Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 467: Prelude to Troubled Times (End of this Volume)
In the dark night, in the valley between two mountains, a large army was marching in a long line. The scattered torches formed a long dragon that seemed to have no end.

"General, isn't it a bit inappropriate to let Sun Xiaozhe cover the rear and ambush him in Wuming Valley?"

At the front of the team, Zhang Xiaozhong asked the main general Cai Xide beside him.

For some reason, he had a bad feeling. Sun Xiaozhe was indeed young and ignorant. He relied on his adoptive father Shi Siming and looked down on everyone with his arrogance.

How can such a person be trusted?

Cai Xide said nothing. After all, it was a dishonorable act to make things difficult for subordinates. He didn't want Zhang Xiaozhong to feel sad because of the loss of his subordinates.

"General, what if Sun Xiaozhe gets upset and sends someone to inform Fang Zhongyong that we are marching overnight, suggesting that the enemy is chasing us? What should we do then?"

Zhang Xiaozhong asked with a worried look on his face.

Now Cai Xide can no longer pretend to be deaf and dumb.

He shook his head slightly and said, "Sun Xiaozhe has no reason to surrender to Fang Zhongyong. He is Shi Siming's adopted son, not his legitimate son. No one can save his life if he acts recklessly."

"But it's not a problem to hide one or two thousand people in the hills of Wuming Valley. It's possible that Sun Xiaozhe first sent someone to secretly contact Fang Zhongyong, and then hid on the hills, and when the Hedong Army was fighting hard with us, he would stab the Hedong Army in the back."

Zhang Xiaozhong was still worried, and felt that Cai Xide's behavior was inappropriate. It was okay to make things difficult for Sun Xiaozhe, but it couldn't be used in such a matter.

Is Sun Xiaozhe so smart?
Cai Xide was stunned. In his impression, Sun Xiaozhe didn't seem to be so insidious.

Or maybe it's simply because the IQ is not up to par.

It is hard to imagine that Sun Xiaozhe could carry out such a complicated and uncontrollable operation with such high risks.

"We are almost at Shouyang County, and we must return to the city tonight."

Cai Xide said firmly.

This narrow mountain road was a natural defense line. In order to wait for the grain to be transported from Jingxing to Hebei, he had to shrink the defense line.

This was the bitter fruit of the failed "surprise attack" on Taiyuan.

If they did not retreat now, they would be chased and beaten with sticks, which would be a very ugly scene. This was also the reason why Cai Xide had to order a late night march.

Now is the critical period for the transition from strategic offensive to strategic stalemate. After that, small-scale elite troops will intercept food supply routes and fight harassment warfare, rather than a large army charging forward to fight to the death.

At this critical juncture of rhythm change, if you fail to operate properly and suffer a defeat, you may have to switch to passive defense.

Camping in the valley was a very risky thing. Cai Xide weighed the pros and cons before deciding to return to Shouyang County overnight.

At this moment, the sound of horse hooves came from behind the team.

A personal soldier rushed to the front of the team, dismounted, and reported to Cai Xide: "General Cai, there are a large number of cavalry chasing us from behind, and General Gao Ruzhen is forming a battle array to protect himself. Please make a quick decision, General Cai!"

"Pass on my military order, stop marching, and each unit must form a formation on the spot to block the attack!"

Cai Xide said in a deep voice.

"Order!"

The messenger took the order and left.

Gao Ruzhen is Shi Siming's direct descendant, but the relationship is not as close as Sun Xiaozhe's adopted son. However, Gao Ruzhen is brave and resourceful, not like Sun Xiaozhe who only relies on brute force and does not use his brain, and his personality is not as annoying as his.

After the messenger left, Cai Xide quietly told Zhang Xiaozhong, "Take your troops and retreat to the Tumen Pass in Jingxing to defend it. I will lead people to camp at the old pass in Jingxing. The two passes will support each other, so it will not be difficult to defend Jingxing."

Eh?
Zhang Xiaozhong was stunned for a moment, then he immediately remembered that their own troops were marching at the front of the team, and he seemed to understand something.

Cai Xide's caution has become a subconscious habit. Even his marching arrangements are to ensure that his own troops can escape first.

"General, are we going to hand over Shouyang and Shiai counties to others right now?"

