Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 77 Return to Shandan
"Sorry..."

At the hour of Mao the next day, when it was still dark, Liu Jilian led more than 180 cavalrymen out of the east gate of Zhangye.

At this moment, hundreds of laborers were already transporting supplies and driving the herds.

In the battle the day before yesterday, only three of the two hundred Shandan elite cavalry were killed, and the remaining ten or so were all servants of Suo Xun.

They stayed in the city, and Liu Jilong had no right to stop them.

For him, the departure of these servants of the Suo family was actually a good thing. Anyway, there were still enough men in Shandan to join the army, so he was not in a hurry.

After removing the saddle and sitting on the side of the road, Liu Jilian watched hundreds of laborers busy at work.

As time passed, grain and bean feed were loaded into the trucks, and the herd was counted to a thousand.

By the time of Chen, the 400 most important military horses were driven here by the chief clerk of Zhangye County Government.

Seeing the soldiers and horses, Liu Jilong quickly stood up and ordered Li Ji and others to take good care of the soldiers and horses.

Seeing the time coming, Liu Jilong had no intention of staying. After blowing a whistle, he led the Shandan elite cavalry on the journey home.

The team consisting of more than 180 elite cavalry, 600 civilian laborers, 600 horse-drawn carriages and herds of cattle headed eastward, as if they had returned to the time a few months ago.

"Guo Yi, why do I feel like we've gone back to a few months ago?"

Li Jiqu immediately teased himself, and Liu Jilong chuckled and responded: "I don't want to go back."

"Of course!" Li Ji cooperated with a smile, but this kind of words was just a light-hearted joke.

Over the past few months, the number of brothers who were once part of the Third Regiment has decreased again, and the number of familiar faces has also decreased.

This is how it is in troubled times, and no one has any control over it.

If possible, Liu Jilong also wanted to live happily with his brothers in the same city for the rest of his life.

But the experience of the past few months has proved one thing: even if you don't take the initiative to look for trouble, trouble will come to you. Even if you are strong enough, you will still have troubles, big or small.

For Liu Jilian, who knew history, he knew more clearly that the chaotic times in Hexi were not really chaotic times.

At least they have Zhang Yichao to preside over the overall situation, recover the lost territory and protect the peace of the people.

The real chaotic times were the Wang Xianzhi and Huang Chao uprisings 20 to 30 years later, and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms 40 to 50 years later.

Compared with these, Hexi is now quite peaceful.

Liu Jilong had not yet come into contact with those domineering guards. Only after coming into contact with them could he understand why Zhao Kuangyin and Zhao Guangyi went too far.

Keeping his composure, Liu Jilong led his team towards Shandan.

Since there were enough cavalry, Liu Jilian released the Tang cavalry fifteen miles away and asked the civilians to drive the carriages at full speed.

From noon to dusk, they traveled seventy miles in just one day. At the latest, they would reach Shandan by noon tomorrow.

Therefore, after a quick night's rest, before dawn the next day, Liu Jilong urged everyone to get up and set off.

Although the Uighurs have retreated, you should still be cautious outside the city.

From before dawn to noon, they traveled twenty miles, and each of them ate bread as they went.

It was not until a whistle sounded from the front that Liu Jilong raised his hand to signal everyone to stop.

In front, the Tang cavalry holding flags turned back, and the whistles were long, which did not seem like they were encountering the enemy.

After estimating the distance, Liu Jilong had a rough idea in his mind.

He watched the Tangqi galloping towards him from a distance, and stopped at the sound of the whistle. The Tangqi also bowed to Liu Jilong and said, "Guoyi, we have spotted the troops of Shanzhou ten miles ahead."

"Have you negotiated?" Liu Jilong asked, and the Tangqi nodded.

"Captain Li has already negotiated with them. They are not wearing armor either. Their camp is still twelve miles away from us. Another twenty miles to the east is Shandan."

Tangqi told Liu Jilong the intelligence he had obtained. Despite this, Liu Jilong still ordered Li Ji to recall all Tangqi and required all Shandan cavalry to wear armor.

Even though they had fought several battles together with the Shanzhou army, Liu Jilian would not completely trust Shang Bibi and Shang Duoluo.

After more than half an hour, when everyone was ready to go, Liu Jilong gave the order to continue on their journey.

After walking five miles along the official road, they indeed saw a large group of cavalry stationed in the distance.

They waited eagerly on horseback, and only started cheering when they saw the flag with the word "Liu" written on it.

