In just a few days, Zhutiandu's tribe successively occupied Caiyang, Xiangxiang, Deng County, and Tongling. They gained momentum and became famous, and the number of people who came to seek refuge also increased.
Similarly, the rapid expansion of the Zhu Tiandu Department also aroused the county government's high vigilance.
The prefect Zhen Fu first appealed to the imperial court and requested to recall the main force of the county army stationed in Luyang. Then, he issued orders to the counties to recruit strong soldiers to expand the county troops in each county and strengthen the ability to protect themselves.
In Zhen Fu's view, as long as the Chongling rebels are trapped in the area of Caiyang, Xiangxiang, Deng County, and Tongling, and they are not allowed to continue to expand outwards, it is not difficult to completely annihilate them with the strength of the county government. .
However, he still underestimated the ambition and expansion speed of the Zhu Tiandu Department.
On the fourth day after the celebration banquet, Liu Yan summoned his generals to discuss the next offensive strategy. Liu Ji was the first to express his stance. His strategy was very simple, go straight to the new field.
Currently, there are two counties, Chaoyang and Huyang, between the Zhutiandu tribe's sphere of influence and Xinye.
It stands to reason that if Zhu Tiandu's troops want to attack Xinye, they should first capture Chaoyang and Huyang, at least one of them, and then use it as a springboard to attack Xinye.
Taking the new field directly and unexpectedly can have the effect of attacking it unprepared and taking it by surprise.
Of course, this tactic is also very risky. If it can succeed in a battle, it will be okay. If it cannot succeed and cannot attack Xinye for a long time, then the attacking soldiers will be in danger. They will be in a dilemma of being cut off and without supplies. .
Both Deng Chen and Deng Feng expressed their support for Liu Ji's proposal. First of all, both his uncle and nephew were from Xinye, and of course they hoped that they could fight back to Xinye as soon as possible. Secondly, they both knew Xinye very well and knew the strength of Xinye County soldiers. , thinking that if our side launches a sneak attack on Xinye, we will have great hope of success.
After careful consideration, Liu Xiu believed that Liu Ji's tactics were too risky. He said: "At present, all counties have received orders from Zhen Fu and are recruiting a large number of elite troops. I think the current county troops in Xinye are already quite large. .”
Xinye is a large county with a large population and a large number of refugees. Recruiting strong men is relatively easy, and the county army can be expanded to several thousand men in a very short period of time.
In addition, Xinye City has a large amount of grain, grass and baggage stockpiles, which can support a large number of county soldiers without fear of being besieged by one's own side.
Once our attack is blocked, we will face an encirclement by county soldiers from Xinye, Chaoyang, and Huyang. It is too dangerous, and there is no need for our side to be so eager for success now.
Liu Ji said disapprovingly: "Even if the strength of Xinye has increased, we still have a lot of troops. In my opinion, it is not difficult to take down Xinye in one go!"
At present, the strength of the Zhu Tiandu Department has expanded to six or seven thousand men, which can be regarded as a large-scale army.
Liu Xiu frowned slightly, pondered for a moment, shook his head and said: "Once the attack is blocked, the brothers will face the siege of the county soldiers from the three places, and the odds are against them."
"Otherwise, even if the war is unfavorable and the attack is blocked, our brothers can retreat and avoid the danger temporarily."
Deng Feng smiled confidently and said, "Uncle Wen, has he forgotten the Baishan Mountain? Even if our army brothers fail to capture the new territory, they can still retreat to the Baishan Mountain as a way to protect themselves."
Liu Xiu smiled bitterly and said: "Without supplies and without food and grass, if our brothers retreat to Baishan, aren't they asking for death?"
Deng Fengdan smiled and said nothing, and turned to look at Deng Chen. Deng Chen answered: "Uncle Wen, we have also hoarded a large amount of grain in Baishan."
Hearing this, Liu Xiu was shocked. If he remembered correctly, all the supplies he had hoarded in Baishan had been transported back to Chongling.
