Great Han Empire

Chapter 667
In May, Tongguan.

Under Jia Xu's persuasion, Li Jue, Guo Si and other Xiliang generals gave up attacking Niu Fu.

Internal strife will only aggravate the collapse of the army. At this critical moment of life and death, what is most needed is unity, concerted efforts, stabilization of the army, and motivation of the army's morale.

Niu Fu was forced to give up command of the army.The generals in Xiliang unanimously elected Li Jue to lead the army.Li Jue immediately summoned the military officials above the military rank to discuss the matter. He was impassioned in the big tent. You go back and tell every soldier that Mr. Dong was killed by a traitor in the court, the emperor was held hostage by a traitor, and the country is at stake.We want to enter Chang'an, kill the traitors and save the emperor, and avenge Master Dong.After entering Chang'an, every soldier is a hero of the court and can get a generous reward.

That night, the upper and lower levels of Tongguan were brightly lit, and the soldiers of various ministries in Xiliang were making careful preparations to attack Chang'an.Although the morale of the soldiers was not very high, they heard that they would have food, drink, and money when they entered Chang'an, so they were looking forward to it.

Niu Fu was overwhelmed with remorse, startled and frightened.In order to get the court's pardon, I made mistakes again and again. First I killed Dong Yue, and then I killed Hu Zhen. As a result, I angered the generals of Xiliang, and a group of my old subordinates were also chilled, so they abandoned him without hesitation. Own.These old subordinates, like myself, are all Xiliang people who have followed Dong Zhuo for many years. When these people heard that they would go to Chang'an to avenge Dong Zhuo, their blood was boiling and their morale was high.Without the betrayal of these old subordinates, his command of the army would not be lost.Without the army, my days are numbered.

Niu Fu thought twice, and decided to flee Tongguan and go back to Xiliang across the mountains.The situation in front of us was very cruel. The army was attacked by the Northern Xinjiang Army and the Imperial Army. Not to mention reaching Chang'an, even defending Tongguan was a problem.Failure is a matter of time.Taking advantage of the darkness, Niu Fu quietly escaped from the camp with more than 20 personal guards.

After Li Jue heard the news, he sneered contemptuously, "Master Dong is really blind. He found such an ungrateful jackal as his son-in-law. Let him go. Even if he reaches Xiliang, he won't live for a few days."

Zhang Ji was unwilling to let him go.He ordered his nephew Zhang Xiu to take a team of iron cavalry to search along the road, and Niu Fu must be killed.Zhang Ji and Hu Zhen are from the same hometown, and Zhang Ji joined the army with Hu Zhen back then, the two have been brothers for decades, how could they not avenge this enmity?Zhang Xiu and Hu Che'er chased after her all the way.Niu Fu was shocked, turned around and fled towards the Yellow River.Niu Fu thought, as long as I cross the Yellow River, I won't die even if I'm caught by the northern border army.In the northern border army, there are many borrowed generals from Xiliang that he is familiar with. With their help, survival is not a problem.Unfortunately, before Niu Fu escaped to the bank of the Yellow River, Zhang Xiu and Hu Che'er overtook him.The two rushed forward with their cavalry, and chopped Niu Fu into a meat paste.

Inside Tongguan, Li Jue, Guo Si, Jia Xu and others were arguing endlessly over whether to abandon Taolin Fortress.

Li Jue wants to abandon Taolin Fortress.After the army broke out of Tongguan, there was no retreat. It was enough to leave some troops to garrison Tongguan to prevent the northern army from entering the pass. Kanxi simply gave up completely.

Guo Si objected.Keeping Taolin Fortress will give the army the last chance to survive.Once the army is blocked from attacking Chang'an, it will definitely retreat to Tongguan. If Li Hong agrees to our request and lets us retreat to northern Xinjiang, then we will be saved.Li Hong once fought the enemy side by side with us on the battlefield of Xijiang, and rescued us in the battle of Lingwu Valley. With his personality and the persuasion of generals from Xiliang like Xu Rong and Qu Yi, he will definitely give us a solution way of life.

