Three thousand Longxi knights supported the emperor and returned to Luoyang without causing any disturbance. Before they entered the capital, Luoyang had already entered nearly 40,000 troops. In the eyes of the princes in the court, three thousand knights was a lot, but compared to the army in the city, it was by no means too many. The only trouble is that the people of Liangzhou are crowding around today, so we must try to make them retreat in spite of the difficulties.
Dong Zhuo had no intention of guessing the officials in the court, so he entered Luoyang with hesitation. Since the end of the Liangzhou war, he has been wasting nearly half a year on the road, experiencing various censures and hesitations, but now he has finally set foot in this thousand-year-old capital. However, when he arrived, all the prosperity of the past was gone. After three days of bloodbath, Dong Zhuo crossed the Luoshui River and passed through the west gate, only to see skeletons and remains along the way.
He met Zhu Jun, the captain of the city gate, at the city gate. Zhu Jun was leaning on the doorway in full armor, with a look of exhaustion on his face. When the veteran saw the veteran, Dong Zhuo rode forward and said with a smile, "Jun Zhu, do you want to go with us?" Zhu Jun raised his eyebrows and looked at him coldly, without saying a word, walked to the emperor's carriage, saluted, and let Dong Zhuo go. The knights of Longxi were able to arrive in front of the White Tiger Gate. The two magnificent palaces in the past finally appeared in front of the knights of Longxi. However, it was different from what they thought. The first thing they saw was two red gates filled with arrows.
Late autumn has passed, and no one has cleaned the Beigong for three days. When people from Liangzhou walked into the Beigong, they saw the yellow and red sycamore leaves on the road, but they still couldn't cover up the bloody smell in the air, so they couldn't help but pour it out. The right hand is placed on the handle of the knife. After all, there were no dangers along the way. They did not encounter any large troops along the way. However, they passed through the fifth level of the palace gate. Every time they passed a palace gate, everyone noticed that there were several terrifying knife marks on the palace gate.
When they entered the Yongle Palace, the palace was crowded with people in the past. Tables and lamp holders were scattered in every corner. The palace curtains were broken into dozens of cracks, revealing dim light and shadow. Dust was flying in the light, as if this place had become a The ancient ruins are spacious and lonely, cold and lonely. Dong Zhuo turned to Lu Zhi and said with emotion: "The palace is so dilapidated, how can it be used as a residence for the emperor?"
The people of Liangzhou were counting the living people in the palace that day. Not a single eunuch in the palace survived, and 90% of the palace maids were missing. When the late emperor was there, there were nearly 6,000 palace residents in the two palaces, but now there are less than 300. At the same time, Dong Zhuo sent an envoy to inform all the generals in Luoyang City that their regular attendant was dead and that the general's great revenge had been avenged. He ordered them to immediately seal their swords and leave the city and assemble in Xianyang Garden.
Each department responded in different ways, and the Northern Army was the first to respond to the edict. There were about 6,000 people in the five battalions of the Northern Army. They were stationed at the Xuanwu Gate of Beigong at this time. Among the five battalions of the Northern Army, the Tunqi Battalion was headed. Dong Min, the captain of the Tunqi School, was Dong Zhuo's brother. He took the lead in convincing his colleagues that :
"Now that Chang Shi has been punished, we have eliminated the troubles for the country, and the world will be at peace. But after seeking the country, we must also seek for our lives. If you think carefully about the events of these three days, many armies have committed illegal acts, so that the palace is in ruins. , the power of heaven has been wiped out, the Queen Mother and the Emperor must have complaints. Now the former general has escorted him back to the palace, and he has made great contributions to the country, and the former general is my eldest brother. As long as we follow the edict first to show that the Northern Army is a loyal and diligent army, then we can To get out of trouble and gain the merits of King Qin, please don’t hesitate!”
He Yong, the lieutenant general of the Northern Army, was dissatisfied with this statement. He waved his riding whip and objected: "In battle, casualties are common. How can the court blame people? The Taifu is an important minister who assists the country. It is also the Taifu's responsibility to quell the rebellion. Why, since we have been ordered by Taifu to enter the city, why not ask Taifu for his opinion?"
When Dong Min saw him speaking out, he knew that he was entrusted by Yuan Shao and wanted to provide foreign aid to Yuan Shao and Yuan Wei. He immediately said tit-for-tat: "We are originally members of the general, and we have come to avenge the general. What does it mean to be ordered by the Taifu? We are He is also a loyal minister of the country. The emperor issues an edict and we follow it. Why do we ask the Taifu for his opinion?"
