On the seventeenth day of the eighth month, the king of heaven sent 100,000 soldiers and marched into Jingzhou.
In the mouths of teahouse storytellers, it is embarrassing to speak if it is not one hundred and eighty thousand in a war, so ordinary people simply do not know that one hundred thousand is already a large scale.
The foundation of the prosperous Chu Dynasty has gradually collapsed. No matter the south or the north, the number of mouths is decreasing every year. Natural and man-made disasters, fields are abandoned, officials are corrupted, and the army is corrupted. All kinds of malpractices have caused Jingzhou to have internal and external troubles, and the King of Heaven has not yet come in, and this place has become a mess.
First, King Jing was stabbed and wounded, and secondly, he faced off with Qi Chao's navy across the river before, and all the troops and money were allocated.
In the end, more than half of Jingzhou officials looked down on the rabble like the God-given King, thinking that they were nothing more than a group of mud-legged men with shovels and farm implements as weapons, much worse than the naval division of the Qi Dynasty, and just send someone to bring an army to clear it.
Even the powerful and aristocratic family took this as a good opportunity to make meritorious deeds.
…then whoever wins has no head back.
On the 23rd of the eighth month, the Jingzhou army was defeated by 150,000 against 100,000.
King Tianshou chased after the victory, beheading more than half of the Jing army, all the captured generals of the Jing army sacrificed their heads to the flag, and a dozen or so large and small cities were turned into a sea of fire.
This battle directly hurt the vitality, and the panic spread by the defeated soldiers was like a dark cloud.
It didn't look like the King of Heaven was about to stop at all, and he continued to move towards the more prosperous southeastern region. In a panic, the people of Jingzhou ushered in the government's forced military conscription and grain collection. Since the autumn grain has not yet been collected, there is not much food in the civilian family. Children and grandchildren, in the end, nothing was left, and many elderly people fell on the mud and cried in pain.
According to rumors, the King of Heaven has become a monster with four arms, three eyes, and a height of 20 feet who loves to eat human flesh. The people who live in the lower reaches of the river not far from the battlefield have witnessed the stream turning light red, and following the official servants is like The wolf rushed into the village like a tiger.
A month ago, they were still working hard. After paying the land tax and land rent, the family was living on a tight supply of food.
No matter how difficult the day is, the ancestors have lived like this for generations, and they will continue to live.
Now everything has changed, unexpectedly.
Some people left their ancestral property and fields behind, and fled with their families.
More people feel that the village is located in a remote place, and they are self-reliant. Anyway, when the three vassal kings of Chu Chu fought in the past, the war did not burn into the village, and the food was all robbed by the government. There is no shortage of wild fruits and fish and shrimp, and you can't die if you are hungry, so you don't run.
As a result, the king's army arrived, as if locusts were crossing the border.
The crops that are not fully mature in the fields, the grain in the barn, even chickens, ducks and poultry are not spared, and even the beams of the house are demolished.
Those things that Jingzhou officers disliked, the soldiers of the God-given King did not dislike them. Most of them didn't even have a pair of shoes, let alone leather armor, so they were barefoot, with their chests exposed, and they shouted at Ziwei Xingjun for protection. , neither afraid of pain nor death.
The Jingzhou army, who was defeated in the first battle, gave them a lot of weapons and leather armor. They wore clothes stripped from the corpses and broke into the market towns and villages in the countryside of Jingzhou, killing people and robbing things when they saw them. I found something better and threw it away in my arms.
The dropped things were still stained with blood, next to the lying dead bodies, which were then trampled by a pair of feet, and finally mixed into the mud and blood.
The house slowly collapsed in the fire, and the smoke dissipated.
Not long after, footsteps came from the head of the village.
"… Chase!"
The leader tried his best to calm his mind, not to see the horrors everywhere.
They were armed with swords, and their clothes were very similar. They were disciples of the Hengshan School.
Jianghu people usually shy away from war, and don't want to get involved in trouble, but the behavior of the God-given King has been "extraordinary".
