Han Dang is stronger

Chapter 98
It was Zhang Liang's idea to send someone to contact Chen Ying, the leader of the Dongyang Rebel Army. As early as when he and Qin Jia had finalized the joint southern expedition, Zhang Liang suggested that Xiang Bo should act first, and immediately sent someone to send a letter to contact Chen Ying to persuade him to join forces. Chen Ying, who had not taken any expansion actions since then, joined the Young Marshal Army, and joined hands with the Young Marshal Army partial division led by Uncle Xiang and his son to take down the southern cities of Donghai County. Zhang Liang's family, whom Zhang Liang met, went south with books and contacted Chen Ying to try to recruit him.

Uncle Xiang never expected that this move would become his life-saving straw later on. When he led his son and the young commander to the south as the commander-in-chief of the ether, Uncle Xiang was so high-spirited, and he was not as shabby as Xiang Kang on horseback. , directly asked his son to prepare a gorgeous vermilion lacquered cart for himself, and it was pulled by four horses. Sitting in the cart, he was triumphant and magnificent, and his style directly compared to the unfilial nephew who was the main force of the commander-in-chief army. .

The early battles also made Xiang Bo very directional, and Qin Jiajun split up and went south. As long as the pavilions passing by along the way saw the flag of the Young Marshal Army, there would be no pavilion leader who would not immediately open the door and surrender obediently, leading the pavilion soldiers to kneel down Greeting Uncle Xiang's arrival on the side of the road, Uncle Xiang, who was in a good mood, ordered no harm and surrender, and the pavilion chiefs and soldiers immediately kowtowed like chickens pecking at rice, thanking Uncle Xiang for his life.At the same time, the villagers who were unwilling to continue to endure the brutal rule of the Qin court also enthusiastically joined the army, so that the strength of the Young Marshal's partial division quickly exceeded 2000. Xiang Bo was also very happy, and he became more and more convinced that he would be able to pull up a powerful army this time. The army is a rival to Xiang Kang, who is only lucky enough to get to where he is today.

However, after inquiring about the expansion speed of Qin Jia's army, Xiang Bo gradually lost his composure. Every time Qin Jia's army went south from another road, in addition to plundering the people's money, food and materials, they also coaxed and coaxed the local people The young and strong people joined the army, even the half-old children who were not adults, and the army expanded far faster than the young commander's army. Qin Jia recruited nearly [-] troops before he had gone halfway.Of course, Uncle Xiang was very envious when he heard the news, and wanted to follow suit for a while, but fortunately Zhang Liang and Xiang You held him back, so Uncle Xiang gave up resentfully.

What made Xiang Bo even more dissatisfied was still behind. After arriving in the northern suburbs of Huaiyin unstoppably all the way, although the Young Marshal Army Pianshi met with Qin Jiajun as scheduled, but because the Qin Army had confiscated all the nearby ships, the Young Marshal Army Pianshi and Qin Jiajun If you want to cross the river and attack the city, you have to cross the Huaihe River with rafts and build floating bridges to allow the army to cross the river.As a result, when discussing which army should take up the heavy task of crossing, Xiang Bo and Qin Jia, who have very similar personalities, had their first fierce dispute.

Of course, the reason for the dispute was that Xiang Bo and Qin Jia didn't want to suffer, they just wanted to take advantage of each other, they both hoped that the other would take the risk, and neither of them would give in, the fight was so blushing that no discussion resulted.In the end, he had to cast lots to decide who would be in charge of the crossing. As a result, Xiang Bo's luck was pretty good, and he finally got a bargain. Qin Jia was dejected, but there was no other way, so he had no choice but to accept the gamble and accept the task obediently. .

Facts have proved that Qin Jiajun can't afford this burden. When the low-quality Qin Jiajun drove a raft to attack the opposite bank, the general of the Qin Army who fled here from the south led the Huaiyin Qin Army. The regiment, and then quickly fell into disarray, the soldiers fled and fled, and the soldiers fell into the water, and this happened several times. chuckle.

After Qin Jiajun’s failed crossing, logically speaking, it should be the young commander’s turn to initiate the crossing. However, in order to preserve his strength, Xiang Bo used the excuse that Qin Jia had won the lottery and that Qin Jia’s army must continue to initiate the crossing, even Zhang Liang came forward. Persuasion is useless.Qin Jia was furious, and was so angry that he said the words of parting ways. Uncle Xiang didn't have the confidence to win Huaiyin City alone, so he had no choice but to go downhill when Zhang Liang continued to talk, and agreed to let the young marshals initiate a rush to cross.

