Chapter 213 Night Escape in the Desert

It was a few years ago when Guo Mo was not yet eighteen.
He followed the Great Master "Flying Bat" Ke Zhen'e, the Fourth Master "Woodcutter of South Mountain" Nan Xiren, and his big brother Guo Jing, leaving "Seven Heroes Manor" and heading south to the Great Song Dynasty.
“七贤庄”再也没有了往日的喧嚣，除了母亲李萍对儿子们殷殷的思念，就是小张婷的各种不适应。
她是从小就粘着郭默长大的，从这位二师兄嘴里，总是能听到各种各样稀奇好玩的故事，那是在别人那里根本听不到的。
But Second Brother has left, and every time Little Zhang Ting sees Guo Mo's empty courtyard, the little girl's heart feels empty too.
Mother said that as long as she practices martial arts hard and grows up quickly, she can go to the south to find Big Brother and Second Brother.
Since that day, Xiaozhangting began to practice martial arts very diligently.
At the age of eight or nine, it is a time to play, but you can often see Xiaozhangting's figure in the backyard martial arts training ground.
There, it used to be the favorite place for Guo Jing and Guo Moruo brothers.
"Yue Nu Sword" Han Xiaoying also accompanied her daughter every day, constantly guiding her swordsmanship.
A set of "Yue Nu Swordsmanship", gradually proficient in the hands of Xiao Zhangting, the internal strength has also laid the foundation, "Great Desert Seven Forms" has completed the first level of "Desert Micro Dust" practice.
Third senior sister Hua Zheng, who is now the sister-in-law of the big master, is said to be pregnant with a little baby, so she can't play with little Zhang Ting every day, but she can go feed the pair of little white deer every day.
But the fifth senior brother, Ye Qu, is now the leader of the "Seven Wise Village" guarding team. In addition to training the villagers, he often comes to accompany Xiao Zhang Ting to practice martial arts.
Not long afterwards, "Seven Wise Village" welcomed two guests, who were Zhou Cheng and Zhou Lian, the father and daughter rescued by Guo Mo and Huang Rong in Dingxing.
It was personally received by "Yue Maiden Sword" Han Xiaoying. When Xiaozhang Ting heard that the guest was recommended by the second martial brother, she insisted on going to see the guest with her mother.
After reading the letter brought by these two people, Han Xiaoying naturally recognized Guo Mo's handwriting and had no objection to Guo Mo's arrangement.
This second apprentice, in recent years, every move, far-sighted, and in control of the overall trend, has deeply imprinted in everyone's mind, and is very cooperative.
Xiao Zhangting, also heard Huang Rong's name for the first time, knowing that Second Senior Brother now has a beautiful sister.
Ye Qu heard that someone recommended by Second Senior Brother came to help with logistical affairs, and he was overjoyed.
He only likes to practice with everyone, no matter how hard or tiring it is.
However, when it comes to the specific allocation and management of supplies, Ye Qu's head starts to ache.
Therefore, Zhou Cheng's arrival completely liberated Ye Qu and allowed him to focus more energy on the training of the guard team.
Of course, what made Ye Qu more grateful later on was the daughter of Zhou Cheng who came to "Seven Masters Villa" with him, the little Zhou Lian who was rescued by Guo Mo and Huang Rong.
After getting to know each other, both of them being young people, they ended up together six months later.
Just after Huazheng gave birth to Guoping, a grand wedding was also held for Ye Qu and Zhou Lian at "Seven Wise Men Manor."
From then on, the Zhou family finally became completely integrated into "Seven Wise Men Manor."
In the days to come, Xiao Zhiangting's martial arts advanced day by day.
"Yue Nu Swordsmanship", "Nanshan Palm Technique", "Seven Moves of the Great Desert", Xiao Zhiangting's martial arts, mainly practiced with her mother, and she also had a certain foundation in light work and body techniques.
As for her father Zhang Aisheng, known as "Laughing Maitreya", the only martial arts skill he could display was the "Iron Cloth Shirt", which was clearly not very suitable for a girl to practice.
But Little Zhang Ting's uncle, often comes back to "Seven Sages Manor".
