March of the third year of Zhongping of the Great Han Dynasty (186 AD).

The Son of Heaven granted amnesty to the world.

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Li Hong and his subordinates were busy all day preparing for the westward march to Liangzhou, day and night.

Jizhou's money, food, and armaments were delivered one after another.

Cao Peng, a soldier of Zhongshan State, and Cao Fanliang, a thief under his door, rushed to Handan with 5,000 infantry. Soon, Zheng Xin, Wen Chou, and Zhao Yun led their troops back from Changshan Kingdom, and at the same time brought back 4,000 infantry from Julu County and Bohai County.

The Western Expeditionary Army camp outside Handan City became larger and larger, and there were more and more soldiers and supplies.

Xian Yuyin, Zhang Baiqi, Zuo Yan, Huang Ting, and Fang Biao walked into the camp of the Western Expeditionary Army with 48,000 troops and the armaments provided by Youzhou.

Li Hong greeted him far away. Seeing Zhang Baiqi, Li Hong's heart was so full of joy that he almost roared. Together, 50,000 people were finally gathered.

Li Hong helped them up one by one, greeted each other happily, and then went straight to the point.

"Your Excellency kept your promise and did not abandon us, and we are very grateful to your Lordship." Zhang Baiqi said excitedly, "All the situation has been told to us by the adults, how to deal with us, please let the adults know." ”

Li Hong affectionately took Zhang Baiqi's hand and said, "Many of you must stay and follow me on my expedition to the west. If they are old, weak, sick or disabled, or have special circumstances, you will immediately send them home after you have dealt with them as appropriate. There's no way, that's all I can do. ”

Zuo Yan said worriedly: "You secretly release the Yellow Turban captives, if the court knows about it, the Son of Heaven will hold him responsible." ”

Li Hong smiled: "I can't take care of much now." As long as I can go to Xiliang with 50,000 troops, even if the imperial court wants to hold me responsible, it will be a matter for the future. Also, if any of you are willing to go back to Taihang Mountain, go back.

Zhang Baiqi glanced at him suspiciously, and asked, "What do you mean by that?" ”

"Zhang Niujiao died on the battlefield of gall, you all know this. If any of you hates me and does not want to be with me, you can leave, and I will not stop you. ”

Everyone looked at him in amazement.

Li Hong said with a smile: "The journey to the west is difficult and dangerous, the battle situation is tragic, our Yan Zhao army must be sincerely united and work together, otherwise it will be difficult for everyone to come back alive." ”

Now that the soldiers are ready, what Li Hong hopes for most is that Xian Yufu, who is far away in Luoyang, can bring him good news.

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Xian Yu was in the dust, rushed back to Handan day and night, and told the good news to all the soldiers of the Western Expeditionary Army before the arrival of the imperial decree.

The camp of the Western Expeditionary Army suddenly boiled.

In the big tent of the Chinese army, Li Hong and Xian Yufu sat opposite each other, Yan Rou, Xian Yuyin, Jade, Zheng Xin, Hu Zi and a large group of generals sat next to them, listening to Xian Yufu talk about Luoyang.

"Because the advantages of the amnesty outweigh the disadvantages, none of the various factions in Beijing oppose it, and they all unanimously express their approval, but the issue of our military route to the west and the supply of military supplies has aroused fierce debates among the various factions." Xian Yufu said with a heavy heart: "Lord Liu saw that the princes and ministers, and the middle and regular attendants were arguing in the court every day, and there could be no results in the short term, so let me come back first." ”

"No results in the short term?" Xian Yuyin asked in surprise, "If there is no result in the short term, should we still set off as scheduled according to the emperor's request?" ”

"Of course. Even if the imperial court did not give us a route for marching, we would set off. Do you want to resist the decree? Xian Yufu said, "The reason why the court is arguing so fiercely that His Majesty has been unable to make a decision for a long time is because it touches the interests of all parties. ”

