The Child Emperor

(please subscribe for monthly pass)

It was mid-autumn, and the night outside the Great Wall was already chilly. The soldiers who had been marching for many days were finally able to get a good night's sleep, no need to watch the night, and no need to worry about getting up early tomorrow.

Han Ruzi couldn't be steady, the soldiers were still carrying items to the camp. He had summoned the city guards in the lobby of the General's Mansion and asked about the city's condition. Early the next morning, others were still sleeping, so he got up early and led a few. People began to patrol the city.

The Iron Broken City was built nearly forty years ago. Before that, in the face of the harassment and attack of the Huns, the Chu army was on the defensive, and the troops were concentrated on the front line of the Great Wall. Iron Broken City is one of them.

The city is built on a low mountain, with a small hill to the east, and a galloping river two miles to the north. .

There is also a quicksand city more than ten miles to the west, which can be seen at a glance. The Guanhe City in the east is closer and is blocked by a hill. There is a beacon tower on the top of the mountain, which is used to communicate with each other. It has been abandoned for several years, unguarded.

Han Ruzi circled the city and found that the city was still in good condition. Only a few places needed repairs. The problem was that the original defenders were indeed a group of old, weak, sick and disabled, with a total of less than 1,000. Only 20% of the people who greeted General Zhenbei were either too old or too sick to get up.

At its peak, there were seven cities outside Shenxiongguan, and four more on the north bank of the river. After the split of the Xiongnu, the importance of the cities declined. At the end of Emperor Wu, they gave up one by one, and almost all the old, weak, sick and disabled who could not walk were left in Broken Iron City. Accumulated so far, it occupies the number of soldiers, but has no combat effectiveness.

Han Ruzi ordered people to take all the roster of guards to the General's Mansion, and secretly asked Zhang Youcai to search for "Fang Daye" on it, and then took people out of the city to observe by the river.

The river is not very wide, but the two sides are relatively steep. It is indeed a moat. Driving eastward along the river bank for a few miles is Guanhe City. It is built on a narrow passage between mountains and rivers. It is very small, more than 200 steps long and wide. But forty or fifty paces, it was facing a gentle riverbed. Most of the seasons of the year, the cavalry on the other side could easily cross the river.

Guarding Guanhe City can basically block the way the Huns cross the river.

However, the city was broken, and it looked like a city from a distance. When I looked up close, I found that most of the city walls had collapsed, and the remaining city walls were unstable. Approaching, the sound of a horse's hoofs could knock down a section of the wall.

"Why didn't you protect Guanhe City in the first place?" Han Ruzi asked. If he could station troops here, it would be much easier to resist the Huns.

The generals of Iron Broken City looked at each other in dismay, but Chai Yue, who was accompanying him, gave the answer: "When the city was built, it was in an excellent location. About ten years ago, the river flood between spring and summer was several feet higher than before. , the city foundation will be destroyed, and it will not be able to be repaired."

Iron Broken City was originally a city in the back where food and grass equipment was stored, but now it has been pushed to the forefront of the fight against the Huns.

There were a series of pavilions on the other side of the river. Han Ruzi accepted the suggestion and did not cross the river to check. It is said that the pavilions had been destroyed by the Huns to a height of only a few feet.

Han Ruzi returned to Broken Iron City, climbed the city wall and looked into the distance. As far as his eyes could see, it was full of gray and yellow, and there was almost no greenery. Winter had not yet come, and the four seasons had forgotten this place.

"It must have been very difficult when the city was built." Han Ruzi said with emotion.

It was still Chai Yue who gave the answer: "It was fine when the city was built. A few decades ago, there were many trees and weeds on both sides of the river bank, and the earth and stones were inexhaustible, so we could use local materials. Later, the trees and grasses disappeared. , not to mention building a city, it is difficult to maintain the city wall, and everything needs to be transported in from the customs."

"This is the place you recommended to me."

Chai Yue blushed slightly. When he told the ambush plan to Hou Juan, he beautified the situation of Iron Broken City a little, so that Hou Wan thought that the city and the pavilion would be repaired soon.

"This place is very suitable for ambushes." Chai Yue pointed in the direction of Guanhe City, "The Huns can only attack from there. Although the Iron Broken City is a bit broken, it can be defended for at least ten days. A strange soldier is ambushed on the beacon tower on the top of the mountain, When the Huns have all crossed the river, they will block Guanhe City, and the ambush soldiers in the valley to the south will swarm out at that time, and the Huns will have nowhere to go, so they will be completely wiped out."

"Beware of the Huns fighting beasts."

Chai Yue also pointed to the city of Quicksand that was clearly visible to the west, "In all likelihood, the Huns would flee westward. It won't be a trapped beast, and it won't be able to escape an ambush."

Han Ruzi also looked at Quicksand City. He had not been there yet. From a distance, the condition of the city was better than that of Guanhe City. "Don't you need to send someone to guard Quicksand City?"

"According to my humble opinion, I don't guard it, or send few people to guard it, and let the Huns flee there, so as to prevent them from fighting the last battle. It is credit for encircling and annihilating the Huns, and it is also credit for reducing the casualties of the Chu army."

Han Ruzi snorted. According to the military law of Great Chu, when evaluating merit and reward, the number of beheadings should be subtracted from the number of losses on the side. If the two balance out, it will only count as no merit. If you lose more, you will be punished even if you win.

