Zhu Nao

On the pasture, the war horses were grazing leisurely, and the soldiers in charge of watching the horses were also lazy. Some were lying in the grass to bask in the sun, and some were chatting together. The atmosphere was very leisurely.

In contrast, not far from them, near the river bank, a group of Changsha soldiers were dormant in the grass, sweating from nervousness, not even daring to breathe.

There was a sudden rustling in the grass, and the officer leading the team looked back, and saw that several soldiers he had sent out to investigate the surrounding intelligence had returned.The officer quickly asked: "How is it? Is there an ambush by Jingzhou soldiers nearby?"

The soldier replied in a low voice: "Don't worry, boss. We have checked our surroundings carefully. The nearest Jingzhou soldier is three miles away from here, and there are about 300 people."

"Three miles away..." The officer secretly calculated the time it would take for the soldiers watching the horses to report the news three miles away, and the reinforcements from three miles away would rush over again, and found that this time was enough for them to snatch many horses.He secretly squeezed his fist, and said happily in a low voice, "That's good! Now we're waiting for General Fang's order!"

Today their team was patrolling the river by boat, and the sharp-eyed soldiers discovered that there was a horse ranch for Jingzhou soldiers on the river bank.It stands to reason that Sun Xiang had issued an order earlier, telling them to only inquire about intelligence and not to have any conflicts with the Jingzhou soldiers. They should go back after remembering the location of the racecourse.But……

——The war horse is now the worry of the Changsha army.Changsha does not produce horses, but Xiliang, which produces horses, has long been occupied by Zhu Nao.With the relationship between Changsha Mansion and Chengdu Mansion, Sun Xiang knew in his dreams that it was impossible for Zhu Nao to sell him the war horse.Therefore, in order to train cavalry, Sun Xiang spent a lot of money and made many detours, and finally managed to raise an elite cavalry with hundreds of people.But when he attacked Jingzhou a few days ago, this elite team was completely lost by him.

The loss of the cavalry not only made Sun Xiang grey, but also severely weakened the morale of the entire Changsha army.Every war horse is worth a thousand gold to the Changsha Army.Under such circumstances, whoever has the ability to get even two or three war horses back will be credited with a great merit.

But now, these patrolling Changsha soldiers found far more than two or three horses, but more than a hundred strong and strong horses! !

As long as these horses can be brought back, even if only half of them are brought back, it will be enough for every soldier in this patrol battalion to rise to the top!It is difficult for any Changsha soldier to turn a blind eye to these horses, so the officer hurriedly ordered someone to go back to ask Fang Ji whether he should go against Sun Xiang's order prohibiting combat and first snatch the horses.

Of course, although the temptation of war horses is great, the Changsha army will not lose their minds when they see it.After all, if you want to make meritorious service, you have to bring the horse back smoothly, otherwise you may even lose your life.So the officer did not act rashly.He first found a place with a good view on the side of the racecourse and hibernated, and sent soldiers to investigate the enemy's situation around.The soldiers also searched very carefully.

They were very pleasantly surprised by the results of the investigation, as the soldiers who reported just now said, the nearest Jingzhou army is three miles away, and there are not many people there!

Next, as soon as Fang Ji's order arrives, they will be able to grab the horse!

The soldiers lying in the grass looked at those fat war horses, thinking of the reward they were about to receive, their saliva was about to flow down.Some people couldn't believe what good things could happen to them, and worried: "So many good horses are placed here, could it be a trap specially set for us by the Jingzhou Army..."

It's not that officers haven't worried about this problem.He asked the soldiers who had just been sent out to investigate again: "Are you sure you have checked all the places that should be investigated? If you haven't found out where the Jingzhou Army is hiding, we will all be here today!"

The soldiers hurriedly said: "Boss, I have seen all the places where people can hide! There is really no one else within a three-mile radius!"

The officer asked again: "What about the three places?"

"This..." Everyone looked at each other in blank dismay, "Do we have to check three miles away? Isn't it too far away?"

The officer fell silent.Indeed, from the point of view of the horse robbing, there is no need for them to investigate further away.If Huang Dongxuan really ambushes people several miles away in order to set a trap for them... can it still be called a trap?That's a generous gift for nothing, right?

After waiting for a while, a small boat docked to the shore without a sound, and the people who got off the boat were the spies who went back to ask Fang Ji for instructions.

The spy ran to the officer with a low waist, and conveyed Fang Ji's order: "General Fang said, let you grab the horse quickly! He has already arranged for people to come to meet him!"

"Great!" The officer leading the team was excited and nervous, and quickly made battle deployment, "you, copy from the east; you, follow me from the west; you, go back to the aloe and drive the boat out , set up the boards, we will bring up the horses in a while, and we will sail away!"

"Yes!"

……

After a cup of tea.

