The territory of Wuwei County is vast and sparsely populated, desolate and abnormal, and even in the oasis in the desert, there are not many human beings.

The Qiang army was stationed in an oasis, and the aborigines in it were also slaughtered, and the entire oasis was occupied by the Qiang.

Ma Chao took a few personal soldiers to the Gobi and stopped for a long time, but he did not detect the whereabouts of the Xiliang army at all.

He rode on his war horse, looked into the distance with a pair of tiger eyes, frowned tightly, and said quite uneasily: "Why is this happening? ”

made an appointment with Chen Jing to kill the Qiang people near the Gobi, but at the appointed time, no one from the Xiliang army appeared.

"Did he notice something?"

There was an inexplicable irritability in his heart, and Ma Chao said to a Qiang leader: "Guangpai scouts, you must find the traces of the Xiliang Army!" ”

From the beginning, Ma Chao never thought of helping Chen Jingkeng kill the Qiang people.

He killed Liu Zhang's envoy just to paralyze Chen Jing, as long as he could lure the Xiliang army to the desert, and then annihilate them in a battle.

Then the entire Liangzhou will become extremely empty, and Ma Chao can take advantage of the situation to attack it and become a veritable king of Xiliang.

As for his father Ma Teng's official in Pusaka, Ma Chao didn't care at all.

Whenever he thought of his mother, who died in Ma Teng's arms, Ma Chao would feel a trace of hatred in his heart.

After more than ten years of precipitation, this hatred has now become more and more intense.

"What does his life or death have to do with me? If he hadn't been my father, he wouldn't have lived until now! ”

The brocade robe danced in the wind, and the war horses shaved their hooves on the desert, snorting restlessly, silently complaining that they had been staying in this ghost place.

Ma Chao's war horse is undoubtedly the most sophisticated mount of that kind.

It longs to run on the grasslands, even in the desert. The most unbearable thing for this kind of war horse is to stand still and do nothing all the time.

If you don't indulge in galloping for a long time, the explosiveness of the war horse itself will also decline, so excellent war horses must be exercised from time to time.

Feeling the mood of the horse under his crotch, Ma Chao couldn't help but smile slightly, touched the mane on the horse's neck and gently soothed it for a while.

The war horse felt the temperature of the palm on his neck, and then slowly quieted down.

Ma Chao pacified the war horse, and took out a piece of silk from his arms, with dense handwriting written on it.

"There is a secret edict of the Son of Heaven here, even if he kills Chen Jing and occupies Liangzhou, it is also a legitimate thing!"

With a bright smile on his face, Ma Chao suddenly pinched the horse's belly and shouted: "Drive!" ”

The two hooves in front of the horse were raised high, and a cheerful neighing came from its mouth, and then galloped forward with all its strength.

Behind it, there is a large area of yellow sand that has been raised, and a series of clear horseshoe prints.

As for why Chen Jing hasn't had this problem yet, but he has been left behind by Ma Chao for the time being, all he has to do is to gallop and gallop again.

……

In the oasis where the Xiliang Army was located, more than a hundred corpses were thrown in the desert, but the blood stains on the ground still existed.

Most of these soldiers were recruited last year, and although they were all one in a hundred, they had not experienced the baptism of blood.

Even when he ambushed Song Jian, the king of Qiang, he did not engage in any short-handed combat.

Therefore, when these people saw the blood stains on the ground, they felt a little uncomfortable, and even if the whole roasted sheep was fragrant on the bonfire, many people lost their appetite.

As for Chen Jing, she sat next to a large pool of blood with a big smile, cut off some mutton with a sharp sword, and chewed it in a big gulp, showing an intoxicated face.

"I've been eating dry food for the past few days, but I didn't expect that just after I got out of the desert, there was roasted mutton for dinner!"

Eating the delicious mutton, Chen Jing didn't pay attention to the smell of mutton contained in it, and showed a look of enjoyment.

After biting a large mouthful of mutton again, Chen Jing said to Yang Qiu: "By the way, there are more than a thousand sheep in this foreign tribe, all of them have been killed and boiled and distributed to the soldiers." ”

Yang Qiu led the troops away and began to slaughter the sheep in this tribe.

The war is so cruel, destroying their homes, killing their people, and taking their belongings.

If it weren't for the Qiang people, Chen Jing would even leave the women of this tribe behind and bring them all back as goods to reward the meritorious soldiers.

After a while, the army was finally encamped, and Fan Chou, Yang Ding, and Ma Wan also came to Chen Jing.

Under Yang Qiu's command, a pot of steaming mutton soup soon appeared, and everyone smelled the slightly fishy fragrance, and suddenly felt their index fingers move.

