The scout's answer surprised and puzzled everyone present.
It was such a small bandit stronghold that even the government didn't dare to attack it. What was so special about it
No matter how special it is, Wu Dao won't care. Since this so-called Shenmen Village is located in the mountains and forests, it is easy to deal with. He can just take people to flatten it. No matter how special it is, he will not take it seriously.
After gathering the troops, Wu Dao immediately led all the soldiers, together with Zhu Li, Zhang Guiba, Guo Qizuo and others, and under the leadership of the scout, they charged towards Shenmen Village.
Dazhai was indeed located deep in the old forest, but not inside the forest. Instead, it was outside the edge of the woods. There was a mountain wall with a higher terrain. Dazhai was stationed on the high ground, with its back to the mountain wall on the right.
The people who set up the stronghold were very thoughtful. One side of the stronghold is backed by a mountain, the front and back are open, and one side faces the woods. Even if someone surrounds them, they can leave calmly and avoid being attacked from all sides. Moreover, this place is not far from the lake, which solves the water problem well.
Not only that, the Dazhai is also very large, and a military camp with tens of thousands of people is no more than this.
The bandits patrolling around the big village were all wearing helmets and armor, with shining swords and guns. They looked like veteran soldiers who had been through many battles. They didn't look like bandits at all. They couldn't be regular soldiers from the government.
When he saw the big village, Wu Diao suddenly realized that he was careless. Who would have thought that the bandits had such sophisticated equipment? Their equipment was even better than that of Pang Xun's former subordinates led by Wu Diao, not to mention the remnants of Cao's army. This made them, a group of people who wanted to suppress the bandits, stunned and amazed.
But it was too late to regret now, as the enemy had obviously discovered them. The gate of the camp facing the woods opened wide in an instant, and a young general, about sixteen or seventeen years old, riding a black horse and wearing a black armor, rode out on his horse and held a spear.
At the same time, a large number of soldiers suddenly emerged behind the young general. All of them were elite soldiers in neatly dressed armor. At a glance, there were at least a thousand of them.
The young general on the black horse with the spear rode forward and came close to the crowd. Then they could see his appearance clearly. This young man had a sturdy build, long eyebrows, a pair of bright tiger eyes, a nose like a hanging gall bladder, thick lips and a wide mouth. He looked like a real fierce general.
"Hey, those on the opposite sides are bandits. You killed my master and seized my Hongzhou. How dare you come here to die with such a small number of people? Do you think you can bully my Yuchi clan?" The young general in black armor seemed to recognize the uniforms of the Grass Army at a glance. The Grass Army was too easy to recognize, and everyone in the world knew you. Although Wu Dao reorganized the Grass Army, he did not let them change their uniforms. It was not surprising that the young man recognized the identities of the Grass Army.
However, from what he said, it seems that Cao Jun has a grudge against him for killing his father, which is very bad.
"Misunderstanding, misunderstanding." Wu Diao hurriedly explained. He had to explain it clearly at this time. If he could avoid this conflict and fight this unfair battle, it would be better to avoid it.
Considering the enemy's strength, the remnants of Cao's army and Pang Xun's old subordinates, even with Wu Dao's command, if they were to defeat the enemy, they would probably suffer heavy losses. They really cannot afford this loss now, not to mention that the enemy does not seem to be robbers.
"We came from the south and don't know who attacked Hongzhou and killed your master. We came here today only because we heard that there was a bandit problem here. We came to take a look with the idea of getting rid of this harm to the people." Wu Dao said frankly.
“Hmph, don’t play with me, if you have the guts to attack me, don’t dare to come out.
Do you want to play with me?" The young general in black armor could not listen at all. He probably really did not like the Cao army. Who would like to have a good impression of the revenge for his father's murder? However, it seemed that he did not lead his men to charge forward due to some restrictions. (Before Huang Chao went south, his general Tang Ju had conquered Hongzhou, which can be found in the Chronicles of Emperor Xizong.)
This situation was awkward. Wu Diao looked around and first looked at Guo Qizuo. When he saw him looking at him, Guo Qizuo shrugged his shoulders with a helpless expression, and the meaning was very clear: you had made the mistake so you had to solve it yourself.
This rogue expression made Wu Dao's face turn black, but he had to swallow his bitterness. This time, he was indeed too arrogant. Since this kid wanted to fight, then let's fight. Fortunately, it was not a battle, and he was not afraid of fighting.
Then he looked at the generals, his sight stopped on Zhang Guiba, and said in a deep voice: "Da Lang, go and play with him."
"Yes." Zhang Guiba was not surprised but happy when he heard that. He had never been afraid of anyone in a duel. What's more, except for Zhu Li, he was the strongest among Wu Dao's subordinates. Even the captain who escaped back was not his opponent.
Zhu Li was young and was Wu Dao's direct disciple, so he should not take risks easily. It was just the right time for him to take action. Upon hearing this, he drew his sword without hesitation and walked towards the young general in black armor.
Zhang Guiba was on foot with a single sword, while the young general in black armor was on a black horse with a spear. Just based on the battle formation, Zhu Li's side was at a disadvantage. However, Zhang Guiba did not flinch at all. He stopped more than 20 steps away from the young general in black armor and said loudly, "I am Zhang Guiba of Qinghe. May I know your name, young master?"
