At dawn, Liu Fangliang and the others were woken up again just after they fell asleep. The spies wandering around outside the city to investigate the whereabouts of the officers and soldiers brought them good news. Luo Hu was back, just thirty miles away from Dali!
Zhenshan Camp, Laoying, the most elite soldiers and horses of the Dashun Army, Luo Hu, Ma Bao, the rising stars and the bravest generals of the Dashun Army, came to help at this time, it was like a long drought, Liu Fangliang and the others I was overjoyed. With these two people, the officers and soldiers came to besiege the city again. They no longer had to just stick to it behind closed doors. They could launch a one-on-one duel without even giving them a chance to siege the city.
An hour later, Luo Hu and Ma Bao led dozens of soldiers to Dali first. Seeing the two men looking tired and angry, Liu Fangliang and others felt doubtful. When asked about the cause and effect, they gritted their teeth in hatred and comforted the two young men. It’s a chance to get back to where we are today.
Although it was infuriating that the two boys had suffered a heavy loss, the arrival of this elite new force still made Liu Fangliang and the three bosses ecstatic. After some comfort, they asked the two to rest and wait until they woke up before setting up their plans. The banquet was over, but at this moment the spies sent bad news: all three cities on the northern line were lost!
The three of them were stunned to the point of shock, finally knowing where Li Yan's main force had gone.
Although it had been expected that the officers and soldiers would divide their forces to attack the northern front, they did not expect that all troops would go there. I thought that the northern front would be able to hold on for at least ten or eight days, but all of them were lost overnight.
Moreover, the spies also brought a piece of information that made the three of them extremely speechless. That is, except for Hancheng, which made some resistance in the three northern cities, the other two cities directly surrendered without any resistance, just like when the officers and soldiers surrendered during their Eastern Expedition last year. It's crisp and clear.
They say it takes thirty years to reach Hedong and thirty years to reach Hexi, but this is less than a year!
Hearing that 30% of the northern line was lost, Luo Hu and Ma Bao were young and energetic. They immediately asked for orders to lead their troops to regain the lost territory. Tian Jianxiu stopped them. At this time, the situation was unknown and they went there rashly. It was very dangerous. Think long term.
But Luo Hu and Ma Bao didn't care about his long-term plan. They insisted that they were not afraid of danger. Even if there was danger, he could come and leave as he pleased and no one could stop him. The premise was that Tian Jianxiu would allocate two thousand war horses to him.
In the end, it was rejected by Tian Jianxiu. Firstly, Zhenshan camp was very tired after several days of tossing. Secondly, the current situation was too complicated. Everything focused on the overall situation. The so-called overall situation was Tongguan on the south road and Dali on the middle road. , the northern line is all in the mountains, even if it is lost, it doesn't matter.
Although Luo Hu and Ma Bao still resented each other, they had no choice but to give up. No one in the Dashun Army could surpass them in terms of bravery, but in terms of seniority, military rank and official position, they could only obey orders.
"We have only one top priority, and that is to recharge our batteries and go wherever we need to as the situation changes!" Finally, Tian Jianxiu made the decision.
At midnight, Li Yan got up and opened the door. It was another sunny day. The news that Ma Huabao and his men divided their forces into three areas in one day had broken through three cities. But Li Yan was really not happy because at the same time, a Very bad news: Hejin city was destroyed, Qin Songwang fought desperately to break through, and led more than 500 people to flee to Puzhou. Gao Qi has been ordered to meet him.
Luo Hu and Ma Bao drew their troops and left. With most of the pressure on the Hejin city defense gone, why was the city suddenly broken?
The reason is outrageous and helpless.
The so-called thousand-mile river embankment was destroyed by an ant nest!
No army can completely work together, and not everyone can risk their lives. There will always be some who are greedy for life and afraid of death.
Hejin was besieged for several days without any reinforcements. Although most of the soldiers could regard death as Qin Songwang's and vowed that the city would be alive and the people would die, but there were always some people who were greedy for life and afraid of death.
Many times it is this small group of people who are greedy for life and fear of death who can ruin big things. Historically, during Li Zicheng's Eastern Expedition, when he attacked Taiyuan Prefecture, it was because a low-level officer Zhang Xiong opened the small south gate and surrendered that Taiyuan City was destroyed.
