Tibet

Li Ye quickly said: "I would like to hear the details!"

Duguqiao laughed and said, "The commander of Raofeng Pass is Liu Jing, a general of the Yuan family. He is a bastard. He blocks the pass and collects money. He is unkind and has made complaints from all the officials in Hanzhong.

However, this person has two major hobbies, good wine and gambling. My uncle can give him wine as a favor first, and then gamble with him. His gambling products are very good, so he admits defeat, but most people can't gamble with him. "

"What is he betting on?" Li Ye asked.

"He is very good at throwing knives. He can ask three questions. If my uncle fails two, he will lose."

"What if I kill him with a knife?"

Duguqiao shook his head, "Rao Feng Pass is on Ziwu Ridge. Once the beacon fire is lit at Rao Feng Pass, the whole Hanzhong will be shocked. There will also be beacon fire in Ziwu Valley to spread the alarm to Chang'an. My uncle is right to worry. If he doesn't want to alarm the court , it can only be taken by text."

"I have Shangfang Tianzi Sword, is that okay?"

Duguqiao smiled bitterly and said: "Young master, don't you know? The imperial court has issued instructions to all places in Guanlong. No matter who holds the Shangfang Emperor Sword, it will be invalid."

Li Ye was startled, "When was the order issued?"

"We received it three days ago."

Li Ye sighed, "The imperial court has no ability to deal with the outside world, but it has a good way of taking precautions internally."

"The imperial court has always been like this!"

Li Ye asked his men to follow Duguqiao to the county seat to get the map of Raofengguan. Duguqiao didn't know Raofengguan, but one of his men had worked in Raofengguan and was very familiar with Raofengguan. This man could draw a map of Raofengguan. A detailed map.

Li Ye was not idle either. While waiting for the map, he summoned several generals and his staff Li Mi to discuss.

Li Ye would never place his fate on others. This time he defeated Liu Jing by betting on flying knives, but what about next time? How will his men get through it?

Everyone unanimously agreed with Li Ye's plan. They would not compromise and solve it once and for all. Raofengguan must not be allowed to become a choke point for the new passage.

Li Ye called in his guide again. The guide was a merchant from Kang State named Kang Wenda. He used this road to buy silk and satin in Xiangyang all year round. Jianghan was also a land of fish and rice and was also rich in silk. The silk and satin in Xiangyang was 30% cheaper than the silk and satin in Chang'an.

Kang Wenda stepped forward and saluted: "See Governor Li!"

Li Ye was the King of Lu in the Tang Dynasty, and these Sogdian merchants were not afraid of him, but Li Ye was the governor of Hezhong, and all the Sogdian merchants were afraid of him.

Li Ye nodded and asked him, "Can I pass the customs at night?"

Kang Wenda smiled and said: "As long as you give me money, why not? Liu Jing made his own rules. If you pass the customs at night, you will receive double the money!"

Li Ye nodded secretly, it would be easier if he could pass the test at night.

Raofeng Pass is known as the first pass in Hanzhong and is the east gate of Hanzhong. If Raofeng Pass is captured, the important areas of Hanzhong will be safe. At the same time, Raofeng Pass is the only way to the Ziwu Valley, so its strategic location is very important. , the imperial court sent two thousand people to guard this pass.

Liu Jing, the commander of Raofengguan, was a general. He was appreciated by the general element, so he was sent to Raofengling as the commander. He was rough-looking, but very cunning.

Everyone knows that Liu Jing is a good drinker and gambler. He has a lot of money from guarding Rao Fengguan, but most of the money he gets is spent on wine and gambling.

That night, a Sogdian caravan passed through the customs and was going to Xiangyang. This caravan was disguised as Bukhan under Li Ye. He brought two hundred camels and went to Xiangyang to buy silk. The caravan was led by their Guided by Convenda.

After a while, the caravan arrived at the pass, and Kang Wenda shouted: "Tell General Liu, we are going to Xiangyang, please open the pass and let him go!"

Kang Wenda was a Sogdian merchant from Kang State. He often walked this road, and all the soldiers above knew him.

