Great Han Empire

Chapter 642
Late at night, Hongnong Camp.

A group of cavalry rushed out of the darkness and galloped into the camp. The sound of thunderous iron hoofs instantly shattered the silence of the night.

Yushi, Zhang He, and Hua Xiong strode into the Chinese army tent.Xu Rong, Tian Chou and Chen Wei stood up to greet them.

"Is the northern army attacking very hard today?" Xu Rong asked the three of them with a smile while asking them to sit down, "How about the casualties of the army?"

"It's still the same, attacking once a day. Niu Fu doesn't seem to be in a hurry to attack. He probably waits for us to withdraw from the Yellow River before attacking the Kanto." Yushi said, "The casualties of each department are not large, but because we have not been able to With the supplement of troops, the lack of personnel in each department is getting more and more serious. Now the two armies together have only about 2000 people, and there is a shortage of more than 3000 people. My lord, when will the reinforcements from the east of the river cross the river to help?"

Xu Rong smiled without saying a word, and stretched out his hand to help Chen Wei spread out the map on the case table.Tian Chou told his guards to get some food.The three adults and their bodyguard cavalry were about to rush back to the front line of the Candle Water River. They were on their way late at night, and they had to eat before leaving.

At this time, Tian Chou heard Yushi's words, and immediately smiled and said: "We have no reinforcements. Now the general and one hundred thousand troops are fighting in Jizhou, and Zhang Baiqi is leading the troops to fight in Pubanjin, Hedong. We still have tens of thousands of troops here." In the battle against the northern army, the money and food in the northern border are limited and cannot support the three battlefields at the same time. Therefore, my lord has already told the princess and the court, and it is recommended not to send reinforcements to Kansai. The Kansai battlefield is just us."

Yushi, Zhang He and Hua Xiong were quite surprised.Hua Xiong immediately said to Xu Rong: "My lord, we only have more than 1 people, and there are [-] Northern troops on the opposite side. How do we fight this battle? Return to Luoyang?"

"Yes, withdraw immediately." Xu Rong's steady and powerful voice made the three of Yushi look at each other in a daze.

"Not only do we want to withdraw, but we also want to severely injure the Northern Army and suppress the Northern Army in Kansai." Chen Wei said with a smile, "My lord has already made a plan to wipe out the enemy."

=

Chen Wei explained Xu Rong's strategy carefully.

"After burning the food and supplies of the Northern Army, the Northern Army was unable to attack the Kanto, so it could only retreat to the Kanxi." Chen Wei pointed to the Hangu Pass on the map and said, "Then our Northern Frontier Army will be stationed at the Hangu Pass. We can take care of Luoyang, and we can attack Kansai in the west, so that although our northern army is fighting on two battlefields at the same time, because we have control of the initiative in the Kansai battlefield, the critical situation in northern Xinjiang will be greatly improved."

Zhang He thought for a while and raised an objection.Before leaving Luoyang, the general once said that as long as we ensure that all the food and materials purchased from the south are transported to northern Xinjiang, and that there is enough food and grass on the Jizhou battlefield to last until May, we can withdraw from Luoyang to avoid northern Xinjiang. Caught in the predicament of fighting on two fronts.

"The current situation is that we can completely withdraw from the Kansai battlefield. Why do we continue to fight the Northern Army? Abandoning Kansai and stationing at Hangu Pass, the army will lose contact with northern Xinjiang, so how to solve our food, grass and luggage? Do you rely on Yuan Shu?" Zhang He shook his head again and again, "The Jizhou battlefield has already started, Yuan Shao will be driven out of Jizhou by the general at any time, and the states and counties around the country will immediately blockade the Kanto after they get the news. Even if Yuan Shu is willing to continue to provide us with food and grass, but once he How can he help us if we start a war with Liu Biao?"

Xu Rong nodded, "Junyi (yi) makes sense." Then he looked at Tian Chou, "Zitai, please explain to the three adults. The situation in Gyeonggi in the next few months will be directly related to saving the country. Great cause. There are some things that must be made clear."

=

"From the perspective of Northern Xinjiang itself, in order to prevent the Northern Xinjiang Army from falling into the dilemma of fighting on two fronts, we should indeed withdraw from Kansai immediately." Tian Chou said, "But from the perspective of saving the country, we cannot withdraw from Kansai anyway. oo."

The current situation is that there is a dispute between Yuan Shu and Liu Biao in Jingzhou, and there is a dispute between Yuan Shu, Sun Ben and Yuan Shao in Yuzhou.Yanzhou suffered from the intensified disaster of the Yellow Turban Army.In Jizhou, there was a three-way war between the Northern Frontier Army, the Jizhou Army, and the Youzhou Army. The situation was far worse than that in the early years of Zhongping (AD 190).

