Fufeng Song

Liu Kun's troops soon left the plain and entered the hilly area between the Taihang and Taiyue mountains.The troops headed north along the narrow and long river valley beside the Zhuozhang River, sometimes directly stepping on the dry riverbed in winter.Along the way, the troops continued to recruit soldiers and supplies.

Although most of the densely populated villages in the past have been destroyed, there are quite a few refugees hiding in the mountains and ravines.As Liu Kun's army marched northward, more and more refugees came out of the mountains and gathered to join the army.The number far exceeds those recruited by Shangdang in the past few days.

Three months ago, Lu Yao followed this route and fought and fled. The soldiers and horses fought less and less until they finally collapsed.Who would have thought that if they walked this road again at this moment, the team would swell up like a ball of snow, and the number of the whole team would approach [-].

<They couldn't reach Jinyang, but instead became the target of the Huns.

Sure enough, as the troops marched, the small tribes of Hu people scattered all over Shangdang were also moved by the news.These small tribes are miscellaneous Hus vassals of the Xiongnu, and each tribe is usually only ten to twenty.The so-called "Luo" refers to the basic unit of Hu people's subordinates, a family group of about two or three tents and about twenty people.In wartime, about five cavalry can be dispatched for each fall.

After the Xiongnu army gathered in Hedong, these miscellaneous Hu tribes still stayed in the counties of Shangdang to eat.It was one of the tribes that was annihilated by Liu Kun's personal guards at Changping Pavilion.The fighters of the Zahu tribe gradually moved closer to Liu Kun's troops in the scale of dozens to hundreds of people. During this period, relying on the complex terrain of Bingzhou, they repeatedly approached with small groups of cavalry and carried out tentative attacks and harassment.

Correspondingly, Ding Miao, the cavalry general under Liu Kun's command, also dispersed his cavalry into several squads to conduct a large-scale search and attack within a hundred miles of the center of Liu Kun's headquarters.

In just a few days, dozens or even more cavalry squads split and changed, attacking and defending each other, and the sound of fighting rang out from time to time.Ding Miao's cavalry team suffered considerable casualties, and the losses of the Hu people were more than multiples.

This situation lasted for five days, and Liu Kun had to send an order to stay in Yangyi County. First, to let the refugees recover a little bit of strength. battle. <In autumn, the fortress where the Jin people garrisoned a large army, the camp was more than six miles away, and the terrain was flat and open.Liu Kun set up his big tent of selling gold and cowhide in the open space in Zhongyang.He is a wealthy and high-ranking official. Although he does not deliberately extravagant, he is still not comparable to ordinary officials.Incense beast stoves are placed on the left and right sides of the big tent, and the ground is covered with fine fur carpets.The rest of the army will set up their own tents; then rely on the old base of Jicheng to build wooden fences, and set up camps with baggage vehicles in between.

After setting up the camp on the first day, the sentries from all walks of life went out to cooperate with Ding Miao's elite cavalry to force the Zahu tribe far away.

From the next day onwards, each general and school will choose elites to join the army to enrich their establishment.Although the person in charge of the assignment is the respected and respected veteran Linghu Sheng, there is no way to rest assured that such things can be done for others. As soon as the sky broke, more than a dozen generals under Liu Kun who were qualified to form an army rushed to the gate of the refugee camp. , and each raised a banner for recruiting troops.

Recruiting soldiers is a major event, but it is even more trivial and troublesome, and it must be done according to a complete set of procedures.After more than a dozen flag gates were in place, Linghu Sheng stepped on the stage to beat the drums, and dispatched officers to gather the young and strong among the refugees who were willing to join the army to the open space in the center of the camp.

The refugees camped on the north side of Jicheng, so there was nothing to do with the noise, and it was even more chaotic and noisy at the moment: it didn't look like a military camp, but rather like a city in a big city.Linghu Sheng made repeated orders and repeated requests, and then asked for military sticks to serve him, and severely dealt with a few people who made a fuss, and only then did the order stabilize a little.

Then each general enters the arena to select soldiers, with a three-way drum limit, each selects 200 people, and all the young and strong who are selected will go behind the banner gate of the general they belong to.Therefore, all the generals showed off their bright military flags and fine armor, and the accompanying soldiers naturally also used tall and imposing men to show the mighty and majestic spirit of their own army in front of the refugees.

Lu Yao was a little embarrassed because he was an empty general with only Xue Tong and He Yun under his command.There is only one side of the flag and flag, and it flutters alone in the cold wind, which is really awe-inspiring.

In a helpless situation, he heard the sound of drums on the high platform, so he asked He Yun to wait holding up the military flag, and walked with Xue Tong to the refugee community first.

It should be noted that not all of these thousands of people are ordinary people, there are also some people from the remnants of the Bingzhou Army. Lu Yao and Xue Tong are all senior officers of the Bingzhou Army. An old acquaintance.

Shen Jin from Mayi, Yanmen is Lu Yao's colleague for many years. He can shoot a ten-stone strong bow and gallop left and right. He is known for his bravery in the Bingzhou army. .After Chen Yongbing was defeated and died, Shen Jin succeeded in breaking through the siege by chance, and fled into the mountains with more than [-] cavalry until he heard the news a few days ago and came to join the army.Shen Jin and the cavalry under him were all tall and powerful men, and they also had horses and complete armaments, so many of Liu Kun's subordinates and generals were eyeing them as soon as they came.However, Shen Jin and Lu Yao were old acquaintances, and they took the post of Lu Yao's cavalry commander directly, and the generals had no chance at all.

