God of War through the ages: Han Xin

Chapter 22 The Battle of Pengcheng
Henan was settled at the end, Dongdong and Hanoi were taken in, the upper and lower rivers, the Central Plains were victorious, and they had been placed in the hands of the King of Han.

Liu Bang did not change his established goal, which was to expand eastward and look for fighters to wipe out the main force of the Chu army in one fell swoop.Since Hanoi County, newly occupied by the Han army, is on the north bank of the Yellow River, and Chu State is on the south bank of the Yellow River, the Han army needs to cross the Yellow River and march eastward along the south bank of the river.

The ferry Liu Bang chose from the north bank of the river to the south bank of the river is called Pingyindu (today's Mengjin North in Henan Province). This is the Heyin where Er Zhu Rongshen, the power minister of the Northern Wei Dynasty, killed more than 700 people including the Queen Mother Hu and the public officials [-] years later.The section of the Yellow River from Shan County to Pingyin is relatively narrow, but after leaving Pingyin, the river suddenly widens, so Liu Bang can only choose to cross south from here.

After crossing the river, Liu Bang got a message in Luoyang Xincheng (now west of Yanshi, Henan), which was sent by a local elder named Dong Gong (the elder is the official name, in charge of local education).Dong Gong stopped Hanwang's car and told Liu Bang: "Emperor Yi has been killed by Xiang Yu!"

It is said that after Liu Bang heard the bad news, he burst into tears on the spot.Then Liu Bang gave an order with tears streaming down his face that all the troops should wear filial piety, mourning Xiong Xin, Emperor Yi.At the funeral, Liu Bang still cried endlessly, and most of the soldiers below were from Chu, so how could they stand up to the attack of Liu Bang's tear gas bomb?

Liu Bang, who was almost out of control, endured his grief and sent a stern call to all the princes to condemn Xiang Yu's killing of Emperor Yi, and spread it all over the world to avenge Xiang Yu's crime!The call-to-action said: "Emperor Yi is established in the world, and the north is responsible for it. Today, Xiang Yu released and killed Emperor Yi to the south of the Yangtze River, which is a great rebellion. The widows are in mourning, and the princes are all plain. All the soldiers in the pass are dispatched, and the Sanhe scholars are collected. , I would like to attack the princes and kings of Chu who killed Emperor Yi!"

In military affairs, Liu Bang is not as good as Xiang Yu, but in politics, Liu Bang has no opponent at all.Xiang Yu also suffered a crushing defeat on the diplomatic front where the princes united vertically and even horizontally.Liu Bang practiced a set of diplomatic combination boxing casually, and Xiang Yu was beaten into a diplomatic bachelor by Liu Bang. Almost all his allies betrayed Chu and Han.

Xiang Yu had already clearly felt the strong military pressure from Liu Bang. According to the intelligence system report, Liu Bang, the king of Han, had gathered soldiers from the five kingdoms and gathered in Waihuang County (today's Minquan West, Henan Province), preparing to launch a general attack on Pengcheng, the capital of Chu.

The soldiers of the princes of the five countries plus the main force of the Han army, the total strength has reached an astonishing 56 people!In addition, Tian Heng's tens of thousands of Qi soldiers held Xiang Yu's main force in Chengyang, and they were considered Han's allies, and Chen Yu, the king of the dynasty, also sent heavy troops to help the Han. Thirty thousand soldiers under the command of "self-employed" Peng Yue.

On the whole, the total strength of the princes and allies led by Liu Bang should exceed 60.The total army strength of the Chu State at its peak was only 40, and most of them were soldiers from the princes. There were not many soldiers who really belonged to Xiang Yu's headquarters, and it should be less than [-].

When he was in Hongmen, the Chu army and the allied army were 40, while the Han army had only [-]. This is the main reason why Liu Bang swallowed his anger and danced on the tip of Xiang Yu's knife.Now that the strength is changing, the number of the Han army and the allied army is even far greater than that of the original Chu army and the allied army. It is precisely because of this that Liu Bang thinks that without Han Xin by his side, he can still beat Xiang Yu into a scumbag.

What is most beneficial to Liu Bang is that Qi Guotian Heng led the Qi people to firmly drag the main force of the Chu army in the quagmire of Chengyang. territory.For the sake of safety, Liu Bang changed the title of Wei Bao, the king of the Western Wei Dynasty, to the king of Wei, and took Peng Yue as Wei Xiangguo. He took [-] elite soldiers to wipe out the small Chu army near Daliang, and quickly entered Pengcheng by himself.

