Chapter 169 Tanzhou Episode

Under Wang Xiaojie's deliberate arrangement, Zhao Ji was also willing to cooperate, and soon the news of the discord between the general and the commander spread.

A higher-ranking official can crush a lower-ranking official. Wang Xiaojie found an excuse and "expelled" Zhao Ji and Yang Xuanji under the pretext of reinforcing Danzhou.

He got up early in the morning to set out on his journey. Before leaving, Zong Huaichang and Yan Feishi came out of the city to see him off, with a feeling of grieving over the loss of one's loved ones.

Yan Feishi's face was full of solemnity. He bowed deeply and said, "General Zhao, General Yang, take care on your journey. You may have the opportunity to make merit in Tanzhou."

Zong Huaichang was like a lost father, like a salted fish that has lost its dream: "Alas! I never expected General Wang to be so narrow-minded and jealous of talented people. You two have made many military achievements, but he still treats you like this. I and General Yan, the defeated generals, don't know how much bullying we will have to endure in the future!"

Zhao Ji and Yang Xuanji were at a loss whether to laugh or cry when they heard this. They didn't expect that Wang Xiaojie was so tight-lipped that even these two didn't know about the plan to divide the troops.

Zhao Ji had no choice but to comfort Wang Xiaojie and calm his mind: "Don't worry, you two. General Yan is right. General Yang and I may have a chance to make merit when we go to Tanzhou."

"As for the two of you, be careful of Su Honghui's sneak attacks. There were some misunderstandings between General Wang and me, and he was the one who caused it." Zhao Ji did not forget to flatter Su Honghui.

Yan Feishi sneered: "Su Honghui is a shameless villain. He is not good at fighting, but he is good at making trouble."

Yang Xuanji nodded slightly and said, "Let's not talk about personal grudges. This person has a long history of bad deeds. I'm afraid he will cause trouble for the military like Zhang Xuanyu and Ma Renjie. We must be on guard against him."

Zong Huaichang and Yan Fei Shi had both been betrayed by their bad teammates, so they couldn't help but feel sympathetic when they heard this.

The two exchanged glances, then clasped their fists and said in unison: "Don't worry, old general. We will be extra careful and beware of Su Honghui."

Zhao Ji nodded with satisfaction when he heard this and applied eye drops to Su Honghui, which might be effective at a critical moment.

After exchanging pleasantries and wishing each other well, Zhao Ji and Yang Xuanji led the team on their journey.

Within a few days, Zhao Ji led his troops to Danzhou to replenish their baggage and supplies.

Regarding the composition of the Western Route Army, Zhao had only about 4,000 cavalry left when he rushed to support Xixia Shigu last time. Wang Xiaojie waved his hand and doubled the number to 8,000.

Yang Xuanji led about 10,000 infantrymen, and an additional 7,000 were added, so the total number of infantry and cavalry was 25,000.

Zhao Ji and Yang Xuan's basic troops were already in place, but the additional troops were still on the way and needed time to assemble, so the two had to stay in Danzhou for a while.

Compared to Yan Fei Shi and Zong Huaichang who were both ignorant, Zhang Jiujie was responsible for the supply of food and fodder for the army, and had some knowledge of Zhao Ji and Yang Xuanji's tasks.

However, he kept his mouth shut and did not publicize it. He just tried his best to cooperate and meet the requirements of Zhao Ji's troops.

Zhao Ji had nothing to do for a while, so in addition to studying the marching route, he also checked the compasses and maps in the army to confirm that they were correct.

There is no compass vehicle in the military now. This thing is actually not very useful because it does not use magnetic fields to stabilize direction, but relies on a gear-driven mechanical device to maintain the compass.

But when a large army marches, the road is uneven and the error may become very large as time goes by.

The scene in TV dramas where you open the hood of a compass car and find a magnet underneath is absolutely impossible to happen.

Zhao Ji had seen many of these things in the Qianniu Guards. They were all in Wu Zetian's guard of honor. To put it bluntly, they were just for show...

The army's march and direction identification still rely more on maps, as well as the sun, stars, moon, vegetation, guides and other means. Zhao Ji has Li Kaigu, a Khitan surrendered general, as a guide. As long as he does not betray, the army will definitely not get lost in Khitan territory.

After careful consideration, Mochu and Xiao Qingfang are still the most likely to make small moves in the Turkic territory.

By then, the Zhou army would be attacked by the Turks in the Turkish territory. No matter what the outcome of the battle was, Jili Khan would not be able to explain himself, and the Turks would be forced to be dragged into the muddy water.
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In a corner of Tanzhou City, hidden in a quiet courtyard away from the hustle and bustle.

Xiao Jing led several assassins in purple clothes with stern faces to gather quietly, each holding a sword. There was complete silence, as if they were waiting for something.

As night slowly fell, a purple shadow passed over the courtyard wall as lightly as a ghost and quietly descended in front of everyone.

Upon seeing this, the purple assassins all bowed and saluted, saying in unison: "Greetings to the Serpent Leader!"

Xiao Jing's eyes followed the graceful woman involuntarily, and a ripple appeared in his heart. He asked earnestly: "Snake head, it's rare to see it. I wonder how it is these days?"

The purple-clothed lady was Xue Ling Xiao Mei. She didn't even look at Xiao Jing, and her voice was extremely cold: "Stop talking nonsense. My elder sister specially sent you here. Do you have any special mission?"

Feeling the other party's alienation, Xiao Jing smiled awkwardly, and then said seriously: "That's right, my elder sister ordered me to come here to help you deal with Zhao Ji."

Xiaomei's eyes flashed with indifference, hiding her emotional fluctuations, and she said coldly: "Oh? Big sister is going to take action against Zhao Ji?"

Xiao Jing said with a sly smile: "To be precise, my elder sister is going to attack the army under his command."

"Don't keep me in suspense, just say what you want to say!" Xiaomei looked a little impatient.

Xiao Jing then stopped smiling and got to the point: "My eldest sister ordered us to find a way to cooperate with the Turks and ambush Zhao Ji's army."

Xiaomei thought for a moment, then calmly analyzed, "There are only two ways. One is to choose an ambush location in advance and lure Zhao Ji's army into it. The other is to find out the marching route of Zhao Ji's army and then set up an ambush along the way."

"You are worthy of being the Blood Spirit, one of the six snake heads of my Snake Spirit. Eldest sister said so too." Xiao Jing complimented.

Xiaomei's tone was still cold as ever: "So what are the specific arrangements, big sister?"

Xiao Jing replied, "My elder sister said that Zhao Ji is very difficult to deal with. Li Kaigu and Yang Xuanji are both familiar with the surrounding geography. Therefore, we can't simply pretend to be a guide and get close to him like before. The first way won't work."

"And if we send people into the army, there is a risk of exposing our organization if they are discovered. The gain is not worth the loss, so we can only choose the second way."

Xiaomei nodded slowly and made up her mind: "This is easy. We have someone in the Danzhou Governor's Mansion. According to him, there is often a map hanging in Zhao Ji's room. He also asked Zhang Jiujie and Yang Xuanji to discuss things together. It is very likely that they were discussing the marching route."

"It's just that Zhao Ji and Zhang Jiujie were very cautious. He was afraid of being exposed and didn't dare to get close to them when they were discussing matters, so he didn't get any useful information."

"In this case, I have no choice but to go and meet Zhao Ji in person."

"Do you need help?" Xiao Jing asked.

Xiao Mei looked at Xiao Jing with contempt: "No need, I am enough, and any more of you will just be a burden."

(End of this chapter)