Chapter 159 Ma Teng Requests Surrender
Ma Chao originally came here to fight for a position for himself after surrendering, but he was not happy to be used as a gift from Qiao Yan when meeting Ma Teng.
But he was now a prisoner defeated by Lu Bu. No matter how reluctant he was, he had to be tied up and thrown onto another empty horse.
At this moment, because he was in a normal observation angle, he realized that the horse that Qiao Yan was riding was not as eye-catching as Red Hare only because it had just entered the adult stage of war horses. There was also a layer of armor covering it, hiding it -
In fact, if it were allowed to grow up, it would definitely be a handsome and strong war horse.
His mistake of mistaking someone was really a bit...
Somewhat ridiculous.
But thinking that Commander Qiao Yan was able to give a fine horse like Red Hare to his subordinates for future use, and was not reluctant to spend a huge amount of money to build such military equipment, it was obvious that he was a wise leader. Ma Chao felt that there was a little psychological comfort in the depression of being captured.
And because they were being escorted towards Lintao, it was not difficult for Ma Chao to see that there was something wrong with the horses' feet.
This made him vaguely realize that even though the good horses of Bingzhou were somewhat inferior to the best ones of Liangzhou, and the Qiang people who were willing to fight to the death were more desperate than the people of Bingzhou, if there was a head-on confrontation, the Bingzhou cavalry would not be inferior to the Liangzhou troops in the slightest.
It seemed that the pacification of Longxi County would be a natural thing even without Ma Chao's attempt to intercept it halfway.
Thinking of this, he felt much better.
It's just that a young and energetic player like him, although he has admitted that he is inferior, still wants to argue about the issue of treatment.
He then looked in the direction where Qiao Yan was behind him.
However, at this moment, through the somewhat obstructed military flags, spears and cavalry troops, and through the gaps in the crowd, Ma Chao saw that the soldier who had previously heard his explanation that Lu Bu was the "Pingzhou Mu" was not unfortunately killed in the sneak attack on the Bingzhou army, but was able to be recruited to Qiao Yan alive and well to respond.
"..."Ma Chao's expression froze and he chose to look at the ground.
As long as he doesn't look in that direction, he won't know what kind of reaction the reasons he gave for judging the identity will cause after Qiao Yan hears them!
"He was 10 years old when he defeated the Yellow Turbans, which means he grew up early. He was taller and stronger than the barbarians when he conquered the barbarians outside the Great Wall. He was ferocious and vicious when he suppressed the Qiang people..." Qiao Yan couldn't hold back and laughed. "That guy looks quite normal. What was he thinking about?"
Although there was no news media channel that could convey her image to the outside world during the Han Dynasty, when Qiao Yan heard the image that Ma Chao had imagined of her, which was probably a burly figure of nine feet tall and standing tall, she couldn't help but spread her hands in front of her.
This is a hand with distinct muscles and bones, which can exert sufficient power from the wrist to the fingertips, but it is probably still a long way from what Ma Chao imagined.
For a moment, she considered whether she should include her image as the governor of Bingzhou in the gossip section of the monthly report hosted by Zhao Ji.
But if you think about it, this is just like using Qiang people's bones as compost in the fields -
Those who really intend to join her will not care about such absurd statements, and those who intend to be her enemy may also have a little more awe towards her because of this.
So whether to dispel the rumor or not is not really important.
She had just finished commenting on Ma Chao's unusual way of thinking, and turned around to see Xun You beside her almost unable to control the expression on his face.
Qiao Yan asked jokingly, "Gongda just said that Ma Mengqi chose to go straight to Lu Bu in order to avoid causing too much casualties to our team?"
Xun You coughed lightly and replied, "You failed to adapt to the local customs, which was a mistake made by the planner."
It seems that in addition to the previous problem of judging the quality of mud and water, he still has a lot to learn in order to work flawlessly under Qiao Yan.
Fortunately, he could also see that Qiao Yan only regarded it as a small episode during the march, and it was just an episode halfway to entertain everyone.
After setting up camp and resting for a night halfway, they finally pushed the team to the city of Lintao.
At their previous travel speed, it would not be difficult to reach Lintao before nightfall.
But according to Xun You's analysis, they could have slowed down the team even more.
Judging from the information provided by Ma Chao's troops, Ma Teng's determination to fight was not that strong. At least he would not regard Lintao as a fortress that could not be conquered no matter how hard he tried, and block Qiao Yan's way.
This mentality is more or less related to Ma Teng's own life experience.
Compared with the long-established Ma Rong, Ma Lun and Ma Riti of the Fufeng Ma family, although Ma Teng was a descendant of General Ma Yuan, there was not much influence left when it came to him.