Li Jue scoffed.In the past few years, the Northern Xinjiang Army has repeatedly fought with us in the Kanto and Kansai, and there is a deep hatred between them.If Li Hong is willing to let us go to northern Xinjiang to avoid disaster, why should he beat us now?

The two disagreed, and they quarreled, and Fan Chou, Wang Fang and others also insisted on their own opinions, and no one could persuade the other.With more and more opinions, Jia Xu did not dare to make up his mind easily.

At this time, Zhang Ji sent an urgent report from Taolin Fortress, and the northern army suddenly retreated ten miles and stopped fighting.

Li Jue, Guo Si and other generals from Xiliang looked at each other in shock and doubt.Is Li Hong going to give us a way out?
Jia Xu was overjoyed and jumped up, "Quick, quick, attack Chang'an immediately, quick..."

Li Jue hesitated, "Wenhe, Northern Border Army..."

"You have to control your own destiny." Jia Xu said eagerly, "When we arrive in northern Xinjiang, we are like fish belly and we have to be slaughtered by others, so we can't go to northern Xinjiang."

"Do you want Taolin Fortress?" Guo Si asked hastily.

"Let Zhang Ji lead 3000 people to guard Tongguan, let his nephew Zhang Xiu lead 1000 people to garrison Taolin Fortress, and the rest of the army will all attack Chang'an." Jia Xu said loudly, "As long as Chang'an is captured and the emperor and the court are under control, this will be a great victory." No one in the world can defeat us."

"Okay..." Li Jue slapped the table with his palm, "Order the army to set off immediately and attack Chang'an."

=

In May, Kansai, Hongnong Camp.

Holding Yuan Shao's letter, Zhu Jun wanted to cry but had no tears.

Luoyang fell.

This letter was sent by Zhang Cheng, the former Yique captain who stayed behind in Luoyang.Zhang Cheng said that Chunyu Qiong suddenly surrounded Ping Optimism in the middle of the night, and the three thousand troops were caught off guard and trapped in the camp.Among the 3000 troops, many military officials and soldiers in Mali were originally Yuan Shao's people. Under their instigation and persuasion, the [-] troops quickly surrendered.

"Yuan Shao arrived in Luoyang?"

Zhang Cheng nodded and smiled helplessly, "My lord, Yuan Shao holds the emperor's imperial decree. The emperor worshiped Yuan Shao as the chariot general and ordered him to lead the army to Luoyang immediately. I have no choice but to open the city gate..."

"How about Hangu Pass?"

"When I entered the pass, Pan Feng, Zhu Ling, Tao Sheng and others had already passed by Chen Bing." Zhang Cheng looked at Zhu Jun timidly, and said in a low voice, "Yuan Shao said that if the northern army does not withdraw from the pass immediately, he will Attack quickly."

Zhu Jun closed his eyes in pain.

=

The eldest princess and the Jinyang court transferred Xu Rong and let Zhu Jun lead the northern border army in Kansai. The purpose was to defeat Dong Zhuo's old army as soon as possible and completely eliminate the threat of Dong Zhuo's old army to Chang'an.

Xu Rong was not only familiar with the generals of Xiliang, but also had many years of friendship. At this critical moment, he suddenly advocated appeasement, which made the Jinyang court unacceptable.It takes time to recruit, and there are great risks, and the situation in Guanzhong will undergo some unpredictable changes with the passage of time.Once the situation in Guanzhong changes suddenly again, the best time to save and stabilize the country may be so fleeting.

The four ministers Zhang Wen, Lu Zhi, Xian Yufu, and Li Wei immediately made countermeasures.Order Xu Rong to lead his troops into Chang'an to control the situation in Chang'an.

Xu Rong left Kansai, who commanded the best battlefields in Kansai and Kanto?At present, only Zhu Jun can coordinate and command the two battlefields of Kansai and Kanto.Zhu Jun has been in charge of the garrison of the Kanto and Luoyang, with Zhou Hua, Zhang Cheng and others' [-] troops under his command.In addition, with his lofty prestige among the warriors, it would be no problem for him to command the three armies of Yushi, Yan Liang and Zhang He who stayed in Kansai with the imperial edict of the eldest princess and the imperial court.What's more important is that Zhu Jun and the court can maintain consistency and not be disobedient like Xu Rong.

