Yang Guang's plan for the Eastern Expedition had to be aborted because Wang Bo raised troops. He was filled with anger and insisted on conquering Liaodong in person, regardless of the dissuasion of all civil and military officials. He wanted to destroy Wang Bo's power, and then use the power of thunder to wipe out Goguryeo in Liaodong in one fell swoop.
The unification of Kyushu and the complete golden territory has become the long-cherished wish of one emperor through the ages.
After the imperial edict was issued, Li Yuan went north to stay in Taiyuan and took up his post immediately to prevent the Turks and Mongols from the north from taking advantage of the chaos to move south. Li Xiuning received the rank of Hussar General and led 80,000 soldiers from the eight states in Guanzhong to form the Youwu Army. He left Tongguan east and took a ship via Tongguan Pier.
Go, get off the ship at Kaifeng, march quickly across Shangqiu to Huaibei, and attack according to the situation; Yang Su, with the rank of generalissimo, will accompany Yang Guang personally and lead 200,000 soldiers to guard the central army; Lai Hu'er will lead the rank of chariot and cavalry general, with 100,000 soldiers of the army.
Formed the Zuo Wu Army and advanced with the Chinese army. Local officials were ordered to prepare food, grass, ships and all war preparation materials wherever the army passed. In one moment, millions of civilians supported an army of 400,000 and marched away to put down the rebellion.
There was an endless stream of light boats on the Han River, and soldiers, food, carriages and horses were transported to the front in an orderly manner. Li Xiuning took Luo Yu and dozens of special forces members who had not yet graduated from Tongguan at night. The government soldiers had assembled outside Tongguan to hand over to local officials.
After that, Li Xiuning ordered the captains at all levels to organize their armies, make food at the third watch, and break camp at the fifth watch.
There was a large fire basin standing in the simple handsome tent. The heat wave of the raging fire made people break out in sweat, which was sharply different from the cold of the melting snow outside. Li Xiuning looked at the dozen military leaders in front of him: "Generals, Xiuning.
I was ordered to fight against rebellion, and was highly regarded by the Holy Spirit. I received the rank of General of Hussars and led his troops to suppress the rebellion to alleviate the emperor's worries. As the saying goes, it is the only thing to be loyal to the emperor is to eat the emperor's salary. This time I send troops, I rely on you to fight the enemy bravely, and you will return triumphantly in the future.
At that time, report it to the court and reward him based on his merits."
All the army leaders made a promise, and Li Xiuning added: "Now the rebel king Bo Zheng is leading his troops to besiege Xuzhou. He calls himself 'General Tiangong'. According to the military newspaper, Wang Ni has conquered eleven cities since the day he raised his troops.
In the county town, wherever the soldiers passed, they burned, killed, looted, and committed all kinds of evil. The people in each county who disobeyed the slightest were buried alive. In more than a month, hundreds of thousands of people have been taken hostage. Now they are attacking Xuzhou fiercely. We have been ordered to revolt.
The teacher of justice can defeat the unruly ministers, eradicate the evil spirits of the country and dynasty, and relieve the suffering of all the people."
The generals promised loudly again, and Li Xiuning said again: "Generals, please remember that our army is an army of justice. We hope to restrain the soldiers of each battalion. Anyone who violates military discipline will be killed without mercy! Please go back to the camp first and rectify the soldiers of each battalion.
Ma, early tomorrow morning, the whole army will break out of camp and board the ships to go out to fight against the bandits."
The generals left after their orders, and only Li Xiuning and Luo Yu were left in the camp. Luo Yu had been silent just now. After reading the Sui army's military discipline, he originally wanted to bring out the three major disciplines and eight points of attention of Taizu for later generations to Li Xiuning for reference, but
Later, when I thought about it, it was impossible to implement it in this era. The soldiers were all ordinary people who farmed in their spare time. Before the real troubled times came, they would not buy or sell by force. As for all actions, follow the command, the ancients
There are many ways to do it, so you don’t have to worry about it. We can’t mention everything captured and returned to the public, because when cleaning the battlefield during or after war, there will be unexpected gains from time to time, but such unexpected gains will also be accompanied by considerable dangers, such as cold arrow traps and so on.
