Chapter 208 Xiao Yan's Xiao, Li Yu's Li

In mid-June, on the road from Danzhou to Youzhou on the south side of the Great Wall, several large-scale military forces were slowly moving out of camp, while on both sides of the road, the scene was just in the midst of spring and the arrival of summer.

Countless newly-cultivated fields were covered with lush green grass and a gentle breeze blew the wheat that was planted around the first month of the lunar year, swaying in waves.

Tens of thousands of troops, either on horseback or on foot, were marching southward along the road. Countless flags were fluttering in the wind. The unarmored soldiers were in high spirits and were singing the folk songs that had been passed down in Yan for a long time in the wind.

These powerful troops did so without crossing the line on the road, which was rare, let alone offending the common people who were lying on the fields and dared not raise their heads.

It was not until the loud Yan folk song sounded that the frightened people looked up in surprise, as if they were feeling a strange emotion.

These soldiers and horses are all the descendants of the Yan people...

At this moment, the two brothers Wanyan Agunai and Wanyan Hanpu, who were standing by the road, looked at each other in bewilderment. The former squinted his eyes and looked at the scene in front of him, but was already stunned, while the latter had an envious look on his face, but was thinking about something.

However, no matter what, the two were so shocked by the scene that they couldn't express it in words. Their faces showed an expression of having never seen the world before, and it was obvious that they were shocked beyond words.

Even their two leaders were like this, not to mention the Jurchens under their command, who had already been dazed by the aroma of wheat and were overwhelmed by the magnificent sight. They originally only dared to bury their heads and hurry on their way, but now they could not help but look up from time to time and glance at the surroundings with their peripheral vision.

Who would have thought that in just half a year, the Yan area would have changed so much.

However, the Wanyan brothers are knowledgeable and know that this is still a frontier area close to Youzhou. But if even the frontier is like this, they must be mentally prepared before entering Youzhou.

"Master Xiao's method is really effective."

In front of Wanyan and the other two, Yu Zhong, Wang Yanzhang and Tian Daocheng were surrounded by some generals and stood side by side. As soon as the former opened his mouth, he continued to smile and said, "Letting the men sing while marching not only relieves the fatigue of the troops, but also makes the people more friendly to us. Along the way, the people's attitude towards us is much better than it was two years ago when we were under the Liu family."

Wang Yanzhang smiled and said, "What Commander Xiao asked me to do is of course reasonable. But in my opinion, only the folk songs of your Yan area are still somewhat masculine. If they were those beautiful women, the momentum would be lost if they were sung."

Yu Zhong and Tian Daocheng were stunned at first, and then burst into laughter. The latter seemed to be inspired by this and thought: "Should we specially ask someone to compose a drum music for the army?"

"Yes." Yu Zhong said, "General Xiao initially said that the music of the King of Qin breaking through the formation was very good, but the lyrics were incomplete, so he gave up."

Tian Daocheng nodded and said, "I heard that this song is mostly used in the palace. We have never heard it, let alone the men under our command. I think General Xiao is also worried about this."

The other two nodded, obviously thinking the same thing.

After Tian Daocheng finished speaking, he said no more, but just clasped his fists towards Wang Yanzhang and the other two and said, "Okay, I will accompany you two generals here on this trip.

I am a young man, but General Wang and General Yu are both brave and brave, which is rare in my life. I am lucky to be able to fight side by side with them this year! Before leaving, I realized that when it comes to comrades, I still need men like General Wang and General Yu to rely on. I really can't bear to leave..."

"Ha!" Wang Yanzhang smiled for the first time and clasped his fists: "General Tian, ​​please don't make me feel awkward. I will never say such flowery words!"

Yu Zhong laughed on the side.

However, Wang Yanzhang immediately added that these words were actually spoken to Yu and Tian.

"I am a rough man. I have offended some people in the army in the past. I hope General Yu and General Tian will not take it to heart. I am not a person who seeks credit. I am just itching to fight. I can't help but shrink back and wait for others to finish fighting before going up. If there is a chance in the future, I will not compete with you two for the position of vanguard."

