Delong

Chapter 539: Anchehang (8)

After autumn.

The original meaning is after the autumnal equinox, which is a simple word about a time node.

However, in an agricultural society, autumn means too many things... because the autumnal equinox also means the end of autumn harvest, so only after autumn can we have sufficient food, sufficient livestock, sufficient laborers, and avoid the scorching heat... even after autumn, the flow of unnamed rivers will gradually slow down to facilitate passing, and the big rivers after autumn are still large enough to serve as transportation arteries.

Execution will be carried out in the autumn, accounts will be settled in the autumn, and war will begin in the autumn!
And counting from the summer when the Three Expeditions were defeated, the Wei Dynasty disintegrated, and many heroes emerged, it has now passed the sixth year and entered the seventh year... Or to use another calculation method, counting from the year when the Jiangdu military mutinied, the Qulong Gang suppressed Hebei, Sima Zheng returned to the Eastern Capital, and Bai Hengqiu entered Guanzhong from the west, it has also been three years.

There is no room for these three families, those that should be annexed have been annexed, those that should be purged have been purged, those that should establish a country have established a country, those that should be crowned emperors have become emperors, those that should be marshals have become marshals, and those that should set up executive offices have set up executive offices. Even the non-war agreement between Dongdu and the Chulong Gang only has a few months left.

Then, no matter how much you calculate or how much you play, it is unimaginable if you don't resort to heavy force.

"Life is nothing more than sailing across the sea to reach the waves of Dongting Lake."

Bai Yousi, dressed in plain brocade clothes, walked to the wooden door of the Zhenhuo Temple on the famous island in the lake of the Zhenhuo Sect. He suddenly stopped, held the long sword at his waist and looked at the vast sea of ​​smoke on the side.

"Manager Bai said it well." Although Du Pozhen didn't study much when he was young and always presented himself as a rough man, even Dou Lide had improved so much in just a few years. Du, who had been the leader of the alliance for nearly ten years, was certainly not the sheep thief in Dengzhou in the past. Naturally, he knew some customs and understood some words. "This Dongting Lake is the largest lake I have ever seen. It can even generate waves. Except for the sea, there is no place comparable to it."

There were many people accompanying him, including officials from the surrounding areas, the leaders of the Hunan rebels who had just surrendered but had not yet left, and the subordinates of the coalition forces. How could there be a lack of people to join in the fun? However, according to their status, one of the people at the top was Lin Shiyang, and Lin Shiyang would always confront Du Pozhen, not even caring about Bai Yousi's face. So when everyone heard Du and Bai talking about the scenery, their first reaction was to wait for Lin Shiyang to make fun of them.

Sure enough, Lin Shiyang sneered: "Does Alliance Leader Du also know how big the lake and the sea are?"

"Since Du Longtou climbed up the Huai River and entered the lake from the Huai River, his life can be described as a heroic spirit of lakes and seas. How could he not realize the vastness of lakes and seas?" Bai Yousi seemed to be annoyed by Lin Shiyang's attitude and directly refuted and even scolded him.

Lin Shiyang also knew that too much is as bad as too little, so he just sneered with his hands behind his back.

Bai Yousi still stood in front of the wooden door, looking at the lake and sighing, "As for me, I have been in the Western Capital since I can remember. Then I went to Taibai Peak to learn skills when I was young, and went to the Eastern Capital to become an official when I was young. I have been traveling between the Wei court and the Guanlong nobles. Although I have seen many people, I did not know how big the world is. It was not until these years that I traveled to the two seas in the east, Tianchi in the north, and Dongting in the south, that I have gained some knowledge."

"No matter what, Manager Bai knows both the court and the plants. He is much better than us common people who only know about the spirits of lakes and seas." Du Pozhen would of course take the gift back.

"I know more than just plants and trees. When I went to Dongyi that day, I also learned another thing." Bai Yousi said slowly. "Du Longtou, do you know? Someone told me at that time that I was just a daughter of a young girl adopted by my father, the Great British Emperor, and that I actually had another life story."

Almost everyone around was stunned, and many people instinctively thought that it was no wonder that the father and daughter were so estranged that they were now fighting each other with swords... But on second thought, that didn't make sense, because according to what White Snake said, she only knew about this when she went to Dongyi, and before that she was already a member of the Chulong Gang.

So, was it Bai Hengqiu who took the initiative to exclude this overly powerful but non-biological daughter from the very beginning?
How can this old man, who is so petty, still be the emperor?
That's right, astonishment, confusion, doubt, and finally puzzlement.

Just when they were in such a state of confusion, more information came that made them panic.

