Xue Poye's imagination is rich, and his wisdom is definitely not low, but he really did not expect that the special envoy from Yongzhou City this time turned out to be an old friend who was almost forgotten by him.
"Is the commander-in-chief still reluctant to give me a seat when my old friend asks to see you?" The special envoy looked calm, with a faint smile on his face.
Xue Poye got up and went forward, sighing: "I didn't expect it, I really didn't expect it. After leaving Hangzhou, I never expected to meet Mr. Wang here again? How have you been?"
This special envoy is suddenly Wang Shizhen, the governor of Hangzhou! !
Wang Shizhen smiled and said: "It's really difficult to see the commander in chief. This way, the sentry posts, the inner three floors and the outer three floors have been searched. The commander does not have to worry that I am here to assassinate."
Hearing these words, Xue Poye was stunned, and suddenly said, Wang Shizhen in front of him is no longer an old friend, but an enemy. His outstretched hand stopped in the middle, hesitated for a moment, and finally stepped forward to pull it. Holding Wang Shizhen's arm, he said with a smile: "Old friends meet again, gossiping, come, come, Mr. Wang, please sit down, please sit down, Po Ye is full of worries and has nowhere to talk."
Wang Shizhen's expression turned serious, but she pushed Xue Poye to sit down, then walked up to Xue Poye, tidied up her clothes slightly, bowed deeply, and said solemnly: "Wang Shizhen thanked the commander for taking care of me that day. If there is no Marshal, Wang Shizhen's family is bound to be humiliated, please accept my worship!" As he was about to kneel down, Xue Poye rushed forward to help him, and said in surprise: "My lord, what is this for? Hurry up!" Get up, get up quickly, the friendship between gentlemen is like water, and you should help each other as much as you can, and this kind of cliché is unnecessary."
Wang Shizhen said solemnly: "Received the kindness of dripping water, you should repay it with a spring. Besides, the kindness of the commander-in-chief is definitely not dripping water. Wang Shizhen's worship is the lowest courtesy."
Xue Poye forcibly pushed Wang Shizhen down on the seat, and sighed: "My lord, it's no longer the time to be polite. You and my two armies are fighting, and the situation is like fire and water. My lord Wang came here today, presumably not just to thank me. Handsome, what advice do you have, but it’s okay to say it... Isn’t there a saying that two armies are fighting, don’t kill them? Your safety, I can guarantee your safety.”
Xue Poye knew that this was not the time to reminisce about the past, and Wang Shizhen's arrival was obviously not a time to reminisce about the past, so he quickly came out of the emotion of meeting old friends, faced the current situation squarely, and talked with each other in their normal identities.
"Marshal, quit!" Wang Shizhen was unexpectedly straight to the point, without even a single nonsense.
Xue Poye remained calm, smiled faintly, and said, "Retreat? Retreat for what?"
"retreat!"
"So you came to persuade me to retreat." Xue Poye smiled and said: "Master Wang, you have not been with Mingyue King for long, but your brain seems to be broken. Do you think I may retreat?"
Wang Shizhen's expression was also very calm: "Originally, I came to persuade the general to surrender, but I think that according to the general's character, there is almost no possibility of success, and I don't have much confidence in persuading the general to surrender, so I only persuade the general to retreat. The Marshal asked me if it was possible to retreat? Hehe, of course it is possible.”
"Oh!" Xue Poye touched his nose and said, "Tell me."
"Marshal, what do you think of the strength of Yongzhou City?"
"Indestructible, rare in the world!" Xue Poye said sincerely.
"How about the morale of the Northwest Army?"
"Our army failed to conquer Yongzhou City in one fell swoop, and the morale of the Northwest Army is rising steadily, far surpassing our army!"
"Marshal, do you know how long the food and grass in Yongzhou City can last?" Wang Shizhen's eyes were indescribably sharp at this time.
Xue Poye's eyes were even sharper, he looked straight at Wang Shizhen, shook his head and said, "I don't know, but I think that since King Mingyue dared to fight this battle, he must be well prepared, right? The food and grass in the city can last at least five or six months. "
"Let me tell you, if the food and grass in the city are allocated properly, it can last for a year!"
Xue Poye laughed and said, "This battle will be decided in less than a year."
Wang Shizhen said slowly: "Excuse me, Commander, do you have the confidence to break through Yongzhou City?"
"The Chu army will surely win!" Xue Poye said expressionlessly.
Why didn't he know in his heart that the strength of this Yongzhou city was far beyond his imagination, and now he was even doubting whether even the batch of secret weapons transported from the capital would be powerful enough to break through Yongzhou.
