National color raw owl

The news from Liaodong hadn't reached Chu Huan yet, but the news from Hujin was quickly reported to Chu Huan.

After Qiu Ruxue escaped from Hujin, he traveled day and night, and arrived at the Fucheng of Wuping. Chu Huan happened to be in the middle of his practice, and immediately summoned Qiu Ruxue.

"Xuanyuan Shao was doomed to die, but he was rescued by someone." Qiu Ruxue didn't even drink a sip of water, and immediately reported the situation in Hujin to Chu Huan: "Most of the people in the posthouse were besieged, but There were also a few people who escaped, after that Mei Long sent people to search the whereabouts of Xuanyuan Shao and his party members throughout the city, but they did not find any trace."

Chu Huan nodded slightly, and asked, "How is the situation at Wenpu?"

"The trap set by Meilong wiped out all of Wenpu's troops." Qiu Ruxue said, "Meilong sent people to divide Wenpu's troops into two, and one of Wenpu's troops was brought into the tiger's mouth. An ambush was set up there long ago, using fire to attack, almost all of Meilong's troops were burned to death in the valley, they wanted to break out from the entrance of the valley, but the exit was blocked by stones, and none of them could escape."

Chu Huan sighed, and said, "Wen Pu certainly didn't expect to be ambushed by Mei Long, otherwise, based on his experience, he would never have entered a desperate situation."

"Meilong is just worried about accidents, and both sides will attack at the same time, so that there will be no news leaks." Qiu Ruxue said: "Wen Pu thought that Xuanyuan Shao was in Zhengcheng, and it was absolutely impossible for the Hujin army to attack them. Let's do it, but he didn't expect that Meilong has already been bribed by us and has betrayed Qin."

Chu Huan was silent for a moment before asking: "Mei Long has agreed to submit to us?"

"He has nowhere to go." Qiu Ruxue said, "Mei Long is a person who understands current affairs and knows that there is no way out for him to follow Qin. He planned to assassinate Xuanyuan Shao, and he has completely torn face with Qin. There is no other way out. , can only submit to the king's command. But when the subordinate left, he revealed in his words that he hoped that the king would keep his promise and not go back on his word."

"You mean to make him a duke and bestow ten thousand households?" Chu Huan said with a smile, "As long as he sincerely submits to him, the promise to him will naturally not be broken."

Qiu Ruxue said: "The subordinate told him that since she has decided to submit to the King, in order to show her sincerity, she should come to Wuping Mansion to meet the King as soon as possible."

"How did he say?"

"He was a bit hesitant at the beginning." Qiu Ruxue said, "I think he still had some concerns in his heart, but he had no other choice, so he finally agreed to arrange the affairs at hand as soon as possible, and then he will come to see the King."

Chu Huan said with a smile: "Brother Qiu, you have done a great job this time. You can get a team to join you by going out in person. It is really a victory for a thousand troops. In this way, there is no need to go to war with Hujin, and life can be avoided. "

Hearing that Chu Huan still called himself a brother, Qiu Ruxue's heart warmed up, and he said with a smile, "Your Majesty is too famous. If it weren't for the Northwest Army's strong and powerful soldiers, and your Majesty's strategic planning, Mei Long would never have surrendered."

"You worked so hard this time, take a good rest for a few days." Chu Huan said with a smile: "I won't reward you for the time being, and I will reward you later."

As soon as the words fell, a voice came from outside: "The general is here!"

After Pei Ji came in, Chu Huan informed Hujin of the situation, and Pei Ji smiled and said, "Go up to the army and plan. If you don't move a single soldier, you can make Hujin surrender. Hero Qiu really deserves the most credit."

Qiu Ruxue was humble in a hurry. He knew that Pei Ji had something important to ask Chu Huan when he came, so he retreated first. Then Pei Ji said, "Second brother, the thing you have been waiting for has finally been delivered. It was delivered by Sun Zikong himself." arrive."

Chu Huan didn't react for a while, and said: "What?" As soon as the words came out, he immediately remembered, showing joy, and said: "Brother, you mean...!"

Pei Ji nodded slightly, and said, "It's the secret weapon you've been talking about, and it's been delivered now. Second brother, you've been showing off with me for a long time. What's in it?"

Chu Huan laughed and said: "Brother, without those things, I really don't have the confidence to fight the Liaodong cavalry. I thought it would be the earliest spring next year before I could send them here, but I didn't expect Mr. Du to send the things so quickly. ...!" He lowered his voice and said, "Brother, didn't you open the box to see what's inside?"

