Da Wei Chun

The yellowed rammed-earth city walls, dilapidated towers, and a moat that is less than three feet deep all tell the vicissitudes of this ancient city.

The city is densely packed, full of armored soldiers.All of them held bows and shields, and their expressions were cold and solemn.The army formation under the city is like a wall, there are many swords and guns, and there are iron cannons weighing nearly [-] kilograms directly at the city gate, exuding a frightening cold light.

The city wall is quite long, and a single city is thirteen or four miles away.Li Chengzhi looked into the distance and seemed to see no end.As far as the eye can see, the dust and smoke are flying away, and the yellow mist is rolling.

That was when the soldiers in the rear were withdrawing battalion by battalion, and they were going to Binhua Erzhou to support Li Liang.

After staring for a while, Li Chengzhi turned his eyes back and continued to look at the city wall, his eyes brooding.

Chang'an City is not high, and it will be four feet long. It was made of rammed earth when Liu Bang built his capital.But at the end of the Western Han Dynasty, it was attacked by the Gengshi Army (one of the Green Forest Uprising Army), and the city wall was already dilapidated.

Afterwards, Liu Xuan led the Lulin army into the city, and because of the uneven distribution of the spoils, he coaxed inwardly, and Chang'an broke the city again.The Chimei Army (one of the Green Forest Uprising Army) not only dug up the tombs of the Western Han Dynasty, but also burned the city of Chang'an into ruins.

After the establishment of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Liu Xiu made Luoyang the capital. Although Chang'an was designated as Xijing, it was only slightly repaired.Compared with the new capital Luoyang, it is almost one sky and one underground.

At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Dong Zhuo took the young emperor to order the princes and moved the capital to Chang'an.Chang'an City was breached again.But this time the fire was set by Dong Zhuo himself.

After the demise of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Cao Wei established the state, and still set the capital Luoyang.Since then, Chang'an has even lost the qualifications to accompany the capital and has been completely reduced to an ordinary state city.

This big city built with rammed earth has a history of 700 years, just like an old man in his dying years, unable to withstand the slightest bump.

But Li Chengzhi was surrounded but not attacked.

For the first three days, he just shot a few rounds of arrows and fired a round of cannons every day.On the fourth day, Li Chengzhi simply evacuated most of the soldiers.Only one battalion of artillerymen and one battalion of cavalry were left under each of the four cities, and the number of troops besieging the city was no more than ten thousand.

On the fifth day, not to mention the cannon, even the arrows were not released.It's just that Chenshi ([-]:[-] in the morning) and Youshi ([-]:[-] p.m.) each perform a ritual.

It was like this, with less than [-] troops, nearly [-] defenders huddled in Chang'an City, and they didn't even dare to take a half step at the city gate.

Li Chengzhi was looking at the defenders at the head of the city, and the guards in Chang'an were also looking at him.

Yuan Zun was the great-grandson of Daowu Emperor Tuoba Si, the successor of Yangping King. After Yuan Ke succeeded to the throne, he successively served as the governor of Youzhou, Qingzhou and Binzhou.

Because of the disagreement with Cui Yanbo, so last year Cui Yanbo Chen Bingqizhou, the military governors of Jing, Qi and Binzhou, the empress dowager Gao Yingzhun Yuancheng played, and exchanged him with Yang Zhi, who was the former governor of Yongzhou. .

This change made Yuan Zunjue fall into a big pit.

If he was still in Qizhou, he would at most have been subjected to some of Cui Yanbo's pickle.Then, like a sheep, when Cui Yanbo was defeated, he would return to Tongguan with Yuan Qin, or even to Luojing.

