On the second day of September, after the river bridge was completed, Chen Chong, the governor of Bingzhou, took charge of the affairs on the north bank with the help of General Wei You. He appointed Taishi Ci and Wei Yan as the vanguard, Tian Kai, Zhao Yu, Tao Qiuhong, and Xian Yufu as the middle army, and Chang Xi and Zang Zang. Ba acted as the rear guard and led the 40,000 soldiers of the central army across the bridge.
The Nanguan gate was wide open, and the soldiers on the north bank stepped onto the river bridge. The straw shoes and bridge boards made a strange creaking sound, which was particularly clear in the sound of the river water. But the sound lasted from early morning to afternoon, like a wet nurse's murmur before going to bed. The soldiers felt at ease, and the whole journey was completed without any disturbance.
After crossing the river, they sent scouts up the mountain to inquire about the news. The scouts came back and reported to Chen Chong that the camp on Beimang Mountain was empty, with not a single soldier left behind, but the charcoal in the campfire was still warm, and there was still some luggage left in the camp. The debris must have been hurriedly removed last night.
The scouts also handed Chen Chong a silk letter, saying that when they were searching in the main camp in the mountains, they also walked into the commander's camp to see if there was any property, and they saw the silk letter sitting on the table. It must have been Deliberately reserved for Chen Chong. Chen Chong opened the silk letter and saw two lines of official writing on it: "The public did not cross the river, but the public actually crossed the river! What should he do if he fell into the river and died?"
Write one word: Xu.
Shi Tao looked at the silk letter curiously and asked in surprise: "Who left this?" Chen Chong put the silk letter away, put it in his arms, and said to his disciple: "I have inquired about the defense arrangements under Dong Zhuo's command. As far as I know, The captain of Xiaopingjin, whose surname is Jia and whose name is Wenhe, is very resourceful and good at making decisions. There are few people under Dong Zhuo who are as good as him. I am afraid this silk letter was left by him."
"What does it mean?"
"When our army was crossing the river, I left such remarks but had to rush away. I must be unhappy in my heart. I left this book to ridicule our army, just to show off my quick words!" Tian Kai took it for granted.
Chen Chong shook his head, he pondered for a moment, and objected to the generals, saying: "That's not the case, Jia Xu is complaining to me, Dong Zhuo doesn't use him seriously." Everyone was surprised when they heard this, and asked Chen Chong the reason, and Chen Chong answered with a smile. Said: "This poem, also known as "Honghou Yin", is a poem written by a wife to mourn her deceased husband. The deceased husband was a crazy husband. He compared himself with this, saying that although he had a strategy, he could not reuse it, so that I could cross the river! "
Zhao Yu, a member of Xuzhou Biejia Group, laughed and said, "Longshou is famous all over the world and is a leader of the gentry. Who, Jia Xu, dares to compare with Longshou?"
Chen Chong stopped his subordinates from talking and said solemnly: "How many heroes are there in the world? Don't be afraid because of your high reputation, let alone underestimate the enemy because of your low position." Then he commanded the generals and ordered the forwards to slowly go up the mountain and occupy the old area of Liang Army. camp, and asked Tian Kai to lead another unit to explore the situation at Xiaopingjinguan.
Not long after, Tian Kai sent someone to report that Xiaoping Jinguan was also deserted, and they must have all withdrawn to Luoyang.
Even Chen Chong was a little surprised now. Dong Zhuo withdrew so quickly? But he reacted immediately and summoned General Sima Taishi Ci. He gave him a thousand infantry and ordered him to quickly occupy the revolving gate. Taishi Ci was famous in the army for his bravery, but he couldn't help but hesitate after hearing this. He asked Chen Chong : "With only a thousand infantry, I'm afraid it will be difficult to conquer a level!"
Chen Chong explained to him: "Now that the enemy has abandoned Beimang and Pingjin, and the revolving gate hangs alone outside, how can the Liang people still care about it? They must have abandoned it at this time. You quickly go to occupy it and then garrison it on the spot. Taishi Ci was stunned and listened to Chen Chong continue: "If what I expected is correct, in the past few days, Dong Zhuo will evacuate Luoyang and return to Hanhan Valley."
