Born short-lived

It wasn't until the third military order was issued that Huaxu's troops had the intention to retreat - of course, the main reason was that these crazy beasts had also noticed the movement of reinforcements far away.

So hurry up, and finally withdrew to Daomacheng Pass before Sha'an's army arrived.

The Sha'an people also knew that the coach had changed, and they couldn't underestimate the enemy after going too deep. Seeing that they couldn't get any benefits, they didn't rush to attack again.

But just when Dong Sheng was about to heave a sigh of relief, an urgent military report made his mind explode in an instant—the Northwest had fallen.

"Your Highness—" A scout covered in blood rushed up the tower, his face was unkempt, his face was mixed with snot, tears and blood, and his original face could hardly be discerned. In the flag, he was recognized as a person from Lubu in the northwest.

He knelt down in front of Dong Sheng with a plop, and howled sadly, "General Lu is dead..."

Lu Ci, who was sent by Zhuo Feng to guard the northwest, died in battle.

Dong Sheng's hand on the hilt of the sword was imperceptibly tightened, and his eyes flickered unexpectedly, making him slightly stagnant.Zhuo Yiming next to him hesitated for a while whether to ask, but he looked up at Dong Sheng's tense expression and swallowed back the words.

Although the northwest was broken and defenseless, it was not unexpected by Dong Sheng.

What surprised him was that Sha'an was willing to spend such a large amount of money in order to win the Northern Territory this time.

Dong Sheng closed his eyes and asked, "Is there any bones?"

The scout choked up and said: "Yes... Yes, the general is carrying several arrows, and he has long been unable to see..."

He was sobbing as he spoke, and at the end he fell silent, and wept unsightlyly.Dong Sheng knew very well what the thousands of arrows piercing the heart looked like on the battlefield. The corpses had to be identified by the armor in the end, and some of them were almost bloody.

Dong Sheng turned around and helped the scout up from the ground, was silent for a while, and finally sighed: "Bury it."

He patted the little scout on the shoulder, and said solemnly: "This revenge must be avenged."

The tears that the scout had stopped just now poured out again like opening a sluice to release a flood, and then cried, prostrated on the ground and kowtowed a few times regardless of Dong Sheng's obstruction: "Your Highness..."

Sha'an naturally expected that there would be an ambush, and when the dead who were ambushing at Ningwu Pass set off to Daomaguan to encircle them, Ningwu Pass and the entire northwest became defenseless, even with Lu Ci However, the army sent by Sha'an to attack the northwest was twice as large as Lu's, and there was no reinforcements in the northwest.

When they surrounded the Sha'an people, Jiayuguan in the northwest had already been broken.

Dong Sheng frowned and fell silent for a while.

It was still placed together.

Dong Sheng thought, the coach of Sha'an must know what he thinks, so how can it be beyond his expectations...

The defense in the northwest is weak, and the Sha'an army, whose bravery and temperament are integrated into the bones, seems to be in the land of no one.After Jiayuguan, there is no more pass, but the land in the west is vast and rugged, and it is so desolate that it is not suitable for large-scale marches. There have been no battles for hundreds of years.

However, the Sha'an people, who have drawn such a long battle line, are already penetrating alone, and it is impossible to go straight into the western border without taking risks.

If their purpose is to go directly to Huajing, it will be easy to handle. From Jiayuguan to the southeast, it is bound to go down the Nanshan Mountain.Originally, they were in short supply of food and grass. After entering the hinterland, they would probably make plans to pass through the city gates along the way. At that time, they would transfer troops from the western borders and encircle them with the Central Plains garrison. I don't believe they can do anything more.

But the problem is that the Shaan people are definitely not crazy enough to directly attack Huajing, and if their goal is only the northern border, it will be very difficult.

Now that most of the northern border has fallen, once the second batch of military supplies from the Shaan people arrives, the next step is to go east.

How easy is it to snatch food from Sha'an?

Dong Sheng fumbled for the piece of jade on his chest, clicked his tongue lightly, and said to Zhuo Yiming: "Notify the generals, the tower will discuss matters."

Yuan Li's letter was sent to the East China Sea, just in time for Zhou Zirong to come back from southern Xinjiang. Before he could explain, Zhou Zirong asked with obvious nervousness, "What's wrong with Northern Xinjiang?"

Yuan Li looked around and made sure there was no suspicious person, then stuffed the letter Dong Sheng gave him into Zhou Zirong's arms: "It's from Your Highness."

As soon as Zhou Zirong touched the letter, he couldn't help but look down, there were indeed familiar handwriting on it, and Dong Sheng's handwriting was still very ugly after so many years.Zhou Zirong didn't care that Yuan Li was still in front of him, so he hurriedly turned his back and opened the letter.

It seems that the time is short, and only wrote a short sentence - the northern border is still under control, don't read it, and please strictly guard the East China Sea and beware of Panyang.

Although Dong Sheng didn't say it clearly, Zhou Zirong also understood his implication.It must not be a coincidence that Sha'an fought so suddenly this time, and now that the northern border is stalemate and military supplies are tight, there is no guarantee that the East China Sea will not be taken advantage of.

Zhou Zirong looked at the wax seal on the outside of the envelope again, lost in thought.

Seeing that he didn't respond for a long time, Yuan Li couldn't help asking in a low voice: "General?"

Only then did Zhou Zirong come to his senses, and he turned his head and smiled faintly at Yuan Li: "It's nothing, you should be tired after running such a long distance, go and rest."

Yuan Li hesitated for a moment, but seeing Zhou Zirong's expression, he didn't seem to want to speak, so he had no choice but to say yes, and obediently withdrew.