"Horse King God" Han Baoju, really dotes on his niece, as Little Zhang Ting grows taller, he also teaches her all his equestrian skills and "Golden Dragon Whip Technique".
Later, Fourth Senior Brother Feng Ge, along with Tuo Lei and Zhe Bie, went to the Great Song.
Because of an unexpected encounter with Guo Mo, when they returned to the desert, they specifically made a trip to "Seven Sages Manor".
He brought the "Long Life Lock" that Huang Rong gave to Guo Ping, and also showed off the "Cold Night" sword that Guo Mo gave to him.
Feng Ge was pulled by Li Ping, asking about everything and inquiring about his son Guo Mo's recent situation, especially wanting to know everything about Huang Rong.
封戈也尽己所能地，组织语言去夸赞黄蓉的美貌和贤惠。
“对了，这个准二师嫂，还是大名鼎鼎的‘东邪’黄药师的女儿呢。”
Of course, this remark from him also surprised "Smiling Buddha" Zhang Aosheng and "Yue Girl Sword" Han Xiaoying. Li Ping, not being a person of the martial arts world, naturally didn't feel much about it.
封戈拿出那坛泡制的蛇胆酒，并将书信交给了七师傅。
韩小莹打开书信仔仔细细看了一遍，内容很多，主要是详细地介绍了蛇胆的功效、服用方式和注意事项。
"Feng Ge, go find your three masters and come back with them."
As a martial artist, there is naturally not much resistance to snake gall, which can enhance internal strength and has a certain antidote effect.
More aware of the preciousness of the gift sent by the apprentice, if this thing is placed in the world, it would have been fought for until blood shed.
According to Guo Mo's arrangement, the three members of "Jiangnan Seven Freaks" who stayed in the desert, as well as Feng Ge, Ye Qu, and Hua Zheng, each received a snake gallbladder.
Huazhen, citing feeding her child as a reason, gave up her own piece, and finally had to give it cheaply to Xiaozhang Ting.
This can also be considered as a collective power improvement for everyone in the desert, and the most noticeable growth is actually from the mother-daughter pair, Han Xiaoying.
When it comes to internal strength alone, Han Xiaoying has broken through to the sixth level of "Flowing Clouds Chasing the Sun" in one fell swoop, while Xiao Zhangting has consolidated the second level of "Wind Over the Banner Rising".
The guardian team of "Seven Sages Manor" is also constantly growing in strength, with the number of people finally settling at around three hundred.
They were also dispatched to the army of "Horse King God" Han Baoju in batches and conducted actual combat exercises with the army, and they received great training on the way to the Western Expedition of Mongolia.
According to Guo Mo's instructions, the grain, grass, gold and silver secretly raised by "Seven Virtuous Village" were transferred out secretly except for daily use.
In Fuzhou, at the border between Mongolia and the Jin Dynasty, a low-profile manor is acquired to store these supplies, and about thirty reliable villagers are left to guard it on a daily basis.
As the Mongol army grows stronger, they have also started a continuous war of expansion, gradually conquering many small countries in the Western Regions and accumulating more war resources.
Genghis Khan set his next target for conquest on the Jin Dynasty, the once victim of the Mongolian Empire. Temujin, with all his ambitions, still held some fear for the Jin Dynasty.
It wasn't a fear of being unable to defeat the Jin army, but rather a far-sightedness; he didn't want to engage in a mutual destruction with the Jin Dynasty.
Therefore, after discussing with his subordinates, a strategy of "uniting with Song to resist the Jin, attacking from the north and south, first conquering Western Xia, and then destroying the Jin dynasty" was decided.
Unexpectedly, the short-sighted Song dynasty, which had always viewed the Jin dynasty as an enemy, refused to agree to the proposal to unite against the Jin, and even tried to obtain war horses from the Mongols through various means.
Meanwhile, those Mongolian generals who had been previously bribed by the Mongols have all been exposed and met with a tragic end.
The Jin Dynasty has also withdrawn tens of thousands of troops from the Song-Jin border and strengthened its northern defense line.