As expected, Taishi Ci occupied the revolving door that day, while Chen Chong continued to inquire about the news about Luoyang, and sent back intelligence that: the west gate of the east capital was wide open, the official road was bustling with people, and the crowds were slowly heading west like cattle and sheep, leading horses and carts, and supporting the elderly and the elderly. Young, it can still be seen from a distance of five miles. From the south, knights come to the city from time to time, and there may be no less than three thousand in one day.
Only then did Chen Chong confirm that Dong Zhuo had made up his mind to evacuate Luoyang. This is indeed a wise decision. If the confrontation continues in Beimang and Sun Jian conquers the first and second dangerous passes in the south, no matter how much he wants to retreat, he will not be able to evacuate. A strong man has to cut off his wrist and has to choose the right time. Obviously Dong Zhuo chose just the right moment. .
In the south, Sun Jian was still resting and recuperating, while Dong Zhuo's troops gathered together, numbering about 70,000, and he still controlled the eastern capital for the time being. Under such circumstances, Chen Chong did not want to lead his army to attack by force, so he simply occupied the passes in the north while fighting with Yuan Shu contacted and asked Sun Jian to go north again, and the situation in the capital became peaceful for a while.
At night, Chen Chong had nothing to do, so he made an appointment with Tao Qiuhong, Zhao Yu and others to visit the tombstones in Beimang and pay homage to the ancients. The white moon was as cold as frost. Each of them held a torch and walked through the leafless forest. They saw piles of weeds and crumbling dirt roads all around. The mountain mist flowed down from the ridge, making everyone's clothes fly, and they felt quite cold.
And every few dozen steps, you can see broken tombstones and sacrificial vessels, as well as dug-out coffins and earthen bags. Occasionally, you can see bones lying on the ground, some with foreskins, some with exposed bones. Chen Chong squatted down to check, and there were still some bones. There were signs of being eaten by wild dogs, and it was unknown whether the bones were thrown out of the coffin or abandoned by robbers. Chen Chong came closer, and blue-white cold fire appeared on the bones. Wei You, who was traveling with him, quickly pulled him away and said that he was afraid of disturbing the sleeping ghost.
Chen Chong said with a smile: "If a person has a spirit underground, how could he not know that there is someone else disturbing his dream?" Even so, he sincerely prayed to him with everyone, hoping that the dead spirit would rest in peace. If it is really as the World Honored One said, He said that people have an afterlife, and I hope he will be reincarnated five hundred years later.
After the service, Xian Yufu, the captain of Jianyi School, asked: "Is the scene in Beimang always like this?" He was from Yuyang, Youzhou, and came to Luoyang for the first time. Such a scene was quite shocking, and it was very different from the prosperous scene he imagined, so Have this question.
Of course, the scene in Beimang was not like this. Chen Chong recalled the past: "Most of the people buried in Beimang were nobles, so the tomb passages were spliced with white stones. There were dedicated people to clean them. The stone steps were clean and there were no leaves. There were flowers on the side of the path, such as spring orchids, summer peonies, etc. There are yellow flowers in autumn and blood plum blossoms in winter. Although there are constant visitors coming and going to worship, there is still a quiet space of its own."
Everyone looked around, each speechless.
Then we walked west, down the mountain road, and then walked south for three miles. In the moonlight, we could faintly see a mountain and a village two miles away. When I got closer, I discovered that it was also a deserted village. There was only a big stone in front of the village, engraved with the name of this village - Yichunli. Chen Chong couldn't help but sigh, this was the end of their trip tonight.
This is Wenling, the tomb of Emperor Ling. Chen Chong had long heard that the late emperor set up his mausoleum here, but he had never been here. The last time he met the late emperor was four years ago. The face of the late emperor in his memory was a little blurry, but in person here, the late emperor's face , as all kinds of past events suddenly became clear, Chen Chong laughed out loud, and then felt a little sad, as if he had met an old friend, and both parties had nothing to say.
