Plan to cut off the nine states

In the evening, wisps of smoke rise from the Siguo Valley, and the sound of cocks crowing and dogs barking can be heard endlessly, but all the people living there have left.

There is a spare cave in the back mountain that can be temporarily sheltered. Food has been stored in the cave, which is enough for several months. However, when they think that the chickens and ducks that they have worked hard to raise and many items that cannot be taken away are still in the valley, they are likely to be destroyed in one day. moan and groan.

Feeling the solemn atmosphere, the children also huddled in their mother's arms, not daring to walk around or scream.

Just hiding is not enough, someone has to lead the pursuers away.

Xu Chu volunteered and didn't want anyone to follow him. "I have already prepared. I have a place to go and a way to return. It will be troublesome to bring one more person. You guys stay here for the time being. If the soldiers set fire to the village, nothing will happen. You have to wait for more than ten people." Then you can go back and rebuild your house. If the village is undamaged, you should be careful and wait until winter comes.”

Everyone obeyed, but there were still people who wanted to follow Xu Chu. Zhang Shiqing stopped him and said, "If he said it's okay, it must be okay. No one needs to follow. Although the cave is suitable for shelter, there are many places that need to be cleaned up. Everyone should stay. "

Xu Chu was a little surprised and interrupted: "You have to stay too."

"Of course, someone needs to be in charge here." Zhang Shiqing said with a smile.

"Don't light a fire within ten days." Xu Chu gave a final reminder. He mounted his horse and led a string of cattle, horses and other livestock on the road. At an intersection, he untied the rope and drove the livestock away. He left footprints all over the place to confuse the pursuers. , he himself rode alone on the main road, heading east, and soon turned north.

Bao Dun led his troops to attack Yuyang in the north, and he also went north.

Traveling at night was inconvenient. After traveling several miles north, Xu Chu stopped and took out fodder to feed the horses. Before he could rest, he heard the sound of horse hooves behind him.

Xu Chu was shocked. He didn't expect that the pursuers had arrived so quickly. His trick of suspecting the soldiers was useless. When he got here, he was no longer familiar with the terrain. He had no choice but to mount his horse and gallop along the road. He picked up the saddle and suddenly felt No, the sound of the horse's hooves was weak, it seemed like there was only one horse, it didn't look like a pursuit.

"Is that Xu Chu in front?" The people behind him have already seen him.

Xu Chu sighed and replied: "It's me."

Zhang Shiqing rushed over on horseback and said with a smile: "My guess is correct. I knew you would go north."

"I should take all the horses away."

Zhang Shiqing dismounted, took off his saddle, and came to feed the horse, "No one can compete with you, so I won't compete with you, but don't even think about leaving me behind again."

"You have already caught up with me, so naturally I can't chase you away, and I never thought about 'leaving you behind'."

"Whatever you say is up to you, and whatever you do is up to me." Zhang Shiqing was in a good mood. He unloaded his luggage and took out the blanket, "I can only sleep on the floor tonight. I remember when we were running around with the World Army, we often slept on the floor. Sleeping, many people are crowded together - this time there are only two of us, but fortunately the weather is not too cold. "

It had been autumn for some time, and it was actually quite chilly at night. The two of them found a place with leeward wind, hugged each other tightly, and wrapped themselves in blankets.

"Sleep less and drive longer tomorrow." Xu Chu said, feeling warm in his heart and not feeling "too cold" at all.

"Yeah." Zhang Shiqing lay down for a while, but couldn't sleep, so he asked, "Are you going to help Huanyan?"

"Bao Dun will be defeated nine times out of ten, Yuyang doesn't need my help."

"The Jizhou army was defeated one after another. Master Yin was killed in battle, and there were not many Yuyang soldiers left. How can we defeat Bao Dun?"

"It was not Yuyang who defeated Bao Dun, but the Chu army who followed him."

"Hey, why is there still something about the Chu Army?" Zhang Shiqing became even more interested.

