At the end of the Sui Dynasty

Chapter 64
In the morning, the sun was shining and the sky was as blue as washing. It was a sunny day.As usual, all the horses in the stables were released to graze on the hundreds of acres of pastures scattered in the creek, creating a peaceful and leisurely scene.

Of course, this is just a superficial appearance to confuse the bandits. In fact, five hundred Gao's children are hiding in the stables, ready to attack the bandits who invade the racecourse at any time.

At about [-] o'clock in the morning, two fast horses appeared on the other side of the racecourse. The riders were still wearing bamboo hats. They circled along the river and turned back. .

Upon seeing this, Gao Bufan thought it was Zhang Jinzhi's bandits who came to step on the site, but Gao Shiqing smiled and said: "It's our own people, let them come here!"

Gao Bufan couldn't help being stunned, no wonder the behavior of these two knights was so weird, it was probably an agreed signal, he quickly ordered the old servant to put down the suspension bridge, the two knights on the opposite side quickly crossed the suspension bridge, came to the crowd and took off their hats, revealing their two A young face.

Gao Shiqing smiled and introduced: "Master Gao, these two are young masters of our clan. They are good at martial arts, especially good at riding and shooting. The one on the left is called Gao Xingshen, and the one on the right is called Gao Xingjin!"

Gao Xingshen and Gao Xingjin greeted Gao Bufan and his son, and then said to Gao Shiqing solemnly, "Seventh Uncle, Zhang Jin said that he led all the rebels to leave Zhangnan County before dawn. It is estimated that Shen Shi (afternoon At about three o'clock) you will arrive at Flying Eagle Racecourse, it may be earlier, please prepare for the battle as soon as possible."

Gao Bufan raised his sword eyebrows. It seems that Zhang Jin said that after capturing Zhangnan County, he became even more arrogant. He even marched in broad daylight without any disguise. He probably thinks that he is the boss in Bohai County at this moment, and no force can do it. You can threaten him, but this is also good, as the saying goes, arrogant soldiers are bound to lose, Zhang Jin said that the more arrogant, the less prepared they are, and the faster they will die if they are not prepared!

"Then how many people are there?" Gao Bufan asked a question that everyone was concerned about.

Gao Xingshen said with a dignified expression, "There are thieves all over the mountains and plains. We are afraid of being exposed, so we don't dare to get too close and count them. Probably... if there are not ten thousand, there may be eight thousand."

"So many!" Everyone couldn't help being shocked.

Gao Xingjin quickly explained: "Zhang Jin said that after the capture of Zhangnan County, a large number of people were kidnapped. Of course, some of them voluntarily defected. Among the bandit army, there are only about two to three thousand people with weapons. In addition, there are hundreds of horses. They should all be snatched when Zhangnan County was captured."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they heard the words. Fortunately, the main force of the bandit army was only two to 3000 people. Although it seemed to have a huge momentum with so many people engulfed, it actually reduced its combat effectiveness.

Gao Shixiong scolded indignantly: "The officials in Zhangnan County are also useless, but Zhang Jin said that they easily broke through the city and let the bandits get so many horses and weapons, his grandma's!"

Gao Xingshen shook his head and said, "Actually, the officials of Zhangnan County can't be blamed entirely, because a section of Zhangnan County's city wall was destroyed by the flood, and before it could be rebuilt, the bandits entered the city through the gap in the collapsed city wall. There is no way to resist."

Gao Shiqing said in a deep voice: "Thank you for your hard work, go to inquire again, and report back in time if there is any new situation."

Gao Xingshen and Gao Xingjin nodded, put on their bamboo hats and rode away hastily.

Gao Shiqing said solemnly: "The bandit soldiers are stronger than we expected." After speaking, his eyes fell on Gao Bufan, hesitantly said: "Mr. Qing, can Li Jing, the driving officer, arrive in time?"

Obviously, Gao Shiqing was a little shaken at this moment. After all, the Gao clan invested nearly [-] soldiers in this battle. If they were defeated, the entire Bohai Gao clan would be seriously injured. Absolutely can't afford to lose!

Gao Bufan nodded affirmatively: "Don't worry Gao Yuanwai, Li Jing will arrive in time, Changqing dares to guarantee it with Xiang Ren's head!"

"Nephew's words are serious, I can trust you!" Gao Shiqing said, but the worry in his eyes did not diminish much. The atmosphere at the scene was heavy, and everyone seemed to have a big stone on their hearts, including Gao Bufan.

Fortunately, Li Jing is indeed a believer in what he says and what he will do. At the moment before the sun rises to the mid-heaven, but the dust is flying on the official road, a Sui soldier with bright armor finally appears in everyone's sight. .

I saw that although the number of Sui soldiers was not many, probably around five or six hundred, the team was neat and disciplined, and there was a fierce murderous aura in every movement, which made people feel awe-inspiring.

The Sui soldiers marched steadily to the riverside in front of the racecourse and stopped. The two riders left the team and ran towards the suspension bridge. Gao Bufan recognized Li Jing and Wei Zheng at a glance, and quickly lowered the suspension bridge to meet them first.

"Lord Li, Mr. Wei, I have been waiting for you for a long time!" Gao Bufan happily got off his horse and saluted.

