The plan of driving away tigers and devouring wolves is actually to let Shangguan Si and Miao Yuan die together with Zhang Fang, thus eliminating two unstable factors for Luoyang.
As for why Shangguan Si must be eliminated, the reason is very simple: this guy is too much!
The soldiers burned, killed, and looted, and many wealthy families were affected. Although they were restrained by the society, they only wanted wealth and did not harm others, but they still caused public outrage.
In addition, he held the prince hostage and looked ambitious, so everyone was afraid of him and plotted to get rid of him.
Before Wang Yan left, he also sent some news.
Gou Xi, the commander-in-chief of the Northern Army, did not dare to return to Luoyang, so he turned back to Xuchang halfway and defected to Sima Gui, the king of Fanyang. I don't know where this news came from, but it should be true.
On the other side of Yecheng, Sima Ying wanted to order the emperor to issue an edict to depose the crown prince Sima Tan and the queen Yang Xianrong - this was probably revealed privately by Wang Cheng, the middle minister of the Ye Mansion.
Pei Kuo and Pei Xia rushed back to Hedong to watch the situation - it was Pei Xia who must have spread the news, because he was Wang Yan's son-in-law.
Due to the changes of Sima Teng and Wang Jun of Youzhou, Sima Ying, after hesitating for a long time, appointed Liu Yuan, the Xian Wang of the Xiongnu Zuo, as the champion general to supervise the military of the five departments. Yuan Zicong was appointed as the general Jinu, and the emperor followed suit - Wang Cheng revealed of.
After Sima Ying won a great victory, he questioned Sima Yao, king of Dong'an, who had persuaded him to surrender. Yao was speechless and was killed. In this matter, Sima Ying was not as magnanimous as Yuan Shao. After all, he killed someone after losing.
Various news came from all sides, revealing the Langya Wang family's huge network of relationships.
This energy is amazing.
The wealth accumulated by a wealthy family over several generations cannot be underestimated.
I saw Zhang Fang's people killing aristocratic family members like chickens before, which was a bit too dismissive. In the end, the seemingly majestic Zhang Fang might be tricked to death by these people.
Thinking of this, Shao Xun became more determined to build an army from scratch.
It is necessary to let the officers and soldiers form a community of interests with themselves, that is, without this group, everyone will be bullied and forced to stick to each other.
Only magic can defeat magic.
Currently, the most effective thing that can counteract the clan system of aristocratic families is the system of joining the nobility for military merit. This was also the development direction of the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and it was also one of the important factors that caused the clan system to slowly decline after it reached its peak in the Eastern Jin Dynasty.
By the time of the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the so-called aristocratic families no longer had many manors, lands, or tribes, and they gradually became decorations attached to the imperial power. If the seniors of the aristocratic families in the Wei and Jin Dynasties saw it, they would laugh out loud. Are you worthy of being called a wealthy family?
"Sima." Chen Yougen entered and saluted.
"I'd like to inform the men in the training team not to practice too hard these days, so that the soldiers can save more energy." Shao Xun said while wiping the ring-shou sword.
"Is there going to be a war?" Chen Yougen was startled and asked.
"Yes." Shao Xun nodded, and gave an additional explanation to a confidant like Chen Yougen: "Wang Yifu wanted to kill Shangguan Si and ordered him to go out of the city to fight with Zhang Fang. Regardless of victory or defeat, we will take action. Shangguan Si and Miao Yuan It’s dead this time.”
When Chen Yougen heard this, he became excited and said: "That man Shangguan Si, I have long disliked him. What is it? Back in the Tai Chi Hall, I abandoned my weapons and knelt down, begging for my life, but now there are five and six of us. Damn it." !”
"He has offended everyone, how can he be treated without death?" Shao Xun was always surprised by such people who lacked political acumen.
In the late Han Dynasty, there were Dong Zhuo, Li Jue, and Guo Si, and now there are Zhang Fang, Shangguan Si, and Miao Yuan. What did they think?
After a little analysis, you know that you don't have the ability to control the situation, so why do you have to force yourself? Is it driven by the desire to vent?
During the Han Dynasty, there was Wang Yun and others who deceived the warlords and played tricks on them. At this time, there was Wang Yan.
After Wang Yun killed Dong Zhuo, he felt happy, but he didn't know what would happen to Wang Yan.
In the afternoon, Shao Xun accompanied Mi Huang and Wang Bing to meet He Lun again.
