Chapter 52 Chapter 52 Don’t stare at my third brother’s back. …
Only a few bandit leaders were captured alive this time, and Yuan Wangshu immediately ordered that they all be beheaded on the spot.
Seeing the soldiers approaching with their swords drawn, one bandit suddenly fell to his knees, wailing. Using her hands and knees, she crawled to the kindest-looking man and kowtowed, admitting her fault. "Madam, I was wrong! Madam, please spare my life! I don't want to die! Madam, I'll take you to Chief Zhang. Please let me go."
Xie Tingyu raised her hand to block the execution, and the soldier, about to execute him, immediately withdrew his sword and retreated. She squatted down and looked at the man's face several times. He had a square face, thick eyebrows and big eyes, and looked honest and simple.
"If you can point out a few hidden paths leading to Chen Yuan's stronghold, I will consider sparing your life."
Sun Hui looked up in panic. Taking someone to see Zhang Yan could be considered a temporary solution to save her life, but revealing the secrets of her own boss, Shen, would be a complete act of treason.
But being a traitor right now is not as important as saving your own life.
She kowtowed and agreed hurriedly, "I am Sun Hui. Because my family is poor, I have been living with the headmaster Shen for over two years. If you want to ask me anything, I will tell you everything I know."
Yuan Wangshu crossed his arms over his chest and stared at the man coldly, "If you dare to say anything untrue, you will be punished like this board." As he said this, he slashed down with the sword in his hand, and the horizontal board on the car broke with a sound, and the cut was smooth and sharp.
Sun Hui was so frightened that his face turned pale and he kowtowed repeatedly.
The group rode back to the camp at full speed and assigned two people to keep a close eye on Sun Hui. They ordered him to draw a detailed map of the route he knew and to interrogate him to see if he knew the inside story of the Jiankang refugee riot.
With the moon high in the sky, Xie Tingyu found herself at a nearby lake. She tied her moon-stepping horse to an old pine tree on the bank, untied her belt, and let her clothes rustle to the ground. In the moonlight, she was like a fish with shimmering silver scales. With a splash, she jumped into the lake.
The moon's shadow shattered on the lake surface, turning into thousands of silver lights, spreading out with circles of ripples.
Xie Tingyu stretched out her limbs, water droplets rolling down her slender arms and delicate collarbone. She took a deep breath, dove into the lake, and when she was almost out of breath, she suddenly broke through the water and washed her long black hair.
After washing off the dust from her travels, Xie Tingyu stepped barefoot onto the lakeshore and pulled out a small jade comb from among the layers of clothes piled on the ground. She slowly traced the lotus pattern on the comb with her fingertips, chuckled softly, and combed her hair by the lake.
Back at the camp, Xie Tingyu was passing by the wounded soldiers' tent when he suddenly saw a man hurriedly pulling back the curtain and leaving. The man, focused only on the front, walked hurriedly, not noticing anyone around him, and just ran straight into Xie Tingyu's arms.
Seeing that the man was about to fall backwards due to his unstable body, Xie Tingyu was quick to grab his wrist and steady him.
As Yuan Fuxue stood still, she suddenly met a pair of clear, moist eyes. Perhaps from her recent shower, her eyelashes were damp, and her hair, plastered to her cheeks, made her look even more beautiful. Her dress was undone, revealing a slender neck.
He hurriedly lowered his eyes, pulled his hand back as if struck by lightning, and rubbed his wrist with his sleeve. "Sorry, I didn't notice you for a moment."
Xie Tingyu looked inside and saw in the candlelight that several soldiers who were injured in today's battle were being bandaged.
"They're not seriously injured, are they?"
"It's just a minor injury, nothing serious." Yuan Fuxue's ears turned red as she whispered, "But were you hurt by the collision just now?"
"What are you doing!" A sharp voice suddenly interrupted the two.
They both turned their heads at the same time, looking in the direction of the voice. They saw Yuan Wangshu striding towards them with a look of surprise on his face, and said in a stern tone, "Xie Tingyu, it's so late, and you're still dragging someone to the tent to question them. Are you human? Are you?"
