Fulu County, to the west of the county.
It was a vast expanse of land.
There were no hills or steep cliffs. On the contrary, there was a small stream nearby. One must know that this stream flowed down from a glacier. Even in winter, it would not freeze. Therefore, to the people of Fulu County, this was the spring of life. It was extremely important.
Zhu Youtian's army was stationed here.
Zhu Youtian was once the county magistrate of Jiuquan County. To be able to hold the position of county magistrate meant that he had some ability. Moreover, Zhu Youtian was literate and knew some basic military strategies. Therefore, among the many bandits in Fulu County, although Zhu Youtian's army was not the largest, his strength was at least in the top three. Even against the strongest bandits, Zhu Youtian dared to fight.
Zhu Youtian occupied this place and controlled a large piece of land. It was a hundred mu of fertile land, as well as many other ordinary fields. Zhu Youtian made full use of all the farmland. He let the soldiers under his command farm and plant their own crops in order to be self-sufficient.
Apart from that, Zhu Youtian also led his men to plunder.
However, they all plundered the rich and heartless merchants. Apart from that, Zhu Youtian was also hired by many merchants to escort them and receive a certain amount of commission.
In short, Zhu Youtian had a wide range of connections.
Although his army only had five hundred men, their fighting strength was very strong. However, such fighting strength was not achieved overnight. It was honed through battle after battle.
In the fields that Zhu Youtian once planted, the crops had ripened and it was time to harvest. The strongest bandit leader brought people to steal the crops. Zhu Youtian did not say a word and gathered his subordinates to attack the other party without caring about their own losses.
This kind of desperate attack caused the other party to suffer heavy losses.
Of course, Zhu Youtian himself also suffered heavy losses. Even so, Zhu Youtian continued to attack crazily. In the end, the other party cursed Zhu Youtian as a madman and admitted defeat, hoping to resolve the conflict.
However, Zhu Youtian did not give up. He insisted that the other party apologize and compensate, and promise that they would never do it again. Otherwise, he would not rest until he was dead. In the end, the other party apologized and promised not to invade Zhu Youtian's territory again.
It was after this incident that the bandits of Fulu County witnessed Zhu Youtian's craziness. From then on, no one dared to provoke Zhu Youtian. At the very least, no one was willing to make an enemy out of Zhu Youtian without sufficient benefits.
Because of this, Zhu Youtian was able to gain a firm foothold.
Zhu You Tian was developing his strength, but he did not expand without restraint. He only ensured that he only had 500 people.
On the one hand, the more people there were, the more food and money they would need. It was hard for him to bear. On the other hand, there were too many people, and the good and the bad were all mixed together. Although he only had 500 people, his battle prowess was not weak, and was enough to establish a foothold. Thus, Zhu You Tian could only do so much.
Zhu Youtian treated the soldiers under him rather well.
Whatever he ate, the soldiers would eat.
If he had meat to eat, his soldiers would also have meat to eat.
If he had wine to drink, the soldiers would also have wine to drink.
The fact that they ate and lived together caused Zhu Youtian to have an extremely high prestige in the hearts of the soldiers. Everyone was willing to listen to Zhu Youtian's arrangements and follow his orders.
Zhu Youtian was now over forty years old. Many years of running around had caused his hair to turn white. His eyes couldn't help but reveal a look of exhaustion.
It was quite difficult.
It wasn't easy for him.
Zhu Youtian was tall and sturdy, and his martial arts were not bad. Because of his age, his strength had gradually declined, so he rarely used martial arts. However, Zhu Youtian had to participate in the training of the soldiers in the army every day.
He had to keep an eye on them personally.
Early in the morning, the weather was cold. Dark clouds covered the sky, causing the sky to be even colder.
In the army camp, shouts and shouts sounded.
The shouts went straight to the clouds.
Five hundred soldiers were training.
Zhu Youtian stood at the side, with his hands behind his back, supervising the training of the soldiers. He had always told the soldiers under his command to train more. Once they encountered a battle, they would not be afraid to fight and avoid being killed.
"Report!"
At this moment, a soldier came to Zhu Youtian's side.
Zhu Youtian said, "What's the matter?"
The soldier reported, "General, a young man called Ma Yuan is outside the army camp. He said that he has something important to see you about."
