Chapter 175 Eastern Expedition (8) 4/4 is the month
Chapter 175: Eastern Expedition (8)
The next day, the army broke out of camp and marched eastward. The tens of thousands of troops marched directly to the place where Qingshui County was originally located, and then set up camp again. On the way there, you can see many villages along the road...
.....Ruins. These places were originally inhabited by the people, but with the two invasions of the Xiliang people, the fields and villages that took several years or more to be cultivated and built have been crushed by the war.
broken.
The nearby people had been moved into the city by General Chencang, or moved to Guanzhong. Han Sui's cavalry swept these places again. Many villages were now occupied by the invaders and became Xiliang.
The military garrison. When Chen Cheng and the Xiliang princes arrived near Chencang, what they saw was that the people's livelihood was in ruins and overgrown with weeds.
The main force of the army spread out along the Liuchuan River between Qingshui and Weishui, so that there would be enough fodder for the horses. The Qiang people are a half-cultivating and half-grazing people. Although they also grow some crops such as millet, most of the time
In a nomadic state, Han Sui had the largest number of Qiang cavalry and required the largest amount of pasture.
Chen Cheng, Han Sui, Cheng Yi, Zhang Heng and others each led hundreds of cavalry and arrived at the gate of Chencang City. Han Sui pointed to the city in the distance and said to Chen Cheng, half to show off and half to show off: "Please take a look, sir.
This is Chencangjian City! This city is connected to the Qinling Mountains in the south, the remaining mountains of Longshan in the north, the Weishui River in the west, and the Qishan Mountains in the east. It is the barrier to the west of Guanzhong. If Chencang is not broken, we will not be able to attack Sanfu!"
On the ground nearby, there are still the remains of swords, guns, swords and halberds, and there are even arrow clusters left on the city wall. Everything shows how fierce the battle last year was. In order to invade Guanzhong, the Xiliang people
After struggling for more than eighty days under Chencang City, they still failed to capture this small city in front of them.
Yes, Chencang City is not big, but the city wall is extremely strong. It is about three feet high and two feet wide. It is wrapped with green bricks on the outside and rammed earth in the middle. There is a wide and deep trench outside the city wall, and there is a
With horse faces and watchtowers, such a strong city only needs three to five thousand defenders to hold it for a long time.
While listening to Han Sui's introduction, Chen Cheng looked at the morale of the defenders on the city. Morale is a mysterious thing, but experienced generals can tell it at a glance. The cold light on the city was flashing, and the soldiers
Wearing armor, there was no panic, which shows that the morale of the defenders was high.
Also, they had defeated the Xiliang Army once, and not only gained a lot of combat experience, but also established a psychological advantage. Just after the autumn harvest, the city had accumulated enough food and grass for a year, even if the Xiliang Army encircled them again.
For eighty days, they will not be afraid.
Han Sui said: "The guard is Duan Xuan, a brother of Duan Xi and Duan Jiming. This man is skilled in bow and horse and has a thorough understanding of the art of war. He should not be underestimated."
Chen Cheng knew that Duan Xi was one of the "Three Mings of Liangzhou" with unparalleled military exploits, but Duan Xi? Although he was Duan Xi's brother, the name Duan Xi seemed unfamiliar. He looked back and saw Cheng Yi and Yang Qiu.
, Song Jian and others all had a slightly unnatural look on their faces. Last year, they were just a little bit close to completing their long-cherished wish to enter the pass.
However, they failed in the end. The consequences of the failure were very serious. Not only did the leader of the Xiliang army, Wang Guo, die, but a big melee almost broke out among the Xiliang princes. If Chen Cheng hadn't broken into Liangzhou, I'm afraid they would have fought against each other.
They were already dead. But the pressure was always there. If it didn't explode internally, it would need a way to leak out. So, they came to Chencang City again, the place where they had been completely defeated.
This time, their cavalry was even more ferocious, but no matter how powerful the cavalry was, they could not rush directly to the city wall. Song Jian, Zhang Heng and others looked at each other and looked at Chen Cheng, with hope and suspicion intertwined in their eyes. Maybe they
I don't know what they are thinking.
The princes of Xiliang are accustomed to claiming their own territory and dominating one area. They don't like someone to give orders over them, but they also hope to have a strong man who can lead them into Guanzhong and obtain huge benefits. Chen Cheng feels that his current
The situation is similar to that of Huang Taiji in the late Ming Dynasty. His subordinates are a group of bandits. If their desires can be satisfied, the position will become stable. If not, these people will rise up and rebel.
He rode a horse and circled around Chencang for a short time. Seeing that the city was well protected, he said: "It seems that Duan Xuan really knows how to fight, and there are no loopholes here. Moreover, Chencang City is solid and thick, so it is impossible to take advantage of it."
"
Han Sui thought: Isn't this nonsense? If Chencang is easy to fight, why would it be your turn?
Song Jian said loudly: "Don't talk nonsense, Chen Shijun, let me ask you, is there any way to break the city?"
Chen Cheng smiled and said: "Everyone, please be patient. Although the city in front of you is strong, it is not difficult for me to break. It's just..."
After hearing all his methods to break through the city, everyone showed doubts and joy. Zhang Heng asked anxiously: "Just what?"
"It's just that the armies of Huangfu Song and Ding Yuan are in Chang'an and will arrive day and night. If they lead their troops to fight out when we attack Chencang, what will happen?"
Zhang Heng said loudly: "You must have a solution, right?"