Deng Chen explained: "The supplies we hoarded before were indeed transported to Chongling, but later, the Yin family hoarded a large amount of food in Baishan."
Liu Xiu really didn't know about this and looked at Deng Chen in surprise.
Deng Chen said: "Ever since Miss Lihua was on Wang Mang's list of concubines, the Yin family has made up its mind to rebel against Wang Mang. During this period, the Yin family has been selling off their fields and assets, exchanging them for grain, and hoarding them in Baishan to prepare for aid.
Our army. Later, our army rebelled in Chongling, and the control in each county became strict. The grain that the Yin family hoarded in Baishan never had a chance to be shipped out. Now, there is a chance to put it to use."
"That's it!" It turns out that the Yin family secretly stockpiled food in Baishan. No wonder Deng Chen and Deng Feng would support Liu Ji's tactics of sneak attack on Xinye. From this point of view, we can't say that our sneak attack on Xinye will be successful, but at least we have self-protection.
of capital.
Liu Xiu nodded thoughtfully and murmured: "In this case, this plan is feasible!"
Hearing that Liu Xiu also agreed with his tactics, Liu Ji became more and more excited and intervened to Liu Yan and said: "General, I am willing to lead the army to attack Xinye!"
Deng Feng followed closely behind, stepped out of the queue, stepped in and saluted: "General, my subordinates are also willing to lead the army to attack Xinye!"
Both Liu Xiu and Liu Ji had been promoted to partial generals, and Deng Feng certainly did not want to fall behind others. This attack on Xinye was a rare opportunity to make a great contribution.
Liu Gong, Liu Jin, Li Yi and others, who had recovered from their injuries, also came out and asked Liu Yan for a tassel, expressing their willingness to fight.
Everyone was high-spirited and determined to fight. Liu Yan was naturally very happy. He thought for a moment, nodded and said, "Okay! In this battle, Liu Ji will be the commander-in-chief, and Deng Feng will be the deputy commander. He will lead an army of three thousand to enter the new territory."
!”
Liu Xiu rolled his eyes and said: "General, I think we should send out two more troops to pretend to attack Chaoyang and Huyang. One of them can confuse the enemy and better cover Ji Ge's sneak attack.
Secondly, it can share the pressure of Ji Ge's troops. Even if they reach Xinye and the attack is blocked, the county soldiers from Chaoyang and Huyang counties will not be able to immediately go to Xinye for reinforcements."
Before Liu Yan could speak, Liu Yong laughed out loud and said: "Our troops only have a total of 6,000 people. Three thousand of them will be divided to attack Xinye. The remaining 3,000 people will be divided to defend Caiyang."
, Deng County, Xiangxiang, and Tongling, where are the extra troops to attack Chaoyang and Huyang?"
Liu Xiu smiled and said: "It is precisely because our army does not have enough troops to attack Chaoyang and Huyang that I said we would feign an attack and make it appear that our army is going to attack Chaoyang and Huyang."
"Even if it is a feint attack, a large number of troops need to be mobilized, but where will these troops come from?"
"Refugees from four counties can be temporarily recruited."
"Temporarily recruiting refugees? Can refugees fight? I'm afraid they will be scared away as soon as they see the shadow of officers and soldiers?!"
"I have already said that we only need to make a feint attack. The purpose is not to fight with the county soldiers in Chaoyang and Huyang with real guns. We only need to attract their attention and drag them between Chaoyang and Huyang.
It’s fine if we can’t rush to the aid of Xinye in Yang territory.”
Liu Yong continued to play devil's advocate, but Liu Jin couldn't stand it anymore. He cleared his throat and said, "Father, I think Uncle Wen's plan is feasible!" Liu Jin was punished by Liu Xiu with two hundred lashes and almost died. , he was not without complaints about Liu Xiu in his heart, but at this time he had to admit that Liu Xiu's idea of borrowing refugees was a good one, and it could indeed confuse Chaoyang and Huyang county soldiers to a large extent.
