The Prosperous Era of Longwan

878 leather cutting

"Dong dong dong"

The war drums were beating intensively, and the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty who were still in the barracks got dressed nervously.

The soldiers in armor had already run out of the house with their weapons in hand and rushed to the stables at the back.

Although they didn't know what it was about, the sound of the drum was an order for them to assemble, and no one dared to waste even a moment of time.

At the moment the drum beat sounded, the stable guards had already opened the door and looked at the swarm of soldiers rushing in. They just retreated to both sides, leaving the middle passage open.

Not long after, at another exit, a soldier found his horse, rushed out on his war horse, and ran towards the square in front of the barracks.

After Fang Fengshi sent the news to the governor Wang Chonggu and the commander-in-chief Ma Fang, he thought about the situation of defeating Hubao at this time, with only a thousand soldiers and horses.

It is very dangerous to leave Han Naji in Baihu Fort. What if Anda Khan finds out that Han Naji has descended to the Ming Dynasty and leads thousands of troops to besiege Baihu Fort?

So, he immediately summoned Kang Lun, an officer in the governor's camp, and ordered him to lead his cavalry to Baihu Fort immediately.

Not to support, but to bring Han Naji and his party to Datong.

With Datong City guarding it, even if Anda Khan mobilized all his troops, it would be impossible to break Datong Fortified City in a short time.

After receiving the governor's order, Kang Lun immediately returned to the camp to gather troops.

In half a stick of incense, the five hundred cavalrymen had assembled and lined up in the square, fully armed, waiting for his order.

Because they were just going to Baihu Fort to pick up people, the cavalry team did not prepare many supplies. For example, there was no need to prepare food. People could eat horse chews and get it directly at Baihu Fort.

At that time, it will just be a matter of keeping accounts and asking Bing Beidao to issue an extra batch the next time they allocate food.

After the men and horses were gathered, Kang Lun did not say the purpose of his trip. The soldiers followed him in a daze and rushed out of the camp on horseback, heading towards Baihu Fort.

Late at night, it was dark outside Baihu Fort. There was no moonlight tonight, but fires were lit up and down the walls of Baihu Fort.

The figures on the city's head were swaying, indicating that there were many soldiers on duty on the walls of Hubao tonight.

In fact, this was the case yesterday after Han Naji entered the city.

At first, they were worried that Han Naji would fake a surrender, and there was Ada Khan's cavalry behind him, so they might sneak attack on the city at night.

However, the guards are still tight now, because they are worried that Anda Khan's pursuers will come and ask them to return Han Naji.

If the people were not released into the city, everything would not matter.

But if you take people in and hand them over again, you won't have the guts to defeat the Fort Hu defense.

Although he was not on the city wall at this time, he was still sitting in the lobby of the garrison, fully clothed.

Now the whole city is on alert, and he is no exception.

The detective horses in the city were sent out in the morning, and so far they have received good news. At least there is no trace of Anda Khan's army in the thirty miles around Baihu Fort.

Now he can only pray that Datong's order will come soon and tell him how to deal with Han Naji and his party.

Staying in the border fortress is always a hidden danger.

Just then, there was a sound of footsteps outside. He suddenly stood up and walked to the door, where he bumped into the person.

"Sir, a large number of torches appeared in the south of the city, and there was also the faint sound of horse hooves."

The person who came was in charge of a hundred households in the south of the city. Seeing that the garrison leader had come out, he hurriedly reported it.

"Let's go and have a look."

The garrison followed the man out of the garrison mansion. When he left the mansion, he said to the soldiers guarding the gate: "I'm going to the south city wall. If anyone comes, tell them to look for me over there."

Although the south city wall faces the direction of the Ming Dynasty, the defenders are not sure that the people coming are soldiers and horses from the Ming Dynasty, so they have to check carefully.

By the time he got to the south city wall, there were already a lot of people standing under the city in darkness, all of them well-equipped cavalry.

The Ming army had the right armor and right flags, but the city gate hadn't been opened yet, even though the people outside were already a little impatient.

"Lord Guard, this is the customs defense certificate handed over by the officers and soldiers below."

Qianhu from the city sent a basket in front of him, which contained documents and waist badges.

The document was signed by Fang Fengshi, the governor of Datong, to the effect that he sent the governor's soldiers to pick up Han Naji and his party and bring them back to Datong.

The guard carefully read the document and the seal on it and found no problems.

The official seal is the waist badge of the army in the governor's personal barracks. The names of the governor's personal soldiers and Kang Lun are engraved on the waist badge, which is consistent with the document.

"How many people came?"

Although Guan Fang didn't see any problems, now was a special period, so he still asked a few more questions.

