Gentlemen, listen to the sword chant

Chapter 62
Taian 23 November [-]th.

Hecheng.

Since Shen Zhe was beheaded to show the three armies, Hecheng once caused a riot, but it was quickly suppressed, and the people accumulated a lot of discordant emotions. After all, the front line was defeated, and the 20 troops were dispersed by the Dongying people, and people became desperate. and powerlessness.At this juncture, General Zuo Shen Zhe was beheaded, and his head was still hanging on the city tower. Countless people came to spit on this bloody head all day long, but it was of no avail. The people's emotions needed to be vented.The sky over Hecheng is gloomy, just like the more than one million soldiers and civilians gathered in Hecheng, many of whom came from Yincheng and other counties and towns. They imagined and fabricated the image of Dongying people, comparing them to A devil crawling out of hell.

Lu Chen is a powerful general under the Yuezhou pastoral tent. He was awarded the rank of General Right at the age of 15. At this age, in the Vietnam North Army, he is young and an outstanding hero. The Lord of He City.What he inherited was a mess for everyone. The defeat at the front and two defeats cast a dark cloud over the army.Lu Chen also had a sad face, not knowing how to deal with the coming war.At present, there are about [-] troops stationed in Hecheng. In the past few days, they have come from all walks of life to defeat the army. The number is not large. After all, the army was defeated and separated. Some soldiers never want to leave came back.

Lu Chen quickly promulgated the document to guard against death, and patrolled day and night at twelve o'clock to guard against the invasion of the Japanese.

But at this time, a ministry reported that the county guard Xu An led his family to leave the city, but was stopped by soldiers. Lu Chen's face turned cold. When he came, he heard that when Shen Zhe led the army to fight on the front line, he and Hecheng The sheriff had a close relationship, and the relationship between the two was irreversible. Xu An even took advantage of his position to bribe Shen Zhe, and Shen Zhe also led the army to search for gold and silver in the city.Now that Shen Zhe has been beheaded, the front line is in a hurry, and Hecheng is under martial law, Xu An wants to escape with his family at this time?

Give him what he can?

"lead the way."

Holding the military sword inlaid with a big ruby ​​at his waist, Lu Chen mounted the Jedi steed with no expression on his face. Accompanied by several soldiers, he rode his horse towards the city gate of Xiguan.

As a result, Lu Chen was stunned for a moment. Tens of thousands of people gathered in front of the city gate. They all looked at Lu Chen, as if they were longing for something in their eyes. Tens of thousands of people just crowded here quietly.Wherever Lu Chen passed, some people backed up to make way for a wide road. Finally, Lu Chen saw a dozen or so carriages not far from the gate of the city ahead, and a middle-aged fat man in official robes was pushing and shoving with the sergeant. He also took a priceless orb and stuffed it into the sergeant's arms, but the sergeant had no expression on his face, confiscated the things, and didn't say a word. At this moment, the sergeant saw Lu Chen, hurried over, walked up to Lu Chen's horse, knelt down and saluted : "General."

Lu Chen got off his horse with a pale face, stroking the military sword with one hand, and walked over silently. He has been wandering in the army all year round. His whole body is full of arrogance. Come on, it would be a lie to say not to panic, but after all, he has been an official all year round, and Xu An can still pretend to be calm. Seeing that there is no way to hide, he forced a smile on his face, full of smiles, and bowed his knees: "General."

"Master Xu, where are these big and small bags going?" Lu Chen asked calmly with a gloomy face.

Xu An cursed secretly in his heart, knowingly asked, now that the front line is unknown, and the Dongying people are about to come in at any time, where else can he go?Of course he was running for his life, but he couldn't tell Lu Chen clearly.But Lu Chen was not easy to be fooled, so he could only smile awkwardly: "General, to tell you the truth, there is going to be a war ahead, and the Dongying people are brutal, and no one knows if they can hold it. There are millions of people in Hecheng now, that's 100. There are so many mouths waiting to be fed. Just one day's eating and drinking is enough for a pot. General, under the current situation, we should open the city gate quickly and let the people run for their lives. Otherwise, we will stay in Hecheng , can't do anything, what can be done will only drag the general down."

Lu Chen's face was livid, Xu An's words were moved with emotion and reason, but in fact, wasn't it for himself?

He suddenly found that tens of thousands of people were staring at him with hope.

