The garrison of the Eighth Army of the Song Dynasty, Dengcheng Town, was in a state of terror. The three armies were ready for war, and they kept guns away, horses were not unloaded, and they were in line to standby. However, most days passed and no orders were passed. They just changed from attacking to standby. They could sit down and rest, but they were not allowed to have their own activities. Lunch was also a dry food for food.

The long-term high alert made the soldiers tired and even more tired. They sat or lie in the gathering place, whispering in groups of three or two, talking about what important actions were. However, the commanders and captains of the troops were all unaware of what to do after asking questions and did not understand what to do. Someone asked about the military officers who were familiar with the military headquarters and the Marquis of Yu, but they were silent and refused to reveal a word.

‘Ta, get, get...’ A rapid sound of horse hooves came from far and near. A scout with a red flag on his back did not dismount in front of the camp, but drove straight to the commander's tent in the town.

"This is the fourth wave of whistle cavalry today. I wonder what news?" The veterans in the camp muttered at the horses leaving. They knew that running horses in the camp was a death sentence on weekdays, but scouts and correspondents who conveyed emergency military information during the war were not listed here, and the frequent visits and cavalry entered and exited the general tent, which obviously had important military information.

"Brother, do you know what happened?" a veteran with a beard walked over and asked quietly.

"I don't know, I suddenly issued a general order last night and ordered the entire army to prepare for the expedition. We thought we were going to Gucheng to reinforce your third division!" The veteran knew that he was the third division's team with a smile.

"We also received the order we received last night to return to Dengcheng overnight. Everyone thought it was your fault and came back to rescue you. But after running back, nothing happened. We sat here all morning." The bearded veteran said with a wry smile.

"What's the war in Gucheng? Your division and the Seventh Army have been in charge for more than 20 days, and it should be over!" A veteran of the first division who stayed in Dengcheng patted a piece of log he had made and asked him to sit down and talk.

"I have never fired a gun after going there for so many days. Every day I dig trenches along the river to build forts and rope to stop boats. The Seventh Army fought several battles, but it only occupied a few villages on the other side of the river and stopped. The ferry has not been taken down yet." The bearded soldier stretched out his two hands full of blood bubbles and let him see it, and smiled helplessly.

"What kind of battle is this called fighting? I can't figure it out. We have artillery soldiers, and we can block the river surface by building a few forts along the river. When we were in Qiongzhou, Ali Hague used thousands of warships to attack Qiongzhou. His Majesty led the troops of our two divisions and used the crossbows to kill them, blocking them on the beach, and even the city was not seen." The veteran of the first division said angrily.

"Disrespect, I don't know if my brother belongs to the First Division or the Second Division? I am from the First Division." The veteran of the First Division bowed and asked. Of course, the first division he mentioned was not the current Eighth Army Division, but the first division of the Qiongzhou Palace Guards in the past.

"I belong to the second division, which is the left camp of the commander-in-chief's army back then." The bearded soldier bowed and said with a respectful respect.

"That's really a senior, but according to my brother's qualifications, he should be a commander, why is he still a team leader?" In the military, the veterans of the First Division said more respectfully.

"I'm stupid and can't recognize a few words. I can't even command a battalion. I've been leading troops at the bottom. It's great." The bearded soldier smiled and said uneasy. "After entering Jiangnan, we had also retired the veterans who had expired from our service to the local area, but I didn't want to leave, so I applied to stay again to join the army to open the army and transferred to the Eighth Army when the army was expanded."

"I should retire this year. I was reluctant to leave it, but now I don't want to stay in the Eighth Army like this. I will go home to farm in a few more months." The veteran of the First Division sighed.

"The Eighth Army is also considered an old imperial guard, but in a small city like Gucheng, there are 40,000 or 50,000 people, and it is still difficult to capture it in the past month. It is puzzling. We only had less than 3,000 soldiers to join Qiong, and we didn't have such good weapons and no armor. But His Majesty dared to take us to fight Guangzhou and defeated the city. I think the governors of the Eighth Army are not brave enough and dare not fight tough battles." The bearded veteran sighed.

"Brother, please hurry back. Can you hear any wind?" The two of them became closer and closer. The veterans of the First Division approached and asked softly.

"This... I heard some rumors earlier that Jiang Shuai was seriously injured and could not be in charge. His Majesty wanted to come to attack Jingxiang in person, but then there was no further information. This suddenly recalled us. I wonder if I want to go out to greet Your Majesty?" The bearded soldier looked around and replied softly.

"Oh!" The veteran of the division spoke in surprise, but then realized his situation. He saw that no one was paying attention and then said softly, "When coming from Huaibei, he must walk Suizao Road, and now Fancheng has been lost. If what Brother said is not false, the Shengjia may be blocked from Fancheng. The sound of cannons in the east in the morning was vague. After half a day, it is very likely that the Shengjia has arrived and is attacking Fancheng."

