The general in charge of escorting the supplies back to the mountain stronghold was called Qi Ding, a trusted aide of the Khitan Supreme Khan Li Jinzhong.
Since it was announced that the Khan was ill and needed to return to the mountain to recuperate, it was only normal for him to leave behind a trusted general to protect him.
More than ten thousand people, coupled with a large number of horses and mules, was also a mighty procession. Qi Ding needed to command the whole army, especially the carriage in which Li Jinzhong's body was hidden. He almost never left it, so Yang Fan had never seen him.
In fact, with more than ten thousand soldiers escorting so many supplies, Wu Youyi only needed to send a group of light cavalry. Even if they could not annihilate them, they could still seize the supplies. Even if they could not seize it, they could force the Khitans to burn the supplies, which would be a heavy blow to the Khitans.
Fei Mo might have said it casually, saying that things could be seized again if they were lost. In fact, attacking cities and seizing strongholds was not an easy task for a cavalry unit that specialized in roaming and maneuverability.
If they could starve the Khitans of food and clothing, they would only have to wait until winter. Just the howling of the north wind would be enough to decimate the Khitans and greatly weaken them.
If not for the fact that Sun Wanrong knew that news of the Khan's death could not be hidden for long and that he needed to win a few major battles while the morale of the army was still stable to establish his authority, he would not have taken such a risk and allowed Qi Ding to lead such a weak force to escort the supplies back to the mountain.
However, after traveling for seven to eight days, they did not encounter a single Zhou army. Fei Mo was immensely proud, but Yang Fan was disgraced. The battle at Huangbo had truly displayed the might of the Khitans. In this battle, they had cleverly exploited the arrogance of the Zhou army and the advantageous terrain had played an important role.
But in the eyes of the Zhou people, they only saw that the Khitans had fought this battle with even more prestige than the Turks and Tubo. The extreme contempt they had for the Khitans immediately turned into extreme panic. They had overestimated the fighting strength of the Khitans. As a result, Wu Youyi, who had more than a hundred thousand soldiers, did not even dare to challenge this easily defeated grain convoy.
Gu Zhuting and A Nu were still dressed as master and servant, returning from Horse City with a convoy on their way to Thousand Gold City.
One of the defeated soldiers got lost in the mountains and wandered for more than half a month before he finally found his way out and escaped to Horse City. These days in the mountains, he could only eat mountain fruits and small animals to fill his stomach. He was not a hunter, so it was not easy for him to catch a small animal. He was so hungry that he was emaciated. He fainted as soon as he reached Horse City.
However, before he fainted, he was asked for his name. He said his name was Yang Fan! Gu Zhuting and the men sent by Ah Nu to search for Yang Fan's whereabouts at Horse City treated him as if he had found a treasure and immediately guarded him. Because his body was too weak and in urgent need of treatment, they dared not move him too much and only sent men to Thousand Gold Smelting City to report the news.
When A Nu and Gu Zhuting heard the news, they immediately rushed from Thousand Gold Smelting City. However, they were disappointed when they saw him. Although this man was exhausted and had lost his body shape, A Nu was familiar with Yang Fan. His facial features, height, and physique were not that different, so she could tell that this was just a person with the same name.
These days, A Nu had met more than one person with the same name as Yang Fan. Some were alive, some were dead, but no matter if they were alive or dead, they were not the Yang Fan she was looking for. Therefore, every time she met them, all she got was sadness.
Gu Zhuting said, "You should be happy. There is no news about the Sovereign, doesn't that mean he is still alive?"
A Nu asked in return, "If he is still alive, why is there no news about him? It doesn't make sense that those pawns who only know some ordinary martial arts have all returned as long as they are still alive, but his whereabouts are still unknown. "
In fact, A Nu hoped that Yang Fan was safe and sound more than anyone else, but because of her concern for him, the most terrifying result would always be lingering in her mind. When she was in Thousand Gold Smelting City, every day, she would see corpses being sent into the Corpse Smelting Furnace, and her mind would always be filled with the gruesome scenes. It had tortured her to the point that she was emaciated and exhausted.
As the caravan moved forward, a steward hired by Gu Zhuting raised his horsewhip and pointed into the distance, "Look! There is a troop coming! "
A Nu and the others went to Horse City, but they could not find Yang Fan. So, on the way back, they bought a batch of coal and urns from Horse City. These things were consumed too quickly. The amount of coal and urns needed for the cremation of more than a hundred thousand people was huge. Even if the shops they ordered were to produce at full capacity, they would not be able to meet the demand in a short time. After buying these things, they hired a dozen large carriages from the locals, and this steward was the leader of the carriages.
Gu Zhuting looked up and saw a group of cavalrymen galloping over from the horizon. She did not pay them any mind and said indifferently, "They are probably the soldiers who are taking in the rebels!"
In recent days, there were often generals from the imperial court going to the cities and towns to take in the fleeing rebels, so they were not surprised anymore. This place was very close to Thousand Gold Smelting City, and they did not think of any possibility other than the soldiers.
However, that group of people was getting closer and closer. They didn't raise any flags, but as they got closer, their clothes could be seen clearly. The workers transporting the coal couldn't help but exclaim, "It's the Khitans! They are the Khitans! "
The Khitans transported the supplies eastward. At first, they tried their best to avoid the cities to avoid being harassed by the soldiers. But along the way, they found that the Zhou army was scared out of their wits. Under Wu Youyi's strict orders, the cities only held back their troops, so they gradually became bolder.
