In ancient times, Mengjin Ferry was not a single ferry, but a group of seven or eight ferry crossings north of Luoyang, across both banks of the Yellow River. Luoyang is located among Kyushu, with convenient terrain crisscrossed by mountains around it, and a warm climate with abundant rainfall. It has been a ferries since ancient times.
The place where Chinese ethnic groups thrive, but it is precisely because of the existence of Mengjin Ferry that Luoyang becomes the center of the world.
Yuchi Gong led his elite troops to Luoyang at high speed. He did not enter the city, but passed directly from the north of the city, took over the Mengjin Ferry, and sent out the scouts to find out the news about the navy and the Shandong private army.
The sky was getting dark and the rain was pouring. Yuchi Gong stood on the bank of the Yellow River wearing a raincoat and his soldiers. He looked at the surging river water with worries in his heart and a gloomy face.
After returning to the camp, he had just sat down for a short time when a soldier walked in quickly, with a nervous look on his face: "Commander Qi, a battle report has been sent from Banzhu, saying that Banzhu has been lost."
Yuchi Gong's heart sank and he asked: "Where is the messenger?"
"Just outside."
"Call in, I have something to ask."
"Here."
After the soldiers left, not long after, a captain who was soaked in water came into the tent and greeted him with courtesy: "I am a captain under the command of Tong'an County Duke. I have met the commander-in-chief."
Because Zheng Rentai had been recovering from illness for two years and had no actual official position except for the title of General Youwuwei, he could only be referred to by his title.
Zheng Rentai nodded slightly and asked: "What is the specific battle situation? Please tell me in detail."
"Here."
This captain is Zheng Rentai's personal soldier. Although Banzhu was defeated, Zheng Rentai decided to claim his illness and draw a clear line with the King of Jin to ensure the interests of the Zheng family in Xingyang. However, he could not hide silently. At the very least, he should
The result of the Battle of Banzhu was informed to the King of Jin.
Immediately, he carefully recounted the events of the Battle of Banzhu one by one. When he finished, he saw Yuchi Gong sitting there, stroking his beard, and was silent for a long time.
After a long while, Yuchi Gong came back to his senses and said: "Immediately send the news to Tongguan and report it to His Highness the King of Jin."
"Here."
The captain saluted and then withdrew. Even though it was raining heavily, the military situation was urgent and he did not dare to delay. He went straight to Tongguan in the rain.
Yuchi Gong asked his soldiers to boil water and make a pot of tea. He sat alone in the tent, listening to the pounding rain outside and feeling restless.
During his life as a soldier, he was accustomed to victory and defeat, so he naturally knew that nothing in the world was guaranteed to win. Even though Zheng Rentai, the best among Zhenguan ministers, guarded Banzhu and fought at home within the Zheng family's sphere of influence in Xingyang, Yuchi Gong still
I thought that Zheng Intae would be defeated.
However, he didn't expect that Zheng Rentai, with his great reputation and veteran soldiers under his command, would be defeated so quickly and so miserably.
The more than 10,000 elite men under Zheng Rentai's command were enough to fight against the force of the First Guard, but they were almost unable to fight back under the rampage of naval artillery. Despite a burst of indiscriminate bombardment by the opponent, they were beaten to the point of losing their troops and being defeated.
The combat power of the navy is evident.
Now that Banzhu has been lost, the navy can enter the Yellow River from the sluice at any time and go upstream. It is still unknown where the Shandong private army has arrived. It is only said that it can be reached in the "nearest days", but how many days is this "nearest days"?
If the Shandong private army arrives at Mengjin Ferry just as they are crossing the river, but is attacked by the navy halfway across the river, and the scene at Yanziji repeats itself, the King of Jin will be completely in dire straits.
Fortunately, there are heavy rains now. Although it makes it more difficult for Shandong's private troops to cross the river, the turbulence of the navy also creates difficulties for the navy upstream, which greatly reduces its sailing speed. It may be possible to gain a day or two.
Thinking of this, he ordered the soldiers outside: "Immediately send more scouts to cross the river and search east. After contacting the Shandong army, I will convey my order to the general and order them to speed up to Mengjin Ferry. If there is any delay, I will severely punish you!"
"Here!"
The soldiers were ordered to go out and assigned tasks. Dozens of them, regardless of the darkness, rode their horses straight to the ferry in their raincoats. Regardless of the danger of capsizing at any time due to the swollen river water, they risked crossing the river to reach the other side, and ran towards Hanoi. .
Yuchi Gong was lying on the hard wooden bed with all his clothes on. His ears were filled with the sound of wind and rain outside. Maybe he drank too much tea, his eyes were wide open, and he was not sleepy at all.
The development of the situation was completely beyond his expectation, and he regretted it...
He had naturally foreseen the risks and consequences of failure when he followed the King of Jin in launching an army. However, as the saying goes, risks and benefits are equal. The greater the risk, the greater the benefits. As long as he can assist King Jin to buck the trend and follow the example of His Majesty Li Er. , then the benefits obtained will be immeasurable.