Lu Chen's heart sank, and he couldn't help feeling pessimistic.

Don't even the common people feel that they can't keep it?Can you hold on to yourself?
Lu Chen asked himself, he didn't have the confidence, but before the war started, let the common people run for their own lives, is that okay?This will definitely affect the morale of the army. When the time comes, the soldiers will also run away. Who will fight?
However, if the common people are left behind, and if they fail to hold on, millions of residents will become captives. What kind of scene would that be?Lu Chen felt aggrieved and felt a sense of powerlessness.

"General, don't hesitate, open the city gate, Hecheng can't hold it anymore, Shen Zhe has wiped out the 20 troops, the Dongying people will definitely come here soon, please, General, let us go. " Xu An said.

"Please, General."

"General..."

After Xu An finished speaking, countless people began to speak, and the atmosphere changed suddenly.

There were cries.

Xu An saw that someone agreed and the effect was so good, so he gritted his teeth. How could he care so much now?Immediately, he knelt straight on the ground and said, "General, please let us go, we will die if we stay."

"Snapped"

Countless people also knelt down.

All the people kneel together.

Lu Chen looked at this scene in astonishment. People's hearts are made of flesh, and Lu Chen is not hard-hearted. He is also a human being, a man, and a soldier.At this moment, Lu Chen was confused. He is a soldier, and a soldier should protect his family and the country and the people, but what is he doing now?Does he want to imprison these people and wait for death with him?
At this moment, Lu Chen was confused.

At this moment, Lu Chen heard the cry of an old woman. The old woman knelt on the ground, her face was full of tears, and she looked very sad, "General, I have five sons, three of whom joined the army, and one died in the army last month." In the chaos of war, there is still one whose life and death are uncertain, and now I am such a son, he is still young, he wants to live, what is wrong with him..."

"General, my husband died in the Battle of Yin City, I want to live, I want to live with my husband and my only flesh and blood..."

"..."

"General, let us go, we want to live..."

"..."

Crying loudly.

At this moment, Lu Chen broke the defense, and the soldiers who maintained order also broke the defense. Most of them were Hecheng Army, and many of them were Yincheng Army. They also began to miss their families, their wives and children.

Lu Chen closed his eyes. He knew that if these people were let go, the army would no longer have the ability to fight. He is a general. He knew that after doing so, Hecheng would definitely fall, but he had no choice. He was also a man and had a wife. There are children, and there are parents.

"The military's duty is to defend the country and protect the people."

The soldiers eat the taxes and food paid by the common people, and now they can't even protect the common people, what kind of soldiers are they?Let them stay in the city and die with them?No, it's not soldiers, it's the devil.

In an instant, Lu Chen made his preparations. He nodded and solemnly clasped his fists together: "Folks, it's my Lu's fault. I couldn't protect you well. I'm sorry."

With that said, Lu Chen bowed deeply.

The people wept bitterly.

"I'll let you go."

As soon as these words came out, the whole place fell silent.

Xu An, the governor of Hecheng who was kneeling on the ground, was stunned for a moment, and he was ecstatic in his heart. He sneered and thought, Lu Chen, Lu Chen, you are indeed young, and there is a price to be paid for being soft-hearted.He knew that if Lu Chen let the people leave, the morale of the army would definitely be hit, and Hecheng would definitely fall, and all this was caused by Lu Chen's wrong decision, and the Lord Fujun would definitely not forgive him lightly.Xu An just looked down on Lu Chen's self-esteemed face. When Lu Chen came to Hecheng, Xu An greeted him with a smile and promised ten thousand gold benefits, but Lu Chen sternly refused. This made Xu An very upset. When they arrived in Yuhang, they shifted all the responsibility to Lu Chen, and reported to the Lord Fu that Lu Chen was enriching his own pockets and plundering the people's fat and anointing, which caused the people to riot. He had to open the city gate, and then exaggerated Lu Chen's inability to command... ...Anyway, Lu Chen will definitely be dead by then, and Hecheng will definitely fall. How can I say it all depends on his mouth?

Xu An was delighted in his heart, thinking wildly, suddenly, he felt a sharp gaze on him, he couldn't help shivering, raised his head tremblingly, only to find that it was Lu Chen looking at him.

"General..."