The moment Zhu Youtian heard Ma Yuan's name, a bright light flashed across his eyes. Zhu Youtian had been sending people to contact Ma Yuan, hoping that he would work for him. Zhu Youtian had even told Ma Yuan that as long as Ma Yuan was willing to help him, Zhu Youtian was willing to marry his daughter to Ma Yuan and let Ma Yuan inherit his foundation.
One had to know that Zhu Youtian only had one daughter. Under such circumstances, if Ma Yuan married Zhu Youtian's daughter, he would reach the heavens in a single bound. However, Zhu Youtian felt that it was a pity that Ma Yuan had rejected him.
Zhu Youtian became excited and immediately ordered the training soldiers to disperse, and everyone went about their own business. Then, Zhu Youtian hurried to the entrance of the army camp.
Zhu Youtian understood the art of war and strategy, and even the principle of being courteous to the wise.
He treated Ma Yuan with the utmost respect.
When Zhu Youtian arrived at the entrance and saw Ma Yuan, he glanced at Huang Shi, then looked away. He looked at Ma Yuan again and said with a smile, "Ma Yuan, you're finally here. I've sent you several letters to invite you, but you've always refused. Now, you've finally come to Fulu County. Are you prepared to work for me? "
Ma Yuan said, "General Zhu, are we going to talk here?"
Ma Yuan appeared very calm in front of Zhu Youtian. As someone who was sent to Fulu County, Ma Yuan knew very well that if he acted humble or flattered Zhu Youtian, it would be difficult to convince him.
He had to be magnanimous enough.
Because he represented Du Qi, Ping Xi Wang's man.
Zhu Youtian stroked his beard and smiled. He waved his hand and said, "Yes, yes. You've traveled a long way, it's indeed not easy. Come, let's talk in the tent. "
"Many thanks, General Zhu."
Ma Yuan waved his hand in a manner that was neither servile nor overbearing, indicating that Zhu Youtian should go first.
This trip to Fulu County had indeed taken a lot of time. Because there were many bandits on the way from Jiuquan County to Fulu County, Ma Yuan avoided them as much as possible to avoid conflict. Therefore, it took a lot of time to reach the county seat of Fulu County.
Zhu Youtian led his men into the tent.
The host and guest took their seats.
Zhu Youtian asked, "Ma Yuan, why have you come to Fulu County this time?"
When he saw Ma Yuan before, Zhu Youtian had a preconceived idea, or rather, he hoped that Ma Yuan would work for him, so he asked. After returning to the tent, Zhu Youtian thought for a while and already had a rough judgment.
Ma Yuan came uninvited, so there must be something.
Otherwise, Ma Yuan would not have come.
If Ma Yuan wanted to work for Zhu Youtian, he should have come when Zhu Youtian invited him several times before, and not now. After all, Zhu Youtian did not send a letter to Ma Yuan during this time.
Ma Yuan said seriously, "General Zhu, I've come for General Zhu this time."
Zhu Youtian said, "What do you mean?"
Ma Yuan said, "Ping Xi Wang of Jiuquan County has sharpened his sword and is ready to attack Fulu County. General Zhu is different from the other bandits, so I've come for General Zhu. "
Zhu Youtian narrowed his eyes.
He looked at Ma Yuan.
There was a touch of cold light in his eyes.
Ma Yuan sat upright and still, looking extremely calm, without the slightest panic. Since he had come, Ma Yuan had already disregarded life and death. Especially this time's plan, which was related to whether he could establish a foothold under Du Qi's command.
If he could not even handle such a small matter well, how could Du Qi put him in an important position?
Ma Yuan's demeanor made Zhu Youtian feel quite frustrated.
Zhu Youtian sighed, "Ma Yuan, I've asked you to come for help several times. I'm even willing to marry my daughter to you. I didn't expect you to follow Du Qi in the end. "
Ma Yuan smiled faintly, neither servile nor overbearing, he said, "I'm very grateful for General Zhu's kindness. It's just that working for Ping Xi Wang and General Zhu are two different things. "
Zhu Youtian said, "How are they different?"
Ma Yuan said, "First, working for Ping Xi Wang is to work for the Imperial Court, which is the righteous path. Second, there's ambition, because Ping Xi Wang is in charge of Longyou and wants to expand to the west. There's an opportunity for me to perform meritorious deeds and fulfill my ambitions. However, I don't have either of these two things to work for General Zhu. "
After a pause, Ma Yuan continued, "There's only one benefit to working for General Zhu, and that's freedom. However, under the general trend, once Ping Xi Wang comes, where will General Zhu hide? You won't be able to hide at all. "
Zhu Youtian said with a smile, "Even if Du Qi's army comes, they may not necessarily win."
