Under the sky

Chapter 221

Yan Jiuling lowered his head and did not dare to raise it. He was almost lying on the ground. He could only see his third brother's black silk boots.

There was mud stuck to the bottom of the leather boots, but the uppers were smooth. This was because the leader was running so fast that he barely touched the ground.Except for one thing, he noticed that on the smooth boot surface, there was a small piece of yellow mud stuck to the middle of the instep.

How did you glue it on?It looked so annoying that he couldn't help but be distracted. He actually had the urge to remove this piece of yellow mud.

He was really loyal to his third brother. As the eldest brother, he might have acted like an elder brother when he was very young. But as the third brother got older and his methods became more vicious and ruthless, he became more and more afraid of this younger brother and even dared not Competing with his third brother for position.

"Brother, stand up." The voice was cold and without any emotion.Not knowing what his third brother would do to him, Yan Jiuling didn't dare to raise his head. He was sure that the leader's face must be ugly now.

"Where are they?" Yan Feixi asked.

"We have already entered Micang Road." Yan Jiuling replied, "I didn't stop him..."

Yan Feixi took a deep breath, his face with a half-disfigured ear couldn't help but twitch, it was covered with frost, and even more like a ghost.

"You lost a son and you are eager to take revenge?" Yan Feixi asked, "Do you know what Huashan lost?"

Yan Jiuling did not dare to answer.

"It's not just the more than 90 troops who were trapped in Qingcheng, it's not just my two sons." Yan Feixi said, without any harsh words or anger, but his tone was so cold that he didn't look like a living person. "You also lost [-] years of Huashan." You have worked hard to accumulate the capital to expand the territory. Do you know that without that food, Huashan will not be conquered for long?"

Yan Jiuling's legs went weak and he knelt down again, his body trembling uncontrollably.

The grain storage areas in Huashan are mainly in Hanzhong, Chang'an and Xianyang. The grain storage in Hanzhong has been lost. It will not take a day or two to transport a large amount of grain and grass from Chang'an and Xianyang. At present, even if the land in Hanzhong is scraped, it will not be enough, and the army cannot help. Huashan cannot catch up with Qingcheng, and the rice warehouse road is steep. In order to save these 2 people, more people, horses and food must be paid.

The question before Yan Feixi is whether to make a big gamble on this battle. If the Qingcheng Army retreats along Jinzhou West Road and Micang Road is clear, he may try his best to rescue the more than [-] soldiers. As long as Ma and his two sons can help, the battle will not be lost, and at least they can retreat safely.But since Qingcheng's men and horses are stuck in the middle, it is very different. Qingcheng can resist the danger and defend, waiting for the [-] Huashan disciples inside to starve to death before coming to deal with Huashan.

"Where is the toastmaster Fang?"

"No...I don't know..." Yan Jiuling's teeth chattered.

There was a rapid sound of horse hooves outside the camp, and a man came rushing towards him. He turned over and dismounted, bent down and said respectfully: "Dad!" Although it was only one word, his tone was urgent and uneasy.Yan Xuting was leading his team to pursue Qingcheng. He heard that his father had finally arrived, leaving the former army behind and galloping back.

"How is the battle going?" Yan Feixi asked.

"I haven't caught up yet." Yan Xuting gritted his teeth.

"Withdraw troops." Yan Feixi said.

Yan Xuting was stunned and couldn't help but ask: "Dad, what did you say?"

Yan Feixi replied with sharp eyes.

"But the eldest brother and the second brother are still in Qingcheng!" Yan Xuting said anxiously, "There are still more than 2 disciples!"

"We lost this battle." Yan Feixi said, "They have to find a way to come back on their own. As for you, brother." He glanced at Yan Jiuling who was lying on the ground.

Yan Jiuling knew his fate. "Then...that Qing...Qingcheng..." He wanted to defend, but he was speechless. Yan Feixi could not even care about his two sons, let alone his brothers who made big mistakes.

