Huang Zhixian stood on the watchtower, looking at the lantern in the barracks not far away, his eyes were in a daze, and after a while, he turned around and asked Wei Zhizhou beside him: "Are we going to fight the barracks?" ”

"You're in the wrong head? It turned out that as soon as the garrison here was in command, we would harass it, and we would have to run fast to stay alive. Now the three commanders there, plus Xu Ping's bodyguard, are almost two thousand people! If you don't want to die, I still want it! ”

Wei Zhizhou couldn't help but scold, Huang Zhixian usually looks like a dog, why is it so unbearable when something big happens? I can't turn my head at all.

A cool breeze blew, and Huang Zhixian shivered. In November, it is already winter, and although it has not cooled down this year, it is still cool at night.

Huang Zhixian shrank and asked Wei Zhizhou again: "What about Huang Conggui, do we still kill or not?" ”

"Kill, of course you have to kill! At this time, wouldn't it cost us our lives to let him run out again? Wei Zhizhou's face was gloomy and terrifying, just a few days ago he was running around looking for people with great energy, but he never expected that this would be the result in the end, and it would become a difficult situation to ride a tiger.

Outside Xu Ping's army of nearly 2,000 people, the original plan will definitely not work. But the problem is that even if you don't do it, you can't wash away the stains that you have already stained on your body. When Xu Ping occupied Qianlongtong, Wei Zhizhou didn't know how to face it in the future.

Huang Zhixian is even more afraid, as soon as the road is repaired, the army will come and go here for a day, Luobai County He has already said that it doesn't matter, and now as long as there is a little bit of power, he is afraid when he sees it.

Seeing that Wei Zhizhou said resolutely, Huang Zhixian said: "Then go down and arrange manpower, and Huang Conggui's life will be ruined today, so as not to have too many dreams at night." ”

"Wait!" Wei Zhizhou stopped Huang Zhixian, "Wait a little longer." Let's see how the army moves tomorrow, maybe there will be a chance to turn the tables. Besides, now you are making a fuss, but you are looking for death! ”

Huang Zhixian didn't know what the opportunity was that Wei Zhizhou said, but he had no idea, and what others said was what it was.

Just after the third watch, the horn sounded in the barracks, waking the entire Luobai County from its sleep.

Half an hour later, Zhang Rong had already set off with the vanguard and headed straight for the reckless mountains to the south in the dark. While the rest of the troops packed up, packed up their utensils, and cleaned the barracks.

The mountain path can only be passed by one person, not even two people side by side, and one person occupies three feet of length on the road, plus the horses carrying supplies, the average is five feet. Two thousand troops did not sound like much, but the mountain road ahead stretched into a long line of nearly ten miles. With such a slender formation, even the commander's orders could not be effectively conveyed, which greatly tested the ability of grassroots officers to respond to emergencies.

Zhang Rong led the team first, followed by the newly recruited An Yuanjun, and Xu Ping took Gao Daquan to the rear. It's not an army that he can control, Xu Ping is still not at ease after all, and puts them in the middle.

By the time Xu Ping left, it was the darkest time before dawn, the moon had disappeared, the sun had not yet risen, and even the stars in the sky seemed to have become sparse.

With Tan Hu helping him put on his armor, Xu Ping took a breath and walked out of the room with his waist knife.

The people outside were shouting and the horses were busy, and a kerosene lamp was lit and held around the horse's neck, and everything looked hazy.

Facing the cool breeze of the early morning and stepping on the dew on the grass, Xu Ping led people on a journey.

When the sun rose and the glow shone all over the land, Xu Ping's team finally reached the mountain pass. The team in front of Anyuan had already formed a long line, winding forward like a snake between the green mountains.

Gao Daquan shook the reins of his horse, rode his horse and ran backwards along the marching army, shouting: "Stop in place, unload your armor, and change into light clothing!" ”

This has been set a long time ago, except for the necessary guards, all of them should change into light equipment when crossing the mountain, otherwise that armor can exhaust people to death. The armor taken off was carried by the horses that followed, and then armed when they left the mountain, which was also the measure of the day and night march set by Xu Ping.

As for being attacked by barbarians on the road, there is no need to think about it, one is that the time is tight and the barbarians can't concentrate, and the other is that they come with the same light clothes, and no one can run in the mountains and forests with helmets and armor.

Xu Ping got off the armor, tied to the horse by Tan Hu, took a breath against the rising sun, and said to Tan Hu: "I hope the weather is good these days!" ”

"As long as there is no wind, there is no rain. The general judgment is reassuring, and there is very little rain in Yongzhou this season. ”

Listening to Tan Hu's words, Xu Ping nodded. The rain is the monsoon from the sea, and when the monsoon stops, it is time for the rain to stop. Otherwise, whether it is Jiaozhi or Guangyuan Prefecture, they all choose to start the war at this time, and on the mountain road in front of them, if the march catches up with a flash flood in the rainy season, it will be all over without fighting.

Gao Daquan inspected the team before rushing back and reporting to Xu Ping.

Xu Ping nodded: "Gao Daquan, you have to ensure that the team does not break contact at any time." Let's go! ”

The handsome flag in the hands of the soldiers around him pointed forward slightly, and more than 100 guards with Xu Ping set off first, followed by Gao Daquan's personal soldiers, and went to the path to Qianlongtong on the way.