Hejin City Breaker was also a small leader under Qin Songwang. He gathered dozens of people and rebelled against the water at night. The officers and soldiers guarding the gate opened the city gate and allowed the outside thieves to enter the city. Even though Qin Songwang discovered it in time, he could not block the hole. , only a few hundred people broke out and escaped after a bloody battle!
After hearing the news, Li Yan stood in the yard with his hands behind his back and looked at the sky for a long time, so long that Gu Junen even rushed over from Chaoyi on the other side.
"Almost" Gu Junen said.
Then Li Yan ordered his soldiers to send a message to Wu Sangui: "Let go of what you are doing." He also recruited the Jin Yiwei who accompanied the army and asked them to send a secret report eight hundred miles away from the capital.
The situation at Tongguan is tense, and the war is imminent. In the past few days, officers and soldiers have continued to gather. The vanguard troops are even stationed only a few dozen miles away from Tongguan. The main force is gathering while preparing to attack the city. Every day, there are several groups of different sizes. When Tan Ma went to the outside of Tongguan City to conduct reconnaissance checkpoints, it was inevitable that he would have large and small fights with the traitor army's Tan Ma.
Tens of thousands of troops were approaching the city. Li Guo, the leader of the rebel army, did not dare to be careless. He was in charge of reinforcing the city's defenses and had to do everything every day for fear of something going wrong. He knew that once the officers and soldiers attacked the city, there would be a violent storm and he must not underestimate it.
Tinkering in the city and gearing up outside the city, the most excited person is Wu Sangui. He has been waiting for an opportunity, a chance to make great achievements, and attacking Tongguan is the opportunity. He has waited for too long. From last year until now, he has already I couldn't wait any longer.
But who would have expected that that night, he suddenly received a military order from Li Yan, asking him to temporarily put aside the work at hand. Outsiders may not understand this, but Wu Sangui naturally understood it, which was to suspend the attack on Tongguan!
Why? Wu Sangui was very puzzled!
But combined with Gu Junen's words and the unfavorable results in the middle line in the past few days, the great harvest in the northern line and the loss of Hejin, the experienced Ma Ke understood instantly: the chips are enough, and Li Yan is also exhausted from the tossing. .
Wu Sangui frowned: "If we break Tongguan, wouldn't the chips be bigger?"
Ma Ke shook his head and chuckled: "The biggest bargaining chip is when we attack the city!" Wu Sangui suddenly realized, yes, if you don't agree with the conditions, I will fight. This is a threat but also a bargaining chip!
A lot of things happened in just a short period of time. From Li Yan's lightning attack on Chaoyi, then the bandits sent troops to besiege Hejin, Wu Sangui's troops went to Tongguan to gather the army, Ma Huabao and others besieged Dali, then recovered the three cities on the northern line, and finally fell to Hejin... ...It didn’t take long and many things happened, and the entire Yellow River defense line was affected. The two sides used their tricks and tricks to fight against each other. In general, in the end, the imperial court took advantage, got more chips, and regained They visited the three cities and the bridgehead on the northern line, tested the strength of the central gate, and even put troops outside the south gate to put pressure!
During this period of time, those who participated in the war were all under Li Yan, and they completed many difficult tasks in a very short time. This brought his military strength, armaments, and follow-up supplies to almost the limit, so he had to stop.
It was getting dark. In the hall, Li Yan touched the teacup and raised and put it down. He repeated it several times. Finally, he raised his head and glanced at Gu Junen, who was silent next to him: "Sir, can Hejin save me?"
Li Yan was still unwilling to accept it. He had nothing to say if he was breached by others, but he was defeated by the insider. How could he be willing to accept it? Moreover, after some analysis, he felt that Hancheng on the other side of Hejin was in his hands at this time. With the cooperation of Gao Qi and Qin Songwang here, can they win another battle to recapture Hejin, or will the opponent be frightened and surrender under the siege?
But Gu Junen denied it. In his words: "I'm afraid something will happen again!"
Others may be confused after hearing this, but Li Yan was enlightened after hearing this. During this period, the situation on the Yellow River defense line was extremely complicated. Although the southern front did not participate in the war, it was still on the drawing board, while the central and northern fronts were already exhausted. Everyone has their own injuries, and although they are still dissatisfied, they are already exhausted, so they have to maintain a temporary ceasefire. But if Li Yan insists on regaining Hejin, it will affect the entire body and break the existing balance, causing butterflies. Effect, it is not ruled out that the bandit army will also launch an attack, such as sending troops to recover the three cities on the northern line or the imperial court.
