Under the sun.
The skinny old man pushed the plow.
The sun was quite dazzling. Under the sunlight, you could see the ferocious expression on the old man's face. He pressed his head, his legs sank deeply into the soil, and pushed forward with all his strength.
The plow seemed to have taken root and was motionless.
The old man gritted his teeth, turned his back again, and tried many methods, but he could not shake the plow.
Not far away, an equally skinny young woman stood on the edge of the field, looking straight at this scene. She held a baby in her arms, and her withered breasts could no longer feed the child in her arms.
On the official road opposite, a knight passed by slowly.
The old man, woman, and baby seemed to look at them at the same time.
There was no fear or fear on their stiff faces, and they just stared at these knights passing through the official road.
Yao Xiong withdrew his eyes and said, "After leaving Dingzhou, it turned out to be such a world."
Liu Taozi walked at the front of the team, followed by more than 500 knights, with an extraordinary momentum.
Tian Zili wanted to say something, but then he looked at the young man who was following him.
The young man had a sad face, was riding a big horse, and was sitting in a very strange posture.
Tian Zili glanced at Yao Xiong, who nodded, and then asked coldly: "If Mr. Cui doesn't want to follow, just say so, why bother? I see the sorrow on your face, why do you wrong yourself so much?"
"
This descendant is none other than Cui Gang, Cui Jishu's son.
He quickly raised his head and said, "It's not that I don't want to follow, it's just that I've never ridden a horse for such a long time and it's really painful."
Hearing this, everyone else laughed.
Cui Gang didn't understand why they were laughing. He asked sincerely: "Isn't it supposed to hurt?"
Several people stopped laughing, but did not answer him.
Liu Taozi glanced at them, and then Tian Zili said: "Cui Jun is going on a long journey on horseback for the first time. This will naturally happen. He will be fine in a few days. Please be patient for now."
"good."
"Cui Jun, why don't you slow down for now, as long as you can keep up with the army."
"No need."
"Just think of it as a way to see if anyone is left behind."
"good."
Cui Gang slowed down slightly, and Liu Taozi and others quickly distanced themselves.
Tian Zili said with a straight face, "Brother, how can you bring such a person with you? This guy comes from a rich family and is best at being a dog for the noble people. He was not born to be with us!"
Liu Taozi said nothing.
Yao Xiong also expressed his agreement at this moment, "I think this guy was sent by Cui Jishu to monitor us. Hasn't Cui Jishu been reinstated? He wanted to take revenge on us, so he sent his son here and asked his son to report him.
approve"
Chu Jiande laughed and said, "That's not the case. Now that the lord has been favored by the Prime Minister, he is the emperor. It's not easy to touch the lord."
Tian Zili glanced at him, "Even if that's the case, you shouldn't bring Cui Gang, a dog-man or the like!"
Chu Jiande chuckled, showing his ugly molars, "You make dogs for noble people one by one, so do you think my lord is not a dog for the prime minister?"
Tian Zili was furious, "How dare you! How dare you be rude to your brother?!"
Yao Xiong also directly pressed the knife with his hand and glared angrily.
Chu Jiande was not afraid of them, he continued: "I don't mean to humiliate my lord, but I think Cui Gang, a young man, although he comes from a rich family, he is honest and has no bad habits of rich people. Besides, he has read a lot and is knowledgeable.
Yuan Bo, there is a shortage of such people around my lord, there is no harm in bringing him along."
Tian Zili and Yao Xiong still didn't speak, with very unconvinced expressions on their faces.
Liu Taozi suddenly asked: "What's the situation like where we are going next?"
Several people around him were stunned immediately. Yao Xiong scratched his head, with a depressed look on his face, "Who knows? I wonder what the prime minister thought, sending his brother to a place where birds don't shit, what Wuchuan, I am
I’ve never heard of it, I don’t even know what the official position of the Wuchuan garrison commander is.”
Liu Taozi looked at Tian Zili again. Tian Zili was also speechless at this moment, "Brother, I have never been to such a far place."
"Cui Gang!!!"
Liu Taozi shouted.
Immediately, a knight sent a message back. Soon, Cui Gang rode his horse and came to Liu Taozi with gritted teeth. He patted his leg in pain, then reacted and lowered his head towards Liu Taozi, "Mr. Liu, please forgive me.
