After the banquet on the night of the 16th, Zhang Chong held a gold-conferring ceremony on the morning of the next day, and a soul-calling ceremony for the fallen soldiers in the afternoon.
After a series of ceremonies, the military morale of the Taishan Army and the Ruying Yellow Turbans recovered a little, but it would not be possible to restore their strength to the pre-war strength overnight. Because this battle was too tragic, the troop reductions in each army were serious, and this The prisoners of war were also severely traumatized and had no fighting spirit, so they were considered semi-dead.
Under this situation, all the staff in the army suggested that they should finish the attack on Xingyang quickly and then return to Heji for repairs. Obviously, at this time, most people in the army were unwilling to go north to Hebei.
This was the view of the military staff. Zhang Chong was noncommittal, and then he asked several major generals in the army.
Among them, Guan Yu replied like this:
"Commander Qu, the war-weariness in the army is real now. From the time we left Mount Tai in April this year to September now, in five months, we have fought three battles with more than 1,000 people. We have fought with more than 1,000 people. , we fought six times, and there were countless small battles left. Since these five months, I don’t know the situation of other school commanders. I only take my left school commander as an example. The casualties are half, and many more have been added later. The strength of the troops. For example, some of the generals in the main force have been replaced three times, and even the generals at the Tunnel level have been replaced once. The casualties of these troops are not small, and it is difficult to fight without repairs."
Seeing that Zhang Chong was listening with an open mind, Guan Yu told the truth:
"Commander Qu, now we have traveled thousands of miles. Except for repairs in Puyang, we have been on the road almost all the time. The troops are very tired. Many of the Han soldiers who surrendered and absorbed just sat there halfway and said they would not leave even if they were killed. There are also troops There are also complaints among the people, saying that the brothers in the cavalry are more comfortable with four legs, but it is not as if they have two legs that will break if they run."
Zhang Chong frowned and asked:
"What about the conditions of Zuo Xiaowei's officers?"
The main force in the management of the army lies with the officers. The sergeants must have complaints, but they usually don't take them seriously. People will inevitably say strange things when they are tired. But if the officers in the army also think this way, then they will be really angry. There are some.
Guan Yu nodded and directly talked about the situation of the officers and soldiers in the army:
"Most of the military officials in Zuo Xiaowei's department are from the Laotaishan area. These people have high consciousness and take the lead, and the military system depends on them to maintain it. But because they are all from the Laotaishan area, they are also homesick. We are now in Xingyang, After being away from home for a long time, everyone is worried about the situation of Mount Tai. Our main force is away, we don’t know if Mount Tai has been attacked by the Han army, and we can’t contact us, so we are all very worried."
Seeing Guan Yu asking about the situation in Taishan's hometown, Zhang Chong simply said:
"When we left Mount Tai in April, the people in charge were Du Man and Army Deputy Yang Mao. Although we took away most of the main force, because of the good grassroots work in the old Taishan area, most areas were divided into fields and pulled up. We had soldiers to protect the fields, so in fact the defense of the base area was not weak. Moreover, before we left, we almost wiped out all the Han soldiers around Mount Tai, so the pressure on Mount Tai was not great. Judging from Duman’s letter to me, currently only Xuzhou Langya made a trial attack, but because Duman and the others were holding the Yishan Pass, the other side withdrew again."
Guan Yu nodded, but as he spoke, Zhang Chong said:
"Are you asking why I didn't tell the sergeants this?"
Zhang Chong explained:
"The letter from Duman was not sent directly to me. Because we fought too many battles, they always lagged behind us. After we captured Puyang and established a stable base in the Heji area, the two sides officially established communication.
We all went south later, and Adan brought this information from Fengqiu."
Zhang Dan, who was sitting next to Guan Yu, nodded repeatedly when he heard this.
There is no way, this is the communication situation in this world. In later generations, a phone call would take months or even years here. In peacetime, local communication also relied on the post system, but it was only available to the government, and only to the private sector.
You can rely on a dedicated person to run errands or just take a trip. The first kind of person is too expensive, and the second kind is highly uncertain. Letters often get lost halfway. In short, it is not easy to communicate in different places.
This is not a big joint. After Guan Yu finished speaking, Zhang Chong looked at Zhang Dan to listen to his opinion.
Zhang Dan touched the beard around his mouth, thought about it, and said it truthfully:
"The situation of the Right Military Division is the same as that of the Left Military Division, but the situation is different. The same thing is that there is also depression in the army, but it is not as serious as that of the Left Military Division. Thanks to the repairs in the Fengqiu area, the morale of each department is good.