Ma Yuan said, "Once His Highness's army arrives, it will be a sure-win situation. General Zhu, do you know that the bandit Shen Biao who occupied Jinshan in Jiuquan County has been killed? The Jinshan bandits have been wiped out. "
"Is that so?"
Zhu Youtian raised his brows.
He used to be the County Magistrate of Jiuquan County and had dealt with Shen Biao. He knew that Shen Biao's army was very strong, and Shen Biao himself was also very strong.
However, Shen Biao was unexpectedly wiped out.
Ma Yuan said, "Shen Biao was captured just before I came. General Zhu, I won't hide it from you. Currently, Ping Xi Wang has about 2,000 troops in Jiuquan County. Moreover, the strategy pursued by Ping Xi Wang is the same as yours, that is, quality is more important than quantity. Such a force coming to Jiuquan County is bound to sweep away everything in all directions. "
After a pause, Ma Yuan continued, "Especially the generals under Ping Xi Wang's command, they are incomparably powerful. I, Ma Yuan, have been practicing martial arts since childhood. My hammer technique is firm and fierce, invincible. In the end, however, I was directly defeated. Ping Xi Wang's generals are real experts. Killing generals and capturing flags on the battlefield is a piece of cake. "
Zhu Youtian said, "Ma Yuan, I'm afraid your words are a bit exaggerated! Besides, although your martial arts are excellent and you also know the art of war, in fact, how strong can your martial arts be at such a young age? "
Zhu Youtian knew that Ma Yuan's martial arts were good and he also knew the art of war.
He was also young.
He had great potential.
Therefore, Zhu Youtian needed Ma Yuan and wanted to recruit him as his son-in-law. He wanted Ma Yuan to work for him and even inherit his foundation. However, Zhu Youtian didn't really care about how powerful Ma Yuan's individual strength was.
Ma Yuan thought and said, "General Zhu only saw me practicing martial arts in Jiuquan County and thought that my martial arts were good. But in fact, we haven't really competed. "
"Why don't we take this opportunity to compete in the drill ground, so that we can have an intuitive understanding."
"I say, General Zhu has a hard time understanding how powerful the generals under His Highness are. But under His Highness's generals, I can't last more than fifty moves. From me, you can judge the strength of Ping Xi Wang's generals. "
Ma Yuan looked at Zhu Youtian and asked with a smile, "General Zhu, what do you think?"
"Okay, I'll listen to you."
Zhu Youtian had a smile on his face.
If they competed, they would know the result and be able to directly judge the strength of the generals under Du Qi's command.
Ma Yuan stood up and said, "General Zhu, please!"
"Let's go, follow me!"
Zhu Youtian was also a straightforward person. He immediately led his men out of the central tent and went straight to the drill ground. When they arrived at the drill ground, Zhu Youtian ordered his men to bring over the Tiger Generals.
Zhu Youtian ordered, "Su Feng, you go first."
Su Feng was in his early thirties.
He was tall and sturdy.
When he heard Zhu Youtian's arrangement, he carried an iron rod as thick as a goose egg and walked straight to the drill ground. He cupped his fists and said, "Ma Yuan, Su Feng is waiting for your instructions."
He raised the iron rod in his hand, and the hard rod fiercely smashed down, hitting the ground of the drill ground. Immediately, a dent appeared on the ground. The ground was smashed down by the force of the blow.
Ma Yuan saw this, but his expression did not change.
He was confident enough.
Ma Yuan walked straight to the weapon rack. There were all kinds of weapons here. Ma Yuan's gaze fell on the iron hammers. He stretched out his hands and swung the two iron hammers. The left and right iron hammers collided with each other. With a clang, the sound vibrated, causing some pain in people's eardrums.
Zhu Youtian said with a smile, "Ma Yuan, these two iron hammers are extremely heavy. When you first pick them up, you don't feel anything, but when you compete with such weapons on the battlefield, you may not be able to withstand the force after a while. "
Ma Yuan shook his head and said, "General Zhu, in my opinion, these iron hammers are still not heavy enough. If each iron hammer was five kilograms heavier, that would be great. The weight at the moment is slightly lighter. But I don't have any heavier iron hammers, so I'll use them. "
Zhu Youtian's face twitched.