Discourteous."
"What's going on where we're going next?"
Cui Gang was stunned and quickly said: "The Prime Minister appointed Liu Gong as the commander of the Wuchuan garrison. Wuchuan is an important border town, bordering the barbarian people outside the wall and even the Western bandits. The previous dynasty once stationed many military households here. In our dynasty,
, counties were first established under the jurisdiction of Hengzhou, but later there were many wars and the county was destroyed many times, so the lower counties of Hengzhou were banned, garrisons were set up, and garrison chiefs, large and small, were set up to guard the local area, and built fortresses and beacons to resist foreign invaders."
"There are many Xianbei military households inside and outside the city, and they are extremely fierce. The local Han people are responsible for farming and providing food, while the Xianbei people train and prepare for war all day long."
"There are many military garrison in Hengzhou, so most of the nobles' sons serve as generals with various positions and concurrently."
Cui Gang explained the situation there to Liu Taozi very seriously. He seemed to feel no pain and spoke very quickly. In a short time, he explained the various systems there as well as the past and present very clearly.
.
Liu Taozi waved her hand and said, "I know, let's keep going."
"only."
Cui Gang walked among the crowd again. Yao Xiong and Tian Zili looked at each other, and then Yao Xiong said: "Brother, I understand."
Tian Zili pursed his lips, lowered his head and did not agree.
After advancing like this for a long time, Kou Liuhu led a few cavalrymen back to Liu Taozi, "Brother, there is a village ahead! You can rest there tonight!"
"Go around."
Kou Liu was stunned.
"It's spring planting, don't disturb the farmers."
"It's not surprising, brother, the village is empty."
The fence outside the village lies on the ground, in a state of disrepair.
The ground is overgrown with weeds, and many of the houses are covered in black, retaining the appearance of when they were burned down.
The whole village exudes the smell of decay.
Liu Taozi led the army and moved into the village. Kou Liu and others had already packed up a house that looked okay, allowing Liu Taozi and others to rest here.
A bonfire was lit, and under the light of the bonfire, the network of cracks on the walls of the house was clearly visible.
Everyone grabbed the meat with their hands and ate it with big mouthfuls, leaving stains all over their faces.
Cui Gang looked around in astonishment, carefully pinching the meat, not knowing how to eat it.
Yao Xiong sighed, "What a pity. We have one thousand cavalry, but we can only bring five hundred with us. It's a waste."
Cui Gang said timidly: "In fact, with the official position of General Hufen, he can only command dozens of soldiers."
Yao Xiong waved his hand, "How can my general be an ordinary General Hu Fen? If you ask me, he should bring all a thousand people with him!"
Tian Zili said: "You are leading more than a thousand cavalry across the prefecture and She County. Are you eager for the temple to send troops to attack us?"
Yao Xiong suddenly looked at Cui Gang, "When we go to Wuchuan this time, are we going to fight?"
Cui Gang's eyes widened, "Since Emperor Wenxuan, the border fortress has been peaceful for a long time and there has been no war."
"Then what did we do there?"
Cui Gang couldn't answer this time, so he looked at Liu Taozi for help.
Liu Taozi finished eating the meat in her hand and wiped her mouth.
He looked at the people sitting in front of him.
"Once you go there, you will naturally know what to do."
"Liu, set up a secret sentinel to patrol, don't be careless."
"only!!"
After Liu Taozi finished speaking, she placed the package on the ground and fell asleep.
Everyone stopped talking and fell asleep one after another.
Cui Gang was at a loss. He followed the example of others, put the package on it, and then put his head on it. However, the package was hard, the ground was uneven, and there were many small stones. This made it impossible for Cui Gang to sleep, so he had to hold on tightly.
Close your eyes and force yourself to fall asleep.
At this moment, his father's appearance appeared in front of him again.
"No matter how many books I read, I can't do anything for the country. I think I am noble, so I come to point fingers at me and want to teach me how to do things."
"Well, just follow Liu Taozi for a while, even if it's just to do one thing well. When you've done it, come and debate with me the principles of how to behave."
"Don't underestimate this person. Although he has never read any articles on Confucian classics, his future fame cannot be limited. Go and see for yourself!"
Cui Gang couldn't help but opened his eyes and looked at the man lying on his side not far away, sleeping soundly.
