Qiu Yizhi was very happy to see that Ruan Wenlong had surrendered, and said with a smile: "General Ruan, don't worry. My adoptive father has not yet ascended to the throne, so it is not the time to reward him. General Ruan has plenty of opportunities to make contributions. For example, there is something right now that I think only General Ruan can do."
"I'd like to ask you something." Ruan Wenlong asked impatiently.
Qiu Yizi took a sip of tea and asked slowly, "The government troops that originally went out to attack my adoptive father have all been defeated by my adoptive father, is that right or not?"
Ruan Wenlong nodded like a chicken pecking at rice: "That's right. The prince is a mighty warrior, and he is a master at using troops. In one battle, he almost captured General Qian Qing, who replaced Marshal Dai, alive. The emperor was furious, so he ordered General Qian to be beheaded in front of the army and his head to be sent everywhere. The newly sent old general Bai Wenbo knew that he could not defeat the prince, so he ordered all the imperial guards outside the pass to withdraw to Tongguan..."
Qiu Yizi had already guessed these battle situations to be almost correct, and now hearing from the well-informed Ruan Wenlong, it was confirmed.
So he thought and said, "That's it. At present, the government troops have become frightened birds, and they only rely on Tongguan. If General Ruan can help my foster father break through Tongguan, then my capital will be undefended and can be taken in no time! This is the greatest achievement of Qingtian's protection!"
"Really?" Ruan Wenyuan's eyes lit up, but then dimmed. "But I'm just a thousand-man officer guarding the gate. If it were before, I might have been able to deceive my superiors and subordinates and think of a solution. But since General Bai came, the defense of Tongguan has been taken over by the imperial guards. I really can't think of any solution."
Qiu Yizhi scratched his head and said, "So General Ruan has been idle at home these days, right?"
"That's not the case." Ruan Wenlong replied, "I am now on duty every three days to take charge of the opening and closing of the Tongguan Gate. Although I have a little free time, I can't say that I have nothing to do."
"Oh? Opening and closing the city gates are just some hard work. It's a waste of talent for the court to send a talent like General Ruan to do such heavy work." Qiu Yi's words were somewhat teasing.
Ruan Wenlong was too stupid to hear the sarcasm, so he said, "Your Highness, you don't know this. The gate of Tongguan is heavy, and it is said to be ten times heavier than the twelve gates of the capital. Therefore, the opening and closing method is naturally different from other places. If you use brute force to push under the door, you can't move it even if you pull it with your hand. Opening and closing depends entirely on the soldiers on the tower pushing the winch, so that it can operate smoothly."
He took a breath and continued, "This capstan was manufactured during the reign of Emperor Xianzong. It has fallen into disrepair and often breaks down. That's why we, the old men who have worked in Tongguan for a long time, have to watch over it and repair it immediately if it breaks down."
When Qiu Yizhi heard this, he slapped his thigh and had come up with a plan. He said to Ruan Wenlong happily: "General Ruan, this is an important task. If you follow my plan, I'm afraid this great achievement will not be missed by you!"
Ruan Wenlong was naturally happy to hear him say this, but he was still confused. He stared at Qiu Yizi with wide eyes and asked, "I wonder if your highness has any good ideas?"
Qiu Yizi smiled but said nothing. He pondered for a while before asking, "When will General Ruan start his mission? Can you send my brother Zhao out of the border?"
Ruan Wenlong hurriedly replied, "We are now on duty every four days, and tomorrow I will be on duty. Even if thousands of troops cannot send him there, I still have the ability to send this Lord Zhao there, so Your Highness, just wait and see!"
Qiu Yizi nodded, told Ruan Wenlong a few words that must be kept confidential, then left and went to the inn where he was staying.
Along the way, Yuchi Lianghong felt uneasy and asked Qiu Yizhi: "My dear brother, I think Ruan Wenlong is greedy and has no ambition. I'm afraid I can't trust him. Don't sell us out and ruin my plan!"
