On the third day of the Liang army's attack on the city, the Liang army was also a little tired. Due to Guo Bang's misdeeds in the past, Guo Bang was responsible for all the strong attacks in the past few days. Guo Bang had more than 20,000 people under his command, almost all of them. Everyone was waiting to cross the city wall. Even the general Guo Si went to the city twice to fight. After three days, about 2,000 of his men were killed and wounded and lost their combat power, and countless others were injured. number.
But they are not decadent because of this. Soldiers who have experienced the battlefield can distinguish the situation on the battlefield: they are tired, and the enemy is not only more tired, but also fearful. War is not only a physical torture, but also a mental torture. There is no murderous intent or persistence in the eyes of the guards guarding the city. Such soldiers cannot survive. As for the Liang people, they had fought many battles that were more painful and tiring than this, so it had little impact on their morale.
Just to deal with the consideration of merging troops that will come later, Xu Rong will be responsible for the main attack today, and a handover will be carried out between the two departments to allow Guo Bang's department to take a rest. Xu Rong, wearing black armor, stood among the soldiers like an iron tower. He encouraged the soldiers: "Today's battle is not as good as the Battle of Guangcheng. At that time, I broke through several formations and reached Sun Jian's main formation. Who is Lu Bu?" Also, if we can't take it as a blow, can't we defeat a group of new soldiers today?" The soldiers were overjoyed when they heard this, and then launched an attack on Nancheng.
Suddenly there was a new enemy, and the Northern Army guards on the city suddenly felt uncomfortable. If Guo Bangbu is like a sharp hunting knife, not afraid of collisions at all, and repeatedly cuts off the parts that dare to bite him, then Xu Rongbu is like a soft whip, moving quickly and elusively, often He suddenly launches an attack at an unexpected place, but then breaks off the offensive before anyone can counterattack. If this tactic is to tear apart the defense line, it is naturally far inferior to Guo Si, but it is very effective in causing the enemy's loss and mental blow. Incomparable to others.
When the battle reached Shenshi, the Northern Army defending the city complained incessantly. Although the Liang Army did not break through the defense line, they firmly occupied the next space between the city wall and the mountain. Both the attacking and defending sides suffered heavy casualties, especially at Xi'an Gate. The corpses of Liang people in white and linen were piled up and down the mountain and inside and outside the city wall. They were all carefully organized advance troops in the army, composed of elites who were determined to avenge Dong Zhuo. Most of them are now dead or injured here. General Lu Bu fought bloody battles here, and now he is almost a bloody man. After many days of hard fighting, Lu Bu had gone from being invincible to now fighting and retreating, and he was not sure how long he could hold on.
Just as the Liang people's advantage on the battlefield was getting bigger and bigger, a burst of bells and drums suddenly came from behind Xi'an Gate, which surprised the Liang people. After fighting for nearly a month, they had become very familiar with the troops, flags, and orders of the Northern Army. Familiar, the sound of bells and drums does not sound like reinforcements are dispatched, otherwise it would be accompanied by trumpet sounds, nor does it sound like an intention to retreat, otherwise there will be no sound of drums. Xu Rong was also unable to figure out the enemy's movements for a while, so he simply ordered the soldiers who attacked the city to form formations to defend themselves and observe the situation.
They quickly got the answer. After the bells and drums rang nine times, more than a dozen knights in golden armor rushed up to the city wall, ran back and forth among the fighting crowds, and shouted loudly: "The Emperor has arrived!" Although the knights tried their best, they His voice was still small among the sounds of fighting. But the words they spoke seemed to have an incredible power, slowly suppressing the sounds of fighting. Gradually, the soldiers put away their weapons and returned to their respective groups, forming clear queues on the city wall that was wide enough for horses to race. At this time, only the voices of the Tiger Guards were left floating in the fishy wind.