Yushi, Yan Liang, Zhang He and other generals of the Northern Frontier Army have been fighting against Dong Zhuo's army for several years, and they have a deep hatred for each other. This time they finally seized the opportunity to wipe out the enemy, how could they miss it?But Xu Rong insisted on appeasement. Although the other generals harbored complaints, they did not dare to stand up and oppose publicly. None of them wanted to offend Xu Rong.

Concerned about the safety of the emperor and Chang'an, Zhu Jun was eager to put down Dong Zhuo's former troops, which coincided with the thoughts of the generals of the Northern Frontier Army.Zhang Wen and other court ministers saw this, so they reassuredly handed over the command of the Northwest Frontier Army to Zhu Jun.The generals of the Northern Frontier Army cooperated very well, and Zhu Jun even spared no effort to send reinforcements from Luoyang to attack the Taolin Fortress.

However, at this juncture, Yuan Shao suddenly entered Luoyang and occupied Guandong, which dealt Zhu Jun a heavy blow.

The loss of Kanto and the fall of Luoyang is not a matter of how much guilt one has, but a problem of the emperor and the court not being able to return to Kyoto quickly, and the great cause of saving the country will be seriously delayed.When Yuan Shao occupied the Kanto, he also cut off the connection between the northern border and the southern states and counties. The northern border army and his own Henan army's food, grass and supplies were all cut off.Now whether it is to turn around and fight the Kanto, or continue to fight Dong Zhuo's old troops, there is no succession.

If Yuan Shao gained a firm foothold in the Kanto region, and then united with Liu Biao, Yuan Tan and other armies to defeat Yuan Shu and occupy Jing, Yu, Yan, Yang and other counties, Yuan Shao's power would expand dramatically.Yuan Shao has always refused to recognize the current emperor, and insisted on rebuilding the emperor's line. When his power is in full swing, he will definitely rebuild the emperor's line and establish another emperor.The world is in chaos.

=

The crime of harming the country, even if I die, I can't redeem it.The more Zhu Jun thought about it, the more he regretted it, and the more he thought about it, the more fearful he became.

Yushi, Yan Liang, Zhang He, Gao Lan, Hua Xiong, Gao Shun, Zhou Hua, Tian Chou and others will gather in the army camp for urgent consultations.

"Master Zhu, didn't Yuan Shao's army fight fiercely with the Yellow Turban Army in Heishan? Why did they suddenly reach Luoyang?" Zhang He asked suspiciously, "Even if Chunyu Qiong told Yuan Shao the news of Dong Zhuo's killing, Yuan Shao was still in such a short period of time. It is obvious that we will enter Luoyang within the time limit..." Zhang He didn't continue, he meant that someone under your master Zhu Jun must have betrayed you and acted as an internal response to Yuan Shao.

After Xu Rong left Kansai, his army was led by Zhang Yun.Xu Rong admired Gao Shun very much, and before leaving, he was transferred from Yan Liang's army and served as Zhang Yun's deputy.

Zhu Jun sighed.The power of the Yuan Clan was something that he could not contend against.

"Many ministers in the Chang'an court have a very close relationship with Yuan Shao, such as Lord Situ Wangyun." Zhang Cheng explained, "The imperial decree that Yuan Shao showed me is absolutely true. The only one who can give Yuan Shao this imperial decree is Lord Situ, so I think Yuan Shao probably knew the truth about the Chang’an Mutiny and Dong Zhuo’s murder earlier than we did. In addition, the powerful families in the Kanto region, including the princely families in Luoyang City, are inextricably linked with the Yuan Clan. Yuan Shao As long as he enters the customs, he can quickly gain a foothold in the Kanto region."

