weaving

On the second day after Yuan Shizhong married Li Huimei, the adopted daughter of King Chuang, three groups of bandits, namely King Chuang Li Zicheng, Cao Cao Luo Rucai, and Xiao Yuanying Yuan Shizhong, divided into three groups and marched towards Suizhou in Guide Prefecture.

The army that broke into the camp set out from Yancheng on the west route, passed through Xihua, Fugou, and Taikang, and then stopped between Yuzhen and Suizhou, waiting to join the other two armies before discussing the attack on Shangqiu.

Luo Rucai found Cao Ying's men and horses as the east route. They also set out from Yancheng and took Shangshui all the way to Zhecheng. Then they turned north along the Huiji River and entered the southern suburbs of Suizhou, where they met up with Chuang Ying and Xiao Yuan Ying.

The march route designated by King Chuang for Yuan Shizhong was to go straight north from Chenzhou, bypass Taikang, and go straight to the west of Suizhou City. Xiao Yuan's camp was walking in a straight line. At the same time, as a middle army, he also happened to sandwich In the middle of the two camps of Chuang and Cao.

Li Zicheng had a deep meaning in this arrangement. Perhaps he thought that Xiao Yuan Ying had recently defected to him and wanted to provide him with care and protection, so he sandwiched him between himself and Cao Ying to avoid harassment by the officers and soldiers.

But what he didn't expect was that everyone in Xiaoyuan's camp, from the military advisers and staff officers to the various leaders, were talking about this matter, and some even vented their dissatisfaction in public.

"What nonsense about 'Chuang Wang' being lenient and righteous? It's obvious that he can't trust us, 'Little Yuan Ying', so he put two sides on both sides to guard against us..."

"That's right... Originally we were kings, we could eat and drink as we pleased, and fight wherever we wanted. Now it's better. We have come to recognize our own biological father, and others don't treat us as their biological sons..."

Faced with all kinds of complaints and dissatisfaction in the camp, although Yuan Shizhong pretended not to see it on the surface and did not say anything, he was also complaining secretly, but he was caught in the middle by the two armies of Chuang and Cao. I can't help myself.

What's more, Chuang Wang's army is no longer what it used to be. Since he joined forces with Luo Rucai, he has fought all over Henan Province without losing a single defeat. Not only did he defeat the thief general Zuo Liangyu with a surprise force during the second siege of Kaifeng, and Ding Qirui.

Moreover, after twice defeating the former Baoding Governor Yang Wenyue, he also killed the two former Trilateral Governors Fu Zonglong and Wang Qionian in front of the battle. In addition to gaining great prestige, he also recruited tens of thousands of elite officers and soldiers.

Chuang Wang Li Zicheng's name is unparalleled for a time, and it is not just as simple as overshadowing Luo Rucai, Zhang Xianzhong and others. In Henan Province, the word "Chuang King" is already known to everyone, but the names of Luo Rucai and Zhang Xianzhong , perhaps only those old thieves still know about it, how many people among the people still remember them?

This is actually the reason why the Eighth King Zhang Xianzhong does not want to stay!

For this reason, Cao Cao and Luo Rucai were always at odds with Li Zicheng. Although on the surface they were always harmonious, sincerely united, and tacitly cooperated, secretly they also wanted to find opportunities to break away from Li Zicheng and go it alone.

But he didn't know that since he had boarded the pirate ship Chuang Wang, there was no possibility of him getting off the ship and going ashore!

…………

Gao Guiying, the wife of King Chuang, led the men of the old camp and marched to Suizhou with King Chuang Li Zicheng.

The old camp and Chuang Wangxingyuan were originally one, but occasionally during wartime, the old battalion stayed behind and would be temporarily separated from Chuang Wangxingyuan. Since Chuang Wang called himself the "Civil and Military Marshal Fengtian Advocating Righteousness" last year, Chuangwang Xingyuan has also been separated. It is often called the Marshal's Mansion or the Marshal's Mansion.

At first, only a few generals in the Chuang camp called it this, but this title soon became popular among the Chuang Cao Second Camp. Later, for some reason, the Lao Camp and the Marshal's Mansion were combined into one, and it was called Laofu for short.

Therefore, the various units of the Laofu camp of the Chuang Army, including the Zhongjun camp commanded by Gao Yigong and the Marshal's Mansion pro-army led by Li Shuangxi, were collectively referred to as Laofu troops.

Coupled with the old battalion commanded by King Chuang's wife Gao Guiying and the generals and family members of the Chuang army, this "old mansion" now has more than 100,000 horses. Flags cover the field, swords and guns reflect the sun, and horse hooves move the ground. It is so majestic!

However, the elite soldiers in the old mansion, including Gao Yigong's Zhongjun camp, Li Shuangxi's pro-military camp, and Gao Guiying's old guards, totaled less than 30,000 troops.

The rest are all auxiliaries, servants, servants, and caregivers, as well as the military dependents of important generals, as well as numerous craftsmen, such as blacksmiths, cobblers, doctors, veterinarians, etc.

Moreover, the large amount of money, military rations, horse supplies, cloth and other materials of the intruder army were mostly stored in the old camp. The other camps drew on demand, and what they carried with the camp could only last a few days.

