At the end of the Han Dynasty: a stingy husband from his hometown

Chapter 193 Chariots marching south, the danger of Yiyang

Not long after Huang Zhong secretly led his troops to attack Yiyang, Zhou Tai and Zhou Jin, who were wandering near Huarong, also received a letter from Xu Huang.

"I didn't expect that Xu Gongming was able to perform such an extraordinary feat!"

While the two were amazed, they also did not hide the envy in their eyes.

In this attack on Jingzhou, Zhou Qi led the main force in Yangzhou. Nearly five months have passed since the battle, but they still only captured Yicheng.

On the other hand, Xu Huang broke into Changsha with a strange army. He first conquered Linxiang, the prefecture of Changsha, and then defeated the Jingzhou soldiers led by Liu Pan. Now he is besieging Liu Biao in Hanshou.

Although Xu Huang's ability to accomplish this feat is closely related to the fact that Zhou Qi and Zhou Tai attracted Jingzhou's attention and contained all the main forces in Jingzhou, Xu Huang's achievements cannot be denied.

If the meritorious service in the war against Jingzhou is to be rewarded, Xu Huang should be the first.

Zhou Jin held the letter in his hand and asked: "Xu Gongming asked us for help, hoping to get support from the navy. What do you think of Youping?"

Zhou Tai heard the words, but said with some hesitation: "My lord's order to us is to restrain Jingzhou's soldiers and horses in Huarong, and look for an opportunity to conquer Huarong if possible."

"But this moment, that moment."

"According to the report from the scouts, Huang Zhong, the guard of Huarong, secretly led his troops back to assist Hanshou yesterday. If he is ordered to cut off Xu Huang's food road, the consequences will be disastrous."

"The reason why we didn't dare to bypass Huarong before was because we were worried that the food route would be cut off by the Huarong defenders."

"But now that the northern part of Changsha County has been acquired by us, the grain and grass can be transported directly from Yuzhang County without passing through Huarong."

"At this time, even if we bypass Huarong and join General Xu Huang directly, we will not worry about running out of food and grass supplies."

"In my opinion, we should abandon Huarong and rush to Xu Huang's aid at this time."

Zhou Jin pondered for a long time, but finally shook his head and said: "Although what Youping said is reasonable, Huarong is an important place. If the Lord learns about the situation in Changsha, he will definitely abandon Xiangyang and attack Hanshou to capture the thieves and the king. "

"If my lord wants to go south, he must pass through Huarong, and he must also transport grain and grass from Xiangyang and Yicheng south. He needs naval protection."

"You Ping can personally lead the navy under his command to assist General Xu Huang. I will bring my own troops and horses to continue to station troops in Huarong, waiting for the lord's follow-up instructions."

Compared with Zhou Tai's desperate decision, Zhou Jin's decision was more prudent. Not only could he effectively support Xu Huang, but he also did not violate Zhou Qi's previous orders. It could be said that he killed two birds with one stone.

Zhou Tai accepted the order and immediately said goodbye to Zhou Jin. He led his troops from Yunmengze into Yuanshui, and then from the southwest from Yuanshui. Finally, at the intersection of Yuanshui and Zishui, he headed straight up against Zishui. Go to Yiyang.

Jingzhou, Xiangyang, Zhou Junying Village outside the city.

Chariot and Cavalry General Zhou Qi frowned slightly as he looked at the memorial sent by Zhou Yi.

He showed the memorial to everyone, and then asked: "The letter states that Xu Huang underestimated the enemy and rushed forward, and there may be a danger of the entire army being annihilated. What do you think?"

When the civil and military ministers read the contents of the letter, almost all their expressions changed slightly. Even Xi Zhicai, who was always good at coming up with strange schemes, frowned.

Tian Feng has an upright character. After reading the content, he said directly without much hesitation: "What Yuzhang County Magistrate said is true, Xu Huang's move is indeed too risky. Yuelu Mountains are dangerous and dangerous, and inaccessible. It is difficult for the army to pass, and food and grass are not available." There is no way to transport it, and if you are not careful, the entire army will be in danger of being annihilated."

Everyone else nodded. Even the brave and skillful generals in the army almost all agreed that Xu Huang's move was too risky, and hoped that Zhou Qi could rush eight hundred miles to prevent the opponent from sending troops.

After hearing everyone's suggestions, Zhou Qi finally set his sights on Zhang Liao.

Ever since Zhang Liao took refuge with Zhou Qi, he had become taciturn and reclusive.

Even though he made great achievements in Lujiang County and Yicheng, he still kept a very low profile.

Zhang Liao usually had no contact with other generals in the army except for occasional contacts with Tian Feng and Gao Shun.

At this time, the generals were discussing matters. Zhang Liao also maintained his previous attitude, just standing in an inconspicuous corner and listening quietly, but did not express himself too much.

