I want to be emperor

Chapter 5 Officers and Soldiers Attack
Li Tonglin wants to take his army to plunder the Sanlin Village in the north, so as to have a bumper harvest of food, money and beauties!

But before he led his soldiers to kill them, the sentry reported that thousands of officers and soldiers had killed them from the northeast. This group of officers and soldiers should have come to encircle and suppress them, the rebel army.

This is not the point, the point is that when these thousands of officers and soldiers were chasing their rebel army, they stopped by Sanlin Village on the way.

根据哨探回报！

The official and army reported that Sanlin Village colluded with bandits to plunder the countryside. They stormed Sanlin Village for half a day and broke through. They massacred the entire Sanlin Village and looted all the food and other goods inside. Zhuangzi burned.

Obviously, the people who knew that there was food in Sanlin Village were not only Li Tonglin and the others, but also the officers and soldiers...

This news drove Li Tonglin to death!

"That's Lao Tzu's food. Those officers and soldiers are so bullying that they even dare to grab Lao Tzu's food!"

Li Tonglin was so angry that he once wanted to lead his troops back to defeat the officers and soldiers and grab the food back.

But in the end, Sun Chengli and the others persuaded them. They were three or four thousand officers and soldiers, and they were not corrupted local guards, but recruits from battalions. It was too late to run away when they met them. If you turn around and go back to beat him, you don't want to die!
Luo Zhixue actually didn't understand that Sun Chengli and the others were so afraid of officers and soldiers. He felt that the uprising in the late Ming Dynasty was so big that the combat effectiveness of the officers and soldiers should not be very good. Woolen cloth.

Sun Chengli reassured him: "There are many types of officers and soldiers. If it is an ordinary guard soldier, it goes without saying that we can probably win the battle by sending a few hundred people at random, but the one who is here now is not a guard soldier. , but the elite under Zuo Liangyu's hands."

There were also many types of officers and soldiers in the late Ming Dynasty, including elite frontier troops and recruited troops that were more capable of fighting in inland areas.

It is hard to say whether the fighting power of different Ming armies is strong or weak, it depends on who the generals lead the troops.

For example, after Lu Xiangsheng went south to the Yunyang area, he joined several other government troops. The total number of people killed was only [-], but he defeated the tens of thousands of rebels entrenched in the Yunyang area, forcing them to flee back to the mountains. , which in turn restored Yunyang to stability.

And now the officers and soldiers behind their buttocks are the troops under Zuo Liangyu's command. It's hard to say whether Zuo Liangyu's army will win or lose against those large-scale rebels, but it must be a one-on-one fight against Li Tonglin and his small rebels. allow.

If you encounter this kind of enemy, don't run away and wait for the New Year!
The problem is that even if Li Tonglin and the others wanted to run, it wasn't that easy.

Ever since he learned that there were officers and soldiers from the north, and Zuo Liangyu's army was chasing him, Li Tonglin yelled at first that he wanted to go back to grab food, but he was persuaded by his subordinates after a while, and then ordered to run away.

It's just that the refugees recruited along the way with more than 1000 people are young and strong, and their speed is simply not fast enough.

Just three days later, they were overtaken by officers and soldiers.

When Luo Zhixue looked at the officers and soldiers reconnaissance cavalry that frequently appeared in the north, he knew that the rebel army he had just joined would change from fleeing to a full-scale rout at any time.

The only question is, can he survive the rout?
"It seems that it is difficult to handle. Now that the scout cavalry of the official army has appeared, I am afraid their forwards are not far away. Once they are entangled by their forwards, it will not take long for the main force of the official army to feel it. By then That's going to be a big problem."

Luo Zhixue said to Sun Chengli who was beside him: "General, it's impossible to go on like this."

Sun Chengli, a middle-aged man with pockmarked face and even ugly appearance, also looked suspicious, and only heard:

"We are now taking these more than 1000 people away, and we have also brought a lot of luggage. It is impossible to escape under the pursuit of the officers and soldiers."

"At this point, the general needs to make a decision early." After finishing speaking, Sun Chengli turned his head and looked at Li Tonglin who was riding a horse not far away to observe the enemy's situation.

