Outside Wangtao City, among the army.
Looking at the anxious expression of Tian Yu, who was over 60 years old, Cao Shuang couldn't help swallowing for a moment.
"Lord Tian," Cao Shuang asked carefully, "It's a hundred miles from Wangtao City to Guangwu. Even if I can reach Guangwu by tomorrow morning, it will take at least three days for the reinforcements to arrive here!"
Tian Yu patted Cao Shuang on the shoulder and said, "Zhao Bo, you grew up in Yecheng and Luoyang, and you are the eldest son of a general. Do you know how ordinary soldiers can stand out in the army?"
Cao Shuang shook his head blankly and asked tentatively: "Accumulate merit or be the first to ascend the battlefield or break through the enemy lines?"
"Neither." Tian Yu said: "If you want to stand out, the greatest achievement is saving the day!"
"Look at this place. Nine thousand people are lined up along the river, and there is no strategic location to defend. Suli said that Kebi Neng can lead an army of 20,000 cavalry, but in my opinion, it is possible that Kebi Neng can mobilize 30,000 or 40,000 cavalry."
"Kebineng is obviously using the Suli tribe as bait to lure me out. If I am defeated, unless the imperial army arrives here, the You army will not be able to resist the Xianbei's invasion for several years!"
“By then, not to mention Kebi Neng, even the obedient Suli, Xieguini, Budugen and the Wuhuan people today will probably rebel!”
Tian Yu sighed: "I know that although the general sent you here for training, he actually doesn't want you to get into danger."
"It's not that I don't want to train you, but this kind of request for help is most suitable for you to do!"
Cao Shuang knelt on one knee and saluted: "Don't worry, Lord Tian! I will go there and come back soon!"
Tian Yu nodded: "Go quickly and come back quickly! I rely on these two thousand elite soldiers of my own army to suppress the Suli tribe and the Wuhuan Yicong. If my own army suffers more casualties, the Xianbei and Wuhuan light cavalry will probably scatter."
Cao Shuang stood up, mounted his horse, and without saying anything, stretched out his hands and walked towards Tian Yu.
Tian Yu took out a warm copper token from his arms and gently placed it in Cao Shuang's hand.
"Tian Gong bids farewell!" Cao Shuang did not hesitate, he spurred his horse and left. When he reached the end of the team, he called the nine cavalrymen in his team and carefully led ten more war horses.
……
At this time, in Guangwu City, a hundred miles away, Liu Ye and Guanqiu Jian were in a quite relaxed mood.
Since Qian Zhao went to Luoyang and the new prefect had not yet taken office, the most spacious and best-equipped prefectural mansion in the city was naturally given to Liu Ye and Guanqiu Jian for use.
Inside the Yanmen prefectural government residence.
Yanmen County Magistrate Guo Fang and County Commandant Feng Po were sitting in the hall chatting with Liu and Guanqiu.
Understanding the situation in the border counties was their job. But as they chatted, the topic started to go off track.
Feng Po smiled and said, "Mr. Liu and Mr. Guanqiu may not know that there is a kind of fox in Weishan Mountain, 20 miles away from Guangwu. In autumn and winter, the color of its fur gradually turns brown and gray."
"But now it is the end of summer, and the fur of this fox is completely red, and it jumps like fire, so it is also called the 'fire fox'. If the two angels have nothing to do, why don't you let me be your guide and go fox hunting outside the city together? It can be a good pastime."
"This fire fox is only found in this county. I have never heard of it being produced in other places."
Liu Ye had an expression of noncommittal, while Guanqiu Jian beside him seemed to be somewhat interested.
"Captain Feng, I have never seen a fox with this color of fur. I wonder if the color will fade after being hunted?" asked Guanqiu Jian.
Feng Po smiled and said, "That won't happen. Yanmen is a bitterly cold place, and the north wind howls in winter, making it extremely cold. The former governor of this county, Qian Gong, had a pair of knee pads made of fire fox fur."
Guanqiu Jian thought for a moment, then turned to look at Liu Ye: "Mr. Liu, do you remember the cushion on His Majesty's recliner in the Beigong study?"
Liu Ye smiled and replied, "How can I not remember? The cushions on your majesty's recliner were first made of tiger skin, then rabbit skin, and now probably deerskin."
Guanqiu Jian said, "It is almost autumn and winter. If we can hunt a few fire foxes here and present them to Your Majesty to make a cushion, it would be a good thing."
Liu Ye raised his eyebrows and looked at Guanqiu Jian.