In the depths of the mountain, in front of a thatched hut halfway up the mountain, Dagui took Cen Dalang's hand, looked at the team in the valley that was slowly moving forward like a long snake, and raised his head and asked, "Daddy, who are those people?" ”

"It's the soldiers and horses of the imperial court, we barbarians, and the lord's Tian Zijia doesn't look like this."

"Oh, what are the soldiers and horses of the imperial court? What did they do in the mountains? ”

Cen Dalang touched Dagui's head and said in a low voice: "The soldiers and horses of the imperial court are the soldiers and horses of the emperor in the capital, if they don't come to the mountains, will the master of the 'Kuding Law' pay attention?" ”

Cen Dalang's hands trembled slightly, did he really live out of the big day? He used to pay attention to his first-hand medical skills in the Wei family, and his knowledge was not comparable to that of ordinary mountain people, and he knew that he could not go to the mountains with a paper edict, and he didn't take it to heart for the "Bracket Ding Method" that was spreading everywhere. Without a sword on the neck of the master's house, how could they possibly give money to their slaves? Not to mention the punishment for beating the slave master's house, there has never been such a thing in heaven and earth.

Thinking of his wife who was beaten to death, Cen Dalang's eyes were a little moist. His wife was beaten to death by the master's family, and he still had to flee, if there was already this "bracket law", the government would really arrest the master's family to pay for his life?

Cen Dalang couldn't figure it out, but his heart was full of longing.

Of course, he didn't know that even after Kuo Ding, there were still different masters and servants, even in the mainland, the master who reported to the government was between living and not living, and it all depended on the mind of the magistrate. The crime of killing a servant by the lord is reduced by one degree compared to ordinary people, and it is not a certain death, and the magistrate can kill him, or he can be sentenced to exile according to the "law of breaking the rod". It depends not only on the temperament of the magistrate, but also on the wealth of the master's family, and it is possible that there is nothing to do at all. After all, no matter what the era, the law is dead, and people are alive.

Night is falling, and the surrounding mountains in the darkness are like beasts of prey, ready to be devoured at any time.

Xu Ping sat down on a boulder on the side of the road and took a breath. Tan Hu took hot water and let Xu Ping drink it.

After collecting the kettle, Tan Hu said: "Official, tomorrow you will still ride a horse, we all feel hard to walk on such a road for a whole day, let alone you!" ”

"There's no need, no matter what, it's just two days, just endure it and it's over. By the way, you beckoned everyone to eat tightly, and we will continue to leave in an hour. ”

Tan Hu agreed, and went to instruct Xu Ping's accompanying sergeant who was resting.

Xu Ping rubbed his sore and sore calves and sighed. Sincerely, Xu Ping dismounted and walked not only to set an example for his subordinates, he was also afraid that he would be particularly conspicuous on his horse, and if there was really such a barbarian on the side of the road, he would become a target, and the latter reason was not easy to say.

I had eaten one meal when the sun was rising, I had eaten a second meal in the afternoon, and now I had a third meal in the middle of the night, and I had to march with a little news, and this intensity was quite torturous. It turned out that I thought that I had worked overtime for several days in a row in my previous life, and it was no problem to stay up for two nights in this world, but not only did I not sleep, but I had to walk continuously, which was torturous.

There is no way, the decision I made by myself was bitter and I had to swallow tears in my stomach.

After instructing everyone, Tan Hu took the food and asked Xu Ping to fill his stomach.

Don't think about hot rice and soup when marching continuously, just a dough cake, two cold boiled eggs, a piece of salted meat, and two pickled cucumbers, and swallow them with hot water.

That is to say, the cane sugar is rich and rich, and the march also makes the food have meat and eggs, although it tastes bad when it is cold, it can always fill the stomach. In particular, the two commanders of the newly recruited Xiang Army, who used to be mostly from poor families in Fujian, did not have much oil to their mouths all year round, and they were satisfied with the cold.

Kerosene lamps dotted the long winding dragon, which stood out in the dark night, and all kinds of small animals in the mountains and forests on the roadside poked their brains, carefully watching this scene that they had never seen before.

After dinner, after a short rest, when I set off again, the bright moon in the sky had already set west, covering the mountains with a layer of silver-gray.

The mountain road rises all the way, although it is not steep, but it is rugged, and the foot is deep and shallow, high and low, and it is extremely difficult to walk. Xu Ping felt blisters on his feet, and it hurt to step on the stones, but looking at the team that had been moving forward, he had to grit his teeth and forcibly hold back.

The blisters on his feet broke the old ones, and the new ones rose again, tormenting Xu Ping in agony. The footsteps slowly became mechanical, as if those two legs were no longer their own, but they were moving forward little by little. And the numb legs finally no longer feel the pain caused by the blisters.

When the red sun rose, the whole mountain was smeared with a red halo, and Xu Ping and his entourage finally arrived at the highest point of this continuous mountain, the most important pass between Luobai County and Qianlongtong.

From here, go all the way down the mountain and step straight into the Qianlong Mountain by the Ming River.