Chapter 155: Shovelful of Earth

The four riders who do not cause trouble, their going and staying in the huge Dajian City is like a drop of water thrown into a giant ravine, it does not stir up anything at all.

Xu Fengyen left the restaurant soon after he and Zhang Xucheng had finalized matters, Qing Zhuniang only said one thing when she saw him off, saying that the last time they parted, he had given her a word, and this time she returned it to him. Xu Fengyen smiled and said he received it.

Zhang Xiucheng returned to the window of the elegant room looking at the four riders on the street far away without turning around, the woman was slowly cleaning up the wine pots and wine cups on the table, and those delicate plates holding small dishes with wine, Zhang Xiucheng asked curiously, “Qingzhu Niang, what is that sentence? Can I say it?”

Qing Zhu Niang smiled wanly, “What can’t be said, he said to me last time to live well, there is no greater truth under the sky than this.”

Zhang Xucheng lamented, “This world is going to be chaotic.”

Qing Zhuniang asked in a low voice, “Who exactly is he? If you can’t say, don’t say.”

Zhang Xiu Cheng turned around, a little puzzled, “I really can’t say, it’s just that I talked to him so much, and you didn’t guess it, Qing Zhuniang?”

Qing Zhu Niang’s cheeks slightly reddened, “I don’t know what I was thinking at the time, anyway, it feels as if I can’t remember anything now.”

Zhang Xucheng froze for a moment and held back his laughter, “Just think of him as Xu Lang, anyway, there will always be a day when his true identity comes out, and at that time, even if you flee back to Beimang and close your ears, it will be useless. From the details of how he treated that maidservant, I can see that it’s not to say that he’s a good person, but he’s certainly not bad.”

Qing Zhuniang blankly glanced at this Taoist priest who always liked to laugh at himself for only being able to subdue demons and remove devils in the piles of storyboards, and softly said, “He ah, he’s not bad at all.”

Zhang Xucheng did not know what was going on, and was not happy to get involved in this mess, so as to save himself. By the way, in the Spring and Autumn scholar’s eyes after the sinking of the Divine Kingdom, I do not know which mouth does not accumulate virtue of the scholar said a big bad words, widely circulated, that is, “Xu Snapdragon look in the mirror, inside and outside of the people. Zhang Xucheng in Jizhou after the roots of the first did not understand, and later realized that it is scolded that the old Liang Wang killed too many people, is the intrusion of the ghosts of the world. As for the others, such as “the general walks, one high and one low”, this is simple and clear, it is in irony Xu Snapdragon is a cripple, “the upper beam is not correct, the lower beam is crooked”, once used to joke about the human butcher hunchback and his eldest son Xu Fengyen playboy unscrupulous, but with the Xu Fengyen’s reputation, has been rarely mentioned. However, as Xu Fengnian’s reputation has grown, few people have mentioned it.

Zhang Xucheng sighed, but unfortunately, he could not take a look at the great general who had a good death. Collected these useless thoughts, Zhang Xiu Cheng looked out the window at the sky, he should also go out of the city, the big boss side is still waiting for their news. Zhang Xucheng suddenly sat back down, letting Qing Zhu Niang put back the cups and chopsticks, poured a cup of wine, and slowly drank it.

She, on the other hand, leaned against the window and quietly looked at the bustling and hustling foreign cityscape.

After Xu Fengyen’s four riders passed through Yanzhuang Pass north of Dajian City, in order to prevent any complications, they abandoned their horses and traveled on foot over the mountains, quickly traveling north on the mountain road where woodcutting and hunting were rare. Mi Fengjie and Fan Xiaochai were both impressed by that child, at a young age, good understanding is not strange, but such strong internal strength makes no sense at all. Of course, they could not have imagined that the shepherd boy, Yu Di Long, had inherited half of Wang Xianzhi’s mantle. During the trip to Jizhou, Six Years Phoenix always found Xu Fengyen with precision and passed on the battle situation in Youzhou. When a group of four people ran along a canyon on a high ridge, Xu Fengyen once again abruptly stopped his body, raised his arm to support the divine handsome Haidongqing that broke the clouds and fell. Mi Fengjie saw the usually calm King of Northern Liang somewhat grave this time, standing on the cliffside in a daze. Yu Di Long sat down on the ground, took off his sturdy cowhide boots and lifted them up upside down, pouring away the gravel that pinched his feet.

