country

On the top of the Yanmen Pass, flags flutter, and every few steps there is an armored guard guarding the body with a long bow and iron spear, quietly watching the endless vast world outside Yanmen Pass.

Outside Yanmen Pass, there is a long and narrow road. On the left is the extension of the Yanmen ridge, and on the right, there are bottomless cliffs. When the battle was fought, I don’t know how many ghosts and ghosts were buried under it. The bottom is probably now a bony bone.

On the city tower, the general stood in the biting cold wind. The old man was like steel, with a straight and domineering figure. Beside him, there were one person on the left and one on the right.

On the left is Xue Poye, the servant of the household department, and on the right is Ouyang Dexiu, the general of Yanmen Pass.

Ouyang Dexiu has a big face of an orthodox soldier, with dark and rough skin, showing the harshness of the bitter cold border area, and the skin on his face is cracked with thin cuts one after another.

For the soldiers at the border, these openings are medals, medals for guarding the frontier.

"The difficulty of the border gate, Xue Poye, you should have seen it." The general's eyes were stern, looking at the quiet and deserted closed gate under the torch. When the hour came, the Yanmen Pass would be closed, and the inside and outside would be blocked. He said slowly: "Kingto I don't want to get involved too much with the flamboyant things in my life. I was born in the army, and my goal in life is to protect the territory of my Great Chu. As for those power struggles, I have no interest in taking care of them, and I don't even want to listen to them. listen."

The general spoke very frankly.

Xue Poye stood by and listened respectfully, only to hear the general continue: "However, I don't care about the factional disputes in the imperial court. As the servant of the household department, the food, grass and military salary I need are all from you. I want it." He looked at him with a pair of tiger eyes, and said in a deep voice: "No matter how hard or tired the Beizhen Army is, it will always guard my Great Chu's Scourge Fortress. Returning to suffering, I don’t ask for food and drink spicy food, but the court must ensure that they are full. They guard here desperately, and the military pay supports their families. Without military pay, the army’s morale is unstable. The old man will also go to the capital to sue your household department. of."

Xue Poye pondered for a moment, and said seriously: "General, Xue Poye does not dare to draw conclusions about the affairs of the court, but please rest assured that as long as Xue Poye is in his position, he will not be idle. You must do your best to do your job well, otherwise, Xue Poye is willing to come to the border to plead guilty to the general."

The general laughed, patted Xue Poye's shoulder heavily, and said, "It's a good man, a man who knows what he should do." He stroked his beard and said, "I heard that this time the Bank of the Household Department Stolen, a large amount of official money disappeared, the food, grass and military salaries are barely enough to meet the needs of the army, is there such a thing?"

Xue Poye knew that the great general, who is a powerful figure in the Great Chu Kingdom, would definitely know such news even if he was at the border, so he said straightforwardly: "There is such a thing."

The general nodded and said: "I think so, the Holy Majesty has always been kind to my Beizhen army, but this time the food and grass and the army salary came late, and the boys are full of resentment."

Xue Poye hurriedly said: "It's really my fault for letting the brothers suffer."

The general waved his hand and said: "It's not that the old man is ignorant of good and evil. Speaking of which, I don't blame you for this matter, I should thank you. When Ku Yin was lost, you didn't seem to have entered the household department. It is not your responsibility. I heard that it was you who spoke in front of the Holy One and came up with a countermeasure for merchants to raise donations, and then prepared these food, grass and silver, which solved the urgent need. Thank you, old men and sons.”

Xue Poye hurriedly said: "Don't dare, the general has won the award." He thought to himself: "So this old general is not someone who waits for unreasonable things. It is still clear whether it is good or bad."

"Xue Poye, I thank you today." The general said slowly: "But in the future, if there is any problem with the food, grass and military pay, I will still ask the Holy One to deal with Wang Dezhao and you. At that time, don't blame the old man for being ruthless. "

Xue Poye hastily said yes.

"Master Xue may have heard that there is a road of blood outside the Yanmen Pass." The general looked at the narrow road outside the pass and sighed: "That is a road built with blood. How many souls of the dead are floating there." Pointing to the narrow road, he said slowly: "Below, there is the road of blood, extending from here to the foot of Qilin Mountain."