"They said that my father followed Yang Bin to attack Chen, and after defeating the enemy in Baling City, he found me on a pile of firewood that was about to be lit in the True Fire Temple in the lake, and brought me home to raise me." Bai Yousi narrated calmly, as if he was talking about someone else's affairs. "They also said that the Red Emperor looked after me and saved a place for me on the Monster Island. She wanted me to go to the Monster Island to be the leader, away from the troubles in the Central Plains... but I didn't agree."

It was a clear and crisp autumn day, with a gentle breeze and surging waves on Dongting Lake, but the air near the wooden door seemed to be frozen.

To the smart people present, it was obvious that there was a back-and-forth oscillation from “this is bullshit” to “she has no reason to be bullshitting.”

Because there is really no need!

Is it worth it given the ugly appearance of the Hunan princes?
Moreover, you are talking about the arrangements of the Queen Red Emperor in front of the gate of the Zhenhuo Temple. Aren't you afraid of being envied?

So... is it true?

Su Che was still confused. Another surrendered general, Xu Xuan, suddenly thought of something and looked excited. "It's like this. Brother Zhang once said that the commander of Baling was both a general of the Southern Chen Dynasty and a direct descendant of our True Fire Sect. He was almost considered the next leader. So Yang Bin crossed the river and Hunan went all out to help Baling. In the end, they were defeated. The best of Hunan's children were all killed. The commander had placed his wife and newborn daughter here, saying that if they were defeated, they would set themselves on fire. As a result, they died, but there was no fire. Afterwards, the sect made peace with the violent Wei, so Hunan became alienated from them... I remember that the general's surname was Lu..."

"It doesn't matter what your last name is." Bai Yousi stopped him. "I've been here for a few days and have already investigated everything... And if I don't admit this matter, it seems that my personal situation will be better. But now that I've come to this place, it would be ridiculous if I didn't tell the truth... I'm only telling it because it's true."

Everyone was in awe, and although the surrendered generals from Hunan had their mouths sealed, they couldn't help but wink at each other... They were defeated generals to begin with, so what if they could find this road directly?

It is certainly feasible to transport the surrendered people from Baling to Huaixi, but what if they could stay in Hunan to assist this person?

Lin Shiyang did not find it too difficult to accept - after all, although the surrendered people from Hunan were the targets of his plan, according to his thinking, it would not be his turn to eat the surrendered people and generals around Dongting Lake. What he wanted to eat were the forces upstream of the Xiang River.

That's right, even he, after thinking it over, felt that Bai Yousi was telling the truth and was not deliberately trying to snatch the three taels of meat from his mouth.

Bai Yousi didn't care what these people were thinking. He turned around and walked into the wooden door. Then he came to the huge brazier in front of him, clapped his hands, then put his palms together and prayed loudly: "Your Majesty, since the Tang Dynasty moved south, the world has been in chaos for hundreds of years. The tyrannical Wei Dynasty was immoral and could not maintain the great cause, so now it is in chaos again. Today I return to the place where I was born and see the True Fire blazing. I only hope that the world will be unified again and that peace will come soon, so that the people will not suffer and women and children will not be forced to beg for a living. I hope that in the future when the world is at peace, swords will be used as plowshares, True Qi will be used to build dams, and everyone will become a dragon."

After saying this, he did not cut any corners or sleeves of his clothes. He just took out a small bag that he had prepared before from his waist and poured some of the new grain he had harvested this year into the brazier.

When a raging fire receives food, it makes a popping sound at first, and then there is a slight burst of flames. This is all normal. But then, once the burst of flames starts, it won't stop, and the popping sound becomes more and more frequent, as if what was thrown in was not just a handful of food, but an endless supply of food.

What happened next was not beyond everyone's expectations - the flames grew larger and larger, until a majestic phoenix formed in the sky above the island, and then soared into the sky, straight into the clouds.

Obviously, the true fire of the Red Emperor once again gave a clear response to the sacrifice of Lady Bai, but some people remembered Bai Yousi’s previous self-description and guessed that this might be a vision that the master had created for himself... But if someone did this and the Supreme was not angry, wouldn’t it mean that the Supreme also recognized it?

Just like that, everyone followed Marshal Bai into the temple with mixed feelings.

The two reasons for coming here are, firstly, to offer sacrifices, and secondly, to discuss how to deal with the people who surrendered to Dongting Lake and their families… The sacrifices are empty, the latter is the key.

However, Marshal Bai revealed her background before entering the temple, which inevitably made people feel that she was determined to win.