It could kill someone at any time. Without this unexpected reward, few people would take the initiative to clean up the battlefield.
Forget it, what can’t be implemented at this time will be discussed later when we have the opportunity. Let’s slowly explore it after the establishment of the Tang Dynasty. I hope that the army can be professionalized by then. Later generations will read books and watch TV, and there will be many scenes of ancient cold weapon wars.
At that time, just watching from a distance made him a little frightened. Now he was about to face such a bloody scene at close range. Luo Yu didn't know what he felt in his heart. People would die in war. Maybe these comrades who were going with him
Most of them will never come back. According to Yang Guang's temper, he will not stop for a while after Wang Bo is pacified. He will choose to go directly north. By then, countless good men will have to be buried in a foreign land. Black Gunpowder
It is definitely not a good idea to configure it for Yang Guang now...
Thinking of this, I couldn't help but sigh: "General, my subordinates still have military affairs, so please leave first..."
Li Xiuning raised his eyes and glanced at Luo Yu: "Why do you sigh when you join the army? But what's wrong with you?"
Luo Yu thought for a while and said: "General, I have a weapon to kill enemies here, but now is not the time to appear on a large scale. If your Majesty is informed..."
Li Xiuning said: "Oh, what weapon did you invented to kill the enemy? And why can't you let your Majesty know about it now? Since ancient times, when war breaks out, it is the common people who suffer in the end..."
Luo Yu took out a package of things from his sleeve: "I prepared this in my spare time. When lit with fire, it will produce huge sound and power. If used properly, it can kill iron and stone like rotten wood, let alone the human body. The formula has been recorded.
Okay, General..."
Seeing that Luo Yu didn't answer her next question, Li Xiuning's eyes flashed. She glanced at Luo Yu, stopped asking, and said with a smile, "Is this what Taoism calls thunder in the palm of my hand?"
Luo Yu was angry and funny: "General, can you take the time to see the power of this thing?" Li Xiuning smiled and nodded, asking Luo Yu to put the things away, turned around and called Li Xiaogong and Yue Yun, explained to them, and then pulled
He followed Luo Yu and walked out.
Luo Yu held the torch and led Li Xiuning to a low soil slope seven or eight feet high. He fixed the torch, poked a small hole about the size of an egg and two feet deep with a wooden stick, and then put the gunpowder in the clay pot he had made.
Going in, the lead wire is made of hemp rope, and there is saltpeter inside the hemp rope to ensure that it will not burn out after being ignited. It is made temporarily and is not that particular. Let them improve it in the future.
There was about half a kilogram of black gunpowder, saltpeter, sulfur, and charcoal in the clay pot. Luo Yu personally ground it, wrapped it in silk cloth, sifted it out, and then mixed it in proportion. This stuff should be able to blow up this hillock.
Li Xiuning looked curiously at Luo Yu's busy work. After seeing him put away the clay pot, he took the torch in his hand and walked to her: "General, please step back ten feet first, and I will come over after lighting the fire."
."
Li Xiuning's eyes were full of doubts. Is it necessary for such a small thing to retreat so far? But when she saw that Luo Yu looked serious and didn't seem to be joking, she turned around and retreated by the light of the torch.
Seeing that Li Xiuning had retreated to a safe area, Luo Yu felt a little uneasy. Although this fuse had been tested several times and the effect was good, it was without gunpowder. Now, the power of half a kilogram of gunpowder is really hard to estimate.
.In his time and space, he had only seen the power of his father when he exploded rocks. Of course, the gunpowder was better than this one, so it shouldn't be that powerful.
Without thinking anymore, the torch lit the three-foot-long fuse, a puff of green smoke rose up, and then a string of sparks flashed, and the sound of "chichichichi" came from behind his head, and Luo Yu ran towards Li Xiuning in despair.
