It was a dark and windy night, with withered grass and wild sand. Xie Changgeng personally led a cavalry of a hundred men from Xiutu, crossed the border, and followed the traces left by the northerners along the way, chasing them in the direction of the northern royal court.
Late at night on the second day, after completing the mission in Ma River Valley, Shang Xing's 300-strong northern cavalry on their way back stopped for the night after arriving at Yuquan.
They didn't expect that two days ago, the Hexi man they had impersonated appeared in front of them like a ghost falling from the sky.
Those who were awakened by their companions' screams still couldn't believe it when they first saw the figures of the Hexi cavalry.
Their king moved his court several times in order to seize the land further south.
Each migration to the south brought them closer to Hexi. As their ambitions grew, it also marked a further increase in the deterrent power of this nomadic nation over the imperial court that temporarily controlled Hexi.
Tonight, the place where they stood was not far from their royal court.
And just a hundred miles away, there was a cavalry camp of ten thousand people.
That's where they were sent from.
In recent years, the horses and cavalry of Hexi have emerged as a new force. In previous battles, they have not been able to gain any advantage, and even the harassment that used to be a common occurrence has become difficult.
But they couldn't believe that Xie Changgeng, the governor of Hexi, would take such a huge risk and personally lead a light cavalry of only a hundred people to pursue deep into this place tonight.
It's too late to wake up.
Under the starry sky, beside the Pelican Spring, this tranquil and sweet body of water turned into a pool of blood.
At the mouth of the Ma River Valley, the wind was howling wildly. Liu An and his soldiers had been confronting the native soldiers at the mouth of the valley for two days and one night.
After the incident, the natives gathered troops in the valley in a short time. The old chief's son Bai Long was furious and did not believe the explanation. He burned the birthday gift sent by Xie Changgeng some time ago and ordered a decisive battle to attack the Jiedushi Mansion and kill Xie Changgeng to avenge his father and his companions who died in the attack.
Liu An was very nervous.
The order he received was not to fight, but to use all means to guard the entrance of the valley, temporarily block the native soldiers at the entrance, wait for the return of the Jiedushi and his entourage, and never let them rush out to kill Guzang.
It was not that they were unable to suppress it. But once the situation got out of control, it would not be a matter of how many people died, but the entire Hexi region. From then on, the peace situation previously maintained by the Jiedushi would likely collapse and cease to exist.
Just last night, he mobilized a large army and used formations several times to suppress the native soldiers who tried to break through the siege. Although the goal was achieved, facing the flying flints and arrows from the opposite side, many soldiers were injured even though they were protected by shields.
At dawn, the first snow of the year fell at the mouth of the valley.
The weather was already very cold, but Liu An was sweating profusely, and his clothes were sticking tightly to his back under his battle robe.
He received news that there was another disturbance at the valley entrance. This time, Bai Long personally led the native soldiers and rushed out with the help of flint and stray arrows.
Liu An quickly climbed onto the platform and looked at the black mass of native soldiers at the entrance of the valley, who looked like ants. He shouted to the other side: "Bai Long! The old leader celebrated his 60th birthday, and the Jiedushi even sent gifts. Why would he send people to attack you! Think about it carefully, and you will know what is going on! It was all done by the northerners, who intended to stir up chaos in Hexi!"
The other side ignored him. Bai Long was furious, and with a command, the valley was once again filled with arrows, and fire blazed in the flying snow.
Liu An knew that the old leader was unconscious. Among the natives, Bai Long was the most powerful at the moment. He was originally hostile to Xie Changgeng and they had clashed in Jiaocheng before. He was afraid that it would be impossible to reason with him now. Seeing that the other side was attacking again, he hurriedly gave orders and ordered the soldiers to deploy their formations again and resist with all their strength.
Just when the situation was about to break out, a voice came from behind: "The Jiedushi is here—"
Liu An turned around suddenly and saw a group of cavalry galloping in the distance. He knew that it was Xie Changgeng who had personally pursued the murderer the night before and had returned. He was overjoyed and got off the stage and ran to greet them.
Xie Changgeng rode ahead, galloping forward. With the soldiers on both sides kneeling to greet him, he galloped through the camp and arrived at the entrance of the valley, shouting, "Look carefully, are these the thugs who attacked you the night before?"
Behind him, several riders followed and threw over a dozen severed heads hanging on both sides of the saddles.
At the other end of the valley, the flints, bows and arrows slowly came to a stop.
Bai Long stared at the dozen or so bloody heads on the ground, raised his eyes, and saw Xie Changgeng grab a bag from the horse's back, raise his arm, and throw it towards him. With a "puff", it landed in front of his feet.
The bag opened up, revealing a pile of bloody human ears.
"Bai Long! The night before last you were attacked, I personally led my men into the Northland, and at the side of the Pelican Spring, I caught up with this group of northern cavalry pretending to be my men. There were three hundred of them in total!"
Bai Long was surprised, and his eyes swept across the distorted heads on the ground again.
That night, a group of people dressed as Hexi soldiers came here and claimed that they had received urgent military intelligence about the actions of the northerners, who intended to harm the Mahe Valley. They came overnight on the orders of the Jiedushi to ask to see the old leader to discuss important matters. They said that the Jiedushi would be here soon and asked the old leader to meet them.