In fact, he was indeed determined to win. Lin Shiyang's opposition seemed very tough, but his selfish motive was not here, not to mention that he himself had a secret agreement with the Chulong Gang. On the contrary, the opinions on the direction of Yangzhou brought by Xiao Shuo played a promoting role on Bai Yousi's side - Xiao Hui explicitly refused the migration of Hunan princes to Huaixi. If this was really the case, the meat would be taken out. At this point, the Hunan rebels would either surrender or die.

In other words, compared with the previous plan, Xiao Hui was more willing to accept Bai Yousi's plan to reorganize the Hunan rebels on the spot and then resist Britain.

Of course, this was Xiao Hui's reaction after he received the relevant handling results of Baling. Whether he would still have this reaction if he knew Bai Yousi's life experience is another matter... But if it really comes to another matter, this matter is not something that Xiao Hui can decide whether he is willing or not.

After some discussion, with the active cooperation of the surrendered Hunan rebels, an agreement was finally reached that Su Che and the Baling defenders would not return, and their families would be sent to Huaixi; while the surrendered soldiers from Dongting Lake headed by Xu Xuan and their families would be settled on the spot and accepted reorganization.

Of course, Bai Yousi also made some kind of expression, expressing his willingness to unify these surrendered people into one army with Xiao Shuo as the president.

It was roughly agreed that day that it was already the second half of the afternoon and it was not convenient for everyone to take the ferry back in the dark. Moreover, this place was a famous place in Dongting Lake. Marshal Bai ordered that the surrendered people be dealt with on the island, and they were sent in batches for reorganization and treatment before being transported to the shore.

Everyone suddenly realized what was going on and settled down with peace of mind.

At dusk, the first batch of surrendered people arrived, along with messengers, documents, food, money and silk from the city of Baling which could be vaguely seen in the distance, and even craftsmen who had gone to the nearest island to repair their equipment.

Not to mention the chaos, at night, Fu Bo Shi, the deputy leader of the Huaiyou League, the leader of the Chulong Gang, and Du Pozhen's sworn brother, who was escorting the first batch of surrenders, came to find Du Pozhen.

"It's true." Under the light, Du Pozhen certainly knew what the other party was going to ask, so he took advantage of the noise outside to explain what happened during the day.

Fu Boshi was silent for a moment, and couldn't help but ask: "She is throwing out her life story at this time, is it to win the hearts of the surrendered people in Hunan?"

"Of course he did, but if you ask me, I just went with the flow. He had to deal with his background when he got here, so he might as well wait until he had fought this battle and established his authority, and then show some favor and win him over before he spoke out." Du Pozhen said seriously. "After all, he is the number one Grandmaster, the chief and leader of the Jing'an Division of the Chulong Gang, so his background is just like that."

Fu Boshi thought for a moment and continued to ask seriously: "She planned this because she must have thought that the army would be mobilized in the autumn and the people of Daying would come down the river to meet her. If that's the case, what do you think?"

"What do you think, old assistant?" Du Pozhen hesitated.

"Now there are only two ways. One is to go upstream of the Xiang River, and the other is to stay in Dongting Lake... I think we should stay here." Fu Bo Shi was as straightforward as ever.

"why?"

"If we go to Xiangshui, our people will not be able to adapt to the local climate, the language, or the customs. The navy will be useless, and we will have to fight with the locals, and there will be no room for maneuver... It's disadvantageous everywhere. On the contrary, if we stay here and help Manager Bai deal with the British, we will have meritorious deeds and a way out for our brothers in the future." Fu Boshi tried to persuade. "Old Du, don't go around anymore. The Chulong Gang has always left room for us, and we should be aware of this."

"What are you thinking, old assistant?" Du Pozhen laughed dryly. "How can we go to Xiangshui? You are right, we can only stay in Dongting Lake! If you don't fight, show your ability, and make achievements, everyone will look down on you."

Fu Boshi breathed a sigh of relief and said seriously, "Since this is the case, please write a few letters to appease the troops."

"Has the morale of the army been shaken?" Du Pozhen was suddenly shocked.

"Why do you think we won't waver?" Fu Boshi was furious. "Since we went south, we didn't waver because Chief Bai was here and because the Xuzhou Xingtai came with him. They thought we were following the Chulong Gang, the Ming Dynasty, and forming an alliance with the Southern Liang to fight against the British... Old Du, let me say something unpleasant. If we had followed your advice and headed south from the beginning, our Huaiyou League would have split in Huainan!"

Du Pozhen was silent for a moment, then slowly said, "Even so, there are still people who follow me."