When Mongolia just started to attack Western Xia, the Jin Dynasty actually sent a force of over 100,000 soldiers to join forces with the Western Xia army to fight against the Mongolian cavalry.
Genghis Khan was a natural-born military leader, and he had an intuition that there was an invisible hand manipulating these events, as if the other side could foresee his plans.
而他秘密派往大宋的探子，也陆续带回一些消息，其中三个人名引起了他格外的注意。
头一个是“赵昊”，这个突然冒出来的大宋“燕王”殿下，是大宋给予自己提出联盟后的答复之一。
And bestows upon this "Yan King" His Royal Highness a gold medal of "as if the Emperor were present," which can mobilize all the military forces within the Great Song territory.
Even Genghis Khan himself had to sigh with admiration at this decision. Thinking from his own perspective, he might not even have the courage to bestow the entire nation's military power to a prince, who is said to be just an adopted son of the Great Song Emperor.
In this way, the Great Song seems to have also expressed its attitude, and is determined to destroy the Jin dynasty and avenge its past humiliations.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have appointed a "Prince of Yan," this territory is directly the capital of the Jin dynasty.
The second name is Guo Mo, who is also considered by Temujin as a young man whom he watched grow up. Surprisingly, he became the martial champion of the Song Dynasty, and was even granted the title of "Imperial Scholar" by the royal court of the Song Dynasty.
Establishing the "Dunwu Army" and promoting the commander of "Dunwu Army" out of the regular order, this can be equivalent to the Mongolian "commander of ten thousand".
Moreover, he was also appointed as the "supervisor of the Imperial City Bureau," which made Temujin even more puzzled. This position is definitely a close attendant to the emperor.
But how could Guo Mo, a poor boy who grew up in the desert, receive such generous treatment and trust from the imperial court of the Great Song?
And later, Guo Mo's military achievements under his leadership also surprised Genghis Khan.
He successively wiped out tens of thousands of Jin border troops, and even cut off their left ears, showing a ruthless means.
He also recaptured Dengzhou and Tangzhou from the Jin people, making the Jin people completely lose their temper, and even forced them to exempt the Song Dynasty from the "tribute".
This boy, who has been inscrutable to Temujin since childhood, has now grown up to be even more difficult for Temujin to understand.
The third name is Guo Jing.
First, he became the leader of the "Beggars' Sect", the largest martial arts sect in the Great Song Empire. Then he also joined the Song army. Later, he was promoted to the commander of the "Army for Suppressing the Rebellion" because of his accumulated military achievements.
On the desk of Genghis Khan, the names of the three armies "Dunwu", "Jingnan", and "Zhongshun" were carefully carved.
And behind these three powerful armies, it seems that the shadow of Guo Mo can be seen.
So, what kind of person is Guo Mo after all?
As Temujin recalled his limited interactions with Guo Mo, he felt that this child seemed to have deliberately kept his distance from him since he was young.
From Guo Mo's eyes, he could see that the other person appreciated and even admired him, which was something that couldn't be hidden.
However, Guo Mo was unwilling to engage in deeper interactions, as if he was wary or guarding against something.
"Batu, what do you think of this Guo Mo?"
Batu is the third son of Genghis Khan, in his thirties, and the most outstanding of Genghis Khan's sons, and is also the default heir in Genghis Khan's heart.
"Father, as I see it, if this Guo Mo cannot be of use to me, we must find a way to get rid of him, otherwise he will become a stumbling block for us someday."
"Wo Kuotai, like Temujin, has great ambition, thinking of turning all the places where the sun shines into Mongolian pastures."
"Our main opponents now are still the Western Xia and Jin Dynasty. I'm afraid that in three to five years, there will be no chance for us to confront the Great Song at all."
"But from various sources of information, the speed of growth of this Guo Mo is just too fast. In just one year, he has gone from a mere martial arts champion to a powerful figure with an army of sixty thousand soldiers under his command."
"Fortunately, the emperor is too incompetent, and has actually demoted Guo Mo. But keeping this person is ultimately a hidden danger."
"Temujin stared at the intelligence in front of him, as if he was talking to Ogedei, and as if he was talking to himself."