The Changsha soldiers used the dense grass as a cover, and cautiously approached the Jingzhou soldiers who were freeing their horses, intending to surround them and kill them.

However, their encirclement circle hadn't been formed yet, and those Jingzhou soldiers who looked lazy were extra vigilant. Immediately, someone noticed the change, and drew a knife and pointed at the grass: "Who's there?! Come out!"

The whereabouts of Changsha soldiers were revealed, and they could no longer hide.The officer gritted his teeth and ordered: "Rush up! Kill me!"

The Changsha soldiers hiding in the grass jumped up in an instant, and rushed towards the Jingzhou soldiers holding their knives and screaming: "Kill!!"

When the Jingzhou soldiers saw that the enemy was crowded, they resolutely gave up resistance and shouted: "Withdraw! Quickly withdraw!"

The Jingzhou soldiers turned around and ran away. Those who moved quickly grabbed a horse and rode up to flee, while those who moved slowly hid in places with complicated terrain to avoid being caught up.

Seeing that he had frightened the snake and let the Jingzhou soldiers escape, the officer of the Changsha Army couldn't help shaking his fist angrily.However, they didn't come here to kill people. Now that people are running away, these people will definitely notify the reinforcements immediately, and there is not much time left for them.So the officer ordered decisively: "Don't chase! Hurry up and lead the horse, as much as you can before their reinforcements arrive!"

The Changsha soldiers hurriedly put away their knives, pulled the reins of their horses in a hurry, and rushed to the river.

The war horses were eating grass and eating happily, but they were suddenly interrupted, and naturally their mood was not much better.But the soldiers in Changsha waved their whips and yelled at them to drive them away, but the war horses knew that they would not make trouble for themselves, and ran obediently to the river.

The people drove the horses to the river in a short time, the soldiers on the boat had already docked the boat, and the wooden boards for the horses were also set up.At this time, the surrounding area was still peaceful, and there was no trace of Jingzhou people.

Everything went well, the officer couldn't help but urged, "Hurry up, get the horses onto the boat!"

The soldiers hurriedly led the horses to the boat, but as soon as they got to the river, the horses who had been cooperative just now suddenly became stubborn, and ran back with their necks twisted one by one, but refused to get on the boat.The unprepared soldiers were thrown from the reins by the horses, and fell into the mud. They hurriedly got up and chased: "Go, go! Go over there!"

The war horses paid no attention to it and just retreated, but none of the horses were willing to board the boat.

The soldiers were in a hurry, and whipped their long whips to the horse's buttocks: "Let you go! Go!"

The horse was jerked and slammed the rein violently, then turned and ran away.In the blink of an eye, five or six horses had already run away.

This was not at all expected by the soldiers in Changsha.The officer thought that his subordinates were not doing well, and cursed angrily, "What are you doing? Get the horses on board!"

For every bit of time they waste, it is possible to rob a few horses less, and what is less is their military exploits.

The officers were anxious, and the soldiers were also anxious. Some gave up their disobedient horses and tried to lead other horses;

The Changsha soldiers beat hard, and the horses also lost their temper. They kicked their hooves and punched people furiously. He fell to the ground and convulsed, spitting blood.

Finally, several people worked together to push a war horse onto the boat, and as soon as everyone let go, the war horse quickly jumped off the boat and fled, as if the board of the boat was the bottom of a hot pot, and it would roast them after a long time.

When it came to this point, the officer also saw that something was wrong.He asked anxiously: "What's the matter with these horses? Are horses afraid of water??"

The Changsha soldiers had seen very few horses, so they really couldn't tell for a while.The horses in Changsha don't seem to have this habit. Could it be that the horses in Jingzhou are different?

Due to the lack of cooperation of the war horses, the people and horses on the bank of the river were completely in a mess.

The officer leading the team kept looking back anxiously, praying that the reinforcements from the Jingzhou Army would come slowly, and slowly.Seeing that so many good horses had already been led to the river, he really didn't want to just give up.He suddenly thought of an idea, and hurriedly said: "Quick! Go and cut some grass for the horses to put on the boat!"

The soldiers ran to mow the grass in a hurry again, and managed to cut a few bundles, trying to lure the horses to the boat.But I don’t know if the war horses were full or something, they still stubbornly refused to move their hoofs to step on the boat, but the Changsha soldiers were so anxious that they could exchange souls with the horses, so that they could get on the boat with their buttocks up.

During the stalemate, the spy in charge of the lookout ran to report in a panic: "It's not good! The Jingzhou army is here!"

The officer turned his head and saw that Jingzhou soldiers had already appeared on the plain, charging towards them.He forced himself to be calm, and asked the spy watching the wind, "How many people from the Jingzhou army are here?"

The spies said: "About two to three hundred people."

Undoubtedly, it was the Jingzhou army who had just been stationed three miles away.

