At dawn three days later, the entire Kansai army prepared and stood up to offer sacrifices to the ghosts and gods of heaven and earth. An hour later, the 300,000-strong army divided into three groups and advanced toward Dafeichuan.
In these short three days, Qin Mubai did several "big things" both in public and in private.
The private matter was simple but important. Qin Mubai sent someone to make a round trip to Lanzhou and delivered a handwritten letter from Wu Meiniang and Princess Gaoyang, as well as a picture of the newly born baby son Qin Ying. The love letter expressed the longing for parting and all kinds of heartfelt wishes for peace, which made Qin Mubai feel relieved. The baby son was born with a tiger-like head and a very cute head. Qin Mubai's sense of accomplishment as a father was unprecedented.
In addition, Chen Yan was also persuaded to stay in Shanzhou to accompany Xiaolouer, or to go to Lanzhou to live with Wu Meiniang, so that she no longer had to follow the army to Dafeichuan. After all, this trip is very likely to involve going to the plateau. The climate there is not something ordinary people can get used to, and the journey may take a long time. Xiaolouer cannot leave her mother for too long.
Chen Yan agreed very logically, and naturally sent two "confidants" to "serve" him. Of course, they were the Tantai sisters, the female generals.
Qin Mubai also finally settled several official matters that had been planned for a long time.
Now that the prince Li Ke is here, it will be easier to deceive the Huihe generals. Qin Mubai asked Li Ke to come forward to appease the Uighur generals and promised them many rewards such as official titles, land, and property. The Uighur people were so happy that they almost knelt down and licked Li Ke's toes.
Prior to this, when Qin Mubai was escorting the Tubo and Gaochang generals to Chang'an, he had secretly reported to Li Shimin through the Huangben Memorial, asking him to help him cover up this lie - that is, he wanted to deceive these Uighur generals as well. Go to Chang'an and buy him with his official title, wealth and silk, so that he can devour this army and horse, and strangle Tu Midu's evil intentions in the cradle.
Li Shimin would definitely agree to such a request. Now Li Ke, who represented the emperor, came forward to express his position, so it was very logical for Qin Mubai to "invite" these Uighur generals to Chang'an to receive the reward before the war began.
At the same time, and very logically, Qin Mubai took apart the 40,000 to 50,000 elite Huihe cavalry and mixed them into the Kansai Army.
Li Ke said that Qin Mubai has become a monster after being apart for a long time. The skills of killing people without showing blood, eating people without spitting out the bones, and selling people and having people count the money with a smile have been cultivated to the state of perfection.
However, there is one person who is very difficult to deal with, and that is Ashina Blood Lotus. It stands to reason that swallowing this Huihe soldier is equivalent to accepting someone else's dowry. Qin Mubai was not shameless enough to kick the eldest girl out as soon as he took the dowry. But it's not like they will have sex in the wedding room right away - similar to Zhu Bajie's cruel behavior of eating ginseng fruit, Qin Mubai has always been ashamed of it.
Coupled with the constant encouragement from Li Ke, a bad friend, and the cold and violent threat of Xue Lian who used silence and alienation as a weapon, Qin Mubai had no choice but to... take her with him and continue to go to Da Africa together as the commander-in-chief of the Huihe Army. Sichuan.
Li Ke said, don't worry, as long as I, the marching commander, accuse you of misconduct, others will definitely not say a word, because they are all used to it - you, Marshal Qin, have always been suave, whether you are going up the mountain or into the sea or rolling around on the ground. , and women can’t be left around.
Qin Mubai scolded him for talking nonsense. We have always had strict laws and regulations in the Guanxi Army. We have never taken women to join the army privately or as prostitutes. Princess Ashina Blood Lotus is the commander-in-chief of the Uighur Army and a fierce general who charges into battle. Great talent!
Li Ke was amused, "What about the twin girls from the Tantai family? They're not trying to catch rogue generals and spy on talented people, right?"
Qin Mubai rolled his eyes. Everyone knows that these Tantai sisters are Qiba among the hundreds of thousands of soldiers in the Tang Dynasty. They are truly the "only" Baiqi female generals recognized by the emperor and awarded by the imperial court. But now, these two real female generals are really the "personal" maids sent by Chen Yan to "keep an eye on" Qin Mubai - they are still very personal and can stay close to each other to a negative distance.
