Yingchuan County Governor Qiangyuan garrison Xu County actively cooperated with Zhang Han's march south. At this time, Zhang Han heard that Lu Chen had killed Zhuang Jia and reoccupied Chencheng, so he asked Qiang Yuan to lead his troops south. He also sent two captains to assist him in attacking Chencheng.
Qiangyuan immediately sent troops. When Lu Chen heard that the Qiang had returned, he personally led his army to fight. The two armies met at Mishui. The Qiang people set up a formation on the other side of the river, then stood by the river and watched. Looking at Lu Chen's army, he said: "Although there are many thieves, they are really just a mob." They set up more than a dozen pontoon bridges on the Wei River. Then lead the crowd to kill across the bridge. Lu Chen saw that the Qin army was coming with a fierce force, but he did not show weakness and commanded the army to meet them. The two sides fought a battle by the water. In the end, Lu Jun couldn't resist anymore, so he had to retreat ten miles to the village. Seeing that all the Qin troops had crossed the river, Qiang Yuan ordered the pontoon bridge to be burned, saying: "Behind us is the Mishui River. There is no way to retreat. We can only fight to the death with the rebels!" The morale of the Qin army was greatly boosted, so they came over again to cover up the enemy. Lu Chen commanded the Chu army to retreat while fighting. At this time, a Qin general rushed up and said, "I am Deng Chang, the general of Qin. Surrender quickly!" Lu Chen was furious and stood up with his weapons to fight. The two fought for more than ten rounds, but Deng Chang couldn't win, so he turned around and left. Lu Chen was chasing closely from behind, and just as he was about to catch up, Deng Chang suddenly turned around and shot an arrow, hitting the heart guard. At this time, Huang Zhen, the general of the Chu army, saw that Lu Chen was in danger and rushed to rescue him. Unexpectedly, another general came out from the side. This man came to fight Huang Zhen with his weapon drawn. The two fought for several rounds, and Huang Zhen killed the Qin general with one strike. Lu Chen also fought hard at this time, and the Qin army slowly retreated.
At this moment, Lu Chen's father Lu Qing suddenly caught up and said: "Oh no, Zhang Han sent left captain Xie Fei and right captain Ju Yong to attack Chen City. The city has been captured by them. Those who have not Those who had time to get out of the city were killed by the Qin army, and many people died too!" After hearing this, Lu Chen had no choice but to abandon the Qin army in Lishui and rush to Chencheng. When Xie Fei saw Lu Chen coming to the city, he said to Ju Yong: "Now that they have been defeated and homeless, they should notify Qiang Yuan and let him lead his troops to attack. If they attack from both front and rear, they can completely defeat Lu." I am your minister." After the two of them had made a plan, they immediately sent someone to contact Qiang Yuan. At about midnight that night, Qiangyuan soldiers arrived and launched an attack on Lu Chen's military camp. When Xie Fei and Ju Yong heard the killing sound, they also opened the city gate and came out to fight. Lu Chen saw that the Qin army was attacking from both sides and the formation was disrupted, so he had no choice but to protect his father and break through. At this time, Xie Fei and Ju Yong came after him again. They waved their weapons and shouted: "Lu Chen, quickly dismount and surrender?" Lu Chen wanted to protect his father and was unable to fight, so he fled in defeat. General Qin was still chasing after him from behind.
When Lu Chen retreated, they all retreated. They ran for fifty miles before stopping. At this time, Lu Chen found that there were only a few hundred people left around him. He looked up to the sky and lamented: "Oh my God! All my infantry have been lost. How can we continue to fight?" Someone advised: "General, the victory or defeat is It's a common thing for soldiers. As long as we call on the troops again, we can fight again!" Lu Chen's mood stabilized a little, and he took everyone to a place called Qingpo Village to dismount and rest. When the people nearby heard that King Zhang Chu's men had arrived, they took the initiative to bring out some food for everyone to satisfy their hunger. Lu Chen was very grateful to these people.
