Chapter 220 Usurping Life
In the sixth year of Guanghe, on June 30th, the Taishan army won a great victory in the battle of Pushui.
When Tian Jun led the assault cavalry to capture the empty Rencheng Kingdom camp, the flames soaring into the sky were clearly visible to the Rencheng Kingdom soldiers who were only four miles away.
In the dark night, the red fireworks that penetrate half of the sky represent not hope but despair.
Everyone knows that this means that even if they defeat the Yellow Turban thieves who are surrounding them, they will still be trapped and die here. With no supplies, no fresh water, and no reinforcements, they could only wait to die.
Therefore, the car formation is still the same car formation, but it can no longer bring any safety to these Rencheng soldiers. The initial retreat was in the north, where there were no besiegers from the Taishan Army. After running for dozens of steps, they still did not encounter the pursuers. This made the Rencheng soldiers who were still in the car array no longer able to retreat. Without any scruples, they all fled northward.
The war drums on the battlefield are still going on, but the Rencheng soldiers have no resistance. The way to survive is to the north. Who would be willing to stay here and wait for death.
But unfortunately, as they looked north and fled, the Taishan Army immediately adjusted its military formation and began to drive the Han soldiers north towards Pu River in a semicircle.
The Han soldiers were also alert and knew that the Pu River was to the north. If they went further north, they would be driven into the Pu River, so not long after running north, they began to run diagonally in both directions.
But these people all died, killed by the swords of the roving Taishan military sentries. Their deaths clearly told these Han soldiers running north that they could go north, but if they went anywhere else, they would die.
In this way, no matter how unwilling they are, these defeated soldiers can only go north. Soon, they saw the Pu River. Some of the Rencheng soldiers grew up by the Surabaya River and knew how to swim. When they saw the Pu River blocking the road in front of them, they threw away all their heavy objects without any hesitation, and then plunged into the river with a sudden move. When you are in Pu River, you are like a fish swimming in the water.
But there are only a few lucky ones who can swim. They are infantry soldiers rather than navy soldiers. So most people gathered on the south bank of Pu River, looking enviously at the lucky ones.
The Taishan army that caught up did not shoot arrows at the swimming Han soldiers. After all, the arrows could be recovered. Shooting them into the water was still too much of a waste, and it was not worth spending arrows on these people.
And even if these people swim across, will they survive? Didn’t you know that there was a man named Ding Sheng on the north bank of Pu River who never accepted Han soldiers on the battlefield? They will die "heroically" on the North Shore.
The Taishan army held torches and surrounded these Han soldiers. Under the firelight, the faces of the Han soldiers were frightened and desperate, and they prayed for the forgiveness of these Taishan thieves.
Dian Wei came over coldly at this time, his armor covered with blood, but he didn't see Lu Qian's head. It was obvious that Lu Qian had run away.
This was also the reason for Dian Wei's anger. There were still too many people, especially after the Han soldiers were defeated and retreated. Lu Qian, who was at the front, took his companions and killed them through the gap in the southwest. Dian Wei chased for a long time, but in the end he only found Lu Qian's armor and iron spear, and nothing else.
Dian Wei's anger needed to be vented, and the target was these Han soldiers. He wanted to drive all these people down Pu River to avenge the deaths of Zhao Chong and Xu Xi.
So he waved the military flag and ordered the entire army to move forward and drive the Han soldiers down the Pu River. The military orders were overwhelming, and no one had any objections. Taishan's sergeants lined up in neat ranks, holding swords and spears, and began to squeeze the Han soldiers.
The Han soldiers were desperate, crying everywhere. The last ones pushed forward, and the ones in front had half of their legs in the water.
Just at this moment, a horse came from the west, it was Yu Jin.
Yu Jin found Dian Wei under the banner of "Dian" and immediately persuaded:
"Awei, we can't go any further. Force these Han soldiers to surrender. Force them to surrender and give them a way to survive."
Dian Wei asked sternly:
"Give them a way to live? Who will give it to us? When the two generals under me, Zhao Chong and Xu Xi, died, who gave them a way to live? If I let these Han soldiers go now, who can I stand against? I can stand up to you, Are you worthy of me? Or worthy of the dead Zhao Chong and Xu Xi? "
Yu Jin was silent. Sure enough, it was because of this. He knew that Dian Wei was not a murderous person, and the current situation would definitely result in heavy casualties. However, he did not expect that both of Dian Wei's generals would die in the battle.
But Yu Jin still replied:
"These Han soldiers who made the forced landing can stand up to Qu Kui and Huang Tianzhi!"
As soon as these words came out, Dian Wei became furious. He drew out his iron halberd, pressed it on Yu Jin's shoulder, and shouted angrily:
"You dare to threaten me?"
