Late Tang Dynasty Floating Life

Chapter 776 Vortex and Youzhou

"Haha, Shi Dutou, there is good news again." At night, Zhou Ben laughed and entered the camp and said.

Shi Shucong raised his eyelids and asked, "Where does the joy come from?"

"King Wu won a great victory in Anzhou, killed three thousand enemies and captured more than a thousand. He is currently rectifying his troops and preparing to attack Huaixi. Shen, Guang, and Shou are our old places in Huainan, so we take it as a matter of course." Zhou Ben said loudly.

Shi Shucong was taken aback, still in disbelief, and asked, "How did you fight?"

Zhou Bendao: "Anzhou's soldiers were at a stalemate with our army, and it was difficult to break through the city in a hurry, so the king of Wu moved his troops to Yingshan County to attack Jingguan. The thieves were afraid that the city would fall and threatened Shen and Guang, so they had to fight, but they were defeated. And go, retreat to the state city, and now I don't have the strength to go out of the city to fight in the field."

"Okay!" Shi Shucong slapped his thigh, stood up, and said happily: "Anzhou has been attacked——Huaixi is very empty. If you can break through the pass and go north, Shenzhou and Guangzhou will be easy to take. Your army, Zhu Yanshou, In Shouzhou, if we can attack both sides, it will not be difficult to attack Shouzhou. Zhe Zongben, Zhe Silun and his father and son are not dead, so what will happen?"

Shi Shucong originally wanted to say that you have been fighting Anzhou for so long, and finally you have some clues, but suddenly realized that this is not very polite, so he changed his words.

"When will King Wu attack Shen and Guang?" Shi Shucong asked.

"The army has been fighting hard for many days and still needs to rest. In the middle of March, troops should be dispatched to attack Pingjing, Lishan and other passes. Don't worry, going north is inevitable." Zhou Ben assured.

"Guancheng is not easy to fight." Shi Shucong actually considered marching and fighting for the Huai army, which shows the urgency of hope.

Guancheng was stuck there, and a large group of people couldn't get through, so they could only send a small group of people across the mountain to plunder.But no matter what, it can still cause a lot of trouble, at least it can make Shenzhou and Guangzhou feel nervous and nervous.

"How many troops does the bandit Xia have in Shen and Guang?" Zhou Ben asked eagerly to find out information for Yang Xingmi.

"At most five thousand." Shi Shucong studied these all day long, and the information can be said to be at his fingertips.

As soon as Zhou Ben heard that there was something interesting, he said: "It is better to send troops to the south to attack Huaixi Town with King Wu from the north to the south, and it will be destroyed."

"I'm going south, I've already gone south." Shi Shucong said helplessly, "I've missed the opportunity now."

When he first dispatched troops, he could indeed go south, but the situation in Caizhou was critical, so he was in a hurry to rescue him, so he stopped his troops at the foot of Yingzhou city.After this delay, Qi Bizhang is already preparing to attack Xu Su, so why don't you change houses with him?I'm sorry, Shi Shucong doesn't want to change, Huaixi is poor and all industries are withered, although Xu Su is not good, but at least he is better than Huaixi.

"It's a pity." Zhou Ben followed with a sigh, as if he was very regretful.

He still remembered the task Yang Xingmi gave him.Yangzhou's barrier is the Huai River, and if another piece of land can be obtained north of the Huai River, it will be more stable.Xuzhou is the best target to attack.

But at this time, Liang and Huai are closely related, and this kind of matter cannot be dealt with directly, and another good opportunity must be found.Uncle Cong has been in Xu Su's town for many years, and the families of Fei Sheng and Xiong Wei have also moved here one after another. If they can win him over, it will definitely be a great achievement.

Of course, this is just a pre-cooked stove to break the relationship.If Shi Shucong really votes now, Yang Xingmi will be in a dilemma.It is unreasonable for people to bring troops and territory to vote, but this will greatly deteriorate the relationship with Zhu Quanzhong, which will lead to twists and turns in the anti-Xia great cause.

