The summer night, when there was no wind, was like a dose of knockout drug, making people drowsy, weak, and suffocating.
Yang Fan was lying on a mat. He didn't know how long he had slept, but he suddenly felt suffocated. He opened his eyes and saw that the sky was still dark. His mouth was dry, and he sat up in a daze. He felt for the wooden crutch he had made himself and propped it under his right arm. He groped his way to the table, grabbed the kettle, and gulped down a mouthful of water. He then walked to the toilet at the end of the bed.
The crutch tapped on the floor, making a 'dong dong' sound. A figure immediately appeared at the window and peeked inside. Borrowing the weak moonlight, the figure saw that Yang Fan had gotten up at night and retracted his head.
Yang Fan had been living in this small town for three days. He also felt it strange that the Khitans would suddenly stay here. The surrounding cities were densely packed, and they were all the territory of the imperial court. If the Khitans wanted to choose a stronghold, this was definitely not a good choice. The best choice should be Lulong.
For the first two days, Fei Mo had been complaining to him. She didn't understand why the army was stationed here, but after He Axiao came yesterday morning, Fei Mo didn't complain anymore. He didn't know what He Axiao had said to him.
After going to the toilet, Yang Fan suddenly didn't feel sleepy anymore. Leaning on his crutch, he walked step by step to the window. Outside the window, the patrolling warriors were pacing back and forth like ghosts in the middle of the night. The moonlight reflected off the sabers in their hands, reflecting a touch of cold light. Anyone who looked at them would involuntarily feel a sense of coolness.
There was only half a moon in the sky. It was covered by a thin mist, so it wasn't bright. Yang Fan let out a soft sigh. He couldn't help but think of his wife and children. Gazing at the half-moon covered by thin clouds, Yang Fan thought in a daze, "If the Khitan people stay here, it's not bad. Once my leg injury is better, it'll be easy for me to escape. Once I return to the mountains, it'll be hard for me to escape. "
In the third courtyard of the mansion, there was a row of rooms on the east wall. It was dark and unlit, but in one of the rooms, there were two figures sneaking around each other. One of them was Liang Shuang, and the other was the secret agent he had sent to Zhuozhou. His name was Zhang Shuhao.
Liang Shuang lowered her voice and asked, "What instructions does Young Master have?"
Zhang Shuhao said, "Young Master said that this is a rare opportunity, and that he must die here."
Liang Shuang frowned and said, "I tried my best to curry favor with the Khitans so that they would not make things too difficult for us. But in the end, we are not their people. It's true that Yang Fan is in our territory, but he's not alone. How can we kill him? "
Zhang Shuhao said, "Young Master has already issued a death order. Once he escapes, there won't be another chance. Young Master said that no matter if it's poisoning, assassination, or assassination, any method is fine. If necessary, we can abandon this manor, set it on fire, and cause chaos. In the chaos, we can take his life. As long as we can accomplish this, Young Master will not hesitate to reward us handsomely! "
Liang Shuang carefully calculated for a while, then nodded and said, "Hmm, you go and rest first. I'll make a good plan and see if there's an opportunity to make a move!"
Zhang Shuhao said, "I haven't shown my face here for the past two days. If a new face suddenly appears, won't it arouse their suspicions?"
Liang Shuang scoffed and said, "Don't worry. All of us have been locked up in this courtyard. Those Khitan soldiers have never looked us in the eye, nor have they counted our numbers. Who would remember who you are?"
Only then did Zhang Shuhao feel relieved. Taking advantage of the darkness, he quietly escaped.
Liang Shuang gazed at the hazy moon in the sky and let out a long sigh.
The Lu family manor was the largest in the town. The Khitan general named Fei Mo naturally moved here, and so did Yang Fan. However, although he was close at hand, it was easier said than done to kill him. The Khitan soldiers who were guarding against Yang Fan's escape were also his best protection. It would be difficult to carry out Young Master's order …
…
In Zhuolu City, in the mansion where Li Jinzhong was.
Li Jinzhong struggled for another three days, but in the end, he couldn't hold on. At the third watch, he sadly breathed his last.
The generals under him had led their own warriors to guard the perimeter. They had already occupied Zhuolu for many days, so they couldn't ignore the imperial court's troops. Therefore, they weren't guarding by his side. When he breathed his last, there was no one beside him except Sun Wanrong.
The room was still filled with the smell of medicine and Li Jinzhong's rotting body. Mosquitoes flew tirelessly in the hazy night. Suddenly, they would sneak attack Sun Wanrong, who was sitting by the bed like a corpse. Sun Wanrong was in a trance and didn't notice them at all.
After a long while, he gently wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and said in a deep voice, "Men!"
The door opened and a few personal guards quickly walked in.
As nomads, every adult man was a warrior. The tribal leader didn't have any special guards on a daily basis. During times of war, the herdsmen of the tribe were his army. As for the most trusted soldiers, they came from the families that had the closest relationship with the tribal leader.
The warriors stationed in the manor were Li Jinzhong and Sun Wanrong's absolute trusted aides. The warriors all had heavy expressions. Some of them had tear stains on their faces, but none of them cried in front of Sun Wanrong. All they did was quietly listen to his orders.
