Back to Longshang, in September last year, Lu Bu was defeated at Jincheng, losing more than 10,000 yuan in one day. Later, when Han Sui led his army to pursue him, he lost ground one after another. All the counties in the south of Wuwei that he had captured in the past two years were lost. Many warriors recruited under his command died one after another in the snow, and they had to retreat to Lingzhou in defeat.
This battle had a great impact on Longshang. The Qiang people in Liangzhou thought that Lu Bu was sure of victory, so many people sought refuge with him. Unexpectedly, Han Sui could use another clever plan to reverse the situation. As a result, they fell with the wind. They had just settled eastward and could not rest for a few days. Now they dispersed and went westward, and then went to Han Sui.
This made Lu Bu very angry. Except for the Battle of Gaoling, he had never suffered such a defeat in his life. The reason for his defeat was that he mistrusted Liu Xiongming and made the traitor his confidant. This experience made him feel extremely humiliated. So much so that a reward was announced in Liangzhou, saying that those who could offer Liu Xiongming's head would get a thousand gold, and those who could offer Jiang Zheng's head would get five hundred gold, in order to vent their shame and anger. But since the battle has been defeated, such behavior is just to add to the laughter.
Under such circumstances, Lu Bu sent Zhang Chang to ask for help from the imperial court, hoping that the imperial court could once again send reinforcements, money and food. After Chen Chong heard about it, he immediately mobilized ten thousand people from Dong Cheng's army to go north, and arranged for Wei Gu to recruit troops in the Hedong area. Until March of the sixth year of Yanxing, more than ten thousand people were recruited and all were sent to Beidi County. In addition, Lu Bu spent more than half a year to expand his army and recruit tens of thousands of troops. As a result, he had about 60,000 troops under his command, which was even better than before the battle in Jincheng.
Lu Bu was so aggressive that he naturally wanted to avenge his shame. But what he didn't expect was that on March 19, Han Sui actually sent an envoy to say to Lu Bu: "I want to bring 50,000 troops each with the general to fight in front of Fengyi Mountain." His words and attitude were very serious. Contempt, this made Lu Bu furious. He whipped the envoy on both sides with a riding crop in public, and shouted: "What a villain, Han Sui, dares to compete with me? If it weren't for the villain's treacherous plot, the Han thief would have been a withered bone!"
Unexpectedly, the envoy had blood foaming at his mouth, but he still smiled and said: "The general said that, does he dare not fight with Han Gong? I thought the general was a hero of Northern Xinjiang, but now I see him, it turns out that he is the dog-eared guard! "
"The Sword Comes"
Lü Bu was agitated by this and flew into a rage. He drew his dagger in front of everyone and cut off the messenger's nose with a wave of his hand. Seeing the messenger covering his face and wailing under him, he scolded him again: "How dare you say such a thing! I, Lü Bu, am a great husband, five years old." How could a former Iron Knight, with a hundred thousand soldiers under his command, be humiliated by Han Sui? Go back and tell Han Sui, if you are a real man, don't break your promise!" So he accepted Han Sui's invitation.
So Lu Bu took control of more than 60,000 people, leaving only 5,000 soldiers and horses to guard Fuping, and then sent his troops south again to meet Han Sui's appointment.
The battle location was Fengyi Mountain, about fifty miles northwest of Gaoping City, in the remnant of Liupan Mountain. It was hilly and crisscrossed with ravines, so it was not fertile soil for farming. However, this plateau overlooks the entire Gaoping Basin. Once people and horses pass through it, they will be threatened whether they are going south or north. It can be said to be an important military area in Anding County.
In the spring of the first year of Jianning (AD 168), Duan Jiong, the captain of the Qiang Guards, fought against the various Qiang species of Xianling at the foot of this mountain, and won a great victory. He was then given the name of General Po Qiang. People pass by here and still remember it today. Being able to see the remains of the battlefields of our predecessors, horse bones in the stone, and rusty swords in the grass, we can’t help but reminisce about the martial arts events of our predecessors.
Last year, Lu Bu recruited the Qiang people at the foot of the mountain, built walls and forts, and took the place under his control, gaining great advantages in stabilizing Yang Qiu. Han Sui made an appointment with Lu Bu here to fight, apparently with the intention of regaining the lost territory in one battle and completely blocking Lu Bu in the north. But if Lu Bu wins, the Gaoping Basin will change hands, the impact of Jincheng's defeat will dissipate, and Lu Bu will regain the initiative in Longshang.
Therefore, both armies did not dare not to prepare for the attack.
