Chapter 259 Compassion for Master Huailu

Wulibu was lustful by nature and had been coveting Princess Maud for a long time. It was rumored that he sent troops to attack Weisheng just to snatch the beauty.

Gushe followed Nianhan southward. While gathering in Zhending Prefecture, he heard interesting stories about Zhao Fujin. Although he was not that lustful, he also wanted to see who the most beautiful woman in the Song Dynasty was.

As for Geng Nanzhong's speculation that Yang Chang relied on women to get to the top, Gushe was obviously not convinced.

In the wars between Jin and Song, except for the defeat in Shanxi, the Jin Dynasty was almost invincible.

Loushi, Yinshuke, pull out the speed, and close the speed.
These people were all brave warriors of the Wanyan tribe. They made great contributions during the conquest of the Liao Dynasty, but eventually they all died at the hands of Yang Chang. The flattery from their own people is not objective, and the true evaluation must be based on the evaluation of their opponents.

The fact that Nianhan attached great importance to and gave instructions is enough to explain the problem.

Geng Nanzhong thought that Gushe would continue to inquire, but he was surprised by the winding mountain road and sighed: "This Taihang Pass is really dangerous. If there are soldiers stationed along the way, it will be very disadvantageous to the attacker. No wonder Yang Chang was able to defend it many times. He must have used the relevant terrain."

"General, what you said is very true. There is Taiyue Mountain blocking the road to the south of Taiyuan, and there are also several such passages. If we use heavy troops to defend the dangerous places, it is indeed not easy to break through. However, after the founding of the Song Dynasty and the destruction of the Northern Han Dynasty, the entire Shanxi Province was integrated, and the various passes were basically abandoned. Yang Chang was able to stop your army from moving south, naturally because he took advantage of the pass. This time, the Jin army bypassed Huaizhou and went north, and he no longer had such a dangerous place."

"Let's go around the entire Taihang Mountains. Yang Chang is quite capable. By the way."

Gu She interrupted Geng Nanzhong and asked seriously, "I can't see the end of Taihang Mountain at this moment. I wonder how far it is?"

"According to ancient records, Taihang Xing is about two hundred miles long, and there are about a dozen passes along the way. However, the road is wide enough for horses and carriages, so it is estimated that we can get out of it in three days." Geng Nanzhong said, shaking his head.

“More than a dozen passes”

Looking around at the vast mountains and the Dan River flowing southward, Gushe thought that he was not worried about the water source, but the journey was too far. Once the Song army guarded the pass, the food he brought with him might not be enough.

"What a great Taihang Pass, a great mountain road of 200 miles. I wonder what the commander of Zezhou will do? Will he send troops to guard the pass? I was too hasty in sending troops."

"Don't worry, General. Taihang Pass is jointly maintained by Zezhou and Huaizhou. There has been no war in recent years. Most of the passes along the way are probably abandoned. If you want to station troops, don't you have to repair them first? Even when Tian Hu rebelled before, he didn't station troops in the pass. That would be too costly."

"I see."

After listening to Geng Nanzhong's analysis, Gushe's frown finally relaxed. He walked while enjoying the mountain scenery. After two days of walking, there were indeed no guards to stop him.

Until we walked out of the mountains and came to the last patio gate, we saw that the door was wide open and there was no one inside.

According to the report from the scouts at the front, there were originally twenty or thirty soldiers guarding the pass, but when they saw a large group of Jin troops from afar, especially the appearance of the iconic black flag, these people decisively abandoned the pass and fled.

Seeing that the Zezhou defenders were afraid of fighting, Geng Nanzhong guessed that the state's military and civilians were quite aware of current affairs, so he took the initiative to ask the commander-in-chief Gushe to take the imperial edict to Jincheng to persuade them to surrender.

Gushe only has 20,000 soldiers and horses. If they fight, the number of soldiers will decrease as time goes by. Even if Geng Nanzhong does not volunteer, he will send officials from Huaizhou to surrender.

On the fifth day of July, the Jin army arrived in Jincheng.

Geng Nanzhong and the defending general Gao Shiyou welcomed Gushe into the city at the city gate.

When Gao Shiyou learned that Huaizhou had fallen and the prefect Huo Anguo and other resisting officials had been beheaded, how could he dare to continue resisting the Jin army?
In order to save their lives, they had prepared to flee to Luzhou, but Geng Nanzhong arrived ahead of time.

