The dream of a lonely hero

More than half of the more than 100,000 minions recruited by Yang Chongsu to separate lanes, bids, and flags were gone. He wanted to storm Tianlang Mountain, but his deputy chief Zheng Weizhong, prime minister Ding Luo, and Zuo Fang Zhao Ming repeatedly persuaded him to stop him. For the time being, we will withdraw our troops and return to Evil Tiger Mountain to recharge our batteries. There are more than 24,000 people in the three and twenty-four divisions of Evil Tiger Mountain. In addition, there are nearly 40,000 people who are divided into lanes, bids, and flags, and nearly 70,000 people are supplied. Military food has become a big problem. The rations for Yang Chongsu's 120,000-strong army that attacked Tianlang Mountain were supplied by Evil Tiger Mountain. After more than half a month's march, Evil Tiger Mountain was now completely empty. Yang Chongsu had no choice but to order the leaders of each lane, mark, and flag to go down the mountain to borrow grain from the states and counties. Saying that they were borrowing grain was actually robbing them. If the states and counties refused to borrow grain, they would attack the states and counties, plunder the warehouses, and rob people. Canghe. This was all expected by Cheng Xu, the military advisor of the Golden Spear Association. Therefore, Jin King Zhao Guangyi had a countermeasure and ordered all counties and counties under Dingzhou, except for the two counties near Weibo, the officials could abandon the city and flee, and the others must defend. In this way Lead tens of thousands of minions who borrowed food from Evil Tiger Mountain to Wei Bo Fan Town.

On this day, Fu Yanqing, the grand master of Wei Wang in the Mingzhou Festival Palace of Wei Bo, was sitting in the hall, stroking the black falcon on the commander's desk. Liu Sixu, the envoy of the middle gate, reported:"Report to the old master, thousands of thugs from the Golden Spear Society attacked our northern areas of Weibo." The county threatened to borrow food, and the general was willing to lead a brigade to cut them off on the spot or drive them out of the Weibo territory."

Fu Yanqing was seventy years old, with white beard and hair, and a strong spirit. After some thought, he said:"Instruct the guards of the eighteen counties in the north. We will abandon the city and return to Mingzhou, there must be no mistake!"

Liu Siyu was greatly puzzled. He thought he heard wrongly and hesitated:"Grand Master! This and this——"

Fu Yanqing said:"Are you going to disobey the solitary king's command?"

Liu Siyu said hurriedly:"Don't dare! Don't dare!" He ordered to retreat hurriedly.

Fu Yanqing, the governor of Wei Bo Fan Town, was not an ordinary military commander. He came from a family of military generals. His father, Fu Cunshen, was one of the nine Taibao of the Thirteen Taibao of Jin King Li Keyong. The school's Taifu, Henghai Jiedushi, Tongzhongshumenxiapingzhangshi, Zhongshuling and the school's Taishi, and Xuanwu Jiedushi were posthumously named King of Qin.

Fu Yanqing was born out of blue and better than blue. His father was crowned king after his death, and he was crowned king during his lifetime. He served as an official for 12 emperors in the Five Dynasties: Later Tang, Later Jin, Later Han, Later Zhou, and Northern Song Dynasty. He was born at the age of thirteen. During the Later Tang Dynasty, he served as personal commander, member commander, Yuhou of Longwudu, training envoy of Yaozhou regiment, governor of Qingzhou, governor of Jizhou, and Yi State governor. In the later Jin Dynasty, he was appointed as the military governor of Wuning, Tongping Zhangshi, and granted the title of Duke of Qi; in the later Hanzhong, he was granted the title of Duke of Wei and granted the title of Taibao; in the later Zhou Dynasty, he was appointed as the military governor of Tianxiong Army and granted the title of King of Huaiyang. After entering the Northern Song Dynasty, the king of Wei was granted the title of Taishi. Fu Yanqing was granted the title of prince with a different surname by three dynasties and six emperors. Dynasties changed and emperors changed, but his princely title never wavered. In the era of 12 emperors in the Jin Dynasty, he was appointed as Taibao, Taiwei, and Taishi, and he was worthy of his name. The founders of the Six Dynasties. The two queens of Chai Rong, Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou Dynasty, were both his daughters. His sixth daughter was the concubine of his younger brother Zhao Guangyi, and the Fu family became a famous family of relatives. During the Five Dynasties and the sixty-four vassal towns, he served as the military envoy of the forty-nine vassal towns: Tongzhou Military Envoy, Baoda Army Military Envoy, Heyang Sancheng Military Envoy, Zhongwu Army Military Envoy, and Wuning Army Military Envoy. , Wuning Army Jiedushi, Anguo Army Jiedushi, Taining Army Jiedushi, Zhenhai Army Jiedushi, Tianping Army Jiedushi, Weibo Army Jiedushi (Tianxiong Army Jiedushi), etc. All nine of his brothers were military commanders who guarded one side. Many of his nephews and nephews all held important civil and military positions in the Later Zhou Dynasty and the Northern Song Dynasty. They were in charge of considerable political and military power, forming a family force represented by him. This is all A powerful political and military force that other power groups are afraid of. It can be said that the disciples and old officials are all over the world. Two generations of father and son created the most prominent family in the Five Dynasties of the Later Tang, Later Jin, Later Han, Later Zhou, and Northern Song Dynasties. The emperors of that generation were all Don't dare to underestimate it.