, the burning speed of this fuse seems to be much faster.
About ten feet away from Li Xiuning, there was a muffled sound behind him, and then the ground shook. By the light of the torch, I saw dust flying around, followed by gravel and sand falling all over the sky. I thought that the small slope was already there.
No longer exists.
Li Xiuning faced the flying sand in the sky, walked a few steps forward, pulled Luo Yu to her side, her eyes flashed with concern: "Are you okay?" Luo Yu reached out and patted the fine dust on his chest, holding it high.
Lighting the torch: "I'm fine, let's go and see how powerful it is." After saying that, he stood in front of Li Xiuning and walked forward slowly.
The small earth slope has disappeared. In the light of the fire, a large pit about ten feet square is emitting green smoke. There are a handful of ceramic fragments scattered around it. It is thought that it was blocked by the loess during the explosion and did not float too far.
It's just some black soil covering the weeds.
Li Xiuning looked at the deep pit in surprise and asked blankly: "Is this caused by the little clay pot you just gave me?" Luo Yu smiled and said: "Yes. This is not the maximum power!"
Just as Li Xiuning was about to speak, the footsteps of dozens of people could be heard behind him. The muffled sound of the explosion must have alerted the soldiers in the military camp. Because it was night, Luo Yu and the others had not gone too far, so someone came over after a while.
Li Xiaogong and Yue Yun led more than thirty people holding torches and quickly came to Li Xiuning. Seeing that she was okay, they all breathed a sigh of relief. Li Xiaogong clasped his fists and said, "General, what happened just now?"
Li Xiuning didn't want people to know about the black powder. This thing is too powerful for everyone and everything. Although it is a weapon to kill the enemy, the enemy will make it in the future, and it will definitely become a weapon to kill himself.
, Luo Yu was right. Don't use this thing to kill people unless absolutely necessary. Thinking of this, he said: "Nothing, did you all hear the sound just now?"
Yue Yun clasped his fists and said: "I didn't hear the sound, but the ground shook, like an earth dragon turning over. My subordinates were worried about the general's safety. They saw fire here, so they came over to take a look."
Li Xiuning said: "We're fine. This place was struck by lightning, that's why this happened. Let's go back to camp!" After saying that, he stopped waiting and took the lead to go back.
Except for Luo Yu, everyone was doubtful. Seeing that Li Xiuning and Luo Yu had walked out of Zhang Xu, they hurriedly followed them. They were silent all the way until they dispersed inside the camp.
Luo Yu no longer thought about it. Li Xiuning had already seen the power of gunpowder. It was none of her business how she used it. He returned to the camp alone and slept with his clothes on amidst the footsteps of the soldiers patrolling the camp.
At three o'clock the next day, it was already very hot outside the camp. The sergeants of the food camp were working hard to prepare meals. Dozens of large pots were lined up in the open space. A dozen five-layer steamers were also steaming, and the smell of steamed buns was mixed.
The aroma of mutton wafted in the wind, making people want to eat. Thousands of people were divided into three teams, ate separately, and then got ready to go. After dawn, they boarded the ship and headed east to kill the enemy and make achievements.
Luo Yu was well fed. He had been here for several months and had already become accustomed to the food here. Because he joined the army, his meals were delivered to the camp. He really wanted to cook for himself and stir-fry some pork dishes.
But he has been busy with military school affairs, and before he graduated, he was pulled out to suppress the rebellion. He may have to join the army in the Eastern Expedition. It seems that there is no time to eat the pork he cooked!
He has practiced equestrian very well. In this era, it is unreasonable for soldiers not to be able to ride horses. Although he is not officially a member of the military, when the special forces were trained in the military academy, this was the only item that made them dissatisfied, so Luo Yu specially found
It took him a day to tame a fierce horse, and he naturally learned to ride a horse. Of course, he couldn't go into battle and charge. In front of them, he arrogantly said that if he had to go into battle on horseback, the army would be finished!
