In the northern line of Baoding City, Chang Yu handed over the command to Zhou Yuji and Li Yan before leaving. As for the head of the Ministry of War, Shi Kefu, retreated to the second line and guarded the city. Although he had the highest official rank and the oldest seniority, he was still a civilian official, so when it came to marching He is not as good as Zhou Yuji in fighting, and he is not as good as Li Yan in terms of planning, but he is a good hand in handling civil affairs. At this time, just after the war, there are too many things to finish inside and outside the city.
There are a lot of officers and soldiers in Baoding City. Zhou Yuji's direct lineage plus Yang Zhenwei who was borrowed from abroad, He Chengxin has more than 10,000, Jinwu Guards, Tengxiang Guards about 20,000, Li Yan's tribe plus Wu Weiying's Shenji Battalion has more than 10,000, and there are also prisoners. There are more than 40,000 soldiers in total, and they can attack and defend with ease.
At half noon, just when Li Guo of Zhending Prefecture on the southern front was putting on airs and wanted to fight Huang Degong fiercely, Zhou Yuji ordered all the troops to leave the city and line up in a line of about ten miles by the Qingshui River.
Its troops are the central army, Jinwu Guards are the east wing, and Li Yan's troops are the west wing, staring at the other side with eager eyes.
This move naturally attracted the attention of Liu Fangliang and Zhang Nai, the leaders of the rebel army on the other side. They paid close attention and guessed what the officers and soldiers were doing. Are they going to take the initiative to attack? Could it be that they discovered that the main force was withdrawing south? impossible!
"Let's go through the refugee barrier first!" Liu Fangliang sneered, using the refugees to consume his combat power, and then he and Zhang Nai's main force covered them up. Although they might not be able to reach the city, it would definitely be difficult for the officers and soldiers to cross the river.
Unexpectedly, just when the two of them were full of ambition, they suddenly heard the sound of cannons. They were shocked and hurried out of the camp to check. They saw a volley of artillery fire on the city of Baoding due north, and the refugees on the other side fled in panic.
The officers and soldiers are really going to come over, what the hell is going on with those refugees... When I was really anxious, the soldiers came to report: the refugees were bewitched by the officers and soldiers on the other side, unwilling to be cannon fodder, and fled in all directions. The thief army in charge was about to intercept them, and artillery fire was fired on the other side. The rebel army was blown away, and the refugees fled along the river bank for their lives.
"Fuck! This can't be stopped." Liu Fangliang was so angry that he kicked the soldier who was delivering the message over. Zhang Nai sighed slightly: "Now the people's hearts are loose, and it's not what it used to be!"
"It doesn't matter if it's a frivolous thing or not, use it if you can, and kill it if you don't. If you run away, you'll save food. Without him, wouldn't we be able to fight? We won't be able to defeat the officers and soldiers. Damn it, I don't believe in evil." , I have never been defeated since Xi'an, but I fell into the hands of that dog eunuch."
"Report to the general, officers and soldiers are crossing the river!" At this time, the soldiers came to report, and the two of them were shocked. They had previously placed tens of thousands of refugees on the shore, and had a small group of people patrolling. They thought everything was safe, but they did not expect that the officers and soldiers said a few words to let them go. After a few shots, the cannon fodder fled for their lives. The river bank defense line was immediately decorated, and the officers and soldiers took advantage of it.
Thinking that they would take advantage of the opportunity, but did not expect that they would move so quickly, Liu Fangliang quickly mobilized his troops to fight, while cursing the soldiers. There were at least thousands of patrols. Why did they let the other side cross the river so easily?
This was Li Yan's cleverness. He tricked the refugees into fleeing for their lives. At the same time, the city's field artillery fire from the Shenji Battalion on the shore also opened fire. The two fires suppressed it. Taking advantage of the chaos and chaos of the refugees to flee for their lives, he ordered the army to cross the river. These more than ten people In the river, the thousands of thieves on the other side were washed to pieces by the refugees, and were suppressed by firepower and could not reach the shore. In fact, even if they made it to the shore, how could these few people stop the tens of thousands of troops on the other side? .
There was almost no fighting, so Yazi ran away. The officers and soldiers crossed the river easily and landed less than three miles away. Liu Fangliang and Zhang Nai's army arrived. When enemies met, they started fighting without letting go!
