Tiger Guards

Chapter 156 No Way Out
When we inspected the leaders today, neither Fu Wan nor Sima Fang came.

The Chief Censor Yang Zhong and Pei Mao inspected the heads on behalf of the court and took away copies of the bamboo slips of merit.

Qubei even displayed several black dragon flags he had robbed, and the head of Qiangqu King Liu Cheng was carefully cleaned and his hair was re-combed. He solemnly invited Yang Zhong and others to inspect it.

During the inspection, Guanqiu Yi came quickly, took Pei Mao's arm and handed him the bundle of arrows and books. "Brother Juguang, this is what I found outside the camp this morning when I led the Yulin Lang to defend the emperor."

Pei Mao was about to flip through the arrow book when he stopped and restrained his expression: "General Yulin, are you saying that these arrow books came from the soldiers in the camp?"

"I dare not. Perhaps it is possible, or it could be a plot by the Huns to sow discord."

Guanqiu Yi's head was about to explode. He hesitated for most of the day and stayed in the camp, not daring to hand these things over to the emperor or Fu Wan.

This was a very embarrassing thing for the imperial court. The emperor was ashamed, and Fu Wan had no place to put his face.

If it were any other time, there would naturally be a major purge of Lang Wei, and they would rather kill the wrong person than let him go.

But if it is exposed now, it is very likely to cause a mutiny.

When the responsibility was investigated afterwards, Guanqiu Yi could not escape.

No matter how he calms down the situation, how will the people of Hedong view him?

We really can't delay any longer. If the Huns attack tonight or Lang Wei rebels, it will be too late to say anything.

Seeing that Guanqiu Yi was so irresponsible, Pei Mao admired Zhao Ji's previous boldness and decisiveness.

I am not afraid of people in power killing people, but I am afraid of them being stupid and incompetent!
Taking two deep breaths, Pei Mao tried his best to maintain a calm demeanor. Many military officers were watching nearby. He placed his arm around Guanqiu Yi's shoulder, led him a little further, and then asked in a serious tone, "Does Minister Zhao know?"

"I gave it to him just now, but he refused to look at it. He insisted that I report it to the emperor and see the emperor's handwritten edict before he would look at it."

Guanqiu Yi was so anxious that he jumped up and down. If he didn't make military preparations, it would be too late.

Pei Mao felt bitter and helpless, saying, "He didn't want to interfere in the military affairs of the camp in the first place. If he were to intervene now, the emperor would surely be deeply resentful and difficult to resolve. Why didn't you tell me earlier? If you didn't dare report it to the court, letting me know would allow me to think of countermeasures sooner rather than later."

Guanqiu Yi remained silent, so Pei Mao reassured him, saying, "Don't worry too much. With the capture of the Qiangqu King today, the Xiongnu tribes in Xingcheng are temporarily without a leader."

At this time, Zhao Ji was wearing loose leather armor, leather boots, and striding over with a long sword hanging from his waist.

Pei Mao immediately went to meet him and said, "Minister, I have already reprimanded Guanqiu Wenqiang. Please put the affairs of state and the safety of the emperor first."

Zhao Ji stopped and glanced at Guanqiu Yi, who was hanging his head seven or eight steps away, then at Pei Mao. "You refused to share such important information with me, and only came to me at the critical moment. You want to harm me. Lord Fu and I have a tacit understanding, and Langwei is under his jurisdiction. If I present these arrows and letters, I'm afraid he won't believe them."

Now more and more people know about it. If I don't inform Fu Wan, he will be held responsible if the camp suffers losses.

Fu Wan would not take action against Pei Mao and Guanqiu Yi until they defeated him.

Zhao Ji wanted to slap Guanqiu Yi a few times in public. After experiencing the national disaster, it was no wonder that he was still alive after so many years. This man was too cunning.

