When Zhang Fu came back from outside, it started to drizzle.
The carriage drove along the wet stone road and stopped in front of the imposing gatehouse.
Xiao Xiu held up an oil-paper umbrella, rushed over from the gate, and took Zhang Fu into the house.
I stayed in Haojing for several months.
The Quanrong people gradually relaxed their vigilance towards them.
Because he was a guest official that the Queen Mother relied on, the guards at the door and the servants in the mansion now respectfully addressed Zhang Fu as Mr. Zhang. The surveillance was no longer so strict.
Zhang Fu was in a relaxed mood, strolling slowly in the rain with an oil-paper umbrella in hand.
It seemed that the banquet he had just attended made him very relaxed and happy.
Xiao Xiu followed with an umbrella. He lowered his head and pulled the umbrella handle tightly with a little force to hide the nervousness in his heart.
The gentleman seemed to be attending an insignificant party tonight.
In fact, according to Mr.'s previous estimate.
This banquet was a trap set by Queen Liang, waiting for her husband to fall into it.
It is very likely that the people on Queen Liang's side will finally be unable to hold back tonight, and will use this banquet as a cover to formally contact you in private.
Only by following Mr. Zhang's side did Xiao Xiucai know how difficult and dangerous each step was for Mr. Zhang.
He used his face, which seemed always calm and smiling, to deal with the shrewd and powerful Queen Mother Mo Zang.
On the one hand, he gained the trust of the Empress Dowager by suppressing the Empress's family, and on the other hand, he revealed some flaws, which made the Empress Liang, who hated him to the core, want to poach him and she sent people to try to make contact with him.
Tonight, the Queen thought she had set a trap to lure the gentleman over.
Who knew that this was exactly what the gentleman had carefully planned and had been looking forward to for a long time.
The two walked into the room.
Xiao Xiu put away her rain gear, sent the servants away, and closed the doors and windows one by one.
While helping Zhang Fu change his clothes, he asked in a low voice, "Is it done, sir?"
Zhang Fu handed him the outer robe he had taken off, with a smile on his face.
After following the master for such a long time, Xiao Xiu gradually became able to distinguish the master's real smile.
He clapped his hands excitedly: "Great!"
Zhang Fu straightened his clothes and sat down at the table.
He poured himself a cup of hot tea, sipped it slowly for a while, and then said, "Xiao Xiu, I have an important letter here. Please go there in person and deliver it back for me."
Xiao Xiu was puzzled: "We have a special channel for delivering messages, why do you want me to..."
He suddenly realized what was happening and knelt on the ground: "No, how can I leave you alone at such a critical moment?"
Zhang Fu lowered her eyelashes and slowly turned the cup in her hand.
After a moment, he raised his eyes and said, "After tonight, every step we take will be like walking on a tightrope. I cannot fully grasp what will happen next."
"If you insist on staying, you must be ready at all times."
Xiao Xiu knelt on his knees, raised his head and looked at Zhang Fu. He didn't say anything, but just nodded firmly.
Outside the city of Zhengzhou, military camps of the Jin State surrounded this majestic and sturdy city.
Looking around, there were densely packed black shacks and fluttering flags everywhere.
Countless Jin soldiers lined up in neat rows, shouting loud slogans from time to time, and walked in and out of the camp.
This brought tremendous psychological pressure to the military and civilians in Zhengzhou City.
At this time, several Jin soldiers were urinating near the camp.
Yang Luhou stood beside Yang Sheng, "Brother Sheng, we have been surrounding Zhengzhou for more than two months, right? We haven't had a single decent charge. What do you think the generals are thinking? With so many people, not to mention the daily consumption of food and horses, the daily excrement alone is enough to flood Zhengzhou, right?"
Yang Sheng straightened his clothes and kicked Yang Luhou: "Shut your mouth and wait quietly. You will have a chance to win the first place and make a contribution."
The two of them returned to the camp laughing. Smoke rose from the camp, indicating that another day of dull waiting was about to pass.