Famous sects can’t eat and drink dew, they also have fields to hire farmers to cultivate, and their disciples are practicing martial arts, not farming. If you move out, even if you can let the tenants at the foot of the mountain hide in advance, what about the unripe crops in the fields
Therefore, after hearing about the atrocities committed by the king's army, the large and small sects who had received the letter from Fengxingge and were still hesitant to defend their territory immediately dispatched their disciples to support Jingzhou, and the Hengshan faction was just one of them.
Not long after they chased, they met the rebel army of the God-given King in another market town.
There are about a hundred people in this chaotic army. Although they do not know martial arts, their fierce and violent aura is shocking. They seem to be much slower than ordinary people. They usually cry when they are cut to the third knife, and most of them stare red. Eyes were suffocating, weapons fell and limbs were broken, and he clenched his teeth with a strange smile on his mouth.
"hiss."
A disciple of the Hengshan faction did not investigate, but was bitten by a chaotic army on his left arm.
"A lunatic, they are all lunatics." The scalps of the Hengshan Sect disciples were numb. If they hadn't been good at martial arts, they might have lost their lives in their chaotic behavior.
Where did the chaotic army gather from the King of Heaven, could it be the evil spirits released from hell
Jianghu people are still shocked, let alone ordinary people.
When the chaotic army was finally strangled and killed, the disciples of the Hengshan faction stood on the street panting, in a state of embarrassment and lingering fears.
When walking back from all over town, the pace also slowed down a lot.
I thought it was a simple errand, but as disciples of the big sects in Jianghu, they rely on their own strength. In their imagination, eradicating the chaotic army is as easy as chopping melons and vegetables. As a result, the melons and vegetables suddenly grew sharp teeth. If he was not careful, he was stabbed with blood, and even tore off a piece of meat.
And they have to move on and deal with these mad dogs.
"Damn..."
The disciples of the Hengshan faction scolded angrily, and one of them couldn't help but ask, "Catch the thief first and capture the king, why don't you go directly to the day to grant the king?"
The older classmate rolled his eyes and said angrily, "It's natural for someone to go to this matter, it's not up to you and me to worry about it."
The implication is that none of the people present are qualified to be this assassin.
"Have you forgotten that Zheng Tu, the disciple of the ancestor of Qingwu, served as the king of heaven many years ago? Although the ancestor of Qingwu died in Taijing, and the people of Zangfengguan also scattered, but Zheng Tu has always been good. Di is staying in Yizhou, how is his martial arts, you have no idea?"
Everyone stopped talking now.
There are kendo geniuses from famous families, and there are desperados who picked up a secret book through shit luck. No matter how powerful these people are, everyone is dissatisfied, and they always feel that they may be more powerful if they change themselves.
Zheng Tu is different. In fact, he is taking the path that Jianghu young heroes yearn for the most. He walks around the thirteen prefectures in the world one by one. Every time he challenges a famous Jianghu senior in every place, he wins every battle and is the most bizarre. The thing is that his martial arts cannot be said to be invincible in the world, but he can see the flaws in other people's tricks in the continuous fight, and often turn defeat into victory. No one is willing to run into such an opponent, let alone capsize in the gutter, and lose inexplicably.
Zheng Tu rarely kills people in competitions. In other words, when he wins, he is also covered in bruises. It became louder and louder, and everyone changed the caliber and praised him without margin. It means that the party who failed in the competition is not famous, but it was just unfortunate that he met Zheng Tu. If Zheng Tu suddenly ran out of brains and ran to serve the God-given King, he might have been able to win a martial arts leader after decades of such prestige. .
In fact, the rumors in the rivers and lakes are quite beneficial to Zheng Tu. Most people believe that this is not Zheng Tu's will, but that the teacher's order is difficult to violate, especially after the ambitions of Qingwu ancestors were exposed.
"The ancestor of Qingwu is dead, Zheng Tugen-->>
There's no need to stay with the God-given King... Look at these chaotic armies, what are they..."
