Daxian Mountain is located at the junction of Yishui and Linqu, with Yishan Mountain on the west side, Huangdun Mountain, Longshan Mountain and other mountains on the east side. The valley bottoms on both sides are passages from north to south. The Great Wall of Qi stretches across the east and west, and Muling, the "natural danger of southern Qi" Guan Xiong is located here.
Liu Huaishen's troops were blocked in Daxian Mountain for nearly two months. They fought many battles with Yong's army, with victories and defeats. Hu Fan did not advance rashly and firmly defended Muling Pass. Liu Huaishen's army could not attack for a long time.
A few days ago, Liu Yu sent an envoy to inform Liu Huaishen to collect grain on the spot in the name of collecting summer taxes. After nearly two months, there was not much food and grass in the army, so Liu Huaishen summoned the generals to discuss the matter of requisitioning food.
Shen Linzi frowned and said, "As the army marches north, the people do not welcome the imperial soldiers and horses. If summer grain is confiscated, I am afraid the people will become even more disloyal."
Liu Huaishen sighed: "You don't know, but the food and grass in the army can only last for half a month. It is difficult to win the battle with Yong's army in a short time, so we can only collect food on the spot."
Shen Linzi sighed and said: "The officials who returned were half-hearted. Relying on them to collect grain would be half the result with half the effort. The local people would also resist. A large army must be sent out to intimidate the grain and grass collected as soon as possible and sent to Gai County for storage (today's southeast of Yiyuan County, Shandong Province)." )."
After Liu Huaishen's death, his eldest son Liu Rongzu was appointed. Liu Rongzu was the eldest son of his concubine and was born from a concubine. Liu Yu defected to his father when he raised his army at Jingkou, and fought with him to destroy Nanyan, defeat Lu Xun, and conquer Sima Xiuzhi. Because of his proficiency in riding and shooting, and his bravery in battle, Liu Yu valued him, and he was awarded the title of Taiwei to consult with the army, to strengthen the general, and to participate in the military expedition of his son. This time he also accompanied his father on the expedition.
After hearing Shen Linzi's words about sending troops to collect grain, Liu Rongzu quickly came to the side and cupped his hands and said: "The army is collecting grain. I am afraid that Yong's army will attack. I will lead the light cavalry to respond."
Shen Linzi smiled and said, "With Ancestor Rong here, nothing will go wrong."
Liu Huaishen stroked his beard and sighed in his heart. It was a pity that his eldest son was born from a concubine. Otherwise, he could inherit the family business and be a hundred times better than Deyuan (the eldest son), Lai Rongzu, but nothing could happen.
"My son can lead a thousand riders to secretly guard the grain carts. If the Yong army dares to come to rob the grain, they will be killed."
Liu Huaishen divided his two thousand soldiers and horses into ten groups of two hundred men each, and scattered them in various counties to collect grain and grass. Yang Anxuanzhi's field tax was half a stone per mu, including various miscellaneous donations and rent transfers. The imperial court was "taxed according to Ding meters", seven stones per Ding, and Ding women were reduced by half, but in addition to the field rent, other " Ding men pay two feet of cloth, two feet and eight feet of silk, thirty liang of silk, eight liang of cotton, eight feet of silk, three liang and two cents of cotton, and half of it for Ding women." And so on, the tax collected per mu is nearly a stone. Yang Anxuan collected taxes twice as much.
The imperial court's system of taxing rice by ding was beneficial to aristocratic families, but ordinary people paid taxes on a per capita basis regardless of how much land they had, which invisibly increased the taxes of ordinary people. Some people who could not afford to pay the taxes joined the families of aristocratic families and became Hidden away from taxes.
The grain collection team sent by Liu Huaishen followed the officials to the countryside to collect grain. According to the court's "taxation of rice by ding" and rent transfer, the people complained. Even the officials who went to collect grain were dissatisfied. Dare to speak more.
The people were easy to bully, and within half a month more than 300,000 shi of grain were raised and shipped to Gaixian County. Liu Huaisu ordered that every ten men go out to fight, under the command of the pavilion chief, who would bring his own dry food from each pavilion to the county, and then the county government would transport the food to Gaixian County. For a time, the official road to Gai County was full of grain trucks and porters.
Liu Rongzu led thousands of horses to cruise around Gonglai Mountain (Fulai Mountain) in Gai County, waiting for the Yong army to attack. He believed that Hu Fan would never sit back and watch his army collect food and grass and remain indifferent.
As a concubine, Liu Rongzu knew that he could not inherit the family business and had to work hard on his own if he wanted to achieve anything. When he had the opportunity to follow Liu Yu in battle, Liu Rongzu fought bravely to take the lead in every battle. When he was conquering Sima Xiu, he fought Yang Anxuan in Zhangshan. He was injured in many places and still fought hard, which was praised by his uncle Liu Yu.
