Twenty miles outside the city of Bianliang.
Outside the official road, there was thick snow, covering everything in silver.
“Oh…”
Jing Chao pulled the reins, and the warhorse slowed down its pace with a clattering sound.
"Brothers, wait a moment."
“Oh…”
"Brother Jing, why don't you leave?"
"Look at that?"
Jing Chao pointed to a big tree beside the official road.
"Brother Jing, isn't it just a tree? What's so interesting about it? Let's go and rescue the old marshal."
"Look carefully at that big tree. Is there a cross mark carved by a knife where the branches fork?"
"Which one? There are so many big trees on the roadside. How can I see clearly from fifty steps away?"
Jing Chao took out an arrow from the horse's belly, stretched it into a full moon, and shot the arrow directly.
"Whoosh! Puff! Buzz!"
Liu Zhengyan dismounted and walked quickly in the direction indicated by the arrow. He saw a clear cross mark where the branch of the big tree forked. It was obviously made today.
"Hey, come and see, there's actually a cross mark on this tree. It's really new!"
Liu Zhengyan waved his hand and called the people behind him to come over.
Several team leaders gathered around and looked at the cross marks on the tree. They all marveled at Jing Chao's hawk-like dynamic vision and his archery skills that could hit the target from a hundred paces away.
While galloping on horseback, he could actually find a coin-sized notch on a tree fifty steps away. How could these eyes be so long?
"What does this mean? Is it a code?"
"Of course it is. Who would have the time to go so far outside the city and carve a cross?"
"I just don't know whether it was left by the old marshal or by Liang Chen, the chief eunuch of the Eastern Palace."
"The Eastern Palace eunuchs have always been trained in secret and have never come into contact with other troops. Let's ask if there are any people in the Imperial Guard who have served with the Grand Marshal."
A few minutes later, the two guards were brought under the tree.
After just a glance, the two of them said at the same time: "This was left by the old marshal."
"What's the meaning?"
"There's an enemy vanguard camp ten miles ahead. This cross-shaped mark slanting to the left represents the vanguard camp. There's no clear mark indicating the distance, so it represents ten miles."
"If you're not sure, you can look further ahead. The clan elder Marshal's code rules only leave two locations within a ten-mile radius. There should be more about a mile ahead."
Several people returned to the official road, jumped on their horses and whipped them, heading forward. Sure enough, Jing Chao found another cross mark on a big tree, and there was an oval mark not far away.
"What does this mean?"
"This means nine, and the oval represents a wine glass, which means wine."
Seeing that it was getting late, Jing Chao thought about it and decided to give everyone some instructions.
"Brothers, seven or eight miles ahead is the base of Tong Guan's 30,000-man army. They have sent out scouts and deployed a vanguard camp. This mission is dangerous. I have a few words to tell you, brothers. Remember them."
Liu Zhengyan didn't like to hear it. Among these seven generals, Liu Zhengyan was the most rude, talking loudly and saying whatever he wanted.
"Brother Jing, why are you being so fussy? Although this is just our first meeting, your abilities are obvious to all and we are all convinced. Commander Wang has assigned you to lead us on our mission, so just take care of it."
Others also agreed, saying that Brother Jing, you have a meticulous mind, superb archery skills, and are more courageous than ten thousand men.
Speaking of Jing Chao, although he was a military officer, he had a clever tongue and was able to boost the morale of the Imperial Guards with just a few words, and also gave a legitimate reason - to save his colleagues.
[When the Jin invaded, Bianliang was already in turmoil. Tong Guan, who was afraid of death, did not actively resist the Jin. Instead, he persuaded the emperor to move south, saying that moving south could break the siege of the Jin soldiers. This was simply bullshit.
The new emperor ascended the throne and resolutely resisted the Japanese invasion. Tong Guan not only refused to cooperate, but also plotted a rebellion. He used a conspiracy to kidnap the old marshal, intending to seize the Song Dynasty and become a vassal of the Jin Kingdom.
The brothers of the Imperial Guard had been holding their breath for a long time. Their duty was to protect the Bian Jing Palace, and they had no chance to fight against foreign invaders. What they hated most was to hear that the Jin people were invincible.
As soldiers, they would rather die on the battlefield and fight the Jin people to the death.
Now they want to kill Tong Guan, kill Li Ang, and kill those surrenderists who influence the will of the army to save them.
Morale was high and Jing Chao continued to encourage everyone.
Strategically, we must despise our opponents. We are the army of justice, we are the mighty army. Only the best people can be selected to be the royal guards. We are invincible.
On the other hand, if one soldier is incompetent, the whole general will be incompetent.
The group of soldiers under Tong Guan were all cowards who loved life and were privately called Tong Paopao.
It is said that the shame on the back is the shame of the soldiers. Look at Tong Guan, isn’t he a case of that? The scars on his back were all caused by people chasing and hacking him when he was running away.
However, strategically we must also take our opponent seriously. Tong Guan's army, however weak, still numbers 30,000 men and is well-armed. We must exploit the mobility and impact of our cavalry to break up their formation.
"Good! Good! Good!"
"Drive out the Tartars and return our country to us, starting with defeating Tong Guan!"
"Drive out the Tartars and return our country to us, starting with defeating Tong Guan!"
"Follow my command, mount your horses, and charge!"
Speed is of the essence in war. With the city gates blocked, Tong Guan's garrison outside the city must have received the news that his 800 guards had left the city.
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It’s even more exciting later!
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