Wei Zheng winked casually, and said with a smile, "I was ordered by the prefect to wait for Master Li on the way, fortunately, it's not a disgrace to my mission."

Gao Bufan immediately understood, and hurriedly said: "Mr. Wei and Mr. Li have worked hard, please go to the racecourse to rest first."

Li Jing glanced at the people who were walking on the bridge behind Gao Bufan, and asked directly: "Little friend Changqing, I don't know if the prefect has prepared many people to support him?"

Gao Bufan replied without changing his face: "The head of the bandit, Zhang Jin, said that he is now leading the bandit soldiers from the direction of Zhangnan County. The county needs a lot of manpower to defend the city, so we can't gather too many manpower. There are only [-] strong men. , and is now lying in ambush in the stable."

Hearing this, Li Jing did not doubt that he was there, nodded and said: "Okay, 600 people are enough. I have just observed the terrain. Your racecourse is easy to defend but difficult to attack. It is a good place to ambush. How about it, let your The men and horses continued to lie in ambush in the stables, while the officer led his troops to garrison in the forest two miles away from here. When the bandits attacked the suspension bridge, using the fireworks as a signal, the officer led his troops to kill them and cut off the bandits' retreat. When the thieves are in a mess, you can send out ambushes to charge from the front and attack from both sides, and the big thing will be settled!"

"It's that simple?" Gao Shiqing, who had just arrived, couldn't help interjecting.

Li Jing frowned, looked at Gao Shiqing, and said calmly, "What's your name?"

Gao Bufan quickly introduced: "This is my uncle Gao Shiqing, this is my father Gao Kaishan, and these two are my younger brothers Gao Shixiong and Gao Shiheng."

After everyone exchanged a few words of politeness, Li Jing asked: "Little friend Changqing just said that bandits are coming from Zhangnan County, so you must know how many troops the other party has and when they will arrive!"

Gao Bufan nodded and said, "Zhang Jin claimed that Zhangnan County was captured a few days ago, and a large number of people in the city were taken hostage. So now there are nearly 3000 troops, but the main force of armed rebels is only [-] people."

Li Jing didn't fluctuate when he heard the words, and said calmly: "It's about the same as I expected. Zhang Jin's claim that he coerced tens of thousands of people seems to be powerful, but in fact it is a stupid move. There is nothing to be afraid of. It's just that my friend Zhang Qing is sure. The other party came for your racecourse?"

Gao Bufan's heart moved, and he blurted out: "Master Li, you mean that Zhang Jinzhi is more likely to attack the county seat?"

A flash of light flashed in Li Jing's eyes, and he praised: "Little friend Changqing is really smart. Zhang Jin said that it is obviously impossible to make such a big move just for a racecourse. It is estimated that the thief captured Zhangnan County and tasted the sweetness, so he plans to go all out. Even the city of Yi County was taken together, so Zhang Jin said that even if he wanted to attack the racecourse, he would only send out a small group of people to attack."

As the saying goes, an expert will know if there is one as soon as he makes a move. Li Jing analyzed the current situation very thoroughly in just a few words, and came to the conclusion that the bandits will not attack the racecourse with all their strength.

Gao Shiqing had doubts about Li Jing's ability at first, but now he didn't dare to underestimate him, and hurriedly said: "If it's as Mr. Li expected, should we rush back to the city immediately to help defend? It is estimated that the bandit soldiers still have one You can kill Shi Chen to the bottom of the city."

Brother Gao Shixiong also clenched his fists anxiously upon hearing this!

All the foundations of the Gao clan are in the county seat. Once the bandits break through, the consequences will be disastrous. No wonder they are so nervous.

Li Jing said calmly: "There is no need for this. The county has a city wall and a moat, and the bandit soldiers have no siege equipment. If there are no traitors in the city, it will be no problem to guard for ten or eight days. The most sensible thing to do now is to wait for the bandit soldiers to attack the city." Come to attack the racecourse, let's take this opportunity to eat up this bandit army, and then take advantage of the momentum to attack the bandit army outside the city of Ji County!"

Gao Shiqing took a deep breath, clasped his fists and said, "General Li really deserves a false reputation. If so, I will follow General Li's command."

Li Jing didn't say much, and immediately ordered the Sui soldiers under his command to set off and go to the mountain forest two miles away to camp and hide. At the same time, he released more than a dozen scouts.

At this time, the bandit leader Zhang Jin said that he was leading the bandit soldiers under his command to move towards the direction of the county town in a mighty manner. Tens of thousands of bandit soldiers covered the mountains and plains, and the momentum was indeed quite scary.

Zhang Jin said that at this moment, let alone how proud he was. A little over a month ago, he was still a little bandit with less than a hundred people under his command. He lost one-third of his manpower in the first battle of Gaojibo, which seriously injured him. As a result, after more than a month He has grown to tens of thousands of people under his command, and has captured a county town, and has his own territory, which is like a dream.

However, a county town obviously cannot satisfy Zhang Jincheng's appetite. Just as Li Jing expected, he led the bandits out this time not only for the Flying Eagle Racecourse, but to take down the entire county. By the way, at this moment, he also urgently needs a war horse to expand his strength!

So he has to settle the county seat, and also the Flying Eagle Racecourse!
(End of this chapter)