Chapter 176
Two fast horses coming from opposite directions entered Wuling County almost at the same time and headed straight for the prefectural governor's mansion.
The two secret letters from Lingnan and the imperial city also reached the hands of Wuling County Prefect Huo at the same time.
Huo Shanrong read the two secret letters and looked at his confidant with a gloomy face.
"The batch of military rations that was previously robbed from Yuzhang was robbed by bandits from Lingnan before it could be shipped out."
The trusted general was shocked: "The military rations have been stolen. How will you explain this to His Majesty?"
Huo Shanrong sneered and held the last secret letter from the imperial city in his palm. His face was gloomy. "The secret letter sent by His Majesty is about inquiring about the military rations of Yuzhang. He also said that if the rations are delivered a second time, then the robbery will continue."
If the military rations cannot be handed over smoothly this time, the emperor may suspect that he is hoarding them and plotting a rebellion.
The general was stunned. After a moment's silence, he mumbled, "How could military pay be so easily robbed? The previous time we borrowed grain, we lost quite a few soldiers. This time, when Yuzhang sends military pay again, the deployment will certainly be even tighter. Even if Your Majesty is wary of Yuzhang, you can't let them lose their troops here again and again. It seems Your Majesty is..."
The words were on the tip of his tongue, but Lang Jiang didn't dare to say anything more.
Huo Shanrong glanced at him and said, "It's just you and me, what can't we talk about?"
Upon hearing this, Lang Jiang hesitated for just two breaths before expressing his unfinished thoughts.
"While Your Majesty is weakening Yuzhang's military strength, it seems... he is also weakening Wuling's."
Huo Shanrong was not surprised at all.
Such a simple truth, you can understand it at a glance.
When the new emperor ascended the throne, there were many people who were dissatisfied. No matter which force they were from, the new emperor was on guard against them.
Even though he had secretly served him for twenty years, the new emperor was still wary of him.
The world is unstable now, and we should win over the meritorious officials who have served the emperor, rather than foolishly suspect, suppress, or weaken them.
The emperor was not stupid, but he was old and high up in the world. He was used to giving orders and letting his subordinates do what they wanted. He didn't care whether it was difficult or not, as long as the results were good.
The general had begun by saying something disrespectful, but he simply continued in a low voice, "Your Majesty ascended the throne at the age of nearly seventy, so it's inevitable that he's confused and suspicious. There are rebellions everywhere, and although Your Majesty has used force to suppress them, you've also sent troops from various places to quell the rebellion, and the imperial city's military strength hasn't been damaged at all."
What his subordinates said was also what Huo Shanrong was worried about.
He ascended the throne at the age of seventy, but the crown prince has not yet been appointed. According to the information sent by the secret agents in the imperial city, two of the princes vying for the throne have already died. Huo Shanrong does not believe that this happened without the instigation of the new emperor.
Obviously, the emperor's suspicion became more and more serious. Not only these local forces, but even his own son were on guard against him.
After all, he has been coveting that position for decades. Now that he has finally ascended to a high position, everyone seems to be trying to snatch his throne.
Now some are rising up in rebellion, and some are fighting to kill traitors. He feels that he may not be able to hold on to the throne firmly.
After a long moment of contemplation, he suddenly said, "Instead of being loyal to the shaky imperial city, it is better to create a new world."
The general guessed something and asked, "Sir, are you planning to surrender to Yuzhang?"
Huo Shanrong seemed to have heard something funny and burst into laughter, making Lang Jiang laugh inexplicably.
The laughter stopped abruptly, and his expression suddenly became stern: "If he can sit on the throne, why can't I?"
If you can say such words, it means you have already thought about it.
The general was startled, but after calming himself down a bit, he clasped his fists and bowed to express his loyalty: "I swear to follow you till death, sir!"
Huo Shanrong threw the crumpled secret letter in his hand onto the table and said leisurely, "In the past hundred years, the throne has changed three times. It's Wuling's turn now."
Lang Jiang's mind was already calm: "Sir, what are the plans for the military rations in Yuzhang?"
"Yuzhang is a century-old family with strong strength. The Zhou family leader is not a pushover and may not truly submit to a traitor. He must have a back-up plan in mind. I'm not the only one vying for that position."
