Chapter 28: Heroes Stride on Shanzhou on a Moonlit Night
The fleet walked like this for a day and night under the fog of Gongsun Sheng, and finally set foot on the border of Shaanzhou when night fell the next day. Finally, the fleet docked outside Fenglingdu near Guanxi Town. A wilderness place.
The boatman set up a gangplank, and Wu, carrying a white paper lantern in his hand, walked up to the shore and lit the lantern with a flint. Lin Chong's fleet also gathered and docked at Wu Yong Gongsun Sheng's ship. Around the fleet, and the fleets of Yang Zhi, Lu Zhishen and others were also gathering behind them. At this time, Lin Chong came out of the cabin and looked at Wu Yong holding a white lantern in one hand. He was very surprised. It's weird, not to mention the shape of this lantern, just looking at the color of this lantern, except for mourning, who would use such a wordless and unpainted light to illuminate, and now Wu is using this lantern, it is really scary. , no matter how you look at it, it is a dazzling pale light.
Just when Lin Chong looked puzzled, the white lantern was held by Wu Yong and became lighter and lighter. It was so light that it slowly rose up. Lin Chong was stunned. This pale lantern looked like a toddler at first. Children, not long after we walked up, the light became more and more dazzling. The entire lantern looked like a will-o'-the-wisp swaying in the wind. When we finally looked at it, it was already soaring upwards, like the sun in the sky.
Lin Chong looked at it and couldn't help but be surprised. He has lived so long since he was a child and has never seen any lanterns that can soar like this. He has never seen any lanterns that can fly like this. It was dazzling, and today it was not only Lin Chong who had his eyes opened, but also Lu Zhishen, Yang Zhi, Ruan Xiaowu, Ruan Xiaoer, Shi Qian and Shi Jin who came up later came ashore curiously and came to Wu Yong's side.
Shi Qian was quick on his feet and not slow on his words. He was the first to ask: "Military advisor, what kind of lantern is this? It can actually fly into the clouds and mist."
Wu Yong looked at Shi Qian's curious look and said with a smile: "This is not a lantern, it is the legendary Kongming Lantern."
"Kong Ming Lantern," Lin Chong seemed to have heard of this thing, and said: "According to legend, it was invented by the Prime Minister of Shu in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. However, it has been lost for a long time like a wooden cow and a flowing horse. How come the military strategist knows such a superb method?"
"That's true. It has been lost for a long time. I, Wu Yong, am just a villager. How could I know that such a profound method was taught by Taoist Master Gongsun," Wu Yong said humbly.
Gongsun Sheng saw that everyone was looking at him with admiration. At the moment, he only smiled lightly and had no polite words.
Shi Jin said: "What on earth is put in this Kongming Lantern to have such a dazzling light?"
"They are powders ground from a special black stone (the black stone here is the metal magnesium today), boiled with sulfur and lamp oil, and finally solidified into a wax block, in which a stick soaked in lamp oil is placed. The wick is so simple, but it's not that great." After hearing Shi Jin's question, Gongsun Sheng told all the "mysteries" of the Kongming Lantern.
Shi Jin nodded after hearing this, and looked at the Kong Ming Lantern flying into the night sky. He turned back to Wu Yong and said, "The military advisor is sending a signal."
Wu Yong said: "Yes, I have sent Bai Sheng, the day rat, and others to pretend to be horse vendors, and come here quickly. There is no fixed place to meet, so they use this Kongming Lantern as a signal to follow the footsteps of their horses. Don't be slow, after a while, they will come this way when they see it. When the time comes, when I hear the horses neighing, I will send someone to pick them up."
Everyone nodded and said yes, and everyone parked the ship here. For the sake of safety, all the men were in the cabin, and the supplies and food were not unloaded. They were just waiting for Bai Sheng and his people to come to meet him. After waiting like this for a long time in the dark night, less than half an hour later, a man with his ears on the ground suddenly stood up and came over, knelt on one knee and reported: "Chief leaders, the sound of horse hooves can be heard from over there. "
"How many," Wu Yong asked cautiously, shaking his feather fan.
"Waiting for the rumble, I estimate from experience that there will only be a dozen or so people," the gangster reported back.
"More than a dozen people," Lin Chong repeated. At first, he felt something was wrong. How could these thousands of people bring these dozen horses? Then he thought about it in his mind and had another answer.
Wu Yong stroked his beard and said with a smile: "That's right. I told them to hide their horses before. When they see the signal, each team will send a fast horse to meet us. Since there are not many coming, , then there is a chance that it is them, not from the government, Xiaoqi,"
"Here," Ruan Xiaoqi said, clasping his fists in response: "The military advisor's orders,"
"Take a small team of troops and go to meet them. If they are from the headquarters, bring them back. If they are government spies, don't fight them on the road and lead them to the woods. Remember to leave one alive and tie them back for questioning," Wu Yong ordered. , Ruan Xiaoqi responded and led a small group of brothers, quickly heading over there.
