Liu Jingxuan led several personal guards to the city gate. He saw torches lighting up the city and a young general appeared in the light. Liu Jingxuan recognized it as Shen Qingzhi who had captured Suining and Guanghan cities.
Shen Qingzhi shouted loudly from the city tower: "General Lingjiang Shen Qingzhi has been ordered by the Lord to capture Linqu City. The city is cramped, and the army can temporarily camp outside the city."
Liu Yu slapped the horse's neck bitterly and said: "The mantis stalks the cicada, and the oriole is behind. Yu has been guarding Yang Anxuan from profiting from it, but he still took the opportunity to seize Linqu City. It's hateful."
Liu Daolian said angrily: "I led my army to conquer Linqu City and kill these thieves who took advantage of the situation."
The three armies were furious and waved flags and shouted. Liu Muzhi urged: "It's already getting late. I don't know how many Yong Yan soldiers and horses there are in the city. If the war breaks out and they kill each other, it will give the Yan people an opportunity to take advantage of it. Moreover, the army will be exhausted after a day of fighting, so it is better to set up camp first." Take a rest and wait until tomorrow to figure it out."
Liu Yu's eyes burned with anger. He took a few deep breaths and sent an order: "The army will set up camp three miles away from Linqu City."
At the end of Xu, Tan Shao returned with five hundred Jin troops who had attacked the city, and saw Liu Yu dejectedly pleading guilty. Tan Shao said: "You led your army to sneak into Linqu City. When you met the Yan army escaping from the city, you learned that Linqu City had been captured two-quarters of an hour ago."
Liu Yu regained his composure and said calmly: "You are not to blame for this matter. It was a foolish mistake. You can lead the army to rest."
Tan Shao said angrily: "My lord, please order me to attack at night and recapture Linqu City for my lord."
Liu Yu comforted him and said, "Your Majesty, the three armies are tired after a day of fighting. Let's wait until tomorrow."
Liu Muzhi suggested: "My lord, you might as well order some food to be sent from the city so that I can get some information from it."
Half an hour later, twenty ox carts were sent from the city to pull out more than a hundred baskets of bread and several barrels of cooked pork and mutton to reward the army.
Liu Mu went to express his thanks and chatted with the captain who brought the food for a quarter of an hour. After all the food was moved away, the soldiers who transported the food returned to Linqu City, and the city gate was closed again.
Liu Muzhi came to see Liu Yu with a heavy heart. Liu Yu tore into the noodles and asked vaguely: "What did Dao He ask?"
"The army in Linqu City is led by Yang Zijing, and there are only three thousand soldiers and horses in the city." Liu Muzhi sat down aside, picked up a piece of dough, tore it into small pieces and threw it into his mouth.
"Didn't Yang Anxuan dispatch 20,000 troops this time? Do you know where the others are? Where is Yang Anxuan?" Liu Yu asked in a deep voice.
The three thousand guards in Linqu City did not worry Liu Yu. He was worried about Yang Anxuan's reaction after taking Linqu City by force.
Liu Muzhi swallowed the noodles slowly, took a sip of water, and said, "Yang Anxuan is in Wuyang City and has more than ten thousand troops under his command."
Liu Yu said with a sneer: "This is to cut off Yu's retreat. If Yu attacks Linqu City, I'm afraid Yang Anxuan will lead his army to attack Pengcheng and Xiapi."
"There are more than 200,000 stones of grain in Linqu City, and hundreds of thousands of cattle and sheep, which is enough to support the city's defenders for several years." Liu Muzhi said bitterly: "If these baggage are obtained by the lord, there is no need for the army to worry about supplies."
Liu Yu thought for a moment and then said: "Although Linqu City is small, it is easy to defend but difficult to attack, and it is difficult to capture it for a while. I thought it was not suitable to Linqu City before capturing Guanggu City."
Liu Muzhi nodded and said: "My lord is very worried. If we attack Linqu Yi Shuoguoguo first, it will give the Yan people a chance to breathe. A small loss will cause a big loss."
