When the news of the fall of Linyuan City came, especially when he learned that the entire army was wiped out and his beloved son Tian Siyuan was captured, Tian Hongyou panicked. Linyuan City was reinforced with 3,000 soldiers, and the city was breached in half a day. I don't admit that Marshal Li really has some tricks.
However, it was useless to be angry. After all, they had lost a usable soldier. Seeing that Wu Ping's army was about to cross the You River, Tian Hongyou's first reaction was to send troops to the west bank of the You River, hide in the dense forest and ambush, imitating Peng Shichou's "half-crossed" "attack" strategy, but soon received desperate news one after another.
Tang general Chai Kewu was leading an army to attack Chenzhou, and the envoy sent to meet the Han army commander Pan Chongche also came back miserably with one ear cut off, and brought back an indignant letter from Pan Chongche. Not only did he accuse the barbarians of He refused the alliance on the grounds of lack of trust, and even accused the Dongxi barbarians of attacking Lingnan together with the Chu army in the past, looting and massacring the people. This blood feud will be repaid in person after the Han army pacified the Chu territory.
Tian Hongyou suddenly lost his mind. After cursing Peng Shiyu, Li Yuan, Pan Chongche, and his dead son Tian Siyuan several times, he hurriedly bit the bullet and began to mobilize his troops.
The strategy of "attacking halfway across" was imperative. Once Wu Ping's army was allowed to cross the Youshui River and Peng Shiyu was leading the way, the consequences would be disastrous. However, Tian Hong looked to his right at the roster of generals and fell into a dilemma.
What is imminent now is not only Li Yuan's army, but also a Tang army in Chenzhou that is attacking the city. Since Tian Hongyou previously concentrated all the main force of 30,000 barbarians in Xizhou, the defenders in Chenzhou City were less than 5,000, all of whom were old and weak. If Chai Kewu led Wu Ping's troops to capture Chenzhou, By detouring along the Youshui River, wouldn't it mean that we are directly taking the back road of Xizhou? Therefore, Chenzhou must not abandon its defense.
But after all, Xizhou City only has 30,000 soldiers, and they have to shoulder the responsibility of defending the city. If they divide their troops to support Chenzhou, how should they deal with Li Yuan's army? You must know that Peng Shichou's "half-crossing attack" was successful because the Chu army was not familiar with the terrain and chose a wide place to cross the river. However, he gathered young men from various tribes and assembled a total of 60,000 troops before he dared to go there. ambush.
Now that Li Yuan's army was not only coming with force, but also had Peng Shichou's son Peng Shiyu as its guide. How could one not expect that Tian Hongyou would repeat his old tricks? There must be precautions, and the route across the river must be chosen carefully and appropriately. Even if we don't save Chenzhou and we don't defend Xizhou, if all 30,000 barbarians march out from the west bank of Youshui River, can they really successfully stop Wuping's army, which is well prepared and as wolf-like as tigers? This is undoubtedly a life and death gamble.
Thinking of this, Tian Hongyou, who had limited troops at his disposal, hesitated and finally seized power, but with one careless move, he lost everything. Seeing that the commander was so delayed and delayed in issuing military orders at such a critical time, all the generals knew that the time was urgent and they were all anxious.
Gong Langzhi, as the leader of the Gong clan, one of the five barbarian tribes, and Tian Hongyou's confidant general, could no longer hold back at this time and hurriedly raised his hands and said: "Captain, please give the order quickly! If the Tang army is allowed to cross the Youshui River, it will If there are rebels leading the way, Xizhou will be in danger! The Han people are good at all kinds of siege methods..."
Tian Hongyou frowned and sighed: "Oh! How can I not know that the situation is critical? In addition to the enemies of Youshui, the Tang army is currently attacking Chenzhou City with the intention of outflanking our army's retreat. If Chenzhou is lost, Xizhou will be attacked from both sides. !
