Regardless of Li Jiancheng's shortcomings and strengths, the Tang army was the winner in the Tongguan battle, and Prince Li Jiancheng's performance at this time can also be said to be remarkable.
As long as he could win over the hearts of the soldiers guarding Tongguan, no one except Zhang Shigui disobeyed military orders, and he always followed the prince's lead in everything. This alone was actually much better than Wang Shichong.
His strategic arrangements were indeed conservative, but they could not be described as stupid. A series of strategic decisions virtually kept the casualties of the Tongguan defenders within a tolerable range.
It's just that such a commander is known to be more stable than aggressive, so it is difficult for him to have a big defeat, and it is also difficult for him to win a big victory. From the perspective of later generations, he tends to be mediocre.
But really think about it, how many people with large soldiers can do this?
In fact, Li Jiancheng did not need to worry about his reputation in the eyes of the generals. The surrender envoys from Wu Heitai, Hao Xiaode and others soon arrived at Tongguan City.
It is obvious that Li Mi's old men were not unprepared when they rebelled against the enemy this time. Even if Qin Qiong and Cheng Zhijie did not reveal their side, it would probably be like this in the near future.
One of the reasons why it has been delayed until now is because the group has no leader and there are many gaps among each other, making it difficult to unite. It takes time and environment to collude.
Wang Shichong undoubtedly created such a situation for them. Under the bloody butcher's knife, Li Mi's old men finally came together again.
Secondly, regarding the death of Li Mi, the Li family and his son acted very dishonestly, and neither of them were fools. After Li Mi surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, he ran away again, and was finally captured by Wang Shichong, and then he was killed.
As a result, many people were not interested in joining Li Tang. They preferred to fight and then disperse. At worst, like Shan Xiongxin, they could just go to the mountains to fall grass and live freely.
As for the third time, the army came from the west, and everything in Henan was deserted. If they could kill Wang Shichong and lead their troops back to Luoyang, then there might be another situation.
In addition, Wang Shichong's trusted generals led an army of more than 100,000 people, and after the formation, many people were hesitant and unable to make up their minds.
In fact, it all boils down to one sentence: people's hearts are divided and they can't agree on one thing.
Again, Wang Shichong was definitely the protagonist in the Battle of Tongguan. The heavy casualties caused by the continuous siege of the city and the increasingly brutal methods made Li Mi's old men desperate, so they quickly reached a consensus.
But for them, the change happened just as suddenly. When the figures of Qin Qiong and Cheng Zhijie appeared at the critical moment and were confirmed, Wu Heitai and others were also horrified.
These two guys actually appeared at the gate. They knew what this meant without even thinking about it. If they didn't take action immediately, everyone would be dead when Wang Shichong recovered.
It can be said that Qin Qiong and Cheng Zhijie sold out their former colleagues thoroughly. How could there be any sense of friendship or loyalty at all?
The melee was a mess, and the situation was out of control from the beginning. Li Mi's old men were almost involuntarily involved in the melee.
The same was true for Wu Heitai, Hao Xiaode and others who took action first, and the same was true for Yang Defang and others who took action later.
Sending people to Tongguan to ask for surrender was a pre-arranged drama. Originally, they planned to let the Tang army go out to help and leave Wang Shichong behind Tongguan in one fell swoop. But at the critical moment, everyone was dumbfounded.
Li Jiancheng took the letter asking for surrender, but he couldn't laugh or cry. He thought to himself, what have you bastards done so far?
If I lead my troops out of the border at this time, who will fight first, Wang Shichong, or you guys who are asking for surrender? Even if you are willing to help, you still have to figure out who is who among you, right?
There was no response from the Tang army, and they failed to kill Wang Shichong immediately. They fought for only half an hour, and Li Mi's old troops could no longer withstand the attack.
Wu Heitai's flag was the first to move closer to Tongguan, followed by Hao Xiaode and Yang Defang's troops. Once they retreated, it was difficult to stop.
They were too exhausted, their soldiers were exhausted, and their morale was low. If they had not been supported by the spirit of resistance that is characteristic of Henan generals, such as killing the dog emperor and avenging their dead comrades, they would probably have collapsed in the first place.
Come.
Wang Shichong, who almost lost his life, was in a semi-crazy state at this time, and launched a fierce attack, pushing this unprecedented scale of internal strife to a climax.
The twists and turns perfectly reflect the characteristics of the war in Henan.
After closing the door, arrows rained down, and rows of people fell to the ground like weeds. The sound of the arrows entering the flesh even drowned out all other sounds, as well as the screams that followed, the muffled sound of human bodies falling to the ground, and the sound of weapons.
The sounds of mutual fighting, gathered together, completely transformed this battle into hell mode.
The blood of Henan people was spilled on a large scale under Tongguan. For the first time, the Tang army effortlessly caused serious damage to the Henan army.