"It's because someone will follow you that they split up!" Fu Boshi gritted his teeth, glared, and lowered his voice. "Old Du, without the Huaiyou League, and only your 10,000 loyal soldiers, the Chulong Gang will just treat you as a bandit!"

Du Pozhen paused for a moment, then suddenly asked back: "How do you want me to comfort you?"

"We need to appease both the old officials whose families live in Huaishang and the adopted sons' army. Please write a few letters..." Fu Bo Shi said earnestly.

Du Pozhen nodded: "You are right. We must hold on to the Huaiyou League at all costs. I will write it now. You..."

He stopped talking halfway and asked seriously, "Old Assistant, do you think that Manager Bai put me on this island for some reason?"

Fu Boshi hesitated for a moment, then frowned and asked, "Are you saying that she wants to put you under house arrest and then do something to you?"

"Not really." Du Pozhen shook his head immediately. "I'm not the only one on the island. The best thing to do now is to subdue the rebels around Dongting Lake. Even if they detain me, they are probably preventing me from taking advantage of the opportunity to seize some soldiers and occupy some places. We can't cause trouble at this time... I'm writing a letter now, you take it out to Kan Leng, Lao Yue and others, and tell them to behave themselves."

Fu Bo Shi nodded repeatedly, and Du Pozhen spread out paper and pen under the lamp, and asked Fu Bo Shi some questions while writing. In the meantime, Fu Bo Shi also pointed and criticized, asking Du Pozhen to make the changes more tactful here and more severe there.

After tossing and turning all night, the two slept in the same bed. The next day, they went to see Bai Yousi together to talk about military affairs. Then they inevitably quarreled with Lin Shiyang. However, the island was really busy. Fu Bo Shi stayed until the afternoon and wanted to leave too. Du Pozhen naturally went to see him off.

Before leaving, Fu Boshi couldn't help himself and held the other's hand and said earnestly: "Old Du, I still say the same thing, the Huaiyou League is our foundation. We must maintain the entire Huaiyou League no matter how difficult it is, so that you, I and all the brothers can have a result."

Du Pozhen agreed with him and just held his hand to see him off.

After the people left, they were busy all day. On the next morning, as another fleet came from Baling City, Bai Yousi immediately summoned Du Pozhen alone.

"Du Longtou, the chief has a directive from the Grand Secretariat for you. Let me lend you this." Bai Yousi handed the document to the other party first, and then took out an object from his waist, which was the compass, and then explained it briefly. "This object is as magical as Wang Huaiji's magic mirror and my master's divination stick... If you have doubts in your heart, hold this object and chant a spell, and it will point to what you want... If you are hesitant, this object can help you break the situation, but be careful, once you use this object, you will be killed, and you can't get through it without great perseverance and determination."

Du Pozhen was stunned for a moment.

After all, he and Zhang Xing have known each other for six or seven years, and he is also a non-staff high-ranking official in the Chulong Gang, so he naturally knows about this compass... But what does it mean to let him use this thing?
Soon, the leader of the Huaiyou League guessed a possibility, that is, the other party was tired of him.

The chief was tired of the Huaiyou League's repeated separation from the Chulong Gang and its continued connection with it, and was tired of his own state of being unable to let go of his "ambition" but being so distant... Now he had to give him a satisfactory answer himself.

Du Pozhen took another look. The letter was real. It was written by Zhang Xing himself and was co-signed by Chen Bin, the clerical manager of the Daxingtai, and Xiong Bonan, the gang affairs manager. The compass should not be fake either, because Bai Yousi had brought it with him when he went south this time, and Du Pozhen had seen it twice... This time, Alliance Leader Du was really afraid. He was afraid of Zhang Xing and the Chulong Gang's current attitude, and he was also afraid of his own true thoughts.

After a long while, seeing that the other party did not take the compass at all, Bai Yousi put the compass down on the table in front of him, then stood up and walked around behind the other party and said, "Actually, I don't want to use this thing for no reason. It's just that the future is chaotic. Why should we risk our lives? It's not that it is useless. It's really the most powerful treasure in the world when there is no place to stand and no hope of survival. But in my opinion, Sanlang and the Grand Chancellor are too anxious. It doesn't have to come to this."

Du Pozhen breathed a sigh of relief. No matter what, Bai Yousi, who was the direct link between him and the Huaiyou League and the Chulong Gang, had a gentle attitude. This seemed to be the only way out of this predicament.

Thinking of this, he suppressed his uneasiness and stood up to speak: "Boss Bai, I know that the Grand Chancellor suspects the Huai You League... But since you are here in person, you should know that we, the Huai You League, are dedicated and have not shown any signs of disloyalty. Why do you suspect us? Is the Chulong Gang so tyrannical that it cannot tolerate others?"

