Going northwest from Mufu Mountain is the territory of Xianning County, Ezhou.
Several people came out of the valley and stopped halfway up the mountain, observing the villages in the col.
The village is not big. There are more than a dozen families in the mountain col, with dilapidated thatched houses. It is obvious at a glance that there is no money to be made.
"College Deng Zuo," a man dressed as a mountain man came up from the path and crouched behind the bushes. As if he was afraid of being seen by the villagers in the mountain col, he reported to the leading man in a low voice, "There is a village outside the mountain col.
, there are thirty or fifty soldiers in the village, and they have to wait until night to pass; let’s go back and see the deputy governor..."
The leading man was Deng Fu, the captain of the left wing of the Yuanzhou Dudu Mansion. At this time, he fled from Xia Yuanbei to Xianning. He did not have a good rest for more than ten days. Every day, he hid day and night, wandering into the forest.
Walking through the forest, with sunken eye sockets and messy beards, they looked like bereaved dogs. At this time, they all pretended to be ordinary defeated soldiers, took off their fine scale armor, replaced it with ordinary leather armor with dull luster, and fled to the mountains of southern Hubei.
Hearing that there was a mountain stronghold outside the mountain pass, Deng Fu pressed his hand on the saber on his waist and said in a deep voice: "If you want to pass through Ezhou, you will have very little contact with outsiders. You must remember that no matter what time, you are not allowed to mention it again.
The word "lieutenant governor..." He glanced down the mountain, then led the people into the valley.
Walking through steep places, woods, and bushes, there are hidden paths leading in and out of the valley with one or two people on guard.
Chen Zishou and the remaining troops have been hiding deep in the valley since the day before yesterday.
Chen Zishou was defeated on the way to Xia Yuan. When he learned that Zhou Zhi was secretly defecting to Huaidong, he did not dare to go to Xia Yuan to join Huang Binghao, but fled deep into Heshan Mountain in the north. In the past ten days,
Chen Zishou led the remnants of his troops to flee northward, and did not reach the northern foot of Mufu Mountain until the day before yesterday.
Deng Fu and others walked back, walked up to Chen Zishou, who had a messy beard and slender cheeks, and reported: "Further north, there is Xianning County, between the hills and mountains, the population is much denser. Although Hu Wenmu wants to strengthen the defenses of Jiangxia and Jingzhou
, a large number of troops and horses were transferred northward after May, but in Ezhou to guard against Huaidong, more than 10,000 troops and horses were still left behind. If our whereabouts were exposed, Hu Wenmu would not be able to let us sneak to Hanjin smoothly..."
Hanjin is on the north bank of the Yangtze River. More than 300 people traveled two to three hundred miles day and night. It was not a big problem, but it was not easy to cross the Yangtze River without leaving a trace.
"According to me, we can simply set up camp in Mufu Mountain. One after another, broken troops are fleeing from the south. With the reputation of deputy governor, it is not difficult to recruit three to five thousand people. If you have soldiers in hand, you still have to worry about him.
Bird?" said a black-faced general.
"Mufu Mountain cannot be stopped, and the whereabouts of the deputy governor cannot be leaked," Deng Fu said. "When Yuanzhou's troops were first defeated, the battlefields were all on the north bank of the Yuan River. Twenty to thirty thousand defeated troops fled to the north of Heshan and Mengshan.
There are deserters all over the mountains and plains, and the Huaidong Army has no way to eliminate them one by one. Two to three hundred of us are hiding among them and are not conspicuous, so we can escape smoothly. If the whereabouts of the deputy governor are exposed, how can Donghai Fox let it go so easily?"
Chen Zishou was followed by more than 300 direct bodyguards, and he did not dare to stop and collect the defeated troops, so he successfully escaped from Yuanzhou Mansion.
"To the northeast of Mufu Mountain is the border of Xiushui County, Jiangzhou Prefecture. We are now northwest of Mufu Mountain. In fact, it is within Xianning County, Ezhou, and belongs to the Jinghu Military Defense Area. If the East China Sea Fox doesn't want to let us go, what can it do to us?
"Chen Zishou, one of the rebel generals, mostly came from Jiangzhou and was quite familiar with the situation in Jiuling and Mufu Mountains. A bearded general disagreed with Deng Fu's caution and retorted.
Although the remaining troops around Chen Zishou were only two to three hundred people, they were all direct descendants of Chen Zishou, and many of them were familiar with military geography.
"In early summer, in order to deal with the situation in the Jingxiang area, Hu Wenmu transferred a large number of soldiers and horses from Jinghu to Jiangxia. Jingzhou strengthened its defenses, and the garrison in Ezhou was sharply reduced. The garrison of Xianning County at the northern foot of Mufu Mountain was only five or six hundred people.
"We want to gain a foothold in Mufu Mountain, and Hu Wenmu's troops in Xianning can't do anything to us." Another general said.
