On the first day of February in the second year of Chuping, news of the successive losses of Hangu Pass and Xin'an reached Mianchi. Dong Zhuo was unable to speak for a long time. He could not even curse. In the end, he only asked Liu Ai, the chief official, to convey the order to attack Dayang. All the troops retreated to Mianchi and reorganized their troops. Even Niu Fu's troops in Dongyuan abandoned the city and went south.
Prime Minister Dong Zhuo has always been vigorous and resolute in his work, but when the generals returned to Mianchi, he went against his normal behavior and only entertained the generals with fine wine and delicious food, while he hid in the city, neither showing up to meet with the generals nor sending envoys to warn them. As for the generals, they are worried and have many thoughts.
On the early morning of the eighth day of the eighth lunar month, generals above the lieutenant colonel level, whether they were Liang people who belonged to Dong Zhuo's old army, such as Niu Fu, or veteran generals who originally belonged to the imperial court, such as Zhu Jun, etc., suddenly received orders to pack their bags. , went outside the city to worship the heaven and earth with the Prime Minister. The generals did not dare to delay, and hurriedly put on their clothes and armor. They immediately rode out of the city and followed the envoy to the east for fifteen miles, passing through Cypress Mountain and Plum Blossom Mountain one after another. Chidi Mountain, to the foot of Shangde Mountain.
Shangde Mountain is not the highest mountain around Mianchi. There are majestic mountains towering to the east, west, south and north, which are far superior to them. However, it happens to be in a wilderness. Being on Shangde Mountain, overlooking the mountains in all directions, it is like the palm of the god. He is lifted up, and the human body is in the palm of his hand, which makes people think of heaven and man.
When the generals reached the foot of the mountain, they discovered that there were stone steps on the mountain. The stone steps were all made of flower stones. Each of the twenty-eight steps had a fold, making a total of twelve folds, which coincided with the stars and earthly branches. When they reached the top of the mountain, they saw the mountain. The altar is being held high, and a tripod with a round mouth and a thunder pattern and a phoenix head is located in Taichung. Behind the tripod is a high case with two tablets. On the left is "Hou Huo Qubing, Champion of the Han Dynasty" and on the right is "Xiang Yu, King of Western Chu". On both sides of the tripod are five-colored rocks, surrounding the top of the mountain to form a temple of heaven.
The Prime Minister knelt down in front of the cauldron, holding Xiang Yu's sword in one hand and the Prime Minister's seal in the other, praying to the spiritual throne. The chief minister, Liu Ai, stood aside, wearing a five-color sand robe and a crown that reached the sky. Seeing everyone gathered, Then he stepped forward in small steps, bowed and said softly to Dong Zhuo: "Prime Minister, the sacrifice ceremony can begin."
Dong Zhuo looked back at his generals, and then ordered: "Let's begin." He held a knife at each other at the edge of the altar, and ordered the heads on the left and right to sign for sacrifices. They were a four-foot-tall white calf and a calf. There were only white pheasants with five-color crests and three white dogs. He personally held a knife to bleed these sacrifices and offered them into the cauldron. Then he called the generals and anointed the base of the altar with five-color soil. Finally, Chief Shi Liu Ai presided over the ceremony. Everyone present is asked to bow three times and kowtow to the tripod case.
Finally, Dong Zhuo held the blood-stained sword of Xiang Yu in one hand and the golden seal of the Han Dynasty Prime Minister in the other. He walked to the table, presented the two objects to the altar, turned around and glanced at the generals who had followed him for many years, and said slowly: "You know that this place is Where?"
Most of the generals under Dong Zhuo's command were rough men, and most of them knew nothing except tactics and famous military generals from the previous generation, so no one could answer. Yang Yi, a native of Hongnong who knew the stories of his hometown, stepped forward to answer: "I have heard that , Five hundred years ago, this was the old platform where King Qin Zhao met with King Zhao Huiwen."
During the Qin Dynasty, King Zhaoxiang attacked the State of Zhao, and the State of Zhao lost troops and territory, but in the end he was able to repel King Zhaoxiang. King Zhaoxiang then wanted to attack the weak Chu State, and decided to reconcile with the State of Zhao.
