In history, after the fall of the Western Jin Dynasty, Chen Wu led the beggar army to support himself. He showed no fear in the face of the surging Hu army around him. Even the powerful dock owners in the north succumbed to Jie Hu, and Chen Wu never thought about it. After giving up the resistance, Chen Wu stayed like this until his death in 319 AD. Before his death, he repeatedly told his clan and tribesmen to continue to resist and not to surrender to the Hu people. 《八》八《Read》书, 2■3o⊥
Unfortunately, not long after Chen Wu's death, this army of beggars broke out in civil strife during the tug-of-war between Shi Le and Zu Ti. They surrendered to Shi Le and Zu Ti respectively. After Zu Ti's death, all the hinterland of the Central Plains was lost. The begging army, like other begging armies, completely became a victim of the Eastern Jin Dynasty's partial peace and was completely used by Jie Hu.
However, it is now the third year of Yongjia.
At this time, the beggar army still maintained a sworn hatred against the Hulu.
Guangping, in the county residence.
"General, almost all of our sons and daughters have been injured, and the food and grass consumption has been huge. The food reserves are not even enough for a month. If there are no reinforcements, Guangping City will be difficult to defend."
The person who spoke was Chen Wu's general Feng Long. However, although he was a general in name, Feng Long was also a civilian commander in the beggar army. He was only controlled by Chen Wu because he had the title of General Xuanwei awarded by the imperial court. That’s all.
Therefore, Chen Wu still maintained considerable respect for Feng Long and did not really regard Feng Long as a general.
"Brother Jingyun, I am also aware of these situations, but we have sent out three waves for help, but no one from the nearby Wubao city has responded."
When Chen Wu talked about this, he felt a little helpless. After they set foot on a foreign land, they, the Bingzhou people, no matter they were officials, powerful people, common people, or any other status, they could not escape in the eyes of Hebei scholars. The word "refugee" means people are ostracized everywhere in Hebei. If Chen Wu didn't have a small title of General Xuanwei and took over the city defense of Guangping, then these beggars would have to find a place to build a house in the wilderness. The fort was built to defend itself.
"Hmph, these powerful people in Guangping County are simply seeking their own destruction. As long as our begging army is here, the Hulu will not dare to kill them all. If our begging army is really destroyed, the Hulu will have no worries, and the unlucky ones will It’s not like they are eggless tycoons!”
After Feng Long said this, he still couldn't calm down his anger for a long time.
"These powerful men are like a pile of loose sand. If they defend the wall of the dock to save their own lives, they will still be willing to do their best. If we let them leave the dock to save us, it will be even more difficult."
As Chen Wu spoke, he raised his voice and continued in a firm tone.
"Everyone, go back and tell us the sons of the beggar army. I, Chen Wu, know that the beggar army is exhausted and exhausted, but the same must be true for the Hulu who besieged the city. These Huru thieves fight for food, money and access. , we are used to bullying the weak and fearing the strong. As long as we bite the bullet and fight for another half month, these thieves will definitely withdraw their troops on their own. After all, it is not cost-effective to waste food and grass just to eat the small Guangping City. "
"I don't believe it. How can a son of the beggar army lose to these Hu slaves?!"
Chen Wu's words were immediately echoed by all the refugee commanders present.
After all, based on their previous combat experience with the Xiongnu and Han bandits, these barbarian bandits often do not spend too much time attacking a city, because the forts scattered outside the city are enough for them to plunder. , it is not cost-effective to spend too many troops to attack the city.
However, this time Jiehu Shile's siege seems to be different from the past. It has been more than a month since the beginning, but there is no plan to withdraw the troops.
Sure enough, just when all the refugee commanders agreed with Chen Wu, one person stood up and expressed his concerns.
"General, this time the Hulu siege seems to be different from the past. If they siege the city for another month, they won't even need to fight, they will starve us to death in Guangping City."
Everyone present looked at the speaker.
I saw that this man was about thirty years old, with a heroic appearance and a height of more than eight feet. At first glance, he looked like a warrior full of power.
This man's name was Ran Long and his courtesy name was Yuanchang. He was a yellow man from Wei County. He was one of the first people in Hebei to join the beggar army.
"Yuan Chang, what are your countermeasures?"
