Pingyang Fu of the Red Chamber

Chapter 507 Gu Ping hesitates

The land south of Beijing,

Linyue Fucheng,

Today, it’s still dark,

The bandits outside the city had already set up their formations, surrounding the city on all sides, and the black mass of people surged endlessly. After a while, the first band of bandits began to carry ladders, driving large numbers of people away to prepare to attack the city.

Linyue Fucheng,

There were also all soldiers and armors. Some young faces looked nervously outside the city, their legs swaying unconsciously. Most of them were people from the government army, each with ugly expressions standing tightly behind the city wall.

The prefect Li Cheng stood tremblingly on the city tower, looking at the dense crowd of rebels under the city. The city was already being surrounded by the rebel army. He was very frightened and began to think of many random things, the most common of which was whether to abandon the city and flee. , protecting one's family and life is the top priority. In other cities, there have long been fleeing government officials and people complaining that these so-called rebels are actually thieves. He said that everything was robbed. Not to mention anything else, all the officials and petty officials, regardless of their size, were all dragged out to Lingchi. It was inhumane.

Nowadays, Linyuefu City at the southernmost point of the Central Plains is the last city that can be defended. The gentry and wealthy families from all over the country, as well as some officials and wealthy families who fled are all here. Many of them are still connected with the county and city, so the inner city , it is also noisy now, the courtyards and restaurants everywhere have been occupied, I have no thoughts to care about it, I only think about how to save my life is the most important thing, unlike those people, their lives are about to die. It's really stupid to still think about those family fortunes.

But now, we still have to rely on Qin Yunjiang. This person is also a general, but he is too upright.

"General Qin, now the bandit army is pressing down on the territory and surrounding the city. What should we do?"

"Soldiers will block us, water will cover us, and water will cover us. What are we afraid of? It's okay to hold on for a while. As long as the enemy's elite warriors who dare to fight don't come, we just need to wait for General Gu to come here."

Qin Yunjiang looked at the chaos below, frowned, and then looked further away. On the hillside, the neat bandits stood motionless. That was a serious problem. No matter how many people were in front of him, it was impossible to capture the city. Unless the Taiping Sect doesn't care about their lives, relying on the pile of lives, I have a bad feeling in my heart.

Listening to what Qin Yunjiang said, although Magistrate Li was frightened, he still reluctantly trusted those soldiers. Magistrate Li knew what those soldiers were like. If he hadn't recruited young men temporarily, there would have been not enough people.

"General Qin, if you need anything else here, I will try my best to satisfy you, but you also know the situation of the warehouse in Fucheng."

"Master Prefect, we are short of everything. Pay, food, clothing, and medicinal herbs for military medicine must be provided. We also have half a year's salary owed by the government army, which must be made up. Otherwise, the brothers may not think so. There is no warehouse, but Those squire and wealthy families are almost unable to live in their homes. If they really don’t give it, then don’t blame Qin Mou for telling the prefect in advance that the Taiping Sect outside the city will not capture this city. I will leave, after all, the iron smelting workshop is in the city."

"This"

Magistrate Li was speechless for a moment. This was a threat. If this was the case, he would still be a magistrate, so he might as well run away.

However, seeing that Qin Yunjiang, the general of the government army who had arranged to defend the city, had no intention of abandoning the city and fleeing, Magistrate Li stopped his thoughts of escaping and asked,

"General Qin, as you said, I will discuss this with my colleagues and find an opportunity to entertain the squires and wealthy households in the city. After discussion, as for defending the city, you can see whether the city can be defended. I think this is the number of rioters. , or else kill him for a while first.”

Magistrate Li didn't mean to talk nonsense. Although there were a lot of refugees, the rioters below the city were almost unarmed. They climbed up the city with ladders and were really vulnerable. So he thought of sending the government troops out of the city to kill them. But Qin Yunjiang looked at the hills not far away with an expressionless face. There were densely packed soldiers with complete armor and weapons. They really didn't look like rioters. The surrounding area was dark and green. Everyone had weapons, but the armor was incomplete. He thought they were from the Taiping Sect. .

"Master Li, you raise your head and look into the distance. There are nearly [-] people there, all equipped with weapons and armor. Even if you want to run away, it's too late. There is no one to take care of you. Leaving the city can only lead to a dead end. Besides, there is iron smelting in the city. We have all the weapons available, at least it can hold up for a while, but I don’t know how long it can last.”

Qin Yunjiang also answered truthfully. The rebels under the Taiping Religion over there were elite at first glance. With these government troops, they could defend the city. As long as they went out to fight, not to mention the elite of the opponent, even those young and strong people would be afraid of fighting. However, those hungry people were hardly human beings.