The young general in black armor narrowed his eyes slightly, but he was unwilling to lose his courtesy, so he bowed and said, "Hongzhou Yuchi Xin."
Zhang Guiba raised his eyebrows when he heard this, and said loudly: "I have long admired you, young hero Yuchi. Do you want to compete with me by relying on the advantage of your warhorse? If so, even if you win, it seems that it is not a fair victory."
Yuchi Xin was the son of Yuchi Tian, the former governor of Hongzhou. Yuchi Tian was surrounded and killed by the Cao army, but he sent his wife and children out of the chaos, accompanied by dozens of Hongzhou officers to protect them.
After Tang Ju led the Cao army away, the court immediately arranged a new governor. Yuchi Xin and his mother had nowhere to go, so they set up a large camp deep in Meiling Mountain, preparing to live in seclusion.
But fate is a fickle thing. You want to escape from the world, but God won't let you. Yuchi Tian's former subordinates and the Hongzhou guards who escaped from the war all came to join you. In less than a year, the big village had grown to its current size.
The hatred for his father was like a thorn in Yuchi Xin's heart. He often led his men on long journeys, attacking small groups of grass-roots troops and looting their food and grass, without telling his mother and sister. This made Wu Dao's scouts misunderstand them as robbers, leading to the current scene.
"No horses, that's easy."
Yuchi Xin looked at Zhang Guiba with contempt, then turned his head and waved behind him. A guard who looked like a guard rode out of the camp. When he ran to Yuchi Xin's side, Yuchi Xin signaled him to give his horse to Zhang Guiba. Although the guard was a little unhappy, he did not dare to resist the order and had to give his horse to Zhang Guiba.
Zhang Guiba was not polite at all. He jumped onto his horse, bowed his hands to express his gratitude, and then rushed towards Yuchi Xin with his machete raised high, shouting, "Thank you for your
Horse, but I will not show mercy."
Yuchi Xin was initially worried that this guy couldn't ride a horse, but when he saw him leaping freely and skillfully on horseback, he knew that Zhang Guiba's riding skills were good, so he was relieved and shouted in the same impolite manner: "Do you need to show mercy? Look at your brother Yuchi who will kill you like a slut."
After saying this, he knocked on the horse's belly, rode towards Zhang Guiba, and swung the 10-foot-long spear in his hand, stabbing it into his chest.
Zhang Guiba's weapon was a broadsword, which was obviously not long enough compared to the 10-foot-long spear. He had to temporarily avoid the attack, leaning his body to the right, with his body and the horse's back forming a 30-degree inclined plane. Then he thrust out the broadsword, and with a "clang" sound, he knocked away Yuchi Xin's spear that was aimed at his chest.
In the first round, neither of them made any progress. When the horses crossed, Zhang Guiba relied on his short and nimble broadsword to slash at Yuchi Xin's head with one blow.
An inch longer, an inch stronger; an inch shorter, an inch more dangerous. When the distance was long, Yuchi Xin had the advantage, but when they rode close, it seemed that Zhang Gui had the advantage.
"Hmph..." Facing Zhang Guiba's stab wound, Yuchi Xin snorted coldly. He drew his waist as fast as lightning and a steel whip more than one meter long was in his hand. Without thinking at all, he blocked Zhang Guiba's machete with a whip.
Zhang Guiba's face turned ugly as his machete was suddenly opened by the opponent's steel whip. The opponent had a 10-foot-long spear at long range and a steel whip to protect him at short range. It seemed that he had taken advantage of him, which made Zhang Guiba a little indignant.
Yuchi Xin was quite skilled and his skills with a steel whip were better than those with a spear. Zhang Guiba was equally capable. In history, this cavalry general accompanied Zhu Wen in his campaigns and finally died of illness while in office. If he had not had some skills, he would probably not have left his name in history.
In an instant, there were shouts and neighs of horses, swords and spears waving wildly, and the shadows of whips were heard. In an instant, the two men were fighting each other in a fierce battle.
Zhang Guiba's current strength can only be regarded as that of a second-rate general at the peak, and Yuchi Xin, who has been fighting with him endlessly, seems not much better than him.
Time flew by, and in a blink of an eye, the two had fought for more than eighty rounds. Both were sweating profusely, and there was no clear winner. The two still did not stop and continued to fight.
At this moment, another horse rushed out from the gate of the big camp. It was a handsome chestnut horse without a single stray hair on its body. It was obvious that it was not an ordinary horse.
The horse also carried a young general, who looked even younger than Yuchi Xin, perhaps only thirteen or fourteen years old. He was covered in silver armor and had a fluttering red cloak. He held a phoenix-feathered sword in his hand, which was as sharp as frost and snow, and was extremely frightening.
It was not until he stopped his horse to watch the battle that everyone could see his appearance clearly. This young general was so handsome that he was as handsome as Pan An and Song Yu. He was so handsome to the point of being outrageous.
The only flaw is that this man has a pair of almond-shaped eyes, which makes him look more feminine than masculine. The only thing in common between him and Yuchi Xin is that he also has a steel whip on his waist.
After the appearance of the young general in silver armor, the guards in front of the stronghold looked more energetic. In a trance, even their morale was boosted a lot.
This made Wu Diao, who was particularly sensitive to morale, frown slightly. He couldn't help but wonder secretly, who is this guy? It was strange that he could boost the morale of the entire garrison as soon as he appeared.