stubborn thief

Zhang Yingchang, Cao Bianjiao, and He Renlong were still immersed in the excitement of the friendly forces' victory.

Suddenly receiving a report from the army, Yang Yanchang ran out of Yaozhou City and told his men to break camp and run south without saying a word. They looked at each other in shock.

Until Yang Yanchang was discovered running away, the three generals did not know that Ren Quan'er had run away. Cao Bianjiao even said: "Let General Ren chase Yang Yanchang quickly!"

Because allowing Quan'er to move the camp to the south of the city was the result of discussions with them.

He first discussed with Cao Bianjiao and said that the five battalions of the coalition forces were all in a daze, and we were the only two who were awake. You would be stationed in the west of the city, and I would be stationed in the south. If something happened, there would be someone to take care of them.

Xiao Cao originally felt that he and General Ren had similar interests, not to mention that this was a popular figure in front of Chen Qiyu, the governor of the five provinces. He considered that such an arrangement would be beneficial to the military and immediately agreed.

Then Ren Quan'er broke camp and headed south.

But at this moment, Yang Yanchang also broke camp and headed south, which made people confused.

He Renlong frowned and said, "Could they be in cahoots with each other?"

Zhang Yingchang and Cao Bianjiao said in unison: "Impossible!"

Zhang Yingchang said categorically: "Then Ren Quan'er and Yang Yanchang have never dealt with each other. How could they get together?"

Zhang Yingchang had thought when he was stationed in Longxi earlier that if Yang Yanchang died of poison or was assassinated one day, it would definitely be Ren Quan'er.

The same is true in reverse. If Ren Quan'er is hacked to death with random swords or let go by his own gunmen on the battlefield, it must be Yang Yanchang's order.

As for Cao Bianjiao, his tone was not so firm. Just hearing He Renlong talking to himself, Ren Quan'er's hateful face emerged in his mind.

How could General Ren, such a decent man, turn to the thieves?

On the contrary, He Renlong recalled that whenever the Yan'an camp robbed his belongings, Ren Quan'er would come and give He Yong a small red envelope and ask He Yong to say good things to him.

This made He Renlong fall into deep doubts. Could it be that there was something wrong with his memory?
Or do you mean that we don’t know how to recognize people at all?

He Renlong has indeed doubted his vision for a long time.

After all, if the Famine Army releases a ruthless character like Liu Chengzong, no matter who it is, they will fall into deep self-doubt.

As soon as he said these words, General Ren Quan'er's jealous face appeared in his mind. He immediately shook his head and said, "Could it be that Yang Yanchang ran away and General Ren is chasing him?"

The three generals fell silent.

The person who broke the huge silence was the soldiers sent by Bee Tail Needle from the city. They entered the camp unimpeded and asked in the middle army: "Generals, my general asked why the two battalions of soldiers went south. Anyway, What should I do?"

"If there is an attack, our army can also cover your flanks."

Cao Bianjiao's eyes almost flashed into his head, asking you to cover the flanks?It was time for something to happen if nothing happened.

Zhang Yingchang talked on the wheel again, soothed the messenger of Bee Tail Needle back, looked at Yaozhou City and sighed, and then looked at each other with Cao Bianjiao and He Renlong: "What should we do about this city?"

No matter how slow they reacted, they had already realized that something was wrong with Yang Yanchang and Ren Quan'er's camps.

At this time, Cao Bianjiao and He Renlong were of no use.

Cao Bianjiao is a determined guerrilla general, and He Renlong is an experienced general. They are both very capable in battle, but they both struggle to lead their headquarters and are of no use to the overall situation.

Zhang Yingchang raised this issue because he wanted to legitimately gain command of the Ming Army on the North Road.

In fact, to be honest, he doesn't want command power, because command power requires responsibility.

It's just that he had some guesses about Liu Chengzong's current position, and the fear of Xi'an falling was greater than the pressure of responsibility.

The first decision he made was to tell He Renlong and Cao Bianjiao: "We and other three battalions must not chase the two battalions south."

After that, he unfolded the map in the Chinese army's camp and drew a line from west to east with Qianzhou southwest of Yaozhou as the center. He grabbed the scabbard and pointed to the south of the line and pondered for a moment.

Zhang Yingchang guessed Liu Chengzong's approximate location.

The reason lies with Zu Kuan. Zu Kuan crossed the Wei River and plundered from east to west. In order to search for Guan Ning's army, Liu Chengzong briefly retracted Tangqi and spread it to the southwest.

North of Qianzhou there are almost no signs of the activities of Marshal Tangqi.

There were only scattered Mongolian cavalry drinking horses and grazing in the wilderness, but those elite soldiers were afraid of people, and only one cavalry was needed to drive away a small group of them.

But even if they are driven away, they will just come to eat grass in a different place.

Guanzhong, which was invaded by drought and locust plagues at the same time, was desolate and decayed. The place was too big, and there was no place where Da Bing could not graze.

Let alone risk our lives for a few mouthfuls of grass. Since the Ming army likes the grass here, we can just eat it somewhere else.

So even if Qianzhou was being besieged by Zhang Xianzhong, Zhang Yingchang could be sure that Liu Chengzong was not there.

