Chapter 370 The Wind Rises
Chapter 370 The Wind Rises
The boat rowed into the reed marsh, startling a flock of wild ducks.
The people on the boat immediately stopped moving and crouched down with nervous looks on their faces.
Peng Ling took out a short knife and was on high alert.
The others followed suit, took out their bows, ring-handled swords, and shields, and held their breath.
After a long time, the reed marsh was calm and there was no sign of anything unusual, so the few people breathed a sigh of relief.
Peng Ling put away his dagger, signaled with his eyes, then was the first to get off the boat, waded through the knee-deep muddy water, and quietly went ashore.
A boy of fifteen or sixteen followed him closely and went ashore together.
I don’t know if it’s an illusion, but Peng Ling feels that the Huns’ defense is becoming more and more tight.
This is Dongyu, which belongs to Wei County in terms of territory and was occupied by Shi Le last year.
Lingjin on the opposite bank was garrisoned by 5,000 troops from the Yanzhou army's rear camp, which had once thwarted Shi Le's attempt to cross the river. Subsequently, there was no movement for three months.
The two sides faced each other across the river and lived in peace.
But even if the main army does not cross the river, the scouts will still cross the river.
Peng Ling was a member of the rear camp of the Yanzhou Army, transferred from the Langling Tuntian Army, and served as the team leader. This time he was ordered to cross the river to the north to meet the scouts returning, which was the first time for him.
But, we have arrived at the agreed location, where is the scout?
There is a small village by the river, with constant noise.
Peng Ling was a little puzzled. He had also come from Hebei and was very familiar with these villages along the Yellow River.
After years of war, there are very few people left.
I heard that the prefect Le Mo had evacuated everyone who could be evacuated, so why is there such a noise?
Suddenly, a familiar smell wafted in the wind.
He sniffed, struggled and hesitated for a while, then quietly walked out of the bushes and touched the road.
Sure enough, it was fresh donkey dung.
He walked forward and saw another pile of smooth donkey dung.
Go further, there is more.
He even saw from afar several large trucks parked in a haphazard manner at the entrance of the village.
Some people were lying in the car sleeping, while others were leaning against the side of the car chatting.
There were horses tied under several big trees. Judging from the saddle ornaments and the bows and daggers inserted in the scabbards, they were definitely mounts for regular cavalry.
He didn't dare to look anymore, and quietly retreated back into the bushes and returned to the starting point.
"Team leader..." the boy shouted.
Peng Ling's eyes flashed with ferocity, and he grabbed the boy's neck directly.
The boy was scared to death, but under Peng Ling's ferocious gaze, he dared not struggle and could only look at him pitifully.
Peng Ling let go of his hand and said softly, "Don't shout loudly. I'll teach you a lesson this time. Remember it next time."
The young man nodded repeatedly.
Peng Ling waved his hand and took the young man back to the boat.
After Peng Ling and the other two left, several riders came out of the village.
After getting on the post road, they were about to run when the leader waved his hand and stopped.
He looked at the wet footprints on the road and in the grass for a long time without saying a word.
When Peng Ling returned to the boat, everyone immediately asked, "How is it?"
Peng Ling was silent for a while, then said, "It's getting dark. If he hasn't come back yet, he probably won't be able to come back. Let's go! We won't wait any longer!"
Someone disagreed: "Recently, many scouts have not returned, and the higher-ups are extremely worried. If we come and leave without picking up anyone, how will we explain when we return?"
"How can we bring the dead back?" Peng Ling asked coldly.
"This..." The person who asked the question was speechless.
"If it were last year, I would have stabbed you to death." Peng Ling put away his dagger and said firmly, "Let's go!"
Several people responded and began to row the boat away from the reed marsh.
At this moment, several long arrows flew through the air, scaring everyone.
"Shield!" Peng Ling growled.
The boy subconsciously raised a shield to protect his rower.
Another man also raised his shield.
The arrows were becoming more and more frequent, and shouts and the sound of horse hooves could be heard from the river bank.
One person on the boat had been shot by an arrow and was screaming in agony, holding his stomach.
Peng Ling's expression remained unchanged, and he continued to stare at the reeds that were gradually disappearing into the distance.
An arrow flew over his head.
There was no change in his facial expression; he simply lowered his body slightly.
The others followed suit and climbed onto the side of the boat and lay down.
The boat gradually drifted away.
The arrows were not powerful enough and fell into the water.
A moment later, several people emerged from the reeds, waded through waist-deep water, and chased forward a few steps. When they found that they could not reach it, they finally put down their bows in disappointment.
"The Huns are transporting grain." Peng Ling said suddenly.
"Are they also harvesting in autumn?" the young man put down his shield and asked foolishly.
Peng Ling was too lazy to pay attention to him and just looked at the north bank.
Once people have concerns, they will become worried.
Peng Ling has already started a family in Juancheng.
In one family, a man died and the widow took care of the child. But he also lost his wife and child, so over time they started living together.
And the widow was pregnant with his child.
This made him a little worried, and he was no longer as fierce as before.
At the same time, this also stimulated his fighting spirit.
His life seemed to have a purpose again, and he was no longer in a muddle. He didn't want Juancheng to suffer from war again and let his wife and children worry, but he knew it was just wishful thinking.