The firearms battalion of Zhang Nai, a young general of the Protagonist Army, also marched with the Laofu troops of the Protagonist Army. Many firearms were carried on mules, and some artillery pieces were put on mule carts and pulled forward.

It was also during this march that Gao Guiying discovered that the young general Zhang Nai suddenly became trance-like and a little haggard. His eye sockets were sunken and his face was a little yellow, far less rosy than before.

She wanted to find an opportunity to chat with Zhang Nai, so as to comfort him, but Zhang Nai seemed to avoid her intentionally and always stayed far away. Even if he came to reply occasionally, he would speak quickly as soon as he finished speaking. Leaving, Gao Guiying could not find the right time at all.

In the afternoon of that day, Wang Changshun, the old horseman of King Chuang, passed by Gao Guiying, so she ordered someone to stop him. Wang Changshun, the old horseman, galloped forward and asked with a smile: "What orders do you have, madam?"

"There's nothing wrong. I'm just bored and want to find someone to talk to. Let's walk together and have some fun by the way."

Gao Guiying had learned martial arts in the bandit camp for a long time, and he was able to do both on horseback and on horseback. As he spoke, he walked side by side with Wang Changshun and asked: "Look at Xiao Nai, is he thinner than before?" Already?"

"It's not that good. It's really no wonder he is there. I feel aggrieved..."

There was something in Wang Changshun's words. He was also an old man who had been with Wang Chuang for a long time. He also saw clearly what happened between Zhang Nai and Huimei. After hearing his words, Mrs. Gao also sighed. She did not want to continue this. topic, he casually asked: "Changshun, I always feel that the folks in central and eastern Henan are different from those in western Henan. Do you feel that?"

"Madam, I feel it too. When we were in western Henan, villagers everywhere came out to greet us and rushed to join our army. However, although the villagers here were not enemies of us, they were always He doesn’t have the energy of Yuxi, he even avoided us and ran away from us."

Gao Gui Yingce answered immediately and said: "Yes. I can see what you said, but I just can't figure out why it is like this. What is the reason for this?"

In my opinion, maybe we have not provided enough relief in central Henan and eastern Henan, but there is nothing we can do about it. Nowadays, we are no better than before. Now there are more troops in the King of Chu, and the army also needs food and grass to eat. We ourselves are also in great difficulty. How can we provide so much food and grain for relief wherever we go?

Besides, there are still men and horses from Cao Ying with us at this time, and the supplies are all distributed from our side. We people in Laofu can sometimes endure some hardships, but the people in Cao Ying cannot suffer any loss at all. As long as he suffers a little loss, he will have complaints against us, King Chuang, and he can no longer be of the same mind as us.

So, although we are here in central Henan and eastern Henan, we will give out relief to the villagers wherever we go, but we can no longer do it casually like we did in western Henan. For this reason, the poor people here see Because of us, it's not as hot as Henanxi. "

Wang Changshun rode his horse next to Mrs. Gao. After listening to her words, he said: "Madam, according to Lao Wang, it may not be all for this. We are people who like to find people to help us at home from time to time. There are some poor brothers in the camp who have just surrendered from Henan Province. They are feeding the horses with me in Gada, and listening to them talk about some of the ideas of the common people, I feel that they are right."

Gao Guiying quickly asked: "What do they have in mind?"

"I heard from them that every time our army goes to a place, they always leave after only a few days, so they don't dare to fight too hard with us, for fear that once we leave, the government will accuse them again." 'Thief', that's really serious.

Therefore, even though some people are oppressed by the government and the gentry, and are full of unjust accusations, they do not dare to come to us to complain, because they are afraid that after we leave, they will be in great trouble. "

After listening to his words, Gao Guiying nodded frequently and said: "This is still reasonable. But everyone is saying that we can't set up officials to manage the people now, and we have to wait until Kaifeng is conquered before we can do these things. , so there is nothing we can do about it.

Fortunately, it won't last long. Once we capture Kaifeng City, the overall situation will get better day by day. At that time, we can follow Mr. Li's method and capture every city we capture. We will also set up officials to manage the people. Let everyone grow crops and live a good life, and the situation will be much better. "

"That's right. The common people are all watching our next move. If we want to conquer the world, we can't just walk around here and there. We have to go when we should go and when we shouldn't go. We won’t leave, we have to occupy some space.

Without our own territory, the poor people dare not really agree with us. We can only occupy the place and set up officials to manage the people. Otherwise, how can we stabilize our country? "

They chatted for a while, and Wang Changshun returned to his team.

Mrs. Gao looked at his retreating figure and said to herself in her heart: "This old man is really a thoughtful person. He thinks wholeheartedly about conquering the country for King Chuang. He can take things that others don't think about, but he can keep them in mind. It’s really not easy…”

…………

On the afternoon of the eighth day of March, Yuan Shizhong led the soldiers of Xiao Yuan's camp to the outside of Suizhou City. However, Luo Rucai's troops from Cao's camp arrived one day earlier than him and were already making arrangements to attack Suizhou City.