Therefore, contacting and maintaining the relationship in advance is the best way at present.In the short term, Zhou Ben will not be leaving, this is his task.

"Tomorrow I will go north to Suzhou, and General Zhou will stay at Wokou, and wait for my good news." Shi Shucong made up his mind to keep his old nest first.

******
Li Ke returned to Youzhou with the first army.

The past three months have been really fulfilling.In the twelfth lunar month, Liu Rengong was defeated in Youzhou, thousands of people were captured and beheaded, Khitan was surrendered, and more than ten thousand people were surrendered by Xi people.Then a unit was sent south to Ying and Mo to wipe out the new local rebels, and led the main force to conquer the camp and Ping. After two months of hard work, they were defeated first and then victorious. , Ping Erzhou.

In this war, the Gao Siji brothers who had gone north to Yeluyi also joined the battle, but their total strength was only more than 1 people, and they were still newly defeated, and they were still powerless in the end.Liu Rengong quickly ran northward with brothers Gao Siji, like a dog in mourning.

Since the expedition, Li Keyong has won a series of victories, but Li Keyong is already tired of Youzhou affairs.There are people rebelling every day, and they have been killed so many times, no one dares to rebel, right?

"Since this expedition, over ten thousand thieves have been killed for several months. I want to see if the Yan people dare to rebel." Li Ke used the horsewhip, cloak, and saber one by one like throwing out trash. Get into the hands of the soldiers, and then with the help of others, remove the armor and put on the robes.

"Your Majesty, the Yan people should not dare to make mistakes. Zhenzhou Wang Rong also sent an envoy, saying that if the Majesty stops in Youzhou, he is willing to make offerings together with Lu Yanwei." Gai Yu who followed behind him kept saying Said.

"Wang Rong just defeated Wang Gao. This is a good deal." Li Keyong sat on Hu's bed, shook off his riding boots vigorously, then sat down cross-legged, and sneered, "Wang Gao is too careless. Even the soldiers can't beat him, so what can we expect him to do?"

Gai Yu smiled and didn't get involved in this matter.

The two families of Wang and Li are relatives by marriage. Don't look at King Jin scolding fiercely. In fact, if something happens in Dingzhou, he will still rescue him.

"How's the battle in Henan going?" Li Keyong asked after taking a sip of tea when the servant brought him tea.

"Returning to Your Majesty, according to the news we received last time, Xia Bing has broken Cai and Ying prefectures, and there is a tendency to go north to outflank the Liang people." Gai Yu said.

Li Ke was silent for a moment after hearing this, and asked, "If Master Pang loses, what will happen?"

"That depends on the outcome of the defeat." Gai Yu replied: "If the whole army is wiped out, Chen Xu will definitely not be able to protect it. It would be good if Quanzhong can control the northern states. If he is only severely injured, he can survive for a while. .”

"In your opinion, how long will it take to decide the winner?"

"Not more than half a year."

"Half a year is enough for me to win Cangjing?" Li Keyong asked.

"Not enough." Gai Yu replied honestly.

"You!" Li Ke glared and was about to curse.

"Husband..." Mrs. Liu signaled Gai Yu to stop talking with her eyes, walked behind Li Keyong, kneaded his shoulders for him, and said with a smile: "This is not a matter of beating a Cangjing Town, Chengde Wang Rong also counts." Come in. Maybe, seeing the critical situation, Wei Bo will also send money, food and even troops."

Liu's words are to the point.

It has been many years since Li Keyong first beat Wang Rong, and this guy is still alive and kicking.She didn't know that it took Zhu Quanzhong ten years to destroy the Zhu Jin and Zhu Xuan brothers in history. The cause of the incident was the attack on the Tianping Army, but would the other princes watch?They are all feudal towns that have been stable for 140 years. They are ready for war at any time.In the last two years, he wiped out the three towns of Xu, Yan, and Yun one after another. Can you say that he wiped out the three towns in only two years?The actual situation is that he spent eight years battling the three feudal towns to the brink of exhaustion, and finally spent two years finishing them off, and this is not counting the time wasted when he had to withdraw his troops due to interference from other directions.