Pei Mao, with a bitter expression, tried to persuade him again, but Zhao Ji pointed south with his left arm. "If he refuses to go, then you go with him to inform him. If Lord Fu refuses to come in person, I will close the camp tonight and will not send any troops. I mean what I say. Hedong can do without the emperor, and it can do without you and me, but it cannot do without this army guarding the gates."

Without the emperor and ministers, the world of Hedong is still ruled by the people of Hedong.

If the army is defeated, the Huns will rush through the pass, sweep across the southern counties, and occupy this beautiful mountainous and river-rich area, and will surely grow rapidly!
Seeing that Zhao Ji didn't seem to be joking, Pei Mao didn't dare to delay any longer and immediately went to find Yang Zhong.

The inspection process ended quickly, and Yang Zhong didn't say anything to Zhao Ji.

Zhao Ji watched Yang Zhong, Pei Mao and Guanqiu Yi leave in a hurry, then spat a mouthful of thick phlegm on the ground.

Qu Bei came forward and asked: "What has upset the Minister?"

Zhao Ji saw a Xiongnu warrior behind Qu Bei still holding the head of the Qiangqu King, and frowned: "Does the wise king like him very much?"

"It's okay. If the Minister doesn't like it, I will have someone bury it immediately."

"It's not a problem. As long as the wise king likes it, that's fine."

Zhao Ji glanced at the lightly made-up head and said, "I've heard that a certain tribe has a sorcery method that can shrink a human head to the size of a fist. They like to hunt down their enemies and eat their hearts, believing that this will gain their power. They also remove the skulls and other parts of the heads and salt them to shrink the skin and flesh, eventually reducing them to the size of a fist."

The Xiongnu warriors listened attentively, but Qu Beize looked disgusted and asked, "How can there be a tribe of cannibals? Then what?"

"Then the skin and flesh shrink. Even without the support of facial bones, the facial features appear lifelike, like a baby, very similar to what they were in life. They believe that holding such a dried head is a symbol of personal bravery, and they are tied with ropes and hung around the neck or waist."

Zhao Ji said casually, and Qu Bei quickly waved his hand after hearing it: "The young prince is not that kind of person, don't worry."

"I have only heard such rumors. I thought the wise king was reluctant to part with this person. Since he doesn't like her, we will bury her together tomorrow."

As Zhao Ji spoke, he saw Qubei frowning and thinking again, so he stared at Qubei.

Qubei hesitated and said, "If the young prince wants to unite the tribes, he must first intimidate the nobles of each tribe. If Liu Cheng's head is buried and rots, there will be no evidence, which will not be conducive to uniting the tribes."

"As the wise king decides, I don't like the smell of this. Let him take it away."

"Yes."

Qubei immediately dismissed the Xiongnu warrior and walked with Zhao Ji to an open area. He asked, "Why did Yang Zhong leave in such a hurry just now?"

"There is a traitor among the emperor's guards. He secretly sent a letter with an arrow last night. I believe the enemy must have discovered the emperor's whereabouts."

Zhao Ji said helplessly, "I thought Guanqiu Yi had been in the army for over ten years. Even if he wasn't a good general, he was at least a diligent man. I never expected he would use such a trick on me."

Qubei was speechless. After a moment, he said, "If he were a general under my king, this leader would be killed tonight!" "No problem, my king, please return to the camp as soon as possible. I will draw up a night curfew order later."

"Then Xiao Wang will take his leave."

He bowed, took two steps back and turned to walk away. Perhaps it was because his old enemy was killed that he walked with the wind blowing, looking very happy.

Zhao Ji thought about it, turned around and went to the central army area to find Jia Xu.

Jia Xu was flipping through the military registers in the camp. After listening to Zhao Ji's story and seeing that Zhao Ji looked calm, he said, "The Minister is right. There is no need to worry. The emperor's entourage is not incompetent. It will not be difficult to hold out tonight."

Jia Xu changed into a comfortable sitting position, frowning, "But if we don't send troops, the emperor will be deeply resentful. When the court is stable in the future, I will definitely investigate what happened tonight."