After all, the troops and strength on both the central and northern fronts are equivalent. The reason why the officers and soldiers took advantage is mostly due to Li Yan's strategy. If they really go hard, the Zhenshan Battalion with Luo Hu may not be able to defeat Li Yan. It's a good deal.
Moreover, the rebel army that captured Hejin was affiliated with the old battalion and was also an elite force. The chance of scaring them into surrendering without a fight was too small. If they attacked by force, they would be seriously injured!
To sum up, Gu Junen does not recommend beating Hejin.
Although Hejin was lost, it still accounted for four cities, four to one, which was enough for the imperial court to use as a bargaining chip, so there was no need to pursue perfection and just give up when it was good!
"Stop as soon as you see fit" is a very good word. This is what Chang Yu told Shi Kefa.
In the past few days, Li Yan was killed in the Yellow River and the sky was dark. The negotiation table for the reopening of the capital was also full of smoke. The court representatives, mainly Wu Xuan and Shi Kefa, and Song Xiance were also at loggerheads.
The imperial court's idea is to surrender first and then make the king, and there is a prerequisite: either go to Sichuan to kill Zhang Xianzhong, or recover Jinzhou for me, and then remove the military power after making the king!
Song Xiance refused to give in. He first granted the title of king and then surrendered. It was negotiable to defeat Zhang Xianzhong or regain Jinzhou, but it was not negotiable to lift the military power, because he was worried that the court would turn against him and he had to protect himself. At the worst, he had to leave a force for Li Zicheng!
As a result, Wu Sheng scolded him, and Li Thief was in prison in Dongchang at this time, and he still left some wool for him.
Song Xiance, on the other hand, burst out laughing: "You can only capture King Chuang's substitute, King Chuang's real body is in Tongguan at this time!"
Wu Sheng and Shi Kefa were shocked and half-believing. The little eunuch's other things were unreliable, but he couldn't cheat randomly. This was a serious crime of deceiving the emperor.
The first negotiation broke up unhappily. That night Shi Kefa went to see Chang Yu and said why this old boy Song Xiance had suddenly become tough and had been begging for peace a few days ago.
Chang Yu sighed deeply in his heart. He knew that Li Zicheng had escaped and had contacted Song Xiance, so this guy suddenly became hardened.
It seems that we need to raise the stakes.
Whatever comes to mind, good news and secret reports keep coming from the other side of the Yellow River.
The army is approaching Tongguan City, and Dali is in danger...
In the second negotiation, Song Xiance lost his toughness as before. He could surrender first and then be crowned king, or he could defeat Zhang Xianzhong and regain Jinzhou, but his military power still could not be completely lifted.
Wu Sheng and Shi Kefa flatly refused, and Song Xiance walked away.
On the same day, another secret report was delivered to Chang Yu. After reviewing it, he sent it to Shi Kefa. Then the third negotiation began, and Shi Kefa threw the secret report directly in front of Song Xiance.
It was sent by Zuo Liangyu. He has mobilized a large army to surround Jingzhou for several days. This time he is serious about it. It is not what he did years ago. Zuo Liangyu is an old fox and he knows that the situation has changed. If he fools the little eunuch again, he will be punished. After cleaning up, even if you are just pretending, you have to be real.
Song Xiance's face became solemn: "You can surrender first and then be crowned king. We choose to recover Jinzhou and retain a force of King Chuang for self-protection. Other generals can release their troops and transfer them to other uses. During the period of recovering Jinzhou, the imperial court must not take the opportunity to attack." Xi'an, the Yellow River soldiers and horses should be withdrawn!"
Wu Sheng slapped the table: "In a dream, you are still holding on until now. You don't need to step back a little bit, just show your bottom line!"
Song Xiance chuckled and said that this was his side's final bottom line. If the court did not accept it, the two sides would fall into a stalemate again. They would be fighting for who knows how many years. Can the court afford to delay...
This spoke of Wu Sheng's pain point. The court was dragged down by you thieves to the point where it was almost taken advantage of by foreign enemies... The more he scolded, the angrier he became, and then he couldn't hold it in anymore... The talks broke down again.