At dawn the next day, while the soldiers were still in a haze, they suddenly heard the sound of drums beating loudly. A troop of soldiers and horses from nowhere suddenly arrived in front of the Chu army's camp. They also carried a large flag with the words "The Invincible King" written on it. Four big characters. Lu Chen and others hurried out of the camp to investigate, only to find out that they were bandits and road bullies, and they complained endlessly. After a while, the group surrounded their camp. Lu Chen told everyone not to panic. If you look closely, you will see that the leading man is riding a big black horse, wearing chain mail, a long red cloak, and holding a double moon halberd upside down. He is very majestic. He comes to the front of the camp and shouts: "Leave the horses and weapons!" Seeing the tattoo on this man's face, Lu Chen thought he must be a bad guy, so he cursed: "Tattooed thief, how dare you rob the general?" the strong man laughed. : "What general? He's obviously a rat. Please leave your things quickly and don't be nagging!" Lu Chen was furious and rode on horseback to prepare for a fight. Suddenly, there was a bang, and hook hands had already emerged from all around, hooked Lu Chen's horse leg, and fell to the ground. Huang Zhen and other generals behind Lu Chen said together: "Tattooed thief, please pay us for our strength!" After saying that, they charged towards the strong man with their weapons raised. The strong man thrust the iron halberd into the ground and grabbed the weapons of several people. Several people struggled hard, but to no avail. The strong man shouted, Huang Zhen and others' horses were frightened, and they fell to the ground. They were all caught by Hook Hand.
Lu Qing was old and prudent. Seeing that his son and generals were caught by bandits, he asked: "Heroes, who are you?" The strong man smiled and said: "Quickly leave your things and go, I won't hurt you!" Lu Chen sighed. He said: "Horses and weapons are the lifeblood of a soldier. I would rather die than give them to you!" At this time, a scholar behind the strong man waved his flag, and his men retreated. Seeing this, Lu Qing said to Lu Chen: "My son, a little impatience will mess up the big plan. Why don't we give them the horses, and we can fight on foot." Lu Chen said: "Our army has been completely defeated, and we only have this few cavalry left. If we lose again, we can fight on foot." How can we fight Zhang Han decisively if we have no war horses?" After hearing this, the scholar asked loudly: "Who are you?" Huang Zhen answered first: "We are the soldiers and horses of King Zhang Chu, and we were killed by the Qin army. We have been defeated so much." The scholar looked at Lu Chen and asked, "Could it be that the general is General Lu Chen who killed the traitor Zhuang Jia?" Lu Chen said that it was true. After hearing this, the strong man and the scholar hurriedly dismounted, came to Lu Chen, loosened their bonds, and then bowed down and bowed.
When Lu Chen saw this, he was shocked and asked: "What are the two heroes' names?" The strong man said: "My name is Ying Bu. I have been tattooed. People in the world call me Ying Bu." Lu Chen heard that he was Ying Bu and hurriedly helped him Qi said: "Are you the Yingbu, the tattooed warrior who came back from Xianyang in the past and killed the 'four sons of the royal family'?" Yingbu replied: "I am exactly the same." Lu Chen said with great joy: "Oh, the heroic deeds have already shocked the world. , the name of the brave man is really loud and clear. I don’t want to meet here today. I’m glad to see you!” The scholar also stepped forward to meet him. Lu Chen asked him his name. Ting Xu said: "He is my brother Zhu Jian with a different surname. He came out of Xianyang with me." Lu Chen said happily: "So that's the case, but I don't know why the two warriors came here?" Ying Xu said: "The two of us came out of seclusion. Later, I fell into poverty in Penglize. Later, I heard that Wu Rui was calling for an uprising of troops and horses in Fanyang County, so we went together to join him. Mr. Wu Rui is really a hero. He not only recruited us two as sons-in-law, but also allocated thousands of troops. Recently I heard that General Lu After we raised troops in Xinyang and killed the traitor, Master Wu Rui sent us to join General Lu. We didn’t want to meet here, so we are so lucky to meet you!"