Xue Poye looked at the deserted and quiet narrow road at this time. In the dark night, under the firelight of the tower, there was nothing special, but he could understand the mood of the old general. Perhaps many years ago, the old general himself passed through Yanmen Pass. He fought against the Beihu army, and even watched his close partners fall in a pool of blood one by one.

The cold wind is bleak, and the world is desolate.

The soldiers of the Beizhen Army on the Yanmenguan Fortress still kept their eyes wide open, watching every move outside Yanmen Pass. Fifty miles outside Yanmen Pass, near the ancient ferry of the Han River, there was an outpost of the Beizhen Army. There will be a signal at the slightest sign of trouble, and the soldiers guarding the gate must always pay attention to the transmission of the signal.

Ouyang Dexiu, who was silent by the side, finally said: "General, it's late at night, you haven't had a peaceful rest for several days, go and take a rest."

The general waved his hands and said with a smile: "When I was young, I didn't sleep for four days and four nights. When the barbarians came, I rushed ahead and killed several strong barbarians. Although I am old now, I can't compare with the young ones. time, but with this little physical strength, there is still some.”

Xue Poye touched his nose with a smile, and suddenly asked something he regretted saying: "General, are the barbarians really going to attack?"

The general glanced at Xue Poye, and didn't seem to blame him for the rash question. After pondering for a long time, he slowly said: "Will the barbarians not want to attack? They have the same thoughts as me, Da Chu. Ever since the founding of the state of Chuhou, which generation of emperors didn’t want to wipe out the grassland?” After a pause, he continued: “It’s just that our Great Chu’s Northern Expeditions have ended in failure, and the whole country has a feeling for the grassland. Therefore, for so many years, we have only focused on defense and have not gone north. Although the northern Hu barbarians have the intention to go south, they have not acted because of three reasons. This has also fulfilled the decades-old relationship between the two countries Peaceful."

"Three reasons?" Xue Poye frowned.

"That's right!" The general seemed to be in high spirits tonight, or maybe Cang Liao's Yanmen Pass reminded him a lot, and he said calmly: "One, for so many years in my Great Chu, the country is safe and prosperous, and the national power far exceeds that of Beihu. Therefore, they are afraid and dare not act rashly. Both, it is because of the existence of the ancient Hanshui ferry, once the soldiers, our Yanmen can be on guard at any time, as solid as gold, and for so many years, the Beizhen army has worked hard , The fighting power is extraordinary, and that is one of the reasons why they dare not go south."

Although Xue Poye didn't understand the military affairs of Great Chu, he understood that the two reasons the general said were absolutely correct.

"Three, it must be attributed to the Beihu people themselves." The general sneered, "It is said that our Great Chu people have many eyes and like internal fighting, but speaking of it, the Beihu people are not good at fighting internally." They are bigger and weaker than me. They have dozens of ethnic groups, big or small. Tu Shuai even wanted to initiate a coup d'état and replace the authority of the Inaro royal family in one fell swoop. Hey, who knew that in turn, it would be wiped out by the other three commanders. Now the aftermath of the grassland has not subsided. It is also they who are fighting with each other , hinder each other, and cannot be unified, so there is no capital to go south, and in the final analysis, this is also the biggest reason."

Xue Poye nodded and said: "The general is right. There are many things and people in this world. The reason for the failure is nothing else but oneself. One's own defects often lead to fatal results."

The general laughed and said: "Unexpectedly, you are so young, and your knowledge is not small. No wonder the Holy Majesty has favored you. It seems that you still have some skills." Suddenly frowned, and said seriously: "Actually, Beihu This coup is not a good thing for me, Da Chu."

He turned around and said to Ouyang Dexiu: "Long Meng, you seem to know the handsome Yingtu in this coup quite well!"

There are six generals with the word dragon under his command. Except for General Longyi Liu Zizheng, for the other five, the general has always called them by their general titles, either because such titles have more military characteristics, or because this This kind of title can make the generals under him feel the respect of the general.

