On the seventh day of the twelfth lunar month, Changzhou City.
Tomorrow is the Laba Festival, and in more than half a month it will be the New Year's Eve. However, there is not much festive atmosphere inside and outside Changzhou. Instead, there are still various scars from the series of bloody battles not long ago.
There are still mottled marks on the high city wall, which were cut by arrows, wood, stone and other offensive and defensive weapons. A house next to the southern city wall has long been in ruins, including some that were destroyed by the war. , but most of them were forcibly dismantled by the soldiers into weapons such as hammers and rolling stones in order to defend the city walls; in addition, food in the city was also running out, and the people's lives became increasingly difficult.
But compared to these, what makes people feel that the war is not far away even more is the two battalions of soldiers and horses stationed outside Changzhou City. The garrison of tens of thousands of officers and soldiers always reminds everyone in the city all the time that the threat of war is It hasn't been lifted yet, so we can't have any luck or slack.
Three miles south of Changzhou City, the Shandong Army and the Huainan Army are stationed here with clear distinctions. Although there is no tense situation, it can be seen from the alert look of the soldiers on both sides looking at each other from a distance that the relationship between the two armies is already very serious. It seems that before Fang La's rebels arrive, the two armies will start fighting. If someone hadn't forcibly suppressed the soldiers' behavior...
Even under such an environment, the Huainan army was still lazy and noisy. From time to time, you could hear frolics and even curses and complaints that would come out when Guan Pu was playing for money.
In comparison, the Shandong military camp a few miles away was much more solemn. Even if there were sounds that kept coming out, they were the shouts and shouts of the soldiers who were practicing according to the rules. The neat shouts sometimes reached the opposite military camp. , can make many people tremble with shock.
The gap in strength between the two sides is completely visible to the naked eye, but Huainan, which is much weaker in combat power, dares to confront the Shandong Army. This is really strange. Not only are many soldiers in the Shandong Army difficult to understand, but even as a bystander, The soldiers and civilians of Changzhou were very surprised, and the reason lies only in the forbearance of some people.
When a gust of north wind blew with a deep chill, the soldiers who were training in single clothes shivered unconsciously. Seeing this, Dong Ping, who was checking the attitude of the soldiers in front, waved his hand and shouted: : "Stop! That's it for today. Let's go back to camp to warm up first."
All the officers and men felt as if they had received a general amnesty. They quickly dispersed and returned to their accounts after responding to the order. Although there were no heating objects such as fire pits in the tents, it was much warmer to hide in a sheltered room than to stand outside in the wind. And after a while, someone will bring steaming food, which will dispel the cold even more.
To be honest, as northern soldiers from Shandong, they never thought that the winter in the south would be so difficult. The coldness seeped into their bones. In addition, the entire army did not have many sets of heavy clothing to keep out the cold. It's even worse.
Dong Ping also looked at the Huainan military camp not far away with some worry, and then turned his gaze to Changzhou City in front, thinking: "Song Gongming can always get something out this time..." As he was thinking about it, , he saw several people coming out of the city and rushing here quickly. It was Song Jiang who brought people back.
eager to know the end
Dong Ping couldn't wait in the camp with peace of mind at this time, and immediately strode out of the camp gate. When the other party came to him, he quickly asked: "How about it? Can the city provide us with some clothes to keep out the cold first?" ?”
In fact, the Shandong Army had prepared all kinds of logistical support earlier, including arrows, armor, food and clothing. However, when they marched towards Changzhou, because they learned that the military situation ahead was urgent, they temporarily threw their most cumbersome and bulky winter clothes on the way. This was because I wanted to rush to Changzhou for rescue as soon as possible. Secondly, I also felt that the winter in the south of the Yangtze River might not be that cold.
But more than half a month later, the temperature dropped sharply and the climate became extremely cold. In addition, the army stayed outside Changzhou for a long time, and the soldiers suffered. Now there are hundreds of people in the camp who fell ill due to the cold. Well, the situation is very worrying.
The Huainan Army on the side was well prepared and was not affected by this. However, the relationship between the two sides was tense and it was impossible for the other party to provide cold-weather clothing for the Shandong Army. Therefore, in desperation, Dong Ping could only make his move to Changzhou. I hope I can get some clothes from them.
But when he asked this question, he could clearly see the bitter look on Song Jiang's face, which made his heart sink: "Why, are they not willing to help my Shandong soldiers overcome this difficulty?"
Song Jiang clasped his fists and bent over: "Song Jiang is incompetent and has disappointed the governor. Fan Zhifu said that the city is also in short supply now. The people are not only short of food and clothing, but many people don't even have shelter. He really can't give us any clothes to support us. "
"Hmph, I think it's not that they can't get something out, but that they don't want to!" Chao Gai, who was standing next to him, immediately glanced at the Huainan military camp and said, "And it's most likely that Peng Yongzhen is here. He was making trouble behind his back. He was really sure that we didn't dare to attack them, so we used all his dirty tricks."