A hero has no talent, so he immediately takes the title of marquis. Liu Yu praised Liu Rongzu very much, encouraged him to make more military exploits, and promised that he would not be buried because he was a bastard.
After the Zhangshan War, Liu Yu granted Liu Rongzu the title of Taiwei to consult with the army and strengthen the general's power, and to participate in the military expedition of the eldest son. Liu Huaishen also paid more attention to the eldest son of the concubine. Liu Rongzu's biological mother (or aunt) also had a separate courtyard at home. , no longer need to look at people's faces; his younger brother Liu Xingzu can study with peace of mind. Liu Rongzu knew that all of this had to be achieved by fighting on the battlefield.
Liu Rongzu took the lead in every battle. He was a man who valued righteousness over wealth. He was considerate of the soldiers and all his subordinates were willing to die for him. strong
When the sun was high, Liu Rongzu and his soldiers hid in the forest to escape the summer heat. After waiting for eight days, Yong's army was still nowhere to be seen. Everyone was a little frustrated. They were chewing cooking cakes and talking in various tongues.
"The Yong army is as timid as a rat. They only dare to hide behind the wall and don't dare to fight at all. Otherwise, General Liu would have led us to crush their heads."
"I heard that there was a great victory over Yizhou, and General Tan almost captured Liangzhou."
"Don't be careless. I heard that Duke Yong has returned from Qianghu. This battle can be fought."
"Song Gong is invincible in the world, and Yong Gong is no match."
Someone looked at the endless flow of grain carts on the official road and sighed: "I wonder how the harvest will be this year? Last month I received a letter from my family saying that I am sick. I wonder how I am doing now?"
The atmosphere became solemn, and after a while someone spoke up: "The land in Dongguan County is really fertile. One acre of land can actually yield six or seven stones of wheat. My rice fields may not have such a high yield."
Most of the soldiers in the army were sons of farmers. When they heard about the grain production, they all jumped in and started talking about it. Some people said that the land here was fertile, some said it was because of the sufficient livestock power, and some said that deep plowing with Yang Jiali could increase production...
"Have you heard about it? Under Yonggong's rule, there was a special agricultural department, and experts in grain growing were invited to serve as farmers. I heard that he was a ninth-rank official."
"Impossible, a farmer can still be an official, that's nonsense."
"Really, I have heard that my father is a good farmer. He can harvest three to five bushels more than others. If he could be a farmer here, he is also a son of an official. "
"It would be more realistic for you to dream of marrying a wife."
There was laughter and laughter in the forest, and several horses galloped towards them in the distance. Liu Rongzu stood up. They were the scouts he had sent.
"General Liu, thousands of Yong troops have been spotted five miles west of Gaicheng County, attacking and killing the brothers who were carrying grain." The scout cavalry reported breathlessly.
Liu Rongzu's eyes narrowed. These days, he focused his attention on the north of the city, thinking that Yong's army would send troops from Muling Pass. It seems that he was wrong. Yong's army actually detoured to Haiyue (Yimeng Mountain) to launch an attack from the southwest. Waiting for him After defeating Yong Qi, you must report to your Excellency and beware of the Yong Army launching a surprise attack from behind.
"Brothers, after you've eaten and drank enough, go with Yu to stretch your hands and feet, and earn a few more acres of land for your family." Liu Rongzu got on his horse and roared energetically with a silver gun in his hand.
A moment later, the sound of hooves was like thunder, and he rushed towards the direction where Yong Qi appeared.
The general who led Yong's army was Feng Ping, who was originally a general of Southern Yan. His elder brother Feng Song was Zuopushe, the minister of Yan State, and was later overtaken and killed by Murong. Liu Yu attacked Yan, and Feng Song's brother Feng Rong surrendered to Jin. , was later executed by Liu Muzhi together with Han Fan on charges of treason.
After Liu Yu captured Guanggu, he killed 3,000 Nanyan ministers. Feng Pingyuan was spared in Chaoyang City, Le'an County. Liu Mu was not implicated when he killed Feng Rong, but the Bohai Feng clan was seriously injured.
Feng Ping had a grudge against Liu Yu, so Hu Fan led his army to attack Northern Jizhou. Feng Ping offered Chaoyang City and was appointed the governor of Le'an by Yang Anxuan. This time Liu Huaishen led his army, and Hu Fan summoned the army to Daxian Mountain to defend, including Feng Ping.
The Feng clan of Bohai is a high-ranking clan, and half of Feng Ping's subordinates are county soldiers, most of whom are well-equipped and well-trained troops. The name of Hu Fan is Beijizhou Biejia, which is actually the governor, and he is the governor of Anding. , To win over Feng family more, and rely heavily on Feng Ping.
