"Bo Yue, this is not the way to go." Liang Xu came up with an anxious face, "Ji Han's army will arrive soon, and we will be unable to advance or retreat. What should we do?"
Jiang Wei nodded, agreeing with Liang Xu's statement, and asked, "Where is Luomen? If it doesn't work, let's go back to Luomen first."
"I sent someone to try it the day before yesterday, and the gate of Luomen was also closed."
Liang Qian interjected.
Although Jiang Wei had expected it, when he heard this, he could only look up to the sky and sigh, "Does the sky want to destroy us?"
Liang Xu's eyes flickered and hesitantly said, "Bo Yue, this is not..."
Jiang Wei heard the words and knew what they meant, and immediately sneered, "What Lehe said was that he was going to surrender to the Shu captives?"
Liang Xu, Liang Qian and Yi Shang did not dare to look at Jiang Wei, they all lowered their heads and remained silent.
"The clans in the city have really put their best efforts into it!"
Jiang Wei smiled miserably.
He finally understood what the family meant.
The Shu captives are coming fiercely, and if Jicheng cannot be defended, then these few of them who surrender to the enemy in advance will be the family's hope on the Shu captive side.
If the city of Hebei is not destroyed, then the clans in the city will be regarded as having merit in defending the city, and in order to defend the city, even the members of the clan will refuse to leave the city. Isn't this not loyal enough?
What's more, being forced to surrender by one's own people in such a desperate situation will only make him more trusted by the Shu captives.
Jiang Wei thought that maybe the clan would like to use the relationship between himself and others to make Yishi with Hanzhong bigger in the future.
"I was pushed out by my family, what can I do?"
Liang Xu smiled bitterly.
If you can quickly devise this kind of situation based on the situation in the past few days, which of the elderly people in the family is not a genius? It is estimated that when Ma Zun said those words in Luomen, the family had already started planning after getting the news.
Jiang Wei snorted and turned around, "Let's go."
"Where to go?"
"Where else can we go? Of course we have to vote for the big man!"
Jiang Wei gritted his teeth and said.
"Boyo, did you decide so quickly?"
Liang Xu was a little surprised.
"My family has decided for me, what else can I do?"
Although he was worried about his mother at home, the Jiang family was from Liangzhou. Even if he was away, his mother would still have her own family to take care of her, so there was no need to worry too much.
It's just that if you say this, you will fall into a place of unfilial piety.
But in this situation, what else can he do?
Jiang Wei got on his horse and looked back at the city behind him, with a gloomy look in his eyes: If you don't tolerate me, I swear to make you regret what you did today!
The group of people cast long shadows on the ground and walked south, leaving Jicheng behind.
The chaos in Longyou reflects all aspects of life.
Some go south, some go west.
When Longxi County, the farthest west of Longyou, received the news, it was already time for the Han army to enter the pass in large numbers and divide their troops to capture various counties.
Nan'an County fled because the prefect abandoned the city, and other counties responded one after another. In addition, Guan Xing and Zhang Bao led some light cavalry, and they were quickly defeated.
Then the two men immediately led their troops northward and set up a guard at the junction of Longyou and Liangzhou to prevent Liangzhou soldiers and horses from coming for reinforcements.
Wei Yan continued to go west, preparing to pass through Nan'an County and conquer Xiangwu County, the county seat of Longxi County.
All the counties in Longyou surrendered, especially Nan'an, which was captured without any effort, which gave Wei Yan the illusion that he could naturally conquer the area in one fell swoop as long as he led his army to Longxi.
After all, among the four counties in Longyou, even Tianshui County, the most important place, has surrendered. Is there any reason why Longxi County, the most remote place, should not surrender?
Therefore, he urged his troops to march lightly and quickly, hoping to reach Xiangwu County quickly.
When the officials in Xiangwu City heard that Shu soldiers were coming, they were all frightened.
You Chu, the prefect of Longxi, stood at the city wall, looking eastward, with sorrow on his face and sighing.