When Lu Chen heard this, he was overjoyed. Seeing that they were all strong men, he excitedly took Yingbu's hand and said, "With the help of strong men today, Chu will definitely be saved! I have admired the name of strong men for a long time. When we meet today, I want to become a brother of the opposite sex with you, and then revive the Chu Kingdom. What do you think of the strong man?" Ying Bu is also a cheerful person. When he heard this, he immediately said: "It is really a dream to be able to sworn sworn brothers with the general! "The two men immediately gathered earth to make incense, knelt down and sworn sworn vows, and then said in unison: "Your Majesty, I, Lu Chen (Yingbu), and Yingbu (Lu Chen) have become brothers with different surnames today. From now on, we will jointly fight against Qin and restore Chu. If you are ungrateful, you will surely die under the sword of chaos!" After the sworn vows were completed, Lu Chen became the elder brother and Qing Bu became the younger brother. They were very happy.
At that moment, Yingbu sent an order to camp in an open place, and then said to Lu Chen: "I have a friend named General Pu who is not far from here. He is called 'General Pu' in the rivers and lakes. This man is very skilled in martial arts. He is only filial at home. Now he is filial." The period has expired. If we invite him here, we will have help to destroy Qin." Lu Chen was overjoyed and immediately entrusted Ying Bu to invite General Pu. In a short time, Ying Bu led General Pu to the military camp. When Lu Chen saw this man with a tiger head and leopard eyes, green face and purple beard, and a tall figure, he hurriedly welcomed him into the camp. When General Pu met Lu Chen, he bowed his head and said: "People from the mountains and wild areas are highly respected by General Lu. From now on, I am willing to work hard for Zhang Chu's cause!" Lu Chen was overjoyed and said: "Now you two heroes can help me. , why should I worry that I can't defeat Zhang Han?" Yingbu then gathered all his troops, about three thousand of them, most of whom were soldiers of the Qin State who had fled the country. Lu Chen and others were so happy that they ordered the slaughter of cattle and sheep and celebrated grandly.
The next day, Lu Chen was discussing military affairs with everyone. Suddenly, a military detective came to report that a Qin army had been killed from the north. Lu Chen asked how many soldiers and horses had come. Tan Ma replied: "They are Xie Fei and Ju Yong, the left and right captains of the Qin Army. They each led five thousand troops." Yingbu asked Lu Chen: "Brother, who is leading the army?" Lu Chen said: "They are Zhang Han's. The two captains on the left and right are very brave. They captured Chencheng and chased us all the way here!" Yingbu said with a smile: "I see, I'll chop off my head first to strengthen my military power! "Lu Chen then placed the men and horses in a straight line and placed himself in the middle. On the left are Qingbu, Zhu Jian, Han Lier and others. On the right are General Pu, Huang Zhen, Fan Yong and other generals, all of whom are waiting in full formation.
In a short time, the Qin army arrived like a tide. At the sound of the bell, I saw a flying horse coming to the front of the formation. It was Qin General Xie Fei. Seeing someone intercepting him, he arrogantly said: "Thieves who rebel against the country, quickly offer your head!" Lu Chen shouted: "You The day of your death has come, don't show off your power! Do you know who the strong man beside me is?" Xie Fei looked at the tattooed cloth with disdain and laughed wildly: "He is a tattooed thief!" Yingbu was furious, raised his double-moon halberd and said: "The rats look at the thorns!" They stepped forward to fight. Xie Fei said anxiously: "Hey! I won't kill unknown people!" Yingbu said: "You thing, I am the Jiangyang thief Yingbu who came out of Xianyang in the past, captured the generals, and killed the 'four sons of the royal family'!" When Xie Fei heard that he was Ting Bu, he said, "I'm going to take you, the big thief! Kill him!" After that, he came out of the formation. Ju Yong, who was standing behind him, thought that Ying Bu was indeed a key criminal in the country. If Xie Fei killed him, the credit would be his, and he hurriedly said: "General Xie, let me help you!" After that, he went to kill Ying Bu. When Qingbu saw the two Qin generals rushing over together, he took a good look at their heads, shouted loudly, raised his double-moon halberd, and swept them over fiercely. The second general was stunned by the roar. Before he could fight back, the pair of moon halberds had already flown over. The two heads were immediately beaten into minced flesh, with blood splattering and brain matter bursting out. The two generals had already reported to the Lord of Hell. went. Later generations wrote a poem praising:
The hero builds momentum to relieve the crisis, and capturing and killing the second chief is like killing a son.
