Chapter 213 Guangping
In the sixth year of Guanghe, on June 24, in Guangping, the Han army's Beizhonglang general camped in Zhangshui.
After the victory over the Hebei Yellow Turbans in Handan, fourteen days ago, Lu Zhi and his clan members won another great victory in Quliang. The Hebei Yellow Turbans once again retreated north to Guangping, not far from Julu County, where they once again faced off with Han soldiers.
When Lu Zhi led his troops, they knew that this place was obviously a position that Taiping Dao had planned for a long time. The thieves built three pontoon bridges on the Zhang River, and built six stone fortresses lined up on the remains of the Zhao Great Wall, all the way to the Zhang River.
On the east bank of the Zhang River, there are Lao Chao, Quzhou and Guangzong, which have been operating on Taiping Road in Hebei for 20 years. There are nearly 100,000 Taiping Dao believers here, who can cross the Zhangshui River on the three floating bridges built at any time to support the positions on the west bank of the Zhangshui River.
Lu Zhi now understood why Taiping Road had to resist all the way northward from Handan. It turned out that it was to build a fortification zone twenty miles wide from east to west in Guangping, relying on the pontoon bridge over Zhangshui River and the ruins of the Zhao Great Wall, to fight against the Han soldiers. A long confrontation.
Lu Zhi was both civil and military, and he knew at a glance that the key to this battle lay in the three pontoon bridges on the Zhang River. As long as these three pontoon bridges are there, the Taiping Road reinforcements on the east bank of Zhangshui River will continue to cross the river to support them, and they can only reach a positional battle with the Yellow Turban Army.
Lu Zhi originally had an army of 20,000, which had been combined with Hanoi, Weijun, Zhao, Julu and 4,000 Youzhou cavalry from the north. Now his army has reached 40,000. It is an exaggeration to say that the people will conquer the world, but sweeping Heshuo is completely enough, so even if Lu Zhi sees the key to this battle, he only plans to defeat Shihui with one force.
Therefore, he ordered Zhang Zebu of the former army from Wei County to go out and attack the Lianzhai on the outskirts of Guangping. But unfortunately, apart from losing troops and generals, nothing was achieved. This general Zhang Ze was so angry that his beard exploded, thinking that before he was guarding Yecheng, Taiping Road could not do anything to him. Now if he were to attack, he would end up with the same result.
After several days of fierce fighting without victory, the morale of the Han army was slightly depressed. As a last resort, Bei Zhonglang's general Lu Zhi personally recruited a hundred brave men who dared to die, and he was led by his general Lu Fang. Taking advantage of the gloomy night and the fog shrouded the Zhang River, I rowed a small boat and wielded a big ax, trying to cut off the iron cables and the pontoon bridge. However, the night was quiet, and the sound of rowing alarmed the Yellow Turban Army guarding the pontoon, and the lights were bright for a while.
Lu Fang was horrified, and just as he was about to push his army forward, the Yellow Turban Army's camp was set on fire and arrows were fired, and arrows rained down. Lu Fang was the leader, and he was hit by dozens of arrows and sank into the river. The other warriors were also hit by fire arrows and lay in the boat wailing. After a while, the shouts gradually disappeared, but the mist was filled with red.
Lu Zhi established a water village, and his relatives were in miserable condition, but they were silent. The left and right were uneasy, and just as Jia Yong was about to invite a fight, Lu Zhi had already held his breath and fainted on the ground. It was night, and the Han army's stronghold was silent all night.
——
The next day, as the morning light dimmed, the Han army's morning drums sounded.
Lu Zhi was leaning on the couch, his face pale and green with frost. Youyou woke up and saw the generals gathered around the couch, with anxious faces and warm hearts. The Lu family in Zhuojun had been operating for a hundred years and finally gained some prestige. These important generals of the Han Dynasty still obeyed them. As for the guards on one side, not to mention, they all had a close relationship with him and were extremely loyal to the Lu family. They were even more heartbroken at this moment. But not long after Lu Zhi was moved, he thought of his nephew Lu Fang's voice and smile, and of the red color that filled the Zhang River last night. He couldn't help but cover his face with his palms and cry muffledly.
