On the way, Zhang Chong had no time to ask Zhao Yun:
"How do you persuade those who come down the mountain?"
Zhao Yun swallowed the dried meat and explained:
"When we went to deliver food to the old and weak in the township community, we happened to meet a man coming down the mountain. He also carried a bag of millet and wanted to deliver food to the elderly at home. Then I told him that our Taishan Army and others
It’s different. We are the army of Guizhou. We fought all the way from Mount Tai to Hebei, where we gave each Guizhou head a piece of land. I asked him to go back and tell everyone to go down the mountain. It’s getting cold now and the mountains can’t bear it.
"
Zhang Chong laughed loudly and asked again:
"Then what? You can't just say a word and someone will come down?"
Zhao Yun was stunned, and then said:
"The kid didn't pay any attention to us at first. Later, his father came out of the den and stopped him. Later, the old man said it himself, and he really believed us."
Zhang Chong nodded, understanding that in the end it was our Taishan Army that implemented things in a practical way, allowing the leaders of Guizhou to truly feel the benefits. These practical actions are always much stronger than those slogans.
When Zhang Chong came over, there were more than 20 young men gathered around in a cautious and fearful manner outside the camp area. They crouched with their hands and arms folded.
They are just the most ordinary Guizhou leaders. They have never seen such a huge military force in their lives. At this moment, they are enveloped in such military aura and their hearts are trembling.
At this time, when they saw the familiar handsome young man appear, they seemed to have met a savior and gathered around to express their gratitude.
It turns out that these people are not unfilial sons, leaving their parents and mother to die in the village. When the rich people in the village told them to take their things into the mountains, these people planned to take the old and the weak with them.
But these old and weak people were stubborn and refused to go into the mountains, saying that they would die of old age in the village. The young and strong people wanted to keep the millet, but the old and weak people refused to take it, otherwise they would commit suicide in front of them.
There was no other way, these people had no choice but to go into the mountains.
At first, these people thought that the old parents must be dead. Even if they were not vented to death by those tiger and wolf Taishan troops, they would starve to death.
But one of them, a hunter named Huo Shan, was really worried about his father at home, so he secretly took a bag of millet and carried it down the mountain to his father.
Then when Huo Shan came back, he actually told them that the Taishan Army at the foot of the mountain was taking care of their parents, and asked them to follow him down the mountain to take a look.
Everyone knew Huo Shan very well. He was a tough man. When he said this, they believed him.
When they returned home, they saw that the ground at home had been cleaned up, there were piles of firewood at home, and they even saw rows of wooden houses in the wilderness.
The parents told them that these were all made by the Taishan Army. Those people were really good people. They came to build their houses after the training, using the leftover wood from the camp.
One of the generals, who was as fair and handsome as a girl, told them that winter was coming, and although the shelter was warm, it would collapse under a heavy snowfall, and it would be dangerous to fall asleep by then.
Some old people shed tears at that time. Of course they knew because they had experienced it.
And when the Taishan Army men built a row of long houses for them, they couldn't believe it. They were so horrified that they didn't know what to say.
They are simple and know that when a noble person is too kind to you, it is the time to make you sacrifice your life. This is the same as eating without your head.
So they dare not ask for it.
But when Bai Jun's general told them, their Taishan Army was different from other armies. They came from the heads of Guizhou, and eight out of ten people present were the sons of the heads of Guizhou.
So you are our parents. Is there any reason why you treat your own parents well?
As a result, these people knew that the people in front of them might really be different.
But they still choose to live in the basement because they want to live in a new house with their relatives.
Now, the sons came down and moved into the longhouse together. These people didn't know how to thank Zhao Yun, so they could only wait outside the camp and long for Zhao Yun to give some wild vegetables from the mountains to Zhao Yun.
Zhang Chong just listened quietly to the villagers' stories. He looked at Zhao Yun, who was shy and blushing, and felt very warm in his heart.
He didn't expect that Zhao Yun had done so much. No one told him that he should be like this, and he didn't say anything to his brother-in-law about the relationship between the military and civilians.
Therefore, Zhao Yun's actions are even more heartfelt. He really regards the people as his parents.
Feel sorry for them and love them.
Later, these villagers handed Zhao Yun some wild vegetables from the mountains and wanted to leave. After all, they could see that there was a person in the crowd who must be a big shot, because everyone was surrounding him.
Out of fear of authority, they did not dare to stay longer.
But at this time, Zhang Chong walked into them with a smile. He looked around at everyone, and then said with a smile:
"Why did you go into the mountain before?"