"Then it's a deal?" Yu Zhong said with a smile.

Wang Yanzhang said proudly: "A real man's word is as good as his words. It's a promise!"

Tian Daocheng also laughed, and then sighed: "I'm afraid this opportunity will never come again..."

The three of them fell silent. Wang Yanzhang smacked his lips, also feeling quite emotional.

Thinking of the four important generals who were the first to come forward under Xiao Yan's command, Yuan Xingqin led the troops to stay in Mobei, Tian Daocheng would also lead most of the Dingbadu and half of the Lulong army to become Xiao Yan's private army and go to Yuyang, while Wang Yanzhang and Yu Zhong would return to the Central Plains.

Yuan Xingqin was already a dead man on the list, and he acted prudently. Xiao Yan had already decided to keep him in Mobei. Tian Daocheng made contributions in this battle in Mobei and was promoted again, but he was not well-known in the officialdom of Bianliang. He was the best candidate to train a private army for Xiao Yan. Moreover, he was a commoner promoted by Xiao Yan, so there was no need to worry about loyalty.

As for Wang and Yu, the former was originally a general of Bianliang, while Yu Zhong had made great contributions in the battle to pacify Yan. Therefore, he was required to follow Xiao Yan to lead troops into Bianliang and serve in the imperial guards, which was considered a super-level promotion.

This year's fighting was exciting and thrilling. Although some disagreements were inevitable among them, they eventually formed a brotherhood of life and death.

The more a warrior has been on the battlefield, the more he knows how important it is to have comrades who can trust their backs to each other. Not to mention that their official positions are getting higher and higher. They are both generals in the army and have experienced life and death together. The help they can bring to each other is needless to say.

It’s a pity that the opportunity to fight together on the battlefield again is hard to foresee.

"It doesn't matter. We are all serving Marshal Xiao. That day will come." Wang Yanzhang laughed and seemed very open-minded.

Tian Daocheng also laughed, and then clasped his fists again: "General Wang, General Yu, see you later."

Wang Yanzhang also became serious for a rare time, and returned the greeting with Yu Zhong: "Brother Tian, ​​see you later."

However, all three of them knew that they didn't know when they would meet again.

……

The horn sounded, and several brave soldiers without raising flags left the main group at the fork in the road and headed east.

It was an army of about 6,000 people from Dingbadu and Lulong Army, heading towards Yuyang. Han Yanhui had already relocated their families there.

As a result, Hebei had a private army that did not exist on the books of Daliang, but in fact still received military pay from Daliang.

After being away from the war for more than a year, Yuyang, which had already begun to be rebuilt, has become the base camp of someone's almost complete separatist rule.

This place is sandwiched between Mobei, Liaodong and Youzhou. It can advance south or retreat to Liaodong. It has long been the core area of ​​the Xiao Yan Group. The manpower and financial resources sent there are countless. Even the Mobei Army that captured Abaoji last year has started farming and mining in the local area and has completely taken root there.

Looking at the Jurchen soldiers who followed Tian Daocheng, Wanyan Agunai leaned forward on horseback, crossed his arms and bent over towards Wang Yanzhang and the other man, and asked in unskilled Chinese: "Generals, I have handed over all my men. When can I meet General Xiao..."

"To meet Xiao Shuai, let's go to Youzhou and wait."

Wang Yanzhang pulled his beard, smacked his lips and muttered, "I don't even know where he went. If you want to see him, I still want to see him!"

------

The group walked slowly along the official road, chatting as they went.

"Gong Yang, you said that you wanted to die, how come you are still alive today?"

Gong Yangzuo, who was being questioned, just laughed loudly, ignoring the dull pain from the arrow wound on his body. He just pointed at his nose and said to the bad guy who was teasing him, "Go away, I still have to see you off to the end of your life, how can I die first? I'm only fifty-nine, you old guys should die before me."

It would have been better if these words had not been said. As soon as they were spoken, they were immediately cursed at and the few pedestrians on the side of the road cast surprised glances at them, obviously frightened by these scarred old men.

