…
This was Qin Zongquan's most glorious time. He captured Hukou Pass, which was easy to defend but difficult to attack, and was the only barrier to Yongzhou without spending a single soldier. The whole process only took an hour.
As the gate of Hukou Pass opened, Lao Zhang and the two thousand defenders put down their weapons and knelt at the pass, respectfully welcoming Qin Zongquan's army into the pass.
Qin Zongquan rode forward, notifying his scouts to report the victory to Fa Yang, while leading his troops to garrison at Hukou Pass.
"Subordinate Zhang Ting, see General Qin!"
When Qin Zongquan rode his horse into the pass, Lao Zhang took the initiative to kneel down and show his goodwill.
Qin Zongquan looked at the prostrate Shu soldiers on the ground, nodded and said: "Very good, those who know the current affairs are heroes. I am very satisfied with the fact that you have made the right choice. Please stand up and speak. Stop kneeling."
"Thank you, General Qin..." Zhang Ting stood up and stood aside timidly, whispering, "General Qin, you promised us that as long as you are willing to surrender, you will not embarrass us."
Qin Zongquan waved his hand and said: "That's natural. I always keep my word, general. I think you are a good person, so please lead my horse and lead the way and familiarize yourself with the situation in Xiaguan."
"I obey my orders."
Zhang Ting tiptoed to the horse Qin Zongquan was riding, grabbed the horse's head and reins, and led Qin Zongquan and tens of thousands of Chu troops into Hukou Pass.
After entering Hukou Pass, when Qin Zongquan looked at Zhu Xuan who was tied up by Wu Hua Da, he couldn't help but frowned, leaned over and asked Zhang Ting: "Who is this?"
Zhang Ting said: "General Qin, don't be surprised. This is Zhu Xuan, our deputy guarding the pass. Because he was confused and could not accept General Qin's arrival, and was afraid that he would cause trouble, his subordinates tied him up."
Upon hearing this, Qin Zongquan got off his horse, walked straight to Zhu Xuan, folded the riding whip in his hand, held her chin and asked, "Are you unwilling to surrender?"
"Bah!" Zhu Xuan immediately spat on Qin Zongquan's face and cursed loudly: "As a Han official, how can I beg for mercy from thugs like you? You want me to surrender to you Chu thieves? It's better than that. Kill me happily!"
Qin Zongquan was furious when he heard this and whipped Zhu Xuan's face so hard that the skin on his cheeks was torn.
"How dare you speak harshly when you are about to die? Hmm, haven't you heard of my reputation, Qin Zongquan?" Qin Zongquan said fiercely to Zhu Xuan.
Zhu Xuan sneered: "A beast beaten by our Han army is as miserable as a lost dog. Of course, this general will be thunderous."
"Presumptuous!" Qin Zongquan was furious and whipped Zhu Xuan hard again. "Now that your Han army has been defeated by me, who is the loser dog? I ask you who is the loser dog!"
Qin Zongquan went crazy and kept hitting Zhu Xuan with the riding whip. After a while, the leather armor on his body was gradually deformed and shriveled.
Zhang Ting couldn't bear it, and hurriedly stopped Qin Zongquan and persuaded him: "General Qin, you have a lot of people. Don't be the same as Deputy General Zhu anymore. Let me persuade him again, okay?"
"roll!"
Unexpectedly, Qin Zongquan, in a rage, kicked Zhang Ting to the ground and continued to whip Zhu Xuan several times before he recovered.
The next moment, he threw the riding whip into the hands of his soldiers, glanced at Zhang Ting who was lying on the ground, and said with a soft snort: "I was too excited just now, so don't take it to heart. Since you said you wanted to persuade me, Then give your former boss some good advice."
After saying that, he glared at Zhu Xuan gloomily, then turned around to inspect other places.
Even though he was wearing armor, under Qin Zongquan's violent whip swing, Zhu Xuan still grimaced in pain, while his bloodshot eyes were fixed on Qin Zongquan's back.
