After crossing Hangou and riding on the horses hidden in the woods, everyone took advantage of the darkness to bypass the obstruction of the stream and gallop towards the northwest.
The further northwest you go, the sparser the population becomes. There are collapsed and abandoned houses everywhere, or roads washed away by floods. It’s only thanks to Han Qian and the others that they ride the best horses in a hundred that they can survive in such muddy land.
Move forward quickly.
After driving all night, after dawn, Han Qian and the others bypassed the deserted road and got into a dense forest to rest. At this time, they had bypassed the Forbidden Army's checkpoint and entered Shiliang County again.
It would be extremely hard for anyone to escape from danger as soon as possible, hide their whereabouts, and travel all night long. Han Qian completely ignored his image and sat down on the ground, leaning against a pine tree, tearing up wheat cakes.
Holding a tin kettle in one hand, a mouthful of cake and a mouthful of cold boiled water were eaten whole to satisfy the hunger.
After resting for an hour, He Liufeng led a team of rearguard troops and rushed over to join them. He said: "There was no movement over there in Yangzhou. I don't know if it was because I was really frightened, or if Wang Wenqian thought that your Excellency's suggestion was really good and didn't send out pursuers."
Come."
"Then he must have been frightened," Han Qian said with a smile, "Wang Wenqian can't make the decision in this matter. If he hadn't been frightened, he would have sent pursuers to intercept us even if he was just pretending."
At this time, it rained heavily. When the clouds stopped, He Liufeng and his troops continued to rest in the woods. They also watched the way back to see if any Huaidong scouts would come over. Han Qian and the others rode on horseback.
Exit the woods and continue on the road.
After reaching the west bank of the Xiaota River, they found the shallow water and swam directly across the river. Han Qian and the others arrived at Baitigang in the afternoon and followed Xiao, the former member of the Zuo Guangde Army who had moved here earlier, as well as Feng Liao and Guo Rong who had stayed here.
They meet.
It had only been a few days since Han Qian and the others left, and the second group of people migrating north had already arrived to join them. Nearly 600 people from Zuo Guangde's old army and his family's family had gathered in this low hill - except for Guo Xiao as
The messenger stayed outside Yangzhou, and Lin Sheng, one of the nine leaders of the Chishan Society, rushed over in advance.
"How about it? If you are sure to convince Huaidong, when will Yang Yuanyan give you an accurate reply?" Feng Liao asked impatiently.
Things here are not in order and Han Qian will not leave easily. But if Han Qian stays outside, once the news leaks out, the situation will be very dangerous.
Feng Liao still hopes that the matter here can be resolved as soon as possible, and then they return to Xuzhou.
"It's not that easy," Han Qian shook his head and said with a smile, "Yang Yuanyan is a headstrong person who will not bow his head easily. His plan for Jinling was thwarted by me. Even if he wanted to cooperate, it would be difficult for him to swallow this breath——
We still need to be prepared on both sides. How have you conducted reconnaissance of the surrounding refugee forces in the past few days since I have been away? Can you confirm that Huaidong has also penetrated these refugee forces?"
"The distribution of refugee forces and some basic information are not difficult to detect, but the refugee forces are relatively closed. If you want to infiltrate and find out whether they are controlled by whom, it is not possible for the time being." Feng Liao said.
Shiliang County initially had a population of less than 20,000, but since the outbreak of the war, a large number of people have fled from Chaozhou and western Chuzhou, causing an increase in the number of people staying here to escape the war.
Dozens of refugee forces, large and small, would not have been believed by Han Qian if it were not for the infiltration of the Anning Palace rebels and Huaidong rebels. It is even very possible that Liang Guo's spies had infiltrated their activities.
The imperial army was also worried about this, so they did not dare to easily mobilize troops from the eastern part of Chuzhou to advance to the south bank of Hongzepu.
Of course, the key is the degree of penetration of various forces. Due to the vigilance and closed-door nature of the refugees in the chaotic land, it is difficult for them to conduct detailed investigations in a short period of time. Just like they gathered in Baiti Gang and settled down, others should not think that they can easily
Penetrate in and find out their roots.
"We need to be prepared on both sides? Is it possible that Huaidong will send troops across Fanliang Lake to attack us?" Feng Yi asked doubtfully.
"Yang Yuanyan is even more afraid of being jealous of Jinling at this time, and he is also afraid that Jinling will seize the opportunity to withdraw from the vassal state. Huaidong soldiers and horses will not come in large numbers, but they will use the refugee forces they secretly control to try our
After all, Yang Yuanyian is still happy to do it," Han Qian said, "Only after we have dampened Yang Yuanyuan's enthusiasm can we really ask him to think about the benefits of cooperating with us."
"If we really suffer another setback, maybe some people in Huaidong are worried that if they cooperate with us, they will create trouble," Guo Rongwei said with a frown, "King Xin had such a huge advantage before, but it was all hurt by you. Zhundong said from the bottom of his heart
There are definitely not a few people who are deeply afraid of you!"
"If Huaidong is not given more choices, in order to quench their thirst, even if a glass of poisonous wine is placed in front of them, they have to drink it." Han Qian was not worried about the impact of Huaidong's fear of him, and said disdainfully.
, but they still have to deal with possible attacks and harassment from fellow refugee forces at any time.
When Han Qian sneaked out of Xuzhou this time, he originally wanted to use Xue Ruogu's hands to uncover the truth about Shang Wensheng's assassination case, divide the attitude of the court officials towards Xuzhou, and further ease the tense situation in Guangde Mansion.