"Commander, why did you follow Shangguan out of the city?" He Lun asked with some dissatisfaction: "There are so many newcomers in our army, and they don't know each other very well. How can we resist the enemy in the field?"
"If our army doesn't send people out of the city, Shangguan will be suspicious." Mi Huang also knew that this was not a good idea, but he still insisted: "You send out the newly attached people. There is no need for more, a thousand people are enough. Exit the army. A thousand men will also be sent out, under your temporary command, to go out of the city to resist the enemy."
After speaking, Mi Huang glanced at Wang Bing.
Wang Bing understood and immediately said: "At that time, I will allocate a thousand troops to you."
Two thousand people are enough. Others have no idea how many defeated troops the Royal Army has contained, and Shangguan Si has no hope for their combat effectiveness.
Shao Xun said nothing.
He must choose these one thousand people. As for who will be chosen, who needs to say? They are not from Luoyang City, but they have been rectifying it for six or seven months, so they are relatively trustworthy.
What was sent this time was a thousand newly formed auxiliary soldiers. At critical moments, trust is more important than anything else.
Seeing Wang Bing also stand up, He Lun knew that he couldn't change it and sighed heavily.
He knew very well that Wang Bing and Shao Xun would not be willing to give him their elite soldiers. In this doomed battle, he had better think carefully about his escape route, lest he die in confusion, which would be too unfair.
At this time, he was really feeling a little angry, and he already had suspicions about Mi Huang, Shao Xun, and Wang Bingsheng.
Seeing that He Lun accepted the fact, Mi Huang breathed a sigh of relief.
In this conspiracy planned by Wang Yifu and coordinated by them, no one was noble.
One by one, they are all ruthless people, scheming from beginning to end, including Zhang Fang...
****
On the fifth day of September in the first year of Jianwu (304), in the north of Luoyang City, the sky was high and the clouds were clear, and the breeze was gentle.
On two post roads, one large and one small, large groups of sergeants surged southward.
In the farmland on both sides of the post road, cavalry galloped in all directions, the sound of hooves thundering.
There are 15,000 infantry, 6,000 cavalry, plus broken troops collected along the way. The total army is 27,800 people. This is Zhang Fang's total strength. The vanguard arrived at this time, with a total of 3,000 infantry, 500 cavalry, and another 3,000 cavalry. They were still in Mang Mountain, waiting for orders.
Zhang Fang led his soldiers to the outside of Luoyang City first. After inspecting from a distance, he ordered to camp in the north of the city.
He was old enough to fight, and he had deduced several scenarios in his mind in an instant.
After seeing the soldiers at the top of Luoyang City walking around in a panic, he snorted coldly and left.
Wang Yan, Shangguan Si, Miao Yuan, Man Fen, Chen Jin and Mi Huang also went to the city to look out.
For some reason, Shangguan Si suddenly felt a little frightened and said: "At this time last year, the Western Army was not very good. A year later, it has become much more capable and orderly. Why?"
Wang Yan was a little stunned.
In his opinion, aren't last year's Western soldiers and this year's Western soldiers the same? What's all the fuss about?
Mi Huang, however, had some discernment. He took a closer look and explained to Wang Yan: "The Western Army fights every year and may be weak at first, but after fighting for a long time, it will always improve. The Western Army in front of him has a strict banner and a military Wei Ping is not a weakling."
Wang Yan suddenly realized that it turned out that he had practiced it through many battles.
If you think about it carefully, Sima Yong, the king of Hejian, did actively participate in the Luoyang war. He sent troops every time, ranging from 20,000 to 70,000, which gave him a lot of experience.
I heard that Huangfu Zhong of Qinzhou was still holding on, and Chang'an also sent a large army to participate in the battle. The Western soldiers fought a lot of battles.
Of course, then again, Luoyang has fought more battles, but it has just experienced the tragic defeat of Dangyin. The morale of the soldiers is low and it is difficult to compare with others.
"Send the order, assemble the entire army and leave the city to resist the enemy." Shangguan suddenly ordered.
When Wang Yan heard this, he was surprised and said: "General Shangguan, this is..."
Shangguan Si was still very patient with his future "in-laws" and explained: "The thieves have come from afar and have not yet established a stable footing. They are attacking together to dampen their spirit."
Having said that, what I was thinking was: massing troops and horses, overwhelming the enemy with numbers, defeating the enemy's vanguard first, preventing them from setting up camp smoothly, dampening their spirit, and boosting our own morale. As for whether Zhang Fang will fight after the main force arrives, he is inclined not to fight.
