The wind rises at the end of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 260 Torrent
Ye Bu took back the Ma Detective Report, after confirming that the Qing army had really retreated.

Sun Chuanting led the mighty army from Luokou Town to the west of Jinan City.

Sun Chuanting led the army to arrive, which once again caused waves in Jinan City.

As the chief envoy of Shandong, Zhang Bingwen, together with Song Xuezhu, the censor of Shandong patrol, led the officials of Jinan City, big and small, out of the city to greet them. Both sides of the road were filled with gentry and common people who came to greet them.

Even Prince De's palace sent envoys with livestock and grain to reward the army.

If it weren't for the fact that he was worried about causing unnecessary suspicion due to his identity as the feudal king, even King De would have personally come out of the city to greet him.

The imperial court's legal system strictly prohibited the vassal prince and his clan from participating in military affairs. However, in the Battle of Jinan, many members of the Toku clan still broke through the vassal ban and joined the defense team.

Under the comfortable life for hundreds of years, even though countless people have perished in it, there are still some people who maintain their blood in times of crisis.

Chen Wang also stood in the queue, welcoming Sun Chuanting who was leading the army outside the city.

Sun Chuanting's emperor was strict, and he was gentle with officials and gentry who were corrupt and violated the law, but he was not harsh with the people who were able to serve.

From the letter sent by Chen Wang, Sun Chuanting also learned about the situation in Jinan City.

Therefore, during the last section of the road, Sun Chuanting dismounted and walked into the city with the Jinan officials.

The Qing army besieged Jinan City for nine days and nights. There were only a few soldiers in Jinan City, but they were united.

With only [-] weak soldiers and [-] civilians, they held off the Qing army's tide-like offensive.

The officials went to the generals to take care of their lives, and the soldiers and civilians went forward with one heart. More than [-] people were killed or injured in the city.

Tens of thousands of households in the city now wear filial piety and linen, and at a glance, the city is covered in plain silk.

Sun Chuanting walked on the road of Jinan City, facing the grateful eyes one after another, and looking at the people kneeling on the ground, he felt mixed emotions in his heart, and he felt like there was something stuck in his heart, which was hard to describe.

He suddenly understood a lot of things and understood a lot of things.

The tragic scene in Luokou Town made him understand Lu Xiangsheng's persistence.

At this moment, Sun Chuanting finally understood why Governor Lu Xiangsheng chose to go deep alone even though it was difficult for him to do so.

Yang Sichang was high above the temple. To him, the people in each city and the soldiers in each battalion were just cold and ruthless white and black characters.

But Lu Xiangsheng was not Yang Sichang. He stood on the muddy ground from beginning to end, standing with the people he loved and protected.

Lu Xiangsheng was in Xuanda University and Beizhili, and watched the tragedy happen together before his eyes.

Maybe Lu Xiangsheng had hesitation in his heart. Maybe Lu Xiangsheng had hesitation in his heart.

The winning rate is slim. Should we really avoid the edge for the time being and preserve our strength?

However, as a border minister and a governor, responsible for guarding the territory and bringing peace to the people, he was unable to stop the raging and destruction of the Donglu.

Seeing the once prosperous cities turned into ruins, seeing countless people dying tragically and lying on the ruins in the wilderness, how could Lu Xiangsheng deal with it calmly and sit in the camp?
As Lu Xiangsheng said:

When the country is in crisis, can An stay out of it?
How can we just sit back and watch the people suffer?
……

Lu Xiangsheng didn't know about Yang Sichang's plan.

If Lu Xiangsheng was willing to lower his head and follow Yang Sichang's arrangements, then none of this would have happened.

But how could a man as arrogant as Lu Xiangsheng be willing to bow his head, sit back and watch the country's crisis, and let the people suffer?

The emperor's suspicion, the criticism from his colleagues, and the slander from the court finally forced Lu Xiangsheng to a dead end.

The moment he entered Jiazhuang, Lu Xiangsheng had actually foreseen everything that might happen, his own defeat, and his own consequences.

However, Lu Xiangsheng led the remaining soldiers without hesitation and entered Julu's Jiazhuang.

In the suburbs of Nangong, the elders of the three counties braved the wind and snow, carrying pockets and cloth bags, and wearing single clothes. Although they were skinny, they still delivered the only food left at home.

In times of crisis, the soldiers of Xuanfu, Datong, and Shanxi towns were still willing to follow him.

He can't be sorry to them...

……

The city of Jinan is filled with blood, and every breath is filled with the smell of fresh blood.

Sun Chuanting walked on the street, walking forward step by step, feeling heavier with every step he took.

At the end of the day, I felt as if my legs were filled with lead and stone.

Countless messy thoughts lingered in Sun Chuanting's mind.

Sun Chuanting was thinking about one thing. If he had not led his troops to arrive in time, if he had not been able to drive away the Qing army, what would have been the fate of the hundreds of thousands of people in the city when the city of Jinan was broken.

