As dawn broke, Song Liyun and Zhao Tingduo stood by the Zhabu River, gazing at the convoy of people and horses that was gradually disappearing into the distance.
My brother, sister-in-law, nephew, and niece have all passed away, and I don't know when I'll see them again.
Xiao An heard that Old Ma had died of old age a year ago, so he asked his second sister for Chrysanthemum Green Horse to take back to Broken Gold Town.
He felt that with Juqing and Heijin around, with these emotional animals, he had family and wouldn't be lonely.
The two stood there for a long time, until they could see nothing at all, before Zhao Tingduo took Song Liyun's hand and said, "Ayun, if you can't bear to leave your brothers, why don't you go and stay in Wu Dynasty for a while?"
Song Liyun turned her head and smiled: "It's not that I'm reluctant to part with him, it's just that it feels like only yesterday that Xiao An grew up and my brother had a few more children."
Only we remain unchanged.
Zhao Tingduo smiled and said, "Yes, we haven't changed, and we never will."
Song Liyun looked down at the large hand holding hers, then playfully tilted her head: "Take me horseback riding!"
"good!"
As the two horses drew closer, Zhao Tingduo put her arm around Song Liyun's waist, pulled her across the horse, and nestled her against her chest.
Behind the two, the guards followed silently in unison.
The cool morning breeze made her black hair flutter, and it also dispelled Song Liyun's sorrow of parting.
She closed her eyes, like a petrel taking a short rest in the waves, quietly experiencing the rise and fall of the horse as it galloped.
It was already dark when they returned. The two had just arrived at the city gate when they saw Abu, who was anxiously waiting.
"What is it?" Zhao Tingduo slowed down his horse.
Abu stepped forward and whispered, "Boss Jian sent a letter. It was delivered by carrier pigeon from Hecheng at the rest stop, and it was urgent."
Some of the bandit Jian Fangtong's men knew how to raise homing pigeons, so the city sent over several pairs of pigeons.
However, the grasslands are vast, and the distance is too far to rest. There is no food on the ground, and eagles and falcons are chasing them from high altitudes, resulting in a high loss of carrier pigeons.
However, they can be released from rest stops along the way, making it faster than a horse for a distance of 100 li (50 kilometers).
It now seems that Zhao Tingduo and Song Liyun received the news shortly after leaving the rest stop.
Back in the study of the city lord's mansion, besides Elder Yu, there were several deputy generals from the Lei Battalion, each with a solemn expression.
Upon seeing Zhao Tingduo return, Old Master Yu couldn't wait to say, "Third Young Master, Pingliang Fort has fallen, and Qing'an Prefecture in Yunzhou is under siege!"
Zhao Tingduo's eye twitched.
Since the outbreak of war on the Xuyang Grassland, Hecheng has ordered the Zhenbei Army in various garrisons to strengthen its defenses.
Pingliang Fort had fallen to Xuanwei Army five years ago when Zhao Tingduo used the "driving away wolves and tigers" strategy to drive out the wandering tribesmen and attack the fortress guarded by Xuanwei Army.
With the collapse of Weibao and the gathering of rioters, the Di tribe's royal court and its allied forces of several thousand men seized the opportunity to enter and march south, burning, killing, and looting in Yunzhou Prefecture and several counties, and heading straight for the imperial city.
The late emperor was so enraged that he fainted and suffered a stroke in front of all the court officials, which allowed the then crown prince to oversee the country.
It was during this opportunity that Zhao Yanqiao, the father, regained full control of the military and drove the Xuanwei Army, the direct descendants of the eldest prince with impure motives, out of Yunzhou.
After that, Pingliang Fort was under the control of the Zhenbei Army and there were no problems for several years. How could it have fallen again now?
Old Yu took out a thin roll of paper, which Zhao Tingduo unfolded. It was covered with tiny, densely written characters.
As he looked around, his face paled in shock. After a moment of hesitation, he said to Wu Dan, who was serving beside him, "Please bring Madam here!"
After losing Pingliang Fort once, the garrison was increased and the fort was renovated, making it even more solid and sturdy.
However, of the military households inside, only one in ten survived the last defeat.
Four years ago, Wan Youyou and her family members, along with some convicted officials from the capital, were exiled here.
The problem lies with these corrupt officials.
Although these people were trapped in frontier garrisons, their minds never stopped working.
Even right under the noses of the Zhenbei Army, they couldn't stay out of line. On one hand, they contacted old acquaintances in the capital, and on the other hand, they tried to extract information from the soldiers.
However, the Zhenbei Army had very strict discipline, and they did not succeed.
Three years passed. During the Battle of Xuyang Grassland, the Zhenbei Army tightened the guard posts and had to draw labor from the military households to collect soil from the grassland to build walls.
With the slightest oversight, someone made contact with the Di tribe.
Unlike the breaching of the pass five years ago, this time the Zhenbei Army defending the pass reacted quickly, not only killing the traitorous military households immediately, but also repelling the tribes that wanted to launch a sneak attack.
However, these actions also served as a reminder to the tribes of the Xuyang Grassland that they could find this breach and then enter the pass to plunder.
then……
Not long ago, at night, three thousand tribal cavalrymen disregarded their own safety and charged up Pingliang Fort like trapped beasts. All three hundred guards were slaughtered, and five hundred military households were captured and taken to the grasslands.
After capturing the easily defensible Pingliang Fortress, the Di cavalry charged into Anqing Prefecture in one fell swoop...
Song Liyun, who rushed over, also changed her expression drastically after hearing the whole story.
Even though the Zhenbei Army has already chased those Di cavalry out of Yunzhou, the imperial court will still relentlessly impeach Zhao Tinglei.
"Why is this happening?" Song Liyun couldn't believe what she was hearing.
Since the chaos broke out on the Xuyang Grassland, the Zhenbei Army has strengthened border management. How could such a major oversight have occurred?
Old Yu's face was pale, and his eyes were icy as he said, "The five thousand soldiers who went to the mines... were drawn from the Zhenbei Army!"
Song Liyun felt a sharp pain in her chest... Oh no, something terrible has happened!
Because of the need to open mines and burn cement, Zhao Tinglei, the garrison commander of Hecheng, pulled 5,000 soldiers from the Zhenbei Army to do hard labor.
Although these soldiers worked hard in the mines, they received a high allowance in addition to their military pay, so they were satisfied.
Over the next two years, cement and pig iron were sent to Hecheng to be processed into weapons and armor, and to repair garrison forts and forts, giving the Zhenbei Army a completely new look.
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