Northern Xinjiang is the biggest mess in Huaxu, and the Sha'an people are also very tough. Although Dong Sheng has been a soldier since childhood, he has rarely encountered such a situation.

It will take at least a few days for this letter to reach his hands, and Yuan Li has been in the palace for a while. At that time, Beijiang was fine, so what about now?

Zhou Zirong sat back on the chair, took off the ink jade chime around his neck, and rubbed it gently in his hands. He didn't know what was going on in his mind, and his eyes gradually looked at the open door with fascination.

At this time, a few shocking dog barks came from outside the door, which pulled Zhou Zirong back to his sanity.He sat up a little, and saw Pan Shuning walking in with a tray, followed by a big black fur dog.

"It's been so long since I've been back, is it because I didn't come to look for you, so you don't know how to say hello to mother?" Pan Shuning had exquisite makeup on her face, with a pair of almond eyes hanging from the end of her eyes, and complained with feigned anger, " Unfilial son."

When Zhou Zirong saw her, he realized that he really forgot to go to the wing to say hello, so he hurriedly got up and greeted her with a smile: "Mother, why did you come here in person?"

Pan Shuning is also in her fifties and has gray hair, but when she knew her son was back today, she also dressed up carefully, and took out all the emerald hairpins that were kept in the drawer on weekdays.

The emerald jade hairpin was the jade material that Zhou Zirong bought for her when she went to Nanyang in the early years. Seeing that she wore it specially, he also pretended to be a little surprised and sighed with great eyesight: "Ah, mother, why don't you wear it?" This hairpin is really pretty."

While boasting that she was still busy, she took the tray from Pan Shuning's hand and carefully placed it on the table.It was two bowls of white fungus soup, which had cooled down, and the sweetness could be smelled from far away.

Pan Shuning covered her lips and smiled, rolled his eyes at him, and scolded with a smile: "The little thing is glib."

The dog swung its head and tail around Zhou Zirong twice, then threw itself on his lap as if to please him, and clawed at his thigh with its thick paws.Zhou Zirong was tickled by him, and rubbed the dog's hard forehead with a smile.

"Look, Fugui also misses you very much." Pan Shuning sat down at the table and brought Zhou Zirong a bowl, "I know you're busy, so I'll bring you something to cool off."

"It's a blessing, mother." Zhou Zirong knew what his mother liked to hear the most, so he comforted him along the way, "Xi is outside, and I always miss your craftsmanship."

Pan Shuning was suddenly amused by him, and laughed a few times coquettishly, but she didn't know if the wind had entered her throat, and she coughed without warning.

Zhou Zirong frowned, and quickly asked, "What's wrong? Do you need to see a doctor?"

Pan Shuning rolled his eyes at him again, picked up a bowl of sweet soup, stirred it up, and prepared to eat it: "What's the matter, it's just an old problem, it's not a problem."

"Mother, you still have to take care of your body."

"You still have the nerve to say it," Pan Shuning said angrily, "It's not that you, a little brat, don't stay home all day long. I don't think it's all because of you."

As soon as he heard that his mother was going to have an attack again, Zhou Zirong sat back obediently, waiting for his mother's "whip".

Sure enough, Pan Shuning couldn't stop complaining, nagging and saying: "You are the only one left in our Zhou family, your father died early, and your younger brother also... Hey, you don't stay home all day long, you let me How am I going to live alone?"

"Yes, it's the child's fault."

"I've heard all about it. There's another fight in northern Xinjiang." Pan Shuning frowned, her face trembling with anxiety, and her makeup dripped down. "What kind of people are they in Sha'an—they're ashamed and bloody?" Di Ren! Then Zhuo Feng is still your father's old brother back then, isn't it all..."

Pan Shuning sighed heavily, grabbed Zhou Zirong's shoulder nervously and said, "I'll tell you, don't meddle in this matter in northern Xinjiang, let them fight, and just watch over you This one-acre three-point land. The northern border is no better than our East China Sea, the defense is weak, you can pay it back if you go."

The smile on Zhou Zirong's face did not diminish, but his eyes gradually sank, and he asked casually, seemingly calmly, "What if the northern border falls?"

Pan Shuning groaned, and beat her heart and lungs: "What else can we do? There are defenders in the northern border, and that's not your business. We are in the East China Sea and have nothing to do with them."

Zhou Zirong stopped talking, just smiled calmly.Pan Shuning thought that he had listened, so she wailed even harder: "You are the only son, mother. If something happens to you...what do you want me to do?"

Zhou Zirong couldn't help smiling wryly in his heart, thinking that this person just loves to go to extremes, if the little prince he yearned for could have half the understanding of his old mother, he wouldn't be so worried.

He wanted him to live his life in peace and stability, even if he was idle and ignorant, he also wanted him to live his life in peace.

But the man said that he wants to travel in this world.

Zhou Zirong knew in his heart that Dongsheng's Northern Expedition was not just for the forces in the northern border.No matter how much this child who has not reached the weak crown has been tempered, there is always such a feeling of territoriality in his heart.

Maybe some people are born emperors.

Establish a heart for the world, and a life for the people.

No one in the camp in northern Xinjiang dared to relax for a moment from night to day. Ever since Jiayuguan was broken, Dong Sheng had never slept more than two hours at night.

At that time, the city tower was discussing matters, and I remember that after everyone left, he looked at the defense map on the table without moving, and said coldly: "Since you dare to come, don't let them go back."

The transfer of armaments in northern Xinjiang has never been so efficient. All the armaments that can be snatched in the northwest were moved back [-] miles within three days, and the city was defended. , ready to intercept the Sha'an people going south from here.

The two sides were stuck in a stalemate for more than a month, and the offensive of the Sha'an people was forced to stop, blocking them in the northwest.

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