Chapter 263 Chapter Ten

Under the leadership of Bai Wenyuan, who knows the way, Kou Zhong meets Cao Yinglong's bandit soldiers who are retreating to Zhangshui. The two are on a mountainside overlooking the enemy's situation. It wasn't until this moment that he really breathed a sigh of relief. He was sure that Cao Yinglong, as expected, immediately gave up attacking the city and retreated to Fengxiang City after learning of Xiao Xian's betrayal of the alliance. The ranch army should not be far away. According to the agreement, if Cao Yinglong retreats, the ranch will dispatch the whole army to follow closely behind.

Under the light of the bright moon, the bandit cavalry crossed the grassland like a long snake. Bai Wenyuan said: "Most of the Three Rebels are infantry, and there are less than 7,000 cavalry. In case of any accident, the cavalry will take the lead and leave the infantry behind." Kou Zhonghu's eyes brightened, and he said in a deep voice: "The key to using troops is to observe the enemy's situation first. This is called knowing the enemy. It is said that you can take advantage of doubts, take advantage of labor to attack, take advantage of hunger to get trapped, take advantage of points to gain profits, take advantage of emptiness to plunder, and take advantage of chaos." It is advisable to admit that it is not enough to be swayed, to control it when it is not launched, to rob it when it is victorious, and to pursue it when it is defeated. We have used the trick of "taking advantage of suspicion" to break their iron triangle The alliance forced Cao Yinglong's 40,000 troops into fleeing rats, so now we have another move to take advantage of the defeat and kill them without leaving any behind."

Bai Wenyuan said in admiration: "These words are deeply rooted in the purpose of the art of war, the young commander is indeed a pedantic heaven and man." Kou Zhong had the nerve to tell him that it all came from Lu Miaozi's secret book, so he had no choice but to hesitate. Bai Wenyuan was full of praise: "Young commander's most powerful move is to use coercion and lure to scare Dong Jingzhen and lead more than 2,000 men to flee back to Yiling in a hurry, leaving them unarmed and short of food. The mausoleum will not be completed. This matter must not be hidden from Zhu Can, and it is even more certain that Dong Jingzhen is the real culprit. Who would believe that someone is willing to let the tiger go back to the mountain like this, which makes Xiao Xian at a loss for words. When Zhu Can retreats, Cao Yinglong has no choice but to withdraw."

Kou Zhong said with a smile: "Psychologically, Dong Jingzhen thought to himself that he had indeed leaked the military information about Zhu Can and Cao Yinglong to me. He was ashamed, so he dared not tell his allies clearly." Then he looked down at the enemy, and said in a deep voice: "Just seeing that the opponent's formation is not in order, and the grain trucks are all behind the rear, you can tell that they are exhausted and confused. As long as we rob their grain trucks, they will be more tired than tired." If they are hungry, they will turn into chaos and disperse, so they can only flee to Zhangshui, hoping to cross the river as soon as possible, so we can take advantage of it."

A horse belly said: "Come on!" Xu Ziling and Xuan Yong inspected the camp and saw more than a hundred people making fake grass figurines. They asked in surprise, "What are they used for?" Xuan Yongdao: "This is called stagnation and suspicion. Because of our small number of people, it is difficult to block and rob tens of thousands of bandit soldiers who have fled from the desert. The enemy only dares to flee towards places where there are few people on the surface, but what is false is real, and it happens to fall into our trap." Xu Ziling praised: "Good plan!"

When they came to the shore, thousands of soldiers were digging trenches, setting up horse pits with spikes hidden in the bottom, and covering them with mud and grass.Xuan Yong explained: "This is all designed for the enemy to cross the river in a hurry. In addition, the enemy did not expect us to ambush on this side, so it must be doomed." Xu Ziling stopped in his tracks, looked at the case from a distance, and said in a deep voice, "The battle is approaching, how does Brother Xuan feel?" Xuan Yong stood side by side with him, and sighed: "Since the leader was killed and died, I thought I would never have the hope of fighting on the battlefield again! How did I know that the promotion of the young commander will not only avenge the leader, but also give full play to his strengths and talents. The longer the young commander gets along, the more I admire him. This does not only refer to his intelligence and martial arts, or his vision. The most convincing thing is his character. You never doubt that he will suspect you. And what is impossible Everything becomes possible in his hands, as if a matter of course, getting along with him is really exciting and interesting.”

Xu Ziling thought to himself, this is Kou Zhong's charm, and it is also his biggest asset in fighting for world hegemony. The sound of hoofbeats shook the sky, and under the afternoon sun, ten thousand fine riders from the ranch galloped from the ground like a tidal wave. Kou Zhong and Bai Wenyuan galloped down the slope and went up to meet them.As the horn sounded, the ranch's 2,000 vanguard troops led by the second deacon Liu Zongdao and Luo Fang stopped slowly. Liu Zongdao's one-eyed look showed a hot look, and he laughed from a distance: "Brother Zhong is good, but in just one year, you have become a young commander who is famous all over the world."

