Late Tang Dynasty Floating Life

Chapter 795 Mist and Fugou

On the day Pang Shigu received the news, Zhu Quanzhong had already arrived in Chenzhou.

The governor of Chenzhou was very polite. He not only sent pigs and sheep to the army, but also collected grain, grass, horses and mules and sent them to the army, which made the people very dissatisfied.

Horses are generally owned by rich local households.Martial arts practice has become popular these days, and families with some conditions will let their children and grandchildren practice martial arts.Those who are richer will practice horse fighting, riding and shooting. Wang Yanzhang was born in such a landlord family in Shouzhang County, Yunzhou.As for reading, some people also read, but if you can only choose one, it must be martial arts, but there are many people who are both civil and military.

Therefore, if you want to search for folk horse mules, you usually break ground on these people. Will they be satisfied?
Zhu Quanzhong waited in Chenzhou for a whole day, until the morning of the 29th, but he could not wait for the news of Jia Majun.

Older than the battle, he felt that the situation was a bit wrong.

Shao thief worked so hard, and his cavalry went out everywhere, desperately trying to block the news, where did the so-called come from?
Even since the day before yesterday, many cavalry have tried to get close to the team that harassed them.Fortunately, backed by Cai Shui, with the powerful crossbows on the boat division to help defend, and the infantry with large chariot wings to protect them, the Xia bandits were not allowed to succeed.

But the situation is really not right.

After resting in Chenzhou City for a day and two nights, Zhu Quanzhong felt that he had recovered his physical strength, so he returned to the camp with his troops.

The battalion sergeant was full of Ma Teng, and they were all waiting for orders.

The news of the siege of Bianzhou has gradually spread to the entire army, which caused a certain amount of turmoil in the army at first.But after walking all the way for so many days, everyone became numb, morale was unstoppable, and it bottomed out.

And after a rational analysis, everyone agreed that Xia Bandit's cavalry would not be able to attack the city, and even if they sent infantry there, if the city were to stick to it wholeheartedly, the [-] government troops would not be able to take it down.As for other irrigation, caves, etc., the possibility of success is extremely low.

Still the same sentence, as long as you want to defend, even if the water is up to your knees, you can't get in from outside the city.If you don't want to defend, someone may sacrifice the city before they use their strength.

After looking for the staff and generals in the camp to find out the situation of the troops, they suddenly received news: Someone came back from the Yingdong front, saying that the Jiama army was wiped out, there was a change in Xuzhou, and the main force of Pang Shigu's army was preparing to retreat.

"You broke Xia's army? Where's Wang Yanzhang?" Zhu Quanzhong sat on the Hu bed. On the table on the left was the account book of the army's grain, grass and supplies, and on the right was a map drawn on silk.

"General Wang is wandering around Xuzhou, and sent me to wait for seven people to come back first." The messenger replied.

"Seven people left, only four came back?"

"Yes, I was unlucky on the road. I met a group of summer bandit knights. After fighting for a while, I got rid of them. As a result, everyone got separated." The messenger replied.

"A true warrior." Zhu Quanzhong said with a smile, "I'll go down to receive the reward later."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." The envoy burst into tears of gratitude.

Those who broke the Xia army couldn't beat the Xia army when there were 5000 people, but when fifty people fought each other, their performance was much better.If there are only five or six people on each side, sometimes they can even gain the upper hand.

After all, many of them were born from rich families and practiced various martial arts and riding skills since childhood.Take archery as an example. When people practice, they may shoot several times or even ten times more arrows than you in a year. The foundation is excellent, but the battle experience and cooperation are the worst.

"What's going on in Xuzhou?" Zhu Quanzhong called the medical officer and asked him to wrap up the envoy's wound on the spot, and asked at the same time.

"When I returned from Yingshui, because the military situation was urgent, I didn't go to the post in the city to rest. But outside the city, I saw the master who was transporting grain and was called back. The townships are still recruiting Xiangyong, but Pang Shuai did not order The second requisition. In addition, there were knights from the Zhongwu Army chasing us, and we were thrown off." The messenger replied.

Zhu Quanzhong groaned with a straight face.

