When Liu Bei entered Hulao Pass, he realized that Xu Rong had fled three days ago, and there were only a thousand defenders left in the pass.
He took over Hulao Pass without any effort, and princes from all walks of life also settled in.
Originally, Liu Bei planned to rush directly to Luoyang with Gongsun Zan.
But thinking that both Chen Mu and Tian Feng suggested that he save some face for the princes, Liu Bei summoned the princes to discuss matters with the mansions in the pass.
The princes from all walks of life came one after another. After everyone sat down, Liu Bei looked around at everyone and said: "The Dong thieves were afraid of our coalition forces, so they moved their capital to the west and fled in a hurry. I am going to take advantage of the victory and pursue him. What do you think?"
"this......"
Yuan Shao hesitated and said: "Alliance leader, although Thief Dong has withdrawn the troops and horses from Hulao Pass, his strength is still there, and the Xiliang iron cavalry is sharp. I think we should take a long-term view. We should send detective horses to check the situation ahead to prevent
It would be best for the Dong thieves to ambush you."
After he said this, the eyes of Liu Bei, Chen Mu and others suddenly became even weirder.
Um.
Some time ago, Yuan Wei was killed, and Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu were still in pain, shouting that they were incompatible with Dong Zhuo and vowed not to be human unless they avenge this.
As a result, Dong Zhuo was obviously in decline and had withdrawn from Hulao Pass and moved the capital to Chang'an. When the coalition forces seemed to be able to take advantage of the victory, he was actually afraid to move forward and did not dare to attack.
Although Yuan Shao also made an excuse, fearing that Dong Zhuo would ambush him.
But the whole family was slaughtered, and yet he could still remain calm. The meaning behind this is indeed intriguing.
Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu were not anxious, but Cao Cao and Sun Jian were.
Cao Cao immediately persuaded him: "At the beginning, on the highway, the traitor Dong burned down the palace and kidnapped the emperor, causing the sea to tremble and not knowing where to go. At this moment when the survival of the country is in danger, how can we stand still?"
Yuan Shao sighed and said: "Mengde, Dong's thieves have not yet sent out the elite Xiliang cavalry, so their strength should not be underestimated. Now that all the troops and horses are exhausted, it may be useless to pursue them."
After he said this, Liu Bei almost rolled his eyes.
He has always been the main force in the attack, and has nothing to do with Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu and other princes. Yuan Shao dared to shamelessly say that everyone was tired. It was extremely shameless.
Now Liu Bei finally understood that people like Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu were actually trying to preserve their strength and encouraged him to fight Dong Zhuo.
When the time comes, both he and Dong Zhuo will lose, and people like Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu will step up to clean up the mess and reap the fruits of victory.
Chen Mu had analyzed these things with him before. At first, he didn't believe that the fourth and third sons of the Yuan family would do this because they were respected by the world.
But now, through the reaction of these people in the past few months, it seems that we can only sigh that people's hearts are not as good as they used to be, and the world is getting worse.
"Leader, if they don't go, I will go. My troops can still fight, so I'll be the vanguard!"
After Sun Jian recovered from his injuries, he said energetically.
Liu Bei shook his head.
Although Sun Jian was brave, his Danyang elite troops suffered heavy losses after being ambushed by Xu Rong. If he continued to be the vanguard, if they encountered Dong Zhuo's main force, they would be in danger of being annihilated.
Cao Cao then said to Yuan Shao: "Dong Zhuo took advantage of the power of our eighteen princes. In order to avoid the sharp edge, he began to move the capital to the west. In the battle of Hulao Pass, our army killed Hua Xiong, defeated Lu Bu, and closed the garrison.
The soldiers have no fighting spirit, and our army's morale is at its peak. If we fight now, the world will be in jeopardy. How can we remain suspicious and miss a good opportunity?"
Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu simply turned their heads and looked away, while the other princes also remained silent.
The only princes who agreed to continue the pursuit were Liu Bei, Gongsun Zan, Cao Cao, and Sun Jian, which was no different from the fact that there were only two people, Liu Bei and Gongsun Zan.
Because Cao Cao only had four or five thousand troops, Sun Jian originally had eight thousand, but after being ambushed, only four or five thousand were left. Liu Bei's troops suffered heavy losses due to continuous attacks on the city, and there were still fifty thousand left.
about.
Added up, the total strength of the four men is actually 90,000. Dong Zhuo's troops and horses will not suffer much loss. If he retreats to Hangu Pass, all the troops and horses from the north and south can be transferred back.
In this way, there is not much difference in strength between the two sides. Hangu Pass is several times more dangerous than Hulao Pass. One Hulao Pass can stop the Kwantung Allied Forces' more than 200,000 troops. If Dong Zhuo concentrates all his troops on Hangu Pass for defense, then with Liu Bei's help
With these 90,000 troops in hand, let alone tackling key problems, it may be a question of whether they can win in a head-on confrontation.
It was for this reason that Liu Bei agreed to sit down and talk with Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu and other princes, but it seemed that the talk was in vain.
