Daming: From the end of Hongwu

262 Chapter 260 - Investigation and Controversy

Zhuozhou city.

Since Zhen Wu ordered the Tang family and others to be sent to Beiping, all his thoughts have been devoted to the next battle to the south. At the same time, he also got the latest developments of the court and the current situation from Zhu Neng.

Zhuozhou City extends in all directions, leading to Beiping in the north and Shanxi in the west. These two roads pose no danger or pressure to Zhen Wu and the others. Zhuozhou City was out of breath.

Even when the Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, none of the generals, including Zhu Di, has the slightest thought of celebrating the festival, but is full of worries.

There are two roads going south, one leads directly to Zhending Mansion, and Zhending Mansion has now been designated by Zhu Yunqi as the Chief Secretary of Pingyan. There will be no less than 30 troops.

30 million!

Even if Zhu Di kept surrendering and reorganizing all the way, there are only [-] soldiers at full strength.

It's like having a deposit of only 7 yuan, but you have to pay for a house with a down payment of 30 yuan. Zhu Di, who is so stressed, can't sleep every night.

And this is just one of the imperial court's several routes to the north, the other route to the south is even more terrible for them, as if the fire has already reached their eyebrows.

This other route leads to Shandong, counting from north to south. Starting from Zhuozhou, it is Xincheng County, Xiongxian County, Mozhou (now Renqiubei), Hejian, and then directly to Dezhou, Shandong.

Zhu Neng came out of Beiping before and went all the way south to Xiong County, but after the imperial army attacked aggressively, Zhu Neng saw that Zhu Di and others were too late to help him, so he had no choice but to abandon Xiong County and retreat to Xincheng County.

As a result, the current situation is a bit difficult, because Xincheng County is not as strong and broad as Xiong County. If the imperial army attacks, Zhu Neng and the others cannot use Xincheng to defend, and they have to retreat to Zhuozhou.

It was as if the barrel of the court's gun was about to stab Zhu Di in his mouth.

Zhen Wu looked at the garrison situation of Shandong soldiers and horses on the map, and frowned deeply. Xu Kai's [-] troops who marched from Shandong had already stationed in Hejian. The vanguard Yang Song led [-] soldiers to occupy Xiong County. Pan Zhong led more than [-] people to station in Mozhou as a response.

He tapped his fingers on the location of Xiong County irritably.

This city must be in their hands. Otherwise, Xu Kai's Hejian soldiers and horses can continuously enter Zhuozhou from Xiongxian County. As long as Xu Kai wants to fight, he will attack Zhuozhou city at the first time. This is too bad for them. , and if Xiong County is in the hands of Zhen Wu and others, and there is Baigou River between Xiong County and Mozhou, Xu Kai's soldiers and horses want to cross the river, and they have to weigh their troops stationed in Xiong County.

Only in this way can they effectively contain Xu Kai's advance.

Once it can't be contained, wait for Geng Bingwen to send troops from Zhending, and the two sides attack together, and everyone doesn't have to fight, just vote and forget it.

Speaking of which, after Yang Song occupied Xiong County, he did not move. He was waiting for Geng Bingwen to gather 30 soldiers from Henan and other places. With the strong city wall of Zhuozhou City, it can also hold on.

But the problem is that Geng Bingwen's 30 people can't tell when they will be assembled and start going north.

Zhu Neng, Zhu Gaoxu, and Zhu Gaosui all had a bit of guilt on their faces, and Zhu Di comforted the three of them: "You three don't have to be like this. Speaking of it, we are still slow, but if we come a few days earlier, even if we face Xu Kai's army of [-], Xiongxian will not be afraid. If you can keep it, now it’s nothing more than fighting it down.”

Although Zhu Di's tone was relieved.

But the three of Zhu Neng didn't feel well either.

There are only three words to fight it down. Kexiong County is so strong, and Yang Song's [-] soldiers are sticking to it. If they don't use up all their strength, how can they be defeated.

But once they use up all their troops, how can Pan Zhong from Mozhou and Xu Kai from Hejian not support them, and when they fall into a war of attrition, how will they be able to afford it?

Everyone can think of these issues. After some discussion, they ended up breaking up again like the previous few times. There is no good solution.

After the meeting ended, Zhen Wu planned to have a break with Zhu Neng and the three of them. He also saw that the three of them were holding back their energy and wanted to comfort them.