"A fake general with adultery; a general who turns into an adulterer... Tsk tsk, birds of a feather flock together in the Kansai Army, and there are so many talents!" Li Ke smiled teasingly and shamelessly.
Qin Mubai was annoyed, so he refused to be scalded by boiling water, "I'm still the 'Three Heroes Fighting Lu Bu', what's wrong? - You are envious and jealous!"
Li Ke was hit in a painful spot by him. He bared his teeth in annoyance but had no words to reply. He could only look up to the sky and let out a long sigh and said quietly: "Hitting someone is not a slap in the face!"
"Oh, your highness, forgive me, I almost forgot that you have been a virgin for more than a month!" Qin Mubai said with a smile, "Don't worry, when the war starts and the prisoners are captured, you can choose from all the Tubo female prisoners. You Maybe you don’t know yet, but the women in Tubo are very charming! They are all as majestic and powerful as Yuwen Hongtai, and they will definitely serve you... Sorry, it’s not that I want to die, but I want to live but not die. cannot!"
Li Ke's expression turned petrified, and he looked at Qin Mubai blankly, and suddenly a strange and evil smile appeared on his face.
"W-what do you want to do?"
"Didn't you say that there is such a thing as splitting peaches with cut sleeves and Longyang's habit?" Li Ke grinned, "Rather than being insulted by those wild boar-like women, I would rather be with a guy like you, who has thin skin and tender flesh..."
"Damn it! You really can say it!!!" Qin Mubai was completely shocked. His whole body was so cold that he had goosebumps. He picked up his riding whip and ran wildly.
"Haha! Fight with me!" Li Ke laughed loudly.
The two of them were chatting and talking about the sergeant of the Guards, who had never been shy about Qin Mubai. At this time, everyone around them burst into laughter. Li Ke shouted at Qin Mubai's back: "Qin Mubai, why are you running away? - Don't panic, don't panic, come back quickly! In fact, I, like you, only like peach blossoms, not chrysanthemums!"
The sergeants laughed again and discussed:
"What peach blossoms and chrysanthemums? Which one are your highness and the young marshal talking about?"
"I don't know. Anyway, I heard 'Long Yang's Addiction', haha!"
"It turns out that His Highness King Wu is also very funny and easy-going. He is not as aloof and stern as the prince I imagined. No wonder the young marshal fell in love with him. The two of them are the same and don't have any big airs. They are easy to get along with!"
"That's it, that's it!"
Li Ke rode the horse swaying, the smile on his face never leaving. Quan Wanji, who was riding a horse and walking next to him, saw this in his eyes, thought in his heart, and said to himself: "For several years, King Wu has never smiled so easily, calmly, and heartily as he does today. To His Highness, To him, the palace is a cage where one keeps a low profile, the palace is a shackles that follow him like a shadow, and Liaodong is a place of execution where he dies in flames. Now, he finally escaped from the execution ground, broke free from the prison, and took off the shackles - Your Highness, Your Highness, you are finally. With a piece of sky that belongs to you, it’s time to fly!”
Looking at Qin Mubai from a distance ahead, whipping his whip and riding away, Quan Wanji also smiled like Li Ke and whispered to himself, "Your Highness, you must always remember this sky and this moment in front of you. , he tailor-made it for you. No matter what achievements you will have in the future, most of what you will gain will be thanks to him... The heroic king who was born at the wrong time, and the romantic man who has great supernatural powers and is almost evil. How could we be so close to each other? Is this all destiny
At the foot of the Kunlun Mountains, adjacent to the upper source of the Yak River, it is in the main camp of the Tang Army.
Hou Junji lay on his back on the bearskin mattress with his eyes closed and his fists clenched. Next to him, a military doctor was using gold needles and medicinal sutures to suture a several-inch-long stab wound on his cheek bone that was deep enough to show the bone.
Today, he had just led his troops to wipe out the last group of Tibetan tribesmen at the foot of the Kunlun Mountains. Although he had won a complete victory, he himself was accidentally injured and was slashed in the face. Fortunately, he reacted at the last moment, dodged and was protected by a helmet, otherwise the knife would definitely have cut off half of his head.
Even so, this knife would almost cut off half of his face. Now even if it is sutured up, it will definitely leave a scar that will never heal, making his face look particularly hideous.
Several generals stood next to him, all staring at his face worriedly. Every time the golden needle and medicine thread in the hands of the military doctor moved, the faces of the generals became more excited and their hearts became anxious for a moment.