Chen Wu thought highly of Ran Long. He knew that Ran Long looked like a crude warrior, but in fact he had a calm mind. If he had no countermeasures in mind, he would definitely not say such words easily. ⊕eight⊕eight⊕read⊕book,◇o≮
"General, the powerful dock owners near Guangping are all cowards and cannot be counted on at all. If you want to find reinforcements, you must go further and ask for reinforcements from the imperial army. I heard that General Zhengbei He Yu is guarding Yecheng, Beizhonglang General Pei Xian is guarding Wei County, and Chariot and Cavalry General Wang Kan has also arrived in Handan. These three are all famous scholars and have elite soldiers in their hands. As long as one of them can send troops to rescue them, Then our siege of Guangping can be solved, and then the siege of Guangzong will be broken without attack."
After listening to Ran Long's words, the military commanders of the beggar army present started discussing in a buzzing manner.
Chen Wu knew that there was some truth in what Ran Long said. These three people were all generals of the imperial court, and each of them had the troops to relieve Guangping.
However, the forces of these three people are used to control the three cities and prevent the Shilehulu from going south to threaten Luoyang. Will they come for the beggar army in Guangping?
"Having said that, are these three people willing to save our little Guangping City?"
Chen Wu said with some worry.
"General, although our city in Guangping is small, our beggar army is the banner of Hebei's resistance to Hu. If we and the beggar army in Guangping are destroyed, no one in the land of Zhao and Wei can restrain Shi Le. Liu Ling is a barbarian."
These words were recognized by everyone.
The Beggar Army is indeed the banner of resistance to the Hu in the land of Zhao and Wei in Hebei.
Ran Long continued.
"If our beggar army is destroyed in the hands of Hulu, then Shile and these Hulu will completely control hundreds of thousands of people in Zhao and Wei, and then Jizhou will be in danger. Such a simple truth can be explained to these three General, then reinforcements are available."
Chen Wu also felt that what Ran Long said made sense. He Yu, Pei Xian and Wang Kan were all imperial generals who were ordered to guard against Shi Le and other Huru bandits. Now that Shi Le was trapped under Guangping City, as long as a group of elite soldiers from the imperial court came to fight with them, The beggar army in Guangping City will attack from inside and outside and will definitely defeat Shi Le.
Not only Chen Wu thought so, but the other military commanders present also felt that what Ran Long said was reasonable.
"In this case, who is willing to leave the city to find these reinforcements?"
Chen Wu said.
Everyone present was hesitant after hearing this, because none of the sergeants sent by the Begging Army to ask for help came back.
These people may have fallen into enemy hands, or they may have been unable to return to Quang Binh because the enemy was too tightly surrounded.
But no matter what, passing through the camp of tens of thousands of Hulu outside the city is tantamount to entering a dragon's pond and a tiger's den.
Even among the beggar army, which is known for its courage in fighting, only those with the most courage and martial prowess can take on such an important task.
There was no news from the three consecutive waves of begging troops asking for help. How could these people not hesitate?
At this time, there was another loud voice immediately.
"General, I'm willing to go!"
Everyone looked at the voice and saw that the person was none other than Wei Jun Ranlong who made the suggestion.
"Okay, Ran Yuanchang is indeed a general."
Chen Wu couldn't help but admire.
Later, Chen Wu asked Ran Long to select ten knights from the begging army to accompany him. When leaving the city, the troops could be divided into two groups. In the necessary critical moment, the other group of men could be sacrificed to protect Ran Long.
After Ran Long heard this, he immediately rejected this cruel, but life-saving plan.
Ran Long told Chen Wu that he only needed at most five people to accompany him, and he only needed to equip them with good horses, hard bows and iron spears.
With these, Ran Long had the confidence to rush through the Hulu camps outside the city.
Seeing Ran Long's persistence, Chen Wu said no more and ordered people to immediately prepare the necessary horses and staff for Ran Long.
Finally, Chen Wu also ordered someone to bring his most beloved set of Hundred-Refined Sleeve Armor and put it on Ran Long himself.
Ran Long led the five selected beggar cavalry to the south gate, planning to rush out as soon as the city gate opened and kill the horsemen between the Hulu camps, and then use their fast horses to encircle the Hulu Detach quickly before.