He is just a warrior who is easy to kill. How did he get his father to admire him so much?
April, the first year of Qianming Dynasty.
Wuchuan.
Liu Taozi and his party stood on the official road, looking at the city in the distance.
The entire city is like a huge ferocious beast. The gray-white walls are thick and tall. There seems to be a crossbow machine placed on the city wall. The sharp crossbow arrows stick out from between the wall stacks, like fangs.
Around the city, there are many military camps, arrow towers are built on high places, there are low walls on both sides of the road, and there are horses.
The surrounding trees have been cut down, and the city is surrounded by city walls of different heights. Some are made of stone and bricks, some are made of wood. This city is like a hundred-proof cavalry, which has been armed. teeth.
Everyone looked at this posture and couldn't help but marvel.
Someone had already noticed their approach, and a heavy horn sounded from a sentry tower, followed by warnings everywhere.
Liu Taozi made Tian Zili raise his banner.
After the two sides exchanged flags, a group of cavalry rushed out from the side of the low wall in the distance. There were more than ten people in total, and they rushed towards here.
The group of people rushed in front of Liu Taozi and looked at the group. The leader just dismounted.
"I don't know why I have come here, so why do you ask for your forgiveness? My subordinate Tu Xiyue, the master of the garrison tower, is responsible for the guard tower in the north of the city under the orders of the Khan!"
"Take me to the official office."
"only!"
The officer shouted loudly, and the horn sound in the distance stopped. He got on his horse, sent people to pass the order, and then led Liu Taozi to the city gate.
Everyone looked around curiously, and when they came to the low wall, they saw the checkpoint here. At this moment, the soldiers guarding the checkpoint had already stood on both sides, giving way to the road.
Not far away, you can see many civilians.
I don’t know how many of them there are, but they are all standing on the inside of the wall, kneeling in the direction of Liu Taozi. They are in ragged clothes, and there are various tools beside them. They must be renovating the city wall, and behind them Beside him, there were several Xianbei soldiers holding long whips.
Everyone looked at the situation here and were about to pass the checkpoint.
A Xianbei soldier quickly walked out of the queue and blocked the crowd.
The owner of the building was very displeased. He raised his head and shouted: "How dare you offend a nobleman from Han Dynasty! Get out of the way! Get out of the way!"
However, the Xianbei soldier looked straight at Liu Taozi on the horse and asked, "Are you the new chief of the garrison?!"
Liu Taozi nodded, "Yes, it's me, what do you want?"
Looking at Liu Taozi, who was tall and powerful, there was no fear in this guy's eyes. He said loudly: "I just want to ask the commander of the garrison! Did you come here to bring the food we need? !”
"Only half of last year's grain was given to us, and the rest was told to be raised by ourselves! Self-raised, self-raised! Where is the place here that can be raised by ourselves?! Are we supposed to go to Yecheng to raise it by ourselves?!"
"I only brought two pieces of winter clothing. I also have two younger brothers who have no clothes to wear. Their toes are frozen and they can no longer ride on the horse!!"
"Great garrison leader!! Did you bring any food?!"
The building owner once again pretended to scold: "The garrison leader has just arrived! Get out of the way quickly!!"
After hearing the soldier's question, several soldiers inside and outside the checkpoint also stood up one after another. Someone said loudly: "That's right. For two years, we haven't been given enough food every time. Why are we saying that we will reissue it?"
Where is the reissue of food?! Do the nobles in Yecheng no longer care about us?!"
Looking at the many restless soldiers, Yao Xiong slowly put his hand on the handle of the knife.
Seeing this scene, the owner of the building took a few steps back, narrowed his eyes, and raised the corners of his mouth slightly.
However, Liu Taozi stepped forward on horseback. The green lion stared unkindly at the soldier in front of him, his breath almost blowing on his face.
Liu Taozi lowered her head and looked into his eyes, "In the past two years, Daqi's harvest has not been good."
The owner of the building was happy. When the soldier heard this, he became even more angry, "Then we are going to starve?! I think we won't have to worry about food and drink when we come to Yecheng, right?!"
The soldiers all made an uproar and made a noise.
Liu Taozi raised her head and looked to the west.
"But I heard that the Western Bandits have a great harvest."