Now that the northern army is withdrawing from Kansai, the northern army will drive straight in and successfully occupy Kanto and Luoyang. Dong Zhuo will then lead his army to attack Jing, Yu, Yan, Ji and other surrounding counties.At this time, whether it was Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu, or the states and counties in various places, after more than two years of continuous battles, their strength had been greatly weakened. On the contrary, Dong Zhuo's strength had recovered to a certain extent because of his withdrawal from Guanzhong. If the other goes up and down, Dong Zhuo will sweep the states and counties, and the country will be overthrown.

Once Dong Zhuo conquered Guanzhong, Guandong and Jing, Yu, Yan and other prefectures and counties, his strength increased sharply. At this time, it was not only a question of the devastation caused by the flames of war, but also a question of whether Northern Xinjiang could eliminate him in the future. Therefore, Kanto could not To Dong Zhuo.

The Kanto cannot be given to Dong Zhuo, and we don’t want to fall into this place of the Four Wars, so the Kanto can only be given to Yuan Shao or Yuan Shu, but the premise is that no matter which one we give, they must be able to defend the Kanto, so when we withdraw Kansai, giving up Luoyang, depends on the timing.

If the country is to be saved, the northern border must be strong, and the northern border must be strong. It is far from enough to rely solely on Jizhou's taxes and the strength of the northern border army. It is also necessary to find ways to weaken the opponent's strength.If Dong Zhuo, Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu, and the forces of various states and counties can be used to check each other in Kanto, and even fight, it is of course the best and most labor-saving way.

=

Yuan Shao drove Han Fu away and occupied Jizhou. He was criticized by many people, but no matter what method Yuan Shao used, Han Fu gave Jizhou to Yuan Shao on his own initiative. Yuan Shao had a high-sounding reason, but what about our occupation of Jizhou?

We took down Jizhou by force, and the consequences are self-evident.After we occupy Jizhou, how will the people of the world view the general?Will the general be accused by the people of the world as a traitor of the Han Dynasty and become the second Dong Zhuo of the Han Dynasty?If everyone in the world thinks that the great general's capture of Jizhou is the beginning of the great man's demise, will the various forces of the great man join hands to deal with the great general?

We cannot predict what will happen after the Beijiang army occupies Jizhou, but we must work hard to make the general avoid repeating the mistakes of Dong Zhuo, and we must work hard to make the general and Beijiang the only force that can save the country in the hearts of the people of the world. Sheji was rescued quickly, so we must fight Dong Zhuo, hold high the banner of begging King Dong Qin, and continuously launch counterattacks against Guanzhong, and let the world know that only the generals and Beijiang are still fighting tenaciously and unyieldingly. Save the country.The reason why the general wanted to occupy Jizhou was because he wanted to challenge King Dong Qin, which was a forced move; the reason why the Northern Army withdrew from Luoyang was because it was besieged by rebels, and the Northern Army was exhausted and unable to support it.

If the people of the world admit that the general's conquests are all to save the country, then the eldest princess and the court will have authority, and then I, a big man, can be saved and revitalized quickly.On the contrary, the general and Beijiang will follow in the footsteps of Dong Zhuo and fall into the danger of being besieged by all directions. Saving and revitalizing the country will become an unattainable task.

=

After Tian Chou finished speaking, he sat quietly behind the table and bowed his head in thought.

The people in the big tent were silent, carefully chewing the meaning of Tian Chou's words.

The Beijiang Army is not only fighting in the Kansai battlefield, but to show the world the loyalty of the Hussar General to the Han, the determination of Beijiang to save the country, and the absolute authority of the eldest princess and the court.Even if the Northern Frontier Army wanted to withdraw from Kansai, they could not withdraw intact. Instead, they would be beaten out, kicked out, and crying to the world with blood and wounds: It's not that I don't save Sheji, but I am powerless to save Sheji.Today's big Han is rebellious everywhere except Hushi General and Beijiang, and everywhere is a national thief.

Xu Rong picked up a roll of bamboo slips and said with a solemn expression: "Before the general left Luoyang, although he repeatedly told us that Luoyang can abide by the rules and cannot give up the rules, but as my ministers who defend the great man and the country, for the sake of The great Han has thousands of miles of land and mountains, for the sake of thousands of Li people, even if we are smashed to pieces, we will not hesitate."

He handed the bamboo slips to Yushi, "This is a letter from four ministers, Zhang Wen, Lu Zhi, Xian Yufu, and Li Wei, please take a look."