Suppressing the turbulence in his heart, Lu Zhi stood up and asked the generals for their advice:
"Last night, we failed because I didn't check the situation. The brave men in our army died in vain. If I don't kill the yellow scarf ant thief, it won't be enough to vent my anger. If I don't kill, it won't be enough to comfort my nephew's spirit. But the thieves are cunning, and they have the advantage of the location. So, do you have any ideas for me? ”
Everyone looked at each other speechless, Lu Zhi sighed, also feeling gloomy.
Suddenly, the tent door opened, and a bearded man came in on his knees. The guards outside the tent were shocked and scolded the bearded man.
When the man with the beard was still waiting to advance, the guard became angry and hit the man with the beard on the ankle with his knife. The bearded man wailed and fell to the ground. The guards on both sides dragged the man away until he was brought out of the tent to be punished.
Anyone who dares to go straight through the Chinese army's tent will be killed directly.
The bearded man also knew that what he had just done had violated a taboo in the army, and knew that if he did not speak out, he would definitely die, so he shouted:
"Ming Gong, don't try to harm me, I have a plan to defeat the thief."
The guards dared to bark when they saw this man. They were afraid that Lu Zhi would be angry and continue to pull the bearded man for more than ten feet, so they had to deal with it carefully.
It came suddenly. Lu Zhi was looking sad and gloomy when the bearded man suddenly appeared and was dragged away by the guards. When he heard that this man had a plan to defeat the thief, he rushed towards the beard without even thinking about talking.
Later, when he saw that the guard was still dragging the bearded man, Lu Zhi became angry and his eyes turned cold. He even picked up a horse and threw it at the guard who was dragging the bearded man. Lu Zhi didn't care, so the horse brushed against the guard. The side of his face broke the tent.
But this still made the guard kneel down in shock, with a panic-stricken look on his face, just because Lu Zhi was not only the general of the Northern Palace of the Han Court, but also the head of the Lu family in Zhuo County, and one word could determine their life or death.
This guard is prostrate. The rest of the guards did not dare to pull any more, and just stood aside. The bearded man was also frightened when he saw Lu Zhi suddenly getting violent. But knowing that life and death depended on this, even though his body was shaking, he told Lu Zhi one by one how to defeat the thief.
This bearded man is named Meng Mingguan. He was originally a wandering knight in the streets of Ye County. He admired the stories of his predecessors, read several military books, gathered with fellow villagers, and tasted great talk, saying that he had the art of defeating thousands of people. This time, the Han army sent a large number of troops to attack the Yellow Turban Army in Hebei. They were greedy for the money and food in the army and enlisted in the army. Because he has a good beard, his teeth will be loved by his generals and they will recruit him as a guard to protect his teeth.
Before, he heard Lu Zhi lamenting about the failure of thieves outside the tent. He was moved in his heart and gritted his teeth against the tent in a bid for wealth. Unexpectedly, he almost lost his life. If Lu Zhi hadn't lost his nephew this time and was looking for a way to defeat the thief, otherwise, with his strict military management, if he dared to break into the Chinese army's tent, he would have been exposed to the public. .
——
Two days later, on June 27, the morning light dimmed and the military drum beat three hundred times.
Lu Zhi led the attack on various villages, and all armies advanced together. At the same time, the Yecheng naval force of the Han Dynasty sent out more than ten iron boats with cow leather on them and a brazier in front. They sailed upstream in a mighty manner.
The Yellow Turban Army in the water stronghold had already seen the Han army's cockroach. According to the old plan, they fired fire arrows, but they were deflected by the cowhide on the cockroach. The stern rowed along with the oar and went upstream, reaching the first layer of iron cables.
At this time, the dead man lying at the bow of the ship lit the kerosene in the brazier, and the flames suddenly rose, burning the iron chains red. There were another dozen or so big men wearing helmets and raccoon cloths, holding axes and slashing at iron chains. If so, the pontoon bridge will be broken.
The Yellow Turban Army stationed on the east bank of Zhangshui was furious when they saw that the pontoon bridge was broken. I saw Han troops going down the river again, and the walled city on the other side of the river was surrounded by Han troops.
