Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 348 Inappropriate
Linfen.

The soldiers were facing a formidable enemy, holding spears and looking at the city with vigilance.

The people of Zhou did not recognize this newly appeared army at first, but the people of Qi could recognize it. That familiar mask, isn’t that Baibao?
Plus the flag raised by the other side.

For a moment, the defenders in the city couldn't help but feel fear, and they looked at each other with panic in their eyes.

They were not the only ones who were afraid, Dugu Jie was too.

Dugu Jie was born in the military. In his eyes, Duan Shao and Baibao Xianbei were both unattainable. Even when he said it himself, he felt that they were not a good match. It was still the same now. He really had no confidence to stop Duan Shao.

He looked at the people around him, "Everyone! General Yao will be here soon. We only need to hold out for half a day. Half a day is enough!"

Just as Dugu Jie was trying to boost morale, an old general walked out from the enemy camp.

Duan Shao rode his horse and appeared under the city wall in a swagger.

He raised his head and used one hand to shield himself from the sun.

"Tell Yao Changying that I'm going south!"

Several messengers around him immediately began to shout out Duan Shao's words in a loud voice with extraordinary momentum.

Dugu Jie looked at the officers around him, and they also looked confused.

Afterwards, Duan Shao turned and left. The knights hurriedly formed a battle formation and followed him. In just a moment, the knights flew away, leaving behind corpses all over the ground and many burning weapons.

The officers on both sides stepped forward in a hurry, "General Dugu, quickly send someone to inform General Yao that Duan Shao actually appeared here! General Yao must come back as soon as possible, otherwise, he will have to pass through Pingyang all the way to Heluo!"

Dugu Jie was about to give orders when his expression suddenly turned serious.

"No!"

"Before General Yao left, he told me to block the city gates. No matter what happens, I am not allowed to open the city gates or leave the city walls."

Dugu Jie pointed at two dense forests in the distance and said, "If we don't open the city gates, it may take some time for the enemy to take over the siege machinery. But once the city gates are opened, who dares to say that there are no knights hiding there? Let them take the opportunity to rush in, and they can capture the city in a moment!"

"If General Yao finds out something is wrong, he will come back on his own. Don't pay any attention to him. Continue to reinforce the city gates and walls!!"

"only!!"

Dugu Jie was not a great general, nor even a fierce one, but he was obedient.

He had always been standing on the top of the city wall, staring at the places in the distance where people might be hiding. Occasionally, he took people to look around, and never stepped down from the city wall.

Walking on the city wall, he analyzed the current situation in his mind.

How did Duan Shao get here?

The only explanation is that they came from Fenshui Pass.

After learning the location where the Zhou people and the enemy crossed the river, General Yao led his troops back to cut off their path, while the checkpoints and cities around Linfen retreated their defenses and concentrated their forces on several important roads in Linfen to prevent the enemy from making a breakthrough.

Duan Shao must have seized the opportunity to shrink the Fenshui defense line and took the chance to cross the river from Linfen, crossing the river from the most dangerous place.

In this way, Yao Xiong and the Zhou army were left behind, and Pingyang's army was defeated in Linfen. He could pass Pingyang from here and go all the way down to Heluo, and there would be no army to stop him.

It can be said to be a smooth journey.

The more Dugu Jie thought about it, the more scared he became. He didn't know what else he hadn't thought of. If Duan Shao was with him, then what were the Zhou people behind him doing?
Could it be that he was pretending to lure his people to the rear and then crossing the river from here?
That's not right. If both parties had agreed on it in advance, how could Duan Shao lead his troops to attack the Zhou people?
Dugu Jie couldn't figure it out.

He kept guarding until evening. The sky gradually darkened, and the dense forests and ravines outside the city seemed even more terrifying and eerie, as if something was really about to rush out from there.

A clear sound of horse hooves came from not far away, and dozens of cavalrymen wearing black clothes appeared under the city wall.

These are our own scouts.

The tense atmosphere on the city wall was instantly relieved.