No one spoke, as they were afraid that if they said something wrong, they would cause big trouble.
At this time, the hunter named Huo Shan said in a deep voice:
"We are all lowly people, and we don't know who is good or bad. The local tyrants above asked us to run into the mountains, so we ran away without thinking too much. In fact, we are just a group of rats, no matter which way the soldiers come.
They all just want to huddle together in a cave and survive. So general, don’t blame us poor people."
Seeing that this person could speak fluently, Zhang Chong knew that this person should be the leader of their group, so he said warmly:
"Oh, what do you think of our Taishan Army now?"
Huo Shan hesitated for a moment and said seriously:
"None of us have ever seen an army that treats us as well as you, so we came to send some things from the mountains. They are not very good things, but this is all we have."
Zhang Chong nodded, and then he really squatted on the ground and started to pick up these wild products. Then he pointed to something similar to a tree root and asked:
"What's this?"
Huo Shan said truthfully:
"This is kudzu root. You can break it into kudzu powder. It is something that people in our village often eat."
Zhang Chong roughly rummaged through the things. The things on the ground were indeed some common mountain products. He had a general understanding of the living conditions of these villagers, so he stood up, thought for a while, and said this.
.
"To be honest, if I were in your shoes, I would run away. In today's troubled times, there are wars everywhere. Whether it's those who capture slaves or those who fill ditches, manpower is needed. So you run into the mountains and I'll do it.
I won’t blame you because you still don’t understand our Taishan Army.”
"But now that our Taishan Army is here, we don't plan to leave anymore. We want to take root here. Taking root here doesn't mean living in a separate property with the local tycoons from the Han Dynasty, and then taking away half of your savings.
We have only one purpose in taking root, which is to lead you to live a better life."
Seeing that these people didn't know what to do, Zhang Chong gave a more specific explanation:
"For example, this piece of kudzu is a good thing in my opinion. But you all rely on digging it in the mountains. It all depends on luck. Apart from eating it yourself, you can't sell anything even if you sell it to outsiders. And when our Taishan Army comes,
, will take you to plant kudzu roots. When the time comes, these mountains will be planted with these kudzu roots, and you can all make a good living by selling these kudzu roots."
In the whispers of everyone, Zhang Chong finally promised:
"My name is Zhang Chong. I am the commander of the Taishan Army and the king of Datai. As long as I have promised, even if there are thousands of difficulties ahead, we Taishan soldiers will do it. This is our determination."
At this time, Huo Shan suddenly said something:
"Your Majesty, I want to follow your Taishan Army."
Zhang Chong shook his head and told Huo Shan:
"I can see that these people need you. You can help them more by staying in your hometown than by following our Taishan Army. Besides, the battlefield is fierce and dangerous. If you are not careful, you will lose your life."
After saying this, Zhang Chong chatted with these people again, asking them to stay in Lishe with peace of mind, take care of their parents, and give birth with peace of mind.
He finally made a promise to everyone:
"Don't worry, our Taishan Army will not leave once it arrives."
As a result, all the villagers cheered, and then Zhang Chong smiled and prepared to return to the camp.
At this time, Huo Shan spoke. He knew that this was the opportunity of his life. He said loudly:
"Your Majesty, I know you are going to Yikou next. I know a way to help you go around."
As soon as he said this, Zhang Chong turned around. Seeing that this man did not seem to be joking, he and Xun You looked at each other and laughed.
Unexpectedly, unintentionally inserting willows and willows will create shade.
…
As Guo Lin, who came from Taiyuan, fully grasped Yangqu's defense, he began to recruit troops in Yangqu.
Yangqu is the northern gateway to Taiyuan, and the Yikou Pass, Shiling Pass and Chitang Pass are distributed like a pin character. Among them, the Yikou Pass is the protrusion of the entire defense, and its gains and losses directly affect the mood of this war.
.
Therefore, he prepared Yikou Pass as the focus of his defense.
As a qualified general, Guo Lin also realized the difference between the Taishan Army's southward march this time and the Xianbei people's southward march in the past.
In the past, he would place important troops at Shiling Pass. But now, the most suitable place is Yikou Pass, because he knows that the Taishan Army will definitely attack here.
The reason for his judgment was the same as Zhang Chong's. They both understood that this time the Taishan Army's 50,000-strong army marched south to the Taiyuan Basin, and they would never let their food routes be threatened.
Therefore, even if the hills to the west of Yikou Pass are empty and soldiers and horses can pass through, Yikou Pass still needs to be pulled out.
