About three hours later, the mess outside Horseshoe Lake was finally cleared up. In the depression outside the forest to the west, dozens of thick smoke were rising, and there was a faint smell of fishy meat.
Even in winter, Xu Mu had to be careful. Hundreds of corpses were not properly disposed of, and a plague spread. It was a serious matter.
It's like watching a farce. Except for the new group of people, the rest of the people in Zhuangzi have not changed much. They work when they need to work, and eat and drink when they need to.
"Master, Gu Ying is here." Chen Sheng held the knife in one hand and ran back in a hurry.
Xu Mu has always had a good impression of the chief guard around the young marquis. I heard that he was originally a general who followed the young marquis all the way here.
"Little boss, do you have anything?" Gu Ying got off his horse, the long knife under his waist faintly glowing with silver.
"No, there were two thousand troops that were defeated before, and they were defeated without a fight."
"I was thinking along the way that my little boss is a person who came back from the border. These two thousand rebels should be safe and sound."
After a few words of talk, after Gu Ying swallowed his throat, Xu Mu suddenly understood that something was going to happen again with Yuan Tao.
"Brother Gu, could it be that something happened to Mr. Hou?"
"Xiao Dongjia, my master has been coughing more and more these days. It's rare that he has relaxed a little today, so he asked me to go personally and invite Xiao Dongjia to Changyang."
Xu Mu frowned slightly. Yuan Tao's illness was obvious to everyone. According to the words of the miracle doctor Li Wang'er, he probably didn't have much time left.
However, what Jia Wenlong said that day has some truth to it after all...
With a deep expression on his face, Xu Mu simply didn't think about it anymore. All he needed to know in this world was that the young marquis Yuan Tao was the last barrier to the Great Age, and that was enough.
"Si Hu, go find a dozen people to follow me into Changyang."
The defeat of the army is far from over. As Jia Zhou said, even if the fire cannot start a prairie fire, it will eventually burn.
"Mr. Chen, and Chen Sheng, you two are optimistic about Zhuangzi."
When Si Hu called someone, Xu Mu whistled, and General Feng had already rushed to the front.
"My dear boss, what a good horse." Gu Ying turned around and looked at him, uttered only one sentence, then hurriedly stepped forward, picked up the horse and turned over.
The wind and snow howled in the head, and it only drifted for a few times before completely covering up the blood in front of Horseshoe Lake. The horseshoes stepped on the snowy road, shaking the woods on both sides, and frost and snow weighing on the branches were knocked down.
"Little boss, there is one more thing." Gu Ying turned his head as he hurriedly ran.
"I went to the official road before and checked. This time, two thousand troops retreated to Horseshoe Lake. In fact, someone did it deliberately."
"The four major households in Tangjiang City." Xu Mu said coldly.
Jia Zhou's analysis is correct. Blocking someone's money is like killing one's parents. In the inner city, if we say the ones with the deepest grudges, there are only four major households.
"Does the little boss know?"
"You can guess it."
"That Mr. Lu, I guess I'm still waiting for news of your death. I also know that my young master should have murderous intentions at this moment."
Xu Mu hesitated for a moment and did not answer. He was better at hiding his clumsiness, even though Gu Ying was the young Marquis's man.
"I won't ask any more." Gu Ying nodded lightly, "My master is letting you go to Changyang this time. It's probably because of something important."
"know."
More than twenty figures on horseback were running very fast in the snow. The sound of horse hooves reflected in the snowy scene, adding a bit of wildness.
It took about two days for the group to fight through Fengxue and stop their horses in front of Changyang City.
Xu Mu raised his head and looked at the tower outside the city gate. If I remember correctly, Chen Jiaqiao came over a few days ago and hung Hu Yanche's body here.
"Little boss, let's enter the city."
On a cold day, the sick young prince would probably not sit under the weeping willow tree.
As Gu Ying said, it had only been less than half a month, and the face of the young marquis Yuan Tao became more and more haggard.
Looking from a distance, even though he was wearing a thick cloak, he still looked like he was weathering the wind and snow, holding a stove in one hand and covering his mouth with the other.
The sound of coughing that ripped through his chest made Xu Mu's heart ache.
"When you come, follow me into the house."
The voice was so hoarse that if you listened with your eyes covered, you would just think it was an old man speaking.
"Xu Mu has met Mr. Hou."
"Don't be too polite, you are one of our own family." Yuan Tao smiled.
Gu Ying hurried forward, helped lift the stove, supported Yuan Tao, and slowly entered the house.
"Brother Tiger, a banquet has been prepared in the outer courtyard."
Si Hu, a group of about twenty, cheered and hurried away in small groups.
Xu Mu carried him into the house and looked at Yuan Tao's stooped figure from behind, feeling even more uncomfortable.
"You should know about the collapse of the army, ahem..."
"I know, I even beat up a bunch of them today."
Yuan Tao's pale face was startled, and Gu Ying beside him hurriedly whispered a few words. After a while, Yuan Tao's face turned happy again.
"I didn't misjudge the person."
"If there are any heroes with eggs in this Daji, my little boss is one of them."
"The Marquis is overly praised."
"It's not an exaggeration, cough...my boss, I have no choice but to let you enter Changyang this time."
Yuan Tao raised his arm with difficulty and pointed at his chest.
Gu Ying, whose eyes were red for no apparent reason, helped to untie half of the warm robe.
For a moment, Xu Mu also felt a little nervous.
The heart and mouth of Yuan Tao's chest were clearly blackened, and dense black veins were all over the surrounding area.
"Li Wang'er said that I probably wouldn't survive this winter. But now that I think about it, he seems to have been overconfident."
"Yesterday, several old doctors who had returned to their hometowns all entered the Hou Mansion and said that I would not survive more than a month."
"Master Marquis, if not, I will immediately go to Muyun Prefecture to look for famous doctors."
Xu Mu only felt that his voice was trembling a little.
"Don't go. Gu Ying sent people there a few times ago." Yuan Tao coughed, with regret in his voice.
"This time, let the little boss come to Changyang because I want to trouble you with something."
"Master Marquis, please tell me."
Yuan Tao raised his pale face and his eyes became intense.
"Three hundred miles outside the inner city, there is a defeated army of 7,000 people entrenched in the county. How about a visit to my little boss?"
Xu Mu was startled, "Master Hou, I heard that many battalions were transferred back to the court."
"That's their business."
Yuan Tao lowered his head, "This round, you go to the county and rescue a few people for me."
"Save people? What does the Marquis say?"
"There was an envoy from Liangzhou who was blocked in the city after the defeated army occupied the county."
Xu Mu was smart enough not to ask why an envoy from Liangzhou was blocked in a defeated county. But he vaguely guessed that this matter should be Yuan Tao's plan.
"Gu Ying is a genuine fifth-grade silver sword guard. He can't go because he is being watched too closely. Some of the brothers outside don't believe it. They just feel that they don't have such methods as the little master. After all, it is a rebel city."
"I guess the camp soldiers will be around you soon, so be careful. I'll have something for you when you get back."
Xu Mu nodded silently.
"By the way, what you mentioned earlier...that Lu Zizhong from one of the four major families happened to be reported. He may have entered Changyang City."
"I'll send someone to help you dig it out. You can go and break the willow branches yourself."
"Master Hou, what if I were beaten to death?"
"It's up to you. No matter what, you should be tougher."