Li Yan's tactics this time were not to play any tricks, but to directly advance and crush with a large force. He calculated that even if the rear troops left by Li Zicheng were the main force, they would definitely not have many troops! What's more, the main force is not elite. The most elite Li Guo and Luo Hu are in Zhending Mansion hundreds of miles away.
Li Yan's prediction was good. Li Zicheng thought that he had secretly tricked Chen Cang's officers and soldiers without noticing, and would just hide in Baoding City and pray that the rebels would not take the initiative to attack them. Thank God, he would never take the initiative to attack, so although Liu Fangliang and Zhang Nai were left behind, The main force of the army, but the number of troops was no more than 10,000. He felt that the refugees could be enough to confuse the enemy, but he did not know that Chang Yu had seen through it early, so that at this time, the officers and soldiers suddenly attacked, and the speed was completely unexpected, not even as fast as the first Time resists.
"I'm afraid the officers and soldiers have seen through the master's clever plan." Zhang Nai couldn't help but sigh when he saw the officers and soldiers suddenly running over him with a large force. Liu Fangliang also looked up to the sky and cursed, the dog eunuch Duan was so cunning.
Knowing that they were outmatched by the officers and soldiers, the two men retreated more than ten miles while fighting and set up a second line of defense at the original rebel camp at the Qingshui River diversion, in an attempt to prevent the officers and soldiers from going south to pursue the main force.
Zhou Yuji led his troops to pursue him for nearly ten miles, and stopped two miles away from the Qingshui River. He ordered the entire army to stop making fire and cook food to rest and reorganize their troops, and then summoned his generals to discuss how to break through his defense line.
The rebel army is small in strength, only about ten thousand, but if they rely on the river to defend the danger and we attack by force, the casualties will be huge. If we don't divide our troops to cross the river, it will be difficult for the rebel army to take care of the head and tail. If they don't dare to fight, they will have to flee. Li Yan suggested a plan, and Zhou Yuji nodded and followed. He then ordered Qin Songwang to lead his troops ten miles eastward to cross the river, Yang Zhenwei to lead his troops ten miles westward to cross the river, and the remaining troops to conduct a frontal attack to attract the attention of the rebels.
The battle started in the evening, and this plan really worked. Liu Fangliang and Zhang Nai relied on the river channel to think that they would be able to defend until tomorrow at the worst. Unexpectedly, as soon as the battle started, the officers and soldiers used field artillery fire to suppress it, and then launched an attack. People couldn't help but curse. This Damn it, you carry your cannon wherever you go.
The officers and soldiers were suppressed by artillery, and the troops were superior. The rebel army was already difficult to resist. However, at this time, spies came to report that officers and soldiers were crossing the river ten miles away. Liu Fangliang and Zhang Nai were shocked. If they were to be attacked by both sides, they would be surprised. If you outflank or go around to outflank, the whole army will be annihilated and the game will be over.
But at the moment, the troops on hand were already too stretched to divide their forces into two wings to fight, so the two had no choice but to order a retreat and escape as night fell.
The officers and soldiers successfully crossed the river and occupied the main camp to rest and recuperate. Do not pursue the enemy if they are poor, and do not rush to pursue them. Li Yan and Zhou Yuji discussed it briefly, made a fire, cooked food, slept, and got up early tomorrow to catch up again!
Qizhou (now Anguo City) is located a hundred miles south of Baoding and 150 miles away from Zhending Prefecture. It is known as the "Medicine Capital" and is one of the three states under the jurisdiction of Baoding Prefecture.
At this time, the three floors inside and outside Qizhou were filled with people. Li Zicheng secretly asked Chen Cang to travel south from Qingyuan for nearly a hundred miles in one day and night to settle in Qizhou. His troops and horses, together with the refugees, submerged them all in a blink of an eye.
Li Zicheng entered the city to rest, and the puppet government in the city held a banquet to entertain them. During the banquet, they were insinuated. After all, Li Zicheng's sudden turn back made them frightened. Was he about to leave after losing the battle? If he were to escape, wouldn't the officers and soldiers settle the score with himself and others...