Ma Yuan, this kid.
Really …
Zhu Youtian smiled and said, "Since that's the case, this general will wait and see. I hope you won't disappoint me, kid. Moreover, Su Feng is extremely strong, you don't have to hold back. "
Ma Yuan said, "I won't hold back in such a competition. Please rest assured, General Zhu."
After pausing for a moment, Ma Yuan turned to look at Su Feng and said, "Please!"
"Kill!"
When Su Feng heard this, he did not stop and swung his iron rod horizontally. The iron rod swept horizontally at an extremely fast speed. With a whistling sound, it left a shadow in the air and quickly smashed towards Ma Yuan's head.
Ma Yuan did not dodge. The two iron hammers in his hands were raised in the air. When the iron rod fell, it made a clanging sound. Because of the impact of the force, sparks flew in all directions.
Ma Yuan and Su Feng's expressions did not change. They stood on the ground and did not retreat at all. Moreover, their eyes were filled with fighting spirit.
"Now, it's my turn."
Ma Yuan's expression was sharp, he raised the hammer in his hand and smashed it out.
With a swing of the hammer, the huge hammer whistled through the air and smashed towards Su Feng in the blink of an eye. The hammer fell, its speed was fast, and its momentum was heavy.
Especially this hammer, Ma Yuan had already used 120% of his strength and did not hold back at all.
It was impossible for Su Feng to retreat.
He wanted to show his strength.
When Ma Yuan's hammer fell, Su Feng raised his iron rod and directly went forward to meet it.
"Clang!"
The iron hammer and the iron rod collided.
Under the violent impact of the force, Su Feng's expression suddenly changed. His hands were the first to be injured. Under the violent and overbearing force, Su Feng's palms were numb and in pain. It was to the extent that the web between his thumb and index finger was about to split open.
Next was his arm. He felt a copious amount of power invade his arm, and his entire arm felt as if it had been destroyed. Finally, it was his body. With all the power acting on his body, his internal organs shook and he could no longer stabilize his feet.
"Bang!" Bang! "Bang!"
Su Feng took three steps back before he could stabilize his body. However, the moment he stabilized his body, Ma Yuan's second hammer had already fallen. In the collision just now, the hammer in Ma Yuan's right hand was not affected in the slightest. Under the force of the recoil, the hammer leaned back, and under the pull of this force, his body turned sideways, and the hammer in his left hand smashed down once again.
The hammer fell like the Milky Way pouring down.
Su Feng's expression changed slightly, because when he fought with Ma Yuan, he knew that he was no match for him. The opponent's strength was simply too strong. In terms of strength, it was a complete suppression.
However, when Ma Yuan's hammer fell, he was unable to dodge.
Su Feng was sure that once the hammer fell, his palm would definitely break, and the weapon in his hand would definitely be knocked away. If the hammer landed on his body, he would definitely be severely injured.
"I admit defeat!"
Just at this moment, Su Feng shouted loudly.
He didn't want to get himself seriously injured just because of a contest. When Su Feng shouted, the hammer that was already falling down suddenly stopped. At this time, the hammer was less than a foot away from Su Feng's face.
If he was a little slower, a foot of distance would only be a blink of an eye.
"I admit defeat."
Seeing that the hammer had stopped, Su Feng heaved a sigh of relief.
"Thank you for letting me win!"
Ma Yuan nodded, he kept the hammer in his hand, looked at Zhu Youtian, and said with a smile: "General Zhu, who still wants to fight?"
Zhu Youtian's face was solemn as he said solemnly: "Cao Song, you come and fight."
Under Zhu Youtian's command, Cao Song was the number one general.
Strength was the strongest.
Su Feng straightforwardly admitted defeat. Zhu Youtian could already determine that Ma Yuan was very strong, so Zhu Youtian did not hide anymore and sent the strongest person under his command to fight.
Only in this way could they fight.
Cao Song's figure was even taller, nearly 190 centimeters tall. His arms were thick and strong, and his body was strong and sturdy. His weapon was a large blade with an iron back. There were rings on the back of the blade.
When he swung the blade, the rings would hit the holes on the back of the blade, making a tinkling sound that could disturb one's mind.
Cao Song walked out with his blade and said expressionlessly: "Please!"
"Please!"
Ma Yuan nodded.
