After the battle on the sandbank, the Central Route Army suffered only a hundred casualties, captured more than 500 people alive, and killed more than 200 people. Only more than 20 generals such as Lu Bu and Wei Yue were lucky enough to survive. Then the Taishan thieves pursued the victory and dragged away nearly a hundred ships from Xiaopingjin. Jia Xu could only shoot arrows in the pass and did not dare to go out to stop them.
Previously, the soldiers of the Central Route Army often heard that the Liang people were invincible in the two rivers, and they were quite afraid. However, when they first saw it, the Liang people came fiercely, but in the end they were disgraced. This greatly increased the confidence of the Central Route Army. The soldiers discussed privately that it was not difficult to conquer Luoyang.
For Prime Minister Dong Zhuo, this was just a test. The loss was not big, but it revealed a very unfavorable fact: if the two armies crossed the river to fight, the people under his command knew nothing about water warfare. The result will definitely be disastrous.
Fortunately, this battle did not have a great impact on the morale of the army. After all, Lu Bu fought bravely and bravely. Even though he was in a situation of certain death, he actually managed to climb out of the river. The soldiers were astonished that he was a god. They all said that Zhonglang would be protected by the river god. , and then called Lu Bu General Dashi. Therefore, Dong Zhuo did not blame Lu Bu, but instead gave him a lacquered gold gift armor and five hundred red gold.
However, in this way, he could only sit back and watch Chen Chong build a city on the sandbank, which made Dong Zhuo quite unwilling. He was also afraid that Chen Chong would suddenly cross the river to fight, and he would not think about food and tea for a while, and he would rest uneasily. Early the next morning, he summoned his staff to discuss the war.
The Prime Minister first said: "Although there was a small setback yesterday, it can be seen that the Chen bandits are just good at water fighting. On the sandbank, Fengxian led the army with one against five. They were defeated as a last resort, but they still did not lose the majesty of our army. Now our army is There are still 50,000 Ying Yang warriors, and the rebels can only be 70,000 locals at most. Can we follow the old plan and send another surprise army to attack his flank like we did with Wang Kuang?"
Mengjin captain Zhang Ji lost cities and territory one after another. Although Dong Zhuo did not blame him, he was extremely ashamed and eager to make meritorious deeds. He took the initiative to ask for a battle and said: "At the end of the day, I am willing to go to Hebei. I also ask the prime minister to use Ji as the vanguard to defeat the rebels." !"
Dong Zhuo waved for him to retreat, but Zhang Ji still stood stubbornly. Dong Zhuo had to patiently persuade him: "I know you are loyal, but what we are discussing today is how to retreat from the enemy. If there is a war, how can I miss you?" Please step back."
Zhang Ji then quietly retreated to the table. Li Ru guessed what Dong Zhuo was thinking, so he expressed Dong Zhuo's worries: "The rebels are very good at water warfare, so they really can't take it by force. But Chen Chong is not as good as Wang Kuang. The Prime Minister sent a strange army to cross the river elsewhere to attack the flank. If Chen Chong If we cannot get out, we will send troops to cut off the river channel and isolate both sides like yesterday. Our army will be unable to fight if we advance, and we will be unable to retreat. At that time, we will be in danger of overturning."
Dong Zhuo nodded and said, "That's true. This is exactly what I'm thinking about. Do you have any good advice for me?"
Everyone had different opinions for a while: Dong Yue suggested that it would be better to remove the Mengjin South Pass first; Hu Zhen suggested that he should be put to death and live later, and the whole army would cross the river instead of fighting quickly, Chen Chong would definitely be nervous; Dong Huang said that it would be better to let go of Pingjin Pass and lure Chen Chong crossed the river and we fought decisively under Mang Mountain in Luoyang. What everyone said made some sense, but none of them scratched Dong Zhuo's itch. Therefore, Dong Zhuo hesitated. After all, he himself had no good plan.
At this moment, Jia Xu, the captain of Pingjin School, finally thought it through. He stepped forward and said: "The Prime Minister's plan to move the capital was originally to prepare for the strong men to cut off their wrists and save the general body. But I didn't expect that the two Yuans were so unlucky. Yuan Shao didn't know about the war, and Yuan Shu We did not dare to fight forward. In the battles in Henan and Hanoi, the rebels were all defeated at the first touch. Therefore, we circled Luoyang, hoping to conquer and put an end to the chaos in the world.