"King of Heaven, you can't say that. Changzhou City is really in trouble now. Several brothers and I have seen it. How many people are homeless. They are living a worse life than our soldiers..." Song Jiang hurriedly spoke to comfort him. After a pause, he said: "Why don't I go to the Huainan Army to discuss it with them and exchange food for some warm clothes, so that the sick brother will not be worse off."
"No, this is just drinking poison to quench thirst!" Dong Ping immediately shook his head: "No one knows how long they will consume us. If there is a food shortage, the situation will only get worse."
"If you ask me, it's better to just go over and snatch their clothes. I've long disliked them!" Shi Wengong came over at some point and said with a gloomy expression.
As soon as these words came out, they immediately got the approval of many generals, but before the general Dong Ping could speak, Song Jiang and Lu Junyi shouted in unison: "Don't be reckless!"
Later, Song Jiang said sincerely: "I know everyone is upset, but at this time we must not let our own tempers run wild, otherwise the grievances we have suffered during this period will be in vain. Then Peng Yongzhen wants to use this method Forcing us to take action will prove that we have evil intentions. At that time, he will report it to Jinling, and Zhu Meng will add jealousy to the matter and send it to the court, and we will be completely clean. You may not If you care about yourself, you should also do it for the soldiers
, think about Sun Qianjie, if our impulsiveness affects Qianjia, our sin will be great. "
Everyone who was still angry finally calmed down after he mentioned Sun Tu. In fact, if it weren't for Sun Tu's sake, the Huainan Army had insisted on keeping them in Changzhou before, and even threatened to use troops to stop them, they would have led the army to attack fiercely.
Speaking of which, the situation of the Shandong Army is indeed difficult now. Not only is there a problem with logistical support, but the reputation is also very bad. Even the people in Changzhou who were just rescued by them have a certain degree of hostility towards them. This Naturally, someone deliberately spread the news that their relationship led to Xie Mo's death. Xie Mo's reputation is not only in the Jinling area, but also in the entire Jiangnan area. He is like a Buddha-like existence among thousands of families. Since everyone believes that the Shandong Army killed him, naturally they will not look good on them.
Coupled with the fact that there was an eyeing Huainan Army nearby, they couldn't even leave to find Sun Tu, and they were in a real dilemma.
Of course, if it were another general who had taken the decision, he would have taken action regardless of the aggrieved situation. It was only because Song Jiang, Lu Junyi and others tried their best to persuade him, and Dong Ping still considered the overall situation, that he did not take the situation further. Expand and only confront the Huainan Army here.
But as the situation got worse and worse, even Dong Ping couldn't hold it any longer. After everyone was silenced by Song Jiang's words, he darkened his face and said, "If only we generals had to suffer some hardships." That’s it, we can withstand it. But the brothers below may not be able to bear it. In the past half a month, three to four hundred people have gotten cold. If this continues, the number of illnesses will only double. , if he gets sick and dies, how can we explain to Sun Qianha?"
"But..." Song Jiang wanted to say something more, but was interrupted by Dong Ping with a wave of his hand: "In my opinion, with Sun Qian's consistent love of soldiers as his sons, even if he is here, he will never ignore himself. The interests of the soldiers have been kept cold and cold. This time has been delayed for long enough and cannot be delayed any longer. I have decided that this will be a showdown with the Huainan Army. If they dare to drag us again, the worst is to beat them twice. Disperse!"
"Okay! Director Dong, we have been waiting for this sentence for too long. These bastards from Huainan can't fight, but they always want to provoke our brothers. It's time to let them know how powerful our Shandong Army is!" Chao Gai immediately said He was eager to respond.
Following his statement, other generals also shouted: "We can't bear it any longer. If we bear it any longer, we will become a turtle. I don't want to be a turtle. Let them know how powerful we are today!"
The atmosphere was so tense that even Song Jiang couldn't stop him anymore. He could only say with a bitter face: "Brothers, please bear with me for a few more days... I believe that things can always be solved, and Sun Qianha will definitely come to help us solve the problem." …”
"I can't bear it anymore! If anyone dares to come with me and speak clearly to Peng Yongzhen, come forward and we'll go there right now!" With the decision made, Dong Ping no longer had any worries and immediately strode towards the Huainan military camp.
Just when everyone responded and followed, and Song Jiang was so anxious that sweat was about to break out on his face, several horsemen and horses faintly appeared from the north, galloping towards the Shandong Army camp at extremely fast speeds. This fell into Song Jiang's eyes and made him suddenly overjoyed: "Prince Dong, wait a minute, it's Sun Qianha who sent someone here..."