Who among the important officials in the court today doesn't know that Your Majesty spends the most time in the study? If the cushions on Your Majesty's recliner were presented by me and Guanqiu Jian, wouldn't Your Majesty often miss him when seeing them?
"Zhong Gong is very thoughtful, what he said is very wonderful!" Liu Ye smiled and looked at Guo Fang and Feng Po: "I just don't know, will it cost a lot to hunt this kind of fire fox?"
"Mr. Liu, you are worrying too much!" Feng Po said with a smile, "If we have experienced local hunters leading us, 20 to 30 hunters and 60 to 70 dogs, we can hunt two or three in a day."
Liu Ye nodded and said, "Okay! We have nothing to do today and tomorrow, how about setting off in the afternoon and returning before tomorrow night?"
Guo Fang and Feng Po looked at each other, both showing joy. They knew Liu Ye's name, and it was a rare opportunity for them, the small officials in the border counties, to have the opportunity to make friends with or get close to such an important official.
Who doesn’t want to make progress?
……
Cao Shuang and his group of ten knights, with each man riding two horses, galloped for three hours until it gradually darkened.
The heavy rains in the summer and the streams and rivers have washed away many roads, making the already dilapidated roads even more difficult to travel on.
In addition, these knights were unfamiliar with the route and could only travel about twenty miles in an hour.
As for the night… riding a horse at night on a strange and dilapidated mountain road is tantamount to seeking death.
After camping in the wild for a night and setting off at dawn the next day, Cao Shuang and his party finally arrived at Guangwu City in the morning.
Holding Tian Yu's token, the soldier guarding the gate did not have any difficulty and directly took them to the government office to find the county magistrate Guo Fang.
Guo Fang walked out of the government office gate and looked at Cao Shuang's group of ten riders with a rather strange look in his eyes.
Cao Shuang dismounted and saluted: "I am the envoy of Tian Gong, the commander of the Wuhuan Guard. Ke Bineng led 20,000 cavalry to attack, Tian Gong is surrounded, and the border is in danger."
"Please take me to see Lord Qian." Cao Shuang took out Tian Yu's token from his bosom and said, "This is Lord Tian's token. Please take a look at it."
Guo Fang took the token with a complicated expression, and after carefully reading it front and back several times, he threw the token back to Cao Shuang.
Guo Fang sighed, "To be honest with you, Mr. Qian is not in the palace right now. I am powerless to dispatch troops for rescue."
Cao Shuang was shocked and asked quickly, "Isn't Qian Gong in Guangwu City? Where should I go to find him?"
Guo Fang shook his head in silence.
Cao Shuang took a few steps forward, less than two feet away from Guo Fang, and stared straight into Guo Fang's eyes: "Mr. Tian's army is in danger, and we need Mr. Qian to rescue them! Please tell me where to find Mr. Qian?"
"Oh my, what's going on?" Guo Fang pushed Cao Shuang away and explained, "Mr. Qian is not in Guangwu, nor in the county! Mr. Qian was summoned by the court and went to Luoyang to serve as an official."
"Mr. Qian has left, and the new governor has not yet taken office. I am just a county magistrate, how can I help you send troops?"
Cao Shuang stared at Guo Fang suspiciously for a few moments. The man in front of him was half a head shorter than him and half as fat as him. No matter how he looked at him, he didn't look like a good person.
"Where is the commander of Yanmen? Please take me to see him!" Cao Shuang said with patience.
"The commander is not in Guangwu either. He went out of the city to hunt with the nobles from Luoyang. If he comes back quickly, he may be back tonight."
Tonight? If we wait until tomorrow to prepare for the military deployment, and if we delay for another day, I'm afraid Tian Yu's military situation will be in real danger!
Cao Shuang angrily pulled off the helmet on his head and threw it to the ground, cursing: "What a crap nobleman from Luoyang! Why did you come here only when the military situation is critical?"
"Minister Guo, please don't worry about it. Where is Commandant Feng now? I will go find him myself!"
"How can you talk like that?" The good-tempered Guo Fang could no longer bear it. "This is an angel appointed by His Majesty to patrol the border of this county. How can you, a military student, comment on Mr. Liu and Mr. Guanqiu?"
"Besides, Commander Feng has no authority to send out troops! Since Lord Qian is not here, we must at least find Lord Liang, the governor of this county."
The name Guo Fang mentioned made Cao Shuang's heart move.
Angel? Liu Gong? Guanqiu Gong?
