Han Shizu

Chapter 704 Destruction is imminent
The summer breeze blows past the Chengling Pass at night, and the whole city is immersed in a depressing atmosphere. When you pass by, all you see are numb faces, lifeless.

Feeling the low morale in the camp, Zhou Xingfeng wanted to encourage him, but he couldn't think of any effective way.Even in the wounded barracks, personally bandaging a few wounded soldiers can only play a superficial effect.

Not only was there a lack of food and equipment in the camp, but there was also a lack of medical treatment. Many seriously injured soldiers died of pain.After Zhou Xingfeng left the wounded barracks, several more corpses were pulled out and buried.

The camp wall was dark and leaned against the hills, and he still enjoyed the coolness of the river breeze, but Zhou Xingfeng could only feel the dull and defeated emotions of the camp, and the wailing of the wounded soldiers behind him made him even more upset.

"Wang Duan!" Zhou Xingfeng called out.

"Here!" Wang Duan, the tooth general accompanying the inspection, immediately approached to listen to the order.

Without much thought, Zhou Xingfeng's descriptions showed a palpitating ruthlessness, and he ordered in a low voice: "The army is short of medicine, those seriously injured soldiers can't be cured, and they will suffer a lot if they are alive. , I really can't bear it, you help them get rid of it for me!"

Wang Duan was slightly startled, raised his eyes to look at Zhou Xingfeng, only saw a face of indifference, and clasped his fists in response: "Follow the order!"

"Remember, come in concealment, move quickly and keep quiet!" Zhou Xingfeng warned.

"Yes!"

Wang Duan turned around to make arrangements, but Zhou Xingfeng took a deep breath, his expression became more stern, how much herbs and rations could be saved by treating a group of seriously wounded soldiers?

"Command the generals of the battalions to discuss the army in the pass in half an hour!" Zhou Xingfeng summoned the herald, gave some instructions, and then left quickly.

In the handsome tent, two plates of meals have been set up, which are also fish and mandarin fish. After all, it is close to the rivers and lakes, a land of fish and rice.

In front of him was the Central Army’s office, reporting on the situation in the army. His voice was filled with apprehension: “Today’s battle resulted in thousands of casualties. , less than [-], less than [-]% of those capable of fighting, and only [-] of the defenders in Baling. There are a lot of complaints in the army, morale is low, and the army rations can't last long."

"How much rations are there?" Zhou Xingfeng raised his eyes and asked in a cold voice.

The secretary paused, and replied: "Chengling, Junshan and Baling, together, are less than a thousand stones!"

"Where's the new food in Changsha?"

"Jie Shuai, Secretary Li reported that Changsha has no food to adjust. In order to support the frontline operations, the treasury of Hunan has been exhausted and the people's strength has been exhausted. Recently, there have been civil disturbances in various places, and it is impossible to suppress them. The state has not listened to the orders of the military government. Changsha is also in turmoil, and Madam and Secretary Li can only sit in Changsha for now."

Listening to his report, Zhou Xingfeng was not hysterical, but rather calm, but the silence was a little frightening.Zhou Xingfeng was well aware of how bad the situation in the rear was.

After a while, he asked again, "Is there any progress on Junshan?"

The reporter replied: "The Han army is defending with solid walls and fortifications, and it is difficult to conquer. Today, General Zhang was attacked by Zhang Xun, losing thousands of troops. General Zhang reported that it was difficult to break through the front line of Junshan, and asked to retreat. Today, the navy suffered another loss There are many warships and soldiers, and the Han army's navy is attacking fiercely, and it is difficult to hold the river mouth firmly, blocking the Han army outside the Dongting. Once the navy is completely broken, the Junshan camps will become a lone army."

"There is no good news!" Zhou Xingfeng took a deep breath, and a deep smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

"For Zhang Chongfu, I know he has tried his best, no wonder he!" Unexpectedly, Zhou Xingfeng's attitude was not so strict because it was unfavorable for his subordinates to fight: "If there is any more bad news, let's talk about it together!"

"Wuling, there has been no news for two days, and my subordinates guess that it has already fallen!" the reporter reported cautiously.

"It's predictable!" Zhou Xingfeng said without any major emotional fluctuations.

Looking at the situation, Ji Shi couldn't help showing hesitation.Noticing it, Zhou Xingfeng said indifferently: "Do you have something to say?"

"Jie Shuai, my subordinate" the recording room obviously had scruples.

"Speak! I forgive you for your innocence!" Zhou Xingfeng said.

"Jie Shuai, the general situation has collapsed. The current situation is such that our army has reached the most dangerous situation. The Han army is powerful. If we continue to resist forcefully, we may die."

"You want to persuade me to surrender?" Zhou Xingfeng asked coldly.

Being stared at by him, Ji Shi was taken aback, his body trembled, thinking about Zhou Xingfeng's temper, he secretly scolded himself for talking too much.However, Zhou Xingfeng did not mean to blame him, and waved his hand: "You step back!"

"Yes!"

When he was alone in the tent, Zhou Xingfeng murmured, "Surrender? It's too late."