"Master Xu, you have been an official in Hecheng for so many years, and you have covered the sky with one hand. You have bent the law for personal gain and accepted bribes, right? In these dozen or so carriages, there are many people's anointments that you have collected, right?" Lu Chen said expressionlessly.

Xu An shrank his pupils, pursed his lips, and wanted to refute, but found that countless people were pointing at him and spitting and cursing.

Lu Chen waved his hand and said, "Catch them."

"As ordered."

Hundreds of soldiers rushed over and detained Xu An and his family and servants on the ground.

Xu An seemed to realize something, got excited, and yelled: "Lu Chen, what do you want to do? I am a Juren in the second year of Tai'an. I am very talented. I am the Sheriff of Hecheng personally appointed by the Lord Fujun. I was awarded by the court. Clerk, what do you want to do!"

Lu Chen was unmoved, turned his back to him, looked at the people, and said loudly: "Xu An has despised the king's law these years and embezzled a lot of money. Now that the villagers are fleeing, they must have money and food on the road. Xu An executed on the spot, opened the granary of the Hecheng government treasury, and the villagers who want to leave can take their money and food and run for their lives."

When this statement came out, the whole audience was shocked.

You know, Lu Chen's approach is unprecedented. Since ancient times, the principle of mutual protection between officials and officials seems to be branded in their bones. They even thought that Lu Chen wanted to let the people escape because of Xu An's face, so they had no choice but to let them go. Walk.Now it seems that it does not seem to be the same thing?After the silence, there was a burst of ebullition, and countless people were cheering, shouting "general" and "general", but Xu An, who was detained on the ground like a dead dog, was annoyed. Started to cry.

"General, please spare me, I don't want money, please spare my life."

"I am the county guard conferred by the imperial court, and I am a serious official. General, you and I are both officials under the tent of the lord of the Fujun, and we all receive the salary of the Great Liang. You must not be unkind, General."

"General, please forgive me, General..."

"..."

However, Lu Chen was unmoved, and immediately issued an order: "Pass down my military order, take Xu An and others to the tower, chop them up immediately, and divide the gold and silver obtained into several parts, let the common people flee for their lives."

Next, Wanmin witnessed Xu An being beheaded.

The common people were in high spirits, and some people hated Xu An so much. In the past ten years, Xu An relied on his status to bully men and women, and countless real money flowed into his mansion. It is as rich as oil.Many people wished to swallow Xu An alive. Today, Lu Chen ordered the beheading of Xu An and his family, which can be said to have vented a bad breath on behalf of the people.Countless people clapped their hands and applauded, calling for relief.

Next, Lu Chen ordered people to open the granary, distribute all the food to the people, and let the people in the city run for their lives.

Many soldiers also feel itchy.

With a wave of his hand, Lu Chen passed on the military order, gathered all the Hecheng troops, then stood in front of the county guard's mansion, and said loudly: "Soldiers, Hecheng can't be defended any longer, everyone, if you want to leave, you can leave." Take a share of money and food as a package, and run for your life."

As he said that, he ordered people to bring numerous boxes of gold and silver treasures and more than a dozen carriages of grain.

Looking around, the 10,000+ soldiers looked resolute, but many of them were shaken in their hearts, but no one spoke. After all, no one knew whether what Lu Chen said was true or whether it was a test.Who dares to say that he wants to leave if he is defeated, and becomes a deserter, and he is pulled out and beheaded for public display.

So, no one moves.

Lu Chen continued to speak loudly: "Hecheng can't be defended anymore, I won't embarrass you all, Lord Fu will blame you, I will bear it all, you can leave if you want, I will not stop you. I only have one request, if you leave Now, if you meet civilians, don’t rob them of food or money, and don’t forget that as a soldier, you have to protect the people.”

After finishing speaking, Lu Chen turned around and entered the Sheriff's Mansion without saying anything, leaving behind a 10,000+ army looking at each other.

Several hours passed.

Some people really left. The timid ones sneaked away without taking any money or food. The brave ones went to get some money and some food. Gradually, more and more people left.

Later, a banner owner walked up, took a piece of gold, and then took a few catties of grain, bowed deeply towards the mansion, and walked away silently, so more and more people left.

it's dark.

About halfway through, there are only tens of thousands of people who are still in place.

They haven't gone, and won't go.

In the county guard's mansion, in the main hall, Lu Chen was drinking silently. There was a wine jar in front of him. At this time, dozens of banner owners walked in and stood in front of Lu Chen. They didn't say anything, but their eyes were red.