The cheers became even louder when they saw the herds and carriages.

The Shanzhou cavalry did not rush forward, but just stayed where they were and cheered.

As Liu Jilong and his team approached, he also saw Shang Bibi, Shang Duoluo and others in the team.

When Liu Jilong led his team to the front of the battle, Shang Bibi and Shang Duoluo both looked behind him.

In response, Liu Jilong did not play the victim and say how difficult it was for him. He just raised his hand and bowed, extending his hand to signal:
"The herds were all sent by Governor Zhang to the Jiedushi. As for the beans and grains on the carriages, only 2,000 dan of millet was sent to the Jiedushi. The rest was sent to Shandan."

"Please ask the governor to send 500 men to carry the goods. We will not go to your camp."

The reason why Liu Jilong said this was because he saw the camp of the Shanzhou army.

Their camp was two or three miles southeast of the official road, and going there meant staying away from the official road.

It would be fine if it was a person or a horse entering, but if a carriage entered, it might not be easy to get out.

In order not to waste time, Liu Jilong chose to unload the goods on the spot and let Shang Bibi and the others move them back by themselves.

Anyway, for more than a thousand people like them, two thousand shi of grain would only require a few trips.

"it is good!"

Shang Duoluo didn't want to beat around the bush and happily dismounted to call for help.

However, Shang Bibi saw this and chatted with Liu Jilong: "I heard that you defeated the Uighurs. I am really happy for you."

"My general is now Zuo Guoyi of Shandan."

Before Liu Jilong opened his mouth, Li Ji expressed his dissatisfaction.

Shang Bibi laughed when she heard this: "Haha, congratulations to Liu Guoyi."

Liu Jilong glared at Li Ji, and then said modestly to Shang Bibi: "It's just luck that I got promoted. Jiedushi is too kind to praise me."

"No, no..." Shang Bibi smiled bitterly: "If you say it's luck, then I have been too lucky in the past few decades."

Shang Bibi was someone who had seen Liu Jilong display his supernatural powers. If this was the kind of luck Liu Jilong had, then he had been extremely lucky in the past few decades.

You should know that when he was at his peak, he had 40,000 to 50,000 light cavalry under his command, and was able to suppress Lun Kongre south of the Yak Gorge.

If Liu Jilian had so many troops, Shang Bibi couldn't even imagine how much territory this guy who always relied on luck could conquer.

"I wonder when Liu Guoyi will fulfill his promise?"

When Shang Bibi thought of her past glory, she couldn't help but start asking Liu Jilong tentatively.

Liu Jilong knew what he was talking about, so he glanced at Shang Bibi:

"Shandan has just suffered a heavy blow. Even if I reorganize the army, it will take at least two months. By that time, the heavy snow will have closed Yanzhi Mountain, so the earliest time will be the beginning of spring."

"At the beginning of spring..." Shang Bibi's face looked ugly. The food and livestock he had in his hands could not be eaten until then.

"Don't worry, Jiedushi. During this period, Shandan can lend you grain."

Liu Jilong made a promise, but then he also put forward conditions: "But I have two conditions."

"Just say it." Shang Bibi spoke Mandarin very well.

When asked, Liu Jilong said frankly: "I don't have that many horses, so the first condition is that I hope the Jiedushi will transfer the rest of the light cavalry to me while sending the elite cavalry."

What Liu Jilian was interested in was not the 300 armored cavalrymen in Shang Bibi's hands, but the more than 1,500 military horses.

Although these war horses are not as strong as those in the Central Plains, they are not weak either.

The Shandan horses plus the 400 horses that Zhang Huaishen had just given him totaled just over 700 horses. With each man riding two horses, they could at most gather over 300 elite cavalrymen.

But if Shang Bibi was willing to transfer the troops and horses to him, he would be able to gather more than 800 elite cavalry.

These more than 800 elite cavalry plus Shang Bibi's more than 300 elite cavalry, that's more than a thousand elite cavalry.

With this elite cavalry, he could definitely move around Liangzhou like the wind.

"I can send you eight hundred horses, and I can send you three hundred armored soldiers, each with their own pair of horses."

Shang Bibi had more than 360 elite armored cavalrymen under his command, but he also had to protect himself, so it was not excessive to ask him to leave more than 60 people behind.

Liu Jilong nodded his understanding and said, "In that case, the first condition is set."

"As for the second condition, I hope to borrow one stone of grain and return one sheep."

