Although Zhang Jun bought Chen Qing two months, time was still tight. It would take more than a month to get from Lin'an to Ganquan Fort. Chen Qing had to leave for the west as soon as possible.
Three days later, the day of departure came.
On this trip to the west, there were many people traveling with him. In addition to Lu Xiu, there were also her brother Lu Wei and his fiancée Li Mei. Surprisingly, Li Qingzhao also followed them on a trip to central Sichuan, and there was also Wei Su, the wife of deputy general Yang Yuanqing.
Yang Yuanqing and Wei Su got married in Linyou County. They separated not long after they got married. Wei Su followed his elder brother Wei Qing to Lin'an. Wei Qing had a favor and was appointed magistrate of Dinghai County in Yuezhou, so Wei Su lived with his brother.
Together, she misses her husband and is willing to follow Chen Qingxi.
There was also the family of three, the master craftsman Xie Changzhi. Chen Qing gave him two hundred taels of silver as a settlement fee to pay off the debt he owed for treating his leg. Xie Changzhi immediately said that he would sell it to Chen Qing for the rest of his life.
of the army.
Xie Changzhi also followed Chen Qingxi, but his family would disembark halfway, go to Yuezhou to settle down, and wait for Chen Qing to lead his army to join them.
Just like when he came, Chen Qing rented a large passenger ship worth 3,000 dan and a horse boat worth 3,000 dan.
That morning, at the pier outside Yuhangmen, the Lu brothers and sisters said goodbye to their father Lu Jin, who was seeing them off, and the two large ships slowly set off.
The ship has three floors. The luggage is placed on the top floor. Chen Qing and many of his female relatives live on the second floor. Chen Qing's soldiers live on the first floor.
Everyone was still in the excitement of the recent trip, visiting each other or gathering in the large middle cabin, which was equivalent to the lobby, where they usually ate and rested.
Everyone was sitting together on the left side. There were three tables on the left side and there were several windows. From the windows, you could see the scenery and people on the shore.
Although it was midsummer, there was a cool breeze blowing on the river and the cabin was relatively shady. It was particularly comfortable for everyone to drink tea and enjoy the scenery.
This time Li Qingzhao also brought two female disciples, who were also daughters of wealthy families. One was named Ding Xiniang and the other was Lin Qingqing. They were both as old as Lu Xiu. They each brought their maids. In fact, after all, they were still
Quite a few.
Four women were sitting together playing leaf play. Chen Qing sat next to Lu Xiu and watched the game. It was the first time for Chen Qing to see this type of poker played in the Song Dynasty, and he was very interested.
Ye Zixi is a playing card. There are forty cards, representing forty official positions, ranging from county captain to prime minister. There are dice patterns on the playing cards. Then the dice are rolled in turn. The number of the six dice is determined by whoever has the card in his hand.
Then if you get this official position, you may become the prime minister in the first time, and be demoted to the county captain in the next time. It can be said that poker is like life.
Card players and spectators can also place bets on the size of the dice, making it highly participatory.
After playing for a while, Li Qingzhao smiled and said, "Come and see the scenery outside."
Everyone dropped their leaves and ran to see the scenery. They saw mountains in the distance, and a village nearby, with white walls and black tiles, hidden among green trees, red flowers, small bridges and flowing water. It was really beautiful.
Chen Qing picked up the tea cup, took a sip of tea and said with a smile: "The soul of the scenery still lies in the people. This beautiful scenery would be dull if there were no fishing boats. But with a few fishing boats and villages, the whole picture comes alive."
Lu Xiu shook a small light fan, pursed her lips and smiled and said: "Sanlang is right, just like what you wrote about mountains and rivers, doubts and no way out, dark willows and bright flowers, another village, the poetic eye is the word "village", and it suddenly has a soul.
, as if returning to the human world."
"Shangyuan, tell me about your itinerary!"
Lu Wei was very concerned about their schedule. Once Chen Qing left, he would have to shoulder the safety of everyone, which was a heavy burden, so he was always worried.
Chen Qing clapped his hands and laughed loudly: "Everyone, be quiet. I'll give you a brief explanation of the itinerary."
Everyone calmed down, and Chen Qing added: "Let's talk about the journey first. Most of the time we take a boat, but when we get to Jiayu County, we have to get off the boat and take the land route, and then to Jianli County, we get on the boat again. This section is mainly about
We are avoiding the water thieves in Dongting Lake. It is about a day and a half journey and we will spend the night in a small town on the way. You don’t have to worry about your safety. We are guarded by a hundred elite soldiers. One hundred of them can be worth a thousand...
..”
"Will General Chen take office directly in Yuezhou?" Li Qingzhao asked.