"Damn it, the Shengjia was blocked by Fancheng, only thirty miles away, but they ignored it and refused to send troops to welcome the Jia. Do you want to rebel?" The veteran frowned and said angrily.

"Brother, don't be impatient. They are not kind-hearted. We cannot ignore the safety of His Majesty. We must try to ensure the safety of the Saint. I wonder how many people I can contact with." A veteran of a division pressed his beard and said softly.

"When Huguang expanded its army, many veterans were transferred from the Five Army of Jiangdong and the Imperial Guardians, but at most they were the first-level commander. Although they did not have the right to dispatch troops, these people were all directly led troops. If there was any change, they could still play some role. We should tell those reliable people to prevent accidents. What?" The bearded veteran said for a moment. Although he had doubts, he still chose to trust his comrades who were both old descendants.

"Okay, let's contact us secretly. How much can we calculate. If we don't, we force ourselves out of the camp to welcome the horse in Fancheng!" A veteran of a division thought for a while and made up his mind.

"In this way, we will act separately and secretly contact the reliable personnel of the Eighth Army, especially those who came from the Imperial Guards, who are the most loyal and trustworthy to Your Majesty!" said the bearded soldier.

"Well, all of us reliable people tied white towels on our right wrists as markers to avoid accidental injuries." The veterans of the first division thought more thoughtfully, and after saying that, they stood up and left...

…………

Zhang Ba was walking anxiously in the commander's tent. More than a dozen senior officers above the commander-in-chief of the Eighth Army of the Imperial Army were also frowning. His eyes were either following his tents or wandering around in thoughtfulness. No one spoke, but only his heavy steps and his sighs from time to time.

"Zhang Dutong, what's your idea? Should you go or stay? The entire army has already gathered and has been standing outside for almost four hours!" Zhang Huai, the commander of the first division, stood up and said.

"Now we are in a dilemma!" Zhang Ba asked him to sit down, spread his hands and sighed, "Who would have thought that Shi Bi was so useless? Fan Cheng did not defend it for a day and was broken in just half a day."

"It's not Shi Bi's waste, we are really incompetent!" Song Lian, the commander of the Third Division, curled his lips.

"How can the Song governor, how can we speak like this? We have no support from the navy and are alone, facing the attack of the enemies in Nanyang and Xiangyang. How can we defend it? Move the army closer to the seven armies so that the two armies can rely on each other and form a suppression force against the enemy." Zhang Huai said indignantly.

"Hmph, Your Majesty, he moved forward thousands of miles from Tianfu, and only brought two brigades of troops. He marched day and night for nearly a month, and walked across the road from the enemy. Why have you never been afraid? Moreover, he only took a rest in Jingxiang and defeated Fancheng for one day. But we can't even take down Gucheng, so how can we suppress it!" Song Lian snorted coldly and replied.

"Don't argue anymore, the imperial guards are the elite of the entire army, and their combat power is not comparable to ours. Your Majesty's courage is unprecedented. How dare you and I compare to each other? I should think about what is happening now!" Zhang Ba frowned and stopped the dispute between the two.

Zhang Ba knew very well that Zhang Huai, the commander of the first division, was the former Huai Army who had followed him for many years. He had always been regarded as a confidant. He must have been indifferent to him and argued with him. Song Lian, the commander of the second division, was reorganized by the former Huai'en Army and was included in the Eighth Army during the expansion. As for Ma Ling, the commander of the third division, was an old Weisheng Army. The former leader Qin Linfeng was executed by His Majesty for corruption. After they were incorporated into the Eighth Army, they were not harmonious with him, and it would be of no benefit to him after they had a quarrel.

As for Shi Bi, Zhang Ba was so angry that he knew that after he was in charge of the Jingxiang army, he used a long siege to attack Xiangyang against His Majesty's will. He thought that he had the most qualifications and that Jiang Jin could not be in charge of the director, so he could threaten the emperor to be the chief supervisor of Jingxiang Road. However, he did not expect that the emperor would work hard to fight thousands of miles in person.

After learning the news, Zhang Ba wanted to disrupt the situation in Xiangyang, making the situation unstoppable. In the end, he had to help him to stabilize the situation. He was taking advantage of the situation to conquer Xiangyang and had to reward his contributions. However, he did not expect that after he made the plan, Shi Bi's guy did not cooperate and repeatedly gave up the fighter he created for him, allowing him to drive straight to the city of Fancheng.

Zhang Ba repeatedly miscalculated and realized that he was in an awkward situation and that the crime of not being welcomed by the Shengjia was enough. So he transferred all the Eighth Army to Dengcheng, hoping that once Shi Bi attacked the camp at night, or sent troops to cut off the road to the west, he could take the opportunity to rescue him and block the emperor's mouth first. What was hateful was that Shi Bi was arrogant and disdainful. When he learned that His Majesty was preparing to attack Fancheng, he thought about helping him when the attack was unfavorable, and he could always redeem some sins.
Chapter completed!