Competing

chapter 16
The sound of horseshoes broke the tranquility of the countryside. Soldiers with tall horses and armored soldiers walked by in a row.When the young child suddenly saw this formation, he was so frightened that he cried.The panic-stricken woman hurriedly picked up the child, called her own man to cover the gate, and hid in the bamboo hut.

An Tong was riding on the horse, his body swayed and jerked, and he asked leisurely: "Xin Gang, where are you going?"

Afterwards, Xin Gang rode his horse forward quickly, and reported back: "General, there is a lush forest in front of you. It is the most luxuriant tree in this area, so it got its name. According to the report from the sentinel, the gathering place of bandits is in this area. .”

"is it?"

"Yes, not only that, but the subordinate also got good news." When Xin Gang spoke, there was a mysterious smile on the corner of his mouth.

An Tong's pupils dilated instantly, and he asked, "What's the good news?"

Xin Gang said with a smile: "The general's reputation spread far and wide, and before he made his move, the bandits were already frightened. According to reports, the bandits were terrified when they heard the news of the general's dispatch, and more than a dozen of them fled. Now that Yin Xu There are only a hundred stubborn people around, and they may have lost their morale, but they are still trying to resist."

The flattery was well done, An Tong laughed loudly and said, "That's natural, the general will go out in person, and it's no problem to deal with a few small thieves."

Xin Gang said with a smile: "The general is famous, and a group of mobs are trying to resist in a corner. It's like a mantis trying to block the car. Lieutenant General Li has already led people to encircle and suppress. Presumably, the bandits have already been punished and given the leadership."

An Tong laughed, it was very helpful.Just as he was talking, Xin Gang came towards him on a fast horse, and said with a smile: "General, it seems that Lieutenant General Li's victory report has arrived."

Before the words were finished, the sentry rider had already arrived. Looking at the expression on the spy's face, Xin Gang had a bad feeling.

"How's the battle going?"

The spies cupped their hands and said, "I got the news this morning that the bandits are still entrenched in the Maolin lair. When Vice General Li arrived at noon with his troops, there was no one there."

"Run away?" Xin Gang laughed and said, "The bandits must have fled because of the general's prestige."

Uh!The spy said reluctantly, "Vice General Li also thought so at the beginning, but he was careless for a while and set up traps for bandits."

"Uh?"

The spy continued: "The bamboo house is full of dry firewood smeared with turpentine, and there is still a kindling left in the dark to connect with the news from the mechanism. The brothers who entered the yard accidentally touched the mechanism, and the dry firewood was ignited. The courtyard instantly became a sea of ​​flames, and all the dozen or so brothers who entered were killed."

"what?"

Hearing the spy's reply, Xin Gang's smile froze instantly.An Tong was even more furious. In his eyes, exterminating more than a hundred bandits was too easy, just like crushing an ant.But before he saw a trace, he was laid out by the bandits.Although there were only more than ten casualties, it was nothing, but it undoubtedly gave him a slap in the face of the general, which made him lose face.

A yell made the soldiers look sideways, An Tong had no choice but to force his voice and asked: "Where are the bandits hiding now? Do you have any clues?"

The spies replied: "The sentinels reported that the bandits retreated to the Rongshuling area. Lieutenant General Li has already sent people to pursue them, but they have not reported yet."

An Tong asked: "Rongshu Ridge? Do you know the terrain there?"

Xin Gang replied: "Rongshu Ridge is in the southeast of here. The specific situation has not been found out yet. It seems that we can only ask the locals."

An Tong nodded slightly, and ordered: "Bring the guide over here!"

After a while, a middle-aged man came forward to greet him with a smile. This man's name was Lai San, a local rogue who had been dealt with by Yin Xu and others.After Tong Dajun arrived, he looked for a guide. Hearing that there would be rewards and revenge, Lai San actively signed up.

"Raisan?"

"The little one is here!" Lai San nodded and bowed, with a flattering and respectful face.

Xin Gang said: "Tell the general about the terrain, mountains and rivers of Rongshu Ridge in detail."