Liu Bei glanced at Chen Mu and shook his head: "In that case, Benchu and Gulu will be stationed at Hulao Pass first, and our troops will attack first. We will follow you after you have had enough rest."
Chen Mu said nothing.
In fact, he knew what Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu were planning, and he also knew what they would do.
This is what they did historically.
The reason why Liu Bei was advised to talk to them first was because he didn't want them to fall out so quickly.
After all, Qingzhou Group also needs time to develop, so if we give them an excuse now.
For example, if Liu Bei does not rescue Liu Bian in the future, the challenge against Dong will fail this time.
If investigated later, Yuan Shao might blame Liu Bei for not asking him to join the attack, which caused the emperor to be in trouble, and he was a sinner of the Han Dynasty or something.
This is called giving people instructions, so it’s better to do superficial things early and not practice what they say.
After Liu Bei finished speaking, Cao Cao immediately raised his hands and said impassionedly: "I am willing to follow the leader of the alliance."
"I would also like to go."
Sun Jian also said.
"Um."
Liu Bei nodded: "It's not too late, let's march today!"
At that moment, the four people left the Chenggao County government office and gave an order for half of the coalition forces to continue the attack.
Chenggao County is Hulao Pass, and rows of soldiers are coming and going on the streets. After the army order is given, Liu Bei's army is the vanguard and begins to go west.
As a gap between Mount Tai and the Yellow River, after passing Chenggao County, there is a small plain, and all the way past it is Gong County.
After the vanguard troops stationed in Gong County, the few Dong army guards here quickly dispersed. The county was in chaos, and most of the local people were moved away by Dong Zhuo, leaving only some old, weak, sick and disabled.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! As the saying goes, bandits are like combs, and soldiers are like gourds. When Liu Bei entered Gong County, he saw a dilapidated scene, and there were no people on the streets.
, people's homes seemed to have been ransacked, many doors were opened, and there was a mess inside, with pots and pans, not even a pair of chopsticks left.
Some of the old, weak, sick and disabled were unwilling to leave their homeland, and some were really unable to leave. When they saw the new soldiers entering the city, they did not feel the joy of welcoming the king's division, nor did they feel the relief of liberation. The faces of everyone
They all showed numb expressions.
Perhaps to them, the Kwantung Allied Forces are no different from Dong Zhuo. Some people even hate the Kwantung Allied Forces, because if they had not come, if there had not been this battle, they would not have become like this...
.
Liu Bei looked at the remaining people with a look of shame.
Chen Mu stood aside and said calmly: "These are not brother's fault, they are Dong Zhuo's fault."
"But, if I don't call on all the princes in the world to fight against Dong Zhuo..."
"I think eldest brother should know very well that if Dong is not punished, it will not only be these people who will suffer, but also the whole world."
"I lost my temper."
The moment of shame was fleeting, not to mention crocodile tears. Although millions of people in Luoyang were forced to leave their homes, and tens of thousands of people were killed or injured in the process, it was indeed the fundamental reason why Liu Bei launched this war.
But Liu Bei is also a man who does big things, and he knows very well that if he doesn't do it, then this country, the Han Dynasty, may never be unified.
As a descendant of the Liu family, it was Liu Bei's duty to protect the Han Dynasty inherited from his ancestors.
Otherwise, if everything hurts the spring and autumn, then people in this world don't have to do anything. Because no matter what you do, as long as it involves other people, it will inevitably harm the interests of other people.
Liu Bei resettled the people on the spot and stationed in Gong County for a day, then ordered the logistics department of Xingyang to move forward, and piled grain and grass in Gong County to prepare for the Luoyang siege he might encounter.
The army continued to advance on the second day, and the journey was chaotic and desolate. Along the way, the fields on the plains on the south bank of the Yellow River were deserted, the villages were dilapidated, and there were new graves everywhere.
Dong Zhuo forced the people around Luoyang to relocate. Naturally, he did not use gentle methods in this process. Tens of thousands of people died in this turmoil.
Those left behind were the old, weak, sick and disabled who could not leave. Liu Bei had to bear their livelihood. This may also be part of Dong Zhuo's calculation.
It was nearly two hundred miles from Gongxian County to Luoyang, and they had to pass through Yanshi. The army walked for three full days. Along the way, there were ruins and ruins, and the people's livelihood was in decline. It was extremely bleak.
Although Liu Bei lamented the disastrous impact of this war on Luoyang, he still marched towards Luoyang resolutely.
After passing Yanshi, the vanguard army led by Dian Wei had already begun to encounter Dong Zhuo's scattered troops in the direction of Luoyang.
These soldiers and horses were all former auxiliaries, some escaped, and some looted everywhere. In some remaining towns near Yanshi, the people who fled into Songshan suffered greatly.
After defeating these soldiers and horses, they arrived at a village more than ten miles away from Luoyang.
It was now approaching evening, the sun was setting in the west, and the gorgeous fire clouds dyed half of the sky red. However, people saw from a distance that the fire clouds on the horizon did not seem to be dyed red by the setting sun, but that there was real fire baking on the ground.