Entering the Northern Song Dynasty, Zhao Kuangyin, the Taizu of the Song Dynasty, was granted the title of Fu Yanqing, the king of Wei, and the guardian of the Wei Dynasty. He was also appointed as the military envoy of Wei Bojun. Weibo Fan Town has the most prominent military strategic position among the three towns in Heshuo. It is the frontier of the Central Plains regime and the Khitan (Liao Kingdom). It governs the six states of Weizhou, Bozhou, Xiangzhou, Beizhou, Weizhou and Chanzhou. The six counties have 100,000 soldiers. The vast territory and strong military strength are unmatched by other vassal towns. Other vassal towns had jurisdiction over no more than two or three states, and those with a large number of troops only had 20,000 to 30,000 troops and horses. Among the thirteen emperors of the Five Dynasties, six (Li Cunxu, Shi Jingtang, Li Conghou, Liu Zhiyuan, Shi Chonggui, Guo Wei) served as Jiedu envoys of Wei Bo (Tianxiong Army). The Wei Bo Fan Town has strong soldiers and strong horses, ranking first among all other feudal towns.

Wei Wang Fu Yanqing knew very well that the imperial court was worried about the vassal towns having friendly relations with courtiers. Even though the King of Jin was his son-in-law, he had to avoid suspicion. When the King of Jin passed through Mingzhou on his way to Dingzhou, he did not meet him. He speculated that Zhao Guangyi was ordered to inspect Yan Nan to eliminate the banditry in Tianlang Mountain, and that he was determined to help the King of Jin eliminate the Golden Spear Society. However, without Jun's order from the Imperial Palace of the West (Privy Council), he could not lead his troops to leave the flooded areas to Ding because he was helpless. Prefecture, if the golden spear enters his jurisdiction, he can justifiably wipe out the Jin king with a helping hand. This was in perfect agreement with the King of Jin, and there was no need to write a letter stating the reason.

Half a month later, Zheng Weizhong, the deputy leader of Evil Tiger Mountain, and Ding Luo, the prime minister of Biao Fang, led 50,000 minions to occupy more than a dozen counties in the northern part of Weibo. They wanted to eat, drink, and forget their worries. Wei Wang Fu Yanqing personally led 80,000 troops and horse generals Zheng Weizhong and Ding Luo, and led 50,000 golden spear men to encircle and annihilate them all, and captured 38 leaders including Zheng Weizhong and Ding Luo alive. Why are these more than 50,000 people so unbeatable? On the one hand, he was short on strength and gave up the advantages of small-scale mountain fighting and street fighting; on the other hand, he was indulging in peace and quiet and neglected to practice for a long time and neglected the battle formation. What's more terrible was that Zheng Weizhong and Ding Luo were greedy and extravagant and had no commanding talents. One general died of incompetence and exhaustion. Thousands of troops.

Fu Yanqing ordered that Zheng Weizhong and Ding Luo, who had been captured alive, be cut into pieces with a thousand knives, and the remaining leaders of the Golden Spear Club were beaten to death with sticks.Liu Siyu, the envoy of the middle gate, was deeply puzzled and said:"Old Taishi had a clever plan and lured the snake out of its hole to make way for thirteen counties in the north to kill all the 50,000 Golden Gun Society bandits. Old Taishi has experienced hundreds of battles, but he has never killed like this. Prisoners of war, where does the hatred for the Golden Gun Society come from?" He was a confidant of Wei King Fu Yanqing, otherwise he would not be able to be Wei Bozhong's disciple, and he would speak casually.