"Oh? Aren't you leaving too?" Lu Chen raised his head.

"General, we are not leaving, we will follow the general to the death."

"Follow the general to the death."

"..."

The words "swear to follow the general" resounded like thunder in the main hall, and Lu Chen laughed loudly: "Okay, you are all bloody men, sit down, bring some wine, someone Lu wants to drink with the generals , live together and die together."

After a while, dozens of people raised their glasses and said, "General, I respect you."

In their eyes, there is a raging fighting spirit.

A general smiled and said: "General, I left for the battle of Yincheng. I will leave again when I attack Yincheng. This time, I will not leave."

"Yeah, I'm not leaving, I want to live and die with Hecheng, and kill a few more Japanese."

"Hahaha, killing one is enough money, killing two makes money..."

"..."

Everyone wept while talking.

On this day, everyone was drunk. Early the next morning, Lu Chen led dozens of people out of the mansion, and saw that the piled up gold, silver and food were running out. Tens of thousands of people were there, but no one left.

Lu Chen nodded, feeling a little moved in his heart. You must know that this battle is almost certain to be defeated, and the soldiers who came down from the battle are probably determined to die.

But Lu Chen is not hard-hearted. He cleared his throat and said solemnly: "Soldiers, those who are still here are good soldiers, qualified soldiers, and the strongest men in Vietnam. Thank you."

No one spoke.

"However, this battle is bound to be defeated. You all run for your lives, go to Yuhang, join the army of the Lord Fujun, and come back later."

"General, what are you talking about?" A soldier said with tears in his eyes.

"General, we swear to follow the general!"

"Follow the general to the death."

"..."

Lu Chen sighed. He knew that this battle would be defeated, but he couldn't be too selfish. The youngest of these soldiers was only 16 years old, and the oldest was fifty. They were all other people's children, their fathers, and their husbands. He can't be so selfish.

Thinking of this, Lu Chen turned cold and scolded: "There are no elders and children in the family, and those who have mothers to take care of, come out."

No one moved.

"This is a military order, come out!"

Hundreds of people reluctantly walked out of the line, their eyes were red.

"Those who are unmarried and under eighteen, come out."

After a moment of silence, hundreds of people came out.

"What else? This is a military order!" Lu Chen roared.

Hundreds more came out.

"The last time, this is a military order."

Hundreds more came out.

Lu Chen nodded, and said solemnly: "Those who have newborn children in the family, come out."

Hundreds more came out.

"Okay. You listen to my military order, take your money and food, go to Yuhang, don't look back, this is a military order, this is a military order."

"General..."

Then, there was an astonishing scene, thousands of people knelt on the ground in unison, weeping bitterly.

"General..."

Hecheng seems to have become an empty city.

Ninety-nine out of ten people have fled, and those who don't, most of them really don't want to leave.

The fall of Hecheng seems to be a foregone conclusion?

One day, Hecheng was dead and silent, almost empty. The once prosperous Hecheng, a huge city with hundreds of thousands of people, now has only tens of thousands of troops. How sad?
However, among the tens of thousands of soldiers left now, more than half of them are Lu Chen's loyal troops, and they are all the backbone forces led by him personally.

They don't want to go.

Anyone can leave, but Lu Chen can't. He wants to die in allegiance to the Lord Fujun's kindness. He knows that Hecheng can't be defended, but he wants to use all his strength to deal a heavy blow to the Japanese invaders.

On November 23th in the [-]rd year of Tai'an, the Dongying army arrived before Hecheng and approached the city.

Envoys from Dongying came and sent letters of persuasion.

When the Japanese envoys entered Hecheng, they frowned. It stands to reason that there are at least a million refugees gathered in Hecheng. Why is it so quiet?There are several reasons why the Dongying people did not choose to attack the city.First, the defeat of Shen Zhe, and the influx of countless refugees and rout soldiers into Hecheng will cause national panic and a severe challenge to order; second, the conflict between the army and the people will definitely intensify, because the refugees want to escape, and the Dongying people do not believe that Hecheng The city lord will let the people flee, and the morale of the army will be hit. How can we resist the coalition forces?Of course, there is also a possibility that Hecheng doesn't want it anymore and they withdraw directly, but this possibility is extremely slim.Therefore, the Dongying people did not rush to attack the city, but sat on the mountain and watched the tiger, let the contradictions in Hecheng intensify by themselves, and reached the critical point. After the contradictions intensified, the Dongying people came to persuade them to surrender. Why not do it for the next city?

