The Chu army originally had an army of 110,000. After fighting with the Sun and Huang families for more than a month, even though tens of thousands of troops were lost, there were still 100,000 troops left.
Although Jiangxia originally had an army of 30,000, due to the initial defeat in the battle with the Chu army, a lot of troops and horses were lost. If the reinforcements of the Wu army had arrived in time, they would have been wiped out long ago. Now there are only more than 20,000 left.
It's just military strength.
How could Jiang Xia's army, which only numbered 20,000, withstand the Chu army of 100,000?
Following Liu Xiu's order, 100,000 Chu troops launched a full-scale attack, and within three days, the Jiangxia army's defense line was overwhelmed.
Within three days, the Chu army was so powerful that it defeated Shaxian, Anlu and other five counties. Half of Jiangxia was in the hands of the Chu army.
In the process of fighting against the Chu army, the Jiangxia army suffered heavy casualties. Only a few counties such as Xiling and Qichun were left in hand, and its military strength was less than half of its peak.
Jiangxia Administrative Office, Xiling County, in the prefect's mansion, Huang Xie was giving medicine to his bedridden father Huang Zu.
Even Chun Shenjun and Huang Xie, one of the four princes of the Warring States Period, could not prevent the Jiangxia Kingdom from being destroyed.
Since Huang Zu was critically ill, Huang Xie tried every means to save Jiangxia from destruction and sent envoys to neighboring princes for help.
There are only four strong families adjacent to Jiangxia, Qin Hao, Sun Jian, Zhao Kuangyin, and Liu Xiu.
In addition to Liu Xiu, who was attacking him, and Sun Jian, who had withdrawn his troops, the only people Huang Xie could rescue were Qin Hao and Zhao Kuangyin.
However, five armies of the Southern Han Dynasty attacked Qin, and three of them were in Jingzhou. Therefore, the Qin army in Jingzhou had no time to take care of itself, so how could it have any spare power to rescue Jiangxia?
As for Zhao Kuangyin of the Song Dynasty, he was bent on seizing the land of Jianghuai. In addition, in his eyes, Jiangxia had become a dead land. Liu Xiu was determined to win Jiangxia, so sending troops to fight with Liu Xiu at this time was out of the question.
Even if Huang Xie is willing to cede territory to survive, Zhao Kuangyin is unwilling to send troops to rescue, so Jiangxia is obviously facing a dead end.
"My son, how is the situation outside?" Huang Zu asked weakly.
Huang Xieqiang laughed: "Father, don't worry, I have a plan, and I will not let Liu Xiu's thieves take away the Huang family's foundation."
As soon as he finished speaking, Huang She, also known as Huang Tingjian, who was wearing armor, walked in with a panic look on his face.
Huang Tingjian was about to say something, but after seeing the look in Huang Xie's eyes, he held back the words that were about to come to his mouth.
"She'er, if you have any bad news, just tell me directly. Your father and I are not so confused that we can't distinguish the form." Huang Zu said weakly.
"this……"
Huang Tingjian glanced at Huang Xie. After hesitating for a moment, Huang Tingjian said with a wry smile: "Go ahead."
Huang Tingjian saw this and said truthfully: "The magistrate of E County surrendered without a fight. The Chu army is already less than fifty miles away from Xiling."
"I knew that the situation was over, ahem..."
As he spoke, Huang Zu coughed violently, even coughing up traces of blood.
"Father, father..."
Huang Xie was so anxious that he patted Huang Zu on the back and said bitterly: "My child is incompetent. He is no match for Liu Xiu and cannot defend the foundation of our Huang family."
"No, I don't blame you. As a father, you are no match for Liu Xiu. You have done well enough, Xie'er. How can God help Liu but not my Sun and Huang family?"
Huang Zu said with a wry smile, he never thought that all the good things would be ruined because of the rebellion caused by the Japanese pirates and Shanyue.
What else can I say besides being unlucky?
"Have a break, shoot. Now that Jiangxia's situation has been decided, even if we continue to resist, it doesn't make much sense. It will only increase casualties."
Huang Zu grabbed Huang Xie and Huang She and said with a serious face: "Let's go quickly. Leave Jiangxia and join the Qin army. If you have a chance, come back and avenge your father."
Huang Xie's expression suddenly changed: "Father, aren't you going with the child?"
"My father knows his body well. It is better to die on the battlefield than to die of illness on the road. You don't want your father to die in such a useless way, right?"
"But……"
Huang Xie and Huang She wanted to refute, but they were speechless. They knew their father's character, and dying on the battlefield was also a fate for him.
"I, Huang Zu, have been mediocre in my life and have never accomplished anything big. The only thing I am proud of is..."
Huang Zu caressed the cheeks of Huang Xie and Huang She, and said with a smile: "It's because of you two outstanding sons.
Qin Hao is not a stingy person. Even if you are the sons of princes, he will still tolerate you.
From now on, even if my father is gone, with your talents, you can still occupy high positions in the Qin army, and the inheritance of my Huang family will not be interrupted."
"Father."
The two brothers hugged Huang Zu and cried bitterly.
"Okay, stop being so childish and leave quickly. If it's too late, you won't be able to leave once the Chu army besieges the city."
"Father, take care. The child will definitely come back and seek revenge against the traitor Liu Xiu."
Huang Xie gritted his teeth and said, his eyes full of hatred and determination.
In the end, Huang Xie did not defend Xiling, but led more than ten thousand Jiangxia troops, then crossed the Yangtze River north to Zhangling County, and took refuge with Meng Wu, the prefect of Zhangling.
Huang Xie took away all the money and food he could carry at once, and burned everything he could not take away, leaving no supplies for Liu Xiu.
The reason why Huang Xie went to Zhangling County instead of Nan County was mainly because there was a war going on in Nan County. If he went to seek refuge at this time, his 10,000 troops would definitely be requisitioned immediately.
Facing the hundreds of thousands of troops from the Southern Han Dynasty and the mere 10,000 remnant troops from Jiangxia, they were just a drop in the bucket. Even if they were all thrown in, they wouldn't be able to make much of a splash.
This 10,000-strong army is the last bargaining chip in the hands of the Huang Xie brothers. Of course, they hope to maximize the role of this 10,000-strong army so that they can secure a good future for their brothers, instead of being used as cannon fodder on the Nanjun battlefield.
After Huang Xie brothers led the army to withdraw from Xiling, Xiling City became an empty city, and naturally it was even more impossible to stop the Chu army.
Before the Chu army entered the city, Huang Zu jumped from the tower and fell to his death on the spot, ending his life.
So far, the 14 counties in Jiangxia County, except for the three Jiangbei counties that were ceded to the Qin army from the beginning, the remaining 11 counties have all fallen into the hands of the Chu State, and Jiangxia County has been returned to the Chu State.
"Report... to report to my lord, before the Huang Xie brothers surrendered to the Qin army, they took away everything they could from the warehouse, and burned all the grain, grass and ordnance that could not be taken away. Now all the major buildings in Xiling
The warehouse is already empty."
After hearing the news, Liu Xiu's eyes suddenly ignited with anger, and he said coldly: "Damn Huang Xie, I will make him pay the price sooner or later."
"Lord, what should I do with Huang Zu's body?"
"Although Huang Zu has always been against our army, since he was considered a great man, he should be buried with dignity."