After all, with tens of thousands of enemy troops surrounding the city and besieging it, it is impossible to achieve a truly airtight situation.
Just when Ran Long and others were ready, and Chen Wu, the beggar commander, was about to order the city gate to be opened and rush out, a shout came from behind the people seeing them off.
"Father, don't abandon me!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a boy as strong as a tiger cub squeezed in from the crowd and appeared in front of Chen Wu and Ran Long.
"Father, don't abandon me, I want to go with you!"
Although the boy's voice was childish, his tone was as firm as an adult's.
"You bastard, this is such a big military issue, how can I let you, a child, mess around!"
Ran Long's face darkened and he scolded sternly.
Chen Wu, the handsome beggar next to him, recognized this boy. He was Ran Long's only son, Ran Liang. He was twelve years old this year. Although he was immature, he was proficient in bow, saber, and gun. No ordinary adult man could be his opponent. .
Even in the beggar army where children can go into battle to kill the enemy, Ran Liang is also the leader. He has already personally killed several barbarians in several city defense battles.
At the age of twelve, Ran Liang is enough to be called the "Boy Scout Soldier King" who begs for work.
However, in the eyes of people like Chen Wu and Ran Long, Ran Liang is still a child no matter what.
"Ran Liang, your father's trip is of great importance and you cannot be willful. Just go back and wait."
Chen Wu wanted to speak to comfort the child, but the words of a man who was killed in a hail of swords and arrows had no comforting effect at all.
Ran Liang turned a deaf ear to other people's words and just kept waiting for his father Ran Long.
"Father, I can ride a fast horse and shoot a strong bow. I will never be a burden."
Seeing that Ran Liang was so stubborn and embarrassed in front of so many colleagues in the begging army, Ran Long raised his hand and was about to hit him.
But at such a young age, Ran Liang was not afraid at all and had no intention of dodging at all.
Ran Long looked at his son's face and couldn't help but think of Hu Qi's late wife, and finally couldn't bear to hit him with his hand.
"General, send someone to take good care of him for me, Ran Long, please."
Seeing that his father was finally going to abandon him, Ran Liang was so anxious that he suddenly pulled out a bi shou from his waist and almost poked his eyes with the sharp tip.
"I'm going to have a narrow escape from death today. If I can't see my father in the future, what's the use of these eyes!"
As Ran Liang spoke, he pressed down the bi shou hard, and the sharp blade immediately drew blood marks on his face.
"Stop! Alas! That's all, that's all, come with me."
Ran Long quickly agreed to his son's request.
As a father, he was very clear about Ran Liang's thoughts. Ran Liang and he depended on each other. He knew that going out of the city to seek help this time was very dangerous, and he was just afraid that something might happen to him.
"General, give the dog a bow and a horse."
Ran Long said helplessly to the refugee commander Chen Wu.
After a while, everything was ready, and Ran Long and his son were ready to rush out as soon as the city gate opened.
"Son, are you afraid of death?" Ran Long asked.
"Don't be afraid!" Ran Liang said firmly.
"Let me ask you, what will you do if I die?" Ran Long asked seriously.
"In that case, how could my son survive? Of course he would die with the adults!" Ran Liang had a look of determination on his face.
"No! If I die, you must live on. No matter what you do, you must live on!"
What his father said greatly exceeded Ran Liang's expectations, making him look surprised.
"If I die in battle, it will be a well-deserved death. You will be the only member of the Huang Ran family in Wei County. Remember, this is not an illegal life. This is for the survival of the Huang Ran family's bloodline. Only living people can inherit the bloodline."
Ran Liang, the ruthless "Boy Scout Soldier King", was a little confused after hearing these words. This was very different from the sayings he had heard before about loyalty to death.
When the Guangping City Gate opened a gap with the sound of the door hinge, Ran Long took the lead and led the beggar army cavalry behind him to leap out and rush towards the Hulu defense line with a fierce and undaunted momentum.
After killing several Hulu cavalry who were blocking their way, Ran Long and the others started a fierce pursuit battle with the pursuers behind them. In the end, with the help of carefully selected good horses and mounted archery, they paid the price of two tragic deaths. , Ran Long finally took his son Ran Liang and four others to escape from the Hulu pursuit.
