The reception banquet was very harmonious, and Taizhou officials, big and small, were very good at flattering them. They greatly praised Xue Poye. They were obviously full of confidence in this battle. With hundreds of thousands of troops, this number made them feel at ease.
Xue Poye did not show contempt for these officials on the surface. After all, the supplies provided by the imperial court would be transported to Taizhou for a long time. The officials here were the logistics force of the Northern Expeditionary Army, and they could still be used.
As the commander-in-chief, Xue Poye naturally became the focus of everyone's flattery, while for Sein Fei, the officials seemed to be contemptuous.
Xue Poye also knew the reason for this in his heart. Most of the people present were civil servants, and in their hearts, he obviously fell into the category of civil servants. Civil servants led troops, which made them look good. As for Song Fei, his background
In the army, the civil servants did not admire him very much.
In the minds of literati, warriors are always representatives of vulgarity.
Sein Fei had a gloomy face from beginning to end, which was very unsightly. Xue Poye saw this and couldn't help but frown.
The banquet was coming to an end when they saw a general rushing to Xue Mulong's side and whispered a few words. Xue Mulong's face darkened. He looked up and saw Xue Poye looking at him, so he stood up and came over, whispering: "Commander
, something happened again at the camp."
Xue Poye frowned and said, "What's wrong?"
"The Hangzhou Army and the Youzhou Army had a quarrel."
Xue Poye sneered: "Do these guys only know about internal strife?" He stood up, not caring about the banquet going on, and said in a deep voice: "Let's go take a look, Mr. Xue, please lead the way."
Xue Mulong hurriedly agreed.
Xue Poye walked to Song Fei and said with a smile: "General Song, there is something going on at the camp. I wonder if you are willing to go together?"
Song Fei glanced at Xue Poye and said calmly: "The commander-in-chief will go first. As long as the commander-in-chief comes forward, no one dares to overturn the situation. The general will have a few more drinks here."
Xue Poye remained calm and said with a smile: "That's fine."
Xue Mulong was about to lead Xue Poye to the camp. Xue Poye thought for a while, and first changed into the clothes of an ordinary sergeant, pretending to be Xue Mulong's follower, and then went with him. He wanted to disguise himself to see what he was bringing.
What a group of soldiers.
…
"Commander, this Youzhou Army is a northern army with a wild temperament, while the Hangzhou Army is a southern army with many ideas. In my heart, I despise the Youzhou Army and often make sarcastic remarks. The Youzhou Army will not shrink back and speak angrily.
Xiangxiang, as a result, conflicts will arise from time to time." On the way to the camp, Xue Mulong said respectfully: "When these two parties start to quarrel, they bring along the sergeants from other states to quarrel from time to time. Not even half of them have gathered here.
Yue, we have caused trouble countless times, and almost killed someone two days ago."
Xue Poye looked indifferent and said calmly: "Those officials didn't deal with it?"
Xue Mulong smiled bitterly and said: "Commander, don't blame the subordinates for talking about others behind their backs. In the document issued by the Privy Council this time, in addition to the marshal and deputy commander, there are two other generals. One is Liu Xiao from Youzhou, and the other two generals.
There is Yang Yijun from Huizhou. Both of them are like wolves. They dislike each other and their subordinates fight. Instead of stopping them, they not only don’t stop them, but also... Hehe, the commander-in-chief will see if he goes to see them."
Xue Poye touched his nose. Although Xue Mulong did not speak clearly, there is no doubt that the two generals must be responsible for these battles.
We are about to face the northwest army. If we lead an extremely disharmonious army with the north and the south facing each other, it is doomed to failure.
At this time, the sky was gradually getting dark, and the tents were lit with bonfires over a hundred miles away, and the tents were connected one after another, like stars all over the earth.
Xue Poye rode a horse and followed Xue Mulong. He observed carefully and found that although there were many tents in the southern end, they were scattered but not chaotic. They were arranged in rows in an orderly manner. He nodded secretly in his heart. At least from the perspective of the layout of the camp,
That's completely passed the test.
"Commander, I also considered that there might be discord between the soldiers from the north and the south, so when we were setting up the place, all the troops camping in the south were arranged here. Go north, and that is the camp of the northern army." Xue Mulong said softly.
: "This southern army is led by Huizhou Yang Yijun, and the camps here are all arranged by him. I think Yang Yijun is somewhat capable of leading troops. But the apricot forest ahead is where the north and south are.
