On this day, the Eight Gate Golden Lock Formation was completed. Fang Xuanzao and Shan Xiongxin finally breathed a sigh of relief. Shan Xiongxin said a little tiredly: "Hurry up and take your time. Finally, the formation is completed. But what should our army do next?"

?”

In the battle of Xiang'an, the Wei army lost about 40,000 people, and its advantage in military strength was gone. Shan Xiongxin only had 10,000 elite troops here, and 20,000 heavy troops who were promoted to combat soldiers. There were still 40,000 elite troops in Qingliu County who were resting and reorganizing, but

This is the only army available to Li Mi. If Xu Shiji and Wang Bo are unable to support them, they will need to urgently mobilize from these 40,000 people. Although Jiangdu City still has 20,000 people, the scale of the city is so large that even the city walls are not enough.

How can they be used? There are some county soldiers in other counties, but they also need to prevent local powerful people from causing rebellion. Meng Jiigong in the south also restrained 30,000 Wei troops. This means that before the new soldiers have transformed into fighting men,

It was impossible for Li Mi to take the initiative to send troops.

"Wait!" Fang Xuanzao pondered for a moment before spitting out one word.

"Wait?" Shan Xiongxin looked at Fang Xuanzao blankly and asked doubtfully: "Is it that simple?"

"Yes! It's that simple!" Fang Xuanzao explained: "According to the report from our army's scouts, there were only 15,000 soldiers and horses brought by Yang Tong to Du Jun. This is his emperor's personal army, and its mission is

Protecting Yang Tong's safety means that Yang Tong's army will attack only at a critical moment. Based on this calculation, Du Fuwei's available troops are still only his original army. Although our army was defeated, Du Fuwei experienced successive battles

, is definitely not better than our army. Although he has temporarily won at this time, it is very difficult to break through our camp with his strength. Now we only need to guard the camp, regroup the morale, train the soldiers, and wait for Du Fuwei to do the work.

Just come and attack. If they break into the camp rashly, they will be seeking death! If Du Fuwei doesn't come, it will give the king more time to recruit soldiers and train the army."

"Okay, I'll just follow what you say, sir!" Shan Xiongxin nodded. As the general of the Wei State, he knew the situation of the Wei army quite well. Now he really does not dare to send troops randomly. For them, every one of them now

Elite soldiers are very valuable.

At this moment, bursts of loud sorrow and music suddenly came from outside the camp. Shan Xiongxin and Fang Xuanzao frowned at the same time. Shan Xiongxin's deputy general Xu Shiren looked cold and said sternly: "Who is making noise outside?"

"Return to the general, it was the Sui Emperor who sent people to play mourning music!" A school captain quickly stepped inside and replied.

"Bastard!" Shan Xiongxin slapped the table and saw Fang Xuanzao looking at him. He suppressed the anger in his chest and said in a deep voice, "Why didn't you shoot them to death?"

"General, they were ordered by Emperor Sui to return the bodies of our soldiers. It's not easy to shoot arrows!" the captain said with a bitter smile.

"What? Return the body?" Shan Xiongxin asked loudly.

The captain replied: "Exactly!"

"Who is coming?" Shan Xiongxin's eyes flashed with a cold look.

"Coming back to the general, the person here is Wang Xiongdan, the adopted son of Du Fuwei." The captain said in a deep voice.

"I'll kill him!" Xu Shiren groaned, holding the knife and ran out of the military camp.

"Stop!" Shan Xiongxin stood up and snorted coldly.

"General?" Xu Shiren turned around and looked at Shan Xiongxin in confusion.

"When the two armies are fighting, they will not kill the envoy. This is a rule and cannot be broken! Moreover, they are here to return the bodies of our soldiers. Due to emotions and reasons, we cannot go too far." Shan Xiongxin walked out of the commander's position and said calmly.

Said: "Let's go! Follow me to meet the corpses of the soldiers."

"Here!" Xu Shiren clenched the sword unwillingly and followed Shan Xiongxin. Fang Xuanzao and several generals also filed out.

Outside the camp, a stream of bloody smell hit his nose, making Shan Xiongxin frown, but Fang Xuanzao's heart sank. The civilians who followed the Sui army were still playing mournful music.

A large group of Wei army officers looked unkindly and surrounded two hundred Sui army cavalry. However, the Sui army officers turned a blind eye. Their faces exuded a calm temperament. Even though they were riding on war horses, their waists were still straight.

, the momentum is sharp and extraordinary, like a long sword unsheathed, thrust straight into the sky.

