An Lushan's army was like a broken bamboo, heading south all the way, and all the prefectures and counties along the way turned to the wind.
However, there were also prefectures and counties that were unwilling to surrender. Tangchang County and Gucheng County in Dingzhou, as well as Zhangyang County in Shenzhou, were determined not to surrender. An Lushan was furious and ordered the army to break through the county towns and massacre them. The men, women, and elders of the three counties were More than 20,000 people were massacred.
An Lushan immediately ordered that all those who did not surrender would be slaughtered.
Frightened by the ferocity of Anlu Mountain, the states and counties in Hebei did not dare to resist anymore and surrendered one after another. However, even if they surrendered, they could not escape the rape, burning, killing, and wanton plunder of the Hu soldiers in Anlu Mountain. The cruelty of the war and the ferocity of the Hu soldiers shrouded fear. In everyone's heart.
Half a month later, An Lushan's army reached Anyang County, Xiangzhou. An Lushan ordered the entire army to rest for three days to wait for the arrival of the logistics army.
An Lushan was invited to the staff tent by Yan Zhuang. An Lushan had three great counselors, Yan Zhuang, Gao Shang and Ashina Chengqing. Among them, Ashina Chengqing was An Lushan's confidant. He assisted the third An Qing'en in taking charge. Youzhou.
In the staff tent, there were more than a dozen people including the second son An Qingxu, counselors Yan Zhuang, Gao Shang and generals Shi Siming, Cai Xide, Cui Qianyu, Tian Qianzhen and so on.
There is a Central Plains sand table in the middle of the tent. The sand table was invented by Fei Long and is now a standard equipment for all Tang armies. An Lushan sent people to lurk in the Central Plains and it took three years to make this sand table.
Gao Shang said to An Lushan: "Prince Qi, we have just received news from Chang'an that Li Longji has appointed Xianyu Zhongtong to stay in Luoyang. He has recruited 30,000 troops in Guanzhong and rushed to Luoyang for defense. In addition to Luoyang's own 20,000 troops, Then the garrison of Luoyang will be 50,000."
An Lushan sneered and said: "What kind of combat effectiveness will the newly recruited army have? It's just a bunch of rabble. How can he compete with our hard-trained soldiers? Such an army of 200,000 will be killed by us without leaving any skin or armor!"
Yan Zhuang said from the side: "Your Majesty, Luoyang has the Luoshui River running through the city. It is easy to attack and difficult to defend. The Tang army will definitely not defend Luoyang, but will defend Sishui Pass. I am thinking of dividing the troops into two groups and attacking from the front. The other way crosses Mengjin Bridge from Hanoi and goes around behind Sishui Pass. If attacked from both sides, the Tang army will be defeated."
Shi Siming next to him said: "The Tang army will not be ignorant of the danger of Mengjin Bridge, and will definitely destroy it in advance."
An Lushan immediately made a decision: "The Mengjin Bridge has been destroyed. Let's just build another pontoon bridge. Military Advisor Yan's plan is very good. General Shi, you lead 30,000 cavalry across the Yellow River from Mengjin and attack the back of Sishui Pass. Anyone who does not surrender will , they will all be killed!"
Shi Siming bowed and said: "I humbly obey my orders!"
An Qingxu stood up and said: "Father, I have received news that the general guarding Xiangyang is Li Dai, and he is recruiting troops."
"so what?"
"Father, Li Dai is in Xiangyang, and I suspect that Li Ye is also here."
An Lushan frowned, "Didn't Li Ye go back to Anxi?"
He turned back and looked at Gao Shang, who nodded, "We received news from Chang'an yesterday. Emperor Li Longji announced that Li Ye, the military governor of Anxi, had come to the capital, and appointed Prince Feng as the Protector of Anxi. This means that Li Ye is still in Anxi."
An Lushan nodded, "Never mind Li Ye, after taking Luoyang, we will implement it according to the original plan!"
An Qingxu added: "My son suggested that we first send five hundred people to sneak into Xiangyang City as an internal response, and then we can cooperate with the internal response and capture Xiangyang City in one fell swoop."
An Lushan nodded happily, "Agree to implement!"
In Hanzhong, a team stretching for dozens of miles had passed Liangzhou and entered Yangzhou. In the evening, Li Ye saw that it was getting late and ordered the army to camp and rest.
