The continuous Yimeng Mountains start from Taishan County, traverse east and west, connect north and south, and stretch for thousands of miles. Finally, after entering the territory of Donghai Kingdom, they come to an end. This is what is called Lintan Cang Plain in later generations.
Tancheng is located in the center of this plain.
Tancheng, located between the Yi and Shu rivers, is undoubtedly a good place. It has four distinct seasons, abundant rainfall, fertile land, and the advantage of being close to mountains and rivers. It is a well-deserved land of plenty.
Usually in spring, there will be countless busy figures working in the fields outside the city. Even on the Maling Mountain in the east of the city, which is famous for a battle in the Warring States Period, there will also be a lively crowd.
Busy scene.
But in this February of the fourth year of Chuping, the fields seemed very depressed.
There are many fewer farmers working in the fields than before, and those who have the only remaining fruits seem a little absent-minded. From time to time, they will raise their heads and look around. If there is any disturbance, they will hide like frightened animals.
Go hide deep in the vegetation.
This is the helplessness of living beings in troubled times. Tancheng, a land of plenty, is not only rich in land, but also a strategic location connecting the north and the south. Although the chaos in the world since the first year of Zhongping has not had much impact on Xuzhou, as the situation has changed drastically,
, Xuzhou still cannot survive alone.
Since last year, the war that has been burning in the Central Plains has finally reached the paradise of the East China Sea. Although the people of Xuzhou have not experienced the pain of war, the refugees traveling from south to north have brought a lot of information, making them nervous.
In fact, ordinary people don't know who the enemy is and where they come from. The current situation in Xuzhou is extremely chaotic. Multiple forces are intertwined and intertwined. Even the officials in charge of military affairs cannot accurately judge the changes in the relationship between enemies and friends, let alone
Ordinary people?
They would be nervous just because the defenders in the city had a posture as if they were facing a powerful enemy.
"Boss Chen, which side are we guarding against? Didn't you say that Xiapi is quite safe? Why would someone come to attack Tancheng?" Most of the defenders who put up a defensive posture did not know the truth. The city gate tower
Above, a rather handsome soldier was asking and complaining to his commander.
"You have your orders, and your ministers must listen. What's the point of making irresponsible remarks? Just stand guard and stop making noise here and disrupting the morale of our army!" The image of the man known as Boss Chen is quite terrifying, half a picture
His face was pitted and pitted. If he bumped into him in the middle of the night, he would be regarded as an evil spirit. With such a face, and if he spoke harshly, it would naturally be very scary.
The talkative soldier shrank his neck in fright and slipped away.
Seeing the officer walking away, the soldier snorted lowly and started whispering to the others: "Isn't he just a village chief? What's so impressive about him? He's just a small official who is as big as a sesame seed and a mung bean, and he has to use his face to do it.
Change. Change it to me. Give it to me. I don’t want it. Return it to the king. Where is the minister? Which king would pay attention to such an inconspicuous minister?"
"Forget it, it's not like you don't know that Boss Chen has this temper. If it weren't for his temper, just based on his achievements over the years, why can't he be made a captain? You haven't seen Captain Zhang like that?
All the water bandits..."
"That's right. Captain Zhang didn't seem to have done anything except for his service. How could he be promoted so quickly? Although Boss Chen has a bad temper, he has made real contributions. Isn't that face the same as before?
When Tao Shijun conquered Langya and attacked Jiqiu City, was he scalded by the hot oil from the bandits? That was because he was the first to get there! For so many years, he was only a village commander. This reward and punishment is really..."
Another person became nervous and shouted: "Okay, Zhang Xiao, how dare you say such nonsense? Didn't you know that this was the rule in the dynasty? Killing people and setting fires with gold belts! If you can't get rid of those thieves, you can only recruit peace, otherwise you will be punished."
What can be done?"
Zhang Xiao said disapprovingly: "If you ask me, the affairs of the Han Dynasty were all ruined by these celebrities." Without waiting for the other party to answer, he suddenly lowered his voice and said in a hoarse voice: "I heard that this time,
The formation we set out is to defend the north!"
"North?" The person who answered him, as well as several people who were listening, were startled and said in disbelief: "Isn't it the north... it can't be? Aren't the Qing and Xu families allies? Tao Shijun was seriously ill before.
, the hussar general from Qingzhou even sent a doctor to rejuvenate him! When Wang hussar general swept Qingzhou and fought fiercely in Hebei, didn't Tao Shijun also keep sending money and food for support?"
"Yes, there were rumors in the streets and alleys that Tao Shijun was seriously ill and could not be cured. He was planning to hand over Xuzhou to Wang Qiaoqi. What should we be prepared for?"
"Captain Zhang went out of the city a few days ago, wasn't he just to welcome General Hussars? Why did he suddenly..."
There are different opinions, but no one wants to believe it.
This is no joke. Xuzhou is in such chaos now. If we fall out with the invincible Hussars again, won’t everyone be turned into powder? Besides, just like Tao Shijun and General Hussars.
There is no way that friendship can become sour at a time like this.
There is no funeral ceremony! This has been a rule since ancient times.
When everyone's surprise was almost vented, Zhang Xiao said happily: "So those celebrities are not good people? These things are all their fault..."
