Chapter 58: The City of the Peel

After coming out of the side hall, Cao Yuanzhong said angrily to Yan Yishan: "Why are you holding me? I really want to beat him up!"

Yan Yishan said: "The Fourth Young Master, now is an extraordinary period, and everything is important!"

"Major matters are the most important thing, so should he let him blackmail it?"

Yan Yishan coughed, signaled Cao Yuanzhong to restrain himself, and said, "Fourth Young Master, let me talk with you." He pulled him aside and whispered, "Four Young Master, this time you come to Guazhou, are you going to make contributions or to mess up the matter?"

Cao Yuanzhong calmed down as if a basin of cold water was poured on his head, and said, "I don't want to do this either, but these hundred tents are really hateful! Our family has raised them for years, but now there is something wrong, but he wants to take advantage of the chaos to rob! I just want to rush to the city of Jinchang to fight Di Yin, but I didn't know that Liu Guangwu would create such a scene!"

Yan Yishan said: "But Guazhou's defense has a great influence, so we must try to get the support of the Hundred-Department Department. Even if it is not good, we must not push him to Di Yin."

"What should we do now? We really want to give them ten thousand stones of grain and grass? Where can we find so much grain and grass? If we want to search all Changle's military warehouse and civil warehouse for them - then what should we eat ourselves!"

"This matter is really difficult to deal with," Yan Yishan smiled in a very low voice: "But the fourth young master doesn't have to do it himself. Isn't there anyone in it who boasts about his wise and magical martial arts and wants to save the Han people and save Hexi? We might as well throw this mess to him. If he can solve it, we are happy to see it happen. If he can't solve it, it will not be too late to ask Ling Gong to come out and clean up the mess."

Cao Yuanzhong said: "This...this is not very good."

Yan Yishan said: "I actually don't believe that Di Yin is really willing to give Liu Guangwu 50,000 stones of grain and grass. If he really offers this price, can Liu Guangwu not get over? Now that Liu Guangwu has come over, it means that he and Di Yin are in a bad agreement. But just now, Liu Guangxin has killed him and asked for 10,000 stones of grain and grass. It is not good whether we agree to this matter or not. But if the Zhang surnamed Zhang deals with it, if he agrees, he will let him pay the money and grain. If he does not agree to make the matter a mess, then he will mess up the matter! When Ling Gong comes back, there will be a buffer between us and Liu Guangwu. This is the best choice for Guiyi Army, Ling Gong, and those who do things."

Cao Yuanzhong hesitated, and finally said, "Okay." He returned to the hall. Zhang Mai was still waiting for him. When he saw this, he asked what happened. When he mentioned this, Cao Yuanzhong couldn't help but be angry and said, "These Hu slaves! These Hu slaves! They were trying to blackmail us at this moment and negotiate terms with us!"

Sun Chao hurriedly asked: "What conditions should I discuss?"

Cao Yuanzhong said: "It was an envoy sent by Liu Guangwu. He was sarcastic when he came up. He said that the tribe was suffering from disaster and the tribe was almost starved to death. He asked us to escort them 10,000 stones of food and grass in one breath!"

Sun Chao widened his eyes and said angrily: "Ten thousand stones of grain and grass? Do we really think that the grain and grass of our Han people were transformed by some gold art?" Although the Hu tribe asked Guiyi Army for food and grass, the wool came from the sheep, and the money and grain were finally squeezed from the Han farmers in the Samugu states. Although Sun Chao had doubts about Cao's argument for gold, he couldn't help but feel a sense of hatred for the enemy when he heard about the Hu people extorting Han people.

Cao Yuanzhong said: "Not only that, they also said that Di Yin told them that as long as they defected, Di Yin would give them 50,000 stones of grain and grass. The people of the Hundred Treasures wanted to agree. Just because Liu Guangwu missed my father's kindness, he pushed down his tribe members with all his might, but he asked us to send 10,000 stones of grain and grass to solve the current crisis for him."

Zhang Mai asked, "Did the fourth young master agree to him?"

"Of course not!" Cao Yuanzhong said: "I almost got angry at that time. If Brother Murong Teng hadn't held me down, he would have almost beaten him."

Zhang Mai said: "It sounds like the hundred tents are really hateful, but it is still unsuccessful to kill the envoy."

Yan Yishan said, "The fourth young master finally held back and said that this matter was of great importance and he wanted to ask his father and brother for instructions." He said, "Major Protector, what if you see this matter?"

Zhang Mai said: "What do you think you should do?"

All the generals were very angry when they heard this, but they thought that this fact was a dilemma. They had to send food and grass to the Hundred Treasures. There was a shortage of food and grass in Changle City, so why would they send it to them? They were worried that they would really push the Hundred Treasures to Di Yin.

At this time, the flag bearers representing the four prefectures of He, Lan, Kuo and Shan were also there, and they discussed it one after another, and some said, "Or why don't we just raise some money and food and send it to them."

Some said, "How can that be done! Didn't you obey the other party's blackmail but you obeyed? How can you bear it? And I heard that the city is not full of food and grass."

"But if you don't send it to them, and if the Hundred Treasures follow Di Yin, wouldn't Di Yin be like a tiger?"