"The commander-in-chief's army should have started to spread severe cold and fever?" Wang Shizhen asked indifferently: "I don't know if anyone has died of this disease?"
Xue Poye was surprised, but kept calm enough, and said calmly: "Master Wang underestimated my warriors. They are all strong and strong. In the northwest land, there is really nothing that can hurt them."
Wang Shizhen's gaze was like a sharp sword, piercing Xue Poye's face, and the two looked at each other. Xue Poye naturally would not feel any fear, but Wang Shizhen, who was a special envoy, also had a serious face and did not flinch. meaning.
"Marshal, at this time, do you still want to hide it from me?" Wang Shizhen laughed suddenly: "At this time of year, there are as many mosquitoes and ants in the northwest as a cow's hair, and they carry deadly poison on their bodies. Eight or nine will suffer from severe cold and fever. People in the Northwest can't resist it, let alone the Chu army. I just walked all the way in the camp, and I have observed that many soldiers under the general's subordinates have already contracted cold and fever Severe illness, looks extremely weak, this situation will become more and more serious with the passage of time, and the combat effectiveness will also be weakened rapidly... Doesn’t the commander think that even if the Chu army’s morale is like a rainbow and the combat effectiveness is the strongest, they will still be weak? If you have never captured Yongzhou City, if you attack the city again with a tired army, is there any chance of winning?"
Xue Poye said indifferently: "The military situation is impermanent, no one can tell. Perhaps the attack of the disease will make our army more determined to capture Yongzhou City."
Wang Shizhen stood up, put his hands behind his back, and said in a deep voice: "Marshal Xue, don't deceive yourself. I have been ordered by King Mingyue to persuade you to retreat. I want to give you a way to survive. Don't be ignorant of what is good or bad, so that you won't lose your life if you die." Wan Dajun was buried in the long yellow sand in the northwest."
Xue Poye sneered and said: "Wang Shizhen, this commander also told you clearly that if Yongzhou City is not destroyed, this commander will never retreat. As for you, you have turned your back on Da Chu, joined the rebels, and even have the guts to be a lobbyist. Your face is thicker than your guts."
"Xue Poye, are you really going to be stubborn?" Wang Shizhen stared at Xue Poye closely, but in the depths of his eyes, there was an imperceptible gratification.
"Wang Shizhen, I will let you go back today. When I break through Yongzhou City, don't blame me for not remembering the past. I will definitely escort you back to the capital and hand it over to the Holy One." Xue Poye snorted coldly. , turned around with a flick of his sleeves, and said coldly: "Come here, see off the guests!"
The armored guards outside the tent immediately entered the camp and made a gesture of appeal, which was to ask Wang Shizhen to leave by himself, lest they do anything.
"Xue Poye, are you sure you won't retreat?" Wang Shizhen sternly shouted.
Xue Poye said in a deep voice: "Wang Shizhen, if you don't back down, I will cut off your tongue. If the two armies are fighting, if you don't cut off the envoy, I didn't say that you can't cut off the tongue of the envoy."
Two guards stepped forward, one on the left and one on the right, trying to drag Wang Shizhen out.
…
"Go away!" Wang Shizhen pushed the two of them away with all her strength, and said solemnly, "Marshal Xue, tell them to back down, I have something to say."
"What else do you want to say?" Xue Poye asked calmly without looking back.
Wang Shizhen looked around and said: "I just want to ask you, do you still want to break through Yongzhou City? If you want to, let them retreat quickly, otherwise, I have no choice but to leave."
Xue Poye heard that there was a reason for his words, he pondered for a moment, waved his hands and said: "You guys go down first."
After the guards went down, Xue Poye turned around slowly, frowned, looked at Wang Shizhen with some doubts, and asked, "What do you mean by what you just said?"
Without further words, Wang Shizhen carefully took out a scroll from his bosom, went to the desk, and opened it. Xue Poye looked intently, but it was a map.
"This is...?" Xue Poye approached, looked at the map, and asked in surprise, "What is this?"
Wang Shizhen looked serious, and said in a low voice: "Commander, the most important thing for the army now is to prevent and cure the severe cold and fever, otherwise the combat effectiveness of the army will drop sharply. An army of 200,000 troops may be difficult to resist." Pointing to a mark on the map, he said: "Look at this place, Commander-in-Chief, only forty miles west of here, there is a chaotic hillock with few people and dangerous terrain. There are many crypts, and I have marked ten of them outside the crypts, which are marked by conical boulders. The commander must remember that under these crypts, there are a lot of rhubarb and rhubarb. Herbal medicine to cure severe cold and heat. In addition, I also prepared xuncao. After the commander sent someone to take it back, he boiled the juice in a large pot and distributed it to the soldiers who had not been infected. You only need to apply a little on the body, and the mosquitoes Ants don't bite people, so remember."