"What does Pang Du will mean?" Jing Xiang asked from the side.

"General Pang Du sent three waves of envoys to Xuzhou to investigate, but did not return overnight. He also ordered the Zhongwu Army to send a hundred horses to the camp, but there was no reply, and the envoys did not return."

Jing Xiang and Li Zhen looked at each other.

There are various indications that something is wrong with Xuzhou.It is possible that the Zhao family was kicked out due to military chaos, or it may be that the Zhao family rebelled and took refuge in Shao Shude.

The possibility of the former is unlikely, because the prestige of the Zhao family in Chen Xu is really high, and the brother died and passed down to the third Jiedushi, and no one objected, so it is unlikely to be a military chaos.

The possibility of Zhao's betrayal is very high.

In fact, you only need to infer it.What are Zhao's interests?Continue to hold the position of Jiedushi of the Zhongwu Army and pass it on.So in today's situation, how can we better protect our own interests?Change to a stronger person to surrender.Otherwise, once the Liang army is defeated, Chen Xu's position will definitely change, which is unacceptable to the Zhao family.

"My lord, this matter..." Jing Xiang stepped forward, frowning.

One bad news after another, bad news every day.In fact, he also thought about the betrayal of Zhao's family in the Zhongwu army, but he didn't say it in front of others.Well, I mentioned it to King Liang once in private, and King Liang was also a little worried.It now appears that most of the fears have come true.

"Hold on." Zhu Quanzhong stopped Jing Xiang, who was about to speak, and continued to ask the envoy with a pleasant face: "What's going on with the Jiama Army?"

"The Xia bandits captured many generals of the Jiama Army, displayed them along the river, and let the captives loose. General Pang Du has already beheaded all those who returned to the camp." The envoy replied.

"Are you sure?" Zhu Quanzhong asked.

"Exactly. There is a man named Pei Gong in the military academy. Someone knows him. It is indeed me."

"Where does Pang Shigu want to retreat?"

"Retreat in the direction of Weishi County."

"How did he arrange it?"

"I don't know about this." The messenger replied honestly.

Zhu Quanzhong nodded, waved the emissary back to accept the reward, and sat there silently thinking, glancing at the map on the case from time to time.

There are two post roads from Xuzhou to Bianzhou. One goes directly to Weishi through Changsha, the other goes to Weishi through Yanling, and finally goes to Bianzhou through Weishi. It looks like more than 200 miles. If it is faster, it will be within seven days-now it is obviously impossible to get up soon.

In fact, it doesn't matter which way you go.The key is how to arrange the retreat, which is the most important.

Someone needs to break the back, fight and retreat on the road, and cover alternately, so that most of the active forces can be kept and retreated safely.

If Shao thief only had cavalry, it would not be a big headache.The key is that he still has infantry, a large number of infantry, who will chase after the buttocks, make you panic, make you tired and tired, make you throw away your armor and armor, and when you are out of formation and your hearts are in a state of confusion, the cavalry will clash, Reap the greatest results.

Of course, the most perfect way to retreat is to win one or two beautiful battles, and Li Keyong knows this well.

This person often takes the lead in fighting in the front line, and is extremely brave. Therefore, he is loved and trusted by the soldiers and has a high prestige in the army.Whoever he arranges to break up, usually no one talks nonsense, and they are all resolutely carried out.Whoever sets up an ambush can be well executed.This is the main reason why he has successfully retreated before the enemy many times.

But Li Ke's method is only applicable to the Jin army.Strictly speaking, Liang Jun and Xia Jun are very similar. They are both capable soldiers, daring to fight, and fighting according to the plan. There is no need to go to the front line like Li Keyong and his son.This is the difference between the army owned by individuals and the army owned by the system, which cannot be generalized.

Shao Shude and himself are essentially the same kind of people, and the prestige of the two in their respective armies cannot be compared with Li Ke's prestige in the Jin army.

Victory can cover up many things and make the soldiers obedient, but warriors of this age prefer brave people after all, and it is best for them to see this bravery often, which is very similar to the Hu people's ethos of respecting strength.

