"Right Gu Du Hou, it is my honor to meet such a distinguished noble of the Great Xiongnu," Zhou Fugui said with feigned delight after the Xiongnu noble, Turi Hu, announced himself.
"Heh heh..." Turi Hu chuckled at his reaction. "Hu Yan Han Cang, a hundred-man commander, you do have some discerning eyes."
"Lord Right Gu Du Hou flatters me. Does this humble one dare not recognize Mount Tai?" Zhou Fugui replied with a smile.
"Oh..." Turi Hu's words immediately made him look at Zhou Fugui's eyes from beneath his helmet with suspicion. "You dare not recognize Mount Tai? Why do you seem... like a Han? Quickly, take off that iron helmet."
Zhou Fugui's heart immediately panicked. He glanced around. The Xiongnu people were bustling about, and there were hundreds of Turi Hu's subordinates. It was impossible to kill them all to silence them... So, he had no choice but to remove his helmet and say to Turi Hu, "My lord... I have two Han slaves in my tent, so I have unintentionally learned some things from them."
"Han slaves?" Turi Hu saw Zhou Fugui's appearance. Although he was a pretty boy, he didn't look like a Han. Only then did he relax and say, "That's understandable. But Hu Yan Han Cang, why would you learn from Han people? What use are Han people? Like cowardly pigs and sheep. However, Han female slaves... are quite nice."
Bastard, one day I'll make you like your brother-in-law, Zhou Fugui cursed silently in his heart before smiling and replying, "Lord Right Gu Du Hou speaks the truth."
"Where is my short-lived brother-in-law?" Turi Hu asked thereafter.
Yes, short-lived. Your short-lived brother-in-law has gone to the eighteenth level of hell, Zhou Fugui thought with a hidden chuckle. After his inner amusement, he replied, "Wu Li Dang Hu ordered me to lead my men back to report military intelligence. I truly do not know where he is at this moment. However, before I left, he was in the vicinity of Jue Ni Fort."
"Jue Ni Fort? What is he doing at Jue Ni Fort?" Turi Hu frowned at the mention of the place and asked again.
"Jue Ni Fort is a wealthy stronghold. It is filled with countless treasures and women. If Lord Wu Li Dang Hu is still at Jue Ni Fort, he is likely indulging in wine and women, unwilling to return?" Isn't he your brother-in-law? Then let your sister die of anger or grief, or you can go find your dead brother-in-law to settle the score, Zhou Fugui said with a smile.
Unexpectedly, Turi Hu was not angry but chuckled happily. "He knows how to enjoy himself? Hu Yan Han Cang, after you report the military intelligence, ride your horse quickly to Jue Ni Fort and tell my brother-in-law to come back quickly."
Xiongnu people naturally took wives, but apart from their wives, the noble Xiongnu chieftains had countless beautiful female slaves. If they couldn't even stomach a few female slaves, how could they manage jealousy? Therefore, the principal wives of the Xiongnu people, like the Han, largely turned a blind eye as long as their status was not affected.
What Zhou Fugui did not know was that the more the Xiongnu plundered and captured female slaves when they went south to raid, the more capable they appeared. Therefore, Turi Hu not only did not get angry but seemed somewhat proud.
"Oh, as you command!" Zhou Fugui did not want to bicker with him any further. He wanted to get rid of him quickly and then blend into the Xiongnu army. If he could gather some military intelligence, he would. If not, he would just flee. So, he responded perfunctorily.
"Aren't you going to ask why?" Turi Hu was persistent, looking at Zhou Fugui and asking, as if he had met an old friend in a foreign land and wanted to have a long chat.
"Lord Right Gu Du Hou's command, this humble one will obey. Why should I ask the reason?" Zhou Fugui replied with some impatience.
"Hmm, that's true. But this lord still wants to tell you..." Turi Hu was still full of conversation. "It's because..."
"Son of Cheng Li, Lord of the Sun God, blessed by Heaven, the valiant Chanyu arrives!"
"The glory of the Lord of the Sun God, Gu Tu arrives!"
"The glory of the Moon Goddess, the Prince Consort arrives!"
Unfortunately, the Great Xiongnu Chanyu Duo Yong Jian and others did not give Turi Hu a chance to ramble. Dozens of Xiongnu warriors holding long halberds led the way, followed by five thousand Xiongnu cavalry entering the military camp. Between the five thousand Xiongnu cavalry were the Chanyu Duo Yong Jian and Prince Bian, and Prince Consort Lin Yue.
The five thousand Xiongnu cavalry were all robust and fierce. Their weapons and armor were exquisite, and their warhorses were divine. As they entered the military camp, a chilling aura swept over them, inspiring awe. The previously chaotic Xiongnu people stood on both sides of the road, respectfully welcoming the Great Xiongnu Chanyu Duo Yong Jian and others.
Zhou Fugui and the others, unable to dodge, also stood on both sides of the road, feigning to welcome the Great Xiongnu Chanyu Duo Yong Jian and his entourage.
With the main characters arriving, Zhou Fugui stood among the crowd and secretly looked up, observing Duo Yong Jian and his group.
The Great Xiongnu Chanyu Duo Yong Jian was obese, his brows furrowed, riding a remarkably strong and tall horse. No one knew what he was thinking. The strong and tall horse was also constantly exhaling white mist under the weight of the obese Duo Yong Jian. Its hooves struck the muddy ground, creating small pits.
Two strikes, at most two strikes, could end his life. Upon seeing Duo Yong Jian's true face, Zhou Fugui couldn't help but feel disdain. He was indeed strong, but too obese, which would undoubtedly make his agility much worse. If he fought him head-on, he could kill him in at most two moves.