Over the years, he has been suppressed by Li Ji, and even Cheng Yaojin has gradually surpassed him in power. This makes him extremely dissatisfied as he has always regarded himself as the leader of martial arts. With the death of His Majesty Li Er, and Li Jing regained control of the army to assist the prince, and his future status may even be completely surpassed by Li Ji, Li Jing, even Fang Jun and others.
Not to mention that the younger generation such as Su Dingfang and Xue Rengui, who are more trusted by the prince, have already emerged and will naturally gain more and more trust in the future...
For Yuchi Gong, who had a strong desire for power, this was simply intolerable, and siding with King Jin became almost an inevitable choice.
Especially since King Jin also promised to rule the feudal world after he ascends the throne...
But now it seems that all expectations may become a dream. But in the final analysis, who would have thought that when the Jiangnan and Shandong clans control nearly half of the empire's territory, especially when the Jiangnan clan has raised more than 100,000 private The army actually couldn't defeat even a mere naval force, and was blown away by a random bombardment, leaving behind no armor and fleeing for life?
Now even Zheng Rentai, a veteran of hundreds of battles and a famous general in the world, has been defeated, and he was defeated so quickly and miserably.
The fall of Banzhu meant that the waterway from the south of the Yangtze River to Tongguan had been completely opened. Countless warships of the Navy could sail upstream to Tongguan at will, and attack Chang'an's Donggong Liuli from both sides.
The situation took a turn for the worse.
Under such a situation, how could King Jin have any way to recover?
Even if more than 100,000 Shandong private troops successfully arrive at Tongguan for reinforcements, can they defeat the elite army under the prince's command and enter Chang'an City to seize the throne?
And once the King of Jin is defeated, what will happen to him...
Yuchi Gong was restless and restless, tossing and turning where could he sleep?
In the middle of the night, the sound of horse hooves came in the rainy night. Yuchi Gong got up with a grunt. In a moment, he saw his own soldiers opening the door curtain and entering the barracks. He said urgently: "Commander Qi, the scouts have just crossed the Yellow River. Then I saw personnel sent by the Shandong Army, saying that the army would arrive near Hanoi County tomorrow evening and arrive at Mengjin Ferry the day after."
Yuchi Gong jumped up and asked: "Have the scouts who went to Banzhu to inquire about the news come back?"
"Not yet. The latest news is that after the Navy captured Banzhu, they cleaned up the battlefield and rebuilt the sluice gate. It seems that they are waiting for the troops in Jiangnan to be replenished."
Yuchi Gong breathed a sigh of relief. In this way, there were at least two to three days for the Shandong private army to cross the Yellow River. Although it was impossible for one hundred thousand private troops and an almost equal number of civilians to cross the river in such a short time, but As long as half of the army successfully reaches Tongguan, it will have a certain impact on the situation. At least the generals of the Sixteenth Guards who were waiting and watching will continue to wait and see, instead of immediately turning to the East Palace to swear allegiance to the prince...
He asked again: "What time is it?"
The soldier replied: "The Yin hour is about to pass, and the Mao hour is coming."
Yu Chigong perked up and said loudly: "Then why should we sleep? Go, beat the drum and gather the generals, I want to discuss something!"
"Here!"
Although he complained that the people who came all the way from Tongguan were exhausted and needed to be repaired, why should you not let everyone sleep if you don't want to sleep, but the soldiers dared not say a word and hurriedly turned around and went out. After a while, the sound of "dong dong" drums was heard.
The whole military camp suddenly became noisy. Many soldiers were busy setting up tents and arranging supplies last night. They had just slept for a while. At this moment, they were awakened by the sound of drums and jumped up. They thought it was an enemy attack, but they found out after leaving the camp.
It’s the handsome generals...
You definitely don't dare to complain. Yuchi Gong was very strict in his military management and frequently punished according to military laws. However, the soldiers were inevitably full of resentment. After all, they retreated from Chang'an all the way to Tongguan, and then rushed from Tongguan to Mengjin Ferry. The morale of the soldiers was inevitably affected.
The accompanying generals gathered in the commander's tent, and Yuchi Gong's eyes were bright: "The navy has defeated the defenders led by Zheng Rentai, Banzhu has fallen, and the navy fleet may arrive here at any time upstream along the Yellow River, and the Shandong reinforcements will also arrive here at any time."
We have arrived in Hanoi County and will start crossing the river the day after tomorrow! We will light a fire and cook immediately. After half an hour, the entire army will be dispatched to requisition all nearby fishing boats and cargo ships. Even just a piece of wood must be brought for the Shandong army to cross the river! Anyone who dares to obstruct will be severely punished.
No loan!"
The captains were shocked and quickly knelt down on one knee to receive the military order: "General, I obey!"