"We have to save it. There are more than 2 soldiers and horses there, which is more than [-]% of our strength. If they are wiped out, their vitality will be severely damaged, which will affect dad's plan!" Yan Xuting said, "We should use all our strength to rescue that lone army! "

"If you knew it was serious, you shouldn't abandon Hanzhong." Yan Feixi said.

The odds of continuing to win are not high, and Yan Feixi does not want Huashan to fall into the quagmire.

Yan Xuting said anxiously: "As long as this road is opened, we may be able to turn our defense into an attack. This battle is not over yet, so we cannot admit defeat!"

"If your second brother doesn't come back, you will be the leader from now on." Yan Feixi said coldly, "You have to learn to be ruthless and consider the overall situation."

Yan Xuting was stunned. Did he mean that he had given up on his eldest brother and his second brother?He looked up and saw that his father's face was covered with a layer of frost, just like when his fourth brother died.He knew that his father was angry and shocked, but he couldn't tell whether he was sad or not. Did his father really ignore his eldest and second brothers?
When Yan Feixi walked back to the main seat in the tent and sat down, Yan Xuting saw it.He saw his father's body that was trying his best to suppress but trembling slightly when he sat down. He didn't notice it when his fourth brother died, but he noticed it now.

Dad will be sad.

"You made such a big mistake and became the heir apparent because of it," Yan Feixi said, "I feel sad for Huashan."

"Give me 5000 people! No, you don't need to give me people, let the Hanzhong disciples make meritorious service for their crimes!" Yan Xuting said, "I will rescue the eldest brother and the second brother!"

Yan Jiuling was surprised.If Yan Zhaochou dies, Yan Xuting will definitely become the leader. If Yan Zhaochou is rescued, he has no fault in this war, but Yan Xuting will lose his position as the leader.But Yan Jiuling didn't want to dwell on this matter. He took the opportunity to find a chance to survive, raised his head and said to Yan Feixi: "Third brother, that is your son after all. If you give me a chance, I will definitely bring back your nephew for you!"

Yan Feixi closed his eyes and raised his head, thinking for a long time.

"There are only 5000 people, and we can't provide food and grass for the time being." Yan Feixi said, "Do you have any ideas?"

"I will find a way!" Yan Xuting replied firmly.

■

Li Jingfeng was a little bored.A horse approached, and someone tapped him on the shoulder. Li Jingfeng turned around and saw Xie Gubai, and said in surprise: "Brother, why are you here? Doctor Zhu said you should rest more."

After he met Xie Gubai, because of Xie Gubai's condition, except for military discussions, he avoided interrupting even though he had a lot to say. To paraphrase Zhu Menshang, it didn't take long to return to Qingcheng.During this march, Zhu Menshang specially arranged a car for Xie Gubai to prevent him from bumping around.

"I've been raising you for long enough." Xie Gubai took a breath and asked, "Are you worried?"

Li Jingfeng touched the mask on his face: "So that big brother can see it?"

"You are in a daze, and you can tell even with the mask on." Xie Gubai said, "Are you thinking about what Mr. Ji said?"

That was before entering the rice warehouse road. At the military meeting, Ji Shaoguang proposed burning the houses along the way to deprive Huashan of food and delay the pursuit of troops.

"This is not to leave food for the people, but to leave food for Huashan." Ji Shaoguang said, "If they can pursue them so fast, the people of Hanzhong must have suffered. They don't care about their own people. Why do you worry about them?"

Li Jingfeng said: "We don't need to follow others when they do bad things. We are not short of food now, and we didn't return the food when we left the village in Jinzhou."

"There are only a hundred people in that village, and two months of food is not enough for us to eat for three days. Can we compare?"

"You're still in Huashan territory now, and you said you're going to burn down people's houses. Are you going to burn them down in Nanjiang too?" Li Jingfeng asked.

"Of course it's different when we get to Qingcheng. We will drive the people up the mountain and let them escape for their lives." Ji Shaoguang said, "Do you think Huashan will be polite to the people of Qingcheng?"

In the end, Xie Gubai made the decision to enter the rice warehouse road as the first priority to avoid delays.

