Chapter 695 What's the use of guarding oneself behind closed doors
Everyone knows that Jia Xu was once a member of the Xiliang Army.
After Dong Zhuo took the Han Emperor hostage and retreated to Chang'an, most of the Xiliang army was deployed on the Hongnong front line to resist the threat of the Kwantung princes.
As a member of the Xiliang Army, Jia Xu had lived in Hongnong for a long time and should be familiar with the terrain here.
This is also the reason why Yan Liang brought Jia Xu as an army counselor during his western expedition. The further west he went, the closer he got to Jia Xu's hometown, and the broader the field for Jia Xu's use became.
Jia Xu looked indifferent, his face was like water, he just stared at the map and remained silent.
Yan Liang knew that this poisonous man was searching for his past memories, so he stopped urging him.
After a while, Jia Xu coughed a few times and said slowly: "To the west along the Luoshui River, you can reach Lu's City. To the north of this city is Kuzong Mountain. When I was in Hongnong, I did hear that there were hunters.
I once crossed this mountain and traveled between Hongnong and Nanyang."
If there are hunters, it means that there must be a path in this mountain that can lead from north to south.
Yan Liang's spirit suddenly lifted.
"Ahem." Jia Xu changed the subject and added: "Although there are trails in the dry mountains, only the local farmers and hunters know about them. Xu only heard about them. As for how to walk, he has no way of knowing.
.”
When everyone heard this, they were a little disappointed.
If you have a road but don't know it, what you Jia Xu said is just like saying it in vain.
At this time, Yan Liangbao suddenly slapped the case hard and said loudly: "Back then, Han Xin took Ziwu Road to Hanzhong to defect to Liu Bang. Later, he secretly crossed Chencang and took this road again. The shortcut was pointed out by an old farmer in the mountains. As long as there is a road, why worry about not knowing it?
.”
As soon as these words came out, everyone was startled at first, and then suddenly realized.
Nearly one-third of the soldiers in Yan Liang's army of hundreds of thousands were from Jingzhou, and there was no shortage of soldiers from Nanyang among them.
Since this Kuzong Mountain trail connects Hongnong and Nanyang, Yan Liang doesn't believe it. So many Nanyang soldiers died and no one knows about it.
While everyone was excited, Yan Liang had already loudly ordered: "Pass this king's order and immediately select all the soldiers registered in Nanyang. Each of them will be questioned carefully by me."
The order was passed, and the camps besieging Shaanxian County quickly and secretly began to get busy.
After several days of secret interrogation, three soldiers borrowed from Nanyang were selected. These soldiers were all from the counties closest to Nanyang County and Hongnong. Before joining the army, they were all hunters and had gone deep into Fubing Mountain many times.
I hunted in the Kuzong Mountain area and was quite familiar with the trails in the mountains.
Yan Liang finally decided to use these three soldiers as guides, and ordered the veteran Huang Zhong to lead 5,000 Changsha troops to cross the Kuzong Mountain to attack Hongnong City and cut off Lele's retreat.
Huang Zhong was Yan Liang's general who was best at attacking fortresses. His five thousand Changsha soldiers were all veterans who were good at mountain warfare and had participated in the campaign to conquer Shu.
Today we have to cross mountains and ridges to capture Hongnong City. Huang Zhong and his Changsha soldiers are naturally the best choice.
The plan was decided, and that night, Yan Liang killed chickens, drank and meat, and rewarded the five thousand Changsha athletes generously to strengthen their performance.
After some encouragement, Yan Liang ordered Huang Zhong to leave the camp at night, and quietly left the Shaanxi County camp with the grain transport team returning south.
As soon as Huang Zhong's troops left, Yan Liang, in order to attract Le Jin's attention, sent Luoyang's navy to move westward against the current, pretending to seize Shaanxi and Jin from the waterway, threatening the north bank of the river to the east, so that Le Jin had no time to distract the rear.
