In August, Li Cunxu held a grand military parade in Weizhou. The military was majestic and majestic.
Li Cunxu showed off his muscles in Weizhou and received an unexpected reward: Zhang Wanjin, the military commander of Taining Army in Yanzhou of Houliang Dynasty, surrendered to Hedong and requested to send troops for support.
Li Cunxu personally led a large army to harass Yun and Puzhou, and then stationed at Majiadu to wait and see.
Hou Liang sent general Liu Wei to attack Zhang Wanjin in Yanzhou, and sent He Gui and Xie Yanzhang to the north of Puzhou to confront the Hedong Army at Majiadu.
The suffocating and tense confrontation lasted for more than a hundred days. No matter how the Hedong Army challenged them, the Houliang Army always closed the gate of the village.
Up to now, although the strength comparison between the two sides has changed to a certain extent, the situation and demands of both sides have remained unchanged. That is, the Hedong Army has traveled thousands of miles to attack, the front is too long, and the front almost completely relies on "external forces" (Zhenzhou, Dingzhou) ), and faced a new and powerful barbarian tribe (Khitan) in the north that was bent on going south. Therefore, the Hedong Army needed to fight quickly, actively seize and create opportunities for a decisive battle, and strive to complete its achievements in one battle. Hou Liang was just the opposite. He had to rely on the city to hold on, fight for consumption, and delay the later stage.
The Hedong Army was stationed at Majiadu, which was on the south bank of the ancient Yellow River, which meant that Hedong forces had crossed the Yellow River; He Gui and Xie Yanzhang were stationed in Xingtai Village, north of Puzhou.
Li Cunxu planned to implement the leap-frog tactic and directly attack his hometown in Bianzhou, but He Gui and Xie Yanzhang were not ordinary people, and Li Cunxu was extremely worried.
Just after entering the twelfth lunar month, Li Cunxu couldn't bear his anxiety and led his army forward. He set up camp only 5 kilometers away from the Houliang military camp. He continued to send people to provoke the enemy and scold the enemy's formation non-stop, luring the Houliang army to fight.
As the Hedong Army continued to approach, serious differences arose within the Houliang Army. He Gui advocated going out to fight, while Xie Yanzhang advocated holding on.
The personal relationship between He Gui and Xie Yanzhang was not harmonious.
He Gui was a subordinate of Zhu Xuan of Yunzhou. He Gui was defeated and surrendered when Zhu Wen conquered the two Zhus of Yanyun. Dozens of generals including He Huaibao and Liu Cun were captured together at that time. Zhu Wensu heard of He Gui's name, so he escorted these dozens of generals to Yanzhou City and beheaded them all except He Gui. After that, He Gui was grateful to Zhu Wen for not killing him and vowed to be loyal to Zhu Wen to the death.
Xie Yanzhang was born in Genhongmiaozheng. He served Ge Congzhou since childhood and was adopted by Ge Congzhou as his adopted son. Xie Yanzhang was intelligent and agile, and was deeply valued and cultivated by Ge Congzhou. According to records, Ge Congzhou personally taught him the art of war, placing thousands of copper coins on a large plate as a sand table to teach him the essence of arranging troops. It can be said that Xie Yanzhang obtained the true biography of the famous general Ge Congzhou.
After reaching adulthood, he became Zhu Wen's cavalry general. After Zhu Youzhen came to the throne, he promoted Xie Yanzhang to be the military envoy of the two capital cavalry armies, which probably meant the commander-in-chief of the cavalry.
He Gui's infantry and Xie Yanzhang's cavalry were both called "unparalleled twins". The army and people of Houliang were very proud, so Zhu Youzhen sent these two men to the front line of the Yellow River. With their combined swords, they would be able to resist Li Cunxu.
Li Cunxu did not dare to underestimate the "unparalleled twin prides". At the beginning of the confrontation at Majiadu, Li Cunxu once put himself in danger and came with only a few hundred cavalry to investigate the Houliang military camp, but was ambushed by Xie Yanzhang. Five thousand Houliang cavalry surrounded Li Cunxu and a dozen cavalrymen. Fortunately, Li Cunxun led troops to rescue in time, and Li Cunxu escaped in embarrassment.
During the confrontation for more than a hundred days, Li Cunxu did not dare to attack Bianzhou because he was afraid of the "unparalleled two prides".
Xie Yanzhang was not only good at commanding cavalry in battle, he was also good at arranging troops and forming formations after receiving the true instructions from Ge Congzhou. When he came this time, Xie Yanzhang was appointed as the "arrangement envoy" as He Gui's deputy (He Gui was the northern recruiting envoy and commander-in-chief). One day, the Hedong Army discovered that a certain military formation in Houliang was well organized, almost impeccable, and had no loopholes. They were amazed and told each other: "It must be the two imperial masters here."
Taifu of the Two Capitals is the honorific title given to Xie Yanzhang (the military envoy of the two capitals of the Horse Army, the Jiedushi of Xuzhou, and the Grand Tutor of the School). The enemy who was fighting against each other did not dare to call him by his name in private, violating his respect, which shows Xie Yanzhang's status in the hearts of the officers and soldiers in Hedong.
