Li Hong was worried that Xu Rong and Liyi's army would be chased by the rebels and would be unable to get out, so he personally led 10,000 iron cavalry into Hanyang to meet them. The army crossed the pass and went straight to the Wing City. At Yuting, eighty miles away from Yicheng, the two armies met. Xu Rong and Liyi were very moved when they saw Li Hong personally leading his troops to respond.

"If the two of you are eaten by the rebels, what kind of battle will I fight in Xiliang?" Li Hong smiled, "What did Master Fu say?" ”

The two relayed Fu Xie's parting words.

"The army and food in Yicheng are too small to resist the siege of an army of more than 100,000 people. I'm afraid it's a bit ...... if you want Lord Fu to hold on for two months" Xu Rong shook his head and said worriedly, "If you want to hold on to Yicheng, you need at least 10,000 troops. ”

"If you stay with 10,000 troops in Yicheng, there will not be enough food at all. In the short term, we will neither have enough troops to lift the siege of Yicheng, nor will we have enough food to replenish it. Li Hong said helplessly: "Lord Jingzhao Yin Gai has written three times, saying that the current grain reserves are difficult to maintain the needs of the army. Now the grain in the Guanzhong area is being harvested, and according to his estimates, it will not be until the beginning of next month at the earliest, so that we can continue to supply grain and grass. Geng contempt gave up grain and grass to the rebels, so that we are now powerless. This is pure desperation. ”

"What my lord means is that we don't have enough food and grass for ourselves." Koji asked in surprise.

"For the sake of the 50,000 army's food, Master Gai and I both quarreled. The stored grain in Guanzhong was sent to Xiliang by me. Li Hong said angrily, "It's good that you guys brought food and gave it to the rebels together, clean and thorough." ”

Koji said angrily: "Geng despises that stupid person, he doesn't understand anything, he knows how to bully others." Now that he's dead, he's still hurting people, leaving behind such an unmanageable mess. ”

Standing behind Koji Yi, he looked at Li Hong, who had an unkind face, and asked cautiously, "My lord, do we still have anything to eat?" ”

"Yes." Li Hong sighed and said, "Let's save a little, eat one meal a day, and pass this month first." ”

If you can't eat enough, what kind of war are you fighting? Everyone was in a heavy mood for a while.

The scouts galloped in.

The kingdom, Han Sui, June Thunder led a large army into the siege of Hanyang.

Li Hong asked in surprise, "Why did another kingdom emerge?" Who is this kingdom? ”

No one answered him. Li Hong looked at the Xiliang generals gathered around, and they all looked lonely, meaning that they were more depressed than having nothing to eat.

Li Hong's heart sank, and he secretly felt that it was not good. The relationship between the Xiliang soldiers and the Xiliang rebels is complicated, and it is difficult to tell what kind of feelings they have, but sympathy is still the most basic. An outsider who doesn't know Xiliang is difficult to understand the feelings of Xiliang people. It is an indisputable fact that outsiders have been defeated repeatedly in Xiliang. Li Hong thought of when he first came to Xiliang, Zhang Wen and Zhang Wen's subordinates were wary and complained about the Xiliang soldiers. After a few months, he replaced Zhang Wen, and finally felt the tension and helplessness that he couldn't predict the future. Without the help of these Xiliang soldiers, wanting to defeat the rebels in Xiliang is tantamount to a fool's dream.

Since Beigong Boyu took the lead in raising the banner of rebellion in Xiliang, these Xiliang soldiers have not taken the initiative to rebel against the enemy. But now Ma Teng, who is famous in Xiliang, has joined the rebels, and Li Xiangru, the Taishou of Longxi, has also joined the rebels, which is a huge blow to the morale and confidence of the Xiliang soldiers. Will more people join the rebels in the future? Li Hong's heart was heavy, and suddenly he lost his self-confidence.

Li Hong looked up at the sky.

The cool sky is always blue, the pure, delicate and warm deep blue, which makes people intoxicated, solemn, so that people can throw away all their troubles, open their hearts, and fully integrate into the vast silence and depth, which is a kind of abandonment, a kind of detachment, a kind of leap.

Li Hong laughed.