After Sun Chuanting passed Wengcheng, he changed his original plan and did not continue to go deep into the city. Instead, he followed the horse path and boarded the west city of Jinan under the puzzled eyes of the Jinan officials.

Sun Chuanting did not let the Jinan officials follow him, but asked them to return to their official offices. He said on the pretext that the Qing army was heading north, and he would soon lead his troops to leave to chase the Qing army. However, there was currently insufficient food and livestock, so he asked for the allocation of some military supplies and food.

Naturally, the officials in Jinan did not reject Sun Chuanting's request. Jinan City had plenty of grain and rice.

Sun Chuanting led the army to relieve the siege. The soldiers entering the city were in strict discipline and did not do anything to disturb the people. They all saw it.

In fact, in many cases, it is really not entirely the fault of some officials guarding the city for not letting the soldiers into the city, which makes the soldiers feel cold.

Because at this time of year, many armies have broken military discipline, and the disasters they cause after entering the city are not even lighter than those caused by rogue bandits.

The scary thing about the black sheep lies in its amazing destructive power, which can quickly destroy the trust between each other.

An upright and capable person may be swallowed up if he enters a chaotic group, while an unscrupulous person can quickly turn an efficient group into a mess.

The impact and damage caused by an army with corrupt military discipline is enough to make all armies not trusted by others.

All the officials in Jinan were dismissed, but Chen Wang was not among the people who were dismissed. He also followed Sun Chuanting to the west city of Jinan.

Zu Kuan and He Renlong followed Sun Chuanting into the city, but Cao Wenzhao and Cao Bianjiao were not among them.

The army did not enter the city and was temporarily stationed in the western suburbs of Jinan. Naturally, a general was left to take charge of the central army. Cao Wenzhao now stayed in the army to coordinate various affairs.

Cao Bianjiao led Qingqi outside, following the Qing army retreating north, monitoring the movements of the main force of the Qing army.

The main force of the Qing army moved northward. Naturally, they could not stay in Jinan for a long time. They would immediately transfer northward to Dezhou as soon as they could replenish a little food.

Chen Wang and the two of them followed Sun Chuanting to the west city of Jinan.

After arriving at the West City, Sun Chuanting did not let them follow him. For some reason, he only took two of his followers and climbed onto the tower, which was already somewhat damaged due to the war.

The remaining guards and generals who followed Sun Chuanting to the west city were left under the tower, which also gave a few people time to talk.

"These battles have been really enjoyable!"

He Renlong's tiger eyes glowed fiercely, and his successive victories made him quite high-spirited.

"It just so happens that some generals from the border towns are invited to see the capabilities of our Qin army."

He Renlong looked sideways at Zu Kuan and snorted coldly.

He Renlong has a straightforward personality, he says whatever he wants and he never likes to cover up anything.

However, He Renlong is not just a reckless man. He also knows that when facing some people, there are things he cannot say.

For example, when facing Hong Chengchou and Sun Chuanting, he knew how to speak.

But Zu Kuan was not among those people.Zu Kuan was a battalion general like him, but he was the commander-in-chief of the important towns on the three sides of Shaanxi, while Zu Kuan was just a deputy commander-in-chief of Guan Ning.

The rank between deputy commander-in-chief and commander-in-chief is only one level lower, but their authority and status are completely different.

There are very few people like Chen Wang who lead a town with the title of deputy commander-in-chief. That is to say, the deputy commander-in-chief is the chief officer of newly built camps and small-scale camps and towns.

Zu Kuan's expression was cold, and there was a light shining deep in his eyes.

The scene of He Renlong holding a square sword and shouting condescending questions to him is still vivid in my mind.

Zu Kuan did not respond to He Renlong's provocation.

Chen Wang's eyes swept across Zu Kuan's face. Chen Wang naturally knew why the two had a dispute.

It was not only because of the battle in Luokou Town that Zu Kuan wanted to retreat, but also because of the grudges between Liao Town and other military towns.

For many years, Liao Town has received the most money and raised the most soldiers, but it has been in vain.

The other border towns are like little mother's children. Not to mention military equipment, even military pay is difficult to raise.

Most of the soldiers in Liao Town were wearing armor, and the armor wearing rate was terrifyingly high. Almost all the regular soldiers in the establishment were wearing armor.

The armor issued to the battalions on the three sides of Shaanxi is basically one level lower than that used in Liao Town, and the armor coverage rate is not high. Generally speaking, only first-level officers of the team can wear complete cloth armor. Ordinary soldiers Most of the soldiers were wearing various types of armor, and they even had no armor to wear at all.

"The good news has been conveyed to the capital. Your Majesty will never forget the merits of our soldiers and generals."

Chen Wang clasped his hands and said.

"However, the battalions of each town are also contributing. In the battle of Jiazhuang, the soldiers of Xuanfu, Datong, and Shanxi towns fought bravely with Governor Lu."

He Renlong could ignore Zu Kuan's face, but Chen Wang couldn't.

He Renlong is the commander-in-chief, and he is just the deputy commander-in-chief.