At the junction of the two camps, those disputes often arise from there."
Xue Poye looked at the soldiers beside the bonfire indifferently. On this hot occasion, most of them were wearing clothes and throwing their weapons aside. They talked about some extremely lewd topics by the fire and laughed wildly from time to time.
Voice.
These soldiers looked extremely loose and lacked the solemn and murderous spirit that soldiers should have. At first glance, they looked like a group of scoundrels.
Xue Poye shook his head when he saw it, but he also understood in his heart that there had been no war in Dachu for many years and the military was lax. These soldiers drawn from various places had already developed the habit of laziness. If they were fierce and murderous, Xue Poye would
It would be weird to break the night.
Although Xue Mulong was dressed as a government official, the generals along the way obviously had no feelings for the Taizhou governor. They did not restrain themselves at all because of his arrival. It gave people the impression that there was just a grazing horse passing by.
Xue Mulong was completely not given the respect and awe he deserved.
"Commander, you've seen it too." Xue Mulong said with a helpless smile: "These guys with no one to tie them down have no respect and no regard for lower officials." He sighed and shook his head.
: "Commander, this army is really difficult to lead. If we face the Yongzhou cavalry, I'm really worried... I'm worried about whether they have the courage to fight with the opponent."
Xue Poye touched his nose and remained silent.
After walking straight to the north for a while, he saw a huge forest in front of him. Xue Poye knew that it was the apricot forest at the junction of the camps of the northern and southern armies.
The fire there was blazing into the sky, much brighter than elsewhere, and a large group of soldiers were crowded here, cheering and yelling from time to time.
Xue Poye frowned, a little confused, followed Xue Mulong and dismounted, and asked in a low voice: "Why are there so many people gathered here?"
Xue Mulong sighed: "There must be a fight going on inside."
Beside the apricot forest, there were already three floors inside and three floors outside. Nearly a thousand officers and soldiers formed a large circle. Xue Mulong stood outside and said in a deep voice: "Stay out of the way!"
The soldier saw that it was Xue Mulong and recognized his official uniform. Although he did not take Xue Mulong seriously, after all, Xue Mulong was an important member of the party and no one dared to confront him head-on, so he moved out of the way to a narrow road.
Xue Mulong and Xue Poye exchanged glances, and then led Xue Poye to squeeze in along this narrow road.
There was only a fierce fighting sound coming from inside. Some of the officers and soldiers around him cheered and some yelled. After Xue Poye squeezed in, he saw clearly that in the middle of the field, two shirtless men
The man was fighting hand to hand with his bare hands. The two of them were covered in scars and exhausted, but they were still biting each other like two evil wolves.
Xue Mulong whispered to Xue Poye: "Commander, the two sitting ones are Yang Yijun on the left and Liu Xiao on the right." After speaking, he pointed.
Xue Poye frowned and looked carefully. Under the firelight, among the crowd on the left, there was a general in armor sitting. He was not necessarily stout, but his eyes were like a torch, and he was very murderous. At this time, he was leaning against
Sitting on the big chair, watching the fighting in the field, his face looked stern and his brows were furrowed.
This person is naturally Yang Yijun, the boss of the Southern Army.
Behind Yang Yijun, several more lieutenants stood. Xue Poye glanced at them and was quite surprised because he actually recognized two of those lieutenants.
One was Hu Dutong, who was traveling in Hangzhou. The Lu Mansion once hosted a dinner for Tan Ziqing to see him off, and Hu Dutong was one of the guests that night.
This man's archery skills were not bad, he almost won the first prize in a fight that night, and he had a rather upright temperament, but Xue Poye remembered it clearly.
Another person, who was an old acquaintance of Xue Poye, was Ye Tianxiang, deputy inspector of the Suzhou Camp Majun.
Ye Tianxiang was dressed in a white helmet and white armor. He looked heroic and had a very serious face, staring closely at the battle in the field.
Xue Poye thought to himself: "I didn't expect them to come too." Looking to the right, there was also a general sitting on a big chair. He was tall and thick. He looked like a fierce general. At this time, he was touching the scum of his beard under his jaw.
A proud smile appeared on his face.
This person is naturally Liu Xiao.
Xue Poye watched with cold eyes, watching the two men in the field fighting with all their strength. He sighed in his heart: "These guys have hard work, but they are fighting internally. I don't know if they are really on the battlefield."
