Plan to cut off the nine states

As time passed, there were more than a dozen families in Siguo Valley, turning it into a medium-sized village. Chickens, ducks, geese, and dogs swaggered on the road, followed by a few children who walked crookedly.

The old servant was too old to stand up straight, but he still refused to be idle. He used a crutch to guard the crops and drive away the passing poultry. When he saw the children coming, he took out the snacks with a smile, distributed them one by one, and then yelled: "Where are the people?"

"Here he is!" Several women replied from a distance. They were standing under the shade of the trees talking about something, not paying much attention to taking care of the children.

The old servant let go of the poultry that had gone to look for food and sent the children back. "There are wolves in the grass den. They specialize in eating children's arms and legs, one bite at a time..."

The children were frightened by the old servant's tone and ran towards their mothers one after another. The old servant could not keep up and could only advise: "Slow down, slow down..."

The women smiled and picked up their children and continued chatting. The old servant breathed a sigh of relief and looked back. The crops were growing just right. The group of poultry had gone far away. There were only two dogs running around in the grass. He So I walked into the village and checked the courtyard of every house along the way. If there was any mess, I would stand outside the door and call out to the owner to say a few words.

When approaching the study, the old servant held his breath, tiptoed to the door, and took a peek inside. The only student in the valley, Ma Shi, was studying. He was seven or eight years old. He sat upright, holding the book with both hands, and read in a measured tone. The old servant He nodded with satisfaction, but he was a little surprised when he didn't see the young master.

The old servant walked around the study, not far away, and saw the young master standing there in a daze.

Xu Chu was wearing shorts and trousers. He didn't look like a teacher at all, but he didn't look like a working farmer either. He looked more like a boy from a rich family.

The old servant stepped forward and asked, "What are you looking at, Master?"

Xu Chu smiled and said: "Look at that mountain."

“This mountain is there every day.”

"What I said makes sense."

"Young Master is making fun of me again. I mean, what is there to see in this mountain?"

"A few dozen miles behind the mountain is Yecheng."

"Young master, you want to go to the city?"

Xu Chu shook his head, "I was wondering, who is the master of the city now?"

"It's not the princess anyway. Over the past few years, there have been more than a dozen groups of people."

"Not that many, just five batches." Xu Chu said with a smile.

"That's not a lot. Anyway, Young Master can always find a way to stop them from harassing Si Guogu. I'm not worried. There is something else I have to urge Young Master."

"Um?"

"Young Master has been married for several years, why are you not in a hurry?"

"Child? You can't rush this kind of thing."

"Where is the little princess? Did she go out to play again? Master, you have to take care of her. She is not a child. She should..."

"What should it be?" someone asked from behind.

The old servant's face was not red, and his heart was not beating. He continued: "You should take more care of things. With so many people living in the valley, you have to be the little princess to take charge of the overall situation." After saying that, he turned around slowly and nodded slightly, "The little princess is back."

Zhang Shiqing smiled and said: "I haven't gone far, won't I be back now?"

"It's good to come back. It's not safe outside. You'll feel at ease if you stay in the valley..." The old servant walked away nagging.

Zhang Shiqing looked at the old servant walking around the study and asked with a smile: "Is he urging you again?"

"Well, as soon as he opened his mouth, you rescued me." Xu Chu said with a smile.

The smile on Zhang Shiqing's face disappeared, "The news I just sent is that the war is spreading here. It's hard to say who will win and who will lose. If defeated soldiers come, you can't stop them."

"Five years."

"So long?"

Xu Chu nodded.

"Since Huanyan left Yecheng, this area has become more and more chaotic. It's hard to stay alone even if you think about it. Have you ever thought about..."

"If necessary, take others to Yuyang..."

Zhang Shiqing sneered: "You are still saying this now? Who is willing to leave? Me?"

Xu Chu smiled and said: "I said something wrong. We all stay. Yuyang is not a safe place. Princess Huanyan may have to evacuate to Liaodong."

"Really? Looking at the letter she wrote, it seems that she is planning to make a comeback."

Xu Chu shook his head, "The situation in the world is becoming more and more obvious. If Princess Huanyan still can't see through it, she will be called a distinguished person in vain."

"She's going to bluff us too?"

"Maybe she hasn't made up her mind yet."

Zhang Shiqing was silent for a long time and then said: "It is a good thing for Huanyan to give up his ambition and retreat to Liaodong. He is always better than my father. He insisted on borrowing troops to avenge my brother, but... he died in Bingzhou."

Zhang Shiqing put aside the sorrow in his heart and said, "There are twenty-four victorious soldiers in the valley. I will take twenty people to guard the entrance of the valley and leave four people to guard the back mountain path. Family matters..."

"I'll keep an eye on it."

"Well, I hope no defeated soldiers will pass by here..." Zhang Shiqing glanced around, suddenly approached, kissed Xu Chu on the face, and left with a smile, walking briskly as before.

For several days, everything inside and outside the valley was quiet, and the battle around Yecheng never spread. Zhang Shiqing did not dare to be careless, so he used weeds and dead branches to hide the path into the valley, and sent people out to inquire about the situation.

The atmosphere in the valley is becoming more and more tense. After dark, no lights are lit, and fires must be made in hidden places to avoid exposure to smoke. The children are reminded not to cry loudly...

On this day, outsiders brought back news that the war around Yecheng seemed to be coming to an end, but it was unknown who would win and who would lose. After nightfall, Zhang Shiqing was still hiding in a small bush at the mouth of the valley, monitoring the official road outside.

Around the second watch, Xu Chu came over, walked to his wife, and whispered in her ear: "How is it?"

"Don't bother me." Zhang Shiqing grabbed her husband's hand and pulled him to sit on the grass together. "A group of defeated soldiers ran over an hour ago and didn't find this place."