The imperial teacher brought the imperial edict to cede territory and informed Gao Shi that nearly 200,000 troops from the east and west had all marched to Bianliang. Gao Shi immediately obeyed the order and gave up the city.

Gushe captured Jincheng without bloodshed and used the former provincial government office as the general's headquarters.

On the evening of entering the city, Gushe held a banquet at the general's headquarters to celebrate the victory, and Geng Nanzhong and Gao Shiyou were both guests of honor.

Geng Nanzhong was already familiar with Gushe, and he said a lot of flattering words at the banquet.

Although Gao Shiyou was disgusted by what he saw, this behavior reminded him, so he took the opportunity to toast and reminded him: "General, in addition to Jincheng, the capital of Zezhou, there are still five cities left. I wonder if you are ready to take them all together, or..."

"Please introduce them first, and focus on which places are adjacent to Chief Yang's jurisdiction."

Gushe did not give a direct answer, thinking that he only brought 20,000 people with him, and he certainly could not accept them all at once, but he could focus on the territories bordering Yang Chang's jurisdiction and transport food and fodder to prepare for Nianhan's subsequent march north.

"Ok?"

Gao Shiyou was startled at first, then he licked his lips and replied, "Except for Jincheng and Yangcheng in the south, the remaining four counties of Zezhou are adjacent to the jurisdiction of General Yang."

"Why are there so many?" Gushe was surprised.

As the news was blocked, Gao Shiyou did not know that Liaozhou had been taken by Yang Chang, and he immediately explained: "Taiwei Yang is in charge of three towns, two of which are adjacent to Zezhou, Qinshui and Duanshi are adjacent to Pingbei Army, Gaoping and Lingchuan are adjacent to Luzhou."

"That's right." Gu She nodded slightly, and then asked: "Do you have a map?"

"Yes, yes, I will ask someone to get it right away."

When Gao Shiyou brought the map, Gushe discovered that there were many mountain ranges marked at the border between the western part of Zezhou and Pingbei Army, and it was estimated that they would need to cross mountains and ridges.

He had just walked 200 miles along the Taihang Pass and felt that the mountainous terrain was not conducive to marching, nor was it suitable for the attack mode of the Allied Cavalry, and it was far away from Yang Changwei's victory.

Turning our attention to the north of Zezhou, although there are mountains blocking the way horizontally, there are still relatively flat areas. Nianhan will definitely choose this place to break through.

Thinking of this, Gushe looked pleased, pointed at the map and asked, "Is Gaoping closer to Huguan, or is Lingchuan closer to Huguan?"

"The distances are not too different, but Gaoping is flatter, while Lingchuan is surrounded by more mountains."

"Then let's go to Gaoping. I will take over this place first."

"Yes."

When Gao Shiyou clasped his fists and saluted, Gu She suddenly raised his hand and pressed it on his hand, saying sternly: "There is one more thing I need to trouble you with, General Gao."

"Your order"

"The food and grass from various counties in Zezhou should be transported to Gaoping as soon as possible. When the marshal attacks Yang Chang in the future, Gaoping will be the starting point." A cold light flashed in Gushe's eyes.

"okay."

After Gao Shiyou hurriedly responded, he looked at Geng Nanzhong curiously and asked, "Minister Geng has the imperial edict and a letter from His Majesty. If General Yang obeys the edict, a fight can be avoided. General, are you sure you want to transport grain to Gaoping? Every transportation will cause losses, and the grain reserves in the counties of Zezhou are limited."

"That's right, we can give it a try."

Gushe also looked at Geng Nanzhong, pinching his beard and thinking about something.

Geng Nanzhong hurriedly saluted and said, "Yang Chang has killed many Jin generals, I'm afraid he won't give up the city easily. It's okay for me to run there, but I'm afraid it will be in vain in the end."

"The Jurchens admire heroes. If Yang Chang is not hostile to us, this general can make the decision on behalf of the Marshal and wipe out the grudge with him."

"I admire the general's generosity, but this man holds real power and may not obey the emperor's orders."

"Don't you have an imperial decree?"

Gushe pointed at Huguan on the map and asked, "If we can capture this place, it will be like a wedge driven into Luzhou. Shangshu, can you follow Huaizhou's strategy and help me capture Huguan?"

"It should be." Geng Nanzhong did not dare to refuse, and immediately turned to Gao Shiyou and asked: "Are there many troops stationed in Huguan?"

