Chapter 52: See Through
After entering the city, the group of people did not look around, but followed the person leading the way in an orderly manner. No one spoke along the way.
It was so quiet, so quiet that it didn't seem like ordinary people entering the city for the first time, but rather like well-trained soldiers...
Zhao Xiao narrowed his eyes and looked at this group of people carefully. Their calves were slightly bent outwards, which should be a feature left by long-term riding. Ordinary people don't have the opportunity to ride horses.
Although they changed their clothes, they neglected the shoes on their feet. Common people cannot wear boots.
Although the anti-people clothes were of different sizes, they could still be put on. However, the shoes did not fit their feet, so they simply did not change their shoes.
After getting on the carriage, Zhao Xiao said to Song Yuzhu: "There is something wrong with these people."
"I was just about to say it, but I didn't expect you to have already figured it out."
From the first glance, Song Yuzhu realized that something was wrong. Although they tried their best to disguise themselves as ordinary people, their age could not be disguised.
"This group of people is too young. Almost all of them are strong men between the ages of 16 and 26 or 27. There are no young or old people. It is unreasonable for them to be a civilian uprising army."
"Secondly, the man in the lead said that he led the local people to revolt, but judging from his timid temperament, he doesn't seem like a person with leadership ability."
The two were very curious about who came up with this idea and dared to pretend to be anti-civilian and fall into the trap?
When I returned home, I happened to run into Xu Bing.
Xu Bing: "I was just about to go look for you two. I heard that a group of rebels came to the city to surrender?"
"yes."
"At this critical moment, the people who come here must be carefully checked. If there are spies sneaking in, it will be bad."
Song Yuzhu and Zhao Xiao looked at each other and said, "There are more than one spy who sneaked in." The two told Xu Bing what they had just discovered.
Zhao Xiao: "What should we do with these people? Should we kill them directly or keep them for a while?"
Xu Bing stroked his beard and said, "This marching style reminds me of someone..."
Song Yuzhu: "Shen Congwu?"
Apart from him, I really can't think of any other idiot who would dare to lead troops to sneak into the enemy city as a spy.
Xu Bing: "Don't kill them yet. Why not take advantage of their tricks and see what they want to do?"
*
Shen Congwu didn't know that he was exposed at the first sight. He was still secretly happy in his heart, thinking that King Chengtian was not that powerful, and he easily accepted a stranger to come and join him, and he was not afraid that there were spies among them.
The guide brought them directly to the military camp, and he took the opportunity to inspect the rebels again.
Looking at the soldiers standing in uniform on the parade ground, Shen Congwu's face turned ugly.
He originally thought that the Chengtian Army was just a bunch of rotten fish and shrimp, but he didn't expect that these soldiers were well-trained and well-equipped. Whether it was riding and shooting arrows or close combat, they were all very disciplined and no worse than the army under his command.
If the two armies were to fight, it would be hard to say who would win or lose...
After crossing the parade ground, the soldiers led them deep into the military camp. This place used to be a military prostitute camp, but it became vacant after the prostitutes were disbanded. Zhao Xiao ordered his men to lock them all up.
Shen Congwu alertly realized that something was wrong, and quickly pulled Tian Dasheng out and whispered something in his ear.
Tian Dasheng patted the door nervously and said, "General, we have come all the way to seek refuge with King Chengtian, why are you locking us up?"
The soldier said, "The general wants you to rest here for a while, and we will send someone to make arrangements for you later."
Shen Congwu was relieved a little. He pulled Tian Dasheng to a corner and told him: "What to say and what not to say, you don't need me to teach you, right?"
Tian Dasheng was so scared that he nodded quickly: "I understand, I understand."
"Remember, tell him that you want to join their Chengtian Army and fight together!"
"Why!"
After waiting for a while, still no one came. These disguised soldiers became a little panicked. If their identities were discovered, they would probably die miserably.
"Keep calm! Don't panic!" Shen Congwu shouted in a low voice, wondering if he had been discovered when entering the city.
That's impossible. If they had discovered it then, they should have taken action. Why would they have let them into the city?
Stay calm and don't lose your composure!
After waiting for more than an hour, someone finally came. Zhao Xiao sent Ma Zhenwei to "take care" of them.
Ma Zhenwei was a bad guy. Knowing that they were spies, he would not let them go easily. He took them directly to the stable to clean up the horse manure.
