Wang Xiaolie was handling official documents in the official hall when Wang Ruohai hurried in from outside. Said: "Commander Jie, Zhai Xing was killed, and the Zhai family army was defeated!"
Wang Xiaolie raised his head and looked at Wang Ruohai, stunned for a moment. After a while, he said: "What did you say?"
Wang Ruohai said: "Zhai Xing was killed, and the Zhai family army has been defeated!"
Wang Xiaolie stood up suddenly, walked forward and said, "What's going on? For two months, the Zhai family's army has been gaining the upper hand. Why did Zhai Xing suddenly die?"
Wang Ruohai said: "We don't know the details yet. However, those of us who were watching the battle at Longmen have returned. It is said that Zhai Xing was suddenly killed on the battle formation. Meng Bangxiong's people counterattacked, and the Zhai army was unable to resist the enemy and retreated across the board. Meng Bangxiong’s army is pursuing us, but we don’t know what the situation is now.”
After Wang Xiaolie heard this, he walked around the room twice. He said: "Immediately send someone to investigate. We must find out what happened. Li Dutong went to the Ru River to inspect the pontoon there, and sent someone to ask him to come back immediately. Consultant, if Zhai Xing is really dead, this war will not be over. Same."
Wang Ruohai accepted the promise, turned around and left Wang Xiao's hunting hall.
Wang Xiaolie sat back, thought for a while, and called Cui Qing over. Said: "Please make arrangements and change my official office into a headquarters to prepare for battle."
It won't be long before Wang Ruohai comes back. Said: "Commander Jie, the matter has been roughly understood. The Puppet Qi bribed Zhai Xing's forward commander Yang Wei and killed Zhai Xing in the battle formation. The Puppet Qi had already prepared and took advantage of the situation to counterattack, and the Zhai family army was defeated. According to the news, It was led by Peng Qi, the commander of the Zhai family army, and the entire army retreated to Yique City. Meng Bangxiong's people then pursued them, and it seems they are going to wipe out the Zhai family army!"
Wang Xiaolie said: "Our army is on the side, who gave Meng State the courage?"
Wang Ruohai sighed: "We have been in Ruzhou for almost two months. What do others think? In the eyes of Meng Bangxiong, they also think that we are here to take advantage of Zhai Xing. Zhai Xing is dead now , maybe he thinks we won’t join the war!”
Wang Xiaolie lowered his head and thought for a while. Said: "Now it depends on whether Zhai Cong can hold Yique City. If he holds it, our army will go out to help him reverse the situation. If he cannot hold it, there is nothing to say. There is no need to consider the Zhai family army in this battle!"
Wang Ruohai nodded and said nothing. Lie down on the table and look at the map near Luoyang.
Wang Xiaolie sat back in his seat, closed his eyes, and slowly thought about the current situation. When Zhai Xing died, the Zhai family army lost its backbone. It was not easy for Zhai Cong to regain his strength. Meng Bangxiong will not give him time and should take advantage of the situation to attack fiercely.
Zhai Xing died, and the forward commander defected. Dong Xian should no longer guard Shou'an, and might retreat immediately. The other commanders of the Zhai family army may not obey Zhai Cong's orders for a while, and may be in chaos for a while. If he didn't take action immediately, Meng Bangxiong would probably drive Zhai Cong back to Yiyang.
Wang Ruohai suddenly raised his head. Said: "When Zhang Jun went to Yingyang, he said that one of Zhai Xing's troops, Yang Taiwei, was conspiring with Jiang Yi. Unfortunately, Jiang Yi died later and the matter was left undisturbed. We mentioned this matter to Zhai Xing, but he didn't I believe it, I must have heard it wrong. Now it seems that this Captain Yang is Yang Wei."
Wang Xiaolie thought for a while. Said: "Maybe that's it. Alas, if Zhang Jun had brought Jiang Yi back at that time, there would not have been the disaster today. Forget it, don't mention this matter in the future, just pretend it never happened. Think about it, now we have tens of thousands The army is on the side, and if Yang Wei is out of his mind, he will not defect and surrender to the puppet Qi at this time. He must have wanted to defect before, and the puppet Qi has something to do with it, so he has to kill Zhai Xing."
After finishing speaking, he thought for a while and then said: "Linru Town is not far from Yique. Order Zhang Yin to come to Wentang immediately! The other troops in Linru Town must be ready for battle!"
After noon, Li Yanxian returned to Wentang. It was only said that Zhai Xing was killed in front of the battle, and he couldn't help being surprised.
The three people gathered in Wang Xiaolie's official hall, discussing the nearby situation and what was going to happen next.
Li Yanxian said: "When such an accident occurs, it goes without saying that we must participate. If we participate in the war, the attack must be fierce without any hesitation! We must make Meng Bangxiong unable to react and attack Luoyang City directly! How to attack Longmen, we Many plans have been made. Now that Meng Bangxiong's army has attacked, Longmen should be empty."
Wang Xiaolie nodded: "Yes. It happened yesterday, and we got the news early this morning. According to time, Meng Bangxiong's army should arrive at Yique today. If Meng Bangxiong breaks through Yique, we will send troops immediately , can’t hesitate!”