Even if it is a thousand difficulties, all kinds of difficulties, it is only a moment, a flick of a finger, what is fearful, what cannot be surmounted. Suddenly, he felt that there was nothing difficult in this world.

＝

"The kingdom is a native of Longxi Didao, born in a scholar family, making a living from animal husbandry and business, and is a famous rich man in Xiliang."

"He is righteous, kind and charitable, and his chivalrous name spreads all over the western Xinjiang, and he is known as Xiliang Mengwei."

"Every time there is a famine, he will definitely use all his grain reserves to help the people, and for decades, countless people have survived. There are too many people in the western Xinjiang who have been favored by him. ”

"Several of Di Dao's academies were run by him, and talented poor scholars studied there for free."

"He rebelled, as long as he ascended to the heights, he could gather tens of thousands of people just by virtue of his fame."

The Xiliang soldiers introduced the kingdom to Li Hong one after another, but the words were all words of appreciation, and when they spoke, their demeanor was respectful, and the color of admiration was overflowing.

Li Hong waited for everyone to finish speaking, and said with a smile: "Xiliang's capable people and wise men emerge in an endless stream, which makes people feel dizzying. He looked at Xu Rong, who was speechless, and asked, "Does Brother Zilie know him?" ”

Xu Rong sighed and said, "Don't just know each other. If I hadn't held an official position, I would have been a brother with him. ”

Li Hong smiled when he heard this, and his expression suddenly became a little embarrassed.

"Let's go, my lord, let's go back to Zixiu Mountain." Lu Yi looked stunned and said with a wry smile, "People in Western Xinjiang can be proud of being his friend, so don't ask again, we all know him." ”

Li Hong looked back at Pang De behind him, and unconsciously blurted out: "Ling Ming is ...... in his academy."

Pound De arched his hand with a respectful face and said: "Teacher Wang's scholarly attainments are amazing, and we often listen to his lectures. ”

Li Hong shook his head and lamented, "It's difficult." ”

The crowd was silent. Not only is it difficult, everyone thinks it is difficult.

＝

Wang Guo is about fifty years old, his body is slightly fat, his face is round and bearded, his complexion is ruddy, and he is gentle and kind.

He smiled with a smile on his face, his tone was smooth, and he said slowly: "I am very grateful to the two of you for looking up to me, but I dare not accept the position of handsome." Although Mr. Bian was seriously injured, he had commanded the army for a long time and had a special position in the minds of the soldiers. I think we should unite with Mr. Wenyue first and take Xiliang and enter Chang'an as soon as possible. What do you think? ”

Ma Teng and Wu Du glanced at each other. Ma Teng said: "Didn't Mr. see that since Mr. Bian was seriously injured and couldn't serve as a director, Mr. Han had the final say in everything. Mr. Han......"

Wang Guowei waved his hand at him, interrupted him, and said, "Shoucheng, we and Wen Yue are brothers who have been friends for eight worships, don't talk nonsense. ”

Wudu is in his forties, thin, with a long face and short beard, and a pair of eyes that are very bright, feeling brighter than ordinary people's eyes, and looking extraordinarily shrewd. He twisted his short beard and muttered, "Sir, this is a bad word. That's what Mr. Han thinks, but does Mr. Han think so? ”

"Mr. Bian is seriously injured and may return to heaven at any time, everyone knows this. Once Mr. Bian passes away, who will succeed him in the position of handsome, which is directly related to the future of Xiliang and our net worth, it doesn't matter, what matters? Now the important military and political affairs are actually Mr. Han alone. Wu Du said coldly, "Who stipulated that he had the final say?" ”

"The Xiliang army is not only his Jincheng army, but now there are also Mr. and Shoucheng's Longxi army, my Hanyang County army, the Xianlingqiang of the stormy sand, the Baimaqiang of the thunder in June, the Shenwolf Qiang of the northwest rain, and the Huangzhong of Beigong Boyu belong to the Qiang people, and it should not be regarded as Mr. Han's descendant army, right? With so many armies together, why do we listen to him? Listen to the command of his Jincheng people. ”