Because not long ago, Qin Yunjiang sent a thousand general battalions to explore the west. Unexpectedly, they encountered hungry people and were surrounded. Although they were unarmed, these one thousand people were eaten by force. Several of them were waiting for them. The soldiers who came back were also crazy. After the people in the city and the government army knew about it, they were all trembling in fear, and no one dared to bring up the matter of the city again.

At this opportunity, Chu Yiyue, the deputy leader of the Taiping Sect, gathered his troops and surrounded Lin Yue's Mansion. Li Cheng was shocked. Qin Yunjiang's intention was that as long as there was someone to help him, he could leave the city. It seemed that he had no confidence in holding on. , Li Cheng secretly noted in his heart that the response was not just waiting for General Gu to come.

"General Qin will try to delay it as long as possible. When General Jingnan comes here, he will definitely be able to defeat the bandit army. The court will definitely know it. If, if it really cannot be defended, for the sake of being together for many years, Qin will be invited." The general has given me a helping hand and Li Cheng thanks me."

There were no outsiders around, so Li Cheng gave Qin Yunjiang a gift.

"I will be with you when I leave, Lord Zhi. It's just that there is no sight on the battlefield. You have to prepare horses and carriages in advance. Don't take anything else with you. The swords and swords are silent. It just depends on luck."

Qin Yunjiang didn't finish what he said, but he made a few pointers. Magistrate Li understood.

"Then thank General Qin. The general will use whatever is in the treasury, money and food. I will entertain the squires in the city tonight, but General Qin also has to think of a way. These people want money rather than their lives. Lord, I am just a civil servant, so in the end, General Qin still needs to look to you. Whatever I can do, I will definitely do it."

"That's good!"

outside the city,

The main camp of the Taiping Sect, on the slope of Nancheng,

"Report! Master Chu, now that most of the followers have gathered, are you going to attack the city?"

Zuo Ling, Zuo Ling who came from the south of the Yangtze River, asked. After Zuo Ling met Master Wuxin from Hanshan Temple, he knew that he had no chance, so he stopped disturbing him. He rushed to the important town of Runan and received a secret tip from the sect. After a secret report, knowing that Master Chu was in urgent need of a move, he rushed over quickly and led an army to capture Zhaozhou City.

"There's no rush. We'll build the siege equipment today. Let the refugees consume some of their energy first. Then, if we die more, we can save food. We don't have much food and grass, and we can't feed so many people."

Chu Yiyue looked at the Linyue Mansion City not far ahead, with a smile on his lips. As long as this city was captured, the weapons and armor would be relieved a lot. When the former prince's old troops captured Linshan County City again, they would bring in a large amount of food and grass. , at that time, in the land south of Beijing, the Taiping Sect had established a firm foothold.

"Master Chu, don't worry. From Chenzhou and Weizhou, their former prince's subordinates have brought a large amount of grain, grass, and ordnance. His left commander also said that he wants us to capture Lin Yue Mansion quickly and inform us. Gu Ping, the general of Jingnan, has led [-] elite troops southward, passing around Chenzhou City, and will be here soon."

"Oh, there is such a thing."

Chu Yiyue listened to what Protector Zuo said, squinted his eyes and thought, then looked at Linyue Mansion City not far away, and said lightly,

"Guardian Zuo, let your leader, [-] men, stay here and keep an eye on them. The rest will go north at night."

"Master Chu, what does this mean?"

Zuo Ling was shocked. The city in front of him was easily accessible, so why should he go north?

Chu Yiyue looked towards the north with sharp eyes and said,

"First go and fight against Jingnan General Gu Ping. As long as he is defeated, Lin Yue Mansion will be like searching for something. You immediately lead [-] people to camp at the mouth of the valley. I will lead the army to follow. Then, you can lead the army on both sides of the valley. Ambush, wait for Gu Ping to go south to Fallen Leaf Valley, attack him from both sides, and then I will lead the army to besiege him, I will definitely hit him hard."

Zuo Ling's eyes lit up after hearing this. It was a good idea. Fallen Leaf Valley was a very familiar place. It was a good place for an ambush. If they got there, even if they couldn't annihilate them all, they could at least bite off a piece of meat.

"Yes, my subordinates take orders."

Then Zuo Ling took his men and retreated back.

Leader Chu then ordered to set up camp on the spot.

The elite cult members who stayed behind pressed on the formation, and Chu Yiyue's confidant leader immediately ordered the already prepared refugee army to begin attacking the city.

"Order to supervise the troops and start attacking the city. Tell them that they can capture the city and plunder as they please without questioning."

"Yes, Hall Master,"

Then the ordering soldiers began to run around, shouting,

"The hall master has an order to attack the city. Take this city and plunder it at will."

"Kill, kill, kill!"

"Rush over!"