Wang Ruohai said: "I don't know what Zhai Cong is thinking. If something like this happens, Zhai Cong should ask us for help. Zhai Xing has been guarding Luoyang for several years, and his brother has a good reputation in this area. He doesn't care about his identity, so it's hard for others to say anything. Zhai Cong doesn't have this kind of prestige, so it shouldn't be like this."
Wang Xiaolie said: "Henan Prefecture does not belong to the Zhai family. Zhai Xing is the governor of Henan Prefecture, Mengzhou and Zhengzhou appointed by the imperial court. If he does not agree, my army cannot enter Henan Prefecture. Zhai Cong is just a subordinate of Zhai Xing. General, he doesn’t have this identity. Don’t worry about him!”
Li Yanxian said: "In this way, once Zhai Xing is dead, Commander Jieh will no longer have any scruples in attacking Luoyang."
Wang Xiaolie nodded: "That's right. I've been staying in Ruzhou because Zhai Xing didn't invite us to attack Luoyang together. Once Zhai Xing died, there would be no officials appointed by the imperial court around Henan Mansion, so why should we care? We must do it before tomorrow morning Figure out what happened and what the current situation is. There is no accident and we should attack immediately!"
Li Yanxian and Wang Ruohai agreed.
In fact, these people under his command didn't quite understand why Wang Xiaolie was worried about Zhai Xing. It is not easy for a hundred thousand troops to come over the mountain. Until now, Xiangyang Prefecture, Dengzhou, Tangzhou, Suizhou, Yingzhou and other places are still active in military operations and transport military rations to Ruzhou on a large scale. Paying such a high price, Wang Xiaolie stayed in Ruzhou for two months just because of Zhai Xing. These two months will require a lot of military rations.
In the Song Dynasty, the appointment of governors was often very casual. For example, Feng Changning and others reported to the court that they were holding the place and became governors. Zhai Xing, the governor of Henan Prefecture, Mengzhou, and Zhengzhou, was not a great official. However, he had the strongest military force around Henan Prefecture, so he became this official. Even Zhai Xing's deputy envoy Dong Xian actually ignored Zhai Xing. What does Wang Xiaolie care about?
What Wang Xiaolie cares about is his status in the imperial court. Even if this title has no practical meaning, it still doesn't go too far. This was not done because Wang Xiaolie valued the imperial court, but because other people valued the imperial court. Doing things this way is easier for local powerful groups to accept.
In the evening, Zhang Yin arrived. After saluting everyone, Wang Xiaolie ordered him to sit down.
Wang Ruohai said: "Deputy Commander Zhang, Zhai Zhenfu in front was assassinated by his general Yang Wei, and the Zhai family army was defeated. Do you know the news?"
Zhang Yindao: "Return to the Council. I've heard about it, but I'm not very clear about it."
Wang Ruohai said: "During yesterday's attack, when we reached the top of Longmen Mountain, Yang Wei suddenly stabbed Zhai Zhenfu, killing him. Later, Yang Wei took Zhai Zhenfu's head and defected to Meng Bangxiong. Meng Bangxiong's army took advantage of the situation to counterattack. , defeated the Zhai army and headed straight for Yique City."
Zhang Yin wanted to ask why this happened, but after thinking about it, he held it back. Said: "Our army is approaching Yique, I don't know how to give orders?"
Wang Xiaolie said: "As soon as Zhai Xing dies, we must join the battle. You are at the front and should be ready to fight at any time. The plan to attack Longmen has been made many times, but now that the battlefield is not Longmen, it should be changed."
Zhang Yindao: "Commander Jie, please give me your orders!"
Wang Xiaolie said: "When the army is dispatched, there must be no hesitation. It requires the courage to fight and the ability to fight! When Yique City was built at that time, it was mainly to defend Yiyang and Ruzhou, and did not intend to use it to protect Luoyang. What you have to do Even if Meng Bangxiong is stationed in Yique City, we must ignore it and attack Luoyang directly!"
Zhang Yin hesitated. He said: "If this is the case, once Luoyang cannot be captured quickly, it will not be easy to transport food later."
Wang Xiaolie said: "Don't worry about these things. The troops behind will naturally handle them. In short, once there is a military order, you must attack Longmen directly, and then attack Luoyang. Ignore Yique behind! The decision to attack must be decisive, and there must be no Any hesitation!”
Zhang Yin crossed his hands and said, "You will understand, Commander-in-Chief, don't worry!"
Wang Xiaolie looked at the sky and said, "It's getting dark soon. You should rush back to Linru Town immediately. Make arrangements overnight and be prepared!"
Zhang Yin promised, said goodbye to several people and left.
Wang Xiaolie said to Wang Ruohai: "Order the left army in Deng Yu Village to get ready. After receiving the military order, set off immediately to surround Yique City! When we join the war, we cannot be held back by Yique City and let the defenders of Luoyang do the work. Be prepared. Zhai Xing attacked Longmen for two months and died suddenly. Luoyang will be in chaos now, so we must seize the opportunity!"