What he said made He Yong speechless. The other captains agreed deeply, so the Northern Army immediately broke out of the city and headed for Xianyang Garden.
There were about 3,000 people in the left and right camps of the Yulin Army. They were stationed in Yong'an Palace at this time. Yang Ding, the general of the Yulin Army, received the order and smiled at his subordinates: "The former general and I were both Yulinlangs when we were young, and we often communicated with each other. Comparing force, it's just that times have changed. Now that he has crossed the dragon gate, he is no longer comparable to me. But at this time, I am respecting the imperial edict and talking about old feelings with the former general. I am about to live a life of great wealth and wealth. Will you follow me?" So Yu said. Lin Jun also followed the Northern Army out of the city.
Zhijinwu Ding was originally stationed in the Taicang arsenal at this time. According to common sense, Zhijinwu was in charge of patrolling the palace and had only a thousand men under his command. However, Ding Yuan led 6,000 soldiers from Bingzhou and came unexpectedly. He Jin trusted him so much that he was able to hold the three positions of governor of Bingzhou, captain of cavalry, and Zhijinwu. He said to the envoy: "Now that the chaos in the capital has begun, I, as the king, have the responsibility of guarding the two palaces. How can a crowd of six thousand be the Dao?" The implication is not to withdraw a single soldier.
The Eighth Battalion of Xiyuan was divided into two groups.
One of the three battalions brought out by He Miao that night was annexed by Wu Kuang and Zhang Zhang after He Miao was killed, with a total of more than 4,000 people. After Wu Kuang and Zhang Zhang heard the edict, they discussed in private: "Now that I am only thirteen years old, what can I say? The order to withdraw must have been given by Dong Zhuo. We are the generals who are deploying, so why should we listen to Dong Zhuo's words? It is better to stay. The capital will wait and see for a while." After they finished their discussion, they excused themselves by saying that there were too many casualties among the soldiers and they needed some time to rest before they could respect the order.
The other group was the five battalions stranded in Xiyuan, with about 6,000 people. As soon as He Miao died, the five battalions were headed by various captains, but the captains had different opinions.
On the 27th, Xia Mou, the left captain, went to Taicang and asked Ding Yuan to allocate some grain to the Xiyuan Army. Ding Yuan, because he was part of the old Miao tribe, beheaded him on the spot and hung his body on the valley gate. The Fifth Battalion of Xiyuan was greatly shocked when they heard about it, so Zhao Rong, the left commander of the assistant army, and Feng Fang, the right commander of the assistant army, both advocated obeying the edict.
Only the right school captain Chun Yuqiong had always been on good terms with Yuan Shao, and he tried his best to persuade everyone: "Taifu and Sili Xiaowei, as leaders of the party, have world fame, and have the ambition to conquer the world. Dong Zhuo is just reckless and lucky, how can he be compared with the Taifu uncle and nephew? You must be clear about practical matters and understand the current situation. Even if you endure humiliation for a while, what's the harm?"
But Xia Mou is not far away, and everyone cherishes their own lives. Xia Mou is an old member of He Miao, aren't the others? If he was killed inexplicably like this, who would win and who would lose would not matter. Chunyu Qiong's persuasion was in vain. He could only take more than a thousand of his subordinates to leave, and the remaining four battalions followed orders to Xianyang Garden.
Two thousand Huben troops were stationed in the Chongde Hall of the Nangong. Yuan Shu, the commander-in-chief of Huben, saw the edict and said impatiently to the envoy: "The Huben guards were originally only under the command of the emperor. Now that the emperor is young and the queen mother is regent, it will be up to the queen mother. "The emperor's decree is nothing more than Dong Zhuo's arrangement. I, Yuan Shu, have done my duty faithfully, how can I be intimidated by him?"
Finally, there are nearly 10,000 Yanyu troops that He Jin had previously organized and trained, led by Grand Tutor Yuan Wei, stationed in front of Sangong's Mansion. When Yuan Wei heard about the envoy's arrival, he immediately complained of illness and stayed behind closed doors. Not long after, Chunyu Qiong led more than a thousand people to inform Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao realized later that the situation in Luoyang had changed drastically. He quickly summoned Xu You, Bao Xin, Wang Kuang, Xun You and others to the Taifu Mansion to discuss the situation. situation.