Cao Shuang stepped forward and grabbed Guo Fang's shoulders, shook him a few times, and asked anxiously: "The Luoyang angel you just mentioned, the Guanqiu Gong, was it Guanqiu Xing or Guanqiu Jian?"
Guo Fang frowned and pushed away Cao Shuang's hand on his shoulder. "What are you doing? If it weren't for the fact that you are the envoy of Lord Tian, I would have arrested you and punished you for being so rude!"
"How did you know Guanqiu Gong's name? It's the Guanqiu Jian you mentioned."
Cao Shuang actually laughed at this moment, glanced at his companions who came here with him, turned around and asked: "Mr. Guo, who is the Liu Gong you are talking about? Liu Fang or Liu Ye?"
"Who are you?" Guo Fang's face suddenly became serious, and he asked in a serious tone, "How can I know the names of Mr. Liu and Mr. Guanqiu?"
"I am a close confidant of Lord Tian, and it was Lord Tian who told me this." Cao Shuang did not intend to tell the truth: "May I ask County Magistrate Guo, did Lord Liu carry the imperial seal when he went on tour this time?"
Guo Fang was confused about the situation for a moment and nodded.
"That's easy!" Cao Shuang said with a heroic smile, "Mr. Tian is in urgent need of rescue. If Mr. Liu holds the seal, he can certainly summon the county soldiers to the north to rescue him! County Magistrate Guo, please send someone to take me to find these two Luoyang angels!"
"Wait a moment!" Guo Fang frowned and walked forward to take the token from Cao Shuang's hand. He looked at it carefully several times, then turned around and said a few words to the clerk next to him.
"May I ask your name? Judging from your speech, you are truly extraordinary." Guo Fang asked cautiously.
"Me?" Cao Shuang laughed dumbly: "I am just a deputy chief under Lord Tian. My last name is Cao and my given name is Shuang."
Cao Shuang? Last name Cao?
Guo Fang originally wanted to ask the county official to take them to look for Feng Po and the others, but now he changed his mind: "I will personally take you there! Can you still ride a horse after traveling a hundred miles?"
"Why not?" Cao Shuang turned and looked at the nine knights who followed him: "Fan Ta, Hao San, you two are the best riders, now come with me!"
"Yes!" Fan Ta and Hao San responded together.
The twenty-mile mountain road is indeed not short, and can even be described as rugged and difficult to travel.
While serving in a border county, he often accompanied the former prefect Qian Zhao to inspect various counties. Even though Guo Fang was a civilian county magistrate, his riding skills were still top-notch. Despite his short and fat figure, he actually looked quite elegant when riding a horse.
In just one hour, Guo Fang, Cao Shuang and the other two found the hunting ground.
It was already afternoon.
After a day of hunting, and with a bit of luck, Liu Ye and Guanqiu Jian hunted six fire foxes.
It was long enough to make a long cushion. When Cao Shuang was ten feet away, he shouted loudly on his horse: "Zhong Gong! Where is Zhong Gong?"
Guanqiu Jian heard a familiar voice coming from a distance, frowned slightly, and looked towards the direction where the horse hooves sounded.
Liu Ye, who was standing by, also heard it. No one had called Guanqiu Jian this way in more than a month since he left Luoyang.
Guo Fang, Cao Shuang and others reined in their horses and stopped. Guanqiu Jian finally saw the appearance of the person coming on horseback.
Guanqiu Jian asked in surprise: "Zhao Bo? How come you are here?"
Cao Shuang dismounted, walked up to Guanqiu Jian, and said excitedly, "I finally found you! Since the governor is not here, you are the only ones who can save Lord Tian!"
Liu Ye got a hint of what was going on and asked, "Zhao Bo? I remember you were supposed to be under the command of Lord Tian in Dai County, right?"
"Greetings, Mr. Liu." Cao Shuang bowed and saluted, then told him everything that Tian Yu's troops had encountered in the past few days.
Liu Ye was older than Guanqiu Jian's father, and Guanqiu Jian always took Liu Ye as his leader along the way.
Liu Ye turned and looked at Feng Po, the commander of Yanmen County: "Commander Feng, how many soldiers are available in Yanmen County?"
This "envoy of Lord Tian" who suddenly came here with Guo Fang really made Feng Po, who controlled the military forces in the county, very confused.