Kou Zhong rode his horse to come to him, leaned over and hugged him, said with a smile: "It's just a waste of fame, what's the value of Uncle Liu's hexagram, is the owner in the central army behind?" Liu Zongdao smiled and said, "The host is here!" I saw the vanguard army spread out to both sides, forming a passage composed of men and horses. At the same time, they drew their swords and shouted "Long live the field owner", and their morale was boiling to the extreme. At the end of this human path, Shang Xiuxun, who was dressed in armor and full of heroism, rode a white horse with no trace of hair, galloping swiftly and swiftly. The yellow shawl fluttered in the air behind her, making her look like a mortal goddess of war.

Her mount was obviously extremely fast, and a group of generals headed by the great housekeeper Shang Zhen followed behind, and they all chased very hard.Kou Zhong was overwhelmed by her celestial beauty, and was dumbfounded. Shang Xiuxun was smart in equestrian skills. Amidst the saluting and applauding of his subordinates on both sides, he ran faster and faster, and in the blink of an eye, he rushed to the nearby place like a whirlwind, and said coquettishly: "Kou Zhong, is your Khitan BMW? Let's compare the strength of our feet." .” Before Kou Zhong had time to react, Shang Xiuxun swept between him and Xu Zongdao with a gust of apricot wind.

Kou Zhong shouted "Okay", turned his horse's head and chased after him wildly. Xu Zongdao, Bai Wenyuan, and Luo Fang waited until Shang Zhen arrived, then led the army and chased after the two who had become smaller.Shang Xiuxun ran for more than fifty miles at a stretch, before stopping at the top of a hill. Kou Zhong was more than half a mile behind, and when he came to her, the ranch army was still coming ten miles away.The sun had set behind the mountains in the west, and the afterglow dyed the sky on the horizon red. Shang Xiuxun stood in front of him on horseback, and said calmly, "It's you!"