"Yes, yes, you must know that the Baiguan tribe is a tribe in Guazhou and is familiar with the geography of this state. If we follow Di Yin, then our virtuality and reality will be revealed."

"But if we send it to them, we can't guarantee that they won't vote for Di Yin."

Seeing that these people were unconvincing, Sun Chao, Cao Yuanzhong, and Murong Teng were also quite troubled. Yang Yi thought to himself: "He Langushan's flag bearer is not worth laughing at, but Sun, Cao, and Murong are not handsome. Changle's army is chaotic, and the city is not very strong. There are many people waiting to be fed. If I am Di Yin, as long as I am the right time and send 10,000 troops outside the city, I don't have to attack the city, and I will be in chaos in the city. Di Yin keeps Changle with it, but it is really a vilifying intention!"

After looking at Zhang Mai, Zhang Mai seemed to understand what he meant and asked Murong Teng: "What is Liu Guangwu's character and status in the clan?"

Murong Teng snorted: "Liu Guangwu is the most greedy in the entire Hundred-Ten Division, but his Liu family has been in charge of the Hundred-Ten Division for three generations and is very authoritative. The heads of the six tribes are either his in-laws or his confidants, so no one dares not to listen to him. The Protector, look at this matter, why don't we send a document to ask Cao Linggong."

Yan Yishan said: "Then there is no time!"

Cao Yuanzhong said: "A Di Yin is already in trouble, but the Hundred Accounts Department has caused this incident again. What's wrong with this?"

Zhang Mai looked around the people in the hall and said, "Everyone should be calm." After quieting down, Zhang Mai said, "This matter is not that complicated. At first glance, although it looks like a mess, there are only three knots, just open them one by one. These three knots: the first is how to break through Di Yin's encirclement and rush to the city to report the news, the second is how to deal with the Hundred Accounts, and the third is to defend Changle City. Judging from the current situation, these three things are probably going to be carried out at the same time. Fourth Master, General Murong, I think we have the lead in doing things."

Murong Teng said: "I will keep Changle."

Cao Yuanzhong snorted and said, "If I were asked to choose, I would rather lead a thousand people to break through Di Yin to Jinchang to report the news, than to deal with the traitor Liu Guangwu again."

"Since that's the case, I'll leave the matter to the Hundred Accounts." Zhang Mai said: "I can't deal with Hu Er. I believe Liu Guangwu will not be the first one!"

Yan Yishan suddenly interrupted and said, "Major Protector, don't blame Xiao for being rude. These hundred tents are strong clans of Guazhou. Guazhou has a lot of defense. When the Major Protector is in action, please do not use too fierce means to avoid forcing them to Di Yin's side."

Zhang Mai glanced at him and said, "What kind of result does Yan Sima hope to get?"

Yan Yishan said: "Of course it is to let the Hundred Treasures recover 10,000 stones of grain from the 100-square-of-large, but at the same time, they promise to fight the enemy side by side with us."

Everyone felt that Yan Yishan was embarrassed when they heard this, but Zhang Mai said, "Okay, since it was your advice, Zhang Mai would do his best to do this."

Everyone was shocked, and Sun Chao frowned even more. He couldn't think of any way Zhang Mai could do this.

After the meeting ended, Sun Chao came to Zhang Mai and said, "Major Protector, how do you plan to conquer the Hundred Accounts?"

Zhang Mai said: "In accordance with the laws and traditions of the Tang Dynasty, he was conquered."

Sun Chao thought he was unwilling to tell the truth, but he didn't ask again, but said, "But now we have fewer troops, but the Protectorate still has to be divided into three groups. Wouldn't that be more deteriorating?"

Zhang Mai smiled and said, "This Changle is a trap arranged by Di Yin. If we gather here, we will be waiting for death."

Sun Chao was shocked and said, "What do you mean?"

Zhang Mai said: "Now there are three troops in the city. Our Anxi Army is one side, Murong Teng's garrison army is one side, Cao Yuanzhong is one side, and the three troops are less than 6,000. And it can be said that they are a mob. What can the effect of gathering in this panic Pingcheng? It would be better if I could move freely when I pulled myself away. This is the first."

Sun Chao nodded and said, "That's right."

Zhang Mai continued: "Di Yin has sent so many people in to eat our food. If the troops are in the face of the terrorists, these people will not only not be able to help, but will only cause chaos. The situation will be difficult to control at that time. How can we fight? This is the second.

"The refugees don't know how many spies and how many ears they have been involved in. We have to find them out. If we don't find them, Di Yin may have seen every move. This is the third one. So I think staying in Changle is not very effective. If Di Yin uses this momentum to defeat Changle, he can win the reputation of defeating the seven coalition forces in the northwest afterwards. If the soldiers and civilians of Jinchang heard that Jinchang City was broken and reinforcements were annihilated, they were afraid that the courage they had originally had to defend the city would be scared to death."

Sun Chao said: "What should I do if the Protector is going to do?"

Zhang Mai said: "If we stay in Changle, we are afraid that Di Yin will see all actions clearly. We don't know what he wants to do. The situation is the enemy's darkness and we are clear. We have to turn this situation around first, and we have a chance of winning next."