Not to mention those common people who quietly avoided him, Gongyang Zuo just amused himself and exchanged a few words with a group of bad people from Yingzhou without showing any weakness. However, in the end, he was outnumbered and had to spur his horse to hurry forward.

"Young man, please move aside and let me talk to the captain."

He rudely pushed away Li Mang, who was accompanying Xiao Yan, and rode his horse forward.

The latter had a look of surprise on his face, and the scar on his face made him look even more ferocious, but he was not as thick-skinned as Gong Yangzuo, so he could only stay behind and eat dirt in silence.

That was not all. Gong Yang Zuofu looked at You Yi, who was on Xiao Yan's right. "Old You, go check if the road ahead is smooth. Don't let our captain get stumped."

You Yi's hand stroking his beard froze, obviously frightened, and glared at him with a stern face. However, he seemed to know what Gong Yang Zuo was going to say to Xiao Yan, and after a moment's silence, he really went ahead alone to explore the way.

In this regard, Xiao Yan just watched with amusement from beginning to end, and did not interfere.

Gong Yang Zuobian then chuckled and whispered, "Captain, the old man has something to say, but I don't know if I should say it."

"That's right."

"You saved my life, so I owe you one. Logically, I should just work hard for you no matter what. But this time when meeting the Marshal, I should be more cautious."

"How to be cautious?" Xiao Yan said with a smile.

"Uh..." Gong Yangzuo hesitated and whispered, "In order to meet the Marshal, we can let the old man go and test the waters first. No matter what, the Marshal's first appearance in decades must be for some big event, but he has not made any moves since he came to Yingzhou, which is really strange."

Xiao Yan smiled calmly: "It's me who wants to see the Marshal, I don't think it's a big deal, you are just an old senior, why are you so troublesome?"

"Oh, just because I'm an old man and a senior, I know more than you!" Gong Yangzuo kept talking. Looking at Xiao Yan's expression, he became a little anxious and said, "How can you, a young man, understand the Marshal? My father died in Huang Chao's rebellion when I was seven years old. I followed the Marshal's orders for twenty years before I joined the Bad People...

You don't understand how stubborn the Marshal is. In the past, Emperor Zhaozong issued an imperial decree that made the Marshal stay in the Cangbing Valley for more than ten years. He is very stubborn! You, a young man, have caused such a big incident. You betrayed the Bad People with a few children from the branch helm. Can you just pretend that nothing happened?"

As he spoke, he glanced at Li Mang behind him, squeezed his horse's belly, and whispered, "Do you know what you are doing? You are challenging the Marshal's authority! These young people don't know how powerful the Marshal is, so of course they are not afraid, but you can't not be afraid! They can be unafraid of the Marshal, and even the old man can be unafraid of the Marshal, because in the Marshal's eyes, we are all ants...

But you are different. You can call on several people in the branch to work for you, you can start a big event to overthrow Hebei, and you can also make Mobei obedient. You are not an ant, you are an eagle in the sky, you can make the Marshal keep you in his heart, and you can make him wait for several months in Yingzhou..."

At this point, Gong Yangzuo's expression became serious, and he said directly: "If you don't fear and respect the Marshal, the Marshal will destroy you as easily as taking something from his sack. The old man can turn against the Marshal to repay your favor, but the old man is nothing. Ten or a hundred old men can't defeat a finger of the Marshal."

Xiao Yan nodded slowly, listening while staring at the ground in front of his mount, but no one knew what he was thinking.

Gong Yangzuo looked at his profile, hesitated for a long time, and finally sighed and said: "The old man said this for no other reason, just to remind you... It's not shameful to bow to the Marshal."

Xiao Yan couldn't help but laugh, nodded and said softly: "Thank you for your kindness, Senior Gong Yang."

Obviously, in Gong Yangzuo's eyes, Xiao Yan's ambition was higher than the sky, and he was afraid that this would cause trouble, so he said this. But it can also be clearly seen that if Xiao Yan really turned against the general, Gong Yangzuo might really stand on Xiao Yan's side to repay the favor.

