Xi Zhicai looked at Zhu Kui, his eyes flashed with deep meaning, he shook his head with a smile and declined: "Thank you General Zuo Zhonglang for your kindness, Xiao Shengjue can just follow Zhu Sima as an aide, not anywhere else." Serve the country.”
"In this case, I don't have to force you, sir. Zhu Sima can set up camp on his own beside the camp. We will wait for Wentai to return with the food and fodder tonight and come to my camp to discuss how to defeat the enemy."
Zhu Jun said, patted Xi Zhicai and Zhu Kui on their shoulders to show their closeness, and then withdrew his troops and returned to camp. Zhu Kui was allowed to handle the place where he camped.
When saying goodbye to Chen Gong, he told Zhu Kui that he knew Chen Lin and Chen Kongzhang. The two often exchanged letters, and Chen Lin was a good friend of Zhang Hong, so Zhu Kui was mentioned in the letter. Only then did he know Zhu Kui's name. Zhu Kui's fame has spread throughout the Central Plains and all over the world.
When he and Xi Zhicai returned to Buqu, Zhu Kui looked at Shu Shu'er who were surrounding him and asking about the meeting.
Zhu Kui smiled slightly and first reported the good news: "General Zhonglang has appointed me as the Sima of the Right Army. I will compile a film of my own and serve with the army.
"Congratulations to Brother Zhu (eldest brother, third brother)!" Naturally, the brothers who are close to him couldn't help but congratulate him. As soon as Zhu Kui became an official, he got a big officer. This is a good start. If they are happy, they will make him happy. He took out a large amount of food and celebrated grandly.
Zhu Kui raised his hand to signal for silence and ordered: "First find a place to camp, bury pots to make rice, and then go to the general of the Chinese army to attend the meeting at night." Finally, he repeatedly told: "We and other foreign troops must remember not to be like here. Moling was arrogant and arrogant during the time, let alone making troubles, keep a low profile in everything!"
At the foot of Hongshan Mountain, there is the army camp, with Zhu Jun's tent in the middle. Zhu Kui, the small camp on the left, seems to be Sun Jian's tribe. Zhu Kui is camped on the right side of the army. At this moment, sergeants are patrolling and setting up defenses. Zhu Jun has been in the army for many years and is a veteran general. Some military arrangements were tight and orderly. Now that Peng Tuo was defeated, they still did not relax.
However, this time the imperial court confiscated Taiping Road and assigned the three major Zhonglang generals of the Left, Right and North. In addition to Zhu Jun, the Zuo Zhonglang general Huangfu Song and the North Zhonglang general Lu Zhi both had a large number of rebels and local braves. Take refuge, but there are too few on Zhu Jun's side.
In fact, the bottom line is that Zhu Jun's reputation is far lower than that of Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi. They are a team of servants composed of some Runan nobles, or some refugees recruited by local powerful people. They asked Huangfu Song to trek north. In their view, Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi is more likely to bring them fame.
On Zhu Jun's side, except for the two rebels Sun Jian and Zhu Kui, they could make up one by themselves, but the rest could not vote. There were dozens, dozens, or hundreds of people who could not make up one by themselves. Fortunately, Zhu Jun had all of them. Integrate it into your own military account.
It was night at the Chinese army's stronghold. Zhu Kui came without Xi Zhicai. He finally saw Sun Jian, who was twenty-nine years old and had returned from the county with 30,000 grains and grass. He hadn't seen him for many years. Zhu Kui, who was eight years old back then, is now But he was nearly eight feet tall like Sun Jian, and his stature was comparable to that of Sun Jian.
However, Sun Jian's appearance has not changed much. He still has a broad forehead and a strong body, but the greenness between his brows has faded away and he is a little more steady, but his bravery is even more overwhelming. At a glance, Zhu Kui directly felt that a fierce tiger was lying down, and the evil spirit was overwhelming.
Behind that stood four generals, Huang Gai, Zu Mao, Han Dang, and Cheng Pu. Han Dang was a warrior that Sun Jian had recently conquered.