After pondering for a moment, he said, "Send someone secretly out of the city to Yuzhang and inform Patriarch Zhou that the emperor ordered Yuzhang to quell the rebellion while simultaneously sending me to intercept food supplies, resulting in a mutual defeat for both the Yuzhang army and Cangwu Commandery."
After considering it, the general said, "Although Sect Leader Zhou will believe what you say, he may not be willing to form an alliance with you."
Huo Shanrong smiled and said, "I don't want an alliance, nor do I want that Sect Master Zhou to trust me. I just want to tell him that I will no longer serve this emperor, and I will turn a blind eye to whatever he does."
His smile deepened as he handed the secret letter from Lingnan to Lang Jiang: "I can't say nothing. Give this secret letter to the Zhou family leader. I think he can understand what I mean."
When talking about the Yuzhang Zhou family, one will think of the humiliation that the old man of Yuzhang suffered in the Zhou family when he passed away.
It was just a few sarcastic remarks. He was in a high position now, and he was not a drunkard like Huo Minzhi who could lose his mind with just a few words. Those humiliations only made him angry for a moment, but he didn't care much about it afterwards.
Nothing is more important than the overall situation.
The winner is the king and the loser is the bandit.
*
Sect Leader Zhou took a look at the secret letter from Wuling and was a little surprised, but after the surprise he felt it was natural.
Huo Shanrong was a fence-sitter. When he saw that the situation was not good, he leaned towards the side with stronger wind.
"Master, this man looks like he's surrendered, but he's abandoned his master twice. He can't be trusted."
Sect Master Zhou said "hmm" lightly, his eyes fell on the secret letter, and then said: "He knows that Lingnan Muyun Village has a relationship with me."
The two subordinates in the room were both stunned.
"Yuzhang and Muyun Village have close ties, so how could Huo Shanrong know this? Could it be... Fu Wei!?"
Sect Leader Zhou frowned slightly and listened to his subordinates' continued analysis: "Even if they're not biological, they've been father and son for twenty years. Fu Wei has never met his biological father, so how could he have any feelings for him? Even the relatives who stayed in Yuzhang are only half-relatives. How can they compare to the adoptive father who he has been with for twenty years?"
"Previously, the father and son looked as if they had no ties to each other, but it was inevitable that they were putting on a show in front of the Sect Master to let him down. This time, the Second Young Master had revealed everything to Fu Wei, and since Fu Wei knew about Lingnan's deployment, it wouldn't be surprising if he informed Huo Shanrong."
Sect Leader Zhou had a moment of doubt, but he immediately suppressed it.
"Huo Shanrong isn't that stupid. If Fu Wei is truly his pawn, then he's essentially making Fu Wei a discarded pawn. How can there be any father-son relationship?"
"He only knew I was colluding with the Lingnan bandits, but he wasn't sure if they were my men. He had no direct evidence, only some clues he had found through his investigation."
Sect Master Zhou held up the secret letter and said, "If you knew you were my man, you wouldn't have sent this secret letter to test me, but would have negotiated terms with me directly."
"He thought he would turn a blind eye and cover up for me to surrender, but he just wanted me and the emperor to kill each other so that he could reap the benefits."
The two people in the room pondered for a while, and after a moment, they still advised: "Master, Fu Wei has been raised by Huo Shanrong for twenty years. He must have been infected with Huo Shanrong's insidiousness and cunningness. He can't be trusted."
Sect Leader Zhou put down the secret letter and pondered for a few breaths before saying, "When you employ someone, trust him. When you doubt him, don't employ him. Fu Wei is already part of my plan, and the situation outside of it is uncertain. There's no need to talk about internal strife anymore."
"metropolitan……"
Sect Leader Zhou raised his hand to stop his subordinate from trying to persuade him. He said, "Fu Wei and Er Lang are both in Lingnan now. Let's see how they handle the situation first."
Seeing that Zhou Zong had made up his mind, the two of them said no more.
"Let's not discuss this matter anymore. Let's discuss the issue of food and military doctors first."
Speaking of military doctors, Sect Leader Zhou thought of Fu Wei's wife.