Ouyang Dexiu's face was always tense, like a rock. After thinking for a while, he slowly said: "Yingtushuai is the most ferocious eagle on the grassland, and also a rare hero in the grassland. He is known as the A warrior is not only skilled in bow and horse, but also knows the art of war, and is extremely cunning. This time, if there is no sudden difficulty in the coup by the leopard commander, if there is no sudden attack by the eagle commander, it will be successful in all likelihood." After a pause, he said slowly : "After the destruction of Leopard Tushuai, Yingtushuai's prestige on the grassland reached its peak. Genghis Khan, who had just ascended the throne, appointed him as the commander of Beihu Supervisor, and his power also reached its peak. Now he uses various The method is to unite the various ministries, rectify the army and horses, practice day and night, and negotiate with Khitan and Tubo in private, so the purpose is naturally to prepare for the southward attack on Chu."

The general looked serious, and said coldly: "No matter how powerful a person is, no matter how wild his temper is, he has nothing to fear, but this person has great ambitions, so we have to beware. He can make the Beihu prairie where the ethnic groups quarrel People are calm, and they dare to send envoys to contact Khitan and Tubo in private, this kind of ambition is not ordinary." Hehe sneered: "I think back then, the northern Hu people were just fighting guerrillas and looting in our territory of Great Chu. After a while, he retreated to the grassland, not daring to have too much delusional thinking, but now the commander-in-chief of the country, he really wants to destroy my Great Chu, hehe... But if he wants to enter the territory of my Great Chu, he must first I fought with the old man."

Ouyang Dexiu said solemnly: "General, I think that Commander Yingtu wants to reorganize his military equipment and coordinate the relationship between all parties. He is not fully prepared. With his personality, he will definitely not go south easily."

The general put his hands behind his back, nodded and said: "I've calculated this too. If they want to go south, I'm afraid they need at least two years of preparation, otherwise there is no [-]% chance of winning."

Ouyang Dexiu frowned and said: "However, the most worrying thing for the humble officer is that Beihu will use a small force to harass all the frontiers of our Great Chu border, so that we can't rest assured to prepare for the war."

"We will discuss this matter later, and we must come up with a perfect plan." The general clenched his fist lightly, and suddenly asked: "The spies stationed in Beihu, has there been any news recently?"

Ouyang Dexiu suddenly knelt down on one knee, and said in a respectful voice: "The humble official is going to ask the general for his crime!"

The general said indifferently: "Could it be that something happened to the spies?"

Ouyang Dexiu hurriedly said: "The humble official sent a total of three batches of spies to Beihu. Half a month ago, all the news was cut off in an instant, and no news came back. Then the humble official sent two batches of spies, a total of seven people. , Up to now, there is still no news back."

The general's expression froze, and he said coldly: "You mean, all our spies were discovered by Beihu and arrested?"

"Although the humble position cannot be determined, I'm afraid that's the way it is." Ouyang Dexiu was a little annoyed, but more angry, his two iron fists were clenched together, and his veins were bulging.

The general flicked the cloak behind him, and said coldly: "Follow me back to the house." After glancing at Xue Poye, he said indifferently: "Master Xue, if nothing else, you go to rest first."

Xue Poyegong claimed it was, seeing that the general was about to leave with Ouyang Dexiu, he suddenly said: "General, I'm afraid there are traitors." Hearing that the spies were arrested, I suddenly remembered the spy wars I saw on TV in my previous life. Many spies were caught because they were betrayed by traitors.

The general paused slightly, and then said in a deep voice, "You also come with me." He strode down the tower.

General Longmeng's resident barracks.

Naturally, the house of the general at the border cannot be compared with that of the officials in Kyoto. Many times more magnificent than this.

This place is heavily guarded, after all, it is the source of orders from the Yanmen Fortress, and it is heavily defended.

There is a very secluded hut here. At this time, the general is sitting on a chair with a stern expression, and Xue Poye and Ouyang Dexiu are standing quietly in front of him, and the expressions of the two are also very serious.

"You said we have traitors here?" The old general stared at Xue Poye with sharp eyes, like an eagle.

Xue Poye clasped his fists and said: "General, I made a slip of the tongue, please forgive me, General."

"Military and national affairs, there is no room for slips of the tongue." The general was extremely stern at this time, and his voice was cold: "Tell me your reason, otherwise, you will be dragged out to receive thirty army sticks."