.But the composition of our department is different from that of Zuo Xiaowei. Most of Zuo Xiaowei's officials are old Taishan people, and the soldiers are generally veterans of war. However, because our department has been split up before, a large number of soldiers are
From the Heji area. After fighting two battles, these people saw the blood on the battlefield, and they all showed some shrinkage. For example, some people were unwilling to return to the army after recovering from their injuries, and some were looking for ways to return to the Heji area.
Those who divide the land among the officials are just greedy for the security of the rear. Except for the canal trackers, who are hardworking and hardworking, the soldiers in the Heji area are generally worse than those in the Taishan area."
Seeing that Zhang Chong didn't ask, Zhang Dan made his own summary:
"Commander Qu, given the current situation, it is not worthwhile to start another war. Those Heji soldiers are tired of fighting at the doorstep of Xingyang, let alone taking them to Hebei to fight the Han army again."
Zhang Chong didn't say anything. Instead, he was pleased that the senior military officials in the army were generally able to express their thoughts truly and tell the truth. They did not have the Han army's habit of reporting good news but not bad news, and covering up mistakes with minor mistakes.
Don’t be afraid if there are problems, just be afraid that you can’t see the problems.
Although Guan Yu and Zhang Dan didn't say anything, Zhang Chong already knew their opinions.
Regarding the current situation, their opinion is that it is not recommended to conduct mobile operations. As long-term operations on the outer lines are carried out, it will be very difficult to supply and replenish personnel in the army. They should return to Heji for repairs and expand the system of dividing the fields and pulling in field-protecting soldiers.
These are all true words, but Zhang Chong is still hesitant.
What is he hesitating about?
Because to be honest, Zhang Chong himself was a little confused.
He couldn't understand the changes in the current situation. The letters to Huang Wan sent by Ding Sheng a few days ago made him realize that there were still 30,000 Han troops there. He didn't know how many powerful troops there were in them.
But this force is still stronger than the Taishan Army. And there is also an internal response from the Han Army in the army. Zhang Chong did not make it public in order not to alert the snake, and did not want to make people panic, so he did not make it public, but it is still a thorn in the flesh, and it may pierce the flesh at any time.
.
Let alone internal and external troubles, let's just say that if he ignores the situation of the Battle of Hebei now and returns to the Heji area, according to his deduction, once the wave of Han troops from the south joins the battlefield in Hebei, the Yellow Turban Army will be dead.
Then after the Yellow Turban Army is destroyed, will he be able to sit still in the Heji area?
When the time comes for Hebei and all the Han soldiers from the Central Plains to besiege him, how can Zhang Chong stop him with just a small area? If he can't stop him, the Heji area will be lost. Where should we retreat? To Mount Tai? Then we won't be able to defend the base areas around Mount Tai.
.
And there, the Taishan Army has been taking root for a long time, and the land distribution has been implemented. Once the Taishan Army cannot hold it, all those years of hard work will be ruined, and it will make these areas believe that the leaders of the Taishan Army have lost all. By then, he will be horrified
The only option is to take the remaining soldiers and hide in Mount Tai.
But I'm afraid Taishan can't protect them!
Therefore, ignoring Hebei and returning directly to the Heji area for repairs seems to be a way of survival, but it is a dead end. So where is the real way of survival?
Going to the battlefield in Hebei? Not to mention that the Taishan Army is now war-weary and its combat effectiveness has seriously declined. Even if Zhang Chong relies on his former prestige to persuade his subordinates to go north, can the Taishan Army in this state defeat the main force of the Han Army?
And once he fails, Zhang Chong's prestige will be really wiped out, and he may really be regarded as a grass-head king.
That is to say, prosperity is also booming, and death is sudden.
Since he couldn't retreat or advance, Zhang Chong was really confused and didn't know what to do.
To be honest, he now knows how difficult it is to conquer the world, especially when someone from the bottom like him is almost universally enemy. He still won the battle, but he still has a headache, let alone if he loses the battle in Xingyang
.
Zhang Chong continued to think about the way out for the Taishan Army, but the machine of the Taishan Army continued to act according to its previous inertia.
…
On September 18, the sixth year of Guanghe's reign, outside Xingyang City.
The hustle and bustle of the day replaced the quietness of the night.
Outside Xingyang City, groups of Taishan troops came up from the rear. The place was already full of tents. The Taishan troops who arrived in advance took advantage of the free time to wash their faces with the cool river water outside the city. Some of them faced each other.
On the rising sun, I am praying. I am obviously a member of the Yellow Turban.
The laborers who came up behind, under the leadership of the baggage team, dragged the carts creakingly. There were all kinds of ready logs on them. They could just use these when they set up camp. Some cars behind them put
There were loads of supplies, bundles of arrows, bags of corn, piled high.