But at this time Zhang Yu came to Zhen Wu's side and said, "General Zhen, is there anything else for a while?"

Zhen Wu shook his head, then smiled and said: "General Zhang, you don't have to be too polite. If you don't mind, you can call me Da Wu. Almost all the elders in the family call me that."

Zhang Yu was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "Then I'll take care of you, but you don't have to call me General Zhang, you can call me Lao Zhang. I've been in the army for most of my life, so I don't care much about it."

"That's it, that's it."

Zhen Wu was even less particular. Unless it was necessary, he didn't pay too much attention to what other people called him. He looked at Zhang Yu's expression and saw that he seemed to have something to do, so he asked: " Is there something looking for me?"

Zhang Yu nodded, looked in the direction of Xiongxian County and said, "It's nothing serious, I just wanted to ask you if you want to go to Xiongxian County for a visit."

"Xiong County?"

Zhen Wu understood Zhang Yu's meaning in an instant. He planned to see the garrison in Xiong County with his own eyes, so as to determine whether he could fight or how to fight.

He immediately became interested and asked, "Just the two of us?"

"Yes, at most one person can bring a personal guard to act as a servant. If there are too many people, it would be inappropriate."

"No problem, let's go right away?"

"Let's go."

Zhang Yu was in a good mood, thinking that it was a smart idea to fool Zhen Wu to go with him, and the safety factor would be doubled.

The two then went down to prepare separately. After meeting outside the city, they quickly headed towards Xiong County. After reaching Xincheng County on the way, the two changed into a private carriage and pretended to be wealthy households who fled from Xincheng and wanted to go south. , Not long after, they merged into many people who went south to seek refuge.

Among the many people who went south, they were not too conspicuous.

However, Xiong County was taken over due to war preparations, and the inspections in front of the city gate were very strict. Ordinary people were not allowed to enter the city at all. Even Zhen Wu and the others were allowed to enter the city after spending some money because of their status as wealthy gentry.

However, he was still told that he had to leave the city before the curfew, or he would be arrested as a spy.

Zhen Wu and Zhang Yu looked at each other, which basically cut off the possibility of a large number of soldiers being mixed in for internal response. Even if a hundred or ten people were mixed in, it would not be of great effect.

After they entered the city, they observed the city defense of Xiong County without any trace.

Zhen Wu has to say that Yang Song is a bit capable and the city defense arrangements are tight, but there is one thing that makes Zhen Wu a little excited, that is, whether it is the people or soldiers in the city, they all have very strong feelings for the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival. Everyone seemed to not pay attention to the Yan army in Zhuozhou City, and planned to have a lively festival.

Zhen Wu thought it was a bit funny.

When Zhen Wu and Zhang Yu found a restaurant and sat down to eat.

He even heard the conversation of a team of changing soldiers.

A soldier at the captain level, after drinking a bowl full of wine, said carelessly: "It is said that the Northern Army can fight, but it seems that it is nothing more than that. Didn't Zhu Neng hear that he is very good? How did you see that?" We ran away in despair."

"That's right. At that time, I was still preparing to fight a tough battle. Who would have thought that I would just run away, and I ran all night for fear that I would run too slowly."

The crowd suddenly burst into laughter.

Then someone said, "That's normal. No matter how much the northern army can fight, it's because they didn't meet our southern army. If we were put on the border, I dare say the Mongols would be fucked if they continued to fight."

"Yes, yes."

"Speaking of which, we don't know what's wrong with King Yan's mind. He is only a few people, and he dared to raise troops to fight against the court. Isn't this old birthday star eating arsenic, and looking for excitement when he has nothing to do."

……

A few people said a word and said it with great joy.

In fact, not only them, most people in this world are not optimistic about Zhu Di. After all, his strength on paper is too bad. No matter how imaginative people are, they would never expect Zhu Di to fight back and forth and win in the end.

But other people's underestimation is good news for Zhen Wu and others.

Zhen Wu smiled and whispered to Zhang Yu: "I didn't expect Zhu Neng and the others to give us a chance to retreat."

Zhang Yu also nodded with a smile.

Arrogance is taboo in the barracks.

Afterwards, the two of them listened to the soldiers chatting, and they even talked about the Mid-Autumn Festival. Several people were excitedly discussing how to celebrate the festival, how to play, and how to call a few little ladies.