After paying a certain price, and because the Huaiyin Qin army was unwilling to fight all their strength in the field, the relatively high-quality young commander finally rushed across the Huaihe River and built a pontoon across the river.However, new troubles are coming soon. Which army should take up the important task of attacking the city?

This time there was no drawing of lots, and each discussed for a long time with their own little calculations. Xiang Bo and Qin Jia each made a concession and got the result. They decided that the young general army with relatively weak troops would be responsible for attacking the west gate of Huaiyin, and the strong Qin Jia army would be responsible for attacking the southern part of Huaiyin. Gate and East Gate, and then whichever army enters Huaiyin City first, will get [-]% of the money and food in the city.

The seemingly fair allocation of siege tasks, in exchange for everyone working together without effort, and not wanting to spend all their money, the troops commanded by Xiang Bo and Qin Jia only rushed to the city to give a few symbolic yells every time. Then he quickly fled under the counterattack of the Qin army. Not only did no one want to really work hard to attack the city, but he kept staring at the other party, constantly accusing the other party of being lazy and slack, just wanting to take advantage and not to suffer, the conflict arose, and it also caused Guan Hu, the general of the Qin Army who commanded the defense of the city, was puzzled. He scratched his head and said strangely: "How did Xiang Kang, a rebel, become so weak? When they attacked Ling County, if they were like this, how could I treat them like this?" Is Ling County lost?"

If such a siege really wins the historic city of Huaiyin, only ghosts would believe it.During the period, although Zhang Liang also helped Xiang Bo plan a few siege tactics, he also advised Xiang Bo to focus on the overall situation and not to be too greedy to preserve his strength, but it was useless. With an army, coupled with Xiang Bo's selfishness and Qin Jia's refusal to fully cooperate, no matter how correct and reasonable Zhang Liang's tactics are, if they are not executed properly, it will be futile. has been greatly affected.Zhang Liang was helpless, and he had to admit that Xiang Kang's driving Xiang Bo to the south line was indeed a brilliant move. Let Xiang Bo and Qin Jia, who also have obvious personality flaws, join forces, and it is doomed to fail to produce any decent results.

When they were at a loss, the envoys sent to contact Chen Yingyi's army suddenly brought good news, saying that they had received warm hospitality in Chen Ying's army. Shuai Jun's yearning and admiration, neither opposed to joining forces with the Young Marshal Army to overthrow Tyranny, but also expressed that he could consider leading the army to join the Young Marshal Army.In the siege battle, Xiang Bo also seemed to grasp a life-saving straw, and immediately proposed to abandon Huaiyin, turn around and fight Xutai, and then strive to recruit Chen Ying's rebel army who had directly captured Dongyang County.

Xutai was sandwiched between Xu County's young commander and Chen Yingyi's army led by Feng Zhong. The situation was critical. Compared with Huaiyin, Xutai should be easier to fight. Of course, Zhang Liang did not object. With both hands agreeing, the coalition forces immediately lifted the siege of Huaiyin, turned around and headed west to attack Xutai.

At the same time, the scramble for Chen Ying's army was in full swing. Of course, Xiang Bo immediately sent eloquent envoys to Dongyang to persuade Chen Ying to lead the army to join the side division of the Young Marshal's Army and accept his orders. He commanded and joined forces with his own army to take down the cities in the southern part of the East China Sea.Qin Jia, who was not an idiot, also acted almost at the same time, sending envoys to visit Chen Ying with gifts, and persuading Chen Ying to join the army and open up a new world with him.According to Xiang Kang's previous orders, Feng Zhong has been trying to persuade Chen Ying to change his flag and directly accept Xiang Kang's orders.