"Wen Yuan, do you have insight?"

Suddenly asked by Zhou Qi, Zhang Liao hurriedly stepped forward to salute.

He was also very grateful to Zhou Qi.

A long time ago, when Zhang Liao thanked Zhou Yu, he learned from the other party that everything he did was ordered by General Cheqi.

Although Zhang Liao couldn't understand why the general of chariots and cavalry thought so highly of himself, the defeated general, that he tried every means to spare his life.

However, he still remembered this kindness in his heart.

After that, Zhou Qi made an exception and promoted him to be the captain of Lujiang County. First, he made great contributions with Tian Feng, and then deliberately gave him the credit for ambush Yicheng's soldiers and horses.

Zhang Liao knew that the reason why the chariot general did this was to make more meritorious deeds for himself, so as to dilute the impact of killing Huang Shao in the first place.

Zhou Qi's various actions almost made Zhang Liao return to his original position under Ding Yuan, and he felt the long-lost kindness of knowing him.

Zhang Liao was not a hypocritical person, nor did he talk too much. He just buried this gratitude deep in his heart.

He stood up and bowed to Zhou Qi. After careful consideration, he said in a deep voice: "In the current situation, Xiangyang cannot be attacked for a long time, and the navy is blocked in Huarong. It is obvious that Jingzhou has been prepared."

"If we proceed step by step to conquer Jingzhou, this labor-intensive expedition will most likely end in vain."

When the generals heard this, they all looked at Zhang Liao angrily.

Many people were still secretly sneering in their hearts, thinking that Zhang Liao was accusing the generals of chariots and cavalry of being ignorant and incompetent in the civil and military affairs of Yangzhou.

They all wanted to see if the cavalry general would be furious.

You know, this is Zhou Qi's first large-scale use of foreign troops since separatist rule.

If it ends in failure, it will be a huge blow to the morale of the entire Yangzhou Group.

Therefore, even after fighting to this day, the army still has not gained much and can only waste money and food under Xiangyang City, but no one dares to suggest retreating.

Just like when Cao Cao and Liu Bei fought for Hanzhong, they fought for a long time but could not win. Instead, they lost troops and lost money and food. He wanted to retreat but was worried about damaging morale, which was ridiculous.

This is a tasteless allusion, but Yang Xiu was also smart but was misled by his cleverness.

Didn't Cao Cao's men know at that time that Cao Cao's army was in a dilemma and the only way to retreat was to withdraw?

No.

There are many smart people under Cao Cao, and there must be people who can guess Cao Cao's intentions, but except for Yang Xiu, no one dares to mention the withdrawal of troops.

At this time, Zhou Qi's situation was even more difficult than that of Cao Cao.

After all, the outcome of this battle is related to Yangzhou's overall strategy in the future.

If they return without success, the blow to morale will be self-evident.

Even Zhang Liao himself looked at Zhou Qi carefully, feeling extremely uneasy.

Zhou Qi didn't take it seriously. Instead, he looked at Zhang Liao with a smile and said calmly: "What Wen Yuan said is true. Jingzhou has been prepared for a long time. If the stalemate continues here, it will just be a waste of money and food."

"You should have something to say later, just say it bluntly and don't have any scruples."

Hearing this, Zhang Liao breathed a sigh of relief and said: "There is a saying in the art of war: Use the right combination to win by surprise. The battle situation is now deadlocked. If you want to break the situation, you must use surprise troops."

"Crossing Yuelu Mountain and attacking Changsha County with surprise troops, even we thought it was impossible to succeed. How could Jingzhou soldiers and horses think of this?"

"Although I am not acquainted with Xu Gongming, I have heard of his name for a long time. I know that he is knowledgeable in military matters and is famous for his stability. He has made great achievements in besieging Shanyue in Kuaiji County."

"These generals have changed their usual steady style and led a strange army across Yuelu Mountain. They must have had a plan in mind."

"Since my lord has given me the tiger talisman and the sword, I must have great faith in Xu Gongming's talents."

"In that case, why not let him let go?"

"If the strategy fails, even if three thousand soldiers and horses will be lost, it can also be declared that the battle against Jingzhou has ended in failure. The troops can be withdrawn as soon as possible to avoid wasting money and food."

"If Xu Gongming lives up to his lord's expectations and is lucky enough to cross Yuelu Mountain, seize Changsha with a surprise force, and prevent Jingzhou from looking at each other, wouldn't it break the current deadlock?"

When Zhou Qi heard this, he couldn't help but clasped his hands and laughed, and then said to everyone: "When I inspected Xiangyang before, I already knew that it would be difficult for the army to conquer Jingzhou this time."

"As Wen Yuan said, this battle is of great importance. Gu was not willing to fail, so he wrote a secret letter to Xu Gongming and placed high hopes on him."