It showed its power when it first appeared, and Lishan became uneasy from then on.
Tingbu beheaded two Qin generals, rode his horse to the Qin army's formation, pointed his blood halberd at the Qin army and said, "Which of you wants to sacrifice your life for Qin?" The soldiers were already frightened, so they all climbed down and said, " I am willing to surrender!" They all surrendered to the Chu army. When Lu Chen saw that ten thousand more soldiers and horses had been added, he praised him and said: "My dear brother, Meng Ben is alive and Xia Yu is alive again!" Lu Chen then led everyone to rush towards Chencheng, and the people were fighting each other along the way. Join the army.
When the army arrived at Chencheng, Qin General Qiang Yuan, Zhang Hu and others stayed behind closed doors. Zhu Jian came up with an idea and said: "The Qin generals are not coming out because they know that we have killed the left and right captains, so they are waiting for Zhang Han." After giving such instructions to Lu Chen, Lu Chen led the Chu army Go east. When the Qiang Plains detective heard that the Chu army had retreated, he asked Zhang Hu to come out and pursue him, while he defended the city. As soon as Zhang Hu left the city, he was blocked from the front by a big man wielding a broadsword. This man was General Pu who had ambushed here in advance. Zhang Hu was caught off guard, and General Pu cut off half of the Tianling Cap, and then rushed towards the city. Qiang Yuan hurriedly ordered the city gates to be closed. Suddenly, a loud shouting was heard in the city. Someone came on flying horse to report that Ting Bu had entered the city. Qiang Yuan was so frightened that he had to abandon the city through other gates and flee. There is a poem praising General Pu:
Born in the Warring States Period, he lamented poverty, but his fortune as a man who helped the world was not new.
The soldiers and horses talked about jokes on the road, but the country did not believe and only won Qin.
It turned out that Lu Chen listened to Zhu Jian's plan and asked General Pu to ambush outside the city, and Ying Bu attacked the city while he went out to lure the Qin army. The Qin army was indeed fooled. Now that the army has entered the city, Lu Chen first comforted the people, and then counted the money and food in the government treasury and household registration records. He found that the number of people had dropped to one-third of the original number, and he felt very sad. That night, Lu Chen said to everyone: "Chencheng is the capital of Zhang Chu. Since King Zhang Chu captured Chencheng and failed, it has been one in and one out. Later, I raised troops in Xinyang and broke into Chencheng. I met Xie and The second general in the play made a sneak attack, and Chen Cheng was lost again, so it was two in and two out. Now the two wise brothers helped me recapture Chen City again, which is considered my third in Chen City. Now I am really worried about whether I can hold this city in the future?" Ting Bu He said: "Brother, please rest assured. I have a double-moon halberd. Even if there are a hundred thousand Qin soldiers, what should I fear?" Lu Chen said again: "The two worthy brothers are indeed Chen Cheng's guarantee." He appointed Ying Bu as the Zuo Duwei. Pu will be the right captain, Han Li'er, Huang Zhen and others will be the school captains, and Zhu Jian will be the marching commander, working together to guard Chencheng.