Now our army only has 30,000 troops, and we have to defend Xizhou. If we divide our troops to rescue Chenzhou, there will not be many available troops. What's more, Li Yuan's army has rebels leading the way, so he must be familiar with our army's tactics! If you risk your troops and invest them, if they can't resist it, then Xizhou City will be doomed! "
Gong Langzhi paused, raised his hands and asked in a deep voice: "What the Governor said is reasonable, but even if our army is at a disadvantage, how can we sit back and wait for death? If we really let the Tang army easily cross the You River, how should we respond? Does the Governor really want to Are you going to fight a defensive battle with the Tang army?"
Hearing this, Tian Hongyou and all the generals present lowered their heads in thought. It was obvious that they did not have much confidence in defending Xizhou City, because defending the city was not Dongxi's strength at all.
Since Peng Shichou took control of Xizhou, whenever foreign enemies invaded, almost all the methods used to protect Xizhou were to defend the enemy outside the You River. The barbarians were only good at various ambushes and harassments, not to mention fierce battles on the city walls. In the final analysis There was no such combat experience at all. The first time most generals saw siege engines and trebuchets was when they followed Ma Xi'e to attack Tanzhou City.
At this time, Tian Hongbin, Tian Hongyou's younger brother, stood up calmly and said: "Everyone, I don't think there is any need to panic! So what if the Tang army successfully crossed the You River? This is the land of our Five Streams! Even if something goes wrong, it doesn't matter. The thieves lead the way. They are Han people after all, and they must be unaccustomed to the local environment when entering Xizhou.
What's more, now is the time when the heat is unbearable and wild beasts are infested. If we go deep into the mountains and forests, the morale of the army will definitely be unstable. As long as our army is halfway through the march and uses the advantages of the deep mountains and dense forests to attack in separate divisions, it may not be impossible to win! "
These words gave the generals a lot of confidence, but Tian Hongyou still said with a worried look on his face: "Since the rebels dared to lead the Tang army across the You River this time, they came straight to Xizhou City. How could he not offer his advice to Li Yuan?
The so-called unbearable heat and acclimatization can be cured by the Han people with just a few medicinal patches. Even the rebellious son of the Peng family knows the prescriptions for repelling the poison of blowing darts! Now that our army is short of troops, harassment alone can only delay the Tang army for a little while, but I'm afraid it's far from enough! "
Tian Hongyou made it clear, but the generals gradually became dissatisfied. They were used to Peng Shichou's vigorous and resolute style in the past, but now the coach is so indecisive. This will not work, and that will not work. If it continues to be delayed, it will definitely waste the opportunity for the war. Is it really necessary to put it down? Will the three states of Dongxi, where the various tribes live, be handed over to the Tang army?
Suddenly Xiang Zongyan, the commander of the left wing of the Xizhou Army, changed his usual silence, stood up and cupped his hands and said: "Captain, I have a plan to defeat the Tang Army!"
Tian Hongyou was very surprised when he heard this. You must know that Xiang Zongyan is a member of the Xiang clan. When Peng Shichou abandoned the Xiang clan and chose the Tian clan, the two families had already forged a grudge. Although he succeeded this time, the Xiang clan was gradually declining. Fai Bao could only bow his head and obey orders, but how could he not know the dissatisfaction in the hearts of the Xiang clan?
At this moment, Xiang Zongyan, as the leader of the Xiang clan, actually claimed to offer advice, which was really strange.
General Tian Hong asked doubtfully, "Oh? If you have any plans for the envoy, tell me quickly!"
Xiang Zongyan said calmly, "Captain, have you ever heard of Ma Yuan, General Fubo of the Han Dynasty nine hundred years ago?"
These incomprehensible words made Tian Hongyou confused for a moment. Before he could say anything, his brother Tian Hongbin sneered and said: "Is it possible that the envoy to the capital lost his mind and started teasing the governor? The enemy is actually telling a story now? "
The mature and steady Gong Langzhi seemed to react in an instant, his eyes shone with light, and he exclaimed excitedly: "Xiang Duzhi is really a god!"
Tian Hongyou swallowed his saliva and asked with confusion on his face: "How do you say this?"
