Chapter 624 Long Live
The sky was dim, and on the Taiyuan Road, thousands of troops and horses were rushing south.
Zhang Chong wore simple leather armor and rode a spare horse. He led an army of 6,000 cavalry without sacrificing any horsepower.
From here, it is only two hundred miles away from Dusuoyuan, which can be reached in half a day by horseback. But in order to maintain their combat effectiveness, Zhang Chong and others put their armor and main vehicle at the back, just to prepare their horses for the journey.
Zhang Chong had actually paid attention to the 50,000 Kansai Han soldiers in Dusuoyuan. When Taishan's army broke through Yanmen Pass and moved south, he expected that there would be reinforcements from Kansai.
Before that, Zhang Chong also arranged a secret hand before conquering Bingzhou, which was to send Guo Tai, the former Yellow Turban Daqu of Bingzhou, to Baibo Valley to recruit his old troops and act as eyes and ears for the entire army going south.
Guo Tai has extraordinary abilities, and he was the one who introduced Baibogu's Yellow Turban to the Tao. Therefore, even though he lost contact with Baibogu's old team, he still controlled the situation after returning.
In this way, there was an endless stream of military information sent from Baibo to Zhang Chong's tent every day.
The Taishan Army, which has completely mastered the former Taiping Road intelligence network, has eyes and ears both inside and outside Chang'an Palace.
When Wang Yun's letter asking for help was delivered to Dong Zhuo, the agents in his palace had already copied it. Then when Dong Zhuo convened an internal military meeting, the eyes and ears at the military meeting copied another copy. When Dong Zhuo decided to send troops to report to the young emperor, the eyes and ears in the palace made another copy.
In other words, Zhang Chong already had three pieces of information on hand before Dong Zhuo's expeditionary army left Chang'an.
While waiting for Hu Zhen to enter Hedong from Longmen with an army of 50,000, Guo Tai from Baibo Valley gave Zhang Chong another copy.
In this way, Hu Zhen and others' initial plan to leave the Yanbei area from Loufan Pass and intercept the Taishan Army's retreat was actually a joke.
Zhang Chong knew the movements of Hu Zhen's army well.
Because of this, he paid special attention to Hu Zhen's army. No matter what thoughts you hold, there is one fact that is irrefutable, that is, Hu Zhen's army is indeed an elite army.
The main body of the Xiyuan Army was built by Liu Hong in the past. It was used to regain the old capital and restore his own mountains and mausoleums. Their combat effectiveness cannot be faked.
This has been demonstrated on several occasions on the Weihan battlefield. In the first three battles of Weihan, the Kanto court, as the party with the most resources, has always occupied the initiative on the battlefield. No matter how much the troops in Kansai are recruited, they are still not half as strong as those in Kanto. The reason why they can keep fighting is because of the bravery and proficiency of the soldiers in Xiyuan.
At that time, Zhang Chong was focusing his strategy on the Hebei area, but he did not relax his attention on the battle between the two capitals. Because there were too many heroes on that battlefield.
Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Liu Bei, Lu Bu, Zhang Liao, and Zhang He all showed their courage and courage in the eight hundred miles of Xiaohan section. How could this make Zhang Chong unconcerned?
Because of this, Zhang Chong did not react when Hu Zhen's army crossed the river from Longmen. Because he was worried that if he reacted, he would scare the other party back.
This is not because Zhang Chong is arrogant, but because he knows the nature of the Guanxi Army too well.
Although Dong Zhuo's Liangzhou soldiers have now taken over and become the central army, in essence, they are still a warlord-like armed force.
And what do warlords do? Zhang Chong knows it too well.
Friendly troops are in trouble and remain motionless? This is just ordinary. The so-called "an inch of mountains and rivers, an inch of blood" can also be achieved.
Therefore, Zhang Chong must exercise restraint.
He was like a patient fisherman, patiently and patiently, watching Hu Zhen's army leave Linfen and watching Hu Zhen's army enter Jiexiu, without daring to make a single move, just to catch this big fish.
But now, as Zhang Chong expected, the army on the other side refused to take a step north after reaching Jiexiu. At this time, Zhang Chong understood that this was the pinnacle of the Kansai soldiers.
Therefore, Zhang Chong set the scheduled battlefield in Jiexiu. During this process, the general ledger of the Taishan Army was calm on the surface, but in fact it was dispatching the assault cavalry assigned outside.
Not only that, the Tuqi troops originally scheduled to be stationed in Hebei also quietly entered the Yiding Basin from Feihuxing. These assault cavalry replaced the previous order of Wuhuan Hu cavalry, so although the number of them remained the same, the actual combat power was already different.
As Taishan's army has grown to its current level, he understands very well that the factor that determines the difference in combat power between him and the heroes in the south is the cavalry.
Previously, the Taishan Army relied on strict military discipline, top-down unity, flexible tactics, and active military officers to achieve victory after victory.
But as the enemies of the Taishan Army changed from Yongqian's Han Dynasty to the ambitious Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, the situation changed.
