Li Meng didn't dare to be careless and bowed reluctantly. "General, we know, you can order it."

Xu Rong looked at the others, and Fan Chou and others had to bow their hands after hearing this.

Xu Rong immediately ordered the generals to set out in turn and pay attention to cover to avoid being ambushed by Sun Ce. The generals were so awesome and agreed to the promise. Zhang Liao listened on the side and felt confused. Sun Ce had no cavalry, so how could it be an ambush? These people were unwilling to go out in the middle of the night, and they had already wasted time. If they had such concerns, wouldn’t it be even slower?

All the generals came out of the tent and went to the base camp to raise some people. After a while of chaos, they went out of the camp one after another.

Zhang Liao was desperate. In order to seize Xi County, Sun Ce went on a hurry despite the danger of being in trouble. But these people delayed for a long time before leaving. When they arrived at Xi County, Sun Ce probably had all entered the city.

Xu Rong was very calm and waved his hand. "Okay, go back and rest, let's talk about it tomorrow."

Zhang Liao said anxiously: "General, now is a good opportunity to intercept Sun Ce. When he enters Xi County, it will be much more difficult for us to attack the city. How can we achieve success when the generals act so slowly?"

Xu Rong said: "Do your best, follow the will of heaven, wait for Sun Ce to enter Xi County."

Zhang Liao sighed. He knew that Xu Rong didn't want to send someone to intercept Sun Ce, but Nanyang was not Luoyang, Dong Zhuoyuan was in Chang'an, Li Meng and others had no sense of urgency, and they were passive and lazy to fight, and Xu Rong was not in power. Just like a master's fight, if the opponent was a mediocre person, it would be fine even if his hands and feet were slower. But if the level of both sides was similar, the negligence in an instant could be fatal. Compared to Sun Ce's orders and prohibitions, Xu Rong's orders were not as efficient.

Zhang Liao wanted to ask orders to lead his more than a thousand cavalry to intercept Sun Ce, even if it was to get some time. However, when he saw Xu Rong closing his eyes and preparing to go to bed, he swallowed the words to his mouth again. Xu Rong taught him a lot, but he still felt that he could not see through Xu Rong and didn't know what Xu Rong was thinking.

Zhang Liao withdrew from the big tent, closed the tent door, stood outside the tent for a moment, sighed heavily, and left with his head down.

Inside the tent, Xu Rong slowly opened his eyes, looked at the blue-black tent, listened to the night wind outside the tent, and sighed softly, with an unconcealed fatigue on his iron-cast face.

Sun Ce occupied Xi County, Wuguan Road was completely closed, and I don’t know when the news from Chang’an will come again, and what kind of news will be coming.

Mr. Dong, are you okay in Chang'an?

Xu Rong lie down in the quilt, but he couldn't fall asleep for a long time. He originally had a great sleep, but even as he grew older, he could fall asleep with just a touch of his pillow. However, over the past year, he often had insomnia and couldn't sleep all night long and had nightmares. When he closed his eyes, he saw corpses all over the mountains and blood flowing wildly. He dreamed that he screamed in pain in the boiling water like the prefect of Yingchuan Li Min. The burning of firewood under the pot was not firewood, but Luoyang City with rising flames.

The Hu monk in White Horse Temple said that those who kill will go to hell, go to hell, go through various tortures, and redeem the sins committed during their lifetime to be reborn. The more severe the sins the more suffering the more time the people suffer, the longer they will be. I will probably go to the bottom of hell, and I will never be reborn in the future, right?

What about Mr. Dong, where are the soldiers of Xiliang under his command?

What about those eunuchs who fostered the court?

What about those Qingliu celebrities who talk big and enjoy great reputations, but have no talent for governance but occupy a high position, will they become Buddhas or go to hell?

Can I really become a Buddha if I put down my butcher knife? I want to let it go, but can I still let it go?

Xu Rong was drowsy and his mind was in a mess. He didn't force his eyes closed until dawn, until he was awakened by the sound of Zhang Liao's footsteps again.