The Chengtian Army raised tens of thousands of war horses. There were special people responsible for taking these horses out to graze and walk during the day, and they would return to the stables to rest in the evening.
The stables were originally cleaned by each barracks in turn, but now that these people are here, they would be doing nothing anyway, so they might as well be put to work.
As soon as they entered the stable, the soldiers were so choked by the feces and horse urine in the stable that they couldn't open their eyes.
Ma Zhenwei pinched his nose and said, "Clean it up before dark. If it's not cleaned up, there will be no dinner tonight."
Shen Congwu almost fainted. He suppressed his anger and stepped forward and said, "General, we are here to join the Chengtian Army to fight. Why do we have to clean up horse manure?"
"Hey, you kid, why don't you know what's good for you? Do you think fighting is easy?"
"On the battlefield, swords and guns are blind and you may lose your life if you are not careful. You peasants have no experience in fighting. The general arranged for you to clean the stables out of sympathy for you. Others want to do this but cannot."
Shen Congwu was speechless. Their current status was indeed not suitable for going to the battlefield, and the Chengtian Army was not short of soldiers. He could only bite the bullet and pick up the wooden chisel and broom to start cleaning the stable.
They worked until dark before they cleaned dozens of stables. Shen Congwu was so tired that he couldn't even lift his arms.
After leaving the stable, we were told to go to the canteen to eat quickly, otherwise there would be no food left.
The group of people rushed to the cafeteria without stopping. Each person was given a bean cake and a bowl of rice porridge. Shen Congwu was shocked by the poor food of Chengtian Army. Is this what people eat? !
They had not finished their meal yet and it was time to turn off the lights and rest. Ma Zhenwei chased them back to the military brothel camp and locked them inside with a big lock.
Shen Congwu had never felt so aggrieved in his life. His whole body was filled with the stinking smell of horse manure. He was busy all afternoon and didn't even have time to pee.
As a descendant of a wealthy family, he had been well-fed and well-dressed since birth, and even when he went to the battlefield, he had never received such treatment. But now he couldn't even take a hot shower. He was so angry that he bit a bean cake fiercely, and the rough cake made his throat hurt.
Hold on for a few more days, and when the army captures Xuzhou, we’ll drown that damn King Chengtian in the horse manure pond!
*
The fourteenth day of the first lunar month, the second year of Yong'an.
Sheng's army finally arrived outside Xuzhou City. Xu Dingkun learned from Shen Congwu's subordinates that they had sneaked into the city disguised as rebels.
General Xu was stunned by his amazing moves, but being able to sneak into the city was also a skill, and maybe he could really perform some unexpected tricks.
According to the agreement, Xu Dingkun sent people to shoot flaring arrows. The sharp sound of the arrows cut through the sky and could be heard several miles away. People in the city should start preparing.
The two armies faced each other, Zhao Xiao led 10,000 elite soldiers out of the city to fight. Song Yuzhu sat firmly on the city wall, looking at the tens of thousands of soldiers under the city wall with excitement.
The north wind is fierce, and the cold iron reflects the cold light.
Xu Dingkun sat in the chariot, staring at the soldiers opposite. He did not recognize the general in charge, but learned from others that he was a boy named Zhao. He used to be a guard of King Jing, and later joined Yang Yuanqing.
Originally he thought this man was a dog-headed general, but when he actually saw him, Xu Dingkun instantly overturned his guess.
The layman watches the excitement, while the expert watches the details. The aura of this man reminded him of the general who defended the country in the past.
I can't help but feel a chill in my heart. This is a tough battle...
"Boom boom boom..." The other side actually started beating the war drums first!
Yang Ping pulled the frightened warhorse, feeling somewhat uneasy. This was his first time leading troops to fight such a large-scale battle, and he had no experience at all. Originally, it was planned that Shen Congwu would lead the troops, and his grandfather would command and supervise the battle. Now he was in the city and could not be contacted at all, and it was unknown whether he was dead or alive.
"Grandpa..." Yang Ping felt a little nervous before he even started fighting.
Seeing this, Xu Dingkun comforted her and said, "Ping'er, don't be afraid. Go get my armor."
"Grandpa...are you going to fight in person?"
Xu Dingkun nodded. Although he was in severe pain from his leg disease, he was not so old that he could not hold a knife.
When two armies are fighting, the most taboo thing is for the generals to be cowardly. If the soldiers are cowardly, the generals will be cowardly as well. If the generals are all afraid, the battle should not be fought at all!