At this time, all the soldiers, both the enemy and ours, were staring blankly at the stairs to the upper city, with an unbelievable light in their bloodshot eyes. They were obviously shocked by the news. But the Emperor's banners don't lie. They slowly rise up the tower like bamboo shoots breaking through the ground, and then you can see a group of people walking up from them. Among them, a young man wearing a military uniform and riding a tall maroon horse is the most conspicuous. Behind them were the ministers of the Manchu Dynasty in court uniforms. The autumn wind was strong, and it was from the south, blowing the bloody smell of the battlefield in their faces. Many of the people accompanying them had pale faces and surging throats. They walked all the way to Xi'an Gate. In front of the gatehouse, only fifty steps away from the front line of the fighting, they stopped.
Here, the emperor and the ministers of the court saw the Liang army's camp for the first time. The camp on Longshou Plain was like a sea of flags, and the number of people inside was as numerous as the accumulated leaves in late autumn. There were countless broken limbs and remains on the city walls. Looking at this scene, no more than one-third of the ministers could look straight at it and stand as normal.
Liu He, the servant, had seen the horrific scenes in the imperial prison, but he was still calm about the scene. He was just worried that the emperor would show cowardice, which would definitely affect the morale of the army. So he secretly turned around to spy on the emperor's expression, and found that the emperor's face was still calm, and his iron-like hands were holding the horse's reins without moving at all.
Liu He was surprised, but he quickly remembered that the emperor was one of the parties involved in the Luoyang coup. The constant attendants died in the river. The scene was so terrible that the young emperor could not speak. Unexpectedly, the younger emperor could not help but remain unmoved. Instead, he talked freely in front of Dong Zhuo's army, which made Dong Zhuo make up his mind to change his throne. For him, this kind of scene was nothing more than that.
Ranwen
When everyone stood still, Dong Cheng, as the assistant minister, stepped forward and asked where Lu Bu was. Fenwu General Lu Bu walked out of the crowd holding a long spear and stood in front of the emperor. Before he could salute, the emperor said to Lu Bu: "The general fights for the country and is wearing armor. There is no need to salute." Then he took it out from the palace. After a glass of royal wine, he dismounted and raised his head in respect, saying: "I have heard for a long time that the general is good at fighting. Today, seeing the blood on the general's body proves that the reputation is well-deserved. The general can be called the eagle of the country. I cannot drink alcohol, so I can only congratulate the general."
Lu Bu was nearly nine feet tall, while the emperor was only twelve years old and only five feet tall. The two looked very different when they were close, so Lu Bu had to kneel down on one knee, take the emperor's drink, and drink it down in one gulp. The emperor then gave Lu Bu a Zhongxing sword left by the late emperor. Lu Bu took it with both hands and placed it on his waist. Then he drew out the sword blade and showed his sword-wielding skills to the soldiers behind him. The soldiers had been impressed by Lu Bu's bravery in the past few days. Impressed, everyone cheered loudly when they saw this. The Liang people who had formed a defensive formation were also a little at a loss when they saw this, and the murderous aura in their chests felt a little lessened.
Lu Bu was treated with such respect for the first time since he followed Ding Yuan to the capital. He was extremely happy and immediately promised the emperor: "As long as your majesty is here, even if I die, I will not let the traitor army enter the palace." The emperor also smiled and said again Lü Bu was ordered to select the ten warriors who had fought most bravely in the past few days, and he rewarded them with gold, silver and silk cloth in public. Lu Bu then selected ten old men from Bingzhou. They were: Zhang Liao from Mayi, Gaoshun from Yangyi, Yancheng from Jiuyuan, Houcheng from Loufan, Caoxing from Langmeng, Wei Xu from Jiexiu, Chenglian from Zhongyang, and Hao from Nie County. Meng, the eldest son Zhang Qin, and Huguan Liu Chao. Each of them was named a Marquis of Guannei and was rewarded with a hundred pieces of brocade and two hundred gold. Then Dong Cheng stepped forward and declared to the soldiers that no matter whether the soldiers were alive or dead, they would be rewarded with ten stones of rice and grain after the war.