"This expedition to Jingzhou, whether to fight or to retreat, whether to win a great victory or to return without success, you all just wait quietly!" Even though Zhou Qi acted so calmly, he was already anxious in his heart, not sure about Xu Huang Will this trip be successful?

Seeing that the time passed day by day, the army consumed a lot of food and grass every day, but there was still no news from Xu Huang, Zhou Qi couldn't help but feel bored in his heart, and sometimes even couldn't sleep at night.

Until that day, a guard suddenly came to report that the governor of Yuzhang County had sent an envoy. Zhou Qi's heart sank slightly, and he secretly complained.

"I didn't wait for news from Xu Huang, but instead received a letter from Zhou Yi. Could it be that Gongming lost this battle?"

Thinking of this, Zhou Qi suddenly felt cold all over. He didn't even have time to put on his clothes, so he hurried to summon the envoy sent by Zhou Yi.

The envoy saw Zhou Qi and his face was ashen, couldn't help but trembled in his heart, hurriedly took out the letter in his arms, and reported loudly: "Changsha has won a great victory, your lord ordered me to apologize on behalf of you!"

When Zhou Qi heard this, he immediately turned from anger to joy and hurriedly grabbed the letter from the messenger. After reading the Changsha battle report in the letter and the confession written by Zhou Yi for the previous letter, he couldn't help but laugh several times and ordered his subordinates to be summoned quickly. Civil and military affairs.

When Yangzhou civil and military officials were called together, they still didn't know what happened.

Not long after, Zhou Qi, dressed in fine clothes, walked in radiantly, and the previous anxiety was no longer on his face.

He looked around at the crowd, then held up the letter in his hand, and said loudly: "Xu Gongming led [-] exhausted troops to attack Changsha County day and night, and recruited young men in the city to defeat the [-] Jingzhou soldiers led by Liu Pan! "

"Zhou Yi, the governor of Yuzhang County, led his army to attack Xiajun, the northeastern gateway of Changsha, and opened the grain road between Yuzhang County and Changsha County."

When Zhou Qi finished speaking, everyone was shocked.

Shocked, all civil and military officials showed joy, and stepped forward to congratulate Zhou Qi.

"Once Changsha is broken, Hanshou will be within reach, and Jingzhou will also be in the Lord's pocket!"

"How could we have achieved such a great victory if our lord had not had the ability to recognize people, use Xu Gongming in times of crisis, and give him the opportunity to make decisive decisions?"

"It's very good, it's very good. Fortunately, my lord knows people and makes good use of them, and insisted on letting Xu Gongming do his own thing despite all opinions, so that we can achieve this great victory!"

Listening to the continuous flattery from everyone, Zhou Qi was also very happy.

Although their actions were indeed suspected of flattery, they were not wrong.

If Zhou Qi had not believed in and activated Xu Huang, I am afraid that the current battle situation in Jingzhou would still be in a stalemate.

He stretched out his hand and pressed it in the air to signal the man to quiet down, and then said: "Changsha has been broken, we don't need to continue stationing troops here to confuse Jingzhou."

"We can leave Xiangyang alone for the time being. All of you, please go to Changsha with me, join forces with Xu Gongming, and go to Hanshou to capture Liu Biao alive!"

Everyone agreed with a bang, then quickly broke out of camp and headed straight for Changsha.

When arriving at Yicheng, Zhou Qi left behind [-] troops and [-] naval troops, and ordered Jiang Qin to guard the place. On the one hand, he cut off Xiangyang reinforcements from entering Wuling County, and on the other hand, he guarded the Han River to prevent Cai Mao from taking advantage of the emptiness of Jiangxia. Encircle Wei to rescue Zhao and attack Jiangxia.

Perhaps even Huang Chengyan didn't expect that Wenpin and Li Yan, whom he valued very much, would actually lose Yicheng.

With Jiang Qin leading his troops to garrison Yicheng, Huang Chengyan's previous strategy of ordering Cai Mao to attack Jiangxia while Zhou Qi was heading south could be declared a failure.

But Zhou Qi evacuated the Xiangyang camp, and after that, he would receive a battle report every few days.

At the beginning, Xu Huang sent the most detailed battle report and a letter asking for help.

When Zhou Qi learned about Xu Huang's tricks in Linxiang, he couldn't help but sigh: "Xu Gongming is really a famous general in the world!"

Zhou Qi conferred on Xu Huang the title of Pingxiang Zhonglang General and rewarded him with many fields and money.

Xu Huang also became Zhou Qi's first lieutenant general, and his position was second only to Zhou Qi.

Even if he is just a general with a miscellaneous title, his rank is higher than that of a school captain or a captain. He is also the only military general in the entire Yangzhou Group, except Zhou Qi, with the title "general".