Sun Chao was deeply impressed by Zhang Mai's analysis, so he asked Zhang Mai how he needed to cooperate. Zhang Mai said: "I want to play an invisibility technique. During this period, Sun Linggong helped me maintain the situation on Changle."

After saying goodbye to Sun Chao, Zhang Mai invited Cao Yuanzhong and asked him how he would break through Di Yin's interception. Cao Yuanzhong said: "I have sent someone to investigate. There are people guarding several shallows, so it is not easy to get over, so I want to go around the upstream and secretly cross the river with a bamboo raft."

Zhang Mai disagreed: "I'm afraid Di Yin will expect this move. He can understand your actions by just a few sentry detectives upstream. It will take a lot of time to build a raft and cross the river. He has time to ambush. What if you get caught in ambush after you pass by? "

Cao Yuanzhong said: "Then you have to break through."

“That’s not right.”

"Does the Great Protector have any plans?"

Zhang Mai smiled and said, "I have a solution, but I just want the fourth young master to cooperate with me."

"Please speak with the Protector."

Zhang Mai said: "Let's cover each other before Di Yin has taken action. You will first launch a back attack to attract Di Yin. But I left quietly, went around the dark and gave Di Yin a ruthless move. After the Uighurs in Ganzhou were attracted by me, you suddenly launched an attack. At that time, you will definitely be able to break into the city of Jinchang."

Cao Yuanzhong was shocked and said, "Why do the Protector want to sneak attack Di Yin's camp?"

Zhang Mai smiled and said, "I still have to think about how to do it, but this is the basic strategy. If we cooperate with each other, we will definitely be able to make Di Yin frustrated before Cao Linggong arrives."

Cao Yuanzhong said: "Okay! That's it! But we are in two places, how can we cooperate at the opportunity?"

Zhang Mai said: "It's not difficult. I will pass back the opportunity to advance." After Zhang Mai left, Yan Yishan flashed out from behind the tent and said: "Fourth Young Master, do you really want to cooperate with Zhang Mai?"

Cao Yuanzhong said: "He cooperates with me, I cooperate with him. This should have been the case."

Yan Yishan said: "I'm just afraid that he is using some trick."

Cao Yuanzhong said, "Can he still cheat me? I believe he is not such a person."

Yan Yishan said: "I don't think he dares to cheat the fourth young master, but I always think he has ulterior motives."

On the second day, Cao Yuanzhong was about to attack, but Zhang Mai asked him to wait. On the third day, several fire spirit cavalry sent by Guo Zhang had returned. It turned out that Murong Guiying had hidden five hidden warehouses in Guazhou, each with at least two or three thousand stones of grain. The manuscript he gave Zhang Mai also mentioned the location of these hidden warehouses. Zhang Mai sent people to confirm whether these hidden warehouses exist. After learning from the detective cavalry, Yang Yi was happy and surprised and said, "Old Murong is really amazing. I am afraid that Cao Yijin may not know about the things he hid. But thinking about it, he has been in charge of military and political affairs in Guazhou for more than ten years and has hidden 10,000 or 20,000 stones of grain and grass. But why did such a good person give us all his old capital?"

Zhang Mai smiled and said, "Of course he gave it to us will not be without purpose, but the Murong family has been in Guazhou for more than ten years, so these may not be all his old capitals."

Even after telling Cao Yuanzhong the time was up, Wei Fei asked Cao Yuanzhong to say to him: "The Great Protector asked his subordinates to tell the fourth son: There may be Di Yin's spies in Changle City, and our actions may be noticed by the enemy, so please be careful."

On the second day, Cao Yuanzhong indeed left the city and rushed violently towards Jinchang. As a result, before breaking through the shallows, the Uighur cavalry in Ganzhou opposite came surrounded. Cao Yuanzhong was relatively unfamiliar with government affairs, but he had led troops several times to quell the rebellion of Shagua and harassment from foreign races. He was quite surprised by the military and thought: "This group of people is like waiting for me here."

Fortunately, Cao Yuanzhong had the idea of ​​retreating immediately after he was unable to win. He did not force a breakthrough, so he did not fall into it. He left with a flick of his shot. But looking at the soldiers chasing him, he thought to himself: "Di Yin seemed to be very clear about our army's every move. Could it be that what Zhang Dadu said is true? There are really spies in Changle City? You have to torture them carefully when you go back!"

When he returned to Changle, Zhang Mai was gone. When Changle's army and civilians saw Cao Yuanzhong's failure and Zhang Mai disappeared, they were even more panicked. Cao Yuanzhong asked Murong Teng when Zhang Mai left. Murong Teng said: "As soon as the fourth young master left, the escort drove out from the west gate. Three thousand people left the city together. They disappeared shortly after leaving. I asked him where he was going. He said he wanted to conquer the hundred tents and asked me to tell the fourth young master to remember his agreement with the fourth young master - the fourth young master, what did you agree with Zhang Dadu Protector?"

Cao Yuanzhong did not answer and said, "So he really wants to go north."
Chapter completed!