The wind rises at the end of the Ming Dynasty
Chapter 376 Pei County
Chapter 376 Pei County
On October 24, the thirteenth year of Chongzhen, in the south of Peixian County, there were densely packed military camps.
Tens of thousands of Ming troops were living in camps that almost covered the entire southern suburb of Pei County.
Flags of various colors were scattered among the camps, and the north wind blew past, bringing with it the sound of hunting.
Lingren's chilling aura spread out from the countryside and radiated into the distance.
Looking at the continuous fortresses and the city walls of Peixian County in the distance, Chen Wang gently pulled the reins of his horse. The advancing horse felt the command and slowly stopped its pace.
The knights behind him also gently pulled on the reins of their horses and stopped in unison.
After handing over the defense of Xiangyang to Zhou Yumao, Chen Wang did not delay, ordered the rest of his troops and entered Henan Province directly.
On the seventeenth day, he rushed from Xiangyang to Peixian County. Naturally, the infantry found it difficult to keep up, so Chen Wang now only had more than a thousand elite cavalry of the Guards Battalion around him.
The rest of the cavalry and infantry were led by Zhao Huailiang and headed towards Guide Mansion.
The Henan Seventh Battalion is now under the control of Hu Zhiyi, and together with the native soldiers, it is stationed in Shangqiu, Guide Prefecture, together with the Chen De, Zhang Er, and Huang Long battalions.
Although Chen Yongfu expressed his obedience, it is naturally impossible to use it at this stage.
The reason why Chen Yongfu obeys now is because he is still in the environment of the Ming Dynasty. If there is really a situation of separatism, he has no idea how Chen Yongfu will choose.
Therefore, Chen Yongfu was transferred by Chen Wang to Runing Prefecture in southeastern Henan to eliminate local bandits and prepare for possible invasion by the Fifth Battalion of Ge Zuo.
Runing Mansion is close to the Yinghuo Mountain Area, and the Fifth Battalion of Gezuo often harassed Runing before.
Although the main force of the Fifth Battalion of Gezuo is now in Fengyang, there are still many soldiers and horses left in the mountains. This reason can still be tenable.
"Looking at this camp, the number of soldiers and horses assembled should be more than 30,000."
Chen Gong gently kicked the horse's belly, stepped forward a little, looked at the continuous fortresses in the distance, got closer and said to Chen Wang.
Chen Wang nodded. From the size of the camp and the amount of smoke, it was not a problem to estimate the approximate size of an army. Chen Gong's estimate was indeed correct.
It's just that Yang Wenyue's defeat in Suzhou destroyed almost half of the troops in Baoding Town, and Shandong's troops also suffered a lot.
According to common sense, Sun Chuanting should not be able to gather so many soldiers and horses, the number is not enough.
Yang Wenyue originally sent more than 4,000 soldiers and horses to the Daming Mansion to suppress the rebellion.
After the Battle of Suzhou, because they were caught in an ambush, the number of Ming troops who escaped was extremely limited.
The total number of soldiers and horses under the command of Hu Dawei and Fang Guoan was only more than 2,000, and they were still retreating in the middle of the battle.
Of the nearly 20,000 soldiers and horses, only more than 4,000 people fled back to Peixian County, and most of the rest were scattered.
He either died in the battle, was captured by the army of the people, or fled after being defeated because he was unwilling to continue joining the army.
Sun Chuanting took office as the governor of Baoding, but he brought out a battalion of Beijing troops, but there were only three to four thousand people.
These numbers, plus the soldiers and horses left behind in Baoding Town, totaled only more than 15,000, which was half the size of 30,000. This was obviously wrong.
"Could it be the troops from Shandong?"
Chen Gong frowned slightly and said hesitantly.
In the current situation, it is most reasonable for Sun Chuanting to summon soldiers and horses from Shandong.
All the towns on the nine sides of the North are on war readiness, and troops have to be transferred from other places. How can it be possible to separate the troops and go south.
"No."
Chen Wang narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at the densely packed fortresses in the southern suburbs of Pei County, and objected.
"The news I received in Kaifeng is that the civil uprising in Shandong was not suppressed. Instead, the troops who entered the suppression were defeated for a while. The imperial court fired a general and two guerrillas in one go."
"The civil uprising in Shandong has not ended yet, and it is causing a huge uproar. It is unlikely that the Shandong soldiers and horses are involved."
In the thirteenth year of Chongzhen, Wang Jun rose up and set off the largest civil uprising in Shandong, and then relied on Teng, Yi, and Fei Mountains to fight the Ming army.
It successively occupied nine mountain tops including Dacang Mountain, Xiaocang Mountain, and Fuguiding to the west of Liangqiu, and was known as the King of Nine Mountains.
People in Shandong who could no longer survive due to natural disasters and man-made disasters fled to the mountains one after another, and Wang Jun's power increased greatly.
The officers and soldiers failed to succeed in their initial campaigns, and later they were unable to do anything against Wang Jun. Many campaigns ended in failure.