Everyone sneered, the generals are already going into battle, what does it mean for you to join the army for a small amount of time?
There were no horseshoes in this era. Whenever Luo Yu saw some war horses going into battle with wounds due to worn hooves, he felt very distressed. So he drew the shape of horseshoes and found the blacksmith in the army, and asked him to follow Li Xiuning's instructions.
After making two or three sets of horseshoe shapes, I called Li Xiuning. She trimmed the horseshoes in front of her and then nailed the horseshoes. Then, I used scissors to cut off the protruding copper nail tips, and finally painted them with copper oil.
This is very simple. The other three hooves were nailed by the groom according to Luo Yu's method. Li Xiuning looked at Luo Yu and said with a smile: "How did your little head grow?" Luo Yu also smiled and said: "I'm just a subordinate.
Put shoes on them..."
Li Xiuning took Ziyu, turned on the horse, and shouted "Drive..." Ziyu opened his mouth and hissed, and rushed forward like an arrow from the string. The horseshoes stepped on the stone road, sparkling sparks appeared, and the sound of iron and stone collisions was heard.
As you know, with this sharp tool, you don’t have to worry about horse hoof damage in the future.
However, there is no time to make shoe shoes for all the war horses now. These can only be done slowly in the future. Li Xiuning was very happy. He jumped on the horse and whipped it. He ran around the arena three times and came to Luo Yu. He got the horse to come.
The blacksmith said: "The matter of shoeing is kept secret for now. If anyone violates the order, he will be punished without mercy!" After saying this, he pulled Luo Yu towards the gate.
Tongguan Town is not big, with only a few hundred households. Usually the sun rises and the sun goes down. At this time, the town is overcrowded. They are all carpenters and painters from more than a dozen surrounding villages. Because the military affairs are urgent, there are not so many ships.
To serve as warships, they had to temporarily repair old ships and rush to build new ones. Li Xiuning and several military leaders rode horses and led the army to the mayor, who was about forty years old and waiting at the receiving booth. Behind him was still standing
There were five or six scribes in Tsing Yi in their thirties, who should be officials in the town. After the two parties met, Li Xiuning took the tiger talisman and the edict to the mayor and said: "Xiuning is leading the army according to the edict. Mayor Liu, please press
The imperial edict entrusts our army with 150 heroic ships, 120 heroic ships, and 20 grain transport ships of various types."
Mayor Liu stroked his long beard and replied: "It's easy to say, the required ships are ready. I can hand over the tiger talisman after my subordinates have seen it. The general will wait a moment." After saying that, he picked up the tiger talisman and took two steps back.
, turned around and could no longer see his movements.
Luo Yu couldn't understand why the little mayor owned this tiger talisman, which was so important. Li Xiuning suddenly explained softly: "The tiger talisman is used to verify the leadership of troops. If there are any places where soldiers and food are handed over along the way, they must be checked first.
If it's not right, you can deny food and grass to the soldiers. Those who hold the dark side still have the power of life and death, so kill them first and then report them."
Luo Yu nodded and said he understood. He thought that there would be several verifications later, so he didn't worry about it anymore. Because he had to take a boat, except for a few people on horseback, everyone else was on foot, and they didn't have armor or weapons. According to Li Xiuning,
According to the statement, they will not be assigned until Kaifeng, so it can be regarded as a light march.
After the handover, Li Xiuning took the document signed by the mayor, saluted, and led the sergeants around the town to the dock. He saw dozens of warships of various sizes parked on the riverside. At a glance, the masts were
The characters are lined up, the canvas is folded under the mast, and the ship's hull rises and falls with the waves, it's so spectacular.
At this time, the water of the Yellow River was not as turbid as that of later generations, and I don’t know why it was called the Yellow River. From here to the east until Kaifeng, the entire waterway has not yet been opened. There are countless reefs and dangerous shoals on the way, and the water flow conditions are changeable. Therefore, every warship is equipped with
We have three experienced old captains. They have already completed the entire journey and marked the waterway. Some places can transport people, but if the draft of cargo is too deep, they will hit the rocks. It is precisely because of this that Li Xiuning and others are allowed to travel lightly.