It's good now that the army is under the city, and there is no doubt that he will lose, but as the governor of Yongzhou, can he still flee without a fight?
Encountered a major defeat, Shaodi and Yuan Yi are worried that there is nowhere to vent their anger, and they don't know how to shirk the blame for the defeat. If he flees without fighting, wouldn't he just slam into the tip of the knife?
On the other hand, Yang Zhi, who was the opposite of him, lost even famous generals like Xi Kangsheng, and Cui Yanbo was even more defeated.Even though Yang Zhi was responsible for defeating the army, he had to obey Cui Yanbo and Yuan Qin.Moreover, Chaoyan is now on the occasion of employing people, so naturally he will not be too harsh on him.

So Yuan Zun's intestines are going to regret it.

In addition to regret, he also has hatred. He hates that the rebels of the Li clan have already occupied Xianyang County, and even more than half of the northern border of Chang'an County, the city center of the tight state, why not take the Yongzhou City in one go?
You must know that Xianyang City and Yongzhou City are separated by a Wei River, and it is only [-] miles away.Moreover, if a horse is on Pingchuan, if cavalry is used, it will arrive in less than half an hour.

Li Chengzhi was better, but he stayed in Xianyang for nearly a month before sending troops again?
If Yuan Qin was still there, the guilt of the city's defeat would naturally not fall on him Yuan Shizun...

"His Royal Highness, it has been more than two months of fierce battle, but the damage to the rebels is very small, and it is not enough to rest for a few months, but why are you attacking my Yongzhou now?"

"Why? It's all the fault of Yuan Qin's dog thief, who insisted on the strategy of strengthening the walls and clearing the fields, and burned the food in Jing, Qi and Bin with a fire. In order to avoid repeating the same situation, Li's child naturally wanted to Quiet the drums, and when I put the summer grain in Yongzhou into the warehouse and conquer it, I will naturally be able to grab a lot of grain... Even if you and I want to break the boat and burn the grain and grass in the city of Yongzhou, can we still control the grain and grass in the prefectures and counties. Burn it all down?"

Yuan Zun's teeth gritted his teeth, "Why did you, when the thieves under the city besieged and did not attack, only besieged for a few days, but then withdrew half of the Thai troops? You are afraid of persecuting us too much. When it collapses, burn up the autumn grain in the state..."

The confidant suddenly realized, stared at the rebels under the city for a while, and persuaded in a low voice: "His Royal Highness, there are less than [-] rebels in the city now, and there are nearly [-] defenders in my city. Isn't it a good opportunity from heaven, why not let the defenders go out of the city to fight. ?"

"You are stupid and don't know it... a chance to be a bird feather?"

Yuan Zun laughed back angrily, "Cui Yanbo was a famous general in the world, powerful in the universe, and had an army of 30, but in the end he was defeated and died. And don't you know that the enemy who knocked on Longguan at that time was only one of Cui Yanbo's ten into one?

Now, although there are [-] defenders in the city, nine out of ten have fled from the Jing and Qi states. "

When the cronies heard the words, the pressure was even lower, almost inaudible: "Even if you can't win, you can also take the opportunity to break through..."

Breakout?

"Dog thief, don't you want to coax grandpa out of the city to die?"

Yuan Zun became more and more annoyed, grabbed his subordinate's collar, pointed at the iron cannon about a mile away and scolded: "Have you ever seen that artillery, there are ten bottles under this southern city alone, and the gate below the city is right there. There are only three, and there are three guns waiting outside each gate. But when the gate is opened, all three guns will be fired. Before the soldiers and horses break through the gate, they will be shot and killed. How do you break through?"

The confidant's face was as pale as snow: "So, thief Li is actually trying to trap me in Yongzhou City?"

"Otherwise, what else could it be? Li Thief just wanted to spare his efforts to force me to surrender to the city. But as Yuan Shizun, as a relative of Yuan Shizong, how can I be a person who is begging for pity? Don't persuade me any more. , Haosheng defends the city with me, it is nothing more than coexistence and death with the city..."

The cronies were trembling in their hearts and hearts, but when they heard Yuan Zun's second half sentence, their eyes were suddenly bigger than walnuts.

When did I persuade you to surrender?
Haha, is that what you mean?
The cronies immediately understood and nodded indistinctly...