In Zhengzhou City, separated by a wall,
Zhengzhou garrison commander Wei Mingshan was sitting in the main hall, with his subordinates, the Quanrong generals, sitting in front of him.
The former Yongqiu defender Du Luowei sat in the first position on the lower left of Weiming Mountain.
He said angrily: "I have always admired the general's bravery in battle. Back then, the Han princes' coalition army of more than 100,000 people marched to the city of Zhengzhou. They were also defeated by the general's attack. The Luzon and Huayuzhi all fled in panic in front of the general's iron cavalry."
"There are only 50,000 people in Jin State, and they are so arrogant that they come to our gates to show off their power. Why did the general let us hide in the city? I really don't understand."
The general on the lower right, who was as tall as an iron tower and had a dark complexion, was the Queen Mother's clansman, Mo Zang Yuanqi. He said, "General, there is nothing to be afraid of the Jin army. Back then, Li Wenguang, Han Quanlin, and the lord of Jin, Cheng Qianyu, once led their army to attack us. Were they not easily defeated by the general's surprise attack?"
He hit his left chest with his right fist: "As long as the general sends me 5,000 cavalry, I will leave the city immediately and kill them all!"
Wei Mingshan's face was dark. "You are all generals who have led the army for many years. Now the Jin army of 50,000 is besieging the city, and I only have more than 20,000 soldiers and horses in Zhengzhou. Do you want me to abandon the advantage of the strong city walls and open the city to fight the Jin army in the field?"
Wei Mingshan was really depressed. He had been guarding Zhengzhou for a long time, and had made all kinds of efforts. He also incorporated the scattered soldiers of Mo Zang and Pei Zhen who retreated from the previous battle of Bianzhou. He originally had 50,000 to 60,000 brave soldiers.
A few months ago, for unknown reasons, the Queen Mother frequently transferred troops and horses from Zhengzhou to him, and in the end, he was left with less than 20,000 troops to defend the city.
They, the Xirong tribe, conquered the world by force.
The generals in the tent were mostly aggressive and brave. They were good at charging into battle, but they were all frustrated and impatient when asked to squat behind the city walls and defend the city.
He had no choice but to explain patiently: "The allied forces of the princes may seem to have a large number of people, but they are independent and their generals are of mixed quality. Luzon fought to Zhengzhou but Yuan Yizhi cut off the army's food supply out of jealousy, so they were easily defeated by our army."
"This time, the three armies of the Jin army are well prepared. Helan Zhen in the center, Yu Dunsu on the right, and Mo Qiaosheng on the left are all brave generals who cannot be underestimated. We can obviously rely on the geographical advantage to defend the city. We just need to stay in the city and wait for reinforcements. In addition, the Jin army will suffer huge losses over time, so it will naturally be defeated without a fight. Why should we give up our advantages and use our weaknesses to attack their strengths?"
Du Luowei snorted, "They are nothing but two-legged sheep. General, why should you boost their morale? Recently, His Majesty and the Empress have frequently given out rewards to our Zhengzhou soldiers. The morale is high right now. We should win a great victory to repay His Majesty and the Empress for their kindness."
Wei Mingshan couldn't help but curse, "Two-legged sheep? I wonder how General Du was defeated by Mo Qiaosheng, a two-legged sheep, and handed over Yongzhou to Jin Yuehou?"
Du Luowei was hit in the sore spot and became furious. Without even saying hello, he just threw his sleeves and walked out.
After everyone dispersed.
Wei Mingshan sat on the chair with a gloomy face.
His personal attendant looked at his face and said indignantly: "The general has made countless contributions to the Western Rong and has always been neutral in the court. The dispute between the Queen Mother and Your Majesty has involved the general for no reason. The Queen Mother sent Mo Zang Yuanqi and the Queen sent Du Luowei. They are placed on the left and right sides of the general. How can the general lead the army to fight?"
Wei Mingshan frowned.