On the sixth day of April, Lu Bu led a group of people to climb the mountain from Shixiakou and follow a small river called Baiyangshui upstream. The state capital's cavalry lined up in a long line on the flat ground by the river. The men and horses were like ants under the cliff, and the iron armor they were carrying was shining in the sun. The quiet water flowed just below their feet and quickly disappeared into the rugged mountain road. The rainy season has not yet arrived, and most parts of the river are still dry. Where there is water, some weeds float back and forth, like floating clouds on the water, covering the ripples of light, sometimes intertwining, sometimes converging or separating, stretching downward.
Lu Bu looked forward in a daze. Walking another thirty miles to the south, you will reach Fengyi Mountain Fort. There are large green woods on both sides. The mountains behind the woods gradually rise, and behind the mountains there is a faint mountain shadow, which reaches to the sky. Occasionally, a black spot swayed in the forest, as if leaves were blowing in the wind. The scout in front said: "That's a crow. There is a large persimmon forest on the southern slope of the mountain. After the Qiang people left, the crows made their home there."
Lu Bu thought: "Where is Han Sui now?"
Although Lu Bu believed that he would win the field battle, Liang Ren's plan in the battle at Jincheng really impressed him. Looking back afterward, Lu Bu had to sigh at the boldness of the plan. Therefore, he was extra cautious in this battle, and kept scouting all the way, lest the enemy might devise another trick.
The scouts who came back from Gaoping in the south said that soldiers were gathering in Gaoping City one after another. Apparently, the various units of the Liang Army are gathering towards Gaoping City from Jitou and Boluogu Trails. There are currently about 20,000 people in the city, and it is estimated that it will take another ten days before they can all arrive and come to fight.
When Lu Bu heard this, the tension in his heart eased a little, but then he thought again, could it be that they lured me here and then cut off my return at the river in the north? So he braced himself again and waited for the report from the scouts at the rear. It wasn't until two days later that Lu Bu led his army to the foot of Fengyi Mountain and heard the news that nothing happened in the rear, that he took another breath.
Fengyi Fort is not big and can only accommodate about 7,000 people living in the fort. So Lu Bu sent his troops to join Cao Bao and lead the cavalry to the Ranma River in the southeastern corner of the plateau to monitor the movements of the people in Gaopingliang. He led most of his troops and stationed themselves at Mayingshui, five miles south of Fengyi Fort. The Qiang people built mountain camps here, which could accommodate officers to stay here, but most of the soldiers and horses had to find the cliffs by themselves and sleep in them. At night, a strong wind blew from the northwest, making the thick shields outside the tent flutter. Listening to these sounds, the new recruits began to miss the warm nights in the pub.
Before setting off, Lu Bu gave every soldier in Lingzhou a pot of scalding wine, and also invited some Qiang girls to sing and dance among the troops. This scene was deeply engraved in the minds of the public, especially the children of Hedong. They could not sleep and missed their hometown all night long. The sergeant commented: "If General Fenwu thinks of his wife and concubines who are fasting and practicing Buddhism, it will be even more difficult for them to fall asleep."
It turned out that before leaving, Lu Bu's concubine Wang Diaochan held a gathering of monks in Lingzhou, and invited nearly a hundred eminent monks from India to pray for the soldiers who went on the expedition. Diao Chan had believed in Buddhism for many years. She asked the eminent monk Zhidu Jialuo from Guishuang how he could protect the soldiers' safe return. Zhidukara said: "As long as you make the vow to sacrifice yourself, practice the eight fasts, bathe every morning, burn incense, change your clothes, hold sandalwood in your mouth, burn incense and hang banners, and recite the Avalokitesvara Sutra every day, then everything will be safe." Diao Chan then stayed in the house. Standing in front of the Buddha's golden body, he takes off his silk clothes and dresses, puts on pure patchwork robes, and sacrifices himself to practice and pray for blessings. Before leaving, Diao Chan said to Lu Bu: "The day my husband returns, it will be the day when I leave the palace." Now in this long night, she must still be wishing victory to the soldiers who are far away.
Another seven days passed like this, and the Liang troops in Gaoping were still converging, with no intention of heading north for a fight. This made Lu Bu so impatient to wait that on April 15th and 16th, he sent envoys three times to make an appointment to ask them when they planned to attend the appointment.