Can you still have this kind of fighting spirit? If the entire Northern Expeditionary Army can use this kind of fighting spirit, let alone one hundred thousand Yongzhou cavalry, there are only two hundred thousand or three hundred thousand, what is there to fear?"
Hearing a loud roar in the field, a man finally picked up another big man by the waist, raised it above his head, and then smashed it to the ground. The man who landed on the ground groaned, curled up, and rolled on the ground. It was obvious that he was
painfully.
Suddenly, the sergeants on the right cheered in unison, the sound was like thunder. Liu Xiao also showed a proud smile, stood up, raised his hands, motioning the soldiers to quiet down, and then said with a smile: "General Yang, it seems that the south
The man still couldn't stand the beating, so he could only hide in the mother's bed and torture her."
Yang Yijun glared at the struggling man on the ground and said loudly: "Liu Xiao, don't get too proud too soon. We have won three out of five rounds. We have only passed three rounds. As long as we win two rounds in a row,
Even if we win, then you will have to lick my boots, haha...!" As soon as he finished speaking, the soldiers of the Southern Army behind him also laughed loudly.
Liu Xiao laughed and said: "Yang Yijun, you are really deceiving yourself. My northern soldiers are all famous men. If your subordinates hadn't cheated in this round, you would have come to lick my boots right now."
"Hey, you have won two games in a row. You are just dreaming. Come on, let me see what else you can do." He turned around and said, "Zhao Daqing, go teach these guys a lesson."
Xue Poye had already seen at this time that this battle was about two generals licking each other's boots as a bet, sending five of each other to fight, and the winner would be the winner of three out of five games.
Xue Mulong came closer and whispered: "Commander, look?"
Xue Poye shook his head slightly and said calmly: "Look what other tricks they are playing!"
From behind Liu Xiao, another tall and thick man stood up. He took off his shirt, walked into the field with a smile, and said loudly: "Who? Who dares to fight me?"
Hu Dutong, who was behind Yang Yijun, immediately jumped out, took off his shirt, and shouted loudly: "Uncle, I will take care of you."
Zhao Daqing clenched his fists and said with a smile: "Southerners with your size are already considered powerful, but in my eyes, killing you is like killing an ant. Come on, let me practice your skills."
.”
The northern sergeant Ke Ke cheered: "Girls in the south, get back here. We can fight this battle."
"F***, you Southern chicks, when the time comes to go to the battlefield, don't wet your pants, haha...!"
"It's not necessarily that you wet your pants, but it's certain that your legs are weak and you won't be able to run even if the Northwest Army is fighting in front of you."
As soon as the Northern Army started to curse, the Southern Army immediately cursed back.
"You guys, these northern turtles, let me tell you, fighting a war does not rely on the power of oxen, it requires the use of brains. You stupid pigs have no brains."
"Let the northerners fight, it's better to drag a herd of cattle to fight."
"That's right, that's right. If I were the commander-in-chief, I would just let them collect food and grass, so that they wouldn't be embarrassed on the battlefield."
The scolding battle between the two sides was also very exciting. The northern voice was rough and the scolding was powerful, while the southern voice was more diverse and the scolding was even more distinctive.
After the two sides began to curse, some who were close to each other even started to fight.
Liu Xiao's voice was like a bell, and he shouted: "Don't make any noise!"
His voice was strong and his words fell behind. As expected, the northern sergeant stopped cursing, and the southern sergeant cursed a few more times and then stopped.
Zhao Daqing raised his fists in the field, looked at Hu Dutong, and said loudly: "Come on, don't be afraid, I won't kill you."
Hu Dutong strode forward and cursed: "Grandson, take a punch from me." The iron bowl-like fist hit Zhao Daqing directly in the face. His punch was really powerful and sharp.
.
Zhao Daqing took a step back, punched diagonally, and hit Hu Dutong's elbow with a swing of his arm.
As soon as the two men came up, they used all their strength and showed no mercy.
Xue Poye touched his nose and thought secretly in his heart: "The antagonism between the soldiers from the north and the south seems to be very strong. Now that the war is imminent, it will be harder than climbing to the sky to eliminate the conflicts between these people in a short time. If both sides bring
If the contradictions are coordinated, the power will be greatly reduced, and there may even be trouble. I have to think of a way to solve this problem, otherwise... there is no need to fight, just surrender to the Northwest Army."
The two guys in the field were going back and forth, fighting fiercely, and there were bursts of exclamations from time to time.