Stationed at the barrier on the east bank of the Zhang River was the Yellow Turban general Zuo Zhaozhangba. He personally led his troops to rescue him and sent troops to the east bank. However, the pontoon bridge was broken and there was a Han army boat division crossing it, making it impossible to enter. Just when all the generals were suspicious, Zuo Yanzhangba ordered Zhang Yan, a good traveler in the army, to swim Zhangshui into Guangping in hiding to explore the situation in the city.
Stationed in Guangping is Yang Feng, a young commander of the Yellow Turban Army. He has a sinister temperament and a bit of courage. He is a local tycoon, he has always been a knight, and he has won the hearts of scholars. Because he was dissatisfied with the arrogance of the county officials, when the Taiping Road uprising occurred in April, he raised troops to respond, killed the county magistrate, and let the Yellow Turban Army enter the city. After the war, he ranked first in merit and was stationed in Guangping.
At this time, Yang Feng was wearing armor and personally led his troops to stand in the south city of Guangping, hoping to stop the Han army. However, the Han army sent a total of 40,000 troops and besieged them on all sides. The walls built outside the city were also surrounded by Han soldiers and could not save him. In addition, Yang Feng felt that the defense line was impregnable, and he was not well prepared for falling rocks, rolling wood, and gold juice. Therefore, the Han soldiers rushed directly to the city, but he was caught off guard.
But in the face of this critical situation, Yang Feng was upset but encouraged the troops:
"Brothers, the enemy is afraid of reinforcements from our friendly forces on the east coast, and wants to take advantage of my ambition to win quickly. But the billions of sons of our rebel army are all brothers. How can Commander Zuo sit back and wait for us when we are in trouble? I I expect reinforcements from Commander Zuo will be on the way. Brothers, we will fight against the Han thieves."
At this time, Zhang Yan swam in Zhangshui, climbed up the rope to Guangping, and met Yang Feng. Yang Feng took Zhang Yan's arm, pushed him to the left and right, and said:
"Brothers, do you have any doubts? This warrior is General Zuo Shuai. When you enter the city, tell me that Zuo Shuai's reinforcements are coming soon. I hope we will live up to Huang Tian's kindness and swear to defend Fancheng."
Hearing this, the troops clamored and regained their momentum.
Seeing that morale had recovered a little, Yang Fengcai whispered to Zhang Yan:
"What do you call a strong man?"
"Changshan Zhang Yan"
"Okay! Brother Zhang enters the city alone, he must be brave and heroic. My previous actions were nothing more than deceitful tactics, and my strength can be strong or weak. Our army will be exhausted and trapped in an instant. I hope the strong men will take pity on the thousands of children in my city and return. Dong'an told Commander Zuo to send a large army to help quickly, otherwise everything will be over."
At this time, Zhang Yan looked at Yang Feng with a look of sadness, which was very different from the previous one.
But Zhang Yan had no choice but to tell Yang Feng that the pontoon bridge was damaged and the reinforcements were blocked by the Han army's naval division. When Yang Feng heard this, he seemed speechless and seemed to have a death wish. He waved his hand and asked Zhang Yan to return and do his best.
Zhang Yan descended from the city, killed several brave soldiers, and swam back to the east bank. The Qi is not intermittent, and the beard on the left is eight feet long, indicating that Guangping is in danger. Zuo beard Zhangba did not expect that Yang Feng was so careless and underestimated the Han army. He was so angry that he cursed this local dog in front of all the horses.
But for Huang Tian's plan, Guangping cannot defeat it. Once it was broken, the Zhangshui defense line was broken, and the Yellow Turban Army had no choice but to retreat to Guangzong.
There was no other way. Eight generals with left beard and ten feet called the generals and asked what they had planned. These generals on the Taiping Road were generally careless, and few of them had plans in mind. They all frowned and racked their brains but couldn't come up with anything.
But at this time, a brave man raised up all of them, it was Kushai, he said bravely:
"Lu Zhi came here with the hope of making this move. If our army does not cross, Guangping will definitely not be able to hold it. There is no other choice for today's matter, but to fight to the death at the risk of one's own life. What plan can I use? I am willing to take the lead. The brothers under my command will recruit three hundred warriors from Qu's commander's army to advance first."
As soon as he said this, Zuo Beard Zhangba applauded loudly. Without any delay, he directly selected the 300 bravest men who dared to die from the guards and handed them over to Kushai. Then he took out the fifty small boats that had been hidden earlier and gave them to Kushai. Cross the river.