"The Shu captives are approaching, and the Ming Dynasty does not understand the laws and regulations. It does not order the officials or repair the soldiers and armor to defend the city. Instead, it laments here. Is this the way to defend the country for the imperial court?"
When You Chu heard the sound and looked over, he saw two men standing not far away looking at him. One of them was Shi Mayong, the governor of Longxi County, and the other was Gongsun Zheng, a soldier in Longxi County who had personally visited Nanxiang.
What he said just now came from Gongsun Zheng's mouth.
"Why don't I want to defend the city?"
These two people were both his friends. You Chu smiled bitterly, but he did not hide his helplessness, "It's just that the two counties of Tianshui and Nan'an have surrendered. Now only Longxi County is left, and it is isolated from the outside world. What can I do? "
"The Ming Dynasty also knows that Longxi is isolated from the outside world?" Gongsun Zheng smiled when he heard this, "The Shu people not only came from afar and spared no effort in manpower, but what can they do even if they get here? They have no siege equipment and have been exhausted for a long time. Master, can we still capture this fortified city?"
You Chu heard something in Gongsun Zheng's words, and immediately asked, "Why did Boyan teach me?"
Gongsun Zheng pointed to the outside of the city and said, "The defenders of the city must cut down the surrounding trees, fill up the water sources, destroy the walled houses, drive the people into the city, and prevent it from being used by the enemy. In this way, the Shu people want to attack the city. We also need to go far away to cut down trees and make equipment, so the Ming government should have people do this as soon as possible."
"I saw that the general of Shu was advancing with light armor. When he got here, he was unable to penetrate the armor with his strong crossbows. We used the well-charged troops in the city to go out to meet the tired troops. If he dared to fight, he would be defeated. If he didn't dare to fight, he would be defeated. If you have to retreat a few miles to camp, you can also dampen its energy first."
"Nowadays, the hearts of the people in the city are unstable, and the Ming government must calm them down as soon as possible. Otherwise, how can we defend the city if people are not united?"
You Chu's eyes lit up when he heard Gongsun Zheng's previous words, and when he heard the last sentence, he frowned again, "When a person's heart is depressed, how should he care for it?"
"This is an easy matter." Gongsun Zheng looked at You Chu with burning eyes, "But I have to borrow something from the Ming Dynasty."
"What?"
Gongsun Zheng pointed at his head.
The next day, You Chu summoned the officials and people in Xiangwu City who were highly virtuous and respected, and said, "Since I became the governor of Longxi, I have never been kind to you and others. Now the Shu people are aggressively attacking Longyou, and all the officials and people in other counties have gone to Shu people." "
"If you want to do it, I will not stop you. After all, this is your opportunity to seek wealth and honor. But I am different. Others can surrender, but I cannot."
"The duty of the prefect is to guard the county, so my duty is to die. If you are willing, please use my head to seek wealth."
As he spoke, he pulled out his sword and threw it on the ground.
With a "clang", everyone took a step back, then looked at each other, not daring to speak.
Although You Chu claimed that he was not kind to Longxi County, in fact he was generous and charitable since he became the governor of Longxi County. He always focused on kindness and did not like to use criminal law and killing. Most of the officials and common people benefited from him.
Now looking at him standing there with righteousness and awe, preparing to die, finally a passionate person said loudly, "The righteousness of the Ming Dynasty lies, how can we live in an ignoble existence? I am willing to live and die with the Ming Dynasty!"
With that said, he stood up, picked up the long sword, and stood in front of You Chu, "Everyone wants to leave, but please do as you please. Please don't harm Ming Mansion."
At this time, the integrity of the Han people still existed, and Liangzhou was very chivalrous. Someone took the lead, and the kindness and righteousness arose, and everyone said, "We have the same heart."
You Chu sighed, "It seems like I am forcing the sergeants of the city!"