“Father Khan, although Guo Mo and Guo Jing have left, the great desert still holds their mother Li Ping, their several masters, and even Guo Jing's…”
Wokou Tai did not finish speaking, but Temujin already understood what he meant.
Wokou Tai was referring to Guo Jing's son Guo Ping, born to Hua Zheng, who is also Temujin's grandson and Wokou Tai's nephew.
However, in the face of imperial power, these so-called family ties are simply nothing.
Back then, Genghis Khan allowed Huazheng to marry Guo Jing partly because Huazheng's engagement to Du Shi no longer needed to be fulfilled.
Guo Jing and Guo Mo, the two brothers, both seem to have promising futures.
Behind them, there are also "Seven Freaks of Jiangnan" as martial arts masters, and Zhebie is also the master of these two young boys, which all adds up to quite a formidable force.
As the ruler, his starting point for considering issues is always whether the matter is advantageous to himself, as for family affection and so on, it only has value when it can be used.
"You personally arrange this matter, don't let your fourth brother know. In addition, keep a close watch on Han Baoju and Feng Ge in the army, even that Zhebie...forget it, Zhebie may not do anything, after all, he is a true Mongolian."
Wo Kuotai took the seal of Genghis Khan and went down to handle official business.
Later, the war against Western Xia was extremely fierce. There were even a few bed crossbows on the city walls of the Western Xia. It seems that even the Jin Dynasty didn't have these, right?
This damn Great Song, they must have taken the bed crossbow and exchanged it for the Western Xia's warhorses.
Genghis Khan valued the three armies under Guo Mo's command, and the most crucial point is that these three armies almost encompass half of the Song Dynasty's cavalry.
Genghis Khan is commanding at the forefront, and every time the city is attacked, the casualties are heavy. Under the stimulus of "slaughtering the city", the Mongols still captured one city after another in Western Xia.
"Third Master, today our army has suffered heavy casualties, but Khan has ordered us to take a short rest and continue the attack."
封戈进到韩宝驹的营帐里，拿起水囊狠狠地喝了两口，发泄着心中的郁闷。
“封戈，咱们自己的人伤亡大吗？”韩宝驹问道。
封戈明白师傅的意思，韩宝驹作为千夫长，却率领了将近四千人，其中有他的亲兵卫队四百来人。
几乎都是北逃而来的汉人，或者是草原上无家可归的奴隶，这四百人和“七贤庄”的三百护庄队，是他们留在蒙古的本钱。
"Ah, just a few times of storming the city in the morning, and the imperial guards have lost around a hundred people, now there are less than two hundred intact."
The imperial guards are the strongest among all the soldiers under Han Baoju's command, and in the continuous battles, they have lost nearly half of their strength, while the other soldiers have suffered even more casualties.
Originally, there were nearly four thousand people in the army, but now only one thousand eight hundred are able to continue fighting.
"Feng Ge, I suspect that this is intentionally targeting you and me by Wo Kuotai."
"Last night, I just received a letter from your second master. He has been at 'Seven Sages Manor' for two months. He originally intended to take the people in the manor south to return to the Song Dynasty, but was blocked by two thousand-man teams at the manor."
"It was sent by the Wo Kuotai faction, saying that Mongolia is currently at war with Western Xia and the Jin Dynasty. They were ordered to protect Princess Huazheng and her son, and no one is allowed to leave 'Seven Sage Manor.' To deliver this letter, the Manor has lost more than a dozen good men."
After "Master Ma" Han Baoju finished speaking, he slammed his fist on the bookcase in front of him.
"Master, how could they treat us like this?" Feng Ge also felt very angry after hearing this.
"Seven Heroes Manor" is his home in the desert. Fifth Master and Seventh Master are there, as well as Auntie Li Ping and nephew Guo Ping. If something happens to them, how can he explain to First and Second Senior Brothers?
"Fengge, come and take a look at this letter, you'll understand after reading it."
The contents of the letter on the paper have already been revealed by Han Baoju using a special potion.
This is a trick commonly used by people in the martial arts world, even if it is intercepted by someone, it won't leak any information.