Several bold black dots floated on Xie Tingyu's forehead. "I only said no more than five sentences. Am I not a human being?"
Yuan Wangshu stared at Xie Tingyu with a cold expression, "Don't say a word."
It was originally just an ordinary conversation, but Yuan Wangshu's forced intrusion made Yuan Fuxue feel very uncomfortable. His ears were burning, and he raised his hand to salute, hurriedly saying "It's late, time to rest", and hurriedly left.
Yuan Wangshu moved an inch to the side, blocking the view of Yuan Sanlangjun completely, and said sternly, "Don't stare at my third brother's back."
Xie Tingyu pointed his finger at Yuan Wangshu's forehead and asked, "Do you have any brain disease?" Without looking at the man's ashen face, he turned around and left.
The next morning, the guards on duty presented the drawn mountain path map and Sun Hui's signed confession to Xie Tingyu. The testimony essentially stated that the Jiankang refugee rebellion was the work of Shen Yuan, who had gathered the entire village and asked who was willing to go to Jiankang.
Everyone gathered in the main tent.
Cui Yuanying had gained some confidence after yesterday's battle, and he dared to express his opinion in front of Huan Zhanyue. "Aunt, I think we should follow the information provided by this person and attack and destroy Shen Yuan's stronghold in one fell swoop.
After saying this, Cui Yuanying glanced at Xie Tingyu's reaction again.
Xie Tingyu was concentrating on reading Sun Hui's confession, and he seemed oblivious to the arguments among the people. Wang Lanzhi, who was standing nearby, also came over to examine it.
Yuan Wangshu immediately denied it, tapping his fingertips on the desk. "It's just one person who wrote the lyrics, how can it be trusted?"
Cui Yuanying retorted, "What's Yuan Dafeng's idea? Could it be a few more robberies and abducting a few more people?" She deliberately slammed her hand on the table. "Some people must have forgotten who cut off the clues yesterday, preventing Xie Er from even being able to question him!"
Wang Lanzhi finally raised his head and said to Huan Zhanyue, "Even though Sun Hui has confirmed that the Jiankang refugee riot was solely related to Shen Yuan, and that she and Zhang Yan have been at odds for a long time, I don't think Zhang Yan would not come to our rescue if we attacked Shen Yuan."
Xie Tingyu put away the testimony and the roadmap. "I agree. This is an internal matter, and even if she's telling the truth, she can't be trusted." She patted Cui Yuanying's shoulder. "But what you just said does give me some clues."
Cui Yuanying nudged him with his elbow: "Then tell me quickly."
Xie Tingyu faced the crowd and pointed to Shen Yuan's base on the military map. "Now that we've obtained the testimony, Shen Yuan is the one who's most worried. She must be constantly worried that we'll attack her at any moment and rip her head off."
"However," Xie Tingyu's finger slid over Zhang Yan's stronghold, "since we know this, then Zhang Yan knows it even better. She also knows the truth that if one loses the other, the other's teeth will be cold. If Shen Yuan is captured alive by us, then she will definitely be next."
Huan Zhanyue nodded, "Indeed. Even though there are many disagreements between them, if one is in trouble, the other will surely rush to the rescue."
"Exactly! General Huan hit the nail on the head!"
Yuan Wangshu twitched the corner of his mouth and said, "Xie Er, you are quite good at flattering and handling things."
Wang Lanzhi suggested, "We might as well send a few scouts to explore the route along this map. If something unexpected happens, we can retreat without worry."
Cui Yuanying was confused when he heard this: "Then do we still have to fight Shen Yuan first?"
"Attack! Of course! First, pluck out some of the Black Mountain Army's wings, and then attack Zhang Yan."
Xie Tingyu's lips curled up into a sly smile, "Do you know the story of the boy who cried wolf?"
Everyone was confused and puzzled.
Xie Tingyu explained, "I suspect Shen Yuan must have learned by now that the men she sent to rob the merchant caravan are now dead. She must be terrified, suspecting her fellow bandits of thuggery and fearing a crackdown by the imperial court. We might try to rob her grain train a few times, cutting off her supply and making her feel uneasy and uneasy."