But Zhou Yi, the governor of Yuzhang County, led 500 men and marched day and night to attack Yiyang.

Although there are many soldiers and horses, except for the five hundred northern elites, only a thousand Yuzhang County's original soldiers have received military training.

Moreover, these county soldiers, like the original Lujiang County soldiers, did not have any actual combat experience and their combat effectiveness was worrying.

The remaining three thousand newly recruited rebels from Yuzhang, as well as the soldiers and horses recruited by Xu Huang from Linxiang, had not received any military training and could only be regarded as a mob.

If these people are led by famous generals who are proficient in military affairs, after a period of training, they may not be able to allow them to fight.

Unfortunately, Zhou Yi was just a civil servant and had no experience in commanding troops. While leading these thousands of people on the march, they often had conflicts because they came from three different places.

Especially the two thousand soldiers and horses recruited from Linxiang, they can certainly fight to the death regardless of their own safety in order to protect their vested interests.

However, these people were not happy to have them leave their hometowns and travel long distances to fight, and they were not commander-in-chief Xu Huang.

This is why Xu Huang, who clearly has so many troops under his command, is so anxious to ask for help from Zhou Yi, Zhou Jin and Zhou Qi respectively.

If the 5000 men under Xu Huang's command were all elites trained by him, they would not be afraid even if they went deep into the hinterland of Jingzhou.

However, as the commander-in-chief of the army, Xu Huang knew very well that it was unreliable for his newly recruited soldiers to follow him on an expedition to attack Hanshou.

Once the stalemate lasts for a long time, these people will definitely lose their morale.

In fact, if Liu Pan hadn't been frightened by Xu Huang and was hiding in the city, not daring to fight, Xu Huang would have fled.

Although Xu Huang is now powerful in Jingnan, he actually has no fighting force in his hands and is completely a paper tiger.

Even after Xu Huang left Linxiang, he didn't have the confidence to command these mobs, let alone Zhou Yi.

Zhou Yi saw more and more conflicts among his men and the march was getting slower and slower. Worried that Yiyang was on guard, he simply asked Xu Huang's Qu Chang to lead [-] northern elites and [-] county soldiers from Yuzhang County. Let them raid Yiyang first.

Zhou Yi himself took the remaining soldiers and horses, adjusting the conflict and comforting him, and then slowly rushed towards Yiyang.

But it was said that Xu Huang's subordinate Qu Chang led 1000 people to Yiyang day and night.

At this time, in Yiyang, there were only some police officers and hundreds of volunteers just recruited by the county magistrate.

Qu Chang ordered many people to plant flags, falsely claimed that he had three thousand soldiers and horses, and also spread rumors that his three thousand soldiers and horses were just the vanguard, and tens of thousands of troops would follow soon.

If the garrison in the city does not surrender, when the army arrives and the city is broken, no chickens or dogs will be left behind.

The county magistrate was frightened and surrendered.

After entering the city, Chang Qu immediately ordered people to seize the merchant ships and close the city gates. All important positions were guarded by his own people.

Qu Chang had just occupied Yiyang when Huang Zhong arrived with thousands of troops.

When Huang Zhong saw the flag on the city wall, he couldn't help but change his face slightly.

He asked his subordinates to capture some people who had escaped from the city and asked them about the details of the city.

When Huang Zhong learned that only 1000 troops were approaching the city and the Yiyang County magistrate began to surrender, he couldn't help but become furious.

He shouted sternly: "If there is really a disparity in strength between the two sides, it would be barely justified for the Yiyang County magistrate to surrender in Kaicheng."

"However, the bandit army numbered only a thousand, and the Yiyang County magistrate surrendered without a fight. He really deserves to be killed!"

When Huang Zhong heard that Yiyang was false and true, he immediately led his army to attack Yiyang and shouted in the city that if the soldiers in the city surrendered, their previous crimes would be forgotten.

Huang Zhong also had letters shot into the city, advising major families to recruit private soldiers to help break the city.

On the day the city is destroyed, there will be generous rewards.

Huang Zhong's move was indeed very effective, and people in Yiyang City suddenly became excited.

Qu Changxin was not a native of Yiyang, so he only had a thousand soldiers under his command to guard the city gate. Anyone who tried to get close would be shot.

Huang Zhong took the opportunity to attack Yiyang fiercely. Qu Chang was worried about internal and external troubles and struggled to defend the city.

If it hadn't been for the [-] northern elites who had defeated the Jingzhou army who had climbed onto the city wall several times, I'm afraid Yiyang would have been unable to defend itself.

Even so, the current situation is not optimistic.

If Zhou Yi cannot arrive with his army within three days, Yiyang will surely be lost!
　Haha, for those of you who are still studying, congratulations on the start of school, aren’t you very happy?
　　
　
(End of this chapter)