"The views of the four ministers on the Kansai battlefield are very close to ours. The opinions of these four ministers can basically represent the will of the court, but because the changes in the situation and the development of the war situation are far beyond our expectations and control, so The imperial court did not directly issue an order, but gave us suggestions in the form of a letter jointly signed by four ministers." Xu Rong stroked his short beard and said slowly, "Do you have any objections to this, my lords?"

After carefully reading the letters of the four ministers, Yushi, Zhang He, and Hua Xiong shook their heads, "Everything is in accordance with your lord's instructions."

"Okay, retreat tomorrow."

=

In March, Hongnong City.

Niu Fu, Li Jue (jue), Jia Xu and other generals of the Northern Army, surrounded by a group of personal guards, walked up the tower excitedly.

From the time when the soldiers left Tongguan in October of the first year, after more than four months of fierce fighting, the Northern Army finally broke through the Zhushui River and entered Hongnong City. This was a huge victory.Niu Fu was very excited and laughed and laughed along the way, but Li Jue, Guo Si and others looked indifferent, as if they were not happy about the army's effortless entry into Hongnong City.

Niu Fu obviously noticed that several of his subordinates were unhappy, but he pretended not to know, and continued to chat and laugh happily with these old friends who had been with them for more than ten years as before.

Niu Fu knew why Li Jue and others were unhappy.Since the end of last year, Dong Zhuo has been uncharacteristically entrusting the children of the Dong clan, and all of them have been promoted to nobles. Even the baby born to Dong Zhuo's concubine has been made a marquis. However, Dong Zhuo is very mean to his old subordinates who follow him. I didn't even worship.Everyone's official positions have not been changed, Zhonglang will still be Zhonglang, and the school lieutenant will still be the school lieutenant.During the Chinese New Year, Dong Zhuo's old subordinates such as Hu Zhen and Li Jue wanted to go back to Chang'an to reunite with their families, but Dong Zhuo flatly refused.

Niu Fu was Dong Zhuo's son-in-law, and he gained a lot of fame. He was promoted to the lowest rank of general, and he was made a Marquis of Guannei. He also went to Meiwu for a while during the New Year.During this period, Niu Fu tried Dong Zhuo, wanting to intercede for old friends like Hu Zhen and Li Jue.Dong Zhuo knew Niu Fu's intentions, and he bluntly said to Niu Fu, I have a plan in mind, and when Luoyang is captured, I will worship the generals.It's a little early to promote their officials now.

Niu Fu didn't understand.The army is attacking Luoyang. Of course, adding officials and ranks will help improve morale.At this time, Tian Yi told him in private that there were too many people who had betrayed the grand master in the past two years, and the grand master no longer trusted anyone except his own clan children.For example, if you want to be promoted to the officials of Hu Zhen and Li Jue, you have to be promoted to the officials of Duan Yan, Bao Hong, Lu Bu, and Zhang Liao. It cannot be promoted.If one favors more than another, and only Hu Zhen, Li Jue and others are promoted to officials, Duan Yan, Lu Bu and others will definitely have opinions. Once they are dissatisfied and betray, it will be very troublesome.

When Niu Fu, Li Jue and others defeated Luoyang, Dong Zhuo's strength became stronger, and Hu Zhen, Li Jue and others also made contributions. If these old subordinates were still loyal to Dong Zhuo, this official would naturally be promoted Soon.

Although Niu Fu knew it well, he didn't dare to speak nonsense after he returned to Daying.Dong Zhuo wanted to take this opportunity to test the loyalty of the generals to him, so Niu Fu certainly didn't dare to spoil Dong Zhuo's good deeds.The generals were filled with resentment, and their attitude towards Niu Fu changed drastically. They often spoke sarcasticly and attacked each other, and even pushed and dragged each other in battles.

=

Niu Fu himself was happy for a while, and then discussed with the generals about continuing to attack the Kanto.

All the generals looked at the Yellow River, as if they didn't hear each one, no one answered.Niu Fu was very bored, so he had to ask Jia Xu, Wen He, do you think the army will attack Hangu Pass immediately?
Jia Xu was very respectful. He told Niu Fu that Hongnong City was an empty city, and the Northern Army moved all the people and supplies in the city to Hedong, which shows that the Northern Army was fully prepared for the retreat.Since the Northern Border Army had long intended to retreat, and the commander in chief of the Northern Border Army was the world-renowned General Longxiang Xu Rong, there must be something famous here.Jia Xu suggested that Niu Fu should rest temporarily in Hongnong for a period of time, and wait for the scouts to confirm that the Northern Xinjiang Army has indeed withdrawn to Hangu Pass before launching an attack.

