Tiger Guards

Chapter 22: The Fighter

Inside the camp, everyone sat down.

As Sima, Wang Zhi sat in the main seat, and Xu Huang sat opposite him.

Wei Gu sat below Wang Zhi, followed by Pei Xiu; below Xu Huang was Jia Kui, and the desk space behind Jia Kui was empty.

As for Zhao Ji, he could only wait outside the barracks.

The garrison commanders and team officers who had taken their positions one after another were all here, patiently listening to the conversation in the barracks.

Soon, the conversation ended in a bad mood.

Xu Huang walked out angrily. Seeing Jia Kui rushing to catch up and trying to speak to him, Xu Huang waved his arm to stop Jia Kui and stared at him. "Jia Sheng, you must give me at least 20 dan today! Not a dan less!"

Pei Xiu also came out and observed Wei Xing and Zhao Ji. Guanqiu Xing came to Pei Xiu first and whispered, "Seventh Brother?"

Pei Xiu said nothing, but just watched Xu Huang and his group leave.

At this time, Wang Zhi walked out, glanced at Jia Kui a few times, said nothing, and left with a flick of his sleeves.

Following closely behind was Wei Gu, who spoke to Jia Kui and consoled him, "Since we've provoked this man, it's not Liang Dao's fault alone. Just give him the twenty dan of millet."

"Yes……"

Jia Kui looked helpless, lowered his waist and walked a few steps with Wei Gu.

Wei Gu stopped again and said, "We need to send food to the north bank. Liang Dao, lead the Linfen Tiger Guards to buy some sheep and wine."

"Yes, I understand."

Jia Kui did not ask how much was being purchased. The market price fluctuated greatly, and since it was Wei Gu's personal investment, the money would definitely not pass through Jia Kui's hands.

It basically means you spend as much money as Wei Gu pays.

After watching Jia Kui leave, Wei Gu glanced at Pei Xiu, who quickly followed him.

The two men walked and talked in low voices. Wei Xing stood there and watched quietly. Suddenly he turned and asked Guanqiu Xing, "Ah Xing, why are you so unhappy?"

"I'm not happy either."

Guanqiu Xingchao spat at his feet, wiped his saliva with his foot, and went to look at Zhao Ji: "Aji, you wait here, or do you want to go ask Seventh Brother together?"

"I'll wait here. There has to be a conclusion."

After Zhao Ji finished speaking, he walked to the wall, sat down against the corner, tilted his head back and squinted his eyes to bask in the sun.

Wei Xing came over and sat down on the ground with his legs bent. He was followed by Ximen Jian, Wang Cheng and other new and old garrison commanders and team officers, a total of five garrison commanders and thirteen team officers.

Most people were silent. So far, the only rumor in the camp was that they wanted to join forces with Xu Huang to attack the Jishan bandits.

Soon, Guanqiu Xing and Pei Xiu arrived one after the other. Pei Xiu's face was unhappy. "Xu Huang was evading orders, saying that without an imperial decree, he would not send troops to help suppress the Jishan bandits."

Zhao Ji understood clearly that it was impossible for Xu Huang to send troops to help them resist the Huns.

He stood up and asked, "What do you think, Sima Wang?"

"It was his original proposal. Xu Huang refused to help. How could Sima Wang give up so easily?"

Pei Xiu looked around at everyone and said, "Sir Wang has sent someone to invite Commandant Ma... Let's not worry about that matter anymore. Brother Zhongjian has asked Jia Liangdao to purchase some sheep and wine. The army will have a good meal today!"

"Yes!"

Wei Xing, Ximen Jian and others took the lead in agreeing, and everyone dispersed, waiting to eat mutton and drink wine.

As for the suppression of the Jishan bandits, the Jishan bandits were not very strong, and the difficulty lay in the fact that there were few of them and it was difficult to capture them.

When the Hu Ben army was first formed, it was challenging to fight against two or three hundred bandits, but many people still had confidence in fighting against the Jishan bandits who numbered only dozens of people.

At the Wenxi team camp, Zhao Ji was drinking water from a lacquered wooden bowl, while Hu Ban sat beside him, picking the ends of his hair with his index finger, stopping from time to time to use a wooden splinter to pick out the black hair oil dirt from between his nails.

Hu Ban was enjoying this, feeling quite pleased. "So, now not only have we deceived Sima Wang, but we've also deceived many people in the camp. Even Wei Gu only has a partial understanding of the situation, and can only see the whole picture through a small part of the tube?"

Pei Xiu cradled his sharp sword in his arms, gently wiping the blade with a piece of fine silk in one hand, without looking up. "Our plans must be kept secret; they will be revealed after nightfall. I hope the soldiers from each county can form a team to supervise the battle and respond to emergencies."

On average, each county had a county official leading the team, accompanied by at least five county soldiers.

If a battle breaks out tonight, the county troops will number nearly a hundred people.