It was precisely because Xie Yanzhang's reputation eclipsed He Gui's, which made He Gui very unhappy. Especially because Xie Yanzhang was paired with him as the "unparalleled double pride", He Gui felt extremely unsatisfied.
In terms of age, He Gui is the elder and Xie Yanzhang is the junior; in terms of position, He Gui is the leader and Xie Yanzhang is the subordinate; in terms of seniority, although He Gui is a demoted general, he has worked in the Bianzhou Group longer than Xie Yanzhang.
The public's reputation cannot be influenced by the parties involved, but the differences with Xie Yanzhang on the work line were regarded as human factors by He Gui.
He Gui was not a military idiot. When the Hedong Army was still on the north bank of the Yellow River, he and Xie Yanzhang had the same views. They both advocated holding on and leaving it to the later stage. But now the situation has changed. Li Cunxu has crossed the Yellow River, and his army is deep into the army alone. Logistics and reinforcements are blocked by the natural dangers of the Yellow River. At this time, Hou Liang's countermeasures should also change accordingly.
Starting a battle on the south bank of the Yellow River is extremely beneficial to Hou Liang, and there is also the possibility of capturing Li Cunxu alive.
Apart from military factors, political factors also have to be considered.
The last emperor, Zhu Youzhen, preferred a quick victory. As a lesson from the past, Liu Wei was repeatedly impeached for advocating closing the city and sticking to it, and was eventually dismissed from office and demoted. He Gui has been in officialdom for a long time and is well aware of the influence of political factors in the rear on the frontline battlefield. Therefore, as long as there is a glimmer of hope, He Gui will take the initiative to avoid making the same mistakes as Liu Wei.
One time, He Gui led the generals to inspect the terrain. He Gui pointed to a high hill and said: "What will happen if the Hedong Army builds a camp here? It will be extremely detrimental to our army." A big leader always wants to show his outstanding talents. Coincidentally, the next day, the Hedong Army actually built fortifications there, exactly as He Gui said.
It should be said that the heroes see the same thing, but He Gui suspects that there are senior spies from Hedong around him. The most suspected person is Xie Yanzhang.
He Gui repeatedly asked to go to war, and insinuated and tested Xie Yanzhang, saying: "The emperor has entrusted the entire army to you and me. Now the enemy is approaching the gate of our camp, but we are not standing still. What does this mean?"
The implication is that if someone impeaches us for secretly communicating with Hedong, or playing banditry and refusing to advance, then we will not be able to defend ourselves, and we will either be executed by the whole family, or demoted and exiled.
Xie Yanzhang evaded the important, bypassed political topics, and returned to the military track, saying: "The enemy is approaching the gate of the camp, and their purpose is to fight us quickly. We build high forts, dig deep trenches, and guard dangerous points, so they dare not fight in depth. Delaying it to the later stage will be our victory. Otherwise, if we rush into battle, if something goes wrong, we will regret it."
He Gui looked at Xie Yanzhang, looking more and more like a traitor. So he turned around and secretly reported to the rear. Without any evidence, he firmly accused Xie Yanzhang of collaborating with the enemy and conspiring to rebel. Without the approval of the imperial court, he secretly colluded with political commissar Zhu Gui (Zhu Youzhen's confidant, who participated in the execution of Zhu Yougui), and took advantage of the opportunity of rewarding the soldiers to kill Xie Yanzhang and his confidants. Reporting to the court that Xie Yanzhang was treasonous, he was promptly discovered and executed.
Faced with He Gui's killing of generals, Zhu Youzhen not only refused to investigate, but rewarded him. Zhu Gui, who participated in the plot, was promoted from Caozhou governor to Xuzhou Kuangguojunliu (replacing Xie Yanzhang), and a few days later was promoted to Qingzhou Pinglu. The military governor also serves as deputy commander-in-chief.
The death of Xie Yanzhang is also an unsolved historical case. Who killed Xie Yanzhang, or who wanted to kill Xie Yanzhang? Some history books, as mentioned above, said that He Gui killed him because he had conflicts with him and had serious differences; some history books made a vague mention that Zhu Gui had a conflict with Xie Yanzhang, and Zhu Gui was the mastermind. And He Gui is an accessory.
Zhu Gui once participated in the plot to kill Zhu Yougui and was Zhu Youzhen's confidant. As mentioned earlier, the murder of Zhu Yougui itself is a mysterious case full of doubts.
Moreover, after Xie Yanzhang was killed, Zhu Youzhen issued an edict to commend Zhu Gui by name. In addition to a series of promotions, he was also granted the title of "Founding Marquis of Peiguo County", but did not mention He Gui at all.
Whether it is "The Biography of He Gui" or "The Biography of Xie Yanzhang", there are only one or two lines of records on this matter. Only Zhu Youzhen's "The Last Emperor's Chronicle" contains a little more ink, and the extra ink is Zhu Youzhen's name. An edict praising Zhu Gui.
The fewer words, the greater the amount of information.
The invisible hands behind the scenes are still hidden in the bottomless abyss of history and remain unknown.