In the process of obtaining intelligence from the south, Cao Cao and Yuan Shao were also learning from the military system of the Taishan Army and building their own core armaments.
Through continuous learning from the Taishan Army, the combat effectiveness of Cao and Yuan's armies has also been completely transformed.
But if we can learn tactics and military systems, can we learn cavalry? There are no sources of excellent horses and cavalry, and it would be difficult to create them.
And where could the Han Dynasty produce these two things? It is nothing more than quiet, peaceful and cool. Now, Zhang Chong has two of the three, and it can be said that he is truly arrogant in the world.
Therefore, after taking Pingzhou, Zhang Chong began to expand the scale of the sudden cavalry on a large scale. Not only in terms of numbers, the original ten battalions were expanded to twelve guards on the left and right, with a total of 24,000 riders.
When it comes to selecting candidates, both Hu and Han choose energetic warriors. Hu Hanliang's family and small chieftains in You and Ping Prefectures have been practicing riding and shooting on horseback since childhood, and they also gained war experience through large-scale hunting.
With these knights as the source of troops and the original Tuqi as the backbone, Zhang Chong was able to handle the newly built twelve guards on the left and right like an arm and a finger.
Now, Zhang Chong is leading the six armies of the Left and Right Flying Dragon Guards, the Left and Right Flying Tiger Guards, and the Left and Right Flying Leopard Guards heading south, with six thousand cavalry.
These six armies are now the most powerful battalions of the Taishan Army. It can be said that there are many tiger generals in each battalion, such as Zhao Yun, Ma Chao, Tai Shici and others.
This shows how much Zhang Chong attaches importance to this battle.
Indeed, when he knew that Lu Bu was on the opposite side, Zhang Chong couldn't hold himself back.
When the time comes, let Zhao Yun, Ma Chao, and Taishi Ci fight together against Lu Bu. Also see who is stronger and who is weaker.
Zhang Chong was full of curiosity about this.
Of course, the so-called drama of the three heroes fighting Lu Bu is just a bad taste. Because no matter how strong Lu Bu is, it doesn't matter. In front of Zhang Chong, he treats everyone equally.
What he cares more about is the 50,000 officers and soldiers of Hu Zhen's army. These talents are the pillars of Kansai. If they can be annihilated and captured in one battle, maybe they can reach Chang'an this time and conquer both capitals in one fell swoop.
As for Zhang Chong, has he ever thought about failure? To borrow a sentence he said to the generals when he went south:
"Some people say that the soldiers in Kansai are strong and strong. Now that there are many people and the troops are at a sharp front, they suggest that I defend first and then attack, and be sure of it. But is this what I worry about? What I worry about is never that the enemy dares to fight, but that he is afraid He won't fight. Now is the time. Since the Kansai soldiers dare to march into the Taiyuan Basin, our army will capture them in one fell swoop to save me from running away."
No one thought Zhang Chong's words were arrogant. They had won countless battles with Zhang Chong. Their trust and pride in the king had long been ingrained in this long war.
They gathered together in the forest in the second year of Guanghe, and spent the next three years on the road in Mount Tai. Relying on seventy-five old brothers and their passion, they suddenly swept the world from Mount Tai.
Nowadays, the Taishan Army not only claims to be the king and establishes the system, but also expands the territory, from the northeast coast to the grassland of Daidi. In the meantime, the land where dogs and deer are used, and the land where foxes and minks are produced, are all surrendered.
It can be said that today Zhang Chong is not only the king of the Taishan Army, but also the king of the vast fishing and hunting people in the Northeast.
In such a country, every foreigner, Han, and commoner has the opportunity to gain the respect and future they deserve through their own efforts.
Such feats have never been seen in thousands of years, let alone this era. Therefore, to these people present, King Zhang is Zhang Sheng.
So, six thousand horse-riding soldiers, like dragons, quickly followed King Zhang southward.
Accompanying him along the way were some children of old brothers from various armies. They were all second-tier talents of the Taishan Army and would be the successors to their father and brother's future careers. Therefore, this meeting was introduced into the Hengxing system by Zhang Chong early and cultivated.
This time, Zhang Chong also took them with him during the 200-mile run, just to take them in.
Since ancient times, famous generals have emerged from these wars. If these second generations still want to inherit the careers of their fathers and brothers, they must participate in large-scale wars early.
The road of two hundred miles was not too long. At noon on November 6, they had already arrived at Tian Junbu's camping spot.
At this time, the Taishan Army's cavalry on Dusuo Plain was close to 11,000 cavalry, making it the largest cavalry regiment since the Taishan Army raised its troops.
At around noon, Tian Jun brought his battalion generals and subordinate generals, a total of more than 200 people, to meet Zhang Chong. Under Zhang Chong's huge curtain, these people crowded together and listened to their king's arrangements for this battle.
Zhang Chong was still smiling so confidently. He looked around at his generals and saw countless heroes gathered here, waiting for his instructions, and his heart was full of pride.
He smiled:
"Our army will win this battle."