The imperial treasury was full, so the imperial mausoleum was built very wide. However, looking far away, I could see that the courtyard wall was crumbling, the broken walls were scattered on the ground, and the wormwood half as high as a man was covered with wormwood. When I heard the sound of movement, Mice were scurrying around on the high stone steps, and occasionally one or two foxes could be seen leaning out to look around. A gust of west wind blew, and the wormwood fell down with the wind, making a rustling sound. Apart from that, there were only a few crows that were not very attractive. It is hard to imagine that it has only been a year since the late emperor passed away.
"The thief Dong destroyed the tomb of the late emperor to such an extent. It is ridiculous that he still established himself as the prime minister. There is nothing more ridiculous in the world." Everyone walked around the mound and tomb in this way. When they were here, they couldn't help but sigh. , even though he was as prominent as an emperor, with power and wealth reaching the highest level in the world, in the end it was still a desolate earthen tomb. Everyone rebuked Dong Zhuo in their mouths, but what they thought in their hearts was: fame, fortune, and wealth are all reduced to dust.
At this time, Shi Tao, who was walking in the front, said, "Sir, there is a big hole here. I'm afraid it has been stolen!" Everyone hurriedly looked for the sound and gathered to take a look. I saw a large pile of grass wadding artificially stuffed into a clump of wormwood as tall as a person, but some damaged earth walls could still be seen through the gaps. Apparently there was a hollow behind the grass, and someone had removed all the grass wadding. After digging and exposing the cave, I discovered that it was a large hole six feet high and five feet wide.
A rotten damp air floated up from the hole. Two mice caught a glimpse of the light and slipped out of the hole. Someone poked the torch down a little, and the black rumbling earth path illuminated a mess everywhere. It was all filled with stagnant water and footprints, and there were a few scattered pieces of jade flickering in the puddles. The group looked around and smiled bitterly.
Wei You hesitated and asked, "Shall we... go down and take a look?"
Xian Yufu shook his head and said: "After all, the emperor and his ministers are in a relationship. How can the ministers enter the emperor's mausoleum and take a look?"
Shi Tao said directly: "The Wen Mausoleum has been stolen by the Liang people. We will not steal it. We will repair the cemetery for the late emperor in a few days. We are just looking at the damage first. Why should we hesitate?"
Everyone agreed, and walked into the tomb with torches. Along the way, there was stagnant water and sludge under our feet. It must have been caused by the continuous autumn rain a few days ago, which flowed into the cave. It was full of water vapor when we breathed, which was quite uncomfortable. After walking thirty steps inside, the space suddenly opened up. It was obvious that we had arrived at the tomb chamber, but the scene in front of us was even more shocking.
The robbery hole leads directly to the corridor of the tomb. The wooden wall in front of the corridor was cut with a knife to create a gap as big as two people. The yellow intestine wood poured out from the entrance of the hole and was thrown into pieces. There were many broken porcelain tiles in the muddy water. , everyone walked into the gap to take a look, and found that the inside was even more unsightly. The walls were dilapidated, and there were torn scrolls, bamboo slips, silk banners, and silk everywhere in the footprints, but there was not a single piece of gold or silver. Presumably the Liang people had buried the tomb. All the gold and silver were taken away, and the rest, not worth much, was abandoned on the ground.
Everyone then followed the footprints, past the toilet, music store, and money store, and walked all the way to the east room where the coffin was placed. The late emperor's coffin was right in front of them, but the lid of the coffin was also opened by Liang Ren. The smell of decay was suffocating. Chen Chong did not see the people in the coffin, but just closed the coffin lid for the late emperor with his colleagues.
Several people couldn't bear to look any longer and hurried out of the tomb. After smelling the fresh air outside the tomb, they no longer felt desolate. Everyone said that even the late emperor’s tomb was in this condition, and they didn’t know whether the ancestor’s tomb could be saved.
Chen Chong said in his heart not to mention Liu Xiu, as he was afraid that none of the imperial mausoleums in Mangshan could be preserved. He stood for a long time, remembering the past debates with Hongdu School, and reciting the poems and poems written by the late emperor. His emotions could not be settled, and he finally composed a poem and said:
"Who understands Hongdu's guests? Feng Ge laughs at Confucius. He holds a green jade staff and bids farewell to the white jade tower. He is always in time to have fun, and he forgets his worries when he wants to talk. The west wind passes by the imperial mausoleum, and a light boat is launched from Bei Mang."