Chen Chongjin led the Bingzhou army to come and confront our army. Our army is in danger of occupying Mang Mountain, and Chen Chong is in danger of guarding the river. The first troops to go out will be defeated by the latter, and we have no reason to fight with them.
The disadvantage of our army is not that it is difficult to cross the river, but that the rebel divisions surround us on three sides. The strength of the army is so stretched that one enemy is against five, and the soldiers are engaged in bloody fighting. Now if we want to break the deadlock, why not leave only ten thousand people and still confront each other in Beimang, while the remaining soldiers turn to attack Er Yuan.
As soon as the two Yuan forces were defeated, Chen Chong could hardly applaud. If he knew the current affairs, he would have withdrawn his troops and joined the party to defend the courtyard. If he fights against him, then, with our army numbering 90,000, why should we be afraid of fighting with him? "
These words finally moved Dong Zhuo. He shouted "Okay" three times and added: "Our army can build a large number of ships on the river bank and prepare for a decisive battle across the river. This can make Chen Chong guard the river beach and deceive Yuan Shu and Yuan Shao." , Yuan and Yuan are both cowardly people. When they see me and Chen Chong fighting with each other, they will definitely compare themselves to fishermen and watch from the sidelines. When that time comes, I will divide my troops and attack by surprise, and I will definitely achieve miraculous results!"
At this point, he pondered for a while and asked the final question of the strategy: "We are just attacking the two Yuans. Who should go first and who should go last?"
Li Ru did not dare to fall behind and immediately replied: "Attack Yuan Shu first, then attack Yuan Shao."
"Why? Looking at it now, Yuan Shao is weak and Yuan Shu is strong."
"Although Yuan Shao is weak, his army of more than 100,000 people cannot be destroyed. Luoyang is more than 200 miles away from Suanzao and borders a large river to the north. Our army has been attacking for at least two days, and its tracks are difficult to conceal. Once their whereabouts are exposed, Chen Chong Even if we contact Yuan Shu to attack from the north and south, our army will not be able to retreat suddenly. Instead, we will go deep alone and risk losing control of the front and rear."
"Although Yuan Shu is strong, he is limited. He has more than 100,000 troops under his command, most of them are mountain bandits. He also has to be wary of Yuan Shao and Liu Biao. The only 40,000 to 50,000 people he can use to challenge Sun Jian are just scouts. As the saying goes, Sun Jian is training his troops. He is very effective, and he is also a good fighter, so he cannot underestimate the enemy Lang Zhan."
At this point, Li Ru paused, then analyzed the situation and said: "Luyang and Luoyang are more than 160 miles apart, and there are green mountains covering the road. We can hide our tracks and attack with surprise troops. Even if we are invincible for a while, Chen Chong can't Cross the river to rescue us, even if Yuan Shao breaks our courage and cannot save us, we can safely retreat behind Yique Pass."
The Prime Minister was very satisfied. He smiled and said to everyone: "Wen You thinks about defeat before thinking about victory. This will help me survive a hundred battles."
He was determined, changed his arrangements on the spot, and issued an appointment.
To the north, Dong Zhonglang general Dong Yue led ten thousand people to station in Mang Mountain. He built a two-foot-high military canopy on the top of the mountain, and then placed a large flag with the word "Dong" on a black background and gold edges. A man who looked like Dong Zhuo was placed under the military canopy to create a suspicious formation. At the foot of the mountain, Jia Xu, the captain of Pingjin School, was in charge. He recruited boat people and built a large number of ships at Xiaopingjin. After they were built, they were used for naval drills. They must successfully confuse Chen Chong.
Dong Zhuo, the army going south, attached great importance to it and planned to conquer Luyang himself.
In order to achieve success with one blow, he came out of the empty nest and mobilized all the elite soldiers under his command: such as Colonel Li Jue of Yique, Colonel Guo Si of Guangcheng, and Hua Xiong, Colonel of Taigu, all of whom were famous in the army. A good general and a brave general in hundreds of battles, Dong Zhuo transferred him and his 15,000 soldiers away from the Three Passes as the vanguard of the Southern Expedition.