……

When the cavalry conducts equestrian drills, the artillery battalion is rotated out of the brigade.It's not complicated, but it's just a matter of standing up military resources and practicing queues.

It's not that Li Chengzhi intends to show off his power, but he is afraid that the soldiers will go wrong.

Since the beginning of the You Shi, this tossing has been an hour later, that is, at the beginning of the Xu Shi, the sun has reached the top of the West Mountain.Li Chengzhi ordered the troops to return to their camps one after another.

Under the four cities of Yongzhou, each city has only three city gates, and the troops of the West Sea are naturally stationed not far from the city gates.But instead of staying up all night, it is divided into two parts, one for the first half of the night and one for the second half of the night.If a movement is heard at night, whether there is an order or not, the gunmen will fire at the city gate.

The ammunition I had prepared were all blooming bullets. Once the cannon rang out, no grass would grow within a hundred paces, and no amount would be enough to kill...

Li Chengzhi's commanding camp was located about three miles east of Beicheng. It was under the jurisdiction of Chang'an County. It occupied Xianyang more than a month ago, and it has already returned to the West Sea.

Therefore, a month ago, Yongzhou was already under the city, so Yuan Qin and Yang Zhi ran so fast.

But who would have thought that Li Chengzhi would endure not to eat the fat that has been fed to his mouth?

Presumably since this month, the court has been on pins and needles, right?

Li Chengzhi changed his mind and returned to the camp with the army.

As soon as he entered the middle tent, Li Cong greeted him in a busy manner: "Lang Jun, eldest brother (Li Liang) has good news!"

Li Chengzhi took the envelope and hurriedly swept away, a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

After dispatching troops for seven days, Binzhou will regain half of Thailand. If you want to come in three or five days at most, the remaining counties can be conquered.

The reason why it is so fast is all thanks to Yuanqin's divine assist.If he hadn't burned food and grass when he fled, several counties in Binzhou would not have been covered in flames in just two decades, and the counties and counties welcomed the righteous teachers one after another.

Therefore, Li Liang not only did not abolish a single soldier, but also gathered nearly [-] rebels in just a few days.

Of course, there should be less than one out of ten soldiers who can be requisitioned, and most of the rest are old and weak, women and children.But now Li Chengzhi has no shortage of land, only people and food.

Now that there are people, food is not far away.

Li Chengzhi put away the envelope and asked again, "Has Huangfu ever sent someone to report?"

"Binglang-kun, not yet!"

Li Chengzhi said to himself again: "Well, it seems to be going well!"

This time, although he personally fought, it was still Huangfu who led the army.When he dispatched troops seven days ago, Huangfu crossed the Weihe River from west to east and entered Fengyi County (governing today's Gaoling District, Sanyuan County, Yanliang District, and Fuping County).

Fengyi County is not big, its borders can be as wide as a hundred miles, and most of Xipei is surrounded by Xianyang County.

Although they did not take the initiative to ask for surrender like the counties in Binzhou, Huangfu Rang's army of [-] had just crossed the river, and the counties only gave a symbolic resistance and then surrendered.

On the other hand, when Huangfu moved from south to north, he encountered considerable resistance when he turned to attack Beidi County.

It is also because Beidi County is close to Huazhou. Once it is broken, Huazhou is at risk of falling.Therefore, Yuan Qin dispatched troops to Beidi County to support him, and the momentum was great.

But Li Chengzhi estimated that no matter how fierce the resistance was, the officers and soldiers would only be defending the city, and they would never dare to fight in the field, otherwise they would be defeated faster.

And this time, the strategic intention of Xihai is mainly to grab food, supplemented by land occupation.Huangfu has always been calm, and will naturally implement his intentions to the extreme.

"Where's Li Zhang?"

"Bacheng has been captured at noon, and we are heading to Mount Li!"

"I will tell him, don't enter too fast, lest Yuan Qin's dog jump over the wall, so the trick will be repeated!"