After pondering for a while, Zhou Xingfeng showed a little paranoid color on his face, his eyes were a little red, and he muttered bitterly: "Unfortunately, the sky will not protect me Zhou!"

"The Gao family is a piece of trash, and they surrendered without a fight! These Jingnan troops have fought so hard against me in Hunan. If they can deal with the Han army with all their strength, how can the overall situation of Jinghu collapse to this point?"

"Li Jing is short-sighted, and I can let go of the past conflicts, but he has both ends, fearing Han like a tiger. If Jinghu is destroyed, how can he protect Southern Tang?"

"Fu Yantong, this barbarian is hard to rely on after all."

"."

Complaining in bits and pieces, it finally turned into a long sigh.

In fact, Zhou Xingfeng has long understood that he has reached the end of his life, and his downfall is inevitable.The front has become difficult to maintain a stalemate, and the rear has become a trend of erosion.

On Yuezhou's side, he could still support him hard, but since there was a problem on the West Road, he knew that persistence in Yuezhou was meaningless.

When Liyang was defeated, Yang Shifan's entire army was annihilated, and the news came that Murong Yanzhao led the army to go south, Zhou Xingfeng also thought about retreating back to Tanzhou.But after thinking about it, I gave up. Not only would it not be able to survive, it might even collapse directly and lead the military disaster directly to Changsha.

Of course, the fact that the Chu army was still able to persist in Yuezhou was also the result of Zhou Xingfeng's strict blockade of news from all parties, otherwise, it would have collapsed long ago.

After a while, footsteps of varying degrees of severity sounded, and all the battalion generals entered one after another, and they all saluted Zhou Feng.Looking up and looking around, each of them looked solemn, and it seemed that words such as "despair" and "failure" could be seen from their faces.

In front of this general, Zhou Xingfeng regained his usual fortitude and prestige, the corners of his mouth twitched, and he said coldly: "Just now someone told me that our army is in a critical situation and suggested surrender to me. I think you are all depressed. , do you also have this ambition?"

After saying this, all the generals present looked at each other with strange expressions, as if they were wondering who was so bold.

For a while no one dared to answer, Zhou Xingfeng said again: "All of you here are brothers who joined me in the army and fought for many years. They have always been regarded as brothers. I will speak bluntly if I have something to say. Zhou's head, there are still some Value, if you have the heart, you can cut it off and donate it to the Han army, and you can make a rich future, and I don't blame him!"

"Jie Shuai don't say that again!" Zhou Xingfeng said, Ya Jiang Wang Duan stood up immediately, and said loudly and seriously: "The last general will swear to die to follow Jie Shuai. I, a Huxiang man, don't fear the Han army!"

"Follow Jieshuai to the death!" Someone took the lead, and the rest followed suit.

It's just that these slogans seem to be strong on the outside, and some people may not mean what they say.The Chu army's morale has been scattered, and it has reached a very dangerous situation. If Zhou Xingfeng hadn't organized a battalion of supervising the war with his loyal and loyal soldiers, he would have been in chaos.

Zhou Xingfeng didn't seem to take it seriously, and said directly: "Thinking of the current battle situation, it is difficult for our army to maintain the current situation. The Chengling Pass has been severely damaged, and Junshan is difficult to break through. Continuing to disperse our troops will only give the Han army Take advantage of this opportunity!
I intend to abandon the stronghold and leave, shrink the troops, retreat to Baling, rely on Baling City, and fight to the death with the Han army! "

"Dare to ask Marshal Jie, when will he act?" a Chu general asked.

"Just tonight!" Zhou Xingfeng immediately said: "I have ordered Baling to make preparations, and all the generals will return to the camp, and make secret preparations for withdrawing troops. After midnight, the whole army will withdraw!"

"Yes!"

"I know that there are many people who feel that we are doomed to lose this battle!" Before the tents were dispersed, Zhou Xingfeng got up and said loudly as always: "However, this commander never thinks so. We still have elite soldiers and strong generals. There is still a strong city to rely on, and the Xuzhou barbarians have agreed to send troops to help. The victory or defeat of this battle is still unknown!

Back then, Li Congke was able to turn defeat into victory when he was trapped in Fengxiang, and even entered the Central Plains to seize the throne.Today, the Han army is going on an expedition, and our brothers are united as one, so there may not be no chance of winning."

Not to mention whether it is appropriate to use Li Congke's situation as an analogy, but for Zhou Xingfeng, as long as it has an effect, it is enough to be able to fool these rough men.

And judging from the results, several people were really bewitched by him.No matter how he is in private or what flaws in his personality, in front of others, especially in front of this general, Zhou Xingfeng has always been strong, fearless and full of confidence, which is probably also a manifestation of leadership.

Following Zhou Xingfeng's order, the Chu camp secretly mobilized, and in the middle of the night, they made arrangements for the end and then retreated to Baling.At the same time, Zhang Chongfu, who was in front of Junshanzhai, received the order and decisively withdrew his troops, and retreated to Baling under the support of the navy.

The change of the Chu army quickly attracted the attention of the Han army, and a chaotic battle unfolded in the night, which also kicked off the prelude to Zhou Xingfeng's defeat.

(End of this chapter)