"Envoy, the mutton soup is ready, and the soldiers are all mixed with dry food and start eating."

Chen Jing got up and patted Yang Qiu's shoulder lightly, and said, "General Yang has worked hard. ”

After Yang Qiu and a few people sat down, he suddenly frowned and said, "Envoy, this location seems to be far away from the oasis we booked. ”

Yang Ding asked in astonishment: "Haven't we been marching west, why are we so far apart?" ”

Yang Qiu's face was slightly red, and he said: "I waited for the march the day before yesterday, and I have already shifted too much to the north, although I have been marching to the west later, but now I am in the northeast of my destination. ”

"If you want to reach your destination, you have to march for at least two days."

When everyone heard this, their faces changed slightly, and marching in the desert was definitely not a pleasant thing, and everyone had already realized it in the past few days.

Since the army was not adapted to the desert march, the speed of the march was expected to be much slower, and now it will be delayed for two more days, which will definitely delay the fighters.

What's more, because there is no wood in the desert, the people basically did not bring a lot of food, and their backpacks were basically dry food.

Although the army carried a lot of dry food, the logistics supply of the Western Liang army had almost been cut off, and it was the wisest move for them to defeat the Qiang people as soon as possible and then retreat.

In the desert and the Gobi, the slightest carelessness will wipe out the whole army.

For every day that the army is delayed, there is more danger.

Therefore, when they heard that this place was still far away from the destination, everyone felt quite uneasy.

After being silent for a long time, Chen Jing suddenly said: "Now that the time to meet Ma Chao has passed, if we delay for another two days, even if we arrive at our destination, we don't know if the Qiang people are still there." ”

Yang Qiu's face was full of self-blame, and he said: "If it weren't for the last general who took the wrong path, I'm afraid it wouldn't be like this, please punish the king!" ”

Chen Jing waved his hand and said, "It's hard to distinguish the direction in the desert, and you can't be blamed for this matter." ”

At this moment, Yang Ding, who had been silent, suddenly said: "Before leaving, Mr. repeatedly explained that you must be cautious and guard against Ma Chao. ”

"Regardless of whether you can meet the Qiang army or not, the envoy should be careful."

Fan Chou also said: "Although the possibility of Ma Chao's fraud is relatively small, it is not a bad thing to be on guard after all. ”

But the horse sat next to him and didn't make a sound.

Since he was beaten with a military stick by Chen Jing and deprived of a lot of military power, he has been a lot more restrained. Most of the time there is silence.

Chen Jing heard Yang Ding and Fan Chou's words, but she laughed and said, "Actually, from the beginning, I didn't count on Ma Chao. ”

The generals were shocked when they heard this, and couldn't help but ask in unison: "In that case, why did the envoy insist on sending troops to Wuwei County?" ”

Chen Jing laughed loudly: "Although I don't expect Ma Chao to help me kill the Qiang people, but the determination to kill the Qiang people in this battle will not be wrong." ”

Yang Qiu asked suspiciously: "If there is no Ma Chao's help, how can you kill all the Qiang people?" ”

Fan Chou's eyes lit up, and he replied instead of Chen Jing: "The Qiang people's combat effectiveness is not strong, and the reason why they have been suffering from Liangzhou for more than a hundred years is just because they are scattered and live in a scattered place, and it is not easy to crusade. ”

"This time, if the Qiang people can gather all the troops together, with the combat strength of our army, even if they fight head-on with the Qiang people, they can be defeated."

"Could it be that you have this kind of idea?"

Chen Jing laughed loudly when she heard this: "That's right! ”

The Qiang people are entrenched in the four counties of Longxi, and if they rashly lead the army to fight, the army will cross several deserts, and the amount of grain, grass, and supplies consumed will be an astronomical amount.

What's more, this consumption doesn't necessarily pay off. If you are not careful, the army may even be wiped out on an expedition to the desert.

Then, Chen Jing's eyes narrowed slightly, and he snorted coldly: "If Ma Chao is acquainted, it is naturally very good, if he dares to have two hearts, he will definitely be captured and killed in this battle!" ”

How could a person like Chen Jing easily believe that Ma Chao would surrender?

From the very beginning, he wanted to fight a hard war, not a war of speculation.

Otherwise, he would not have agreed to meet with Ma Chao in Wuwei County, because in the Gobi, it was almost impossible to ambush the Qiang people.

The reason why he didn't tell Zhong Jian about his plan in advance was that Chen Jing was afraid that he would not agree.

After all, in the desert to fight with the Qiang people, the Xiliang army did not occupy the geographical advantage at all, and it was not wise to start a war with the Qiang people when Guanzhong was surrounded by enemies on all sides.