"Lin Fu is the privy envoy and is in charge of the military affairs of the world. Although Jinghu is headed by Hu Wenmu, it is also nominally under the jurisdiction of Jiangning. There is nothing wrong with Lin Fu dispatching troops to Ezhou as the privy envoy, especially since Lin Fu is under Yuan
"Hu Wenmu is even less likely to openly resist Lin Fu if the state beats us like that," Deng Fu said. "To say the least, once the deputy governor leaks his whereabouts in Ezhou, Hu Wenmu doesn't want Lin Fu to have an excuse to mobilize troops into Ezhou.
I won’t just sit idly by and ignore the deputy governor…”
"This won't work, that won't work either, but you can come up with a better way," the bearded man said angrily, "We can't defeat the Huaidong Army, how can we not even be as good as the Jinghu Army?"
"Lin Fu is in Xia Yuan at this time, and there is no sign of going north. Huaidong's main force in Yuanzhou is mainly Zhang Xiongshan's troops who are besieging Xinyu City. For the time being, they can't Gu Xiao escape into the broken army between the mountains in northwest Jiangxi.
," At this time, a young general squeezed in from the outside and said, "In addition, the fall of Nanyang is imminent, and to deal with the critical situation in Jingxiang, Lin Fu should quickly transfer the main force of troops and horses from the hinterland of Jiangxi to the north after taking Xinyu.
Rather than scattering our troops among the mountains in northwest Jiangxi to chase down those defeated troops. Similarly, because the fall of Nanyang was imminent and the She and Luo families combined with the Northern Yan army were about to go south to attack Jingzhou, we stayed in Mufu Mountain to contain Hu Wenmu in Jingzhou.
The soldiers and horses in the south are of more use than the two or three hundred people who hastily crossed the river to flee to the She family. Just like Deng Zuoxiao judged the army, if his father's whereabouts were leaked in Mufu Mountain, Hu Wenmu would probably transfer troops from Ezhou
Beat us, but then again, can we still not beat Hu Wenmu’s troops in Ezhou?”
The young general was Chen Tong, the son of Chen Zishou. He had been fighting in the army with Chen Zishou since he was a child. Only this time they were able to escape together and did not stay in Yuanzhou and be liquidated by Huaidong.
"The mountains of Mufu Mountain are also dangerous. Even if we can gather three to five thousand men and horses, what will happen to the army's food?" Deng Fu asked.
Chen Zishou led the remnants of his troops to flee north, not daring to expose their whereabouts. Not only did they not dare to come into contact with other defeated troops along the way, they also did not dare to attack the fortresses with defense forces, and the villages inhabited by groups were not easily looted. They only captured some birds and beasts along the way to satisfy their hunger.
The eyes of three hundred people have turned green from hunger for more than ten days.
"If we attack two or three large villages, even if the mountains are closed, it shouldn't be a problem if we hold on for half a year," Chen Tong said. "In half a year, Jingzhou will have fallen, and the Yan cavalry will drink their horses on the north bank of the Yangtze River. Maybe Hu Wenmu will also surrender to Bei Yan by then.
By then, we will have three to five thousand soldiers and horses in our hands, so we will not be looked down upon by others!"
Further north, in Xianning County, the hills and mountains are densely populated, and it is also the central area of Jingzhou and Ezhou. Once you leave Mufu Mountain, you must quickly rush to the south bank of the Yangtze River to find a way to find a boat to cross the river.
Deng Fu's plan was to send a few people across the river first, contact Yang Xiong who was guarding Hanjin, and arrange a date to ask Yang Xiong to send a boat to the south bank to pick them up across the river. However, as a practical matter, Chen Zishou only had three hundred people at his side.
How can a group of people cross the river to Hanjin and be taken seriously?
But it’s not safe to stay in Mufu Mountain.
Forty thousand Yuanzhou troops were defeated, and almost ten thousand soldiers and horses surrendered. Lin Fu quickly issued a pardon to the remaining defeated troops who fled to northwest Jiangxi in Xia Yuan City, allowing them to return home on their own.
Within the stipulated time limit, if the defeated soldiers return to their place of origin and surrender their armor, they will be repatriated as civilians and will not be charged for previous crimes.
Deng Fu was not sure whether they could win over 3,000 to 5,000 men and horses in Mufu Mountain. Moreover, everyone fled north in one fell swoop, and many people abandoned their armor. Even if they could win over 3,500 to 5,000 men, the armor would not be all in full force.
.
Furthermore, even if the Sheluo family united with Beiyan to capture Jingzhou in one go, it would be unrealistic to cross the river further and capture Ezhou in a short period of time. Hu Wenmu had Jiangxia on the south bank, and Ezhou could retreat, so how could he easily surrender to Beiyan?
Their stay in Mufu Mountain will last far longer than half a year.
Everyone couldn't decide whether to escape or stay for a while, and looked at Chen Zishou, who had remained silent.
"Let's wait and see the situation at Mufu Mountain first." At this time, Chen Zishou made the final decision in a calm voice.