It is impossible for a team that is dozens of miles long to camp together, otherwise the leading army has finished its rest and is ready to set off, and the following team has not yet arrived at the camp.
This is why we have to divide the front army, the middle army and the rear army. Let the teams along the way rest at the nearest gathering place and agree on a departure time. However, marching in this way can easily be ambushed by the enemy, so marching is also a test of ability.
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The soldiers were busy making pots and cooking, and set up two tents in an open space. One was for Dugu Xinyue and the wet nurse, who had to take turns taking care of the children, and the other tent was for seven maids.
The seven maids were also busy boiling water and cooking. The wet nurse went to bed, and Dugu Xinyue sat aside and looked at the child.
Star Officer was sitting on a blanket, concentrating on playing with several wooden toys, such as ponies, deer and puppies, which were carved for her from wood by the soldiers and polished very smooth without any wood thorns.
Li Yeze and Li Mi were studying the map on a large rock not far away. They found that there was indeed another pass ahead, Raofeng Pass, the east gate of Hanzhong.
In the past, they had passed the border calmly without disturbing the local officials. Even if some local officials discovered them, they did not say anything. This is a tacit understanding in the officialdom, which can also be said to be an unspoken rule. If you don't trouble the other party, the other party will not bother them either.
you.
But Raofengguan and the others had to face it no matter what. Once a fierce battle broke out, Nanzheng would definitely report the situation to the imperial court, and the Hanzhong route would be cut off by the imperial court.
Li Mi thought for a moment and said, "Send scouts to inquire about the officials in Hanzhong to see if they are familiar with them, and see if they can find any connections."
Li Ye nodded and immediately sent two scouts to Xingdao County, twenty miles away, to inquire about the situation.
Xingdao County is a small county with a population of only a thousand households and underdeveloped commerce. They make a living by farming. The city gates were closed after dark, and two scouts dressed as city merchants entered the city at the last moment.
The information they gathered was relatively simple, and they went directly to an inn near the city gate.
The innkeeper heard that they were going to give gifts to Yangzhou officials and asked about the official situation in Yangzhou. He immediately introduced them to them in detail.
Who is the governor, who is the chief governor, who is Sima, and the officials below? The two scouts suddenly heard a familiar surname, Shi Duguqiao, the magistrate of Xingdao County.
"Is this Duguqiao a member of the Dugu family in Chang'an?" the leading scout asked quickly.
The shopkeeper nodded, "That's right! But I heard he's not the owner."
The two scouts immediately understood that, just like Dugu Ying in the river, he had turned from a Dugu slave into a commoner. They found out where he lived and immediately went to visit him.
Dugu Qiao was also an aristocratic slave of the Dugu family. He performed outstandingly and became a commoner. He was then carefully trained by the Dugu family. He was a Jinshi in Tianbao for ten years, served as the chief registrar of Xixiang County for four years, and was promoted to the county magistrate of Xingdao County this year.
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Duguqiao was about thirty years old, of medium build, and looked very smart and capable. When he heard that Li Ye was twenty miles away to the west, he was shocked and quickly followed two scouts to visit Li Ye.
Although the city gate has been closed, he is the county magistrate and will be in charge of him when the city gate is opened. Of course, the soldiers guarding the city do not dare to offend.
Soon Dugu Qiao was brought to Li Ye. Dugu Qiao quickly bowed and saluted, "Dugu Qiao, meet my uncle!"
Li Ye smiled and said: "I didn't know that there were people in the Dugu family in Hanzhong."
Dugu Qiao smiled slightly and said: "The Dugu family also has a layout, but I can meet you wherever you go. Even in Shannan East Road, there are people from the clan!"
"Where is Shannan East Road?" Li Ye asked quickly.
"Sima Dugukai of Jingzhou."
"I see!"
Li Ye nodded and said, "There is something I want to ask the Dugu County Magistrate if he has any way to solve it."
"Uncle, please tell me!"
"We want to cross Rao Fengling. Of course we can fight there, but that will alarm the imperial court. But I don't want to alarm the imperial court. I want to pass by quietly. Is there any way?"
Duguqiao thought for a while and said: "Rao Fengling is an independent pass and is directly under the jurisdiction of the Imperial Military Department. It has nothing to do with the local government. Generally, it will not pay attention to the favors of local officials. However, there is a way to humble one's position!"
