On September 20th of the fifth year of Qianfu, the sun rose very high, dissipating a little bit of the cold air on the earth. In a place like Hedong, which is also a mountainous area, it was almost late autumn, and the temperature did drop very quickly. No, it should be said
The cold weather came earlier this year. In two months' time, Dejun, who didn't even have a winter coat, didn't know how to deal with it.
Sigh, it’s really difficult without stable logistical supplies!
“This city wall is in tatters. It seems that the last rebel attack was very fierce and the damage was severe.” Standing outside the Zhelu Army City, looking at the bumpy walls with gaps everywhere, Lu Huaizhong was speechless.
Shao Shude discovered yesterday that the city walls had a dilapidated smell, just like the hundreds of soldiers in the city. In fact, those people were professional soldiers, and their skills were not to say superb, but at least they were very skilled. They were better than just pulling them from the ground.
The civilian men who came were much stronger. But their problem was that they were exhausted. Without a long period of rectification, it would be difficult to fight on the battlefield. Hao Zhenwei was not polite to these people, and directly dispersed them and added them to various ministries, and these people
There was no sign of resistance, and he was so frustrated that Shao Shude doubted whether this decision was correct, even though he also had a team of people in his hands.
"Li Keyong came to Caochengchuan in the morning and evening. We have thousands of troops. Are we all huddled in the Zhelu Army City? It may be possible to block it with force. The problem is that there is no food and grass, and there is an egg." Lu Huaizhong walked around irritably.
, said: "I have been repairing the city wall all day long, and the people who sent people to contact Kelan Army have not come back. It has been several days. Lieutenant General, do you think you will..."
"Don't talk nonsense." Shao Shude glared at Lao Lu and said: "The Kelan Army and the Zhelu Army are the same as our Tiande Army. They are soldiers and horses manufactured by the imperial court. The last time Li Keyong attacked the Kelan Army, the outer city was destroyed.
It was broken. Fortunately, the soldiers used their lives and the inner city was not broken. The loyalty of Kelan's soldiers to the imperial court can be seen from day to day."
At this point, Shao Shude looked around and saw that no one was paying attention to them, so he gave them a look that could only be understood but not explained, and said: "At least so far, the Kelan Army is still reliable."
Lu Huaizhong laughed when he heard this and said nonchalantly: "Vice general, you can see the mentality of the Kelan Army soldiers from the Zhelu Army soldiers. I also went to see the fifty or sixty bastards who were newly assigned.
It's even worse than the batch of Shuozhou surrender troops that were divided last time. The crime of annexing friendly forces is not a small one, but if the benefits are big enough, it will be done. But look at the Zhelu Army.
, Alas, it’s a shame not to mention it!”
"Be careful! From now on we are all brothers of Pao Ze, why bother to be so humiliating! You also know that the soldiers of the Chalu Army are well trained and have everything they need to know to fight in battle. In the past, when the Uighurs invaded, they were also able to fight in battle.
, not only can fight, but can also win. The problem now is here -" Shao Shude pointed to his head and said: "I have learned something more or less these days. Since Li Guochang and his son started the rebellion, Yun, Wei, Shuo,
The states of Dai, Xin, Lan, and Shi were at war with each other. Many armies, cities, villages, and forts lost their food and pay due to the failure of their journeys. Li Guochang and his son tempted these garrison troops with the pretext of going south to plunder together, so there were many people who joined them.
There are observers from the imperial court on the Kelan Army. It is understandable that they do not want to join the bandits. However, the Zhelu Army has no one to rely on, but it dares to fight with Li Keyong, pitting the weak against the strong. This courage is still acceptable.
"
"The courageous ones have died, and only the timid ones are left." Lu Huaizhong muttered a few words, but he had to admit that without food, salary, and rewards, he would not be willing to work hard for the court.
Now their small group has five teams: front, middle, back, left and right, with a total of more than 200 people. The front, middle and back teams are considered the main force and are currently at full strength. The left and right teams each have two and three people.
The number of ten people was not enough, and they were not satisfied with the number. The newly established left team was headed by Shao Shude's old subordinate, the former fire chief Ren Yuji. He had thirty people under his command, and three former Tiande Army West City veterans were appointed as fire chiefs.
The right team gave the hard-working Lao Li, Li Yanling, two firemen under his command. In addition to Liu Zijing, an old man from Xicheng, who served as the chief of fire, he also gave a man named Qiang Quansheng under Guan Kaiyun the position of chief of fire. This was regarded as a blessing to him.
It's a reward for being low-key and cooperative for a while.
"Stop complaining here. If you have this skill, it's better to work hard on your martial arts. The rebels are coming soon, and we will definitely go into battle. Li Nixiaorui, if my men don't have any skills, I'm afraid I won't be able to stop them.
, get out of here quickly." Shao Shude waved his hand and said impatiently.
Lu Huaizhong left with a black question mark on his face. Shao Shude picked up a grass stem and played with it while worrying. He looked rough on the outside, but he was actually a thoughtful person on the inside. These days, the Tiande Army has been running around like a bereaved dog.
Sufficient supplies of food and grass, but no stable supply of equipment. Even if they won a victory at Zhonglingshui and defeated the main force of Xue Zhiqin's troops in Shuozhou, things seemed to have not changed. They did not even dare to stay in Shuozhou and hurriedly headed south to Caochengchuan.
I was afraid that someone would make dumplings if I took one step too late.