Listening to these words, Luo Zhixue had already heard the meaning hidden in Sun Chengli's words!
Make a decision early?What decision?
Luo Zhixue didn't need to think too much about it, this decision must mean abandoning the more than 1000 refugee soldiers, and then leaving with only more than 100 cavalry.

The more than 1000 migrant soldiers were still carrying luggage, and their marching speed was very slow, and they could not escape the pursuit of the officers and soldiers behind them.

And there is another hidden danger that no one has mentioned at this time, that is, they are short of food.

The remaining food in the army is less than seven days old.

And because there were officers and soldiers chasing after them, the enemy's vanguard was estimated to be only ten miles away from them, so that they didn't even have time to stop and attack small towns and farms to plunder food.

As soon as they stopped, the forwards of the government army behind them could catch up and entangle them.

If they continue to be chased by the officers and soldiers like this, even if they are not defeated by the officers and soldiers, they will have to completely collapse due to lack of food.

However, if more than 1000 refugee soldiers are abandoned, things will be simple. Their more than 100 cavalry can quickly get rid of the pursuit of the officers and soldiers within a short period of time. A wave of looting by a big landlord can solve the food problem.

Li Tonglin who was not far away was also in a bad mood!

The reconnaissance cavalry of the officers and soldiers has appeared, which means that the forwards of the officers and soldiers are not far away, and the main force of the officers and soldiers is also approaching.

If it continues like this, it will be a dead word sooner or later.

but!

Li Tonglin was not reconciled to just abandoning these more than 1000 refugees!
After he led a group of soldiers to mutiny a few months ago, while avoiding the encirclement and suppression by the government and army, he ran around and plundered and gathered troops. He managed to gather more than 1000 soldiers on the way.

According to his plan, after gathering a few thousand more people, he will attack a certain county like other large-scale rebels, plunder food, gold and silver, ensnare more young and strong, and continue to grow in strength. Give him a year In half a year, who dares to say that the army under his command cannot expand to tens of thousands?

But this was just the beginning, and Zuo Liangyu was following him.

This gave him a sense of frustration.

At this time, Sun Chengli also brought Luo Zhi to Li Tonglin's side, and Sun Chengli said, "General, it's been three days."

"We've tried it, but this officer is like a dog's skin plaster, you can't get rid of it!"

"General, let's go."

Luo Zhixue on the side also felt that Li Tonglin couldn't hesitate anymore, otherwise, Luo Zhixue would have to consider whether to leave the big team and escape on his own.

They were pursued by Zuo Liangyu's elite troops, many of whom were cavalry, it was impossible for them to escape with more than 1000 refugee soldiers.

Luo Zhixue immediately said: "General, since the second king, now there are rebels from all walks of life in Shanxi, Shanxi and Henan. There are Chuang Wang Gao Yingxiang, Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong, Luo Rucai, etc. Now the group of heroes has become a force."

"How come the official army has been unable to wipe out the rebel army for so long?"

Hearing Luo Zhixue speak, and what he said was still the general trend, Li Tonglin and Sun Chengli immediately turned their heads to look over.

Luo Zhixue continued: "At the beginning, the strength of the rebel army was weak, but they avoided battles and looked for opportunities to grow stronger. Now that the rebel army is strong, they will gather troops to attack or defend, and it is difficult for the officers and troops to continue."

"The rebel army is more skilled in riding, or good at riding and shooting, or straddling two horses. They can travel hundreds of miles a day to attack the enemy's weak. Even if they are accidentally surrounded by the enemy, they can easily escape. The officers and soldiers have many horses and three steps. There is no way to chase them. Chase."

"In this way, even though the government and army have been encircling and suppressing for many years, the heroes are still in many provinces!"

After preparing to say something, Li Tonglin narrowed his eyes slightly!
As an officer and soldier, and a few months ago he was one of the officers and soldiers who personally participated in the encirclement and suppression of various bandits. Li Tonglin could easily understand Luo Zhixue's words.

