He Yun withdrew from the tent with some anxiety, while Lu Yao looked down at the spreading geographical map, and remained silent for a long time.

With the help of the eyes of many scouts and spies, the large map in front of Lu Yao was so detailed that it was beyond ordinary people's imagination.

His fingers moved northward along the line of the army. The complex points, lines and lines at the fingertips, seemed to have a real scene in his mind, vividly reflecting the magnificent wild mountains and rivers within hundreds of miles of radius and the countless Xianbei tribes distributed therein.

After looking for a while, he felt his eyes a little sore. After all, it was dusk. Although the sunset was still on the distant mountains, the tent was already very dark. The tempting aroma of stewed food had already been heard outside the central army's tent. The soldiers returned to the camp to wait for the meal, talking and laughing, the sound of words and pots and pans colliding with each other, and the clanging sound of armored soldiers patrolling outside the tent mixed together, making it a little noisy.

Lu Yao rolled up the geographical map and placed it on the side of the table. At the same time, he closed his eyes tightly, opened them wide, and repeated several times to relieve the fatigue of his eyes. Just as he was about to get up to light the candle, someone took action before him, walked around the tent diligently, and lit up the surrounding lampstands together.

The lights were lit by an old man about 60 years old. The swaying light reflected his face. The old man looked ordinary, dark skin, white spotted hair wrapped in a bun loosely, looking a little too tall, with a slightly hunched back, and an old sheepskin jacket slanted, looking rustic. Just when He Yun entered the tent, the old man sat at Lu Yao's lower head, but firstly the light in the tent was not bright, and secondly, he was really not eye-catching, so He Yun never noticed this person from beginning to end.

Lu Yao supported the desk table with both hands and bowed to the old man, saying, "I'm working hard."

The old man smiled and said, "General, don't be polite. I heard that Team Master He has followed the general for many years, and has been born and died together, and is the most trustworthy. When I see him today, I am indeed kind-hearted and different from ordinary warriors."

"It's just a woman who is ignorant of the general principles." Lu Yao shook his head: "It's really a bit surprising that you have been in the northern border for decades, but you have known this team leader in our military region so much."

"Why should the general be too humble? The general comes from a famous family, and he started from the army of soldiers. He increased the Xiongnu and turned the tide in Yecheng with his defeat. He even took the county with a thunderbolt and shocked the northern border. Such a record is even the famous general Gou Dao, and Liu Yueshi, who are just like this. General Yingyang's reputation spreads far and wide, and even the fierce generals under the general are already well-known. It is not surprising that I know the reputation of He team leader..." The old man bowed politely to Lu Yao and continued: "Who did not see He team leader's archery skills today, but he appreciated He team leader's benevolence."

Lu Yao leaned back and smiled silently: "A heart of benevolence? Duke Xiang of Song practiced the way of benevolence, but he was defeated and died in Hongshui's army and became a laughing stock for thousands of years. Duke Deyuan said that although benevolence is great, it is useless."

The old man lowered his eyelids: "However, isn't this kind of kindness that General Lu values?"

Lu Yao didn't expect that his thoughts would be so easily revealed, and he couldn't help but be slightly stunned.

He looked at the old man, respected as "Duke of Deyuan", sat upright with his eyebrows down, his face calm and composed. Although he was not particularly majestic, he had an unfathomable aura. He was worthy of being a legendary figure who served as the assistant minister of Tuoba Xianbei, the left general, and Wei Cao, the Marquis of Dingxiang.

This time, Lu Yao's army was slow to advance on the dam, and he acted as he was only concerned about plundering people and wealth everywhere to confuse the two powerful families of Puliru and Chiluo in the north; secretly, he had sent capable personnel to work with Ma Bonde to the source of Rushui, and connected with the refugees of Jin who were trapped there. As early as three days ago, Wei Cao personally risked his life to sneak through the blockade of the Xianbei cavalry and came to Lu Yao's big camp for negotiations.

Lu Yao knew very well that for refugees trapped at the source of Rushui and on the verge of despair, Dai County troops were their only life. But he did not rush to the death and rushed to rescue him impatiently, but instead deliberately suppressed the speed of the march. During the three days when Wei Cao was with the army, the distance of the Jin army camp to the north was only ten miles a day. The reason for this was that it was first to obtain more favorable conditions when discussing with Wei Cao.

Wei Cao served as an official in the Tuoba Xianbei tribe for many years and determined the official positions and systems for the two generations of great Shanyu. His clans had dozens of important civil and military positions. Even during the chaos of the Tuoba Xianbei, he could still combine tens of thousands of Jin people to retreat and protect themselves. Such a huge force was exactly what Dai County, which lacked manpower, needed.

Among the troops and people Lu Yao is currently in charge, Hu Er has more than 60%, and this proportion is very terrifying. It should be noted that the Jin people are like flesh and blood, and the Hu people are just sharp blades used to fight. If they are not used carefully, they will hurt themselves. Even if Lu Yao tries his best to break up the original tribal system and use the laws of the Jin people to restrain the Hu people, it cannot guarantee that these Hu people will always be loyal when fighting with the same clan. In this context, he urgently needs to obtain more support from the Jin people to ensure the stability of the county power.

But at the same time, Lu Yao was deeply afraid of this force that was out of the jurisdiction of the court and was unique on the grassland. Although his wings gradually became fuller, his foundation was not strong after all, and he only relied on a county. If the means of dealing with the Wei clan were not perfect, he might be at risk of turning against the guest. Because of this, Lu Yao decided to discuss the conditions with Wei Cao in detail to ensure that he would obey the orders of the county from then on.

Unfortunately, when he went north to the grassland, Shao Xu had never followed the army, but he broke into the wine shop and was not Lu Yao's skill in making subtle tongue arguments. Although Lu Yao deliberately neglected Wei Cao for several days, Wei Cao always maintained a calm attitude of not being impatient, which made it difficult for Lu Yao to deal with. His occasional words were vaguely meaningful, as if he was mocking Lu Yao's scheming, saying that he was really watching the Jin people besieged by the Xianbei because of his selfishness, which was contrary to Rendao.

Lu Yao inhale deeply and exhale deeply, suppressing his anxious mood. Wei Cao is simply an old fox that is difficult to guess. Maybe he can just recommend it honestly?

"Duke Deyuan, I have visited Mahjong in the past few days. The Xianbei people in the Ruyuan area were in a hurry to invade. Although our army intended to help, it was blocked by many tribes in the southern part of the Bashang Grassland, and it is unlikely to rescue them in time..." Lu Yao pondered for a while and asked tentatively: "The situation is so critical, but I don't seem to worry about this?"

Wei Cao first smiled and then sighed. When he sighed, wrinkles immediately appeared on his forehead, as if reminding others that this once-famous figure was aging after all. But perhaps the demeanor and appeal brought by decades of holding power still existed. When he spoke in a blink of an eye, Lu Yao couldn't help but concentrate and listen carefully.

*******

It is indeed a hard work to divide the chapters. It seems that the next chapter must be named "Wei Cao (Part 2)" or "Wei Cao (Continued)"...
Chapter completed!