In history, Wang Jun controlled Yanzhou Prefecture, and even later joined forces with the Henan Yuyuan Peasant Rebel Army to capture Tancheng, Zouxian, Qufu and other places, and his power expanded rapidly.
After the Qing army entered the pass, Wang Jun led his troops to fight against the Qing Dynasty and fought for six years. In the end, he was defeated and killed because he was outnumbered.
Wang Jun in history can already be called a hero. In the current historical process, due to the influence of the Ten Thousand People's Army, Wang Jun's power is not only not weaker than in history, but actually stronger.
Shandong's troops and horses were naturally used to guard against Wang Jun. How could they help Pei County at this time?
Chen Wang learned the news from the Supervisory Office in Kaifeng City, and as of today, it was only news from Shandong five days ago.
In five days, even if Wang Jun is really wiped out, it is impossible for Shandong's troops to reach Pei County now.
"The sentry is coming."
Chen Gong interrupted Chen Wang's thoughts.
Chen Wang raised his head and looked at the place pointed by Chen Gong. Not far away, a group of sentinels with about twenty or thirty riders were galloping towards them.
When the army sets up camp, in addition to having people guarding the camp walls, there will also be Rangers scattered around as a warning.
Once a large group of enemy troops are discovered to be attacking, they will immediately alert the camp to give the camp time to respond.
The reason why they came was naturally because they discovered a strange team suddenly outside the camp.
……
"What did you say?"
"Retell it again."
Sun Chuanting put down the document in his hand. Even though he had been in officialdom for many years, he still couldn't help but look moved.
"Chen Wang is here?"
All the generals and officials in the tent looked at each other in confusion.
Hu Dawei and Fang Guoan looked at each other and saw the look of astonishment in each other's eyes.
Sun Chuanting frowned slightly. After he led his troops to Pei County, he did send a message to Chen Wang.
However, the message was to summon Chen Wang to temporarily give up the attack on Xiangyang, lead troops to assist Henan, and stationed in Guide Mansion as a partial support force to cut off the westward retreat of the Wanmin Army.
But now, Chen Wang indeed suddenly appeared in Peixian, on the outskirts of his camp.
The atmosphere in the tent also fell into an eerie silence for a moment.
Sun Chuanting's brows slowly wrinkled, as if he was thinking about something.
When the generals and officials in the tent saw Sun Chuanting looking like this, they naturally did not dare to disturb him.
After a long time, Sun Chuanting's brows relaxed a little, he raised his head again and ordered.
"Summon Chen Wang into the account."
The messenger responded to the order, turned around and sent the message outside.
Soon, with the sound of heavy footsteps outside the tent, the curtain was opened.
A tall and burly figure first caught everyone's eyes.
Everyone looked up and were attracted by the bullfight embroidered on the visitor's chest.
It looks like a dragon with its horns raised, a python-shaped fish tail, and its horns curved like a bull's horn, which is a bullfight.
Those who can be awarded bullfighting uniforms are basically officials of the third rank or above, either generals who have made meritorious service in battles, or people who have received special rewards, and they are all cherished.
I am extremely cautious in giving out clothes today, and only give out very few costumes. Although the bullfighting suit is a third-class gift, it is still enough to show that I am extraordinary. Facing everyone's gaze, Chen Wang, wearing a bright red over-the-shoulder bullfighting suit and soap shoes, strode into the tent.
Stepping into the tent, Chen Wang did not hesitate, bowed his head and bowed to Sun Chuanting first.
"The last general, Chen Wang, goes to see the Prime Minister."
Sun Chuanting's expression was still a little frowned before Chen Wang entered the account, but he relaxed a lot after seeing Chen Wang.
After Chen Wang bowed down, Sun Chuanting's expression softened involuntarily.
Sun Chuanting stood up and walked steadily down the first seat, then stretched out his hands to support Chen Wang, who was saluting.
Chen Wang stood up following Sun Chuanting's hand and raised his head.
"Long time no see..."
Looking into Sun Chuanting's eyes, which were like ancient wells, Chen Wang had a smile on his face and said softly.
"Supervisor."
Sun Chuanting's calm eyes finally trembled a little.
Chen Wang's words of "supervision" caused Sun Chuanting to fall into memories involuntarily.
When he first met Yu Kurosui, Sun Chuanting still remembers Chen Wang's initiative to invite him, and the vitality exuded from him.
Later, during the Wuyin Incident, Chen Wanglian fought against Jiannu, which was completely opposite to the war-fearing psychology of many generals in the camps and towns inside and outside the pass at that time.
Of the three thousand Hanzhong Town camp soldiers, less than half of them followed Chen Wang back home.
At that time, he served as the governor of Baoding and the commander-in-chief of Guan Neiqin Wang's troops.
Many towns and battalions violated his military orders, but Chen Wang was the only one who always unswervingly carried out the military orders he issued without any compromise.
After he was imprisoned, most people avoided him.
However, Chen Wang did not leave because of this. Instead, he sent his attendants to Beijing to take care of him, which improved his environment in the prison a lot, and even sent some books to the prison.