"I'm not afraid of being held accountable later, but I'm worried that the emperor will be abducted by the Xiongnu tonight."

Zhao Ji breathed a sigh of relief: "Nothing will happen tonight, so I have nothing to worry about."

Jia Xu, however, looked thoughtful. "This kind of thing is difficult to eradicate. The Xiongnu here are disorganized and unruly, with multiple political leaders and unpredictable. How about we move our camp westward tomorrow, to Baibi?"

Baibi is good for defense, as you only need to consider enemies in one direction.

Zhao Ji nodded. "That's good. If the camp moves west, the Xiongnu will slow down their nighttime harassment, and our officers and men will be able to sleep well."

If the location of the camp changes, the old Huben camp can be abandoned, thus eliminating a weakness.

The garrison in the old camp could then retreat south and join the Chidao Pass.

Join forces with the various militias stationed there to strengthen the defense capabilities of the pass.

In any case, the emperor's camp must be stationed outside the pass.

As for the damage to the morale of the various armies caused by the westward retreat of the headquarters...this loss can now be tolerated.

The huge disparity in casualty ratios for two consecutive days has pushed morale to a critical point.

The slight reduction doesn't affect anything, as the Huns' morale recovers very slowly anyway.

At this moment, Liu Xie was looking through various arrow books. The handwriting and calligraphy were different, obviously from different people.

At this moment, fear and hesitation finally appeared on his face.

He turned to look at Fu Wan, who also had a grim expression on his face. "Master Fu, are the Xiongnu going to attack this place tonight?"

"That's right, it should be so."

Fu Wan's voice seemed a little weak when he answered. He looked at Pei Mao again and said, "Juguang will have to go through more trouble."

"Here."

Pei Mao agreed, and suddenly he heard the evening drums from the old Tiger Guard camp next door. After three evening drums, it meant the curfew was enforced.

In the emperor's camp, the evening drums were also beaten.

Fu Wan then turned to Guanqiu Yi and said, "The Xiongnu are invading tonight. I will lead my guards to inspect all locations. If anyone carries a letter or arrow and indicates collusion with the enemy, they will be executed immediately."

You cannot interrogate him at this time. Catch him and kill him immediately. You can adjust Lang Wei when you have the chance later.

"Here!"

Guanqiu Yi also agreed. Seeing that Fu Wan didn't give him a cold look, he knew that this guy probably wanted to settle accounts with him.

At this point, Guanqiu Yi's emotions had calmed down, and he was serious and methodical, without any complaints.

Fu Wan discussed and dealt with some other things.

The meeting was dissolved only when the second evening drum sounded.

Guanqiu Yi selected another team of Yulin knights to escort Pei Mao out of the camp, but they were stunned at the gate.

Pei Mao jumped on his horse and asked, "What is Wen Qiang thinking about?"

"It's the second evening drum, and Minister Zhao hasn't sent anyone to announce the curfew order, nor has he sent anyone to inquire about the camp's order."

Guanqiu Yi's expression was dull as he spoke, looking at Pei Mao. "Brother Juguang, there's no need to go. The gates will be locked at the third evening drum. If you try to break in without permission, the guards will surely shoot you out."

Pei Mao was stunned and pointed to the old Tiger Guard camp nearby: "Is it possible that someone in the Tiger Guard camp knows the password?"

"Same here, Brother Juguang, you can enter the camp, but you can't ask for the password."

Guanqiu Yi went to see a Yu Lin Zhong Lang, who rode out of the camp and quickly returned with the reply: "The gates of the Huben camp are closed. When I approached, I was shouted at and had to retreat."

Pei Mao's face turned even worse. Zhao Ji made it clear that he didn't want to have his hands stained with the blood of the people of Hedong.

I don’t know about the curfew order. No matter how many people we send to ask for help tonight, they will all be shot to death at the gate.

Even if Fu Wan goes there in person, the guards at the gate will dare to shoot!

unless……

(End of this chapter)