Dugu Jie was still worried, so he went up to the city wall and observed the person in front of him again and again. After confirming the other party's identity, he told them what had happened.

The scouts did not enter the city, but quickly began to explore the surroundings.

They searched all possible places where people might be hiding.

After the search, the scouts returned to report.

They didn't find any hidden enemies, and Gu Dujie breathed a sigh of relief.

After a long time, Yao Xiong finally led the army and appeared in the distance with a tired face.

In such a short period of time, Yao Xiong led the army and completed a round trip.

Not to mention the soldiers under his command, even Yao Xiong himself was exhausted.

He didn't dare to delay any longer and hurriedly arranged for everyone to rest around.

Yao Xiong was also a little worried. He was afraid that the enemy would take advantage of the situation and suddenly attack. Although he had more people, if they were attacked, the result would certainly not be good.

The army entered the parade ground and began to rest, while the scouts expanded the search area to ensure that the enemy would not launch an attack at this time.

Yao Xiong did not bring all the captives here. He placed them in batches around the ferry. Only the most important captives were escorted to Linfen.

Dugu Jie walked down the city wall and paid a visit to Yao Xiong.

Yao Xiong signaled him to follow him, and then quickly sent people to take over the defense of the city. At the same time, he also sent people to inquire about the situation of several important checkpoints on the surrounding roads.

Dugu Jie almost trotted after Yao Xiong. He saw that General Yao Xiong had a gloomy face, and his big beard covered half of his face, which was shaking due to his walking.

"Half an hour after the general left, scouts from Pingyang appeared outside the city."

Dugu Jie reported to Yao Xiong everything that had happened after Yao Xiong left. He spoke in great detail without leaving out anything.

Yao Xiong followed him into the inner room, sat down, and listened to him continue talking.

It took Dugu Jie a long time before he told everything.

Yao Xiong pounded the table in front of him helplessly.

"The General Duan I'm waiting for at the ferry is Duan Xiaoyan and Duan Shao's younger brother."

"They only brought three or four days' worth of food with them. They suddenly appeared on the other side of the river. After crossing the river, they started fighting with the Zhou people. By the time I got there, the Zhou army had been defeated by them, and then they surrendered."

"Duan Xiaoyan couldn't say anything. Clearly, the news we received earlier said that Duan Xiaoyan was the first soldier to escort food and supplies to Quyang, but he showed up at the ferry. Duan Shao, who should have been at the ferry, showed up in Linfen."

Yao Xiong said with a straight face, "We were deceived by Duan Shao. If the person who passed on the information did not lie, then he was also deceived."

"He deceived Jinyang, deceived us, and deceived the Zhou people."

"If I'm not mistaken, he should be heading in the direction of Heluo now."

"He is quite close to Dugu Yongye of Heluo. Now that he is bringing the emperor with him, Dugu Yongye will definitely not refuse. Once Duan Shao brings the emperor to Heluo, he can order the states and counties south of the river to gather. Dugu Yongye's Heluo Xingtai is still very capable."

Yao Xiong expressed his guess.

Dugu Jie hurriedly asked: "Should we give chase?"

"Chase?"

"How can Baibao chase them? Unless my brother comes back, we can make contact with the Mandrill Camp, but how can we? If it's a blocking battle, I can still try, but a pursuit battle?"

Yao Xiong shook his head slightly.

"Then what should we do?"

"Are we going to watch Duan Shao leave so easily?"

"I'll send scouts to track them down. You should go and rest first."

Yao Xiong waved his hand, unwilling to say anything more to Dugu Jie. Dugu Jie bid farewell to Yao Xiong and returned to his mansion. Yao Xiong then had Duan Xiaoyan brought out and presented to him.

Duan Xiaoyan didn't feel tired at all, nor was he panicked at all.

Yao Xiong did not make things difficult for him, neither did he tie him up nor take off his clothes. He had someone serve him some tea, and the two of them drank for a while.

