Zhang Xing received a report from Lu Changheng at the second watch that night and learned that the partial division of the army had entered Douzigang. The news was confirmed and he ordered the other party to keep a close watch and went to sleep calmly.
At the fifth watch, when the sky was getting slightly brighter, he received new information, saying that the army suddenly retreated in large numbers late at night, but there was still no unnecessary response. He just ordered the logistics personnel who stayed at Qipan Camp to prepare for the mass retreat in advance. Dry food and drinking water for large-scale operations.
On the morning of the first day after the war, just like the day before the war started, artificial fog filled the entire camp.
In the morning, the civilian husband sent a large amount of dry food and drinking water to the Maface River Camp, and asked the troops stationed in the Maface River Camp to leave only three battalions to guard the prisoners, while the rest of the army was ready to send troops.
Before noon, Guo Jingke, who led only a small number of sentries and cavalry to cross the Ma Mian River in advance to patrol south, received the news that the enemy's partial division troops had indeed withdrawn from Douzigang and appeared in the plains on the other side of the river, heading towards Pingyuan City. Close together.
After hearing the military situation, Zhang Xing did not hesitate and ordered his troops to attack. Qian Tang was the main force along the way. Together with Wang Zhen, he led the Dengzhou reinforcements and some of the captured Pingyuan County soldiers, and headed for Ande City in Pingyuan County. .
The rest of the troops first gathered at the Ma Mian River camp.
By this time, it was already afternoon.
Frankly speaking, due to the lack of time, almost most of the leaders realized that this pursuit that only started in the afternoon was bound to appear somewhat lacking in military effectiveness, and even felt like an armed parade.
"I tell you clearly that this is by no means a pure force. I never do such meaningless things... Of course I don't expect to continue to annihilate the enemy, but we do need to use a real army now, a real army. We are advancing to force the special division troops of the Hejian Camp to leave the southern front quickly to ensure that they will not converge with Qutuda and continue to cause us trouble." On the riverside behind the camp, a simple leader-level military At the meeting, Zhang Xing’s words were concise and to the point. "So, you have to pursue it and you have to create pressure."
"If this is the case, should we detach a group of troops and attack them first?" Wang Shuyong made a serious suggestion. "Pingyuan City is too far away. A large force is rushing over. If we still need to be prepared for a counterattack by the army, we may not be able to arrive until the next day. How about sending a group of troops to go ahead and get to Pingyuan City before tomorrow night to act as a deterrent?"
"No need." Zhang Xing gave his plan before anyone else could speak. "We don't go to the plains to chase Xue Wanbi's partial army, otherwise we would have asked you to join us upstream to cross the river... We will cross the river from here, gather twenty battalions, and go to Jiangling City to chase Xue Wancheng and Xue Wanquan!"
There was a sudden silence, but soon someone woke up.
Moreover, Chen Bin, the new leader, spoke quickly and interpreted it before the others: "Brilliant strategy! We don't chase the partial divisions that have all the strength to fight, but chase the defeated troops of the camp who are still in retreat." , there is no military risk, but it can still play a role in exorcism - Xue Changxiong saved one or two points to let the partial army wait for Qu Tuda, but he was afraid that he would not care about it, because even if it was just to make the family noble To maintain his integrity, he can no longer lose his troops."
The people around him nodded their heads, and quite a few of them took advantage of the situation to take another look at Chen Bin.
The plan was decided and everyone immediately followed the order.
Of course, this move is still a bit too cautious in the eyes of most people, because Chanyuan is four hundred miles away from here. If Qutuda had not abandoned his baggage and traveled for days, it would be impossible to reach the battlefield in time.
Judging from the previous battle situation, he didn't have the need.
Therefore, the most fundamental worrying premise is somewhat unconvincing.
But Zhang Xing insisted on having his own way.