He then took Guo Rong with him, who had a better understanding of the situation of the Jiangdong clan. However, he never thought that the situation could not keep up with the changes. Now he had to consider the issue of the old Zuo Guangde Army moving out of Guangde Mansion and crossing the river to settle down. Guo Rong and Feng Yi
They followed him around and suffered a lot, but they couldn't help much.
Han Qian now needs military commanders who can help Zuo Guangde's old army establish a foothold on the west bank of Fanliang Lake. This is not what Guo Rong, Feng Yi, or even Feng Liao is good at.
Among those who are good at this, Dou Rong stayed in Dingjiagou, Xuanjiao Ridge, while Kong Xirong, He Liufeng, and Xi Rong followed Han Qian.
When He Liufeng led his troops to Baitigang to join them, Han Qian called everyone together to learn more about the composition of the people who entered Baitigang in the early stage and the terrain of Baitigang and the surrounding lakes, and study how to deal with the possibility of an explosion at any time.
Attacks and intrusions occurred.
Zuo Guangde's old army entered Baiti Gang in two groups, front and rear. It was difficult to hide from Huaidong's eyes. This also meant that they were in the open while the enemy was in the dark.
At the same time, because they fled across the river from the south, the refugee forces secretly controlled by the Anning Palace rebels might mistakenly think that they were pioneer troops sent by the Forbidden Army and attack them.
The situation they were facing in Baiti Gang at this time was not at all easy.
…………
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Considering that there will be many variables in the early stage, even if it is necessary to bring some women and children as cover, the 600 people who moved into Baitigang in the early stage are mainly young men or teenagers over 12 or 13 years old, among whom are the Chishan Army
Or Zuo Guangde's army, there are 300 veterans who have participated in the battle of Mei Zhuxi or the attack on Langxi City, and more than 200 other strong women and young people can also serve as internal guards.
The establishment of a women's camp and a youth camp has been a tradition of the Chishan Army since its establishment.
Kong Xirong commanded the elite bodyguards who personally protected Han Qian, as well as the elite spies in Xi Rong and He Liufeng who were in charge of spying on the enemy along the way. There were a total of 120 people.
It's just that Kong Xirong and He Liufeng were the ones who mainly escorted Han Qian into Yangzhou to meet Wang Wenqian. The elite troops in Xuzhou did not participate in the construction of the camp at Baiti Gang in the early stage.
Han Qian rushed back at this time and saw that with the assistance of Feng Liao, Guo Rong, Feng Liao and others, the camp on Baitigang mainly used abandoned ancestral halls and cottages in the mountain depression on the east side facing the lake.
, build barracks that can provide shelter for everyone, and the defensive facilities are equivalent to none.
This is not to say that Feng Liao, Guo Rong and others are not good at creating.
In fact, even though Feng Liao, Guo Rong, and Feng Yi were not as accomplished as Ji Xiyao, Chen Jitang, and others in terms of construction work, they had been exposed to new learning in Xuzhou over the years, and their purely theoretical deductions were no better than Ji's.
There is a huge difference between Chen and others, and in terms of construction practice, they are beyond the reach of the so-called great craftsmen and craftsmen of the world.
They mainly wanted to wait for Han Qian to return and immediately withdraw to Xuzhou and hide in Baitigang to avoid alerting the enemy. They deliberately did not build defensive measures and wanted to act like refugees fleeing from famine, so as not to arouse opposition from all parties.
Notice.
Considering that this area might be attacked at any time, Han Qian also made up his mind to wait until Chishan Council could gain a firm foothold in Baitigang before talking about anything else. He immediately made new adjustments to the camp construction ideas at Baitigang.
Fortunately, the Imperial Army stationed at the southern wing of Shiliang County was not very strict in checking the checkpoints along the way, so Lin Sheng and the others were able to bring a relatively sufficient batch of supplies, iron tools, and armor and equipment.
Although Baiti Gang is only forty or fifty meters high, the mountain is not dangerous. It faces a lake on one side and is surrounded by plains on three sides. It is not easy to defend or attack, but it also depends on the intensity and level of the battle.
Considering that whether it is Huaidong or Anning Palace, in the area south of Hongzepu and west of Fanliang Lake, the elite force that can be directly controlled is extremely limited. At most, a group of untrained and incomplete soldiers can be gathered.
A mob of people attacked, but the terrain of Baiti Gang was valuable for study and utilization.
The mountainous terrain of Baiti Gang is low in the west and difficult to climb. The mountain stretches to the north and south, forming an arc facing the lake in the east. The camp of the Chishan Congregation at this time is located on the east slope of Baiti Mountain, in the mountain col facing the lake.
, there was an abandoned fishing village before, and there were five or six broken fishing boats stranded on the reed beach.
There are lush trees in the mountains and even more lush reeds on the lake beach.
In addition to the north and south entrances that can attack the camp, there is also a ravine from the west. The terrain is easy and easy to climb. Even without a sneak attack, the enemy can easily attack and climb to the ridge from the west.
After research, he found that this terrain was the easiest to set up traps. Han Qian then used bamboo as tendons to weave reed mats, and then used pine and fir as frame supports. Several reed mats were stacked together to make a reed mat bed.
.
At the top of the ravine or on the dangerous cliff slopes on both sides, these reed mat fence beds are supported on the ground on one side and tree stumps are tied to ropes on the other side. They are suspended in the air, filled with gravel, and covered with weeds.
