Xiao Tuo, Lian Fei and the other three set out from the capital overnight. They ran for a day and a night before taking a rest. They changed horses at each post station and it took them two days and three nights to get from the capital to the southern border.
The southern border was still peaceful at that time. The moonlight illuminated the blue-gray streets, which seemed quiet and peaceful at night.
The five people changed into local clothes in the inn in Heyou Town, and Xiao Tuo led the five people out of Heyou Town and walked towards the border.
There were soldiers from both countries patrolling on both sides of the border. Several people hid in the dark. Xiao Tuo said, "Take the opportunity to pass through, and be sure not to be discovered. Be careful."
"Yes!"
Several people dispersed, avoiding the guards patrolling on both sides from different places, and took the opportunity to sneak through.
Not far from the border, there are more than a dozen tents, with the main camp in the middle.
At this time, torches were lit around the tents, and only about two or three rows of people were left in the tents, while the rest went to patrol the border.
It was dark inside the main tent, and it was unclear whether the commander was resting or not.
He searched around and found nothing unusual.
Xiao Tuo walked around the edge of the tent, and some strange sounds came from a distance, vaguely audible and unclear.
With an uncertain premonition in his heart, Xiao Tuo ran out of the tent and climbed a big tree nearby.
The terrain here is high, first there is a wilderness stretching for dozens of miles, with a few hills in the middle, and then there are undulating mountains.
In the dim moonlight, Xiao Tuo looked into the distance and felt something moving in the dark. Xiao
Tuo could only sense it vaguely. He climbed down the tree and wanted to take a closer look, and then he saw Lian Fei running over. Lian Fei
whispered, "Master, I didn't notice anything unusual."
Xiao Tuo patted him on the back of his head and said, "I found it, follow me."
Lian Fei rubbed his head and ran forward with Xiao Tuo.
The two of them didn't know how long they had been running in the dark night. Xiao Tuo grabbed Lian Fei and said, "Stop."
The two of them hid aside, and Lian Fei heard it clearly. He widened his eyes and said, "Young Master... No way..."
Lian Fei leaned against the stone and listened to the loud vibration sound transmitted to his ears through the stone. A chill rushed to his head.
This situation was more serious than Xiao Tuo had imagined.
Marching in the dark, without torches, moving slowly, and staying behind the mountain or in low places before dawn.
Xiao Tuonong frowned, stood up, and climbed up the hillside. He saw a black mass of flowing armor coming towards this side. They did not even tie up their tents, but just sat and leaned against the hill to rest.
The sky gradually brightened, and after half an hour, human figures could be seen. Lian Fei lay on the ground and looked not far away, his mouth wide open in surprise.
Xiao Tuon whispered, "Let's go." Lian Fei
nodded, and the two of them slowly climbed down together and returned to Heyou Town before dawn.
When the two returned to the inn, the other three guards were waiting in the room.
The others did not notice anything, and Xiao Tuo did not explain, just asked them to go and rest first.
Under the flickering candlelight, both of them had solemn expressions.
Xiao Tuo patted Lian Fei on the shoulder: "Rest first, we will go to find Uncle Lin tomorrow morning."
Lian Fei was still immersed in the silent and huge march just now, and it was difficult for him to come back to his senses. His face was pale in the candlelight. He swallowed his saliva in fear: "If we hadn't come..."
If we hadn't come, when half of the troops in the southern border were withdrawn, Weiyuan Kingdom would lead the army that had been ambushed long ago to attack. In less than a day, the southern border would fall. And the troops in the northern border were delayed, and even if they led the troops back, it would be too late.
Xiao Tuo didn't know what he was thinking, and he nodded perfunctorily. Lian Fei was very sleepy. After bringing hot water to help the young master take a bath, he fell into a deep sleep.
The night at the border is a little quieter than that in the capital, and there is a slight smell of sand in the air.
Xiao Tuo looked at the crescent moon outside the window, and the details kept emerging in his mind.
Before he revealed any information, and only mentioned the Yunshu Kingdom, Yuan Yi suddenly looked stunned, and determined.
She was not speculating, nor doubting. She
was determined.
She first determined that the southern border was in trouble, and then found an excuse to convince him.
There was also the matter of the Yao family.
He didn't understand at the time, and didn't want to ask more. Later, the Yao family lost power, and he happened to hear people gossiping that if the Yao family didn't fall, a person with a merchant background would be in trouble, and the Yao family would take that person's fame.
And among those tribute scholars who participated in the palace examination, only Jiang Ruchao was from a merchant family.
The Yao family handled this matter very secretly, why did Yier know about it.
He frowned and thought about it, but couldn't figure out anything.
There were many details that he didn't want to recall, such as those about Chu Huan.
Xiao Tuo sighed, covered his eyes with his fingers, and forced himself to sleep.
The next morning, Xiao Tuo woke up first. Bright light poured in from the window. Xiao Tuo walked to the window and took a look. For the first time, he saw the southern border that he had seen countless times on the sand table and in military books.
The line of sight passed Heyou Town. There was a large mountain range on the border, with occasional flat land in the middle. The light grass that grew in spring was not obvious on the large yellow land. It was still desolate.
The huge marching army was hidden behind the mountains at night and could not be seen at all. The crowds that surged into a black sea last night seemed to have not existed.
Lian Fei was lying on another wooden bed, sleeping soundly. The sunlight shone on his eyelids, but he did not react.
Xiao Tuo took a step forward and kicked the foot of the bed.