Ma Teng's father once served as a captain in Tianshui, but he lost his position not long after he took the job. He had to live in Longxi County, mixed with the Qiang people. Because his family was poor and he had no wife, he could only marry a Qiang girl.
This is extremely rare in today's era, when most Han people do not intermarry with Qiang people.
When Ma Teng was young, he could only earn money by chopping trees and selling firewood, which undoubtedly made him yearn for a rich and stable life.
If he could successfully establish his own regime with a strong enough army, Ma Teng would not have the idea of giving up. Just like the previous failure of the imperial court's repeated campaigns against the rebels to eradicate them made Ma Teng more willing to be the local emperor in Longxi County.
But under Qiao Yan's powerful attack, he was about to lose his last barrier. Under such circumstances, even if Han Sui had no practice of attacking his partners, Ma Teng would not be inclined to choose to join forces with Han Sui and continue to resist the royal army.
Well, let's add a little more pressure on him.
After the ambush team he sent out left Lintao, they disappeared without a trace, like a drop of water gathering in the Tao River, leaving no trace.
However, the team he was wary of did not suffer any attack, nor did they show any signs of being provoked, but continued to advance slowly and steadily.
If I must say, the current situation is more like—
Boil the frog in warm water.
If the frog in the pot of Lintao was someone else, he would probably either choose to adapt to local conditions and launch another round of counterattacks, or rather have another vigorous fight, or use all conditions in the city to defend the city and wait for the situation to change.
For example, Qiao Yan took advantage of Han Sui and Dong Zhuo's blind spots in thinking and reduced the obstacles he encountered in his plan to attack Ma Teng.
But after the news got out, Dong Zhuo would definitely not be happy to see her progress so smoothly. He might create some trouble for Qiao Yan in the rear, and then the defenders would have the opportunity to counterattack.
It just so happened that the person who was here was Ma Teng.
After Ma Chao failed in his attempt to go out of the city to meet the enemy, and fearing whether he had further offended Qiao Yan, Ma Teng spent the entire night in anxiety.
At night he often felt as if he were having auditory hallucinations, as if he could hear the sounds of troops marching outside the city. However, when he reached the top of the city wall, in the cool moonlight, all he saw was the Tao River flowing outside the city, and there was no human figure anywhere.
He gritted his teeth and felt that he couldn't wait until Lintao was about to be breached before making a decision.
By that time it will be too late!
So when the Bingzhou army arrived at the city, what Qiao Yan saw was not the heavily guarded city gate, but Ma Teng standing alone outside the city holding the former general's seal, making a welcoming gesture.
He did not make the mistake of identifying the wrong person like his son did. After walking in front of Qiao Yan, he raised the seal in his hand towards her and said, "Ma Teng apologizes to the Lord."
What is his crime?
Ma Teng said: "The traitor Dong held the emperor hostage in Chang'an, usurped power and allied with Liang Province. Teng was short-sighted and accepted his appointment and made him his colleague. Now I have troubled you to come here on a long expedition, and I have lost many soldiers and money. I know that I have sinned greatly, and I only hope that you will forgive me."
Qiao Yan smiled and said, "General Ma is the descendant of Ma Fubo. He should have been a pillar of the Han Dynasty, but he was unlucky. He first encountered Geng Bi who was in power in Liangzhou and the rebellion was difficult to quell. Later, the central government's order arrived through the rebels. The general only agreed to the order because it came from the hand of the emperor of the Han Dynasty. What crime has he committed?"
Ma Teng was delighted when he heard this and quickly replied, "That's right."
He had already made preparations. With Qiao Yan's usually decisive style, it was very likely that he would not be welcomed by the other party if he went out of the city to surrender. However, after she killed Pang De and then captured Ma Chao, the first thing she said was to excuse him, which really surprised Ma Teng.
But thinking about it, it’s not surprising that Qiao Yan would say that.
Ma Teng's action can be said to be an acceptance of Dong Zhuo's solicitation, but it can also be explained that he chose to accept it because the edict was issued by Liu Xie.
This at least means that Ma Teng and Qiao Yan both believe that Liu Xie is the orthodox position.
With this alliance, he has an extra bargaining chip to save his life.
Ma Teng felt even more relieved when he saw that Ma Chao was still tied up there intact as Qiao Yan's trophy, instead of having lost his life in the chaos of the battle.
Finally getting rid of the torment of those troubled emotions at night, he asked without thinking: "Do you need me to persuade Han Sui to surrender?"
Qiao Yan glanced at him speechlessly, thinking that it was obvious that Ma Teng and Ma Chao were father and son.
