Zhuang Lang was sitting in the official hall, with a fire in front of him, and a leg of lamb roasted on the shelf. Next to it was a drop of wine, poured and untouched.

Wu Qusu entered the official hall and bowed: "The lower official has seen Lord Thorn Shi." ”

Zhuang Lang raised his head and said in a deep voice: "Outside, the Song army has besieged the city, and the military order to gather troops and horses has been sent to all departments?" ”

Wu Qusu said: "Back to my lord, people have been sent out, but there are not many military orders sent to various ministries. Prior to this, a large number of cavalry of the Song army entered Wolf Mountain and Black Mountain and swept through the various departments. They robbed the horses and weapons of the various tribes, and those who were called together did not dare to answer the call if they lost their weapons and horses. In addition, a large number of Song troops roamed in the mountains, and many of the soldiers who gave orders were captured by them and could not reach the tribe. ”

Zhuang Lang buried and said: "The order goes down, this time it is a surprise, the people who lost the weapons and horses are not to blame, let them come to the prison department quickly!" ”

Wu Qusu sighed: "My lord, we don't have an arsenal in the city, what's the use of those soldiers coming?" The cavalry of the Song army covered the outside of the city, there were no weapons and horses, and they could not assemble, how could they dare to come to the superintendent? The Song army besieged the city, or hurried to Xingqing Mansion for help and held the city. ”

Zhuang Lang said impatiently: "A few days ago, the Song army attacked the area of Quye River, and the minister of the country gathered a large army and went there. What's the use of asking for help from Xingqing Mansion at this time! The prime minister is not here, there are no soldiers and horses, who will come to save us! The Song people were planning to attack the east and the west, leading the army of the prime minister to Quye River and concentrating troops to attack the Black Mountain Supervisory Army. has already hit the plan, can only point up the headquarters of the soldiers and horses, stick to it to have hope! ”

Wu Qusu said: "The soldiers and horses of the Song army in the Tiande Army are actually not much. Even if Zhao Zi comes—"

Zhuang Lang stood up abruptly and said sharply: "It's all this time, you still think that a guard of Yunnei Prefecture can make such a big move!" The army has besieged the city, and I don't even know which part of the Song army is coming, so what do you want! According to my estimate, this time I am only afraid that Du Zhongxiao will come in person, at least he has already arrived in the Tiande Army! Tang Longzhen killed the Khitan Emperor, and now the northern tribes, hearing the waiting for Lao Tzu, their legs trembled! With the existing soldiers and horses in our city, how long will we be able to resist the Song army outside the city? They have cannons, don't you know how powerful they are? When the Khitans came, we were lucky to keep the sea from being breached, and how many surrounding cities could not withstand the Khitan artillery fire! I don't know how much stronger the cannon of the Song army is than the Khitan, how can I defend the city?! ”

Wu Qusu was silent. The methods that I thought of have all been done, but there are cavalry of the Song army everywhere outside, and it is difficult for even those who ask for help to break through the blockade, what else can I do? The cavalry roamed and cut off the contact between the enemy's various departments, which was originally a nomadic people and tactics, and did not want the Song army to be in full swing now. Even the cavalry can't compare to the other side, what else can you expect?

After losing his temper for a while, Zhuang Lang sat down again, looked at the fire and was silent for a while, and said, "Now we can only hope that the White Horse Supervisor and the Helan Mountain defenders will save us." The people who were sent there to ask for help did not know if they avoided the defenders and went to ask for help. You pick a group of people, change their attire, and ask them to go out of the city to inquire about the news. Which part of the Song army came, how many troops did they have, what their intentions were, and how many they could inquire. There is also a need to pay attention to the news of the White Horse Supervision and Military Division and Helan Mountain, whether they have sent troops or not. I will send another person to ask for help here, and let him go north, bypass the Song army, and ask for help from the White Horse Supervision Military Division. - That's it, you go down. ”

Wu Qusu bowed and withdrew from the official hall.

Zhuang Lang looked at the fire, picked up the wine glass that was poured next to him, and drank it all with his head up.

Behind the screen, a three-fold black-haired man from the Central Plains turned out and saluted Zhuang Lang: "The leader is hard. ”

Zhuang Lang pointed to the seat next to him and said, "Sit down." You are your own person in the tribe, and I don't have to be polite here. ”

The middle-aged man is the person in charge of foreign trade and entertainment of the Zhuang Lang tribe, and he is regarded as an elder, named Zhuang Lang Shidao. This time I came to discuss how Zhuang Lang would use his power to support the conflict with the Tatar tribes in the north after the arrival of spring. I didn't want to encounter the siege of the Song army, so I had to stay. With the exception of towns and agricultural areas, the party is based on the tribe, and the interests of the tribe are greater than the interests of the imperial court.

Zhuang Lang sat down, Zhuang Lang poured him a glass of wine, took the roasted leg of mutton, and put it on the plate between the two.

Taking out the hand knife, Zhuang Lang buried and said, "Mr. use some wine and meat." ”

Master Zhuang Lang said: "At this time, how can you eat? Leader, this time the Song army besieged the city, one is not good, it is a catastrophe. ”

Zhuang Lang buried the bao: "How do I not know? The affairs of the court are handled by me, you don't need to worry about it, just use wine and meat. ”

Zhuang Langshi thanked him, took out his hand horse, cut the meat to eat, and drank wine.

