The cavalry came on horseback, and the sun-scorched loess road raised flying dust like a giant yellow dragon. As they approached the camp at the narrow bridge, the galloping horses gradually slowed down, revealing the figures of the leading generals. Chen Han Sanli was wearing a green coat.
Lin, wearing black armor, stepping on stirrups, squinting at the watchtowers on both sides of the camp gate, more than two hundred horsemen behind him were holding reins and reining in their horses in circles.
It was so hot on this dog day, and my crotch was soaked with sweat. Some people were so greedy for coolness that they ran all the way without lining their armor, and their old skin was bruised and bloody by the armor, soaked in salty sweat, and it made them even more excited.
It hurts, grinning, and mentally cursing the Jiangdong Left Army who suddenly stepped up their offensive at this time, causing them to rush back from the camp on the Yishui side under the sun...
"The Zuo Guards are back..." The sergeant opened the heavy camp gate and shouted, calling people inside one by one. All the generals in the camp who had nothing to do came to greet him at the camp gate.
Chen Hansan drove his horse into the camp, got off his horse, and was not in a hurry to return to the tent. He climbed up to the watchtower and looked out over the open plains to the south.
At this time, the sun had just set, and it was the hottest time of the day. Many cavalry were chasing and killing each other in the wilderness to the south.
The Jiangdong Left Army sent troops from its camp at Shukou to drive out all the scouts here from the area south of the narrow bridge. The small-scale chase has not stopped from dawn to now.
Still unable to discern the intentions of the Jiangdong Left Army, Chen Hansan watched for a long time, his head dizzy from the sun. He could not see any sign of the Jiangdong Left Army dispatching large-scale infantry.
"Master Gan came here from Dongying..."
After hearing the reminder from the people around him, Chen Hansan turned around and saw Sun Zhuang, the son of Sun Gan, leading people from the cable pontoon bridge to Xiying. He did not go down to the watchtower, waiting for Sun Ganzi and others to come.
The narrow bridge was originally a large wooden bridge across the lower reaches of Shushui River, 24 to 5 miles away from Shukou. The bridge was destroyed by floods in the early years, but the place name remained.
This section of the Shushui River has narrow banks and fast currents. In order to prevent the Jiangdong Left Army from marching north along the Shushui River to rescue the officers and soldiers guarding Shuyang, and also to counter the Jiangdong Left Army's camp at Shukou, Chen Hansan set up camp here.
garrison.
The Zhaiqiao camp is divided into east and west camps, standing across the river.
Xiying is a town that directly occupies the west end of the bridge. Hundreds of households in the town were evicted, and a fence was built along the original earthen fence outside the town for reinforcement. As a military camp, it was quite large.
Han San led more than 10,000 elite troops to settle in.
After Sun Ganzi led his troops to attack and capture Yunti Pass, he was supposed to rush to Xuzhou to participate in the siege there.
Sun Ganzi was a vanguard commander who was not good at long-term planning, but was good at fighting tough battles. His subordinates, Chen Zhi and Zhang Gou, were all brave generals, so it was perfect for him to be sent to attack the fortified city of Xuzhou.
However, after the Jiangdong Left Army entered Huaibei, the situation along the Huaihe River changed drastically.
Although there is Yan City between Shuyang and Linyi, Jiangdong's left army can completely bypass Yan City and directly enter Linyi, posing a threat to the flanks of the army besieging Xuzhou.
Liu An'er asked Sun Ganzi to stay in Huaibei and work with Chen Hansan to suppress the Jiangdong Left Army.
Sun Ganzi occupied the village at the east end of the bridge, consolidated it slightly, and established it as the East Camp. The East Camp was smaller in scale, but the elite soldiers Sun Ganzi brought over were only four to five thousand, so it did not feel crowded.
The east and west camps were connected by an iron cable pontoon bridge. Hundreds of hidden piles were densely laid in the river below the iron cable pontoon bridge, and many boats were sunk to block the river.
Hundreds of giant trees were cut down on the upstream side of the narrow bridge and tied to the shore. When the river sealing formation downstream was broken by Jiangdong Zuojun's water camp, they cut the ropes and allowed hundreds of giant trees to wash down with the rapids.
Crash the warship of Jiangdong Zuojun.
