Starting boy Ma Kongqun

Chapter 171 Soldiers under the City

In the vast desert, a section of an underground river flows out of the surface, nourishing vegetation and turning it into a huge oasis.

The Hanhai Kingdom is centered on a city built on an oasis in a meandering river, radiating to a radius of three hundred miles.

Of course, 90% of this so-called three hundred miles of land is uninhabited desert. More than ten thousand civilians in the country live in oases. Only princes, nobles, officials, wealthy businessmen, and soldiers are qualified to live in the named building. In the city of "Star of the Vast Sea".

Not long ago, the king of the country, Arslan, suddenly issued a decree, saying that a powerful enemy might invade the Hanhai Kingdom in the near future, and ordered all the people in the oasis to move into the city temporarily. And due to the limited space in the city, everyone can only carry necessary clothing, food and other living materials, and the rest of the livestock, vehicles, furniture, etc. will be abandoned outside the city.

This decree caused the usually peaceful oasis to turn upside down. These civilians first drove the livestock out of the fence and scattered them on the oasis to prevent them from starving to death after entering the city. Then tens of thousands of people helped the old and young, and poured in like a tide. "Star of the Vast Sea".

This small city can accommodate this population at its limit. It really cannot provide enough shelter, so everyone can only live in tents on the streets and squares.

However, the population is so dense that it is difficult to solve just one defecation problem. Other problems such as public security, food, and disease make the kingdom's managers even more worried.

But they won't have to worry about these problems soon, because there are more serious problems ahead.

A cavalry team totaling five hundred came to the oasis outside the city and set up camp in an orderly manner. At the same time, they drove cattle, sheep and other livestock scattered outside the city back to the camp to use as military rations.

The Hanhai Kingdom has more than a thousand standing troops, more than twice that of the opponent.

But several generals of the kingdom saw the knights' superb horses and sophisticated armor, bows and arrows, and long knives. They saw their strict formation as if they were one body when advancing and retreating, and felt that even though they were separated by a considerable distance, they were still in contact with the thick city wall. The strong sense of oppression and murderous aura that can also be heard, you know that this is a truly elite soldier who has fought through mountains of corpses and seas of blood on the battlefield.

They knew better that if these soldiers around them, whose main responsibility was to maintain daily security, and who had never even killed anyone, were sent to this cavalry, they would only end up being slaughtered like lambs, so they immediately issued an order He obeyed the military order that he could not give out.

After the men and horses outside the city rested for a while, fourteen knights came out of camp and stopped at the bottom of the city. On the black horse at the head, which was as majestic as a hill, a man who looked like a young man in his twenties said loudly: "The horses are empty." I'm leading my brothers from the 'Ten Thousand Horses Hall' to come here and ask the Lord of Arslan to answer in person!"

He deliberately used the "Heaven-shaking and Earth-shaking Soul-Lost Curse" method when speaking. Every word he spoke seemed to be like a bolt from the blue in the sky above the "Star of the Vast Sea".

The over 10,000 people in the city had their ears roaring and their hearts trembling. The Hanhai Kingdom soldiers who were closest to the city were even dizzy and lost their feet. Many of them stumbled and fell on the city.

In a small but extremely splendid and luxurious palace in the city, Arslan, the leader of the Hanhai Kingdom, smashed a golden wine glass on the ground angrily: "Ma Kongqun is really here, how dare he?"

Some time ago, Chu Liuxiang came back from the Central Plains and explained to him what happened at Hua Ruling's birthday banquet. At the same time, he also revealed the truth that the princess was the princess of the Demon Cult, the Nanhai Lady.

Arslan was furious at first, but then he thought that Nanhai Lady did not violate the rules after following him.

As for her secretly wooing the princes and nobles to compete for the crown prince position for her son, Prince Peacock, several of his other wives were doing the same thing, and some even did it more openly.

Whether it was because of the face of the king of a country or because of the love between husband and wife for more than ten years, it was impossible for him to hand over the person to Ma Kongqun for any explanation.

He originally thought that Ma Kongqun might just talk casually. After all, it would be childish to come all the way to ask a kingdom for an explanation for an unsuccessful assassination.

