The wind rises at the end of the Ming Dynasty

Luyang Pass.

Two mountains stand on the wall, with flowing water in the middle. It is the pass from Mount Gelu to the south.

Luyang Pass is located in a north-south fractured canyon between Lushan Mountain and Nanzhao.

It is the most important pass gate of Mount Lu, and it is also an important transportation hub between Luoyang and Nanyang Basin. It has been a battleground for military strategists since ancient times.

The Lushanguan section starts from Nanzhao Yunyang Town in the south and reaches Lushan Ranghe Township in the north. The highest altitude of the valley bottom is nearly 200 meters, and the elevation of the mountains to the east and west is as high as 700 meters.

Passing Lushan Pass proves that you have left Nanyang Mansion and entered the territory of Ruzhou Mansion.

On the official road between the two mountains, a large number of soldiers and horses were marching toward the north under the rhythmic marching drums.

The team marched on the dry land, and countless footsteps and horse hooves trampled from the road, causing dust to fly, almost covering the sky and the sun.

The red helmet flags and red tassels looked particularly eye-catching under the sunlight.

The tasseled flag fluttered under the headwind and moved against the wind. From a distance, it looked like a rolling bloody wave.

Chen Wang held a horsewhip in one hand and a sword in the other, leading the generals to stand on a high slope and look down at the marching soldiers on the official road below him.

The long marching team above the official road is like a winding red dragon.

The messengers carrying the command flags drove their horses back and forth on the official road from time to time, nervously conveying the superior's military orders and the military situation ahead.

The girders and horses were in front, exploring the dangerous passes ahead for the army and guiding them on the correct marching route.

Even though he had been used to seeing strong winds and waves after many years of fighting, the scene in front of him still made Chen Wang couldn't help but feel excited.

After accepting the soldiers and horses under Chen Hongfan, plus the local soldiers still under his jurisdiction, the number of troops under direct control has exceeded 20,000.

Chen Wang received military orders from Yang Sichang and came to Henan to quell the rebellion. He even got the power to temporarily dispatch soldiers and horses from various towns in Henan.

Military affairs also have the right to do things expediently.

There is no need to be responsible to the governor of Henan, and he can report directly to Yang Sichang immediately.

This also means that Chen Wang now has a high degree of autonomy.

At least above the border of Henan Province.

Today, the collapse of the situation in Henan has become unstoppable.

Twenty thousand capable soldiers are the foundation of Chen Wang's career.

The high degree of autonomy and temporary dispatch power are the general trends that Chen Wangke can rely on.

On the high slope, a group of generals stood respectfully behind Chen Wang.

A huge sand table divided it into two rows.

There are many mountains and rivers on the sand table.

If there were any Henan officials who were familiar with geography at the scene, they would definitely be shocked.

Because this huge sand table is today's Henan Province.

Chen Wang turned around and faced the sand table directly in front, scanning the mountains and rivers above the sand table with his lowered eyes.

Hu Zhiyi stood beside Chen Wang, holding a command whip, and reported the situation in Henan Province to Chen Wang.

"On February 27, Lord Li Yan launched his force into Yanshi, and Yanshi was defeated in three days."

"Li Yan killed Xu Ritai, the magistrate of Yanshi, and then swore an oath to the three armies in the eastern suburbs of Yanshi. He entered Luo with great force and swept eastwards."

Chen Wang stood in front of the sand table, frowning.

The situation in Henan can be said to be completely out of control.

Yanshi is an important branch city of Luoyang, only a hundred miles away from Luoyang.

The fall of Yanshi caused the entire Heluo to fall into complete panic.

Because this means that the Ten Thousand People's Army led by Li Yan can march westward without any hindrance and encircle Luoyang.

At this time, Luoyang was at its most empty.

Chen Wang pondered for a while and asked.

"How many soldiers and horses are there in Luoyang Mansion?"

Hu Zhiyi raised the command whip in his hand, pointed to the direction of Luoyang Mansion, and replied.

"There are still four battalions of soldiers and horses in Luoyang Mansion."

"The military affairs of Luoyang Mansion are currently in charge of the political affairs of Wang Yinchang, who has 1,500 pacesetters under his command."

"Hearing that the city of Yanshi was destroyed, there were three battalions of troops rushing to Luoyang to help. They were Henan general Wang Shaoyu, deputy generals Liu Jianyi, and Luo Tai. There were a total of 7,000 Zhengqi soldiers."

"On paper, including other troops in Luoyang City, the garrison strength can reach 10,000 people, but in reality it is considered good to have 6,000 troops."

There are naturally a lot of distortions in the data on paper, especially in the guard camps and towns in the mainland, which are extremely untrustworthy.

Six thousand people or Hu Zhiyi went to a conservative place.

"Wang Shaoyu..."

During Hu Zhiyi's report, Chen Wang heard a familiar name.

The reason why Chen Wang is familiar with this name is because in the original time and space, Li Zicheng was able to break through Luoyang City, which had a lot to do with him.

