more at ease to obey orders from a general like the Dujian."

It was obvious that Lu Da did not trust Su Wu that much at first, and this had nothing to do with his character or emotions.

It was a professional issue. Lu Da was a professional, and Su Wu had never actually led troops in battle, so it was normal for him to have doubts.

Now, all the doubts were gone, and I felt that Su Wu was qualified, at least a qualified military general.

Only in this way can you feel at ease serving under your command.

The only thing to be afraid of is that the boss pretends to know everything and does things in a chaotic manner. In that case, the soldier can no longer serve as a soldier and will have to think about running away.

Yang Zhi at the side also said: "With such a supervisor, this path is the right one to take. I'm afraid this future is real."

Obviously, Yang Zhi and Su Wu had a similar mentality. Since they were joining the army again, they just wanted to join the right place.

"Then, let's work together to suppress the bandits and make meritorious deeds!" Lin Chong said later, laughing. He also knew that Lu Da and his brother still had such worries in their hearts.

"With all of you brothers here, what can bandits do to me?" Su Wu said this sincerely. Lu Da was also attentive to him. Lu Da was not a very patient person, but after this, he was very patient with him.

Su Wu also knew that this time when he went into battle, he had to lead the troops. This was not a show, but a way to rally the hearts of his brothers.

Moreover, all his men were new soldiers, and only seeing Su Wu taking the lead could really motivate him. No matter how many words he said, it would be meaningless if he really went into battle and risked his life.

Maybe this won't be necessary every time in the future, but it must be done this time.

They marched, stayed overnight, and marched again, without entering any city along the way.

Su Wu also became more and more familiar with the operations and taboos of marching, and remembered them all in a booklet.

Eight days later, before noon, they had already seen the city of Qingzhou.

The four gates of Qingzhou City had already been closed, and the tops of the city walls were filled with soldiers. It was obvious that a fight had really begun.

Su Wu immediately sent Li Cheng with a few riders to the city.

Here, Su Wu once again chose a place to set up camp and did not enter the city. Entering the city would be a bad idea as he would lose the initiative. He would have the initiative only outside the city.

This time the camping was even more different. They had to build a tall wall, cut down trees to surround the village, and even dig trenches outside the village.

Once you get to the battlefield, you have to be down-to-earth, take every step carefully, and take every detail well.

Su Wu also asked, watched, and instructed about every detail, and even learned how wide the ditch should be, how high the wall should be, and where the water source was...

Not long after, Li Cheng rode back from the city.

When they met, he reported: "Captain, the Qingzhou prefect Murong Yanda invites you to come into the city to discuss matters."

Su Wu nodded, looked around, and said to the crowd, "I will lead a hundred or so cavalrymen into the city. All matters in the army will be handled by the commander Lu first."

Everyone bowed in acceptance.

Su Wu led a hundred or so personal guards and galloped towards the Qingzhou city a few miles away.

After waiting for a while at the foot of the city, the huge city gate was only half open, and hundreds of riders came in one after another. Qingzhou City was similar to Dongping Prefecture, and even the layout of the city was somewhat similar.

Su Wu deliberately wore armor, and the group went straight to the government office. Su Wu, wearing armor, kept going in.

Entering the hall, Murong Yanda was also sitting in the middle in a red official robe. This unlucky man, according to the story, would die at the hands of thieves one day.

He was still killed by Qin Ming himself, because Murong Yanda fell into Song Jiang's harmful plan, misunderstood Qin Ming, and killed Qin Ming's entire family.

Song Jiang's plan was really hard to describe. He actually asked his men to pretend to be Qin Ming and massacre many good people living outside Qingzhou City. He even burned down countless people's houses.

Therefore, Murong Yanda really believed that it was Qin Ming who did it. When Qin Ming returned to the city, Murong Yanda no longer trusted Qin Ming and thought that Qin Ming had surrendered to the enemy, so he killed Qin Ming's entire family.

Looking at Murong Yanda in front of him, he was very fair and had a handsome face, looking like a serious Confucian scholar, but he was a little old.

This guy is not without background. His sister is a noble concubine in the palace.

Su Wu didn't look at him for long, but just glanced around and was surprised. Where is Qin Ming?

There were a few soldiers present, but none of them looked like big and strong generals. Qin Ming was not there!

Su Wu bowed and said, "Greetings, Sir!"

Murong Yanda suddenly got up from his seat and walked towards Su Wu, surprise written all over his face. He said directly: "I never thought that the reinforcements from Dongping Prefecture, 600 miles away, would arrive first! None of the nearby prefectures have arrived yet!"

After hearing this, it’s no wonder that Murong Yanda was so excited.

Su Wu replied politely: "How dare I delay the imperial military order?"

"Okay, okay, Supervisor Su, please sit down!" Murong Yanda was obviously very flustered and raised his hand to gesture.

"Thank you for your hospitality, sir." Su Wu said nothing more, and immediately asked after he sat down, "I wonder where the Qingzhou Army Commander Qin Ming and the Army Supervisor Huang Xin are?"

Murong Yanda had not yet returned to his seat. He paused when he heard the words. He turned around with a bitter face and said hurriedly, "Huang Xin was just going to capture Hua Rong who was harboring bandits. When he came back, he was ambushed by bandits from Qingfeng Mountain and fled with heavy casualties. When Qin Ming learned about it, he ordered his troops to attack Qingfeng Mountain. Now it is unknown whether they will win or lose. Now that Su Dujian's army has arrived, why are they still camping outside the city? We should quickly send troops into the city to defend it. The bandits are powerful and this city must not be lost!"

When Su Wu heard Murong Yanda's words, he felt uncomfortable. This guy... might be even worse than Cheng Wanli.

You shouldn't think like that. Murong Yanda is far inferior to Cheng Wanli. The reason why Qin Ming and Huang Xin finally surrendered to the enemy was because Murong Yanda didn't do many good things in Qingzhou, and he didn't even show much kindness to his soldiers.

His attitude towards Su Wu was different now, because he was panicked and frightened at the moment.

But then he thought, Qin Ming has already led his troops to attack Qingfeng Mountain?
Trouble!
(End of this chapter)