The Great Wei Music Bureau

Chapter 274: Revisiting Dunhuang (Part )

Last time, we talked about how the black wolf pack that attacked Gu's army was destroyed under the active efforts of Xiao Ziyi and Liu Ruyun, and there were less than 500 people left in Gu's army, and they were no longer able to protect themselves. What should they do next? Let's read on.

Gu Zhou led the remaining tribesmen to bury the bodies of their companions, and then gathered together the bodies of a dozen black magic wolves and burned them. Then they left the battlefield filled with blood and the smell of burning overnight.

At dawn the next day, they camped by a river. Many of the exhausted tribesmen fell asleep on the ground. Baozhu Faluo was able to sustain a few people to make a fire and cook, while Gu Zhou took the few remaining men to count the household belongings.

They now have only more than a hundred sheep and more than forty horses left, and even there are less than ten sheepdogs left. There is not much food left, and now they must find a place to replenish supplies, but they don't have anything valuable on them, so Gu Zhou is in a dilemma.

After resting, Gu Zhou took Gu Ting to find Li Yi's Baozhu Falu to discuss the next plan. There was no big tent or stools, so several people sat around the fire by the river. Water was burning on the fire, making gurgling sounds.

Gu Zhou said, "We don't have much food left, so we have to find a place to restock it. But we don't have anything valuable on us, so I want to ask Brother Li Yi and Aunt Baozhu if they have any good ideas?"

Baozhu Falu said: "There are still some valuable things!"

Gu Zhou asked, "What does Aunt Baozhu mean?"

Baozhu replied, "Ironware. We now have more than enough weapons, stirrups, iron pots, and other ironware. I think we can exchange these for money."

Gu Zhou shook his head and said, "But these are the hardest things to get on the grassland. If we sell them all, I'm afraid it will cost several times more to buy them back in the future."

Baozhu sighed, "What's the point of all that junk when people are starving to death? In this situation, if it weren't for the young master, a cavalry of 200 people would have wiped us all out or taken us as slaves. Chief Gu, you've never been a slave, so it's not a pleasant experience."

Gu Zhou did not refute. As the son of a big chief, although he could not be described as having a life of luxury, he was still an absolute aristocrat on the grassland. But now the family fortune left by his father was gone. It was a bit of an exaggeration to say that he was now a pauper, but he certainly did not have much money on him.

Li Yi asked: "Hey, Chief Gu, you are a chief, you can't be penniless, right? Tell me the truth, how much silver do you have?"

Gu Zhou thought for a moment and said, "I don't have even a tael of silver left. I only have a box of gold left. This is the last money of the Gu Department. We can't touch it unless it's absolutely necessary."

Li Yi asked: "Brother, isn't it the worst possible situation now? We are almost out of food. Come on, tell me, when can we use this money? When will it be the worst possible situation? I really can't understand why you are still such a miser!"

Gu Zhou glanced at Gu Ting and nodded, sighing, "The box of gold was originally used to recruit soldiers and rebuild the tribe, but now it seems that it cannot be used."

Li Yi said, "Look at how stingy you are. You don't want to sell weapons, and you don't want to touch the box of gold. So how are you going to get food? Go rob it?"

Li Yi rolled his eyes at Gu Zhou and said, "If it were in the past, maybe you could really lead people to rob, but now, with just your small group of people, the average age is less than 20 years old. Except for you and Gu Ting, two sixth-rank warriors, the rest are only slightly better than ordinary people. What can you use to rob!"

Gu Zhou lamented, "It's all because I'm so useless."

Li Yi smiled and said, "You should be content. If you were useless, your father would not have allowed you to take these people with you. If you were a fourth-rank master, you would definitely go to Tianshan to die."

Gu Ting said, "Brother Li Yi, what you said is too harsh. Can't you comfort your brother?"

Li Yi said unhappily, "I didn't say anything unpleasant. You are here, and I am saving face for your brother! I heard Yuehua talk about your first attack! If it weren't for Aunt Baozhu, you would have all died there that night!"