Then came the hungry people, their eyes red and wailing, as if to vent the fear in their hearts. They didn’t need to supervise the battle team, so they rushed to the city wall like crazy, climbed up the ladder desperately, and did not avoid the shots from the city head. The rain of arrows and the charge of hundreds of thousands of people came over. Even Qin Yunjiang's face changed drastically when he saw it. He was simply crazy.

"Let the reinforcements in the city go up to the city wall immediately, and let the archers behind them shoot at will to defend the city wall, quickly."

"Yes, General." Then, a large number of reinforcements came under the city wall, temporarily suppressing the madness of the hungry people.

Magistrate Li was stunned with fear. Those people were simply crazy. They rushed over unarmed. Those who had been hit by arrows and fell to the ground also moved towards the city wall with their hands lying on their stomachs, leaving behind bloody traces. It was too horrible to see. A thought suddenly came to his mind, if the elites behind were like this, could the city be defended? Unable to bear such a bloody scene, Magistrate Li hurriedly led people down the tower and returned to the inner city.

On the city wall, although the defenders were afraid, they still held the hilt of the knife in their hands and waved it. Every time they waved it, a bright red life was taken away. The blood spattered out, dyeing the city head red, and more The unarmed hungry people rushed to the top of the city, then hugged the defenders and jumped off the city wall to die together. The hungry people waiting below immediately stripped off the soldiers' armor and weapons and continued to climb.

In this way, although the rebel army suffered heavy casualties, many of the defenders also died. Many old, weak, and young men had already turned pale. If it weren't for Qin Yunjiang's close friends from the old battalion, who were watching from behind, the consequences would have been disastrous. material.

Lieutenant General Lan Xiao rushed over with blood on his face.

"General, we have a lot of casualties here. Those hungry people are simply inhuman. If these people come to attack this city, I'm afraid we won't be able to defend it."

"If you can't defend it, you have to defend it. With the city wall, they can still attack. If it doesn't, do you think they can still attack."

Of course, Qin Yunjiang knew that the government army was not of much use, but it could still be used. However, without the protection of the city, the government army would inevitably be defeated unless General Gu came to support him, but he could still wait a few days.

Lan Xiao also had a miserable look on his face.

"General, otherwise, we can lead the brothers from the old camp to break through directly."

"Confused, let's lose no time. There are no reinforcements outside, and there is also the Fallen Leaf Valley. If we are ambushed, it will be doomed. Besides, the brothers have sacrificed their lives and we still don't have the money, food and grass. I am unwilling to do so."

Qin Yunjiang weighed the pros and cons in his heart. He must not leave the city now. He must find an opportunity. As for the wealthy gentry, servants and servants in the city, none of them came out. They all hunkered down in the inner city and had fun without caring about the lives of the people in the outer city. Defending the city is definitely not a long-term strategy.

Qin Yunjiang stood on the tower, looked north, and murmured,

"General Gu, I don't know where you are. It will take a few days for you to arrive!"

On the official road,

The [-]-strong army led by Jingnan General Gu Ping is almost here. However, after many days of rapid marching, the soldiers are already exhausted and their drinking water needs to be replenished.

And the deputy general ran over from behind the team,

"Report, General, no traitors have been found for fifteen miles in front and rear. It's just that the brothers have been exhausted from traveling for days. General, would you like to take a day off?"

Gu Ping had a gloomy look on his face, standing on the slope and looking around. Because he had gone around the official road in Chenzhou City, he had walked an extra day and detoured an extra place. The soldiers under his command were exhausted. How could he not have known that the military situation was urgent? We absolutely dare not delay, but we have no military morale to spare.

"Is there any place to camp around?"

"Yes, general, there is a forest fifteen miles ahead, close to a small river. It is a good place to camp."

The lieutenant general had already sent people to inspect the surroundings and looked for a place to set up camp. After all, the army was galloping all the way, and all the drinking water and dry food were exhausted.

"Well, let's set up camp in front and rest for a day. We will wait for our military orders when to set off."

Gu Ping thought about it and decided to make some preparations to let his soldiers recharge their batteries. After all, they were getting closer and closer to Lin Yue Mansion. At this time, they might encounter the Taiping Sect's thieves. Who knew where the Taiping Sect was? Such strength, if the reputation is not fulfilled, this trip will be difficult.

If the enemy is outnumbered and the battle situation is unfavorable, rescuing the city will become a joke.

At that time, I hope Qin Yunjiang in the city will be able to see the battle situation, look for opportunities to lead his troops to break out, and then unite his troops before retreating. It doesn’t matter if you don’t want the city. If you can’t defend the ground, otherwise, you will miss the opportunity and you won’t be able to get out. The entire army of ten thousand men and horses was wiped out. If he lost more troops and generals, it would be hard to say whether he would be able to recover.