As I talked about it later, I felt a little indignant.

Bai Yousi, who was behind the other party, was not in a hurry: "Leader Du is overthinking... When has the Grand Chancellor ever doubted the Huaiyou League? It's just that Sanlang suspected you, Du Pozhen."

Du Pozhen suddenly paused, then laughed dryly: "Chief Zhang and I are friends from humble beginnings, and he even helped me to establish the Huai You League, so how could he doubt me?"

"That means the Grand Secretariat suspects you." Bai Yousi immediately laughed. "What else?"

Du Pozhen was finally speechless, and could only smile bitterly and spread his hands: "So, what can I do?"

"The compass is just an attitude." Bai Yousi said seriously. "Master Du, the Grand Secretariat is actually just asking for your attitude... If you ask me, how about you go to Yecheng? Just say that you went there with the compass."

"If you look at the compass, it will definitely not point to Yecheng." Du Pozhen knew that the critical moment had come, and he could not help but sigh in response. "Boss Bai, I will not hide it from you. The reason why I seem to be so detached from the Chulong Gang is that I can't let go of the Huaiyou League. I was a useless person in the first half of my life. Later, I achieved some results. My honor, disgrace, life and death, and the experiences of my relatives and friends are all in the Huaiyou League. The Huaiyou League has its own experiences. After all, it is not a branch of the Chulong Gang... So I don't need any compass, and I know that this direction is here, because the Huaiyou League is here."

Bai Yousi thought for a moment and shook his head again: "Even if what you said makes sense, the Grand Secretariat has already conveyed its intention. You have to make a gesture. What's the point of just going there?"

"Boss Bai, I'm not trying to refuse, nor am I exaggerating. I'm just saying that now it's not just me who can't leave the Huai You League, the Huai You League can't leave me either... We've just arrived in Jiangnan, and people are uneasy. If I go to Yecheng, I'm afraid it will cause misunderstandings." Du Pozhen quickly explained. "This is not a threat. I know Boss Bai is very capable and can suppress them, but once people's hearts are divided, it will be difficult to control them... Why do you have to do something that will make your loved ones sad and your enemies happy?"

"You've said all the good and bad things." Bai Yousi shook his head and turned back to sit down again, asking face to face. "But Alliance Leader Du, I just want to ask you, you are so stubborn and seem invulnerable, but can you really deal with the Grand Secretariat? Why should the Grand Secretariat believe you instead of thinking that you are holding the Huai Right Alliance hostage?"

Du Pozhen responded carefully: "No matter what, Manager Bai always understands my intentions."

"We both know it's meaningless." Bai Yousi shook his head again and again. "Now that the war is imminent, there is no room in the world for you, the various forces, to establish yourselves. If the leaders of the Grand Secretariat believe that you are half-hearted and are only trying to eliminate the danger, Sanlang will probably follow the trend and act with lightning speed... You have to do something practical."

"Or, let the old assistant go and explain my meaning clearly." Du Pozhen became more cautious.

"I don't think so." Bai Yousi's smile faded. "Old Du, the Grand Administrator is worried about you, not the Assistant Chief."

Du Pozhen's heart sank completely... There was nothing he could do. Yecheng suddenly launched an attack, and he was really caught off guard. It was not that he had no means and room to resist, but that would cause trouble in the Huaiyou League. They were all in the hinterland of others, with wolves in front and tigers behind. If there was a riot, it would be easy to deal with it. But now he was trapped on the island, alone, and even had to go through others to send messages. How could he deal with it?
In fact, Grand Alliance Leader Du has already suspected that going to the island and boarding the ship with the Grandmaster's presence was a pre-planned measure made by the other party to deal with him today, and that incorporating the Dongting Lake rebels was just a side job.

If that's the case, I'm afraid I won't be able to escape.

However, Du Pozhen had risen from a sheep thief to a standard local lord. How could he be frightened by the predicament? He thought for a moment and then made a decision: "If even Chief Bai thinks that I am indecisive, just tie me up, break my legs, and send me to Yecheng... I will never say no!"

Bai Yousi responded coldly: "Do you think I don't dare?"

Du Pozhen was shocked and instinctively wanted to give in, but he gritted his teeth and held on: "People are the planks and I am the fish. Shouldn't the fish be allowed to struggle a bit?"

