Plan to cut off the nine states

Of course Xu Chu was not qualified to be the envoy of He Rong's ministry. He was just a "lobbyist". The real envoy was a Xiaohou, also named He Rong, named Ma Touqing. He was in his thirties, short and stocky. He is strong and staggers when he walks, but he seems to be one body when sitting on the horse. No matter how violent the horse is, he can't throw him off, and he will soon become submissive and recognize him as his master.

This person is one of the so-called twenty-four heroes and is deeply trusted by Shan Yu. The most important thing is that he does not understand a word of Chinese dialect and does not bother to learn, so he will not be "bewitched" by outsiders.

The order he received was very simple. He was to lead a group of people to Liangzhou, hand over Shan Yu's letter, and then let Xu Chu explain it on his behalf. At the same time, he was reminded that the "lobbyist" must be strictly guarded along the way and he was not allowed to escape.

Ma Touqing did it. When he opened his eyes, he never looked away from Xu Chu. When he wanted to close his eyes to rest, he assigned others to keep an eye on Xu Chu. There were always at least four people guarding outside the tent at night, one on the front, one on the left, and one on the left. .

Xu Chu couldn't even talk about escaping, he couldn't even relieve himself.

Chang Yan would occasionally remind you, "Sir, I've packed everything."

"Well, don't rush, just wait." Xu Chu always said this.

The war in Qinzhou is not completely over yet. In fact, the Herong tribe only occupies a small area in and around Xijing. Most of the counties and counties surrendered to the emperor and the Shanyu in name only. They were willing to accept all exploitation, but refused to After handing over the power in their hands, almost one city and one master were still fighting among themselves.

Along the way, Xu Chu saw what "broken mountains and rivers" meant. Sometimes, corpses were placed on the roadside with signs on them, saying that he was a certain general or a certain king...

Ma Touqing only led a few hundred soldiers. Every time he arrived in a city, he would be warmly received and dropped off. Especially after the city lord was convinced that the He Rong people were just passing by, he became even more hospitable. No matter how poor the city was, he would always provide generous gifts to the envoys. of meat and wine.

Even to the border of Liangzhou, Xu Chu did not find a chance to escape.

From Qin to Liang, the terrain gradually rose and the roads became more and more steep. Many places could barely accommodate a carriage. Xu Chu was not in a hurry and said to Changyan: "No wonder Tiancheng can only adopt the policy of restraining Liangzhou." , if the Yang family is allowed to dominate here without sending officials directly, it will be really difficult to conquer. "

"Well, you don't know where to escape from this hellish place." Chang Yan only cared about one thing.

Yang Ke, who claimed to be the King of Liang, had received the notification and learned that the messenger was a close associate of Shan Yu. He sent his son Yang Mengjun and led 3,000 soldiers to meet him thirty miles outside the border, and held a banquet to welcome the messenger.

Yang Mengjun is a tall middle-aged man, his face is full of traces of wind and frost swords. He looks like a general who grew up in the army. He can speak He Rongyu, and Ma Touqing hits it off immediately, and he wants to do it no matter what. He was left to drink heavily for a day and a night.

The Liangzhou army was also dominated by cavalry, with bows, crossbows, and spears. The rules in the army were more like those of the Central Plains army than those of the He Rong people.

Xu Chu attended the banquet, but Yang Mengjun didn't even look at him. He and Ma Touqing toasted each other, chatting and laughing without knowing what to say.

It's said that he drank for a day and a night, but of course it couldn't really last that long. There were also several breaks in between to build up strength and drink again after waking up.

Xu Chu only participated in the first round and stayed in the tent to sleep the rest of the time.

The night was already deep, the wind was howling outside, and Xu Chu was awakened by a bright light.

A tall figure enveloped half of the tent. Chang Yan stood up and said sternly: "Who is it?"

Xu Chu said: "Don't worry, it's General Yang."

Yang Mengjun had shown no concern for Xu Chu before, but now he came to visit him in person.

Chang Yan said blankly: "The He Rong people guarding outside asked you to come in?"

"They are drunk and sleeping. My people are guarding outside." Yang Mengjun replied in Central Plains dialect and put the lantern on the ground. "Let's keep the story short."

Chang Yan said wisely: "I'm going to... relieve myself."

"I have admired your name in Liangzhou for a long time." Yang Meng said.

"I have also heard about the reputation of the 'Three Fierce Men of Xiliang' for a long time."

King Yang Ke of Liang had three sons, all of whom had the word "meng" in their names. They were quite famous. Xu Chu had never heard of them before, but on the way to Liangzhou, he had already heard his ears tingling.

"It's just a false name." Yang Mengjun said calmly, and immediately changed the topic to business, "Why did the Chanyu send Your Excellency to Liangzhou? Can you tell me in advance?"

"Of course, the Chanyu prohibits Liangzhou from accepting the Jishi Army and the Jizhou Army into the border, not even a single soldier."

"Hey." Yang Mengjun was a little dissatisfied with the word "forbidden" but didn't say anything.

"Moreover, Shan Yu sent an order to King Liang to send troops to prevent the Shishi Army from leaving the fortress."

"Why didn't Chanyu himself send troops to stop it?"

"The Chanyu has other plans, and he has invited many grassland tribes to join the fortress. By this time, they should have reached the border of Qinzhou. They will also stop the Jishi Army. The Liangzhou Army is only an auxiliary. The King of Liang wants to use this move to show his support for Shanyu. obedience and allegiance.”

"Hmph." Yang Mengjun didn't like hearing it even more, but still didn't say anything. He looked Xu Chu over and said, "You are from the Central Plains, the son of a general, and you were once the king. Why are you willing to be Shanyu's adviser?"

"To save one's life - it should be easy for General Yang to understand."