A young Hengshan Sect disciple complained in a low voice, moved reluctantly, and followed the crowd to the next village.
***
On the twenty-fifth of August, after an annoying autumn rain, it was no longer hot enough to make one want to get angry.
Summer seems to be extraordinarily long this year, with drought in several places.
However, when it was really cool, no one cared about the harvest and the weather.
A Zhuangzi, hidden behind a hill, looks like a place where the rich and powerful are hunting and living. Usually, the door is locked, and almost no one can come and go, but now it is unusually lively.
Many people were busy going in and out, with bamboo tubes brought by carrier pigeons in their hands, and a fast horse kept arriving.
The rider rolled off the saddle, showed his waist badge, then took the water bottle handed over by others, poured it down hastily, and rushed into the house.
"Reporting to the pavilion master, the latest military report of Jingzhou City..."
"Pavilion master, news from Hengshan."
"Tracks of the rebel army were found in the area of Xianan County."
When Tao Niangzi and her brother arrived, they saw this chaos and order.
They originally opened an inn on the banks of the river and were engaged in the business of smuggling goods. As a result, the inn was destroyed by a storm, and they met Meng Qi Mo Li by accident.
Tao Niangzi's cousin, Xiaohezi, practiced outside work, which damaged the meridians. Doctor Mo showed it. Originally, he promised to come back after three months for diagnosis and treatment to change the prescription. As a result, the summer has not completely passed, and Jingzhou is already in chaos.
The village where Tao Niangzi and her brother lived temporarily were refugees who smuggled in from the north bank. Although Tianshou Wang Dajun hadn't called, he was also panicked when he heard the news from the merchant, and they all discussed escaping south. Madam Tao was fidgeting when she welcomed two distinguished guests who had disappeared.
Meng Qi changed back to the appearance of an old man.
This is so as not to scare Mrs. Tao, she can't see her for more than a month, so she should be rejuvenated.
As a result, when they came to Zhuangzi's door, the people in Fengxing Pavilion almost didn't recognize it.
-Thanks to the appearance of the black carp getting old, some people from Ningtai have seen it.
"National teacher, Doctor Mo."
Qiu Jing's confidant heard the news and hurriedly welcomed the two in.
Numerous pairs of eyes swept across the Tao Niangzi sister and brother, and the gaze that looked at the evaluation was obviously unpleasant.
When the group of four arrived in front of Qiu Jing, the origins of the Tao Niangzi sister and brother were also handed over to the Fengxing Pavilion Master.
"It turned out to be Mrs. Tao from the Eight Arms Gate in the middle of Sichuan." Qiu Jing glanced at the paper on which Mrs. Tao's life was written in the corner of his eye, and then his heart moved, and he vaguely understood why Meng Qi and Mo Li had brought Mrs. Tao here.
"Come on, let's watch tea."
People in the rivers and lakes talk about etiquette as a matter of face, and sometimes they can't wait to finish the etiquette.
The four of them had just sat down, and before they even had time to serve the tea, they heard Qiujing ask straight to the point: "The Eight Arms Gate specializes in hidden weapons, and has always had a good relationship with Pili Tang. Mrs. Tao has been away from the teacher's door for many years, and I don't know how much she knows about Pili Tang. ?"
Tao Niangzi had already heard Mo Li talk about the incident of Pili Tang assisting the King of Heaven to break through Xuanchuan Pass. In fact, she came here to volunteer.
"Pili Tang has been deeply divided over the years. Some people are addicted to manufacturing hidden weapons, while others have always wanted to go out. They think that Yizhou's structure is too small, and it is not possible to make money and feel aggrieved. Passed away, it should be the meaning of the new owner of the new family."
Tao Niangzi said that she would find a way to find some brothers and sisters in the Eight Arms Gate and contact those who oppose the family owner in the Perak Hall.
Finding people is Fengxing Pavilion's specialty.