Feng Po glanced at his old colleague Guo Fang, and after seeing Guo Fang nod slightly, he said, "Reporting to Lord Liu, I have 6,000 regular county soldiers in Bingzhou, 2,000 of which are in Taiyuan County and 1,000 in Xihe County, to guard against the five tribes of the Xiongnu."
"The remaining 3,000 county soldiers are all in my Yanmen County."
Three thousand serviceable soldiers were enough! Tian Yu's own army only had two thousand Han soldiers!
Cao Shuang excitedly said to Liu Ye: "Mr. Liu, there is no time to lose. Please speak for me and send troops north to rescue Mr. Tian!"
Liu Ye nodded slightly, turned around and looked at Feng Po: "Captain Feng, I am here to patrol the border under the order of the emperor. The situation at the border is urgent and Qian Zhao is away from his post."
"Tian Yu is a national general and a pillar of the northern border. He must be rescued! I order you to prepare the available troops in the county and help me rescue Tian Yu! Do you have any objections?"
"I..." Feng Po hesitated for a moment, not knowing whether he should agree or not.
According to common practice, even if Yanmen Governor Qian Zhao is here, he cannot send troops casually! He must have the permission of Bingzhou Governor Liang Xi!
But now Qian Zhao is not here, and Liang Xi is far away in Jinyang. Could it be that such a big matter has to be decided by a captain like me?
When Feng Po hesitated, Liu Ye beside him coughed lightly and said slowly: "Captain Feng, I see that your name is 'Po'. Do you know that Lian Po was stationed at Yanmen for many years and made great military achievements?"
"If this rescue operation is successful, I will definitely recommend you. I may even raise your salary from 2,000 dan to 2,000 dan!"
Cao Shuang said, "If you succeed, I will personally recommend you to His Majesty as a lieutenant in the central army!"
Are you crazy? Who are you to recommend me to His Majesty?
His eyes moved to the 'envoy of Duke Tian'. In front of Liu Ye and Guanqiu Jian, Feng Po, a man from Bingzhou who had served in the army in the border counties for more than 20 years, didn't know what to say for a moment.
Guanqiu Jian asked quietly, "Captain Feng, where is your seal? Please lend it to me."
Feng Po was stunned for a moment, then took out the seal of the commander of Yanmen County from his arms and placed it in his hand.
Feng Po was still quite moved by what Liu Ye and the unknown envoy said.
Guanqiu Jian took two steps forward and gently took the seal from Feng Po's hand. Before his hand was raised a foot, he put it heavily back into his hand.
Guanqiu Jian said, "Captain Feng, I have just taken your seal away from you. I am returning it to you now."
"It was Lord Liu who decided to send troops from Yanmen County, and I, the Yueqi Captain Guanqiu Jian, personally took your seal."
"Captain Feng," Guanqiu Jian stared into Feng Po's eyes, "If this expedition is successful, what Lord Liu promised you just now will also come true. If unfortunately it fails, you can report to the emperor that it was me, Guanqiu Jian, who took your seal."
"Master Guanqiu...Master Liu..." Feng Po first lowered his head to look at Guanqiu Jian's right hand, then raised his head to look at Liu Ye, stamped his feet and said, "I will listen to what Master Liu and Master Guanqiu say!"
"If we send troops to rescue Lord Tian, where should we go from Guangwu?" Feng Po asked.
Liu Ye hesitated for a moment and asked, "Does Captain Feng have a map with him?"
Feng Po shook his head and said, "I can draw a rough outline for Mr. Liu to see."
After saying that, Feng Po found a flat land nearby, broke off a branch, and outlined the approximate locations of several cities and the Sanggan River on the ground.
Liu Ye watched Feng Po explain the terrain, and then asked Cao Shuang to explain the military situation in detail again.
After thinking for a few moments, Liu Ye stood up and said, "Yinguan is an isolated city located on a plain with no water source, so it must be impossible to defend! I am sure that Tian Yu will go to Mayi!"
"Captain Feng, which is the fastest way to Mayi?"
Feng Po said without hesitation: "There are two ways to Mayi from here. One is the way the envoy of Tian Gong came, from Guangwu over the mountains to Yinguan, and then across the Sanggan River to Mayi."
"This road is mostly mountainous, making it extremely inconvenient for large groups of people to pass through, and it is impossible to transport food and supplies."
"The other way is to go along the Han Great Wall to Loufan, cross the river to the west bank of the Sanggan River, and then go all the way north to Mayi. Although this road is farther, about a hundred miles away, it is really flat and easy to travel!"
"Then we'll take the Loufan route!" Liu Ye said firmly, "Let's return to Guangwu City now and set off at dawn tomorrow!"