Chen Qing shook his head, "I still have to go to Qinzhou to collect troops, so I will go to Bashu with everyone. We will split up in Chengdu. Then I will leave thirty elite soldiers to protect everyone's safety. You can enjoy yourself in Shu.
Don't worry about safety issues.
In about a month, I will lead the army back to Bashu. We will meet up then and then we will make the return journey. On the return journey, I will take office in Yuezhou, but I will send a warship to escort everyone back to Lin'an. This will take about three months.
Around now, it should be autumn by the time everyone returns to Lin'an."
After a pause, Chen Qing smiled again and said: "There is another important point. I will bear all the expenses for your trip this time, even if I am not here!"
As soon as Chen Qing said these words, the cabin suddenly burst into cheers.
.........
The journey went smoothly. On this day, the fleet finally arrived in Chengdu. Chengdu was not damaged by the war and still maintained the prosperity of the Northern Song Dynasty. All kinds of goods were piled up, crowds of people were everywhere, business was prosperous, and it was extremely lively.
Chen Qing rented three private courtyards at the best Gao'an Inn in the city, and ordered Yan Jun to lead thirty elite soldiers to guard them. Chen Qing also handed over the Yu sisters to Lu Xiu and asked them to play with them.
After saying goodbye, Chen Qing led seventy soldiers to ride northward. This time they were not burdened by carriages and ran very fast. They arrived in Hanzhong five days later. Chen Qing did not go to Nanzheng County, but continued northward.
.
This morning, Chen Qing and his men finally arrived at Ganquan Fort.
Zheng Ping, Yang Yuanqing and other generals rushed to the city gate to welcome Chen Qing's return.
"Du Tong, how can the imperial court give up Ganquan Fort? Are we just giving up the foundation we have worked so hard to build?" Everyone surrounded Chen Qing, talking all over the place, and their eyes were full of anger.
Chen Qing said to everyone: "This is the emperor's will. Unless we rebel and stand on our own feet, we must obey it."
Seeing everyone's sad expressions, he waved his hands and said: "The so-called iron-clad camp and flowing soldiers, Ganquan Fort will not disappear. It will always be here. As long as our army is still there, one day we will take it back.
Everyone should take a long-term view and not care about the gains and losses of one city or one place."
"We understand! We are just evacuating temporarily, and we will come back sooner or later."
When Chen Qing arrived at the military camp, he saw that the military camp had been tidied up, leaving only the tents that could be tidied up at any time.
Zheng Ping and Yang Yuanqing had received the message from Feiying in advance. Although they did not understand it, they still packed up all kinds of money, food and materials according to the order.
"Have all the residents in the city been notified?" Chen Qing asked again.
"We have already informed them. Some are willing to leave, while others want to stay. They are reluctant to part with the land outside the city."
"This is not forced. If we continue to inform you, the army will go south in three days!"
When Chen Qing returned to the Chinese army's tent, Zheng Ping walked in and said: "Recently, we have discovered that many female patrol cavalry have been observing us from the outside. Xiao B's army had a conflict with them and captured two prisoners."
"What did the prisoner say?"
"They said they came from Deshun Prefecture. There were about 10,000 Jurchen cavalry gathered in Deshun Prefecture."
Chen Qing nodded. This was what he expected. Wanyanchang would not allow him to retreat south smoothly. These 10,000 cavalrymen should be here to stop him.
Although his army is very elite, Chen Qing has to admit that in terms of cavalry combat, the Jurchen cavalry is still invincible. The Song Army cavalry is no match for the Jurchen cavalry. It mainly loses in riding skills. After all, the Jurchen cavalry is on horseback.
They grew up in the army, and their equipment was no less than that of the Song army.
"Bring Zhao Xiaoyi to see me!"
Not long after, Zhao Xiaoyi hurriedly walked into the big tent, knelt down on one knee and performed a military salute, "I'm sorry to see you in charge of the capital!"
"Has there been any movement among the main force of the Jin soldiers in Deshun Prefecture recently?"
"The news from five days ago was that there was no movement. Yesterday, I sent scouts to Deshun Prefecture. There should be news back later today."
"If you have any news, report it to me immediately!"
"Follow the order!" Zhao Xiaoyi bowed and retreated.
Chen Qing considered playing a side game. It would take a day and a night to come from Deshun Prefecture. If the opponent did not move in Deshun Prefecture, then he would make full use of this day and night.
"But......."
Chen Qing immediately thought of another difficulty. He still had a large amount of baggage, and there were people following him. It was a six hundred-mile journey from Ganquan Fort to Xianren Pass. The baggage needed to be traveled for ten days, and the Jurchen cavalry could catch up with him in two days, so they did not
Not in a hurry.
Chen Qing gradually realized that if they really wanted to retreat south smoothly, they would not be able to escape a tough battle.
Forget it, just face the threat of the Jurchen army!