Chapter 102 Facing the Enemy
Yin Erwu stood stunned for a moment, then spread his legs and ran towards the village. Along the way, he shouted at the top of his voice: "No, there is a big army coming to kill!"
Of course Yin Erwu, who was illiterate, did not know that the approaching Guan Shengyun fleet was a rebel. Even if you were literate, you wouldn't be able to see anything clearly from a distance of five or six miles. However, in this era, as long as there is an exchange of troops, there is actually no difference between the officers and soldiers and the rebels: the same pullers, the same robbery of grain, the same strength (typo), the same looting... Indeed, history books often say It is recorded that a certain army had strict military discipline and did not tear down houses to death from freezing to death or starve to death without looting or anything like that. It was deeply loved by the common people. However, the only reason for the thick ink is simply because this phenomenon is so rare - if every army was like this, would historians still need to waste ink? Moreover, such armies often disappear within a short time of their existence, without exception! The truth is actually very simple: Strict military discipline means that the generals can run the army well and the result of running the army well will inevitably be overwhelming combat effectiveness, plus winning the hearts and minds of the people... Put these things together, if you were the great emperor, you would be able to sleep well Are you awake?
The best example is Xiao He. During Liu Bang's expedition, he managed Guanzhong in an orderly manner and was praised by all the people. When Emperor Gaozu came back, the people all ran to the front to ask for credit for the prime minister. Then Liu Bang imprisoned Xiao He as soon as he went to court! Fortunately, under the guidance of an expert, he changed his behavior during the period of probation after he was released from prison, and began to plunder and plunder a large amount of personal wealth, which made the people complain and suffer unspeakably. When the people came to complain again, Liu Bang was delighted: This is right. The people are scolding you in unison, and they all think that I am the great savior, so I can rest assured! Prime Minister, you have done well and will be rewarded generously!
The truth is there, but no one can explain it clearly. You have to understand it yourself.
Understand?
On the contrary, collecting supplies on the spot was the most common practice for most armies in this era. The reason is, first of all, the transportation cost is so huge that almost no province can independently afford it and the efficiency is so low (not even one out of ten can transport food thousands of miles). Secondly, life or death is uncertain once one sets foot on the battlefield. From soldiers to officers, emotions such as fear and regret need to be vented. Thirdly, a very high proportion of soldiers are prisoners, who are not good people... so both generals and local officials often turn a blind eye to this. ——Afterwards, the court would also tacitly exempt some taxes from the places where the soldiers had fought. Otherwise, if conflicts intensify and lead to mutiny, that will be a real big trouble! As for the losses suffered by the people...well, they are all necessary costs, costs that the court can fully expect and accept!
As soon as Yin Erwu ran back to Yangzhuang, he ran into Ma Laoqi and his party. More than two hundred people have gathered around the latter, including men, women, old and young. Tao Shiliu, Meng Youcai and others are among them - these are almost everyone in Yangzhuang now. Before Yin Erwu, who was out of breath after running, could speak, Ma Laoqi nodded at him and said: "Brother Mazi came just now. Someone from Shiqiao Bao's place came out to deliver a message. What Mr. Qian said was the opposite." Thief, you want us all to go to the city to kill the thief and make meritorious service to the court."
Although his eyes were dark with hunger, after hearing Ma Laoqi's words, Yin Erwu, like everyone else, immediately became energetic, and the energy he had used to fight against the sky and the earth to catch the rebels a while ago seemed to be re-possessed instantly. If you kill the rebels, you will have steamed buns to eat, and you will be hungry for a long time because all the rebels who conspired against you have been caught - for Ma Laoqi, Yin and Erwu, this truth is as simple and clear as one plus one equals two. What's more... the officers and soldiers can't afford to offend them no matter how much they eat, but the rebels are simply too easy to deal with: so many deep houses and courtyards, so many servants who are usually like wolves and tigers to guard the courtyard, and such tall courtyard walls. ...As long as everyone shouts loudly to catch the traitors and rush forward, aren't they all crying out for injustice while kneeling down obediently and letting themselves be punished? They are all at our mercy like little chickens!