"The fighting in Shaanxi is fierce. We only have the remaining strength to defend Tongguan and are unable to rush to Luoyang."

"The failure of the two campaigns greatly damaged Henan's military strength."

Hu Zhiyi finished explaining the internal situation of Luoyang Mansion, and then began to explain the surrounding situation.

Although Chen Wang only asked about the situation in Luoyang Mansion, the surrounding situation also had an extremely important impact on the battle situation in Luoyang.

"Henan Governor Li Xianfeng is still in Kaifeng Mansion with his remaining troops."

"When Li Yan was advancing westward, Henan soldiers and horses were simply unable to pursue him."

There are not many soldiers and horses that can be mobilized in Luoyang Mansion, because everything happened in more than a month.

It only took more than two months, or even less than three months, from Li Yan's rise to the time when he swept across Kaifeng and defeated the officers and soldiers.

At this time, the Heluo area had become chaotic because of Li Yan.

"There are constant civil unrest in Huaiqing Mansion in the north of Luoyang Mansion. There are tens of thousands of bandits and bandits, big and small, causing trouble everywhere. They simply have too much time to take care of themselves and there is no way to mobilize reinforcements from Huaiqing Mansion."

"Ruzhou in the south is also a mess."

"Li Yan captured Dengfeng and his reputation was at its peak. A group of thieves surrendered and worshiped him as the leader of the alliance and followed his lead."

"Li Yan once again enfeoffed the group of thieves, gathered 200,000 people, set up eighteen battalions, and divided the troops into three groups."

Hu Zhiyi moved the command whip and placed it on Yanshi City, which was filled with black flags.

"Li Yan personally commanded the main force, the ninth battalion, since Dengfeng entered Yanshi. The Luoyang reconnaissance cavalry had previously reported that its strength exceeded 100,000."

"After the army of ten thousand thieves defeated Yanshi, they killed all the wealthy landowners in the city and opened warehouses to store grain. The refugees in the Heluo area flocked to surrender after hearing this, and there were so many followers that it was difficult to count."

Chen Wang's eyes followed the command whip in Hu Zhiyi's hand and rested on Yanshi City on the sand table.

As he continued to go deeper into Henan, the information he obtained became clearer and clearer, and Chen Wang's understanding of Li Yan became deeper.

Li Yan was strict in running the army. He called his subordinates the Ten Thousand People's Army. He made a three-chapter agreement and strictly enforced military laws. They were not allowed to kill and plunder at will.

Every time a city was captured, the first thing to do was to tie up the wealthy households and landowners in the city, and then hold a public trial in the city.

After confronting the victim and counting the evidence of the crime he committed, he will be sentenced according to the crime he committed.

All the wealth of wealthy landowners would be confiscated. For ordinary people, Qiu has almost no crime, at least on the surface.

The biggest reason why this can be achieved is because Li Yan has restrained military discipline from the beginning.

Li Yan was famous for his benevolence and righteousness, and he was very popular among the people because of his clear rules of rewards and punishments in running the army.

In addition, he treated his sergeants favorably. Unlike many camp leaders of rogue bandits, they lived a luxurious and lustful life after they rose to power.

Li Yan remained humble from beginning to end. He lived and ate with the sergeants in a simple manner, which made him even more popular in the military.

During battles, Li Yan often took the lead and was never afraid.

He won a series of battles, thus intimidating everyone and attracting the admiration of the generals.

It is precisely because of this that Li Yan was able to restrain his subordinates, making the Wan Min Army completely different from ordinary rogue bandits.

The Wanmin Army does not coerce the hungry people. For those who follow it, it mostly uses profit to drive them as eyes and ears to monitor the surrounding situation.

In addition, they will also select strong ones from among their followers and organize them into an army.

Henan has been severely hit by disasters. After several military disasters, most of the people who are still alive today are young, old, weak, women and children. Many of them have already died in frequent natural and man-made disasters.

Li Yan is well versed in the art of war and knows how to train troops. There is a huge difference between the Ten Thousand People Army under his command and the rogue bandits of the old Thirty-sixth Battalion.

Therefore, the combat power of the Ten Thousand People's Army is even better than that of many rogue bandits of the old Thirty-sixth Battalion.

"The latest military intelligence report from Luoyang shows that the size of the 10,000-strong army of thieves who have swept in is close to 150,000. They are majestic and continuous."

Li Yan called the army under his command the Ten Thousand People's Army. As an official and army side, Hu Zhiyi naturally could not call it the Ten Thousand People's Army.

Therefore, whether it is the imperial newspaper or the public's mouth, they are called the Ten Thousand Thieves Army.

"The other nine battalions of soldiers and horses were divided into east and west routes. The fifth battalion of the East Route Army, about 60,000 people, moved from Dengfeng to the southeast and attacked Kaifeng, cutting off the road for reinforcements from Henan soldiers and horses in Kaifeng Prefecture."

"The fourth battalion of the West Route Army, about 50,000 men, moved southwest from Dengfeng into Ruzhou. The soldiers and horses in Nanyang Mansion in the south moved northward, posing a threat to their main force entering Luoyang Fu Nei."