"Mr. Ji said that there should be no kindness to women on the battlefield." Li Jingfeng thought of Yu Xuanqing and said, "When we leave food, we leave food for the enemy. If we don't scrape the land, they will. This war was not started by Qingcheng , if we are afraid of casualties and dead people, then when Huashan comes, the second brother surrenders and gives Qingcheng away, and no one will die. If the barbarians come to fight, we are afraid of casualties, so we have to give up the country to others? Shouldn't it? That’s the truth.”

He shook his head: "But I still don't want to see such a thing." He asked Xie Gubai, "The deputy commander said that this battle will be fought sooner or later, either now or in the future. Either Dian Cang Huashan will be fought first or Hengshan Qingcheng will be fought first. Brother, is the deputy commander right?"

Xie Gubai nodded: "No one can stop it."

Li Jingfeng thought about the dispute between the North and South Star Gates again. Even though the two small towns had intractable grudges, the disputes were relatively easy to resolve, and the relationship between the nine families was much more complicated.He was silent for a while and then asked: "Is there no way to prevent this kind of thing?"

Xie Gubai pondered for a long time and said: "The war has just started, and there is room for many things. You think it is miserable, but in fact it is not miserable enough. Now whether it is Huashan or Qingcheng, when you enter the city, you still need to provide food to the people. The longer the war drags on, the more likely it will be. When the land is scraped layer by layer, farming will inevitably be desolate and famines will occur. Only those who have enough warehouses will know honor and disgrace. The poorer and hungrier they are, the more people's hearts will become corrupt. At the end of the previous dynasty, we heard of looting, massacres, and cannibalism. Compared with At that time, and now it was still a battle between gentlemen.”

Li Jingfeng was frightened by these words.

Xie Gubai said: "For the people, it is the most important thing to end the war as soon as possible."

Li Jingfeng thought for a while and said: "What the elder brother said makes sense, but I also think that it is for the sake of those people in the future, but what about these people now? Huashan can also say to their people, we scrape the land to make it easier to fight. Win Qingcheng and let Huashan live a good life. The longer it takes, the more people will die. Is it really guaranteed that if they scrape the land, the war will end sooner? Maybe if they lose early, they can save the people. I don’t know how many people can be saved in the future. Why do these people have to die in front of us now?”

"No one knows what will happen in the future, but what happens now will be known immediately. I don't know whether more people will die in the future, but now these people will die soon. The third master said, if you can do bad things if you have hardships, then the more reason you have, the more likely you are to die. If you are high-sounding, you can do bad things without a bottom line." Li Jingfeng thought again, shook his head and said, "I know that the eldest brother and the second brother stand high and see far. What you see is not the same scenery as I see. Such a big thing is left to Just worry about it, it’s better for a fool like me to stay out of it.”

"You're not stupid." Xie Gubai muttered, "Maybe you're too smart."

Li Jingfeng looked at his elder brother, wondering what he meant.

■

If Shen Yayan hadn't ridden back alone, just looking at his angry look, the guards would have thought that Master Ya was going to make some big noise again.

The horses entered the auspicious gate without stopping, rushed through the reception hall, and went straight to the Juntian Hall despite the heavy injustice.Chang Buping gave an order and the guards gathered. Shen Yayan ran straight into the school grounds. Chang Buping jumped in and stood between the hall and the horses and shouted: "Master Ya, stop!"

Shen Yayan paid no attention to him, and did not dodge. She stood up and waited for the horse to hit him. The guards around him had their swords unsheathed and arrows cocked, and there were many spears. They were about to hit him in just a dozen feet.

A guard from the Juntian Palace rushed out and shouted loudly: "The master has an order, Master Yunya enters the palace with his carriage and horse!" Chang Buping drifted away sideways, not forgetting to wave his hands to signal his subordinates to move away.The guards were like waves breaking apart, making way for them. Shen Yayan galloped in, rode her horse up the steps outside the palace, and reached the entrance of Juntian Palace. Then she jumped up and landed in the hall. The surrounding guards each took a step forward. alert.

