Great Han Empire

Chapter 588: Troubled Times Heroic Chapter Dangerous
Li Ru has been staying in Luoyang to take charge of the military affairs of the Kwantung, and he has limited knowledge of the specific strategy of this conquest.In order to keep it secret, Dong Zhuo did not tell him the detailed attack strategy in advance.

Li Ru was very surprised after listening to Tian Yi's explanation.

After several battles, the 12 North and South troops in Gyeonggi have lost nearly 2 people.Zhang Yang's 1 men surrendered to Yuan Shao in Hanoi, and the armies of Hu Zhen and Lu Bu lost about 1 men in the battle with Yuan Shu and Sun Jian.With an army of one hundred thousand, Dong Zhuo divided it into two. 2 people stayed in Guanzhong, Dong Zhuo's younger brother Zuo General Dong Min led [-] southern troops to garrison Chang'an, and Zhonglang generals Huangfu Hong and Bao Hong each led [-] troops to garrison Fufeng and Fengyi counties.

8 people went out to fight with him, and the army fought on four battlefields at the same time.3 of them attacked Hedong.Duan Yan, the general of Zhonglang, led [-] soldiers to attack Pubanjin in the east of the river.Captain Jia Xu led two thousand soldiers to garrison Tongguan.Zhonglang General Niu Fu led [-] troops to attack Fenglingdu, and the school captain Fan Chou led [-] troops to attack Maojindu.

The rebel general Li Ru commanded Li Jue, Guo Si, Zhang Ji, Wu Qiuyi, Liu Jing, five school lieutenants, and [-] troops to surround Hulao Pass in the southeast of Luoyang, Mengjin and Xiaopingjin in the northeast of Luoyang. close.

Zhonglang led Dong Yue and Li Su to lead [-] troops out of Wuguan, and attacked Nanyang from the northwest.Zhonglang led [-] troops from Lu Bu and Xiaowei Zhang Liao out of Yique Pass and Dagu Pass and went south to attack Nanyang from the northeast.

Zhonglang's general Hu Zhen and Xiaowei Li Meng led [-] troops out of the pass and went south to attack Yingchuan.

After the war began, Dong Zhuo planned to force Wu Xiong to Hanoi and Yan Liang to Yanzhou, and then personally lead an army of [-] to attack Henan and Jingzhou.In order to solve the crisis of money and food shortage in Gyeonggi, Dong Zhuo decided to occupy Nanyang and Yingchuan, and completely eradicate Yuan Shu and Sun Jian.

Dong Zhuo said that now Gyeonggi, Nanyang, and Yingchuan have entered the autumn harvest season, and the army can plunder wherever they go, and the food problem has been completely solved, but the purpose of our sending troops this time is not to plunder money and food, but to occupy Nanyang And Yingchuan and other rich counties, so defeating Yuan Shu and Sun Jian as soon as possible is the top priority.As long as we have Jingzhou and Yuzhou, we will be able to take the initiative and quickly recover our strength, and we will be able to conquer and pacify the country in the future.

=

"How to solve the thing in Hedong?" Li Ru touched the scar on his face and asked very uneasy, "Although we can be sure that Li Hong will not recruit troops from outside the Great Wall to join the war in order to give up the northern border, but because he lost Jing For grain support in Hebei and Henan, the only way to buy grain from Jizhou is through a close alliance with Yuan Shao and Han Fu. In this way, once Yuan Shao, Han Fu, Liu Dai and others solve the riots of the Yellow Turban Army in Qingzhou and Montenegro, Li Hong can Join forces with them to attack Chang'an and Luoyang."

"How can there be such an easy thing in the world?" Dong Zhuo sneered, "This year Yanqing and Xu Sanzhou suffered from ant thieves riots, and the grain harvest was in short supply. If Liu Dai, Jiao He, and Tao Qian wanted to fill their stomachs, they had to buy grain from Jizhou. Think about it, Jizhou can supply the food needs of Northern Xinjiang, Youzhou, Yanzhou, Qingzhou and Xuzhou at the same time? It is impossible. Something will happen to Jizhou, and Li Hong and they will definitely fight for money and food in Jizhou. "

"Taking a step back, even if they don't have internal strife or fight, the money and food in Jizhou alone can't support a 10,000+ army to attack Chang'an and Luoyang, so next year, neither Li Hong nor Yuan Shao will be able to attack us. If Yuan Shao, Liu Dai and others did not pacify the Yellow Turban Army in Qingzhou and Heishan this year, and if they are still fighting the Yellow Turban Army next year, haha..." Dong Zhuo stroked his beard and laughed, "then the year after next will definitely be their death. "

Li Ru looked at Dong Zhuo's smug and chubby face, and reminded in a low voice: "My lord, Li Hong, Xu Rong, and Li Wei are not ordinary people, we'd better be cautious."