Gao Shiyou replied: "I heard there were three thousand people."

"So many?" Geng Nanzhong frowned in confusion, muttering to himself: "Why are so many troops stationed in Huguan? Are they guarding against Zezhou?"

"Huguan is a strategic military town. Three thousand people are not a lot, but it is a very strategic location. Even if Minister Geng can open the gate, the troops must be well hidden. Once they are discovered by the lookout soldiers, something bad will happen."

"Don't worry." Gu She interrupted Gao Shiyou and replied with a little pride: "Minister Geng is the envoy who delivered the imperial edict to cede land. It's not too much for him to have more than a hundred followers, right? And our Jin warriors are one against ten, which is enough to support the follow-up troops. Yes, first take Huguan by surprise, wait for the marshal's army to return from Bianliang, and then directly lead the army to attack Weisheng."

"Right."

Gao Shiyou nodded in agreement. Although Geng Nanzhong was unwilling in his heart, he dared not refuse.

Nianhan ordered the dozens of heads of Huaizhou to be chopped off without saying a word, but Fan Zhongxiong managed to survive in the end because of Gushe's words.

Since Nianhan attached so much importance to Gushe, how could Geng Nanzhong not perform well?
On the tenth day of July, the earth seems to be steaming.

Luzhou has just finished the summer harvest and needs a heavy rain to moisten the soil and provide nutrients for autumn sowing.

In the afternoon in Huguan, there were dense clouds but no rain, and no wind.

Lu Zhishen fanned himself with his upper body exposed, but even with a broken cattail leaf fan, he could not cool down. Sweat continued to roll down his forehead. He finally recited Buddhist scriptures silently and entered a state of meditation, but was awakened by the aroma of wine. Is there wine?

Lu Zhishen opened his eyes and sniffed. It was indeed the long-lost aroma of wine, so he jumped up with a start.

With a bang, the door was pushed open.

"I smell alcohol. Could someone be hiding something?"

"No one, the commander has a very sharp nose, Commander Yan just delivered some wine."

"Send wine?"

Lu Zhishen slipped out of the door and ran towards the pass following the smell of wine.

During the past six months, Yang Chang had newly added Luzhou and Liaozhou, as well as countless hungry people. The stored grain was only enough to maintain their livelihood, and there was no surplus grain to make wine.

People in all places were tightening their belts, and the defenders of Huguan could only maintain a basic standard of food and clothing. They had not been issued with alcohol for more than a month. Master Lu had almost forgotten the taste of alcohol, and seemed to be able to keep this precept, but his true colors were revealed as soon as the alcohol came.

"Brother Xiaoyi, isn't there no wine in Luzhou? Where did you get this truckload of wine?"

"The Grand Commandant ordered Xiao Rang to send people to buy it from Jiangzhou, but the quantity is not large. We can only satisfy our cravings for now. If we want to drink to our heart's content, we have to wait for another two months. Although this season has a good harvest, it will take time to brew the wine."

"I see."

Lu Zhishen wiped his bald head, stared at the opened wine jar and said, "Quickly filter a bowl for me, is there any more?"

"Yes." Yan Qing smiled and nodded, "I just divided two altars. I heard that the master was in meditation, so I didn't send anyone to invite him."

"Haha, how can I have the willpower to stay still? I came here just by smelling the smell."

Lu Zhishen took the wine bowl with a smile, tilted his head back and poured the whole thing into his mouth. He then sighed with satisfaction, "Wine is still strong and quenches thirst. I can't give it up in this lifetime."

"Master, do you want to quit drinking?" Yan Qing looked surprised.

"No." Lu Zhishen shook his head. "I'm not going to become a Buddha, so why should I give up? Isn't there any other way? Oh, is there only this cart of wine? How much can each person drink?"

"There are quite a few people in Huguan, and each person can only have one bowl at most."

"Ah? That's it?"

"hehe."

Yan Qing smiled and poured another bowl, handed it to Lu Zhishen and said, "Master, drink one more bowl. I don't want this, so I'll give my share to you, brother."

"That's so embarrassing."

Lu Zhishen scratched his head and smiled awkwardly, but put down his hand and took the wine bowl.

He was just about to savor it carefully when Yi Yazheng suddenly ran over in a hurry and said in a loud voice: "Reporting to the two commanders, the Grand Secretary of the Council of State, the Secretary of the Privy Council, the Minister of the Left, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and the Envoy Geng who ceded the land."