Now, they were getting closer to their destination, and the surroundings were getting more and more desolate. There were only Horse City and Thousand Gold Smelting City, two small cities that could not hold a large number of troops, so they became even more unrestrained and swaggered over.
By the time Gu Zhuting and the others realized that the riders were Khitans, it was already too late for them to hide. A few of the charcoal workers were so frightened that they instinctively wanted to run, but it was impossible for them to escape with the charcoal carriages. After a moment of confusion, the carriages and horses blocked the road in disorder, so they were stuck there and could not move.
"Everyone, don't move. We are just businessmen. As long as we do not resist, they will not do anything to us!"
Gu Zhuting raised her voice and ordered loudly. A 'Nu quietly pressed down on the sword at her waist. Seeing these Khitans, she thought of Yang Fan, whose whereabouts were unknown. In her eyes, every Khitan was a mortal enemy. She wanted nothing more than to chop these people into meat paste.
"A 'Nu!"
Gu Zhuting saw A 'Nu's strange expression and immediately warned her.
A 'Nu slowly let out a breath and loosened her grip on the sword.
When the Khitan soldiers saw this caravan, a group of cavalry immediately galloped over and surrounded them. They galloped happily on their horses and laughed at the panicked workers.
After a while, a large group of people came over and protected a heavily guarded carriage. They passed right in front of this group of people who were obviously merchants, not even sparing them a glance. A man who looked like a general rode his horse over and shouted, "What are they doing?"
A Khitan soldier answered, "It's a group of merchants!"
The general's face lit up. He waved his hand and said, "Search their carriage and see what they are transporting!"
"Yes!"
Immediately, two soldiers dismounted from their horses and walked over with sabers in their hands. They shouted, "All of you, get off the carriage! Get off the horses! What are you doing?"
Gu Zhuting patted A 'Nu's arm and took the lead to get off the horse. She put on a flattering smile and said, "Lord General, we are just doing small business. The carriage is transporting some coal and charcoal to Thousand Gold Smelting City. It's nothing valuable. Lord General, please be magnanimous and have mercy on us."
"Transporting coal?"
Hearing this, the Khitan man lost interest. The thing they lacked the least in the mountains was firewood, so there was no need for them to waste their energy transporting charcoal into the mountains. He walked around the carts and looked at them. Seeing the jars tied with straw ropes, he couldn't help asking, "What's inside?"
The chief steward, who happened to be standing next to the carriage, answered while trembling, "Lord General, these … these are empty jars. There's nothing inside."
The Khitan soldier didn't believe him. He flipped his saber and smashed two jars with the back of the saber. Sure enough, they were empty. He couldn't help but be disappointed and said angrily, "Motherf * cker, why are you transporting so many empty jars?"
The chief steward was cautious. He was afraid that he would say they were for the dead Zhou soldiers and make the Khitan soldier unhappy. His life and death depended on the other party's mood. He quickly answered with a bitter face, "This old man is just a businessman. If the customer wants to buy it, we sell it. As for what the customer wants to buy it for, we don't have the right to ask."
"Motherf * cker, are you saying I talked too much?"
The Khitan soldier gave him a hard shove. The chief steward staggered a few steps and fell on his butt. The Khitan soldier couldn't help but laugh when he saw his sorry state.
At this time, under the protection of the soldiers, another carriage drove over.
This carriage paled in comparison to the magnificent carriage from before. The awning on top of the carriage was a temporary one. It was unknown how long they had been on the road, but the awning was about to collapse. The carriage swayed as it moved and was only barely supported by the ropes on four long poles. The carriage was simple and crude. It was just a carriage used by ordinary farmers to transport grain and firewood.
The carriage was piled with cloth and clothes. Inside, there were two people, one sitting and one lying on the ground.
One of them was Fei Mo. Fei Mo could now lie on his side. He was lying on his side with one hand propping up his hairy cheeks. He looked like a sleeping arhat with his eyes closed. Yang Fan was sitting next to him. He had made a nest out of the cloth and was lazily leaning against it. He was looking at the trapped passersby.
Yang Fan saw that the group of people was a group of passing merchants who were surrounded by the Khitan soldiers and looked very pitiful. He raised his voice and called out, "Yu Fu, why are you fighting with a group of people who are just trying to make a living? They're all poor people and their lives aren't easy. Let them go!"
These days, Fei Mo really didn't treat Yang Fan as an outsider. They ate and slept together. Although he didn't say it out loud, he actually treated Yang Fan as his brother. Yu Fu was the leader of the group of cavalry that trapped A 'Nu and the others. He was Fei Mo's nephew. Because of Fei Mo's attitude towards Yang Fan, his subordinates also became respectful towards Yang Fan. That was why Yang Fan tried to dissuade them.
A 'Nu, who was disguised as a servant, stood beside Gu Zhuting. Her eyes were fixed on the ground and she didn't even raise her head. She was afraid that if her eyes revealed uncontrollable hatred, it would attract the attention of these Khitan soldiers.
As soon as Yang Fan's voice entered her ears, A 'Nu's heart jumped so fast that it hurt a little.
She suddenly raised her head and stared at the person speaking in the carriage. With one glance, she was so happy that she was about to explode!
… …
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