After thinking about it, his father finally agreed, and out of gratitude for Xie Changgeng's previous courtesy, he personally came out to greet him. Unexpectedly, after he showed up, the other party suddenly changed his attitude and started killing people.
The incident happened suddenly and without warning, and the nearby people suffered heavy casualties, and his father was also shot by a poisoned arrow. After the other party succeeded, he quickly fled.
Bai Long raised his eyes and looked at Xie Changgeng on horseback, his anger still lingering.
"You have repeatedly forced us to relocate, and you are full of tricks! How can I know that this is not another deception? This is our ancestral land, where we have lived for generations. How can you control it? On my father's birthday, you sent him a gift in a hypocritical manner, but when you failed to achieve your goal, didn't you bear a grudge and kill my father? Now you deny it and completely deny the matter. Do you think we are so easy to deceive?"
"Do you think I will submit to you if you have killed my father? Even if I die, I will avenge my father and the dead people of my clan!"
The native soldiers responded with a shout so loud that the sound shook the valley entrance.
Xie Changgeng ordered another group to come up. His followers pushed up two northern cavalrymen who were still wearing Hexi soldiers' uniforms.
Xie Changgeng said, "Their accomplices confessed that these two people are fluent in Chinese. They were the ones who impersonated me and delivered the message to you that night! You can't remember the faces of the people in the dark, but you can always distinguish the voices, right?"
The northerner was kicked to his knees on the ground, facing the sharp blade, with his eyes closed, not uttering a word.
Xie Changgeng looked gloomy and waved his hands at his men. Several men stepped forward, pinned down one of the northerners, pulled out a dagger, cut off his ear, gouged out his eyes, and cut off his nose.
With a wave of his hand and a slash of his knife, the man's face was covered in blood in an instant, looking like a ghost, and he let out bursts of shrill screams.
The two had originally made up their minds not to speak, and at worst they would die and serve the king. They never expected to be treated like this.
The remaining man's face turned pale. Seeing the executioner let go of his unconscious companion and walked towards him with a dagger in hand, he dared not stand up anymore and confessed loudly.
Bai Long and the people who were present the night before immediately recognized the voice and were shocked.
Bai Long rushed over angrily, drew his sword and stabbed the man to death.
Xie Changgeng dismounted and said, "The northerners' royal court has repeatedly moved south, intending to get involved in Hexi. Their ambitions are obvious. A few months ago, the new king ascended the throne and claimed to have 500,000 cavalry. If he returns to the south, can you stay out of it and defend the place where you have lived for generations?"
Bai Long held the blood knife tightly in his hand, stared at Xie Changgeng and said: "My father is in danger! If you hadn't been entangled with him before, he wouldn't be caught off guard and killed! Even if you didn't do it, you are just like the northerners, with bad intentions! We men, everyone can be a soldier! If that day really comes, instead of trusting you, it's better to rely on ourselves and fight them!"
After he finished speaking, he ordered the native soldiers at the entrance of the valley to retreat and turned away.
Liu An and the others were furious and said, "Sir, this Bai Long doesn't know what's good for him! Just capture him and force them to give up their place!"
Xie Changgeng looked at Bai Long's departing back without saying a word.
That night, he returned to Guzang.
In the past two days, the city has been circulated with news that northerners have entered the city to kill and burn people, and that the natives are also going to riot and attack the city, and people are in a panic. Today, the government posted a notice to clear up the rumors, and the people saw with their own eyes that the governor himself rode back to the city, and the mood finally calmed down.
In the past few days, the news has also reached the Jiedushi Mansion. Xie's mother was terrified and worried about her son's safety. Today, she learned that the news was not true and her son had returned and asked the servants to report his safety to her. Only then did she feel relieved. She waited in the house for a while, but her son did not come to see her. She could not help but ask Ah Mao to support her and go to the front. She saw that her son's handsome face had sunken eye sockets. She felt distressed and said that Qi Lingfeng was preparing food for him and asked him to go eat first.
Xie Changgeng said that he had already eaten outside and he had things to do, so he asked his mother to go back to her room and rest.
Xie's mother had no choice but to go back.
After Xie's mother left, Xie Changgeng continued to sit alone in the yamen for a long time. Then Liu Guan came and asked him what he thought about recent events.
Liu Guan said, "Evacuating the natives by force is feasible, but it is the last resort. Although Bai Long is young and hot-tempered, he thinks too highly of himself and has a deep prejudice against you. But the old chief has shown signs of softening. Unfortunately, he was murdered and is in a coma, in critical condition. Since the princess is here, why don't you ask her to give it a try? If we can save a life and get through this disaster safely, the situation will be very different in the future."
After he finished speaking, he looked at the governor sitting on the seat.
The candlelight on the desk flickered, his eyes were solemn and he said nothing.
Liu Guan waited for a while, and finally heard him say: "Let's give it a try as you suggest. I'm busy and can't get away. Please go to the horse farm to find her on my behalf."
Liu Guan immediately stood up from his seat.
"It's urgent. I'll be there right away."
Xie Changgeng nodded slightly.
Liu Guan said goodbye and walked out. When he reached the door, he suddenly heard another voice behind him: "Wait!"
Liu Guan stopped, turned around and looked over.
The firelight cast two dark shadows under his eye sockets, and his face was covered with a gloomy look.
"If she says she wants to see me first, bring her here immediately without delay."
He concentrated for a moment and gave the order.