In fact, there is a big problem with the selection of these ten people. After all, the Liang people lost most of them after the Battle of Gaoling. Now most of the defenders of the city are the Northern Army reorganized by the new soldiers from the third auxiliary army, and the combined number is only one-third. But Lu Bu However, ten Bingren were selected, and none of them came from the third assistant. Although Bingren was indeed the most skilled in fighting, it was not conducive to the unity of the Northern Army. But fortunately, Dong Cheng issued a new reward order later, which calmed people's hearts.
Logically speaking, by now the rewards have been completed and the morale of the defenders has been greatly boosted, it is time for the emperor to return to the palace. But the emperor suddenly came up with an idea and asked Lü Bu which army was attacking the city at this time. Lü Bu knew it and answered truthfully that it was Xu Rong's army. The emperor then ordered Liu He to go to the front of the Liang army and announce that Xu Rong had come to see him.
Earlier Xu Rong saw the emperor's command, and then he saw the emperor giving rewards on the city tower. He was stunned for a moment. He went to the court several times and naturally recognized the emperor's face. However, it was precisely because he recognized the emperor that he had some difficulties: now the emperor is approaching. Within a hundred steps, he ordered an attack. Perhaps he could be captured in one battle. With the emperor in hand, Chang'an would naturally be within easy reach. But everything also has a bad side. If he fails to succeed in his attack, but instead injures or even kills the emperor, then he will be intolerable to the world and will not be able to survive no matter where he is thrown. He thought and hesitated, but ultimately did not take action.
At this time, Liu He stepped forward and issued an order, saying that the emperor wanted to see Jianwei. Xu Rong was a little embarrassed, but he struggled for a moment and finally agreed. He temporarily handed over the command to his younger brother Xu Gui. He walked out of the tribe alone and walked through the door again. After passing through the formations of the Northern Army, they arrived directly under the emperor's command, and consciously saluted the emperor.
The emperor looked Xu Rong up and down, but without speaking to him first, he asked Lu Bu: "General, how is this man doing with his troops among the Liang people?"
Lu Bu wanted to belittle him first, but when he turned around and saw that his subordinates were in such a mess, and Xu Rong was calm in front of him, he felt a little discouraged for a moment, and finally answered truthfully: "Dong Zhuo told me before he was alive. He had three men under his command, Guo Si is good at strength, Li Jue is good at profit, and Xu Rong is good at strategy. In terms of changes in the use of troops, Xu Rong should be the number one in the Liang army."
The emperor said "Oh", turned to look directly at Xu Rong, and asked: "Xu Qing attacked the city because I have not cultivated my virtue, so I want to carry out military remonstrance?"
Xu Rong was sweating profusely, and he replied slowly: "I am not sincerely rebellious, I am just asking your Majesty to point out a way out for us."
The emperor added: "If this is the case, it would be easy to handle."
The young man paused and then said to Lu Bu: "I heard that the general's martial arts skills are unparalleled. Is this true?" Lu Bu nodded.
The emperor asked Xu Rong again: "I have often heard that Liangzhou's horses dominate the world, and their bravery is unmatched. Is this true?" Xu Rong also nodded.
He then suggested: "In that case, why not trouble Xu Qing to go back to the army to discuss and select the bravest among the Liang people to fight to the death with General Fenwu. If you win, I will pardon you. If you win, I will pardon you." If we are defeated, we will give up and surrender."
Lu Bu immediately applauded when he heard this, while Xu Rong looked at the adults beside the emperor. The unspoken implication was that they were the ones who really needed to express their stance. Dong Cheng, Yang Biao and others discussed for a while and expressed their support. Xu Rong agreed and agreed to reply that night.
At that time, the two armies temporarily ceased fighting. Two hours later, Liang Jun sent someone to reply and agreed to the emperor's proposal to challenge in front of the city at 3:00 tomorrow.
Chapter 21 About the Challenge