However, the Japanese envoys made a mistake after entering the city. The street was too quiet, except for the occasional army passing by, not even a single person was seen.

what's the situation?
Could it be that the defenders of Hecheng really let the people go?

Is this an empty city?
The envoys were delighted, as the chances of persuading them to surrender increased.

All the way to the county guard's mansion, the envoy was searched, and then held hostage by several soldiers, with a sword on his neck, the envoy was annoyed, and said in broken Daliang language: "What do you mean?"

The sergeant had no expression on his face: "It is said that the Dongying people advocate some kind of 'Bushido'. I am afraid that you will be able to learn martial arts and assassinate my general."

As he said that, he waved his hand and slapped the envoy hard on the face.

"Snapped"

The envoy was full of aggrievedness, and was slapped by a small soldier. He was immediately annoyed and cursed at Dongying.

"Oh my god, what a bitch, are you still not satisfied with beating you?" The soldier went up and kicked the envoy's heart ache, his face flushed into a pig's liver, the soldier sneered when he finished beating him, Thick phlegm spat on the face of the Japanese envoy, and he said with a look of disgust: "You have a long memory, dare to talk nonsense, I will kill you."

The envoy was furious, but it was difficult to say anything on other people's territory, and he secretly made up his mind that if the guard of Hecheng was willing to surrender, after the Dongying army entered the city, he would personally chop up the soldier's head with a knife.

Entered the mansion.

Empty.

The envoy smelled the smell of alcohol in the room, and sneered in his heart. It seems that the Lord He is nothing more than that. Now that the enemy is facing him, he actually locked himself in the mansion to drink to his heart's content?You must know that the Japanese army has strict discipline, and the army has repeatedly banned drinking and seeking pleasure.

Taking a closer look, there was a middle-aged general in red armor sitting on the main seat in the empty hall. He was holding the wine jar in one hand, his face was full of vicissitudes, his stubble was pulled down, and he was full of decadence.

The envoy felt disdainful, even more contemptuous.

"People from Dongying?" Lu Chen was puzzled.

The soldier nodded, "General, you are the envoy of the Dongying people."

"Ah."

The envoy squinted at Lu Chen, and glanced at the sword on Lu Chen's waist. The inlaid big ruby ​​was very eye-catching. He was ecstatic in his heart, the governor general!The chief general of the Hecheng garrison was actually a governor general. Although he defeated Shen Zhe the day before yesterday, he was also the governor, but this is different. This is the living governor. If he can persuade Lu Chen to surrender, it will have a great impact on the morale of the Vietnamese army. The envoy restrained his joy from the big blow, and said calmly, "General, I am the envoy of Dongying Hokkaido Military Mansion. This time I am here..."

He wanted to say that he came here this time to persuade Lu Chen to surrender, and he prepared a set of arguments, such as gold, silver and jewelry, and military positions, but Lu Chen interrupted him with a wave of his hand, and said expressionlessly: "People from Dongying? Push them down." , Ling Chi executed."

"Huh?" The envoy was stunned, what's going on, he hasn't finished his sentence yet.

"General, I am an envoy sent by Dongying Honshu Military Mansion to persuade you to surrender, General..."

The envoy is in a hurry, this general doesn't play his cards according to the routine, why is he so irritable.

"Push it down and execute Ling Chi." Lu Chen didn't want to listen to his nonsense at all.

The envoy was really in a hurry, and hurriedly struggled: "General, the two armies are fighting, if you don't kill the envoy, general, you can't kill me, I am the envoy of the military government of this state, general..."

The corners of Lu Chen's mouth were raised, and he stepped forward. He had disheveled hair, a terrifying appearance, and bloodshot eyes.

"Prickly"

The stench is coming.

Incontinence.

"I know your envoy."

"General, why do you want to kill me? You have to let me go back and pass on the message..." The envoy was really scared and panicked.

"Say what?"

The envoy was at a loss for words, but his life was under control. The envoy did not dare to speak out, and his voice trembled, "General, you can't kill me. I am an envoy, and I am here to persuade you to surrender. Killing me will not do you any good, but it will cause trouble." The hatred of my Dongying people, you..."