Sun Ganzi led people into Dongying, climbed up to the watchtower using both hands and feet, looked at the vast plains in the distance with his hands in front of his forehead, and asked Chen Hansan: "Hansan, you are so resourceful. What's wrong with the big commotion in Huai'an these days?"
look?"
What he saw in front of him seemed to be a thick fog that could not be moved away. He could vaguely see some outlines, but they may not be real. Chen Hansan glanced at Sun Ganzi and said, "I heard that Malantou sent someone here before noon. I
Why didn't you see me? What did Malantou say?"
The refugee army set up fortifications along Shu River and Si River, which not only blocked the southward escape route of the Changhuai Army, but also blocked the northward advance of the Jianghuai reinforcements.
On the Sishui side, led by Chen Hansan and Sun Ganzi, the defense line of the narrow bridge camp was mainly used to prevent the left army from Jiangdong from advancing along the north of Shushui to aid Linyi; on the Sishui side, led by the bandit commander Malantou, they guarded Suyu and Siyang.
, Suining cities, to prevent Jianghuai reinforcements from advancing along the north of Surabaya River to aid Xuzhou.
Yang Quan was killed by Liang Chengyi in Hezhong Mansion, and Malantou became the most intelligent and courageous general under Liu An'er.
The refugee army wanted to attack Xuzhou. In addition to Liang Xi in the north and Cao Yiqu in the northwest, they were most worried about the Jianghuai reinforcements marching north along the Surabaya River to break the siege of Xuzhou. Liu An'er picked Malantou among the generals to go out to guard Surabaya.
Malantou was also good at defending the city. At the beginning of the Hongzepu army, Liu An'er guarded Sizhou and Malantou guarded Wuhe. They directly confronted Zuo Shangrong's Changhuai Army for more than half a year, and finally won the great victory in Haozhou.
Malantou had nearly 40,000 soldiers and horses at his disposal, stationed in Siyang, Suyu, Suining and other cities.
Sun Ganzi and Ma Lantou were both from Hongzepu Water Village. They were Liu An'er's direct descendants and had a close relationship with each other.
When Chen Hansan took refuge with the government, he had a lot of blood on his hands. Many generals in the refugee army rejected him, and Malantou was one of them.
Sun Ganzi touched his nose and said: "Ma Lan claims to know a few words, but look at his arrogance. Holding a pen is more tiring than holding a gun. He can write one less word and will never draw one more.
The people he sent have been sent away by me. Whatever nonsense Malantou said, I will tell you the same thing..."
Chen Hansan nodded expressionlessly, wondering what attitude Malantou would have towards him, and how could a reckless man like Sun Ganzi help cover it up. Chen Hansan didn't mind that Malantou didn't see him, but he thought about the current situation.
Let’s hear what Ma Lantou’s views are different from others.
"The Jiangdong Left Army gathered more than 10,000 troops on the north bank. Liu Tingzhou recruited tens of thousands of soldiers in Huai'an and brought them all to Shanyang County to prepare for crossing the Huaihe River. The pressure on Lao Ma was great. Lao Ma didn't worry about anything else, he was just afraid.
Lin Fu feigned a shot here, and finally pulled the Jiangdong left army to the west front and rushed in along the Si River," Sun Ganzi said, "If it comes here, Lao Ma may not be able to stop it!"
Chen Hansan frowned and thought.
Sun Ganzi was so upset that he couldn't hide his words. Without waiting for Chen Hansan to say anything, he said directly: "I think Lao Ma is right to be worried. I have thought about going to the west bank of Yishui River to take care of Siyang and Suyu..."
The Yishui River mentioned by Sun Ganzi refers to the old river from Yancheng County. Although the water surface is wide, a dam has been built on the riverbed to intercept the water. Apart from the flood control, it is almost a waste river. When you touch the location of the dam,
You can wade across the river, but warships cannot get in.
Hearing what Sun Ganzi said, Chen Hansan's brows jumped, subconsciously thinking that Sun Ganzi wanted to sneak away to Suyu to hook up with Malantou.
"I think Ma Qu is too handsome..." Chen Hansan said nothing, and someone behind him interrupted.
Sun Ganzi looked back and saw that it was Chen Hansan's master Ma Zhen. He frowned slightly and asked, "How do you say that?"
Ma Zhen was originally a down-and-out scholar. He was recruited by Chen Hansan when he commanded the anti-theft camp. Later, he was betrayed by Chen Hansan and defected to the refugee army. He always regarded himself as a counselor. In the hot weather, Ma Zhen was still wearing a long gown.
