Regarding Li Tinggui's decision, Zhao Chongtao and Han Baozhen agreed unanimously after considering it. Even though they were determined, they did not ignore it. Although they jointly defeated the Han army, they failed one after another, but Li Tinggui tried his best to be loyal and still worthy of trust. After the discussion was over, Zhao and Han Er immediately led their troops and retreated to Nanzheng to reorganize their troops and repair the city and oars.
Li Tinggui immediately ordered that the entire city be closed off and under martial law. He personally arranged for the defense and prepared a war supervision camp and a reserve camp. He gathered all the available men to build deep ditches and fortresses, transport ordnance, and polish the walls of the city. Wood and rolling stones.
They also took advantage of the Han army's equipment, especially thunderbolt chariots and kerosene bombs, and learned a lesson. They also prepared a large amount of sand, soil and river water on the top and bottom of the city wall in preparation. He also drove all the old and weak people in the city to the east, with the appearance of fighting to the end.
But the arrival of the Han army was faster than Li Tinggui imagined.
On the mountain road from Xingzhou to Xixian, a Han army was marching eastward along the mountain road. There are not many people and horses, only one battalion of 500 horsemen, one hundred horsemen in front and one hundred in front, and infantry in the middle. There are more than 30 pack cars, and the speed is not slow. This is the vanguard of the Han army, led by Murong Chengtai.
The march route to Hanzhong this time has been set long ago, and there is no other way to go. Xixian County is the biggest obstacle to the march to Nanzheng and has to be overcome. Early on, he explored the movements of Dexi County. After taking Xingzhou, Xiang Xun led his army to rest in Shunzheng City, and sent an army to advance as a vanguard, clearing roads and testing the enemy's situation.
Murong Chengtai took the initiative to ask to lead the army. He had been training with Xiang Xun for so long. He had experienced the front and back battles this time and had some experience in leading troops. Therefore, after some consideration, Xiang Xun still agreed to give him this The opportunity to lead alone.
Even so, Xiang Xun still warned him not to rush when he marched, to be careful about ambush, to test the enemy first, and not to attack the city without permission. Even with many instructions and restrictions on his head, Murong Chengtai was still very excited.
After entering winter, the Han army's troops also changed into winter clothes, especially the southwestern armies, who were the first to do so. The inner part is lined with a coat, the outer part is covered with a coat, the head is wrapped with an ink towel, and the feet are worn with hemp shoes, all in the same military uniform to ensure protection from the cold.
Riding his horse in front, he led his men along the Sichuan-Long Post Road and advanced calmly, keeping alert and ready to go into battle at any time. The soldiers sent as the advance guard were naturally the elite of the Southwest Army. They traveled for dozens of miles and did not show much signs of fatigue.
Murong Chengtai's marching arrangements were also planned and planned, and the waiting horses were spread out far away, up to ten miles away. Fortunately, the Shu army's energy was focused on the city defense of Xi County, and they did not set up any obstacles or ambushes, and even the roads and planks were not damaged.
The journey was smooth. Except for a few refugees heading east, there were no obstacles. This made Murong Chengtai, who was cautious along the way, very bored. He muttered: "I thought the march would be difficult, but I never thought it would be so smooth. I If it were the Shu army, they would have destroyed the post road no matter what..."
"The Shu army was defeated like a lost dog. It's not enough to escape. How can we care about these things?" The camp commander next to him said to Murong Chengtai in a relaxed tone: "That's fine. Marching in the vanguard is a hard job. If we can make it easy, Wouldn’t it be beautiful to go to Xi County?”
The post road was winding and winding to the east, surrounded by high mountains and steep cliffs. The mountain wind was cold and steep. Murong Chengtai couldn't help but rub his hands and said with a smile: "The weather is getting colder. I hope that the Shu army can take the initiative to come out to fight and stop me." , so that I can relax my muscles and warm up my body by then!"
"The Shu army may not have the courage!"
Nowadays, the officers and soldiers of the Han army are more or less arrogant. Most of the officers and soldiers despise the Shu army. This is the inevitable impact of the consecutive victories. We all know that we cannot underestimate the enemy, but when our emotions rise, how can we care about so many things, especially for middle and lower-level officers.
It wasn't until I came out of the mountain and approached Jushui that I got my reward. Something was strange in front of me.
At Jushui Ferry, Fuliang had been burned, and the air was filled with the smell of burning grease. The bright firelight made the sky look much darker against the background.