Lu Chen said impatiently, "I don't want my life anymore, are you still afraid of your revenge? Push it down, I want to watch you cut him with a knife. By the way, pass on my military order and call all the soldiers to enjoy it together. "

The envoy couldn't believe it, his heart was ashamed, and he was still begging, but he was carried out by two soldiers.

With Lu Chen's military order, countless soldiers spontaneously came to watch.

In a short time, thousands of people gathered.

In front of the city tower, there were soldiers wielding swords one by one. Amidst the envoys' cries, they were three thousand swords late.

"Hang the corpse on the tower."

"As ordered."

Lu Chen ordered Ling Chi to execute the envoys, and there were tens of thousands of soldiers watching, shouting to relieve their hatred. They were all suffocating, but these days they were more lifeless, waiting for the war, and died generously. Be active and inspire the army. ,

……

at the same time.

25 miles outside the east gate of Hecheng, the Dongying Army's Honshu Legion is stationed.

Dongying is known as the "country of a thousand islands". It has four major islands: Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu, and Shikoku. This country adopts a "military-civilian community". an institution.Politically, the prime minister is the prime minister, and the decision of the emperor is decided by the cabinet ministers' votes; militaryly, the four marshals stand against each other and maintain order in the military government. In short, the internal political structure of this nation is complicated, but it seems to be operating As methodical as a big machine.

Since the victory in the Battle of Yincheng, the 7th Corps led by Kenshin Fujino of Dongying Honshu Military Government has entered Yincheng. Last month, it was revealed that the 11th Corps led by Baron Matsui was transferred from Zhoushan Islands to Dongying Hokkaido Military Government. The 13th Corps led by Su Haiyi of the Shikoku Military Prefecture, and the 33rd Corps led by Tojo Jun of the Kyushu Military Prefecture met in Yincheng.

The structure of the Dongying military government is also intricate. Although the military government and the cabinet are strictly implemented in a unified manner, they still have battles with each other.At the beginning of the invasion of Vietnam, all the military governments dispatched troops and generals, and used military merits as a share of benefits after the war ended.Among the four generals, only Kenshin Fujino was the youngest, and he was the only one who had just been awarded a military rank. However, the military government issued a document, appointing him as the forward general and possessing the highest command over the allied forces.The other three generals were naturally upset, but they didn't dare to disobey the military order. After drinking some wine late at night, they couldn't help but sneer at themselves and said, "Hmph, I'm a samurai from Xiaoqianye Kendo Academy, sixth-level kendo." Yes, It is enough that he is a samurai of Xiaoqianye Kendo Gym, and he is the sixth-dan swordsmanship. He is the soul of the vanguard allied army and the undefeated banner. Who dares to refuse?
The envoys to Hecheng did not return for a long time. Fujino spread out the documents and studied them carefully. He heard that Yuezhou Mu killed the defeated general Shen Zhe early in the morning, and quickly parachuted a powerful general to the city. Hecheng commanded the war.In front of his desk, on the bamboo scroll were information about Lu Chen. (Although paper has been popularized on a large scale, important documents in the army and the court are habitually recorded in bamboo scrolls. One is solemnity, and the other is easy preservation. Paper is not moisture-proof and easy to dry, so it is not suitable for the preservation of such important information. )
"Lu Chen, he enlisted in the army in the first year of Tai'an, and he was recruited by the Huzhou Army in the fifth year of Tai'an."

"After the Lianchi uprising, he responded to the call and went to Jingzhou to fight. He made outstanding achievements in the battle of Jiangcheng. After returning to Yuhang, he was awarded the rank of sapphire."

"In the 15th year of Tai'an, he made great achievements in suppressing thieves. Under the recommendation of the generals in the army, he was promoted to ruby ​​and served as the right general of Yuebei."

"..."

The information is very detailed.

Compared to Shen Zheshun who inherited the left general position, Lu Chen almost relied on his military merits.

Fujino knew that people like this were very difficult to deal with, and it was almost impossible to persuade Lu Chen to surrender.Fujino was ordered in danger, and he stood in this position at a young age. There were many criticisms in the army. It is generally believed that Fujino is a young samurai from the Kochiba Kendokan. He has a rich background and came to the army to be gilded. He will retreat behind the scenes, and he will be a high-ranking official in the military government or the cabinet.Regarding these, Fujino just smiled and did not explain. He is young, but not impulsive, and has a very high strategic vision, so he ordered the army to stand still and wait for the internal ferment in Hecheng. Now the time is ripe, as soon as the envoy returns, he Immediately ordered the army to forcibly attack the city.