Wang Guo smiled: "Yi'an, we can talk about what you say in private, but that's the end of it. I and Shoucheng, Boyu, Mr. Bian, and Wenyue are all brothers, at this time, everyone should hug together and take down Xiliang as a whole first. There is no place to live, and everything you say is false. What's more, in this incident, it was Wenyue who made suggestions. If it weren't for Mr. Wenyue leading his troops to besiege Di Dao and say that Lord Li would surrender, Shoucheng and I would not have been able to spare troops to rush to Wuxi Ju and join forces with the Qiang people to surround Geng's 50,000 army. Without these 50,000 troops, it would be difficult for us to have the strength we have now. In the final analysis, Mr. Han still has the greatest credit. ”

Wu Du shook his head and said with a smile: "Without Mr. to provide military resources and grain and grass, what will Han Sui do?" He had been cornered. If it weren't for Mr. Timely Help, Han Sui would now be preparing to flee west to the Great Snow Mountain. Mr. is loyal and kind, and treats others as his own, so he will suffer. I'm afraid that Xiliang will take it, and Mr. Bian will return to heaven, and we will not be far from death. ”

Ma Teng smiled: "Brother Yi An said too much. Although Mr. Han is a little arbitrary, he is brilliant and dedicated to the people, and he has many years of friendship with our brothers, and he will definitely not do such a thing. ”

Wu Du shook his hand and said solemnly: "Shoucheng, you think simply. ”

"The year before last, after Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhou raised their troops, why did they force Mr. Bian and Han Sui out and ask Mr. Bian to be their leader? To put it bluntly, his appeal is not enough, and he is not enough to get the support of Xiliang. If you want to achieve something great in Xiliang, you can't do it without prestige and qualifications. In Xiliang, there are not many people with this kind of prestige. Mr. is one, and so are Mr. Bian and Han Sui. ”

"Now Mr. Bian can't do it, Mr. and Han Sui pay equal attention. Let me ask, are you and I willing to listen to Han Sui's command? In the same way, Yang Qiu and Liang Xing, are they willing to listen to Mr.? ”

"There is no room for two tigers in one mountain, and in this case, what will happen? If we look at history, there are many such fraternal walls and fratricidal rivalries. Sir, although you don't have the intention of harming others, you can't be without the heart of defense. You know, once we occupy Xiliang, we can cut off the king when we advance, and we can appease and surrender when we retreat, all of which are beneficial things, who doesn't want to be this leader? ”

As if they had not heard, the kingdom stroked its long beard with its hand and smiled without answering.

Ma Teng lowered his eyebrows and was silent. Wang Guo and Ma Teng are brothers, but Ma Teng is much younger, so Wang Guo has always treated him like a nephew, and the relationship between the two is very deep. Because Bian Zhang and Han Sui are friends of the kingdom, they even look at Ma Teng, the little brother, differently, but there is no deep friendship between Ma Teng and them. Hearing Wudu's words, Ma Teng felt that Wudu was alarmist. In any case, we are all brothers, so it won't get to this point. Now that the matter of occupying Xiliang is not a word, I just think about it so much, is it too deep in scheming, and there are too many expectations. He and Wu have been friends for many years, and they know that he is cautious and cautious, and it is not easy to refute him.

Wu Du looked at the two of them and said, "Do Mr. and Shoucheng think I'm too worried?" ”

Ma Teng said with a smile: "Brother Yi'an, now the handsome man is still Mr. Bian, and Mr. Bian is not dead yet, so what you said will not happen for the time being." Can you tell us about the solution? ”

Wu Du laughed, he lightly slapped Ma Teng, and said, "I have said a lot, but I can't match your words." ”

"You talk too much nonsense." Ma Teng teased.