"I'm afraid there are four to five hundred people. It should be that all the cavalry from the personal camp are here."

Chihu replied.

"Two hundred households were transferred from the east and west of the city. Except for the officers and guards, everyone else stayed in Wengcheng."

The guard ordered, "Let's go down and greet them. The security in the city cannot be relaxed."

After wasting some time and waiting for the officers and soldiers of the four hundred households to form a formation outside Wengcheng, the gate of Baihu Fort slowly opened, and the guard appeared in the gate with a group of guards.

Kang Lun was already a little irritable waiting at the foot of the city. This ruined Hu Fort was a frontier fortress. He stayed in the wilderness without the protection of the city wall, and he felt uneasy after all.

Seeing the city gate open, Kang Lun came over with his troops.

After chatting with the garrison for a few words, he did not express his dissatisfaction, but still followed his wishes and allowed his troops to be stationed in Wengcheng.

Baihu Fort is not big, and the Wengcheng is naturally small. Five hundred people entered and the place was completely packed.

"Guo Shoubei, my men didn't have time to prepare dry food when they left Datong. This man is sleepy and his horse is exhausted. Please ask the brothers who defeated Hubao to prepare some food. The war horses also need a batch of horse feed."

Kang Lun said after walking through the gate of Wengcheng.

Having watched the Ming cavalry enter the city earlier, Guo Shoubei had noticed the appearance and behavior of these people, and was basically convinced that this group of people was not Mongolian or White Lotus believers.

Most of the Ming army were military households, and their ancestors had been eating this bowl of rice for generations, but many of their habits were different from those of civilian households.

Since they are not enemies, the garrison is finally relieved at this time, and can finally send out the hot potato. Asking for food and horse feed is not a trivial matter to the army, but it is just a note in the account book given to Bingbeidao. It’s about the pen.

"Easy to say, please let Master Kang go to the city to rest first. I have already asked people to prepare meals.

The brothers' food will be prepared soon, so don't worry, everyone will not be hungry when they arrive at Baihu Fort. "

Guard said with a smile.

Although his official position is higher than that of a lieutenant general, he is a personal soldier of the governor. He is not afraid even when facing the commander-in-chief, so he naturally deals with him with caution.

"Also, please ask Guard Guo to prepare some tents for camping. The soldiers will rest in the city tonight and leave with them tomorrow morning. Please also ask Guard Guo to say hello."

Kang Lunyou continued.

Originally, I should have left with Han Naji after dinner, but now it was getting too late and the road at night was not easy to walk. I rushed all the way and did not reach Baihu Fort before dark, so I had no choice but to let my men fight. Go on your way with a torch.

On the border, doing this is very dangerous and can easily expose your whereabouts.

This is not a time of peace. If we are discovered by the pursuers sent by Ada Khan, it will definitely be a war.

His men, who were traveling in a hurry, were already exhausted, and at that time they were probably in a desperate situation.

Although Kang Lun wanted to leave here as soon as possible, he still had to consider his own life, and if something happened to Hannaji in his hands, how would he be able to do business even if he returned alive?

So after just thinking for a moment, he decided to spend the night in Baihu Fort and leave at dawn. This was not safe.

"Don't worry, Master Kang. I will arrange for my men to prepare food for you tomorrow morning. I will never delay your journey."

Of course Guo Shoubei understood what he was thinking and agreed immediately.

With these five hundred people in the city tonight, he felt that he would be able to sleep peacefully for a while.

He didn't sleep well last night. He only found time to take a nap during the day, but he was actually very sleepy.

But Han Naji came to his territory while sleeping, and this ruined Hu Fort was not a traffic artery.

Baihu Fort was actually built only a few decades ago. It was relatively new among the Ming army's border forts. Because the passage guarded here was in a dangerous terrain, it was not the first choice for large army operations.

The Ming army only built a city here during the Jiajing period for the safety of Datong to guard this passage.

Therefore, there were not many soldiers and horses stationed in Baihu Fort, only more than a thousand people.

Although there are occasional Mongolian attacks, the opponent's troops are not many. After all, the terrain here limits the attack of large corps, so it has been easy for him to defend here over the years. He can only wait for another two years to find a way to move and change. A better place.

It's best to move to the back, this side of the fort is not easy to treat.

As for the other big cities in the surrounding area, forget it. It’s better to stay here than go there. At least Mongolians generally won’t come here.

Early the next morning, Kang Lun saw Bahan Naji.

In fact, the movement in the city last night had already alarmed them, but there were hundreds of Ming troops guarding the residence outside, and they could not move around in the military fort.