"What a spirit!" Shan Xiongxin felt extremely stuffy in his chest, and his eyes lit up when he saw this Sui army general. However, this time the Wei army suffered such a big loss at the hands of Du Fuwei, Shan Xiongxin wanted his adopted son

Naturally, he didn't have a good face. He looked at the leader Wang Xiongdan with cold eyes and snorted: "Are you Du Fuwei's adopted son, Wang Xiongdan, who is known as the little general?"

"Wang Xiongdan has met General Shan!" Wang Xiongdan dismounted from his horse, bowed his hands in a salute, and then corrected: "It is true that General Du is my foster father, but I am not a junior general, and now I am just a school captain in the Sui Dynasty."

"Colonel?" Shan Xiongxin was slightly surprised. Wang Xiongdan had made such a big name in Jianghuai, but when he arrived in the Sui Army, he was just a captain?

Wang Xiongdan puffed up his chest and said proudly: "Thanks to His Majesty's grace, I am now a captain of the Xuanjia Army, the most powerful force in the Sui Dynasty."

Only then did Shan Xiongxin suddenly realize that he knew what the Xuanjia Army was like. Wang Xiongdan became a captain in this army. Although he was demoted, he actually had a bright future. He waved his hand and said: "Don't talk nonsense, Emperor Shengwu asked

Why did you come?"

Li Mi respected Sui Zili, and Shan Xiongxin could not call Yang Tong by his name.

"The Holy One has said: The two sides are fighting for fate, and there is no personal grudge between them. The soldiers are fighting for their own masters on the battlefield. Life and death are determined by their destiny. Now that the soldiers of your army are dead, the Holy One cannot bear the death of these soldiers of the same race.

Later, the corpses were exposed in the wilderness, so I was specially ordered to come and return the corpses of your army so that they can be buried in peace."

When the surrounding Wei army officers heard this, the anger in their eyes dimmed a lot. Indeed, dying in battle is the fate of soldiers. Death is a normal thing. This time, the Wei army besieged Xiang'an. If

If the city is destroyed, Du Fuwei will probably be in trouble. Can we still blame Du Fuwei for not arresting him without hesitation?

Many Wei army officers looked at the corpses piled high on the hundreds of carriages, with sadness in their eyes. Their originally indignant morale quickly dropped, and some officers even couldn't help but cry softly.

Looking at the corpses that were removed from the carriage and the soldiers who were so frightened by the fragmented remains that their faces turned pale, Shan Xiongxin suddenly felt that the morale of his soldiers, which was already low, had plummeted to the bottom. He felt a tightness in his chest and followed closely.

A murderous intent flashed in his eyes, and he snorted coldly: "Wang Xiongdan, aren't you afraid that I will kill you?"

"Why did General Shan kill me? What reason is there to kill me?" Wang Xiongdan smiled and said: "General Shan is a hero of the world. He has clear grudges and is upright. How can he not distinguish between right and wrong? I will send back your soldiers.

Even if you don’t reward me for the body, you shouldn’t kill me, right? If so, next time, our army will have no choice but to let the corpses of your soldiers be exposed in the wilderness and be eaten by birds and wild dogs.”

"Okay, hahaha!" Seeing Shan Xiongxin's murderous intention, Fang Xuanzao on the side burst into laughter. The laughter was so sudden that the surrounding Wei military attachés were startled and looked at Fang Xuanzao in confusion.

Wang Xiongdan just looked at Fang Xuanzao indifferently. The knuckles of the hand holding the reins turned pale due to excessive force, but his face still had a calm look.

After a long time, Fang Xuanzao stopped laughing and said loudly: "It seems that General Wang is not only strong and courageous, but also has extraordinary strength. He also has a clever eloquence. Come, please give 20,000 taels of gold to General Wang to thank him for the gift."

Return the bodies of our soldiers."

"Sir?" Xu Shiren on the side was anxious. The two thousand taels of gold were given to them by the King of Wei for emergency purposes. Is this just a gift? Or was it given to the enemy?

Fang Xuanzao ignored Xu Shiren and said loudly: "In the heart of King Wei, every soldier in our army is a priceless treasure. What does these 20,000 taels of gold mean? If there are mountains of gold and silver here, I will also uphold the principles of Wei."

Wang Zhizhi, I will devote everything I have to thank General Wang for such a righteous deed."

Seeing the excitement and gratitude on the faces of the soldiers around him, Shan Xiongxin immediately understood Fang Xuanzao's intentions, the gift of ten thousand taels of gold, and if these words spread among the army, what would the soldiers think of Wei?

With the king's ownership, loyalty will be extremely high, and morale will also rise steadily. Before this crucial battle, it is really cost-effective to spend 20,000 gold to gain the loyalty and great morale of 30,000 soldiers!

Soon, forty guards carried twenty heavy boxes to Fang Xuanzao. Fang Xuanzao waved his hand, and the guards carried the boxes to Wang Xiongdan.