Bai Yousi stared at him for a while, then suddenly laughed: "I am just a temporary leader, not yet officially appointed. How can I break the legs of a formal leader like you? But Alliance Leader Du, don't think you can just get away with it... How about this, let the deputy leader go with two thousand soldiers, and then ask the leader Li Zida to come back with his battalion of soldiers, so that the Grand Chancellor may be able to sense your sincerity."

Du Pozhen was stunned and immediately realized that this was like cutting meat with a blunt knife. The Adopted Sons' Army was his last and most fundamental reliance. Not to mention the coming and going, the more crucial thing was that once these one-fifth of the Adopted Sons' Army changed their minds like Wang Xiongdan in the north, they could be released back to hold back the entire Adopted Sons' Army.

By then, I'm afraid I really won't be able to move the Huaiyou League.

"Why do we need the adopted son army..." Du Pozhen retorted instinctively.

"This is the final condition." Bai Yousi said solemnly. "When the Yizi Army sets out and reaches Huaixi, you will leave the island... Otherwise, you will go to Yecheng. If you are determined not to go to Yecheng, the Chulong Gang will officially announce to the world that your status as leader will be abolished, and you will be expelled from the gang. At the same time, I will be appointed to concurrently lead the Huaiyou League."

Du Pozhen was silent for a long time, then nodded slowly: "Let's do it this way! But if I don't leave the island, how can I convince the Yizi Army?"

"I don't believe you don't have a token or mark to contact the Yizi Army." Bai Yousi's tone became even colder. "Du Longtou, don't play tricks at this point... The Grand Secretariat is not in a sudden whim to not accommodate you, but the overall situation is urgent and they have to remove obstacles one by one. Don't make yourself an obstacle."

Du Pozhen sighed and finally took out something from his waist.

Bai Yousi was stunned for a rare moment: "You also have this thing?"

"They should all be from the Chen family in Huaiyou." Du Pozhen stroked the golden awl in his hand and said seriously. "Although there are more than 20 in total, they are all different. I know that Chief Zhang, Chief Manager Bai, and Brother Qin all have them... so I paid attention and found one in Huaiyou."

"Then write the letter, write it now." Bai Yousi nodded and stopped caring. "Then send out the golden cone together, we will send it in person."

Du Pozhen had no choice but to agree. He wrote a detailed letter on Bai Yousi's desk on the spot, instructing Kan Leng to select two thousand people. Then he thought about it and found a reliable guard under his command. In front of Bai Yousi, he handed the golden cone and the letter to the other party and asked him to pass it on to Kan Leng.

The matter seemed to be over.

Three days later, Fu Bo Shi appeared in Huarong, an important town north of Dongting Lake, where the commander of the Adopted Sons' Army, Kan Leng, and a part of the Adopted Sons' Army were stationed.

When the two sides met, Kan Leng greeted him respectfully, addressing him as "Fu Bo", and then led him into the hall. Fu Bo Shi took the initiative to ask the other party to dismiss his attendants and guards, and then took out two letters one by one.

Kan Leng had roughly finished reading and was about to speak when Fu Bo Shi took out a golden awl and handed it to him.

Kan Leng did not dare to neglect it and personally examined the golden cone before bowing: "Uncle Fu, does father have any other instructions?"

"Yes." Fu Boshi said solemnly. "Your father asked me to tell you two key points. First, although this matter was forced into a corner by someone, it is actually inevitable, because the three powers in the north will inevitably go to war in the autumn. At this time, Yecheng must eliminate the surrounding ups and downs one by one to determine the enemy and ourselves. No matter how much we care about the Huaiyou League, we can't abandon the Chulong Gang and join the Great Britain, let alone join the Eastern Capital. Nanliang is useless, so we have to stand with the Chulong Gang, the Great Ming, and Chief Zhang, and we have to stand firmly and firmly!"

Kan Leng thought for a moment and replied with a sigh: "That's right. At this point, I'm afraid this is the only way...what else is there?"

"Also... your father thinks that we should consider the future." Fu Boshi sighed heavily. "He is worried about the disunity among the gang members, that is, the discord between you and those Huai Shang tyrants, and he is also worried that the Chulong Gang will not tolerate us in the future..."

"It's not just now. My father has always been worried about these things on weekdays." Kan Leng replied dimly.

"So, he hopes that you can personally lead these two thousand people to exchange with Li Zida." Fu Boshi said earnestly. "He also hopes that you can make achievements in the war in the north and make a name for the Huaiyou League."

Kan Leng was stunned for a moment, then he looked down at the golden cone in his hand and remained silent for a long time.

Fu Bo Shi didn't dare to say much and could only remain silent.

After a long while, Kan Leng finally smiled bitterly: "Father always told me to tie down the Yizi Army...but now he suddenly changed his mind!"