If it’s not in Qianzhou, it must be in the south.

Because since the fifth battalion led the army south, the contact with Xi'an Mansion has been severed.

Calculating the time, the messenger he sent to Xi'an to ask for Zhang Zhen's advice on state affairs should have arrived long ago, and the reply should be sent back this morning.

But this news seemed to sink into the ocean without any response.

Based on this information, Zhang Yingchang drew a large circle on the map of Xi'an Fucheng and the counties north and south of the Wei River, and judged: "Liu Thief should be here."

He Renlong stared at the map with big eyes, wondering about Mr. Zhang's circle. This guy has circled two-thirds of the entire map.

What's the difference between this and me farting on the map: Thief Liu is on this map!
All fools know it!

It was not difficult for He Renlong and Cao Bianjiao to determine Liu Chengzong's position.

The hard part is analyzing his next move.

This is what Zhang Yingchang wanted to say. He gestured with his hand on the map: "Yang and Ren's two battalions are heading south, and they will meet Liu Thieves soon. Our three battalions are following behind. If something unexpected happens, it may be difficult to move the horses." Go back."

"Currently Liu Thief will lead his army to move in all directions, surrounding Xi'an Fucheng, attacking the officers and soldiers on the south route, facing the officers and soldiers on the west route, or going north to attack me."

After Zhang Yingchang finished speaking, he asked the two generals: "What do the two generals think he will do?"

"Attack the South Road officers and soldiers."

Cao Bianjiao spoke categorically, clasping his fists at the two men and saying, "Now I understand. As long as one of the two generals Ren and Yang has a problem, they can explain Zhang Zhen's actions in the city to wait for our army to go south."

"Someone must have leaked the news in advance and informed them of our army's strength and equipment. This allowed them to make a false surrender strategy."

Having said that, Cao Bianjiao added: "I think it's Yang Yanchang, why would he dare to enter..."

Cao Bianjiao still didn't want to believe that there was something wrong with Ren Quan'er, but he was interrupted by Zhang Yingchang before he finished speaking: "Ignore them in advance, it is our third battalion now, we must withdraw immediately and go west."

Cao Bianjiao said: "General, what you mean is that most of Liu's thieves will go north?"

He Renlong was much more sensitive. He had something in his mind. He nodded and agreed to Zhang Yingchang's suggestion. Then he quickly changed the subject, raised his finger and pointed in the direction of Yaozhou City, saying: "There are six thousand in the city, and Yang Ren's two battalions are seven. Thousands, which is already more people than our third battalion."

"If some random people come from the south, I'm afraid they will surround us here."

The most critical thing is that their three battalions can no longer form an absolute advantage against Zhang Zhen who owns the city wall.As He Renlong spoke, he was already aware of the serious situation at hand and said, "Should we enter Xi'an or go west?"

Zhang Yingchang categorically pointed to the north of Qianzhou on the map: "Go west, enter Pizhou."

Pizhou is in the mountains to the north of Qianzhou. Both Cao Bianjiao and He Renlong can easily see the advantages of stationing in Pizhou.

Firstly, there are mountains and rivers there, which is not conducive for the army to spread out and defend; secondly, it is close to the Guanzhong Plain, which is easy to move out.

The most important thing is that all three of them know that Pizhou is still under the control of the imperial court.

Earlier information about the victory in the west was that the messengers were passing through Pizhou on the mountain road. They were originally going to Qingyang. When they learned that they were marching to Yaozhou, they were sent to Yaozhou.

This means that there is still a relatively safe passage over there.

It is not easy to find a safe passage on the Guanzhong Plain nowadays. Liu Chengzong's troops are everywhere in Qianzhou, Yaozhou, Longzhou, Fengxiang Prefecture, and Xi'an Prefecture.

Seeing that both of them had no objections, Zhang Yingchang breathed a sigh of relief and directly issued the order as the commander-in-chief, ordering the third battalion to inspect the weapons and livestock, count the soldiers, and immediately break camp and head west.

Although everyone knows that the course of a war usually deviates greatly from the plan.

But this time, before the friendly forces started fighting, they slipped away without saying a word. This was something no one could have imagined.

Fortunately, although Zhang Yingchang, Cao Bianjiao, and He Renlong were not subordinate to each other, they had their own official positions. Without Yang Yanchang and Ren Quan'er, who could not help themselves, and were little masters at fighting against each other, General Zhang became more nervous.

Zhang Yingchang had the right time, place and people, and managed to take command of the three battalions of more than [-] troops. All he thought about was a blessing in disguise.

He decided to station in Pizhou. The main purpose was to avoid being surrounded and annihilated by the marshal's army before contacting friendly forces.

As long as more than [-] troops enter Pizhou City, the strength is enough to defend the city wall. There is basically no possibility of being breached before the food and grass in the city are used up.

At least in Zhang Yingchang's view, he had single-handedly reversed a crisis.

The next thing he wanted to see was Liu Chengzong's strategic intentions and troop deployment direction.