Three days later, Xiang Bo and Qin Jia's coalition forces successfully arrived at the outskirts of Xutai. When the results made them ecstatic, the coalition forces had just set up camp, and Chen Ying, who was not far away, brought more than 3000 troops to Xutai. He also directly sent envoys to express his attitude, saying that his own army was here to help Xiang Qin's coalition army attack Xutai. After Xiang Bo and Qin Jia were overjoyed, they couldn't wait, so they hurriedly sent people to visit Chen Ying and invited Chen Ying to meet in the camp.However, Qin Jia was very careful, saying that there were too many affairs in the army, and he refused to meet in the camp. Instead, Xiang Bo and Qin Jia met in his own army.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with Chen Ying doing this. Xiang Bo and Qin Jia came together, and they made it clear that they wanted to grab the land and grab money and food. Taking the opportunity to detain himself directly, forcibly annexing his army and territory.And Xiang Bo and Qin Jia are also two masters who are greedy for life and afraid of death. After joining forces, they usually discuss things with each other in open places and meet with their guards. Of course, they dare not rashly take risks in other people's camps. Passed the camp on his own behalf, and persuaded Chen Ying to join his army directly under the banner of paying a visit.

Of course it was Zhang Liang who represented Uncle Xiang. After seeing Chen Ying, Zhang Liang soon discovered that Chen Ying was actually quite elegant and didn't have much ambition. He just wanted to find a thick thigh to hug and follow the boss. Eat well and drink spicy food, and it is easy to escape for his life after a failure (Chen Ying's real person in history).However, when Zhang Liang persuaded Chen Ying to join him on behalf of Xiang Bo, Chen Ying made it clear: "Mr. Han, this matter is too important, I must discuss it with Master Xiang face to face, otherwise, I dare not make a decision idea."

Knowing that Chen Ying wanted to see in person whether Uncle Xiang was worth following, after returning to the camp, Zhang Liang of course urged Uncle Xiang to go to the camp in person, and personally persuade Chen Ying to join the Young Marshal's army.However, Uncle Xiang shook his head and said, "I can't take this risk. People's hearts are so deep, who can guarantee that Chen Ying will be safe. I can't pass the camp. You can come back tomorrow and tell Chen Ying. If he joins us, I will immediately make him a captain and give him a reward of one thousand."

"It's really a pity to do great things, and see Xiaoli die." Zhang Liang sighed secretly, and persuaded: "Brother, I can make another trip, but if you don't show up in person to show your sincerity in soliciting, Chen Ying definitely won't make this decision himself, so even if I go again, I'm afraid I'll have to return empty-handed. Also, I can see that Chen Ying doesn't have too much ambition and is full of kindness towards us. There is certainly no danger in battalion to meet him in person."

Of course, Uncle Xiang didn't dare to trust Zhang Liang's guarantee, he just continued to shake his head, and said with an idea: "Why don't we, like Qin Jia, ask Chen Ying to meet outside the camp, and each lead a team Guard, so he can rest assured, right?"

"Brother, doing this can reassure Chen Ying, but he will also know that you are worried about him." Zhang Liang said helplessly: "If you do this, he will only understand that you are suspicious and guard against him, so you Even if we meet him, I'm afraid it will be difficult to persuade him to lead his army to join you."

After pondering for a while with a sullen face, Uncle Xiang said, "Just do this, and we will talk about it first. If I find that Chen Ying is really reliable, I will immediately visit his camp and persuade him to lead an army to join us."

Zhang Liang reluctantly agreed, but it was getting late, so Uncle Xiang could only plan to send someone to contact Chen Ying the next day for an appointment, but the next morning, the scouts suddenly sent an urgent report saying that it was Chen Ying Qin Jia and Qin Jia had each led a guard and ran to meet in front of an open field in the southeast of Xutai.Xiang Bo was shocked when he heard the news, and hurriedly scolded Qin Jia for his quick actions, while hurriedly leading a team of guards and Zhang Liang, and rushed to meet Qin Jia and Chen Ying.

When they arrived at the scene, Chen Ying and Qin Jia were chatting and laughing with each other in the cold wind. Uncle Xiang went up to beg for drinks cheekily. Although Qin Jia, who arranged the open-air banquet, did not refuse, he asked someone to give Xiang a drink. Bo set up a seat and introduced to Xiang Bo with a smile: "Master Xiang, let me introduce you. This one is Brother Chen Ying and Chen. Although he looks gentle, he does things more straightforwardly than us. He has already agreed to take his The army and I have joined forces to overthrow Tyrant Qin and rebuild Chu."