Horse power can be seen from afar, and true love can be seen in adversity.
"It's been a long time indeed..."
Thinking of this, Sun Chuanting couldn't help but feel filled with emotion.
It was not until Sun Chuanting was imprisoned that he realized that the world was in trouble. When he was arrested and imprisoned, there were only a few people who wrote letters to defend him.
All the officials in the dynasty, even the many friends he thought were his friends, did not write a letter to argue for him when he was imprisoned.
Among the people who wrote a letter to defend him at that time was Chen Wang.
But then, Sun Chuanting frowned again and asked.
"You come to Pei County to see me. Have you settled all the matters in Henan?"
The reason why Sun Chuanting frowned before was not for other reasons.
Just because the military order conveyed to Chen Wang was for Chen Wang to lead troops to Guide Mansion in Henan and lead partial divisions to respond.
But Chen Wang rushed to Peixian County at this time and came to see him.
"Don't worry, Prime Minister. I rushed to Shangqiu first to rectify military affairs, and then rushed all night to come to Pei County to meet the Prime Minister."
Sun Chuanting's expression was caught in Chen Wang's eyes.
Chen Wang had spent a lot of time with Sun Chuanting before, so he naturally knew Sun Chuanting's temper and character.
When I arrived, everything had been arranged in advance.
Sun Chuanting was very strict in managing the army, and he was strict in controlling his subordinates, and he often resorted to military law.
Historically, in the tenth year of Chongzhen's reign, Xu Zhong and Liu Yingjie, the model soldiers under Sun Chuanting, launched a mutiny in Lantian because the military law established by Sun Chuanting was too harsh.
Sun Chuanting was an upright man, similar to Lu Xiangsheng, but he was even more arrogant than Lu Xiangsheng.
When Lu Xiangsheng does things, he still considers the influence of all parties and is more tactful.
But Sun Chuanting often spoke out, wrote letters clearly, and argued hard with reason.
This was also the main reason why Yang Sichang could not accommodate Sun Chuanting later.
Sun Chuanting's frown suddenly relaxed.
Chen Wang knew that he had made the right move. Seeing Sun Chuanting's expression softening, Chen Wang continued to play while the iron was hot.
"The general came here this time not only to meet with the Prime Minister, but also for other important matters."
Sun Chuanting raised his eyebrows slightly. He didn't know the meaning of the other priorities in Chen Wang's words.
"As the art of war goes, if you know yourself and your enemy, you can win a hundred battles without danger."
"The general has fought several battles with the Ten Thousand Thieves Army in Henan before, and he knows a thing or two about the tactics and conditions of the Ten Thousand Thieves Army."
Chen Wang looked serious and said in a deep voice.
"Although the Ten Thousand Thieves Army has grown in strength over the past few years, it remains true to its origins, and the bandit leader is still Li Yan."
"Regarding the situation of the Thousand Thieves Army, I think it is best to ask the Prime Minister for instructions in person, so that no mistakes can be made."
Sun Chuanting's eyes brightened slightly, he gently stroked the beard on his chin and said in appreciation.
"Thousands of things can change, but they all have the same way. A good person can change without departing from his origin."
Sun Chuanting felt relieved. There had been quite a lot of criticism of Chen Wang both inside and outside the DPRK in recent days.
Rumors circulated that Chen Wang and Zuo Liangyu seemed to be conspiring, harboring the intention of supporting the troops and respecting themselves, and being disobedient.
Although these rumors are groundless, to be honest, three people are like a tiger, and a crowd of people can make a fortune.
After all, Sun Chuanting was also a mortal, so he was naturally affected.
Although Sun Chuanting did not believe that Chen Wang really had disobedient intentions.
But he also felt that Chen Wang did have too many troops under his control now.
Previously, Yang Sichang presided over the suppression campaign in Sichuan.
Chen Wang was in charge of the suppression operations in Huguang and Henan provinces.
Later, the emperor put Chen Wang in charge of the new army formed in Henan.
As a military minister, Chen Wang now has too much power and troops.
Even Qi Jiguang in the past did not have the power and troops that Chen Wang has now.
But if you think about it carefully, Yang Sichang assigned Chen Wang the task of suppressing Henan.
The reason why the new army will be organized and managed in the future is also the emperor's intention.
Chen Wang has been running back and forth, playing the role of a firefighter.
The reason why they went to Xiangyang was because the war situation in Huguang had deteriorated, and Yang Sichang ordered Chen Wangchi to assist Huguang.
The siege of Xiangyang was indeed an effort, and the casualties of more than 6,000 soldiers left behind Xiangyang City cannot be faked.
Xiangyang City is a fortified city that is easy to defend and difficult to attack. It was originally used as a storage place for weapons, money and food from the five southern provinces, but it has been reinforced several times due to the attacks of rogue bandits.
The Xian thieves use elites as their main force and use money and food to recruit refugees as an army. It is indeed difficult to conquer.
Thinking of this, Sun Chuanting couldn't help but feel a little guilty, feeling guilty for having doubted Chen Wang.
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