Chapter 854

Changshan Kingdom, Shangai County.

Nearly ten days had passed in a flash since the migration from Xiaquyang.

Nearly six hundred thousand Taiping Dao believers from Julu Commandery had walked across Changshan Kingdom and arrived at Shangai County.

Further ahead, they would need to pass through the Heishan Mountains, which is the Taihang Mountain range, to reach the Taiyuan Plain.

But the entire route to the Taiyuan Plain was mountainous.

That night.

The countless campfires lit by Taiping Dao believers outside Shangai County were like stars in the night sky.

Looking down from high above, the lit campfires were like a sea of stars stretching out as far as the eye could see.

And dozens of miles behind the hundreds of thousands of Taiping Dao believers, there was another force.

A Liangzhou army of over ten thousand people.

At this time, on the side of Shangai County closest to the west, and also the direction closest to the Heishan Mountains, the Taiping Dao believers of the Youzhou Camp were stationed here.

Most of the over one hundred thousand Taiping Dao believers were Youzhou refugees, but among the over one hundred thousand people, there was a Huang Jin Army force of over ten thousand.

These ten thousand plus people were the elite of the Youzhou Camp; they should not be called Taiping Dao believers, but should be called the Huang Jin Army.

And this force of over ten thousand people was the elite under Cheng Zhiyuan's command.

They were all composed of young and strong men, and the vast majority had weapons.

In addition, among these ten thousand plus Huang Jin soldiers, there were over a thousand cavalrymen.

But more than half of them were pack horses, not warhorses.

The ten thousand plus Huang Jin soldiers formed a separate large camp, and Cheng Zhiyuan's main tent was in this camp of ten thousand plus people.

At this time, fire basins were lit on both sides in front of the camp gate, extending for dozens of meters.

On both sides were elite Huang Jin warriors under Cheng Zhiyuan's command guarding it.

The tent door of the main tent opened to both sides.

Cheng Zhiyuan, as the commander of the Youzhou Camp, sat in the tent, with wine and meat placed on the table in front of him.

Cheng Zhiyuan, with a full beard, was eating and drinking heartily.

Sitting on his left and right were two other people.

One was Deng Mao, the vanguard under Cheng Zhiyuan's command, and the other was a fierce-looking young man in his early twenties.

The young man was holding a roasted chicken in his hand, tearing off the chicken meat in large mouthfuls.

Two mouthfuls of meat, one mouthful of wine, his mouth was oily.

Beside the young man were two meteor hammers.

"Come, Brother Bian Xi, I will toast you on behalf of the Qu-commander with this cup."

Deng Mao, sitting opposite Bian Xi, raised the wine cup in his hand and said: "I have long heard that there is a fierce general under the Earth Duke General. It is a pity we could not meet sooner; otherwise, I would definitely have pulled Brother Bian Xi into Youzhou."

"But it is not too late. Now that the Saintess has sent Brother Bian Xi to the Youzhou Camp, it is our fate."

"This cup is to toast Brother Bian Xi." Deng Mao raised his wine cup and drank it all in one gulp.

Bian Xi, with disheveled hair, wearing a black short jacket on his upper body and bamboo armor over it, put down the roasted chicken in his hand, wiped his hands on his body, and picked up the wine cup.

He also drank it all in one gulp.

Bian Xi was originally from Bingzhou.

Later, he went to Wuji County in Jizhou to make a living.

But he had never made a name for himself.

When Zhang Bao retreated to Xiaquyang, he began to recruit troops again.

It was at that time that Bian Xi joined Zhang Bao's command.

Because of his ferocity and bravery, he was soon appointed by Zhang Bao.

Unfortunately...

Zhang Bao was dead, but Bian Xi did not know the specific cause of death; he only knew that after Zhang Jiao entered the city that day, Zhang Bao and Zhang Liang died.

Later, after Zhang Jiao entered the city, Bian Xi became one of Zhang Jiao's subordinates.

The reason why Bian Xi was currently in the Youzhou Camp was because after departing from Xiaquyang, Zhang Ning had sent a liaison camp of several hundred people to each camp.

Their purpose was to convey orders and reflect the situation in each camp in a timely manner.

But to put it bluntly, it also meant monitoring.

It had been nearly ten days since they departed from Xiaquyang, and Bian Xi had been in the Youzhou Camp the whole time.

Whenever the army stopped, Deng Mao would immediately find Bian Xi to drink.

And Bian Xi also liked wine, and he was also drunk at Cheng Zhiyuan's place almost every day.

When Bian Xi picked up the wine bowl, Deng Mao's gaze quietly looked at Cheng Zhiyuan.

Cheng Zhiyuan nodded slightly to signal.

After filling his own cup with wine, Deng Mao raised his wine cup again.

"Brother Bian Xi is also a man of temperament. Our Commander said that meeting Brother Bian Xi was like meeting an old friend."

"The Commander also said that if possible, he would like to petition the Great Virtuous Teacher and the Saintess to keep Brother Bian Xi in the Youzhou Camp in the future, and then govern the Youzhou Camp together with Brother Bian Xi."

Bian Xi, who had put down his wine cup, was stunned when he heard this.

He looked at Cheng Zhiyuan with a hint of surprise in his eyes.

Govern the Youzhou Camp together?

"Haha." Cheng Zhiyuan laughed, wiped the wine from his beard, and said boldly: "Deng Mao did not speak nonsense."

"To be honest, Brother Bian Xi, I truly admire you."

"The first time I saw you, I felt that you were definitely someone who could do great things—you have courage and insight!"

"If the Earth Duke General hadn't left so early, Brother Bian Xi would sooner or later have been a commander of a region."

"It's just a pity that the Earth Duke General left so early, burying such talent as you. Now you are actually just a mere messenger; it's truly a pity," Cheng Zhiyuan said, shaking his head and sighing.

Bian Xi, holding the wine cup, suddenly felt a sense of grievance.

Yes, he was highly skilled in martial arts and had insight, yet he was assigned as a small messenger.

Looking at that guy named Zhou Cang, who was not as good as him before, he had been promoted all the way and was now a Qu-commander by Zhang Ning's side, commanding a camp of troops.

In terms of ability, wasn't he much stronger than Zhou Cang?

Thinking about it made him feel aggrieved.

"What can be done? Who told them to look down on us?" Bian Xi said with a depressed expression, picking up his wine cup: "Drink, drink."

Cheng Zhiyuan also picked up his wine cup and said with a smile: "Brother Bian Xi, don't belittle yourself. With your courage and insight, sooner or later there will be a day when you soar."

"It's just..."

Cheng Zhiyuan's words paused slightly: "It's just that now is not the time."

"Come, come, come, drink, drink!"

After a gluttonous meal, Bian Xi, who had drunk too much, was carried out again.

And only Deng Mao and Cheng Zhiyuan were left in the tent.

"Commander, if we continue to move forward now, we will enter the Heishan Mountains," Deng Mao said, lowering his voice: "Bian Xi also said that the Great Virtuous Teacher has not appeared even once."

"This subordinate suspects..."