"Okay, okay." Wu Du said, "Again, Mr. should strive to sit in the position of the marshal before Mr. Bian dies and with his consent." In this way, it is reasonable and reduces a lot of unnecessary troubles in the future. ”

Wang Guoguo shook his head again and again and said, "Yi'an, at this time, how can you talk about this?" It's not like you're looking for trouble, and you're asking for trouble. ”

"Of course we can't say that." Wu Du said, "Let someone else do it for us." ”

Ma Teng glanced at him and said, "Stone? ”

Wu Du nodded and said, "Let him propose the most suitable." He was the first to raise troops in Xiliang, and his prestige and influence in the army were still very great. Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhou were weak a while ago, and they swallowed their anger, but recently they have taken the army back, and they have someone in their hands, you can see that their waists are also straight, and their voices are louder. I don't think they will listen to Mr. or Han Sui. Stone may want to be the big leader himself. ”

Ma Teng's eyes widened and he said, "I'll ask him when I go back." I see he's looking for a fight. ”

Wu Du smiled and said: "You are sworn brothers, it is best for you to warn him, so you don't know that he can listen to you?" ”

＝

Han Sui arrived in Yicheng with his army the next day. His army came from Didao over the mountains and mountains, and it was very hard. The army set up a large camp outside the west gate of Yicheng. Han Sui did not rest, and hurried to the kingdom's camp with Yang Qiu and more than a dozen attendants.

The kingdom was a few years older than him, and Han Sui called him his brother. The two met, were very affectionate, and chatted for a long time. After a while, Beigong Boyu, Li Wenhou, Ma Teng, and Wudu rushed over when they heard the news. Let's say hello. Han Sui affectionately took Ma Teng's big hand and said with a smile: "You finally made up your mind." ”

Ma Teng smiled: "I'm ashamed, I'm burdened by my family background." In fact, if it is reversed, it is the opposite, whether it is right or wrong, it all depends on one's conscience. ”

"That's right. We read books, read scriptures, and learn martial arts, why? I think we should still set our hearts for heaven and earth, set up our lives for the people, and open peace for all generations, as long as we work hard for this, no matter what their descendants say. Whether it's a hero or a rebellion, the key is that we die with a clear conscience. ”

Ma Teng nodded repeatedly.

Han Sui saw Wudu and chatted with him deliberately. When Wudu was young, he was also a disciple of Zhang Huan, and the two had the same friendship.

"Yi'an, we haven't seen each other for a few years, and you're still so thin, not fat at all."

"Brother Wen Yue is still as graceful as ever, as beautiful as in the past."

"Old." Han Sui sighed, "I'm old, I feel much older." Recently, my sideburns have turned white. ”

Thunder in June, strong winds and sand, Northwest Rain and a group of large and small canal marshals received an invitation from the kingdom and also rushed to meet. The kingdom held a feast in the Great Horde. Everyone drank and chatted and talked about the Xiliang battle in detail.

Han Sui's intention was to take Yicheng immediately. If you can't take it within ten days, you won't fight, mobilize all the main forces to attack Fufeng County, and strive to reach Chang'an before the end of the year. Guanzhong has a bumper grain harvest this year, and if you want the people of Xiliang to spend the winter safely this year, you must enter Sanfu and plunder it, which is the only way to save yourself.

No one disputes this strategy.

"It's a very good time to attack Sanfu now." Han Sui said, "The northern army of the imperial court has returned to Luoyang. Dong Fatzi's army was lured by us to Beidi County, and it is difficult to return in the short term. Because of the raid on the house and arresting people, the relationship between him and the leopard is very stiff, and he himself is now in Luoyang, so his threat can not be considered. ”

"The army of Fufeng County was almost wiped out by Boyu last time, so Sanfu has no defensive strength except for the county soldiers of Jingzhao Mansion."

"Now, what we have to deal with is the leopard and the army of Xu Rong and Ko Yi. Xu Rong and Liyi's army only had more than 10,000 people left, and they were now withdrawn to Longxian, and it is estimated that they have joined up with the leopard's army. The combined strength of their two armies is about 50,000 men, which is quite different from ours. ”

"Everyone knows the use of leopards." Han Sui said with a heavy face, "This spring, I lost both battles to him, so that I gave up my previous efforts and gave up Xiliang. The root cause of our defeat ......" Han Sui raised his eyes and looked at Beigong Boyu, the anger in his eyes flashed, and he said slowly, "First, we underestimated the enemy, second, there was a problem with the coordination and cooperation between the armies, and third, we dispersed our forces, which is the most important reason for our defeat." Our army of more than 100,000 men attacked in three directions, and they attacked in turn, and the result was that the enemy seized the opportunity to break through each one. ”

Han Sui looked around at the people in the big tent and said, "This time, we must concentrate our forces, unify the order, and not give the leopard any opportunity to take advantage of. ”

He looked around and said, "What else do you think?" ”

"I don't agree." Beigong Boyu suddenly broke the calm in the big tent and said loudly.