The doubts in my heart also dissipated.
If Fu Wei had any ulterior motives, he would not have allowed his wife to teach others medicine.
"The food and wages were sent out in three batches a few days ago. They were all old grain. Even if they were robbed, it wouldn't matter. After all, the previous food and wages have been taken back, so it won't affect the Second Young Master and his men."
Sect Leader Zhou nodded, "Where's the military doctor?"
"The military doctor has also set out today."
*
Food and fodder were sent first, and the military medical supplies and the troops transporting food and fodder set out from Yuzhang three days apart.
Sect Leader Zhou also arranged another elite force to escort them to Lingnan.
Yuzhang was heavily guarded by soldiers, so people inside the city did not feel the difficulties of the world. Only after leaving Lingnan did they realize that the outside world was in chaos.
They originally wanted to stay overnight in the village when they passed by, but when they arrived, they found the village in ruins. The houses were burned down, and corpses were lying everywhere. The limbs were broken after being eaten by wild dogs. The bones were white, and the flesh was full of maggots, which was disgusting to look at.
Most of the military doctors were young men between the ages of fifteen or sixteen and twenty. Among the fifty of them, thirty-two percent were selected from the army, and thirty-one percent were children of military families.
Seeing this scene, his voice rose and fell.
Even Yu Ying's face turned pale, but as the head student, she suppressed her nausea and felt more sad.
In troubled times, human life is as worthless as grass.
The corpse had already rotted, and in order to avoid being infected by corpse poison, we could not stay overnight in the village. We had to move forward and find a relatively flat place to camp.
The night was dark and full of dangers. The escorting soldiers were divided into three groups and took turns guarding. The guards were on high alert and did not slack off at all.
The younger and inexperienced military doctor sat by the fire with a pale face and a slightly dazed look.
The youngest among them was Wei Yong, who had competed with Fu Wei.
He had been a bit of a troublemaker at the academy, but he hadn't even turned fifteen when he enrolled, and had just become old enough to join the army last month.
Although he is a troublemaker among students, he is just a child when facing life and death.
Yu Ying sat down by the fire, and everyone stood up belatedly and called out "Sir".
"When you're out and about, there's no need for so many etiquettes. Please sit down."
Everyone sat down in silence. After a long time, someone suddenly spoke.
"Sir, can we return safely?"
They didn't feel scared before they went there, but after seeing the destroyed villages and the corpses lying around, they became afraid. They were afraid that they would also die in the wilderness in the future and become bones in the wilderness.
Yu Ying did not give them any assurances, but said, "If we are captured one day, our lives will be the most important."
Everyone looked puzzled.
Now that you have been captured, how can you value your life?
"You are military doctors, and you have skills. Doctors are most needed when two armies are fighting. If you are captured, you will use your skills to save your life."
Someone understood, glanced cautiously at the soldiers in the distance, and whispered, "Sir, please be careful with your words."
Although he was asked to be careful with his words, it was impossible for him to say that he was not shaken at all.
When they set out, the elders all said that Yuzhang was the most important thing. However, apart from their mother and grandmother, the master was the first one who told them to put their lives first.
Yu Ying knew that it was not appropriate to say this, but rather than hiding and being suspected of having ulterior motives, it was better to say it in public.
"Saving yourself first and then finding a chance to escape is a temporary solution. It doesn't mean you should betray your family or the Duke of the County."
No one dared to discuss it, but nodded, still feeling worried.
But I don’t know if it’s because the gentleman is around, but I feel a little more at ease.
Yu Ying looked around and her eyes fell on the guarding soldiers.
There are always scouts going ahead during the march, and the situation of the village must have been surveyed first.
They had already conducted an investigation, but they did not stop the people from moving forward. Instead, they let everyone witness the tragic scene. This must be what Sect Leader Zhou meant.
Let these newly trained military doctors adapt first so that they won’t be frightened by the bloody and brutal battlefield.
This is only the first day, and there are still ten days to go. I wonder how many more tragic scenes like today's will we see.
Yu Ying breathed a sigh of relief.
Looking up at the night sky, I felt extremely depressed.
I really want to go home.