In the evening, the military flag of the Han army was flying on the west bank of Jushui. There were still hundreds of refugees stranded by the ferry, each looking at the burning raft and weeping.
Qingqi arrived. Seeing this scene, Murong Chengtai was surprised and asked Tanqi: "What's the situation here?"
"Back to the general, these are refugees who fled south in Xingzhou. The Shu army set up a checkpoint here. When they saw our outpost, they poured oil and set fire to Fuliang and left, abandoning these Shu people on the west bank!" General Tanqi inspected! He described the situation to Murong Chengtai.
"The Shu army has obviously become a frightened bird. It is said that they are invincible. If they see our flag, they will retreat without fighting!"
After looking at the situation of the Jushui River, it was found that the water flow was not large in winter and flowed out from the shallow mountains and hills. The mountains were not high but the ditches were deep. The land was uneven but the slopes were gentle. Murong Chengtai said: "It seems that the Shu army also knew about this water." It was difficult to stop our army, so we abandoned the defense and retreated back to the west city."
"Gather all these refugees together for me, take them to cut down the trees and build a stronghold, and camp on the west bank tonight!" Murong Chengtai ordered coldly after sweeping over the refugees who were cowering in fear as they were driven by Han cavalry. Send an order to the rear camp to speed up the advance!"
"General, these refugees are mostly old and weak, so I'm afraid they won't be able to contribute much!" His subordinate shook his head and said with a look of disdain on his face.
"If you can make a point, it's a point!" Murong Chengtai said coldly: "These untouchables, why bother? Are they being wronged by being my obedient subjects? Ignorant of current affairs, leaving their homes and fleeing, and suffering this misfortune, isn't it for this reason? Abandoned by the Shu army, you are asking for trouble!"
The organizational and execution capabilities of the Han army are already very high in modern times. They have their own camps and military systems. Under the leadership of the officers, everyone moved up and down, and soon a simple camp was built. The defense was not strong, but the layout was very orderly, and it was enough to provide shelter from the wind and cold.
After arranging passwords, camp defenses, and patrols, and checking weapons, food, and war horses, dusk had completely fallen. Even Murong Chengtai, who was always energetic, was tired after all this hard work. Although he only carried a battalion of several hundred soldiers, he felt like he was shouldering a huge responsibility. He also gained a deeper understanding of marching and garrisoning.
After night falls, the winter wind becomes even colder, carrying water vapor and invading the muscles and bones. In the camp, many bonfires had been lit to keep warm. It was a little late to prepare the meal, so the aroma of rice filling the air seemed particularly tempting.
Murong Chengtai tried his best to eat with the soldiers, but after eating two pieces of cake, he took out a water bag and drank a few sips in the name of patrolling the camp. It was filled with wine...
"General, many of those refugees have no food rations and are crying for food. The commander-in-chief has orders not to harm the people when marching. Do you want to..." The officers under his command found Murong Chengtai and asked for instructions.
In order to ensure the safety of the camp, the hundreds of refugees were monitored three miles outside the camp. They could only light a few fires and find some grass and trees, and huddled up to starve and endure the cold. It was very miserable.
"The Commander-in-Chief said not to disturb the people, but he didn't let us help them! We are fighting now, and you don't know how difficult it is to transport military rations from the rear to the front. How can we distribute the rations to the soldiers!" Murong Chengtai said , with a stern look on his face, but after hesitating and careful consideration, he finally waved his hand and said: "That's all, there aren't many people around, so make some porridge and transport it to them to fill their bellies. Tell them to go back to where they came from!" "
"yes!"
He led a small group of soldiers out of the camp and checked in front of the ferry. Murong Chengtai's dark face almost blended into the night. The original Fuliang was completely dead, with only some residual wood left, and some smoke could still be smelled.
Looking at the other side, in the dusk, one could vaguely see the shadows of people flickering, they should be Shu soldiers used for reconnaissance and surveillance. The outline of the west county town is also vaguely visible, very far away, and it feels a bit desolate.
"I wonder if the defenders in the West City are panicking at this time?" Murong Chengtai muttered.
Taking a deep breath, Murong Chengtai told the sentry officer he summoned: "Early tomorrow morning, send someone to detour around Fushui and cross the river to check the enemy situation in Xicheng and the surrounding terrain. In addition, search upstream and downstream to see if we can Find some ships!”
"yes!"