Liu Yu's army went around to collect grain, but Hu Fan originally didn't want to pay attention to it, because Yang Anxuan's letter told him to just hold the Daxian Mountain pass and wait for the opportunity to counterattack.
Guarding Muling Pass, Feng Ping didn't have many chances to fight, which made him a little anxious. The Bohai Feng family was severely weakened by the execution of their brothers Feng Song and Feng Rong one after another. The Feng family and Liu Yu had a blood feud and could only rely on Yong Gong. But if you want to keep your family's reputation in the county, you have to make contributions and be valued by Yong Gong, and the battlefield is the best place to gain credit.
Feng Ping was eager to fight and told Hu Fan that he was familiar with the terrain and knew that there was a trail that could pass through Yishan and go directly to the southwest of Gaixian County, so that he could attack Gaixian County and burn the grain.
Seeing that Feng Ping's words were true and full of confidence, Hu Fan was involuntarily moved. Since the beginning of the war, Liu Huaishen had captured Dongguan County and was blocked in Muling Pass. He also felt aggrieved.
Gaixian County is where Liu Huaishen stores grain, so it must be heavily guarded. It would be difficult to seize it.
Possibly, but since Feng Ping is familiar with the terrain, he might as well be sent as a partial division to contain Liu Huaishen's army on the flanks. Now is the time for summer grain to be stored in the warehouse, so the partial division does not have to worry about food supplies.
After careful consideration, Hu Fan decided to send Feng Ping to lead 3,000 soldiers and horses out of Yishan via a small road to the southwest of Liu Huaishen's army, and to attack Liu Huaishen's rear, which might lead to a surprise attack.
After two and a half days of trekking, Feng Ping led his army out of Yishan, and happened to see hundreds of soldiers escorting grain and grass passing by not far away. Needless to say, Feng Ping led his army to fight out, defeating the small with more, and dispersed the soldiers and horses holding the grain without any effort.
Hu Fan had told Fengping not to embarrass the people who were transporting grain. When those people learned that they were the soldiers and horses of Duke Yong, they felt more cordial and led the oxen and carts to follow Yong's army to deliver grain into the mountains. Feng Ping found an abandoned cottage in the mountains, ten miles away from the exit, which was a perfect place to stay.
The team had still completely entered the mountain. Dust and smoke rose in the distance, and the faint sound of horse hooves could be heard. It was the arrival of Liu Yu's Qingqi. The Feng family was a local rich man, so he saw the reputation of the people and asked them to throw the remaining grain trucks into the mountains to take shelter. On the one hand, he asked his subordinates to pile up the grain trucks in a deliberately chaotic manner, blocking the entrance to the mountain, and waited with 500 people.
A quarter of an hour later, Liu Rongzu arrived with his light cavalry and saw grain carts piled up and down on the ground. They seemed chaotic but blocked the path of the galloping horses. Hundreds of Yong soldiers lined up behind the grain carts, waiting with guns and bows.
Liu Rongzu secretly frowned. When he followed Song Gong to conquer Yan (South), he heard Song Gong comment on the war. Song Gong said that the best way for the Yan army to deal with the enemy was to block Daxian Mountain, and then let the elite bypass Yishan or Wulian Mountain. From the back, the food road is cut off, and the attack is from the abdomen and back.
The appearance of these Yong troops in front of him was what the lord said was the best strategy. Liu Rongzu was secretly surprised. The Yong troops bypassed Yishan and attacked the rear of his army. He did not know how many soldiers and horses came. He wanted to report to his father to seal this loophole. superior.
Although Yong's army did not have many soldiers and horses, the area was not conducive to horse fighting. Liu Rongzu did not rush to attack, but waited patiently. .
Two quarters of an hour later, 800 garrison troops from Gai County arrived. Liu Rongzu ordered the garrison to launch an attack. After a brief engagement and a hail of arrows, Feng Ping led his troops to retreat. Qian Hong, the garrison general, led his troops into the mountains to pursue them. After traveling for only three miles, they encountered an ambush and retreated from the mountains after dozens of casualties.
There was an ambush in the mountains. I don't know how many Yong troops were hiding in secret. Liu Rongzu became more and more afraid to enter the mountains easily, so he asked people to report to Liu Huaishen urgently. Liu Huaishen sent 2,000 infantry, and ordered Liu Rongzu to lead 1,000 light cavalry and 2,000 infantry to garrison on the west side of Gai County to protect the rear wing of the army.
War brings casualties and suffering, but it also brings opportunities for some people to make achievements. In the midst of the general trend, everyone from the Emperor Langya and Duke Yong to Song Gong, down to the ordinary soldiers and common people are unable to break free and can only move forward in the rolling torrent.