"A strong person is in the middle, surrounded by weak people. When each one is defeated, he must first stabilize him, then anger him, and then attack him. Bao Dun wanted to fight for the world, but he thought that the King of Chu didn't know it, so he fell into the strategy of 'stabilizing him first'." "

"What if I anger him again?"

"There are many ways, one of which is to accept Yuyang's submission and prohibit Bao Dun from attacking. If Bao Dun is not allowed to attack Jizhou, he will definitely be furious, disobey orders, or directly rebel, and the King of Chu will have reason to 'attack him'."

"So troublesome?"

"If this is not the case, once Bao Dun is destroyed, all the heroes will be wary. It would be unwise for the King of Chu to calm down chaos and create more chaos."

"Is King Chu really that smart?"

"If he didn't have this intelligence, how could he be the overlord? How could he defeat Prince Ning?"

"You have seen the King of Chu and you say he is smart, then he is really smart. But it seems that Yuyang still cannot be saved. Bao Dun will definitely capture Yuyang first, and then turn around to fight the Chu army - oh, this is exactly the plan of the King of Chu , using Yuyang as bait to trick Bao Dun into going north, so that he can lead his troops directly to Yecheng."

"Exactly." Xu Chu smiled.

Zhang Shiqing thought for a while and said, "King Chu led the heroes to defeat King Ning. He was supposed to get Yecheng and Jizhou, but he would rather give it to Bao Dun. The reason is that Jizhou is not at peace, and Bao Dun is greedy, so he will go north first and then south."

"You can become a counselor." Xu Chu smiled.

"I've figured it out, everything is logical. Before I figured it out, I couldn't see clearly. Alas, the King of Chu is cunning enough, and Bao Dun is stupid enough. No, he is not stupid, but greedy. As expected, it is still leisurely in the valley, and I haven't seen anyone yet. Well, I have to worry so much. I don’t care how Yuyang is doing, just go to sleep.”

Zhang Shiqing fell asleep quickly.

Xu Chu went to bed late and woke up early. He felt a bone-chilling chill, even colder than before falling asleep. Only his chest and abdomen were warm. Zhang Shiqing was almost curled up in his arms, sleeping soundly.

Xu Chu waited for a while before waking his wife up.

"What time is it?" Zhang Shiqing asked, and he also began to feel the cold.

"I'm not sure, it should be a while before dawn, let's get on the road, don't let the pursuers catch up."

"They probably haven't found out that there is no one in the valley yet." Zhang Shiqing yawned, but still got up, quickly packed his luggage, and stamped his feet to keep warm, "It turns out that autumn is so cold."

"It's cold at night, better during the day, no matter what, we have to find someone to stay for today."

The two led the horse and walked for a while, and only got on the horse after their feet were warmed up.

The pursuers never appeared.

Jizhou has been through several wars, the population has decreased, and merchants have disappeared. There are almost no inns to stay in. The two can only find someone to stay for free. If they meet a kind person, they can stay for a night for free and get some food. If they meet a greedy person, they have to pay a very high price. They have to be careful at night and dare not sleep too deeply.

Finally, there were no dangers along the way. The closer they got to Yuyang, the more news they heard, but it was hard to tell the truth from the false. Sometimes they said that Yuyang had fallen, and sometimes they said that they were still holding on.

Xu Chu was not like a soldier, and Zhang Shiqing was a woman. The common people they met advised them not to take risks in Yuyang, as it was very dangerous there. Once caught by the soldiers, they would be enslaved at best and killed at worst.

Xu Chu asked for the route, bypassed Yuyang far away, and ran to the pass further north.

Zhang Shiqing understood Xu Chu's intention, and did not ask much, just followed him, regardless of the wind and frost.

Xifengkou was one of the several passages to Liaodong. Xu Chu heard that it was still guarded by Jizhou soldiers, so he came to knock on the pass.

Xu Chu had no credentials on him. He had lived in seclusion for five years and his reputation had declined. Ordinary soldiers did not know who he was, refused him entry, and ordered him to leave his horse behind.

Zhang Shiqing took out several letters written by Huanyan before, and sent the wooden box alone, which had the seals of Princess Huanyan and the emperor.