Dong Zhuo smiled contemptuously and asked, "Then what do you mean? Let me take the initiative to shake hands with Li Hong? Let me take the initiative to tell Li Hong that I'm old, confused, wrong, sorry? Hmph... now The situation has changed, and the advantage is in my hands. If you want to bow your head, it is he who bows to me."

Li Ru hesitated for a moment, then said: "My lord, this is not a matter of bowing to whom, but a matter of how to ensure that we achieve the goal of dispatching troops to the greatest extent. It is for this reason that we beat him first, and we are now taking the initiative to make peace with him." , and for this reason.”

"No." Dong Zhuo waved his hand vigorously and said firmly, "No. He is tyrannical, and I am more tyrannical than him. He wants to restore the vitality of Beijiang, but I will not let him succeed. He wants to hit me, ignoring the survival of the country, Am I afraid? Let me tell you, I am more ruthless than him, if he dares to hit me, I will crush the Dahan Sheji to pieces, and I will let him die without a place to bury him."

Li Ru smiled wryly, and continued to persuade: "My lord, now the [-] troops are fighting on four battlefields at the same time, and the troops are scattered, which is very dangerous for us. The ultimate purpose of your lord's sending troops is to occupy Jing and Henan, but if Our army is in a stalemate with Yuan Shu and Sun Jian in Nanyang and Yingchuan due to insufficient troops, or..." Li Ru didn't go on, his meaning was obvious, if Dong Yue, Lu Bu and others were defeated by Yuan Shu and Sun Jian, Morale is frustrated, it will be very difficult for the army to take down Nanyang and Yingchuan in one go, and of course the consequences will be disastrous.

Li Ru looked at Dong Zhuo, bowed and said, "My lord, it's better to contact Li Hong as soon as possible to make peace. In this way, Yan Liang and Wu Xiong can immediately return to Hedong with 7000 troops, and my lord can immediately bring [-] troops back to Hedong. An army of [-] marched south to attack Nanyang and Yingchuan."

Tian Yi immediately waved his hand and said: "These 7000 people cannot be sent back to Hedong. With Li Hong having these 7000 people, the strength of Hedong will be even greater. This is very dangerous for Chang'an and Luoyang. In order to avoid angering Li Hong, we also In order to avoid their own losses, they gave up attacking Yan Liang and Wu Xiong, which is already a great deal of face to Li Hong. Now we are enemies with Li Hong, Yan Liang and Wu Xiong have no backup, no food, and sticking to the pass is a dead end for them One, so we just need to tell them, let them lead the army to leave the pass, and the two of them will go out without hesitation. Once Yan Liang and Wu Xiong leave, my lord can lead the army south."

"By the time Li Hong agreed to our terms and asked us for the 7000 troops, Yan Liang and Wu Xiong had already left the pass. As long as we didn't kill the 7000 people, what could Li Hong do with us? Could he say that we didn't Trustworthy? The legs are on Yan Liang and Wu Xiong, they want to run away, what should we do?"

Dong Zhuo also expressed the same meaning. He analyzed the financial predicament in northern Xinjiang and the deployment of troops in northern Xinjiang. He believed that Li Hong had neither money nor military strength. He could not fight this battle. "So, don't worry, he Sooner or later, you must bow your head to me. After driving Yan Liang and Wu Xiong away, I will leave the pass and go south."

=

Li Ru shook his head again and again, smiling helplessly.

"My lord, Shuping (Tian Yi), these 7000 people returned to Hedong did not change the balance of forces between the two sides, and it has nothing to do with the overall situation. In addition, you are too underestimating the Northern Xinjiang Army." Li Ru sighed, "Yan Liang has already said, As long as there is one person alive in Hulao Pass, the Black Panther Battle Banner will not fall. Wu Xiong from Xiaopingjin said that even if he eats people, he must guard the pass. Captain Xiang Cheng stationed in Mengjin is even more arrogant. On the night when he surrounded him, he led people into the camp in the dark, captured a few patrolling soldiers, and cooked them on the tower the next day. Many of the soldiers in northern Xinjiang were yellow scarf warriors. They are all warriors who participated in the battle of Yanmen Pass and the expedition to the desert, it is a joke for you to expect these people to abandon the pass and flee for their lives."