Yu Jin felt the pressure and sharp edge of the iron halberd, and sweat dropped, but he gritted his teeth and continued:
"Awei, we have reached a very dangerous situation now. We are all senior military officers in the army. We know that whether it is in the north or the south, our Taiping Road is facing huge casualties. And our Taishan side has won a great victory all the way. But our strength is declining rapidly. Our enemies are getting stronger and our losses are becoming more and more heavy, so we need this group of soldiers, and we will need them in the future. Only in this way can we become stronger and stronger."
Seeing Dian Wei thinking, Yu Jin went one step further and said:
"Moreover, only if we achieve a real victory can we be worthy of Zhao Chong and Xu Xi. If we lose, like them, like you and me, all of us in Taiping Dao will be framed as bandits. Who will remember that we are the ones who stood up for them?" Tian Xingdao, the righteous master who punished the people? At that time, Zhao Chong and Xu Xi's death was in vain. And only if we win, can we let the world and future generations understand the sacrifices of Zhao Chong and Xu Xi. , it is for all the poor people in the world to live a different life. In that way, the deaths of Zhao Chong and Xu Xi will be meaningful. Even though they are dead, they will still be alive in everyone's heart."
Finally, Yu Jin sighed:
"Awei, I once heard Commander Qu say that history cannot be tampered with. But the premise is that we must win."
Yu Jin grabbed Dian Wei's rough hand and said emotionally:
"Stop it, Awei!"
Dian Wei's eyes were filled with tears at this moment, and many things came to his mind:
It was an afternoon when he killed the powerful man who had harmed others and fled across the lake. While he was resting on the left side of the road, an army came over. The leader saw his majesty and asked:
"Do you dare to join the army and strive for wealth?"
Dian Wei did not hesitate and nodded in agreement. It's not for wealth, but because he doesn't know where to go, so why not join the army?
Later he got to know Zhao Chong, and this was his first meeting with Zhao Chong. Then he acquired a soldier from Zhao Chong, who was appreciated by Qu Kui and became Zhao Chong's general. At first Dian Wei himself felt embarrassed, but it was Zhao Chong who maintained his authority all the time, helped him stand firm, and helped him become a qualified general.
This is Zhao Chong. As long as he obeys someone, he will help him and support him all the time!
There is also Xu Xi, he and he are both rangers in Yanzhou.
What is a ranger? It sounds majestic and righteous, but in fact they are just a group of marginalized people who are not respected by others and only believe in force. So Xu Xi was rebellious at first and was brave and brave all day long. However, after being beaten and subdued by Dian Wei, Xu Xi only followed Dian Wei's lead.
He told Dianwei that there was a wide and long river where his family lived, and that his mother raised him by starching and washing people's clothes. She wanted him to cultivate the land well, saying that the land was the root and the An inheritance that can be passed down to the family. So all the mother's money was to save a piece of land so that Xu Xi could marry, have children, and flourish. But in the end, my mother was deceived, and all her savings only bought a piece of gravel land on the river beach, which was impossible to plant. In anger, my mother died. And Xu Xi killed the swindlers and their whole family and became a wandering ranger.
Later, he joined the Taishan Army. It was here that he learned that someone actually gave land to the poor. From that time, Xu Xi always said that if the Taishan Army had appeared earlier, his mother might not have died. It was also from that time that he always dreamed of his mother telling him that our family had land. From then on, Xu Xi's pursuit was to fight with Mount Tai's army so that the poor could have land to grow, spread their branches, and pass on their family lineage.
But unfortunately, Xu Xi's pursuit stopped at the shore of Pu River.
Thinking of this, Dian Wei could no longer control himself and squatted on the ground in aggrieved manner, crying loudly. Emotions are so strong that people rarely notice their emotions in ordinary life, and once they are really absent, the emotions will come over like landslides and tsunamis.
Yu Jin caressed Dian Wei and comforted him, feeling sad in his heart.
Dian Wei started crying quickly and stopped crying quickly. He knew how to make a choice.
He said calmly to the guard beside him:
"Go and call those Han soldiers to surrender."
The guards received the order and began to issue unique surrender flags to the troops in front. For a time, the south bank of Pu River was full of Taishan local dialect, making these Rencheng soldiers abandon their weapons and surrender.
The Rencheng soldiers in the circle were not sure at first because of the language barrier. However, when a brave man threw away his weapon and walked up to the Taishan Army, and the Taishan soldiers picked up the rope and started to tie him up, these Rencheng soldiers Only then are we really sure that they can survive.
So, on the south bank of Pu River, wept with joy.
Dian Wei listened to the cries and joy on the river beach in front, looked leisurely to the north in the direction of Zhang Chongzai, and murmured:
"Qu Kui, we must win!"
——
The crash continues!
The Rencheng State-owned Village and Shanyang State-owned Village on the north and south sides of the Pu River burst into flames one after another. The nearest camp in Jiyin County had been discovered. Bian Chong, the military commander, discussed with Li Qian of Chengshi and left the camp overnight and returned to Dingtao.