Xue Poye was speechless, unable to believe it.
"Don't be surprised, Commander. Since I came to Yongzhou, I thought that there would be a battle today, so I secretly prepared these medicines. I was afraid that our army would be trapped by disease." Wang Shizhen said seriously.
Xue Poye was very excited and was about to say something when Wang Shizhen waved his hand and said, "Commander, listen to me." He pointed to another place and said, "Commander, look here again."
Xue Poye saw that this mark was a thin black line extending from Yongzhou City to the city head, and frowned, "Where is this place?"
"On the surface, this is just a very ordinary yellow sand land. It is in the east of Yongzhou City. At first glance, people who don't know the details will never see the problem." Wang Shizhen said solemnly: "But there are not many people. You know, under the yellow sand is the blood of Yongzhou City!"
"The blood of Yongzhou City?" Xue Poye couldn't understand.
Fortunately, Wang Shizhen has already explained: "The water used by Yongzhou City flows into Yongzhou City from under the yellow sand."
Xue Poye suddenly said in shock: "This... is this true?"
His depressed heart suddenly opened up, and he learned that this place is the underground water source of Yongzhou City. Ten thousand possibilities and a thousand plans rushed straight to Xue Poye's head. This moment suddenly enlightened.
"Yongzhou City has been reinforced and repaired for decades, and it is known as an 'unbreakable city', which is very reasonable, so if the general wants to attack and take the city, it will be even more difficult." Wang Shizhen said slowly : "In this way, the commander-in-chief can only think of other ways to force the Northwest Army to fight. Since the commander-in-chief knows the location of the underground water source, he can try two methods. One is good and the other is evil. What's the point?"
Xue Poye hurriedly said: "Mr. Wang... point me out!"
Wang Shizhen said: "To be honest, the commander can send someone to find out the route of the underground waterway, and then block it. In this way, the city of Yongzhou will inevitably lack water, and without water, it will not be possible to live. In desperation, the Northwest Army can only go out of the city to fight. At that time, according to the strength of the imperial army, there was a 70% chance of winning, but to wipe out the Northwest Army, there must be a considerable price."
Xue Poye nodded and said: "That's right, the Northwest Army is brave and good at fighting. Although the number is inferior, the combat power is not much weaker. If we want to completely destroy them and make them submit, our army is ready to sacrifice."
"If the commander-in-chief wants to reduce the damage to his subordinates, there is another trick!" Wang Shizhen sighed, shook his head and smiled bitterly: "If the commander-in-chief poisons the underground waterway, the defenders in the city will not know it. There must be heavy casualties in the city, and at that time, the commander-in-chief will attack with force, and there is some certainty."
Xue Poye frowned, pondered for a while, and then sighed: "This is something that damages one's virtue."
Wang Shizhen said respectfully: "The commander-in-chief's words are true. It's better not to use this evil way. It's better for soldiers to fight in blood and see the real trick on the battlefield than to make such a bad move." After a pause, he said softly: "Warrior, I would rather die in battle than die in ignorance."
After receiving such advice from Wang Shizhen, Xue Poye's boredom disappeared, and only then did he realize that the so-called "persuasion" that Wang Shizhen came here today was false, and his real intention was to come here to offer advice. His previous words were obviously intended to test Xue Poye was determined to attack the city, and seeing Xue Poye's firm attitude, he felt at ease to offer advice.
"Sir!" Xue Poye straightened his clothes and saluted respectfully: "Mr. lives in a wolf's lair, but he is dedicated to the imperial court. Po Ye, on behalf of the Holy One, on behalf of Great Chu, and on behalf of two hundred thousand soldiers, thank you sir!"
Wang Shizhen took a few steps back, smiled sadly, took out a dagger from his waist, and said: "I brought this dagger with me when I came to Beijing from Hangzhou to be interrogated. I never left it. I never expected to use it today. gone."
Xue Poye wondered: "Sir, you...!"
Before he finished speaking, he saw that Wang Shizhen had closed his eyes, raised his right hand, and the dagger in his hand pierced his own heart. Xue Poye screamed and grabbed it, but it was too late. In Wang Shizhen's heart.