Mi Fengjie couldn’t help but ask: “The battle at Hulukou is unfavorable?”

Xu Fengnian shook his head and said, “The first contact battle over at Zaoma Zhai, the battle losses on both sides were actually still expected by Chu Lushan and Yan Wenluan. But from the spies I have received so far, there are some ‘accidents’ outside the battlefield that must be taken seriously. Yang Yuanzan personally led the vanguard army straight to Wolbow City. Since ancient times, the northern nomads who have to live half of their lives on horseback, are naturally skillful in riding and shooting, but the early days of the Dafeng Dynasty still maintains an absolute advantage over the grassland forces, and you may not have imagined that even at the end of the Dafeng period, even if you don’t rely on the city’s fortification and elite bows and crossbows, the Bong army’s engagement with the steppe cavalry can still be an even match. Both sides appeared to win and lose upside down, is also the matter of the past two hundred years, countless trips to bring smuggled goods profiteering border trade, coupled with two hundred years of countless times to the south to plunder the large captive and return, so that the northern grasslands have a considerable scale of craftsmen and iron, the Spring and Autumn scholar Hongjia north to the north, and more to the north of Mang brought a rich population, the depth of the culture of the Central Plains, as well as the concept of the implicitly war. Dong Zhuo’s private army’s emphasis on foot soldiers, siege, and auxiliary soldiers is one of the notable changes.”

Xu Fengnian squatted down, grabbed a shovelful of yellow soil, gently clutched it in his palm, and said, “Beimang claimed to have invested 300,000 troops on the eastern front in a single breath, if pushed forward by thirty to forty years, we are in the early days of the nine states of the Spring and Autumn period of the Central Plains, we would definitely take for granted that the so-called 300,000 troops, holding up to death, are 100,000 or so war soldiers, even if we add in the civilians transporting grain and grass and the auxiliary soldiers responsible for maintaining the provisioning equipment, it wouldn’t reach 300,000 troops. Even with the addition of civilian soldiers for transportation of grain and grass and auxiliary soldiers for maintenance of supply wagons and equipment, the number of soldiers would not reach 300,000 soldiers. This kind of before the war first put their guts on a strong habit, Xu Snapdragon may not be the first to resist, but Xu Snapdragon is definitely the most resolute and most thorough resistance to the military generals, from the beginning of his attack on the major Liyang clan town cut off forces, he has five thousand soldiers and horses said five thousand. Later on, there was a big joke, just hit the northern Han at that time, the northern Han front line generals heard the spy said Xu Snapdragon went to war with 20,000, the city generals pinpointing a count, well, according to the old rules but only 6,000 or 7,000 people only, up to 10,000, the battle will be able to fight, do not have to retreat. Eventually, the general of the Northern Han Dynasty was captured by Xu Snapdragon, and before beheading him and sacrificing his head to the flag, he cursed Xu Snapdragon as a liar. Xu Snapdragon was so furious that he kicked off half of the general’s teeth, and scolded him back with a sentence that said, ‘I said 20,000 is 20,000, and it’s all fair play to all, and you have the face to call a liar on an honest person like that!

Yu Di Long was originally grasping the two boots and shaking around, like he wanted to pocket some wind in the boots. Hearing this, he also quieted down and perked up his ears to listen to his master talk about one of those things that were far away from him, “war”.

Xu Fengyen gripped his fingers tightly, felt the palm of his hand by the yellow soil to bring refreshing sense of coolness, lamented: “North Mang Liangzhou center line and Liuzhou west line not to mention, Youzhou east line on the 300,000, war soldiers but as many as 200,000, and the remaining 100,000 auxiliary soldiers, in fact, also with the war soldiers is no different. North Mang more riding less step, Dong Zhuo set the rules, this time out of the war, the soldiers in the run on the way are not allowed to set up tents, dismounted closed eyes sleep, open eyes on the horse is the war. The reason why there are 100,000 auxiliary soldiers, more for the Hulukou fortress system and set up, Yang Yuanzan deal with Zao Ma Zhai fortress group, is handed over to the various auxiliary soldiers to attack the city to pull down the fortress, the 100,000 auxiliary soldiers in the commander of the generals, most of the fathers and mothers are spring and autumn survivors, or directly is the spring and autumn survivors of the age of forty or fifty years itself. And Yang Yuanzan’s personal army and Hong Jingyan’s Zojiran iron horsemen, these main cavalry directly bypassed the fortress, the long drive down, and strive to the fastest speed to push to the bottom of the city of Wolbow, until the army is underneath the city, when the siege equipment is transported to the time, then the rear line has almost been swept away, and the Long Wa state is responsible for the grain and grass supplies of the conscripts can be a steady stream of peacefully southward. That’s why this battle, North Mang and Dong Zhuo fought a very ‘Middle Kingdom’ battle.”