Liu Jingxuan Jian said: "Linqu is an isolated city. My lord can order the army to camp between Linqu and Guanggu to block the Yongzhou army in the city. It is impossible for Yongzhou troops to detour to attack Guanggu. After Guanggu is captured, Linqu can be dealt with again. Not too late."
Liu Yu grabbed a piece of mutton from the plate, bit into it dripping with juice, and said, "Good."
On June 17, Yang Zijing passed by Linqu City on inspection. Zhang Feng pointed to the outside of the city and said with a smile: "General, look at how the imperial army has set up a camp to isolate us from Guanggu City."
Standing at the top of the city, you can see clearly that the barracks stretch for three or four miles across the east and north sides of Linqu City. The side facing Linqu City has towering archery towers and is heavily fortified.
Shen Qingzhi said: "My lord has already predicted that we should hold down the troops after occupying Linqu City, so that we don't have to compete with the imperial troops to attack Guanggu City."
Yang Zijing looked beyond the company camp to the north. Thirty miles away was Guanggu City. If he captured Guanggu City, Nanyan would be declared destroyed. This achievement of destroying the country was really tempting.
However, Yang Zijing also knew that he could only lead 3,000 soldiers and horses. It was an unexpected blessing to capture Linqu and obtain Yan's jade seal, imperial chariot and other ceremonial guards. This was a great achievement second only to the destruction of the country. Dedicating these things to the imperial court was enough to make him He was granted the title of County Marquis.
Zhang Feng smiled and said: "General, it seems that the imperial troops do not intend to attack Linqu City. Before leaving, my lord ordered the servants to return to Xintai City if nothing happens in Linqu."
Yang Zijing nodded. When he sent troops from Laiwu (Laiwu District, Jinan, Shandong Province), he received a letter from Yang Anxuan, asking him to take advantage of the gap between the Yan army and the imperial troops to capture Linqu City, and then just hold on to the city.
Taking Linqu City lightly made Yang Zijing deeply admire Yang Anxuan's plan. Yang Anxuan concluded that Liu Yu would not break out and attack Linqu City, and Shen Qingzhi stayed in the city to help him.
Yang Anxuan is very good to his girls and loves his house very much. He will definitely not let Shen Qingzhi be in danger, and he can safely defend the city.
Yang Anxuan also told him that if Linqu City was difficult to defend, he might as well surrender to the imperial troops. He would lead his army to attack Pengcheng, Xiapi, Guangling, and even go to Jingkou. Liu Yu would certainly not dare to embarrass them.
"Zhang Feng, take the captured jade seal with you and hand it over to An Xuan for disposal." Yang Zijing said.
This jade seal was from the Nanyan Kingdom, and Yang Zijingsheng was afraid that Liu Yu would force him to hand it over after learning about it. As for things like chariots, chariots, and ceremonial guards, they were far inferior to the jade seal.
Zhang Feng said with a smile: "General, you have made great achievements this time, and you can expect to be granted a title. Don't forget to take care of Yu in the future."
Yang Zijing scolded him with a smile on his face: "You hozen, you have An Xuan and Yu to take care of you, but if the imperial court can really grant you a title, Yu will have to set up a special wine table for you and Qing."
On June 19, Liu Yu led his army to attack Guanggu City and captured the outer city within one day. Murong Chao retreated all the people and soldiers from the outer city to the inner city and defended the city.
Just when Liu Yu led his army to attack the outer city of Guanggu, Zhang Feng led a hundred cavalry out of the west city of Linqu and rushed to Xintai City in Taishan County.
On June 20, the Jin army began to attack the inner city. The inner city of Guanggu is only four miles in diameter, but the city is six feet high and five feet thick. It is very strong and has many garrison troops all over the city head and plenty of various defensive equipment.
In the season of life and death, the inner city defenders burst out with powerful combat power. After a day of fierce fighting, the Jin army made no progress, and Liu Yu ordered the withdrawal.
After convening the generals for discussion, Liu Yu decided to adopt the strategy of besieging the city. He built a three-foot-high wall outside the inner city and dug three deep trenches in the ground to surround Murong Chao.
