Dongguan.
The sky was dark, and the city that had just experienced the war looked even more dilapidated under the dim light.
A knight suddenly appeared from the dense forest in the distance. He galloped wildly, as if being chased by something terrible. The horse spread its legs and almost flew up.
The soldiers at the gate of the city quickly spotted the knight approaching from a distance. They shouted loudly and aimed their crossbows at each other.
The war horse galloped in front of everyone.
The scout on horseback was covered in blood. When the horse stopped, he flew up directly from the horse. He didn't even have the strength to maintain his balance. The soldiers saw that the other person fell heavily to the ground, and then they stepped up.
View before.
"One of our own!!"
"One of our own!"
Soon, there were soldiers carrying the wounded scout and rushing towards the government office.
Huang Fazhu had already gone to bed. He had just experienced a battle and captured Dongguan. He was exhausted physically and mentally. He just wanted to rest at this moment.
There was a noise outside the door, and his soldiers quarreled with the soldiers. Huang Fasu put on his clothes and walked out of the door.
"What's going on?"
Seeing Huang Fazhu come out, the quarrelsome people immediately fell silent. The soldier hurriedly reported: "General, a scout came just now and said that there was an emergency that he wanted to inform us about but he refused to tell us."
Huang Fazhu's brows jumped and he looked at the soldiers on the side, "I said that there is an urgent military situation and there is no need to stop it. Why not follow it?!"
"My lord has not rested for several days."
"Go down and get fifty military sticks."
"only!"
Huang Fazhu then looked at the soldier and said, "Go and bring me the scout."
He turned around and walked into the house, put on his clothes, and after waiting for a while, two soldiers came in supporting a seriously injured scout.
The scout had at least three arrow wounds on his body. He looked shaky and there was no look in his eyes.
"General Huang."
As soon as he said three words, tears couldn't help but flow down.
Huang Fashu realized something instantly.
"Close the door."
Soldiers immediately guarded several gates.
Huang Fazhu looked at the scout seriously, "What happened?"
The scout immediately burst into tears and said, "General Huang, we are defeated, we are defeated. One day ago, the enemy attacked the camp with Chu River. Our army was defeated. Our general was killed. Tens of thousands of troops were killed and injured. Only a thousand people escaped.
I and my brothers were also hunted by them, but I was the only one who escaped alive."
"What?!"
Huang Fazhu jumped up instantly and turned pale with fright.
His face turned red immediately and his whole body started to tremble, "Sixty thousand troops! Sixty thousand old soldiers!!"
The veins on Huang Fasu's forehead popped out, and he almost grabbed the scout's neck when he stepped forward.
He wanted to ask how Wu Mingche, a naval general, was defeated by the enemy using his best method.
How could tens of thousands of troops be destroyed like this?
But looking at the wailing scout in front of him, he slowly put away his hand.
Huang Fashu's face turned pale. When he first learned of Liu Taozi's arrival, he had never panicked, but now, he also lost his composure.
Among the three armies, Wu Mingche was the most powerful and had the most generals under his command.
Each of the troops he led was Chen Guo's savings over the years.
Was he annihilated by Liu Taozi like this??
Huang Fazhu took a few steps back and slowly sat down. He found that his hands were constantly shaking.
Having just captured Dongguan, he thought Hefei was under control and was extremely confident.
But this sudden change caused him to fall into the ice cellar instantly, and he was in a trance.
He couldn't believe what he heard.
Wu Mingche died, and so did the tens of thousands of old soldiers under his command.
"Come here, summon the generals! Let them come quickly!!"
Huang Fazhu hurriedly gave the order.
Soon, the generals all appeared in front of Wu Mingche. After experiencing the fierce battle during the day, most of these people were a little tired. They were suddenly woken up at this moment. They didn't dare to have any complaints, but they were all yawning and feeling depressed.
But when Huang Fazhu told them what happened, these generals suddenly woke up.
Their performance was even worse than Huang Fashi's.
Some people burst into tears because their relatives were all under Wu Mingche's command. Some people couldn't believe it and kept asking questions. Some people's faces were full of fear and turned pale with fear.