"Let's not talk about this now." Tian Chou said, shaking his hand, "Should we fight the Guandong, or continue to fight the Taolin Fortress, and enter the Guanzhong? Or..." He looked at Zhu Jun with a serious expression, and said cautiously, "Retreat to the east of the river?"

The Northern Xinjiang Army had intended to abandon the Kwantung for a long time. Li Hong had written to Xu Rong as early as early April that if he could not defend, he should give up as soon as possible.Now Yuan Shao took advantage of the favorable opportunity of the sudden change in Guanzhong, and occupied Luoyang without any effort. The food and grass of the northwestern border army in the Guanzhong was cut off immediately, and retreating to Hedong was the best choice.

But no one is willing to retreat to Hedong.

Yushi, Yan Liang and others strongly demanded to continue to attack Taolin Fortress and wipe out Dong Zhuo's old troops.

"We just have to fight for a few more days and they're done."

"With all of Dong Zhuo's old troops wiped out, we can quickly enter Guanzhong and join Master Xu Rong."

"Currently, the imperial edicts of the eldest princess and the imperial court are still valid. The most urgent task is to wipe out Dong Zhuo's old troops immediately and stabilize Guanzhong."

Losing Guandong is too much a crime. Considering Zhu Jun and their own future, Zhou Hua, Zhang Cheng and others strongly demanded to turn around and attack Guandong, and drive Yuan Shao out of Luoyang when Yuan Shao's foothold is not stable.

The generals of the Northern Xinjiang Army and the Henan Army argued fiercely.

"Continue to attack the Taolin Fortress and wipe out Dong Zhuo's old troops to ensure that Chang'an is safe and the emperor is safe." Zhu Jun said decisively, "I will bear the crime of losing the Guandong."

=

Hangu Pass is lost.Zhu Jun played Jinyang urgently.

Before the imperial decree arrived, Xu Rong's letter arrived first.

Xu Rong urgently wrote to Zhu Jun, and attached a letter from General Li Hong of Hussars.All fighting was stopped, and the northwestern border army quickly retreated to Hedong.

Li Hong's letter was addressed to Xu Rong, but this letter explained the current difficult situation in northern Xinjiang in great detail, which would help the generals of the northern Xinjiang army understand the situation.Due to the flood of refugees in Jizhou, the rebellion in the desert could not be quelled for a while, and the wealth of northern Xinjiang had reached its limit. Li Hong asked the Hebei army to obey the emperor's will and withdraw from Guanzhong quickly.

Xu Rong said in his letter that the Guandong was lost, and the food and grass of the northwestern border army in the Guandong were cut off. There was no way out except to immediately retreat to Hedong.Lord Zhu Jun, please temporarily stop the fighting and wait for the imperial edict.

=

The Guandong was lost, and Jinyang was shocked.

Although the imperial court also intended to abandon Kanto in the past, that was when Dong Zhuo existed.Now that Dong Zhuo has been killed, Dong Zhuo's power fell apart overnight, and the salvation of the country is hopeful, so Kanto cannot be lost, especially Yuan Shao, who refuses to respect the current emperor, cannot be occupied.The consequences of Yuan Shao occupying Luoyang are very serious. Once he gains a firm foothold, he will rebuild the imperial line.It is conceivable how chaotic the world will be after the emergence of two emperors in the great man.

Zhang Wen, Lu Zhi, Cai Yong and other ministers ignored the objections of Xian Yufu and Li Wei, and immediately asked the eldest princess to issue an order, ordering Zhu Jun and Xu Rong to quickly retake Kanto at all costs.

At the same time, I begged Li Hong to suspend the war in Jizhou, concentrate on stabilizing Guanzhong, and keep Guandong and Luoyang.

=

Xu Rong hurried to Hongnong and ordered the northern army to stand by and prepare to retreat to Hedong.

"Zi Lie, you want to resist the order?" Zhu Jun asked angrily.

"With the Kanto War, Jizhou will run out of food, and tens of thousands of refugees in Jizhou will starve to death." Xu Rong shouted excitedly, "I will resist the order."

(End of this chapter)