Shen Yayan was wearing a helmet and was fully armed. In anger, she threw the helmet on the ground. With a loud "clang", the bluestone brick was hit with a big crack.Shen Yuqing was working in Qiantang. After listening to the announcement, she came to Juntian Hall and frowned at her uncle.

After receiving Xie Gubai's letter, Shen Yuqing immediately sent someone to notify Shen Yayan.He had been concealing the news about Shen Weichen in Hanzhong because he was worried that Ya Ye would be worried and affect the war situation. When he received Xie Gubai's letter, he immediately ordered all troops north of the Jialing River to be mobilized by Ya Ye to stop Huashan from retreating.

This will inevitably force Huashan and Qingcheng to fight to the death, but if the Huashan army successfully returns to Micang Road, they will have to meet Xie Gubai and Xiaomei's team. If Huashan pursues Xie Gubai's team, the consequences will be disastrous.

Naturally, such a big move cannot be hidden from Master Ya, especially if it concerns Shen Weichen.As for Shen Yayan rushing back to Qingcheng and standing in front of him angrily, Shen Yuqing was not surprised. Guang'an was not far away. He could rush back to Qingcheng from Kunming last time, not to mention the distance was less than four hundred miles.

"How come Xiaoxiao is in Hanzhong?!" Shen Yayan shouted angrily, almost running up and grabbing Shen Yuqing by the collar.He actually ran up, but was stopped by the guards.

"Master Ya, please calm down so that my nephew can talk to you." Shen Yuqing said.

"There is no one in Qingcheng. Do you want Commander-in-Chief Wei Shu to lead the army? Xiaoxiao has to go to the battlefield with her father!" Shen Yayan took a step forward. At this time, he and Shen Yuqing were only three feet apart. The guards immediately alerted and drew their swords. sheath.

Shen Yuqing raised her hand to signal the guards to put away their swords, then walked down personally and said, "It's Xiaoxiao who wants to go to Hanzhong."

"Did your Mr. Xie lie to her?" Shen Yayan took a step forward and stared directly at her nephew, "You would let Xiaoxiao take such a big risk?"

“Mr. The deal was already done, so he sent Wei Xihou to rescue him.The reason why he told Master Ya that it was his own intention was because he considered that Xie Gubai would have to work with Master Ya in the future, and did not want the two of them to have conflicts because of this, so he continued: "The most important thing is the small meaning, Xiao If she doesn’t want to, can anyone force her to touch her?”

He waved his hand to signal the guards to stand down.

"Master Ya, let's go to Qian Tang to talk."

Shen Yayan was still angry, snorted, followed Shen Yuqing to Qian Tang, and asked, "What do you want to say?"

Shen Yuqing said: "When it comes to primary school martial arts, I can't compare to my younger sister. Master Ya, in the past 50 years in Qingcheng, which child has better qualifications than Xiaoxiao?"

"So?" Shen Yayan raised her voice, "You're going to let her go to the front line and take risks?"

Shen Yuqing said: "So? Master Ya wants to say that Xiaoxiao is a girl's family after all?"

Shen Yayan said: "The battlefield is a man's business!"

Shen Yuqing said: "Such a lone army goes deep into the army. If it's Master Ya, will you go?"

Shen Yayan said angrily: "You think I'm afraid of death? But this is too pointless!"

Shen Yuqing said: "If you want to go, but Mrs. Ya stops you and Xiaoxiao advises you not to go, will you still go?"

Shen Yayan said: "What does your aunt know? She is afraid of this and that. She has to send people to build a bridge to cross a small puddle!"

Shen Yuqing said: "Xiao Xiao is up to you. If you dare to go, Xiao Xiao also dares to go. She burned down the Huashan Granary. How capable and amazing is this? But you come to ask why she was allowed to go."

Shen Yayan's face was livid: "Is the battlefield comparable to that of Xingtang and Wei Shu?"

Shen Yuqing said: "Xiaoxiao has always been sensible and knows what she is doing. Did you give her the Moon Shooter to hang in the boudoir? Whatever Xiaoxiao wants to do, I, as an elder brother, will not stop her. She can marry whoever she wants, and she can be in the torture hall if she wants to, and she wants to go to the battlefield, and Yu'er promises that anyone who causes her any slightest harm will regret it."