The out-of-control army finally calmed down in the face of such heavy casualties, and the fear of death suddenly took over.
There was a serious chaos in Wang Shichong's central army. The people in front wanted to retreat, but the people behind were pushing forward, trampling on each other, and the scene of killing and killing was staged for a long time.
When the horns of retreat continued to sound, the army began to retreat in a chaotic manner. The rhythm was completely messed up. If an elite force rushed up at this time, Wang Shichong would probably be completely defeated.
Unfortunately, the rebels who had clung to the base of the city wall and survived the disaster not only blocked the gate, but also lost the courage to fight again.
It can be said that Wang Shichong was lucky enough to escape. It took him half an hour to gather his troops. However, during such a period of time, he did not receive any more attacks. What is this but luck?
When the battlefield calmed down and the confrontation resumed, what stood between them was a place that looked like a mass grave. There were piles of corpses lying there, spread out from in front of the Henan army formation to under the Tongguan Pass wall.
, the wounded screamed in unison, squirming in the pile of corpses, but received no mercy or help from anyone.
The blood had flowed into a stream under the corpse, and the pungent smell of blood was getting stronger and stronger.
The living temporarily put aside their hatred and killing, and watched helplessly at the pagoda hell they created with their own hands. Panic and despair spread among them.
No matter how strong and courageous the guys are, they cannot remain indifferent when facing such a terrible scene. After the panic, they are glad that they did not become one of them.
"Your Majesty, it is not suitable to stay here for a long time..." Duan Da, the disheveled Chen Guogong, persuaded the emperor, but looking at Wang Shichong who exuded a strong ominous aura, he did not say the word "retreat". Duan Da still wanted to live for two more years.
God.
Wang Shiwei, who was still in shock, also echoed beside him. After fighting this battle... it would be better to stay in Luoyang and look after the house with his brother. At first, he was so obsessed that he thought of going out to perform meritorious service and make his title of King of Chu worthy of his name.
Well, this guy was scared out of his wits and wanted Wang Shichong to quickly order the withdrawal of the troops and run back to Luoyang to take a breather.
Wang Shichong was in a state of embarrassment, but at this time his hair and beard were all sprouting, and his face was ferocious. He suddenly kicked Wang Shiwei off his horse, pulled out his knife, waved it around and roared: "You bastard, you are messing with the morale of our army. I won't kill you until you see it."
you……"
Wang Shiwei was so frightened that he ran away regardless of the pain in his body. Wang Shichong waited for his scarlet eyes, stared at Duan Da and said: "I am the lord of the world. A few setbacks are nothing. If you don't follow me to kill the enemy and make meritorious deeds, won't you?
Do you want to persuade me to retreat?"
Duan Da looked at Wang Shichong's crazy eyes, and his hair stood on end. He immediately beat his chest and said loudly: "The Supreme Being wants to organize the army and fight again. I have nothing to say. I'm just going to die."
Soon, the generals who came to Wang Shichong one after another dispersed under the leadership of Chen Guogong Duan Da. The emperor was crazy, so it was better not to stay here.
Wang Shichong had many experiences of failure. During the several years of stalemate with Li Mi, he rarely won. In the end, he relied on Luoyang Fort to defeat Li Mi.
Therefore, no matter what his psychology was, Wang Shichong often claimed to be the master of destiny in front of people. Over time, few others believed him, but he himself believed it.
I have defeated guys like Li Mi, so who else can resist me?
Therefore, he, who often deceives people, said every word he spoke from the bottom of his heart, without any falsehood. He really wanted to compete with Tang Jun in terms of endurance and create a miracle again.
It can be said that Wang Shichong still had some sense left at this time, and his judgment also had some basis for it, because both the central army and the rear army were led by his relatives and confidants, and they had not participated in the siege these days, so
After successfully losing weight, the army still retains its strength.
Of course, this basis is not reliable.
War behavior is not based on such a calculation. Today, when Li Mi's old troops are rebelling and food is in short supply, not to mention an army of 100,000 people, even an army of one million people will have their morale fluctuated and their morale will fall to the bottom.
Such a military brigade, whether attacking or retreating, may turn into a disaster.
In fact, when the war reached this point, both Wang Shichong and Li Jiancheng made some irreparable mistakes, but they also did some things right.
Take Li Jiancheng as an example. He has firmly defended Tongguan and has not even left the border to fight. In fact, he has implemented the strategy very resolutely and indeed missed some opportunities. But now, he has a good chance of winning, which is a clear proof of strategic victory. Looking at it now
It’s just about the outcome of the battle.
On the other hand, Wang Shichong can be said to have made countless mistakes, but he was also very determined in consuming the strength of Li Mi's old troops. Therefore, it was not easy to maintain the situation despite the retaliation from Li Mi's old troops.
.
But now, it's time to decide what kind of symbol should be drawn at the end of the war...
This chapter has been completed!