The two of them arrived at the camp and looked at each other in surprise and pride. At the same time, they both understood the other's identity. Although Zhu Kui's current appearance was completely different from what he had been before when he was eight years old, the name of the newly arrived Right Army Sima was short. The news had spread throughout the army in a few hours, and the five hundred cavalry he had brought with him were also known.
What Sun Jian didn't dare to underestimate was that he had made a mistake at the beginning, and that little fisherman had now reached a position no less than his own. Although the two of them had never seen each other in several years, Zhu Kui's reputation in Jiangdong was rising. Together with Sun Jian, he is one of the two young heroes in Jiangdong. He cannot be a stranger to him, so as soon as he hears his name, he knows who he is...
The two of them looked at each other like old friends who had known each other for many years, and then they briefly exchanged hands and said they had met each other, but they did not exchange greetings like those old friends who met each other, and neither of them was hypocritical.
The relationship between the two is neither friends nor enemies. From today on, they are competitors.
However, what was different from Zhu Kui and Sun Jian was that the three young men behind them, Zhou Tai, Gan Ning, and Wang Cheng, looked at the four generals with big eyes and small eyes. They were obviously competing with each other and refused to admit defeat at all.
Later, Zhu Jun and Chen Gong led the generals to arrive one by one. The generals introduced each other. Only then did Zhu Jun know that Sun Jian and Zhu Kui had known each other for a long time. He stopped talking nonsense and quickly got down to business. .
Zhu Jun spoke first: "The spies came to report that Peng Tuo was defeated in Runan, and three thousand remaining soldiers fled to Xihua County to gather another 20,000 horses. I wanted to rush to Changshe to help General Huangfu fight Bocai again, but Peng Tuo couldn't do it at the rear. Leave it alone. What strategies do the generals have to destroy the enemy?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Sun Jian stood up immediately: "Our army has defeated Peng Tuo twice, and its main force has been lost. They are all farmers. The last general is willing to climb the dead first, capture Peng Tuo, and pacify the Taiping Road in Yuzhou in one fell swoop."
"It is easy to conquer Xihua County, but I am afraid that Peng Tuo will set fire to the city in order to break out of the encirclement like last time, and a large number of people will be burned to death." Zhu Jun sighed pitifully. After he sent troops from Luoyang, he was the first to defeat Peng Tuo. He retreated to Pingyu County, which is the seat of Runan County and has a tall city. With the advantage of the city, Zhu Jun defeated Peng Tuo and his subordinates. Later, he pursued Peng Tuo all the way to Ruyang County and defeated Peng Tuo again.
However, Peng Tuo burned down the county town in order to cut off the queen, and countless people died alive. If he forced an attack on the city again this time, Peng Tuo would do crazy things again, which was a worry for him.
"General, when the two armies are fighting, civilian casualties are inevitable. It is not the general's fault alone, so don't feel bad about it." Chen Gong comforted him, and then he insisted on his earlier views and formally stated in front of the generals: " Xihua County is short of food. As long as he leads the army to surround three people and one is short of food, and when the food is exhausted, Peng Tuo can capture it without a fight..."
As soon as Chen Gong said these words, several generals nodded slightly. This was a very safe method, and it also allowed the tired soldiers and horses to take the opportunity to catch their breath.
"Mr. Gongtai's words are wrong. How many days of food and grass are left in Xihua County cannot be determined. Is it five days or ten days? What if Bocai of Yingchuan or Zhang Mancheng of Nanyang leads an army to rescue? This opportunity cannot be missed. If you don't come again, please allow me to send troops today, general."
Sun Jian argued that this was because of his desire for fame. Since he joined Zhu Jun, he has always been famous for his bravery throughout the army. He has beheaded hundreds of people every time, including the Yellow Turban captain. Therefore, he has always looked down on the weak Chen Gong. If Chen Gong's plan is followed, even if Sun Jian beheads Peng Tuo in the end, the credit will still go to Chen Gong. After all, he is the mastermind, and since ancient times, planners have always taken the lion's share of the credit.