Pei Ji said: "Since you said it was a secret weapon, who would dare to open it without your order?"

Chu Huan asked with a smile: "Where is Sun Zikong now? Has he arrived yet?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he heard Sun Zikong's voice from outside: "Master, this disciple is here. I haven't seen you for a long time. I miss you." Trot in.

When Chu Huan saw Sun Zikong, he took a few glances at him. Although Sun Zikong was still as thin as ever, he was full of energy and looked full of energy. He didn't look tired after a long journey. He patted Sun Zikong on the shoulder and said with a smile: " The road has been exhausting, how is the situation at Shuoquan?"

Sun Tzukong smiled and said: "Master, don't worry, everything is fine at home. Mr. Du knows that Master is in a hurry, and worried that if there is any delay, it will miss the master's important business, so since we received the order from the master, we have been working day and night, secretly stepping up Production. Originally, it could be delivered half a month in advance, but some of them had problems with the workmanship. Director Du said that these things cannot be barely made up, and must be done as best as possible, so he stepped up the production, which caused a little more delay time."

"Your speed has already surprised me." Chu Huan said with a smile: "According to my estimation, you should complete the task after the beginning of spring, which is at least two or three months earlier."

"Naturally, we dare not neglect what the master told us." Sun Tzukong said with a smile, "There are [-] pieces in total, ready to be used at any time, and they are temporarily sent to the warehouse."

Chu Huan said: "You have worked hard all the way, take the brothers who deliver the goods to have a good meal, and then take a rest, I will order someone to prepare food for you."

"Thank you, Master." Sun Zikong was praised by Chu Huan, and he was very happy. After he retreated, Chu Huan asked Pei Ji: "Brother, you are proficient in astronomy and geography. Now you really need your help."

"Oh?" Pei Ji smiled and said, "What is it?"

Chu Huan walked out of the door and looked up at the sky. Although there was no heavy snow these few days, the light snow continued and it was difficult to see clear weather. Even at this time, the sky and the earth were gloomy. Looking at the sky, it was a little strange, and was about to ask, but Chu Huan had already said: "March and fight, the right time, place and people are harmonious. Brother, the time of day is very important. Can you see how long it will take for the sun to clear?"

"Looking at the sky?" Pei Ji was taken aback, "Why does the second brother ask such a question?"

Chu Huan laughed and said, "I just want to know when the sun will come out. I haven't seen the sun rise for a long time, and I really miss it."

For a while, Pei Ji couldn't figure out what kind of medicine Chu Huan sold in the gourd, but seeing that he was very concerned about the weather, he said: "Observing the sky, I can probably tell if it will be cloudy or sunny in a few days. But these days It should not clear up, even if it does, it will take five or six days at the earliest."

"Five or six days?" Chu Huan pondered for a while before asking, "Brother, do you think the Liaodong Army has not moved for a long time, what are they going to do next?"

"It's nothing more than going south or going west." Pei Ji said: "I'm afraid even they themselves are hesitant. But they haven't moved for the time being, it should be that the logistics and supplies have not been in place for a long time. If the logistics and supplies are sufficient and in place, they have a large number of troops, so naturally they will not stand still .”

Chu Huan thought for a while before saying, "Brother, I'm going to send troops to Gucheng!"

"Gucheng?" Pei Ji was quite surprised. He naturally knew that Gucheng was more than 100 miles east of Wuping Fucheng, in the middle of Daomacheng and Wuping Fucheng.

Gucheng is just a county seat, but it has a long history, with a history of hundreds of years. It is larger than ordinary county towns, and although the city is not as majestic as Wuping Fucheng, it is still a solid city, so it is called Gucheng , not because the city is strong, but because it is located in Gu County, which is the county seat of Gu County.

When Gu County was the most prosperous, there were [-] to [-] people in the city. For the northern counties, it was already a large number of people, but today's Gu County is sparsely populated.

When the barbarian army attacked the attached city of Wuping, they collected food and grass in a radius of about a hundred miles. The surrounding area of ​​Guxian County also became a hunting area for the barbarian army.

In today's Gu County, only the old, the weak, the sick, and the disabled and those who can't get away are left, and the total number is only a few thousand.

According to the previous strategic deployment, once the Liaodong Army arrives, the Northwest Army will retreat and lengthen the Liaodong Army's front. Pei Ji doesn't know why Chu Huan suddenly changed his mind. Instead of planning to retreat, he wants to move his troops forward to Goseong.

