In the autumn of the second year of Tianqi, bandits from Shaanxi forcibly crossed the Yellow River and entered Henan and Shanxi. All the way to the east, they captured cities and territories, and the hungry people in Henan and Shaanxi provinces responded in large numbers.
Rogue thieves killed county magistrates, robbed granaries, and released prisoners.
The situation in the Central Plains completely collapsed.
In early September, eight thousand troops from the Western Expedition arrived at the junction of Shanshan and Shanxi, and were immediately surrounded by bandits.
The total number of bandits in Shanxi, Shanxi, and Henan provinces exceeds 200,000.
Among them, the bandits Zhang Zicheng, Li Xianzhong and Centipede Kuai are the most famous.
The three leaders successfully met in northwest Shanxi and unanimously concluded that the Shanxi and Henan officers and soldiers were not to be feared. The most terrifying thing was the Kaiyuan Army who came from the capital to put down the rebellion.
The bandits attacked the original army one after another as a thorn in their side.
Starting from Pianguan in the north, reaching Xichuan in the south, Shenmu in the west, and Luliang in the east, 200,000 bandits formed a dragnet, preparing to annihilate the 8,000 Western Expeditionary Army between the borders of the three provinces.
However, the Kaiyuan Army was not aware of the Liu bandits' combat intentions. The Western Expeditionary Army attacked all the way to the west and successively defeated small groups of Liu bandits, getting closer and closer to the Yellow River.
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It's not that Liu Zhaosun has never thought about intervening in Shaanxi affairs, but he has been busy exploring the north. He did not expect that after entering the customs, the situation in the customs would deteriorate like dominoes.
Due to the intervention of the time travellers, the Shaanxi Civil War in this dimension was even worse than the original history.
When a traveler tries to change the direction of history, the invisible hand in the chaotic sky will always respond to the traveler with more cruel results.
Since the roadside troops in Shaanxi were severely hit by the Kaiyuan Army in the "Battle of Jingnan" and all their elite soldiers were lost, when the civil uprising broke out in Shaanxi, the local government and army were unable to suppress it.
The riots intensified, breaking out earlier and on a larger scale than in history.
On the sixth day of September, the Western Expeditionary Army encountered the bandits Ba Jingang tribe in Pianguan County. Pianguan County was only a hundred miles away from Shaanxi, and it crossed the Yellow River into Shaanxi.
Ba Jingang had fifteen thousand bandits under his command, including six hundred horsemen, one thousand surrendered border troops, and the rest were ordinary refugees.
Two fierce battles broke out between the two sides in the wilderness west of Pianguan City. Deng Changxiong used cavalry as the vanguard, attacked the two wings of the refugees, and used artillery to break through in the center.
The battle went quite smoothly. Ba Jingang paid the price of 500 people and was captured by the Kaiyuan Army with 3,000 people.
However, Deng Changxiong also lost 300 soldiers, and the casualties were mainly in the battle with rogue cavalry.
After the disastrous defeat of the Eight King Kongs, they did not immediately collapse, but retreated to Hequ County in an orderly manner.
No one was allowed to investigate at night. Although Ba Jingang was defeated, the old thieves and horse soldiers under his command were still alive. After they fled back to Hequ, they threatened the people to strengthen the city defense and hid behind the city wall to prepare for a long-term defense.
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It's not like Deng Changxiong has never fought against thieves.
In the early years of Taichang, he followed Duke Huguo to land in Weihaiwei, annihilated Wenxiang Sect in Dengzhou area, and pursued them from Dengzhou to Qufu.
Xu Hongru's followers had almost no fighting power, and they all fled when they finally encountered the Kaiyuan Army.
However, this time when they entered Shan and Shaanxi, the bandits they encountered were obviously different from those of the Wenxiang Sect back then.
They have stronger combat power and better organization, and even have professional horse soldiers and fire gun soldiers - although the number is not large.
This is because the Shaanxi thieves, big and small, all have backgrounds as border troops and post soldiers. Many of them are from Xuanda and Yansui Town, and their combat power is naturally beyond the comparison of the Wenxiang Sect without any military training.
Coupled with the natural and man-made disasters in the Shan and Shaanxi areas, the large number of refugees in the surrounding prefectures and counties can continuously provide cheap cannon fodder for the army of refugees.
Therefore, the opponents faced by the Western Expeditionary Army were not only powerful in combat, but also numerous in number, and could easily be attacked by tens of thousands of people.
Even if one of the gangs is defeated, the thieves will be like leeks, one wave will be cut off and another will grow, and they will be killed and strangled endlessly.
The difficulties that Hong Chengchou, Yang He, Sun Chuanting and others faced in history now also appeared in front of Deng Changxiong.
Deng Changxiong, Sun Chuanting, Wang Zengbin and others had different opinions on whether to cross the river and attack Hequ.