"Do you want to hear the truth?" Upon hearing this, Fu Bo Shi suddenly chuckled.

"Please give me some advice, Uncle Fu." Kan Leng was obviously a little distracted.

"That's because I urged him to do so." Fu Boshi's words became more earnest. "Let me tell you, Manager Bai brought him to the island and displayed the documents from Yecheng, and then asked me to persuade him. This was meant to keep him under surveillance, and even to hold him hostage... Although he can't say that he is angry, he still has concerns."

"That's exactly what I meant." Kan Leng said quickly.

"And I told him that Chief Zhang, although he was a fool, he was a back-up, and he was just pretending." Fu Boshi's tone was revived. "But he still follows the rules... and among all the leaders of the Chulong Gang, only one person has ruined things. We should take this as a warning."

Kan Leng suddenly realized: "Yes, that's exactly what I meant! No wonder father has nothing to say! As long as we fight hard in the front, father will definitely be the leader no matter what! Fu Bo, I'll get ready and leave quickly! It's just right for me to go with the family members in Baling City!"

Fu Bo Shi just nodded.

Kan Leng suddenly thought of something unnecessary: ​​"What about this golden cone?"

"Your father didn't say anything either..." Fu Boshi thought for a moment and waved his hand. "You keep it for yourself!"

Kan Leng was finally speechless.

The Yi Zi Army was the elite of the Huai You League, and the two thousand men selected by Kan Leng were even more elite. They set off as soon as they said they would, along with their families. After passing Anlu and getting local supplies, they left behind the rest and sped up their progress. In late August, they returned to their long-cherished homeland in Huaixi.

That's not all. After they moved to Qiao County and entered the jurisdiction of the Eunuch Army, they met Li Zida's troops who were waiting there. The two sides met and then parted ways. Li Zida also conveyed specific military orders to Kan Leng. Their two thousand Yizi soldiers were changed to the special battalion commander system of the Chulong Gang, but they had to go to Yecheng to change their uniforms and be directly assigned by the Grand Secretariat.

Going further ahead, there were many military stations along the territory of the Chulong Gang, and the Yi Zi Army moved even faster, and arrived in front of the river in early September.

The person who came to greet Kan Leng at this time was Wang Xiongdan.

When the two brothers met, they were filled with emotion, but they suppressed their emotions and only talked about official business... Even after talking about the station, equipment, and sequence division, they did not talk about the past, but only talked about the current situation.

"Why hasn't Britain sent out troops in September?" Kan Leng, who was sitting at a desk in the corridor of a public house in front of Baima Ferry, asked first. This was not just idle talk while the soldiers were crossing the river, but he was really curious.

"There are only two possibilities for this matter." Wang Xiongdan said with a smile. "First, the British want to drag it out with us until there is a gap in strength between the two sides, and then attack us... But this possibility is unlikely..."

"Why?" Kan Leng asked curiously. "Didn't they say that the owner of Danglu was stuck at the door of the Grand Master, just one breath away? It's normal to delay it, right?"

"How is that possible?" Wang Xiongdan shook his head. "When the master of Danglu wants to become a grandmaster, aren't they afraid that whoever of our chief and king will become a grandmaster first? The age of the British king and the marshal is the same as the age of our chief, Bai, and Xiong Tianwang. If it drags on, they will definitely not be able to hold on. Moreover, Britain claims to have inherited the world of Guanzhong and regards it as its responsibility to seize the world. The Guanzhong nobles will shrink to a corner of Guanzhong because of the demise of the violent Wei, and they can't stand it either."

"I see." Kan Leng was stunned for a moment, his tone complicated. "You have improved a lot since then."

Wang Xiongdan was embarrassed for a moment.

"What else?" Kan Leng continued to ask. "If Great Britain is not going to drag it out, why not send troops?"

"Of course it's because they're going to mobilize the whole country from the beginning of the fall, and send out all the elite troops in all directions." Wang Xiongdan shook his head. "What else could it be?"

Kan Leng nodded and continued to ask: "If this is the case, Chief Zhang in Yecheng should be ready, right? When I came here, I saw that the military stations along the way had already started to move."

"Of course everything is ready in Yecheng." Wang Xiongdan looked strange. "But Chief Zhang is not in Yecheng..."

Kan Leng nodded, thinking that the chief's itinerary was confidential and the other party was not willing to tell him, so he did not ask any more questions... But he could not help but sigh that no matter what, their relationship could never go back to the way it was before.

