It has been ten days since Chen Chong left Quyu. He was completely unaware of the developments in the court during the past ten days, and the arrival of the two Hun royal families was naturally not part of the plan. Consistent with the prediction, King Xiutu did not choose to send troops to pursue forcefully. Instead, after a pursuit that was not tough, the pursuers withdrew to Quyu and continued the siege.
This was originally a good sign, but what followed was an extremely bad sign. Then Chen Chong's plan encountered a catastrophic blow and was almost completely unable to advance. The reason was not other than that God did not appreciate face. On this occasion of late spring, after several years of drought, it rained heavily in Xihe.
At first, it was just a continuous drizzle, and everyone didn't take it seriously. Chen Chong ordered everyone to take a rest in the mountains to relieve the fatigue of marching at night, and planned to travel further after the rain stopped. But Chen Chong then looked at the sky and saw that the sky was dark, with rain clouds forming a sea, covering the sky and blocking out the sun's afterglow. He secretly screamed in his heart.
Sure enough, it rained like a forest that night, with no end in sight and no sign of stopping. Chen Chong looked up at the sky and saw nothing. It seemed as if a sea of ink was rising from the sky, and even his state of mind became dark. He asked Wei Yan to summon generals Han Xian, Zhang Liao, and Yang Chou, and said directly: "We can't wait any longer. Let's continue marching."
Han Xian stretched out his hand to catch the raindrops falling from his throat, and asked Chen Chong: "Is it too hasty? We have been fighting hard in the city for a long time, and we have to march at night one after another. I'm afraid the soldiers won't be able to hold on."
Chen Chong shook his head and firmly refused: "There is no time. The soil in Xihe is soft. If the rain does not stop, the road ahead will definitely be swampy. We are all cavalry on this trip. If we can't march quickly, how can we save the crisis?" ?" At this point, Chen Chong said in a serious tone: "We can't wait any longer. You go and organize your soldiers first. I will be the first."
Of course it is impossible to be the first in reality. Marching in the rainy night was really difficult. Some soldiers simply leaned in front of tree trunks and fell asleep. Chen Chong didn't want any of his soldiers to fall behind, so he picked them up one by one. It took nearly an hour to finally get the more than a thousand cavalry ready. Attack.
But it's still too late. On the second day, the rain poured down all over the sky. On the first day, we only marched thirty-eight miles, and on the third day, we only marched twenty-five miles. After four days of departure from Quyu, we traveled less than one hundred and twenty miles in total. It was completely different from Chen Chong's original plan, and it also cast a shadow over the psychology of the entire team.
Wei Yan then said to the army: "A man is not afraid of life and death, so why should he be afraid of mud and water? Don't worry, I will lead the army!"
This was directly rejected by Chen Chong.
Originally, Chen Chong planned to take advantage of King Ri Zhui's rest in Lishi to quickly advance to Yonghe County, collect the county soldiers and baggage in Yonghe County, and take advantage of Lishi's unprepared Xiongnu to ambush and fight quickly. However, the plan could not keep up with the changes. This was not the first time that Chen Chong's tactics were affected by weather, but the troop situation gave Chen Chong no choice in this situation.
It is no longer possible to go to Yonghe County. Although there is no news yet, judging from the situation of both sides, the Han army took the mountain road and the Huns took the main road. Even if the Huns were walking slowly, they should have blocked the road at this time. The battlefield was muddy due to rain, and it was by no means Chen Chong's ideal battlefield.
Where to go next? Chen Chong took a rest in Dongshan, pondered for a moment and then made a plan, because he had no choice in the first place. He then ordered: "Go east to Gaolang, and let the whole army follow. We can't rest for a moment before reaching Gaolang! After arriving at Gaolang, the whole army will rest for two days!"
So the team started moving again, changed its direction, and headed towards Gaolang County. Gaolang County is located northwest of Lishi and within the Luliang Mountains. It is bounded by Guji Mountain to the east, Nanyang Mountain to the south, Yunding Mountain to the west, and Guanshan Mountain to the north. Only the Qiu River flows through it and crosses the Luliang Mountains. The place to stay in the city. But thanks to this, Gao Lang is not a must-win area in Xihe. At least at this time, Gao Lang has definitely not been captured.
The result was as expected by Chen Chong. One day later, they rushed into Gaolang City despite the wind and rain. There was no enemy to stop them. On the contrary, many stragglers who had escaped from Wang Kui's defeat had gathered in Gaolang City. After their defeat, they could not After returning to Lishi and unable to go to Taiyuan, they all gathered together at Gaolang. Chen Chong made a rough count and found that there were more than a thousand people in the city. It was estimated that after a few days of gathering, the number under his command could increase to 3,000.
Until the eleventh day, the messenger sent by the Yonghe garrison came to Gaolang. Yonghe still did not encounter the Hu army's attack. Even in Lin County, there were only Huns scouts wandering around the city to spy. It was very likely that the Hu army had not taken a single step away from Shi. no.