"What's this mess?"

Lu Zhishen was confused after hearing this and impatiently interrupted the report of the guard.

Yan Qing heard that this person was of high status, so he asked, "He is from the imperial court? Please be brief."

"Geng Nanzhong is going to Weisheng to announce the imperial decree. The carriage team is outside the pass right now, and there are more than a hundred soldiers escorting them. The soldiers look well-trained."

"Geng."

"What's there to say?"

This time it was Yan Qing's turn to be interrupted. After Lu Zhishen finished his second bowl, he said impatiently, "As usual, arrest all the followers and let the master pass through."

"Where did the old rules come from?"

Yan Qing frowned and looked worried. It was he who was in charge of the defense of Huguan at the beginning. He thought to himself, how come I didn't know this?

Lu Zhishen disagreed and muttered, "This is how I and Shi Dalang defended the South Outpost and dealt with the Jin envoys."

"The Jin Kingdom is the Jin Kingdom, and the imperial court is the imperial court. The Grand Commandant has not yet broken with the imperial court. We can't go too far. How about I handle it for you?"

"That's okay."

Seeing Yan Qing leave, Lu Zhishen licked his lips and wanted to have another bowl of wine, but he was embarrassed to do so in front of his followers.

Lu Zhishen was conflicted for a long time, but he couldn't bring himself to eat secretly, so he staggered after Yan Qing.

He had just walked halfway when he saw Ya Zheng, who had reported the news earlier, running towards him again.

"Commander Lu, Commander Yan said that the people coming here might be tricky. He will delay for a while before the pass, and then let this delegation in so that you can prepare for the battle."

"What are you preparing for? Am I afraid of just a hundred people?"

"Uh"

"But Xiaoyi is cautious. I drank a bowl of wine from him, so I will listen to him this time."

Lu Zhishen had just drunk some wine and was worried about where to use all his energy, so he asked the escort to arrange the guards while he continued to walk towards the pass.

Just as he arrived at the gate with his upper body stretched out, he saw carriages and cavalry slowly entering the gate. Immediately afterwards, there was a sudden commotion and shouting in the corridor, and a dozen cavalrymen rushed towards him.

Entering the mother's house to pick up the bird, there is really a trap!
Lu Zhishen raised his hand towards Guan Shang and shouted, "Bring the stick!"

"right away"

At this moment, two horsemen approached Lu Zhishen and stabbed his chest with their spears.

Lu Zhishen suddenly turned sideways, dodged the piercing attack like a nimble fat man, and punched the warhorse next to him.

The cavalry on horseback tried to control the horse, but the horse was in pain and was about to fall.

"Catch it!"

With a loud bang, a water-grinded Zen staff fell from the sky.

There were two cavalrymen at the pass, one fell to the ground with his horse, and the other was knocked off his horse by a Zen stick.

Lu Zhishen picked up his Zen stick and charged into the corridor with his bare chest. Without waiting for the people he had arranged to arrive, he and the nearby guards quickly eliminated the more than a hundred Jin soldiers.

Outside Huguan, the bone house in the distance saw the signal flag and immediately rushed to support.

Suddenly, heavy rain poured down from the clouds, and the Jin soldiers were all soaked when they arrived at the pass. The Huguan gate that Gushe was looking forward to was closed. The more than one hundred Jurchen warriors could not even hold out for a stick of incense.

Geng Nanzhong, who was soaked all over, was caught by Yan Qing, brought to the top of the city wall and thrown in front of Lu Zhishen.

"Master, the old thief ordered the cession of land, but he colluded with the Jin people to gain control. What do you think we should do with him? Should we just kill him?"

"No, no, no."

Geng Nanzhong was so frightened when he saw Lu Zhishen was covered in blood that he lost control of his bladder. He quickly begged for mercy: "I am an important official in the court. I was ordered to go to Weisheng to pass on the emperor's order, but I was threatened by the Jin people on the way. You can't kill me. I haven't seen General Yang yet. Master, you are a monk, you should be merciful."

"I am a monk, but I also like to kill people and set fires. If you don't die after three punches from me, I will let you see General Yang. Isn't that merciful enough?"

"don't want."

Lu Zhishen grabbed Geng Nanzhong with one hand. The guy was so frightened that he stood like a wooden chicken, with hot water still dripping from his legs.

Just one punch and the face was completely changed.

(End of this chapter)