I want to go back to that peaceful and prosperous home. I don’t want to be the dean of a medical school anymore, and I don’t want to participate in any battle for world domination.
After sighing, I realized that I had no choice and that these were just thoughts.
Now, she only hopes to have a smooth journey to Lingnan.
However, what you fear always comes true.
On the fifth day, he passed through Nankang but encountered a mutiny in Nankang. The prefect of Nankang County occupied the three counties of Nankang, Guiyang and Lingling, and proclaimed himself the King of the South.
Without much thought, you will know what this "Nan Wang" means, which means the king in the south.
The Nankang checkpoint was under strict inspection and the group was trapped in Nankang.
Their numbers were too large to be conspicuous, and they were afraid that they would all be captured before leaving Nankang. After discussion, they had no choice but to take a long detour through the mountains.
However, the mountain road was rugged, so we had to abandon the carriage and some medicinal materials.
It would have taken several days to reach Lingnan, but now I'm afraid it will take at least half a month to reach Lingnan.
The sun was scorching in September and the mountain roads were difficult to travel on. The soldiers were not greatly affected, but the young military doctors could not bear it. People fainted every day and had to be supported by others to walk.
Yu Ying’s physique is just that of an ordinary person, but this is the path she chose, so she gritted her teeth and persevered.
My lips were chapped, my skin was sunburned, and I had countless blisters on the soles of my feet. I popped them and applied medicine at night, then continued on my way the next day.
After they crossed mountains and rivers and finally passed Nankang and arrived at the Qinshui Pass, they heard that there was a traitor in the Yuzhang army, which led to the defeat in Cangwu and the remaining troops retreated into the mountains and disappeared.
This news was undoubtedly a blow to everyone.
But Yu Ying didn't believe it.
Cangwu Prefect Chen surrendered to Yuzhang, so Lord Zhou will not be defeated this time no matter what.
The rumors of defeat now must be attributed to Sect Leader Zhou and Lord Zhou, father and son, or perhaps Fu Wei is plotting something.
While resting at the Qinshui Pass, Yu Ying asked the captain escorting them, "Since your Excellency has been defeated... should we continue on to Cangwu?"
The captain looked at her strangely. "The Second Young Master leads the army, and General Fu Lang is among them. Now his life or death is unknown. Why don't you worry about him, sir, but instead ask about the way forward?"
Yu Ying turned to look at the listless military doctors. "If I lose control of myself, they won't be able to handle it."
Upon hearing this, the captain followed her gaze.
Indeed, after nearly a month's journey, most of the young military doctors who had never served in the army were exhausted both physically and mentally. After hearing about the defeat, they were all in a state of disarray. If the leading doctor collapsed, they would probably be physically and mentally exhausted before reaching Cangwu, and even if they had all the medical skills, they would be of no use in the future.
If your mind is unstable, it is equivalent to being useless.
There are 100,000 lions, but there are probably no more than a hundred military doctors. Their medical skills vary greatly, and those with excellent medical skills are rare.
The county lord has taken the trouble to open a medical school to train military doctors, but now there are less than 200 of them.
The captain withdrew his gaze and looked at the woman before him. He said, "Before we set off, the county lord sent Steward Zheng to instruct us that absolutely no accidents must happen to this group of people and that they must be well protected. So, sir, there is no need to worry too much. Furthermore, the county lord has ordered that no matter how the war situation is ahead, we must escort you to Lingnan."
After a moment's thought, he added, "Second Young Master has been defeated, but has only temporarily retreated to the mountains. There's still a chance to turn defeat into victory. After such a fierce battle, countless wounded are in great need of medical attention. We can't delay any longer. We'll rest here for the night and set off tomorrow morning."
Yu Ying nodded and returned to the tent.
The defeat may be a smokescreen.
But if we have already made this plan, why should we send the military doctor to Cangwu? The journey is dangerous and he may die.
Yu Ying suddenly felt confused about Sect Master Zhou’s purpose.
It's impossible that sending them to Lingnan is just to confuse the public. The military doctors go there to create the illusion that the army is still in Lingnan?
Then what are they?
Yu Ying had a headache.
It seems that even if you lean against a big tree, it is not so easy to enjoy the shade.
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