Chen Wang knew that his foundation was still shallow, so he naturally wanted to have a good relationship with the generals in Liaodong.

Moreover, he was also from the Liao Dynasty. People of this era attached great importance to local sentiments. People who did not value local sentiments would be given a bad label, so Chen Wang had to defend Zu Kuan both emotionally and rationally.

"The soldiers from the two towns of Guan and Ning have blocked the Donglu all the way. They fought with the Donglu for several battles in the suburbs of the capital."

Chen Wang raised his head slightly, looked past He Renlong, looked into the distance, and sighed softly.

"Commander He, Commander Zu and I have been camp generals for a long time and they should know that many things are not the responsibility of our camp commanders."

"We, the battalion generals, encountered many things that we were unable to do anything about. Things that we fought hard to no avail and were harshly criticized for were just commonplace."

Chen Wang glanced left and right and said softly.

He didn't follow He Renlong's words because it was hard to pick up the conversation no matter what.

However, conflicts can be transferred, and conflicts in various towns can be transferred into civil and military conflicts, internal and external conflicts.

Chen Wang said it very cryptically, but He Renlong and Zu Kuan naturally understood what Chen Wang meant.

The biggest reason why Guan Ning's army was afraid to move forward was because Gao Qiqian was too timid. He sat back and watched the Qing army besiege Jiazhuang, but fled without fighting.

And the reason why we are afraid of the enemy and retreat and want to preserve our strength is also because of unfair rewards and punishments.

Running back and forth, constantly going back and forth, the soldiers will be exhausted. No one will judge the merits of the victory, and all the blame for the defeat will be placed on them.

There were too many times when the court was unclear about what was right and what was wrong. They fought hard without success, lost troops and generals, and still had to be punished.

However, if you avoid the enemy and do not fight, as long as your troops and horses are not lost and your strength is not compromised, the court will not punish and reprimand easily...

Sometimes, it's no wonder that many military generals harbor the idea of ​​preserving their strength.

He Renlong also recovered a little at this time. He realized that his words were inappropriate and he should not have said them in front of Chen Wang. He forgot that Chen Wang was also from Liao.

Chen Wang served as the deputy commander-in-chief of the army in Hanzhong Town. Most of the soldiers under his command were from Shaanxi and were also servants under Cao Wenzhao.

Cao Wenzhao was from Datong, which was located in Shanxi. Shanshan and Shanxi belonged to the same family. Qin and Jin were good friends, so naturally they were one family.

Over time, He Renlong subconsciously treated Chen Wang as a Shaanxi native.

At the moment, Chen Wang did not echo his words, which reminded He Renlong that Chen Wang seemed to be from Liao.

He Renlong's eyes dimmed slightly, and Chen Wang's words also reminded him of the harsh criticism he encountered when he was defeated in the past.

"Brother Chen is talking about... we are waiting for Yingzhen..."

He Renlong wanted to say something, but looking at the armored soldiers standing around him, he was unable to continue.

All the words turned into a sigh at the end.

Zu Kuan, who was standing next to He Renlong with a cold face, also looked a little moved at this time.

The metaphor in Chen Wang's words spoke to his heart.

Zu Kuan raised his head and glanced at Chen Wang, and the fierce look in his eyes faded a lot.

He didn't say anything, he just raised his hands and cupped his fists lightly, all without saying anything. Chen Wang also cupped his fists and returned the gesture.

The ice between Zu Kuan and He Renlong also melted a lot, and the atmosphere was no longer as dull as before.

Chen Wang was about to continue speaking, but a burst of footsteps from top to bottom interrupted his words.

"General Chen, the supervisor has invited me."

Chen Wang looked puzzled and glanced at Zu Kuan and He Renlong. From the looks in their eyes, he could not find the answer.

"Please lead the way."

Without any further delay, Chen Wang bowed his hands to Zu Kuan and He Renlong, and then said to the subordinate who came down to deliver the message.

"General Chen, please."

The pro-cong stretched out his hand lightly, then stood in front and walked up the tower.

Chen Wang followed the follower and climbed the stairs up to the tower.

On the top floor of the city tower, Sun Chuanting, wearing a crimson civil official robe, was standing in front of the railing, with his back to the direction of the stairs, standing with his hands behind his hands and looking into the distance.

"The last general, Chen Wang, went to see the governor."

Chen Wang took a step forward and bowed respectfully.

When Sun Chuanting heard the voice, he turned around at the same time, and then waved gently.

Chen Wang's expression moved slightly, and he followed Sun Chuanting's gesture and walked closer.

Standing next to Sun Chuanting, Chen Wang also learned from Sun Chuanting the reason why Sun Chuanting summoned him.

Just yesterday, Sun Chuanting received an edict in the military camp. The edict appointed him as the governor of Baoding and the governor of the military affairs of Baoding, Shandong and Henan provinces.

At the same time, Hong Chengchou was also transferred as the governor of Jiliao, taking charge of Liaodong affairs...

The wheel of history rolls forward, and the torrent of the times carries the destiny of individuals forward.

(End of this chapter)