Tibet

At this time, Lei Wanchun led an army of 20,000 to Yiling County. This time the army went south. Lei Wanchun was worried about Xiangyang and left 5,000 troops to guard Xiangyang. He also asked Wang Xiaoru to send a navy to blockade the Huaihe River to prevent Nanyang Liang Chongyi's army from sneaking into Xiangyang. .

The key to the success of Lei Wanchun's strategy this time was the full cooperation of Guizhou Governor Yang Zilin. The story he compiled about the two sons' struggle for power was very confusing and completely consistent with the information Li Lin had. Ji Guangchen had two boats. One of the two sons was loyal to Helong and the other was loyal to the imperial court.

If it hadn't been for the arrival of Lei Wanchun, the story of the two sons fighting for power might have really happened. However, after Lei Wanchun arrived, he quickly took control of the military power in Jingxiang. Without military power, Ji Jiangning, the governor of Yuzhou, had no choice but to protect himself and said that he would observe filial piety for his father for three years. .

After building a tomb of their father in Xiangyang, the two brothers took their mother and supported their father's coffin back to their hometown of Shouchun for burial.

Calculating that the other side should have run out of food today, the spies rushed back to report to Lei Wanchun that 30,000 former troops were trapped on a mountain road about ten miles east of Xingshan County.

Of course, the spies were observing the enemy's intelligence with clairvoyance on the south side of the canyon.

Lei Wanchun immediately ordered the plank road to be re-paved, and the army marched westward, preparing to collect the 30,000 troops who had been completely defeated by hunger.

Thirty thousand Li Lin's army repeatedly laid plank roads, but failed no matter what means they used. They could not resist the strong bows, crossbows and kerosene attacks of the Jingxiang army on the opposite side. After three rounds of laying plank roads, they failed miserably, and the materials used to lay the plank roads also failed. All used up.

Li Zhen sent another two thousand soldiers to cut bamboo trees thirty miles away, but they never came back. All the soldiers became prisoners of war of the Jingxiang Tang army.

In fact, Lei Wanchun's calculations were not accurate. The 30,000 former troops tried their best to save food and pushed back the food shortage date by two days, but it was still in vain.

Another day passed, and the most feared moment for Li Zheng's army finally came. They were completely out of food. From morning to noon, and from night to night, the 30,000 soldiers were starving, lying on the ground listlessly, waiting eagerly for food to arrive.

But more soldiers were in groups of three or five, heading east in groups. Thirty miles to the east was a mountain valley. There were large forests here. At least the woods could collect wild vegetables and fruits to satisfy their hunger, and maybe they could catch some. game.

But in front of the mountain col were countless Jingxiang and Tang troops, steaming hot rice and steamed buns. They laid down their weapons and surrendered, so that they could receive steamed buns to satisfy their hunger and survive.

All Bashu soldiers put down their weapons, took off their armor, and walked towards the steaming steamer without hesitation.

Lei Wanchun asked dozens of soldiers to go back to publicize the news. After receiving the news, the soldiers of Li Linjun struggled to get up and supported each other and walked hard to the east. Their strong desire to survive made them overcome the extreme fatigue of their bodies.

In the end, even Li Zhen had to order the entire army to surrender to give the soldiers a way out.

This is a classic battle. Li Ye wrote it into the training materials, warning the generals about the importance of food when marching on a dead road. As long as they are blocked before and after, they will become a turtle in the urn.

But while the Jingxiang Tang Army was dealing with Li Lin's army with all its strength, a crisis quietly came in the north.

In Gucheng County, more than 150 miles west of Xiangyang, the 50,000-strong army began to build pontoon bridges on the Han River under the cover of night. By the third watch, two pontoon bridges were completed, and the 50,000-strong army crossed the Han River overnight.

Blocking the Han River with warships is actually a systematic project. Warships alone cannot do it. A large number of infantry and a large number of scouts must be used to patrol both sides of the strait to keep track of the movements of the enemy's main force at any time.

But Xiangyang no longer has this kind of defense capability. They only have five thousand troops, and it is difficult to even defend the city. Not to mention the blockade of the Huaihe River, the warships can only take care of Xiangyang's first-line defense.

Chen Jingguang, the deputy governor of Xiangyang, learned that Liang Chongyi's 50,000-strong army had crossed the Han River and was heading towards Xiangyang. Chen Jingguang, who was more cautious than brave, thought it was the imperial army retaking Xiangyang, so he made a plan to let him With great regret, he felt that he could not defend Xiangyang, so he led 5,000 troops to abandon Xiangyang and evacuate, leaving Xiangyang to Liang Chongyi.

One of the huge consequences of the imperial court's handling of the three towns in Hebei was the demonstration effect, which made many people with ambitions discover that the central power of the imperial court could be compromised and decentralized, and that Jiedu Mansion could become a state within a state.

