National color raw owl

Mei Long was worried that after Wen Pu's troops arrived in Zhengcheng, Xuanyuan Shao would replace him, but Wen Pu didn't have the heart to think so much at this time.

What he needs to solve most now is the problem of food and clothing for his soldiers.

Tens of thousands of troops fell apart, and only more than 3000 people followed him, most of them were guards, and the rest belonged to the Hexi Army. When they retreated, almost all the Hexi Army had dispersed. There were only more than 1000 people left, and perhaps they did not know where to go, so they retreated to Hujin with Wenpu.

From top to bottom, everyone's heart is extremely heavy.

After entering the territory of Hujin, he was ordered by Meilong to temporarily station outside Wuyang County. Wuyang County is a small county in the north of Hujin. He managed to scrape together some tents and send them out. The food was squeezed out from between his teeth. .

Wen Pu originally thought that after retreating to Hujin, he would go to Zhengcheng soon, take a good rest, and then make plans, but after entering Hujin, the arrangement was not what he thought at all. walk around.

He was quite annoyed in his heart. Whether it was food or housing, it was extremely difficult, and in order to prevent disturbing the people, three thousand soldiers and horses could not even enter the city to rest. In the city, they live on charity, but even so, the rations still come and go. At the end of the day, sometimes they can't even eat a full meal.

All the soldiers under him were furious, and many even suggested rushing directly into the city to seek food from city officials, but Wen Pu resolutely stopped it.

After all, the Imperial Guards were the elite of the empire, and they had their own pride. If they rushed into the county, they would be no doubt like bandits, or even suspected of rebellion.

It was cold and windy, and everyone in the army was at a loss for their future. Those Hexi soldiers who originally came with Wenpu wanted to follow Wenpu. They stopped outside the city for a while, and these people knew that this was just a dream. The small county town has limited storage and lack of resources. It is really difficult to support [-] soldiers and horses. Even the daily consumption of those [-] horses is also Great problem.

In the cold winter, even food is a problem for people, let alone horses. Most of the horses are exhausted and cannot stand up when lying on the ground. Some Hexi soldiers were so hungry that they secretly slaughtered a horse. Knowing that, he immediately ordered the leader to be beheaded, and the others were all beaten with dozens of army sticks.

Wen Pu is the purest soldier, and he came from a cavalry background. He has an extraordinary affection for war horses, and he cannot tolerate soldiers slaughtering war horses for food.

Although several times people were sent to the city to find the magistrate to urge the military rations. At the beginning, the magistrate in the city was afraid of the status of the guards and raised food in the city himself. But later, the magistrate found various excuses to delay, In the past few days, there has been no trace, and no one can be found.

In fact, Wen Pu also knew very well that before the Hujin conscription mobilization, he had already requisitioned food and grass in the Hujin area. It can be said that it has reached the point of exhaustion. It is impossible to support the food and drink, but at this time, besides looking for food, where can I go for it?

Wenpu has strict military regulations. Although it is in this situation, it still insists on strict military regulations. Of course, the soldiers under its command dare not steal or rob. Therefore, soldiers in the army began to flee secretly, mainly Hexi who came with the team. Soldiers, they came here to eat food. Now that there is no food to eat, there is no need to continue to stay.

Wen Pu also had no choice but to turn a blind eye to those soldiers who fled without authorization. If anyone wanted to leave, he would not stop him. In just a few days, hundreds of people had already left, leaving only more than 2000 soldiers horse.

Wen Pu also sent someone to Zheng Cheng to inquire about the situation, but the answer he got was that he was always preparing, so don't be impatient.

Just when Wen Pu's patience was about to run out, the people sent by Xuanyuanshao finally arrived and asked Wen Pu to lead the troops to Zhengcheng.

Wen Pu breathed a sigh of relief, but then he realized that the journey from Wuyang to Zhengcheng would take at least four or five days, and the food on hand was not enough to last four or five days.

In desperation, Wen Pu had no choice but to go to the county seat in person to find the county magistrate for food, but the Wuyang county magistrate was still missing as always, and there was not even a single grain in the county government warehouse.

Wen Pu really had no choice but to distribute the food on hand that could barely last a day, hoping to grit his teeth and make it to Zhengcheng.

When the whole army was deployed, the roads in Hujin were rugged, and they could not walk much in a day. The most important thing was that there were checkpoints on all the main roads in Hujin, and soldiers and horses were stationed there. less time.

Fortunately, the soldiers guarding the checkpoint did not dare to really stop them. They just checked to confirm the identities of Wen Pu and the guards, and then let them go.

The guards couldn't eat well, didn't sleep well, and encountered difficulties along the way, each of them was full of anger.

At dusk that day, the guards were walking exhausted on the rough road in Hujin, but they heard the sound of horseshoes in front of them. Wen Pu went up to meet him, but he heard someone shouting, "Where is General Wen?"

Wen Pu said in a deep voice: "Wen Pu is here, who are you?"