The intruder knew what he meant and tried to comfort him by saying that returning troops was not a defeat but to consolidate territory. In addition, the weather was getting warmer and the plague was raging in the capital and other places, so it was not suitable to go deep. Even if he returned troops, the court would not be able to go south to regain the lost territory. At this time, he would not go north. The imperial court is burning incense, but it doesn't have the courage or strength to send troops.
Everyone was doubtful, thinking that it was time to consolidate the land that Li Zicheng had conquered in just over a month, so they stopped thinking about it. Most of the people at the banquet were filled with flattery and drunken singing.
Happy times are always short-lived. Li Zicheng, who had just finished the banquet and was about to take a break after a long journey, received an urgent message: Ma Shiyao, Ren Jirong betrayed, and Li Guo was defeated and captured.
Li Zicheng was shocked when he heard this and smashed the objects in the room to pieces in anger. He couldn't accept this fact for a while. He still couldn't accept it until Niu Jinxing and others who fled in a hurry detailed the cause and effect.
Why did the key members Ma Shiyao and Ren Jirong rebel? How could elites like Li Guo and Luo Hu be defeated? How could they be plotted by a big boss? Also, why did the little eunuch suddenly arrive in the south when he was clearly in the north? Can he fly or not? Is there a clone, or is he setting off smoke bombs from the beginning to the end? His real body is always in the south. This big hole was dug by him.
Anger is anger, and the most important thing is how to deal with the unfavorable situation. Li Zicheng summoned the generals to discuss. When they heard what was said, they were shocked and angry. They cursed the young eunuch for being treacherous and cunning, and shouted that they would send troops to rescue Li Guo immediately.
"Now that Ma Shiyao has surrendered, Zhending City will definitely fall into the hands of the officers and soldiers. At this time, we will definitely retreat into the city. We are eager to go south and have no time to attack the city... If the attack on the city delays our journey, once Li Yan in the north knows that we are going south, we will rush to pursue him. Come, attack us from both sides and it will be difficult for us to leave!" Gao Yigong looked embarrassed.
Liu Zongmin snorted coldly: "Even including Ma Shiyao's people, there are only more than 30,000 officers and soldiers there. There are still more than 50,000 troops. The refugees have no plan. He can't stop them when they swarm them. Even if they attack the city, it will only take a moment. Things between us won't waste much time at all. Once we break the city and rescue Li Guo, we can then massacre and plunder the city before leaving. Even if Li Yan in the north knows that I have escaped and he sends troops to chase me, Liu Fangliang and Zhang Nai are just decorations!"
Although Liu Zongmin was at odds with Li Guo, Li Guo was a bandit general with great influence, and he was also Li Zicheng's godson. Li Zicheng would definitely rescue him, and he was just showing off as a favor.
"Prime Minister, what do you think?" Li Zicheng asked Ji Niu Jinxing.
Niu Jinxing touched his chin and thought for a moment: "Although the south is defeated, there are still 20,000 soldiers gathered in Cihe. Our main force here is still more than 50,000. The total is indeed as General Liu said. It is not necessarily possible for the officers and soldiers to swarm up. It can be blocked, but if we attack the city, it won’t happen in a moment!”
"How difficult can it be to defeat a mere Zhendingfu city?" Liu Zongmin shouted dissatisfied.
Li Zicheng rolled his eyes at him and said, "Just listen to the Prime Minister quietly."
Niu Jinxing continued: "General Liu, don't forget that the dog eunuch is in Zhending Mansion at this time. With him in Zhending City, it will be so easy to fight. Besides, a lot of our siege baggage is discarded under Baoding Mansion... We want to break it quickly." I'm afraid the city will be extremely difficult, and if we delay for too long, Li Yan from the north will chase us!"
"You think Li Yan is a god..." Liu Zongmin snorted coldly. He suddenly heard that there were soldiers coming from outside to report. After entering the hall, he said hurriedly: "Li Yan led tens of thousands of troops to pursue and kill him, breaking through two lines of defense and reaching Qingyuan County. "
Everyone was stunned! As soon as he raised his feet, someone was chasing him. He was so secretive. It was obvious that he had already figured out his intention and was just pretending not to know. The reason why he didn't come after him was because the soldiers and horses were tired just after the battle, so they had to wait an extra day. When the men and horses recover their strength, come here and kill them!