At this time, Pengcheng was almost an undefended empty city, and Liu Bang entered Pengcheng very easily.Liu Bang was very excited to get Pengcheng, a strategically important town, so easily, and copied Xiang Yu's retreat. But what made Liu Bang even more happy was that when Xiang Yu went to the north, he only brought elite soldiers, not rich and beautiful women.Now that Liu Bang has become the new owner of Pengcheng, these rich and beauties have naturally become Liu Bang's trophies.

What did Liu Bang do during the time he entered the city? "Historical Records Xiang Yu Benji" records: "The Han Dynasty has entered Pengcheng, received its goods, precious beauties, and Nizhijiu Gaohui."

Liu Bang was having a good time in Pengcheng, and Xiang Yu, who was far away in Chengyang, had already started to fight back against Liu Bang.

Xiang Yu is aware of the current situation where Chu is weak and Han is strong, but he does not have the so-called fear of Han as Liu Bang imagined.Since his debut, Xiang Yu has stood upright and never been afraid of anyone.The trapped beast is still fighting, and the painful wound will greatly stimulate Xiang Yu's bloodthirsty nature. The wounded lion first roars in a low voice, and then rushes towards the wolves desperately.

From this point of view, Xiang Yu is great enough!

The instinct of survival stimulated Xiang Yu's persistence in adversity, he will not give up, he will fight for survival and dignity.

Xiang Yu led [-] of the most elite soldiers of the Chu army, left Chengyang overnight, and rushed towards Pengcheng.As for Tian Heng, Xiang Yu is out of control at this time, leaving the frontline battles to the generals under his command, Xiang Yu believes that Tian Heng will not do anything about Zhong Li Mo and Long Qi.To deal with the rogue Liu Bang, Xiang Yu alone is enough.

Xiang Yu, the Overlord of Western Chu, rode his horse and crossed his halberd, galloping at lightning speed, followed by [-] sharp brigades behind him.

Xiang Yu's route to the south is: starting from Chengyang, passing through Lu County (that is, Xue County, today's Qufu, Shandong), going down to Huling (now east of Yutai, Shandong), and passing through Pei County.However, the Chu army did not go directly south from Liuxian County to the north of Pengcheng, but went around a big circle and went to Xiaoxian County (now Xiaoxian County, Anhui), southwest of Peixian County, to fight west of Pengcheng.

Xiang Yu made such a choice, which shows that he is very smart.He knew that Liu Bang had always regarded himself as his biggest opponent. When Liu Bang occupied Pengcheng, he would have guessed that he would go straight from the south of Chengyang to the north of Pengcheng, and stationed heavy troops in the north of Pengcheng.Xiang Yu did not go to the north of Pengcheng, but went to the west of Pengcheng, killing the Han army by surprise.

The Han army with Han Xin is completely different from the Han army without Han Xin.With Han Xin, on the one hand, it can effectively suppress the Chu army going south, on the other hand, Han Xin's army has strict discipline, and the army is always in a state of combat.Liu Bang claimed to be an invincible military strategist, he didn't bring Han Xin out to play, and he underestimated the enemy with pride, which resulted in a catastrophe.

The number of Han troops stationed in Xiao County should not be very large, and they would never have imagined that the mighty Overlord of Western Chu would launch an attack from here.With the fierce fighting power of the Chu army, the [-] loose and lazy Han army is no match for the Chu army, let alone this small number of troops?
When the sky was just dawn and the red clouds hung over the east, the Han army suddenly discovered that a large number of Chu troops were attacking Xiao County in a dark manner.

Almost at the moment of lightning and flint, Xiang Yu stepped straight on the enemy's formation, and the crowd screamed and rushed into the Han army.The brothers of the Han army were still immersed in the immortal days of the past few days and were not pulled out. They were hit head-on by the elite and fierce Chu army. Because they did not have both mental and physical preparations, the Han army suffered heavy casualties.

The 10,000+ Han army was completely thrown into disarray by the [-] Chu army. The general Han Xin was not in the army, and the King of Han was in the city. There were no generals on the front line, and the front line command system of the Han army did not exist at all.Regardless of the life and death of the rear team, the front team fled desperately to the rear. The front team was more like the vanguard of the Chu army, crushing the Han army's rear team.

Overlord was overjoyed to see such a wonderful picture scroll of war.But this is not enough, he wants to add his own rich strokes to this blood-stained picture scroll.The fighting spirit of the [-] Chu troops was almost crazy. They stared at their blood-red eyes, brandished their knives, and wantonly vented their joy of massacre.

