After Li Tong's repeated requests, Liu Xiu finally agreed to let Li Tong lead his troops to Hanzhong.
Hanzhong is close to Chang'an and Nanyang, and Li Tong is no stranger to Hanzhong. Before he and Liu Xiu rebelled in Chongling, Liu Xiu and Li Tong had come to Hanzhong to fight against the rebels.
At that time, the barbarians invaded Yizhou, and Wang Mang sent a hundred thousand capital troops headed by Lian Dan to go south to quell the barbarians.
The local government organized a rebel army and cooperated with the capital army to fight. Liu Xiu and Li Tong were members of the rebel army.
In Hanzhong, Li Tong fought several tough battles with Liu Xiu, and was finally able to leave Hanzhong alive and return to Nanyang, which was regarded as a narrow escape.
This time Li Tong was about to enter Hanzhong to fight again. Liu Xiu was worried, fearing that something might happen to him, but Li Tong himself was not worried at all.
In his mind, Hanzhong was his blessed place. It was Liu Xiu who he met in Hanzhong, and that made him what he is today. This time he went to Hanzhong to fight again, and he believed that he could still win a complete victory this time.
Liu Xiu sent Feng Yi southward and entered Nanjun to reinforce Cen Peng. Li Tong led 30,000 troops from the capital to garrison Nanyang. From the outside, this was very reasonable and reasonable.
Li Tong was going to Nanyang, and Liu Boji was worried. She frowned and asked, "Why did your Majesty suddenly send your husband to Nanyang?"
"There is a war going on in Nanjun now. There are more than 100,000 troops there. Food and grass are only supplied from Luoyang, so there will inevitably be insufficient. Farming in Nanyang can relieve the pressure on the soldiers of Nanjun."
Although she was not going to Nanjun to fight, but was just farming in Nanyang, Liu Boji was still worried.
She couldn't help but warned: "After my husband arrives in Nanyang, just plant the fields well. As for the war in Nanjun, it will be enough for General Zhengnan and General Zhengxi to fight. My husband must not show off his strength."
If they win, they will steal the limelight from Cen Peng and Feng Yi, and they will definitely feel unhappy. If they lose, they will lose the conversation and be criticized. So as long as Li Tong goes to fight, no matter he wins or loses, it will be effortless.
Please.
Li Tong held Liu Boji's hand and said softly: "I understand, Boji, just don't worry."
Liu Boji thought about it and said, "I'd better go to Nanyang with my husband!"
Li Tong was startled, waved his hands quickly and said, "No!"
Seeing Liu Boji looking at him in surprise, Li Tong cleared his throat and explained: "I just arrived in Nanyang, everything is starting from scratch, and the conditions will naturally be very difficult. After a while, everything will stabilize, and Boji will not be able to come to Nanyang again."
Not too late."
Hearing what he said, Liu Boji became even more worried and said: "I'm worried about my husband's health..."
Li Tong smiled and said softly: "My condition has almost recovered. Now I am strong and strong. Even if a bison charges towards me, I am confident that I can kill it with one punch!"
Liu Boji was amused by his words. She suddenly remembered something and took out a peace blessing from under the pillow, wrapped in a red brocade bag. She placed the peace blessing in Li Tong's hand and said, "This peace blessing,
I specially invited it for your husband, and you must wear it at all times."
Li Tong lowered his head and looked at the brocade bag in his hand, which was embroidered with landscapes. In the corner of the brocade bag, there was a small word "Tong". After looking at it, Li Tong felt warm in his heart. He raised his hand and touched it gently.
Touching Liu Boji's cheek, he couldn't describe how he felt for a moment. He took a deep breath and said, "Boji, wait for me to come back!"
The intelligence sent by Luo You to Gongsun Shu clearly pointed out that Luoyang's strategic focus was shifting to the south. In fact, this was indeed the case.
Of the 100,000 Western Expeditionary Army stationed in Chang'an, 50,000 were transferred away. Even the commander-in-chief Feng Yi was also transferred to Nanjun in the south. Only 50,000 of the Western Expeditionary Army was left, which no longer posed a threat to Shu.