Hearing this, Zhen Wu and Zhang Yu's eyes showed ecstasy.

Zhang Yu immediately dipped his fingers in the wine, and wrote 'Xiong County can be attacked' on the table. Zhen Wu wiped it off with one hand after seeing it, and nodded solemnly to Zhang Yu.

Some things must be seen with your own eyes, such as the state, military discipline, and mentality of the soldiers in Xiongxian County. These things cannot be seen in military newspapers, and fighting is not like playing chess. The rules took one of their pawns, because when the two armies confront each other, even if they are at a dead end, if their morale is high, they can still win heartily.

Although these things sound very mysterious, but in real wars, it is often these things that affect the outcome.

Now that Zhen and Wu have heard the conversation between the Xiongxian soldiers, it is obvious that the other party has careless intentions and is not ready for a bloody battle.

The restaurant is not a place to talk. After a brief exchange between Zhen and Wu, they each began to listen to the opinions of the people around them. After eating, the two wandered around the city for a while, focusing on each After the demeanor of the soldiers, the two looked at the time, and then went out through another city gate and returned to Zhuozhou City.

After they returned to Zhuozhou City all the way, neither of them was delayed, and went directly to Zhu Di.

Zhu Di was a little surprised by the two's outfits, but after hearing the two said that they had secretly checked Xiong County, Zhu Di immediately looked at it squarely, and quickly asked, "How is the situation in Xiong County? Let's see if we have a chance."

Zhen Wu excitedly said: "Yes, and the chance is great. Although Yang Song arranged the defense of the entire Xiongxian County to be impeccable, all the soldiers are arrogant and have loose discipline. As long as they fight bloody battles..."

Having said that, Zhen Wu suddenly came to his senses, glanced at Zhang Yu, and said with a smile, "You should talk about it."

This trip to Xiong County was proposed by Zhang Yu. If Zhen Wu said that he was very important, it would be inappropriate to do so. Although Zhang Yu may not care, Zhen Wu can't do it either. After all, in the communication between people, there are often gaps accumulated because of some small things.

Zhang Yu smiled and shook his head angrily. He understood what Zhen Wu meant, and felt that Zhen Wu was a bit suspicious, but Zhen Wu's actions really made him feel a lot better. He only said that Zhen Wu was open and bright, and he was a good friend .

Afterwards, Zhang Yu told Zhu Di what they heard and saw in Xiong County.

Zhu Di fell into deep thought.

At this time, Zhang Yu said something surprising: "We have been resting in Zhuozhou for a few days, and it is time to go south to attack. Yang Song and Pan Zhong are now guarding our way to the south. If we don't capture them, why leave them? In a word, stop I will wait for those who pass by, and kill without mercy."

There was endless sharpness in his tone, as if he was unstoppable.

Zhen Wu looked at Zhang Yu in surprise, is this the pattern? !

To know the current situation, there are Zhending Geng Bingwen's 30 troops in the west, and Xu Kai's [-] troops in the east.

Under such circumstances, Zhang Yu never seemed to be thinking about how to defend these two routes of soldiers and horses. He was still thinking about how to go south and fight to Nanjing City.

Defense?

Do not!
To attack!
This seems to be the courage and breadth of mind that a general should have.

Zhen Wuxin felt that since the start of the battle, there were only two endings, either Beiping City was captured by the imperial court, or Nanjing City was defeated by them, there was no third possibility.

If the generals don't have the belief that they will break the city of Nanjing, how can the soldiers be brave and fearless.

Zhu Di seemed to be touched by Zhang Yu's words, and he looked at Zhen Wu.

Zhen Wu nodded and said: "Your Highness, we are going south to fight, and we are going to the Qing Dynasty in Nanjing City. Naturally, we can't just think about staying in Zhuozhou City, let alone Xu Kai throwing 2 people to Yang Song and Pan Zhong as vanguards. I would be too sorry for them if I didn’t eat them first.”

