Although Zhang Xutuo wanted to catch up with Zhai Rang quickly, he did not expect that without the burden of the bloated army, Zhai Rang's troops of less than a thousand people would actually run much faster. They headed south from Jindi Pass again. After chasing Tongji Canal, Zhang Xutuo hadn't caught up with Zhai Rang's troops yet. If the scouts hadn't sent out to stare at Zhai Rang, Zhang Xutuo would have given up the pursuit and turned to attack Wagang. The mountain is gone.
After crossing the Tongji Canal, the news from the scouts proved that Zhai Rang had turned and fled towards Dahai Temple not far away. Zhang Xutuo lowered his head and recalled the location of Dahai Temple. If he remembered correctly, Dahai Temple There should be a very dense forest around. Zhang Xutuo had secretly understood Zhai Rang's intention. He clearly wanted to take advantage of the geographical location of Dahai Temple to get rid of Zhang Xutuo's pursuers. Zhang Xutuo looked up. He looked at the sky. It was already close to dusk. Ever since he pursued Zhai Rang at Banzhu Ferry, Zhang Xutuo would have ordered the soldiers to set up camp at this time. But this time, Zhang Xutuo hesitated. Okay. If Zhai Rang is allowed to hide in the woods around Dahai Temple, then even the scouts will not be able to keep an eye on Zhai Rang's whereabouts. In this way, all the hard work for more than ten days will be in vain.
Zhang Xutuo was unwilling to give in. Neither were his soldiers. Zhang Xutuo immediately gritted his teeth and ordered the entire army to speed up and continue the pursuit towards Dahai Temple.
Although Dahai Temple is very close to Tongji Canal, by the time the counter-rebellion army chased Dahai Temple, it was almost dark. Looking at Dahai Temple in the distance among the jungle, the glazed tiles printed in the night sky looked special. It was eerie. A few crows flew outside the jungle, making a croaking noise. It sounded particularly harsh to Zhang Xutuo's ears. Zhang Xutuo frowned and reported according to the scout just now. Zhai Rang was already there. Half an hour ago, I fled into this jungle with my deserters. Now it's night. The scouts' sight is blocked in the jungle. They have no way to catch up. They can only wait outside the jungle.
He raised his head and glanced at the jungle in front again. Zhang Xutuo was also a little hesitant. There was a warning from Lin Moru in the art of war. Zhai Rang entered the forest first. There was no guarantee that they would not set an ambush in the forest. But if they didn't seize the time to catch up. .I'm afraid that Zhai Rang will run away from the jungle. Then wouldn't the hard work of these ten days be in vain?
Seeing Zhang Xutuo hesitated, Luo Shixin and other generals beside him also spoke one after another. Luo Shixin was the first to shout: "Commander, what are you still thinking about? Hurry up and catch up. If you don't catch up, then Zhai Rang can Ran away."
"Well, of course I know this." These generals are all Zhang Xutuo's cronies. There is no need for Zhang Xutuo to hide them. Instead, he said in a deep voice: "I am just worried. If it is Zhai Wouldn't it be bad to set up an ambush in the forest?"
"Oops." Upon hearing that Zhang Xutuo was worried about this, Luo Shixin and others immediately shouted. This time it was Fan Hu who spoke. Fan Hu immediately shouted: "Commander, what is there to worry about?" .From Banzhu Ferry to Jindiguan. We have killed Na Zhai to the point of being frightened by the news. We have chased him all the way. Now he only thinks about how to escape. There will be an ambush somewhere. Besides, even if he wants to ambush .With the few remaining troops under his command, we are defeated. We have 50,000 counter-rebellion troops at our disposal, so why should we be afraid of him?"
After Fan Hu finished speaking, Luo Shixin and others also made suggestions one after another. They all persuaded Zhang Xutuo to order the march. After being persuaded by the generals, Zhang Xutuo also threw away his last concern. He nodded and said: "Okay. Fan Hu, you lead 10,000 people from the left. Wan Ren, you lead 10,000 from the right. You surround me from both sides. Leave a thousand people to respond. The rest, all follow me into the forest."
"Here." Following Zhang Xutuo's order, more than 50,000 people divided into three directions and headed directly towards the jungle. Zhang Xutuo and Luo Shixin entered the forest from the official road leading to Dahai Temple. .Perhaps it was because of the intrusion of so many people at once. After the army entered the jungle, a group of crows flew out of the jungle. With that wah-wah noise, they kept circling over the jungle.
The thousand men and horses left behind, although they are euphemistically called "response", are actually non-combat troops, such as doctors, cooks, craftsmen, etc. If the army marches normally, of course they can also march with the army. But when they entered the jungle, they had to face battles at any time. It would be a bit cumbersome for them to follow them. So they simply stayed outside the jungle and waited for the army to return victoriously.
Looking at their comrades who had disappeared into the jungle, several of the cooks also had envious expressions on their faces. They were obviously very envious of those soldiers who could go into battle to kill the enemy. Although they were members of the counter-insurgency army, when they faced other local armies, They have always held their heads high, but in comparison, they also dreamed of one day being able to go to the battlefield with their comrades to kill the enemy and make meritorious deeds to honor their ancestors.