The soldier immediately closed his mouth and looked at Liu Taozi in surprise.
"If you don't have food, don't stay here. Be prepared. In a few days, I will take you to the west to get some food and supplies."
At this moment, the soldier's expression was ecstatic, "Seriously, what the garrison commander said?!"
But the owner of the building was anxious. He hurried over and said, "Master of the Great Guard, we are here."
Liu Taozi stared at him sharply, and the building owner immediately shut his mouth.
Liu Taozi looked at the soldier again and said, "This is true. Please tell the troops in the garrison to sharpen their swords and feed their horses."
"only!!!"
The soldier was overjoyed and hurriedly saluted Liu Taozi, then quickly moved out of the way and stood on both sides.
Liu Taozi led the rest of the group to move forward.
Yao Xiong was very angry at this moment, "A little soldier dared to stop my brother to question him. My brother shouldn't have stopped me. Only killing can make them surrender!"
Tian Zili didn’t know much about the situation here and didn’t rush to speak. Cui Gang timidly said: “The soldiers here are not ordinary soldiers. They are soldiers in name, but they have their own military slaves.
Armed with armor, horses, and crossbows, when going on an expedition, he can take twenty or thirty military slaves with him to fight. The situation here is different from that in the Central Plains."
Liu Taozi said nothing and led the others to move forward.
They passed three checkpoints in this way before arriving at the city gate.
The situation everywhere seemed to be similar, and when they arrived at the city gate, they saw a man riding a big horse, leading many knights, standing here, waiting quietly.
The two parties approached slowly.
Liu Taozi looked at the man, both of them had fierce looks in their eyes, and they gradually came together.
The man bowed his head slightly towards Liu Taozi as a salute, "I am the deputy garrison commander He Laiqian. I have met the general."
Liu Taozi ignored him and directly led his troops to meet them and rushed into the city. For a moment, He Laiqian was shocked. The knights behind him also shouted and hid in a hurry. Liu Taozi directly separated them and separated them from them.
He rushed into the city, and many knights behind him followed him. They looked at the knights on the left and right with evil eyes, and the two sides were at war with each other.
He Laigan was squeezed to the gate, with half of his body pressed against the city gate. The knights kept passing through them, giving him no chance to turn around or come out.
He Laiqian's face was red. I don't know how long it took, but hundreds of knights entered the city. He Laigan could move freely. He turned around on his horse and looked at the people who entered the city. His eyes were full of anger. He bit
He gritted his teeth and looked around, "I was actually humiliated by a little baby!"
"Follow me!!"
He led everyone to follow him quickly.
At this moment, Liu Taozi was looking at the surrounding buildings.
Wuchuan is indeed different from ordinary cities. The buildings in the city are mainly school grounds and military camps, and the residential buildings are close to the outer walls. The entire city is like a large military camp. The roads are very wide, with many main roads and few small roads.
Everything is built according to the configuration of the military camp.
The building owner continued to lead Liu Taozi, but at this moment, he did not dare to say a word.
They came all the way to the government office.
The so-called official office is just a larger earthen courtyard. It looks dusty. When you open the door, you will find that it is overgrown with weeds and dilapidated. There is a foul smell everywhere.
The owner of the building hurriedly explained: "Master of the great garrison, many military garrisons do not have official offices and have not arranged for military officials, so they have always been empty. If you want to live there, you can live outside the city. There are garrisons outside the city."
While he was explaining the situation here, He Laiqian rushed to Liu Taozi's side.
His face was quite ugly. Just looking at the knights crowding the road, he swallowed his words and said, "Master of the garrison, I have prepared meals at the garrison."
"I will live here."
"Get off your horse and take the people to clean it up."
Liu Taozi pointed his riding whip at He Laiqian in front of him and said.
At this moment, He Laiqian finally couldn't help but laugh.
"Does your noble lord think that by bringing some cavalry here and taking the Khan's edict, he can dominate here?"
"There are three thousand knights inside and outside the city. You may not be able to speak with a small number of soldiers."
"And this place is too far away from Yecheng. The Khan may not be aware of the things happening here. There are quite a few garrison leaders who have fallen from their horses and died in consecutive years."
Liu Taozi looked at him, the corner of her left eye twitched, and there was a hint of ferocity in her eyes.
Chapter completed!