In the whispers, many secret things were exposed, and all the soldiers were dumbfounded, as if they were in a dream. Because the shocks they received were too great and too frequent, no one bothered to pursue them for a while. They were scolded by the officers for asking around just now.
Why did Zhang Xiao suddenly become a know-it-all?
After the shock, everyone's hearts were filled with anger.
Zhang Xiao is right, those high-ranking celebrities really don't regard everyone as human beings, and for the sake of their own future, they will push everyone to death!
Who doesn’t know how powerful the Qingzhou Army is!
Are the Taishan thieves in Langya powerful? With Tao Shijun's methods, he can only make him submissive on the surface, but in fact he has occupied the Langya country. Zang Ba is the emperor of the earth!
As the saying goes, extreme joy brings sorrow, and one is almost immortal. Zang Ba actually went to Mount Tai to cause trouble for the king's cavalry, and was beaten into a pig's head and disabled as expected. Now Qingzhou's eight thousand army is in the past Langya area and wants to go south.
, which only takes two or three days. With the three to five thousand county soldiers in the city, it’s surprising that they can compete with others!
With such a small amount of capital, those celebrities actually dare to act against the will and try to shut out the General Hussars. This is literally cutting off everyone's livelihood!
"Whoever wants to go against the Hussars General should go alone and don't get me involved!"
"Yes! Even Commander Tao is planning to give up his position, what else is there to say? Although our lives are not valuable, they are not meant to be wasted!"
"If the king really arrives at the city, I will open the city gate to welcome him! No matter what orders he has from above!"
There is an instigator, and then there is a leader. This is how mass incidents usually start. The soldiers shout indignantly, as if they have been greatly wronged. They are justified. Their reasons are indeed very good, and they behave like this.
Naturally, it’s not surprising.
"We have no problem, but Boss Chen may not..." After shouting for a while, someone suddenly looked at Chief Chen who was patrolling back and forth on the city wall, and raised concerns with concern.
Upon hearing this, everyone frowned.
Chief Chen, whose only name is "ye", is a veteran who was born in the army and has great prestige among the county soldiers. The soldiers respect him, partly because of his seniority, but more importantly, everyone has always been favored by him.
Someone's life was saved by him on the battlefield. When Jiqiu City was attacked, he took the lead on the ladder. The defenders on the city poured gold juice, but he blocked it with his shield and body. The people who were following him at that time
The lives of the soldiers who climbed the city were all saved by him. There are many such cases, and he appeared in all the battles in Xuzhou.
In addition, he has adopted many orphans of those who died in battle, helped many comrades who were retired due to injuries, etc. Such a person. Although his official position is not high, his prestige among the county soldiers is higher than that of most captains.
Still high. No matter how dissatisfied the soldiers were, if Chief Chen persisted, no one could raise a knife against him and stage a mutiny.
Seeing this, Zhang Xiao began to feel worried.
He is not an ordinary county soldier, but a spy deployed by Qingzhou in Xuzhou. In the past, his task was very easy, which was to pass on what he heard and saw every day as intelligence to Qingzhou.
It took a thousand days to raise troops and a short time to use them. This time Wang Yu's Qingqi went south, and the work in Xuzhou was almost at the end. He and many people like him began to become active in order to ensure that Wang Yu successfully took over the East China Sea, at least not in
There was a plot in the city.
Zhang Xiao was responsible for the smooth opening of the North City Gate. Everything went smoothly except for Chen Ye, a stone blocking the way.
He had no idea what to do about this blocking stone. After muttering with everyone for a while, he found an excuse to leave the city gate and headed south of the city. He passed through several small streets and alleys and crossed several rivers.
Gou, he arrived at the door of a small courtyard. He knocked on the door, three long and two short, and the door was opened from the inside. The two sides looked at each other, confirmed each other's identities, and Zhang Xiao stepped in.
"Why are you here at this time? There is a lot of noise in the city right now, and news from the governor's mansion cannot be spread. If it is exposed, it will be a big trouble." The person who opened the door complained in a low voice.
"What do you think I think? Isn't there no other way but to come and ask for help?" Zhang Xiao spread his hands and said helplessly.
"Still can't deal with Chen Shitou?"
"No!" Zhang Xiao curled his lips and said depressedly: "This man refuses to give in, and he is alone without any worries. He has no chance to take advantage of him. I want to open the city gate, but I can't get around him. What do you think I should do?
What to do? The only way now is to get Mr. Tao’s warrant and give him a look, then he will be sure that there will be no problem... By the way, where is Brother Eleven?"
The person who opened the door looked thoughtful and replied casually: "He has gone to Xiapi."
"Something happened to Xiapi too?" Zhang Xiao was stunned.
"Anyway, it's a lot of trouble..." The person who opened the door shook his head, his expression suddenly condensed, and he made up his mind: "Well, let's take a risk. If the lord arrives at the city gate and the city gate doesn't open, or even a conflict breaks out, what trouble will it be?"
That’s big!”
Zhang Xiao was shocked. Tao Qian was seriously ill. The staff of the governor's office had different ideas. People changed their positions almost every day. It was very risky to contact Tao Qian. He came to report and ask for help this time, but he didn't have high expectations.
What he was thinking was that as a last resort, he could only use the killers of the Hidden Mist Army to clear the obstacles.
As a result, the answer given here turned out to be like this! It seems that the troubles over Xiapi are not ordinary. (To be continued...)