Dong Zhuo's face showed anger, Tian Yi's face was shocked.

"Li Hong led the northern Xinjiang army to conquer all these years, and he was invincible. He made great achievements all over the world, and at the same time brought countless honors and achievements to the 10,000+ soldiers of northern Xinjiang." Li Ru sighed again, "Without Li According to Hong's military order, these 7000 northern soldiers will never leave the pass alive. This is not a matter of life, but a matter of the glory of a warrior. We may not understand, but adults should understand. Once these [-] people stand firm, they will not retreat. , Your Excellency’s army will be restrained in Luoyang.”

"If your lord doesn't want them to go back to Hedong, you can simply kill them. Anyway, Li Hong is temporarily unable to gather more than 5 troops to attack Chang'an and Luoyang." When it comes to Yingchuan, Wu Xiong cannot be allowed to lead the army to withdraw across the Yellow River and enter Hanoi."

"Of course, these two armies will not give Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu much help, but because of their existence, they have given Li Hong, Yuan Shao, and Yuan Shu the opportunity to jointly attack. To be honest, once Li Hong knows that Yan Liang and Wu Xiong Leading the army into Yingchuan and Hanoi respectively, he has no scruples and will attack Luoyang desperately, and Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu will also take the opportunity to counterattack. If Li Hong is determined to abandon the northern border and the country, his strength will far exceed We. At that time, Xian Yufu and Zhao Yun will lead tens of thousands of Hu tribe cavalry out of the Great Wall Fortress and directly attack Chang'an. Who can stand up against the sharp edge? Li Hong, Xu Rong and others will lead [-] elite infantry to cross the Yellow River and attack Luoyang. ..."

Dong Zhuo stood up abruptly, and his fat body knocked the case away. He raised his hands high and roared, "Hit me, hit me..."

Li Ru looked shocked and took three steps back.Tian Yi panicked, dodged to pass the case that was flying in the sky, and exclaimed loudly: "My lord, we want Nanyang and Yingchuan, money and food, not a life-and-death confrontation with the leopard, my lord, please think twice..."

"Decree, attack Mengjin Pass for me, attack with all your strength, and kill that Xiang Cheng for me." Dong Zhuo glared at Li Ru and shouted, "Say to Yan Liang and Wu Xiong again. One day, I will only give them one day, if they don't withdraw I'll kill them all when I leave the pass."

Li Ru stood motionless on the spot, "My lord, please think twice."

"If I think twice, I'm going to be forced to death by the leopard." Dong Zhuo said angrily, "They all said that the leopard was powerful, and they all said that we should let him go. What happened? We were surrounded by him and almost starved to death. Don't forget, it was the leopard who wanted to kill me first, not me. If I endure it any longer, the leopard will become more rampant and unscrupulous. Today I just want to tell him that if he angers me, I will kill the same person. I will fight him to the end with the Dahan Sheji and these [-] lives, whether it is destroying the Sheji, or fighting the capital, I will accompany him to the end."

Li Ru and Tian Yi bowed their heads and remained silent.

"We want to occupy Nanyang and Yingchuan, we want to rob money and food, why? Isn't it to kill Yuan Shu, Yuan Shao, and the end? The end is not to kill the leopard." Dong Zhuo said angrily, panting, "Is it possible that I and Can the leopard still shake hands and make peace? Look at the beginning of the year, such a good opportunity, he is not willing to join hands with me to suppress the rebellion, what else can I expect from him? Do I still expect him to help me revive the country? If he is with me at the beginning of the year Putting down the rebellion, killing Yuan Shao and those rebels, how could my big man fall into such a precarious situation today? How could the great Han society be overthrown soon?"

"Order to attack Mengjin tomorrow."

=

In October, Mengjin Pass.

Since Li Hong and Yuan Shao formed an alliance, the school lieutenant Wu Xiong led [-] soldiers to garrison Mengjin and Xiaopingjin.Wu Xiong ordered Captain Xiang Cheng to lead [-] soldiers to garrison Mengjin Pass.

After Li Jue and Liu Jing received Dong Zhuo's attack order, they immediately commanded an army of [-] to launch a fierce attack on Mengjin Pass.Dong Zhuo's order is very simple, kill, kill not one left.The two have long wanted to fight.A few days ago, Xiang Cheng provoked them and blatantly cooked and killed the soldiers of the Northern Army, which made the two furious.The northern army is also deceiving too much.

The sound of drums up and down the pass shook the sky, the sound of killing was like a tide, arrows were like locusts, blood was overflowing, and the bodies of dead soldiers were everywhere.