Chen Jing needed an excuse to go on the expedition, and joining forces with Ma Chao to kill the Qiang people was the best excuse.

Although this excuse seems a little naïve and a little implausible, but so what?

Taking in everyone's expressions, Chen Jing said with a straight face: "The current plan is to arrive at the place where I met Ma Chao first." ”

"At that time, it doesn't matter whether Ma Chao sincerely surrenders or wants to earn my Liangzhou army."

Hearing this, the generals nodded vigorously and went to settle their subordinates.

……

The plump and juicy cactus still seemed so quiet in the sunlight, but the spikes on its body emitted a cold cold light, loyally guarding itself.

In the past two days, Ma Chao finally became a little restless, he waited for a long time, but he didn't find any trace of Chen Jing's army.

"Could it be that you were deceived by Chen Jing?"

Thinking of this, Ma Chao's face couldn't help but be gloomy.

The Qiang people came to this promised oasis early, but they waited for seven days without seeing any trace of the Xiliang army.

Later, Ma Chaoguang sent scouts to investigate, but he didn't get the slightest news.

"If I can't break the Xiliang army this time, my prestige among the Qiang people will definitely suffer. If it really didn't work, I led my troops to kill and rush over and storm Longxian. ”

A fierce look flashed in Ma Chao's eyes, and he had already made a decision in his heart.

Suddenly, there was a hurried sound of horses' hooves, and a Qiang scout ran over with a frightened face.

He shouted loudly from afar: "King, we have detected the Xiliang army, and the rest of the brothers have been hunted down by the enemy, and only I have escaped." ”

Ma Chao was not surprised when he heard this, and hurriedly asked, "How many people are there in the enemy army?" ”

The scout said: "The situation is urgent, the villain did not see the number of enemy troops clearly, only to see that the entire desert is the Xiliang army. ”

Ma Chao was not angry, and asked again: "Which direction did they come from?" ”

The scout replied, "The Xiliang army is coming from the northeast, and it is still more than fifty miles away. ”

Ma Chao was even happier when he heard this, and after thinking for a while, he said: "It seems that it is not Chen Jing who has made an appointment, but who has lost his way in the desert." ”

Then, the corners of Ma Chao's mouth hooked up a hint of curvature, and he became more and more confident in destroying this Xiliang army.

The desert is the home of the Qiang people, and this war horse Chao occupies a favorable position, so how can he be afraid of the tired army led by Chen Jing?

……

As the scouts finally detected the movements of the Qiang people, Chen Jing was overjoyed to get the news.

"It's good that the Qiang people didn't leave."

After the joy, Chen Jing immediately ordered the army to camp in a small oasis and began to build defensive positions against the cavalry.

Today, Chen Jing has completely lost hope for Ma Chao.

With Chen Jing's order, the standard camp was built, but due to the lack of trees here, many things could not be built at all.

In desperation, Chen Jing had to let everyone dig many traps around the camp.

Chen Jing's soldiers and horses rested in the camp and began to recuperate, and a tense atmosphere spread.

After the construction of the camp and defensive positions was completed, Chen Jing immediately asked Fan Chou, Yang Ding, Yang Qiu, and Ma Wan to gather over to discuss the strategy of breaking the enemy.

Yang Ding took the lead in replying: "Most of the Qiang people are cavalry, but our army is all foot soldiers, it is not difficult to break the cavalry with foot soldiers, but if you want to wipe them out, I'm afraid it is not easy." ”

The terrifying cavalry not only gave them a powerful impact, but also extremely powerful mobility.

The cavalry fought against the infantry, and even if they were ultimately defeated, it would be very difficult, and even somewhat unlikely, for the infantrymen to expand their gains.

This situation is especially evident in the vast oases and Gobi.

What's more, fighting against the cavalry led by Ma Chao with foot soldiers may not be able to achieve a final victory, and the generals don't know where Chen Jing got the confidence to win.

Fan Chou, Yang Qiu, and Ma Yu were all battlefield generals, and they all bowed slightly when they heard Yang Ding's words, only Chen Jing smiled and said nothing.

Seeing this, Fan Chou couldn't help but feel strange and asked, "Isn't the envoy worried?" ”

"What if Ma Chao kept harassing our army with cavalry and didn't charge head-on?"

Chen Jing laughed, but she didn't speak anymore, but the essence in her eyes kept flashing, and the corners of her mouth kept hanging with an indifferent smile.

After messing around with Cheng Yu and Li Ru for so long, Chen Jing is no longer the child who touched the widow's ass in Chenjia Village.

If he was not sure, how could he risk leading his troops into the desert?