"We rushed from Jizhou to Xiliang, and the nearest route was from Huguan to Shangdang County, then from Shangdang County to Hedong, and then from Hedong County to Fengyi County, and then to Chang'an, to Fufeng County. Wherever the army went, all localities had to provide food and grass supplies, which was a huge expense for the counties and counties. Who wants to spend? An army of 50,000 people, including 20,000 war horses, the daily consumption of war horse feed alone is very staggering, not to mention the rations of 50,000 soldiers. There are only 200,000 people in Shangdang County, so how many people will there be in a small county in Shangdang County? They themselves are barely able to make ends meet, and there is still food to give us. ”

"The Shangdang County, Hedong County, and Fengyi County that I passed through along the way, as long as it was a better field, almost all of them were the private property of the magnates in the capital, and they all paid for it. The county wants to provide grain, and if not, it will naturally have to be assessed and raised from these rich people, and ask them to donate and lend. So a hundred of them are unwilling, who is willing to lose their property for no reason? ”

Everyone was silent.

"Jizhou has done everything he can, and he can't reach out to them anymore." Li Hong thought for a moment and said, "We immediately sent a letter to inform Your Majesty that the troops have been assembled, and ask Your Majesty to quickly send the route of the troops westward and the military supplies on the way to the march. If these things cannot be delivered in time, I am afraid that it will be very difficult for the army to start as scheduled. We'll leave all these headaches to your majesty, what do you think? ”

Everyone laughed. Li Hong turned back to Zhao Yun who was sitting beside him and said, "Zilong, you draft a document for me according to this meaning, and your words should be earnest and anxious......

"Brother Yu Xing, this time in Beijing, you can see the emperor?" Zheng Xin asked.

"I'm such a small official, what qualifications do I have to meet the emperor, don't daydream." Xian Yufu continued, "Before I left Beijing, a major incident occurred in Beijing, and Lord Taiwei Zhang Yanzhang was deposed. ”

"Why?" Jade Shi asked in surprise, "Such a big official has been dismissed by the emperor, and he has made a mistake?" Or did you offend the eunuch? ”

"I heard Lord Liu say that it was for our westward expedition that we offended His Majesty and the Zhongchang Servant, so I was dismissed." Xian Yufu frowned, touched his three thin beards, and said slowly, "What Lord Taiwei means is that there are already 100,000 troops on the Xiliang battlefield, and the imperial court has basically emptied the treasury in order to pay for the huge expenses of the Xiliang battlefield. Now because of the defeat and defeat, 50,000 troops were requisitioned from the two states of Youji and went west to Liangzhou to participate in the war. Although the number of troops increased by only 50,000, the expenditure on troops increased exponentially. Where does this money come from? The defeat on the Xiliang battlefield was not because the number of troops was not enough, nor because the military supplies were insufficient, but because the generals were incompetent. ”

Li Hong and his subordinates all laughed.

When the old lady said this, did he make it clear that he couldn't get along with Zhao Zhong, Zhang Rang and other eunuchs? It would be nice not to put him in jail. At present, the struggle for power between the DPRK and China is becoming more and more intense, and the slightest carelessness will be a catastrophe. Above this court, it is indeed not a place for people to mix. Jade Shi said angrily, "Lord Liu is kind and loyal, can he stay there?" ”

"He is a member of the royal family, with a noble status, and he has just arrived in Beijing, and he has nothing to do with the various factions in Beijing, and he has won the favor of the emperor." Xian Yufu said with a smile, "So Lord Liu can't offend anyone now, and he gets along very well with the powerful people in Beijing, and he is very popular." ”

"Who is the next lieutenant, have you heard about it in Luoyang?" Yan Rou asked.

"Lord Liu said that the emperor took a fancy to the heavy chariot riding general Zhang Wenzhang, and it was estimated that it was him. According to the law of the Han Dynasty, important ministers above the third duke must handle the government affairs in Beijing and serve the Son of Heaven. But now Lord Zhang is in charge of countering the rebellion in Xiliangbian County, and if he becomes a lieutenant, he will be the first important minister of our dynasty to exercise the power of the three princes outside. Xian Yufu looked at Li Hong and said, "This shows the emperor's favor for this person." When the adults arrived in Xiliang, if they could get his appreciation and recommendation, it would definitely work better than winning ten battles. ”

The subordinates sitting around Li Hong nodded one after another. Someone immediately gave him ideas, how to bribe, how to do what he liked, how to mix up a general as soon as possible.