In short, I regretted it and wanted to rely on the strong city to consume Zhang Fang. As for whether he had broken his promise to Wang Yan, he couldn't control that much.
The order was quickly conveyed, and the soldiers from the battalions who had been prepared for a long time left the city one after another.
Shangguan had already descended from the city, riding on a horse and bringing with him five thousand soldiers.
Three thousand people from the Miao Yuan tribe, one thousand people from the Chen Jin tribe, two thousand people from the Manfen tribe, and two thousand people from the He Lun tribe came together one after another.
There are thirteen thousand in the whole army, most of which are infantry. The cavalry from various units is put together, but it is less than a thousand, which is a bit shabby.
But that's enough. The enemy's vanguard only has three to four thousand infantry and cavalry.
Press down with three times the force, use the masses to overwhelm the few, use the strong to defeat the weak, victory is inevitable.
Wang Yan looked at the city for a while, his expression a little tangled.
Today is not the agreed day to take action.
Before Zhang Fang's main force arrived, Shangguan had already attacked with his entire army, intending to take advantage. In this way, even if there is a war, Shangguan will probably not suffer too much loss, and may even capture a group of thieves, making the momentum stronger.
So, can we still attack him?
Will Chen Jin, Man Fen and others change their minds on the spot?
Wang Yan felt a little uneasy subconsciously, and was already thinking in his mind about how to further compromise with Shangguan if the situation changed.
Alas, what a mistake! Why are there so many accidents?
Chu Zhong often ridiculed me for not knowing much about military affairs, but now he really got it right.
The rumbling drums woke up Wang Yan.
He stared outside the city with wide eyes.
More than 10,000 people were arranged in a phalanx in a chaotic manner.
There are three thousand soldiers in the front army, three thousand on the left and right wings, two thousand in the rear, and three thousand in the rear. He didn't know that this was the standard square formation since Cao Wei, but he just thought it was a bit like a variation of Bagua.
After the formation was arranged, the rhythm of the drums suddenly accelerated.
The entire army of more than 10,000 people, under the command of Shangguan Si, rushed straight towards the Western Army.
The Western troops who were encamped hurriedly gathered and sent cavalry to harass and block them to buy time.
Shangguan Si also sent out cavalry, and the two sides collided head-on, fighting before the infantry.
The drumming continued, and the two sides got closer and closer.
The battlefield was already filled with the sound of dense arrows piercing the air, and soldiers kept screaming and falling down.
Wang Yan stood at the top of the city, his fingers slightly curled, as if he wanted to take off a piece of the city wall.
After a while, the two sides finally came into contact.
Wang Yan watched intently.
It turned out that the confrontation between tens of thousands of people was so huge and the process so cruel.
"Pu She, our army is going to win." Ting Wei Zhou Fu came over and said with a complicated expression.
Shangguan Si really has some strength, no wonder he is so arrogant.
After three thousand Chinese soldiers engaged the enemy, there was a stalemate at first, with both sides suffering extensive casualties. But as time went by, the Western Army gradually became exhausted and retreated. By this time, the formation was in disarray.
The Luoyang Chinese Army is indeed powerful!
Zhou Fu sighed with emotion. They were much stronger than Xuzhou Shibing. Unfortunately, they were basically all lost - or there were still many stragglers who were defeated, but from an organizational point of view, the Chinese army was indeed gone.
"Kill!" Warm cheers suddenly erupted on the battlefield.
Zhou Fu and Wang Yan left in search of prestige.
"Dong dong dong..." The drum sound became more and more intense, which was a signal to pursue the enemy.
The morale of more than 10,000 people was greatly boosted, and they ran in columns towards the direction of the enemy's retreat, shouting for a fierce battle.
"We won." Zhou Fu said expressionlessly.
Wang Yan said nothing, only frowned and thought hard.
The enemy troops fled more and more chaotically, and the pursuers became more and more scattered. There was a serious disconnect between the front and rear, and the formation was loose and loose, no longer as neat as before.
And at this moment, people on Mang Mountain were shouting.
After a while, one group after another of cavalry slowly descended.
After roughly forming a team, they ran at a fast pace, slowly increasing their speed, and outflanked the pursuers on both sides.
"It's over..." Zhou Fu's mind went blank.
He didn't expect Zhang Fang to be so prepared, and there would be such an unexpected event in this battle!
After Wang Yan was shocked, he suddenly turned his head and found that Mi Huang was no longer there!
He did not dare to neglect, so he called several people on the spot and ordered them to go separately to find Governor Mi.
