Fufeng Song

At about noon the next day.

Lu Yao led the horse and walked slowly on the mountain road.He pulled the reins vigorously with one hand, and with the other hand held a long lance to explore the road ahead. A little sweat broke out from the corner of his forehead, and the sweat stained the iron helmet, and immediately froze into hoarfrost.

The green horse under his crotch was a good horse captured from the Huns after the Battle of Banqiao. Although it is very handsome, it has lacked training and has a violent temper.The mountain road is rugged and steep, and the road surface is covered by snow, so he must be extremely careful to control the foothold of the horse, otherwise it is not a joke to fall into the valley.

After walking a few steps, Lu Yao reined in his horse and climbed up a high slope to look back. As far as the eye could see, except for the snowflakes rolling in the air, only this small team was struggling forward.

Their queue stretched very long among the mountains, and their figures flickered between the two mountain ridges.Even for these [-] strong soldiers who have experienced many battles, marching in the field in this cold winter is still an unimaginable task.Therefore, none of the soldiers looked so spirited, presumably everyone was complaining in their hearts.

The first half of the twelfth lunar month is a non-stop march and battle. The soldiers can calm down for a while after arriving in Jinyang, at least to pass the New Year's Eve and Yuan Ri safely. Who knows that such a hard job will be spread out again. , had to leave Jinyang City and set up camp in the wilderness of Zhongdu County.

A few days ago, when Lu Yao announced that he would be exempted from training that day due to snow, many soldiers were still overjoyed.In fact, they complained a little earlier that this General Lu is good at everything, but he is so good at tossing people around, training in different ways, and exhausting his brothers to death every day.This snow came at the right time, and finally I can rest!

This sense of happiness reached its peak at noon. At lunch, each soldier got four extremely porcelain scones, and each team also shared a pot of extremely fragrant and thick mutton soup.The golden scones gave off a tempting aroma, and a large portion of stick bones and pieces of meat floated and sank in the soup, making the soldiers' saliva almost flow into a river.Such a sumptuous meal may not be enjoyed every day even by a wealthy family, the soldiers are all satisfied.Unfortunately, happiness always comes and goes quickly.Before the lunch was digested, Lu Yao ordered the whole army to leave the camp.

Although this was somewhat unexpected, it was nothing in view of the sumptuous lunch.So just like every long-distance running training, each soldier carried a full set of weapons, armor, bedding, supplies, put on thick winter clothes and set off in line.

But no one thought that this time it was not the usual cao practice.The soldiers followed the flag waving at the front of the team all the way to the south, and as soon as they walked, they went into the middle of the night!

Lu Yao did not choose to advance along the main road with great fanfare, but entered a winding path shortly after setting off.Under the cover of heavy snow, they quietly bypassed the cities, docks and villages along the way, and headed straight to the south of the central capital.This path runs through poor mountains and bad waters, and few people know about it, so it has been abandoned for a long time.The forwards of the team often have to use big knives and axes to cut off the thorns and branches blocking the road, and forcefully open a road, so the physical exertion is very high.Soon after departure, it was necessary to select soldiers to rotate as forwards.

With the heavy snow falling, the weather is getting colder and colder.In such harsh weather, no one in Bingzhou except Lu Yao and his troops would act in the wild.Even the pack of wolves that often roam the wilderness don't know where they are hiding.On the contrary, a few clever soldiers dug out a few soil holes during the march, dug out hibernating hedgehogs, squirrels and the like, and planned to have extra meals at night.

On this day, the team traveled a full fifty miles.None of the five hundred soldiers was left behind. This was firstly due to the support of the officers, and secondly, the rigorous training during these days greatly enhanced the perseverance of the soldiers.In fact, in such a harsh environment, falling behind almost meant death.

After resting overnight in the mountain shelter, they still headed south along the path the next day.The terrain of Zhongdu County is gradually high and steep from north to south, and the road is gradually rugged, with staggered ravines and dense forests along the way, making it quite difficult to walk.Sometimes it seems that the distance is within reach, but you have to climb down to the depths of the ravine first, and then walk a long way around to come back.From morning to afternoon, the soldiers had already crossed more than ten hills, and the journey was no less than thirty miles.With heavy weapons and armor on their backs, the soldiers were exhausted physically. If Deng Gang had not distributed thick pancakes and large pieces of dried meat to each of them before departure, some of them might not be able to hold on until noon.But the soldiers couldn't complain, because Lu Yaoren also walked like the soldiers, and he carried far more things than the soldiers.

The soldiers had only been Lu Yao's subordinates for about twenty days, but they had already deeply felt the difference between Lu Yao and other officers.He was brave, and he took the lead in battle; he treated the soldiers kindly and kindly, never abused the soldiers, and all the dead and wounded were compensated; he ate and slept with the soldiers, and rarely enjoyed special enjoyment; It is extremely strict, but the slogan "sweat more in peacetime and bleed less in wartime" does have some truth.Such a general is worthy of everyone's following... Many soldiers thought so, and continued to move their legs mechanically, struggling to trek through the mountains.

Zhu Sheng was one of the captives who surrendered to Yue Shigong after the Battle of Banqiao. Most of those captives were Lu Shuihu, Xi people, and Jie people from Hexi, but Zhu Sheng was the only Han among them.Although the troubled times are difficult and there are often times of helplessness, the soldiers still don't like him very much.Zhu Sheng's life in the army was really miserable.For example, during the attack on Qi County, many companions stuffed heavy luggage into his bag, causing his load to be almost three times that of others.This kind of load almost drained every ounce of his energy during the tens of miles of journey, so that his steps were useless.

