Chapter 1142

When Hu Xiaotian was about to leave Wuxing Jun, Gao Yuan brought someone to meet him, but it was Li Chang'an's junior disciple Xia Zhangming. These two days Hu Xiaotian had been busy dealing with matters concerning Jiang Zhengyang, almost forgetting Li Chang'an's recommendation of his junior disciple. Upon hearing that Xia Zhangming had come, he hurriedly had Gao Yuan invite him in.

Xia Zhangming was even younger than Hu Xiaotian had expected; he was just nineteen this year, with darkish skin, an honest appearance, his coarse cloth clothes washed until somewhat faded, with several extremely conspicuous patches sewn on, giving an impression of great simplicity. If not for Li Chang'an's recommendation, Hu Xiaotian would not have noticed this young man lost in the crowd.

Hu Xiaotian certainly would not judge by appearance; he walked over enthusiastically and smiled, saying, "Mr. Xia, I have heard Mr. Li speak of you for a long time; these past two days I have been waiting for your arrival."

Xia Zhangming was not good at socializing; facing Hu Xiaotian he seemed somewhat restrained, clasping his hands in salute and saying, "Xia Zhangming pays his respects, Sir Hu!"

Hu Xiaotian smiled and nodded, seeing a bamboo flute hanging at his waist, he secretly wondered whether this bamboo flute was what he used to drive birds and beasts.

Gao Yuan saw that Hu Xiaotian and Li Yongfu's attire indicated they were going out, and curiously asked, "Young master, are you going out?"

Hu Xiaotian nodded and said, "Yes!"

Gao Yuan said, "Why not bring me along!" After all, he was still a child; hearing that Hu Xiaotian was going out, he became very excited.

Hu Xiaotian laughed, his gaze falling on Xia Zhangming: "Mr. Xia, would you like to come with me?"

Xia Zhangming respectfully replied, "Xia Zhangming obeys your orders."

The vessel they boarded was a small warship carrying sixty people; its sailing speed was about thirty li per shichen, meaning that from Wuxing Jun to their destination Yunze would take roughly a day and a night. This was much faster than Jiang Zhengyang's convoy speed.

Hu Xiaotian soon realized his luck was indeed good; shortly after boarding, it began to snow. Though the snow was not heavy, it drifted everywhere, covering heaven and earth, providing excellent cover for their voyage. The flotilla they organized proceeded in batches, with an agreement to meet at Luoxia Bay after entering Yunze.

Li Yongfu had people set up a small table in the cabin, lit a stove, prepared a few dishes, and Hu Xiaotian summoned Xia Zhangming and Gao Yuan to join him in the cabin for drinks.

Only then did Gao Yuan realize that Hu Xiaotian was heading downstream along the Wangchun River not merely to admire the snow scenery; his true purpose was to cut off Jiang Zhengyang's escape route.

Li Yongfu still could not be certain that Jiang Zhengyang would definitely flee with grain, but since Hu Xiaotian had made such a definite judgment, he could only choose to believe it; judging from their previous two battles, Hu Xiaotian's judgment had still been extremely accurate.

Hu Xiaotian had already guessed Li Yongfu's thoughts from some of his expressions; this was understandable, after all, up to now Jiang Zhengyang had shown no signs of rebellion. Only by using facts to verify his conjecture could he win over those officers who harbored doubts, making them sincerely convinced.

Li Yongfu said, "My lord, if Jiang Zhengyang truly rebels, he has close to thirty thousand troops under him. Adding the five thousand soldiers of Baichuan City makes thirty-five thousand. Moreover, the water bandits of Heishui Village on Bixin Mountain number about eight thousand, bringing their total force to over forty thousand, while we have only six thousand—a great disparity."

Hu Xiaotian smiled, "It's not the first time we've fought a battle with such a disparity in strength. Moreover, this time we don't even need to engage them head-on; Jiang Zhengyang's thirty thousand and Baichuan City's five thousand need not concern us. If my judgment is correct, Jiang Zhengyang will transport these hundred thousand shi of grain to Yunze Bixin Mountain; as long as we cut off this waterway, his people will be stranded on shore."

Li Yongfu said, "Even the eight thousand water bandits of Heishui Village are not to be underestimated."

Gao Yuan said, "They couldn't possibly launch all their forces; if Jiang Zhengyang colludes with the bandits, the main purpose of the Heishui Village water bandits dispatching ships is to transport grain and troops. Besides the necessary crew, they will try to lighten the load, keeping the ships empty, for only thus can they transport as much grain as possible."

Gao Yuan's words left Li Yongfu feeling ashamed; as an experienced water army commander, his insight was actually inferior to that of a child, and he had failed to consider such an obvious principle.

Hu Xiaotian saw Li Yongfu's embarrassment, patted his shoulder and said, "Even the wise may err after a thousand considerations; Elder Brother Yongfu, you must promptly plan this naval battle. We will strive to defeat the squadron sent to meet them before Jiang Zhengyang and the Heishui Village bandits join forces, thereby cutting off Jiang Zhengyang's rear."

Li Yongfu said, "But now we are still unclear about the situation in Yunze, and we lack understanding of the movements of those Heishui Village water bandits. Although I have already sent out light scouting boats to investigate, the earliest feedback will not return until tomorrow."

The hitherto silent Xia Zhangming now spoke up: "Sir Hu, Xia Zhangming, though lacking talent, wishes to go forth to gather military intelligence."

Hu Xiaotian lifted his gaze to Xia Zhangming, who smiled somewhat embarrassedly and said, "I have a way to make a round trip to Yunze within two shichen and examine the specific conditions there."