Zhang Yingchang also had several plans in mind. If the Marshal's army mainly attacked Xi'an, they would contact Zuo Liangyu, Ai Wannian, Cao Wenzhao, Long Zaitian and other friendly forces.

Cooperate with them to attack the marshal army and peasant army in Fengxiang Mansion.

If Liu Chengzong goes north, it doesn't matter. Their friendly forces in the west are so powerful that they can drag Liu Chengzong in Pizhou, which is enough to hold him until Fengxiang recovers.

If Liu Chengzong goes directly to the west... Zhang Yingchang thinks this possibility is very low, but he is not afraid even if he goes west. Their army stationed in Pizhou can also cause trouble for the marshal's army in the rear.

The three battalions of troops quickly rose up, still with He Renlong in the vanguard, Zhang Yingchang in the middle, and Cao Bianjiao in the rear, and quickly marched toward Pizhou in the west via the mountain road.

Zhang Zhen, Mi Layin, and Ding Guodong in Yaozhou City were all confused.

They really didn't know what was happening. From the moment Yang Yanchang left the city, they saw Ren Quan'er from the south leading his army to run away first, followed by Yang Yanchang. The two battalions were like a race, rolling up dust and swooping down on the Guanzhong Plain. Disappeared.

There were three messy camps left on the Sigou Plateau. They were boiling water and cooking. Suddenly, these three camps also stood up, and disappeared from the other one.

Not to mention how confused the three people in the city were.

Zhang Zhen was the first to react.

He held the battlement and scratched his hair scarf: "If you don't understand, then stop thinking about it. Send someone to tell the general to disperse the besieging troops. Three battalions should go west and two battalions should go south."

"Let Zhang Budang of Qianzhou be careful not to be kidnapped by thieves emerging from the mountains."

In fact, just as Zhang Yingchang thought, Liu Chengzong's main army had crossed the Jing River and arrived at the outskirts of Sanyuan County, very close to Yaozhou.

As long as Zhang Yingchang evacuates two hours later, he won't be able to leave even if he wants to.

During the march, Liu Chengzong saw Ren Quan'er and Yang Yanchang who followed him. However, he had no chance to say much during the march. He temporarily organized the two battalions into the central army and ordered the march to continue, thinking of reaching Yaozhou and talking about it for many more years. The feeling of separation.

At this time, I received news from Zhang Zhen and heard that the other three battalions were also running away. He held the reins on the horse and said with a smile: "They are quite smart and know how to run."

In fact, the march of his army was clearly visible to the Ming army spies walking west on the mountain road.

Information about a large group of soldiers marching north with the Vultures was reported to Cao Bianjiao and others. The three generals were each frightened and felt a sense of escape from their hearts.

Especially Zhang Yingchang, looking at the mountain road at dusk, was simply frightened.

But he didn't know that this was just the beginning.

That night, the Third Battalion was stationed at the Shimen Inspection Department, arriving in a hurry and just sleeping rough on the mountain plateau.

When they got up the next morning, Cao Bianjiao had only half a battalion of soldiers left in a full camp. These people woke up with complicated expressions and regretful faces.

Five groups of soldiers on night watch were all gone.

General Xiao Cao looked confused and puzzled.

On the contrary, nothing happened to Zhang Yingchang and He Renlong's camps.

Zhang Yingchang saw that half of the Pingliang camp was still there, listened to the scout report, and said that according to the footprints, the deserters should have run towards Yaozhou.

He said: "Forget it, it's urgent to get on the road. Let's go to Pizhou first and then recruit troops and replenish the troops on the spot."

He immediately broke camp, and after walking for half an hour, Cao Bianjiao rode up again and said, "General, we can't do it anymore. Let General He take the rear."

Zhang Yingchang thought that he shouldn't.

Now that Yang Yanchang is gone, except for He Renlong, our army should no longer have weird problems.

Now He Renlong is leading the Yansui Army in front, and they are walking smoothly without any surprises.

Why do you have so many things to do?

Cao Bianjiao didn't want to, but the soldiers in the back hall were almost gone.

In the blink of an eye, there were no more five hundred bosses. When I turned around to look for him, I saw that the commander-in-chief who was a Liao soldier was tied up and hung from a tree.

The soldiers all left, saying they had gone to the commander-in-chief.

His battalion now has 1000 men left, but several officers from the Guan Ning Army are in danger.

Return to the imperial army?
If your highness goes down again, they will be gone.

Zhang Yingchang had no choice but to let Cao Bianjiao lead a thousand soldiers as the vanguard, call He Renlong back and let him take the rear.

He Renlong looked like he was dissatisfied and resentful. The boss was reluctant, but after hearing about Cao's miserable appearance, he held his nose and accepted.

Not to mention, He Renlong's visit to the rear this time greatly changed Zhang Yingchang's view of him. He walked very steadily along the way, and even often sent people to the Chinese army to help set up camps and make fires for cooking.

Except for the soldier's habit of petty theft, he is extremely reliable!
Until we cross the Jing River, the west side of the river is Pizhou City.

When Zhang Yingchang turned around, He Renlong was handing him over on the east bank of the Jinghe River.

This grandson did not cross the river and led his troops eastward! (End of chapter)