Rise From the Humble

"The man held his title, the horse's hooves were tied, the flags and drums were hushed, the sound was restrained, and we galloped towards the Kunshan river bank at full speed."

After Zhu Ping'an led the Zhejiang army away from the city gate, he ordered all the soldiers in the army to rush to Kunshan with their titles and gold-wrapped hoofs.

All the soldiers of the Zhejiang Army who were traveling with them had a branch in their mouths, and they wrapped the horses' hooves with two layers of cloth. They also tied a stick in the horse's bridle so that the horses could hold it in their mouths to prevent the mules and horses from neighing.

Zhu Ping'an was no exception. He also broke off a branch and held it in his mouth, then rode his horse forward at full speed with his whip raised.

The journey was uneventful, except for a flock of flying birds and ownerless livestock, and no one was encountered. We arrived at the Kunshan river bank smoothly.

Kunshan is also known as "Lucheng". According to legend, King Shoumeng of Wu once set up a garden to raise deer for hunting in this generation, and built a city named Xilucheng, so it was named Lucheng. It was later named Kunshan because the seat of the county seat at that time was located in the northwest of Kunshan within the territory, so it was named Kunshan County.

However, Kunshan County is located in the south of the Yangtze River. Except for Kunshan, it is a plain with dense river networks.

Ancient bridges, small rivers, and rows of villages sleeping on the river are like landscape paintings.

It's a pity that because of the Japanese invasion, the people in these villages have fled. They don't hear chickens and dogs, and they lose their vitality.

Such a beautiful Jiangnan water town and such a lifeless village strengthened Zhu Ping'an's belief in eradicating Japanese pirates as soon as possible.

When I, Zhu Ping'an, come to this era, I cannot just watch the tragedy of history repeat itself. I must eradicate the Japanese invasion earlier and better than in history! Let the people of this empire live a better and more dignified life!

"Dadao, go to the woods and see if Chen Dacheng and the others are there?"

After Zhu Ping'an arrived at the bank of the Kunshan River, he scanned the surrounding terrain, pointed to the dense forest not far away and said to Liu Dadao.

When they first broke out from the Fengqiao camp, Chen Dacheng was ordered to lead the eighty-horse Zhejiang Army to lurk on the banks of the Kunshan River, where he prepared a large gift for the Japanese pirates.

Judging from the terrain, the nearby places where they can lurk, apart from these dense forests, are the mountains in the distance.

However, the mountainous area is too far away from the river bank, several miles away. Hiding there is not conducive to monitoring the river, and it is easy to miss the opportunity. Therefore, the most likely place for Chen Dacheng and the others to lurk is in this dense forest.

"Okay, I'm going to see if Lao Chen is catting in the woods."

Liu Dadao took the order, turned over and dismounted, and ran towards the woods. After running into the woods, he put his fingers to his mouth, puffed up his cheeks and tried hard, "Cuckoo, coo, coo..." and let out a loud bird call, repeated three times. all over.

"Chirp chirp chirp..."

Not long after Liu Dadao's bird call came out, there was a burst of bird calls from deep in the woods, and he responded three times.

"Hey, Xiao Chen is in the woods." Ruofeng heard a burst of birdsong from the woods, touched his chin and smiled.

The Zhejiang Army used the sound of Wu Ming to convey information, or Zhu Pingan asked him to teach everyone. In the beginning, they used bird calls to convey information, but because of the out-of-season bird calls, they exposed themselves and learned their lesson. The bird calls they now use to convey messages are all in line with the season and the area.

He knew only too well what the birdsong meant.

Sure enough, not long after the birdsong responded, Liu Dadao led Chen Dacheng out of the woods.

Chen Dacheng wore a straw hat made of branches on his head and a coir raincoat made of thatch, which was very camouflaging.

"Greetings, sir..."

Chen Dacheng stepped forward to meet Zhu Ping'an and was a little excited. They had been lurking here for a day and a night. Sleeping in the open air in the cold winter was not an ordinary suffering. The biting cold wind and the wet and cold ground. In order to prevent exposure, they could not light a fire to keep warm. They couldn't even light a fire to cook and could only eat cold food. The arrival of Zhu Ping'an and the others meant that their sins had not been in vain.

It's finally time for their stealth to come into play, how can you not be excited.

"Dacheng, in the cold winter months, you slept in the open air. Thank you for your hard work."

Zhu Pingan quickly stepped forward to help Chen Dacheng up. Seeing his face tortured by the wind and frost, he patted his shoulder and encouraged him with emotion.

"It's not hard, it's not hard. What do we have to do? Sir, it's hard for you to fight to the death with the Japanese pirates." Chen Dacheng shook his head repeatedly.

"I will remember your hard work. Are everything ready?" Zhu Pingan asked.

"Everything is ready. Sir, we brought out more than two thousand kilograms of kerosene from the camp. Except for some for the big gift, the rest are kept in the woods and can be used at any time. We also have the rest. Everything is ready according to your instructions, and the riverside is also decorated according to your instructions."

Chen Dacheng replied with a serious look.

"Very good! I'll mark your merits. Now, take us to the woods quickly, hide the mules and horses first, and then prepare to give this great gift to the Japanese pirates." Zhu Pingan was very satisfied after hearing Chen Dacheng's reply. The nodded.

"My lord, please." Chen Dacheng led Zhu Ping'an and his party into the woods.

This forest is very large, and is jagged with large tracts of dry reeds. There is also a hidden ravine deep in the forest with trees and shrubs in it. Chen Dacheng and the others hid in this ravine after they came out of Fengqiao Camp.

"Sir, this valley has three exits leading to the outside. One of them can lead horses out of the valley, and you can ride horses when you go out..." Chen Dacheng led Zhu Ping'an into the valley and introduced the situation of the valley along the way. "

After Zhu Pingan walked into the valley, he took a look and nodded with satisfaction. Putting the mules and horses here would definitely not be exposed. There are three exits to the outside in the valley, so there is no need to worry about becoming a turtle in the urn.

The Zhejiang troops under Chen Dacheng were all in the ravine. They were dressed similarly to Chen Dacheng. They all wore straw hats with branches on their heads and raincoats. Their faces were weather-beaten. When they saw Zhu Ping'an, they all came forward to worship him.

"In extraordinary times, there is no need to be polite. You have all worked hard, and I will remember it in my heart. I will pay tribute to you after the war." Zhu Pingan waved his hand and encouraged them.

A soldier died for his confidant. When the soldiers heard this, they were very excited, and their bodies suddenly glowed with endless power.

Zhu Ping'an commanded the soldiers to gather the mules and horses in the valley, close to the entrance of the valley where horses could walk, so that they could ride their horses out of the valley at any time to be prepared.

In order to prevent the horse from neighing and revealing its traces, Zhu Ping'an did not let anyone remove the tree pieces from the horse's mouth.

"Dacheng, let me go and see the gift you have prepared." After hiding the mules and horses, Zhu Pingan said to Chen Dacheng.

"My lord, please come this way."

Liu Dacheng led Zhu Ping'an toward the depths of the ravine.