As soon as Jiyin County left, Fengqiu already knew about it. That night, powerful soldiers burned the stronghold and fled. The chaos lasted until dawn. The bandit general Zhou Shen made a final check and only had 2,000 soldiers.
Three days later, on July 3, the Taishan Army led its troops and destroyed the twelve small villages outside Fengqiu. The Han generals Huo Tan, Li Cun, and Zhang Neng surrendered. Yang Zhou and Zhu Rang left Fengqiu with the disabled people.
On July 4th, Taishan's army crossed Jishui and surrounded the hill. Zhou Shen, the general of the Han Dynasty bandits, tried his best to resist the battle. Dian Wei, who was at the front of the Taishan Army, led his troops to ascend first and Fengqiu fell.
In this battle, the Taishan Army obtained 200,000 stones of grain and fodder for the Yanzhou Corps, 6,000 Ding men and women, and more than a thousand cattle and mules. They also obtained Han Yanzhou herds, chariots, ritual objects, talismans, and military equipment.
The Han Dynasty bandit general Zhou Shen led a remnant of 600 men to protect Huang Wan, the herdsman of Yanzhou, as he fled to the north. Li Fu, a talented general of the Taishan Army, hurriedly followed his army. Later, he encountered the Huya and Fufeng battalions coming from the Jujube camp. They were unable to fight and returned south. Fengqiu.
In Fengqiu, Zhang Chong summoned military officials above the general level to discuss the strategic necessity of going south to join the battle on the Taiping Road in Yingchuan.
Zhang Chong told the generals that the anti-Han situation has now reached a critical period.
In Yingyang, Ruying Taiping Road was confronting the main force of the Han army. Now, if they can go south to join the Yingyang battlefield and attack from the north and south of Ruying Taiping Road, they will have a chance to eliminate the main force of the Han army in one fell swoop.
And if it is possible, it will take at least three months for the Han army to gather this number of main legions. At that time, Taipingdao will have this three-month window period to develop, and the situation in the world will immediately change.
The Taishan Army was established by Zhang Chong. Although the generals usually express their own opinions, in terms of grand strategy, the generals of the Taishan Army will unconditionally support Zhang Chong's ideas.
Now that the strategy of going south to support Ruying Taiping Road was formulated, the entire army began to prepare. Zhang Chong and He Kui discussed several response plans together with their staff.
If there is still a stalemate on Taiping Road when they arrive at Ruying, they will naturally attack from a pincer attack. If Taiping Road has already retreated when it arrives, the Taishan Army will need to see if there is an opportunity to launch a sneak attack on the Han soldiers to reduce the strength of the main force of the Han army when it goes north in the future. If the main force of the Han army has already won a complete victory when they arrive and the opportunity is not there, then they need to decisively go north and attack Xingyang directly.
In short, the goal of this battle is that no matter what the situation is, once the army is deployed, it must further attack the strength of the Han army and increase the winning rate for the future decisive battle.
Later, Zhang Chong had to solve the problem of how to march quickly.
It is more than 300 miles from Fengqiu to Yingyang, and the urgent march will take ten days. Time is too tight.
For this reason, Zhang Chong decided to try marching like mules and horses.
The Central Plains area where Fengqiu is located is rich in mules and donkeys. Zhang Chong ordered the heavy troops to go into the countryside, and collected the surrounding mules and donkeys at double the market price with the millet in hand, and obtained a total of 3,000 mules and donkeys. In addition to the mules and horses already in the army, Zhang Chong gathered a team of 5,000 mules and horses.
But don’t think that the decision to march with mules and horses is such a good decision!
It is important to know that almost two-thirds of the Taishan Army cannot ride. Even if they are riding docile mules and donkeys, it is not easy. When it comes to marching, people are basically tied to mules and donkeys. The journey is bumpy, and they will die from vomiting if they are not bumpy. Therefore, even if the Taishan Army arrives at Yingyang, it will not have combat effectiveness if it does not repair for a few days.
In addition, for the three hundred miles to go, the donkeys and horses spent a huge amount of grass, and the Taishan Army had no supplies along the way. It can be seen how many donkeys and horses would starve to death by then.
In other words, in order to save time, Zhang Chong's march was basically a waste of money.
But this is Zhang Chong's courage. In order to seize the fighting opportunity, it is worth paying no matter how high the price is. Not to mention these thousands of animals, even if the Taishan Army is reduced by half, it is still worth it!
After deciding on these, Zhang Chong arranged for the formation to go south to Yingyang, with a total of 4,000 men, 5,000 mules and horses, and 15 days of dry food and millet balls. The remaining 3,000 Taishan troops were on the spot to wipe out the remnants of the Han soldiers and the powerful powerful men in the surrounding areas around Fengqiu. They launched a new round of land distribution movement and encouraged young people to join the army and join the field guards to protect their fields.
Everything was ready. On July 8, the sixth year of Guanghe, the Taishan Army went south to Yingyang to create a new destiny.
(End of chapter)