Uncle Xiang's heart sank, and he hurriedly looked at the expression of Chen Ying, who was about the same age as Zhou Zeng. Fortunately, Chen Ying was also very good at talking, and while saluting to Uncle Xiang, he smiled gently and said, "Brother Qin is in a hurry, this matter is still under consideration." I have to go back and discuss with my subordinates. You also know that those who killed Dongyang and Qin County Magistrate were all my subordinates. I was forced to this position by them after the fact, so for such a big matter, I have to discuss it with them before making a decision."

Xiang Bo heaved a sigh of relief, but Qin Jia laughed loudly and said, "Brother Chen Ying, why do you need to discuss? Look at how many soldiers I have. Joining forces with me will make you suffer? That's it. After a while, I will send someone to send you a few beautiful women there, and when Xutai is conquered, we will share three points of the money and food in the city, and you will get one."

Chen Ying declined the woman Qin Jia sent with a smile, but Qin Jia insisted on sending her. During the dispute, Uncle Xiang lost his composure and said with a smile: "Mr. Can't you consider joining our Young Marshal Army? Don't you know, sir, that our Young Marshal Army has now captured the land of six counties, and the army is strong, sir, if you lead the army to join us, how could we let you suffer? "

"Master Xiang, this is your fault." Qin Jia pretended to be angry and said, "Brother Chen Ying already has a city and his own army, why do you want him to join you? The cooperation between them should be to fight against Qin together, right?"

"Then you just swallowed Chen Ying's army up to the bone, right?" Xiang Bo said with contempt in his heart, but smiled on his face: "Combination makes strength strong, and division makes strength weak. Although it is good to join forces, but after all, One army has many masters, and orders go out to many sects..."

A cavalryman from the young marshal rushed over and interrupted Xiang Bo's persuasion. Qin Jia and Chen Ying's guards hurried to be careful. Xiang Bo also looked back in doubt, not understanding what happened.Fortunately, the cavalryman didn't have any malicious intentions. He rushed forward, reined in his horse, and immediately bowed his hands to Xiang Bo and said, "Master, twenty miles away from the north bank of the Huai River, we found a troop of ours heading towards Xutai. The city hastened to come."

"Our army?" Xiang Bo was stunned for a moment, then he quickly came to his senses and said, "It must be Feng Zhong's army, and he is here too. But why did he come, I didn't ask him for help?"

Both Qin Jia and Chen Ying's expressions changed a little, and Qin Jia, who was the most cunning and suspicious, said to Chen Ying: "Brother Chen, didn't you just say you wanted to go back and discuss with your subordinates? Why don't we come here today and wait Meet again another day?"

Knowing that Qin Jia was worried about the sudden arrival of the Young Marshal's reinforcements, Chen Ying, who also had some doubts about the intention of the Young Marshal's reinforcements, immediately nodded, and agreed, and then they both bid farewell to Xiang Bo, leading the guards very carefully. Hurry back to the camp, and then immediately send scouts to inquire about the specific situation of the reinforcements of the Young Marshal's army.Xiang Bo also hurriedly led his guards back to the camp, and at the same time sent messengers to the north to contact the young commander of Xu County to inquire about their specific intentions.

After a while, the messenger who went to make contact came back in a hurry and reported to Xiang Bo and Xiang You and his son that the commander of the Xu County Marshal who came from the south was Feng Zhong himself, and his intention was to help Xiang Bo and his son attack Xutai City. I was still a little happy, but unexpectedly, another scout flew to report from outside the tent, saying: "Master, Captain, the Tyrant Qin army at the head of Xutai city suddenly put down all the flags, opened the gate of Xutai, and sent many ships to go To the north bank of the Huai River."

"What the hell is the Qin army doing?" Xiang Bo was puzzled again, and said, "Want to take the initiative to fight Feng Zhong? Are they not afraid that we will take the opportunity to attack the city?"

"Could it be that they are preparing to surrender?" Zhang Liang raised his head suddenly, and said quickly, "Could it be that the Tyrant Qin army in Xutai City is preparing to surrender to Feng Zhong's army?"

"What?" Uncle Xiang was dumbfounded and said in surprise, "How is it possible? If the Tyrant Qin army in Xutai wanted to surrender, why didn't they surrender to us? Instead, they surrendered to Feng Zhong who just arrived?"