Yuan Shao first analyzed the situation in the city and sighed regretfully: "In the past few days, the Taifu has contacted Luoyang Gongqing, and I have led the people to eradicate the turbid currents. We have gained a lot from each other internally and externally. I thought that the matter has been settled from now on, and the party members have risen again." , the virtuous minister was put to use, but unexpectedly, a moment of negligence allowed Dong Zhuo to rob the emperor and return!
I originally thought that Dong Zhuo was a disciple of the Yuan family and should be on the same page as the party members, but now it seems that the Taifu did not know people well and did not know that he harbored evil intentions. Dong Zhuo now ordered all the armies to leave the capital in the name of the Emperor. There were nearly 40,000 people in the capital. He had already mobilized nearly 20,000 people from the nearby Yulin Army, the Northern Army, and the Xiyuan Army. Things must be done as soon as possible. A coup is like fighting for food. Now two tigers are fighting each other until death. I dare to ask you, what is the plan? "
Cavalry Captain Bao Xin was ordered by He Jin to go out to Mount Tai to recruit troops. At this time, he had just led his army back to Beijing, only half an hour later than Dong Zhuo, but he was the most anxious.
I saw Bao Xin standing up with his sword drawn, looking around at everyone with stern eyes, revealing the cold light of his sword, and shouted loudly: "Since Colonel Sili knows the situation, he knows that when two tigers fight, the brave one wins! Now Dong Zhuo Chu When he entered the capital, his foundation was not deep. The captain, Zhengke, had a bitter battle with the Taifu, and led 20,000 loyal men to a life-or-death showdown with Dong Zhuo. Dong Zhuo's soldiers were only a few thousand. He defeated the weak with numbers and defeated the rebels with good. How could Dong Zhuo win? ? Once Dong Zhuo dies, and the captain holds the emperor, who else can be in the court?!"
Xu You listened quite boringly. He rolled up his sleeves and leaned against the table. He sneered at Bao Xin and said, "Captain Bao said it easily. Dong Zhuo is one of the most famous generals in the world. No one in the world can compare with him, but Sun Wentai (Sun Jian) ), Zhu Gongwei (Zhu Jun), Lu Ziqian (Lu Zhi), Gongsun Bogui (Gongsun Zan) and a few others. The only ones who can surpass him are Huangfu Yizhen (Huangfu Song) and Chen Tingjian. Now they are attached to Dong Zhuo Moreover, there are nearly 20,000 troops, which is equivalent to the captain. How can we use the masses to defeat the few? How many years has Captain Bao led the army, and how many campaigns have he fought? What are the chances of winning when he leads our army into battle?"
Bao Xin could hear the disdain in Xu You's words. He had always had a strong temperament, but when he was provoked by Xu You, his blood surged and he was so angry that he almost wanted to draw his sword and strike Xu You directly. But he finally understood the general idea, gritted his teeth, swallowed his anger, and simply stepped forward to challenge Yuan Shao: "Although Bao Xin has not fought many battles, he has a passion for serving the country and a heart of loyalty to the emperor. Even if he sinks to Miluo, he will not hesitate." Even worse than Qu Zi! Thanks to Yuan Jun for never giving up, I am willing to put myself first and fight Dong Zhuo to the death!"
Seeing this, Yuan Shao could only persuade him for a while, and Xu You reluctantly apologized to Bao Xin, and then politely reprimanded Bao Xin: "Soldiers are responsible for military and national affairs, how can they be so quarrelsome? Mr. Bao has good intentions. Yuan Shao understands it, but if it is to be successful, it will take a lot of planning."
Bao Xin was greatly disappointed when he heard this, but he couldn't get angry. He could only put away his sword and return to the table sadly. He thought to himself: If Meng De were here, he would not be so hesitant. Yuan Benchu was so indecisive. How could he do this? Help the country? It's just chaos in vain.
At this time, Yuan Shao asked Xun You for his opinion. Xun You felt deeply embarrassed. He rubbed the corners of his eyebrows and said, "Since the two heroes are fighting, we have to fight. But the enemy's situation is not yet clear, so we cannot bet on it all at once, so we should test it out first. . Among our army, Governor Ding is the most capable of fighting, and many of his generals in Bingzhou are also famous for their military skills. We can let Commander Ding provoke Dong Zhuo first and see how good Dong Zhuo is."
At this time, Li Sudan rode into Ding Yuan's camp amidst the patter of rain.