"The bandits gather and disperse. In the past, they would disperse immediately as soon as they were attacked by the official army. But now they have to defend the city with a fortified city. Could it be that they want to attract our army to attack and then launch a massive siege?"
The chief officer, Deng Changxiong, could see the trick of the Eight King Kongs at a glance. There are currently less than 8,000 capable fighters under his command, and reinforcements are still arriving, so he cannot take risks easily.
Wang Zengbin returned from the Mongolian battlefield three months ago. By defeating Lin Dan Khan, he helped Bumbutai regain the throne of Horqin Khan. He was praised by the Protector of the Country and promoted to the chief officer of the cavalry regiment. He was also awarded the title of Chief Military Officer of Iqi Island. It can be said that he is very proud and satisfied. .
"Commander Deng was overly worried. The cavalry did not close his sentries at night and found out that this Bajingang was just a blacksmith before. He was a rough man who couldn't read a word. He didn't know how to use tricks. He must have been frightened by us and had nowhere to escape. , had no choice but to huddle in the county town."
After hearing this, Sun Chuanting couldn't help pouring cold water on the cavalry chief.
"Commander Wang, as the supervisor of the Western Expedition, I have the obligation to remind you not to forget how Shao Jiechun died in the battle of Hetuala?"
Wang Zengbin took a breath. The battle of Hetuala is still vivid in his mind. If it weren't for the desperate resistance of his cavalry battalion, he might have sunk into the Taizi River.
The young and energetic cavalry commander immediately retorted:
"Jiannu is a slave, and a bandit is a bandit. Sun Jianjun can't confuse them. Besides, how can a bandit know how to defend a city? With one go, he captured the city, and the cavalry drove straight in, sweeping through northern Shaanxi, and taking away the bandits in northern Shaanxi. The old nest. Then the army set up an ambush here, and also came to surround Wei and rescue Zhao, and kill all the big bandits such as Zhang Zicheng and Li Xianzhong. This is what the Lord Protector wants us to do."
Sun Chuanting sneered:
"The Lord Protector wants the Western Expeditionary Army to maintain its strength and wait for the opportunity to go to war, not for us to attack the fortified city..."
The two were still arguing when Deng Changxiong waved his hand and interrupted:
"Okay, don't say anything anymore, I am the chief officer here."
Sun Chuanting and Wang Zengbin stopped talking.
Deng Changxiong looked around, looked at a group of generals above the general standing around, and said loudly:
"Aren't you always shouting about when you can have a decisive battle with the bandits all the way here?"
Deng Changxiong's eyes fell on his adjutant Cheng Liang, the commander of the Sixth Guards Army, who was following him on his western expedition as an adjutant.
"Now, we have a hard time."
Deng Changxiong pointed to the slowly flowing Yellow River a hundred meters away.
"There is a dead end ahead, and there are thieves behind. There is only one way, kill it!"
"Kill over, occupy the bend of the river, and then, like the Eight King Kongs, stand firm and wait for reinforcements. The bandits will definitely be surrounded by a large army."
"When the Kaiyuan army arrives for reinforcements, we will bloom in the center, attack from both inside and outside, and severely injure the bandits. The bandits can be defeated in one battle."
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On the eighth day of September, the bandit leaders Li Xianzhong, Zhang Zicheng, and Lao Huihui went north from Shenmu, bypassed Fugu County, and headed straight for Hequ County.
Ten miles southeast of the county seat of Hequ County is Wenbi Town.
The Yellow River has nine bends and thousands of miles of sand, and the waves and winds are blowing from the end of the world.
The Yellow River is known as its nine bends and eighteen bends. Hequ County is very close to the Yellow River, and Wenbi Town is on the right side of the bends in the Yellow River.
On the ninth day of September, Niangniang Beach, Wenbi Town, Hequ County.
It's bright.
In late autumn, a patch of withered yellow chrysanthemums on the bank of the Yellow River contrasts with the water of the river, walking quietly and peacefully under your feet.
Above the East Mountain, the sun has just risen, illuminating Hequ County in the distance.
Cheng Liang looked at the human blood remaining on the trigonellae, gritted his teeth and sighed.
The Sixth Army fought a bloody battle with Liu bandits at Niangniang Beach yesterday. Cheng Liang's men suffered heavy casualties, with more than 800 dead and wounded, and finally occupied this small island in the middle of the river.
Before entering Shaanxi, there were 8,500 troops in the Western Expedition, and less than 7,000 were alive.
Without collecting any returns at night, many groups of thieves were rushing towards the river meander from four prefectures and counties. Their number should be more than 100,000.
The Beizhi reinforcements, who were originally responsible for covering the flanks of the Kaiyuan Army, turned around and fled after hearing that the bandits were powerful.