In addition, the newly appointed commander-in-chief of the Western Expedition Army was Jin Wu Zhu Fu, and Gongsun Shu did not take him seriously at all. Zhu Fu could be a civil servant, talented and knowledgeable, but he was still far from a military commander!
At the beginning, Peng Chong rebelled because of him. As a Youzhou shepherd, the Youzhou army led by Zhu Fu was beaten to a pulp by Peng Chong's Yuyang army. It was a tragedy.
Even a mediocre person like Peng Chong was inferior to him. Gongsun Shu naturally regarded Zhu Fu as a straw bag.
There were only 50,000 people left in the Western Expeditionary Army in Chang'an, and the leader was replaced by Zhu Fu. This did paralyze Gongsun Shu and Yancen in Hanzhong to a large extent.
The purpose of Yancen leading his army to Hanzhong was to seize the third auxiliary.
Before leaving, Gongsun Shu and Yancen had a long talk. Gongsun Shu promised that as long as Yancen could secure three assistants, he would make Yancen the king of Hanzhong, and he could entrust the entire Hanzhong county to Yancen.
Yancen started his career in Hanzhong. Yancen's tribe was also called the Hanzhong Exile Army. Basically, all of his officers and soldiers were from Hanzhong. The conditions offered by Gongsun Shu were too tempting for Yancen.
Gongsun Shu boasted that he, Yancen, would definitely be able to take down the third assistant.
Gongsun Shu also valued Yancen and immediately sent him an army of 60,000. After Yancen led his troops to Hanzhong, he never stopped. He divided his soldiers into several branches and constantly harassed the three areas of Chang'an, Fufeng and Feng Yi.
Yancen's purpose was to provoke Zhu Fu and make him take the initiative to lead an attack. As long as Zhu Fu entered Hanzhong, he could make Zhu Fu and his 50,000 Han troops unable to return.
There are many dangerous places in Hanzhong. As long as he chooses a suitable place to set up an ambush, Yancen is confident that he can completely annihilate the enemy even if the strength of the two sides is about the same.
Zhu Fu is not very good at fighting and lacks the strategy, intelligence and charm of a genius general, but compared with military generals, he is more tolerant and calm.
No matter how much Yancen's soldiers and horses harassed the Sanfu area, Zhu Fu just stood still. Around Chang'an, the troops were stationed and drilled as if nothing was wrong.
If Zhu Fu doesn't take the bait, Yan Cen really doesn't have any good methods to deal with him.
If Yancen was asked to lead his troops to attack Chang'an, he would not have the courage. The lessons learned from the past are still vivid in his mind. The city defense of Chang'an is easy to defend but difficult to attack. He has 60,000 soldiers and horses. It is simply difficult to break through Chang'an where 50,000 people are stationed.
Like ascending to heaven.
Let's talk about Li Tong, who led his army into Nanyang. In this battle, Liu Xiu also sent Li Tong three capable generals. One was the captor general Ma Wu, the other was the captor general Wang Ba, and the third was the traitor general.
Hou Jin.
Ma Wu and Wang Ba are both fierce generals under Liu Xiu. Needless to say, Hou Jin is also a famous general who is brave and good at fighting. But again, the generals under Liu Xiu are shining brightly, and many famous generals have the demeanor.
They were all overshadowed by generals such as Wu Han, Deng Yu, Cen Peng, Geng Yan, Feng Yi, Gai Yan, etc. Hou Jin was one of them.
Ma Wu was very excited about this battle. Like Li Tong, his trip to Hanzhong to fight this time was also a return trip to his old place. He and Li Tong both met Liu Xiu in Hanzhong and became inseparable after that.
Give up and keep going until today.
Wang Ba and Hou Jin had never experienced this, and they were extremely cautious about entering Hanzhong this time.
As the saying goes, the road to Shu is difficult, and it is difficult to reach the sky. The terrain in Hanzhong is steep. Just marching in Hanzhong is a troublesome thing, let alone fighting.
Thirty thousand Han troops led by Li Tong entered Nanyang and stationed themselves in Shedu Township in the west of Nanyang.