Han Sui's face sank, and his face was angry.

This time, Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhou returned to Jincheng, although Han Sui did not punish them, he also ignored them, and he didn't even look at them. He hated them, not even if he had a friendship for decades, and he hated them terribly just by thinking of the old man who had suffered so much. His gaze at the two of them was cold, disdainful, and mocking. Lao Bian was very happy to see them come back, and without a word of reproach, he comforted them a little, and then let them go back to Huangzhong and other places to recruit troops.

They are all from Jincheng, and it stands to reason that everyone belongs to the same camp, and they should be sincerely united and speak with one voice, but now Beigong Boyu jumped out to raise objections, which is tantamount to telling everyone that there is a contradiction between them, and it is a deep contradiction. Han Sui was furious. Beigong Boyu did not reflect on his mistakes, did not sum up the lessons of defeat, but became more and more intensified, in order to take revenge on himself, he turned his face with himself in public, and even his friends were unwilling to do it. It doesn't matter if they don't have friends to do with each other, but Beigong Boyu provoked contradictions like this, which undoubtedly undermined the unity of the Xiliang coalition army. None of the leaders of the dominant forces of the coalition can unite, so what qualifications do they have to demand that the other forces unite with each other? Han Sui saw the crisis.

"We went out of Xiliang twice to capture Sanfu and capture Chang'an, but both times we were unsuccessful. Once because of the snow in vain, and once because of the fiasco. What does it mean? It shows that we are not strong enough, or that we are not fully prepared. Beigong Boyu glanced at Han Sui coldly and continued, "We haven't gained a firm foothold in Xiliang, let alone talk about capturing Guanzhong, this is self-defeating. Is there anyone who is still ready to surrender to the imperial court after defeat? ”

The anger on Han Sui's face was even stronger. Ma Teng, who was sitting next to Beigong Boyu, saw that Han Sui was angry, and hurriedly stretched out his hand to pat the case, signaling Beigong Boyu to stop.

Beigong Boyu ignored him at all, and said loudly: "We should quickly occupy and consolidate the entire territory of Xiliang after taking Yicheng, instead of rushing out again to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past." ”

Li Wenhou added at the right time, "If we lose again, the leopard will neither contain the captives, nor will it come to appease again."

There was silence in the tent.

＝

Seeing that Lao Bian was seriously injured and dying, Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhou felt very guilty, but guilt was guilty, and the two still hated Bian Zhang and Han Sui very much. Agreeing to be appeased by the imperial court is actually surrendering to the imperial court, betraying them and betraying all the soldiers who rose up with them. The two could not accept it.

Yesterday, Ma Teng went to Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhou to discuss the election of another marshal, and Beigong Boyu agreed, he said: "This matter must indeed be resolved, otherwise we will die in the future, and we don't know who will cut off our heads." Ma Teng found that their views were the same as those of Wudu, and he was very strange and asked what was going on. Beigong Boyu said: "Bian Zhang and Han Sui are both scholars, famous scholars, and learned, they still don't want to rebel in their bones, they still want to be bureaucrats of the Han Dynasty, or they want to be loyal ministers of the mediocre emperor." What they say in their mouths is another in their hearts. They said that they rebelled for the people of Xiliang, to eradicate the traitors around the Son of Heaven, and for the rise and fall of the Han Dynasty. In fact, how can there be such a thing, we rebel just to eat, not to be angry, and to live like a human being. Why are they deceiving people? It's not for themselves, so that they can not only accumulate wealth, but also deceive us to fight hard, and in the end, they will be surrendered and appeased, and they can also mix with the Taishou, the captain, and they can also change from rebellion to loyalty. What about us? We're all dead, and we're all playing dead to death for these cunning soldiers. ”

Ma Teng's face was extremely ugly. His heart was inadvertently told by Beigong Boyu. That's what Ma Teng thought, and the kingdom persuaded him so, so he reversed. It was as if he had been stripped naked and stood naked in broad daylight, ashamed of himself. They all regard the illiterate Qiang people and the poor common people as idiots and tools, thinking that no one knows the dirtiness in their hearts. In fact, where are the idiots in this world?