"Is this... is this true? Second Senior Brother, he's actually...?"
Feng Ge looked at Han Baoju with an incredulous look.
"It shouldn't be wrong, this is indeed a personal letter from your second master."
Han Baoju took the letter back again and threw it into the nearby brazier, which was quickly engulfed by the red flame.
"I don't think Temujin and the others know the true identity of your second martial brother, but just his surface identity is already enough for him to come after us like this."
“We can't just sit and wait to die. Let's follow your second master’s suggestion and leave here tonight, and go back to the ‘Seven Sages Manor’ to support them.”
Han Baoju is a straightforward man, suddenly falling out with his comrade-in-arms he has been fighting with for many years, and he feels a little uncomfortable in his heart, especially Zhebie and Tuolei are considered close friends.
Unfortunately, the reality in front of him forced him to make a decision.
What's more, Guo Mo's identity and his actions in the Great Song Dynasty filled this man in his forties with longing for the future, wishing to fly back immediately.
The decision was made, and the two of them packed up some essential items. The imperial guards could not all be taken away, and the brothers who were injured and unable to fight again could only say sorry.
Only one hundred and eighty-five people were left to go together, each quietly preparing five days' worth of dry rations and fresh water, with the equipment of two horses for each person.
At the second watch, Han Baoju gathered eight hundred-man captains, including Feng Ge, in his own military tent.
"Gentlemen, we have just received the military order from Ogedai Khan to be responsible for tonight's night raid, focusing on harassment and avoiding direct attack."
"Tuohai, you lead 800 men to attack from the east gate; Moli, you lead 800 men to attack from the west gate; Fengge leads the guards to attack from the north gate; other injured personnel, stay in the camp."
“Tuohai and Moli, you two lay in ambush outside the city gate first, and launch the attack at the third watch, get ready to go.”
All the centurions went down. They had conducted several night raids before, so no one raised any doubts.
Han Baoju and Feng Ge quietly left the camp with their guards and took a detour to the "Seven Sages Manor."
After leaving the camp, the guards each rode two horses and galloped away.
Even if they were discovered by the Broad Terrace of the Bed, it would probably be too late to chase after them after judging their intentions.
Leaving from here and returning to "Seven Wise Village" is a journey of over a thousand miles, even with forced marches it would take a full two days to run.
As we approached the "Seven Sages Manor", Feng Ge had already sent out scouts far ahead.
Sure enough, the "Seven Sages Manor" was surrounded by Mongolian cavalry on the east, west, and south sides, and pedestrians were strictly prohibited from entering or leaving for several miles around.
Fortunately, "Seven Wise Manor" is large enough, and the agriculture and animal husbandry in the manor can be self-sufficient.
"Fengge, you sneak into the manor tonight and act according to plan. I will lead people to distract them, and you can take the opportunity to break out of the manor and rendezvous at the Fuzhou Estate."
"San, let me draw them away, and you sneak into the Zhuangzi..."
"What? Do you think you're better than me? Carry out the order--"
There is still some time before dark, and everyone is taking the opportunity to eat, drink, and rest.
In the desert in April, much of the snow hasn't melted yet, and even wearing thick fur felt, there is still some chill in the air.
"Outside of the 'Seven Sages Manor', the Mongolian soldiers have been stationed here for almost a month. Apart from the two commanding captains, the rest of them truly think they are here to protect Princess Huaxian."
On weekdays, precautions are inevitably lax. What danger could there be in the depths of the Mongolian hinterland?
Before it's time for bed, the sky is already so dark that nothing can be seen.
封戈穿了身深色衣服，也没骑马，悄悄向“七贤庄”摸去。
住了这么多年，自然是轻车熟路。
没走门，直接来到一处矮墙，翻墙而入。
Just arrived at the "Seven Sages Hall," I was discovered by someone.
"Who are you looking for?"
It was the reprimanding voice of "Yue Nu Jian" Han Xiaoying.
"Seven Master is me, Feng Ge," Feng Ge hurriedly spoke out.
Inside the "Seven Sages Hall," the candles were still lit. If everything goes smoothly, Han Baoju and the others should be able to reach the "Seven Sages Manor" tonight.