Fu Yanqing said:"The Solitary King and the Golden Gun Society have never had any grudges. The Golden Gun Society had hundreds of thousands of bandits, but the Solitary King only annihilated 50,000, so he had to be cruel to the prisoners of war in order to deter the remnants of the Golden Gun Society. It makes him tremble with fear, his heart is shaken, his soul is shattered, and the fate of opposing the Celestial Empire is terrible." Liu Siyu said:"The Grand Master is really wise and far-sighted! If the Grand Master decides to annihilate 50,000 bandits, he can write to the Emperor to express his gratitude. Wei Bo's contribution to the vassal town."

Fu Yanqing said with a stern face:"You hope that the lonely king will die unhappily!"

Liu Siyu was horrified:"Why did the Grand Master say this? The Grand Master was the 12th generation hero of the Five Dynasties, the Taibao, the Taibao, and the Taishi. The three princes, Wei and Taishi, have become extremely respected ministers. Looking at the history of the dynasties, there has never been anyone before, and there will be no one in the future. Today, the emperor is even more courteous to the Taishi. At the beginning of the year, the emperor gave the twelve meritorious officials to live in a big bowl of dragons. Ju, the grand master is the first one! The emperor ordered the grand master to be the first to choose, and the rest were divided among the eleven meritorious officials. The grand master was the abbot of the previous dynasty, and today the emperor still calls you the abbot. In the military world, you are worthy of the name emperor. Junior, during the reign of Xiande in the previous dynasty, the emperor first paid homage to Commander-in-Chief Yicheng Junjiedu. In order to cling to your big tree and get married, he engaged his brother Zhao Guangyi to marry your six princesses. The Grand Master was the only prince with a different surname in the Song Dynasty. The emperor has generously rewarded you for being promoted to a higher rank, with seven points of courtesy. What else do you lack?"

Fu Yanqing said sternly:"What else do you lack - a beheading!"

Liu Siyu broke out in a cold sweat and was still confused. He asked,"This - how could this happen?"

Fu Yanqing said,"Siyu, when the emperor Chen Qiao rebelled, where was the lonely king?"

Liu Siyu said,"In Mingzhou."

Fu Yanqing said,"The lonely king was Is the king a minister of the emperor? Does he have the merits of Chen Qiao and Yidai?"

Liu Siyu remained silent.

Fu Yanqing asked:"How are the founding heroes of the Song Dynasty, Shi Yanzhao, King of Zuotian County, Gao Huaide, King of Youtian County, Prince Zhongqi of Yitian County, and Mu Hualong, King of Jingtian County?"

Liu Siyu said,"Some of them have been dismissed and have no military power. Some are free and handsome, some are idle and enjoy their old age."

Fu Yanqing said:"They are all brothers who were born and died before the emperor ascended the throne. If the emperor doesn't trust him, how can he trust me, an old man from the previous dynasty!"

Liu Siyu said:" This - it cannot be said that the emperor does not trust the grand master. When he put down the upcoming mutiny in Yi Ding who appeased Sun Xingzhou, Henghai of Shi Yanzuo, and Yicheng of Sang Jinxing, the grand master was the commander in chief!"

Fu Yanqing said:"Can the lonely king lead an army?"

Liu Siyu said:"They are all deputy commander Shi Yanzhao's Imperial Army and Guo Jin's Xishan Army."

Fu Yanqing said:"The lonely king is called the commander who pacifies and appeases, and he holds the lonely king hostage. How is it different from Wei Bo? The solitary king who entered the Song Dynasty has never made any contribution to the country."

Liu Siyu said:"The Grand Master is a senior and highly respected person. He has made outstanding achievements in military affairs during his half-life military career. His qualifications and talents、His position, reputation, and great achievements have all been looked up to by everyone in the world. These are unparalleled achievements. How can the emperor not respect the grand master? Fu

Yanqing sighed and said,"Talent and fame are a double-edged sword. How could you know that it's so cold at high places!""

Liu Siyu seemed to understand but did not dare to say anything.