"General, withdraw!"
"Liu Taozi defeated General Wu and is coming for us next. We have to retreat quickly. If we don't leave, it will be too late!"
"Yes, we are in Dongguan now. If we hesitate again, we may be blocked by him on the road!"
"General!"
Everyone under Huang Fasi's command seemed to have lost their souls at this moment. Facing the menacing Liu Taozi, this terrible record made this Beihu demon even more terrifying. Many people no longer dare to face him. What they are thinking now
Only escape.
The room suddenly became chaotic, and everyone was thinking of ways to escape.
Huang Fashu looked at the people in front of him, his face gradually calmed down.
"Liu Taozi defeated General Wu because General Wu was not familiar with the local area and was attacked by water. Otherwise, how could Liu Taozi defeat General Wu with more than 3,000 men?"
"Currently we still have more than 30,000 elites, ten times as many as Liu Taozi!"
"Old General Xu on the side can also come to support at any time. If both sides join forces, they can still easily gather 50,000 or 60,000 horses!"
"This is twenty times that of Liu Taozi!"
"Why are you so afraid?!"
Hearing Huang Fazhu's question, the generals did not dare to speak and just lowered their heads.
Huang Fazhu said slowly: "General Wu was defeated. Many of our comrades and compatriots died in the hands of the enemy. Now we don't want to avenge them, but we want to escape. Can this be considered a warrior in the army?"
The generals then raised their heads and their expressions changed slightly.
Huang Fazhu continued: "After Liu Taozi came, he led his troops to fight everywhere. His army must have been exhausted. Now that he has defeated General Wu, he will not dare to invade us easily."
"This is good for us."
"Fan"
Just as Huang Fazhu opened his mouth, he realized that Fan Yi had died in battle. A trace of sadness flashed in his eyes, and he immediately looked at the other general.
"General Wu, you should leave the city now, return to Liyang, and sit in the city. No matter who comes, they are not allowed to go out of the city to fight. Guard the city for me. As long as I am alive, Liu Taozi will not let Liu Taozi defeat Liyang!"
"only!!"
Huang Fazhu looked at the rest of the people and said, "Everyone, this matter may not be of use to us."
"Hefei is tall and strong, and there are people like Lu Qian and Wei Pohu in charge. The officials in the city dare not surrender easily. If we attack by force, the enemy will have tens of thousands of troops, which will be very disadvantageous for us."
"However, if they learn about Liu Taozi and discover that we are preparing to evacuate, they will definitely get carried away and lead an army to take back Dongguan Liyang."
"These two cities are particularly important to Yangzhou, and Lu Qian will not let them go."
"We only need to make the illusion of evacuation and set up an ambush along the way to make these people pay the price, and then capture Hefei! Replenish supplies!"
"Everyone, although General Wu was defeated, Jiankang did not issue an edict asking us to go back."
"The war is still going on, and the advantage is still in our hands."
"Don't tell the three armies about General Wu yet. You all should go back first and prepare to completely destroy Lu Qian's army, capture Hefei, capture Yangzhou! Capture the two treasures of Huaihe!!"
Huang Fazhu's voice became louder and louder. The generals stood solemnly in front of him, and they were also infected by his emotions.
They quickly saluted.
"only!!!"
The generals quickly left, and Huang Fashu was the only one left in the room. Huang Fashu then put away his excitement, and his face became sad again.
The war is over.
Although Jiankang's edict has not yet arrived, it will be a matter of time.
Originally, the ministers in the country were very opposed to this Northern Expedition. It was Wu Mingche who led the generals to submit a letter together, which gave them this opportunity.
Unfortunately, Wu Mingche was defeated and his entire army of more than 60,000 people was wiped out. This shocked the whole world and the emperor didn't know what to think after hearing this.
This was a devastating blow to Chen Guo.
And if the ministers in the country knew about this, they would never allow the war to proceed.
These people still have great power in the country, and I'm afraid even your Majesty won't be able to handle it.
Now we just need to wait for the order from the temple and then withdraw our troops.