When the back of the last soldier disappeared into the darkness of the jungle, one of the cook soldiers couldn't help but licked his lips, clenched his fist hard, and said: "After this battle is over, I must find someone. Damn it. After so many years in the counterinsurgency army, I only carried a big spoon. If I just go home like this, I won’t be able to brag to my sons and grandsons in the future.”
"Come on." Another cook soldier next to him heard this and also joked: "With your body and your fate as a cook, if you have to go into battle to kill the enemy, then it should be me. You, you better save it. Come on. Just carry your big spoon."
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone around burst into laughter. The cook who spoke first made his face flush with embarrassment. His eyes widened and he was about to refute. But before he could say anything, he couldn't help but be stunned. He raised his head and looked towards the west. With the light of the moon that had just risen, he could see in the distance a group of people running towards this side quickly. The cook immediately pointed towards the crowd. Shouted: "Look, that is. What is that."
In fact, he didn't need to remind him. The increasingly clear sound of horse hooves had already been heard. The thousand men and horses left behind immediately stood up. Although they were all non-combatants, they were also members of the counter-rebellion army after all. When they really have to go into battle, they will not be afraid of fighting. Moreover, looking from a distance, the team of people coming is only about ten people. There are a thousand people here. Even if it is one person, The spit is enough to drown them.
Soon, the team of people also rushed in front of everyone. As soon as they saw the leader, everyone relaxed. The leader was none other than Jia Wuben, the military advisor of the counter-rebellion army. Immediately, he left The leader of the next thousand people, the captain of the Cooking Battalion, came up to him. He cupped his fists and saluted Jia Wuben, and shouted: "Master Jia."
Jia Wuben didn't look very good at the moment. After recognizing that these more than a thousand people belonged to the counter-rebellion army, he immediately looked towards the army for a moment. Then he shouted to the captain of the cook camp with an anxious look: "Where is the commander? Where are the other soldiers and horses? Where have they gone? Tell me quickly."
The captain originally came forward to greet him, but he didn't expect that Jia Wuben, who had always been gentle and calm, would scold him. He couldn't help but be stunned. It took him a long time to react. He almost went crazy when he saw Jia Wuben. He hurriedly told the story. When the captain said that Zhang Xutuo had led the army into the jungle, Jia Wuben's eyes suddenly darkened and he almost fell off his horse.
After finally recovering, Jia Wuben immediately shouted with a face of urgency: "Quick. Quick. Blow the horn. Beat the drum. Notify the commander and the soldiers in the jungle. There is an ambush in the forest. Get out immediately. Quick." ah."
Jia Wuben said such a sentence inexplicably. The captain and the more than a thousand people were all stunned. There was an ambush in the jungle. How did Mr. Jia know about it? Didn't Mr. Jia go to Sishui Pass to dispatch reinforcements? Why were there only these ten people when I left? There were still these ten people when I came back. All kinds of questions popped up in the hearts of these more than a thousand people. Everyone looked at them with doubts on their faces. Jia Wuben. I don’t know how Jia Wuben ended up like this.
Seeing that there was no movement from everyone, Jia Wuben couldn't bear it anymore. He turned over and dismounted and rushed into the military formation. It happened that the war drums in the army were all left here. When Jia Wuben saw it Those war drums, my eyes suddenly lit up. I rushed to the war drums with a single step, grabbed the drumstick, rounded it up, and knocked on the war drums.
"Boom." Although Jia Wu was just a literati, the drum beat with all his strength was loud. The sound of the war drum sounded and instantly spread throughout the night sky in the jungle. The crows were startled and immediately jumped up. They just dispersed in all directions and never dared to stay over the jungle again.
Seeing Jia Wuben suddenly beating the war drum as if going crazy. All the soldiers around him were startled. The soldiers who were close immediately stepped forward to stop Jia Wuben. Are you kidding me? . If this unauthorized beating of the war drum affects the commander-in-chief's operations in the jungle, then it will be a serious crime. Jia Wu is a popular figure in front of the commander-in-chief, a think tank. The commander-in-chief will definitely not punish him severely. When the time comes, It's not just soldiers like them who are unlucky.
"Let me go. Let me go. The commander-in-chief is in trouble. The commander-in-chief is in trouble." Jia Wuben was completely like a madman at this moment. He didn't know where he got such strength. He just forced the soldiers on the left and right to Pushed away, discussed the drumstick again, and struck towards the war drum which was as tall as a person.
"Boom." This time, before Jia Wuben could beat the war drum, a sudden sound broke through the air. A black shadow flew directly out of the jungle, hitting Jia Wuben's chest. Jia Wuben's thin body His body immediately flew upside down, and finally landed heavily on the ground. Even when Jia Wuben was flying in the air, his hand was still holding the drumstick tightly, as if he wanted to use up his last bit of strength to beat it. Sound the war drums that are getting farther and farther away.