In this way, the troops followed closely with dry food and camped overnight. The next day, that is, the afternoon of the second day after the war, they arrived at the foot of Jiangling City. The remaining soldiers in Jiangling City knew that the Dragon Army was coming to pursue them, so they had already fled the night before. , the deposed dragon army occupied this big city without any bloodshed.
And before that, that is, yesterday evening, Qian Tang, as the local county guard who had been in office for quite some time, had already entered Ande City without any bloodshed, where there was no longer an army brigade.
By this time, Ande City and Jiangling City, which were in a row of three cities behind the official army camp at Mamianhe River, had fallen to the help of Qianlong. On the contrary, Pingyuan City on the way back to the army's partial division special forces had not been suppressed.
Not to mention, this day was only half a day's rest in Lingcheng. On the morning of the third day after the war, Zhang Xing regrouped his troops, took four Chengdan masters plus sixteen battalions of superior troops and continued north, and Arrived at the county seat of Changhe County.
At this time, even the defeat of the Hejian Army, which had been robbed for a whole day, was already very difficult, because when they first started to escape, they lost almost all their supplies and had to make do along the way. And if there is still some supplies in Jiangling City, then there will be basically nothing if you escape to Changhe... Don't forget, Changhe County was the focus of the Hejian Army's plundering years ago.
Without supplies, they were defeated on a large scale, they were pursued by superior forces, and their commander was still not in the army. As a result, the defeated troops of the Hejian camp who had fled all the way from the Mamian River were once again in disarray. In the chaos, Zhonglang General Zhang Daoxian and hundreds of remaining men of his troops were actually blocked on the south bank of Qingzhang River, and then chose to surrender under Chen Bin's persuasion.
That was the end of it. Just as the deposed dragon army was preparing to cross the Qingzhang River, the scouts came to report that Xue Changxiong and tens of thousands of fresh troops appeared in Qinghe County on the other side, gathering and gathering the defeated troops.
Zhang Xing asked a captured civil servant to deliver a bottle of wine to Xue Changxiong for him, and then quietly retreated to the empty Changhe City and set up camp.
Sure enough, after receiving the gift, Xue Changxiong chose to give a piece of brocade silk in return, and then slowly retreated northward to Xindu County.
The time is the fifth day after the war.
When the news came, Changhe City was filled with joy.
However, from this day on, Zhang Xing began to face some new situations.
"Xue Wanbi stayed in Gaotang, the gateway to the south of Qinghe River?"
In the evening of that day, all the generals in the city gathered in the county government hall to discuss the matter of returning south and collect intelligence. As a result, Zhang Dalong learned something surprising when he came up. "You still have three thousand soldiers?"
"That's right." Guo Jingke answered carefully.
"Xue Changxiong is... is he showing loyalty to Cao Shancheng?" Zhang Xing thought about the rumors about Murong Zhengyan he had heard from the prisoners before, and couldn't help but ask, but he came to see Chen Bin as a matter of course. "At the expense of these three thousand soldiers and one son?"
"It's hard to say." Chen Bin answered seriously. "I would like to take the liberty of guessing that Xue Wanbi had an extreme and violent temper and did his own thing, while Xue Changxiong was too lazy to argue with his son after his defeat and wanted to see him suffer... Of course, I'm afraid he also had the intention of showing off to Cao Shancheng and Qu Tuda. … Anyway, he has many sons, so it won’t hurt him if a few more die.”
Zhang Xing nodded and asked Guo Jingke again: "Where are Qu Tuda, Li Ding, and Yuan Baocun? Is there any movement?"
"No." Guo Jingke quickly answered again. "The only thing that can be determined is that there are no such people in Gaotang. I have sent people further west to inquire."
"Add more manpower." Zhang Xing turned to look at Wei Xuanding. He noticed that the chief was obviously acting strangely when he spoke just now. "It's better to send some locals to explore from the north here to the west."
Wei Xuanding nodded, then came back to his senses and laughed dryly: "When I was down and out, I worked as a retainer under Wuyang Yuanbaocun for a while. After the Three Expeditions, I even persuaded him to rebel. Later, I found that he was a lack of courage. Yes, those who just wandered to the Eastern Territory can be considered to be reunited and separated... There is no need to worry about Longtou."