Chen Cheng smiled and said nothing, and Zhang Hengxin realized something. He glanced at everyone present and said loudly: "As long as Chen Shijun leads us to destroy Chencang City, he will always be the lord of Liangzhou! Who dares to blow it up?"
He's a stabbing man, let's all send troops together to destroy him!"
When Zhang Heng was talking, his eyes were fixed on Han Sui, which made the latter very unhappy. Han Sui cursed in his heart: We clearly agreed to fight against Chen Cheng and others together, but I didn't expect that you, Zhang Heng, would be the first to betray you! Yes!
My son is the most unrighteous!
He cursed in his heart, but with a serious expression on his face, he said: "What General Zhang said is absolutely true! As long as Chen Shijun can lead us to defeat Chencang, he will always be the lord of Liangzhou!"
Seeing Han Sui say the same thing, the others looked at each other and said in unison: "That's exactly what it should be!"
After everyone had expressed their opinions, Chen Cheng smiled and said: "Since you have elected me as Liangzhou Shepherd..."
Many princes had solemn expressions on their faces, but they were cursing secretly in their hearts: Who recommended you? It's all the bad guys like Cheng Yi and Yang Qiu!
"Since you have elected me to be the shepherd of Liangzhou, I will accept it without hesitation. Normally I don't care about you, but when fighting, you must have unified orders. If you make a contribution, you can share more of the spoils. If you don't listen,
If you give an order and delay the opportunity to fight, you must be severely punished. Do you have any objections?"
"No!"
"This is how war should be fought, but it is still better for you to break the city as soon as possible!"
"Okay," Chen Cheng pointed at Chencang and said, "This city is strong, so don't try to take any tricks. Let's set up camp first, then fill in the trenches, and then use catapults to break the city wall."
The princes were very puzzled and asked: "A catapult? What is that? A cart that can throw stones?"
Chen Cheng smiled and said: "You will know when it is made. Now, spend a few days setting up camp, then cut down more trees and carry more rocks back."
Although Han Sui and others didn't know what Chen Cheng wanted to do, seeing how confident he was, they decided to do what he said first.
Chencang is connected to Qinling Mountains in the south and Longshan Mountain in the north. There is no shortage of trees and stones. Only half of the 100,000-strong army was dispatched, and several nearby mountains were cut down. A lot of stones were also moved from the mountains.
After returning, they began to erect fences, dig trenches, build barracks, stables, watch towers and other buildings under the eyes of the defenders on the city.
Just when the busy life outside the city was in full swing, there was a sound of footsteps on the top of the city. A military general wearing iron armor and a hooded headband came forward and watched the movement outside the city. This man was seven feet tall and had a slight complexion.
He is black, has a three-foot beard on his chin, and looks like he has a strong temperament. He is the younger brother of Duan Xi, and Duan Xuan is also the younger brother.
Duan Yan watched for a while and asked his general standing next to him, "What are the Xiliang thieves doing?"
It is obvious that the Xiliang army is setting up camp as a long-term solution. It is so obvious that Duan Yan is in the army, how can he not see it? But he does not believe that the Xiliang princes will fall down in the same place.
This time, I wondered if there was some trick, so I asked this question.
Most of the generals under his command also participated in last year's city defense battle, and they all said: "General, why should you care about the Xiliang people? We only need to guard the city. The task of defeating the enemy will be done by General Huangfu Zhonglang."
Give."
The flags outside the city cover the sky, and the black crowd can't be seen at a glance. The number of Xiliang thieves is not one hundred thousand but eighty thousand. With the small number of troops in the city, it is impossible to defeat the enemy. The best way is to defend the city firmly.
.Anyway, the walls of Chencang are tall and there is a lot of food stored in the city. Even if the Xiliang people attack with all their strength, they are confident that they can defend the city.
However, in this world, confidence alone is not enough. After all, this is still a world where material comes first. Of course it is impossible without spirit, but it is also impossible to have spirit alone. Napoleon once said: The most important thing in war is money.
The second most important thing is money, and the third most important thing is money. He also said: Three parts of spirit can be used as one part of material.
But we all know that Napoleon was overturned by a despicable British guy in the end. So what he said may not necessarily be right.
Duan Xuan felt a little relieved after hearing the answer from his general, but he still doubted that the enemy would not be so stupid as to fall down twice in the same place. After watching the city for a while, Duan Xuan asked: "
Has the distress letter to Chang'an been sent?"
"Two groups of messengers have been sent out!"
Duan Xuan said: "That's not enough. I'll send another group of messengers over to make it clear to General Jing Zhaoyin and Huangfu Zhonglang that the Xiliang people are attacking in a big way this time. Fufeng is in danger. Please lead their troops to rescue!"
The subordinate asked in confusion: "Don't you need to ask General Zhengxi for help?"
Duan Yan snorted and said: "Ding Jianyang is not from Liangzhou or Guanzhong, so how can he care about our life and death? General Zhonglang and Jing Zhaoyin are our own people."
The generals all looked like they were suddenly enlightened, and exclaimed: "Good morning, General!"
"The general can see thousands of miles away!"
Duan Yan was impressed, but with a serious expression on his face, "Don't just say nice things. The Xiliang bandits were defeated only once last year. They come again this year. It must not be that simple. Cheer up and defend the city well."
!”
"General, please rest assured. The Xiliang thieves are nothing more than clowns. If they don't come, that's fine. If they really dare to attack the city, they must never come back!"