Kou Zhong panted deliberately: "The owner's horse is really fast." Shang Xiuxun shot his beautiful eyes at him, and said with a smile: "I don't mean this aspect, judging horses by horses, even Khitan horses are not as good as the breed I improved." While feasting on his long-lost beauty, Kou Zhong said with a smile, "What is the owner of that match to me?" Shang Xiuxun looked at him intently with beautiful eyes and said: "You know I'm in trouble, so you rushed here immediately and devised a clever trick to break the conspiracy of Zhu Can, Xiao Xian and Cao Yinglong. After seeing him, Not to mention putting on an air of great merit, understand?" Kou Zhong said aggrievedly: "Beauty owner, who do you think I am, Kou Zhong? I don't even have enough respect and admiration for the owner, how dare I put on airs." Shang Xiuxun smiled coquettishly like a flower blooming, looked back to the front, and said coquettishly: "I haven't heard this name for a long time, and it feels a bit fresh. Uh! Let's do this! Destroy Cao Yinglong's horse thief Afterwards, I will give you 10,000 first-class war horses so that you can use them to conquer the world and dominate the country." Kou Zhong shook his head and said: "This is inconsistent with the ranch's judgment, and it makes people feel that the owner of the farm is involved in the vortex of this dispute. Why don't I buy it from the farm owner with real money after I unearth Duke Yang's treasure? Ma, then no one dares to gossip about the field owner.” Shang Xiuxun slightly shrugged his shoulders, and said with a charming look: "If you have to pretend to be decent, Xiuxun will be happy to do it." Turn away the pretty face, looked at him with strange beautiful eyes and said: "I don't see Jingnian, you look more heroic than before, and the name Young Marshal has been changed very well, it suits you best." A strange feeling surged in Kou Zhong's heart, and he even had the urge to hold her in his arms.Ever since Li Xiuning and Song Yuzhi, he had never had such a tantalizing feeling for a woman. The ranch army came to the foot of the hill, and a group of generals left the team and rushed up to the top of the hill to join them. However, Feng Ge and Feng Han, the old generals who dominated the villa in Jingling, did not accompany them because they wanted to stay in Yuan'an and Dangyang. When Kou Zhong saw Sister Fu, Xu Yang, Liang Qian, Wu Zhaoru, etc., everyone was very happy and excited.Chief Deacon Liang Zhi was in charge of the ranch, and he did not come. Shang Xiuxun was polite and courteous to Bai Wenyuan, the great hero, and after talking about the scene, he said to Kou Zhong: "It's getting late, why don't we set up camp and rest, and study how to chase Cao Yinglong's bandit soldiers during dinner?" Kou Zhong shook his head and said: "The opportunity is fleeting. Cao Yinglong's brilliance is to form an army during the day and wait for us to catch up. When our soldiers are exhausted, we will counterattack with superior forces. At night we will When he was resting, he marched at full speed. With this method of turning day and night upside down, he was in an invincible position. Therefore, if we want to defeat him, we must march at night. They are in disarray, and rush to Zhangshui desperately to have a chance to annihilate them in one fell swoop." Everyone in the ranch nodded in agreement, but they also had embarrassing expressions. Shang Xiuxun said: "We have been driving for three days, and the horses and horses are exhausted. Even if the people can support them, the horses will not be able to bear it." Kou Zhong smiled confidently and said: "As long as people can survive, I have already prepared for it. On the way, I have thousands of high-quality war horses captured from the enemy for replacement. It is as convenient as changing horses at a translation station." Bai Wenyuan continued: "We are only one day away from the enemy. If we can change horses on the way, we can catch up with the enemy tomorrow night and launch a surprise attack." Everyone's spirits were lifted, and they were even more amazed at Kou Zhong's foresight. Shang Xiuxun gave Kou Zhong a charming look, and said with a smile, "You have the most tricks." Then Su Rong ordered Shang Zhen to personally select a thousand riders who are the best at night and riding, and set off on standby. Everyone hurriedly took advantage of this gap to dismount and let the horses drink water and graze. When Bai Wenyuan, Luo Fang, Liu Zongdao and other people who were familiar with the surrounding situation were studying the marching route, Kou Zhong and Shang Xiuxun walked aside to talk.The beautiful host suddenly asked about Xu Ziling, Kou Zhong smiled and said, "He and I both miss the host from time to time." Shang Xiuxun said angrily: "You still can't change your slanderous personality, once you go, you are like a yellow crane. People can only know your recent situation from the people you have passed, alas!" Kou Zhongqi asked, "Why are you sighing?" Shang Xiuxun stared at the gradually dark night sky with beautiful eyes, and said softly: "You make Shang Xiuxun very difficult, Li Fanxiang has a good relationship with us, and Li Xiuning is Xiuxun's best friend since childhood. They plan to deal with Liu Wuzhou The war horses I bought from the Turks, I hope I can supply them with new breeds of good horses bred on a regular basis, what should you tell them to do?" Kou Zhong said pitifully: "How can I make it difficult for the farm owner? If the farm owner has a hundred horses, he will sell fifty horses to Li Xiaozi and me each. Then Li Xiuning can't blame you." Shang Xiuxun looked at him in surprise, frowned slightly and said, "Kou Zhong, what kind of person are you? Are you really doing it for me? Or do you have another plan? I really can't understand you." Kou Zhong smiled wryly and said: "Sometimes I am a cunning fox, sometimes I am a stupid pig, I don't quite understand it myself. But one thing is certain, that is, no matter what I do, I will never do anything to harm the person I love. In the battle for world hegemony, which is a great dispute over Angai in the whole of middle-earth, I only have a 10% chance of winning, while Li Xiaozi Shiming has at least 60% of the other 90%, and Dou Jiande will take 20% of the remaining 30% , Du Fuwei and Xiao Xian each take 10%. Therefore, the host must not favor me, otherwise the consequences will be dire." Shang Xiuxun moved his face and said: "Only a real hero can say such words. Since you know that you lose more than you win, why don't you join the Li family?" Kou Zhong was stunned and said: "If I, Kou Zhong, are willing to submit to others and be a running dog slave, am I still Kou Zhong?" Shang Xiuxun said apologetically, "I was just entrusted by someone, so I must convey this sentence! You wouldn't have listened earlier." Kou Zhong was stunned and said, "Li Xiuning?" Shang Xiuxun nodded slightly, and said softly: "She has a letter of trust that I will entrust to you, and it is on me right now." After hesitantly, Kou Zhong said lightly, "Tear it up for me!" Standing on the bank of the river, Xu Ziling suddenly thought of Susu's unexpected death, and couldn't help but feel a pang of pain. The last touch of the setting sun disappeared under the plain on the opposite bank.If Fu Junchuo's death made him grow from a child to an adult, then Susu changed his view of life.What is the purpose of decades of cold and heat in life? Xuan Yong came behind him at this time and reported: "With the instruction of the signal beacon, Cao Yinglong really retreated to this direction, and he will arrive here later." Xu Ziling woke up from his thoughts, returned to the ruthless reality, and pondered: "If the army on the ranch can't cooperate with the pincer attack for some reason, and the enemy can cross the river under the condition of strict defense, will we still have the ability to attack the opponent?" Xuan Yongdao: "That's only a five or five number, success or failure is hard to tell, it all depends on how Cao Yinglong fights back, and Master Xu will make a decision at that time." Xu Ziling secretly thought that Kou Zhong was indeed a good recommendation, and put himself in such a position.Decisions had to be made for the lives and deaths of more than a thousand people. With a wry smile, "You are more qualified than me to make this decision." Xuan Yong said confidently: "Master Xu, don't worry, the young commander will definitely find a way to force Cao Yinglong to cross the river in a hurry." Xu Ziling thought to himself that Xuan Yong was so confident because he had never seen Kou Zhong look like a defeated rooster when he was defeated.In fact, they didn't succeed in many things before defeating Li Mi, and Su Su's death was just a continuation and consequence of that period of failure.If they hadn't walked Xiangyu Mountain on the street that day and asked him the way to the brothel, Su Su wouldn't have died of depression.Thinking deeper, will it be happier if I don't meet Li Jing?It's a pity that there are no ifs in life, just like God has a pair of invisible hands that are invisible and intangible, and are pulling individuals together, triggering entanglement and intricate fate.Life is such ups and downs, involuntary.