After Lishan Mountain is Zheng County in Huazhou, and Zheng County is only a hundred miles away from Tongguan.Once the army invaded Zheng County, not to mention Yuan Qin, who was guarding Tongguan, including the young emperor of Luojing, the prince of Gu Ming, Yuan Yi, and the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty.

In case Yuan Qin's brain is pumped and he burns up all the food and grass in Huazhou, it will not be worth the loss.

It's also because Li Chengzhi's foundation is too shallow. Although he has been victorious in consecutive battles, he is in a rut, but it is all due to his momentary courage.Therefore, there is absolutely no strength to conquer Gyeonggi.

Regardless of the rest, just the food and grass can worry him about losing his hair.

Secondly, there is not enough gunpowder...

……

It is September and the weather is getting colder.The little ladies in Beijing no longer dared to sway through the market just wearing a veil, and they have honestly changed into long skirts.

The corn in Tanaka has long been harvested, and the old farmer drove his oxen to plough the field, hoping to finish ploughing the field before the snow falls, and it is best to rain again and water the ground thoroughly.

When the weather is cold, the hard soil in the fields can be frozen to pieces, as fine as dust.Planted in spring the following year, the germination rate is naturally very high.

This year is a good year, and the harvests in Hedong, Henan and Shandong are not bad.Luoyang is also in this case, the old farmer is naturally smiling.

If it was in previous years, the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty would naturally have been congratulating each other.It is impossible to say that the emperor will find a pretext to give a banquet to the princes and ministers to celebrate with the people.

But this year, all the officials in the hall were gloomy and gloomy.

Ten days ago, Yuanqin reported a good news, saying that Huangfu Rang and Li Zhang, the commanders of the defeated thief, had refused the enemy outside Huazhou, and Tongguan was safe.

But what is the truth?
The embroidery envoys have already checked it out: since half a month ago, the thieves Huangfu Rang and Li Zhang successively captured Xinfeng and Lianshao in Jingzhao County, Tongguan and Bingyang in Beidi County, and the thieves successively sent troops to the border of Huazhou.

Yuan Qin, however, hunkered down at Tongguan and did not dare to go out. He just sent Yang Zhi and Yang Jun to split up and defend the enemy at the state border.

It was not at all that Yuan Qin and the thieves were defeated as claimed in the good news, but after a few days of confrontation, the rebels withdrew on their own and retreated into the nearest county town.

It seems that Li Chengzhi has the intention to stop the war. It may also be because the weather is getting colder and colder, so he withdrew his troops.

This is good news, and it is the only good news since the imperial court and Xihai started war this year, but Yuan Yi always felt that something was wrong.

Li Chengzhi has always been reasonable and unforgiving, so how could he abandon the good situation and die?
If not, there was an urgent report from Xiazhou late last night: more than a month ago, the thief general Li Feng sent troops from Jinming County to attack Xiazhou.In less than ten days, they took Shuofang (now Zizhang, Shaanxi, the area of ​​Qingjian) and Piancheng (now Yanchang and Yankuan, Shaanxi).

Then I don't know how to reopen the Youhu Lake in Gaonu County. After that, they drove the troops on the side wall of Baigan Mountain and used kerosene bombs to open the way. Xi Kangsheng was defeated and retreated, and now he has retreated to Tongwancheng.

But for some reason, the rebels did not go down the wall, let alone occupy the city and occupy land, but just marched along the border wall, and I don't know what their intentions were.

With such a large-scale deployment of troops and a rush to travel for nearly a thousand miles, Li Chengzhi can't be idle and send his troops to the north to blow air, right?

Yuan Yi knew that there must be a reason for this, but unfortunately he never led the army, so he had only a rough understanding of military affairs, so when he arrived at Mao, the gate of the palace opened and the bell rang.

There are many veterans in Beijing who are proficient in the art of war, and there are even more famous generals such as Li Chong.

With just one glance, Li Chong guessed Li Chengzhi's intention: to march north along the side wall, just to block the food route between Liuzhen and Luojing. ...