However, after waiting for half a day, the envoy did not return. Later, a soldier came to report that the Hecheng Army had slaughtered the envoy and executed him Ling Chi. superior.

Fujino was startled when he heard the words, and then smiled wryly. It seems that the Hecheng army is about to fight a trapped beast.

He decided to lead the troops to fight in person.

There is no other reason. First, he sincerely admires a pure soldier like Lu Chen. If it weren't for the faction being hostile, he would want to sit down and have a drink with Lu Chen Qingmei and talk about heroes; second, beheading a general like Lu Chen is also a big deal military exploits.

"Pass down my military order to lead [-] troops to fight before the pass."

……

In the county guard's mansion, Lu Chen is drinking, thinking about his life.

"I think that when I joined the army when I was young, with a long spear, I wanted to compete with the heroes, and I wanted to win the unworldly feat."

"In the battle of Jiangcheng, I risked my life to fight the bandit army for three days with only [-] soldiers and horses. Now that I have achieved success and fame, I don't want to ruin my reputation."

He is thinking.

How will history judge him?

But immediately, he laughed at himself again. There are so many heroes in the big river and the torrent. He is just a person wrapped in history, too small.

It's too far away to win the fame before and after.

At this time, the sound of beating drums came, and a sergeant slowly walked into the hall, knelt down and saluted: "General, the Dongying army has brought troops to the front of the pass to call for battle."

coming.

Lu Chen threw away the wine jar, with a blank expression on his face, he carried his long spear, and followed the sergeant on horseback to the tower. Sure enough, the city was filled with darkness, and several military flags were flying.

"Bring all the arrows in Hecheng's reserve and prepare to stand by. If the enemy comes into range, shoot directly and don't save me."

"As ordered."

"Heh, they call it Zhan, and I will fight if I don't wait."

The confrontation between the two sides lasted less than an hour. Seeing that Hecheng had no tendency to open the door to fight, the Dongying army lost their patience, so they organized siege equipment and forcibly attacked the city. Seeing this, the Hecheng army directly released arrows. They had 2000 arrows in reserve, and all of them were consumed. Exhausted, the Japanese army suffered heavy losses, with [-] casualties.The two sides engaged in a tough battle, and Lu Chen ordered his subordinates to pour oil on fire and throw rolling stones. The battle lasted for half a day. Seeing that Hecheng was about to be captured, Lu Chen ordered the troops to retreat and let his subordinates start a fierce street battle with the Dongying people in the city.

After Fujino's troops entered Hecheng, they were surprised because it was an empty city.

There is no one in the huge city with millions of people, and the granary is also clean, except for rats.

it's dark.

The Dongying army began to arrest Hecheng soldiers on a large scale. Lu Chen was in the dark, and his command started a street battle with the Dongying people. This night, it was destined to suffer heavy casualties.

for days.

There are shocking corpses on the streets at any time.

In the end, on this day, a sergeant brought in a corpse with dozens of knives in his body. The death was miserable. It was Lu Chen.

Fujino's face was livid, and it took seven or eight days to completely wipe out the stubborn Hecheng army in the city. When he saw the general of Hecheng who had been fighting with him for ten days, Fujino sighed, bowed slightly, and performed the utmost courtesy.Lu Chen has won his respect.According to statistics, in this street battle, the Allied Forces of Japan suffered heavy losses, with 7000 soldiers killed in battle, which can be called the most tragic battle on the eve of the Vietnam War.

"Buried him generously, and set up an inscription."

"As ordered."

On November 23, the 21rd year of Tai'an, Hecheng fell, and most of the land, including Hecheng and Yincheng, was completely controlled by the Dongying people.In the following decades, Lu Chen's merits and demerits were still talked about in Wuyue and Wuzhou. Some people said that he was an untimely general who was dragged down by Hecheng. Do it, give him enough preparations, he will definitely be able to defend Hecheng, but he has no time, nor has he formed favorable conditions for a counterattack against the war.After this battle, the entire Hecheng Army was annihilated, its establishment was cancelled, and the vitality of the Vietnam North Army was severely injured.