Everyone looked at the direction Ruan Xiaoqi was leaving and waited anxiously. After only a cup of tea, the sound of horse hoofs sounded from the other side, getting closer and closer. Everyone stared carefully, but not long after. Through the night, you can vaguely see a group of men and horses approaching with black shadows.
Lin Chong and Shi Jin looked at each other. They both took spears in their hands and walked towards the group.
Wu Yong knew that the two of them were worried about the identity of this person. In order to ensure the safety of everyone, and he himself was not sure that there was no accident, he immediately took out the long whip wrapped around his waist, and Gongsun Sheng also took out it. With his long sword, Lu Zhishen relied on the Zen staff to protect everyone behind him. Yang Zhishen held the simple sword in his hand, showing the character of a unique general. Everyone else also had the sword in their hands.
Shi Jin saw the group of people galloping towards him and saw that their horses were extremely fast and showed no signs of slowing down. He immediately became hostile and was about to raise the tip of the spear in his hand, preparing to give the leader a blow. When he was beheading, the man who was leading the way shouted: "Brother Shi Jin is in front of me,"
When Shi Jin heard this, he quickly retracted his gun. When he looked again, the man was already close to him. After a long neigh, the horse stopped its rapid movement. Shi Jin saw that this man was coming. The rat was victorious in the daytime, and he felt relieved immediately, with a smile suddenly blooming on his face.
Bai Sheng's tense heartstrings suddenly relaxed at this moment. After turning around and giving a loud whistle, he quickly got off the horse and came to see Shi Jin. Shi Jin helped Bai Sheng up, and Bai Sheng came back. The person with the news also followed up, and Ruan Xiaoqi and others also jumped off their horses. Shi Jin finally understood that just when Wu Yong sent someone to take the lead, Shi Jin thought, in this case, why not send Shi Qian, who can fly over the wall and go over the wall? , but to send Ruan Xiaoqi. With such a cautious attitude at the moment, Ruan Xiaoqi was indeed the best candidate. He took the lead and rode over with Bai Sheng and others, because many people rode The horse he was riding was not fast, and Ruan Xiaoqi was leading the way by memory. If he made a mistake and strayed into the territory of the officers and soldiers, he would not be able to run away, so he took advantage of Bai Sheng, who was dressed like a businessman. , one person is exploring the way ahead.
Everyone got off their horses, and Shi Jin and Lin Chong brought everyone to meet Wu Yong and others. Everyone was full of joy to see each other here, except for the dozens of minions who dispersed and were standing guard outside. , everyone relaxed their guard just now, and after greeting each other, Bai Sheng sent people to quickly go back to their respective strongholds to notify them to transport the horses quickly.
"Military advisor, there are more than thousands of horses. Although they are gathered in more than ten routes, they are really eye-catching. In the middle of the night, running around makes a lot of noise. It will definitely alarm the soldiers and horses stationed in Shaanzhou. , when the time comes, they will follow. I'm afraid there won't be time for so many people to get off the ship for preparation. Why don't they unload the supplies and armaments now? The horses will arrive in a while, so they can get on and leave immediately. We can just sail the ship later," Bai said. Sun Rat Bai Sheng suggested.
After hearing this, Wu Yong thought for a while and said: "Well, I have considered it. It will take some effort to gather more than 1,500 people from nearly a hundred ships. However, if all the materials and armaments are unloaded from the ship, But something unexpected happened to the cavalry on the way. It was not a cavalry but an army of officers and soldiers. Then our infantry would suffer a big loss. If we fight hastily, we will lose men and horses in vain. If we want to save our strength and want to fight again, It’s even more difficult to get on a boat and escape. To be on the safe side, it’s better to make plans slowly.”
Bai Sheng heard what Wu Yong said was reasonable, and he didn't say much at the moment. He obeyed. Wu Yong sent Shi Qian to ride Bai Sheng's horse to a place more than ten miles ahead as a secret sentry. If there was any movement, Bai would fly away. Come report.
When Shi Qian heard that Wu Yong had sent him to serve as a secret whistle, he felt excited in his heart. He had wanted to go there just now, and then he came to the front of Bai Sheng's horse with a few phantom steps. He pulled the reins and was about to mount the horse, but in his mind I don't know why I thought: The military advisor asked me to be a secret sentry, so I have to go quietly and come back quietly. The hoofs of these horses are too loud. How can I cooperate with my secret sentry? When Shi Qian thought of this, he took out the leggings from his marching bag. He brought a coarse cloth and wrapped all four hooves of the horse thickly. Then he got on the horse, raised his whip, and rode away. The horse was seen to sweep up a trail of smoke, but the sound of the horse's hoofs was much quieter. In the blink of an eye, both people and horses disappeared into the night.
Wu Yong saw this small detail that no one cared about, and couldn't help but smile slightly at the corner of his mouth.
Just after everyone waited for a long hour, a black figure in the distance pierced the confused night and appeared in everyone's sight. Shi Jin had excellent eyesight and was on guard against the minions on the periphery. When the time came, Shi Jin said: "It's time for Shi Qian to come back."
Sure enough, Shi Qian's horse came. Before the horse could stop, he shouted loudly: "They are coming."