Fan Xiaochai coldly said, “In that case, the fortresses north of Crouching Bow City are clearly a dead letter, why doesn’t Youzhou simply line up the three cities of Crouching Bow, Luanhe, and Xiaguang in the northernmost part of Hulukou, so that they won’t just stop the North Mang army outside of the pass? You also don’t have to worry about the major fortresses being slowly eaten up by the North Mang cavalry. In the end, you Bei Liang don’t care about the lives of your soldiers for the sake of that title of being the most powerful in the world!”

Mi Fengjie surveyed this twat with the eyes of an idiot, and the old man’s dry face broke into some smiles, but of course this smile certainly had nothing to do with kindness. This is not to say that Mi Fengjie caught the loophole in Fan Xiaochai’s words at once, Sinking Sword Cave Lord’s thoughts are simple to the extreme, the Northern Liang generals who have soaked in blood and water in the sands and laid in the piles of the dead, especially the veteran generals like Yan Wenluan who have proved their war talents in the Spring and Autumn battles, how can they be fools fishing for fame and reputation?

Xu Fengyen did not laugh at Fan Xiaochai standing and talking, or sneer at her well bottomed frogs, but raised the fist that clenched the earth and nodded the canyon at the foot, calmly said: “Huloukou is not here, I have personally traveled outside the plugs, and I can largely imagine how big the mouth of the huloukou is in the end. And military affairs where to build a city on the mountain, where to break the plug to build a pass, where to build a fort on the water, where to build a flint according to the danger, not only all have to pay attention to, but also have all kinds of complicated variations. Huloukou, is the northern Liang Road terrain is the most unique and the only natural depth of the defense of the important place, you say let the fort soldiers to die, in fact, is right, once the enemy ‘Kou Da to’, these according to the risk of defending the generals, the risk is not enough to ‘keep alive’, can only be defend to the death and ‘defend to death’.”

Xu Fengyen clenched his fists, the wind and sand on the cliff, blowing the hair on his temples dazzling, said: “Beiliang only told Liyang gourd mouth can be filled with 150,000 or 600,000 northern barbarians, the central plains people are mostly unwilling to believe. If it is said that Yan Wenluan started out by wanting the 50,000 Youzhou defenders in the three cities and two hundred fortresses of Hulukou to all die in battle in Hulukou ……”

After a slight pause, Xu Fengnian, who always spoke in a calm tone, smiled, “I’m afraid that the Central Plains is the one who heard about this, and would pretend not to have heard. Maybe oh a sound and then nothing more. Time to drink, time to drink, time to enjoy the snow, time to talk, life must be enjoyable.”

Fan Xiaochai bit his lips, still stubbornly asked: “one person is willing to die fighting, a hundred people are willing, even if a thousand people are willing, but the Youzhou border army of 50,000 people, really willing to know that they will die also die in the gourd mouth? Father and mother gave them two legs, will not escape?”

Mi Fengjie can finally teach this bitch who can do nothing but kill people a lesson, and snorted: “You, the legacy of the old Northern Han’s top honors, how can you know what the Northern Liang people think. The general has been in charge of Northern Liang for only twenty years, the heart of the army is still there, not to mention the border of Northern Liang for so many years is not a peaceful day. Soldiering, fighting, killing the enemy, Beiliang A world, not just rely on Beiliang horse and crossbow Liang knife, in the final analysis, is that the stock of gas support! Do you Fan Xiaochai understand?”

Xu Fengnian did not comment, slightly bitterly whispered: “Beiliang has always claimed 300,000 iron cavalry, the good people in Liyang have always been curious about how much Xu Snapdragon has saved for me, how many cavalrymen and foot soldiers are there, and how many are there in the border army and the local garrison.”

Yu Di Long asked softly, “Master, just how much is there then?”