After arriving at the fertile land of Caochengchuan, we managed to get some supplies. We were about to head south to Lanzhou for food when we suddenly encountered rebel cavalry and had to retreat into the Chalu Military City to protect ourselves. Shao Shude cannot comment on this.
Is this right or wrong? However, there is no sign of the arrival of the main force of the enemy army in the field, and the two sides have not fought. Is this because I am trying to scare myself?
What the hell is going on! A wandering army, like headless flies, walking in the dilapidated and desolate mountains east of the river. Where are the Tiande Army going?
******
Perhaps because of the need to repair the city wall, there was a little more meat in today's lunch. After Shao Shude finished eating in two or two bites, he went to inspect the camp. They were the supervisors and guards of the army. They had a separate camp area. Five teams of people were next to each other.
A team is assigned to guard the camp area on a daily basis, and the rest who are not on duty are responsible for maintaining equipment in the camp.
Shao Shude turned left and right, looking for someone to chat with from time to time. Especially those new arrivals, who were not as reliable as the old people in Xicheng for the time being, Shao Shude spent a particularly long time, trying every possible means to understand their thoughts. He also didn't know how to control people.
He is a skilled man, but what is more important is his sincerity. He sincerely helps the soldiers solve their problems and regards everyone as a brother. Therefore, the people below him are not very resistant to him and are willing to talk to him if they have something to do.
Shao Shude actually also likes to stay with soldiers. In this troubled world, having guys in your hands and brothers around you always makes people feel extra at ease. He once carefully analyzed his mentality, and finally concluded that he lacked a sense of security.
Worry about the future weighed on his heart like a heavy stone. He didn't know what others thought, but he came from a later generation and knew Li Keyong's reputation in history. Although he was still young at the time
, may not have grown up yet, but judging from the war in the past year, this person is still very methodical in using troops. At least he has capable people under his command, who knows how to use his own advantages, what battles can be fought, and what battles cannot be fought.
Yes, the thinking is very clear.
Damn it! My first battle after leaving Fengzhou was against such a person. Now I just hope that the soldiers and horses in other vassal towns can be more powerful to delay the main force of Li Guochang and his son, so that they can have the opportunity to reorganize their troops and obtain supplies.
, and then fight again after completely adjusting their condition. Otherwise, in their current state, Shao Shude doubts whether they can win the previous battle of Zhonglingshui again.
Wandered aimlessly in the camp for half an hour, and was about to go exercise, when he saw Yihuo soldiers guarding the military envoy Qiu Weidao coming back. Upon seeing this, Shao Shude immediately stepped forward to greet him: "Envoy!"
Qiu Weidao nodded and said, "Go into the tent and talk."
In the tent, several officials from the Supervisory Military Academy were working. When they saw the superior officer coming back, they all stood up and saluted. Qiu Weidao waved his hand, indicating that they should continue working, then walked straight to his desk and sat down, Fang said:
"Quan Kelan's army was stationed behind Jia Jingsi, and Quan Hedong was under observation. Li Shao sent an envoy here to deliver a message, ordering us to hold on to the Zhelu Army City. We must not let Li Ni and his son use this as a basis."
"How can Commander Kelan control the movement of our army? Marshal Cao didn't even give any orders!" Shao Shude was a little confused. This was both "power" and "retention". They were all "temporary workers" on the front line.
Officers and generals, why do you speak so rudely? Just take care of your own troops, but you can also take care of guest troops?
“General Cao has passed away.” Qiu Weidao said expressionlessly.
"This..." Shao Shude was speechless. Before Cao Xiang came to Hedong and took office, he was the commander of Zhaoyi Town. He was not very old. Logically speaking, such a military leader was in good health. Even if he suffered a defeat and was in a bad mood, he would still be in a bad mood.
But it doesn’t mean that you just die, right? There must be many hidden secrets in this matter, but it’s just that people at Shao Shude’s level cannot know.
"Cui Jikang, the Hedong Xuanwei envoy, temporarily replaced Hedong Jiedu and recruited the envoys on behalf of the northbound camp. This Li Shao is Cui Jikang's man. He upholds the order of recruiting envoys. How can we not obey? In this matter, even Hao Du will come again
If there are other ideas, there is absolutely no room for change." It can be heard that as a supervisor, Qiu Weidao also has some opinions on Hao Zhenwei's blind avoidance of the battle. However, the Tiande army was previously helpless and passed through the rebel Zhenwu army.
The territory came to the Datong Army, and they marched for more than a thousand miles. To be honest, they were very worthy of the imperial court. Didn't you just stop sending troops if you didn't look at the distant feudal towns? You just pretended that you didn't see the imperial decree. The nearby Youzhou Town has so far
He is still harassing Weizhou indifferently, and has not yet taken any serious action. He seems to be waiting for rewards from the court - whether it is property or titles.
“Understand, the last general will only obey your orders.”
"Do a good job." Qiu Weidao nodded with satisfaction, and then said: "I can say a few words in front of Cui Jikang. If Vice General Shao makes great contributions to the court the next day, he will definitely have a bright future."
Shao Shude naturally thanked him profusely. Although Qiu Weidao was a eunuch, to be honest, he was not bad to Shao. He only performed a little on the battlefield, and his usual guard work was in order. Without any mistakes, he was entrusted with important tasks.
.With such a good boss, what else is there to say, just work hard. He also has some friendship with the new recruiter Cui Jikang. This thigh is not thin.