Li Hu, Xu Huang, Xi Shen and other cavalry officers all clasped their fists:
"Our army will win."
In fact, when Zhang Chong personally led the team, Tian Junbu's morale was greatly boosted from top to bottom, and they could not wait to win the meritorious service in front of the king.
Then, Zhang Chong began to arrange the attack sequence for this battle and the battlefield locations where each unit would arrive.
Zhang Chong had discussed these things with his staff for a long time. At this moment, all the ministries were entering the designated battlefield in an orderly manner according to the formation map.
Originally, Zhang Chong also arranged a trap team to break through the elite cavalry in depth. The selection of his commander-in-chief was originally based on his own wishes.
But Tian Jun stood up and opposed Zhang Chong's doing this. He smiled and said:
"Now that the king is personally on the front line, all the troops are more courageous and enthusiastic, eager to make achievements. The king has the courage of heaven and man. Even if there are millions of enemies in front, they will not hurt the king at all. But the king does not know something. , In the past, I would not have dissuaded the king, but now our army has thousands of cavalry, and we are already attacking the weak with strength. As long as the armies attack according to the plan, victory will definitely belong to our army. In this case, why add more variables to this battle. What? Besides, there are so many warriors in our army now, all of them are eager for military glory. Your Majesty, you want to compete with everyone!”
These words made Zhang Chong laugh. He waved his hand and said helplessly:
"Okay, okay, you're right. I can't compete with my brothers for credit. In this case, I will leave it to you to get into trouble."
After speaking, he shouted:
"Where are Zhao Yun, Ma Chao, and Tai Shi Ci?"
As soon as the words fell, the three armored warriors came out of the parade and sang:
"I'm here!"
Zhang Chong looked at these three people and said solemnly:
"In a cavalry battle, the frontline is the frontline. Now I will hand over the vanguard position to the three of you. Do you have the confidence to fight for our army?"
Without any hesitation, the three people bowed deeply:
"I will live up to the king's trust."
Afterwards, Zhang Chong smiled and said to Tian Jun:
"Old Tian, do you think this arrangement is OK?"
Tian Jun knew Zhao Yun's strength. He had never met Ma Chao and Tai Shi Ci, but he also knew the deeds of these people. That Ma Chao killed tens of thousands of people in formation, and that Tai Shi Ci rode into the formation alone, both of them were very brave.
With the strength of these three people, they should be able to match that Lu Bu.
It turned out that Tian Jun did not want the king to go to the front in person. The actual reason was that he was worried that the king would encounter Lu Bu. Although he had unlimited confidence in Zhang Chong, he still didn't want Zhang Chong to take this risk.
Tian Jun already knew how powerful Lu Bu was through these two days of contact battles.
In the past two days, Lu Bu's Bingzhou Army had made the most attacks on the opposite side. His troops could only dispatch three to four hundred cavalry, but Tian Jun had to dispatch a thousand men to compete with them.
In this way, we will lose troops and generals.
In these two days alone, more than twenty named knights died at the hands of Lu Bu. These people can all be chosen as the front, trapped in the formation, and clashed with ordinary soldiers, but they can't survive a single blow in Lu Bu's hands.
It can be said that among the enemy warriors Tian Jun has fought for so long, the most powerful one is Lu Bu.
And he still can't guess how powerful this Lu Bu is? Because no matter who encounters this person, he will be killed with one blow.
But no matter how powerful you are, Lu Bu, with Zhao Yun, Ma Chao, and Tai Shi Ci around, I don't think he can make a difference.
So, Tian Jun smiled and said to Zhang Chong:
"The king still takes care of the brothers."
Zhang Chong smiled and stopped worrying about this matter.
After deciding on the assault position, Zhang Chong began to arrange the response position, the attack position, the interleaving position, the preparation position, etc. The arrangement and scheduling of the front and back all showed his style as a master of the art of war at that time.
Afterwards, the armies began to eat, and Zhang Chong began to inspect the armies with eight hundred horsemen. Along the way, the knights from all the camps saw the king's large apricot-yellow banner and the iconic plume-feathered helmet of the Cross Collision Cavalry, and knew that the king must be here.
So, everyone cheered and got excited, and finally everyone shouted in unison:
"Long live, long live, long live!"
Its sound was as loud as thunder, and was heard by the Han army on the opposite side.
It turned out that the distance between Tian Jun and the Guanxi Army was only five miles. However, during the two-day contact battle, both sides retreated five miles while fighting, so the fight between the two armies changed from five miles before the war to fifteen miles.
But even at a distance of fifteen miles, the sound of the other party's camp could still be heard clearly in this empty basin.
So, when the mountains roared and the tsunami roared on the Taishan Army's side, the war drums were also beating on the opposite side, and they obviously decided to have a fight with the Taishan Army.
Of course, the Han army at this time did not know that King Zhang had already rushed to the front line.
They still followed the previous arrangement, and the various units of the former army began to attack in turn.
And this time it was Lu Bu who attacked.
(End of chapter)