A well-developed, well-equipped, and clearly targeted feudal separatist regime, and a temporary team that is in chaos and heroes are completely two concepts.

The latter may not necessarily rescue each other, or even the rescue lacks trust and experience, and the operation is not good, but the former has rescued each other too many times in the past 140 years, and the efficiency is very high.

"My uncle has been beating Zhu Quanzhong for six or seven years, and he hasn't been able to completely defeat him." Liu said again: "But in the process of beating Zhu Quanzhong, he took down Shaanxi, Hezhong, Jinshang, and Shannanxi. Dao, Tang Deng Sui, Huaixi, Heyang, Dongdu, and Fengguo nine towns and 26 prefectures have also calmed down the grassland threat. If the husband fights Cangjing, Cheng De will definitely send troops, and Wei Bo and Ziqing will also be suspicious, maybe, The Khitan will continue to invade the south under the instigation of Liu Rengong and Gao Siji. This is not just an attack on a feudal town, General Gai is also loyal to what he said according to the facts."

Li Ke nodded slightly.

He didn't read much, so he didn't know if the last years of other dynasties in ancient times were like this. When one side attacks the other, it often attracts a nest of enemies and entangles them endlessly.

But he still knew that when Cao Cao attacked Tao Qian at the end of the Later Han Dynasty, Tian Kai, Yuan Shu, and Yuan Shao didn't send troops to rescue him. It seems that Tian Kai sent Liu Bei to Xuzhou with few troops. , Cao Cao played too easily, only facing Tao Qian as an enemy at the same time.

Li Keyong also remembered that when he fought against Xing Mingci, Wang Rong came to intervene, and Wei Bo secretly sent money and grain; Like the hornet's nest in the surrounding area, the enemies are all united.

Why can't I break them one by one?

Of course, he would never have thought that when Zhu Quanzhong fought Zhu Xuan, Shi Pu and Zhu Jin sent troops to rescue him, and Wei Bo opened the way for the Hedong cavalry to go to Yunzhou to help Zhu Xuan fight.

"Commander, there is one more thing. Shude's son-in-law, Liang Hanyong, even Shao Lun, governor of Puzhou, and Yuhou Hegui, governor of Tianping Army Mabudu, set off a military chaos and imprisoned Zhu Xuan. Jin, the situation is also very tense." Gai Yu talked about another matter that he just inquired about.

"Why didn't you say such a big thing earlier?" Li Ke said angrily.

"Wars are raging everywhere, and the roads are impassable, so it is difficult to inquire in time." Gai Yu said helplessly.

Don't you look at the attitude of Hebei Fanzhen towards Hedong, will the official messenger let you pass?You can only pretend to be a business traveler or a scholar, but the speed is hard to say, maybe very fast, maybe very slow, it depends on your luck.

"Did Shao Shude know the news?" Li Keyong asked.

"It's almost time to know." Gai Yu replied: "I heard that Wei Bo didn't let the Xia people borrow the way, and it was too dangerous for the messenger to pass through the Liang land. If he went south, he had to pass through the territory of Zhu Jin and Yang Xingmi. It's not easy. Liang Hanyong can only send out multiple messengers, either in disguise, or by force, depending on luck."

"Will Zhu Jin attack Xuzhou?" Li Keyong's thinking can be described as unconstrained, and he quickly thought of such a possibility.

"Judging from the situation in the past year, he no longer troubled Zhu Quanzhong, so it shouldn't be." Gai Yu said, "Zhu Jin may want to avenge his cousin and send troops to Yunzhou in Jiangyan Town, Qizhou."

"Was the military chaos in Yunzhen planned by Shu De?" Li Keyong asked again.

"Probably not, he has no reason to do so." Gai Yu said, "The root cause lies in Zhu Xuan."

Li Keyong's eyes flickered after listening, and he suddenly asked: "How many troops does Shude have left behind?"