Where does Ma Teng get the confidence to say that he can persuade Han Sui to surrender?
She did not directly question the other party's suggestion, but only asked: "Did Shoucheng mention the matter of Bingzhou troops stationed in Longxi to Han Sui?"
Ma Teng shook his head, "No."
Qiao Yan directly captured Zhan County, which was so sudden and unexpected.
According to the information he had heard, Han Sui had been repairing the Kuiyuan Gorge Pass in recent days. How could he have expected that Qiao Yan's farming plan in Gaoping City was only halfway completed, and he would launch a thundering attack when it seemed that Qiao Yan was going to keep his troops in place and gather the Qiang people.
His original intention of seeking Han Sui's help was also suppressed.
In this case, Han Sui probably still felt that Longxi County, which was connected to him by Taoshui River, was still his external aid, and was not the channel for Qiao Yan to attack Jincheng County.
As soon as Ma Teng finished speaking, he saw the gentleness in Qiao Yan's eyes disappear, and he said in a cold voice: "Then there is no need to make any moves to surrender! Beigong Boyu and Wang Guo and others are rebelling without any rules. If it weren't for Han Sui, the rebellion would have been quelled long ago, and the former Hanyang prefect Fu Nanrong would not have had to sacrifice his life for his country. I must kill this thief!"
The expression and attitude of the Bingzhou governor who was walking with a sword in hand, which changed in an instant, coupled with the sight of the shining armor behind her, made Ma Teng suddenly realize that he should not have thought that Qiao Yan was a kind and amiable person just because of the gentle attitude she showed towards him.
Her decisive action of killing the Qiang in Gaoping City was enough to prove that she was completely compatible with the Bingzhou Army in terms of aura.
So much so that when the pair of dark eyes looked at him again, Ma Teng almost shivered.
Fortunately, Qiao Yan's next sentence was, "I see that Shoucheng's son is very brave, and Shoucheng is also aware of the king's orders. I wonder if you would like him to be my vanguard and lead the army to attack Jincheng and Yuzhong?"
Ma Teng replied without thinking: "Yes! Of course not! If you think my boy is useful, you can let him serve as a soldier."
Anyway, Qiao Yan wanted to attack Han Sui instead of him, so what was the point of letting his son work for the Governor of Bingzhou!
Ma Chao heard Ma Teng's words clearly and rolled his eyes silently.
The idea of asking him to hold the horse and stirrups to keep peace was too obvious.
Fortunately, attacking Han Sui also means that he still has a chance to show himself, and maybe he can even get better treatment by relying on his military merit of killing Han Sui.
After being untied, he rubbed his wrists and looked in the direction of Lu Bu and Red Hare, with a hint of fighting spirit in his eyes.
He is no match for the opponent today, but he is fifteen years younger than that guy. Who knows what will happen tomorrow?
Qiao Yan saw the healthy competition among his subordinates and was happy to see it.
She doesn't have the extra time to take care of this.
After entering Lintao City, she needed to contact Jia Xu on the one hand, and listen to Xun You talking about the situation of the noble families in Longyou on the other hand.
Ma Teng's surrender also brought a lot of information.
Although there are not many residents in Longyou, most of them live in the form of wealthy families. For example, the Longxi Li family, which rose to prominence during the Sixteen Kingdoms period, is now located in the Longxi County. They have changed from a family of military generals in their early years to a poor family, and have not yet seized the opportunity for a second rise.
These powerful families have a significant influence on the recruitment of the Liangzhou Army, and are more difficult to control than the Bingzhou families.
If Qiao Yan herself were to say so, what she needed to solve was not just the problem of the surrender of the Longyou nobles and the rebellion of the Qiang people.
The land is almost in our hands, but there are still many troubles.
As she listened to the report made by Xun You after he sorted out the information, she thought that the weather was good in the past two years, and she was able to launch offensive operations in addition to cultivating land and storing grain. However, since the first year of Xingping in history, which was four years later, there had been a drought and locust plague that lasted for four years and was recorded in history books!
If she really wants to take charge of Bingzhou and Liangzhou, she must prepare countermeasures for this problem in advance!
Water conservancy is not simply about renovating rivers and building irrigation vehicles, nor is it a project that can be easily carried out on a large scale at present.
If not handled properly, the conflicts caused in these two places could make all her previous efforts go to waste at any time.
But she has had more time to prepare than others. In order to avoid the tragic situation of "drought, locusts, high grain prices, and people eating each other", since the population of Liang and Bing states is not as large as that of the Central Plains, there are some things she must do!
Of course, before that—
First take Han Sui and win the battle to quell the rebellion in Liangzhou!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