But for Gong Yang Zuo, even so, what good can it do?
Seeing Xiao Yan's expression, Gong Yangzuo said nothing more, but suddenly smiled and said, "But if you really dare to fight the Marshal, I really want to give it a try. How dare the bad people of Yingzhou two hundred years ago to hunt down the Marshal for the traitor Zhang Wulang?"

Xiao Yan laughed, but suddenly turned around.

"Li Mang."

The latter caught up immediately.

"Xiao Shuai."

"I remember that Yanzhou sent me a letter a few months ago, but I never asked you what it was about."

"That's true." Li Mang said in a deep voice, "The commander-in-chief met the emperor in the Cangbing Valley."

Xiao Yan nodded, his face calm, and didn't ask any more questions. Li Mang was about to ask someone to bring the letter, but when he saw this, he waved his hand and said nothing.

Gong Yangzuo was a little confused and scratched the back of his head.

……

The closer they got to the 'Datang Temple' which was neither a temple nor a Taoist temple in the far suburbs of Yingzhou, the more the Yingzhou bad guys who were originally having a great time on the road became silent.

To Xiao Yan's surprise, the 'Datang Temple' was unusually popular, with many pilgrims coming and going. Although most of them were farmers and villagers from nearby, there were also many wealthy-looking families among them.

It is worth mentioning that the Datang Temple has also started selling incense and candles, including fortune-telling by an old Taoist priest, but I don’t know whether he is reliable or not.

Xiao Yan's group of dozens of riders was very eye-catching. A young lady from a wealthy family was initially frightened by the group of scarred old men, but was soon attracted by Xiao Yan, who was tanned, extremely handsome, and generous, and her fear was more or less dispelled.

But even so, the pilgrims still avoided him in fear, watching Xiao Yan being escorted into the temple by a group of tough guards like a dandy young man.

The temple was very quiet, with the occasional sound of pilgrims praying. There was a Taoist priest practicing swordplay in the courtyard, attracting many people to watch.

"Donor Xiao, please come this way."

An old Taoist with white hair and a youthful face immediately stepped forward to guide Xiao Yan as soon as he saw him.

Xiao Yan was not in a hurry. He walked forward a few steps, bowed to the statue of Laozi in the side hall, then brushed his clothes and went to the courtyard behind the Datang Temple.

Seeing this, Li Mang and other young bad guys hurriedly followed. The group of bad guys from Yingzhou who came with Xiao Yan hesitated for a moment and were about to follow in.

However, they were immediately stopped and not allowed to enter.

You Yi stroked his beard and remained silent in thought.

The Yingzhou bad guy next to him also hissed and showed an expression that he was in trouble.

Only Gong Yangzuo looked impatient and grabbed an old Taoist who was pretending to tell fortunes.

"Old man, has the Marshal made any moves in the past few months?"

"Hey, you guys go ahead and fight for yourselves, it's boring for me to stay here, so I won't tell you."

"Okay, okay, I'll let you go next time."

The old Taoist patted his collar. Seeing that the pilgrim who was fortune-telling was scared away, he sighed and said, "I didn't say anything. I just saw a little girl a few days ago."

"Girl?" Gong Yangzuo frowned.

"A girl with long pink hair, looking frail and delicate, carrying a basket of flower petals, quite elegant."

"..." Gong Yangzuo continued to frown, but Li Mang next to him seemed to remember someone and suddenly came to his senses.

------

The courtyard at the back is particularly quiet. In a small pavilion at the end of a long corridor, one can see a tall figure bending over a stone table playing chess alone.

Xiao Yan did not stay long. Under the astonished look of the old Taoist who led him in, he walked straight through the corridor to see the chessboard.

The fingers that were holding a black piece and hesitating to let it go paused for a moment, and then he saw Xiao Yan in his peripheral vision, crossing his hands and bending slightly.

"The bad guy Tian Anxing, I dare to ask for a match with the Marshal."

(End of this chapter)