The two drank a few glasses of wine silently, and Zhuang Lang Shidao tried to ask, "Looking at the leader's expression, do you have other plans?" ”

Zhuang Lang shook his head: "What can you do?" The Song army has besieged the city, and tomorrow I will lead the elite soldiers in the city and go out of the city to fight them. If the war is unfavorable, the city will be difficult to defend. I am the assassin of the Black Mountain Prison Army, and I should try my best to defend the city. But our tribe can't be affected by my identity. If the war is unfavorable tomorrow, the gentleman will go out of the city and talk to the Song army. ”

Zhuang Langshi was taken aback: "Talk to Song Jun, how to talk?" What to talk about? ”

Zhuang Lang said: "What else can we talk about?" If the Vulture Sea City is broken, how can the surrounding tribes keep it? Either move elsewhere, or you can only take refuge in the Great Song Dynasty, where is there a second way? Small tribes don't matter, they move elsewhere, it's just to join other tribes. We're mostly in the neighborhood, where are we moving to? Sent people elsewhere under the fence, one was accidentally swallowed up. ”

Zhuang Lang Shidao was so frightened that the wine glass in his hand fell from his hand, and he asked tremblingly: "What does the leader mean, is he going to vote for Song?" ”

Zhuang Lang buried the wine glass again, poured it full of wine, and said lightly: "For the sake of the court, I must defend it." For the sake of the tribe, if the war is unfavorable, there is only one way to go to the Song. We cannot go west, we can only move to the north, and the White Tatars of the north are our mortal enemies. When we got there, the Song army in the back beat us, and the White Tatars in front also beat us, is there still a way to live? ”

Master Zhuang Lang was silent, silent for a while, and said, "What the leader said also makes sense. However, I have heard that the place occupied by the Song people is extremely harsh to the Fan people. Many of the Tibetan tribes on the Hequ Road fled to the Xia Kingdom because the Song people killed too much, causing the war. ”

Zhuang Lang said lightly: "Mr. only knows one thing, but he doesn't know the other." The Song army killed the Tibetan people because they sold the Song people as slaves and maids. The Song army has been stationed and the list has been revealed, but the various departments still don't know how to stop. The Tibetan tribe, which did not participate in this matter, was not treated harshly, but suffered a lot of benefits. The Song State re-allocated good pasture land for them, returned grain, and gave them new houses to live in. There are also Han slaves in our department, and if the Song army agrees to take refuge with us, it will be nothing more than handing them over. Sir, now is the time for us to survive if the Song army wins! ”

Master Qinglang arched his hand: "Since the leader has said it so clearly, I will no longer be verbose." How to do it, please tell me! ”

Zhuang Lang buried and said: "Early tomorrow morning, we will lead the army out of the city and fight with the Song army." If the war goes well, then everything is suspended. If the battle is unfavorable, you will immediately go out of the city and meet the leader of the Song army. According to my estimate, this battle should be commanded by Du Xianggong, the envoy of the Song River, and you don't have to talk much with other generals, just say that you should go to see Du Jingluo. ”

Master Zhuang Lang nodded: "Understood." ”

Zhuang Lang buried Bao and said: "I saw Du Jingluo and explained to him the difficulties of our tribe. Located north of Montenegro and adjacent to White Tatar, the grudge has been too deep for many years to reconcile. If the Song army occupies Montenegro, there will be white Tatars in the north of our department, and it will be difficult to survive if they are flanked by each other. If you make it clear, Du Jingluo will believe that what we are saying is not a false word. ”

Master Zhuang Lang said, "I wrote it down. I don't know what benefits Song Jun wants to promise us? ”

Zhuang Lang smiled bitterly: "What other benefits can you want?" Keep the tribe alive. As long as Du Jingluo let our tribe live, he is willing to reject the White Tatars in the north of the Song Kingdom and lead to the west of the Hexi River. But there are sent, and all of them obey their orders. ”

Zhuang Langshi said: "Chief, has it really come to this point?" We are a large tribe, and our people have more than 10,000 accounts—"

Zhuang Lang waved his hand: "The clan has more than 10,000 accounts, but how many of them are under our control?" Sir, Zhuang Lang has more than 10,000 accounts, but we only have more than 3,000 accounts under our management. As long as the Black Mountain is lost, it will not be long before these more than 3,000 accounts will be swallowed up by other tribes. I have made up my mind on this matter, and I need no more to say, sir. After meeting Du Jingluo, it depends on Mr. how much benefit he can get. ”

Zhuang Lang Shidao couldn't react for a while, and sat there thinking.

There are more than 3,000 accounts in the Zhuang Lang Department, and the nomadic tribe is already the majority, and Zhuang Lang Shidao didn't expect to face an existential crisis at all. If you think about it carefully, Zhuang Lang is right, how many soldiers can be sent out of more than 3,000 accounts? The nomadic tribes are the majority, and they are not worth mentioning at all in the face of the Song army. The key is that after being driven out of Montenegro by the Song army, survival is really a problem in the face of the old enemy White Tatar in the north. If the White Tatars take the lead in surrendering and attacking from the north and south, the survival of the Zhuang Lang Department will be very difficult. The White Tatars are now under the rule of the Khitan, and the Khitan have been defeated, and they may have voted faster than anyone else.

In addition to the north of Montenegro, the Zhuanglang Department is also widely distributed on the west side of Helan Mountain, and the distribution range has been as far as Zhuoluo and Nanjian Junsi in the south, that is, the area of Lanzhou. However, except for the vicinity of Lanzhou, there are no big Zhuanglang tribes, and most of them are attached to other large tribes.

Although Zhuang Lang said that he didn't want benefits, in fact, he was willing to go west to Hexi, revealing the hope that he would use the support of the Song army to integrate Zhuang Lang's various departments. The integration of all departments of Zhuang Lang has become a pivotal force in this area.

After thinking about this, Master Zhuang Lang got up and arched his hand: "Since the leader is trustworthy, this time he will live up to his mission!" As long as Du Jingluo is not a person who is too harsh, I believe that he can strive for good results! ”