"Okay!" The military doctor was relieved. "General, you must not drink alcohol or get angry for a hundred days. Please apply and change dressings every day. Remember."
"Hundred days?" Hou Junji sat up halfway and tried to touch his face. He found it was swollen and numb, and he could hardly open his eyes. He smiled indifferently, but the smile was uglier than crying, and said: "Old rule, if you win today, there will be a banquet in the army to reward the army, and the generals will not return until they are drunk!"
"Uh, this!..." The military doctor was dumbfounded, and the generals rushed him out.
"General, what should we do next?" the generals asked.
Hou Junji sat casually with his legs crossed, thought for a moment, and said, "I want to issue the last military order."
The expressions of the generals changed, and they clasped their fists and said, "General, please give me the order!"
"Three days later, the entire army advanced towards Qiangtang, with the goal of the upper source of the Yak River adjacent to Sunbo. There was a Tubo tribe there, which was equivalent to Luoyang in our Tang Dynasty. It was a companion capital and the last military barrier in front of Luoxue City. "Hou Junji paused for a moment, narrowed his eyes with murderous intent, and said in a darker tone, "The surname of that tribe is - Gar!"
"The Gar tribe? The territory of Gar Qinling?" All the generals were surprised.
"Why, are you afraid?" Hou Junji sneered, "Don't panic, my general's order has not yet been issued. Within three days, you must pick out all the wounded and sick in the army; send all only sons to join the army or Those who have no heirs are singled out; all those who are unwilling to follow Hou Mou to the end of the road are also singled out!"
"General, what are you..." The generals were puzzled and a little worried. Along the way, nothing Hou Junji has done seems to have much to do with "benevolence, justice" or even "humanity" - is he going to kill his brother at the last moment
Hou Junji's eyelids drooped, he took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, "Give them all the gold, silver, treasures and women, and let them... go!"
"!!!" All the generals were amazed!
They stared at Hou Junji, as if at this moment, they did not recognize the commander who had already turned into a demon.
"What are you looking at? Do you doubt this general's order?" Hou Junji shouted.
"No..." The generals hesitated for a while, and then someone said, "General, please forgive me for speaking bluntly. Is there anyone in the world who is truly not afraid of death? How can you let someone go when you give money and women like this?" Is there anyone who won’t leave? I really don’t know how many people will be left by then.”
"Ha, it doesn't matter!" Hou Junji clapped his legs with both hands and said with a smile, "Even if I, Hou Junji, are the only one left, I will ride my horse and cross my sword, run to the Gar tribe, and have a fight with that bastard!"
All the generals looked at each other, speechless.
Hou Junji stood up and walked to them and said: "Along the way, Hou has killed many people, including those who should be killed and those who should not be killed. But Hou has not lost his conscience yet. Now, It's really time to decide between life and death. Every soldier in the army, whether you are kind or hostile to you, whether you have feelings or hatred for Hou, there is no reason for Hou to let you all follow me. Burial."
No one spoke, everyone looked at Hou Junji quietly, with various expressions and emotions.
"I know you have concerns in your hearts. Under Hou's instigation, you have violated military laws and regulations, and done some wrong things. However, you have no choice but to blame others." Jun Ji continued, "Also, your true commander-in-chief is a sensible person, and he is also... a very caring and protective person. As long as you go back, he will try his best to ensure that nothing happens to you."
The generals remained silent, and many lowered their heads silently.
"General Hou, you are driving us away!" Someone suddenly shouted.
"The young marshal is indeed kind and treats us well, but since we sold our lives to General Hou and followed General Hou all the way here, we have already fired our bows and have no arrow to turn back. We have no reason and no shame to continue. Go back and see the young commander!"
Seeing that the emotions of the generals were about to explode into loud quarrels, Hou Junji raised his hands fiercely and said, "Go back and think it over before you talk to me!"
The generals immediately stopped talking and closed their mouths, looking at him with different expressions.
"Get out!" Hou Junji roared angrily.
The generals were silent and exited one after another.
Everyone is gone. Hou Junji slowly sat down on the bearskin couch that once belonged to Tubo General Quanru, the trophy he captured, picked up a glass of pure white milk wine in a sandalwood purple gold bottle, and drank it all in one gulp.
After struggling to throw the cup to the ground, he pointed at his scarred armor and cursed -
"What a shame! You will be alone all your life, and you will be alone when you die!"