When Wen Hao turned around to look, he saw a maroon horse galloping towards him. The man on the horse was dressed in red like fire, with a sword on his back and an embroidered velvet knife in his hand. He was Fan Lihua with a heroic appearance. Wen Hao said in surprise: "Jade
Son, what are you here for?"
Fan Lihua's eyes widened: "I'm here to fight, can't I?"
Wen Hao grinned and said: "War is a man's business, you are a woman..."
"Hmph!" Fan Lihua curled her lips and said, "In terms of martial arts and military tactics, how are you better than me? Besides, didn't Lord Liu organize women and children to guard Weiding City in the first place?"
When it comes to this, Wen Hao becomes a little discouraged. The couple often compete at home, but he seems to be better only in terms of strength. In other martial arts and military skills, he loses more and wins more. In desperation, Wen Hao had to use his eyes to win.
Look at Liu Ziqiu.
"Haha, haha, when others are fighting father and son, you should fight the young couple." Liu Ziqiu knew that Wen Hao was more brave than clever, so he waved his hand and said, "These five thousand elite soldiers will be left to you. Don't let Liu's advice be betrayed."
Tuo!"
Fan Lihua proudly glanced at the dumbfounded Wen Hao and said angrily: "Why don't you give the order to set off!"
In fact, Fan Lihua hurried over because she was worried about Wen Hao on the one hand, and on the other hand she remembered Liu Ziqiu's words and wanted to find out the true circumstances of Yang Guang's death. Of course, she would not tell the second reason.
…
The fields in autumn are golden, the cotton is as white as snow, the sorghum is like fire, and the heavy ears of grain bend the stalks. The weather has been good since the beginning of spring, and it looks like another bumper harvest.
In Tanjiagou by the Xichuan River, villagers have been busy in the fields early in the morning. At three o'clock in the morning, the villagers put down their work one after another and sat in twos and threes at the head of the field, drinking water, eating dry food, and doing household chores. This is a rare moment in a day's work.
After half an hour of rest time, everyone will go back to the fields and work until dark. Compared to the turmoil in the Central Plains, this small village on the northwest border seems much quieter and more peaceful.
Suddenly, the ground beneath their feet trembled, with dust flying in the west and the sound of horse hoofbeats. Xiping belongs to the border county, bordering the past tense Tuyuhun, and is often harassed by nomadic tribes. When their lives are threatened, the villagers will rise up.
Resistance has resulted in an extremely tough folk custom. Some villagers have dropped their earthen jars and grabbed the hoes and shovels around them. Some other villagers looked confused because now is not the season for nomadic tribes to attack the border.
Soon, the smoke over there was getting closer and closer, and the outline of a large group of cavalry had emerged, as many as thousands of people. Such a large-scale nomadic cavalry attack on the border was very rare. Even the villagers of Tanjiagou, who were known for their bravery, also
They couldn't help but turn pale. If a nomadic tribe with less than a hundred people attacked, they would dare to fight. But with thousands of enemies, they would have no choice but to be slaughtered.
The cavalry team quickly arrived in front of them. However, they just followed the road eastward and had no intention of disturbing the villagers. The villagers looked at the cavalry team rolling past and did not care about eating or working. They gathered together to discuss
One after another.
"Uncle Zhu, with so many troops, are they trying to rob Linqiang City?"
"It's hard to say. I think it's better to go home quickly, pack up, and take shelter in the mountains. Who knows if they will pass through our village when they come back."
After listening to what Uncle Zhu said, some villagers had already started to pack away their farm tools. These hoes and shovels were not only what they needed to eat, they could also be used as self-defense weapons at critical moments. Suddenly, two horses were seen breaking away from the team and heading straight towards the villagers.
In the past, a few villagers clenched their hoes, but if the two cavalrymen really wanted to rob them of their belongings, they really did not dare to resist. Two nomadic cavalrymen were nothing, but if they lured thousands of people over,
There are not enough people in their village to fill the gap between others' teeth.
At this moment, the two cavalrymen were approaching. One of them jumped off his horse, fell to his knees with a thump, and said loudly: "Dad, the child thought he would never see you again."
A sharp-eyed villager shouted: "Brother Ma, isn't this your third son?"
"San'er, it's really San'er! You're still alive!" The father and son hugged each other and cried bitterly.
Another cavalryman hesitated on his horse for a moment, then jumped down and knelt down in front of Uncle Zhu. It turned out that these two cavalrymen were kidnapped by Xianbei a few years ago, and the villagers had already regarded them as dead. Who would have thought that
They actually came back alive today.
Uncle Zhu suddenly pushed his son angrily and shouted angrily: "Gouzi, you are such a beast, how can you help the evildoers do evil! I don't have a son like you."
"Uncle Zhu, it will be good if the baby comes back. It will be good if the baby comes back." Gouwa is Uncle Zhu's only son. When the villagers saw this, they all came to persuade him.
Gou Wa wiped away her tears and said proudly: "Dad, I didn't help the tyrants. When I came back, I helped my lord conquer the world!"
Another villager came over and asked, "Gouwa, where is your Brother Tiezhu?"