"I'll just say it, but it's easier to handle this way." Zhang Xingwen said without changing his expression. "Wei Gong himself went to communicate with him and asked him to come over and be a big leader under your command, a leader or something... so that he could tell the world that our Deposed Dragon Gang had the advantage of turning the clouds over and covering the sky in just two years. , In the past, county officials and county magistrates were now in charge of a county; in the past, traders and local tyrants are now generals who have entered the palace... I don’t know how much effort it takes to achieve this in ten or twenty years."
"On a normal day? Even if it's a hundred years, it's bound to be impossible." Wei Xuanding smiled bitterly, causing the people around him to laugh.
A group of remnants of the Eastern Qi Dynasty are not considered to be top-notch families, and they have no auspiciousness to offer, so how can they easily gain access to the palace?
However, the laughter was obviously short-lived, but Zhang Xing just didn't know, and continued to explain a few words to Guo Jingke, first letting this man who had committed crimes and meritorious deeds continue to leave to inquire about the news, and then lowered his head and started writing something.
"Lingxun is just these days. Not to mention that Qu Tuda was obviously cowering, but he is not afraid even if it comes. He will have support when the time comes." Seeing this situation, Wei Xuanding paused and continued to speak. "Are we going to talk about something else?"
The leaders around him suddenly became energetic.
"It's true." Zhang Xing didn't put down his pen at all, but his tone remained serious. "Not to mention I was so busy that I forgot... I don't know whether Niuda is alive or dead. This is our big leader. In order to cover our heavy troops that were defeated by Qu Tuda, he wanted to see people alive and see corpses. The fingers will also be sent back to the east for burial, and the prisoners in Chanyuan are all my brothers, and they will all be brought back together."
"I'll handle this." Wei Xuanding looked solemn and stood up quickly. "I wrote to Yuan Baocun to ask."
"Okay, by the way, I would like to persuade Yuan Baocun to surrender." Zhang Xing did not forget to remind him. "I was not joking with Mr. Wei just now."
"I know." Wei Xuanding sat back down again.
Perhaps because of the mention of the defeats of Niuda and Chanyuan, the atmosphere became obviously tense. After this conversation, Zhang Dalongtou and Chief Wei just remained silent, and the former continued to write something as usual.
At the same time, Bai Yousi and Wu Jingfeng were both fine, with no intention of speaking.
Finally, everyone's eyes gradually focused on Xiong Bonan, but Xiong Bonan tried to speak several times, but he only became quiet several times. In the end, everyone could only wait patiently for Zhang Dalongtou to finish writing those few things.
"Go to the city's civil servants to copy and distribute the notice." Yan Qing and Zu Chenyan were not here, so Zhang Xing could only order Jia Runshi. "They must also be sent to Ande City, including Bohai, Wuyang, and Qinghe. The basic meaning is that the officials of the Wei Dynasty in these four counties must strictly supervise spring plowing and try their best to assist livestock, farm tools, and seeds. Any As long as the local government does a good job in spring plowing this year and does not resist when we take over the harvest, we can retain the local officials without responsibility, but if they do not, they will be severely punished."
Only then did everyone know what Zhang Dalongtou was writing.
After sending the things away, Zhang Xing actually sighed in public.
At this time, no matter how high Zhang Dalongtou's prestige was, some people could no longer bear it. Fu Boshi was the first to speak: "Longtou, this battle is such a great victory. The four counties south of Qingzhang River are not only easy to win, but also easy to capture. How can you Are you not happy from the beginning to the end? In this battle, everyone has made meritorious deeds!"
"I know everyone has contributed a lot." Zhang Xing nodded, only half of the words were answered, and then suddenly looked at Chen Bin again. "But the most meritorious service in this battle belongs to Chief Chen. Does anyone have any objections?"