Why have the officers and soldiers been unable to wipe out all bandits?
Natural disasters and man-made disasters caused people to not have enough to eat, and then continued to trigger various uprisings and other factors for the time being, let alone the military aspect.

The reason why officers and soldiers were unable to wipe out all bandits was very simple, because most of the core backbone of the rebel army were grooms, postmen, deserters, and rebels, and these people's military literacy was actually not bad.

In addition, there is a saying in "Song Chuang Mengyu" written by Zhang Han of the Ming Dynasty: There are many donkeys, horses, cattle, sheep, fur, muscles and bones in Shaanxi.

There are many mules and horses in this place!
The combination of many factors has led to the very strong mobility of the core backbone of the rebel army.

Even though officers and soldiers sometimes besieged the large units of the rebel army, those trapped were only those refugees who were used to raise money. As for the core backbone of the rebel army, they basically slipped away when they saw something bad.

It is very difficult for the officers and soldiers to catch up with the rebels because there are many infantry and few cavalry.

After the backbone of the escaped rebel army got rid of the officers and soldiers, they were given a few months to bring out tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of refugees.

Even the main generals in the Ming Dynasty saw this very clearly, so they all adopted the method of encircling and suppressing from all sides, pressing step by step, and compressing the space for the rebel army step by step, but the effect was not great. That's all.

For these, Li Tonglin actually understood in his heart, but he hesitated before because he was reluctant to part with the gathered soldiers.

Now, Li Tonglin took a deep breath and said: "The officers and soldiers are chasing closely. The goal of so many of us gathering together is too big. I'm afraid we won't be able to get away. Order the soldiers to gather mules and horses to prepare to break through. As for the rest of us , Let them disperse and break through!"

After thinking about it, Li Tonglin said again: "Give them the food that can't be taken away. From now on, life or death depends on their own fate!"

After giving the order, Li Tonglin looked at Luo Zhixue again, with kindness in his eyes: "Can Mr. Luo know how to ride a horse? Later we will inevitably have to walk some small roads, and the carriage is not easy."

Luo Zhixue said: "I have learned a lot these days. Although I am not yet proficient, it is enough to ride a horse."

He had known for a long time that the gang of thieves would run away under the pursuit of the officers and soldiers. Before he recovered a little, he asked Sun Chengli for a more docile pony to learn how to ride a horse, and he also asked many people for advice.

It would be nonsense to say that he is proficient in equestrian skills, but it is still barely enough to just ride a horse.

Besides, now is the critical juncture of running away, if you don't, you will!

Li Tonglin nodded slightly!
Just know how to ride a horse!
For this Luo Zhixue, he still appreciates it quite a bit. Not only can he know how to read and write, he can do accounts, but what he said just now doesn't seem like something an ordinary scholar could say.

Perhaps in the future, he can also be asked to advise on military strategy.

-

After Li Tonglin made his decision, he acted very quickly. He arranged the matter properly in about half an hour, and then he personally led more than 100 cavalrymen, Luo Zhixue and others to evacuate first.

As for the more than 1000 refugee soldiers, they dispersed after receiving the food distributed.

There are thousands of officers and soldiers behind them. If Li Tonglin hadn't forced them to escape, these refugees and soldiers would have fled for their lives. They would have foolishly followed Li Tonglin all the way.

Therefore, this is actually a matter of benefit to both.

Li Tonglin had to run away with these more than 1000 refugees to really harm them.

Li Tonglin led more than 100 soldiers on horseback and galloped across the road. After more than 1000 refugees and soldiers dispersed, the officers and soldiers behind were accustomed to this.

They have seen a lot of similar situations. Whenever the war is unfavorable, the backbone of the bandit army will basically leave the ordinary refugees and run away alone.

Therefore, the officers and soldiers ignored those refugees who dispersed in a rush, but bit Li Tonglin and other more than 100 cavalrymen tightly.

These more than 100 cavalry are the backbone of this bandit army, and killing them is the real destruction of this bandit army. Otherwise, in a few months, these more than 100 bandit cavalry will be able to regroup thousands or even tens of thousands of refugees.

(End of this chapter)