26. The clouds of war are dense

A group of Song soldiers, neatly arranged and wearing dazzling armor, listened to Zhao Ze's pre-war instructions under the banner of the Fire Red Army in the wind.

Zhao Ze summoned them to a secret village in the north of Dengzhou and briefly issued the war order to attack Shunyang.

Zhao Ze asked them to have the will and determination of steel, fight quickly, and not give the enemy any chance to breathe.

However, the situation three days ago was another scene, peace, tranquility and warmth.

The lively streets, the noisy market, and the crowds are crowded. All the shops are open as usual. The hotels, tea houses, inns and brothel buildings are still full, and the head is driven. Everyone is still talking about the changes in Dengzhou City with relish. The anecdotes in Dengzhou City did not notice that the war is approaching.

On the other side, Zhao Ze's 8,000 troops, half of which are stationed in the barracks in the city, and the other half are stationed on the main road to the Guanghua Army outside the city. They firmly control the surrounding areas, waiting for the weather to get better and the winter supplies of the imperial court to arrive, and then take a walk.

The battlefield is changing rapidly. In order to cope with possible changes, Zhao Ze sent several patrols to closely monitor the movement within 50 miles of Dengzhou City.

Mu Yunhan's team went out of the city to patrol on that day and was stationed outside Chaoshui Village at night.

During the day, after Zhao Ze finished handling the military affairs, he accompanied Shangguan Mei to the city to relax, had a meal, walked around, and felt the life of the people of Dengzhou. He talked and laughed all the way, and inadvertently mentioned the girl in Cuiyun Tower. Shangguan Mei was so angry that he left Zhao Ze and squeezed into the crowd alone.

Zhao Ze quickly caught up with him, so that Lai said that he coaxed her to buy a few silk and satins in a nearby store as compensation. Unexpectedly, on the way, he met undisciplined soldiers running wildly in the market.

This is not bad. It's simply lawless. Zhao Ze, as the commander-in-chief, did not ride a tall horse across the market. Who is this person? Is he so crazy?

So, he quickly took Shangguan Mei away from the silk shop and followed him all the way to Cuiyun Tower.

Now the truth has come out. It turned out to be Han Gang, a newcomer from Zhao Zejun. He brought his cronies to Cuiyunlou to find a girl to be happy.

Originally, Han Gang was a man in Zhao Ze's heart, but from what he did today, Zhao Ze's heart was half cold. It happened that Ouyang Chun also took people to wait for Zhao Ze here. When he saw that an important person came, he quickly walked out of the pub opposite the Cuiyun Building to meet him.

asked, "Your Excellency, are you all right? Just now, the brothers walked with you and lost them all of a sudden. It's all because of negligence."

Zhao Ze didn't blame him. He quickly pulled Ouyangchun to the uninhabited place aside and whispered, "Didn't Han Gang of the Guanghua Army just now go in? Did you see it?"

"I see, but he doesn't seem to recognize us," Ouyang Chun replied.

"You are all dressed in casual clothes. He has only seen you once. Of course he can't recognize you." Zhao Ze continued, "Mr. Ouyang, it's not convenient for me to go in. You can stay in a moment, and then give the silver ticket to the Pomaid and tell her that it was redeemed for Miss Yonger!"

After saying that, Zhao Ze stuffed a few silver tickets into Ouyangchun's hand, and then peeked at Shangguan Mei and saw that she was looking at this side with her neck.

Then, he deliberately raised his voice and said, "Mr. Ouyang, now I ordered you to stare at Han Gang here to see what he said and whether he was slandering me behind my back. Well, I'm leaving. Later, you can report to me later!"

After the explanation, Zhao Ze turned around and went down the steps, took Shangguan Mei away from the street in front of Cuiyun Tower, and hid into the crowd again.

"What is this?" Ouyang Chun was confused and said to himself why he spoke in a low voice, shouted loudly, and asked him to send money to the pimp. Who else is the Yonger girl? It made him confused.

Zhang Hu, who was standing aside, walked a few steps closer and asked, "What's wrong with you, my lord?"

"Cough..." Ouyang Chun sighed and said what Zhao Ze had just explained. Zhang Hu immediately understood after hearing this and smiled and said, "So that's it?"

"What's the matter?" Ouyang Chun asked.

Zhang Hu came to Ouyangchun's ear with a smile and said his guess. Ouyangchun suddenly realized it and patted his head and said, "I understand. So it's it. Well, really, why do you have to do this?"

"If adults don't want to come forward, it's better to ask my younger brother to do this," Zhang Hu said.

Ouyang Chun glanced at him and felt that Zhang Hu was excited enough. Therefore, he stuffed those silver tickets to Zhang Hu and asked him to do this. He went to the opposite restaurant and sat for a moment, staring at Han Gang while waiting for his news.

After Zhang Hu took the order, he flashed into Cuiyun Tower to do business. There is no need to mention this, let alone Zhao Ze and Shangguan Mei.

After leaving the Cuiyun Tower, he walked casually and happened to come to the Xuannu Temple in the city. Shangguan Mei said that she wanted to go in and have a look, so she entered the temple and stayed in it for a quarter of an hour.

In the afternoon, I took a break in the tea house by the roadside, asked for a few snacks, ate and chatted, and didn't return to the camp until the sun set in the west.

After that, the peaceful days were over. A black cloud moved from the direction of the mountain and covered half of Dengzhou. This was a sign of the arrival of the war, and no one could escape.