In particular, Zhang Chun, the chief military officer of Hejian Prefecture, was still fifty or sixty miles away from the vanguard of the bandits, so he led his servants to flee back to Beizhi.
In vain, the Protector had great trust in Zhang Chun and promoted him to the rank of General Soldier. Unexpectedly, this guy could run faster than Wu Xiang.
"Zhang Changjie also escaped?"
"Escaped overnight, leaving all their grain, grass and gunpowder to Zhang Zicheng and Li Xianzhong, as well as a dozen Franco machine cannons."
"Damn it, Zhang Chun must have done it on purpose. I remember that he used to be Zu Dashou's confidant and Wu Xiang's friend. Why did the Protector spare his life in the first place and let such a person continue to lead the army!"
Deng Changxiong waved his hand to interrupt Wang Zengbin and signaled Ye Bushou to retreat.
The late autumn wind in northwest Shanxi was freezing, and several generals had gloomy faces and remained silent.
Not far in front of them, soldiers from Kaiyuan led their horses, while boatmen held up sheepskin rafts and began to slowly cross the river.
From time to time, a few light arrows floated from the river. As soon as the arrow feathers landed in the Yellow River, they were swept to the bottom by the rapid current.
"Zhang Chun was still in Pianguan County yesterday, which is only one day's journey from us. The bandits will be slower in transporting the cannons. It is estimated that it will take two days to reach Hequ."
Deng Changxiong asked two soldiers to hold a sheepskin map and point to a mountain range between He meander and Pianguan with the tip of a whip.
"Here, Shijiashan, General Wang, you lead a thousand cavalry to set up an ambush in the valley."
"Ah? Aren't you attacking Hequ City?"
Wang Zengbin opened his mouth wide and did not react for a while.
Sun Chuanting stared at the sheepskin map and looked back at Deng Changxiong, thoughtfully.
Deng Changxiong ordered the guards to move the map closer so that everyone could see it. He turned to Wang Zengbin and said:
"Fighting, of course we have to fight, but it's just infantry fighting, cavalry doesn't need to participate,"
Wang Zengbin looked angry.
"Why? Chief Deng, do you look down on our cavalry regiment?"
Wang Changxiong said nothing and winked at Sun Chuanting. Sun Chuanting smiled slightly and explained:
"The terrain around the meander is high in the west and low in the east, with undulating hills, broken ground, and crisscrossed ravines, making it inconvenient for cavalry to deploy..."
Deng Changxiong walked up to Wang Zengbin and smiled at the Iki Island commander:
"Zhang Zicheng and Li Xianzhong thought that our army was exhausted, so they came from Shenmu at starry night, just to eat us in one bite. Shenmu is more than 400 miles away from the meander of the river, and they finished the journey in four days, bringing artillery with them. Sun Tzu's Art of War said: If you can make a profit at a hundred miles, you will defeat the general; if you can make a profit at fifty miles, the army will be half over!"
"You are waiting for work in the valley. Mangui's cavalry is coming soon. If the bandits want to eat us, they will have to knock out at least a few front teeth..."
~~~~~
In mid-September, the Tokugawa shogunate in the capital sent people to send Princess Tokugawa Senhime and twelve dowry female officials in accordance with the subsidiary treaty of the "Treaty of Ushioseki".
The red seal ship that the Japanese women rode on was called "Small Harmony".
The Kowa departed from Nagasaki Port and sailed for a month before arriving at Tianjin Port.
The naming of the Zhuin Ship has nothing to do with Lord Protector, nor does it refer to the Yamato sunk by US aircraft during the Battle of Okinawa.
It is said that Yuan Chonghuan quoted scriptures and decided for the Tokugawa shogunate in his busy schedule. Xiaohe means long-term peace between the Ming Dynasty and the Japanese country.
During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Prince Shotoku of Japan (574-622 AD) quoted the Analects of Confucius in the Seventeen Articles of the Constitution:
"The purpose of etiquette is harmony."
"Harmony" is the general meaning of peace, harmony, and harmony. It can also be regarded as having small harmony, medium harmony, and great harmony.
Peace is called small harmony, harmony can be called neutral harmony, and only harmony can be called great harmony.
After Kang Yingqian was transferred back to the capital, Prime Minister Yuan Chonghuan Han Dongxuan announced political affairs and actually became the Supreme Emperor on Kyushu Island.
Yuan Chonghuan was quite satisfied with the appearance and manners of the Japanese princess.
Tokugawa Chihime was the most beautiful woman in the world. Except for her slightly short height (less than 1.6 meters), she was perfect in other aspects.
It is said that it is dedicated to Emperor Zhu Youjian of Tianqi.
However, Yuan Chonghuan felt that it was more appropriate to dedicate it to the Lord Protector.
Lewen