Compared to Liu Xiao's relaxed expression, the expressions of Yang Yijun and the generals behind him were much uglier.
Even if Liu Xiao loses this time, he still has one last chance. If Yang Yijun loses, he will have to lick Liu Xiao's boots in front of all the sergeants. This licking of boots is a small thing, but it is such a shame.
, but that cannot be washed away no matter what. Not only will the Southern Army be ridiculed by the Northern Army in the future, but most importantly, Yang Yijun's prestige in the hearts of the Southern Army will be greatly reduced in the future.
Looking at the two men fighting each other with all their strength, Xue Poye felt a little admiration in his heart: "There are many strong generals in the Chu army. As long as they work together, they may not lose to the northwest army."
With fists and kicks going back and forth, the two of them had already fought nearly Lily, and they were indistinguishable. The soldiers around them forgot to shout and concentrated on watching the fight between the two.
After fighting for dozens of rounds, Hu Dutong shouted, "It's really awesome!" He turned around and left.
Zhao Daqing screamed wildly, caught up from behind, and slapped Hu Dutong on the back with his palm like a big cattail leaf fan.
After exclaiming, Yang Yijun's expression changed drastically and he lowered his head. In his opinion, Hu Dutong was obviously no match for Zhao Daqing.
Just when everyone thought that Zhao Daqing was bound to win, they saw Hu Dutong suddenly leaned over and made a ponytail sweep with his right leg, hitting Zhao Daqing's leg hard. Zhao Daqing swayed and was already
He held on and did not fall, but he saw Hu Dutong lifted his leg again and lifted it on Zhao Daqing's chest.
At this time, both of them were exhausted. Hu Dutong's kick was like a stone hitting Zhao Daqing's chest. Zhao Daqing's legs were already staggering.
Hu Dutong kicked him in the chest. He could no longer hold on. His huge body fell backwards and hit the ground with a "bang".
Seeing that his plan had succeeded, Hu Dutong became more confident. He turned around and put his knee on Zhao Daqing's chest. He swung his iron fist and hit Zhao Daqing on the head. Zhao Daqing was immediately knocked unconscious and unable to move.
The Confederate Army was surprised at first, and then burst into deafening cheers.
Hu Dutong stood up and raised his fists in the air, triumphantly.
Yang Yijun originally thought that he would definitely lose this time, but unexpectedly the situation suddenly changed and Hu Dutong actually won. He was overjoyed, stood up, pumped his fist and roared: "Damn it, I said that northern pigs just can't use their brains, ***
, fighting relies on brains, not bull power, haha... Hu Zong, well done, haha...!"
Liu Xiao said angrily: "|Damn it, you deceived me again."
"Soldiers never tire of deceit." Yang Yijun said loudly: "Liu Xiao, you have led troops for many years. You must understand this truth. Whoever is still standing in the end is the winner."
Liu Xiao took off his armor and said angrily: "***, there's still a while, I'm here, Yang Yijun, if you have the guts, come and fight me alone?"
How could Yang Yijun show weakness at this time? He also took off his armor and shouted: "Just fight, I've never been afraid of anyone."
The two were about to appear when they heard a majestic voice saying: "This time, I will fight."
Among the noisy sounds, this powerful voice actually spread far away.
The soldiers followed the sound and saw that the person speaking was a soldier next to Xue Mulong. They were all extremely surprised, but saw that the soldier slowly walked to the field with his hands behind his back. Under everyone's gaze, he repeated: "This
After a while, I’ll fight.”
Among everyone, the most surprised ones were Ye Tianxiang and Hu Zong. They recognized Xue Poye at a glance. When they were speechless, they saw that Xue Poye had looked over and shook his head slightly.
Shake his head.
The two immediately understood that Xue Poye did not want them to reveal his identity.
Ye Tianxiang and Hu Zong naturally got the news a long time ago that the commander-in-chief of the army this time was Xue Poye. They really didn't expect that he would come to the camp in disguise.
Liu Xiao and Yang Yijun both cast their eyes on Xue Poye, and were quite surprised. At this time, a small soldier stood out, and he was really talented.
Liu Xiao immediately shouted: "Boy, who do you belong to? Who do you want to fight?"
Yang Yijun also shouted: "***, you have the guts, are you from the south like me?"
Xue Poye smiled faintly and said: "I am from Chu. There is no distinction between north and south. As for who to fight...!" His eyes swept over Yang Yijun and Liu Xiao and said lightly: "You two come together!"