Moreover, in history, Sun Jian himself was a man who valued literature and martial arts, and always looked down upon literati. Only in official history did he easily kill Zhang Zi, the governor of Nanyang, and Wang Rui, the governor of Jingzhou.
Zhu Jun saw that his two right-hand men were arguing too much, and quickly waved his hand to stop it. Civil and military discord must be within a certain degree and under control. However, the decision-making of the entire army was in his hands. In fact, he agreed with Chen Gong in his heart. For those who plan, take your time and take every step.
Just when he was making a decision, he saw Zhu Kui sitting upright with his eyes and nose looking at the sky. He was a little confused and asked casually: "What does Huai Ming think of this?"
Seeing Zhu Jun asking himself, Zhu Kui raised his lips and smiled, and said slightly: "Wen Tai and Gong Tai, their words have their own truths, and I agree with them both."
Zhu Jun was greatly disappointed by his indifference and appearance.
However, when he shook his head and gave up asking Zhu Kui, he heard Zhu Kui's words change again: "It's just that Kui has been thinking about one thing in his mind. Peng Tuo was able to escape with his life during the general's two sieges. , fighting one battle after another, it shows that they are not stupid people. After two days in Xihua County, the farmers have caught enough, and even thinking about it, they know that the general has already chased them.”….
"Are you ready to fight to the death with General Zhonglang again, or are you ready to run away tonight? Which of these two options is the best? If Kui is the one, which one will Peng Tuo choose? This question has never been answered. Think clearly."
This answer was very intriguing, as if he was thinking, and as if he was leading others into his thoughts. Everyone in the tent followed Zhu Kui's words and began to ask themselves, what would they do if they were Peng Tuo, but For a moment, there was only one answer in everyone's mind. How could they fight again? After losing two games in a row and losing all their troops and horses, this fight was destined to death. Who would want to die?
Chen Gong reacted for the first time, and he immediately shouted: "No!" This shout made everyone look at him in shock.
Chen Gong wiped his forehead and said to Zhu Junshu: "Peng Tuo has made a suspicious appearance. He will leave tonight. General, please quickly give the order to pursue him."
"What?" Zhu Jun frowned slightly. This sudden surprise interrupted his thoughts, but after all, he had been marching for many years and had led the army in battle. Xu Jin's mentality had always been stable. He pressed his hand and asked the generals to be quiet and listen. Chen Gong said slowly.
"These are just bad guesses. The public broadcaster was so panicked, but found something wrong."
Chen Gong straightened his face and said: "General, we all guessed wrong earlier. We thought that Peng Tuo retreated to Xihua County to gather farmers, hoping to occupy the city again. In fact, that is not the case. Then Peng Tuo defeated us, how could it be possible? If he doesn't know the true strength of our army and insists on fighting, he will definitely die."
"In the daytime we were on the mountain and saw yellow turban soldiers all over the towers of Xihua County. That was Peng Tuo's old suspicion formation. He specifically told us that he was still in Xihua County and led us to encircle and suppress the city. After the city was broken, it was inevitable that It would take a day to search the whole city for such a small amount of time. By then Peng Tuo was hundreds of miles away and no one knew where he was hiding."
"With Peng Tuo gone, even if you kill the new Yellow Turban recruits in the city, it will be useless. You must know that with the deceptive tongue of the Yellow Turban leader, it will take less than half a month to recruit 81,000 people, lurking in the city. Our troops are constantly wandering in the rear, making us exhausted."
Although Chen Gong said it was very urgent and critical, Zhu Jun still knelt down on his knees as steady as a mountain. While slowly thinking about it, he asked: "Oh, it means that Peng Tuo has no intention of fighting with us, he is just searching. Food and grass, I want to escape back to Bocai."
Zhu Jun had been in battle for a long time, and he immediately understood the meaning of Chen Gong's words. The army had a day's rest, which gave Peng Tuo a lot of time to search for food, so he naturally had to escape overnight.