"Thank you sir for the reward!" Wang Xiongdan waved his hand, and twenty Sui soldiers dismounted. Under the horrified eyes of the Wei soldiers, they easily carried a box and strode to the vacated carriage. When they came back

, their expressions remained unchanged, as if they had done something ordinary.

When Wang Xiongdan saw that all the carriages had been vacated, he cupped his hands and said, "General, I have to go back to deliver my order. Please retire."

"General Wang, please wait!" Fang Xuanzao suddenly spoke again.

When Wang Xiongdan heard this, he frowned and looked at Fang Xuanzao, "What are your orders, sir?"

"I don't dare to obey the orders!" Fang Xuanzao twisted his beard and said with a smile: "I have met Emperor Shengwu several times, but now we have to meet with swordsmen on this battlefield. It is really a trick of fate! Please say hello to the Holy Emperor for me.

"

"Does this gentleman recognize His Majesty?" Wang Xiongdan's attitude was more respectful.

"Yeah." Fang Xuanzao nodded.

"I don't know what your name is, sir. I hope I can report back to your Majesty." General Wang Xiongdan bowed and said.

"Just say..." Fang Xuanzao said this, and suddenly asked in a roundabout way: "Is Emperor Shengwu going back to Beijing?"

Wang Xiongdan's eyes narrowed. How did this person know that the Holy Emperor was going to return to Beijing?

Seeing the change in Wang Xiongdan's expression, Fang Xuanzao smiled slightly: "General Wang said, I am an old friend of Luoyang, and your Majesty will know about it."

"I'll remember it, general, let's say goodbye!" Wang Xiongdan nodded, seeing that Fang Xuanzao was not talking, and then slowly left with his team of civilians.

After Wang Xiongdan left, the smile on Fang Xuanzao's face gradually dissipated. The mountain of corpses in front of him, as well as the many mournful and sobbing soldiers, made him feel depressed, and his eyes showed a deep look of sadness. For a long time,

With a long sigh, he gave the order to choose a burial place, and then glanced at Shan Xiongxin.

"Go to the Chinese army's tent to discuss matters!" Shan Xiongxin ordered knowingly.

"Here!" All the generals followed silently.

"Fang Shangshu, Wang Xiongdan is the adopted son of Du Fuwei. He has repeatedly made enemies of our army and is a strong general. Why don't you let me kill him?" Xu Shiren followed Fang Xuanzao and Shan Xiongxin in a low voice.

asked in a voice.

"After our army went south, the battles continued, and the soldiers were already tired of the war. Now our army was defeated again in Xiang'an, and its morale has greatly improved. Yang Tong now sent Wang Xiongdan to return the bodies of our soldiers, which was not a good intention. He did it for

The purpose is to further damage the morale of our army. Yang Dong is using this as a psychological attack, which is more vicious than directly killing people. What's more terrible is that we can't do it unless we are fooled. Wang Xiongdan is just a lieutenant under Yang Dong, and sooner or later he will be killed.

Returning to Luoyang with Yang Tong will not affect our army life or death. If I kill him, I can vent my anger for a while, but it will be very detrimental to the morale of our army. How can I fall into his plan?"

"Fang Shangshu, since the corpses of these soldiers are part of the enemy's strategy, do you want to return them?" Xu Shiren asked in shock.

Fang Xuanzao, Shan Xiongxin: "..."

Xu Shiren smiled and asked again: "Giving Wang Xiongdan so much gold? Can Yang Tong's scheme be defused?"

"At least it will play some role!" Fang Xuanzao thought about the grateful and excited expressions of the soldiers, and said with a smile: "This gold is a dead thing that cannot be eaten, but it has bought a loyal army for King Wei.

It has to be cost-effective.”

Xu Shiren looked confused.

Suddenly, Fang Xuanzao smiled heartily again and said: "Although Wang Xiongdan is a powerful soldier, he is still young and has little knowledge. After being deceived by me, he let me know that Yang Tong was going back to Luoyang. As long as he left, I would not let him go."

I’m worried that Du Fuwei will be able to break our army’s camp!”

"Why are you so sure, sir?" Shan Xiongxin asked curiously. Ever since he learned the formation, he admired Fang Xuanzao's profound knowledge, so he addressed him as "sir".

Fang Xuanzao smiled, and his face became more serious: "Du Fuwei is a young and unlearned thief. He and Fugong Er organized the bandit rebellion when all the heroes came together. They were brave and resourceful.

That’s true, but it doesn’t change the fact that he is weak in knowledge. Under normal combat conditions, he can accomplish a lot with his keen insight, but if it were a formation he knew nothing about, there would be no solution at all.”
Chapter completed!