Li Hong said angrily: "What kind of idea did you come up with, I'm also a general, let's give some face, don't talk nonsense like in the past, this is talking about business, can't I have no choice?" ”

Bearded asked in surprise, "Your Excellency now knows how to bribe the powerful?" ”

Li Hong said hatefully: "I don't know, but I don't bother to do it." You follow me, don't do these things, if you let me know, you look good. ”

"What are the rumors about Zuo Feng's death in Beijing?" Yan Wuxing asked with a smile.

"There are many happy people and few unhappy people. The emperor was not happy and ordered Wei County Taishou to immediately find the murderer. After hearing the news, Lord Lu Zhilu was very excited, and made an appointment with a friend in Beijing to drink day and night to celebrate. Xian Yufu said with a smile, "It's not a pity to die like such a traitorous villain." ”

"Brother Yu Xing, this time in Xiliang, we can see Brother Bo Jue. Haha, this time it's him again. Li Hong suddenly thought of Gongsun Zhan, who was far away in Xiliang, and immediately laughed happily.

"We won't see him anymore." Xian Yufu smiled faintly and said, "After the imperial court issued an order to requisition us to Jizhou, Lord Yang of the Youzhou Assassin Mansion wrote a letter one after another, asking the imperial court to transfer Brother Bo Jue back to Youzhou from the Xiliang battlefield to strengthen the defensive force of northern Xinjiang. The imperial court has approved it. Brother Bo is probably on his way back to his hometown now. ”

Li Hong shook his head in disappointment and said to everyone with a smile: "I have always looked forward to fighting side by side with Brother Bo Jue on the battlefield, but now it seems that this wish is difficult to come true. ”

Yan Rou smiled: "Both of you are heroes in Northern Xinjiang, a white horse and a black panther, and there will definitely be a chance to kill the enemy side by side in the future." It's just that your official is getting bigger and bigger, and after Xiliang is pacified, you may be a general. When that happens, he won't want to serve under you. ”

"Go dream." Li Hong smiled, "If I were a general, and your gang would at least be captains, and all of them would be older than his officers, then he wouldn't be angry, haha......"

The big tent burst into laughter.

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Late at night, the camp of the Western Expeditionary Army was brightly lit and full of laughter. The soldiers sat around the fire in groups, laughing and talking loudly, unable to sleep with excitement.

In order to celebrate the amnesty of the Son of Heaven, the Yellow Turban soldiers were fortunate to be released and regain their freedom.

In the big tent of the Chinese army, Li Hong leaned over and looked at Xiliang's map. This was brought back by Xian Yufu from Luoyang, and it was specially collected for him by Shangshu Ling Liu Yu, in addition to the detailed map of the northwest states and counties, as well as other information on related aspects, and two big bags.

Zhao Yun led Zhang Bai to ride, and Huang Ting walked in.

Li Hong hurriedly greeted them, beckoned them to sit down, and asked with a smile, "It's so late, haven't the two of you rested yet?" ”

The two of them were so preoccupied that they barely said a few perfunctory words without saying anything.

Li Hong sighed and said slowly: "The two of you came to me late at night, do you want to go back?" ”

A hint of shame flashed on Zhang Baiqi's face and nodded.

Huang Ting lowered his head, coughed a few times, and whispered: "I don't have martial arts, I don't have any knowledge, and I can't help much if I follow the adults, so ......"

Li Hong nodded and said, "I understand." Is your family still around? ”

"It should still be there, I guess they all went back to Taihang Mountain with Zhang Shuai." Huang Ting said sadly, "I'm tired of fighting and killing, and it's hard for me to bear this kind of blood. Don't worry, my lord, after I go back, I won't participate in Zhang Shuai's Yellow Turban Army again. I took my family to farm in the mountains to make a living, and as long as I was safe, I would be content. ”

Li Hong stretched out his hand and patted his arm, and said with a smile: "Then you can go back." In Fanyang, you have done many things for me and made great contributions, and I want to thank you. In the future, if I am still alive and living well, you will come to me if you are in trouble, after all, I owe you a favor, and I will always repay you. ”

Huang Ting was very moved, his eyes were red, and he fell to the ground and kowtowed to Li Hong. Li Hong hurriedly helped him up.