"General, Li Zhengwei sent a message, they couldn't catch up with him, and Sun Ce had already entered Xicheng at dawn." Zhang Liao's voice was hoarse and calm, unable to hide his disappointment.

"I understand." Xu Rong slowly opened his eyes, his voice exhausted.

——

When he walked into Xi County, Sun Ce's heart was truly relieved when he reached his throat. Only then did he realize that his back was covered with cold sweat, soaked with golden silk and brocade armor.

This marching was like walking at the gate of hell. Although it was safe and sound, the tension in it made him feel very palpitations. During the march, every sound of horse hooves suffocated him, for fear that the people of Xiliang were whistling from the darkness. Fortunately, the people of Xiliang came much slower than he expected. When Qin Mu sent the news that the knights of Xiliang were approaching quickly, he had already arrived in Xixian County, otherwise it would be a disaster.

Xi Chang Guannan came up and bowed to Sun Ce to the end. He looked haggard, his eyes were as dark as a panda, his armor was not very suitable, but his blood was stained with arrow marks. It can be seen that he was suffering these days.

"General, you are finally here." Before Guan Nan could speak, tears came down and bowed repeatedly. "The elders of Xi County hope that the general will come to help."

Seeing Guan Nan crying, Sun Ce couldn't help but joke. "This is true in the Ming court. Half a month ago, the prefect of Nanyang ordered all counties, but you did not reply. At that time, you probably didn't want me to come."

Guan Nan was a little embarrassed and said, "If the general comes for robbery, we will not welcome him even now."

"Rareless!" Lin Feng shouted and pulled out half of the long sword. "How dare you be rude to the general? Do you think the sword of the Xiliang people is not good for me?"

"Okay, okay." Sun Ce smiled and said, "Don't scare him. By the way, the Ming court has a gentle appearance and his armor is obviously not suitable for him. He should be a scholar, right? He hasn't asked for his surname and name."

Guan Nanke politely bowed his hand. "Sei Guan Guan Nan, whose courtesy name is Xiu Si, is a new savage. He studied in the Imperial Academy for two years. He studied as a man and worked for another ten years before becoming a chief of the analyses. Unexpectedly, he encountered such a thing shortly after taking office, and was really embarrassed."

"When I learned that the people of Xiliang entered the country, I never thought about running away?"

Guan Nan was silent for a moment. "I thought about it, but after hesitating for a while, I couldn't escape, so I had to stay and guard the city with the elders of Xi County."

Sun Ce couldn't help laughing. County Magistrate Guan was not only a top student—it was not something that ordinary people could do because of his studies—it was also a honest person. No wonder hesitated until now. "Why did he hesitate?"

"The officials have three fears: one is afraid of having no face to meet the villagers after returning home, two is afraid of not daring to face Guo Linzong in a hundred years, and three is afraid of being infamous in a thousand years, and three is afraid of being infamous in history after a thousand years."

Sun Ce thought about it and nodded. "The Master has three fears, and the Ming court has three fears. In comparison, the Ming court's three fears are more real, I like it."

An excited red cloud appeared on Guan Nan's face. "The general has won the award, how dare Guan Nan compare with the saint?"

The two of them said a few gossips, which was very speculative. Guan Nan led Sun Ce to the city wall, checking the city defense while introducing the situation in Xi County.

Xixian is built according to the terrain, roughly rectangular, but not regular, slightly narrow from east to west and wide, and slightly wide from north to south. The city walls on all sides vary in length, with a total length of more than five miles. The north is built against the mountain, without a city gate, and there are cliffs over ten feet high on both sides of the east and west. Only a gentle slope on the south side, which goes straight to the river valley and can attack. Junshui flows through the west of the city and is led into the moat. Now it has been filled with Xiliang soldiers. There are countless arrow weapons scattered under the city, and the bodies have been moved away, blood is still there, and the city walls are full of holes, and traces of war can be seen everywhere.
Chapter completed!