Shen Yayan was silent for a long time and said: "I won't go into this matter with you in detail. Xiaoxiao Ping An, I can expose anything. She has even a hair, so I will definitely pursue it to the end!"

Shen Yuqing said: "Not only Master Ya will be held accountable, but I will also be held accountable."

Shen Yayan stood up: "I'll pick up Xiaoxiao!"

Shen Yuqing said: "Waiting for Master Ya's triumphant return."

Shen Yayan snorted, stood up and left, and Shen Yuqing went straight to the outside of Juntian Palace.The horse was still parked outside the hall, and Shen Yayan was about to lead him by, when a soft sedan hurriedly turned out from the side of the hall and stopped at the foot of the steps. Shen Yayan looked at it, but who was Mrs. Ya?

When Mrs. Ya saw Shen Yayan, she hurriedly ran up the steps, glanced at Shen Yuqing, pulled Shen Yayan aside, and said with tears: "Go and save your daughter!"

Shen Yayan frowned: "Shouldn't I go now?"

Mrs. Ya looked at her husband, clutching his sleeves tightly and crying, which made Shen Yayan upset. She originally wanted to say a few words to her wife, but after not seeing her for a long time, her wife was also worried. She patiently stroked Mrs. Ya's hair and said, " The Huashan bastards have lost the fight. Now they are running away, and I will poke their assholes. Just wait and see, I will leave your daughter intact to you."

After he finished speaking, Mrs. Ya still didn't let go. Shen Yayan frowned and said, "Madam, how can I take my daughter home with you like this?"

After hearing this, Mrs. Ya was unwilling in every possible way, but still let go and said: "Ya Yan, it doesn't matter whether we are rich or not, as long as our family is safe, it's good that we are safe."

Shen Yayan got on her horse and ran out of the city. Mrs. Ya turned around and saw Shen Yuqing. Seeing that he was about to speak, she hurriedly turned around and ran down the steps, shouting: "Go back to Lingxiao Pavilion!"

Shen Yuqing stood on the steps in front of the palace and watched Mrs. Ya get on the sedan chair and leave from a distance, but she couldn't even exchange a word with her.

■

Huashan looted all the grain treasures in Nanchong and ordered the troops to withdraw to Micang Road.Looting is a delicate job, it is not as simple as murder and arson - who doesn't hide food and treasure?Besides, massacring the people is not only tiring, but also a waste of time. It only boosts the enemy's morale in vain. If there is another war in Huashan in the future, it will only be more difficult to attack the city.

Yan Zhaochou asked Yao Zhimei, his most meticulous subordinate, to take charge of the looting and ordered it to be done quickly.Although Yan Zhaochou was in a hurry, he knew he had to take his time, especially not letting his disciples know about the loss of food in Hanzhong.Yao Zhimei also knew very well, but he didn't understand why he wanted to seize the treasure.

"An army with treasures is bound to lose morale. Disciples who hide silver coins are often defeated at the first touch. If they have silver coins, they will cherish their lives."

"I know." Yan Zhaochou said, "Just do it."

The Huashan army gradually retreated from Nanchong, and all left Tongzhou within two days. Yan Zhao

Chou early sent people to Bazhong to inform Yan Xangcheng, and then ordered a rapid march. They walked hundreds of miles in one day. At this speed, they could reach Bazhong in five days.But they only left for two days when spies came to report that there was a team in the east, still fifty miles away, numbering about three to four thousand people.

Is it the Tongzhou garrison?The number of people is also too small.Yan Zhaochou did not know that most of the garrison in Tongzhou had been sent to Hanzhong to assist in the war.

"The leader of the Dazhou War Hall is a young man named Wei Xihou, 27, with little experience." Yao Zhimei said, "Maybe he came here on Qingqi?"

Yan Zhaochou himself was not very old. He knew that young people are often eager to make meritorious deeds, so he said: "You lead 5000 people to the rear. If they come, don't wait for them to rest. Rush up and fight them. If you fight them off, then retreat. The others continue walking, and take it easy." some."