However, what he didn't know was that it was not only no secret that Zhang Xing was going to build the last inner dike for the Hutuo River, but Wang Xiongdan also wanted to settle his former brother and rekindle their old friendship... It's just that Wang Xiongdan happened to be one of the very few people who knew that the other party was actually deceived, so he was a little embarrassed.

That’s right, Kan Leng was deceived.

Du Pozhen never thought of asking the chief general who could command the adopted son army to come in person, but he could not resist Chief Zhang's old tricks again, using the golden cone plan and then using Fu Bo Shi, the second-in-command of the Huai You League who was loyal to the Chulong Gang, to trick Kan Leng over.

In fact, when Kan Leng and others arrived in Huaixi, Du Pozhen already knew the situation...but Bai Yousi and Fu Boshi apologized in person and Zhang Xing apologized in a letter, which gave him enough face. In addition, the most important point was that the matter was done and Kan Leng could not come back. So Alliance Leader Du could only accept this fact in despair.

Otherwise, could he abandon the main body of the Huaiyou League, which still had 8,000 Yizi soldiers and over 10,000 naval forces, to surrender to Da Ying? Where was Da Ying?

The only thing we can do at this moment is to sigh that Chief Zhang's conspiracy and intrigue are no less powerful than before!

In early September, when Kan Leng crossed the river and arrived in Hebei, and there was no movement in the north, the Allied Forces' navy suddenly encountered the British navy on the Yangtze River.

The location is just upstream of Jiangling City which was just controlled by the Allied Forces, and downstream of Yiling which was controlled by the British. It is located in Zhijiang County, which is almost a huge island in the middle of the river.

Bai Yousi did not dare to delay. She made the arrangements that Lin Shiyang and others had been waiting for for a long time. With Lin Shiyang as the leader, she went south to the Xiangjiang River to surrender the remaining Hunan rebels, and assisted Bo Shi to guard Baling and control Dongting Lake and the downstream waterways. She personally led the main force of the coalition forces upstream to Jiangling.

When they were about to arrive at Jiangling that morning, they confirmed that Zhijiang had been lost, but the enemy's main support had not yet arrived. So Bai Yousi did not hesitate and ordered the entire army to continue upstream along the river, passing Jiangling without entering, and heading straight for Zhijiang.

The coalition forces were moving upstream a little slowly, and by this time, the autumn colors on both sides of the river could no longer be concealed.

But almost no one on the boat admired the scenery. Instead, they all looked towards the river... It turned out that there were a lot of abandoned wood, old fishing boats and wood shavings in the river. It seemed that the main force of the British navy upstream had already been dispatched and might have even arrived in Zhijiang.

After all, they are floating downstream.

As a result, the generals in the army, such as Du Pozhen, Zhou Xiaoshang, Wang Hou and others, all came to ask whether they should return to Jiangling and confront it in the famous city.

In response, Bai Yousi refuted it one after another and insisted on her own way. She believed that it was very likely that the main force of the British army was using a strategy of confusing the enemy in order to cover the British vanguard occupying Zhijiang. Moreover, even if the main force of the enemy came, they could completely hold off the two banks in the wild and continue the confrontation. There was no reason to give up the battle easily.

Sure enough, after walking for another ten miles, the wood, broken ships and wood shavings had disappeared. When they arrived at Zhijiang and boarded the huge island in the middle of the river, they did not encounter the main force of the enemy navy. Moreover, as the navy and the army took up positions and continued to advance, the Zhijiang City located on the westernmost part of the island in the middle of the river was decisively abandoned by the British army.

But that's all.

As this British army was packing up its ships and evacuating to Songzi City on the south side of the river, which was facing Zhijiang City, there was a sudden rumble of drums on the upstream waterway to the west. Then countless yellow warships appeared on the open river surface, and finally a huge tower ship was gathered around it, with a yellow dragon flag and a single red word "Wei" written on it!
Not only that, even though they were very far away, everyone could see from afar a group of yellow clouds rising into the sky, rolling and raging above the ship, with its fangs and claws bared.

It was evening, and the banks and the river were all golden. The autumn wind was blowing, and the trees on both sides were rustling, with countless leaves falling. Combined with the scenery in the river, it was like the arrival of gods.

Du Pozhen and others all changed color.

"The endless falling trees rustle under the sky, and the endless Yangtze River rolls in."

In Zhijiang City, at this moment, Bai Yousi turned his head to look at the fallen leaves on both sides of the river and chanted an irrelevant poem. "Such a beautiful view, Sanlang is not deceiving me."

The generals around him were just thirsty and could not flatter.

PS: Thanks to Mr. Yiyezhou of Muliuqingxi for his alliance with Shaosong.