......

The first sound of drums in Song's military camp echoed in the big tent. In an eye, the people sitting in it were refreshed.

By this time, the sky was already bright, and the sun emitted a brilliant golden light, making the tent particularly warm.

Chen Shun, Teng Xiong in Baiting Town, Jia An and Sun from Xichuan came forward to see the ceremony in turn, and retreated to the side after the ceremony.

"Thank you for your hard work!" Zhao Ze said.

"I dare not, I dare not, this is what the grass people should do," Chen Shun and the four replied in unison.

Zhao Ze nodded and felt that the four people were quite loyal. He thought about what he should be given to them, so he asked, "What do you want me to reward?"

"This!" Chen Shun and the four of them didn't know how to answer for a while, and they felt a little difficult to speak.

Zhang Zai sat aside and saw that they were embarrassed, so he asked, "You don't have to be too careful. If you have something to say, it's okay to say it. We adults are very talkative and won't be difficult for you."

With Zhang Zai's words, Chen Shun first stood up and hugged his fist and said, "Your excellency, the villain has no relatives and no reason. He has all martial arts skills. He wanted to join the army but was afraid that his wife and children would be lonely and no one would take care of him. However, the villain figured it out today. He wants to work under the command of the adult. Please complete it!"

Zhao Ze smiled and replied, "The strong man is dedicated to repaying the country and his loyalty is commendable, but what about your wife and children?"

"Your Excellency!" Chen Shun hugged his fist again and said, "If the adult is willing to accept the villain, the villain only asks the adult to find a place to settle down in this city. When he picks up his wife and children, the villain is willing to serve the work of dogs and horses!"

Chen Shun's straightforwardness moved Zhao Ze quite a lot. He looked at Zhang Zai. Zhang Zai nodded. Zhao Ze was understanding and then told him, "Well, I have promised you. After that, I will send a few people to go to Baiting Town to pick up their wives and children. I will arrange their future lives, and then you can go to my account to listen to the order!"

"Yes, my lord!" Chen Shun happily clenched his fist again, and then stepped aside.

Next, Zhao Ze's eyes fell on the savage Teng Xiong. Seeing that he had big ears, strong limbs and simple appearance, he had a little more love and asked, "This hero, what do you want!"

Just now, when Teng Xiong saw that his eldest brother Chen Shun was accepted by Zhao Ze, he was happy. When he heard Zhao Ze call him, he quickly came to the tent. Then he fell to his knees, kowtowed and replied, "The villain is also a hunter. He has no relatives and is willing to work under the command of adults until he dies!"

"Yo-ho!" Zhao Zexin said that this man was still a little literary, but he didn't know that Teng Xiong learned from the storyteller.

"Okay, you stay first and listen to the order under my account!"

"Yes, my lord!" Teng Xiong quickly thanked him and then bowed down.

The drums sounded for the second time in the barracks, and the drill began. At this moment, there were still two people in the tent standing anxiously, waiting for Zhao Ze to call the name.

"Well, the two strong men in front of me have said their own requirements. I don't know what they plan to do," Zhao Ze asked.

As soon as Jia An heard the adult sitting on him call him, he quickly came out, shook his sleeves and bowed, and then replied a little staggeringly, "Jia An, a student, is shallow and dares not climb high. I am willing to make a pen in the adult's account. This life is enough!"

Jia Yan's words were true. At this time, he really only wanted a mouthful of food, stay happily with the Hun family, listen to the wind and the moon, and be free for a lifetime.

Although there were many scholars in the Song Dynasty, there were not many who could really become officials, especially the few officers in the army who knew how to read and write. Most of them were reckless. Since Jia An was interested in working in the army, Zhao Ze nodded and said to Zhang Zai, "Zihou, what do you see!"

Zhang Zai is also a scholar. He has to deal with most of the affairs of Zhao Ze's army. He is worried about the lack of a reliable helper. Since God sent Jia An, who was also from a poor family, Zhang Zai was happy to let him go to his account.

Jia'an thanked him so much that he almost knelt down and kowtowed. Zhang Zai didn't let him make such a big salute.

Finally, Jia An's Sun family came out. First, she lowered her head. Zhao Ze called her and dared to look up. Because this was etiquette, a woman could not look directly at Shangguan.

"Sun, how do you want me to reward you!"

"Your Excellency, the people and women also want to join the army!" Sun answered concisely.

As soon as he said, Zhao Ze laughed and told her, "You can't keep women in the army!"

"Well," Mr. Sun panicked. "I want to be with my family to wash clothes and cook for him. Do you think, can you..."

Speaking of this, Sun's eyes turned red and he was about to cry. Jia An was full of poetry and books, but he was not stupid. He knew that women could not cry in front of Shangguan, so he quickly stepped forward and said, "Your Excellency, my family doesn't understand etiquette. Please forgive her. I will drive her back. Home"

Zhao Ze raised his hand, thought about it for a moment, and said, "That said, I'm going to hire a handyman. If you don't mind, you can be a handyman here and listen to my personal escort!"

Sun Shi could stay as soon as he heard that. He was overjoyed. He quickly kowtowed and thanked him. Then he got up and retreated to his husband Jia An. Finally, he stepped on him fiercely. Jia An grinned and did not dare to say anything. He said to himself that you, a woman who did not know how to be polite, almost ruined my good deeds. Fortunately, the adult was very kind.