Chu Huan naturally saw Pei Ji's doubts, and said softly: "There are hundreds of thousands of people in Wuping Prefecture. If we leave them behind, even if the Liaodong Army will not massacre the people, in this cold winter season, there will be half of them." If the people are going to die here, the Liaodong army will not have enough rations, so I find it hard to believe that they will distribute the rations to the people.”

Pei Ji nodded slightly, and Chu Huan continued: "If we withdraw and take them, in this weather, the speed will not be fast at all. If the Liaodong Army knows that we are withdrawing from Wuping Mansion with the people, they will definitely come from behind. , when the time comes...!" His expression became serious, he paused for a moment, and then said: "After this winter, it will be much easier to evacuate here, but the Liaodong Army may not be able to wait until then .”

Pei Ji naturally knew in his heart that although the overall strategy of the Northwest Army's enemy coming and retreating was beneficial to him, it would not be that simple if he joined the hundreds of thousands of people in Wuping Prefecture.

The Northwest Army was well-trained, and when the enemy army came, they retreated as soon as they said they wanted to, simply and neatly. However, the people in the city dragged their families, there were many old and young, and with the winter snow everywhere, it was impossible to retreat completely.

Starting from the overall strategy and considering the military strategy, Pei Ji actually intentionally or unintentionally ignored the life and death of the people in Wuping Prefecture.

"Second brother moved his troops to Gucheng to gain time?" Pei Ji asked.

"Since the Liaodong Army is well-trained and has rich combat experience, they will naturally pay close attention to the movements of Wuping Prefecture." Chu Huan said: "We don't move, and they naturally dare not act rashly before they replenish their supplies. But if they If you find out that we are starting to withdraw our troops, you will never miss the opportunity, even if the food and grass have not arrived, you will rush to us...!"

"If you defend Gucheng, with this extra layer of defense, they will naturally not dare to attack Wuping Fucheng. Even if Wuping Fucheng wants to evacuate, the defense of Gucheng can stop them for a period of time and buy time for evacuation." Pei Ji said softly: "But second brother, have you ever thought that if this happens, the defenders of Gucheng will probably be surrounded by the Liaodong army. They are so numerous that we will transfer all the soldiers and horses in Wuping Fucheng to Gucheng , can't match their strength, once they are surrounded...!"

Chu Huan smiled and said, "Brother, if you were the coach of Liaodong and saw the Northwest Army advancing instead of retreating, what would be your first reaction?"

Pei Ji thought for a while before saying, "Most people would think that the Northwest Army is planning to attack the Liaodong Army on its own initiative."

"I think the same is true." Chu Huan said: "If I were the coach of Liaodong, I would still think that since the Northwest Army dared to take the initiative to make an offensive posture, it means that the Northwest Army has its basis. If you don't understand the situation, Naturally, you can't act rashly." With a slight smile, "If it was Chiliandian, we might not be able to hide it from him, but the commander of the Liaodong Army is not Chiliandian now."

Pei Ji pondered for a moment before saying, "Even so, it's still very risky...!"

"Brother, don't worry, I won't stick to Gucheng." Chu Huan said, "If I want to evacuate, I can do so at any time, and I may not really need to evacuate...!"

"Second brother is saying that you personally led the troops to Gucheng?"

Chu Huan nodded and said: "Yes, brother, I will leave the rear to you. I will lead the cavalry to Gucheng. With this cavalry, no matter whether it advances or retreats, its speed will not be lower than that of the Liaodong Army. Moreover, there is a high speed from Gucheng to Wuping Fucheng." Baili Road, even if the Liaodong Army really wants to fight with all their strength, I can still stop them by relying on the terrain along the way."

"No." Pei Ji immediately said: "Since I am a general, it is my duty to charge forward. Since the second brother is determined to stop the enemy in Gucheng, I will not dissuade him. The situation on the battlefield is changing rapidly. Your The choice may not be wrong, but to lead the army in battle, you still have to let me go."

"Brother, there is no need to fight any more." Chu Huan said with a smile: "Brother knows that I still have a secret weapon in my hand, which will be of great use at that time... Don't worry, I know what to do."

Pei Ji stared at Chu Huan, saw that Chu Huan's brows were full of confidence, nodded and said: "Second brother, since I know what I know, I won't say much. You can lead the troops, and leave the rest to me!"