Yang Ping blushed and said, "Let me do it!"
Xu Dingkun shook his head: "Don't underestimate this man, you may not be his opponent!" Then he got off the chariot, mounted his horse, and walked to the front of the battle.
He had not been on the battlefield for too long, and his arms and legs were almost rusty, but the old general still had the aura. He took a deep breath, raised his arms and shouted: "My men, follow me to kill the rebels and show the prestige of our country!"
The soldiers followed suit and shouted: "Kill the rebels and shock the country's prestige!"
Here, Zhao Xiao rode on a black horse, raised his sword and shouted "Kill!", and the Chengtian army rushed out like a sharp sword.
A dull horn sounded, and cold weapons collided, making a sound of metal and stone. Zhao Xiao was invincible like a god of war. Wherever his long sword went, no grass grew, and the Sheng army was defeated!
Xu Dingkun was not in a hurry and deliberately led him deep into the enemy's territory. Sheng's army had already set up a trap. Once the enemy general entered the trap, even thousands of troops would be unable to make him return!
Seeing Zhao Xiao's horse getting closer and closer, when the trap was about to close, a huge explosion was heard in Xuzhou City.
Zhao Xiao was not interested in fighting. He turned around and shouted, "Retreat!" Then he led his subordinates to fight and retreat.
This was something Xu Bing had discussed with him in advance. Coming out to fight was just to test the strength of the Sheng army. Seeing that their formation might be disadvantageous to Zhao Xiao, he quickly sent a signal for him to retreat back to the city.
He almost entered the battle array! Xu Dingkun pounded his palms angrily and shouted, "Oh no, he's trying to run away, don't let him leave!"
Yang Ping chased Zhao Xiao and wanted to intercept him, but he got further and further away, and even caught up with him near the city gate, within the range of being shot by bows and arrows.
Xu Dingkun was so frightened that his face turned black, and he shouted, "Ping'er, come back soon!"
On the city wall, Chai Rong held an eight-stone bow and aimed at the people below. The sword feathers cut through the sky and instantly pierced through Yang Ping's chest, pinning him to the ground.
Zhao Xiao rode over, grabbed Yang Ping by the collar, put him on his horse and took him back as a prisoner.
General Xu looked at his grandson, whose life or death was uncertain, and his breath got stuck in his throat and he almost passed out.
After all, he was a veteran, so he quickly calmed down, ordered the army to withdraw to a safe distance, and prepared to continue the siege in the afternoon.
Zhao Xiao brought Yang Ping back to the city, took off his helmet and ran to the city wall.
"Why did you suddenly send a signal to withdraw the troops?"
Xu Bing said, "You almost fell into Xu Dingkun's trap just now. He set up a trap to deliberately lure you into the middle!"
Zhao Xiao scratched his head: "I was wondering why those people were so timid and retreated while fighting."
Song Yuzhu said worriedly: "Fortunately, the master found it in time, otherwise it would be troublesome."
Xu Bing frowned and said, "I've heard that General Xu is good at using military formations. Seeing him today, I can see that his reputation is well-deserved. You must be more cautious next time and don't be reckless."
Zhao Xiao nodded: "By the way, I brought back someone, he should be the other side's deputy general."
Upon hearing this, Song Yuzhu and Xu Bing hurried down to check on the person he brought back.
Yang Ping was still conscious, but the pain from the arrow wound on his shoulder made him sweat profusely and he almost fainted.
Seeing Zhao Xiao and the two men approaching, he angrily yelled, "Traitors! Kill me or chop me up, hurry up and do it. I'm not afraid of you!"
Xu Bing: "I just heard General Xu call you Ping'er. Are you Yang Xiaochun's son?"
Yang Ping pursed his lips and said nothing. He didn't expect that this person actually knew his life experience.
"You were captured, and Grandpa must be very worried. I wonder if he will give up the siege for you."
"My grandfather is..." Yang Ping realized that he had been deceived when he saw the other party's expression.
"You bastards, my grandpa will never let you go! He will kill you to avenge me!"
Zhao Xiao thought he was too noisy, so he kicked him in the wound and knocked him unconscious.
Song Yuzhu said: "This person cannot be killed yet. We can use him to negotiate terms with Xu Dingkun."
Two soldiers took Yang Ping away, and Zhao Xiao quickly took a rest and waited for the battle in the afternoon.
(End of this chapter)
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