Xue Poye was stunned for a moment, then smiled wryly in his heart, regretted secretly, and blamed himself in his heart: "Fuck, what kind of limelight is out, why can't even stop my own mouth."

He regretted it in his heart, but seeing the general and Ouyang Dexiu looking at him, he frowned and asked Ouyang Dexiu: "General Longmeng, does anyone else know about the spies you sent?"

Ouyang Dexiu shook his head and said, "I sent this in secret, and no one else knew about it. These people have been carefully trained by me, and they are good at lurking and sniffing out news. I wanted to find out the situation of Beihu at any time, but unexpectedly...!" shook his head.

"Are these spies familiar with each other?" Xue Poye asked again.

Ouyang Dexiu frowned and said, "I sent out five batches of spies, a total of 18 people. Of course, the same batch of spies is familiar, but they are not the same batch, so they are definitely not familiar. Yanmen Gate Guards Over ten thousand, I secretly selected them, even if there are acquaintances, it is absolutely impossible for the five groups of spies to know each other."

Xue Poye couldn't help touching his nose, and frowned: "That is to say, even if the same group of people are caught and tortured to extract confessions, it is impossible to know the whereabouts of other groups of people?"

Ouyang Dexiu looked at the general, saw that the general looked serious, so he nodded and said, "That's right."

Xue Poye smiled wryly and said: "But now the whereabouts of all five groups of spies are unknown. According to General Longmeng's speculation, it is very likely that they were all arrested by Beihu people. Doesn't this alone mean that there are traitors here? This traitor obviously investigated the whereabouts of the five groups of spies, so he was able to report to the Beihu side and let the Beihu people catch the turtle, otherwise, how could the five groups disappear at the same time."

The general pondered for a while before slowly saying: "There is some truth in what I said, but my border soldiers are all loyal and good men, so how can there be a despicable traitor?" He clenched his fists and said coldly Said: "If there is such a person, the old man will have his body broken into thousands of pieces."

Ouyang Dexiu said sternly: "These spies are very clear about the deployment of our Yanmen garrison, and they also know some unknown secrets. If they are caught by Beihu people and forced to confess, it will be a big deal for our Yanmen garrison. Not good."

The general said bluntly: "Send someone again!"

"But...!" Ouyang Dexiu hesitated to speak, looked at the general, and finally said: "I think that if we send people before the traitor is found out, there may still be great danger."

"boom"!

With a muffled sound, the general's iron fist slammed on the table, his face livid: "Check it out, check it out for me, you must find it out, I'll take a look, who is so daring to betray my sons and daughters."

Xue Poye thought to himself: "The general still has a big temper."

"Find the evidence." There was a moment of silence in the room before the general regained his composure, and said slowly: "There is no evidence, so don't easily blame any brother. I always thought that the soldiers of our Beizhen Army were all famous heroes , there will not be such a guy who sells his country and seeks glory."

"Then... Beihu, should we stop sending spies there for now?" Ouyang Dexiu asked.

The general closed his eyes, tapped his fingers on the edge of the table, seemed to be thinking about something, his face was calm, after a long time, he opened his eyes, and said with some seriousness: "Forget it, you find the traitor, once you find the traitor, Whether I am present or not, I will examine his confession to see what he has sold to the barbarians, and then he will be engaged in military law. At that time, send people to rescue...!" The old general sighed deeply: "I am afraid that It's too late."

Ouyang Dexiu's face was also heavy and angry, and his fists were clenched tightly.

They are all generals on the battlefield, one against a hundred, although tens of thousands of people are not afraid, but they disdain the dirty conspiracy behind it, or frankly speaking, they are not proficient in it.

"General, you...do you think I can do it?"

Xue Poye who was standing beside him suddenly spoke.

"You?" The general looked directly at Xue Poye and frowned: "What do you mean?"

Xue Poye clasped his fists and said, "Then select someone from the Beizhen Army to go to Beihu to inquire about news, there may be accidents and dangers, but if it is not from the Beizhen Army, is it possible to succeed?"

The general and Ouyang Dexiu looked at each other, and they both frowned, showing some doubts, as if they hadn't understood what Xue Poye meant.