The scene became awkward for a moment, and many people looked at Jiang Ren Chen Bin unkindly, even if the other person was a big boss.
Chen Bin was inexplicably flustered.
But Zhang Xing just continued: "Think about it, everyone, without the leader Chen, how could we seize that day's opportunity? The prerequisite for winning that battle is that we attack more with less! Not to mention In addition to coming by himself, Chief Chen also brought Chief Wang Fubei and persuaded Zhang Daoxian to surrender yesterday. In the previous battle, he also informed the enemy of the weaknesses of the formation. It can be said that this battle achievement is like killing one stone. , then Chief Chen will monopolize the five fights! Do you have any objections?"
Still no one spoke, because everyone knew that Mr. Zhang was telling the truth, but this did not stop everyone from looking at Chen Bin with an increasingly unkind look.
As for Chen Bin himself, he had been panicking for a long time... In fact, after what he had experienced before, he had already had the mentality of not causing trouble. Especially after this battle, he really felt that people like Zhang Xing and Xue Changxiong were not the same thing. , the latter is a martial artist, and this young Mr. Zhang obviously understands politics and people's hearts.
So, as soon as the battle was over, he began to calm down.
In the end, I still didn’t escape.
"That's not the case." In desperation, Chen Bin stood up and took the initiative to speak. "Even if you have some minor skills, they can't compare to the position that Longtou and the brothers gave you to the big boss that day."
"If it weren't for Leader Chen, how could our Deposed Dragon Gang drink Ma Qingzhang water?" Zhang Xing became more and more sincere. "You are the hero! You can't just be an empty leader, otherwise who will come to defect in the future? Now you have three choices. You choose... to lead the troops, and give you a battalion... And after this battle, I also realized something The problem is that individual battalions are already very united, but the coordination between battalions is very poor. Therefore, the status of the leader must be strengthened, and the military affiliation between the leader and the leader must be clarified to ensure that the leader is responsible for the army. control!"
After hearing this, several big leaders present were the first to feel relieved.
Isn’t this what you want? !
Among them, Cheng Zhili was the most relieved. He had disobeyed military orders that day, lost his valuable cavalry, and actually lost the command of the Pu Tai Army. Basically, he lost everything, but in the end he relied on politics. He has a good posture and has been keeping low and small for a long time. He has followed closely and has slowly regained his position as the leader.
"If you don't want to lead troops, you can still go to Bohai County." Zhang Xing continued. "Similar to the Eastern Territory, there will be people staying behind."
Chen Bin was obviously moved. Bohai is one of the most powerful counties in the world. It is not the general state, but it is better than the general state.
"The last one is that I came to Hebei in a hurry. In just a few months, I didn't have time to establish an overall local police chief." Zhang Xing continued. "You are usually responsible for preventing local spies from infiltrating, and supervising whether powerful officials, officials, and leaders abide by the law... Are you interested?"
Chen Bin was stunned for a moment and immediately asked, "Isn't this the duty of Leader Yan?"
"No." Xiong Bonan suddenly interrupted. "Leader Yan is a human resource. There is a similar leader in the east. It is true that Hebei has not yet established one."
Chen Bin fell silent. With his background and experience, of course he would be keenly aware of the key points of this position. He also knew that Zhang Xing had indeed given him enough face... three positions coupled with the position of the big boss was indeed a dethronement. This is the greatest sincerity that the Dragon Gang can give.
However, the big boss is about status and treatment, and there is a lot to say about which position to choose.
Of course, it goes without saying that he is the leader. In troubled times, the military power is the first, and the soldiers and horses are the first. If he takes over this, even if the troops are surrendered and have to be reorganized, he and Wang Fubei will be able to form a reliable and stable partner, and he will have a foothold. Yes, this was also the fundamental consideration behind why he brought Wang Fubei together before.
As for Bohai, he is actually the county guard. One is that Bohai is big enough and rich enough, and the other is comfort and escaping from the rapids of troubled times. For Chen Bin, who has just escaped a crisis, It is also considered excellent.