Before setting off, Zuo Zhangba personally invited Zhuangxing to drink for all the warriors.
Zuo Zhangba finished the wine in one gulp and said solemnly:
"Brothers, today is a matter of life and death for me in Taiping Dao. I am ashamed and cannot set out with the brothers, but I swear by Huang Tian that you will go first and I will follow, and I will not let the brothers die alone."
After saying that, Zuo Zhangba shouted loudly:
"Dead ball!"
Kushai and other three hundred warriors all finished their wine and shouted:
"Dead ball!"
Then Kushai and other warriors, armed with armor and axes, crossed the river by boat. Kushai's troops were approaching the ship, and arrows were flying on the ship, and their troops suffered heavy casualties. Kushai led his troops to cross the river, seize the upper reaches, ignited the kerosene prepared in the boat, and then took off their armor and jumped into the river. However, there were still those who could not take off their armor and fell to the bottom of the river.
The kerosene boat sailed down the river and set fire to the Han army's fleet. The Han army on the stern was in a commotion. The fire became more and more intense. Some desperate people threw themselves into the water to escape. Countless people drowned in the water. Another person saw an opportunity and took a boat down the river. The Yecheng boat division across the river was directly defeated and could no longer stop the Yellow Turban Army from crossing the river.
The commander of the canal on the east bank, Zuo Zhangba, had been watching the situation on the Zhang River. Seeing this, he worked hard and mobilized all his troops to fight for the crossing of the Zhang River in a small boat. After wading through the water, they organized their troops and attacked the Han army besieging Guangping.
At this time, the south gate of Guangping had fallen.
Yang Feng, the young commander overseeing the army, was still manning Jia Yong, but the soldiers around him were already dead and wounded. At this moment, the man held a ring-shaped sword in his hand, shouted loudly, and quickly rushed towards the armored soldiers of the Han army who had climbed up the tower. The soldier just stood still, and before he could move, he screamed, and the tibia of his calf had been cut off by Yang Feng, and he fell to the ground wailing.
Yang Feng moved quickly to face the other soldier, ducked to avoid the opponent's blade wind, and in an instant, he stabbed the opponent's ankle with a knife. Then he turned around and ran into the arms of the last soldier. He flipped the knife horizontally and stabbed his lower jaw. Blood spurted out and he was dead. Yang Feng was really brave, and he killed three Han armored warriors in an instant.
Xiao Yang was quite proud of his result. Just as he was feeling angry and proud, his vision suddenly went dark, his body and head separated and he fell to the ground. But another armored soldier from the Han army jumped up directly from the ladder, like a divine bird, and beheaded the unprepared Xiao Yang with his sword.
This armored soldier is unusually majestic, with a tiger's back and a bear's waist, a leopard's head with eyes, and a beard on his lower jaw. He is a typical hero of Yan and Zhao.
The man jumped onto the city tower, kicked Yang Feng's head away, then returned and planted the small flag with the surname "Zhang" behind him on the top of the city, waiting to meet the long-armed and long-legged fellow soldiers behind him. But they saw a commotion below the city. A large flag with the word "Left" came slowly. The smoke and dust under the flag were thick, and there were figures. Eight reinforcements from Zuo Beard Zhang on the east bank had arrived.
The Han army had been fighting for a long time and was exhausted. They were attacked by this brave new army and retreated for a while. Seeing this situation, the soldier knew that Guangping was unbreakable today, so he stepped down the ladder to the city in three or two steps, skillfully and silently, leaving a military flag named "Zhang" at the top of the city, standing in the wind.
The man with the left beard, Zhang Ba, had already crossed the river and stood under the banner of the Chinese army. Behind him, he saw hundreds of companies fighting for the current, swallowing thousands of miles like a tiger. The confident Yang Feng tribe was preparing to join Guangcheng and planned to defeat Lu Zhi in one battle.
But at this moment, the south gate of Guangcheng opened, and what came out was not a rigorous pursuit force, but a fast horse galloping towards him.
Hearing that Yang Feng was gone, Zuo Zhangba was silent and speechless.
The Han army was exhausted from the battle, and the Yellow Turban Army had lost Guang as its general. Both armies could no longer fight and were in a stalemate.
(End of chapter)