The weather was hot in summer. The soldiers guarding the south gate of Jiexiu City finally fell asleep until the third watch. The stone thrown by Li Wei, the cavalry colonel of the Han Army, had no greater impact on them than a few pesky mosquitoes. There is a "buzzing" noise, and before dawn, there is a period of the darkest time. This is often the time when everyone sleeps the deepest. After this period of time, the sky gradually lights up, and the human biological clock also It will take effect and it will become easier to be alert. Hou Qinu took advantage of this darkest time before dawn.
When Hou Qinu and his brothers came to the foot of Jiexiu City, it was quiet on the top of the city. Not a single person was seen. The Jiexiu City Wall was not very high and had not been repaired for many years. The surface was full of pits. Such a wall was not suitable for Hou For an abandoned slave, it was no problem at all. He didn't even need to use any tools. He just climbed up with his bare hands.
There should have been a few soldiers on night watch on the top of the city, but they must have been too sleepy. At this time, they no longer knew which garrison cave they had hid in. Wait until the sun comes out. The weather will soon get hotter and hotter. Then we will It's not easy to get a good night's sleep. They know how to seize the opportunity.
Hou Qinu climbed over the battlements and looked around vigilantly. After making sure that there were no defenders, he lowered a rope along the city wall. These ropes were specially made and very strong. They could bear the weight of four or five people. They waited at the bottom of the city. The soldiers of the special brigade grabbed the rope and climbed to the top of the city like a spiritual ape in a few ups and downs.
After occupying the city head, they occupied the commanding heights of Jiexiu City. The situation inside and outside the city was clear at a glance. Hou Qinu made a gentle gesture. More than a dozen soldiers walked along the city ladder towards the city gate. A soldier guarding the gate happened to be When he came out to get up at night, he saw a faint black shadow. He was about to scream. He only felt the wind behind his head and heard a crisp "click" sound. Then he lost consciousness. His neck had been twisted. .
After a cup of tea, two crisp insect chirps came from the city gate. This was the signal that the agreement had been successful. Hou Qinu breathed a sigh of relief and made another gesture. The soldiers lit torches and raised them in the air. After shaking for three times, Beihou Qinu said his vows in front of Zhang Liao. In fact, this was his first mission. That's why he climbed up to the top of the city in person just now. He was really sweating in his heart.
Not far away, Zhang Liao waved his sword and took the lead. He led 3,000 cavalry and rushed straight to the city. Hou Qinu saw it from the city. He imitated two more Bai Ton calls. The city gate slowly opened with a "creak". .
Jiexiu City is the southernmost city in Taiyuan and borders Hedong County. Yuan Shao deployed 3,000 garrison troops here. However, the Han army came too quickly. Many people were taken prisoner in a daze while they were sleeping. A few of them were captured in a daze. One person who wanted to resist was cut into two pieces by the saber of the Han cavalry before he could grab the sword or gun. The following Han army troops swarmed in and quickly took control of the four gates.
In fact, a small city like Jiexiu, even if the defenders are well prepared, may not be able to withstand a half-day strong attack by the Han army. However, being able to capture Jiexiu city quietly will be able to surprise others in the north. Several counties were unaware of it and therefore lost the opportunity to prepare.
After the Han army entered the city, they went out to pacify the people while reinforcing the city defense. Suddenly, the soldiers on the top of the city found a large group of troops coming from the north. They hurriedly reported to Zhang Liao. Those coming from the north were either Yuan Shao's troops or Xianbei cavalry. Zhang Liao was gone. I was surprised when I thought that the enemy had come so quickly. I quickly ordered a group of cavalry, opened the city gate and rushed out.
Because of the situation in Jiexiu City, Zhang Liao had already arrived. The city was in ruins and needed to be repaired as soon as possible. Therefore, he knew that his soldiers were exhausted, so he had no choice but to go out of the city to support the city to buy some time for the deployment of city defenses.
When Zhang Liao left the north gate, it was already getting a little brighter. Only then did he realize that the commotion in the distance was not an army, but people fleeing. Zhang Liao waved his sword and rushed over on his horse. The cavalry behind him followed. Divided into two teams, outflanked the group of people from left to right, and surrounded the group of people in the middle. When the people saw the large group of cavalry coming, they suddenly became chaotic, crying and screaming.
Zhang Liao stepped forward on his horse, swung his sword horizontally, and shouted sternly: "Who are you waiting for?"
These are extraordinary times. Zhang Liao is afraid that these people are deceived and has to guard against them.
The group of common people were in chaos for a while. They pushed an old man forward. The old man stepped forward tremblingly. The cavalrymen who came to this group were all Han Chinese with black eyes and yellow skin. After calming down for a while, they raised their hands and asked: " May I ask who the general is from?"
Zhang Liao said in a deep voice: "This is Zhang Liao, the commander of the Fourth Army of the Han Dynasty. Who are you?"
The old man suddenly looked happy and said: "So, you are the Jingzhou Army. We are common people from Yuci County. We are worried about being harmed by the Xianbei people, so we fled here. We are not spies. I hope the general will find out. .”