Chen Chong realized that he had made a misjudgment. He did not expect that the Huns would stay for such a long time. He quickly sent additional scouts to investigate the situation in Lishi. The results surprised him, not only during the six days he was on the road. Even now, after the Xiongnu army entered Lishi, it has been in a strange calm and has not moved for almost a day.
What on earth are these Huns going to do? With such doubts in mind, Chen Chong began to analyze the situation again.
Not only Chen Chong, the same question also appeared in the minds of King Xiutu and others in front of Quyu City.
"What is Zadu thinking?! This is the third time! He still doesn't want to set off? Does it have to wait until all the Han army arrives before he is willing to walk out of Lishi City and surrender?" Po Lishi, King of Zhelan Almost furious, he smiled angrily at the kings in the tent and said: "Everyone, Zadu has 20,000 troops in his hand. If he doesn't move, can we still fight this battle?"
Qiulin King Gu Tusheng turned around and looked sideways at Xiutu King Huliba, then looked back at Po Lishi. He took the lead and said: "Po Lishi, what's the use of being angry? As you said, Zadu has 20,000 troops under his command. Now, Yufuluo hid in Baibo, and Huchuquan was far away in Yanmen. As the Luotang clan of the Xiongnu royal family, if we want to support the establishment of Chanyu, he actually has the highest status. If we support Xubu, he may be dissatisfied. "
Zuo Jian drank a mouthful of buttermilk from Wang Kuibu and couldn't help but belched. He threw down the pulp bag and spat a mouthful of thick phlegm on the ground. He said dissatisfiedly to Po Lishi: "What nonsense is King Huyan talking about? At that time, when all the ministries were united, it was King Xiutu who acted as the central coordinator, and the plot was successful, and it was also King Xiutu who executed it effectively. The reason why King Xiutu supported Xubu Chanyu was simply because Xubu was often known as a virtuous man, highly virtuous and highly respected, and he had great reputations. What credit? He tolerated everything at that time, but now he provokes thorns?"
Gu Tusheng smiled bitterly and said: "Because the situation has changed now, it is already in his favor. We led an army of 70,000, but we stood at the foot of Quyu City, while he led 30,000 troops to attack Lishi and conquered Quyu in one battle. Nai Xincheng, a small city, and Lishi Naijun, a big city. As a result, Zadu's popularity has greatly increased. Now that he has ordered to stand still, all the ministries under his command have also stood still. This is not something that Zadu alone can do. Presumably all the ministries Everyone has been convinced by him.”
"A bunch of jackals who don't care about the overall situation!" Po Lishi cursed: "Is it possible to wait and see at this time? When the Han Heavenly Army arrives, how can we win if we can't take all the dangerous mountains and rivers? He has such disregard for the overall situation. Is it possible? Isn’t it a way to die?”
Huliba waved his hand to signal him to stop, and said calmly: "Then we can't ignore the overall situation. Now the rain will end without knowing when. As a result, our army cannot even break through the city fence, let alone break the city? Since we already know that Yu Fulo is there Bai Bo is recruiting tribesmen, and it will not help us to recognize him as the Xian King of Zuo. It will suddenly disturb the morale of the army. Zadu wants us to make concessions again, so we will give it to him."
"What to give him?" Po Lishi looked at Huliba in disbelief. Although he already knew the answer, he still didn't want to believe it.
"Send a letter to Shanyu, saying that after deliberation, we will use Zhadu to defeat Lishi and appoint Zhadu as the Xian King of Zuo!" King Xiutu had finished the decision calmly, and the kings were silent for a long time without any objection.
So two groups of envoys were sent out in front of Quyu City. One envoy went to Xubu Shanyu, and the other envoy detoured to Lishi and asked King Zuo Rizhu to send troops again.
So on the 20th day after the fall of Lishi, that is, the 16th day after Chen Chong left the city, the Xiongnu army on the middle road, which had been resting for a long time in Lishi, set off in a mighty manner and marched towards Linxian County along the official road. . Flags were like a forest, horses' hooves were like thunder, and all the Han people along the road were frightened. They could only pray in their hearts that the imperial knights would come to their aid as soon as possible.
At the same time, Chen Chong had also completed supplies and rest in the past few days. Three thousand soldiers and horses were ready to go. Two hours after the Xiongnu Middle Route Army set off, Chen Chong set off immediately. He looked up at the sky again. The heavy rain that lasted for two weeks had ended, but the sky was still filled with gloomy gray clouds. He didn't know when the sun would break out.
It's a good sign, Chen Chong couldn't help but think in his mind, but then he laughed at himself, was he too stressed? You actually believe in omens? He took a long breath, letting his chest and mind feel empty, and getting rid of all the negative emotions.
Death will not come when you are ready.
Chen Chong said silently.