Xiang Cheng opened his eyes angrily, let out a tiger roar, and viciously pierced through the enemy soldiers who were coming to him with the spear in his hand.With a scream of misery, the dead soldier was kicked out of the city wall by Xiang Cheng, and his body fell heavily to the bottom of the city wall.

"Kill...brothers...kill me..." Xiang Cheng stretched out his big bloody hand to support the wall, gasped for a few breaths, then turned his head and shouted wildly, "Beating the drum... beating the drum..."

On the city tower, the sound of majestic drums soared to the sky in an instant, and the soldiers were desperate, roaring hoarsely one by one, and rushed towards the advancing enemy like a ferocious tiger.

"kill……"

=

"My lord, we have taken back the eastern city wall." Marquis Xu Le walked over crookedly with a blood-stained saber in his hand, "We have suffered too many casualties, and I am afraid it will be difficult to last until tomorrow. My lord, you see we have to Don't ask Xiaopingjin's captain for help?"

"Please help." Xiang pointed at the attacking army under the city, and cursed loudly, "Wu Dascar's defense of Xiaopingjin, how much better than ours? Fighting to the death, death in the battle is unknown. We didn't die in the desert, but we died here. This is Luoyang, the capital of my great man." Xiang Cheng pointed at the soldiers lying beside him, and asked angrily, "Do you know why they died?"

Xu Le shook his head blankly.Xu Le has a thin body, a thin face, and a pair of eyes that always reveal a little bit of vicissitudes.Although he is only 21 years old, he has been in the army for six years.When Li Hong captured Handan, he was still a little beggar in the city.Later, Li Hongxi went to Liangzhou to quell the rebellion, and he was recruited in Handan, and he also went to apply.When Yan Liang, the recruiter, saw him, he took him out with one hand and told him to come back when he grew up.Xu Le lay on the ground and wept loudly.Yan Liang's heart softened, and he handed him a spear.From then on, Xu Le carried the spear and followed Yan Liang to fight everywhere.

"What is the world today? Why can't you even understand death?" Xiang Cheng spat outside the city wall, cursing a series of obscenities.

Xiang Cheng is in his 20s, tall and strong, with a black beard, rough and sturdy.He used to smuggle salt in the area of ​​Jizhou. Because he was good at fighting, quick-witted, and forthright, he gradually gathered dozens of people under him.Later, he raised troops with Zhang Jiao and participated in the Guangzong War.After Guangzong's defeat, he continued to fight with Zhang Niujiao.After Yingtao fought, he followed Zhang Yan to Jinyang.When the Yellow Turban Army was appeased, he was the Sima of the Northern Xinjiang Army.Last year, he came back from an expedition to the desert and was appointed captain.Originally, he thought that he could live a stable life in northern Xinjiang, but he didn't know that he had not rested for a few days, and he led the army from outside the Great Wall to Luoyang in the heavy snow.

"At the beginning of the year, we fought with Master Xu, saying that Yuan Shao, Han Fu, and Liu Dai were all rebels, and we beat Dong Dajun into a panic." Xiang Cheng pointed at the army under the city, and said with a wry smile, "At that time, the Northern Army They are brothers with us, and we fought together. Later, Master Hutou said that they shook hands with the general and made peace. They are the brothers of the general. Instead, they fought with the Northern Army? Tell me, are we rebelling now, or are they rebelling?"

Xu Le wiped the blood on the saber with his bloody sleeve, and said without hesitation: "Of course they are rebellious. How can our general be a rebellious man?"

Xiang Cheng grinned and said with a smile: "You mean to say that His Majesty is my big man's rebellion?"

Xu Le was taken aback, and smiled awkwardly: "My lord, how is this possible?"

"But look, who is attacking us now? It's the Northern Army." Xiang Cheng said, "The Northern Army is His Majesty's army, and His Majesty's army is attacking us and the general, which means..."

"Impossible." Xu Le said firmly, "The general will never be a traitor. There must be a reason we don't know."

Xiang Cheng scolded bitterly, and then said: "I'm going to die anyway, kill one and earn another, I don't think much."

Suddenly, intensive drums for help sounded on the west wall.

"Xiang Tao is asking for help." Xiang Cheng was startled, and shouted loudly, "Go, let's go..."

"Brothers, kill me, kill me..." Xu Le raised his knife and shouted, "I swear to the death... a bloody battle..."

=

Zhu Jun walked into Bi Guiyuan angrily.