"These sheep will be reduced as appropriate after each raid, so that your tribe will not return empty-handed the first few times."

"Okay!" Shang Bibi didn't expect to get the opportunity to borrow grain based on the first condition. Liu Jilong's request was not excessive.

At least in Hexi, the value of one stone of rice is definitely equal to or greater than that of a sheep.

Shang Bibi had been active in the Helong area for many years, and he was well aware of the strength of the Tubo in Liangzhou.

Just five hundred elite cavalrymen were enough for Liu Jilong to roam in Liangzhou except for Guzang City, and the Tibetans in Liangzhou had no less than 30,000 people, so the number of herds was definitely huge. The five cities in Liangzhou were independent, and even the one with the smallest population, Fanhe, had at least hundreds of thousands of herds.

Just plundering Fanhe was enough for Shang Bibi to support thousands of soldiers and nearly ten thousand horses.

However, it is not practical to return to Shanzhou with only this amount of troops.

If he wanted to return to Shanzhou, he first needed enough armored soldiers, but there was no craftsman in his army who was good at making armor, so he could only turn his eyes to Liu Jilong.

It was a pity that he was worried that if he spoke up now, Liu Jilong would mistakenly think that he had ambitions, so he could only suppress the idea and wait until the cooperation between the two sides deepened before proposing it.

Thinking of this, he watched Shang Duoluo carry down two thousand shi of rice and call on the soldiers to drive the herds out to graze.

"Now that we have unloaded the food, we will take our leave now."

"If your tribe runs out of food, you can come to Shandan and borrow some from me."

"Shandan has many affairs to attend to. When I have free time, I will come to your department again to bother you."

In just a few words, Liu Jilong said all the good and bad things he could say. Without waiting for Shang Bibi to speak, he blew the wooden whistle and led the team to continue on their journey home.

Shang Bi Bi hurriedly bowed and presented a gift, then led the soldiers and horses to carry food back to the tent.

In just two quarters of an hour, they were getting farther and farther away, and neither side could see their flags anymore.

After marching for more than twenty miles, the Shandan City was right in front of them.

The Tangqi sent out earlier had already come into contact with the people and soldiers of Shandan, and the farmland outside the city was full of people trying to turn the soil.

Some of them wore white cloth on their heads and stared at Liu Jilong and the others. They must have been relatives of martyrs who had died in the previous wars.

Seeing the troops returning, some people dropped their farm tools and ran towards the official road, eager to see their loved ones.

"Li Ji!"

"exist!"

Liu Jilong gave the order on horseback, and Li Ji quickly responded.

Looking at the people running towards them, Liu Jilong said in a low voice: "Bring the civilians into the city, and the soldiers will be disbanded on the spot. Let them have a good reunion with their families, and report to the military camp in three days."

"Yes!" Li Ji nodded in response, and Liu Jilong urged his horse to go into the city.

Soon, sounds of disbanding and cheers from the people who saw their loved ones came from behind him.

Of course... there were also three families who had never seen their relatives and only saw the corpses that were brought back.

Although he had walked far away and could no longer hear the crying, the sound naturally appeared in Liu Jilong's mind, as if it was crying in his ears.

"Don't checkmate!!"

The soldier at the door grinned and bowed excitedly, eager to get Liu Jilong's attention.

Liu Jilong forced a smile at them and then walked into the city.

At this time in Shandan City, white cloth could be seen hanging on the door of almost every five or six households.

Looking along the street, there are at least a dozen households with white cloth hanging on their doors.

This is not a lot, but it is only because the Shandan army's source of troops mainly comes from the other seven cities.

If the Shandan Army in the future mainly consists of Shandan soldiers, a defeat by Liu Jilong would cause every family to wear mourning clothes and the whole city to cry.

Not knowing what mood he was in, Liu Jilong slowly walked to the county government office.

The soldiers from the county government helped him off his horse. Liu Jilong just asked if Zhang Huairong was there, then he calmed himself down and walked into the government office.

Not long after, he saw Zhang Huairong, who was in plain clothes, in the inner hall.

After he told Zhang Huairong about Zhang Huaishen's arrangements, Zhang Huairong also breathed a sigh of relief.

"It's good that you can be promoted to the second level to take over Shandan. Without you, I don't know what kind of chaos Shandan will be in..."

Zhang Huairong smiled bitterly and shook his head. In the past few days, he had experienced what Liu Jilong had experienced in the past few months.