As for the candidates to guard the gate, Dong Zhuo planned to use Wu Kuang, Zhang Zhang, the non-direct lineage of the Xiyuan School Captain, and Zhao Rong, the Assistant Military School Lieutenant, to lead ten thousand people in the defense. None of their subordinates were strong soldiers, and they were not capable of commanding themselves, but they were able to guard the city gate. Useful.
To arrange the main force of the Southern Expedition, Dong Zhuo transferred Xizhonglang general Xu Rong, Huben Zhonglang general Lu Bu, and Nanzhonglang general Hu Zhen to lead 10,000 people each. The main force departed from the south of Yique Pass, passed through Yangren and Liang counties, and formed an array along Huoyang Mountain to approach Luyang.
He also planned to send another surprise force, with Mengjin Colonel Zhang Ji and Northern Army Lieutenant Zhang Liao leading a total of 5,000 cavalry, to leave Zhiyuan Pass and enter Yuzhou, making a gesture of attacking Yangdi, and waiting for the Yuzhou army to gather for defense. The Qi soldiers then marched south and west, bypassing Pingding Mountain, flanking Luyang, and then occupied the main channel of Shuishui, which could block Yuan Shao's reinforcements.
The planned troop dispatch this time was 10,000 more than what was previously planned. This was the result of everyone deliberation and feeling that there was no need to keep troops in Yangwu, so Xu Rong was recalled, so that there would be enough room to divide the troops into feints.
After finalizing the plan, Dong Zhuo was so satisfied that he left his staff to have dinner together. Also during the banquet, he raised his glass and sighed to everyone: "Years ago, I didn't know people well, which caused rebels to swarm and rebel against the army. You can be said to be my humeral ministers by accompanying me through the difficulties. If this is the case, After the battle is successful, let me put down the rebels and thieves, and let you choose all the states and counties in the world."
He also remembered Lu Bu. Lu Bu fell into the river and suffered from the cold. He was resting at home that day, so he said to his entourage in public: "Send a pot of hot wine to Dutinghou to let him rest well. When will he recover?" When will the army set out?" The Liang people here used to look down upon Lu Bu, but now they heard this and were a little more jealous, but they didn't dare to show it on their faces.
So Hu Zhen took the initiative to step forward and asked: "The Prime Minister said that we can choose the prefectures and counties in the world, and we should judge them based on their merits!" When Dong Zhuo nodded, he asked again: "But I don't know, if I capture two Yuan alive, I can choose where?"
The atmosphere around him became heated, and Dong Zhuo smiled and said, "Where would you like to choose?"
Hu Zhen replied loudly: "I would like to be the captain of the Sili school, sit alone in front of the court, and spend my spare time whipping the ministers!"
These words spoke to everyone's heart. Dong Zhuo laughed, and everyone laughed too. Dong Zhuo poured a glass of wine for Hu Zhen himself and nodded at him: "The ministers are weak, so you still have to give them some favors. As for the post of Sili Xiaowei, I'll wait for you to exchange it with Er Yuan!"
By July 23rd, Dong Zhuo's arrangements were basically implemented, and Lu Bu also recovered from his illness and returned to the army. Dong Zhuo led 50,000 infantry and cavalry and marched south from Luoyang. As planned, Zhang Ji and Zhang Liao led 5,000 cavalry troops and dispersed with the main army first, diagonally exiting Sheyuan Pass and heading straight to Yangcheng. Dong Zhuo ordered the army to rest for a day in front of Yique Pass. After the sun set, he immediately Order the whole army to rush to Liang County at full speed.
But as luck would have it, after hearing the news that Chen Chong's troops were coming to Mengjin, Sun Jian, the Polu general and the governor of Yuzhou, finally thought that the army could be used after nearly half a year of preparations, so he reported to the later general Yuan Shu to raise troops today and hold Polu high. With a large banner, he and Guan Yu, the captain of the Zhenjun Army, rode 50,000 troops together and crossed Mount Lu and headed north to Henan.
Both armies concealed the news at first, hoping to take the enemy by surprise and strike first, and they unanimously chose to march at night. Dong Zhuo mostly used cavalry and walked slightly faster, covering more than ninety miles in one night, while Sun Jian mainly had infantry, walking slightly slower and covering more than sixty miles in one night.
The next day, a few beams of morning light peeked out from Songshan Mountain in autumn, and the two armies met unexpectedly in Guangcheng.