"Then one night, we raided Shen Yuan and caught her off guard."
Cui Yuanying was confused: "Then according to what you and Wang Lanzhi just said, Zhang Yan is leading his army to help us, so what about us?"
Xie Tingyu shook his head slightly: "We are now focusing on Shen Yuan and Zhang Yan, but forgetting that there is also Shen Yu."
She clapped her hands and smiled. "The main force of the Black Mountain Army is divided into three groups: Zhang Yan, Shen Yuan, and Shen Yu, each occupying one side. We have only deduced that Zhang Yan will send troops to support Shen Yuan, but Shen Yu is unknown. If we pretend to send only a thousand soldiers to attack Shen Yuan, but actually attack Shen Yu, this tactic is called a strategy of attacking the east and the west."
Huan Zhanyue slammed the table and said, "Whether Chen Yu knows it or not, she will definitely be unable to defend against this move! Their strength is so dispersed. Although they will support each other at this critical moment, this is both their advantage and their disadvantage!"
She looked at Xie Tingyu with a positive eye and laughed heartily: "What a trick to lure the tiger away from the mountain! What a trick to remove the firewood from under the cauldron!"
After much deliberation, the details of this first battle were finally decided: Xie Tingyu and Cui Yuanying would lead the elite main force to attack Shen Yu, while Wang Lanzhi and Yuan Wangshu would lead 3,000 light cavalry to launch a feint attack on Shen Yuan.
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Everyone in the mountain stronghold was in a panic.
Everyone in the Juyi Hall was arguing.
"Master Shen, if the first time we lost our sisters, we could say it was just gangsters robbing gangsters, but now that the grain carts have been robbed one after another, it must be the work of the imperial court's lackeys!"
"Nonsense! Who knows, it's some rat from the mountain valley who's coveting our food supplies!"
"Shut up! Zhang Sanniang, I've already advised you not to encourage the head of the household to go to Jiankang and incite the refugees. If that fails, the imperial court will surely send someone! You're just trying to clear yourself by saying this now!"
Zhang Sanniang's face flushed, and veins bulged in her neck. "If our Shen Da's old mother hadn't been injured by the army sent by the court, she wouldn't have died so early! I'm doing this for Shen Da's sake. If this succeeds, then our Black Mountain Army can take advantage of the situation and attack!"
"Your brain is clogged with shit, right?! What are you hitting me for? Are you hitting me for the shit in my brain?"
The argument was raging, faces flushed, and the situation was already on the verge of violence. You pushed me, I punched you back, and several people wrestled together in front of Chen Yuan. The chaotic noise in the hall actually drowned out the bursts of clamor coming from outside.
Chen Yuan stood up with a grim expression and kicked Sun Sanniang hard in the abdomen, with murderous intent in her eyes. "You beast, what did you tell me at the beginning? You said this move is called catching the enemy off guard and it will definitely kill that dog emperor by surprise." Still not satisfied, she kicked her a few more times.
Everyone stopped, standing there like wooden blocks, breathless. Zhang Sanniang struggled to her feet, tears streaming down her face as she hugged Chen Yuan's legs. "Boss, I'm doing this for your own good! Heaven and earth can bear witness to my deep love for the people of the village!"
Chen Yuan kicked Sun Sanniang away again, angrily saying, "Now, in order to protect the stronghold, I have no choice but to humble myself and beg that lowly bastard Zhang Yan. I even have to respectfully call her Big Sister and give her generous gifts before she agrees to support me."
The more she spoke, the angrier she became. She pulled out a large knife from the wall and chopped the table in half. "I've never been humiliated like this by Zhang Yan! Never! Back then, mother was partial and gave her more troops than me, and now she wants me to beg her!"
The rest of the people looked at each other, not daring to say a word. In the hall, the only sounds were Shen Yuan's angry shouts and the noise rising outside the village.
Shen Yuan finally reacted and shouted, "Hurry up and go outside—"
Before he could finish his words, a man outside fell to the ground, tumbling and crawling. His voice was trembling and incoherent, "Boss, it's bad! The government troops are coming up the mountain!"
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