Bian Zhang and Han Sui have reached the point of exhaustion, why should the kingdom reach out to help? Because he saw another easy way to enter the official career. As long as the heart is hateful enough and the skin is thick enough, you can not only get fame, wealth, but also high-ranking officials. It is a road full of blood, excitement, risks, challenges, but also hope and opportunity. Under the detailed explanation of the kingdom, Ma Teng was cheerful, it turned out that this was a curved road to save the country, benefiting the country and the people, and benefiting himself, if he didn't do it, he would simply be sorry for his ancestors. He shot the case and raised the knife in reverse, clean, thorough and resolute.

Ma Teng, a secret buried in his heart, was casually told by a person who had died on the battlefield once. At that moment, Ma Teng had an urge to kill Beigong Boyu. If this person had been there, he would have hindered himself and the kingdom, and even the future of Bian Zhang and Han Sui. This man is an obstacle.

Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhou didn't notice Ma Teng's gaffe, they were still complaining angrily, venting their dissatisfaction in their hearts. Beigong Boyu said to Ma Teng: "At the beginning, I was worried that I would not be able to stand in Xiliang, so I invited the two of them to come out to support the façade, but the façade was propped up, and we became knives and guns in the hands of others." Now I'm going to take back the seat that should have been mine. Brother Shoucheng, are you willing to help your brother? ”

Ma Teng was speechless. Now that Beigong Boyu has seen through it, it is impossible for him to help the kingdom sit in the position of the marshal. Ma Teng laughed, said yes, and walked in abed.

He hurriedly returned to the big tent of the kingdom and repeated the words of Beigong Boyu. Wang Guo smiled: "This stone is really a masterpiece, and this kind of thing has been seen for him." He is very prestigious among the Qiang people, so let's take a step back for the time being and push him to the opposite side of Han Sui first. Lao Bian was not dead, Beigong Boyu came to grab the seat, and Han Sui must have been very angry. Lao Bian was injured, and Han Sui has always been angry with Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhou, thinking that it was caused by the two of them not listening to the command. Now that Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhou are making such a fuss, Han Sui will definitely not be able to tolerate the two. We took the opportunity to help Han Sui kill them. Han Sui killed the two, which naturally offended the Qiang people, and he couldn't sit down in this handsome position. ”

Ma Teng sighed and said, "At that time, if Mr. doesn't speak, Han Sui will also push you to be handsome." Sir just doesn't do it, I'm afraid it won't work. It's a pity, my brother ......"

Wang Guo sighed and said, "The reason why the Qiang Rebellion has been repeatedly banned is because people like Shi are brave and easy to kill, and no one can control them. I thought that he took the initiative to join Han and should change his temper, but I didn't expect him to be like this. ”

＝

If you want to get the opportunity to appease, you must hurt the court and fear the Son of Heaven. In order to do this, it is necessary to attack Sanfu and threaten Chang'an.

The kingdom glanced at Wudu.

Wu Du comprehended, broke the silence in the big tent, and said loudly: "I think Mr. Han's strategy is completely correct. We must get food and help the people survive the winter in order to win the hearts and minds of the people. Without the will of the people, it will be difficult for us to gain a foothold in Xiliang. ”

The kingdom then chimed in. Ma Teng also said a few words, and everyone didn't know what he was talking about, as if he supported the opinions of both sides.

Some of the Qiang leaders supported Han Sui, and some supported Beigong Boyu.

Li Wenhou stood up, he waved his hand to silence everyone, and then said loudly: "Since everyone disagrees, then ask the marshal to make a decision." ”

Han Sui was almost mad. He gritted his teeth, the corners of his mouth twitched violently a few times, and he held back his anger and did not speak. Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhou were determined to turn their faces with Han Sui.

The dozen or so leaders in the big tent suddenly found that there was no one in the big tent who could make a decision.

＝