Then he said, "If you don't want to take action now, then I will give you an idea. If the Shu people come to attack Longxi, we can't hold on. We will wait until the court reinforcements arrive, and the Shu captives will retreat, and everyone will be able to do so." Received a reward from the imperial court."
"But if things go wrong and the Shu people attack the city in a hurry and find it difficult to defend the city, please be sure to tie me up and send me to the Shu camp. Then I will bear the responsibility of the crime. How about that?"
After everyone heard this, many people breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing this, You Chu knew that his goal of winning people's hearts had been achieved, so he sent an order to close the city gate tightly and prepare to defend the city.
Two days later, Wei Yanguo's light army arrived in a hurry, including the surrendered troops from Nan'an County.
When the army marched to the city, they saw that a military formation had been set up in front of the city gate. At the same time, someone on the city wall shouted to him, "General, you have come a long way, do you have the strength to defeat Longxi Jian'er?"
This situation was beyond Wei Yan's expectation. He really didn't expect that Xiangwu County not only refused to surrender, but also dared to go out of the city to form a formation and wanted to fight with him.
It's just that he marched too fast along the way, and the soldiers had little strength by now. Now they are in urgent need of rest, how can they dare to agree to You Chu?
I saw Wei Yan driving his horse forward and shouting to the city, "The Han army has entered Longyou, and all the lands have descended upon hearing the wind. Do you want to resist the heavenly soldiers with a mere county?"
You Chu laughed and said, "If the Shu people can block Longshan and prevent the soldiers of the Wei Dynasty from going to Longxi, the Longxi officials will surrender without a fight in a month. If not, your wait will be nothing more than raising an army in vain."
After finishing speaking, he beat the drum himself and saw Shi Mayong, the commander of the city gate, shouting loudly and leading the soldiers to advance slowly.
Wei Yan did not expect that the other party would march as soon as he said he would march. He immediately pulled up the reins and returned to the army. He led his troops to cut off the rear in person and ordered the army to retreat slowly.
The first day of the tour to Chu dampened the spirit of the Shu people. The soldiers and civilians in the city were greatly encouraged, so they became more determined to defend the city.
Wei Yan was anxious when he saw that Xiangwu City would not surrender, but he had to rest for a day before asking his soldiers to cut wood and make siege equipment.
Beacon fires broke out in Longyou, and Zhang He led Cao Wei's Luoyang Central Army to come day and night.
In Xiping County, Liangzhou, which borders Longxi County, a fast horse is galloping on the official road. The command flag on his back indicates that this is a post messenger delivering important news.
When the soldiers of Xiping County and the Western Capital City saw the post envoy coming at full speed, they quickly dispersed the people around the city gate.
After a while, at the door of the Xidu Prefecture, the postman rolled off his horse and fell to the ground. However, he took out an official document from his arms and shouted, "Urgent report from Wuwei!"
The soldiers at the gate of the prefect's mansion rushed over and helped him up. One of them took the official document and hurriedly delivered it to the mansion.
"General, urgent report from Wuwei!"
Hao Zhao, who was dealing with government affairs, was shocked when he heard this. He quickly stood up and took it to take a look. His expression changed greatly: "The Shu captives actually attacked my great Wei Longyou?"
The official document was sent by Xu Miao, who had just been appointed governor of Liangzhou, ordering him to quickly organize his troops and go to Yuzhong in Jincheng County to join the Jincheng prefect, preparing to go south and recover Longyou.
Hao Zhao did not dare to neglect, ordered his troops and horses, and was about to set off, but someone under his command persuaded him, "General, in the land of Xihai to the west of Xiping, there is a Bald Tribe who has just surrendered, and there are wealthy families in Xiping County who are often thinking of rebellion. "
"What if the general takes all the troops and horses, the barbarians rebel without justice, and the wealthy families take advantage of the opportunity to cause chaos?"
When Hao Zhao heard this, he felt that it made sense.