Besides, the King of Jin in the Dingzhou official office was overjoyed to hear that the 50,000 golden gun gangs in the Evil Tiger Mountain were all annihilated by Wei King Fu Yanqing, so he invited Jia Su, Chai Yuxi, Liu Wei, and Xiao Daiying to arrive The affairs were discussed in the back hall of the government office. King Jin was full of energy and said with a smile on his face:"In more than a month, more than 50,000 people from the Golden Spear Society of Evil Tiger Mountain were completely wiped out in Weibo. Tianlang Mountain also suffered 20,000 losses." There are many people, and the lonely king wants to take down the bandits' lair in Tianlang Mountain in one go. What do you think?"

Liu Chang said:"Your Highness is far-sighted! The Golden Spear Society has turned against the imperial court, and the criminal Wei Bo was killed by the King of Wei. His Highness raised troops to attack Tianlang Mountain and Shuntian Yingren should take this opportunity to defeat Tianlang Mountain in one fell swoop. Chai Yuxi said:"

What Liu Zhang said is true. His Highness trapped him to death even if he attacked Tianlang Mountain. Yang Chongsu of Evil Tiger Mountain had just been seriously injured and fell out with Wu Tianzhen. He was powerless and unmotivated to rush to Tianlang Mountain. This is exactly what happened." It's a God-given opportunity.

King Jin looked sideways at Xiao Daiying and said,"What do Daiying think?"

Xiao Daiying's face was full of worry and she said:"No!" The King of Wei brutally killed the captured leader of the Golden Spear Society of Evil Tiger Mountain, which indeed acted as a deterrent to the Golden Spear Society, but it was not the time to use troops against Tianlang Mountain at this time. His Highness raised troops to attack Tianlang Mountain. Yang Chongsu and Wu Tianzhen in Evil Tiger Mountain were deeply grudged and determined not to send troops to rescue Tianlang Mountain. Tianlang Mountain was not seriously damaged and there were still more than 30,000 men guarding it. Moreover, the terrain was dangerous and the roads were rugged and complicated. It is said that one man can guard the gate and ten thousand men cannot open it. If you try to attack by force, you will definitely lose your troops and return without success. If you want to be trapped to death by the Tianlang Mountain Golden Gun, let alone one or two years, let alone ten or twenty years."

Liu Chang said:"Why does Xiao Daiying want to inflate other people's ambitions and destroy his own prestige?"

Xiao Daiying said:"Master Liu doesn't know that there are thousands of farmers in Tianlang Mountain. The guards are soldiers during war and farmers at ordinary times. They are not only self-sufficient but also have sufficient warehouses. They also make weapons and armor. artisan. How to be so sleepy?"

Everyone was silent after hearing this. After a moment of silence, King Jin said:"Dai Ying still said that he needs 50,000 elite soldiers to use troops against Tianlang Mountain? Xiao Daiying said:"

This is Mr. Cheng Xu's second plan. We can't use the 50,000 troops to attack Tianlang Mountain.""

The King of Jin was lost in thought. All the soldiers and horses stationed in Dingzhou that he could mobilize were deployed by the imperial army. The Dingzhou Xiang army only had 20,000 troops and horses at best, less than half. How to wipe out the bandits in Tianlang Mountain?

Liu Chang said:"The King of Wei in Wei Bo Fan Town and Li Weidong in An Guofan Town are closest to Dingzhou. One is the father-in-law of His Highness and the other is a close friend of His Highness. Can you write a letter to help us?"

The King of Jin shook his head decisively.

Liu Chang said:"No matter how close you are to Dingzhou, the only one who has deployed Guo Jin is Xishan."

Chai Yuxi said:"How can Guo Jin count on the 'bloodthirsty Yama'? When His Highness was appointed the Marquis of Yu, the capital of the Imperial Palace, Guo Jin was one of His Highness' subordinates at that time. He was the commander of the First Army of the Iron Cavalry on the Left Wing. He often got in trouble with His Highness and repeatedly wrote letters to the Emperor saying that His Highness did not understand military affairs, so the Emperor transferred His Highness out of the Palace. Si was appointed as the Yin of Kaifeng, and Guo Jin was also sent to Xishan. Later, he was squeezed out by his colleague Tian Zuo and stayed idle in the capital. Soon he returned to Xishan to serve. He is His Highness's enemy!

The King of Jin thought:"Now the lonely king can only borrow troops from Guo Jin, and only Guo Jin can send troops to help.""

Chai Yuxi and Liu Quan were shocked when they heard this.

Jia Su said:"Your Highness! Isn't Guo Jin afraid that the imperial court will punish him for leaving Floodland privately? The king of Jin smiled but did not answer, and turned to Liu Chang and said:"Tomorrow Liu Chang will bring the letter from the lonely king to Yanyun, Yuanda, Yangmao and Michao, and bring a lot of money to ask Guo to send troops to help.""

