Tiger Guards

Chapter 30 Abandoning the Army
Soon, more than fifty knights drove the captives back.

Wei Gu sat upstream by the stream outside the camp and washed repeatedly, but he still couldn't get rid of the bloody smell.

He had already changed into new clothes, but whenever he breathed, the fishy smell in his nose made him feel nauseous.

Pei Xiu sat on the stone next to him, speechless. Originally, Wei Gu didn't need to join the battle.

When the battle was over and the wounded were being executed, Wei Gu grabbed a spear and stabbed a Hun to death... This was all normal. After the beheadings were completed in the camp and the captives were driven to carry the bodies to the grave bay at the foot of the mountain for burial, Wei Gu could not hold on any longer.

He vomited all over the place and his face turned pale.

Not far from the stream, five horses with injured legs and feet were being slaughtered and dismembered.

Further downstream, on both sides of the stream are the Tiger Guards washing blood stains and clothes. At the farthest point is the area where they wash the captured heads.

Wei Gu looked weak as he watched the Junbei Knights gradually enter the camp: "A Xiu, how many people did they capture?"

"About sixty or seventy people. I don't know how many were beheaded."

Pei Xiulue asked curiously, "Brother, you've also experienced life and death, why are you so miserable today?"

"It's Zhao Aji."

Wei Gu lay back on the two or three-inch-long grass, squinting at the sky. "I died under his sword, looking like pigs, dogs, and vegetables. At first I didn't think much of it, but then the moment I closed my eyes, it came back to me, and I can never forget it."

He was a little scared and turned his head to look at Pei Xiu: "A Xiu, you said that when the emperor moved east, all the Hongnong Tiger Guards died in Dongjian. How tragic must that be?"

"Brother, all men must die. We have been receiving Han salaries for generations, are in our prime, and have no family or children to burden us. We should die in service of our country, fulfilling our duty as subjects."

Pei Xiu spoke in a low voice. Wei Gu supported himself on the ground with his hands and sat up, his face pale as death: "I'm not afraid of death, but I don't want to die."

As he spoke, he turned his head to look at the cleaned Hun head about a hundred steps away.

Later, the heads will be inspected, and the name of the captor will be written on each head, and then the Hu Ben and the captives will be asked to identify them.

There was no possibility of maliciously cutting off a partner's head and claiming credit last night, but that's the procedure.

All of these were under the charge of county officials. In addition to the Huns, innocent civilians were also captured and executed. However, if these innocent civilians were recognized, they would be recorded in the register.

Notifying the family is one thing, but holding them accountable is another.

For Wei Gu, the only good news now is that he is not the main general and does not need to inspect the head personally.

Wang Zhi, who was in charge of the inspection, also ran away. He sent people to Jiangyi to ask for medicinal materials, but Jiangyi refused to open the door.

Then Wang Zhi personally took people to knock on the door to ask for medicine, and never returned.

The results of last night's battle had obviously frightened Wang Zhi.

Maybe he became more and more scared after daybreak, so he just ran away.

Can Wang Zhi control such a powerful Tiger Guard?
The revenge of the Huns and the fighting among the Baibo generals were not something Wang Zhi could bear.

Therefore, Wei Gu guessed that Wang Zhi was chased by the defeated Huns on the way and had to flee and hide temporarily.

Or they are simply afraid of trouble and take the opportunity to leave the camp to wait and see how the situation changes.

Wang Zhi will probably return to the camp only when the situation becomes clear.

Wei Gu was not in good condition and needed to rest for a while, so Pei Xiu had to return to the camp.

On the way back to camp, Pei Xiu rode his horse and couldn't help but laugh at himself: "Victory is so bad, I can't even imagine what defeat will be like."

Guanqiu Xing just smiled out of politeness. He didn't expect that Wang Zhi would disappear after breakfast.

The results of this battle were too great, and once the news spread, it would trigger unpredictable changes.

It is difficult to predict the situation with the Huns, but it is easy to infer from Baibo's generals that they will act decisively and strike hard!
When the risk was big enough, Wang Zhi did not want to be the Sima with a rank of 1,000 stones, and Wei Gu was mentally traumatized and unable to perform his duties as the Gongcao to audit merits.

Inside the military camp, Jia Tong, who had just returned, rode his horse to the Wenxi camp and threw a head to Zhao Ji, who came out. "General Zhao, do you know who this is?"

Zhao Ji grabbed the braid and threw it to Jia Tong: "It has nothing to do with me. I just washed my hands and don't want to get them dirty."

Jia Tong stretched out his bloody hand and grasped the head tightly, grinning smugly: "This is Liu Hedu, the left chief of the Xiongnu. Although he is not a famous king, he is also very powerful, with no less than a thousand households under his command."

Zhao Ji then took a closer look and found that it was indeed an old man.