Seeing that his sons all stood up to support Liu Xiu, Liu Yong looked ugly, glared at Liu Jin fiercely, and stopped talking angrily.
Liu Yan said: "Okay, let's follow A Xiu's idea! Use temporarily recruited refugees to pretend to attack Chaoyang and Huyang counties, while Liu Ji and Deng Feng will lead the main force of our army to attack Xinye!"
After a pause, he said: "As for the mission of pretending to attack Chaoyang..."
Before he finished speaking, Liu Xiu attacked Qingying and said, "General, I can gather the refugees from Deng County and pretend to attack Chaoyang!"
Liu Yan thought for a while, nodded, and said, "Yes!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Li Yi raised his hand and said: "General, my subordinates are willing to gather refugees from Xiangxiang and pretend to attack Huyang."
"allow!"
The matter was quickly settled, and Zhu Tiandu set its next target on Xin Ye.
Nanyang County has two centers, one is the county town, and the other is Xinye. Whether or not Xinye can be captured is crucial to the Zhu Tiandu Department.
Once Xinye was captured, Zhu Tiandu's tribe controlled the southern part of Nanyang County, laying a good foundation for the next attack on Wancheng and even the county city.
Let’s not talk about other people’s pre-war preparations, let’s talk about Liu Xiu. On the same day, he set off for Deng County.
Liu Xiu's subordinates are basically staying in Deng County, including Deng Yu, Yan Guang, Gai Yan, Feng Yi, Fu Jun, etc. The one who went to Deng County with Liu Xiu was Zhu You.
To make a long story short, Liu Xiu and Zhu You traveled day and night, and finally arrived in Deng County on the afternoon of the next day.
After arriving in Deng County, Liu Xiu immediately summoned everyone to discuss military affairs.
Among those attending the meeting, besides Deng Yu, Yan Guang and others, there were also the county magistrate Wang Chong and Zhao Ying, who had just been promoted to school captain.
Liu Xiu didn't hide anything from everyone, and revealed all the tactics he had formulated. Finally, he said: "I am responsible for the feint attack on Chaoyang. For this battle, I need to recruit one thousand to two thousand refugees."
Wang Chong and Zhao Ying looked at each other, and the former said: "General, it is not difficult to summon two thousand refugees. The county government also has enough money and food to summon these refugees, but..." As he spoke, he glanced at Zhao Ying.
Zhao Ying answered: "Chaoyang County Magistrate Yi Zhen and County Lieutenant Xie Sheng are not ordinary people! The general leads the refugees to pretend to attack Chaoyang. I'm afraid it will be... extremely dangerous!"
Deng County and Chaoyang are adjacent to each other, and the magistrates and county captains of the two counties are naturally familiar with each other. Yi Zhenfeng is a good reader of poetry and books, and has outstanding talents and learning, while Xie Sheng is a military attaché who is good at using troops and is brave and good at fighting. The two of them are both civil and military. , Cooperating with each other tacitly, both Wang Chong and Zhao Ying felt that it was too risky for Liu Xiu to lead the refugees into Chaoyang and make a feint attack.
The two of them were even worried that Liu Xiugang would "lead his army" into Chaoyang, and Yi Zhen and Xie Sheng might take the initiative to fight. Once the refugees met the officers and soldiers, their true colors would immediately be revealed, and they would be frightened and flee, leaving Liu Xiu alone. They eat fish and meat from other people's bodies and prepare lambs for slaughter.
Deng Yu, Yan Guang and others also frowned and looked solemn. They believed that Liu Xiu led the refugees to pretend to attack Chaoyang with false pretense, which was indeed extremely dangerous.
Chaoyang itself is not a small county. There are many soldiers in the county. Coupled with the expansion of troops during this period, it is estimated that Chaoyang's current military strength is at least two to three thousand.
It's okay if people don't go out of the city to fight. Once they go out to fight, the consequences will be disastrous.