The person responsible for this siege was the Taishan Army Houxiaowei Department. Two thousand people from his department set up camp and built a fortress using the east city warehouse as a fortification.
After eating the imperial meal, the officers and soldiers of the Hou Military Academy, who were full of morale, launched an attack on Xingyang City with great vigor and high spirits.
…
Two moments later, Ding Sheng, the commander of the Hou Military Academy, became angry with all the officials under his command.
At this moment, Ding Sheng was so angry that his beard was flaring, and he cursed:
"The people in the city are not afraid of death, so you are? Aren't you just risking your life? Go in and kill them all."
Jin Quan was the general who led the main attack this time. The siege failed, so he had to reply:
"Captain, it's not that the brothers dare not risk their lives, it's that the people on top of the city are all Guizhou leaders in the city. It's hard to kill the brothers!"
Ding Sheng got angry:
"Did they take any knives?"
"Take it"
"Have you ever stabbed one of us?"
"Stab!"
"Then what nonsense are you talking about? They are not the leader of Guizhou, they are all enemies. Those who dare to draw swords against us are all! Do you understand?"
Jin Quan also said:
"But……"
He was interrupted by Ding Sheng:
"There's nothing wrong with it. You'll take the lead in fighting later. If the city can't be broken this time, don't come back. You just want to see the left and right forces keep pressing on us? Are you a coward? You're a coward.
I'll replace him with someone else. Don't give Naigong diarrhea!"
Knowing that the captain was angry, Jin Quan slapped his chest and said fiercely:
"Captain, don't worry. We will definitely capture Xingyang this time."
"Then why don't you go quickly?"
As soon as Jin Quan waved his hand, he led the soldiers out of the tent with murderous intent.
Watching Jin Quan leave, Ding Sheng asked a dark, lean, gray-bearded old soldier next to him:
"Xiang Weng, is this Xingyang City difficult to defeat?"
Xiang Weng was an old recruiter who had joined the army in Guan County. He had rich experience in battles and was specially invited by Ding Sheng to watch the army for him.
Xiang Weng cupped his fists at Ding Sheng:
"Captain Lieutenant Hou, when General Jin attacked the city, I also watched from behind. There were not many enemy troops in Xingyang City, and most of them were civilians on the top of the city. I can also see this clearly. They must be inside the city.
The county magistrate used the family members of these people's sons and nephews to coerce them into defending the city. I saw this method when I was in northern Xinjiang. When the Xianbei people attacked the city, they would first attack nearby villages and coerce the Han people to attack the city. Being able to attack nature
Well, if you can't break into it, it will also consume the tools in the city. I didn't expect that the Xingyang County Magistrate is as cruel as a barbarian. If he doesn't kill him, it won't be enough to satisfy his anger."
Xiang Weng wanted to say more, but was interrupted by the frowning Ding Sheng:
"Xiang Weng, I'm asking you whether we are very sure about our attack this time. Let's not talk about anything else."
When Xiang Weng heard this, he secretly spit and said in his heart:
"What a bad ranger who doesn't know how to respect his elders."
However, he still said respectfully:
"It's not a big problem. The last time General Jin was kicked out, it was because his hands were tied. After all, where is the military discipline? But now with your method of motivating generals, I believe Jin will soon gain something."
At this moment, a Taishan soldier rushed into the tent, holding a bloody head in his hand, and reported:
"There was a riot in the city. He killed the county magistrate and surrendered to his generals!"
Sure enough, the head was none other than Yang Zan, the magistrate of Xingyang County, and Xingyang City was destroyed.
…
When the city of Xingyang was broken, the Taishan Army Chen Huan's troops who stayed in Changshe, which was a hundred miles away, finally could not withstand the siege of the Han army. Under the cover of Ren Jun's assault cavalry, they retreated towards Songshan Mountain in the north.
In the sixth year of Guanghe reign, on September 14th, the Han army's left and right Zhonglang generals, together with Runan Haoqiang, led 20,000 troops. After defeating the Runan Yellow Turbans, they finally arrived at Changshe.
After the battle with the Yellow Turbans in Runan, the Han army was not without losses. At this time, the left Zhonglang general Zhang Wen had 6,000 troops, and the right Zhonglang general Zhu Jun had 7,000 troops. After the war, the powerful troops in Runan
There are about 7,000 Qu soldiers.
On the 14th, the Han army appeared and led the Taishan Army to attack the Wuliting Barrier outside Changshe City. Chen Huan led a thousand elite soldiers in the city, and Ren Jun led 500 cavalry out of the city to rescue. However, the battle was unfavorable, and the Wuliting Barrier
fall.