Lai San smiled and said: "Yes, Rongshu Ridge is a relatively high mountain in this area. There are lush trees on it, and there are wild animals infested. There are few people on weekdays. There is Liudaogou from the northwest side, and you can go up the mountain along the river. To the south is the boundary of Fanyi. , There are also two roads to go down the mountain. Further to the east mountain, there are dense forests, even local hunters dare not enter at will. The mountains in other places are steep and there is no way to go. "

"Eight roads?"

"Yes."

"You go down first!" Xin Gang took the lead, turned to An Tong and said, "General, Zensheng is better?"

An Tong said: "There are only a hundred bandits, as long as they are caught, they will be able to deal with it. But if they are allowed to hide in Tibet like this, and they can't find a trace, they can only do nothing. Now they are hiding in this banyan tree ridge. It’s a good opportunity, it’s best to encircle and wipe them out at once, if it slips away again, it will be difficult.”

"It makes sense, the general meant to divide up the troops to encircle and suppress?" Xin Gang asked tentatively.

An Tong said: "That's right, the troops are divided into six groups, attacking along the river, step by step, gradually close together, until they have no way to escape, then encircle and annihilate them."

Xin Gang said thoughtfully: "The general is right. It's not bad to divide and attack together, but what about the south? There are two ways."

An Tong smiled and said: "Notify Wu Rui, let him send someone from Fanyi to guard the two crossings for me, and don't let one go."

"Uh... promise!" Xin Gang hesitated to speak.

An Tong looked a little displeased in his eyes and said: "You are my confidant, you can say whatever you want, don't hesitate, like a woman."

Xin Gang smiled sheepishly, and said: "Please think about it, general, most of these bandits are from Panyi, and they are more or less related to Wu Rui. Is there any mistake in letting them guard the meeting? In the past two years, Wu Rui has kept fewer robbers and punished them." Disciple!"

"It's true!" An Tong said thoughtfully: "In this way, Wu Rui's side is a bit uneasy."

Xin Gang said at the right time: "It's better to send our own army to guard, just in case. But in this way, the strength of each team seems a bit thin?"

"It doesn't matter!" An Tong shook his head and said, "It doesn't matter. Even if the army is divided into eight groups, each team has more than [-] people. There are only more than [-] bandits left now, let alone a group of mobs fleeing everywhere. How can they fight against me? Compared with elite soldiers?"

"It is!"

An Tong straightened his body forward, and said in a loud voice: "Order to go down, divide the troops into eight groups, attack together, and encircle and suppress Rongshuling."

"promise!"

……

"My lord, Pu Jun is back!" In a dense forest, Gao Yi shouted.Yin Xu got up happily and greeted the sweaty Pu Jun back.

Gao Yi couldn't wait to ask: "How is the situation down the mountain?"

"Don't worry." Yin Xu waved his hand and said, "Take a break first!"

Pu Jun wiped off his sweat, and said: "It's so relieved, the young master's lever mechanism is really effective, the bamboo house was engulfed in flames, and dozens of Qin soldiers were burned to death."

"Really?" Gao Yi was very excited about this.

Lu Ming went a little disappointed and said: "There are only a dozen, too few."

Gao Yi laughed and scolded: "You are really dissatisfied, with such a big house, it would be good to burn a dozen to death."

Yin Xu also smiled and asked, "How did Qin Bing react? What's the situation?"

Pu Jun showed a look of excitement, and said: "They are divided into eight groups, and they are preparing to attack the mountain."

"Divide the troops into eight places? So even several roads in Panyi County to the south are blocked? Yin Xu hurriedly asked."

Pu Jun nodded in agreement.

"Ah?" The pawn on the side couldn't help but said in surprise: "It's all blocked? The mountains and forests in the east can't get in. Isn't it true that we have no way to retreat?"

Yin Xu exchanged glances with Pu Jun, Gao Yi and the others, and immediately said with a smile: "Who said we're going to retreat? It's just right, it's exactly what I want."

"Huh?" The pawn's eyes widened, his expression blank.

(End of this chapter)