So this group of people held up, dragged, shoveled, picked, and forked dung, and marched toward Nanyang Fucheng in the south. Zhang Mazi, who was riding a fast horse, mobilized very efficiently. Along the way, people gradually gathered in Panzhuang, Guzhuang, Hanzhuang, Shuangzhuang and other villages and towns in the north of Nanyang Prefecture. When everyone arrived outside the north gate of Fucheng, they looked around. It was so dark that there were still heads of people there, maybe ten or twenty thousand people had gathered. Moreover, groups of people are still joining in one after another!
Everyone’s faces were filled with excitement and longing: the happy days of having steamed buns to eat, meat to eat, and being able to do whatever you want are finally back!
The Feishui River meanders along the southeast corner of Nanyang Fucheng and then splits into two: one branch first turns west to outside the south gate, and then flows south. This branch is called Baihe; the other goes straight south, and this section is called Jishui. . Until it flows through Xinye, it reaches the junction of Henan and Hubei and joins the Baihe River* where the four rivers are unified again. After the parallel flow, it is called the Jishui River again, and it meets the east-flowing Han River near Xiangyang Prefecture in Hubei.
After listening to the introduction of Qi Lilun and his son, Guan Shengyun, Luo Yonghao and others felt that it would not be too difficult to conquer Nanyang Fucheng, especially what they saw and heard on the way south. Nowadays, the generals of Guanbu have far richer combat experience than most of the Ming army. The generals unanimously believe that in such a desolate place, it is completely impossible to organize any remotely capable organization. Threatening resistance. After a journey of two to three hundred miles, the closer they got to Nanyang Mansion, the sights they saw strengthened the generals' judgment. Many people even proposed to go around the city and go straight south. Among them, the loudest shouter was naturally Zhang Ding. Everyone knows that his Pili Battalion suffered the greatest losses in the Battle of Hangu Pass. Although it has been fully replenished, it is only in terms of organizational equipment. If we look at the standards of the Ministry of War of the Ming Dynasty, the personnel are still young and strong, and the equipment is sufficient. This can definitely be called a first-class strong army. But Guan Shengyun's tribe is a rebel, and they can't live off beautiful numbers on paper. If they want to survive, they must be down-to-earth. Soldiers need to get along with each other for a long time to build a trusting relationship with each other. Trust can determine the success or failure of life and death on the battlefield. New recruits need sufficient training to restore their combat effectiveness. Even so, it is only part of the real battle. Strength must be baptized by real fire of war! At this time, in the Pili Camp, most of the grassroots non-commissioned officers were veterans who survived the Battle of Luoyang. Most of the new recruits were demobilized soldiers from Luofu. They only half understood each other's accents, and they were far from forming an effective battlefield command. chain. Everyone knows Zhang Ding's little thought that he didn't say in private: As long as there is enough oil and water to be fished out, it's not impossible to fight. Anyway, if the person dies, he will be replaced. But this damn place is in such a dilapidated state that there is a high probability of losing money. This is something that the shrewd General Zhang is not willing to do. However, this guy's attitude changed quickly. Luo Shifan pulled him aside, bit his ear and muttered a few words. A smile immediately bloomed on Zhang Youyi's face, which was just flushed purple, and his attitude actually changed 180 degrees. , patting his chest and expressed his willingness to be the vanguard of the army and let the Perak Camp accept the baptism of blood and fire again!
It was not only Guan Shengyun who was surprised, everyone was dumbfounded. Only Commander Luo smiled meaningfully at Ai Zi.
Of course, Nanyang must be defeated no matter what. The army is going to the unfamiliar Huguang, a paradise-like land of plenty and plenty! The officers and soldiers there must be well fed, and their equipment and training are definitely not comparable to that of beggar soldiers, and they must not leave a huge hidden danger behind them. Otherwise, when the time comes, we will be attacked from both sides, and everyone will die without a burial place.