On the 15th, Chen Huan's troops engaged the Han army, and the two sides fought bloody battles. However, Chen Huan's troops were too small, and they finally withdrew to Changshe City under the cover of Ren Jun's cavalry troops.
Chen Huanlu left the knights and formed an army in Guizhou, relying on the four fortifications outside the city to continue to resist the Han army. However, under the fierce attack of Sun Jian, the Han army's captain, the four fortifications outside the city fell one after another, and the watchtower at the corner of the city was burned down.
On the 16th and 17th, the Han army's right Zhonglang general, Sima Sunjian of the department, Sima Fu Xie of the guard army, and Cao Cao, the front army Sima of the left Zhonglang general, stormed the three gates of Changshe. The two sides fought a bloody battle, but Chen Huanjia stayed with him until the end.
Block the Han army's fierce attack.
It was night, and Chen Huan, who knew that the city could not be defended, led his troops to break out from the north gate under the cover of the night, under the cover of Ren Jun's sudden cavalry.
At dawn on the 18th, the Han army discovered that the Taishan Army had withdrawn and did not enter the city. They pursued the remnants of the Taishan Army and caught up with them at Geqiu northwest of Changshe. Sun Jian, the commander of the Han Army's other division, took the lead and charged and attacked the Taishan Army.
The sudden cavalry general Ren Yun was furious. He wore three layers of armor, mounted his horse with a spear, and stabbed Sun Jian's horse. Unfortunately, he himself fell off the horse and died.
Seeing that the general was missing, the Tuqi troops turned back to attack, seized the general's body, and then protected Chen Huan's troops and continued to retreat toward Xinzheng in the northwest.
The Han army was still going to attack, but Lu Xiang and Lu Kuang's troops who were guarding Xinzheng had already received the news and took the opportunity to ambush on the mountain road. Sun Jian's troops lost hundreds of people and retreated southward in a hurry.
In the end, Chen Huan and some of the cavalrymen successfully withdrew to Xinzheng, but they also lost the cavalry general Ren Jun in this battle. Ren Jun is an old man of the Taishan Army and has always been a strong general among the cavalry generals. Losing Ren Jun this time will undoubtedly have a great impact on Taishan.
The army suffered a heavy loss.
Seeing that Chen Huan's troops had broken out and fled, the Han army did not continue the attack, but returned to Changshe and began to loot.
Thanks to the fact that Taishan's army took away the two famous families in the city, Zhong and Han, when they marched north, there was no one in Changshe City that the Han army could worry about.
At this time, the Han army had been fighting for a long time, and because they were fighting fiercely in Runan and far away from the center, they had not received supplies. Therefore, in order to maintain the morale and combat effectiveness of the army, the generals acquiesced to the looting behavior of the Han soldiers under their command. Previously in Ru
Nan, the army was full of powerful soldiers from Runan. These people were close to each other, so the Han soldiers couldn't let go and plundered them. They could only rob the Yellow Turban Army, which was poorer than them.
At this time, Changshe City is different. Who here doesn't understand moth thieves? How do you live if you don't understand moth thieves? In other words, everyone in the city at this moment is a rebel party.
So, on September 18th, 20,000 Han troops began to divide into groups and began to plunder the people in Changshe City. They killed anyone who dared to resist, took out wine from the cellars of these people, and drank wildly while the women were
His body is full of animal desires.
The old residences of the Zhong and Han families did not escape the murderous hands. The Han army broke into these beautiful residences and looted various bronzes and long letter lamps inside. They were still in the Zhong family temple,
Under the influence of various gods of the Zhong family, they tortured the women they snatched away.
After Zuo Zhonglang's general Cao Cao arrived, he managed to put a stop to this farce. However, Cao Cao could only save the residences of the Zhong and Han families, and he could do nothing to help with the other tragedies in the city.
, maybe Cao Cao will die at the hands of those old men.
At this time, the Han army was out of control.
After experiencing a long war, especially the bloody battle of Yingyang, these Han troops actually had no fighting spirit. Logically, they should withdraw to the rear line for repairs, but at this time, the Han court did not have any spare troops to replace them. them.
In this way, the string that had collapsed for a long time completely collapsed in Changshe City.
I don’t know who was the first to set fire to the city. Then the crazy Han soldiers followed suit and set fire to the city. The entire Changshe was destroyed in the flames.
In history, Changshe was burned down by the Han army. Now, even though history has changed, at this moment, history seems to have been corrected. This ancient city was destroyed by the Han army.
Cao Cao, who hurriedly fled outside the city to avoid the fire, looked at Changshe in the fire and the people of Changshe who kept fleeing from the city. He sarcastically said:
"Look, our Han soldiers are really saving the people from fire and water."