Liu Chengyou was not as angry as he was in the imperial tent about the defeat at the front, the discord between the generals, and the outcome of the treatment. He just sent his entourage and Wang Yu back to pass on his order to let the troops in front of the Hezhong camp rest and recuperate. , soothed the morale of the troops and restored morale in preparation for the next step in countering the rebellion. Moreover, it emphasized the status of the deployment of the camp in the middle of the Baiwenke River.
The emperor's "kindness" made the generals on the front line feel a little embarrassed, especially Bai Wenke. The veteran general was also a great Han Yuancong. Although he did not have a close relationship with Liu Chengyou, he did not expect that the emperor would be so considerate at such a young age. Zhou Hui He was ashamed and a little uneasy. Except for arresting He Hui and Fan Aineng, he did not dare to be arrogant anymore and kept a low profile.
As the saying goes, knowing one's shame and then being brave. If the armies in the river were a little gloating about their misfortune when the Forbidden Army was first defeated, but the rebels gained some momentum and dared to send the cavalry south to check, then it would be a shame for all the officers and soldiers. beated.
On the other hand, veterans and generals who are full of troops on the front line, such as Bai Wenke, Zhao Hui and others, do not really think that the emperor will not respond to the scandal and will not pursue it. Perhaps with the mentality of atonement by merit, Zhao Hui and others With the support of the people, on the third day after the defeat, Bai Wenke personally led the army to the north.
Just as Liu Chengyou expected, the victory in the previous battle had a great impact on the situation. The rebels in the city suddenly gained some confidence. The achievements and momentum gathered by the officers and soldiers in the previous battle were as strong as those who were defeated. It's like a tire with a hole in it and it's leaking.
And Li Shouzhen seemed to have figured out how to fight this battle. He just had to be timid, rely on the fortified city, fight back defensively, and hold back the imperial army until the situation changed. If the officers and soldiers showed any flaws, they would be decisive. Attack.
For example, when Bai Wenke and others led the army to the south of the city and entered the stronghold, Li Shouzhen became brave and dared to personally lead his army out of the city to attack and disrupt the stronghold.
Li Shouzhen had a good plan in mind, and wanted to imitate what happened before, taking advantage of the first arrival of the army and his unstable footing, so as to catch him off guard. However, Bai Wenke and other generals were already on guard, or in other words, luring the rebels out of the city was also one of the purposes. .
The number of officers and soldiers outside the city is not much greater than that of the Pu army, and their composition is complex, with different commanders. The coordination and execution are not precise enough. However, except for the Huazhou army, the remaining combat capabilities are not bad. Just in terms of combat power. , the rebels in the city, except for Li Shouzhen's tooth soldiers, are not worth seeing at all.
Although they were fighting each other, after a fierce battle, the officers and soldiers came out from behind, and Wang Yan was invited to attack from Linjin to help, and directly killed Li Shouzhen and retreated back to the city. The Xiaodi army wanted to avenge their shame and fought. They were particularly hard-working, and Sun Li, the commander of the left wing, marched forward in a bloody battle, led his troops to cover up the killing, and tried to follow the defeated troops and rush into the city, but failed and was injured by two arrows.
Li Shouzhen retreated into the city at the cost of abandoning thousands of Pu troops behind him. This time he attacked, the rebel army's momentum was suppressed again, and more than 2,000 soldiers were directly lost in the battle. After this battle, Li Shouzhen was probably Don't dare to go out lightly.
The goal of the officers and soldiers this time was obviously not to become a fat man in one bite. After killing the rebels, they calmly established a stronghold in the south of the city. After establishing a firm foothold, they brought thousands of people to the front line to increase the number of soldiers. Consolidate the camp. After the southern camp was established, they moved to the east of the city and built a new camp. They saw a large number of military camps rising from the ground outside the city. Li Shouzhen in the city saw it from a distance, but he didn't dare to move any more.
Liu Chengyou's side started from Shihao Town, passed through Shaanzhou, crossed Pinglu, moved along the Xiaodi Army's march route, and arrived at the foot of Hedong City in four days. Prior to this, Xingjie Army and San Commander had escorted that part of the grain. The arrival of weapons and equipment also enabled the besieging officers and soldiers to stand firmer. With the arrival of Liu Chengyou's own troops, the siege of Hedong City was completely consolidated.
There are more than 50,000 horse and infantry troops, including the state troops, and the nearly 30,000 civilians recruited successively. The number under Hedong City has truly exceeded 100,000, and can at least be called an army of 200,000. Its strength is huge , the soldiers are filling the base, and the flags are flying, boundlessly.
Under the enemy's city, Liu Chengyou issued an edict in advance. There was no need to arrange any welcoming ceremony or military system. First, he ordered the generals of the army to lead their subordinates to garrison the two-sided company camp that had been formed. However, a 100,000-level camp was not like these. What can be easily constructed during the day still needs to be expanded and repaired.
This expedition was to quell the rebellion in Hezhong and not only shock the world, but also to shock the towns in Guanyou. The town army here has been in a few years and has never seen such a large-scale war or such a huge army.
After the armies were stationed, Liu Chengyou, accompanied by the generals of the armies, began to inspect the camps, personally inspecting the soldiers, and also letting the armies see their emperor. Not only the soldiers of the towns and vassals, but also the soldiers of the imperial army who were recruited. Most of us know that we are protecting and guarding the Emperor, but we have not seen his true appearance.
The emperor's act of "pro-military" had a miraculous effect. He was warmly welcomed by all the soldiers, who surrounded him. Under the encouragement of some generals, the voices of "long live" and "ten thousand victories" kept coming and going.
Of course, to prevent unexpected events, Liu Chengyou traveled by imperial chariot. However, every time he arrived at a camp, he would get out of the chariot, stand on the shaft of the chariot, and wave to the soldiers and civilians who came up from the tent. Every move of the emperor would be The crowd cheered.
Liu Chengyou's move was actually very risky, because there was no guarantee that there would be a hidden arrow. However, some risks had to be taken. Just the deafening cheers as the chariot passed by was worth it. Do.
Of course, although Liu Chengyou was intoxicated by the enthusiasm of the soldiers, he knew very well and should not take it too seriously. He only satisfied the curiosity of the soldiers, and the military support did not reach that level.
However, after Liu Chengyou put on such a show, his morale was even higher. The warm atmosphere was extremely contagious, and many people were caught up in the wave of cheers.
The cheers of 100,000 people were deafening, soaring into the clouds and entering the city, making the guards tremble. Li Shouzhen heard the sound and climbed onto the city wall. When he looked at the officers and soldiers' barracks, his face was terrifyingly gloomy.
The officers and soldiers are naturally worthy of fear, but if their morale is so strong, then it is really not good for him.
The sound spread for several miles, directly across the city, across the Yellow River, and reached the camps of the two armies on the west bank. During this time, Yao Yuanfu and Song Yanwo had led the armies of the three states and set up camp in front of the rebel west camp. Keeping an eye on the rebel Xizhai, the two of them cooperated quite well.
Knowing that the emperor's chariot had arrived, and hearing his cheers, Yao Yuanfu and Song Yanwo also ordered their officers and men to shout tacitly "Long Live Long Live" and join in the East Bank's harmony.
In a short period of time, outside Hedong City and on both sides of Pujin, there were shouts of long live.
When the royal chariot passed by the East and West Ban military camp, Zhao Kuangyin glanced at Liu Chengyou in the distance under the autumn sun. He couldn't help but sigh in his heart, and his expression was also excited. He followed the crowd and shouted "Long live" several times.
I muttered silently in my heart: This emperor is not simple, his military morale is determined, and his morale has been strong since then!