The soldiers and guards turned their eyes to Wei Yinuo to see how he would respond.
Wei Yinuo finally spoke up, "My subordinates are all people who have never seen the world. Why do you need to scare them, Lord Lou?"
He pushed away the sergeant's hand on his shoulder, his expression changed, and he said with a hint of joking and frivolity, "Sergeant, don't be nervous. I just wanted to have a sparring match with Lord Lou."
The sergeant felt relieved. If the Xinquan Army really rebelled, then Ulan would be finished.
Lou Yunchun did not dare to take it lightly.
"Back in Kyoto, I heard that Master Lou was a master of both civil and military arts. Since I practiced martial arts, my father often told me to follow your example and strive to become a better person. When I saw you today, I remembered your words and couldn't help but ask for your advice." Wei Yinuo bowed and said, "We are all soldiers, rough and honest. Master, you are broad-minded and will surely not be as critical as us."
No one would believe this, but since reinforcements hadn't arrived yet, Lou Yunchun could only go along with him. "I can ignore your inappropriate behavior, and I won't hold your Xinquan Army accountable..."
Wei Yinuo interrupted him, "Your Excellency is so magnanimous. I will be deeply grateful." Then he said to the guards, "Why don't you kneel down and thank you for your mercy?"
The soldiers immediately knelt and saluted, shouting, "Thank you, sir, for your magnanimity and for showing mercy."
Wei Yinuo took the opportunity to invite him, saying, "To make up for our impoliteness, I will host a banquet in the camp to apologize to you and all the brothers. I hope you will do me the honor."
I can’t go to the camp, otherwise it will be even more difficult to escape.
Lou Yunchun refused, "I have important business to attend to, so I can't stay any longer. Just let me go, and I'll let bygones be bygones."
One of Wei Yinuo's subordinates also whispered: "Captain, since the Lord is unwilling, I think it's better to forget it."
But Wei Yinuo insisted, "It's getting dark. Even if we cross the bridge, there's no place to stay. Why don't you stay in the barracks for a night before continuing?"
Knowing that the Xinquan Army was afraid and would not dare to attack him openly, Lou Yunchun became assertive and said, "I have my own destination, so don't worry."
Seeing that the invitation was fruitless, Wei Yinuo changed his words and said, "Your Excellency, you may not know that the Turks have been making frequent movements recently. People often sneak into Huizhou in disguise at night. Therefore, our commander has ordered that no one is allowed to pass after dark. Please don't make it difficult for me."
There is something about his words that is meant to deceive people.
Lou Yunchun stared at him and asked, "If I insist on crossing the river, what will you do?"
Wei Yinuo met his gaze, not at all timid, "Then the general..."
Suddenly, a few bird calls were heard in the sky. Wei Yinuo's expression changed slightly. The two subordinates beside him took a half step forward and whispered a few words in his ear.
Lou Yunchun frowned, about to force him to give in, but he heard Wei Yinuo change his tone and said submissively, "Your Excellency is an official appointed by the court, and you have the emperor's order. If you really insist on crossing the bridge, I have no choice but to obey. But don't blame me for not reminding you. This is a border, and it is full of dangers. If you ignored the advice and crossed the bridge at night, if anything unexpected happens, it can't be blamed on our Xinquan Army."
"If anything unexpected happens, I will take responsibility for it myself." Although Lou Yunchun sensed that his attitude was different, he didn't want to stay and entangle with him, so he ordered again: "Open the door and let them pass."
There is a city gate on this side of the Wulan Bridge, which is convenient for border troops to stand guard. The other side is still connected to the official road. Upstream is the Great Wall and the desert. After passing Wula downstream, you will reach Gaolan, the first county under the jurisdiction of the Hexi Protectorate.
"I obey your command."
Wei Yinuo showed an ambiguous expression, then ordered the Xinquan army that surrounded Lou Yunchun and others to disperse, and ordered the guards to open the city gate.
The sergeant asked Lou Yunchun secretly, "Shouldn't we wait for Old Duan?"
Lou Yunchun was afraid that things might change, so he said, "Let's cross the bridge first. He has the Ulan Pass garrison to escort him, and Wei Yinuo won't make things difficult for him." And the person Wei Yinuo wanted to stop was him, not Lao Duan.
"Does your Excellency find Captain Wei a bit strange? He was clearly trying every possible means to stop us from crossing the bridge, but now he's suddenly agreed. I'm afraid there's a conspiracy." The sergeant said to Lou Yunchun, "Why don't we wait for Old Duan to return with his men?"
"Need not."
This is the territory of the Xinquan Army. The Xinquan Army is a border army, and Ulan Pass is just a small pass. They cannot afford to offend the Xinquan Army, nor can they withdraw too many people.
Lou Yunchun asked Lao Duan to invite them, just to add more people so that the Xinquan Army would be afraid of Huizhou Governor's Office.
There are only two possible outcomes for Old Duan bringing the garrison at Ulan Pass: either they will stalemate with the Xinquan Army, or Wei Yinuo will compromise and let them cross the bridge.
Old Duan hasn't returned yet, so they are waiting here. If Wei Yinuo wants to force them into the camp, they will not be able to resist with their manpower.
If Wei Yinuo had been more ruthless and ignored the Xinquan Army in order to achieve his goal, trapping and killing them here, he would never have been able to reach Liangzhou and complete the task entrusted by the saint, nor would he have been able to return to Beijing to see the person he missed so much.
Although they might encounter the "accident" that Wei Yinuo mentioned when crossing the bridge, it is still better than facing the Xinquan Army. Once the Xinquan Army makes any move, it will not only endanger them, but also the situation of the entire Huizhou.
Wei Yinuo said something right. This is a border area, full of dangers and surrounded by tigers and wolves. Moreover, the Beiting Protectorate is ready to make a move.
From his previous test, he knew that the Xinquan Army dared not rebel. However, Wei Yinuo was a member of the Wei family and a captain of the Xinquan Army. Now he was blocking him here, which showed that he had a rebellious heart.
He couldn't stay here and be at his mercy.
The sergeant asked, "How about we go back to Wulan? Or maybe we change our route and take another way to Liangzhou."
"We're going back to Wulan today and we'll have to come back tomorrow. Changing the route will take a detour, and we'll be crossing the border of Huizhou. The closer we get to Liangzhou, the more Hundred Falcon sentry posts there are, and the more dangerous it will be." The city gates were already open, and Lou Yunchun didn't delay any longer. He instructed the sergeant, "Tell the brothers to be on high alert."
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