Xiang Zongyan snorted lightly, glanced at Tian Hongbin with disdain, and then responded in a dull voice: "General Fubo Ma Yuan is a famous general of the Han Dynasty. He made great military exploits for Emperor Guangwu of the Han Dynasty. In the past, he defeated the Longqiang in the west and the Qiang in the south. He conquered Jiaozhi, attacked Wuhuan in the north, and became famous all over the world for his bravery and skill in fighting..."
Tian Hongbin waved his hand and stopped him loudly: "Wait a minute, wait a minute, what do you mean? In the face of a powerful enemy, as a member of the Dongxi tribe, why do you praise a Han who has long since passed away? Xiang Zongyan, what are your intentions?"
Xiang Zongyan's face suddenly darkened, and he continued in a cold voice: "But such a famous general who is well-known to the world, finally fell into the hands of our Dongxi people! Nine hundred years ago, almost all the Han army including Ma Yuan They all fell on the ancient road outside Xizhou City..."
Tian Hongbin chuckled, shook his head and said disapprovingly: "It's nonsense. How could I not know if this is true?"
Seeing that his brother was so messy, Tian Hongyou became interested and became anxious. He quickly got up and asked first, "Oh? Why is such a famous general buried here? Don't give in to the envoy, tell me quickly!"
Xiang Zongyan cupped his hands and replied: "It's normal for the governor's family not to know. After all, thousands of years ago, only I, the Xiang family, and the Gong family lived here. Of course, we know it very well! And the method that led to Ma Yuan's death was caused by me. Xiang's secret that is not told!
Now that thousands of years have passed, there are still a few elders of my Xiang clan who are familiar with this method, but they have never used it. Not only the rebellious son of the Peng family, but also the late grandfather of the Peng family have never seen it... This method is Miasma! "
All the generals looked at each other in confusion: "Poison miasma?"
Tian Hongbin couldn't help but looked up to the sky and laughed: "Hahaha, what a clever trick I thought! Poisonous miasma is not rare. In my land of Dongxi, there are many miasmas in the mountains and fields. The rebellious son of the Peng family has long been familiar with it. Tang Jun is not a fool. Could he see it? Won’t the miasma take a detour?”
"This poisonous miasma is not that poisonous miasma." Xiang Zongyan shook his head and said solemnly: "I, the Xiang clan, have their own unique method. They can turn the miasma into medicinal powder, add highly toxic substances, and make poison sacs to throw. , once contaminated by this substance, whether it is Li Yuan today or Ma Yuan nine hundred years ago, even gods will be helpless if they encounter it!"
All the generals showed incredible expressions. Tian Hongyou was even more excited and said loudly: "If Xiangdu had such a method, why didn't he tell it earlier?! If he could really throw the poisonous miasma at Li Yuan's army How can our army not be victorious?..."
The more he thought about it, the more excited he became. Tian Hongyou soon became a little arrogant. It was no longer a matter of victory or defeat. If it weren't for the fact that everyone would be anxiously waiting for orders, he almost didn't think of capturing Langzhou and proclaiming himself king.
Time was not waiting for him, Tian Hongyou immediately said: "With such a killing weapon in hand, the Tang army will never come back! Xiangdu, please return to the tribe and quickly make a batch of poison sacs! Now the time is urgent, the poison is Once the bag is made, I will immediately order troops to meet the enemy!"
"Captain, it will take at least three to five days to make the poison sac..."
Tian Hongyou took a deep breath and asked in a low voice: "Is this too late? In three to five days, the Tang army will probably be outside the ancient road!"
Xiang Zongyan waved his hand directly and said: "Captain, the poisonous miasma needs to spread in an open area, and it can only play a big role by using the wind to spread! In the deep mountains and dense forests, the grass is too lush, and the enemy troops are scattered and scattered. It is not the best. Timing! Therefore, if Li Yuan's army reaches the ancient road, it will be an excellent opportunity for our army!
The terrain at the pass of the ancient road is flat and the vegetation is sparse. It is difficult for the Tang army to hide their tracks, and it is also at the north wind! At that time, all that is needed is to use bows and arrows with poison sacs to shoot in. When the poison miasma comes, the Tang army will definitely be in chaos and suffer heavy casualties! Our army only needs to wait for work and wait for the poisonous miasma to dissipate to wipe out the remaining enemies..."
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