Xu Fengnian appeared in a trance and lost his concentration, after turning his head, he smiled and said gently, “You guess?”

Yu Di Long shook his head.

Xu Fengnian looked at the northwestern sky again, once there was an old man who didn’t know when he was old, he liked to say you guess two words, Xu Fengnian always reported a blank stare back to step on your grandfather ah, he would smile and answer right, originally is your father.

Xu Fengnian put away this little bit of thought, said in a deep voice: “Hulukou Youzhou garrison is willing to die, there is Mi Fengjie you said the reason, but more importantly did not say. Bei Liang is less than two million households, limited by the small area, no matter how much rest and recuperation, the population is always less than ten million. Then I ask you a very simple question, only two million households, the Northern Liang soldiers even hundreds of thousands, which family which household is not a person in the military? If the Northern Liang Border Army were to be destroyed, which family or household would not need to be clad in onyx?!”

Xu Fengyen gritted his teeth and said, “Among them, almost all of the young and strong men of Youzhou are in the local army of Youzhou, and behind all the garrisons of the three cities and two hundred fortresses of Hulukou, almost a stone’s throw away, is their hometown! If they die one more person, their families may be able to live one more day! The reasoning is that simple!”

Xu Fengnian slowly stood up and said, “Yan Wenluan, who presided over the military affairs of Youzhou, he set up an unwritten rule, when Xu Snapdragon was alive, there were countless officials in Youzhou who railed against it, and when I was hereditary and reckless, all of the scholars who went to Liang, including Huang Shang, all of them strongly demanded that this rule be abolished.”

Mi Fengjie didn’t know about this, but Fan Xiaochai, who had become a great spy of the Whisking Water Room, knew it well.

“The Youzhou Border Army has an iron law, no matter who, those who retreat from the battlefield, once verified, the whole family will be decapitated!”

“Yan Wenluan once said to me personally that he could not be that Northern Liang Infantry Commander, he could even hand over the military power of Youzhou Border Army to someone else, but this rule, before he died in battle, no one can change it. I, Xu Fengnian, can’t either!”

Xu Fengnian exhaled a mouthful of turbid air, narrowed his eyes and murmured softly, “This is war, this is Northern Liang.”

The mountain wind was harsh, Xu Fengyen stood on the cliffside, a bit far away from the trio, appearing a bit lonely.

Fan Xiaochai hesitated and asked, “What do we do next?”

Xu Fenian smiled and said, “Do whatever I can. Coming to Jizhou, this rush, I’ve been doing the same thing.”

Mi Fengjie, who had sensed something earlier, carefully asked, “Is Your Majesty attempting to return to the peak of martial arts?”

Xu Fengnian replied, “There is no way out of the mountain, and even if there really is no road left under my feet, I still have to walk out one myself.”

Outside of Dunhuang, there is a huge stone Buddha, with a majestic mountain as its embryo.

Day after day, year after year, the Buddha laughs at the earth and pities the world.

In the main temple of Wudang Mountain there is Zhenwu Da Di, holding his sword for hundreds of years.

In the Holy Temple there are the Supreme Sage, the Sub-Sage and many accompanying sages, with their dead bodies still alive.

He gently recited silently: “Self-contained view view self-contained, no one is in no I am in, ask at this point in time self-contained, know where the natural self-contained. Rulai Buddha Buddha Rulai, there will be future and future, study this life how to get, has come over as see Rulai.”

Taoism sits in oblivion to realize longevity. Buddhist contemplation seeks to put down. Confucianism Shouren Ke Li Hong Yi.

Xu Fengyen closed his eyes and stretched out his hand, letting the gale blow away the shovelful of yellow sand in his palm.

When Xu Fengyen finally arrived at Hengshui City, the middle-aged man who specially wore a plain Confucian shirt came out of the city alone to welcome him, saying a word and giving him an object.

When Xu Fengnian steered his horse to leave, the top ranker in the sixth year of Yonghui, said goodbye with a long bow.

“I left Jiangnan in the seventh year of Yong Hui, had carried a bag of hometown soil, fourteen years later, the soil has long since dissipated and does not exist, leaving only this old cloth bag, I implore you that after my death, the Northern Liang horse hooves will one day be able to step on the hinterland of the Northern Mang, and at that time, and take a shovelful of Northern Mang soil, and remotely sacrificed to Wei Jingtang!”