Ruzhou Prefecture has experienced several wars and its military strength is weak.

The four battalions of troops entered Ruzhou Mansion, and in a blink of an eye they had riddled the Ruzhou Mansion with holes and turned the world upside down.

At this time, Ruzhou Mansion was already in chaos, and there were scenes of war and chaos everywhere. All the city gates were closed, and soldiers were everywhere.

Chen Wang turned his gaze and moved down from Yanshi to Ruzhou Mansion.

The four black flags in Ruzhou Prefecture are connected and dependent on each other, and they are on their only way to go north to Luoyang.

"What is the reality of the West Route Army of the Thousand Thieves Army?"

Only by knowing yourself and the enemy can you fight without danger.

The most dangerous situation in war is to underestimate the enemy.

Chen Wang did not underestimate the Wanmin Army just because they were a new peasant army.

At present, Chen Wang's family background is still weak. He went to Henan Mansion to escape from the prison and show off his talents, but not to actually put down the rebellion.

"The ten thousand bandits and bandits in Ruzhou have a total of four battalions and fifty thousand men. The leader is Crock Pot. He is a bandit leader in the Henan Civil Revolution. Before Li Yan rose up, he was the leader of all bandits in Henan. His troops and horses were strong and powerful. There are thousands of soldiers and tens of thousands of followers."

"We launched several campaigns last year but failed to wipe them out."

"Based on the reports from Ruzhou and the Supervisory Office, there are about 7,000 thieves and cavalry in Ruzhou, and the rest are all foot soldiers."

"Almost few of the infantry are wearing armor, and half of the cavalry are without armor. The military is not strong. It only relies on the momentum of its large number of people to control the territory of Ruzhou Prefecture."

Chen Wang placed his hands on the edge of the sand table and slowly glanced over the mountains in Ruzhou.

According to the gathered intelligence, as long as they were prepared for an ambush, the thieves in Ruzhou were completely indifferent and posed no threat to them at all.

Chen Wang raised his head, looked at Hu Zhiyi, and asked.

"Yanshi is only more than a hundred miles away from Luoyang. Calculating the time, today should be the day when tens of thousands of thieves arrive at Luoyang City."

Hu Zhiyi nodded and replied.

"According to the normal marching speed, today will indeed be the day when thousands of thieves arrive in Luoyang."

"Luoyang..."

Chen Wang's eyes were slightly focused, and his mind was spinning. At this moment, the memories of the past were slowly unfolding in his mind like a scroll.

History is like a huge wheel. Although what happened before has ended, the force exerted on it has already been driven on the wheel.

The wheel will continue to roll forward until the inertia finally disappears.

Although the time for the upcoming Luoyang offensive and defensive battle is much earlier than in history.

The leader of the siege of Luoyang has also changed from Li Zicheng to Li Yan, and many things have changed beyond recognition.

But the final result may still be the same as in history.

Where Luoyang's offensive and defensive battle will go is unknown.

"The troops in Kaifeng and Ruzhou have been fully withdrawn, and all the passes and arteries are basically controlled by thousands of thieves."

There are many passes along the way from Lushan to Luoyang.

Even if they want to rush north to aid Luoyang, they will inevitably encounter crazy obstruction by tens of thousands of civilian troops along the way, and their marching speed cannot be accelerated.

Going to Luoyang, no matter how fast it is, will still have to wait until a month later, and this is still under the condition of sufficient supply of food and grass.

Hu Zhiyi didn't say it clearly, but everyone present could hear the underlying meaning of his words.

Luoyang has become an isolated place and is under heavy siege.

"Prince Fu..."

Chen Wang leaned forward again and murmured in a low voice.

His mind was racing.

If Luoyang City really falls, King Fu will fall into the hands of thieves.

For him, it actually didn't have much impact.

From receiving Yang Sichang's order to go south to intercept Luo Rucai to being ordered to go north, he did not waste any time and soon led his troops north to aid Henan.

The reason why the march was delayed on the road was mainly due to the problem of food and grass supply in the surrounding prefectures.

But for Yang Sichang, the loss of Qinfan was undoubtedly a very heavy blow, and he would definitely be held accountable by the court and questioned by Chongzhen.

Yang Sichang was the prime minister of the six provinces and was responsible for the supervision and suppression of the Southern Kingdom.

No matter what the reason is for the situation in Henan to get out of control, Yang Sichang cannot escape the blame.

Historically, the sign that the situation in the South was completely out of control was Yang Sichang's death...

Chen Wang slowly raised his head and looked at the mountains in the distance.

Continuous natural disasters, the rise of rogue bandits, and the disengagement of generals have begun to take shape in the Southern Kingdom.

Before we knew it, it was already March of the thirteenth year of Chongzhen.

Chen Wang remembered this time very clearly.

Because at this time, in the Northern Kingdom of Ming Dynasty.

A war is brewing.

The wind and snow from the North are about to sweep southward.