Baozhu Falu also felt that Li Yi had gone too far, so he handed Li Yi a glass of cool water and said, "Sir, have a drink."

Li Yi took the cup and shook his head, saying, "Well, I have a suggestion. Aunt Baozhu is here too. You all should listen to it. If you think it's feasible, do as I say. If not, I will send you to a safe place, and we will go our separate ways."

Gu Zhou looked up at Li Yi and asked, "What's the proposal?"

Li Yi said: "What you lack most now is people. If you want to absorb more people, there are only two ways, annexing other tribes or absorbing refugees, so I suggest that you take the remaining people to settle down around Dunhuang City first.

I will find a way to take over Dunhuang City. You can rest there for a while, wait for the tribe to develop, and then return to the grassland after the disaster is over."

Gu Zhou said, "It's not impossible to go to Dunhuang City. I was originally planning to go there to buy food and horses, but what do you mean by taking over Dunhuang City?"

Li Yi looked at the conch and said, "The current lord of Dunhuang City is Liang Quyi of the Qiang ethnic group. I got the news that they have contacted Western Chu and seem to be planning something.

So I plan to capture Dunhuang City, and then re-establish a set of rules that are more conducive to development, making Dunhuang a true free trade zone, where the Gu tribe can absorb refugees who have fled there, and Aunt Baozhu will rebuild the Guli tribe there. What do you think?"

Baozhu Faluo said firmly: "I will follow your arrangements. Guanzizai Bodhisattva said that only you can help me. I believe in the Bodhisattva and I also believe in you."

Li Yi nodded, then looked at Gu Zhou and said, "You also know that the outer areas of the grassland are not safe now, so many tribes will gather in Dunhuang City. How to recruit people at that time will depend on your ability."

Gu Zhou thought for a moment and nodded, "There is no better way now. But you said to capture Dunhuang City, but I don't understand. How do you plan to attack? And what do you mean by the Qiang Liang Quyi having a connection with Western Chu?"

Li Yi said: "Don't worry, we won't need you to send any troops or exert any effort to capture Dunhuang. You just need to stay there and maintain order in Dunhuang.

I, the Great Wei, will send people to take Dunhuang City. When you are able to protect yourselves, we will hand it over to you completely. As for what he and Xi Chu are planning, I haven't found out yet, but I will know once I catch him and ask him. "

Gu Zhou asked, "Would your Wei Kingdom be so kind?"

Li Yi smiled and said, "Of course there are conditions, otherwise we can't die in vain."

Gu Zhou became nervous and asked, "What are the conditions?"

Li Yi knew that it would be impossible to ask them to submit to Wei now. He could only proceed step by step and take his time. So he replied, "For ten years, you are not allowed to disturb the northwest border of Wei."

Gu Zhou smiled bitterly and said, "Given the current situation, I'm afraid we may not be able to recover in ten years."

Li Yi smiled and said, "It's too early for you to say that. Once this person settles down, he will develop very quickly. Moreover, after the resumption of trade, there will be more opportunities to make money and more people will gather here. By then, I'm afraid that there will be troubles because of the large number of people and the complexity."

Gu Zhou shook his head and said, "We herdsmen still like to be free and don't like to stay in one place for too long."

Li Yi smiled and said, "Okay, we'll see when the time comes. I'll take it as your agreement."

Gu Zhou laughed and said, "What's the point of me agreeing? I'm a pauper now."

After discussing the next step, the rest of the time was spent on traveling. Because they did not have enough horses and also had to drive the sheep, the journey that would normally take three days took them seven days.

Looking at the south gate of Dunhuang, Li Yi said, "You can camp here, don't go too close to Dunhuang City. I will inform you after I take over the city. By the way, there will be many people camping around you in the next few days. Chat with them and get to know them. After all, they will be your clansmen or allies in the future."

After Li Yi finished speaking, he took Langya and Yu Jiu and rode away on horseback. They headed straight for the Huben Camp of the imperial guards stationed on the border of Wei fifty miles to the west. Before that, Zhang Biao left to return to Wei territory to mobilize the Huben Army to march towards Dunhuang City.