After pondering for a while, he said, "The Bald Hair tribe has treated me with great respect. I am now ordering the best members of the tribe to follow me southward. This will not only drive them to fight against the Shu captives, but also make them unable to rebel."
"As for the wealthy people in Xiping County, they were killed last year. At this time, their vitality is severely damaged, and they will not dare to rebel easily again."
After planning, he sent an order to Bald Pigu, the leader of the Bald Ministry.
The Bald Hair Division was proud of their master's advice and moved to the West Sea. They finally found a place to settle down and ended the days without pasture.
In addition, he helped Hao Zhao quell the rebellion, obtained the privilege of trading with the Han people in Xiping County, and continued to annex the Qiang Rong and other tribes near the West Sea, which gradually became a grand event.
Now there are nearly 10,000 tents and more than 7,000 people who control the strings. It is a rare and large tribe in the Western Sea.
Tufa Pigu received Hao Zhao's order, so he asked his son Tufa Qieli to lead five thousand elite cavalry from his clan to accompany him.
When Hao Zhao went south with his preparations, Prime Minister Xiangqin of the Han Dynasty finally led an army to conquer Xixian County. At the same time, Jiang Wei led the officials from Tianshui to surrender on their own initiative.
Zhuge Liang was overjoyed. After taking a brief rest in Xi County, he continued to march northward and invaded Ji County.
At the same time, Zhang He had just passed Chang'an and ran westward along the Weishui River, preparing to meet Cao Zhen at Yicheng.
"Come on, hurry up, don't drop it."
Feng Yong stood at the gate of Xi County and shouted loudly.
I saw one after another short Yunnan horses, led by the grooms, making a "treading" sound under their feet, carrying bags after bags of grain into Xixian County.
This is food shipped from Qishan City.
In the past two years, Zhao Guang has stored a large amount of grain in Ju County. In addition, Zhuge Lao Yao also plundered the grain of aristocratic families in central Shu before the Northern Expedition, so there is no shortage of grain and grass.
What is lacking is transportation capacity.
This time, Feng Yong spent a lot of money and transferred most of the transportation capacity of Dongfeng Express.
Before going north, I also put horseshoes on the horses. Not only did they walk on the mountain road much faster, but I didn't have to worry about damaging the horses' hooves.
Today's grain and grass are first transported from Hanzhong to Juxian by carts along artificial stone roads, and then transported from Juxian to Qishan City by Dongfeng Express.
Some of Qishan's urban settlements and others had to keep up with the army, so as soon as Xi County arrived, they immediately shipped a batch over.
It is precisely because of the powerful transportation capacity of Dongfeng Express that the army at the front does not have to worry about food shortages.
This made the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty very satisfied, and it was also the main reason why Feng Yong was always guarding the grain road at the back, so that people could make the best use of their talents.
Seeing the listless Zhao Guang standing next to him, Feng Yong said angrily, "Just the food in Juxian County has already given you a lot of credit in the Northern Expedition. Who can you show to yourself with this dejection?"
Zhao Guang muttered, "What do I want from this credit? What I want is the credit for going into battle to kill the enemy..."
As he said that, he squatted down and drew circles by himself.
"Don't worry, there are plenty of opportunities for you." Feng Yong glanced at the north and sighed, "These comfortable days will not last long."
I thought about it in my mind, and if history is correct, Zhang He should have arrived in about ten days from the time of the attack on Jicheng.
Zhuge Laoyao's response should be a mistake in estimating the speed of Cao Cao's reinforcements.
If we immediately divide our troops to attack Longdi, there may be a chance to block him to the east of Longshan.
But who knows? What if he sees that Longdi has been lost and runs directly to the north and comes up the Long Road from the north?
Of course, it is also possible that the old demon Zhuge originally planned to fight Zhang He in the street pavilion.
So after thinking about it, I might as well forget it and let Zhang He come over from the street pavilion according to his original trajectory.
It seems that the big man can't get around this street pavilion after all.