After a pause, Zhen Wu continued: "Looking at the overall situation of the war, the Southern Army not only has the backing of almost all the state capitals of Ming Dynasty, but also assembled an army of no less than 40 troops, while we only have Beiping and Yongping, and our soldiers and horses can only be buckled. The [-] troops squeezed out by Kou Suosuo seem to be vulnerable, but wars cannot always be based on the overall situation. We must strive for and accumulate more and more local victories, so as to affect the overall situation bit by bit. Victory, in which our army has more cavalry and has an advantage in speed, through this we can create a lot of local situations where we can fight more and fight less."

"For example, in our current situation, there are 9000 Yang Song in Xiongxian County and more than 7 Panzhong in Mozhou, but we have 10 people. Compared with this, our military strength is obviously superior. As long as we are fast enough , when Xu Kai can't react in time, take Yang Song and Pan Zhong, then Xu Kai's [-] people have nothing to do with our current war. A local battle."

After saying this, Zhu Di and Zhang Yu's eyes lit up.

This kind of global and local theory, although there are similar statements in military books, but Zhen Wu's theoretical statement is quite new, and Zhu Di himself is an expert in blitzkrieg, and he has deep and deep research on the application and study of the value of soldiers, surprise and surprise. He quickly figured out what Zhen Wu said.

After Zhu Di figured this out, the pressure brought by the unfavorable overall situation for a while also became much smaller.

But having said so much, there is still no specific implementation plan for how to fight Xiong County. Zhu Di thought for a while and said: "If you think it is possible to fight, then we will take the initiative to fight, but once we want to fight, we must quickly win Xiong County. Otherwise, the consequences will be huge. First, it will affect morale. Second, Xu Kai in Hejian will definitely increase his troops immediately, cutting off our thoughts of taking down Xiongxian County. The city cannot move."

Both Zhen Wu and Zhang Yu nodded, and Zhen Wu said again: "We understand, so we discussed it on the road, and our opinion is to attack at night."

Zhang Yu took over the words and said, "That's right, if we want to take Xiong County, the only thing we worry about is Pan Zhong, who is echoed by Mozhou, so we can divide our troops into two groups, one to block the reinforcements, and the other to gather all the remaining soldiers and horses. Attacking the city with all our strength, I thought that Xiong County would be taken overnight, but in such a situation, even if Xu Kai had an army of [-], he would not be able to support him, and it would not help."

Take the strong city of Xiong County overnight.

A little risky.

Once they are guarded by Xiong County, Xu Kai's [-] troops will probably be waiting for them.

Moreover, during this night, Pan Zhong's reinforcements from Mozhou had to be successfully stopped. If they couldn't be stopped, Pan Zhong's army would go to the city of Xiong County and attack Yang Song's troops inside and outside, and they would definitely lose.

Zhu Di was a little hesitant. This battle was a bit like a gamble, and he still put all his capital on it.

At this time, Zhang Yu threw out the last opportunity and said: "Your Highness, the Mid-Autumn Festival will be in two days, and the soldiers in Xiong County will be negligent because of the festival. As long as we take advantage of this opportunity to fight, we will surely succeed. Such a good opportunity , I hope His Highness will think carefully about it."

Moon Festival.

Zhu Di recalled in his mind what Zhen Wu and Zhang Yu had just said about Xiong County, and thought of the arrogance of Xiong County soldiers and their anticipation for the festival, he finally gritted his teeth and made a decision.

As the old saying goes, an opportunity cannot be missed, and it will never come again.

He was never a hesitant person, so he immediately said in a deep voice: "Okay, let's fight. After you two go down, don't make a fuss about it. Just ask someone to go to Xincheng to inform Zhu Neng, and let him do something in Xincheng." To give the illusion that we are preparing for the festival, loosen the outside and tighten the inside to paralyze Yang Song, and when Mid-Autumn Festival night, I will destroy Xiong County."

"Yes."

Zhen Wu and the two clasped their fists in response.

After the two went out, Zhen Wu looked at the sky, and the fighting spirit slowly rose from his body. After Zhang Yu felt it, he smiled slightly, and his heart was also surging.

Because Zhang Yu knows that if he just blindly defends, several armies will surely break through Beiping City. If he wants to survive, he can only break through one by one. Victory can support the victory of a big battle.

……

　Thank you for the reward of 'I have no deposit', thank you big brother.

　　In addition, thank you all for your support all the way, and it is precisely because of your support that this book can also be published, which is considered another achievement for me (laughs). easy.

　　Continue to work hard and try to write as much as possible to satisfy everyone.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)