The two sat side by side and talked quietly. A few chuckles were heard not far away. Zhang Shiqing coughed sternly, and the laughter immediately disappeared.

The bright moon was setting in the west, and the sound of horse hooves could be heard in the distance. Everyone closed their mouths and looked warily at the official road dozens of steps away. The night was too dark, and only a dark shadow could be seen.

Not long after, a group of people passed by, and everyone in the valley breathed a sigh of relief. However, before they could truly relax, the group turned around and came back, this time unmistakably stopping in the middle of the valley.

Someone in the team said: "It seems to be here. It should be deserted and we can take shelter for a while."

Zhang Shiqing tightened his grip on the handle of the knife.

The path leading into the valley was full of weeds and thorns. People outside could not distinguish the true from the false in the darkness, thinking that they were all grown. After walking a few steps, someone said, "Did you remember wrong? There seems to be no road here."

"Don't worry about the road, help His Majesty over first..."

Xu Chu and Zhang Shiqing looked at each other, neither knowing who this "Your Majesty" was.

A man stood on the side of the road and said sternly: "I don't need anyone to help me. We won't run away or hide. We'll just wait here for the pursuers and fight to the fullest!"

"His Majesty……"

“He who is timid, leave alone and do not stay with me.”

No one left. There were more than fifty people in total, most of whom were riding horses on the road. Everyone was holding a long spear. Another five or six people were standing on the roadside, surrounding "Your Majesty". "Your Majesty" was obviously seriously injured, and he was breathing heavily. Can reach the ears of the hidden.

"Where is the military advisor?"

"Your Majesty, I am here." A tall figure walked around in front of "Your Majesty".

"Look, I only have dozens of soldiers left, but can I still conquer the world?"

"His Majesty was not careful for a moment, suffered a small setback, returned to the court to regroup, and gained millions of soldiers. How can he say that there are only a few dozen soldiers left?"

"Haha, that's good. It's not the first time I've lost a battle."

"Your Majesty, please mount your horse as hard as you can. Since you can't hide here, you shouldn't stay for a long time."

"Your Majesty" did not move, "Is this really the point where you are overthinking yourself?"

"It looks a bit similar, but...I can't be sure."

"You and Xu Chu were discussing Taoism here?"

"Yes." The military advisor answered a little reluctantly.

Xu Chu and Zhang Shiqing looked at each other again. He had already guessed who the person outside was, but he was still a little surprised when he suddenly heard his name being mentioned.

Ning Baoguan proclaimed himself emperor three years ago, and his country was named Wu. He once had a chance to pacify the world, but was betrayed by the heroes one after another, so he went south and north, winning sometimes and losing. However, he was defeated in Yecheng, and only a few dozen people were left with him. Famous soldiers.

"He is still better than the military advisor." Ning Baoguan said.

Military advisor Kou Daogu said nothing.

"Xu Chu is not a god, he often makes mistakes, but when he is right, he will have miraculous results. I think back then, I just listened to his suggestions before I built the first Wu army and came to Jiangdong. The military advisor had many good ideas, but there were no Something comparable to that.”

"Xu Chu was good at using cunning tactics, but his heart was not right, and his skills were not right either. Therefore, he died early in the rebellion at his own peril. Why does your Majesty miss this man?"

Zhang Shiqing was furious when he heard this and stood up to go out, but Xu Chu held him tightly. It took her a while to calm down.

"I don't miss this person, I just feel... I feel that something must have gone wrong before success. I can't see where the mistake is, and neither can you..."

Kou Daogu's voice sounded a little stern, "Your Majesty will be able to make a comeback soon. How can he be 'failed'? Your Majesty, please mount your horse and go to the seaside. From there, take a boat back south. The people of Huai and Wu will definitely come out to welcome you."

"No matter Wuzhou, the Huai people will welcome me?"

"The Sheng family is incompetent, and the Huai people have suffered for a long time. Fortunately, your majesty saved the people from the fire and water. They miss your majesty like children missing their parents."

"Haha, military advisor... you are really good at talking." Ning Baoguan walked towards his mount, but failed to get on it after trying it twice.

Kou Daogu stepped forward and said, "Let me help your majesty."

"I am the emperor on horseback, I don't need support." Ning Baoguan refused to accept help, pushed himself onto the horse, looked at his guards, and said with a long smile: "Okay, there are more people left than when I was at my worst. , It’s a pity that my companions from back then are no longer here…”

Ning Baoguan swayed and fell off his horse. Everyone was shocked. But at this moment, the sound of horse hooves was heard in the distance. It was obvious that the pursuers were catching up.

Ning Baoguan pushed away the supporter, stood up and said: "The best strategy is to attack instead of defending. All the soldiers will work with me to repel the pursuers. Let's go... it's not too late to go... ah..."

Ning Baoguan shouted and slowly sat on the ground, motionless.

Kou Daogu said loudly: "I couldn't bear to see your majesty humiliated, so I helped him ascend to heaven. If you want to be loyal, go and fight the pursuers. If you don't have this intention, just run away. The Dragon Body of Emperor Wu is here, and no one will chase you." "

The guards hesitated for a moment. If someone took action at this time, they would cut Kou Daogu into pieces with random blades. However, the sound of horse hooves became more and more urgent. The first person to react was not to kill Kou Daogu, but to turn around and run away. The others The people followed, and less than ten people remained, but it was not for revenge.

"The emperor is dead, and his head can be rewarded..." The man left behind jumped off his horse, threw away his spear, and drew his sword, and the others followed suit.

Kou Daogu did not dare to stop him, so he stepped aside and waited for the pursuers. Behind him, the soldiers were dismantling the "dragon body".