Therefore, what he wanted to do was to drag this matter out until it was over.

Chu Liuxiang suddenly came back a few days ago, saying that he had received news that Ma Kongqun had led people west out of Yumen, and it seemed that they were coming to the Hanhai Kingdom.

Arslan was still doubtful. After all, the Hanhai Kingdom was a country in the Western Region. It was unreasonable and unbelievable for a Central Plains gang to attack a country. Unexpectedly, Ma Kongqun actually mobilized all his troops to attack the city today.

Chu Liuxiang was worried that the two of them would get things out of hand, so she stayed in Hanhai Kingdom and sat on the exquisite carpet nearby. Seeing his old friend roaring like a lion whose majesty had been offended, he smiled bitterly and said: "Arslan, this is not the time to be angry. Xiao Ma is usually gentle and approachable in his dealings with others, but inside he is actually a decisive and decisive tyrant. If If you don’t come forward to discuss with him as soon as possible, he may not be able to do something like sending an army to attack the city!"

Arslan said angrily: "What are we talking about? Do you really want me to hand over my princess and become the laughing stock of the world?"

Chu Liuxiang was silent for a moment and sighed: "In that case, let me go out first to explore his tone and see what he wants?"

Not long after, a figure floated down from the top of the city of "Star of the Vast Sea", and suddenly came to Ma Kongqun like a piece of light smoke.

Ma Kongqun had already seen the person coming and said with a smile: "Old bug, I guessed it was you coming out!"

Chu Liuxiang rubbed her nose vigorously and said, "I didn't expect you would come so fast."

Ma Kongqun said: "For the sake of Xian's face, I will wait a day to settle the accounts with Hanhai Kingdom, and then go to my camp for a drink."

Chu Liuxiang was self-righteous and followed Ma Kongqun and his party back to the camp.

When he got closer and saw it more clearly, he realized that it was like a standardized military camp. From the outer protective measures to the installation and distribution of internal tents and baggage, they all conformed to the military style.

The soldiers in the camp who were patrolling or gathering for drills were all in neat and tidy appearance, and every one of them exuded a strong sense of military iron and blood.

Chu Liuxiang took a breath: "I know that you have a long-standing friendship with the Weiyuan Marquis Ma Ji, but the friendship is not so deep that he would risk the disapproval of the world and send the elite of the Liaodong Army to help you settle your personal grudges. stop?"

"How is that possible?" Ma Kongqun shook his head and said with a smile, "These are all warriors from the 'Dibu' under my 'Ten Thousand Horses Hall'.

"However, over the years, I have been letting them join the Liaodong Army in shifts, and they have participated in many large and small battles against the prairie barbarians and Jianzhou Jurchens. Although they are still ordinary people, they are not as good as the elites in the Liaodong Army. Just let the wind fall."

This statement is naturally half true and half false.

It is true that the soldiers belonging to "Wanma Tang" have indeed been participating in the previous battles of the Liaodong Army.

What is false is that as Ma Ji secured his position as the number one person in the military and political affairs of Liaodong, the "Eight Horsemen" who had sneaked into the Liaodong Army also grew into generals who were the mainstays of the army. The soldiers of the "Wanma Hall" and the Liaodong Army Several elite and powerful soldiers are no longer distinguishable from each other. When they put on armor, they become soldiers, and when they take off their armor, they become civilians.

Ma Kongqun hosted a banquet in his tent to entertain Chu Liuxiang.

Chu Liuxiang drank a few glasses of wine unwillingly, and then asked him what he wanted here.

Ma Kongqun put down his wine glass, with a half-smile on his face: "At first, because Arslan was a friend of Brother Chu, I didn't push him too hard. I only said that I wanted an explanation, but I didn't make any excessive demands.

"Unexpectedly, Arslan doesn't seem to regard me as your brother Chu's friend. For such a long time, he didn't even say a word to explain. It seems that he doesn't take Ma Kongqun's false reputation seriously.

"Now that Brother Chu wants me to speak, he needs to be clear about one thing. Once I raise the price, Arslan will not be qualified to pay back the money on the spot!"

(End of this chapter)