Take a boat.
Each Yingwu ship can carry 350 people, and the Yingxian ship can carry 250 people. The other more than 3,000 people escort the grain and grass, and they are divided into 20 logistics ships. They are well prepared and boarded in turn. Every two
The boats form a group and slowly leave the dock after being filled with people.
Luo Yu was not averse to taking a boat. He had been on many boats and had experienced waves more than ten meters high. The waves on the Yellow River were like a child scratching his itch. However, for most Hanzhong people, there were still many people who did not like it.
After getting used to it, after sailing for two or three miles with half sail, someone was already seasick and vomiting. For a while, people were lying on the edge of the boat, and the sound of vomiting kept coming and going. After hearing it too much, Luo Yu felt a little disgusted.
I hurriedly entered the inner warehouse and closed the door before I felt better.
What did Yang Guang think? Most people in Guanzhong don't know how to swim. In order to rush for time, they ordered Guanzhong soldiers who had not been trained on water to go east by boat. Isn't this torture? But after thinking about it, I feel relieved.
It will only take five days at most if everything goes well from the water route to Kaifeng. If you go by land, it won't be possible without half a month. Although it is uncomfortable to take a boat, it won't be a problem once you get used to it. It can also reduce the fatigue during the march and gain ten more days.
, which is very important for counterinsurgency.
Luo Yu didn't worry about this anymore. The only thing he was worried about was Li Xiuning. He was afraid that she wouldn't be able to bear the pain of drifting with the waves. A hero on land may not be able to endure it on a drifting ship. No matter how beautiful a woman is, she would vomit.
It won't look good either.
The third room inside was Li Xiuning's room. Just when Luo Yu wanted to go over and take a look, the door of the next door opened. Li Xiaogong stood steadily at the door and saluted: "General, please join the army and come over!"
After returning the courtesy, Luo Yu followed Li Xiaogong to Li Xiuning's room. He saw that she was sitting in the middle and felt no discomfort, so he felt relieved. After seeing the courtesy, he said, "General, what are your orders for me to come here?"
Li Xiuning showed her face and said: "If you join the army, please take a seat. I was worried that if you join the army and don't know the nature of water, you will get dizzy and cause vomiting. Now it seems that I am worrying too much..."
Luo Yu said: "Thank you, General. I have been trained in water skills by my grandfather since I was a child. Although I cannot catch fish alive under the water, the wind and waves are not a problem." Giving credit to that great and non-existent grandfather is the best way to say it.
.
Li Xiuning said: "It's a long way to go, and there are many undercurrents and dangerous shoals on the way. I don't know if everyone will arrive safely. I feel a little uneasy. Can joining the army help me?"
Luo Yu said: "Since ancient times, wars have been dangerous and wars have been fierce. Even so, there are endless records of wars. There is a poem that says, 'The carriages are rolling, the horses are rustling, and the pedestrians have bows and arrows at their waists. Ye Niang and his wife are walking to see each other off, and the dust has disappeared from the Baliu Bridge.
Holding his clothes and stamping his feet, he blocked the road and cried, and the cry went up to the sky. "In war, people will die. If the weapons are updated and updated, the casualties will be even more severe. How can a white soldier in the next battlefield be able to defeat the general?" Plagiarized the poem of the poet sage.
Luo Yu was still a little embarrassed about this famous story through the ages, so he changed a few words to make it more relevant to the current scene.
After listening to Luo Yu's poem, Li Xiuning recited it silently in her mind. She felt that it could not be more appropriate to describe the scene when the troops were sent out. She did not expect to have a poetic talent in joining the army, which was a surprise. As for what Luo Yu said later, she did not listen.
Li Xiaogong said, "What does the so-called weapon update and iteration of joining the army mean?" These words brought Li Xiuning back to reality. She knew what Luo Yu meant, but she could not and would not take that thing out as a weapon now. The emperor was so happy for his success.