He tried his best and managed to stabilize Henan Yin temporarily. When the grains were ripe and the people began to harvest, Li Ru suddenly ordered the army stationed near Luoyang to rob grain everywhere and plundered without restraint. Yin destroyed everything.Hundreds of thousands of people fell into catastrophe again, countless people were driven from their homes, and started wandering towards death again.

However, Hangu Pass had been blocked, and the only hope of the refugees was shattered. Everyone wailed all the way and turned around and fled south.

Zhu Jun's heart was bleeding, he tried his best to suppress the anger in his heart, and questioned Li Ru one sentence after another.Li Ru kept silent with a smile on his face.The more Zhu Jun talked, the angrier he became, and he wished he could punch Li Ru to death.

"I want to go to Chang'an, I want to meet Lord Xiangguo, I want to impeach you..."

Suddenly, Dong Zhuo's obese body appeared before Zhu Jun's eyes, "This is the emperor's will."

Zhu Jun was horrified, at this moment, he suddenly realized.Dong Zhuo has already started.

=

Zhu Jun flew back to Luoyang City and urgently wrote to Li Hong.

Ding Li ran all the way into the government office, "My lord, is there anything urgent for me?"

Zhu Jun wrote at his desk, and said: "Jingming, you take my seal and pass through Hangu Pass overnight, and then try to cross the Yellow River, and send this letter to General Hushi."

Seeing Zhu Jun's pale and stern expression, Ding Li asked in panic, "My lord, has something serious happened?"

"Dong Zhuo has secretly arrived in Luoyang." Zhu Jun said, "Although we have sent the news to Wentai (Sun Jian) ​​that Lu Bu and Hu Zhen are going to attack Yingchuan and Nanyang, it seems that this is not an ordinary robbery, but A major attack by Dong Zhuo, he will occupy Jing and Henan, and he will lead his army southward soon."

Ding Li looked at Zhu Jun suspiciously, and asked inexplicably, "Why didn't you tell Brother Wentai the news first?"

"Currently there are only more than 2 troops in Yangdi, Luyang, and Wancheng, and Yuan Shu is still confronting Liu Biao in Xiangyang, so even if we tell Wentai the news, he can't stop Dong Zhuo's attack." Zhu Jun was helpless. He said, "We must prevent Dong Zhuo from occupying Jing and Yu states. Otherwise, not only will King Qin have no hope, but we will have to wait for death. Now the only one who can stop Dong Zhuo from leading his army to the south is the Hushi General."

"The general will send troops to attack Dong Zhuo?" Ding Li shook his head and said, "My lord, this is impossible."

"Dong Zhuo has angered the general." Zhu Jun said, "We always thought that Li Ru ordered the army to surround the Hulao, Mengjin, and Xiaopingjin Passes so that their army could safely plunder Nanyang and Yingchuan, but now it seems that we My guess is wrong. I heard from Li Ru that Dong Zhuo has ordered to attack Mengjinguan today, and will attack Hulao and Xiaopingjin tomorrow. I don’t understand why Dong Zhuo angered Li Hong, but I know that Li Hong will never sit back and watch his subordinates suffer. To Dong Zhuo's killing. This time Dong Zhuo will lose his skin if he doesn't die."

"My lord, there are only 500 people in Mengjin and Xiaopingjin, and they won't be able to guard for a few days." Ding Li said worriedly, "In a few days, even if the tiger prison is not breached, Dong Zhuo can still lead his troops south. Just surround the tiger prison with thousands of people. We are too late."

Zhu Jun looked up at him, and said slowly: "Xiao Lan took her mother to Hedong at the beginning of the year, so I have nothing to worry about now..."

Ding Li's expression changed drastically, and he blurted out in surprise: "Teacher, you..."

"You take Zhu Zhu and go together, don't come back." Zhu Jun said lightly, "Although I am old, I can still jump on the horse and whip and fight on the battlefield."

=

Late at night, Hanoi County, Ha Duong City.

Han Hao stood on the bank of the Yellow River, looking at the dark night sky, feeling anxious.

Today, at Mengjin Pass, dozens of miles away on the other side of the river, the Northern Army and the Northern Xinjiang Army fought for a whole day.Although there is no movement at Xiaopingjin Pass, it is estimated that the bloody battle will begin soon.

If both passes are lost, Dong Zhuo will definitely cross the river and attack while Yuan Shao, Wang Kuang and the Yellow Turbans are fighting fiercely.Hanoi is in danger.

The sudden sound of horseshoes suddenly shattered the quiet night and clearly entered Han Hao's ears.

Han Hao's heart suddenly beat violently.

===

(End of this chapter)