"Yes, sir!" Feng Po responded with a fist salute, then turned around and gave instructions to the servants and hunters who were accompanying him.
Carrying the six hunted fire foxes, Liu Ye, Guanqiu Jian, Cao Shuang, Guo Fang, Feng Po and their companions rode back to Guangwu to prepare for the expedition tomorrow.
Of course, at Feng Po's request, Liu Ye and Guanqiu Jian jointly wrote a letter, which was sent by Guo Fang to Liang Xi, the governor of Bingzhou in Taiyuan overnight.
……
The next day, in Luoyang city.
It was late in the morning and almost dawn when Cao Rui slowly woke up in his bedroom.
He looked sideways at the beautiful woman Jia Cheng who was sleeping beside him. Her eyelashes moved slightly, and she seemed to be half asleep and half awake.
Cao Rui coughed lightly and stroked Jia Cheng's cheek: "Are you awake? If you are awake, don't pretend to be asleep."
Jia Cheng raised her eyes slightly and smiled shyly at Cao Rui: "Your Majesty, I have been awake for a long time, but my body is still aching, so I haven't changed my clothes yet."
Cao Rui sat up, smiled and nodded: "Since you are not feeling well, it won't hurt to sleep for a while."
"Zhao Jie!" Cao Rui shouted.
Zhao Jie, who was sleeping in the compartment outside the bedroom, hurried in and saluted: "Your Majesty, I am here."
"Get ready, I will wear plain clothes when I go out of the palace today." Cao Rui ordered.
Jia Cheng, who was lying behind Cao Rui, had also sat up. After looking at Zhao Jie, he said, "Your Majesty has already gotten up, how dare I stay in bed?"
"The maid helped me up feebly. It was just when I first received the emperor's grace. There is also a word 'Cheng' in your name." Cao Rui smiled and said, "Have breakfast with me, and then go back to your palace."
Jia Cheng agreed obediently.
However, when the emperor turned his head to look away, Jia Cheng bit his lips slightly and rubbed his sore waist and legs.
Long before I entered the palace, my mother told me that the most important thing after entering the palace was to conceive a prince or princess for His Majesty as soon as possible.
My mother also invited someone to our home and secretly taught me many methods of getting pregnant.
Last night, after His Majesty fell asleep, Jia Cheng lay on the couch, lying on his back with his heels bent and his buttocks raised and suspended in the air.
He maintained this posture for nearly half an hour, until he could no longer hold on and fell into a deep sleep.
I hope I can get pregnant soon! Jia Cheng thought secretly.
During breakfast, Cao Rui sent someone to call Xin Pi over to listen to Xin Pi's daily briefing.
Ever since Xin Pi took over the Luoyang school affairs, it has almost become a routine for him to report some intelligence that the Majesty is concerned about during breakfast.
Finally, Xin Pi added: "Yesterday, the school reported that He Yan and He Pingshu had already arrived in Wan County, Nanyang."
Cao Rui asked: "Why did He Yan return to his hometown, Wan County, Nanyang?"
Xin Pi bowed and replied: "Your Majesty may not know that He Yan's mother Yin was once the daughter-in-law of General He Jin during the reign of Emperor Ling of Han."
"When the court judge traced He Yan's origin, he used Wan County in Nanyang County, where He Jin was born, instead of Qiao County, where your majesty's clan is located."
"According to the court judge, this is also to prevent He Yan and Xiahou Xuan from getting together again."
Cao Rui sighed, "Xiahou Taichu, I had high hopes for him before. But after he and He Yan and others took the Five Stones Powder, I thought it would be better to punish him a bit and temper his character."
"He is not yet twenty years old, and he still has a long time to serve as an official in the future. It is good for him to encounter setbacks now."
Xin Pi did not respond, and continued, "Zhuge Dan has been executed, and Yuan Kan and Xu Yun are on their way to Youzhou. The court judge has sent a written order to Wang Xiong, the governor of Youzhou."
Cao Rui nodded and said, "Xin Qing, I have nothing to do today. Please come with me and walk around Luoyang in plain clothes."
Xin Pi put his hands down and asked with a smile: "It's rare that your Majesty is interested. Where should we go first today?"
Cao Rui smiled and said, "I heard that the military farm officials from all over the country will come to Xu Shu's office to report the situation today?"
"Come with me and watch."
Xin Pi smiled and cupped his hands: "I obey your order." (End of this chapter)