During Shi Siming's rebellion, in order to protect the Central Plains and Jianghuai River, the imperial court established a large number of Jiedu prefectures and gave them the power to organize their own troops to fight against Shi Siming.

After Shi Siming's death, some Jiedushi returned power to the court, but other Jiedushi saw the effect of separatism in the three towns of Hebei, and began to imitate it, and their ambitions expanded, such as Xu Shuji, Liu Zhan, Liang Chongyi, Tian Shengong, etc. Wait, there are also some ambitious generals who are gradually emerging, such as young generals such as Li Zhengji and Li Xilie.

Liang Chongyi was undoubtedly the most ambitious, cunning and low-key warlord among them. He defected to Li Fuguo. Not only was he not held accountable for the fall of Bian Song, he was also appointed deputy envoy of Nanyang Jiedu. After Li Xian returned to the court and was appointed prime minister, Liang Chongyi became the governor of Nanyang.

After the news of Ji Guangchen's sudden death came, Liang Chongyi did not dare to act rashly. However, under the constant instigation of his son Liang Xing and his staff military advisor Liu Benchang, Liang Chongyi's ambitions continued to expand, so much so that the emperor's will could not stop his expansion of ambitions.

When he discovered that Lei Wanchun was leading the main army south, Liang Chongyi decisively launched an attack on Xiangyang.

Liang Chongyi did not occupy Xiangyang City with a bloody sword. He was very proud. On top of the city, Liang Chongyi looked at the rising morning glow in the distance. He actually had the ambition to dominate the world.

But there was also an unspeakable worry in his heart. By taking this step, he not only offended Helong Li Ye, but also disobeyed the emperor's will. He had no idea what kind of blow he would encounter next.

"Military advisor, what should we do next?" Liang Chongyi asked military advisor Liu Benchang in a deep voice.

Liu Benchang was short in stature, but very cunning. He supported the battlements and said with a smile: "If you want to be a long-term minister, you can only use civil and military skills."

"How to say?"

"Let's talk about martial arts first. Military warfare is relatively simple. It is nothing more than collecting money and food from various states to Xiangyang, and then recruiting and training troops. As long as your army reaches 100,000 people, you will have the strength to separate Jing and Xiang."

"What about Wen?" Liang Chongyi asked.

"The text is very particular. I suggested that you should write a letter of apology to the emperor. He said that there were no troops stationed in Xiangyang and the opportunity was rare. Therefore, he could not help but send troops to recapture Xiangyang for the imperial court. He asked the imperial court to immediately send troops to Xiangzhou, Fangzhou, Tangzhou, Suizhou, Yuzhou and other places have sent officials, and I believe that the emperor also wants to drive Li Ye's forces out of Jingxiang."

Liang Chongyi thought for a moment and said, "Where is Li Fuguo?"

Liu Benchang nodded and said: "Li Fuguo is the key. You must immediately send 50,000 guan to Li Fuguo, and at the same time send 20,000 guan each to Yu Chaoen and Cheng Yuanzhen, so that your position is basically stable."

Liang Chongyi's eyes showed a hint of worry, "But Li Ye's army is still in Jingzhou, what should I do?"

"This must be faced. I suggest that all the family members of the Helong army be sent to Jingzhou as gifts. This may reduce the intensity of the backlash from Li Ye's army."

"can you?"

"It's very possible. As far as I know, Lei Wanchun has been stationed in Ezhou before. Maybe he will return to Jiangxia. On the Jingxiang side, Li Ye attaches great importance to Hanyang. As long as we don't move to Hanyang, I guess we can maintain the status quo."

Liang Chongyi nodded, "But no matter what, strength is the most important thing. I want to expand the army immediately."

When Lei Wanchun led the army to withdraw from the Three Gorges Road, he happened to encounter 5,000 Jingxiang troops who had retreated to Xiazhou. Lei Wanchun was furious and ordered Chen Jingguang, who had abandoned his defense in Xiangyang, to be beheaded. Everyone begged for mercy before being spared.

Losing Xiangyang also meant severing contact with Longyou, but Hanzhong could also send an eagle message. Lei Wanchun immediately sent people to Hanzhong to deliver the message, and at the same time led the army to retreat to Jiangling County in Jingzhou.

Lei Wanchun currently has 63,000 troops, including 30,000 Jingxiang troops, 30,000 Bashu surrender troops, and 3,000 cavalry. There is a lot of troops, but there is insufficient food.

At this moment, Liang Chongyi sent gifts to 12,000 military families out of Xiangzhou. This was beyond Lei Wanchun's expectation and made Lei Wanchun no longer feel the urgency to seize Xiangyang.

But what’s next? Lei Wanchun couldn't wait for His Highness King Qi's order, he had to make his own decision.