The hammer in his hand was already in a stance, ready to attack. However, Ma Yuan was not in a hurry to attack. Instead, he waited for Cao Song to attack him before he swung the hammer in his hand.
His hammering technique was extremely methodical.
Every move was incomparably exquisite.
Even if it was the simplest move of swinging the hammer, there was still a certain level of finesse to it. It directly sealed off Cao Song's path of retreat, causing the two weapons to collide head-on.
"Clang!"
The sound of a violent collision rang out.
A violent force spread out from the place of impact.
Ma Yuan felt the force invading the hammer. The hammer in his hand shook and swung. After removing the force, he used the force of the hammer to turn sideways and the hammer in his left hand fell again.
The entire process was as smooth as flowing water, not affected in the slightest.
Cao Song's expression changed slightly.
He held the blade with both hands.
His hands that were gripping the hilt of his saber were slightly numb from the impact just now. And under the impact of the force, Cao Song could not help but take a step back. When he steadied his body, the hammer had already smashed down again.
"Clang!!"
There was another sound of impact.
Ma Yuan was still unaffected. He turned sideways and swung his hammer again. The third hammer fell. Cao Song quickly raised his blade to block again. Cao Song's expression changed even more. He could not help but take two steps back to stabilize his body.
Cao Song looked up. There was a look of horror in his eyes. There was already a touch of fear in his heart.
Ma Yuan, however, was full of fighting spirit. He said: "Again!"
The hammer had already been swung down again. The speed of the hammer was extremely fast. It did not give Cao Song any chance to recover at all.
In fact, Cao Song could not avoid it.
He could not avoid it at all.
He could only face it head-on.
When the two exchanged seven blows, the hammer and the iron back broadsword collided. Under the violent impact of the force, Cao Song spat out a mouthful of blood. The iron back broadsword was knocked away. He sat on the ground paralyzed.
Ma Yuan was fighting quite happily. When he suddenly saw Cao Song spit out blood and fall to the ground, he stopped attacking. With a guilty look, he cupped his fists and said: "I was in the mood just now. I didn't control my strength. Thank you for letting me win!"
"I lost!"
Cao Song's face was pale. His body was trembling slightly. Especially the web between his thumb and index finger that was holding the hilt of the blade. It had already cracked. Dark red blood flowed out and dyed his palms red.
He looked very miserable.
Ma Yuan reached out to pull Cao Song up and said: "Recuperate well. Don't leave any roots."
"Thank you!"
After Cao Song thanked him, he turned around and left, returning to stand in the army.
At this moment, Zhu Youtian's expression became unprecedentedly awkward. He did not expect that his subordinates would be defeated in a short period of time when fighting with Ma Yuan, whether it was Su Feng or Cao Song.
In fact, if Ma Yuan had not shown mercy. Ma Yuan's full strength alone was enough to severely injure Su Feng and Cao Song.
Too strong!
While Zhu Youtian was lamenting in his heart, he felt that he had not misjudged Ma Yuan.
Unfortunately, he had pledged allegiance to Du Qi.
Zhu Youtian waved his hand and said: "Alright, all of you are dismissed. Ma Yuan, follow me back to the tent. "
"Yes!"
Although Ma Yuan had won, his expression was neither servile nor overbearing. He did not have the slightest bit of arrogance. He appeared very humble. He nodded at Cao Song and Su Feng, then left with Zhu Youtian.
When the group returned to the tent and the host and guests took their seats, Zhu Youtian looked at Ma Yuan and said in a deep voice: "Ma Yuan, are you sure that there is someone under Du Qi who can defeat you?"
Ma Yuan sighed: "Under His Highness, General Xue Rengui has superb spear skills. Most importantly, in terms of strength, I am not a match for Xue Rengui."
"Xue Rengui is about the same age as me. Yes, he should be slightly younger than me."
"I have fought with him before, and I am no match for him!"
"Other than him, it is said that the strongest military general under His Highness is Guard Mordor. He is His Highness's personal guard and is the strongest. I have never fought with Mordor, but even Xue Rengui lost to Mordor, let alone me. "
Ma Yuan explained the general situation.
Zhu Youtian let out a sigh.
Too strong.
Du Qi's strength was too strong.
From Xue Rengui, Mordor, to the current Ma Yuan, it could be seen how strong Du Qi was. Especially when Ma Yuan said that Du Qi also advocated quality over quantity. It could be seen how strong Du Qi was.
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