…
Huayin, Cao Jun’s camp.
In the big tent, Cao Cao was sitting cross-legged on the couch, staring at the map on the desk, in a daze.
"Ahem!" Cao Cao would cough dryly from time to time, and hurriedly offered soup from side to side, so that Cao Cao's coughing and wheezing could be slightly relieved.
After he vomited blood and fell from his horse at Hangu Pass, and then experienced the double blow of a great escape, Cao Cao's body and energy were greatly damaged. In addition to the head wind, he also suffered from a cough.
Cao Cao originally planned to return to Chang'an to recuperate. Unexpectedly, after less than a month of recuperation, Yan Liang launched a fierce attack on him again.
Urgent battle reports from Shaanxi County arrived in Chang'an several times a day. Yan Liang's army of hundreds of thousands marched westward in a mighty manner. How could Cao Cao not be frightened?
In order to assist Hongnong at any time, Cao Cao had to move from Chang'an to Huayin. Not far east of Huayin was Tongguan. As long as Hongnong was in danger, Cao Cao could send his army out of Guandong to provide assistance within one day.
"How is the war in Shaanxi County?" Cao Cao asked subconsciously. This was the third time he asked the same question in one day.
Before the case, Guo Jia cupped his hands and said: "Prime Minister, Le Wenqian just reported yesterday that Yan Liangkong has more than 100,000 troops, but they cannot deploy them in the narrow terrain of Hongnong. Shaanxi City is impregnable. Le Wenqian asks Prime Minister not to worry.
.”
"Oh." Cao Cao responded, his frown slightly relaxing.
When Guo Jia saw this, he smiled reassuringly and said: "Shaanxi County is bordered by the Yellow River to the north and mountains to the south. Its terrain is only a few dozen miles in radius. With Le Wenqian's ability, he can lead an army of 30,000, which is enough to hold back the Yan bandits' army.
"
Cao Cao had a deep understanding of the terrain of Shaanxi County after passing through it several times, and he was also convinced of Le Jin's ability to use troops.
After Guo Jia's persuasion, Cao Cao's mood eased a lot.
At this time, Liu Ye said: "However, I recently heard intelligence from Luoyang Xizuo that the bandit fleet was on the Yellow River and was slowly moving westward along the river. I am afraid that the bandits want to seize Shaanxi and Jin from the waterway and threaten Hedong from the north.
ah."
Hearing Liu Ye's words, Cao Cao sneered: "Once the Yan thief succeeded in the waterway, he thought that the Yellow River was like the Yangtze River and allowed his navy to run amok. He is really arrogant."
"Although it is possible to cross the Yellow River north from Shaanxi and Tianjin, the current of the Yellow River in that area is very fast and it is extremely difficult to sail. If Yan's navy dares to come, there is a risk of capsizing."
Guo Jia smiled and accepted Cao Cao's words, "Furthermore, even if the Yan bandits captured Shaanjin, there are rolling Zhongtiao Mountains along the north bank of the Yellow River. Only Dayang City along the coast can be landed. And that big
The terrain of Yangcheng is also extremely dangerous. As long as thousands of soldiers and horses guard the ferry, the Yan bandits, even if they have a million-strong army, will never land. In this way, even if the Yan bandits' navy comes west, there is nothing to fear."
Guo Jia's words made it clear that the Yanliangshui Road was impossible to move westward.
Cao Cao nodded repeatedly, but then said: "However, Yan Thief is cunning and bold. He can do anything, so he must be on guard. Immediately send an order to Xu Gongming in Hedong. Order him to strengthen the defense of Dayang City and not leave Yan Thief behind.
Any opportunity to threaten Hedong."
"No." Guo Jia and Liu Ye raised their hands in unison.
After the order was passed, Cao Cao became more energetic and murmured: "Yan Liang, I admit it, you are really great. Now I am keeping to myself behind closed doors. I won't play with you anymore. Let's see how arrogant you are. Humph.