Therefore, the people in the village have not fallen asleep.
Feng Ge entered the "Seven Sages Hall" and saw both Master Five and Master Seven. He also saw Master Two, "Masterful Scholar" Zhu Cong, whom he had not seen for a long time.
Li Ping, Hua Zheng, Ye Qu, and even Zhang Ting were also present.
"Disciples have seen all the masters." Feng Ge hurriedly paid his respects to the elders.
"Feng Ge, you made it here. It looks like you received my letter. How are your preparations?"
"The talented scholar" Zhu Cong asked.
"Reporting to the two masters, the third master has already brought the personal guard team to the northwest of the village five miles away, and we can proceed with the original plan."
"However, for some reason, Genghis Khan has been targeting us recently, and we have lost more than half of our men and horses. Even our own people in the personal guard team, we were only able to bring back one hundred and eighty-five of them."
“Huh, my good third brother, can he really do it?”
Before anyone else could speak, Hua Zheng couldn't help but speak out.
When the Mongolian cavalry outside "Seven Sage Manor" had just besieged the manor, Hua Zheng had personally gone to negotiate, and even drew his sword to kill two soldiers.
Still unable to go out, and the other party is unwilling to help her to report, only saying that it is following the orders of the Khan.
Huazheng knew that this must be her father's intention, she did not expect that her father, who regarded her as the apple of his eye, would actually confine his daughter one day.
Huazhen is certainly a clever person. There is a lot of news about Guo Jing and Guo Mo, especially the arrival of the "Mr. Miracle" Zhu Cong.
Except for not knowing that Guo Mo is the son of the official family of the Great Song Dynasty, and not knowing that Guo Mo is the same person as the "King of Yan", Huazhen knows everything else.
She did not expect her father to use such means, is he going to detain the family of the Guo brothers and force them to submit?
The question is, she is also here, is he still her most respected Genghis Khan?
"Huazhen—"
Li Ping held Hua Zhen's hand, not knowing what to say.
"Mother, since the day I married Ajing, I have said that from now on, there is no more Princess Huazhen. I am just Ajing's wife, the daughter-in-law of the Guo family."
After so many years, everyone here is my own family, and I have watched her grow up since childhood.
Especially this time, with my own father and brothers being so ruthless, Huazhen has to consider her son.
"Okay, since that's the case, let's stick to the original plan. Qimei, Huazheng, and Ting'er, the three of you will each take twenty guards to specifically protect Sister Li Ping, Brother Guo Ping, and Zhou Lian and her children."
After Ye Qu and Zhou Lian got married, they also had a son named Ye Feng, who is one year younger than Guo Ping and just over three years old.
"Lao Wu, Feng Ge, Ye Qu, each of you bring one hundred peasants. When you hear the noise from the west, rush out from the east together."
"Ye Qu leads the way ahead, and we head straight to the manor in Fuzhou to meet up with Zhou Cheng. Right now there are only about a hundred warhorses in the manor, and two hundred infantry have already left to go to the first supply point to pick up horses. Let's move."
Everyone mounted their horses, with Li Ping and Zhou Lian taking the two children and getting on a reinforced carriage lined with iron plates that can deflect arrows.
Ye Qu led two hundred foot soldiers to set off first, while the rest surrounded the carriage, with Feng Ge leading one hundred cavalry as the rear guard.
Suddenly I heard people shouting and horses neighing to the west of Zhuangzi, and the Mongol tents were on fire.
"We are under attack - coming from the west."
"Quick, send some men to guard the main gate of 'Seven Sages Manor'."
The Mongolian soldiers were sleeping soundly, but were awakened by the sound of shouting to find that everywhere was shouting and on fire, yet there was no sign of the enemy.
It turned out that Han Baoju led the personal guard outside the main camp, continuously shooting rockets into the camp, igniting the Mongolian army's supplies and tents.
Whether it is a well-trained army, after a flurry of activity, a centurion immediately made a decision.
Leave five hundred men to guard the gate of "Seven Sages Manor".
剩下一千三百多人，向着韩宝驹发起了冲锋.....。