Shedu Township is sparsely populated and has a large area of unclaimed land. The Han army wants to establish farming in Nanyang, so Shedu Township is indeed a good choice.
But this is only a superficial reason. In fact, General Li Tong chose this place for his farming because it is close enough to Hanzhong. Not far from Shedu Township to the west, there is Wudang Mountain. Through Wudang Mountain, it is also
Then they entered Hanzhong County.
Hanzhong camp, Zhongjun tent.
Li Tong, Ma Wu, Wang Ba, and Hou Jin all gathered in the Chinese military tent. They were in Nanyang, but what they were looking at was the map of Hanzhong County.
Ma Wu pointed his finger at the top of the map and said: "According to our intelligence reports and the intelligence reports from Chang'an, the Yancen Division is currently stationed in Beishan!"
Beishan is located in the northernmost part of Hanzhong County, more than a hundred miles away from Chang'an. Li Tong looked at the map, frowning and silent.
Wang Ba also frowned and said: "Since Yancen's troops are all in Beishan, I think our army doesn't have to go through Hanzhong. We can also go around to Chang'an to attack the enemy!"
Hou Jin said: "Our army will detour to Chang'an, and Yancen's army will definitely notice it!"
Wang Ba chuckled and said, "You won't be noticed if you go to Hanzhong? Don't forget, Hanzhong is still someone else's territory!"
Before Hou Jin could speak, Li Tong said: "Otherwise! The terrain in Hanzhong is steep and difficult to march, but similarly, the transmission of news is also extremely difficult. Our army passed through Hanzhong and suddenly appeared behind the enemy, which can indeed surprise them."
, the effect of catching someone off guard."
Wang Ba thought for a while, slowly shook his head and said: "It's difficult! Although our army is not large, it is still 30,000 strong. We want to be invisible and not noticed by the enemy. We suddenly appear behind the enemy."
, this is too difficult.”
To say it was too difficult was putting it mildly. In Wang Ba's opinion, it was simply impossible.
Ma Wu glanced at him and asked, "Wang Ba, have you ever been to Hanzhong before?"
Wang Ba could still speak calmly to others, but he couldn't be polite to Ma Wu. He snorted and said, "Why should I go to Hanzhong if I have nothing to do?!"
"Since you have never been to Hanzhong, how do you know the situation in Hanzhong? Within Hanzhong, there is only one road to Beishan!" Ma Wu stretched out a finger and waved it in front of Wang Ba.
Li Tong said quietly: "Ziwu Road."
The Ziwu Road is named after it passes through the Ziwu Valley. It is no exaggeration to call this road a natural danger. There are many sections of the Ziwu Road, which are built directly on the cliffs. People dug on the cliffs and nailed into the wood.
The path is narrow enough for two people to walk side by side. If you are not careful, you will fall into the abyss.
Even for locals in Hanzhong, Ziwu Road is a yin-yang road. You may be destined to walk up it, but you may not be destined to walk down it.
Ma Wu clenched his fist, hammered the map, and said: "If our army wants to pass through Hanzhong and go to Beishan, it can only take Ziwu Road!"
Li Tong lowered his eyes, paced back and forth in the tent with his hands behind his back.
Taking the Ziwu Road is too dangerous. Firstly, the road is dangerous and difficult to walk. Secondly, if Yancen sets an ambush on the Ziwu Road, their 30,000 soldiers will be in danger of being annihilated.
If we were really ambushed by the enemy on the Ziwu Road, our soldiers would really not be able to fight back at all. The enemy would not even need to fight. They would just throw stones at the top of the mountain and destroy the plank road, and all 30,000 of our soldiers would be killed.
Cliff bottom.
Taking the Ziwu Road is equivalent to making a huge gamble with the lives of 30,000 soldiers. It is not easy for anyone to make this determination.
Ma Wu said meaningfully: "Ziyuan, the Ziwu Road is difficult to travel. We know it, and Yancen knows it even more. Yancen would never have thought that our army would take the Ziwu Road and steal his retreat!"
Li Tong stopped, turned around, walked to his seat, sat down slowly, and after a long silence, he slowly said: "We have to customize the most secret marching route!"