But Huang Fazhu couldn't explain it clearly.
What would happen if he listened to the soldiers under his command and ran back regardless?
The morale of the whole army is low and there is no fighting spirit. The generals will tremble with fear when they hear Liu Taozi's name.
At this time, if Liu Taozi ambushed him again on his only way, Huang Fashu couldn't believe what the situation would be like.
The most important thing now is to overcome the fear of the generals.
The only way is to lead them to defeat the powerful enemy again.
Lu Qian is a good choice.
Moreover, Huang Fazhu was basically certain that he could win. Huang Fazhu liked to study his enemies very much. Before going out for the expedition, he was the only one who found many people from the Huaibei area to tell him about the local situation and sent people to inquire about it.
The situation of those officials and generals.
Liu Taozi was an accident. He never thought that Liu Taozi would appear on the battlefield.
If it weren't for Liu Taozi, he would have captured Hefei by now
Huang Fasu shook his head, put these thoughts out of his mind, and thought about how to deal with Lu Qian again.
At the moment, we can no longer divide our forces. We must have General Xu join us as soon as possible. Both parties must go together. If we go alone, Liu Taozi may seize the opportunity again.
The elite troops under Liu Taozi's command cannot yet be found in the Southern Kingdom that can match them, and he must be accompanied by Wang Lin. Wang Lin is familiar with the local area and even more familiar with the Chen people. With Wang Lin's bonus, Liu Taozi's
The army is not afraid of an old man like Wang Lin, who is too old to die is a thief!!
It's a pity that he returned defeated this time.
The domestic situation is likely to undergo major changes.
Qin County.
On top of the city wall, Lu Yao was still guarding here.
It has been some time since the enemy retreated.
Everyone has many guesses about the enemy's sudden retreat, and the most reliable guess is that our own reinforcements are coming.
Lu Yao was very surprised by this.
He didn't know whose reinforcements were from Yangzhou? Or from Lou Rui?
Everyone in the city thought it was Liu Taozi, but Lu Yao knew that was impossible.
No matter whose reinforcements it is, it must be a very powerful army. Until today, the enemy has not appeared again.
The soldiers in the city could finally rest, and the people also got a chance to breathe.
The atmosphere is no longer so hopeless.
Lu Yao sat alone on the tower, looking into the distance, with thousands of thoughts in his mind.
"Enemy attack!!!"
Suddenly someone shouted.
At this moment, the originally silent city wall was in an uproar. The soldiers stood up one after another and raised their weapons. Lu Yao also woke up and hurriedly stepped forward and stared outside.
A group of cavalry appeared in the distance, many in number, and they were slowly coming towards the city.
There seemed to be a lot of infantry behind them.
Lu Yao's eyes widened. Did Chen gather all the cavalry together?
He quickly ordered his soldiers to prepare for the battle.
After this period of recovery, the soldiers also recovered and began to prepare for battle.
But the cavalry in the distance was still getting closer.
Finally, they were close enough.
Lu Yao saw their flag clearly.
"Liu."
Lu Yao frowned, Liu?
The next moment, he saw clearly what the knights were wearing.
Qi people.
Lu Yao couldn't believe it. He stayed where he was, motionless.
After a while, the soldiers on the city wall also discovered this, and for a while, cheers resounded throughout the city.
"It's the General!!"
"They are the general's men!!"
"He is indeed a great general!!"
"The general is here to save us!"
The crowd cheered wildly, and the soldiers knelt on the ground. The despair and pain of so many days escaped from them in an instant, which made them almost crazy, and some even burst into tears.
There was chaos inside and outside the city.
These were indeed the general's cavalry, and what they brought with them were all enemy prisoners. They were tied up and just moved forward numbly.
When Liu Taozi appeared outside the city on a black horse, Lu Yao didn't even give an order. The soldiers took the initiative to open the city and lined up to welcome him.
Liu Taozi rode past them. The soldiers looked at Liu Taozi enthusiastically and watched him enter the city.
Liu Taozi walked into the city and looked around.