Jia Tong then jumped off his horse and handed the old man to him: "I will not hide it from General Zhao Tun. This head will do me more harm than good. I hope General Zhao Tun will accept it."

The dozen or so powerful young men from the northern county who followed Jia Tong seemed to be mentally prepared and did not feel it was abrupt.

Zhao Ji asked, "Brother Wenzhen, do you know how much I got last night?" "I just heard it from someone."

Jia Tong smiled and said, "Only if General Tun accepts this will we trust him as a man."

"Okay, then I'll accept it reluctantly."

Zhao Ji stretched out his hands to catch it, then threw it to Yang Ji beside him: "Go and clean it, and I'll give you half of the gold ornaments on your head."

"I dare not. I will go right away."

Yang Ji held the old man in both hands and examined him carefully, his eyes shining: "This is the head of the young Xiongnu king!"

Seeing him like this, Zhao Ji smiled and said, "This time next year, my head will be worth more than this old man's!"

Yang Ji didn't know how to respond, so he bowed to Jia Tong as a gesture of greeting, then walked around a few dismounted knights and quickly went to the stream outside the camp.

The other knights also returned to the camp with their horses, and Jia Tong followed Zhao Ji into the small camp.

In the barracks, Jia Tong took off his helmet, took the thin rice porridge brought by Zhao Ji and drank it in one gulp. Then he saw Zhao Ji bring the remaining half can of rice porridge and put it in front of his feet.

Jia Tong was really hungry, so he simply took a wooden spoon, picked up the clay pot and ate the porridge in big mouthfuls.

After eating most of the food, he relaxed and stroked the bulge in his leather armor. "What a relief! I beheaded three levels of the enemy, but I never thought there would be ten times as many as me."

After lamenting, Jia Tong said, "When I was chasing the fleeing soldiers, I encountered another group of Xiongnu, probably Tiele Xiongnu, with only about a hundred people. They seized the boat and fled without engaging me."

The Tiele Huns, also known as the son-in-law Huns, had a slightly higher status than the mixed-race Huns.

He added, "On our return, we saw thirty or forty Xiongnu knights circling the ridge of Purple Gold Mountain. This shows how dangerous last night was. Xiang Libao said his men saw Wang Zhi leading his men south. Matters in the camp are pressing, and General Zhao Tunjiang should make a decision soon. Otherwise, the Tiger Guards from the various counties might flee in panic."

Zhao Ji frowned: "Wang Zhi ran away?"

"We, the newly formed Tiger Guards, captured and killed over 400 people in our first battle. And we have a hero like the garrison commander. He decisively escaped and is indeed a hero."

Jia Tong began to state his point: "If the garrison commander is willing to fight the Xiongnu, then I can convince my fellow villagers to stay and serve. I can also persuade Xiang Libao and Jing Wenqing. Our three Fenshui divisions have over 200 warriors."

In fact, he also wanted to leave, but the casualty ratio last night was too good.

If we really break up like this, I'm afraid I'll regret it later, and I'm also afraid of being blamed by my father and brothers when I go back.

There is another reason that is not easy to explain: he was afraid of offending Zhao Ji.

This man killed a fellow villager with one punch, and he killed so many Huns last night. It is only a matter of time before he becomes a hero in the future.

It is easy to make enemies, and it is not difficult to make friends with strangers. The most difficult thing is to improve the relationship after making enemies.

Seeing Zhao Ji deep in thought, Jia Tong leaned against the wall to rest.

At this time, Pei Xiu and Guan Qiu Xing came in. They were visibly stunned when they saw Jia Tong. Pei Xiu then said, "Wang Zhi is missing. Wei Zhongjian has sent people to investigate, and the gates of Jiangyi have been closed ever since."

"Seventh brother, Brother Wenzhen said that Wang Zhi led his troops south."

"He abandoned the army?"

Pei Xiu was shocked and immediately asked Jia Tong, "Who else knows?"

Jia Tong smiled and said, "Most of the knights chasing the enemy know about it, and it must have spread throughout the camp by now."

"Wang Zhi, the traitor, how dare you ruin the imperial court!"

Pei Xiu was furious, gritting his teeth and glaring, wanting to rebuke Jia Tong. However, seeing Jia Tong's lazy expression, he lost his temper and said, "Now that changes are imminent in the camp, what should we do?"

Jia Tong said nothing, turned his head and glanced at Zhao Ji's profile.

Zhao Ji thought without hesitation: "We are determined to uphold the country. How can we lose our will because of one person?"

Zhao Ji then said, "Gather all the Caos, the garrison commanders, the detachment officers, and some of the county officials. I want to see who wants to leave."

Pei Xiu now gradually gained confidence and started a meeting.

As long as you have a feasible plan, you can hold on for a few more days.

With Zhao Ji around, no one dared to overturn the table and leave.

　There will be one less chapter updated for the old book today. Starting tomorrow, there will be two updates for the new book and only one update for the old book.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)