If the Great Xiongnu Chanyu were killed, the Xiongnu army would be leaderless, and Zhou Fugui and his men would have achieved a great feat. However, the price would be the lives of Zhou Fugui and his two hundred men. Moreover, were the personal guards of Duo Yong Jian easy to deal with? It was possible that Zhou Fugui and his men would die at their hands before they could even get close to Duo Yong Jian.
Therefore, this thought or plan could only remain in Zhou Fugui's mind.
As Duo Yong Jian passed before Zhou Fugui, Zhou Fugui's gaze fell upon Prince Bian and Prince Consort Lin Yue behind him. This glance startled Zhou Fugui, sending a chill down his spine, and cold sweat already broke out.
Prince Bian was thin and weak, as usual, nestled in Lin Yue's embrace. Lin Yue, riding with him, held Prince Bian. In broad daylight, under the eyes of everyone, she opened her robe and leaned against Prince Bian, making people blush. However, the Xiongnu people were already accustomed to it. Only Zhou Fugui and the Yan soldiers who had infiltrated the Xiongnu camp felt their faces burn.
Zhou Fugui not only blushed but immediately lowered his head, wishing he could bury it within his body. The reason was that Lin Yue was the barbarian woman Zhou Fugui had encountered in the snow-covered plains back then.
At that time, Zhou Fugui had shot her but had spared her life, applied wound medicine to her, and let her go. But Zhou Fugui never expected to meet her here. If she recognized him, wouldn't that be a disaster? Zhou Fugui and his men would surely perish without a burial place, and their deaths would be extremely tragic.
Looking at her, this heavenly beauty was also a woman of high status among the Xiongnu? But why was she so shameless? Zhou Fugui thought disdainfully to himself.
Zhou Fugui desperately hid his body behind his warhorse, his head down, afraid of being discovered and recognized by Lin Yue. However, his appearance was too striking... Lin Yue's gaze then fell upon Zhou Fugui, but it swept past, without any unusual reaction. Only the corners of her mouth curved slightly, revealing a barely perceptible smile.
......
"Dong... Dong... Dong..."
"Roar! Roar! Roar!"
In Yan Changshan Commandery, eighty thousand armored soldiers formed ranks, listening to the drumbeats for sitting, advancing, and retreating, orderly and disciplined. The gold, drums, bells, and flags each had their own methods: drums meant advance, heavy drums meant attack; gold meant stop, heavy gold meant retreat; bells transmitted orders; flags to the left meant left, for surprise attacks, they reversed; one drumbeat and one strike meant left, one drumbeat and one strike meant right; one step one drum, for foot drumming; ten steps one drum, for swift drumming. Failure to advance upon hearing the drum meant beheading, those who made noise were executed, and those who moved without obeying the gold, drums, bells, and flags were to be punished.
In short, in this world, the primary command objects for directing warfare were gold, drums, bells, and flags. Following the gold, drums, bells, and flags was the main content of daily training.
Changshan Commandery was the fiefdom of Murong Boli, the Left Virtuous King of the Great Yan. It controlled the important passage for the Qin and Jin dynasties to advance eastward, the Jingxing Pass. Changshan Commandery was located near Jingxing Pass. West of Jingxing Pass was the territory of Zhao Hu, and east of Jingxing Pass was the territory of Yan Hu.
Murong Boli personally led the army to guard this place. One reason was to guard against the incursions of Zhao Hu. The second was to follow his daughter Murong Huiying's advice to avoid disaster by seeking refuge elsewhere.
As Emperor Yan Murong Xi grew older, his temper became increasingly irritable and capricious, and the struggle for imperial succession intensified.
The struggle for imperial succession in the Great Yan was mainly between Crown Prince Cheng and Murong Yi, the son of Empress Murong Qing. However, it was not limited to this. The three commandery kings of the Great Yan, King of Runan Murong Xiong, King of Qi Murong Sheng, and King of Donghai Murong Hong, were all brothers of Emperor Yan Murong Xi and were coveting the throne. The reason was that the succession to the throne in the Great Yan was not necessarily father-to-son; brother-to-brother succession was also possible.
Under such complex circumstances, Murong Boli, under the guise of recuperating, left Youzhou and returned to his fiefdom, staying away from the disputes and avoiding disaster in his fiefdom, which was indeed a wise move. The strategy offered by Murong Huiying was indeed brilliant.
However, in life, ten things rarely go as one wishes. Many times, one cannot avoid disaster even if one wants to.
Of course, this is a story for another time and will not be discussed for now.
The eighty thousand elite troops in Changshan Commandery were Murong Boli's personal soldiers. The main commanding generals in the army were all members of Murong Boli's family. The eighty thousand troops obeyed only Murong Boli's orders; the emperor's decrees were ineffective here. In this chaotic world, holding a powerful army was the foundation for survival.
"Father King, Zi Yue has sent a letter."
Murong Boli was in the training ground, inspecting his household troops, but he appeared to be in a somber mood. No one dared to ask him about his affairs. Only his second son, Murong Ya, holding a letter, walked up to him and said.
When Murong Boli returned to his fiefdom, he brought his eldest son Murong Chi and his second son Murong Ya back with him. However, his wife Lady Helou and his third son Murong Rui and his only daughter Murong Huiying remained in the capital.
Returning to the fiefdom to "recuperate" could not mean the entire family returning to the fiefdom, otherwise, it would not be recuperating.