Immediately, soldiers were sent to report. At this time, the generals in the pass were gathering for gambling. Liu Jing was sitting in the bank, and he was red-faced gambling with a group of generals. A soldier came forward and reported in a low voice: "General, there is a Sogdian caravan that wants to pass the customs. The leader is Convenda!”

"The bastard is here again, how many camels are there this time?"

"About two hundred or so!"

Liu Jing waved his hand, "He knows the rules. If you pass the test at night, you have to double the amount!"

Liu Jing's rules are very simple. He collects money according to camels. During the day, one gold coin is given for each camel. Generally, he is not allowed to pass at night. However, if you actually want to pass the customs, you can make an exception, but the money must be doubled. One camel is worth two gold coins. This is the rule. .

After a while, the soldier rushed back and shouted: "General Liu said that you must follow the rules when crossing the border at night. Dongzhu Kang, you should know!"

Kang Wenda shouted: "I know the rules. I have urgent business to go to Xiangyang. Please open the door!"

The gate slowly opened, and two hundred camels entered the gate in a mighty manner. All the soldiers guarding the gate were counting the camels, but no one was paying attention. At this time, a waiter ducked and disappeared into the darkness inside the gate.

After counting the two hundred camels, Kang Wenda handed over a heavy bag of Sogdian gold coins. The captain smiled and said: "Dr. Kang, you gave me too much!"

Kangwenda nodded, "I know, there are five hundred camels and one thousand Sogdian gold coins."

"But you only have two hundred camels here."

"I know, there are three hundred camels behind me. They are unloading in Xixiang County and they will be late. Please keep the city gate open!"

"How late?"

"About an hour or two,"

"no!"

The captain refused flatly, "The city gate must be closed. It cannot be kept open for so long."

"How about this! Everyone has their own thing. I will give you four hundred gold coins first, and they will pay for the remaining three hundred camels themselves."

The captain had already got the money, how could he return it? If the remaining 300 camels came during the day, wouldn't it be a loss of 300 gold coins?

The captain then said, "Wait a moment, I'll go ask the general for instructions."

The captain went away with the money bag, but came back empty-handed and said to Kangwenda: "The general said that when the three hundred camels come, they can just pass through the customs and there is no need to collect any more money."

"Then I have to go back. If you make a mistake and let other caravans pass, wouldn't it be miserable for me?"

The captain nodded, "That's right, lead Kang and go back! I will recognize you later."

Kangwenda asked one of his men, and he took two hundred camels across the border and left. Kangwenda also returned, and the city gate of Raofengguan slowly closed.

Li Ye is already hiding in the pass. In fact, the camel's passage just now is an opportunity to seize the city. The city gate is blocked by the camel and cannot be closed, but he cannot do it now. He must remove the beacon before he can do it.

So Li Ye set another trap. When there are 300 camels passing through, there will be an opportunity.

The beacon in Raofengguan is a stone tower built close to the mountain, about three feet high. According to the drawings given by Duguqiao, the beacon has only one door, which is locked from the inside. The only way is to knock on the door to let the soldiers inside open the door.

Of course Li Ye would not take this route. He must have climbed up from the outside and swept away the beacon first. But there was a problem. The top of the beacon was also a sentry post. There was a soldier looking out, and next to it was a big bell. Li Ye must kill this sentry.

Li Ye slowly climbed up the stone tower. The surface of the stone tower was very rough and it was very easy to climb. In just a moment, Li Ye climbed to the top. He slowly looked up to the top.

At first glance, he saw a pile of firewood, which was as tall as a man. Then he saw a bell in the corner, but no sentry was seen.

Li Ye looked around carefully again, and there was indeed no one on the top of the stone tower.

After thinking about it, Li Ye finally realized that it was completely different for him to apply the border mentality to the hinterland of the Central Plains.

There has been no war in Hanzhong for more than a hundred years, and more than ten generations of soldiers have not encountered war. How could he not sleep yet and stand guard for you conscientiously? Who are you defending?

If there are no enemies, what use is the sentry?

This is actually just a sentry set up to meet the requirements of superiors. In fact, it is not activated at all.

After thinking about this, Li Ye jumped to the top of the tower.