"Who?!" Lian Fei suddenly woke up and saw Xiao Tuo standing in front of him with a slightly raised eyebrow.
Lian Fei wiped his saliva and stood up with his hands.
Xiao Tuo picked up the sword: "Go and call the other three."
Lian Fei yawned and stood up, looking as if he deserved a beating. Xiao Tuo couldn't help but kick him on the butt. Lian
Fei laughed and ran to call for help.
The front of the military tent was surrounded by a wooden fence. Six soldiers were guarding the entrance. When they saw Xiao Tuo and his men, they immediately raised their spears: "Who is coming?"
Xiao Tuo took out the Xiao family's token.
Several people put down their spears and took Xiao Tuo to the main account.
Lin Yanjue was polishing his sword. When he saw Xiao Tuo coming, he couldn't believe it: "Why are you here? Did your father chase you here?"
Xiao Tuo walked in leisurely, looked at Lin Yanjue, and suddenly said: "Uncle Lin, you are really old..."
Lin Yanjue pointed his sword in front of Xiao Tuo, and the shiny sword reflected a sharp and dazzling light: "How can you talk like that? You are so disrespectful."
Xiao Tuo smiled and pushed his sword away with his fingers. He stopped playing and said: "I suspect there is a fraud in the southern border, so I came here to check it out."
Lin Yanjue frowned: "Fraud? Why didn't I find out?"
Lin Yanjue knew that although Xiao Tuo was usually sloppy and unserious, he never let down his guard at critical moments. Besides, he has come all the way from the capital to the southern border, so there must be something going on.
Xiao Tuo pulled Lin Yanjue to sit down, his face a little solemn: "Uncle Lin, yesterday I crossed the border and ran for about an hour, and saw the army of Weiyuan country marching at night. The number of people was huge, and I think it was a coalition of many countries."
When Lin Yanjue heard this, he put his sword aside, pulled Xiao Tuo to sit down, and seemed a little unbelievable.
"Did you see it with your own eyes?"
Xiao Tuo nodded: "Yes."
He stood up and pointed at the sand table.
"At this time, the enemy has built a siege about 20 miles from the border. When the troops of Ning'an are trapped in the northern border, they can attack and take more than a dozen cities on the border."
Lin Yanjue realized the seriousness of the matter, stared and thought for a moment, and said: "I will go with you tonight to check the enemy's deployment, and then we will report to the emperor immediately."
Xiao Tuo nodded.
Night fell quickly, and Lin Yanjue and Xiao Tuo led a team to check in different places and return to the camp before dawn.
Sure enough, the siege was being established and ambushes were set up everywhere.
After confirmation, Lin Yanjue did not dare to delay any longer. That night, he and Xiao Tuo immediately rode from the southern border to Lizhou, and sent someone to send an urgent letter back to Beijing 800 miles away.
——The
situation in the north was grim. The troops seldom rested on the way to the north, and they traveled all night.
When they arrived in Lizhou, they planned to set up camp and rest for a night.
The darkness was gradually dispelled by the light. Xiao Kangyuan had already stood up and stood outside the tent, looking into the distance: "Hasn't they arrived yet?"
Xiao Yuning said: "No."
Xiao Kangyuan retracted his gaze, turned back to the tent: "Notify everyone, get ready immediately, and set off at noon."
Xiao Yuning: "Yes."
Xie Chenzheng came over and smiled when he heard this: "The second young master may have said it casually. There is no need to wait for him, just set off quickly."
Xiao Yuning couldn't stand his weird and petty mind, turned around and looked at him, and said in a deep voice: "No matter what, Xiao Tuo's move is to be prepared for any eventuality. It is better to be cautious. General Xie doesn't need to be like this."...stingy.
Xie Chen stared at Xiao Yuning unconvincedly, thinking, your brother is just a fool, and you don't let people say anything?
The two of them exchanged glances for a moment, then turned around and went their separate ways.
The army had been reorganized and was ready to set off, waiting for Xiao Kangyuan's order.
Xiao Kangyuan looked at Xiao Yuning, who shook his head.
Xiao Kangyuan turned his head to look at the dark army below, and was about to give an order when he heard a loud voice coming from afar.
"Wait!!!"
Lian Fei's voice was screamed, but the general heard it, so it was worth his effort.
Lian Fei was born with a loud voice, so when he rode down the hillside and looked at the neatly arranged team, Xiao Tuo blew a whistle and handed him this glorious mission.
Lin Yanjue rushed into the team first, got off his horse and half-knelt on the ground: "Your Excellency, I have something important to discuss."
Seeing Lin Yanjue running from the southern border, Xiao Kangyuan and others understood a little.
Xiao Kangyuan turned to Xiao Yuning and said, "Pass the order, rest where you are."
"Yes."
Several people walked aside, Lin Yanjue's thick black eyebrows wrinkled together, and he immediately bowed and said, "General, last night I went to the border of Weiyuan State with Xiao Tuo to check. They have secretly united, marched in the middle of the night, and surrounded the southern border. The battle in the northern border is indeed a fraud, and the southern border is their real plan!"
Upon hearing Lin Yanjue's words, all the generals were extremely shocked, and even Xie Chen gave up those thoughts. Several people sat down and began to discuss countermeasures.
Finally, Xiao Yuning and Xiao Tuo looked at each other and said, "Why not use the enemy's trick against them?"
Several generals looked at each other and nodded, and used the enemy's trick against them.
Now they are the ones who hold the initiative.
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