Qiu Yizi waved his hand and said, "Brother, you don't know this. This kind of person is easier to control. He sees that my foster father's army is now in full swing, and he has his own considerations in his mind. Naturally, he will bet all his treasures on the side with a greater chance of winning. If our army suffers a loss, we will worry that he will betray us! Brother, don't worry too much. Tomorrow, we will see whether he is sincere in sending Zhao Chengxiao out, and then we will know whether he is sincere in working for me."
Back at the inn, Qiu Yizi spread out paper and ground ink, wrote a letter, sealed it himself, and gave it to Zhao Chengxiao, asking him to hand it over to Zheng Rong or Zhong Likuang in person after he came out of the customs tomorrow. If there was any mistake in it, it should be destroyed immediately and not fall into the hands of others.
The next day, Qiu Yizi and the other two got up early and rushed to Ruan Wenlong's house together, and followed him to Tongguan to work.
Although Ruan Wenlong was only a captain, and he bowed and scraped before Qiu Yizhi, he was in charge of more than a hundred soldiers. He was so energetic that he walked to the front of the pass, summoned his soldiers, and scolded them arrogantly. Then he climbed up the city wall, pretended to check and inspect, and then sat down at the entrance of the city wall to drink tea.
Qiu Yizi had been hovering in front of Tongguan for a long time and was very familiar with the terrain here. He took Yuchi Lianghong and Zhao Chengxiao with him and chose a teahouse that could see what was happening in front of the pass. He ordered a pot of tea and some snacks, then sat down and waited for the gate to open.
The door opened very early today, and it slowly opened just after the 9:00 p.m.
Because there were not many people waiting to cross the border, and with Ruan Wenlong's care, Zhao Chengxiao passed the border very smoothly. He rode a horse out of the border to find the camp of Zheng Rong, the King of Youyan.
Qiu Yizhi was relieved to see Zhao Chengxiao walking smoothly, but smiled and said to Yuchi Lianghong: "How is it? My guess is right, isn't it?"
Yuchi Lianghong was about to compliment him when he heard Qiu Yizi continue, "This plan has already succeeded by one third. Now I have to trouble you to go and ask all the people I left in the ruined temple to come to the front of this pass. Tell them to disguise themselves and not reveal their true colors! This must be done within three days!"
Yuchi Lianghong knew, of course, that this matter was extremely urgent, so he agreed without hesitation, picked up a piece of dessert on the table, swallowed it whole, and rode west.
Qiu Yizi sat still in the teahouse and waited for Ruan Wenlong to get off work before following him home. She had dinner at Ruan Wenlong's house and rewarded him with ten taels of gold before returning to the inn to rest.
The next morning, Qiu Yizi was still in the same inn as yesterday, drinking tea and observing the situation.
The Tongguan Pass was opened very late that day. When it was almost 5 p.m. and the sun was setting, General Bai Wenbo ordered the gate to be opened. There were already many people waiting to pass through the gate, and Zhao Chengxiao was among them.
Although Zhao Chengxiao was simple and honest, he was not stupid. He had been in the Youyan army for a long time, so he easily found the central army camp of Youyan King Zheng Rong without much effort, and asked the gatekeepers to report to the prince.
When Zheng Rong heard that it was Zhao Chengxiao who came to report the news, he hurriedly summoned him. He took Qiu Yizhi's handwritten letter and realized that his resourceful adopted son was indeed reliable: in just a few days, Dai Luanxiang and his family were rescued. However, Dai Luanxiang was a reserved person and was unwilling to surrender to the Youyan Palace easily, which was also unavoidable. When he saw Qiu Yizhi's plan to take Tongguan by trickery, he immediately dismissed everyone, leaving only Zhongli Kuang and Zhao Chengxiao to discuss in detail.
After discussion, they felt that although Qiu Yizi's plan was risky, it was worth a try. If something unexpected happened at the critical moment, it would not be too late to act accordingly.
So Zhongli Kuang wrote a note and Zheng Rong signed it, which was immediately handed over to Zhao Chengxiao. He also rewarded him with an excellent sword and asked him to rush back to Tongguan overnight to meet Qiu Yizhi.