The key is the third option.
Choosing this one means offending Zhang Dalongtou's confidant Yan Qing who is not around. Chen Bin, who has learned a little bit about the specific personnel situation of the Deposed Dragon Army in the past few days, has no doubt that among the list of people he has offended, There may also be Zhang Xing's other immediate confidants Jia Yue, Wang Xiongdan, and Jia Runshi, including Lu Changheng who was a spy with Qian Tang, because these people are likely to covet this position.
It will even cause dissatisfaction among Wei Xuanding and Xiong Bonan, because these people who have obviously established their own prestige may have ideas about this position.
Of course, I also want to be a universal black-faced villain, making everyone unhappy.
However, this position also represents authority, and it means that he will continue to be around the core power of the Deposed Dragon Gang... Considering the future future and performance of the Deposed Dragon Gang after it establishes a foothold in Hebei, this probably means that he will continue to receive concessions. An opportunity that attracts the attention of the whole world.
"I...I want to do something about public security and law enforcement." Under Xie Minghe's slightly narrowed eyes, just like the answer Liu Yunhe gave when he faced Zhang Xing's inquiry yesterday, Chen Bin really couldn't resist himself I just hid my desire for power for only four or five days. "It's quite similar to what I did when I was a military supervisor."
"Okay." Zhang Xing looked at the other person, nodded, said only one word, and then looked at the others. "Did you just want me to take credit? At least it would be easier for you to distribute the spoils of the army camp?"
This time, no one said a word, because everyone noticed that the leader looked unhappy.
"You don't need to be anxious about this kind of thing. If there is a problem with rewards and punishments, the Deposed Dragon Gang will not be able to stand up. I can't slack off on this kind of thing." Zhang Xing said with a sigh. "But since it is a reward and punishment, it cannot be just reward without punishment... I have to ask you something. During the battle that day, there was no cooperation between the battalions. The battalions in the front were competing for the supplies of the prisoner camp, and the battalions in the rear even gave up. What does a military order mean? Are you going to fool it?"
Wei Xuanding and Xiong Bonan looked at each other, and then the former spoke helplessly. There was nothing he could do if he didn't speak: "Longtou, it's not that we are willing to argue. It was really such a rush day that it was difficult to determine their fault at the same time."
"Did anyone else take note of it?" Zhang Xing asked suddenly.
No one answered for a moment.
Xiong Bonan also became embarrassed: "I was chasing the enemy general at that time, but I really had no intention of paying attention to this matter."
"It's none of King Xiongtian's business." Zhang Xing nodded and continued. "Actually, there is another important matter... How to kill the newly-reigned soldiers and officers? I have an old friend who has been mocking me, saying that I kill the enemy soldiers, which is really a woman's kindness, because the punishment of beating to death is serious. They are all just used to organize the army... Everyone, please try your best to make suggestions and see how this matter should be handled? Chief Fu Da, what do you think?"
In his words, there was already a bit of power without anger.
Fu Bo Shi felt guilty and a little frightened. He, who was always strong on the battlefield, did not dare to respond at this time.
After a pause, after confirming that the serious military judge Liu Zhouchen was not here, under Chen Bin's burning eyes, Dou Lide suddenly stood up, bowed and said: "Longtou, I was ordered by your army to send spies to the army camp. , I happened to stay in the army camp that day, and there are many records of some things... I was about to report to you."
"Finally, someone happened to be in the Mamianhe military camp at that time." Zhang Xing suddenly laughed. "Everyone, look, are Leader Dou and I chatting here, or are we going to chat somewhere else together?"
Except for Bai Yousi, Xiong Bonan, Shan Tonghai and a few other people who were not around at the time, I don't know who was in charge. The leaders and chiefs in the hall suddenly stood up, and then Wei Xuanding, Xiong Almost everyone stood up, including Birnam.
(End of chapter)