In the State of Jin, Yu Dunsu and Helan Zhen were fine.
The person he feared most was Mo Qiaosheng, who was dressed in black armor.
He had fought this man briefly on the battlefield.
This man is both brave and fearless, and is also flexible and adaptable. He has an accurate and ruthless grasp of the ever-changing battle situation. He is a natural born general.
He also wanted to fight with such a strong opponent on the battlefield, to show off his strengths and compete with each other.
But the enemy has solid support, a monarch whom he can trust with all his might, and reliable comrades.
And myself.
Wei Mingshan let out a long sigh.
His attendant looked at him worriedly and said cautiously, "General, I heard that there is a rumor circulating in Gaojing recently, saying that the general has defected to the Queen's family. The Queen Mother has been sending generous rewards from time to time at this time. I am afraid that the Queen Mother will be suspicious of the general."
Wei Mingshan smiled bitterly: "The Queen Mother is known for her wisdom. We can only hope that she will not be deceived by the rumors."
Inside the magnificent imperial palace in Haojing.
The woman who single-handedly supported this powerful tribe sat there, without hiding her pearls.
The vicissitudes of life have left obvious marks on this woman.
She has gray hair on her temples and deep crow's feet at the corners of her eyes. She is already an old woman in her sixties.
But her slightly narrowed eyes revealed a calm and shrewd light, without any sign of fatigue from old age.
She looked at the Han man sitting in front of her, thinking constantly in her mind.
"Sir, do you also think that General Wei has completely sided with the Queen?"
Zhang Fu said, "Not entirely, but I am confused about one thing."
"Back then, Marquis Jinyue, together with Li Wenguang and Han Quanlin, had an army of 50,000 to 60,000 men and women to invade Zhengzhou. They were defeated by General Wei before they even reached the city. My former master, Marquis Jinyue, was almost captured alive by General Wei. He left his people behind and fled to Wei State in a panic, saving his life."
"This time, the Jin army only has 50,000 troops, but I don't know why General Wei chose to stay and not march out?"
Queen Mother Mo Zang's nephew, Mo Zang Pei Zhen, sat below her.
He slammed the table and said, "Need I say more? He just wants to use this opportunity to blackmail my aunt to allocate more troops to him so as to strengthen his power. When he has a large number of troops, he can help the Liang family fight against our Mo Zang family."
Queen Mother Mei Zang remained silent and pondered.
Zhang Fu said, "In fact, the Queen Mother will know what General Wei's plan is once she tries it."
"Please speak frankly, sir."
"The Queen Mother can issue an imperial decree, ordering Wei Mingshan to withdraw the enemy within a certain time limit. If General Wei still sits there and does nothing, then the Queen Mother can accuse Zhengzhou of disobeying the imperial decree and replace him with General Yuanqi. This will prevent the army of Zhengzhou from falling into the hands of Queen Liang."
Queen Mother Mei Zang said, "Sir, this is a brilliant idea, but is it inappropriate to change the generals before the battle? I don't know why I feel a little apprehensive about the Marquis of Jinyue."
Zhang Fu smiled, "I was born in Jin State, so I know Jin State's strength best. Jin State has only tens of thousands of soldiers. The funny thing is that most of them are slaves. The real soldiers under the command of Jin Yuehou are only more than 20,000. I have 200,000 Western Rong cavalry, so why should I be afraid of a small country?"
"I think the biggest crisis facing Xirong right now is internal unrest. If the foundation is not stable, the building will not be stable. Your Majesty, you should first cut off the Liang family's hands and feet."
Empress Dowager Mei Zang felt annoyed when she thought of the aggressive Empress Liang who had been constantly trying to trip her up, and her increasingly disobedient son.
He nodded and said, "Draft an order to drive out the enemy from Weiming Mountain within one month."
The author has something to say: Yao Tianxiang: Mo crybaby, let me ask you, why is it that you always fall asleep crying first
Mo Qiaosheng: QQ, you still have the nerve to ask.