Sun Wanrong instructed in a hoarse voice, "Gather all the herbs and place them with the Khan's body. Don't use a coffin. The news of the Khan's death must not be made public!"
"Yes!"
A fierce glint flashed in Sun Wanrong's eyes as he said, "When we leave Zhuolu City, we have to burn this mansion. We have to throw all the corpses of the doctors who were executed inside. We can't let anyone identify them!"
"Yes!"
Sun Wanrong's voice was still hoarse, but as he spoke, the faint sound of metal clanging could be heard. "Pass the order to all the soldiers. From tomorrow onwards, mobilize all the horses, mules, and carriages. Gather all the rations that the various tribes have gathered. Fill the sacks with rice and the sacks with carriages. The day after tomorrow, the army will set off and return to the mountains!"
The first two orders were for his personal guards to hear, but the third order was for the entire army to hear. When he said this, his old and haggard face faintly revealed a kind of determination that was as sharp as a knife and a kind of strange excitement.
These Khitan tribes had joined the war either because of Li Jinzhong, him, or the two of them. Now that Li Jinzhong had passed away, he had to shoulder all the responsibility. He was duty-bound to do so!
From the first day they raised their flags in rebellion, he knew that the future would be filled with thorns if they wanted to fight against the behemoth-like imperial court. But back then, Li Jinzhong was the Khan, and he had assisted him from the side. The pressure had never been as heavy as it was today.
Today, he had to bear all of this. This was responsibility and motivation. An unprecedented fighting spirit surged in Sun Wanrong's heart! He wanted to fight a victorious battle, a great victory, so that Li Jinzhong's spirit could rest assured and all the clansmen could rest assured. He, Sun Wanrong, could still lead everyone down this path!
…
Near noon the next day, Fei Mo suddenly received a military order. He immediately ordered someone to call Liang Shuang over.
Liang Shuang had always tried his best to satisfy the various requests of the Khitan people. Seeing that he was obedient, Fei Mo didn't make things too difficult for him. Being nice to him was equivalent to setting an example for the other gentry. Only then would the gentry try their best to satisfy their requests. The people of the Northern lands were fierce, and most of them practiced martial arts. If they were too harsh and even threatened their lives, these villagers would resist with all their might. Although they could suppress them, they would still suffer losses.
When Liang Shuang saw Fei Mo, he pretended to be a yes-man, nodded and bowed, and said, "General, you were looking for me?"
Fei Mo stuck his butt out on the kang and said in a rough voice, "Yes! We are going to leave now. Gather all your mules, horses, and carriages, pack the grain into bags, and move them to the carriages. Tie them up with ropes and cover them with linoleum. Otherwise, if it rains halfway, everything will be ruined! "
Liang Shuang was shocked and cried out, "What? You are going to leave just like that?"
Fei Mo looked at him and said, "What? If I want to leave, do I need your permission? "
Liang Shuang hurriedly said, "No, no, no. What I mean is … … with so much grain, I'm afraid we won't be able to load all of it in a short time!"
Fei Mo said, "Oh! Then you will have to fight through the night. We are leaving early tomorrow morning. Go and do it now. Pack all the oil, salt, sauce, and vinegar and tie them up tightly. As long as you are obedient, I won't make things difficult for you. Otherwise, not only will I confiscate your property, I will also take your life! "
Hearing that they were leaving tomorrow, Liang Shuang felt slightly more at ease and hurriedly agreed.
Fei Mo added, "Also, prepare a light carriage and cover it with two extra layers of mattresses. I want to use it."
The corner of Liang Shuang's mouth twitched twice and he hurriedly agreed. He went to the back and called out all the servants who were detained in the side courtyard. Under the supervision of the Khitan soldiers, they gathered all kinds of bags of rice and carriages of all sizes and loaded them into the carriages.
In the grain cellar, Liang Shuang and Zhang Shuhao stood on top of a mountain of rice, using wooden shovels to load the grains while muttering softly.
Zhang Shuhao propped up a rice bag and whispered, "They are leaving early tomorrow morning. What should we do about the matter that young master asked us to do? Can we think of a way to poison him? "
Liang Shuang fiercely shoveled the grain and quickly glanced at the Khitan soldiers standing at the entrance of the granary. He lowered his voice and said, "They cooked the food themselves. We can't do anything. Besides, if we want to poison him … … where will the poison come from? There is only one pharmacy in this town. As soon as they arrived, they took away all the medicine from the pharmacy, even the arsenic. They said that they want to use it to coat the arrows with poison. "
Zhang Shuhao anxiously said, "Then what should we do? You know young master's temper. He hates Yang Fan to the bone. If we just watch as Yang Fan leaves … …"
Liang Shuang shoveled down and suddenly remembered something. He hurriedly shoveled a few more times and filled the rice bag. Then he grabbed the wooden shovel and went forward to help Zhang Shuhao tie up the bag. He took the opportunity to whisper something to him. A trace of joy suddenly flashed across Zhang Shuhao's face. He calmly nodded and carried a freshly filled bag of grain out of the grain cellar.
… …
… …
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