Both Yuan Shao and Cao Cao only recognized Liu Xin as the Jingzhou Shepherd. Therefore, Liu Xin's army was always called the Jingzhou Army by them. Zhang Liao did not bother to correct them.
Zhang Liao has long been familiar with the terrain of Taiyuan County. Yuci is only not far southeast of Taiyuan City. These people actually fled here. He couldn't help but asked in a deep voice: "How far are the Xianbei people from here?"
The old man hurriedly replied: "Return to the general. We are all common people in the countryside of Yuci. The Xianbei people do not enter the city. They specifically harm us rural people. We have no choice but to find a city to hide. However, we will leave. We have been in Yuci for two days. I really don’t know where the Xianbei people are."
Zhang Liao frowned and said, "There are so many cities in front of us. Why don't you go there? But we ended up here."
The old man sighed: "The gates of all the counties along the way are closed. You can't get in."
Zhang Liao was stunned. Could it be that Yuan Shao had already prepared for his actions? But Jie Xiu was not so lax in his precautions. He couldn't help but pondered: "Why don't the counties in Shentu let you enter the city?"
The old man shook his head helplessly and said, "Aren't you afraid of offending the Xianbei people?"
Zhang Liao nodded and said, "Do you know how to enter the city?"
A middle-aged woman said angrily: "Of course rich men can go to the city. No matter what, even if there are beautiful girls at home, they can go to the city."
Zhang Liaoqi said: "Why is this?"
The woman said: "A rich gentleman can bribe the guards at the city gate. A beautiful girl has no food and clothing. It is just convenient for the officials to take concubines."
"Come here, escort these people to Jiexiu City and resettle them." Zhang Liao ordered, turned his horse around, and went straight to Jiexiu County Government Office.
He Xiang, the magistrate of Jiexiu County, was pulled out of his bed by the soldiers. He was wearing only a pair of shorts and was held aside shivering. The female relatives at home were also gathered together. The soldiers had sorted out the county office. This is Zhang Liao's temporary command post. After Hou Qinu and others captured the city gate, they disappeared without a trace.
Zhang Liao went straight to the back office and ordered all the female relatives of He Xiang's family to be brought up. He selected six pretty young women from them. Then he said, "Quickly. Get them all dressed up for me."
In troubled times, human life is like a piece of grass, and women are even more miserable, especially beautiful women. The female relatives of He Xiang's family were taken prisoner. They were all crying and frightened. The six selected women felt relaxed. It is better to be selected by the general than to be insulted by those soldiers.
The gold and silver belongings in He Xiang's home had long been confiscated by the soldiers. Boxes and boxes of clothes were piled in the back hall. The six women selected by Zhang Liao were He Xiang's concubines, He Xiang's daughters, and ordinary people. Concubine Ji and Miss Qianjin had their own clothes to wear during the festival. Those maids were not dressed up at all. At this time, they simply opened the master's suitcase and picked it up. The women did not care about the shame. They dressed up in front of Zhang Liao and the soldiers. I changed my clothes. I just wanted to dress myself up beautifully to win the general's favor. Besides, the general was handsome and handsome. It wouldn't be a disadvantage if I followed him.
Unexpectedly, Zhang Liao was not in the mood of these women to change their clothes and had already walked out quickly. After a while, several women had changed their clothes and dressed up in splendor. They were taken out by the soldiers and saw several women in the front hall. Young and old men in silk clothes were already waiting there. The general they had just arrived also changed into a robe and turned into a gentle and elegant man.
A huge motorcade quickly left the north gate of Jiexiu City. The carriages were loaded with belongings. There were also several carriages with beautiful girls sitting on them. On both sides of the carriages were guarding servants and servants. These people were moving in a hurry. After another long detour, we finally appeared at the east gate of Wu County at dawn.
People fleeing from the north are crossing the border from time to time these days. Jiang Lang, the magistrate of Wu County, has ordered the city gates to be strictly guarded. Except for people from the county who enter the city to sell vegetables, other people must be strictly screened before they can be released. The so-called screening is not In order to prevent spies, the influx of refugees into the city will bring many unexpected problems to the city's management. Local officials will not allow refugees to enter the city under normal circumstances.
However, since the soldiers guarding the gate are allowed to conduct screening, there will be loopholes. These soldiers have already received hints. If the people who want to enter the city have beautiful women, they can open it up. And the soldiers will carry forward this rule. As long as they are willing to do it If you give them money, you can turn a blind eye.
The captain of the city gate at the east gate is Jiang Lang's brother. His name is Jiang Tao. Most of the people who have escaped will take the north gate to enter the city. But he is responsible for guarding the east gate. He has not made any profit these days. He is feeling confident. Anxious. Just now, a group of common people passed by the city. He opened the city gate in advance and went out. The result was some misery. Not only was he extremely poor, but also several women in the team were not included.
Jiang Tao returned to the city angrily. He finally waited until the time for the city gate to open and let in the local people who came to the city to sell vegetables. Just as he was about to take a nap and return home, he saw a luxury motorcade rushing towards him in the distance.