These fleeing Han troops originally wanted to escape into Pengcheng City to avoid Xiang Yu, a lunatic, but the Chu army had long been mixed with the Han army, chasing and killing, unable to distinguish between the enemy and the enemy. Besides, the gate is so narrow, how many people can be squeezed in? ?The Han army gave up the idea of ​​entering the city and instead went to Gushui and Surabaya on the outskirts of Pengcheng.In fact, this is a dead end. Facing the obstruction of the big river, where can they escape?Behind him is the red-eyed Chu Jun.Countless Han troops were carried by a large flow of people, and they were swept into the icy river like the wind.In addition to being killed and drowned, the Han army lost 10,000+ troops in this messy battle.

But this is not the end of Xiang Yu's great war picture scroll, Xiang Yu only painted less than half of this picture scroll.

This is a result that Liu Bang, the Han king who was still enjoying the happiness in the world in Pengcheng, never expected. Xiang Yu did come, but he came with hatred and anger, killing people continuously, and the 10,000+ Han army was instantly reimbursed. Liu Bang wants to cry but has no tears.

Liu Bang in Pengcheng can't stay any longer no matter what, return all the wealth and beauty to Xiang Yu, anyway, he has enjoyed all that should be enjoyed, and now the important thing is to escape.Before the Han army in Xiao County fled, Liu Bang had already escaped from Pengcheng, and followed the tide of people fleeing to Nanshan.

There are many continuous hills scattered on the Huaihai Plain centered on Xuzhou, and there are many such hills to the south of Pengcheng. The Nanshan Mountain to which the Han army fled should probably be like this.Liu Bang wanted to rely on the convenience of the terrain to stop the Chu army who was too crazy to step on the gate. Xiang Yu was already red-eyed.

Liu Bang didn't dare to stay in Nanshan, and continued to flee southward under the pressure of the mighty crowd. The more he fled southward, the closer he was to Xiang Yu's headquarters in Chu State, but Liu Bang couldn't control so much anymore, and ran around like a headless chicken.Like a flock of frightened ducks, the Han army fled to the north bank of the Dongshui River in a panic after being whipped by the Chu army to howl like ghosts and wolves.

When the Han army found a big river in front of them, their hearts were completely cold. This time it's over, why is the big river blocking the way again!

Xiang Yu's success in the Battle of Julu was due to the strong fighting spirit and strict military discipline of the Chu army, while the Han army on the north bank of the East Sui River was already in chaos, and there was no formation at all. The King of Han was caught in the crowd and could not be found. , How can you fight with your back?That is Han Xin's patent, and there is no Han Xin in this army.In the confrontation with the Chu army, without Han Xin, it means that there is no victory.

The Chu army had another burst of happy massacres!

There is a big river in front of the Han army, and there are pursuers behind. They are caught in the narrow strip on the north bank of the river and cannot move. Except for a part of the Han army in the north, which was beheaded by the Chu army, the Han army near the river bank has nowhere to go. squeezed into the river.

"Historical Records Xiang Yu Benji": "The Han army was crowded by Chu and killed more. More than 10,000 Han soldiers entered Sui Shui, and Sui Shui did not flow." Dongsui Shui is not a wide river. , [-]+ corpses are enough to block the river dam. From a distance, the river surface has become a mountain of corpses piled up with corpses. The scene is shocking.

Xiang Yu doesn't care about these 10,000+ lives, he cares more about where Liu Bang is now.

Xiang Yu knew that Liu Bang was in this messy flow of people, but he didn't know that Liu Bang was dead, so he survived by luck.Never let Liu Bang slip away from the tip of his knife again!The Overlord ordered: You must find Liu Bang, you must meet people when you are born, and you must see corpses when you die!

Just when Xiang Yu kept galloping his horse and leading the team to track down Liu Bang's whereabouts, someone suddenly reported that Liu Bang's trace had been found and he was still alive.Xiang Yu was overjoyed, he must meet Liu Bang today, and see how this old man knelt in front of him and argued.But no matter how Liu Bang vomits lotus flowers, Xiang Yu will never give Liu Bang another chance, just as Yafu said: If Liu Bang is not eliminated, there will be endless troubles.

Because 10,000+ Han troops had been squeezed into the Dongsui River and drowned, a lot of open space had been vacated on the north bank of the river. Xiang Yu had also seen Liu Bang, who was in extreme distress, and dozens of cavalry around Liu Bang.

Xiang Yu looked up to the sky and laughed wildly!

Maybe it was God's will, just when Xiang Yu's laughter hadn't completely dissipated in the air, suddenly the weather was not good, and there was a strong wind blowing from the northwest...

Before Xiang Yu could see the direction of the wind clearly, the wind suddenly strengthened, and the north bank of Dongsui River was instantly darkened.It was noon at this time, and the sun was shining brightly, but it was already like night.Trees were uprooted, houses by the river collapsed, and sand and rocks were flying. The scene was extremely terrifying.The wind force like this should be at least level ten or above. Under such weather conditions, it is no longer suitable for large corps to fight.