Wearing a Confucian scholar's square scarf, sweat gurgling from his body, making him dizzy from the scorching sun, his posture is as straight as a pine tree. He is a good-looking person.
"If we talk about what we know about Liu Tingzhou, I don't think of anyone other than my Han Shuai," Ma Zhen said. "This old man is stubborn. At the beginning, Han Shuai put a knife on his youngest son's neck and asked him to open the gate of Shanyang County.
, he was the first one to take an arrow and shoot it, causing Han Shuai to fail to capture Shan Yang at first and offer it to An Shuai... So Liu Tingzhou crossed the Huaihe River to aid Xu, I believe, and Lin Fu crossed the Huaihe River to aid Xu, it was a bluff. Liu Tingzhou and Lin
If there is a quarrel over this matter, it will definitely not be false."
"Since you think Lin Fu is bluffing and won't make any big moves, then it shouldn't be a big deal if I go to Yixi!" Sun Ganzi said.
"I said Lin Fu was bluffing when he crossed the Huaihe River to aid Xuzhou, and I didn't say that he wouldn't make any big moves," Ma Zhen said. "Lin Fu and Liu Tingzhou had such a big quarrel in Huai'an. If Lin Fu is willing to send troops, Liu Tingzhou needs to hurry up.
Time to recruit brave people to cross the Huaihe River? But Liu Tingzhou’s recruitment of brave people to cross the Huaihe River was so great that Lin Fu was forced to follow him across the Huaihe River even if he was just showing off..."
"I've confused you," Sun Gangzi scratched his temples and asked Ma Zhen, "are you saying that Liu Tingzhou forced Lin Fu to cross the Huaihe River? He has military power in his hands and cannot send out troops. How can that old man Liu Tingzhou force him?
?”
"A lot of people speak for gold, but they accumulate bones and pieces," Ma Zhen said with a chuckle, "Lin Fu has soldiers and territory in his hands, but how many soldiers and how much territory does he have? It's just a small county in Zuo'er. Liu Tingzhou, as a man with no hands,
A civil servant with the strength of a chicken died in the battle across the Huaihe River, but Lin Fu, as a commander-in-chief, hunkered down in Huai'an City. Not to mention the scholars in the world, even the scholars from Jiangdong County poked his back and scolded him enough to make him look up to him for the rest of his life.
Don’t start.”
Sun Ganzi curled his lips and dismissed Ma Zhen's words. In his opinion, Lin Fu's rise to the top of the Yangtze River and his domineering attitude appealed to his liking. He was an alternative among the imperial minions. In his heart, he even worked for the imperial court for Lin Fu.
It was a pity secretly, thinking that such a person should follow An Shuai to mess up this shitty court.
Sun Ganzi's demeanor made Ma Zhen unhappy, but he could hold it back and continued: "Currently, Lin Fu and Liu Tingzhou have formed a two-way movement from the north to aid Xu. Liu Tingzhou is crossing the Huaihe River on the west road to seize Sikou and marching north. Lin Fu
Fu took the east road and headed north along the Shu River. The two routes advanced together. Liu Tingzhou was blocked, and Lin Fu was also blocked. If Liu Tingzhou was defeated and killed on the west road, Lin Fu fought a few tough battles on the east road and then retreated, so he said he would cross the Huaihe River to aid Xu.
If he loses, who can blame Lin Fu anymore?"
"It's just you academic thieves who have so much bad blood and pus in their bellies. How can others have so many frivolous intestines?" Sun Ganzi said with a frown, but couldn't find a reason to refute Ma Zhen.
When Sun Ganzi said this, Ma Zhen's green face turned as red as a crab. The key point he wanted to say was that Sun Ganzi had no excuse to drag his troops to Yixi. He should hold back his anger and continued: "Liu Tingzhou is in Huai'an."
The recruits are all rabble-rousers, and Mr. Ma has many soldiers. If Mr. Ma cannot stop Liu Tingzhou from going north, he is really underestimating Mr. Ma - there is a tough battle to be fought here in Shushui. Lin Fu doesn't know how.
He went to rescue Yue Lengqiu, but he was a greedy person, especially if Liu Tingzhou was defeated and died on the West Road, Lin Fu would have to find an explanation from our side - Master Sun, you can't leave Dongying!"