Zhang Xiaozhong looked at Cai Xide with an incredible look on his face and asked.

"Young and strong people are better at fighting. Fang Chongyong is fighting with a life-or-death fighting style. As long as they defeat Gao Ruzhen's troops, they will be like a pearl curtain rolling up, encircling the defeated soldiers, and attacking the long snake formation along the valley road!

On this narrow mountain road, we wouldn't be able to maneuver even if we had 100,000 people.

If we go to Shou County, we will have no food or fodder and no reinforcements, so we will just wait to die. The same is true for Shi Ai and other counties.

Only by holding the two passes of Jingxing can we wait for reinforcements and food from Hebei. The terrain there is dangerous and cannot be easily broken.

Don't hesitate, this battle is not viable, of the thirty-six strategies, running away is the best strategy!"

Cai Xide ordered his personal soldiers to quietly mount their horses and notified his troops to ride away immediately, while he patiently explained to Zhang Xiaozhong.

After all, the latter will have to guard the pass alone after arriving in Jingxing, so the necessary matters must be explained to him clearly.

As for counterattack, what the hell is counterattack!

Having already lost the initiative, there was no way to counterattack later, and we didn't even know how many people were in the enemy army. The final result was nothing more than killing more enemy soldiers.

What's the point?

Cai Xide saw it clearly, the war could not be fought, so he had to run away. Anyway, Gao Ruzhen's troops were not his own people!

"Understood, I will make the arrangements. General Cai, please go first, I will cover the rear!"

Zhang Xiaozhong was an honest man, and he immediately clasped his fists and saluted Cai Xide to show his loyalty.

"Don't fight too long. Lead the troops back to Tumen Pass and you'll win. If the Hedong Army attacks Jingxing Pass in one go, the government troops will continue to break into the heart of Hebei from here!

Once we have reorganized our troops in the future, it will be easy for us to march to Taiyuan!"

Cai Xide hurriedly gave instructions, then mounted his horse and headed east with his confidants.

Zhang Xiaozhong was not vague either. He quickly summoned the key officers of his troops and ordered them to run away quickly. The shouting and killing in the distance was getting closer and closer, and the soldiers around Zhang Xiaozhong all showed terrified expressions on their faces.

Although it took some time for the information to be transmitted from the back to the front in a long line, the faint movement still filled everyone's heart with gloom.

"Let's go! To Tumen Pass!"

As Cai Xide and his trusted followers quietly fled, the "snake head" of the long snake formation quickly separated from the snake body, and the dense sound of horse hooves gradually faded away.

……

"Who are you? Where is Cai Xide?"

Fang Zhongyong placed the Phantom Wind Blade on the shoulder of a bloody Hebei rebel general and asked.

He Changqi and others were leading people to check the battlefield and pick up the enemy's defeated soldiers. At this time, the sky was already pale, the air was filled with a pungent smell of blood, and the bodies of the rebels could be seen everywhere on both sides of the mountain road.

"I am Gao Ruzhen, a lieutenant general of the Pinglu Army. Cai Xide's grandson asked me to cover his rear, while he ran away with his cronies."

Gao Ruzhen said weakly, feeling dizzy due to heavy blood loss from the wound.

"Bandage him up."

Fang Chongyong instructed his personal soldiers and let out a long sigh.

He looked at the rising sun in the sky and shook his head in disappointment.

The battle situation was just as he predicted. After the cavalry broke through Gao Ruzhen's defense, the defeated soldiers fled in all directions and then attacked the enemy infantry deployed on the mountain road. They fought each other in a desperate attempt to escape, and the atmosphere of collapse was spreading.

Then the cavalry led by He Changqi came roaring, like a snowball. Cai Xide's soldiers gradually lost the will to resist. More and more soldiers were defeated, and the men and horses trampled on each other. Finally, they were defeated like a landslide!
Fang Chongyong only lost a few soldiers when he was charging Gao Ruzhen's unit, which was the last part of the team. At other times, it was like an adult beating a child, and the battle was completely one-sided!
"General, according to the accounts of many captives, Cai Xide and his confidant Zhang Xiaozhong, with several thousand men and horses, are heading towards Jingxing Guguan and Tumenguan. The two passes are mutually supportive. If we set off now, I'm afraid it will be too late to catch up."