The officer brought out 200 people by his side today, and Fang Ji had already dispatched manpower to support him.After all, he was reluctant to give up these horses. After a moment of hesitation, he gritted his teeth and said, "Brothers, let's deal with them for a while, and when General Fang's men arrive, we can take these horses back!"

At this moment, someone on the river suddenly exclaimed.

"Boss, it's bad! The bottom of our boat has been scuttled!"

"what?!"

When everyone looked back, they saw several Jingzhou soldiers swimming ashore on the river bank not far away, still holding chisels and hammers in their hands.Those Jingzhou soldiers were the ones who let the horses go just now. It turned out that they didn't run far away. Taking advantage of the chaos of Changsha soldiers rushing to the boat, they sneaked into the bottom of the water and cut through the bottom of the Changsha army's boat!

The officer buzzed in his head, and quickly asked, "How many ships can we sail?"

The soldiers on board inspected it and said with a sad face: "There is only one, and the others are all missed!"

I don't know if the only good ship is the Jingzhou soldiers who missed it or what. In short, even if they want to leave now, they can't leave.

The Jingzhou soldiers were getting closer and closer, and they had no time to dawdle by the river.The officer had to make arrangements for the only good ship.He pointed at a few people and said: "Go back and find General Fang to rescue the soldiers. There are so many good horses here, let General Fang bring more men! The rest of you, follow me! Go and stop the enemy, we must not Let them take the horse back!"

The situation was critical, and everyone had no time to think about it. The soldiers on the boat pulled the anchor and hit the boat and left, while the rest turned around and rushed to the shore.

……

After burning incense, Fang Ji, who personally led the fleet out of the river, saw a small boat approaching ahead.He took a closer look and saw that the flag of the Changsha Army was flying on the boat, and hurriedly said: "Quick, put the boards on them to catch them!"

Soon, the big boat approached the small boat, and the soldiers on the small boat climbed onto the big boat.

Fang Ji saw that everyone looked embarrassed, and frowned, "Why are you the only boat? Where are the horses? How many horses did you get?"

The soldiers said in embarrassment: "General Qi, when we were pulling our horses to the boat, Jingzhou soldiers arrived. They sent people to dive into the bottom of the water and pierced our other boats. The head of the battalion asked us to come back and ask the general for help. Please hurry up Send a boat to pick it up."

Fang Ji was shocked and said: "You have already fought with Jingzhou soldiers? Ambushed among you?! How many Jingzhou soldiers are there?"

The soldier was afraid that Fang Ji would blame them and that Fang Ji would not send someone to rescue them, so he hurriedly said, "It's not that they were in an ambush, it's just that those war horses were afraid of the water for some reason and refused to board the boat. The reinforcements have arrived. There are not many soldiers in Jingzhou, only... about 100 people."

Fang Ji breathed a sigh of relief. 100 people, it sounds okay.

He also felt that it was strange that the war horse refused to board the boat, but he didn't have time to think about it now, he had to save people and grab the horse before more Jingzhou troops arrived.So he quickly ordered: "Speed ​​up the boat and save people!" After giving the order, he called the soldiers aside and asked them about the situation just now.

Not long after, the boat approached the horse farm.The sailors slowed down and looked around, but they did not see any ships of the Jingzhou Army around them.They looked at the shore again, and they saw the situation on the shore as described by the soldiers who reported the news. Many war horses were parked by the river, and a small group of Changsha army and Jingzhou army were fighting.The sailors hurriedly docked the warship towards the shore.

"Kill!!" Changsha soldiers rushed off the boat and ran ashore to rescue their companions.When the Jingzhou soldiers on the shore saw the reinforcements from the other side arriving, they turned around and withdrew without any reluctance to fight.

The Changsha soldiers naturally refused to let the enemy go, relying on their large numbers, they quickly chased after them.These days, because of Sun Xiang's orders, every time they see the enemy, they can only shrink their tails and run away, not to mention feeling aggrieved.Today is a rare chance to fight back, and this is a good opportunity to make meritorious service!At the moment, everyone is scrambling to rush upwards.

Standing on the bow of the boat, Fang Ji watched the Jingzhou soldiers fleeing in all directions while being chased by his own men, feeling elated.However, seeing that the crowd was chasing further and further away, and would soon turn over the hill, his heart suddenly tightened.

"Stop chasing! Get everyone back!" At the critical moment, Fang Ji woke up in time.This shore is the territory of the Jingzhou army. If they chase too far and their formation is scattered, they may fall into the enemy's trap, and those who run out will never come back.After all, their purpose today is to rob horses, not kill people.

So the orderer hurriedly rang the gong, and although the Changsha soldiers who heard the order were reluctant to part with it, they could only turn around and retreat.

……

not far away.

Huang Dongxuan sat cross-legged on the ground, his eyes were closed, but his ears were pricked up.When he heard the faint sound of the gong, he couldn't help but frowned.