……

Yuhang City.

The news of Lu Chen's defeat and the fall of Hecheng reached Yuhang, which can be described as a bolt from the blue.The right general also lost?Mu Cheng Shouyu of Yuezhou saw countless people evacuated from Hecheng and Yincheng, with a gloomy face. He invested 30 troops in two battles. His original intention was to fight a beautiful battle and boost the morale of the army. 30 against 15, occupying a favorable location and harmony, and lost?Still defeated so thoroughly, Cheng Shouyu almost doubted his life. He was wondering what kind of jackals and tigers the Dongying people were, so brave, and his army was so vulnerable in front of the Dongying people?
Cheng Shouyu took a deep breath when he learned the ins and outs of Lu Chen's defeat.

The ministers are divided into two factions.

One group believed that it was not Lu Chen's fault. He had defended Hecheng for ten days, wiped out [-] enemies, and earned a reputation among the common people.

The other faction insisted that merit outweighs merit. If Lu Chen hadn't gone his own way and insisted on letting the people evacuate and dismissed most of the tribe, with Hecheng's geographical advantage, a 15 army, and millions of people supporting him, how could Hecheng fall?

An old minister kneeled on the ground with snot and tears, crying bitterly, "My lord, do you have to favor Lu Chen? My lord, it is precisely because of Lu Chen's dereliction of duty that he ruined Hecheng's favorable conditions, so that millions The civilians were displaced, hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses retreated without standing, and the fall of Hecheng meant that the Dongying people's frontline had retreated hundreds of miles. If Lu Chen was not brought to justice, it would be difficult to vent their anger. The next official dares to ask the Lord Fu Only by punishing Lu Chen, ransacking his home and beheading him, and letting him go can calm the people's grievances and boost the morale of the army."

Cheng Shouyu hesitated, and more and more petitioners came.

General Tang Hao felt desolate when he saw this situation. He didn't expect that the hero Lu Chen used his military all his life and was very cautious.

If you ignore Lu Chen's dismissal of the troops and civilians in the early stage, relying on the street fighting commanded by Lu Chen to wipe out nearly 3 enemies, this must be a beautiful battle.It was precisely because of this campaign that the arrogance of the Allied Forces in Japan was dealt a heavy blow.

In the end, Cheng Shouyu gritted his teeth and ordered Lu Chen's family to be imprisoned, their property confiscated, and await their execution.

As soon as this remark came out, the general's expression changed slightly, but he didn't say anything, he just expressed regret, and his heart was mixed.The joy is that the left and right generals died in battle one after another. In the North Vietnam region, he is the one who really provoked the leader; the worry is that he is afraid that he will follow in the footsteps of Lu Chen and Shen Zhe, and there will be no peace after death.

"Your Majesty, you must not do it. General Lu Chen has dedicated his life to fighting for me in Vietnam and made great achievements in battle. Why are you so cold-hearted?" Some old counselors were astonished at Cheng Shouyu's decision.

"I'm determined, there's no need to say any more."

The old counselor was sad and indignant: "Your Majesty, please think again. General Lu Chen was defeated because of his love for the people, not to mention that he gave the Japanese a painful blow with his life. Now you only talk about his faults and ignore his merits. After the army, it will definitely attract criticism..."

Cheng Shouyu looked unhappy, and said with a sneer, "He loves the people, so I don't love the people anymore? Don't bring up this matter again, and offenders will be punished immediately."

The old counselor stopped talking, just shook his head and muttered something.

In fact, Cheng Shouyu deliberately smeared Lu Chen. Because of the Hecheng incident, Lu Chen was deeply loved by the people. Many people spontaneously mourned for Lu Chen, which made him extremely unhappy. Slaying two generals, you can only fight in the nest, have the ability to go to the front line to defend against the enemy?
The meeting broke up unhappy.

After leaving the main hall, General Tang Hao was in a daze, looking at the cloudy sky, feeling emotional in his heart.

The old counselor came out in a frenzy, laughing loudly: "Yongzhu, mediocre lord, with this mediocre lord, Yuebei will definitely be defeated, hahaha."

The speaker was unintentional, but the listener was interested. Tang Hao was thoughtful, and soon, a firm gaze appeared in his eyes, and then strode away.

(End of this chapter)