Xiao Yuanying's garrison was designated in the northwest area of ​​Suizhou City, responsible for the main attack on the north gate. Cao Ying's troops were stationed on the remaining three sides, and those three sides were also assigned to Cao Ying's main attack.

Luo Rucai's old camp was located at Sanlidian outside the south gate. Lieutenant General Yuan Shi handed over the camp affairs to deputy military advisor Zhu Chengju, reporter Liu Jingyi and several capable leaders. He himself and military advisor Liu Yuchi rushed to Sanlidian to see Cao Cao. Ask him for advice on various strategies for attacking the city.

Cao Cao and Luo Rucai actually did not take Yuan Shizhong, a young boy, into his eyes. They just regarded him as the leader of a "country bandit", who was nothing more than younger than others.

At the same time, he also knew that Chuang Wang was just using Yuan Shizhong, not wanting to take him as a confidant. Even if Chuang Wang wanted to take Yuan Shizhong as his confidant, in Luo Rucai's view, it would be a waste of time.

Just like him, Luo Rucai couldn't bear the sin of someone who was used to being a leader, but how could he be someone else's subordinate, subject to others' control over eating, drinking, and drinking? I believe that the young and energetic Yuan Shizhong wouldn't be able to bear it either!

As for Yuan Shizhong's status as the righteous son-in-law of King Chuang, it was even more insignificant in Luo Rucai's eyes. From the beginning, he secretly laughed at Song Xiance and Niu Jinxing's honey trap, which was destined to "lose both his wife and the army."

Moreover, Luo Rucai's true thoughts in his heart were that he did not want to see Yuan Shizhong become Li Zicheng's confidant. After all, that would only make Li Zicheng more powerful, and it would not be of any benefit to him, Luo Rucai.

Therefore, even though he said nothing, and on the surface he was happy to hear about it, in his heart he hoped that Yuan Shizhong would leave Li Zicheng as soon as possible, in order to achieve the purpose of weakening Li Zicheng's power.

But now he has not figured out Yuan Shizhong's thoughts, so naturally he must not express his inner thoughts, lest others catch him and make a big fuss out of him.

When Yuan Shizhong and military adviser Liu Yuchi arrived, Luo Rucai naturally received them warmly and briefly told them the siege strategy: Suizhou City was not heavily defended by the imperial court, and the people in the city did not want to attack the city for fear of being massacred. If you defend the city, you can break it without attacking. The army has been traveling for days and the soldiers are tired. We can let the whole army rest tonight, and tomorrow we can attack Suizhou City in one fell swoop.

Luo Rucai also told the two of them: I heard that Li Mengchen, the eunuch of the township, resigned and returned home just a few days ago. He was responsible for guarding the south gate, so he, Luo Rucai, entered the city from the south gate, and then opened the other three gates in sequence, and broke through. After the city, the east, south and west gates were also guarded by troops from Cao Ying, while the north gate was guarded by troops from Xiaoyuan Ying.

It wasn't until the end that Luo Rucai said to Yuan Shizhong in a more serious tone: "Shizhong, this is your first time to follow me into Cao's army to attack the city. You must restrain your subordinates well.

King Chuang had issued a strict order. As long as the soldiers and civilians in the city did not resist the city, after the rebels entered the city, they were not allowed to kill anyone indiscriminately. However, those who violated military orders would not be pardoned.

Your Xiaoyuan camp only needs to send 300 men to garrison the north gate. My Cao camp also has 300 men to garrison at each city gate. The rest of the soldiers are not allowed to enter the city, so as not to cause riots and rebellion among the people in the city. My reputation as a rebel.

There is also the mules, horses, money, food and other property in Suizhou City. Each battalion is not allowed to collect it on its own. I will send another general to lead a team of troops into the city to collect it. All these must be handed over to the old manor.

The money and food expenses in your camp and mine must also be uniformly distributed by King Chuang, and then paid by the old man to my Cao camp and your Xiaoyuan camp. You must not send people into the city to plunder mules and horses, or violate the army. law.

You have only been under the command of King Chuang for a short time now, and as King Chuang's good son-in-law, I am also afraid that you will cause trouble and make King Chuang angry, so I will tell you clearly first.

Since the Generalissimo has left you at my disposal, if you don't look good, our old face will lose its luster in front of the Generalissimo. "

After hearing what Luo Rucai said, Yuan Shizhong was greatly surprised. He was frustrated and angry in his heart, but on the surface he did not dare to show it in front of Luo Rucai. He secretly exchanged a look with Liu Yuchi, knowing that now he could only I had no other choice but to endure it, so I pretended to be obedient and kept saying, "Yes, yes. I wrote it all down."

Then, he bowed to Luo Rucai very respectfully and said: "So that the general will know that my nephew has a savior named Tang Xuan, who lives in Suizhou City now. After the city is broken tomorrow, I would like to invite the general. The general issued an order to save the lives of his family as a way of repaying his kindness for saving Shizhong's life. I wonder if the general will agree?"

After Luo Rucai heard this, he did not answer directly, but asked him with a smile: "What kind of business is this Tang Xuan doing? How did he become the savior of my nephew?"