Li Dingguo's face turned red from being pinched. He used all his strength to barely break free from Sun Kewang's hand.
"Cough cough cough..." Li Dingguo started coughing uncontrollably.
Sun Kewang refused to give in and continued to move forward, intending to strangle Li Dingguo to death.
"Stop!" Li Dingguo gasped, "Since... ahem, since you've determined that I'm a spy, please show us the evidence."
When it comes to the word "evidence", Sun Kewang suddenly stopped.
He moved his gaze and looked at Zhang Xianzhong.
After getting Zhang Xianzhong's consent, Sun Kewang stood there with an angry look on his face and said, "Yesterday at the Zhugan River, I was in the front to defend against the enemy, and you were responsible for supporting us from behind. Is that right or wrong?"
"Yes!" Li Dingguo nodded.
"Why did you massacre my men after I was defeated by the Ming army?"
Li Dingguo looked innocent: "I have already explained it just now. If we don't kill those deserters, they will charge into my army and cause my army to be defeated."
"Okay!" Sun Kewang nodded with gritted teeth and then asked, "When the Ming army was fighting with me, they sent a cavalry to bypass my army and head towards you. Have you seen them?"
Li Dingguo nodded: "Yes, they withdrew on their own when they saw that our army was well-organized."
"Why didn't you pursue at that time?" Sun Kewang asked.
"A rash pursuit will only lead to us falling into the trap of the Ming army! Besides, why should I chase? My adoptive father told us to occupy the enemy instead of chasing them. We just need to drive them away." Li Dingguo was also enraged, and his emotions were somewhat out of control.
"Good, good, good!" Sun Kewang said three good words in a row, "Whatever you say makes sense."
He took a deep breath and asked the last question: "Let me ask you, what did you do after killing the deserters under my command?"
"I..." Li Dingguo suddenly realized the problem.
After Sun Kewang was defeated yesterday, the Ming army did not attack his army, but retreated on their own.
After the Ming army retreated, he also left the battlefield in order to catch up with Zhang Xianzhong.
The combined number of soldiers on both sides numbered tens of thousands.
So many people didn't fire an arrow, didn't shoot a gun, and didn't even curse at anyone.
In the eyes of others, this is a tacit act of cowardice.
He was afraid of fighting, and the Ming army was also afraid of fighting.
But he was the General of the Dashi Army, and the opponent was the elite of the Ming Army.
There is no tacit understanding between the two parties.
Seeing Li Dingguo stunned, Sun Kewang accused him: "According to the situation at that time, the Ming army could have launched an attack in one go. After all, they are all cavalry, and it is almost evening. Even if they are defeated, they can retreat calmly."
"Yet they didn't attack, and you didn't fight back."
"You all tacitly agreed to cease fighting and withdraw your troops!"
"Yes or no?"
Li Dingguo recovered from the slight panic and said seriously, "How would I know why the Ming army retreated? It was already dark at that time, and fighting at night is a taboo in military strategy. Even if the Ming army did not retreat, I would have retreated."
"Besides, my foster father asked me to hold off the enemy, so all I have to do is hold them back to give the baggage train some time to retreat. I think there's no problem with that!"
Sun Kewang was so angry at Li Dingguo's words that he stomped his feet several times and looked at Wang Zhaolin.
Wang Zhaolin had made preparations long ago.
He immediately jumped out and pointed at Li Dingguo's nose: "Li Dingguo, you said just now that you delayed the enemy?"
"Yes!" Li Dingguo answered firmly.
"You lied!" Wang Zhaolin raised the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a smug smile.
He finally found Li Dingguo's weakness!
Wang Zhaolin quickly walked out of the military tent and then dragged the quartermaster who was waiting outside into the tent.
"Tell me everything that happened to you yesterday!"
Under everyone's gaze, the quartermaster spoke: "Yesterday afternoon, the Great Western King ordered the army to move out of camp and leave. Everything went smoothly after the army set out. But around the beginning of the afternoon, hundreds of Ming cavalry suddenly appeared in the east of the city."
"They committed murder, arson and all kinds of evil, turning the retreating baggage camp upside down."
"What?" Li Dingguo felt a chill run down his spine. "Hundreds of Ming cavalry?"
"Yes, although they are not numerous, they are all brave and good at fighting! They fought from the east of the city to the south, and then from the south of the city back to the east. The baggage camp suffered heavy losses in terms of people and food." The quartermaster said crying.
Li Dingguo finally knew why he was suspected.
Anyone would be suspicious.
He was responsible for covering the rear, but a Ming cavalry force of several hundred men bypassed him and raided the baggage camp.
What else is there to say?
Li Dingguo looked at Zhang Xianzhong and knelt on the ground with a plop. "Foster father, you watched me grow up with your own eyes. I will never be a spy even if I die. Please understand!"
"How do you explain those hundreds of Ming cavalrymen?" Zhang Xianzhong asked calmly.
"I..." Li Dingguo was speechless.
First, he didn't know how the Ming army avoided his scouts. Second, he didn't expect that hundreds of Ming soldiers would dare to go deep into his rear alone and kill people and set fire.
The tactics of the Liaodong Li family generals are indeed extraordinary!
Zhang Xianzhong stared at Li Dingguo for a while and sighed: "Dingguo, you have been with me since you were a child. They may not know who you are, but I do."
"From the bottom of my heart, I don't believe you are a spy!"
Li Dingguo's eyes filled with tears: "Thank you for your trust, foster father."
Zhang Xianzhong narrowed his eyes and shook his head gently: "But a lot of very strange things have happened recently, which forced me to be cautious."
"Godfather..." Li Dingguo raised his head.
"So I decided to temporarily take back your military power, and return it to you after defeating Qin Liangyu. How do you think?"
Li Dingguo looked up in surprise, his face full of disappointment.
He didn't expect that Zhang Xianzhong actually suspected him.
Zhang Xianzhong emphasized: "It's not that I don't trust you. If I didn't, I would have killed you long ago."
Li Dingguo kowtowed to Zhang Xianzhong and said, "I, Li Dingguo, was born to fight. Military power is my life. If you, my adoptive father, want to take back my military power, you might as well kill me right now!"
Wang Zhaolin stepped forward and pointed at Li Dingguo's nose and cursed: "Are you talking nonsense? If you want to die, you can commit suicide. Wouldn't this make the King of Daxi bear the infamy of killing his adopted son? The King of Daxi has already granted mercy by taking back the military power. Don't push your luck!"
"Get out of here!" Li Dingguo waved his hand and slapped Wang Zhaolin's hand away.
"How dare you touch me!" Wang Zhaolin was furious and punched Li Dingguo on the temple.
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