Some things are beyond his control.
In this world, useless people in high positions always mess up things, including the one in the palace.
If only I could kill him.
It was already dark when the boat reached the other side.
Peng Ling did not delay. After instructing his men to send the wounded to the medical officer's camp, he took the young man with him and headed straight for the camp owner's barracks.
******
In late autumn, thousands of horses are galloping on the land of Hanoi, with great momentum.
A huge felt tent was set up on the bank of Qinshui River.
Young girls were coming in and out, carrying various food utensils, busy at work.
Outside the big tent, the banks of the Qinshui River were covered with dense grass.
The girl from the grassland exclaimed.
They were presented by the tribe to serve the Han nobles. It was their first time in Hanoi and also their first time seeing such tall grass, which was completely different from their short and poor counterparts in the sand dunes.
A thin boy came over and gently patted a girl's perky butt.
The girl jumped away like a frightened deer, then put one hand on her waist, pointed at the boy and started scolding him.
The boy had a delicate and feminine appearance. Although his face was full of lust, he was not good at speaking. After being scolded by the girl, he walked away angrily.
A woman who was milking cows by the river saw this and said quickly, "Don't mess with him. He is the king's favorite male lover."
The girl screamed "Ah" and quickly covered her mouth.
As the great King of Hanoi, what kind of woman is not desirable to him? How can he like men?
"The king likes beauties, both men and women." After saying this, the woman lowered her head and continued milking.
The girl also came over and squatted down to squeeze in.
"I heard that the king is about to leave Yewang?" asked the girl.
The woman pointed to the soldiers herding horses on the other side of the river and said, "When they leave, the king will leave."
“That’s a lot of people.” The girl stretched out her arms as if to describe “a lot”.
The woman smiled and said, "There are so many high-ranking officials here this time, there must be a lot of people."
"You haven't seen so many people?"
"I haven't seen it." The woman shook her head and said, "Your Majesty has even granted us the Golden Tent, and all the leaders of the tribes have come to the alliance. I haven't seen such a scene for many years."
"Are you from Central Plains?" the girl suddenly asked.
The woman stopped what she was doing, sighed for a long time, wiped the tears from her eyes, and said, "My home is in Yecheng, not far from here."
"Oh." The girl didn't know where Yecheng was, but she subconsciously felt that it was not too far away.
After the two of them finished milking a bucket of milk, the girl took it away.
The woman stood up and looked towards the east in a daze.
In fact, it was very far away and she couldn’t see anything, but she just wanted to see it.
More than a hundred riders came galloping from the east. Those in the front were all dressed in red and purple, and they were obviously high-ranking officials.
General Zhenxi Shan Zheng, General Anxi Liu Ya, Central Guard General Jin Zhun...
Each of them is a high-ranking official in the imperial court.
The woman withdrew her gaze and continued to work.
When I was young, I listened to my father and brothers talking about the Huns. They all shook their heads and sighed when they mentioned the Huns. They said that the imperial court only brought the Hu people into the Central Plains, but did not register them as citizens and discipline them. The so-called registering the people as citizens does not mean that you can just do a household registration, but you have to break up the organization from top to bottom, so that the herders no longer listen to the head, but listen to the government instead. Only in this way can you truly register the people as citizens.
She had been captured by the Huns for several years, and based on observations over the past few years, she found that the Huns were becoming more and more rebellious.
Tribes were lured here one after another.
Every year, several or even dozens of tribes from the northern grasslands would migrate south to enrich the population of the various Xiongnu tribes - this kind of thing seemed to have never stopped since the beginning of the country, and it happened every year.
The newcomers were ignorant and stupid, and they only made a living by hunting and nomadic activities, and did not engage in farming.
Over time, the Huns became more and more barbaric.
And their barbarity will inevitably bring great disaster to the people of the Central Plains.
"Oh." The woman sighed, feeling uncomfortable, and turned around to continue working.
More than a dozen red and purple officials dismounted from their horses far away, and then came to the Golden Tent chatting and laughing.
After a while, the golden tent became even busier inside and outside.
Sheep were brought in one by one and slaughtered and cooked on the spot.
A cart of wine was also brought in, and the shepherds were busy carrying it back and forth.
There are falcons flying in the sky and knights hunting on the ground.
Along the hundreds of miles of Qinshui River, there were herds of horses everywhere, nearly hundreds of thousands of them, grazing on the gradually withering grass.
Henei County, which was once rich in Qingcheng rice, has now turned into a huge pasture.
Yes, during the Han Dynasty, there were large-scale pastures here, but at this time, the grazing people were different.
The falcon flapped its wings and flew south, passing over the Yellow River.
There is tranquility on both sides of the river.
Looking from Henan to Hebei, there is almost nothing unusual.
Only the occasional appearance of cavalry on the north bank reminded people that Jin and Han were still at war.
"Woo--" A desolate horn sounded, and a huge fleet appeared on the quiet river.
The sound of the trumpet is a command.
A large convoy appeared on the shore.
There are long spears, armored soldiers standing in rows, and flags and banners flying, just like the high morale of the soldiers.
The boats were lined up in neat rows, going upstream and straight into the Luo River.
(End of this chapter)