"
…
Huang Zhong dipped his fingers lightly in water and drew lines on the sheepskin map.
He and his 5,000 Changsha soldiers walked from Luoyang against the Luoshui River and walked southwest for more than 230 miles, passing through Yiyang and Kinmen counties. Now they have passed Lushi County.
Directly north of Lushi, there is the upper reaches of Zhushui, and the rolling Kuzong Mountains. There is a less traveled path for more than 150 miles in the mountains. From then on, the road goes north over Kuzong Mountains and across the primitive
The forest can penetrate directly to the southwest of Hongnong City without anyone noticing.
Huang Zhong asked the three Orion soldiers and guides carefully, and after confirming their location again, he put away the map and ordered the army to continue heading north.
It was almost night, and the temperature in the mountains was getting colder. The mountain wind carried fallen leaves and whistled in my ears.
Huang Zhong and his five thousand soldiers, breathing in the white air-conditioning, walked through the mountains and dense forests on the winding path as thin as a line.
This path shuttles between dense forests and bad water. It is very narrow and only allows one person to pass through at its widest point. Obviously, it is impossible to carry luggage on such a road.
Therefore, after Huang Zhong led his troops to arrive at Lushi City, he abandoned all the heavy baggage in the city. Each person in the army only carried five days' worth of dry food and drinking water and moved forward lightly.
It is now the third day. Huang Zhong and his army will not be able to leave Kuzong Mountain for another two days. Let alone attacking Hongnong, they are afraid that only 5,000 people will starve to death in this vast mountain.
Huang Zhong did not dare to delay even a little bit. It was already dark, but he ordered the soldiers to light torches and continue to move forward on the mountain road.
Even so, after walking for four days, they still could not get out of the mountain, and the food and water they carried were exhausted.
In order to survive, Huang Zhong and his soldiers had to quench their thirst with stream water and feed on wild vegetables and fruits in the mountains. If they were lucky, they could catch a few hares.
The five thousand tired army, pretending to be half hungry and half full, circled the Kuzong Mountain for more than eight days.
At dawn, the advancing army suddenly stopped.
Huang Zhong was keenly aware that there must be a surprise.
Regardless of being tired, he walked from the crowded mountain road to the front of the team. At the head of the team where the terrain gradually opened up, the guides were looking at something with joyful faces.
Huang Zhong took a few steps forward and pushed aside the bushes in front of him with his hands, and his eyes suddenly became bright.
Ahead, there is a road going down the mountain, and on the narrow plain at the end of the hillside, you can vaguely see the outline of a city.
"Old general, Hongnong City has arrived, let's climb out of Kuzong Mountain." the guide shouted excitedly.
Huang Zhong felt a surge of ecstasy in his heart, so excited that he almost jumped.
Even during the battle to conquer Shu, even the mountain of Shu, which was difficult to climb to the sky, had never made him feel so difficult.
After half a month of torture and suffering from Luoyang, Huang Zhong finally saw his goal today.
Hongnong City is right in front of you.
Huang Zhong was ecstatic, but he suppressed his joy. When he turned around, he already had a stern look on his face.
Huang Zhong glanced at the tired soldiers in front of him and said loudly: "Brothers, Hongnong City is right in front of us. Now we have run out of food and grass. Retreating is a dead end. Only by taking Hongnong City can we have a way to survive. Those who want to survive
, so he rushed down the mountain with me and captured Hongnong City."
All the soldiers fell into silence.
After a while, someone suddenly shouted: "Kill"
That roar was like a spark of fire, instantly igniting the soldiers' survival instinct.
"kill"
"kill"
The wild roar echoed in the empty mountain forest, surprising the birds all over the mountain.
Huang Zhong bare half of his shoulders, held the long knife tightly in his hand, turned around and strode resolutely down the mountain. (To be continued...)
ps: There has been a power outage today, so this is a bit late, and the third update tonight may not be available either.