…
When Fa Yang's army arrived at Hukou Pass, it was already evening. He did not expect that Hukou Pass would be captured so easily. It was originally planned that such a pass, which relied on natural dangers, would take three to five days at the fastest. possible.
However, when he saw the Hukou closed and the Chu army's flag waving in the wind, he had to believe that all this was true.
"I will be waiting here for the Prime Minister for a long time..."
After Hukou Pass, Qin Zongquan, like a dog, knelt on the ground to welcome Fa Yangma's arrival.
Fa Yang hurriedly stepped forward to help him up, nodded and said: "General Qin, you have made the first contribution in this Northern Expedition. When the commander returns to the court, I will personally recommend your achievements to the emperor."
Qin Zongquan was very excited and said hurriedly: "Everything is done well by the Prime Minister, and the general will not dare to take credit."
Fa Yang: "General Qin, please don't be humble. Our government is based on laws and has clear rewards and punishments. We are determined not to take away the merits of any soldier. Please bring the truth to the customs for inspection."
Qin Zongquan bowed and said: "Prime Minister, please come with me."
Hukou Pass is not big. Under the leadership of Qin Zongquan, Fa Yang quickly had a comprehensive understanding of Hukou Pass. Finally, he leaned on the top of the city and looked in the direction of Yongzhou and couldn't help but sigh:
"Such a pass established based on natural dangers will definitely cause huge obstacles to our army's strategy if attacked by force. Unexpectedly, Hukou Pass was taken down without a single blow. This shows that Liu Ce's control of Shu is not tight."
Luo Song said: "What the Prime Minister said is reasonable. If the Han army guarding here were the Central Army, I'm afraid there would be another result."
Fa Yangma patted the wall at Duokou and said: "In any case, we have won the battle today, and there is no obstacle to the attack on Yongzhou. Wait until dawn tomorrow.
The army continued to march towards Yongzhou, absolutely not giving Yu Jie any time to react.
As long as all the counties in Yongzhou are captured, the purpose of this Northern Expedition will be achieved. The next step is to advance or retreat. The initiative lies in the hands of our Chu army. "
In fact, Fa Yang wanted to march at night, but conditions did not allow it. Chu soldiers generally suffered from night blindness, and the consequences would be disastrous if they encountered an interception by the Han army.
At this time, Luo Song raised a doubt: "Prime Minister, Yongzhou is only thirty miles away from here. The fall of Hukou Pass must have been heard by the prefect Guo Hou.
If he summons soldiers from all over the state to resist, it will not be easy for our Chu army to go to the entire territory of Yongzhou. "
Fa Yang heard this and shook his head: "Guo Hou has no great ambitions. In addition, the garrison in Yongzhou City is less than 20,000, and the military equipment is worse than that of Hukou Pass.
And they are all newly recruited young men with no fighting power at all. In five days at most, our army can successfully take Yongzhou City. "
Luo Song cupped his hands and said, "Then let's settle the soldiers here and march to Yongzhou at dawn."
Fa Yang nodded in acquiescence...
At the same time, in the Yongzhou Prefecture...
After the prefect Guo Hou learned from Ning Sui that the Chu army had invaded Hukou Pass in a large scale, he was on edge. While he ordered people to strengthen the city wall defense, he also ordered people to go to Hukou Pass to inquire about information and confirm the battle situation at Hukou Pass.
"Report~"
While Guo Hou was pacing back and forth in the house, the people sent to inquire about the battle at Hukou Pass came back.
Guo Hou hurriedly stepped forward and asked, "How is the battle going ahead?"
The servant replied: "Reporting to the prefect, the Chu army flag has been hung at Hukou Pass. Hukou Pass has been captured..."
"ah?!"
When Guo Hou heard this, he staggered back a few steps, and finally collapsed on the stool placed at the edge of the table, his face full of sluggishness.