"Huhu...huhu..." Zhu Sheng panted like a bellows, trying to keep up with the team.Unexpectedly, his foot slipped and he staggered and rolled down.Zhu Sheng grabbed the ground with both hands, but couldn't stop his body from sliding along the steep roadside slope towards the deep ravine.Seeing that he was about to be smashed into a pulp, he suddenly felt his wrist tighten, and a strong force immediately pulled him back into the road.It turned out that Lu Yao was nearby, seeing that the situation was not good, he rushed to save him.

Zhu Sheng thanked him again and again, but Lu Yao just patted him on the shoulder, and simply said: "Be careful on your way, don't fall again!" Then he went to the rear of the team.

Zhu Sheng packed his luggage again, jumped to feel the weight, and was about to move on when he suddenly felt a sharp pain like a needle prick in his knee.He uttered a swear word, and sat down on the ground involuntarily.

The mountain road was narrow, and sitting like this, more than half of the road was blocked.The other soldiers passed him sideways one by one, and did not try to help him.There were faint curses from the queue not far away, and some soldiers simply stepped over his head.Zhu Sheng didn't respond to this extremely humiliating act.He flexed and stretched his left leg timidly, and it took him a long time to stand up again. As soon as he took a step, a painful expression appeared on his face again.

"Are you sprained? Get on the horse, I'll take you for a ride!" At some point, Lu Yao had returned from the rear.He took his own horse, patted the saddle and said to Zhu Sheng.

Zhu Sheng waved his hands wildly, and said in shock: "This is impossible! How dare a villain ride a general's horse?"

"Everyone eats on the same stove and fights in the same camp. We are all brothers of Paoze. During the march, we join hands and support each other. When we arrive on the battlefield, we will live and die together and never leave. If brothers If I am in trouble, even if there are mountains of swords and seas of fire blocking the way, I will come to rescue; if I am in trouble, I think my brothers will save me." Lu Yao said seriously: "In this case, what is riding my horse!"

The soldiers around could hear these words clearly, and many of them showed deeply moved expressions.

Zhu Sheng still wanted to refuse, but Lu Yao said unquestionably: "Stop being wordy, get on the horse!" He stretched out his arm to support Zhu Sheng's elbow, and half-forced him to sit on his horse.

At this moment, the voice of the guide in front came from the fierce wind: "General! General!" Lu Yao threw the reins to a soldier, and turned to meet the guide.

The guide is about 40 years old, with vicissitudes of life, but still flexible in hands and feet.He is a member of the Wen clan in Qi County, and it is said that he is also related to Wen Qiao.Since the Han Dynasty, the Wen family in Qixian County, Taiyuan, has been crowned for generations, and has produced high-ranking officials such as Sangong.Although Wen Qiao moved to Luoyang for many years, they are still inextricably linked with their hometown in Taiyuan. Not only are there countless disciples and former officials, but the Wen clan who stayed in Taiyuan is also a powerful and wealthy family in Taiyuan. , nearly a thousand households.Under Wen Qiao's instigation, Wen Xu, the patriarch of the Wen clan in Qi County, had visited Yue Shigong a few days ago and donated three thousand shi of grain, which greatly alleviated the army's plight of food shortage.When Lu Yao sent troops this time, he specially supplemented enough food and fodder from the Wen clan through Wen Qiao's relationship, and invited several guides to lead the way.If this is not the case, it will be difficult to march in the heavy snow.

"General, after crossing this mountain, there is a leeward valley, which is just right for the brothers to rest. After leaving the mountain pass, it is only five miles away from Tuomugang, and it takes half an hour to walk along the road." The guide respectfully said, The beard trembled in the cold wind.

Lu Yao nodded slightly, and took a half-full wine gourd from the horse's back and handed it over: "Thank you for your hard work, old man, please drink some wine to warm yourself up."

After the guide left, Lu Yao hurriedly mobilized his troops to the col.After a day's journey in such severe cold weather, if hot food and rest are not replenished in time, the troops are almost incapable of fighting; what's more, there are necessary mobilization and promises before the war, and a proper plan is also needed. environment to proceed.

After all the soldiers had settled down, Lu Yao summoned more than ten officers.

"This is our goal." He stretched out his index finger and pressed heavily on the map.

"Guo's Wubao!" Chu Kun shouted in response.

"Exactly!" Lu Yao nodded slightly: "Since the powerful families in the southern counties of Jinyang use the leader of the Guo family to perfuse the court, I will use the momentum of thunder to take the head of the Guo family to frighten the rest! The powerful families of that generation are just some Those who bully the weak and fear the hard will, since the chief culprit is punished, the rest of the families will naturally be subdued."

Shen Jin clapped his hands: "Okay! My big knife is already hungry and thirsty!"

Gao Xiang laughed grinningly again and again: "Daoming should have ignored these pigs and dogs a long time ago, he should be talking with a knife."

These two are characters who are brave and ruthless, and who are afraid that the world will not be chaotic.In the past few days, Lu Yao's repeated aggrieved scenes that the rich and the wealthy couldn't do it made the two of them very angry. This time, when he heard that there was a battle to fight, he immediately jumped out.

Xue Tong is also a brave warrior, but compared to these two, he is obviously more calm.He pondered and looked at the map: "The Guo family is a well-known family in Bingzhou. Although this branch is not a direct descendant, it has a prosperous population and is quite powerful in the local area. Although it is wishful thinking to be aggressive, it is more than enough to protect itself. With the strength of our army , I’m afraid it’s not the best strategy to attack Wubao by storm... Dominic Daoming must have another clever plan?”

Lu Yao was confident: "Masters, that's all you need. Within today, we will take down Guoshiwubao."