After a morning passed, Han Ruzi went back to the mansion for dinner. As soon as he entered the gate, Zhang Youcai, who was staying in the mansion, hurriedly greeted him, "Master, go and have a look, Second Young Master Cui is making trouble again."

Xungui Camp and Buqu Camp are on the left and right of the General's Mansion. They are very close. Cui Teng was tired all the way. He slept very sweetly last night. , rushed into the general's mansion, and wanted to talk to Marquis Juan, but he couldn't find anyone, so he stood in the courtyard and yelled.

"What the hell is this place? There are no pubs, no willow alleys, do you have to suffocate to live here? I want to go, I will go right away!"

Cui Teng's voice was hoarse, and when he saw Han Ruzi entering the hospital, he rushed up with a stride, his fists clenched, his face full of anger, and he suddenly smiled again, "Brother-in-law, you are back, hard work, hard work, I won't bother you anymore."

Cui Teng ran out of the yard in a hurry, Zhang Youcai was stunned, his eyes swept to Du Chuanyun, who was following Hou Juan, and he suddenly remembered: "Second son Cui is afraid of you!"

In a deserted garden in the capital, Du Chuanyun once held Cui Teng to a tree and tied him for a while. That was one of Cui Teng's most frightening memories. After the cloud, he has been hiding and walking, and it is the same today.

Du Chuanyun pouted and didn't care.

After the meal, Han Ruzi summoned all the generals and officers of the seventh rank and above. One was to arrange the task of defending the city, and the other was to discuss how to train troops. He did not want to wait in the city for the arrival of the Huns.

It just so happened that several people he had seconded from the Southern Army also came. The leader was Liu Heixiong, the instructor of the Southern Army. He used to teach martial arts in the palace. Picked Deputy.

As the afternoon was about to pass, Han Ruzi invited the generals to a banquet. As a result, Cui Teng caused trouble again just after the dishes were served.

Taking advantage of the fact that all the generals and the head coach were discussing matters, he actually summoned more than a dozen distinguished children, and brought their more than 20 followers to rush out of Iron Broken City on horseback, and fled all the way to the south.

This is a test for Han Ruzi. It is easy to hunt down the deserters, but how to properly handle and block Youyou's speech is the problem.

Many eyes turned to the young General Zhenbei, waiting for his order.

Han Ruzi asked the city gate official who came to report the letter: "How many people are there?"

The little official counted for a while, "Three, thirty-six people."

"What about the horses?"

"It's also thirty-six horses. They didn't bring any extra mounts."

"Is there any extra packages right now?"

"There are some...not many, most of them are just people right away." The clerk tried hard to recall the scene at that time before he could answer the general's question.

Han Ruzi nodded. In fact, he was not very sure. Asking the little official was just a passing scene. His judgment came from his understanding of Cui Teng. In the army, he can usually succeed, but here is outside the Great Wall, and there are no people within a hundred miles.

"Close the city gate. Without my order, no one can enter or leave."

"Yes." The clerk stepped back, bewildered.

The clerk only guarded one city gate, and the other city gates still needed to be formally sent by the messenger. Han Ruzi smiled at the remaining generals and said, "It's okay, they will all come back before dawn tomorrow. ."

In front of the former emperor, today's Marquis Juan and General Zhenbei, most people still have to bow, only Chao Hua and others from the Buqu Camp eat and drink.

The banquet was over soon, and Han Ruzi had to admit that he had not yet found a trick to get along with these veterans. Instead, it was Chai Yue who chatted with this one and exchanged a cup with the other.

Han Ruzi went back to the backyard to rest and bumped into the King of the East Sea.

The King of the East Sea has a special status, so he always lives next door to Marquis Juan, but he has no official position and does not attend the banquet.

"How did you feel on the first day of defending the city?" Donghai King asked with a smile.

"You didn't go with Cui Teng?"

"He did look for me, and I persuaded him that this place is 200 miles away from Shenxiong Pass, and there is almost no place to stay on the way. Even if you reach the pass, you won't be able to pass the pass without documents, but he doesn't believe it. Words, everything can be solved: food will fall from the sky, and the city gate will automatically open. Alas, in his eyes, I am really a traitor to the Cui family."

The fact that Taifu Cui colluded with the champion Hou and used the Chai family to attack the Hebian Village was unknown to outsiders, even less to Cui Teng. He thought that the "deep nephew relationship" between the King of East China Sea and Taifu Cui had not changed at all.

Although the King of the East Sea had not attended the banquet, he had heard of Han Ruzi's order to close the city. After sighing, he said solemnly, "You are too courageous, Cui Teng and the others won't be able to run very far, and I am even more worried that they will return. If you don't come, how will you... explain?"

If Cui Teng was injured or died, it would indeed be a big trouble. Han Ruzi looked up at the clear night sky, "Try your luck, there is an accident, I have no choice but to not go back to the gate."

Knowing that this was a joke, the King of the East Sea still replied: "If you don't return, I must go back. You have a 'Queen' here, but I have nothing."

Han Ruzi snorted and went back to his room.

There was an oil lamp on the table and an open book. Zhang Youcai, who followed up, said, "After searching for a long time, it turns out that Fang Daye is not a soldier or a general, but a prisoner."