Soon, two soldiers helped Lu Yao and walked down the steps of the city wall. Lu Yao walked towards Liu Taozi tremblingly, his speed getting faster and faster.
Liu Taozi dismounted, handed the reins to the soldier beside him, and walked towards Lu Yao.
"Mr. Lu."
"Know what you know"
Lu Yao stretched out his hand and grabbed Liu Taozi's hand randomly. His hands were trembling all the time and he couldn't hold it firmly.
Liu Taozi held his hands steady.
"Don't worry, Mr. Lu. I have defeated Wu Mingche and killed him. His army has also been defeated by me. Qinzhou is safe."
Lu Yao was staring at Liu Taozi in front of him, looking up and down. He seemed to suspect that he was dreaming and couldn't believe that everything in front of him was real.
When he said that Liu Taozi would come to support him, it was just empty talk to encourage people.
He simply didn't believe that Taozi would come to this place.
But now, Lu Yao was confused.
"How did you get here?"
"First take the boat, then ride the horse."
"Wu Mingche?"
"He has been killed by me."
Lu Yao nodded and fell down. Liu Taozi hurriedly supported him, with some fear appearing on his face for the first time, "Quick! Call the military doctor to come!!"
The military doctor checked his pulse and determined that he was just exhausted, and then he was rushed to the government office.
Liu Taozi immediately took over the affairs in the city. He sent people to settle the prisoners outside the city, and also sent people to transport refugees from Guabu and other places here.
Everyone started to get busy.
Inside the house, candlelight flickered constantly.
Lu Yao suddenly woke up.
He accidentally fell asleep again.
In his dream, he saw Liu Taozi.
He raised his head tiredly, and when he looked around clearly, he found that he was no longer on the city wall.
Sitting in front of the case nearby was a tall figure.
Liu Taozi.
Not a dream.
Lu Yao struggled to sit up, and Liu Taozi turned to look at him, "Mr. Lu, the doctor said that you should continue to rest. Don't get up. Just rest for a few days."
Lu Yao looked at Liu Taozi and was silent for a long time.
"I already know about Qian Zhong. Please don't be too sad, Mr. Lu."
"That's what war is like, someone will always die."
"When one day the war ends and the world is at peace, everything will be fine."
Lu Yao sighed, with tears in his eyes, "He has been with me for more than thirty years, and he doesn't even dare to kill a chicken."
The two fell silent again.
Lu Yao forcibly put away his sad emotions and looked at Liu Taozi again, "Why are you here?"
"I can't watch the southerners seize the south of the river."
"I happened to be in Gwangju, so I came to the rescue."
"While the enemy was unaware, I carried out several raids, and then took advantage of Wu Mingche's unfamiliarity with the area to flood it with Chushui. In order to eliminate Wu Mingche, I flooded a city, destroyed countless fields, and killed countless people, including many
Innocent people.”
Liu Taozi spoke softly, and her usual indifference could not be heard in her words.
He looked at Lu Yao and said, "Mr. Lu, now is not the time to feel sad. Even if you have the ambition to stabilize the world, you cannot stop. You must do it to the end. One day, I will calm down the wars in the world and prevent war from ending.
Happen again."
"You should rest first. I have brought many prisoners here, and there are many refugees over there. I hope you can help me resettle these people."
"I still have to deal with the other two generals Chen."
"Huang Fazhu's reputation is not as great as Wu Mingche's, but in my opinion, he is more difficult to deal with than Wu Mingche. Although he defeated Wu Mingche, he still cannot be underestimated. I have to watch them board the ship and leave before I can feel relieved."
Lu Yao looked at Liu Taozi and his expression became a little gentle.
"Go and fight."
"Don't worry about things here."
"I will properly resettle those people and not let them be harmed again."
"Thanks a lot."
ps: Wu Pingzhong (Lu Yao) was surrounded by bandits. After more than a hundred days, he added the Fuyi Tongsan Division. There were many epidemics in the city, and more than half of them died, but the people had no different intentions. In case of illness and death, and the city fell, General Chen
Chapter completed!