"Wenhe, the Northern Xinjiang army retreated to Mianchi. This is what the scouts saw with their own eyes." Niu Fu smiled, "Xu Rong only has more than 1 people in his hands, and we have nearly [-] troops. What tricks can he conjure up?"

"Hmph..." Li Jue sneered and snorted, "My lord, how did you lose Hongnong City in the first place, have you forgotten?"

"We foolishly pursued Hangu Pass, and the northern army came across the river from the other side and blocked us at Hangu Pass. Let's go for a ride?" Guo Si sarcastically sarcastically said, "You are also fighting How can someone who has been fighting for more than ten years not even see this kind of knowledge?"

Niu Fu couldn't hold back his face, and his anger rose, "You know, why did you get the shit out of Xu Rong in the first place."

"It seems that you are the one who scared the shit out of you on Tongguan, right?" Zhang Ji immediately retorted.

"Okay... okay..." Jia Xu hurriedly walked up to the livid-faced Niu Fu, and waved his hands to Li Jue, Guo Si and the others, "It's not good for anyone if you lose the battle. My lords, don't worry." Say something, follow the arrangement of the general."

"We lost the battle, and it was us who lost our heads, not him." Fan Chou sneered, "He can go to Chang'an and continue to be his general, but we will be buried in the wilderness."

"Okay, okay." Jia Xu said very dissatisfied, "Everyone has been brothers for more than ten years, or even decades, why do this? How can we not lose if we go to war like this? Unlike the year before last, as long as we can take Luoyang, the world can be settled for a few years. In the future, you adults will either enter the court as ministers, or be shepherds of a state. You can get what you want, and you will have a good life. Listen to me, everyone, first work together to bring Luoyang will be defeated, okay?"

Li Jue, Guo Si and the others looked at each other and reluctantly nodded in agreement.

"My lord, look..." Jia Xu turned to Niu Fu and asked in a low voice, "Are you going to take a rest in Hongnong for a while?"

"Forget it, let's hurry to Hangu Pass." Niu Fu shook his head angrily, "One, the Grand Master will not agree, and two..." He pointed to Li Jue and others, and said angrily, "Look at what they are like. It would be weird if they don't fight. Let's go, go to war, take down Hangu Pass, and capture Luoyang."

Jia Xu wanted to persuade him a few more words, but seeing the wide-eyed and small-eyed looks of the generals, he had no choice but to keep his mouth shut.

=

In March, Hangu Pass.

Xu Rong, Tian Chou, and Chen Wei rushed to Hangu Pass with their personal guard Qu Feima.

Captain Zhou Hua went out to meet him.

"Is Master Zhu here?" Xu Rong asked immediately when he saw him.

"Here we are." Zhou Hua replied, "I just arrived this morning. However, Mr. Zhu is not in good health, so he came here by car."

"Are you seriously ill?" Xu Rong asked in surprise.

Zhou Hua nodded, with a gloomy expression, "My lord's illness is caused by exhaustion. He deals with official duties all day long, and he is exhausted. He can't sleep for an hour a day. How can he not collapse?"

"After this battle, you must send your lord to northern Xinjiang." Tian Chou said worriedly, "if this continues, your lord will have an accident sooner or later."

"At this time, he will not leave Luoyang." Xu Rong said helplessly, "Even if Gongding (Zhu Mu), Zhongyuan (Li Wei), and Xiao Lan come in person, he will not leave Luoyang for half a step, unless the emperor has imperial decree."

"But if something happens to my lord, how will you and I explain to the general in the future? How can we go to see Gong Ding, Zhong Yuan and Xiao Lan?" Tian Chou said with a bitter face.

=

Zhu Jun lost a lot of weight, his eye sockets were sunken, his face was sallow, and his beard and hair were almost white.

He saw Xu Rong and Tian Chou walking in, struggling to get up from the soft couch to greet them.Xu Rong and Tian Chou hurried forward, supporting him from left to right.

"Zi Lie, I tried my best to recruit 7000 troops from more than a dozen counties and counties including Xuzhou, Yanzhou, and Yuzhou. With the addition of Zhou Hua's army, I managed to gather 1 troops." Zhu Jun coughed twice and said weakly. Said, "In this way, with the addition of Yan Liang's army, you will have 3 people on hand, which should be enough."

"My lord, I have ordered Gao Lan and Wu Xiong to withdraw from Yangdi." Xu Rong said, "Luoyang, I think it is better for Gao Lan to garrison."

Zhu Jun smiled wryly, "Why do you have to start a war in Luoyang?"

(End of this chapter)