Wang Nandan stepped forward and reported to Chongyong.

This Cai Xide runs faster than a rabbit.

This group of soldiers had originally planned to make this Hebei rebel general change into women's clothes and perform the Hu Xuan dance in front of Fang Zhongyong!

"Cai Xide was not easy to deal with. He knew that things were hopeless and fled early. And those who left were his most elite troops.

Don't chase a desperate enemy. You take 500 people to take over Shouyang County, and I will let Guan Chongsi take over Shiai County.

This battle ends here."

Fang Chongyong waved his hand gently and spoke lazily, looking uninterested.

Soha won the battle, but failed to achieve complete success, and the enemy's elite troops escaped.

Fang Chongyong couldn't say whether he won the battle or it ended in a draw.

Fang Chongyong was wandering around the mountain road and saw a Hebei soldier lying on the ground groaning because of injuries. When his soldiers found him, they went up to him and killed him with a single blow. Then they took out an iron saw and slowly cut off his head. The grass was covered with blood foam, which looked horrible.

Whether it was the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army or the various units of the Hedong Army, they were all doing similar things at this moment, just like eating and drinking, their movements were smooth and there was no sign of hesitation, and it was obvious that they did not think there was anything wrong with doing so.

The lower-level soldiers rarely think about the significance of war. Most of them just regard it as a profession. They serve as soldiers, eat food, and receive rewards for meritorious service. That's all.

Kill whoever the higher-ups want to kill!
Few of them thought carefully that a year ago, these Hebei border troops were also troops of the Tang Dynasty.

The Ministry of War has numbers for them, and the roster also records the military status of soldiers from various armies in Hebei. They are all elite troops under the control of the Tang Central Government.

However, only one year later, their treatment became the same as that of the Hu people in the border towns.

When cooking beans, the bean pods are burned, and the beans weep in the pot;
It was born from the same root, so why is it too anxious.

Fang Chongyong believed that if his troops were defeated by the Hebei troops, the other side would not show mercy and would cut off their heads.

This is the truth that being kind to the enemy is being cruel to yourself. Once you are hostile, you don't have to care about your opponent's dignity.

"Pass the order down. Just cut off the right ear. No need to cut off the head. It's too undignified."

Fang Chongyong found He Changqi and gave him instructions.

"Uh, Marshal Ji, about the military exploits..."

he asked hesitantly.

"as always."

Fang Chongyong spoke very carefully and said four words.

He Changqi was overjoyed and immediately made a promise: "If you want to cut off my ears, then cut off my ears. It's not a big deal. It's not a big deal."

"You can handle the cleaning of the battlefield. I will be returning to Taiyuan City first."

Fang Chongyong said something to He Changqi, then turned and left, too lazy to watch the soldiers squatting on the ground, waving saws in their hands and cutting off heads.

It's like a horse-riding orc.

Fang Chongyong cursed secretly in his heart.

At this moment, the valley is filled with golden sunlight, and the rising sun in the sky is as red as blood.

……

In the spring of the twelfth year of Tianbao, when the Hebei rebels were attacking cities in Hebei and Hedong, Fang Chongyong, the governor of Shuofang, Hedong, Youzhou and Pinglu appointed by the court, went out of the city to fight with the rebel Cai Xide's troops who were escorting the people back to Hebei.

However, the government troops suffered a disadvantage in the first battle, and the rebels allowed the civilians to charge into the battle line. The heavenly army suffered heavy casualties, with 50% to 60% of the civilians killed.

But after nightfall, Fang Chongyong learned that Cai Xide's troops were anxious to return to Shouyang County. He made a prompt decision, selected 3,000 elite soldiers from the army, and quickly pursued the rebels on horseback, launching a brilliant counterattack.

Cai Xide was caught off guard and suffered a great defeat.

Cai Xide and his confidant Zhang Xiaozhong, with their own troops, fled to Tumen Pass and Jingxing Guguan in Jingxing area and camped there respectively. The rest of the troops were defeated by Fang Chongyong and the entire army was wiped out.

This battle greatly boosted the confidence of the Hedong government troops.

Previously, wherever the Hebei rebels went, the government troops were either short of manpower or their generals were afraid of death, so they collapsed at the first blow. Even if they managed to hold the city, they suffered heavy casualties.