Thick smoke billows from the foothills of Mang Mountain in the distance, and the dusk crows hovering in the sky keep wailing. They live in Mang Mountain, but at this time they are smoked by the sky-high smoke and are unable to return home.
Seeing this scene, Dian Wei was shocked. He looked into the distance in astonishment and said, "What is going on?"
Huang Zhong is now an army commander under Dian Wei. He put up a awning and said with a solemn expression: "No, something seems to have happened in Luoyang. Someone must have set fire to the whole of Luoyang, otherwise there would be no such huge smoke and dust."
"What?"
Dian Wei was shocked and burned Luoyang?
Huang Zhong turned to Dian Wei and said: "General, we must rush to Luoyang as soon as possible and send someone to inform Duke Ming."
"good!"
Dian Wei nodded hurriedly, ordered his soldiers to step up their pace, and sent someone to report to the Pegasus troops in the rear.
The vanguard army here quickly rushed to Luoyang. When the messenger arrived at the rear army, it was already half an hour later, around six o'clock in the afternoon.
After hearing the news, Liu Bei, who was sitting on the Luma, was also surprised. He turned to Chen Mu and said: "Fourth brother, there is a fire in Luoyang!"
Chen Mu's face was neither sad nor happy, and he said calmly: "This must be the Dong thieves who are burning down the entire Luoyang. They don't want to leave us with a complete capital city. We should send people to put out the fire immediately."
"Okay, come here, inform the whole army, speed up the advance, and make sure to arrive in Luoyang before dusk and dark."
Liu Bei quickly gave orders to the messenger.
A large army marches forward not in a swarm of swarms, but in an orderly manner, with the vanguard, then the front army, the middle army, and the rear army.
Liu Bei and Chen Mu are in the middle army. Now the leader of the front army is Guan Yu, and the leader of the rear army is Zhang Fei.
Others Zhang Liao, Gao Shun, Guan Hai and others were under their tents.
As soon as the order was conveyed, the entire army had to move forward quickly.
After all, it is an army of 50,000 people, which may cause the formation to scatter. If the enemy suddenly encounters the enemy, the battle may be lost.
But at this time, he could no longer care about that much. All the soldiers started running, and the official road was filled with dust.
But at this moment, Chen Mu, sitting on the horse, turned his head and looked behind him.
Historically, it was Sun Jian who was the first to enter Luoyang.
When he entered the palace, he successfully found the jade seal passed down from generation to generation. Then this seal passed down from generation to generation after being circulated several times, and finally gave Yuan Shu a dream of a pseudo-emperor.
Now, Sun Jian is just like Cao Cao, just following their army.
It seems that the imperial seal will be owned by another person.
The sky is getting darker and darker, and time is slowly passing by. The closer to Luoyang, the more anxious Liu Bei becomes.
Because after the sky gets darker, the light of Luoyang's sky-high flames can be seen from kilometers away.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Liu Bei has seen such a scene once, and that time was the Palace Gate Incident.
But at that time there was only a fire in the palace.
You must know that the Luoyang Imperial Palace covers a very large area, and the distance between each palace is also very far.
So unless every palace is set on fire, it will be difficult to implicate other places.
However, this time it was different. What Dong Zhuo burned were Luoyang houses. The houses in the outer city were all wooden houses, which were close together. Once a fire broke out and no one took care of it, it would cause a great disaster.
Although the Han people have long been aware of fires, the residential buildings are only adjacent to each other within the village, and each village is separated by a high-walled courtyard.
For example, there is a difference of ten feet between Buguangli and Yongheli. There is a long compound road in the middle and high walls on both sides.
But the prerequisites for all this are that, first, someone can control the fire, and second, only one neighborhood is on fire. If no one extinguishes the fire and multiple neighborhoods are on fire, the fire will soon sweep through the entire Luoyang.
This is why Liu Bei is so impatient.
Under his urging, the army accelerated its march and soon arrived at Hongchi in the east of Luoyang. Torrential flames emerged from the sky above Dongshi, and the entire sky seemed to be lit up into daylight.
"Quick, quick, get water from Hongchi to put out the fire, hurry!"
Liu Bei clapped his hands and stood on a hill, sadly instructing the soldiers to get water to put out the fire. His heart was cut by a knife, and it was as painful as looking at the flames that were burning his own heart.
Dongshi has turned into a sea of fire, and every square is burning with raging flames, not only Dongshi, but also the whole of Luoyang.
This is the inheritance left by my ancestors. The Han Dynasty has been unshakable for four hundred years, but he cannot fall suddenly when he is about to become the pillar of the Han Dynasty.
Dian Wei had already put out fires everywhere in the city at this time. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei rushed to the city with their troops. Lines of soldiers fetched water from Hongchi and rushed to the city quickly.
"This way, get some water quickly."
"The fire is too big and this little water is not enough."
"Ahem, cough, cough, this smoke is really choking."
There was chaos inside and outside the city, and 50,000 troops rushed into the city, taking water sources from moats such as Hongchi or Luoshui to put out the fire.
But Chen Mu sat on the horse and headed towards the palace under the protection of Zhao Yun and several other guards.