Yang Mengjun sneered, "Our Yang family has not yet bowed to the point of surrendering, so we might as well tell you directly to save you a lot of talking: Liangzhou will not allow the World Army to enter, but it will not cause trouble for no reason. If you don’t offend me, I won’t offend anyone.”

"Can I convey these words to Shanyu intact?"

Yang Mengjun thought for a while, "No, it is up to King Liang to decide how to convey the message to Shan Yu, but the meaning will not change much. I just remind you that there is no need to use sweet words to confuse my father."

Xu Chu smiled and said, "I'm afraid it won't work."

"Are you afraid of being punished by Shan Yu?"

"That's not true. Shan Yu has already prepared ready-made 'sweet words'. I can't help but not say it, I can't help the King of Liang not listening, and I can't help the soldiers of Liangzhou not participating in the battle."

"What kind of rhetoric can be so powerful? Let me hear it."

"Can't say."

"Are you afraid that if it is revealed in advance, it will lose all its power?"

"It's true that you can't say it, you can only do it."

"Huh?" Yang Mengjun was confused.

"Chanyu wrote a secret letter asking King Liang to kill me immediately."

"Huh?" Yang Mengjun was even more confused.

"What Chanyu means is that after King Liang kills me, it will trigger revenge from the Shishi Army, and the Liangzhou Army will have to go to war with them."

"Why did the Avatar Army...did you really get married to the Golden Saint?"

Xu Chu nodded.

"But since you abandoned your position and your wife, why would she want to avenge you?"

"That's what Shan thinks. I'm actually not sure whether the Golden Saint will avenge me."

Yang Mengjun was silent for a while, then suddenly said: "I have seen the Golden Saint."

"oh?"

"She once asked to borrow a road from Liangzhou, but my father was unwilling to agree. He sent me to the border to meet her and asked her to find another way. The Golden Saint is very eloquent..."

"Huh?" It was Xu Chu's turn to be confused.

"She is indeed very eloquent. She described the world situation to me, especially the series of changes that will be brought about after the He Rong people enter the fortress. Some of her statements coincide with mine."

"for example?"

"Chanyu is very ambitious and wants more than just the land of Kyushu. After he establishes a foothold in the Central Plains, he will have to sweep away Yunei, and Liangzhou will not be spared."

"This is inevitable."

"She also said that the key is not to let the Chanyu gain a foothold in the Central Plains. As long as he takes over the three states of Qin, Bing, and Hebei, the Chanyu's foundation will be established, and no one in the world can drive him out. The southern states may be able to use the natural chasm to drive him out. There is no danger for the time being, but there is no way to escape Liangzhou."

"As I walked along the way, I saw that Liangzhou's mountains are majestic, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and are as good as rivers and natural chasms."

"Liangzhou is blocked by mountains to the east, but connected to the grasslands to the north. There is only a small desert in the middle. Once the army from outside the Great Wall pours in, it will be unstoppable."

"He Rong's tribe will get help from the Central Plains people this time. Shanyu has mastered the method of attacking the city with the help of the weapons craftsmen of Qin, Bing and Hebei."

Yang Mengjun sighed, "It's really unexpected that Xijing was captured so quickly. The Golden Saint said that Xijing can hold on until at least tomorrow spring. By then, she had penetrated deep beyond the Great Wall, captured the base of He Rong's tribe, and forced He Rong's tribe to return to Xijing. The siege will also be lifted.”

"It's really unexpected."

Yang Mengjun suddenly emphasized his tone, "But she never mentioned you, not a word."

"So I said that the Golden Saint may not avenge me, it is just Shanyu's wishful thinking."

"In order to march beyond the Great Wall, the Golden Saint has been preparing for a long time, and even abandoned most of the World Army in Xijing. How could she change her plan just because of you?"

"I hope Shanyu can also understand this truth."

Yang Mengjun thought for a while, "The secret message is on Ma Touqing?"

"That must be the case."

"Does he know the contents of the secret message?"

"According to my observation, he probably doesn't know that he is extremely loyal to Shan Yu and will not open the letter in advance and check it."

"How did you know?"

"I have my own way." Xu Chu said with a smile, without saying that he actually guessed it.

Yang Mengjun thought for a while and felt that he had nothing to ask. He handed over his hands and was about to leave, but blurted out one sentence, "Is it the Golden Saint who doesn't want you?"

Xu Chu smiled and said, "You can say that."

Yang Mengjun turned and left. He had roughly understood the situation. As for the decision, he wanted to make it himself.

Chang Yan came in with his arms in his arms, "It's starting to get cold here. If you want to go out, young master, you should wear an extra robe."

"It's about wearing more clothes. Pack your things, I'm really leaving this time."

"Really? What's your clever plan, Master?"

"Perhaps General Yang can let us go."

Chang Yan was disappointed and yawned, "I understand, the luggage is ready, it just depends on when General Yang shows his kindness."

Yang Mengjun and He Rong's guests ate and drank, and really enjoyed themselves all day and night, during which they never came to see Xu Chu again.

The banquet was finally over. Yang Mengjun and Ma Touqing had become sworn friends and talked about everything. In order to show his loyalty to Shan Yu, Yang Mengjun decided to lead his troops around Qinzhou to chase the World Army, leaving a few people behind. As a guide, he repeatedly apologized to Ma Touqing and asked him to forgive him for not being able to escort him all the way.

Ma Touqing was actually very happy and urged Yang Meng's army to get on the road as soon as possible, promising that he would mention this to Shan Yu.

The envoy team went back on the road, and Chang Yan whispered: "General Yang doesn't seem to have such worries."

Xu Chu smiled but did not answer, becoming more and more convinced that Yang Meng's army did intend to release him.