King Zhao Huiwen was afraid of Qin and was unwilling to move forward. At this time, Lin Xiangru, the senior official of Zhao, said: "If the king does not go, it will show that Zhao is cowardly and weak." King Zhao heard that it would harm the country's character, but he still endured his fear and went.
He asked Lin Xiangru again: "I am really afraid, please sir, please go with me." So Lin Xiangru went with King Zhao.
Arriving at Mianchi, King Qin insulted King Zhao several times, and King Zhao was at a loss. King Qin asked King Zhao to play the harp, and Lin Xiangru stepped forward with a sword and forced King Qin to strike the fou. King Qin ordered King Zhao to cut fifteen cities to Qin.
, Lin Xiangru scolded the King of Qin loudly again, and ordered the King of Qin to cede the capital to Zhao. This went back and forth several times. Although the King of Zhao was weak, he did not humiliate the state of Zhao in the end, and finally returned east safely.
After hearing this reason, all the generals bowed their heads and remained silent. Only Dong Zhuo continued: "Now that Fan Chou has lost the battle, Dong Yue and Hu Zhen have been captured, and the western access road is blocked by Liu Bei and cannot be broken through, the situation I face is...
It's more critical than King Zhao, but I don't know if there is anyone among you who can be like Lin Xiangru, who can not harm the face of our Liang army and protect my safety at the same time?"
The Prime Minister was so sincere that all the generals hurried forward to express their loyalty, but the Prime Minister was noncommittal and turned to worship the altar again, and then said:
"In addition to being the place where Qin and Zhao allied themselves, this place is also an ancient battlefield. After Wang Mang's rebellion, the Red Eyebrow Army returned east from Chang'an and encountered the Han Army here. General Feng Yi, the general who conquered the west, commanded and dispatched, and they were defeated.
Red Eyebrow, Xinmang has been in chaos for more than ten years, and then the overall situation has been established."
"Now that the war is about to begin, I feel sad in my heart. I think that throughout the ages, there is no more invincible general who has charged into battle than the Overlord and the Champion. Therefore, people in the world have heard that they are both reincarnations of the gods of warriors, but as a big man, I
Prime Minister, I got Xiang Yu's sword by chance, but I was trapped in a corner by east and west. A battle will determine my life or death. I have no choice but to use this sacrifice to pray that the two gods above will protect us through this crisis." The generals looked at each other and saw that each other was sweating profusely. Dong Huang stepped forward and said: "The Prime Minister's country has its own destiny. The Guandong group is small, does not know the destiny, and resists stubbornly. How can it be compared with the Prime Minister's country?"
Dong Zhuo waved his hand and signaled his nephew to retreat. Then he grew eagle eyes and looked at everyone one by one. He continued: "I came here not to listen to your flattery. Now the situation is critical. Sun Jian has defeated Hangu and Xin'an.
It's only twenty miles away from here. If he hadn't been marching continuously and needed a little rest, his army would have already invaded this place. My great head, like Wang Mang's head, would be hidden in a treasure house!"
After Wang Mang's defeat, his body was cut into pieces, and even the tongue of his head was cut out. Later, Emperor Guangwu ordered that his head be dried and collected to show that traitors and traitors would not die a good death, as a symbol of the Han Dynasty's eternal destiny.
Dong Zhuo used this to describe himself, which was extremely unlucky, and also showed that he was extremely disappointed in his generals.
But he finally sighed and said solemnly to the generals: "At this time of life and death, I hope that you will do your best to fight with me to the end! Now the only patients in the world are Sun Jian and Chen Chong, but only two people How can the leader of the world be responsible for the affairs of the world?" He paused slightly and made a categorical promise to the generals: "Whoever can kill two people will be rewarded with a thousand gold coins, be granted the title of Marquis of ten thousand households, be the Commander-in-Chief of the General Military of Henan, and will be the founder of the three divisions of the government!"< /p>
Everyone was in an uproar after hearing this.