Before Gou Wa could answer, the third son of the Ma family looked gloomy and said, "Brother Tiezhu was beaten to death by those Xianbei beasts last year."
Many villagers gathered around and asked about their relatives. It was extremely miserable to be a slave to those nomadic tribes. You didn't have enough to eat, didn't wear warm clothes, and were often beaten and scolded. Thinking of that experience, Ma Saner and
Zhu Gouwa looked sad. There were more than 20 boys and girls kidnapped by the Xianbei people in Tanjiagou back then. Most of them had been tortured to death. There were also a few girls who got married and stayed in Weiding City. Those who came back today
But there are only two, Ma San'er and Zhu Gouwa.
Brother Ma took his son and said, "San'er, let's go home with me. Your grandma will be extremely happy to see you."
"Dad, no." Ma San'er waved his hand and said, "Military discipline is strict. It's because the commander knew that our two hometowns are here, so he let us come back to see. If the lord hadn't liberated us, who would have known about the two of us?
Can we survive this winter? We will chase the team immediately, and we will never be deserters!"
"Yes, we are not deserters!" Over there, Zhu Gouwa also made up his mind, jumped on his horse, and together with Ma San'er, raised his whip and chased the team.
The villagers stood at the head of the field, watching the two young figures walking further and further away, gradually turning into small black dots, until they disappeared, and then they started talking again.
"Uncle Zhu, which army did your third son join?"
One villager suddenly realized: "Of course it is the army of the Sui Dynasty. We have forgotten that there is no Tuyuhun anymore, and that over there is our Xihai County of the Sui Dynasty."
Another villager said: "That's not right. From here to the east is the land of the Sui Dynasty. Who are they going to attack?"
"The world is in chaos now. I heard that Longxi and Chang'an each have an emperor."
"Forget it, forget it, let's get to work quickly. Those things are not what we common people should consider."
Some families were happy and some were sad. Uncle Zhu and Brother Ma were naturally moved to tears by their son being able to come back alive. However, those villagers whose relatives could never come back could only lament their misery. But the dead were gone, and the living
We still need to face the reality, but we can't let go of the daily work no matter what. The passionate chants soon sounded in the fields again, but the sound was a little more sad and vicissitudes of life.
…
Linqiang City is the westernmost county town in Xiping County. Ten miles north of the county town is Jinshan, where Yang Guang once stationed the Chinese army. This was once a strategic town in the Sui Dynasty. More than a dozen large warehouses were built in the county town.
To accumulate the food and grass needed by the army. Since Yang Guang's expedition to the west, the status of Linqiang City has become less important than before. After Yu Wenhuaji supported Yang You, he successively moved the garrison of Linqiang City to the east, and the food and grass in the city also
A lot of it was transported away, and the city became depressed.
As the vanguard, Tumulu and Jiaoliyan led the army until they stopped five miles outside Linqiang City. After resting for half an hour, the armies began to count their numbers and regroup. The five thousand cavalry were all composed of
It was composed of liberated slaves. Most of these slaves were people from Xiping, Zhangye, Chuihe and other counties. They were taken captive to the West Sea during the Xianbei raids over the years. Along the way, there were many situations with Zhu Gouwa and Ma Saner.
Soldiers in similar situations were granted permission to visit relatives.
"Not even one is missing!" Gui Haiqiu said excitedly after counting the number of people, "Why don't I bring a few people to pretend to be villagers and take down the city gate first!"
He is the guide of this team. Back then, he, Liu Ziqiu, Hua Yun and others traveled a long distance from Luoyang to come here, and now they have fought back, so they are naturally familiar with the journey.
Jiao Liyan waved his riding crop and said: "No, soldiers are very fast! I will lead five hundred people directly into the city!"
There are few trivial matters in Linqiang City. The county magistrate Shaodong got up early in the morning and tried two trivial cases, and the day's work was over. At noon, he made a few side dishes, boiled a pot of wine, and drank happily with his newly married wife in his arms.
After taking two cups, the day passed leisurely.
Suddenly, a government official stumbled into the back office and said repeatedly: "Sir, it's not good! The Tuyuhun people have invaded!"
"Nonsense!" Shao Dong, who was slightly drunk, yelled, "Tuyuhun was defeated by the late emperor a long time ago, so there is no such thing as Tuyuhun!"
The yamen servant was extremely anxious and said: "It's true, those people have entered the city and will be arriving at the yamen soon..."
Before he finished speaking, there was a scream from outside, and several maids ran in in a panic. Behind them, more than a dozen cavalry rushed into the back office like wind and clouds, and the war horses snorted inside the house.
The thick hooves of a bowl plowed the ground, and the knight on horseback waved his scimitar and let out a wanton and weird laugh.
The reins were tightened at the corner, and the horse circled around Shaodong and his wife. The riding whip suddenly pointed at the county magistrate's wife and shouted: "This girl is good, you all get out, let me have fun first."
Everyone laughed and drove Shao Dong, the government servant who reported the news, and several maids who had escaped from the house together.
"Wait!" But Jiao Liyan pointed at Shao Dong and said, "Leave him here and let him watch from the side!"