"General Duan, where has the Grand Marshal gone?"

"He went south." Duan Xiaoyan said sincerely, "If the general doesn't believe it, you can send someone to chase him. Maybe it's still in time."

Yao Xiong's face darkened and he picked up the tea in front of him.

He took a few bites.

"The great Sima is confused."

"Do you think everything will be fine once you get to Heluo?"

"Dugu Yongye has been stationed in Heluo for many years. Since the establishment of the Heluo Xingtai in the imperial court, he has been the true lord of Heluo. Even if the Grand Marshal is very close to him, he will suppress him and take over Heluo by bringing the emperor there suddenly. I'm afraid General Dugu will not be too happy about it, right?"

"It may be okay in the short term, but if it drags on for a while and there are some frictions between the two sides, then it will become a fratricide."

"The Zhou people have wanted to obtain Heluo for a long time. Every time they go on an expedition, they focus on attacking Heluo. If there is civil unrest, the Pseudo-Zhou will pay any price to seize the cities."

"By that time, wouldn't Da Sima be in even greater danger?"

Duan Xiaoyan shook his head. "I don't know these things. My brother never told me about them. I don't know what he thinks, nor do I know what he will be like in the future. These have nothing to do with me."

"I have contacted my grandfather twice in the past and told him about some things in Jinyang. Unlike my brother, I am close to the general. I hope General Yao can quickly send someone to inform the general of my situation."

Duan Xiaoyan has the capital to not be afraid.

When they were in Jinyang, many people were in private contact with Liu Taozi's people and sold some information. Their purpose was very pure, just hoping that if they were caught in the future, they would still have hope of survival.

This kind of thing is not uncommon. From ancient times to the present, there will always be many such people on the desperate side, at least leaving a way out for themselves.

A soldier came forward with a lot of food in his hand and placed it in front of the two men.

Yao Xiong picked up the meat and nodded gently, "I certainly wouldn't dare to be rude to my grandfather's friend."

"It's just that I still have a lot of things I want to know. I heard that you took the grain cart to Yangqu, so why did you appear at the Fenshui Ferry?"

Duan Xiaoyan raised his head again and said, "I've said it before, I'm just following orders."

"boom!"

Then I saw Yao Xiong holding a knife in his hand, cutting the meat in his hand with one stroke, and the knife went through the meat and landed on the wooden table.

The loud noise made Duan Xiaoyan tremble all over, and he looked at Yao Xiong in fear.

He sat back a little, "What do you want to do?"

"It's just cutting meat, you don't have to be afraid."

"My knife skills are pretty good, right? I cut right in the middle with one stroke."

"Come to think of it, at first, I wasn't very good at chopping people."

Yao Xiong gestured with the knife in his hand, "At that time, my brother and I went to kill someone. I cut the head with the knife, but the head was not cut off, but only half cut off. Blood kept spurting out, and the man was not dead. The head was just hanging on the body, screaming and howling."

With his big beard and the knife in his hand, Yao Xiong told the story to Duan Xiaoyan with gestures.

Duan Xiaoyan's face became paler and paler. Yao Xiong seemed to be getting closer and closer, and the knife in his hand was getting closer and closer to Duan Xiaoyan.

Duan Xiaoyan said, "At the beginning, I was ordered to escort the grain cart to Yangqu. Halfway through the journey, my brother sent someone to stop me. When I opened the grain cart, I found that there were people hiding inside, as well as armor and other things."

"I asked the original people to continue to deliver the empty carts, while I hid with my people on the way. After my brother sent out his troops, I joined him and followed his orders to the ferry. Along the way, everyone treated me as my brother. I asked where my brother was going, and he just told me to get to the river, where the enemy would pick me up, and then we could attack them. If I saw your army, I should surrender and save my life."

"I asked him where he was going, and he just said he was going south."

"As for the rest, I really don't know."

Duan Xiaoyan's eyes were fixed on the knife in Yao Xiong's hand. He no longer maintained his original stance, and his voice became gentler.