Shen Jin also recommended his elder brother Deng Gang who he met when he was hiding in the mountains.Deng Gang is from Jinyang, about 40 years old.He is an old soldier who has spent half his life in the military camp. He was recruited to join the army as a son of a good family. He has followed four governors of Bingzhou and is familiar with various military affairs.Perhaps because he has seen too many vicissitudes of life and death, his words are very modest, and he also appears stable and reliable.

I was talking with Deng Gang, only to hear the uproar in the camp. It turned out that a man was arguing with others.The man was very sturdy, nine feet tall, with a bee waist and ape arms, a mess of hair, and a high nose and deep eyes, he seemed to be of barbarian blood.The opponent he was arguing with was a local rich man, with more than a dozen mouths open at the same time, the man was furious at once cursing; when he was proud, the man broke out and beat more than ten people one by one like gourds .

Only after Lu Yao cheered, Xue Tong roared and rushed over, and the two burly men hugged each other and laughed.

It turned out that this man was from Xue Tong's hometown, named Gao Xiang.This person is the personal captain of Nie Xuan, General Jishe of Bingzhou General, a martial arts champion who is regarded as a sharp blade in the palm of Nie Xuan.Gao Xiang himself is quite a bit arrogant, his character and temper are extremely bad.

In the battle where the Bingzhou Army was defeated, Gao Xiang charged forward on his own, frustrating the barbarian's spirit several times, but in the end it was impossible to restore the defeat, and finally fled into the mountains alone.However, he was a little unlucky, and got lost in the deep mountains and old forests, and it took him more than a month to get out. He was as embarrassed as a savage, and lost all his weapons and armor.

Although Gao Xiang and Lu Yao do not have a close friendship, they do have a relationship.Coupled with Xue Tong's friendship from his hometown, this hero of the Bingzhou Army also logically joined Lu Yao's command.

After wandering around the camp for a while, Lu Yao took Shen Jin, Gao Xiang and others back to the place where he raised the recruiting flag, and was surprised to find that dozens of men had gathered in front of the small flag.

He Yun, who was guarding the flag, was chatting and joking with those men, when he suddenly saw Lu Yao approaching not far away, He Yunxi said, "Look, isn't this the general coming?"

The crowd parted to the left and right with a "whoosh", and a young man in ragged clothes came striding forward.This young man is slender, his steps are quick and powerful, he looks about fifteen or sixteen years old, younger than He Yun, he is born with big ears, and his appearance is dignified.Seeing that his exposed arms had strong muscles and bones, and his fingers and palms were covered with thick calluses, he was undoubtedly an experienced fighter.

Lu Yao hurried forward a few steps, and was about to say hello, the young man looked Lu Yao up and down, and suddenly asked loudly, "Are you Lu Yao? Are you the leader of the Bingzhou Army?"

Calling someone's name face to face like this is extremely rude, but Lu Yao doesn't care about these fluff.With the title of "Master of the Army", he knew that this young man must be the remnant of the Bingzhou Army, which made him feel friendly.So Lu Yao smiled and said, "I am exactly Lu Yao. I don't know if you are..."

Before he could finish his sentence, the young man bowed to the ground: "Master Lu, Chu Kun, who lives in Xianan County, joins the brothers!"

"Yes, yes! We are all here to defect!" Many soldiers behind the young man bowed down with him, yelling in one go.

"Don't be too polite, everyone, get up! Get up and talk!" Lu Yao hurriedly helped them up one by one.

Lu Yao didn't recognize any of these soldiers, but they knew Lu Yao's name, and they all expressed that they must follow Lu Yao.They all said that when they served in the army, they had heard of an army leader who was kind to his subordinates and rarely beat or scolded his soldiers;

Lu Yao never expected that he would have such a reputation among the soldiers of the Bingzhou Army, which was really unexpected.For Lu Yao, these behaviors were purely natural, and he didn't mean to deliberately seek fame, but in the eyes of the soldiers, he was really a rare good boss.

In such a situation, Lu Yao really didn't know what to say.In the eyes of the senior officials and generals of the imperial court, Bingzhou is a powerful vassal in the world, it is a place where elite soldiers and fierce generals come out, and it is a strategic place to fight for power, prosperity and wealth in the world; The chief can't even wish for it, even not being abused or scolded is an extravagant wish.

He repeatedly comforted the soldiers, and prepared to lead the way himself, taking them to the back to rest.

Lu Yao was very satisfied with the fact that this trip to recruit troops had yielded such results.Both Shen Jin and Gao Xiang were fierce warriors in the Bingzhou Army in the past, and they were brave enough to defeat a hundred men; while Deng Gang's sophistication and Chu Kun's youthful vigor both made him admire.Not to mention that those old soldiers who have experienced continuous battles are by no means comparable to ordinary strong men.Such 200 old soldiers, as long as they are commanded properly, can be equivalent to an ordinary army of thousands of people; and if the supply of soldiers is sufficient, with the core of old soldiers, it is easy to train ten times as many soldiers!

When he was about to register the names of the soldiers and compile the list, someone nearby sneered and said: "The unknown soldier suddenly got a high position, and he was really confused. He dared to call friends and make a lot of noise in the place where the generals were selected!"