The soldiers guarding the pass then let the two in, sent someone to lead the way, and sent them to the camp outside the pass.

Xu Chu guessed correctly. Princess Huanyan really abandoned Yuyang and led the remaining soldiers to retreat outside the Great Wall. However, she did not go to Liaodong, but stayed in the camp to wait and see.

The camp was not big, and could only accommodate three to five thousand soldiers. There were also some civilians. They looked like refugees, but there were many flags, fluttering in the wind, showing the remaining prestige of the court.

The further north you go, the colder it gets. On the first night when you arrive at the camp, there was a little snow in the sky.

The two were sent to the tent, but they were not summoned immediately. It was not until the afternoon of the next day that an eunuch came to invite them.

Princess Huanyan lived in an ordinary tent, which was no different from the soldiers, except that there was a low desk and a lot of documents. She did not keep a waiter, but reviewed the documents and waited for guests alone.

King Xiangdong was killed by King Ning three years ago. His grandson, Princess Huanyan's nephew, succeeded to the throne, but it did not change the situation much.

Princess Huanyan raised her head, and Xu Chu and Zhang Shiqing were both surprised. After not seeing her for a few years, she seemed to have aged by a dozen years and no longer looked like a girl.

"Why did you come here?" Princess Huanyan asked in a rather cold tone.

"To see you off." Zhang Shiqing replied, but Xu Chu did not speak.

"See you off? The court will soon be able to recapture Yecheng, and you ran to the border to see you off?"

Zhang Shiqing sighed lightly, "Huanyan, although we haven't seen each other for many years, we have been writing letters and are still good friends. I advise you not to hold on any longer. Tiancheng's death is not your fault, and you can't bring him back to life."

Princess Huanyan sneered, stared at Zhang Shiqing for a while, turned her eyes to Xu Chu, became more severe, and asked silently.

"The situation is over. It's a miracle that you can hold on until now."

"I thought you wouldn't come out. Who are you lobbying for this time?"

Xu Chu shook his head and asked, "Who is guarding Yuyang?"

Princess Huanyan didn't seem to want to answer. After a moment of silence, she said, "Tian Jiang said he didn't want to go out of the border and recruited 800 soldiers to guard the city." After a pause, she said, "Feng Ju Niang is also in Yuyang."

"Bao Dun didn't chase here. Tian Jiang must have guarded Yuyang."

"For the time being, unless the King of Chu sent troops north in time, the court has sent envoys to submit a letter of surrender to him, but has not received a reply."

Zhang Shiqing glanced at Xu Chu and knew that he had guessed it again.

"The King of Chu will definitely go north, but after defeating Bao Dun, he will also seize Yuyang and will not return it to you."

"You are still speaking for the King of Chu after all."

"The King of Chu doesn't even know that I am still alive. I am speaking for the general trend: at most three to five years, the chaotic world will end. Human power is exhausted and no one can stop it."

"Thank you two for coming to see me off. I am very busy. You should go and rest first." Princess Huanyan ordered them to leave.

The two said goodbye and returned to the tent. Zhang Shiqing asked: "Will Huanyan listen to advice?"

"She sees clearly and has a plan in her mind. She expelled the Huangfu family from Liaodong two years ago. Our persuasion only made her leave one or two days earlier."

"Alas. Should we follow?"

Xu Chu smiled and shook his head, "Let's go back to Siguo Valley."

Three days later, news came from the interior that the Chu army had indeed arrived and was preparing to fight a big battle with Bao Dun.

Without waiting for the outcome, Princess Huanyan ordered the camp to be broken up and when she came to say goodbye to Xu Chu and his wife, she said: "Although Liaodong is remote, it is enough for the court to stay for a while. Tiancheng is still alive. When I return to Jizhou, I will definitely visit you."

Xu Chu and Zhang Shiqing didn't say much. They saw them off for several miles, stopped on a high place, and watched the carriages and horses go away.

The cold wind was bleak, and Xu Chu was wearing the old clothes he had received many years ago, knowing that he would never see her again.