Although these county soldiers had poor equipment and machinery, they generally had combat experience.

Hu Ban immediately agreed, but also expressed his concern: "Aren't you afraid of the resentment of Sima Wang?" Pei Xiu just smiled and turned to look at Zhao Ji: "Aji, do you really want to do this?"

"We have no choice. If we don't fight back, we will suffer from the Xiongnu's expansion in the future. Even if we escape, we will be treated harshly when the world is about to be stabilized."

Zhao Ji continued to pour water into his bowl and said, "Han and the Hu cannot coexist. The world is unified. After a few years of rest, we will inevitably send a large army to drive out the Xiongnu. We will bear the brunt of the attack, and it is difficult to escape. In this world, there is no way out for men like us. Unless we become slaves and serve the Xiongnu."

Zhao Ji still held the original view that Hedong could not escape and it was highly likely that everything would be destroyed.

If you expand outward on your own, there are still some opportunities. If you win, it will be a big win and you will take everything.

Even if he lost, he felt willing to die.

Upon hearing this, Pei Xiu simply raised his sword, carefully observing the diamond pattern on the blade, and said in a low voice, "Aji, this first step is difficult."

Xu Huang would not help them, but he was worthy of the food he paid for. He had hinted that the Huns would come, and even hinted that the Huns would come from the upper reaches of the east bank of the Fen River.

If one wants to cooperate with Xu Huang, the righteousness of the court is worthless. Only by proving the combat effectiveness of the Tiger Guards can Xu Huang be inspired to be righteous and determined to support the Han Dynasty and be irreconcilable with the treacherous ministers.

The first step Pei Xiu mentioned was to defeat the invading Huns with the least losses and achieve greater gains.

Zhao Ji also sighed at Pei Xiu's pessimism.

He didn't really want to live anyway. His quality of life was too poor. It was better to die bravely and happily in battle than to live a cowardly life.

What really made Zhao Ji feel embarrassed was actually the group of "Wang Yun" in the court.

Having experienced the rebellion of Li Jue and Guo Si, he also witnessed the true faces of people like Zhang Ji and Yang Feng.

In fact, the mentality of the remaining important officials in the court has been distorted. To what extent has it been distorted?
Just like a woman who is insecure, hysterical, and suffers from severe depression while thinking she is concerned about the country and the people.

They keep asking you to use all your means and energy to prove your loyalty; the more you prove your loyalty and obedience, the less these ministers treat you as a human being.

The more you use this inhuman attitude to test your...loyalty.

If you tear off the disguise of loyalty, slap the other person twice, punch him twice in the stomach, and beat him until his face is covered in blood.

Then these ministers will definitely scold you for your wolfish ambitions, but they will also continue to endure humiliation, put on a flattering smile, and cooperate with you.

Just like Yang Feng and other former generals of Baibo, they are now in a situation where they are riding a tiger. Who dares to let the emperor escape from their control?

After leaving the emperor, the cohesion of their army will be greatly reduced.

The disappearance of Yang Ding and Zhang Ji, who was shot dead by the Nanyang defenders, were both revealing a horrible truth.

These generals who have served the king or threatened the emperor will die quickly after losing the emperor!

This is a chaotic world. From the emperor down, no one feels safe.

What are your long-term plans for the future?

Zhao Ji didn't think about it carefully, it was too far away.

If you want to curry favor with someone, you should follow the history you are familiar with... But are you qualified to curry favor with Cao Cao?

Rather than gamble on the moral conscience of Cao Cao's side, it would be better to turn around and fight Li Jue and Guo Si.

However, in the Tiger Guards camp of more than 500 people, those who have a little influence are all making their own calculations.

He took over a hundred people with him to start his own business?
This is really wishful thinking.

Only by upholding the righteousness of the court can one gather people's strength; following Cao Cao's path will leave Cao Cao with no way out.

Just as Zhao Ji was pondering the future, Wei Gu's attendant arrived at the door, holding a bow pouch and quiver in his hands. "Is Captain Zhao here?"

Pei Xiu stood up to greet him: "Aji is here, Brother Zhongjian, do you have a decision?"

Zhao Ji also stood up. The other party handed over the bow and quiver, then turned to Pei Xiu and said, "Don't worry, Seventh Brother. Brother Zhongjian is definitely not a coward."

Pei Xiu handed the bow and quiver to Zhao Ji and replied, "Time is pressing, so I won't let Aji come to thank you in person. When the situation becomes clearer, I will thank you in person."

"This is a small matter."

The man did not stay, and after delivering the bow and arrow, he turned around and left.

Zhao Ji tried to draw his bow and checked the arrows. Seeing that he liked them, Pei Xiu said, "Save your energy and take a nap first. The Tiger Guards will return to the camp in the afternoon. When Jia Kui returns, we will discuss tactics together."

"Yes."

(End of this chapter)