"Xia's army is divided into three divisions, each with a commander. The Huaizhou battalion is commanded by Li Renjun, who has 2 cavalry from Heyuan, Yumen, and Baoyi, and 3 soldiers from Mengzhou and 8000 soldiers from Huaizhou. The total number is less than [-]. There are also [-] Chishui Army and more than [-] Henan Fuzhou soldiers in Xuanmen Pass and Sishui County. The [-] troops are mainly for defense against Wei Bo, and the Wei people should still have [-] to [-] troops." Gai Yu said.

"The Wei people can't do it. The 5 or [-] loyalists can beat their [-] troops and run away. I, the sergeant in Hedong, can easily defeat them. Continue," Li Keyong urged.

Gai Yu continued counting with his fingers: "Anyi has [-] cavalry troops from Wuxing and Guzhen, and the number of soldiers from Jiangzhou County in Jin is unknown. There are still [-] Yamen troops in Hezhong Prefecture. Wang Yao and Your Majesty will not deal with it. "

Li Keyong thought his last sentence was redundant, so he glared again.

Gai Yu was unmoved, and continued: "Tongguan has a national army of 2, and Luoyang has a German army of 8000. Both of these are reserves that can be reinforced at any time. If the king attacks Heyang or Hezhong, the Xia people can call in [-] troops." The above-mentioned yamen army is fighting, and the soldiers of Henan Prefecture, Meng, and Huaizhou are also capable of fighting well, so don't act rashly."

The strength of more than 8 yamen troops is already very strong, and Li Tangbin, the commander of the Luoyang camp, personally commanded only 5 people on the front line of Yingshui.Zhe Zong, the coach of the Tangzhou camp, only had more than 4 yamen under his account, and Li Renjun, the coach of the Huaizhou camp, had less than 3 people. None of the three commanders could compare.

"The land of Lingxia, I don't know very well, I haven't found out, but the designations of Zhenwu, Xinquan, Jishi, Yicong, Tieqi, Feixiong and other armies did not appear in Henan, and most of them stayed behind in Guanbei. Shude Zhang There are more than [-] guards and guards staying in Feng and Sheng, and there are quite a few patrolling tribes, the two Yinshan tribes, and various prefectures. I heard that there are also newly built Jindao and Heizhen armies, and the Tielin army is also missing. , I'm afraid it's Lingxia." Gai Yu said: "Your Majesty, this kind of strength should not be underestimated."

"But if he finishes Zhu Quanzhong, alas, I'm afraid he will usurp the throne." Li Keyong suddenly felt a little regretful. Of.

Gai Yu shook his head and sighed when he heard this, and said, "After the big river thaws in March, Shude may rush to transport grain and grass. After that, the grass will turn green and the wheat will ripen in June, and the reserves in Heyang and Luoyang will increase greatly. More troops may be invested to solve Pang Shigu in one fell swoop."

Li Keyong was having a hard time making a decision, he was hesitant.

He now has more than [-] troops, but it is impossible to devote them all to one front, and it is the limit to bring [-] to [-] Yamen to reinforce one place.Besides, he didn't want to save Zhu Quanzhong, and his relationship with Wei Bo and Cheng De was also very bad, and they couldn't get together.

"I'll think about it again." Li Keyong thumped the armrest of the bed, full of irritability.

Mrs. Liu looked at her husband with some concern, and couldn't help but comfort her: "Husband, although the people of Liang have already lost their status, they will be safe for a while. I think that if the people of Xia can't increase their troops, they will die in a few months." Pang Shigu cannot be taken down. Li Tangbin, Li Renjun, and Zhe Zongben have about 15 soldiers, and they need more than 300 million people to support them. The Xia thief has so many horses, and it has indeed reached the limit. Husband may wish to think about it, whether to continue To attack Cangjing, we should return to the army to take Heyang or Hezhong. In any case, once troops are dispatched, there is no way out."

"What Madam said is true, I'll think about it again." Li Keyong replied.

After speaking, he fell into deep thought and remained silent for a long time.

(End of this chapter)