Moreover, after Guo Lin inspected Yikou Pass, she also found that it was very beneficial to her side.
First, the Hutuo River passes through from north to south, which can provide sufficient water sources, and then the Yunzhong River flows from west to east, and then merges with the Hutuo River in the north of Yikou.
In other words, with the existence of Yunzhong River, the Taishan Army's southward team will be divided into two parts, greatly reducing the pressure in front of the pass.
In addition, because Yikou Pass is located between two mountains, the front of the pass is very narrow and will not be surrounded by two wings. Therefore, if the Taishan Army wants to attack this pass, their superior strength cannot be deployed.
So after Guo Lin saw this level, she decided to choose the battlefield for the decisive battle here.
His plan was to defend the Yikou Pass to ensure the security of Taiyuan's rear. Then, after the rebels defeated the pass, he would send troops northward to look for opportunities to regain the lost territory.
But there are two problems here.
First of all, as the frontline commander, he could not stay at Yikou Pass forever, so he had to choose a pass guard.
The person who originally guarded this pass was a member of the Xun family named Xun Cheng.
This Xun family is not the Xun family of Yingchuan, but the Xun family of Taiyuan.
Since there are ready-made ones, it is natural to use the cooked ones.
But Guo Lin was worried about Xun Cheng, because in the past, whoever was assigned to be the chief of the Yikou Pass was really assigned. After all, this place is not on the commercial road, and there is no profit or water at all, except for those who are messing around.
Yes, who will come?
So at first Guo Lin wanted to choose from among her own generals, but the fact was that everyone knew how dangerous it was to be the chief, so no one said anything.
Originally, Guo Lin wanted to die directly, but the various generals were prevaricating. They all had corresponding duties, so it would be better to use Xun Cheng.
In the end, Guo Lin had no choice but to continue using Xun Cheng.
On the one hand, he asked Xun Cheng to defend, and on the other hand, he sent people as his backup to reinforce him at all times and prepare for the subsequent counterattack.
But then the second problem came, that is, he did not have enough troops.
After he comprehensively reviewed Yangqu's front soldiers, he found that in addition to the five thousand officials and soldiers he brought from Taiyuan, Yangqu had about two thousand pass soldiers on his side, but most of these people were unable to fight.
At first, he was still thinking of asking for troops from the rear in Taiyuan. He and Ding Yuan explained in detail his plan for the defense of Yangqu and his future counterattack.
Ding Yuan agreed very much, but had no choice but to tell him that there were really no reinforcements.
Previously, after Ding Yuan was stationed in Taiyuan, with the support of Taiyuan Governor Pei Ye, he organized and trained a new army of ten thousand people with the military officers he brought back from the Bingzhou Army.
But later, in order to defend Yangqu, Ding Yuan had handed over five thousand people to Guo Lin, and the remaining five thousand could not be divided anymore. He wanted to defend Taiyuan.
When guarding Taiyuan, if he didn't have his own soldiers, he would not dare to sleep. He was really worried that those powerful people would betray him.
Ding Yuan knew it very well. It was said that all the great people in Jizhou had been slaughtered, but what about the Zhen family? Isn't it still rich and honorable? What did they do? Didn't they just become the guide dog of the Taishan Army and give away two daughters?
So despite the fact that the powerful people in Taiyuan are united to fight against the Taishan Army, who can't be a leading dog? Who doesn't have two daughters?
If Zhen can do it, they can do it too.
Guo Lin understood her lord's worries, so she could only find another way.
Under this situation, Guo Lin returned to her clan and met with her clan leader.
Its core meaning is one. Let alone the hatred between the country and the family, the Taishan Army is in the north. If the clans do not fight to the death, the tragic ending of many wealthy families in Hebei will be a lesson for them.
As the martial arts family of Taiyuan's wealthy families, the Guo family's fierceness and strength naturally do not need Guo Lin's persuasion.
Soon, the Guo family gathered all their clansmen, tribes, disciples and subordinates, gathered three thousand soldiers, and rushed to Guo Lin, determined to defend the three passes.
Even Guo Lin's grown-up nephew Guo Huai wore leather armor and rode a skinny horse to participate. It can be said that this time the Guo family left no room at all and wanted to fight the Taishan Army to the end.
But doing this was not enough. The old patriarch gave Guo Lin another suggestion and asked him to find someone who had the power to determine the success or failure of this battle.
This person is now the general who protects the Huns, Wang Rou.