When daybreak, they finally received news that the governor of Datong sent someone to take them to Datong, so they packed their luggage early in the morning and prepared to leave here.

When he saw the rightful owner, Kang Lun didn't say much and left Baihu Fort with his men.

Five hundred cavalrymen guarded Han Naji and a group of ten people in the middle. Of course, it can also be said that they were guarded inside. They beat the horses and left Baihu Fort.

As for the chicken feathers all over Wengcheng, it was naturally the soldiers of Bai Hubao who were responsible for cleaning them up.

Although Bhan Naji's entourage was small, he brought more than 30 horses. They were equipped with one person and three horses, which was very rare among the Ming army's cavalry.

Even for the elite cavalry of the Ming Army, the best treatment is only one man and two horses.

Such a difference made the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty jealous.

But there is nothing we can do, because there are so many Mongolians and horses.

Although they are the governor's personal soldiers, they can only have one person and one horse, but there are no more horses to replace.

Along the way, I saw Han Naji and his party changing horses several times in a row, which made me envious.

Fortunately, we are on our way home now. As long as we arrive at Datong City at night, we don't have to worry about the horsepower.

The return trip was easier than the first trip. After all, not long after leaving Datong, the soldiers also knew that their destination was Baihu Fort. However, the Chinese army officers spared no effort to force them to rush forward, but they were frightened.

When the governor and governor recruited the bidding camp, they selected elite soldiers who were good at fighting from the Datong Army. They had not been on the battlefield for many years after entering this place.

Maybe the bravery is still there, but after all, the spirit has lost a lot.

Biaoying usually goes out with the governor and governor to put on a show, so even the most elite soldiers have gradually degenerated into mere bastards over the past few years.

They look very elite, but their combat power has dropped drastically, so they were scared to death yesterday.

Of course, the key is Kang Lun's rapid march without hesitation of horse power, which is a taboo for cavalry.

If there was horse rotation, the soldiers would not be so worried. They would just change horses to fight when encountering enemies. Unfortunately, they did not have that condition.

Hurry up and hurry up. When the sky becomes dark, the tall Datong City Wall is already in sight.

This place is no better than the surroundings, maybe the straight line distance is closer, but you have to run around the mountain road, and the road outside Datong City is smooth.

When the soldiers saw the city wall, they became very energetic. They shouted and beat their horses and marched in a hurry, hoping to enter the city before dark.

Only by staying within the city walls can they feel safe, which is not comparable to camping in the wild.

Xuanfu, governor's office.

This is the temporary residence of Wang Chonggu, the governor of Xuanda. At this moment, he was holding an urgent military report from Datong in his hand and looked surprised.

Anda Khan's grandson actually came over and surrendered. Although he was only accompanied by a dozen people, his identity meant that this was not a simple surrender and had great political significance.

Moreover, Sun Tzu ran away, and Anda Khan was probably mad at this moment, and he might be regrouping the army and preparing to come to Datong to ask for help.

He called the master and asked him to write a memorial immediately and rush it to the capital eight hundred miles away. At the same time, he summoned the governor of Xuanfu and the chief military officer to discuss the next military preparations of Xuanfu.

Datong is undoubtedly the primary target of Anda Khan. It is not only the closest to Bansheng City, but also houses Han Naji, but this does not mean that the Xuanfu can stay out of the matter.

What he can do now is, firstly, to deliver the news to the capital as soon as possible and wait for the court's order, and secondly, to prepare his army to deal with Anda Khan's attack.

“The news was immediately passed on to the fortresses of the Xuanfu, asking them to put up strict defenses to prevent sneak attacks by the Mongolian Tatars.

The Xuanfu cavalry must assemble as soon as possible, whether it is to rescue Xuanfu or Datong."

After discussing with the governor of Xuanfu, Wang Chonggu issued an order for war mobilization to the general soldiers of Xuanfu. At the same time, he sent a messenger to Yansui Town next door to Datong to ask for help, asking them to make military preparations to support Datong.

Although he has resigned from the position of governor of the three sides of Shaanxi Province, it is impossible for the Yansui General Army not to give him this face and will definitely accept his military orders.

While Wang Chonggu was making preparations, the capital city knew nothing about it.

Although it was almost evening, the official hall was brightly lit, as bright as day.

Gao Gong, Zhang Siwei and others are re-checking the official positions to be dismissed. This is not a trivial matter, but a major matter that affects many people, and the officials must also deal with it carefully.

"Mr. Gao Ge, are all these retrenched officials laid off? Are they not going to have a place to go?"

"If there are vacancies in official positions, do they still need to be laid off? Let them rest first. If there are vacancies in the government, just select them first."

"But this, Nanjing Grain Reserve Hai Rui"