Li Yongfu stared agape, thinking this kid must be talking nonsense; from their current position to Yunze is about 230 li, how could he make a round trip in two shichen? I don't know where the lord recruited such talent—he appears honest and loyal, yet he speaks grandly without blushing.

Hu Xiaotian, however, firmly believed Xia Zhangming's words; he had once ridden that snow eagle together with Li Chang'an, and the snow eagle's flight speed should be over two hundred li per shichen, allowing it to fly four hundred li in one shichen. Excluding the factor of carrying a person, a round trip to Yunze in two shichen should involve no exaggeration. He then nodded and said, "Xia Zhangming, then you will have to work hard."

After bidding farewell, Xia Zhangming came to the bow. He did not use the bamboo flute at his waist; instead, he curled the index finger and thumb of his right hand into his mouth and blew a loud whistle. Hu Xiaotian and the others came out to watch the spectacle. Hu Xiaotian looked up and saw, amidst the falling snow, two white streaks like lightning shooting downward—two huge Snow Eagles, each with a wingspan of about two zhang. One Snow Eagle swooped down to the starboard side of the boat; Xia Zhangming tapped his toes, his body leapt into the air, and he landed steadily on the eagle's back. Another Snow Eagle led the way ahead; the two Snow Eagles flew off along the Wangchun River, one ahead and one behind, vanishing from sight in an instant.

Li Yongfu's tongue protruded halfway and he could not retract it for a long while; only then did he realize how vast and marvelous the world is. Recalling his earlier thought, his face flushed with embarrassment—he had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai, never expecting that this Xia Zhangming could be so formidable.

Hu Xiaotian also saw for the first time Xia Zhangming commanding Snow Eagles, and handling two at once, presumably to increase efficiency by switching them midway. Based solely on the technique Xia Zhangming had just displayed, one could conclude that although young, his skill as a Beast Tamer had already reached perfection; even if not equal to his senior brother Li Chang'an, he was not far behind. Hu Xiaotian felt overjoyed. Although Li Chang'an had recommended Xia Zhangming to him out of gratitude, a talent like Xia Zhangming was truly rare. Hu Xiaotian's entourage lacked a Beast Tamer capable of commanding birds and beasts; Xia Zhangming's appearance not only substantially improved his intelligence gathering in essence, but also made up for his deficiency in troop types.

Gao Yuan gazed longingly at the direction Xia Zhangming had departed, murmuring, "Someday I will surely become his disciple and learn his method of riding birds."

Hu Xiaotian smiled, "Each craft has its specialty; you handle carriages quite well as well."

Gao Yuan blushed, "How can driving a carriage compare to riding an eagle?"

Jiang Zhengyang's grain convoy was only a hundred li from Baichuan City; the closer they got to Yunze, the more excited his heart became—truly heaven's favor. Earlier he had discarded his dignity, set aside his pride, and sent people to Dongliang Jun to borrow grain, only to be ruthlessly refused by Hu Xiaotian. He had originally prepared to spare no cost in attacking Wuxing Jun to seize grain, yet he never expected that the old emperor would assign him the fine task of escorting the grain. Long Xuan'en, oh Long Xuan'en, you are truly an old fool; the grain is now in my hands, do you still expect me to hand it over? Jiang Zhengyang could not help but sneer.

Hu Xiaotian was not as shrewd and formidable as outside rumors claimed; he actually handed over this hundred thousand shi of grain to me without any suspicion. Jiang Zhengyang gazed ahead at the endless grain convoy, feeling warm and reassured—having this hundred thousand shi of grain meant his army temporarily had no rear worries. The court did not know that he had already reached an agreement with Guo Guangbi of Xingzhou, nor that the Heishui Village of Yunze had already defected to Guo Guangbi.

In Jiang Zhengyang and Guo Guangbi's plan, his first step was to transport the grain to Yunze Bixin Mountain; after making adjustments, once his troops had recovered their condition, he would muster a large army and launch an offensive from the south against Wuxing Jun; at the same time, Guo Guangbi would dispatch troops from Xingzhou, and together they would seize Wuxing Jun, thereby completely controlling the situation on the southern bank of the Yongjiang River. Moreover, the three hundred thousand shi of grain that Hu Xiaotian had presented as tribute to the court would surely not escape his grasp. Thinking of this, Jiang Zhengyang could not help but feel elated, a satisfied smile curling his lips.

A commander galloped up behind him on horseback, came to Jiang Zhengyang's side, clasped his fists and said, "General Jiang, there are no pursuing troops coming from Wuxing Jun."

Jiang Zhengyang nodded: "Very good."

That commander added, "Wuxing Jun has dispatched its navy to go upstream toward Yunyang; they were probably drawn by the troop movements from Xingzhou."

Jiang Zhengyang grunted, his heart swelling with pride: "Hu Xiaotian, Hu Xiaotian, you are still too green after all—how could my scheme be something you could perceive?" While despising Hu Xiaotian, he also could not help but admire Guo Guangbi's far-sighted exceptional insight. Joining Guo Guangbi was his only recourse; initially he had looked down on Guo Guangbi in his heart, regarding him as merely a farmer who had struck it lucky. Yet Guo Guangbi's development as a farmer made Jiang Zhengyang take notice—he had not only successfully occupied Xingzhou and organized a thirty-thousand-strong army, but also continually expanded it in subsequent developments, now commanding nearly sixty thousand troops. In today's age, leading sixty thousand troops might not be considered much, yet being able to feed and clothe such a force is truly remarkable.

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