"How is it impossible? If Xutai's Tyrant Qin army is not planning to surrender to Feng Zhong, why send the ship to the north bank?" Zhang Liang asked back, and then said: "Feng Zhong has been stationed in Xu County for a while, and there must be something with Xutai. You must come and go, recruiting surrender is much more convenient than us. And you have seen Qin Jia's group, wherever they pass, they are like locusts crossing the border, and they refuse to stay. How could the Tyrant Qin army in Xutai not be afraid? If They intend to surrender, wouldn't it be safer to surrender to the familiar Feng Zhong?"

Xiang Bo woke up like a dream, and hurriedly yelled, ordering Xiang You to send troops to take over Xutai city first, but Zhang Liang was very calm, and hurriedly shouted: "Brother, we can't take over Xutai, let Feng Zhong It is more beneficial for us to take over the army! Don’t forget, you promised Qin Jia before that you and him joined hands to take down Xutai. If you want to let him station this city, you will take it over, Qin Jia I reached out to you for the city, what do you do?"

Uncle Xiang was tongue-tied, and after a while he said bitterly, "Isn't that too cheap for Feng Zhong?"

"Nothing is better than Qin Jia's." Zhang Liang said calmly, "Brother, you took down Xutai. If you don't hand over Xutai to Qin Jia, it's a breach of trust and let the world scold you. If we hand it over to him, our soldiers will be reviled again." How can you be convinced? Where will the prestige and face of your army survive?"

Uncle Xiang slumped on his son's handsome chair like a deflated ball. Amidst the conflicts and hesitation in his heart, Uncle Xiang couldn't help but have such thoughts, and secretly said: "I hope the ovary guessed wrong, Xutai's The Tyrant Qin army crossed the river not to surrender, but to fight Feng Zhong."

Unfortunately, the matter was predicted by Zhang Liang. When Feng Zhong personally led the Xu County Marshal Army to the ferry on the north bank of the Huai River, the Qin army at the ferry immediately put down their weapons and surrendered to Feng Zhong. Feng Zhong quickly sent troops to cross by boat. After the river, the magistrate of Xutai County led all the officials in the city to kneel and surrender in front of the city gate. The young commander of Xu County drove into the city and quickly took over the control of Xutai City.

"It's really a fight between snipe and clam, and the fisherman wins. We, Qin Jia, and Chen Ying all looked down on Xutai City, and we didn't expect to force Xutai to our friendly army in Xu County. , I never thought that Feng Zhong, an unknown soldier, would come up with such a brilliant move as taking advantage of the situation."

Upon receiving this news, Zhang Liang, of course, heaved a sigh. It was extremely strange that a general with mud legs under Xiang Kang's command, how could he have such abilities?First, he saw the only way out for the Young Marshal Army when he was flanked by the Qin Army, and put forward more clever tactical suggestions?Will this cleverly use the threat of the three-way allies to force Xu Tai to surrender directly to him?At the same time, Qin Jia's envoys had also gone to the camp of Uncle Xiang and his son to inquire about the crime, demanding that Uncle Xiang fulfill his promise and hand over Xutai City to them for garrison.

It was not easy to send Qin Jia's envoy away with the reply after discussing with Feng Zhong. Of course, Xiang Bo's face was as ugly as possible. No matter how Zhang Liang and Xiang You comforted him and said that this was a good thing, Xiang Bo also I can't be happy.In the end, when the soldiers reported that Feng Zhong had sent an envoy to contact him, Uncle Xiang came to his senses and roared, "Send an envoy to see you? Feng Zhong, how dare you not come to see this old man in person?"

After Feng Zhong's envoy was called in, Uncle Xiang repeated the question again, and Feng Zhong's envoy said truthfully: "Report to Master, our Feng Duwei originally wanted to come to see you in person, but he is too busy. You didn't even enter Xutai City, and you immediately took a few people to the Dongyang friendly army camp in the south, so there is really no way to come and pay a visit right away?"

"Why did he go to the Dongyang friendly army's camp?" Xiang Bo asked in shock.

"Go to appease them." Feng Zhongxin replied honestly: "The young commander had an order before, asking Feng Duwei to come forward on his behalf to appease and recruit the Dongyang friendly army. Since this meeting is a rare opportunity, we Feng Duwei went."

Hearing this, Uncle Xiang's face suddenly turned pale, and he didn't care about the danger, so he immediately shouted: "Prepare the horse for the old man, and go to Chen Ying's camp immediately!"

(End of this chapter)