Yao Xiong slowly put the knife aside and shook his head.

"The Grand Marshal was really willing to risk his life. He abandoned tens of thousands of troops and all his relatives and fled south with the emperor. I really don't understand what he was thinking. The demise of Qi was already doomed."

"In the south, if my brother had not fought against the Chen people, the land south of this river would have belonged to the southerners."

"Da Sima took advantage of this opportunity to escape, maybe he is feeling very proud now?"

When Duan Xiaoyan heard the other party belittling Duan Shao, he immediately straightened his head and looked at the knife weakly, "My brother is not a villain, he is a real man. Da Qi was conquered by them, and he doesn't want to see Da Qi destroyed in his hands. He will do everything he can to protect Da Qi. Staying in Jinyang will only lead to death, and there is no way to survive. Going south of the river may still give him a chance."

"From now on, victory or defeat will depend on each person's ability."

Yao Xiong clenched his fists.

Before leaving, Duan Shao openly described his route, and Yao Xiong could roughly guess which road Duan Shao took.

However, he did not dare to pursue.

Tu Xiyue was able to conduct partial interception, but most of Tu Xiyue's men were new recruits, and Yao Xiong did not want to pay a greater price.

He thought for a long time and finally ordered Duan Xiaoyan to be taken out and given a good rest.

As for himself, he began to bury his head in writing.

This time, Duan Shao's surprise attack was entirely his fault. He misjudged the enemy's direction and easily believed the news. If he had not returned at that time, but continued to stay in Linfen, perhaps the situation would be completely different.
This is a letter of apology. While explaining the situation, it also recounts one's own mistakes and hopes that the government will punish him.

The wind kept blowing, and the dense forests on both sides were shaking wildly.

The branches were like long whips, ready to whip passers-by.

The horse's hooves trampled through the mud on the ground, crushing the fallen leaves into pieces, and galloped past the path.

Duan Shao was walking in the front. He stared at the distance, letting the strong wind blow his whole body up, with no intention of slowing down at all.

The little emperor Gao Yan was held in his arms. Gao Yan was wrapped in several layers, with only a pair of eyes exposed at this moment.

There was unspeakable sadness in his eyes.

He didn't know what Duan Shao was going to do, and he didn't even want to trust Duan Shao as much as he said.

But things have come to this point, and he has no other choice but to talk about trust.

Only trust can keep him alive, and no one can stop Duan Shao.

The scenery on both sides passed by quickly, startling countless flying birds.

Duan Shao was panting, his face was red, and his eyes were bloodshot.

He led the army for a long time, rushing all the way from Linfen to Pingyang, and then to Heluo.

He was not as comfortable and proud as he appeared outside Linfen.

That was just a strategy to prevent the other side from chasing us.

If there are pursuers from the front or the back, Duan Shao is confident that he can defeat them. However, this will affect what Duan Shao is going to do next. Duan Shao's goal is to go to Heluo, not to fight to the death with Liu Taozi now.

What he excels at is large-scale legionary combat.

If he could gain a foothold in Henan, he would be able to gather enough food and troops in the future. When both sides were facing each other with large armies, he felt that he still had the advantage.

Duan Shao hadn't had a rest for many days. He was extremely tired, but he didn't dare to close his eyes.

He has always been calm and steady, but unexpectedly, he ended up winning by surprise.

The path he had chosen now could not allow for any mistakes. Even the smallest mistake that would delay him for half an hour would ruin his plan.

He continued to travel without sleep, taking only a few short breaks.

After a forced march, they did not encounter any troops coming to intercept them. Tu Xiyue sent out scouts, but the two sides were far apart and the enemy did not dare to pursue them rashly.

Duan Shao calmly bypassed Beijiang County and flew all the way to the outside of Xunzhang City.

At this point, he was finally able to make some minor adjustments.

Because further ahead is Hanoi and this Xunzhang City is the northern gateway city under Dugu Yongye's command.

(End of this chapter)