Therefore, Zhao Chengxiao acted extremely quickly. On the second day after he left the pass, he disguised himself as a farmer who was going through the pass to attend a funeral, and passed through Tongguan again to meet Qiu Yizi.
"But the soldiers guarding the pass were very strict, and I was afraid that the precious sword awarded to me by the prince would be found and cause trouble, so I threw it into the river in a hurry. Alas! What a pity to waste such a precious sword!" Zhao Chengxiao sighed.
Qiu Yizhi carefully read the note brought by Zhao Chengxiao, feeling happy, and hurriedly comforted him: "Brother Zhao, why do you have to do this? My adoptive father is a very good man. The famous swords and sabers he collected may not be as good as the Western Regions sword I carry with me, but they are also numerous. If this plan succeeds, I will personally beg my adoptive father to open his treasure house and let you choose as you like."
Zhao Chengxiao was in a good mood after hearing this, and thanked him: "Then I would like to thank you very much, Your Highness."
Qiu Yizi waved his hand and said, "Brother Zhao, you and I have known each other since childhood. We are like family. Why do you have to be so distant? I see that you have been traveling all day and all night without stopping. I think you must be tired. Go back and rest now."
By the next morning, Qiu Yizi had just gotten up and finished washing up, and Yuchi Lianghong, who he had arranged to go out on some errands, had also returned to the inn where they were staying.
Qiu Yizhi's brother, the leader of the martial arts world, was very experienced in the martial arts world. It took him only two days to get the job done. Qiu Yizhi's eighty men who had originally stayed in the ruined temple had been arranged by him to dress up as various people and come to Tongguan in batches. And according to their different identities, they were either accommodated in inns or sleeping on the streets.
Qiu Yizi has always known that his brother is reliable, so he did not verify it one by one. He took him and Zhao Chengxiao to visit Ruan Wenlong again. He picked out everything he could say and explained tomorrow's plan to Ruan Wenlong.
Ruan Wenlong had been fed with Qiu Yizhi's gold these days, and had long made up his mind to help Prince Youyan. Therefore, he became much more respectful to Qiu Yizhi, and truly regarded him as his master, and obeyed his words.
After saying this, Qiu Yizhi instructed Ruan Wenlong again: "Whether this plan will succeed or not depends on tomorrow. If something goes wrong today, not to mention wealth and glory, even your life will be in danger."
Qiu Yizi looked at Ruan Wenlong who kept nodding his head. Although he knew in his heart that Ruan Wenlong had been closely related to the Youyan Palace for a long time and that with his character, he would never betray at a moment's opportunity; however, Qiu Yizi still felt from the bottom of his heart that this greedy and selfish commander was unreliable, so he rewarded him with ten taels of gold and asked Zhao Chengxiao to stay here overnight to monitor him. Only then did he feel a little relieved and returned with Yuchi Lianghong.
That night, Qiu Yizi called several leaders among his soldiers and gave them strategies in person.
Among these people, the few people Zhao Chengxiao brought from Yunmeng Mountain, although loyal, were still rash in their work. Qiu Yizi arranged for them to accompany him tomorrow.
The rest of them were all elite soldiers of Youyan Dao. The leaders were all centurions. Their loyalty and ability were far beyond the reach of Ruan Wenlong and his ilk. Therefore, Qiu Yizhi was relieved to let them act independently.
After Qiu Yizi dismissed everyone and asked them to go back and have a good rest in preparation for showing their skills tomorrow, it was Qiu Yizi who found it difficult to fall asleep.
He knew very well that if tomorrow's plan failed, the imperial court's defense measures for Tongguan would be greatly upgraded, and there would be no room for opportunism. At that time, his adoptive father would have no choice but to launch a large army to forcibly attack, which would inevitably cause great loss of life and great damage to both the imperial court and the Youyan Palace!
Thinking of this, Qiu Yizi tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep all night. (To be continued)