Ten days later, the long siege and deep ditch were completed, and Murong Chao had become a turtle in an urn, unable to escape even if he had no wings. Liu Yu felt relieved and divided half of his troops to sweep around Guanggu, harvest food, and recruit surrender and rebels.
Taking advantage of the opportunity of collecting grain, Tan Shao took a thousand light cavalry to the outside of Linqu City and shouted loudly, calling the Yongzhou army a villain who was taking advantage of the situation. He asked the Yongzhou soldiers and horses in the city to send 100,000 stones of grain out, otherwise Linqu City would be destroyed.
Shen Qingzhi was angered and reported to Yang Zijing. He led a thousand light cavalry to fight and fought with Tan Shao on the battlefield. Tan Shao originally wanted to hurt Shen Qingzhi and let out a bad breath, but he was surprised when he handed him over. The Yongzhou young general had outstanding marksmanship and martial arts skills.
The two fought for a quarter of an hour, regardless of the outcome, and each returned to the battle. Both sides knew that it was not appropriate to fight openly at this time, and Tan Shao left angrily with his troops. m
Just as Liu Yu was building a siege and digging trenches, Yang Anyuan of Luoyang led 3,000 troops to board Liu Zhong's fleet at Mengjing Pass. After the fleet met Chen Yu's navy at Hulao Pass, Hu Fan led another 4,000 troops to board the ship. Eight More than a hundred warships went out to sea along the river and headed straight for Donglai County of Yan State.
The fleet docked in Ye County (today's Laizhou City), and Yang Anyuan led 3,000 troops to the east to capture Donglai County; Hu Fan and Wang Huilong led 4,000 troops south to Beihai County and Chengyang County; Liu Zhong handed the fleet to Chen In charge of fishing, he led two thousand navy troops to capture Changguang County (1).
As early as March, Yang Anxuan secretly ordered Ding Quan and Huang Fu to send secret guards to lurk in Nanyan Kingdom. As soon as the war started, the secret guards spread rumors, and the news that Yan State's Linqu City was defeated and the inner city of Guanggu was trapped had long since disappeared.
Yongzhou soldiers and horses landed in Ye County, and almost at the same time, each county received the announcement of peace of the people from Yongyan Governor and Hongnong County Duke Yang Anxuan. In the announcement, Yang Anxuan promised that those who surrendered to the city would be given official positions and would be rewarded separately after the court's review. The local people's taxes would be halved, and they would be exempted from the corvee for that year and many other benefits.
Wherever Yang Anyuan, Hu Fan and others went, the cities surrendered one after another, and few of them guarded the cities that refused to surrender. Yang Anyuan and others took a detour without attacking, and within half a month they captured several counties. .
When Liu Yu got the news, he was so angry that he turned over the desk in front of him and cursed angrily: "We waited for a bloody fight and countless casualties before trapping the Hulu in Guanggu City. Yang Anxuan actually secretly started to steal the results of the battle, which is unbearable. What can't be tolerated is that Yu wants to personally lead an army to retake Beihai, Donglai and other places."
Liu Muzhi was secretly shocked. Shen Tianzi attacked and killed Yang Anxuan in Luchun City. He once said that the Yongzhou Navy's warships were unsinkable, had wheels on both sides, and could move faster than ordinary ships. This time Yongzhou sneaked out of the Yellow River to the rear of Nanyan and captured a large area of land by surprise. In the future, they will compete with Yongzhou soldiers and horses, so special attention should be paid to the Yongzhou Navy.
In just half a month, Yongzhou soldiers and horses were able to occupy the four counties of Yan State. On the one hand, Liu Yu was secretly shocked by the rapid movement of Yongzhou soldiers and horses. On the other hand, he was angry that Yang Anxuan was taking advantage of the situation and was not moral. If he did not fight back, how could he have the face to lead the army? In battle, we must not let the Yongzhou army bully us.
This time even Liu Muzhi didn't persuade him. Yang Anxuan's behavior was really annoying. The imperial soldiers and horses went all the way north, successively captured Donghai, Langya, and Dongguan counties, and trapped Murong Chao in Guanggu City.