As long as you don't squat in Yizhou, as long as you come to Jiangnan, it will be a matter of time.
"Ms. Tao stays here first, within three days, there will be news of your fellow family." Qiu Jing winked, and someone came to lead the way.
Sister Tao Niangzi held the tea cups they just got, and thought awkwardly whether to put them down or take a sip before leaving.
"Cough." Meng Qi maintained the old man's style, and said slowly, "If this time comes back without success, Mrs. Tao doesn't need to worry about it. When the crisis is on the way, she just needs to find a few more ways."
Tao Niangzi breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing that there were more and more people outside the door waiting to report to Fengxing Pavilion, she was embarrassed to stay, she put down the tea cup and left with her cousin.
The atmosphere in the room was even more stagnant. Qiu Jing saw the purple soft sword on Meng Qi's waist and the familiar luggage on Mo Li's back. He couldn't help but wonder where the two had put these things before and how they got them back.
Since Mo Li entered the door, his eyes have been staying on the sand table in the center of the square table.
The red flags stretched a lot from Yizhou, and Jingzhou was defeated like a mountain. In just a few days, one-third of the jurisdiction was lost.
"Does the King of Heaven really only have an army of 100,000?"
Not only is it dangerous like a plague of locusts, but even the speed is so fast, is it possible that it has wings
As soon as Meng Qi saw the person leave, he immediately lost his old-fashioned posture. He didn't look old at all when he got up and paced. Except for the same face, the surrounding Fengxing Pavilion almost suspected that it was a different person.
"Look carefully, there is no big city here."
Meng Qi knew the sand table like the back of his hand, and felt that Fengxing Pavilion's craftsmanship was not bad, but ordinary Jianghu people did not have such skills.
"On the one hand, the king's men and horses will not stay in the captured city, on the other hand, the Jingzhou army can't defend it, and completely abandons the people outside the city, and the king of heaven does not want to waste time on these tortoise shells, and only quickly brings Soldiers push."
Meng Qi casually stretched out his hand and swiped, and the area that was originally red in the eyes of the ink carp became clear.
Qiu Jing was slightly surprised, and then said with relief:
"As expected, it is Meng Guoshi. You can make an accurate guess without looking at the news sent by the front line."
At this time, news of various sects came one after another outside, and Qiu Jing quickly turned over, his fingers trembling slightly with anger.
"Pavilion Master?"
"...The rebel army slaughtered and plundered the villages, and the people couldn't escape."
Qiu Jing held onto the tabletop, fought hard, and said weakly, "Apart from the Hengshan faction and other major sect disciples, more than a dozen other gangs are retreating."
"What?" The people in the Fengxing Pavilion next to him were taken aback.
Meng Qi's face was sullen, Mo Li hesitated for a while, and took the stack of news from Qiu Jing.
Some market towns and villages were almost completely destroyed. After several waves of chaotic troops, there was not even a place to shelter from the wind and rain. Not to mention that the chaotic army looks like a madman, not afraid of casualties, the big sect has not yet suffered casualties, the small gang has already died, and the appearance of the people from the holy lotus altar is even worse.
"In a hurry, Fengxing Pavilion summoned more than 400 disciples of Jianghu heroes from various factions... In addition to the corresponding people in the past few days, it has reached more than 700 people, almost half the strength of Jiangnan, but scattered in the This Jingzhou is like a mud cow entering the sea..."
Qiu Jing stared at the sand table, his palms clenched.
She never thought that these people could turn the situation around, but it was difficult to even save people.
Is this the destiny
Meng Qi closed his eyes and said solemnly: "First, hold back the main force of King Tianshou. He is throwing everything away and heading towards Nanping County, where King Jing is located."
"Report-"
Suddenly someone broke into the outside, and saw Meng Qi Mo Li was stunned, but still quickly said: "Pavilion Master, Senior Wang, they have missed, and the ten people who went to assassinate the King of Heaven have already... Our people searched after the King of Heaven's Gift set off his camp. Their bodies were found."