The envoys all saw Han Sui. He was sitting high on the table, but he didn't say anything clear. One moment he said that the battle would take place in five days, and the other moment he said he didn't know the time yet and asked the envoys to go back first. These actions confused Lu Bu. Some of his subordinates said that maybe the general was cautious in marching, and Han Sui was already afraid when he saw that there was no opportunity to take advantage of him. Others said that maybe Han Sui was repeating his old tricks to make us relax, but again Suddenly a surprise soldier appeared.
At this time, Zhang Liao offered his advice and said: "General, I would like to go to Gaoping to observe the strength of the enemy camp. If the enemy is strong, then our army can fight. If the enemy is weak, then he must have a deception. Our army should withdraw to the river and recapture it first." Lost ground.”
Zhang Liao is one of the few fierce generals in Lu Bu's army, but what is even more rare is that Zhang Liao is extremely meticulous in his observation after fighting in the battle. He can often detect omissions and flaws in the changes in the enemy's formation, so he can often criticize and criticize weaknesses. Get miraculous results with one hit. While Lu Bu was hesitating, he was very happy when he heard that Zhang Liao dared to take risks. He shook hands with Zhang Liao and said with a smile: "Good brother, if we can really get the truth from the truth, you will be the most meritorious in this battle!"
Zhang Liao then went south to Gaoping. To the north of Gaoping City is the Liang Army camp. When Zhang Liao passed by, he carefully observed the surrounding layout and found that the Liang Army camps were scattered and the soldiers were many old and weak. Even so, a rough calculation showed that there were only a little over 20,000 Liang people in front of the city, which made Zhang Liao suspicious. Then he met Han Sui and asked when he would challenge him. Han Sui was still vague, which alarmed Zhang Liao even more.
Therefore, after leaving the city, Zhang Liao did not return to the army immediately. Instead, he hid in a mountain forest northeast of Gaoping City to observe the situation in the city. In the middle of the night, when the moon was shining brightly and cicadas were chirping, Zhang Liao suddenly heard crows from the south. A group of crows flew up among the trees on the avenue. Under them, a black shadow like a dragon could be seen slowly leaving the city. There are about three thousand people. And at midnight the next day, another group of people came from outside the city with great fanfare, playing trumpets and singing triumphant songs, and slowly entered the city.
Zhang Liao immediately understood and informed Lu Bu that there was no large army in Gaoping City. Han Sui's so-called battle was probably to contain our army here, and the real intention may be elsewhere. Within two days, scouts from the north came to report that there seemed to be people coming and going on the north bank of the river. Lu Bu was immediately convinced that those in Gaoping were just suspicious soldiers. So he immediately recalled Cao Xing, planning to lead his troops back to the river and recapture Shuanyin Ferry first.
On April 20th, when Lü Bu was about to break camp, the Gaoping Liang army suddenly left the city and headed north, appearing in front of the Ranma River. Lü Bu turned his army around and confronted the Liang army across the river. When the Liang army saw that Lu Bu wanted to engage in battle, they slowly retreated. It seemed that they only wanted to contain Lu Bu and did not dare to fight in the field.
Lu Bu was more convinced of Gao Ping's intention to serve as a partial army, because he would be a vain army and would not have the guts to fight decisively. Therefore, after he retreated, Lu Bu ordered all the troops to rest temporarily and withdraw again tomorrow. He took off his armor and ate food, and fell asleep early. Unexpectedly, in his sleep, he was suddenly awakened by a noisy cry of killing.
He hurriedly walked out of the camp and saw that a fire had been set in the south camp. Many knights on fast horses were killing among the soldiers of the state capital. Howls and whines came one after another, mixed with arrows piercing the sky in the wind. Voice.
It turned out that Jia Xu had two large camps in Gaoping. One was placed in a grand place in the north of the city, where the old and weak members of the army were stationed, and the other was placed in the Gongbei Liang in the south of the city, where the elite of the Liang army was located. With such a combination of light and darkness, Zhang Liao only knew one thing but not the other. He also thought that the Liang army had another surprise force in the north. In fact, the Liang people had planned to fight with all their strength from the beginning.
After showing weakness to Lu Bu for the last time during the day, Han Sui led his troops to attack Fengyi Fort at night. Ma Teng, Cheng Gongying and other troops directly destroyed the southern camp, and then defeated Lu Bu's camp in one fell swoop. Lu Bu knew that he would be defeated, so he could only lead hundreds of trapped troops to flee north in a hurry.
So far in this battle, Lu Bu's army suffered numerous casualties and was captured without any calculation. No more than 4,000 people were able to return to Lingzhou, and Guanzhong was also greatly shaken. Lu Bulong's five years of hard work could be said to be ruined overnight.