After learning that Linqu was defeated, Yan Guochang County and Le'an County sent envoys to surrender, and Liu Yu obtained five counties. Yang Anxuan first captured Taishan County and Linqu City, and then took advantage of the fact that he was besieging Guanggu and had no time to take care of it. He also took the four counties of Donglai, Beihai, Changguang, and Chengyang, and also obtained five counties. However, the land area of the Yan Kingdom was about 30%. More than Liu Yu.
Tan Shao had been holding back his anger for a long time. Hearing that Liu Yu was about to fight back, he immediately said loudly: "I am willing to lead three thousand soldiers and horses to capture Linqu City for my lord."
Liu Jingxuan cupped his hands and said, "I would like to lead five thousand soldiers and horses to recapture Beihai County."
Liu Daolian said: "I am willing to take the east of the city, Changguang and other places for my lord, and drive away Yongzhou soldiers and horses."
There were 50,000 soldiers and horses besieging Guanggu City. At this time, the inner city of Guanggu was surrounded. It was not easy for the Jin army to attack the city. It was equally difficult for the Yan army to break out of the long siege and deep ditch. Liu Yu estimated that only 20,000 troops were needed. The troops and horses can be trapped in Guanggu City, and other troops and horses can be mobilized to attack Beihai County and other places.
During the discussion, the guards outside the door came into the palace to report, "Yang Anxuan, the governor of Yongyan, sent an envoy to deliver the letter."
Liu Yu received the letter. In the letter, Yang Anxuan emphasized that the imperial court ordered Shangshu to join him in the attack on Yan. Everyone should fight according to his own ability. Both sides are serving the country and should not kill each other.
Liu Yu sneered and said: "Yang Anxuan put it lightly. He worked so hard to plant trees and fertilize, but he stretched out his hand to pick most of the fruits. How can such a beautiful thing happen? If he is willing to withdraw from Donglai, Beihai, Changguang, and Chengyang If you don't care about other places like him, Taishan County can also be placed under the jurisdiction of Yanzhou, otherwise it is impossible to stop the army with just a word."
Liu Jingxuan recalled that when he attacked Shu, Yang Anxuan also used his own power to capture Zitong and Guanghan counties. Although Liu Yu later sent two prefects in the name of the court, Yang Anxuan immediately replaced the prefects of Badong and Brazil counties and transferred Liangzhou to Liangzhou. Securely in hand.
"Lord, why don't you call the person who sent the message up and ask him clearly." Liu Jingxuan suggested. Yang Anxuan was very cunning and would never persuade Liu Yu to stop his troops with just a letter.
Liu Muzhi recognized the messenger and whispered in Liu Yu's ear: "This person is Wang Qiang from the Wang family in Taiyuan. He was originally a minor official in the Taibao Mansion. He resigned last year and unexpectedly joined Yang Anxuan."
Wang Qiang saluted and stood sideways. He had seen Liu Yu in front of the Taibao Mansion. At that time, Liu Yu was surrounded by people, which was not accessible to a small official like him.
Liu Yu killed Wang Yu, Wang Sui and his son, and the Wang family in Taiyuan fell into disgrace. Wang Qiang had no good impression of Liu Yushu. Yang Anxuan sent him to deliver the message this time, and Wang Qiang told himself that he must respond calmly and fulfill his mission.
"Note (1): Donglai County is the northeastern part of Shandong (today's Rongcheng, Wendeng, Weihai, Yantai, Penglai, Huangxian, Yexian and other places); to the south of Donglai County from west to east is Beihai County (today's Weifang, Changyi, Pingdu and other places), Changguang County (today's Laiyang, Laixi, Jimo, Qingdao and other places); Chengyang County is south of Beihai County (today's Gaomi, Jiaoxian, Zhucheng, Wulian, Rizhao, Junan and other places) etc.). The place names in the Eastern Jin Dynasty are the same as the current place names, but the addresses are not in the same place. For example, Jimo was in Beihai County in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, but its current address is in Changguang County, more than a hundred miles apart."