The visitor was dressed in an official uniform. When he saw Wen Pu, he rolled off his horse and cupped his hands from a distance: "General Wen, you have worked hard all the way. The next official is Zhang Xian, the head of the Hujin Military Department. There is an urgent military order to send over!"

Wen Pu frowned, but Zhang Xian had already stepped forward on the snow, took the official document and handed it up, Wen Pu took it, opened it, glanced at it, frowned and said, "Send troops to Pearl Ridge? This Pearl Ridge is another Where?"

Zhang Xian raised his hand and pointed to the northwest: "It's only a day's journey from here, and it's the key to keep the northwest direction."

"Governor Mei asked me to send troops to Pearl Ridge, why didn't I send people over earlier?" Wen Pu said angrily, "We've been walking for two or three days. Wouldn't it be a waste of time to go back and forth?"

"The lower officials have already rushed here at the fastest speed." Zhang Xian said with a wry smile: "Originally, Governor Mei and Commander Xuanyuan have already discussed that General Wen and the soldiers should go to Zhengcheng to rest and recuperate. For this reason, the general camp has even been prepared. , but... the moment Commander Xuanyuan dispatched people, we received news that Chu Huan's Northwest Army has shown signs of going south, and once they go south, they will definitely pass through Pearl Ridge...!"

Wen Pu was startled, then frowned and said, "So fast?"

"I want to come to Chu Huan because I am worried that the longer the time drags on, the more fully prepared Hujin will be." Zhang Xian said with a sneer, "Most of the main force in Hujin is deployed on the southern line to resist the Hebei rebels, so... ...Hey, Mei Du didn't expect Hexi to be realized so soon, so the defenders of Pearl Ridge are very weak, and many of them are newly recruited soldiers with no actual combat experience...!"

Wen Pu asked: "What do Commander Xuanyuan and Mei Du mean, but let all my soldiers and horses go to Pearl Ridge?"

"That's not necessary." Zhang Xian said with a smile: "Pearl Ridge is easy to defend but difficult to attack. Deploying 800 or 800 troops is more than enough. Now that there are [-] troops deployed there, another [-] troops will be more than enough."

Wen Pu pondered for a while, picked up the document and looked at it carefully, and then said: "The above is only to ask the general to send troops to reinforce Pearl Ridge, and there is no mention of dividing troops...!"

"General Wen, to be honest, on the southern side, the thieves under King Qingtian are already ready to move. Just a few days ago, they tried to come here...!" Zhang Xian shook his head and smiled wryly: "Hujin is already in danger today. There is Qingtian King in the south and Chu Huan in the north. I really want to rest. I'm afraid there is no time at all. Compared with the north, there are still many dangerous passes that can be garrisoned. The situation in the south is much more severe. Many, so although it is said that General Wen will go to Zhengcheng to rest, but...but in a few days, General Wen will lead his troops to the south line to prepare to fight against King Qingtian...!"

"So that's how it is." Wen Pu also sighed: "It's my duty to wipe out the rebels, and I don't have anything to say. I will also be ready to go into battle at any time... Zhang My lord, I wonder how the Holy Majesty is doing now?"

Zhang Xian looked left and right, leaned closer to Wen Pu, and said in a low voice: "Commander Xuanyuan originally ordered not to talk too much outside, but...Since General Wen asked, the lower officials dare not hide it, the Holy Spirit has important matters to do, He is not in Zhengcheng now, but according to Commander Xuanyuan, the Holy Majesty will arrive soon."

Wen Pu showed worry, nodded slightly, and then said in a deep voice, "Yuan Yinglong!"

A general from behind immediately came forward, cupped his hands and said, "General!"

"Lead 800 troops to Pearl Ridge immediately to reinforce the defenders there." Wen Pu said, "The Northwest Army is preparing to go south to attack Hujin. It is imperative to defend Pearl Ridge and not let the Northwest Army advance any further." Then he asked Zhang Xian: "Master Zhang, after Yuan Yinglong arrives there, to whom will the military power go?"

Zhang Xian immediately said: "Mr. Mei has an order. After the guards arrive, all military affairs will be under the command of the guards. The hundreds of soldiers in Pearl Ridge will assist in guarding." He added: "Mr. Mei means that, General Wen can send a general who is good at defense to guard Pearl Ridge."

"Yuan Yinglong is good enough to take on this task."

"That's good, that's good!" Zhang Xian cupped his hands at Yuan Yinglong and said, "I'll thank General Yuan for everything!"

Yuan Yinglong asked: "It is our duty to guard the pass, but there are some things to say first. Is the food and equipment in Pearl Ridge sufficient? Why don't you let the brothers guard the pass hungry!"

"Don't worry, General Yuan. In fact, the money and food in Hujin are mainly allocated to various important passes. Pearl Ridge is the top priority. It can be regarded as the northwest gateway to the northwest of Hujin. The food and grass there can last at least two months. , Besides, Zheng Cheng is still doing his best to prepare, and will never let General Yuan have any worries!"

"That's the best!" Yuan Yinglong cupped his hands at Wen Pu, "General, the last general will leave, general, take care!" Without delay, he gathered [-] soldiers and turned to head northwest.