She is definitely not the one who offered black gunpowder. What’s more, her Li family also has her own plans. According to her father, the failure of the Eastern Expedition may cause chaos in the world. At that time, heroes will compete to win the world. Weapons, talents, and soldiers are all indispensable.
, whoever can master the new weapons will definitely be better.
Luo Yu said: "Li Juntou, there are always weapons better than swords and long bows. For example, isn't the Eight Ox Crossbow more powerful than an ordinary long crossbow?"
Just as Li Daozong was about to speak, the ship shook. The three of them hurriedly came out of the room. Under the bright sunshine, the endless sails were slowly lowering, and then they all anchored in the center of the river and stopped moving forward.
The three of them, Li Xiuning, didn't know what was going on. They were about to ask the sergeant beside them. Someone came outside to report that a small boat had been drawn from the east bank of the river. Without further questioning, the three of them went out and came to the east helm. They saw a man in brocade clothes.
The internal officer was holding a scroll that looked like an imperial edict and was coming quickly by boat. Li Xiuning said: "This is Eunuch Zhang, the emperor's personal servant..." Li Xiaogong hurriedly asked the sergeant to put down the hanging ladder, and then stood aside, waiting for the angel to board the boat.
Declare the decree.
It stands to reason that the expeditionary army will not accept new military services without new ones. The previous orders are not issued and the subsequent orders are not obeyed. This is common sense in leading troops. Otherwise, how can they serve the public? I don’t know what the emperor means now.
Perhaps Wang Bo's rebellion was put down and there was no need to go on an expedition.
The angel did not climb the county ladder, but jumped up from the boat. He was a master of lightness. After he stood still, he raised his voice and said: "Hussars General Li Xiuning takes the order!"
Everyone knelt down on one knee in a military salute, and the forty-year-old angel unfolded the imperial edict and said: "By Emperor Tiancheng Yun, the edict says, 'Today is a troubled autumn in the world. King Bo of Shandong has rebelled and caused disasters to several counties without being able to pacify them. Now Dou Jiande, Yuncheng, Shanxi, Hebei
Liu Heitai, who had gathered thousands of foreigners in Cangzhou, had different intentions. He pardoned General Li Xiuning and ordered him to disembark in Changle and go north to Yuncheng to put down the rebellion, in order to strengthen the power of our Sui army! I admire this..."
This imperial edict looks a bit like it was written in the tone of a child. I don’t know whose hand it was. However, since it has been stamped with the jade seal and Zhongshu, the seal under the door is probably not fake. Yang Guang was behind the fleet, and he sent his personal servant
It’s not surprising that he came to announce the decree.
After everyone accepted the order and thanked them, Li Xiuning took a few steps forward and asked softly: "Eunuch Zhang, Xiuning does not dare to doubt the Holy Will, but our army's armor and weapons are all in Kaifeng. If we go north to Changle, how will we solve it?..."
The Eunuch Zhang said solemnly: "General, there are turmoils in various places now. When we come, we have to report that Zhang Shicheng of Shaozhou Road in the south, Chen Youliang of Yangzhou Prefecture in the east, Xue Ju in the northwest, etc. have also raised troops. Your Majesty is dispatching troops to Ping An
"Rebellion, it's not because your situation has changed along the way. Don't worry, the Ministry of War has made arrangements, and someone will send it to you when you get to Changle..."
Li Xiuning sighed deeply in her heart, bowed her hands to Eunuch Zhang as a gift, and respectfully escorted him off the warship. She turned back to Li Xiaogong and said: "Please quickly invite all the military leaders to come to the commander's tent to discuss matters. If you join the army, please come in with me. The situation has changed now and we need to meet again."
Planning a strategy..."
Li Xiaogong agreed and hurriedly went down to inform. Luo Yu, who was still a little confused about the situation, followed Li Xiuning to the central warehouse. Neither of them spoke, waiting for all the military leaders to arrive.