There has never been a complete victory over the rebels.

As a result, the Hebei rebels became more arrogant, with hundreds of people daring to attack the county town and dozens of riders daring to cross the Yellow River for reconnaissance. The defenders in various places did not dare to leave the city to fight.

However, the good news from the front cannot offset the impact of the bad news from the rear.

Less than two days after Fang Chongyong returned to Taiyuan, Che Guangqian, who was delivering a letter to Li Guangbi, brought back bad news from Liangzhou.

"Is Li Guangbi unwilling to send troops to Shuofang?
Did I not make myself clear enough in my letter?

This is a bit unreasonable.”

Fang Chongyong couldn't believe his ears after hearing Che Guangqian's description. He had explained the reason so clearly, and he was considering the problem from Li Guangbi's perspective.

Why would the other party refuse?

"General, Li Guangbi is willing to go to Shuofang, but the officers of the Chishui Army are unwilling to go. They want to wait until your father-in-law returns to Liangzhou."

Che Guangqian replied helplessly.

"Are they An Zhongzhang from the Liangzhou An family, the Liangzhou Zhang family, and Lun Gongren's family?"

The joy on Fang Zhongyong's face disappeared, and he asked in a deep voice.

"Yes, if they don't move, Li Guangbi will be just an empty figure, unable to command the armies of Liang Province.

Now the border towns are worried about whether to listen to Chang'an or Luoyang, and no one wants to become a rebel for no reason."

Che Guangqian told Fang Chongyong some of the things he had heard.

Simply put, the border towns now have their own ideas. After all, Brother Ji is old and can't protect them for many years. Choosing which prince to "follow the dragon" is the most important thing.

As long as you bet on the right thing, you will have endless wealth and glory.

If we follow Brother Ji's order to join the war, what good will it do even if we win?

If Brother Ji passes away, who will honor their military achievements? Who will give them rewards?
In fact, we can't blame the border troops for being suspicious, but their concerns are very realistic. It is only natural that people die for money and birds die for food.

The so-called "Four Kings Rebellion" was backed by the Hebei Border Army. If Huangfu Weiming won and Li Wan ascended to the throne and became emperor, the officers and soldiers of the Hebei Border Army would be promoted and make a fortune.

This situation also applies to other border troops.

Although the positions are different, the principles are the same.

Why did they let the two towns in Hexi and Longyou unconditionally protect Brother Ji and fight to the death with the Hebei rebels unconditionally?

So Ji Ge’s words are useless, and Fang Zhongyong’s words are even more useless!

Li Guangbi was in a state of wavering and unsteady stance, while the troops under his command were determined not to rush into Guanzhong and Hedong to quell the rebellion.

Now this result is both unexpected and reasonable.

"General, the Shuofang army cannot be moved, otherwise Lingzhou will be lost and the Tiele people will rebel.

It would be better to transfer Abusi's troops to Taiyuan and Li Liangchen's troops to Fenzhou, so that we can get 20,000 Hu soldiers. "

Che Guangqian suggested to Fang Chongyong.

"That's okay."

Fang Chongyong nodded slightly and sighed deeply. It is true that "one only regrets not having enough soldiers when they are needed."

"General Jie, I have heard some bad things in Hexi."

Che Guangqian was a little hesitant and stammered, not daring to say anything.

"Go ahead, you are my confidant, you can speak freely."

Fang Zhongyong patted Che Guangqian on the shoulder and said.

"General Jie, many people in Hexi are talking about how General Jie will rebel and lead his troops to Luoyang to support the Crown Prince.

The Hexi border troops were reluctant to get involved in this mess, and this was also a consideration, and perhaps the main reason.

They are waiting for your father-in-law, Wang Zhongsi, to arrive in Hexi with the troops from Anxi Beiting.

If the general stood for the prince, they would stand for the prince. If the general stood for the saint, they would stand for the saint.

As for what the commander was like, they didn't want to guess.

If General Wang goes to the Crown Prince's place, your father and father-in-law are both there, so I think it will be impossible for General Jie not to go."

Che Guangqian explained anxiously, which silenced Fang Chongyong.

(End of this volume)

Next Volume: Thirty Years of Fame and Dust, Eight Thousand Miles of Journey and Clouds and Moon

(End of this chapter)