Arriving at the Huben Army camp, the commander Liu Xun came out to greet him. Li Yi looked at this handsome general who did not look like a warrior at all and said in surprise, "I have heard of General Liu for a long time. Seeing him today, he is very different from what I imagined."

Liu Xun shook his head and said, "Master Yuefu means that I don't look like a warrior, but more like a scholar? Hahaha, many people say so. But Master Yuefu doesn't look like a scholar at all. Which scholar can fight as well as Li Yuefu?"

Li Yi waved his hand and smiled, "Alas, I have no official position now, so I am not worthy of the title of Master of Music."

Business exaggeration was still a necessary formality. After the greetings, the two entered the big tent. Liu Xun sat in the main seat with a map of Dunhuang City hanging behind him. Li Yi said, "It seems that General Liu has a way to defeat the enemy?"

Liu Xun smiled and said, "Lord Li, I am not complaining. His Majesty asked me to bring these rascals to the northwest to train troops. We are all very happy, thinking that we finally have a chance to make merit.

As a result, after wandering in the grassland for more than a month, I didn't even encounter any Hu cavalry. I thought that the Zhenbei Army was too strong and killed all the Hu people who violated the border, so I went to find General Guo, who was in charge of the northwest war in the Zhenbei Army. Only then did I know that something strange had happened on the grassland.

Alas, I have been wandering around the grassland for two months, and I am waiting for you in Guazhou with this group of rascals. Your Majesty has told me to cooperate with you as much as possible. I finally got your news and thought I could do something big, but you asked us to attack Dunhuang City. Li Yuefu, I only have 10,000 troops, and Dunhuang City has high walls and many soldiers. How can I attack it?

I also sent people to inquire. In addition to the current city lord Liang Quyi, there are two other capable fighters in Dunhuang City. One is called Tie Ma and the other is called Shi Ying. They are both masters at the peak of the fourth rank. If these three join forces, I'm afraid you, Li Yuefu, may not be able to resist, right?"

Li Yi nodded and said, "If there are three peak-level fourth-grade warriors, it would be a bit tricky, but we can divide and conquer them. As for the 30,000 defenders in Dunhuang, it would be too difficult to attack them by force if we don't lure them out. However, if I can trick out 10,000 defenders, General Liu, do you have the confidence to capture them all in one fell swoop?"

Liu Xun said confidently: "Of course! My Tiger Guards are the most capable troops among the imperial guards, equivalent to the Black Armor Battalion of the Zhenbei Army! If I can't even deal with 10,000 Hu soldiers, then I, Liu Xun, will immediately resign and retire from the majesty! But I don't know how Li Yuefu plans to lead the Dunhuang defenders out of the city?"

Li Yi smiled and said, "To be honest, someone has offered a reward of 10,000 taels of gold for my head, and the Lord of Dunhuang, Liang Quyi, has accepted the offer, so I plan to use myself as bait to lure them out."

"Ten thousand ounces of gold?"

"Yes! I also want to know who is so generous, so I have to ask Liang Quyi!"

"Does Li Yuefu want to capture Liang Quyi alive?"

Li Yi nodded and said, "If we capture the city lord and annihilate the 10,000 defenders, do you think we can take Dunhuang, General Liu?"

Liu Xun thought for a moment and replied, "If they don't fight desperately, they can be defeated. But who can be sure of this?"

Li Yi said solemnly: "I now suspect that Liang Quyi and the Chu people are colluding, but I have no evidence. I have to go and verify it. Please prepare for a quick march. Once I lead the Dunhuang defenders out, I will send Zhang Biao to report. Please make sure to intercept him."

Liu Xun saluted and said, "Okay, as long as Commander Zhang reports, I will do my best!"

After deciding on the first step to capture Dunhuang, Li Yi took Zhang Biao, Yu Jiu and Lang Ya to Dunhuang again. This time, in order to find out more information, they all disguised themselves and put on goatees.