If they are to be overtaken, the disciples must leave some strength to deal with the enemy.

The 3000 people did not rush to attack and found the Huashan team, but just watched from a distance.On the third day, smoke and dust were already visible in the south.On the fourth day, the first wave of Qingcheng disciples arrived and fought with the army behind the palace. Yao Zhimei threw all the treasures looted from Nanchong on the ground. As expected, the Qingcheng disciples all went to rob the treasures when they saw them. The team was in chaos. Yao Zhimei They took the opportunity to charge and kill for a while, and then led the army to retreat.

Qingcheng killed dozens of disciples to stop the chaos. When Shen Yayan arrived, he was so angry that he couldn't help but cursed and led his army to chase him.

■

The Qingcheng army that withdrew from Hanzhong fought its first battle on Micang Road in Nanjiang.This is a small city with enough flat and wide terrain to facilitate fighting.There were only five or six hundred Huashan disciples stationed in Nanjiang. Xie Gubai didn't want to stay here for too long, so he surrounded the city and called for surrender. Wu Ban, who was guarding the city, was frightened to death when he saw this flying army, but he knew better the consequences of surrender. In order to The family could only order to hold on.

The next day, Ji Shaoguang led his troops to attack the city. Since he had no siege equipment, he personally risked arrows and climbed the city wall with a judge's pen.When the people in the city saw the Qingcheng army approaching the city, those with courage gathered the crowd and rushed into the cells to release more than two hundred imprisoned disciples of the local sect. They cooperated internally and externally, marched early in the morning, and recaptured Nanjiang before noon.Xie Gubai asked the local sect to drive the people to take food into the mountains to take shelter, and the army stationed in the city, preparing to ambush the chasing troops in Huashan.

At the same time, the Huashan disciples who came day and night finally caught up with the Qingcheng troops, but Yan Xuting did not fall into the trap.Losing Hanzhong made him calm. He ordered his disciples to guard Micang Road. He would not move if Qingcheng did not move.His purpose is to rescue the eldest brother and the second brother. If Qingcheng guards Nanjiang, waiting for the eldest brother and the second brother to retreat will be a trap in the jar.

Xie Gubai saw that Huashan was unwilling to go deep, so he let the food and grass go first, and then slowly retreated.The disciples of Huashan always stayed behind and made trouble from time to time, trying to slow down Qingcheng. Qingcheng also kept sending disciples to block the rear and delay Huashan.

The march was slower than expected, which worried Wei Xihou.

"If they send a letter to notify Yan Zhaochou that it will take about five days to travel from Jinzhou West Road to Tongzhou, and then it will be delivered to the Huashan Army in Nanchong in about two days, Yan Zhaochou will have to prepare to withdraw his troops. Such a large army must at least prepare In one or two days, the sooner we arrive in Bazhong, the higher the chance of winning back Bazhong." Wei Xihou said, "The sooner we arrive in Bazhong, the better, preferably within ten days, before Yan Zhaochou rushes back."

Ji Shaoguang proposed leaving troops to garrison Nanjiang to delay Yan Xuting's stay, but Xie Gubai rejected it.They didn't have many people. As long as Yan Xuting left some people to guard outside the city, he could still lead the rest of the team to pursue them. However, his own party lost the bargaining chip to capture Bazhong.

Besides, Xie Gubai thought, the situation in Bazhong might be surprising.

The guess he had made, but he didn't dare to take it seriously, was finally confirmed after the spies reported back.

"B...Bazhong is still there!" the spy said breathlessly, "It's just trapped! Bazhong has not fallen yet. The Huashan troops have trapped Bazhong. In addition to the siege, the surrounding hillsides and other dangerous points are closely watched. It’s so tight that the news didn’t leak out!”

This good news was followed by bad news, and another spy came to report.

"Ahead...the people from Huashan are coming to kill us!"

Ji Shaoguang and Wei Xihou were both surprised.

"We are still twenty miles away from Bazhong. This may be the worst case scenario." Xie Gubai thought.

(End of this chapter)