The so-called Marquis of Ten Thousand Households, looking at the former Han Dynasty and today, all those who can be named have contributed to the reconstruction of the Han Dynasty. In the early Han Dynasty, there were only two people, Xiao He and Cao Shen. However, in the past fifty years, the only person who can be granted the title of Marquis of Ten Thousand Households is the former Taiwei Duan Jiong, for his contribution to the recovery of Liangzhou, was granted the title of Marquis of Xinfeng County, with a population of 10,000 households. The so-called Kaifu Yitong Sansi means that his status is equal to that of the three princes, and the Commander-in-Chief of the General Military of Henan means that this person can He became the most powerful figure in the DPRK second only to the Prime Minister.
Henan Yin Zhujun sighed in his heart: "Dong Zhuo's life is in danger. Now he wants to boost his morale and has gone to such an extent. It seems that he is planning to make a last ditch effort. But I don't know how sure Ting Jian can be of Wentai?" < /p>
Li Jue, Guo Si and others were deeply moved, thinking: "The Prime Minister has treated us with such kindness, why don't we dare to fight hard?" They also silently prayed to Huo Qubing: "I will follow the Prime Minister here. I have been fighting in Liangzhou for many years, and most of what I have seen is the legacy of General Huo. Please help us, General Huo, to achieve a prosperous military fortune!"
Huben Zhonglang General Lu Bu looked at these cold people with cold eyes. Although his face was moved, he thought in his heart: "These cold dogs don't understand the general situation of the battle. They look down at me and others, and they actually want to wait for the three princes." Really disgusting." He thought about Hu Zhen being captured again, and couldn't help but feel a little happy: "Hu Zhen, a stupid and narrow boy, is in the Jing people's camp, but he doesn't know what will happen to him."
But when Lu Bu finally thought about Guangcheng, Sun Jian's disdainful words towards him, and touched the scars on his face, he turned around and touched the knife on his waist, thinking: "If I meet this person again on the battlefield, I will treat him like a snowflake." Shame on you, let the world know that I, Lu Fengxian, am the best in the world!"
Jia Xu, a native of Wuwei, was at the back, but he was worried: "The Prime Minister's plan to motivate the soldiers is a good strategy, but the soldiers are not as kind as they are, and they are also timid in fighting. The gains and losses in this are difficult to explain clearly. If Life and death are unpredictable, and no matter how great the reward is, it is nothing more than the moon floating in the well."
After the ceremony was over, Dong Zhuo said to the generals: "I have sent a message to Sun Jian that our army will meet with him here in ten days. You should go back and prepare."
Just as the crowd was about to disperse, they heard the sound of flapping wings in the air, and a stream of dust fell from the pine forest on one side. Everyone looked up and saw a black eagle, which was slowly contracting its vibrating wings. Both paws rested on the pine tree. The sculpture seemed completely unaware of the presence of the person on the altar under the forest. After it stabilized, it looked proudly to the east. At this moment, the bright clouds were breaking through, and the warm sun of early spring was shining on the clouds. The black eagle is bathed in the spring light.
When the captains in front of Dong Zhuo, such as Dong Huang, Zhang Ji and others, saw a large eagle falling in front of them, they drew out their arrows without thinking and bent their bows to shoot it. Liu Ai hurriedly stepped forward to dissuade them, saying: "No!
Since we set up an altar here to worship the gods, how can we set up our bows and shoot arrows here!"
Li Ru, the attendant, also said: "This sculpture is extraordinary. When we were offering sacrifices to warriors and gods, it actually fell on the side of the altar, and its eyes were like torches, arrogantly looking up at the scorching sun. Could it be that God knew that I was about to fight the bandits, so he made it clear?
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Prime Minister Dong Zhuo asked: "What does the sky show?"
Li Ru said with a smile: "The eagle glares at the east, which means 'use force in the east'. Heaven advises me to fight. If we fight, it will be a sign of victory!"
Dong Zhuo was overjoyed when he heard this. He ordered a golden bow to be taken from someone, held it up with both hands, bowed to the black eagle and saluted: "If we get divine help and defeat the Jing thief, we will build a ancestral hall for the champion marquis on the platform of Mianchi.
Tens of thousands of households worship it and carve stone tablets to show the grace of the gods and the strength of our Liang soldiers!"
After saying that, he respectfully placed the golden bow under the altar. Just as he was about to worship again, he suddenly heard a sound of flapping wings. Everyone looked up and saw the big eagle spread its wings and flew towards Nantianchi Mountain.