Seeing that Liu Bang was about to be captured alive, but this gust of evil wind blew inexplicably, Xiang Yu was so angry that he cursed.

The Chu army already had the absolute upper hand, but Liu Bang was surrounded by countless Chu troops. There were three floors inside and outside, and it was impossible to escape.Now that this gust of evil wind came, Chu Jun was blown to one side, his eyes were fascinated by the wind and sand, and the sky was dark, and there was no one within a few meters.

God willing!

Liu Bang, who was almost desperate, looked up to the sky and shouted, time waits for no one, and he should not hesitate for a moment, and immediately took advantage of the chaos of the Chu army to escape.When the wind passed and the sky became clear again, Liu Bang had already disappeared.

Liu Bang's desire to survive is extremely strong.Taking advantage of the temporary darkness brought by this evil wind, Liu Bang and dozens of cavalry guards successfully escaped from the three-layer encirclement of the Chu army.Fortunately, Liu Bang didn't guess the wrong direction. He fled all the way north. When he looked back and saw that there were no pursuers behind, Liu Bang put his hand on his chest. He heard the sound of his heart beating violently.

After escaping from the triple siege of the Chu army on the north bank of the East Suishui River, Liu Bang's direction of riding his horse was still heading north. Even though he passed by Pengcheng, Liu Bang still did not change his direction.Where is he going?The answer is Pei County, because it is rare for Liu Bang to go back to Pei County. He intends to take this opportunity to take all the family members who stayed in Pei County out and go to Guanzhong to enjoy the blessings.

It's a pity that Liu Bang came late, and his family had fled ahead of time to avoid the Chu army who came to arrest them.Moreover, the Chu army of the brigade had followed Liu Bang to Peixian County. Liu Bang had no time to think about his family's problems, so he had to escape immediately, otherwise he would be eaten by the angry Xiang Yu.Once Liu Bang is captured, his family members will be worthless. Liu Bang prayed to the sky for his family to be safe, while riding his horse and galloping westward.

Liu Bang suddenly found two unkempt children sitting on a haystack by the roadside not far ahead. The boy was seven or eight years old, and the girl was about ten years old, cuddling each other.Liu Bang was so excited that he almost cried. Isn't this his son Liu Ying and daughter Lu Yuan?After a simple inquiry, Liu Bang learned that the two children were dispersed by the crowd while fleeing with their grandfather Taigong and mother Lu Zhi, and the whereabouts of their grandfather and mother were unknown.

Now Liu Bang really has no time to look for Lu Zhi, life and death, good or bad, let fate, it is enough to have a son to spread incense.Liu Bang didn't dare to stop less, and immediately carried the two children into the carriage, and then whipped the horse with a whip, must be fast!
When Liu Bang found out that there were soldiers chasing after the car, the most important thing this guy who boasted all day long that he was a good man who loved his family did was to kick his two sons and daughters off the car not long ago. carriage.Liu Bang thought that this would reduce the weight of the cart and make the carriage run faster, but he didn't know that even an empty carriage would never be able to shake off the fast horses of the Chu army not far away.

Fortunately, Xia Houying, who was with the team, had a better conscience than Liu Bang, how could he have the heart to let the two children fall into Xiang Yu's hands!He hurriedly dismounted, picked up the two children and pushed them into the cart.Liu Bang's true face of ruthlessness and ungratefulness was exposed again, and he kicked off the two children again, and Xia Houying picked them up again, and then there was a third time.

Liu Bang was so angry that he swung his sword and scolded Xia Houying: "Are you Xiang Yu's traitor? Such a waste of time, do you want Xiang Yu to capture the widow alive!" Xia Houying didn't have time to deal with this heartless guy, and tried his best to protect the two children.You don't think of family ties, but I still want two children to call me Uncle Xiahou.

Fortunately, Liu Bang bought enough time before, and when the Chu army chased him, the Hanwang's carriage had already gone away in a whirlwind of dust.

Liu Bang's first foothold in the west was Xiayi County, where his uncle Lu Ze was stationed, and Liu Bang could finally take a few breaths here, drink a few mouthfuls of hot water, and eat a few mouthfuls of dry food.At this time, Liu Bang had already received bad news: his father, grandpa, and wife Lu Zhi were accidentally discovered by the Chu army while fleeing westward, and they were captured back to the Chu camp, where they were strictly guarded by Xiang Yu.

Liu Bang wanted to cry at this moment, his father was lost, and his wife was also lost. He was worried that Xiang Yu would make some excessive demands because of this.

(End of this chapter)