However, Ran Long's subsequent journey to seek help was extremely bumpy.
First time asking for help.
Ran Long and his party first ran to Handan, which is closest to Guangping City and is where the cavalry general Wang Kan is stationed.
But after hearing that Ran Long and his party were beggars from Guangping, this cavalry general who was born in the Wang clan of Donghai didn't even let Ran Long and the others enter through the gate of Handan, and didn't even say a word of dismissal. Maybe in In the eyes of this high-ranking general, Ran Long and these beggars are real beggars.
Ran Long was not discouraged after being rejected, but immediately went south to the nearby Yecheng.
This is the second call for help.
There are 20,000 troops of General Zhengbei and Yu stationed here in Yecheng.
General Zhengbei and Yu actually received Ran Long.
However, they did not agree to send reinforcements to attack Shile at all. Even if Ran Long analyzed the favorable situation clearly, General Zhengbei and Yu were not moved at all.
Ran Long finally saw clearly that General Zhengbei and Yu were just a rat who was greedy for life and afraid of death, and it was impossible to send troops.
He said goodbye in grief and anger, and he and Yu Mingren caught up with Ran Long and rewarded him with ten pieces of silk.
After Ran Long left the Nanchun Gate of Yecheng, he burned the ten pieces of silk in front of the defenders, and then rode eastward to the last stop - Wei County.
This is the third and final call for help.
Pei Xian, the Beizhonglang general stationed in Wei County, is quite different from the first two.
Beizhong Lang General Pei Xian heard that Ran Long and his sons had defeated tens of thousands of enemy troops and broke through the siege. He praised Ran Long and his sons for their bravery and not only rewarded them with good horses and bows, but also good wine and meat. That night, each person had a maid to warm their bed.
Ran Long and the others had not seen meat and fish for nearly half a year, and they immediately felt like they had entered heaven.
But, on the second day.
Pei Xian hosted another banquet in honor of Ran Long.
During the banquet, when Ran Long brought up the matter of military rescue, Pei Xian, the general of Bei Zhonglang, took care of him.
Finally, Ran Long asked again at the banquet.
Pei Xian, who couldn't bear the disturbance, said that he wanted to recruit Ran Long and others as his Yamen military governor. As for sending troops to rescue the Guangping begging army, forget about it.
After hearing Pei Xian's clear statement.
Sitting in front of the table filled with wine, meat and delicacies, Ran Long no longer had any appetite.
Ran Long said loudly and sadly: "When I, Ran Long, left Guangping, the begging army had less than a month's food. Without reinforcements, the Guangping begging army would be defeated. How could I be in the mood to drink and eat?" Meat, I should return to Guangping immediately and die with the begging army."
After saying that, Ran Long drew his saber, led Ran Liang and others, and left Pei Xian's mansion without anyone daring to stop him along the way.
After Ran Long and his party took the horses, they rushed out of the gate of Wei County.
When he just rushed out of the city gate, the more Ran Long thought about the actions of the three imperial generals he met during this trip, the angrier he became.
He suddenly pulled the reins and stood up, turned around and drew his bow, and shot an arrow into the forehead of Wei County City Gate, with the iron and steel arrow embedded in it.
Ran Long shouted at the garrison at the head of Wei County City: "When I go back and kill the Hulu, I will definitely come back and kill you rats who refuse to save me! Let this arrow show our ambition!"
After saying that, Ran Long led a few people on the road back north to Guangping in the cold wind.
Ran Long and his party galloped on horseback, and entered the territory of Ping'en the next day. As long as they crossed the Zhang River in the north, they would be very close to Guangping.
Just when they were trying to find a place nearby to escape the cold wind and spend the night, they suddenly saw several cavalrymen in black uniforms from a distance. These cavalrymen in black uniforms also noticed them and tentatively approached them. Coming closer.
Ran Long didn't know the identity of these people. Judging from their clothes, they didn't seem to be Hulu bandits, but he still didn't dare to take them lightly.
"Cheer up, everyone. If there are any thieves, we will fight them!"
At this time, a shout floated in the distance.
"The Qingzhou Army is here, who is coming?!" 11