Passing through Ezhou Prefecture and then looking for a boat to cross the river are all very risky. Furthermore, if two to three hundred people crossed the east to join the She family, how could they give the She family attention? If Chen Zishou wanted to be content with just surviving, he would have
Maybe he followed Huang Binghao all the way to the dark side.
Mufu Mountain is the northern chain of the Luoxiao Mountain System. Even if it is difficult to gain a foothold in Mufu Mountain, there are Jiuling, Heshan, Mengshan, and Wugongshan to the south where you can move.
Chen Zishou punched the rock hard, and the battle with Yuan made his heart bleed. In addition to the heartache, there was also an unspeakable humiliation. He fled all the way north, perhaps because he was getting farther and farther away from Huaidong's soldiers and horses, and he felt fear in his heart.
Gradually, the humiliation of fleeing in defeat stung Chen Zishou's heart more and more, making him almost unbearable.
***************
The news that Lin Fu personally led the Huaidong elite to capture Yuanzhou soon spread to the north bank.
The horse galloped all the way north from Hanjin, changing back three times along the way, and ran into Xinye City at once. Not to mention getting off the horse, the postman who delivered the message almost foamed at the mouth.
Hu Zongguo opened the letter, read it, walked to the long desk in Shewenzhuang where the letter was reviewed, and said: "Huang Binghao is so useless, nearly 40,000 horses are so defeated, Luxi also fell four days ago
Well, it seems that Zhang Han will bow to Huaidong in Tanzhou..."
"Is there any news about Chen Zishou?" She Wenzhuang raised his head and asked.
"If Chen Zishou wants to escape from the deep mountains and old forests of northwest Jiangxi, he has to find a boat to cross the river through Ezhou. How many troops can he pull out?" Hu Zongguo was not interested at all in whether Chen Zishou could escape.
"It doesn't make much sense if Chen Zishou crosses the river," She Wenzhuang said. "His purpose is to stay in Jiuling and the Mufu Mountain area. Even if he can be called Jiangzhou, Ezhou will not worry..."
"Chen Zishou is from Yangxin County, Jiangzhou, which is located at the east foot of Jiuling Mountain. Most of his direct descendants are from Yangxin County. He is very familiar with the place. If he can recruit a team of people from Jiuling Mountain and Mufu Mountain to fight with Jing
The Hu Army and the Huaidong Army are indeed of some use." Hu Zongguo put aside his useless complaints about Huang Binghao and said objectively, "I'm afraid that he will be discouraged."
When Hu Zongguo said this, Shewenzhuang sighed lightly. Yuanzhou's troops and horses were so useless and so quickly defeated the Huaidong Army, which had less than half of its strength. To be honest, he was a little surprised. Shewenzhuang was still counting on it at first.
Huang Binghao was able to hold off the main force of the Huaidong Army in Yuanzhou for a while.
In less than half a month, all the counties in Yuanzhou Prefecture were conquered by Huaidong.
"When Huang Binghao's troops marched out of Xinyu, they asked the Huaidong army to attack them. Isn't the timing a coincidence?" She Wenzhuang raised his head and asked Hu Zongguo.
"Didn't the Governor long ago assert that Donghaihu would abandon Nanyang and settle in Jiangxi first?" Hu Zongguo said, "Since everyone knows that Zhengdu secretly defected to Huaidong, it cannot be considered a surprise that Donghaihu knew Huang Binghao's timing of sending troops in advance and sent troops to intercept in advance.
ah……"
"Everything is so normal, it makes people feel a little uneasy." She Wenzhuang sighed lightly.
Hu Zongguo would not say that Shewenzhuang is worrying. Dealing with Huaidong over the years has forced them to be more cautious. The more normal Huaidong looks on the surface, the more likely it is that there is a conspiracy behind it.
Furthermore, when using troops at the level of Shewenzhuang, intuition is sometimes very important.
Shewenzhuang felt such a strong sense of uneasiness at this time that Hu Zongguo also took a breath of cold air. Hu Zongguo sat down, sat across from Shewenzhuang, and carefully deduced the battle situation from the beginning. Nothing happened.
There is a leak in the place.
At this time, someone walked into the hall and reported: "General Azige, the envoy of Yan, wants to see the governor."
"Please come quickly." She Wenzhuang said.
Nah Azig walked into the Mingtang, and he was not familiar with the weapon. He cupped his hands towards Shewenzhuang and said: "Now that Yuanzhou has attacked, Huaidong troops will soon go north, and we are ready to attack Nanyang. Prince Mu
Send me to Xinye and ask the governor to go to Nanyang to supervise the battle..."
"Okay." She Wenzhuang said.
After Zhou Fan led his troops to attack Fangcheng, Shewenzhuang sent Tian Chang to lead his troops to cooperate with Ye Jiluo Rong, and Zhou Fan surrounded Nanyang. Because Huang Binghao was too useless, he was unable to hold off the Huaidong Army for half a month, so they just
We can't wait until Nanyang's supplies are exhausted before attacking the city...