It doesn't matter if you come from a bad background, have no money, or have no power, you still have a chance.As long as your martial arts are excellent enough to be convincing, and you have a wide range of contacts, a bold personality, and many friends, you can trample people from aristocratic families under your feet.

"Your Majesty, Pang Du has been in Yingdong for a year, and he is the most familiar with the situation in the army. If he thinks he wants to withdraw, he probably won't be able to persist." Li Zhen said, "Besides, if Chen and Xu are both rebellious, then there is a way out. If it is lost, even if it stays in the camp, the food and grass in the army will not last long."

According to the system, the food and grass in the army are not enough for one month, so they cannot go deep into the enemy's territory.If it is not enough for three months, it is not suitable to stick to the city or fortress.Although in the actual battle, due to various circumstances, not everyone may strictly abide by this iron law, but there is still food and grass for two or three months in Pang Shigu camp.The problem is that the Zhongwu army has rebelled, and the food, grass and supplies from other states cannot be delivered, so they have to sit on the mountain and be destroyed sooner or later?

"Do you need to say more about this matter?" Zhu Quanzhong suddenly patted the table and shouted.

Li Zhen was taken aback, and repeatedly confessed.

Zhu Quanzhong took a deep breath, squeezed out a smile, got up and saluted and said: "This is my fault, I shouldn't lose my temper indiscriminately, Erlang don't worry about it."

Li Zhen was so flattered that he didn't even dare to say it.

"Your Majesty, I've thought about it. The Zhao family's rebellion to Xia Bandit should be because they knew about the defeat of the Jiama Army and jumped ship. On the other hand, Bianzhou was besieged, the Jiama Army was defeated, and the Zhongwu Army rebelled. Most of the rumors have been spread in the army, but now morale is low and they have no intention to resume fighting, so they have to withdraw." Jing Xiang said: "Either the Xia thief spread it, or Pang Du did not control the rumors well..."

"No, Pang Shigu is not that kind of person, there are still many of them." Zhu Quanzhong interjected.

"Yes." Jing Xiang echoed, and continued: "That's Xia Bandit's propaganda. Most of them remanded the captives and sent them to Yingshui on fast horses, so everyone believed it. I also think that Yingshui can't keep it. Withdrawal. It is indeed the most convenient route to retreat through the Wei family. Majesty, I suggest going north to Fugou as soon as possible, or one or two can be received."

From Xuzhou to Fugou, there is only one post road, which is the line of Changshe-Yanling-Fugou, which is also the road that Jiama Jun took before.

The post road is wide, flat, and in good condition, and can pass through an army mainly composed of infantry, because they usually carry baggage vehicles.The main force of the Xia army is also infantry, and they also have to carry heavy vehicles to march. Under normal circumstances, it is difficult to break away from the post road system, unless they do not bring extra food, armor, spare bowstrings, knives, guns, arrows, etc. This is very difficult. Dangerous "light soldiers rush forward".

If the cavalry is marching, it is not so picky.If there are enough horses to carry food, water and arrows for five or seven days with the army, there is no need to take the post road.

The 7 of them went north to Fugou and set up camp on the west bank of Caishui, which was very close to Yanling, so it was more convenient to assist.

"How can the Youguo Army withdraw?" Zhu Quanzhong sighed, and said: "Guxuanyan City is 5000 miles east of Chenzhou, can we make it break through to the east? Chenzhou City is still in our hands, and the Zhongwu Army is in Chenzhou. There are only [-] people in the county, and most of them are new recruits, scattered all over the place, it is inconvenient to assemble, and it is not enough to cause trouble."

To be honest, the distance of [-] miles is not too far, and there are spacious post roads to walk on.But that's a normal situation. What if you encounter disturbance and lag?How long will it take?This is a problem.

"Forget it, let's go north to Fugou." Zhu Quanzhong gave up micromanagement.It is inconvenient to send news now, and he is worried about disrupting Pang Shigu's retreat plan.

What if the Youguo Army has the task of alternately covering friendly troops?You transferred him away, but something big is going to happen.

On the morning of April 29th in the fourth year of Qianning, following an order, [-] troops set out in batches and set off one by one, heading north along the Caishui River, heading straight for Fugou.

(End of this chapter)