Early the next morning, Liu Chang, Yan Yun, Yuanda, Yang Mao, Mi Chao and more than a dozen soldiers drove a carriage to Xishan. On this day, Liu Chang and others came to Xishan to deploy and control Shiling Pass. Next. The flags and trumpets are fluttering at Shiling Pass, and the troops are in good order. All the soldiers are wearing bright helmets, bright swords and halberds.

Sutinghou Guo Jinguan paid homage to Xishan Capital and deployed to sit in Shiling Pass. He is known for his strict military discipline and strict punishment for those who violate military laws. He was given the nickname"Hill-thirsty Yama" and guarded the seventy-two villages in the three passes of Xishan. The soldiers and Di were frightened by the news and had outstanding military exploits. He commanded twenty battalions of 10,000 forbidden troops. The Yangmao dog took advantage of the power of the people and rushed to the gate and shouted:"Grandpa is the King of Jin. The messenger asked Guo Jin to come quickly, but he was half a step too slow. Grandpa asked Guo Jin to walk around because he couldn't eat! After a while, he opened the door and walked out of a small school, saying,"Do you have any paperwork?" Yang Mao gave him a slap in the face and said,"You also read the documents of King Jin!""The colonel ordered the soldiers behind him to tie up Yang Mao. Mi Chao hurriedly said:"How dare you be a thief! Inverted! Even the Jin King’s envoy dared to tie him up!"The primary school's soldiers also tied up Mi Chao. Liu Chang stepped forward and said,"We are indeed the envoys of the King of Jin. We were ordered by the King of Jin to pay homage to Guo Dushuai." He handed the document to the primary school. The primary school read it, led Liu Wei, Yan Yun, and Yuanda, and ordered the soldiers to escort Yang Mao and Mi Chao into the gate, and walked about a mile or two to the outside of the camp gate. , please wait at the camp gate, and go into the commander's house to report to the commander-in-chief.

After a while, I saw a group of soldiers coming from the direction of the gate. More than thirty soldiers were in disheveled armor and tied up as if they had violated military law. There were fifty soldiers. Several soldiers escorted him to the outside of the camp gate. A team member was telling the soldiers to wait for him to enter the camp gate. Yuanda asked a soldier about it and said,"Excuse me, brother!" Who are these people who are tied up?"

The soldier said:"These are the forbidden troops sent by the Xifu. They were personally selected by Guan Jiabaili from thousands of forbidden troops. They have just arrived at the Xishan Du Deployment Department for less than a month.——"

One of the tied soldiers yelled:"Grandpa was sent by the government, and you dare to kidnap me. If Guo Jin doesn't personally untie my grandfather, my grandfather will go to the capital to complain, and Guo Jin will be thrown into the army and killed in the worst case." Head!" He was arrogant.

A group of military officers walked out from the camp gate, surrounding a general who was nearly fifty years old. He wore a phoenix-winged helmet with his hair tied on his head, wearing a half-used parrot green war robe, military uniform leather belt, and half-used boots; he was not angry and proud. , complexion green and yellow, as cold as ice. Yan Yun recognized this as his former Duke Sutinghou Guo Jin.

The tied soldier was slightly shocked by the extremely majestic Guo Jin, and his tone softened slightly, and he said:"Guo Dushuai! I am sent here by the official family."

Guo Jin said forward:"Before leaving, the official What did the family say to you?"

The tied soldier said:"The officials told me to be careful and abide by the laws when we go to Xishan. If not, I can forgive you. Guo Jin will never forgive you, and what awaits you will only be It's beheading."

Guo Jin said angrily:"Okay! Since you know that you will commit a crime of our military law and get an additional penalty, you have to be punished before beheading." He reached out and twisted off his two ears and threw them on the ground. The soldier howled incessantly. Guo Jin turned around and said to the soldiers:"Immediately behead these thirty-six soldiers who have committed the crime of deserting before the battle!" Tian Qin, the judge of the Xishan Capital Deployment Division, came closer and said:"Commanders! These are all sent by the officials. No. Look at Zeng's face and look at the Buddha's face, just give it a beating with the stick."

Guo Jin laughed and sneered,"In my Xishan military camp, we only recognize military law and not officials." He said to the soldiers who were executing the execution,"Do you still call me commander? Once?"