The plan unanimously adopted by everyone this time is to attack steadily. There is no need to risk a huge risk of being counterattacked by the enemy like the Shaanzhou attack, nor does it need to bypass Yiyang to sneak across, just step by step. But even if they fight, Zhang Ding cannot be allowed to take the lead. Both Pili Camp and Zhenyong Camp need to recuperate and serve as reserve forces for the army. Gu Manzi's Gangfeng Camp should not be used in this battle - good steel is used on the blade, so it must be saved to attack Xiangyang Mansion. Therefore, the main attack fell on Gao Tengdou's three flying beast camps and the Poxiao camp led by Guan Shengyun. You Futian's two battalions were divided into two battalions. The Tianyi battalion went to Baihe and the Nutao battalion went to Jishui. Together with the 5,000 auxiliary troops from Guoqinglin, they were responsible for cutting off the southern road from Nanyang Prefecture to Hubei Province.
Zhang Ding was holding back his anger. He didn't like anyone, and he kept cursing. Everyone laughed and made fun of him. The atmosphere was very relaxed. It was obvious that no one took the battle in front of him seriously. superior.
Guan Yehuo was Guan Shengyun's personal guard captain and stood behind the commander to participate in the military meeting. As soon as the meeting ended, this impatient man jumped out of the handsome tent, grabbed Luo Shifan, and asked him carefully what he had whispered to Zhang Ding. The young military advisor couldn't bear the entanglement and had no choice but to tell the truth. Then, this guy who couldn't hide his words ran to Guan Jianlin to show off, and Guan Jianlin told Gu Baisong... Within a moment, everyone knew the answer: the wealthy Nanyang Mansion. It has been ruined like this in just a few years. Although there is no hope for food and grass, we are not short of food! And what about the gold and silver treasures that were originally scattered among the people? It’s not like they can grow legs and run away - right now, they are all piled up in the government office waiting for someone to move them!
Everyone's interest suddenly rose.
Well, Zhang Youyi's curses became louder, echoing in Nuo Da's camp for a long time.
The army's camp was located on the west bank of the Feishui River, ten miles northeast of Nanyang Prefecture. Except for the necessary food and equipment, the other baggage was not disembarked and was parked in the river next to it. After You Futian's two water camps left, Zhenyong Camp was stationed on the bank, The Pili camp boarded the boat to take over the defense and defended separately. Gu Baihua's Gangfeng Battalion, supported by two thousand auxiliary soldiers, was stationed in the southeast corner of the city, cutting off the east road of Nanyang Prefecture. There is no defense in the west of the city - doesn't the art of war say "encircle three towers and one tower"? Just leave an escape route for the defeated soldiers. What's more, with Guan Shengyun's current state, he really can't take any more auxiliary soldiers. He has to digest them for a while first.
When everything was ready, Luo Yonghao held another military meeting against the enemy at Luo Shifan's insistence.
Except for You Futian, who had already set off to the south, the generals who gathered back in the commander's tent discussed privately, and they all felt that the young commander had made a fuss out of a molehill this time. Gu Manzi was particularly dissatisfied: wasn't it because his brother-in-law, the military advisor (Luo Yonghao adopted Miss Zhao as his adopted daughter? People in that era valued this relationship very much, and it was not much different from a real blood relationship) just because he agreed to avenge the Qi family father and son? Then you should ask your father-in-law to send us as the vanguard! Well, I need to tell my bastard Adou later that we can’t be soft-hearted. My uncle’s business is our own business...
Seeing that everyone was here, Luo Yonghao glanced at Guan Shengyun and saw that the latter nodded, so he cleared his throat and said: "Commander, generals. The war is about to begin. Quanzi just told me something. I think it's a bit... It makes sense, so I invite you all to come and listen together." After speaking, he turned to Luo Shifan and said, "You can tell the generals yourself."
Luo Shifan left his seat, raised his hands to Guan Shengyun and others and said, "Commander, generals." Then he turned to the generals and got straight to the point, "Generals, do you think Nanyang Mansion is easy to fight? I don't think so!"
As soon as this statement came out, the generals couldn't help but be stunned. You and I started talking in a low voice: How many good soldiers can we raise when the surrounding area is so dilapidated? Even the elites of Prince Shou's Mansion were defeated in one battle, how could it be so difficult to defeat?
Luo Shifan calmed down for a moment and said slowly: "What you generals said makes sense. However, I believe that our real opponent this time is probably the people, not the army!"
*Four waters unified: Before the Baihe River joins the Jishui River at the junction of Henan and Hubei, it flows alongside the Lianhe River, Nishui River, and Tuanshui River near Xinye.