Gu Ping had a lot of worries on this trip south. As the general of Jingnan, he had to send troops. However, the governor of the county and city, Mr. Shi Yu, still refused to reveal what happened in the south. What was going on, if it weren't for the Imperial City Secretary Someone came to the door and revealed the secret, but I was afraid that I was still in the dark.

When they first left the county, all their elite troops came out. Most of the soldiers were their old subordinates, with powerful armor and strong momentum. There were people on the official roads along the way, but most of them were refugees, skinny as wood, terminally ill, and selling children. There are prostitutes everywhere, and the scene is too horrible to watch.

But we haven’t gone far,

Gu Ping was originally full of confidence, but after just one day of marching, his heart dropped. What he saw and heard along the way was shocking. The bustling city and the bustling villages were now nothing but There are scraps of soup and broken walls, the village is deserted, and nine of the ten houses are empty. There has been no human habitation for a long time. Skeletons are lying on both sides of the official road. A few days ago, soldiers were arranged to bury them. Now they are numb. There are too many and there is no way to deal with them. Take action.

There were red-eyed vultures circling in the sky in the distance, staring at the team below and unwilling to leave for a long time.

Gu Ping was on the slope with a heavy heart. Looking at the long queue, he couldn't help but feel worried, and then shouted,

"The whole army stopped and camped on the spot."

Then the orders were sent to the soldiers one by one, and then passed down,

"The whole army stopped and camped on the spot."

Then the whole army stopped one after another, and the generals and generals of various ministries were on the spot to unload their baggage.

Deputy General Chai Ding brought people back from the front and asked,

"General, something is wrong,"

Gu Ping looked forward again. In the distance, he could vaguely see a continuous mountain range. Although it was not high, it spanned a long distance and there was no end in sight. He stretched out his hand and asked,

"Chai Ding, where are the mountains in front of you?"

General Chai took out the map, compared it, and then replied,

"Back to the general, that is Luoye Mountain. Although it is not high, it spans two counties. In front of it is Luoye Valley. After passing here, you will reach the boundary of Linyue Mansion. There are many mines in it, so Linyue Mansion Ironworks is like this. famous."

"So that's it. Fallen Leaf Valley, Fallen Leaves. I always feel that this name is a bit unlucky. I sent an order to stop camping and continue along the river. Then five miles away from the entrance of Fallen Leaf Valley, across the official road, all the way to the river, east and west Set up camp, dig trenches and set up horses facing the valley entrance. No matter how the general goes, you will lead five thousand brothers to guard the camp. I will also leave the baggage and food, you understand."

Gu Ping had a vague feeling that he was afraid that the trip south would end here. In order to leave a way out, he could only send his trusted lieutenant Chai Ding to guard here. If anything happened, he would have no choice but to apologize to Qin Yunjiang. Yes,

But Chai Ding didn't understand why he did this when the city was right in front of him.

"General, are there too many soldiers left behind? Although the rebels are extremely poor in combat power, they are too numerous to relieve the danger of the city. If they join the defenders in the city, they can attack, retreat or defend. Why are they still here to make a big move? Did the camp leave any baggage behind?"

Gu Ping sighed and asked,

"Besides this official road, are there other roads leading to Lin Yue Mansion?"

"Go back to the general. This is the only shortest road. There are no other roads. If there are, you have to take a long detour."

Chai Ding looked at the map in his hand and replied. When he said this, he immediately understood the general's intention. It was to leave a way out, but it was puzzling that the rebels were really that powerful.

"That's it. I want to leave a way out for my brothers. I have never been afraid of anyone since I led the troops. This time, I actually feel fear in my heart. Do you know why?"

"The general will not know this,"

Deputy General Chai Ding really didn't know that the general would have such an idea. He had never heard of it before. Gu Ping sighed with a heavy face.

"It's because of those hungry people. You can see a single common person along the way. Except for people who have starved to death, there is not even a village. What does it mean? It means that the common people can't live anymore. People from the Taiping Sect will take advantage of it. After entering, the people had guidance, and they immediately rebelled."

After Gu Ping finished speaking, he got on his horse and continued to move forward with the team. After getting on his horse, he continued,

"Do you still remember the disaster of the White Lotus Sect more than ten years ago?"

"The general remembers that at that time, the general was only a thousand generals, and the general was just a school lieutenant. He followed the two princes Ning Rong to encircle and suppress the White Lotus cultists in the south of Beijing. Are those people still human?"

After saying that, Chai Ding also had a look of fear. It was really scary when he met the followers of the White Lotus Sect. They charged and killed too many brothers without fear of death. Especially in the encounter, it was almost one to one. The battle damage was too tragic. Is it possible that the Taiping Sect is still like this?

"General, today is different from the past. The White Lotus Sect has been rampant in the Central Plains for so long. It has existed since the previous dynasty. The Taiping Sect only existed in recent years. I believe it will not be the same as the White Lotus Sect."

"Hopefully."

(End of this chapter)