Soon, the spies rushed to report: "General! They have withdrawn their troops and did not pursue them!"

"Tsk." Huang Dongxuan shook his head unhappily, "Who is leading the soldiers? How cautious?"

The spy said: "There is a general flag with the word 'square' on the boat."

"Oh?" Huang Dongxuan raised his eyebrows and jumped up from the ground, "Fang Ji came in person? Hehe, interesting."

……

the other end.

The Changsha army withdrew to the side of the ship. Because of the disturbance of the battle, the horses that had been driven to the shore fled away again, scattered all over the grassland.Fang Ji could give up chasing the enemy, but he couldn't give up these good horses. He hurriedly ordered: "Go and drive the horses to the boat!"

So the soldiers ran to catch the horse again.

The war horses have been frightened many times today, and even the docile horses have become irritable and run away as soon as they see anyone.The soldiers chased and blocked them like catching chickens, and managed to get some horses back to the river, but when they were about to drive the boats, the scene just happened again—no matter what the soldiers did, the strong horses would be able to move forward. I can't get on the boat with my neck stuck.Those who were forced to be bombarded up again would turn around and run down the boat as soon as they found a space.

For a while, the shore was filled with the neighing and screaming of horses and the scolding and scolding of soldiers, which made people's eardrums buzz.

After all, Fang Ji knew horses better than the soldiers. When he saw the resistance of the horses to the boat, he noticed something strange, and quickly pushed aside the crowd and ran off the boat.

He grabbed a horse that was retreating, quickly turned around the horse a few times, and soon found something.His face changed, he threw off the horse and ran to another horse, checked up and down for a while, and his face became even paler.

"Damn, there's something wrong with these horses!" Fang Ji stomped his feet anxiously, turned his head and ran towards the boat, yelling as he ran, "Stop pulling the horses! Get on the boat, get on the boat first!"

However, it was too noisy around, and no one heard his instructions, and people were still fighting with the Hummer.

Until Fang Ji ran back to the general ship, grabbed the skirt of his messenger, and shouted: "Bang the gong to call back the soldiers!! Let everyone get on the ship quickly!!"

The messenger was taken aback, and asked in confusion, "General, do you want these horses?"

Fang Ji said angrily: "These horses have been trained by Jingzhou soldiers! It's terrible!"

Just now he looked at a few horses and found that each horse had many wounds. These wounds were hidden in the mane, inside the legs and under the abdomen. It was difficult to find without careful inspection.Many of the wounds had already scabbed over, and this was obviously not caused by the Changsha army driving their horses today, so there is only one possibility - it was injured by the Jingzhou soldiers!

Why did Jingzhou soldiers injure themselves so many good horses?Why are war horses so afraid of ships?When the two are combined, there is an answer—the Jingzhou army must have given this horse special training, and as soon as the horse boards the ship, it will be severely beaten.The horse is a kind of spiritual animal, and it will have a long memory after suffering the same loss several times.That's why these horses are afraid of ships like snakes and scorpions, so they resist so hard!

Why did Jingzhou soldiers train horses in such a way?There is only one possibility - to use horses as bait to lure them into the trap.They've been tricked! !

Fang Ji didn't have time to explain so much, he yelled angrily, "Retreat!! Retreat!!!"

The messenger rushed to ring the gong, but it was already too late—on the broad river, two rows of majestic warships were approaching them from both sides, as if they were about to encircle them.No matter how you look at this posture, it is impossible to temporarily deploy troops, but it has been prepared for a long time.

Fang Ji's eyes darkened, and the last trace of luck in his heart was shattered.He shouted hoarsely: "Start the scout ship, go back and ask for help!" Looking at the number of the opponent's ships, he knew that his own strength would never be able to resist.The warship was big and heavy, and it was too late to break through. At this time, the light scout ship could only go back to ask for help.As for how Sun Xiang would feel after knowing this, Fang Ji had no time to think about it.

Several small scout boats rushed out from the river in a panic, and the soldiers on the boats used all their strength to row their oars, trying to get out before the encirclement circle of the Jingzhou army was formed.

On the boat of the building, Huang Dongxuan stood in front of the guard board and looked down at the two small wooden boats flying over. Instead of ordering to delete them quickly, he waved his hands leisurely: "Oh, drive slowly, I have to release some small fish and shrimps." Get out."

With the order, the big ship slowed down slightly, and the two scout boats slipped away.The huge warships of the Jingzhou Army joined forces unhurriedly and surrounded several warships of the Changsha Army.

At this moment, the Changsha soldiers finally realized that they had been tricked.Everyone was afraid and afraid, and the only hope was the scout ship that escaped.They were counting on the scout ship to bring back the rescuers as soon as possible, and someone would come to rescue them before they couldn't resist.

Only Fang Ji, looking at the scout ship fleeing away, felt more and more panic in his heart...