Various things piled up on his head, causing him to have a headache every time he opened his eyes.

Now that Liu Jilong is back, he has brought back the news that he needs to return to Shazhou, which makes Zhang Huairong feel a little happier.

"This government office will be under your control from now on."

Zhang Huairong took out the seal of the Shandan County Magistrate, as if he had handed over a heavy burden.

Liu Jilong took the small seal and did not think that he just owned it.

"Okay, I will set out tomorrow with 600 civilians, and the accompanying soldiers will only need to include Feng Yu, Feng Jing and a dozen others."

Zhang Huairong mentioned a few names. These people were basically low-ranking grass-roots soldiers of the Zhang family.

He did not mention Zhang Huaiman and Zhang Huaijian because the two were now captains and they had to wait for news of promotion from Shazhou to determine whether they would stay or go.

"You can stay in the yard today and move in tomorrow."

Zhang Huairong smiled and said, "You have been working so hard for so long, just take a good rest tonight, and you don't have to see me off tomorrow."

As soon as he finished speaking, he signaled Liu Jilong that he could leave without waiting for him to speak.

Seeing this, Liu Jilong could only bow and then turned and left.

Half a cup of tea later, he returned to his courtyard in Shandan. Cao Mao had obviously known about his return and was standing at the gate with his head stretched out, as if he wanted to see the entire street clearly.

When he saw Liu Jilong appear, he ran over excitedly and happily.

"Don't checkmate!"

Cao Mao suppressed his excitement and bowed respectfully.

"Have you cooked yet? I'm hungry..."

Liu Jilong was mentally exhausted. Cao Mao shook his head, but then nodded, very conflicted: "The dishes are ready. You can cook them when you get home and have them in a cup of tea."

"Prepare more. Ma Cheng and the others will probably be here soon."

"Yes!"

The master and servant returned to the yard while talking. Looking at everything familiar in the yard, Liu Jilong raised his arms, and Cao Mao also took off his armor neatly.

"The hot water is ready. You can have your meal when you come back from your bath."

Cao Mao was very happy. The days he spent with Liu Jilong were the happiest and most comfortable days in his life.

Since Liu Jilong went to war, he has hardly eaten or slept well, for fear that something might happen to Liu Jilong and that he would have to return to his previous life.

Now that Liu Jilong is back, he is probably the happiest one.

Liu Jilong responded, took off his robe, and walked towards the bedroom wearing his undershirt.

Not long after, after he took off his shirt and stepped into the bathtub, he could hear the sizzling sound of cooking coming from the front yard.

He was soaking in the water, feeling a little dazed. He vaguely heard the sounds of talking and laughing coming from the front yard. He thought it was Ma Cheng and the others.

He didn't get up in a hurry because Li Ji probably wouldn't be able to get up quickly.

He soaked in the tub like this until the water became a little cold, then he got up, changed his clothes and dried his hair.

After simply bundling his hair up and fixing it, he finally regained his spirits and appeared to be his former self again.

When he appeared in the front yard, he had become full of energy and it was hard to tell that he had been through so much in the past few days.

"Don't checkmate!"

"Why call me Bie Jiang? Now I'm Guo Yi!"

"Yes, yes, yes! Guo Yi! Guo Yi!"

Seeing Liu Jilian coming out, Chen Jingchong, Ma Cheng, Geng Ming, Li Ji, Cao Mao and others stood up one after another, and four dishes and a soup were placed on the table.

Two meat dishes and two vegetarian dishes, plus a bowl of greasy chicken soup, are enough to make people inside and outside the courtyard drool.

Liu Jilong saw Hu Siguang standing in the courtyard, and immediately looked at Cao Mao: "Are the dishes in the kitchen ready?"

"It's fully prepared!" Cao Mao replied with a smile. The rule here at Liu Jilong's place is to prepare enough food in case there is not enough food for guests who come during the meal.

"Huo Siguang, go to the kitchen with the two brothers at the gate to eat. Don't be shy. Come out after you're full."

Liu Jilong gave an order, and Hu Siguang perked up when he heard it: "Yes!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Jilong saw him walk out, and he himself sat down at the Eight Immortals Table, which had never existed in this era.

He glanced at everyone and put on a smile again: "Everyone, please sit down. Do you want me to treat you?"

"Hehe!" After hearing him speak, everyone sat down one after another.

Liu Jilong didn't say anything opening, he just picked up his chopsticks and gestured to everyone.

"Eat as much as you want today!"

(End of this chapter)