Chapter 105 Xuande will definitely come to save me
The sky is dark and gloomy, Zhuo County is in Gu'an County.
After being besieged by the Hu people and Yuan Shao, Gongsun Zan defeated Laishui.
However, this battle only cost him a lot of infantry, the camp was burned down, and the cavalry fled in droves.
The reason why he was able to run away was because there were some differences and cracks within the Hu people.
As soon as Kuitou died, some problems arose in the alliance of the three most powerful brothers, Kuitou, Fu Luohan, and Bu Dugen.
It's not that Fu Luohan and Bu Dugen have a conflict, but that after the death of Kuai Tou, the strength of their alliance has weakened, and they will begin to fight against Yi Qianman.
Qianman held a high-level meeting a few days ago, using the excuse that Xianbei cannot live without a Chanyu, revealed his identity and that of Lian's son, and asked to succeed the Xianbei Chanyu in front of the leaders of each tribe.
This request was rejected by Fu Luohan and Bu Dugen, who believed that even if Kuitou died and Kuitou's son was still young, one of Fu Luohan and Bu Dugen should inherit.
After all, they are the blood brothers of Kuitou, and Kuitou is also the legitimate and legal successor to the position of Shan Yu. They are not usurping the throne. Who knows that Qianman was still young when He Lian died?
Secondly, they are also the descendants of Tan Shihuai. You, Qianman, are only sixteen or seventeen years old this year. According to your age, you should be Fu Luohan or Bu Dugen.
Both sides argued vigorously, and Qianman naturally did not want to give up Shan Yu's position, so the two sides had a big quarrel and broke up unhappy.
Since they were quarreling, the pursuit of Gongsun Zan would naturally be unsuccessful.
What's more, before they even started to pursue, Yuan Shao's general Cui Juye was defeated by Gongsun Zan in the Juma River area because of his greed for merit, and suffered heavy losses.
This wave is not a restoration of history, but the Juma River is formed by the intersection of Laishui, Rushui and Yishui, like an umbrella. The northernmost one is Laishui, flowing horizontally from west to east.
After Gongsun Zan was defeated, of course he could not cross the river to the south, but could only run along the river to the southeast.
When they arrived at the Juma River ferry, Cui Juye chased him. There was a fierce battle between the two sides, and Cui Juye was defeated and fled. Gongsun Zan easily crossed the Juma River and ran back to his hometown safely from Fanyang.
It can be said that if Gongsun Zan had not used the Molotov cocktails given by Liu Bei to attack the Xianbei camp at night, Kuai Tou's death would not have been caused.
If Kuitou had not died, there would have been no differences within the enemy.
If the enemy had no internal differences, Gongsun Zan would definitely be hunted down by everyone.
In this way, Cui Juye would not be greedy for power and rush forward, and Gongsun Zan would definitely be blocked at the Juma River crossing and suffer heavy casualties.
One link after another, if there is any mistake in any link in the middle, he will inevitably die.
The journey along the way was full of dangers and drama.
On the contrary, it was the Gaolan tribe, the Xiongnu tribe, and the Wuhuan tribe. Because of the internal strife among the Xianbei people, Gaolan, Tadun, Wuyan, Su Puyan and others were troubled.
The Huchuquan and Liu Bao uncles and nephews of the Xiongnu took pleasure in their misfortune. It would be unrealistic to say how good the relationship between the southern Xiongnu and the central Xianbei was. After all, they were both on the same pasture and were in a competitive relationship. It was inevitable that there would be disputes.
But if you want to say that the hatred between the two sides is as deep as the sea, and they are fighting to the death, it is not a matter of life. Because both sides are not very strong, and internal fighting will only hurt both sides, so it is impossible to start a full-scale war. They even occasionally join forces and go south together to fight.
The Autumn Wind of the Han Dynasty.
But they still feel very happy when they see the Xianbei in central China suffering. After all, they are not the ones who are unlucky, but their competitors who have never been in tune with each other. Naturally, they feel comfortable.
As the main force of the Xianbei people, internal conflicts broke out, and Gao Lan and Tadun had to step forward to help mediate.
Neither side could care about Gongsun Zan's affairs. After all, although Gongsun Zan was defeated, Nanlou and Pufulu did not suffer any losses. Without the 30,000 to 40,000 Xianbei troops as their main force, they could counterattack at any time.
As a result, there was such a disturbance, but Gongsun Zan returned to Gu'an County smoothly. After a few days, Fuluo Hanbudugenqianman and others went through mediation. In view of the many favorable conditions proposed by Yuan Shao, they reluctantly agreed.
Deal with the matter of Gongsun Zan, and then solve the problem of who will succeed the Xianbei Chanyu.
After all, the civil strife in Xianbei was finally solved, and Gao Lan breathed a sigh of relief. You must know that he had committed a crime and made meritorious deeds. Even his deputy general Zhang He has not resumed his original position as a general. If Gongsun Zan is finally let go, then what will happen to him?
It will be a big sin and it will be difficult to get over it again.
Now Gongsun Zan did not run to the right north of Yuyang, but ran to Gu'an. He thought that the city there was high and there were many fortifications, so he would be able to hold on for a long time. But he didn't know that it was too close to Jizhou, and Yuan Shao had already mobilized
The army is ready to encircle him, and when the time comes, he will be able to look good.
Under the coordination of Gao Lan and Tadun, the coalition forces put aside their conflicts and continued their pursuit.
Yuan Shao did not come in person this time, but sent two armies. One was led by Gao Lan, with Colonel Zhang He as deputy. The other was led by his favorite Cui Juye, with Colonel Zhu Shang as deputy. The total number of troops was about 40,000 to 50,000.
People, plus 30,000 to 40,000 Xianbei people, more than 10,000 Xiongnu people, 40,000 to 50,000 Wuhuan people, and more than 100,000 troops, surrounded Gu'an City in a mighty manner.
At this time, Gu'an County had been renamed Yijing by Gongsun Zan. The city was majestic and tall, with mountains of earth platforms, trenches and traps everywhere, and watchtowers everywhere. Gongsun Zan had not stayed in the Bohai Sea in vain in the past few years, and he had strong financial support, which was enough for him.
Build an impregnable city on the front line between Youzhou and Jizhou.
Before, he himself confronted Yuan Shao in the Bohai Sea, and Yi Jing was garrisoned by his younger brother Gongsun Yue. After Gongsun Zan returned to Yi Jing, the two men joined forces, plus thousands of troops from Zou Dan and a few from Nanlou and Pufulu.
Ten thousand cavalrymen, at least more than 60,000 people came out, so it wouldn't be too ugly.
Among them, more than 40,000 people are Nanlou and Pufulu. Nanlou is the strongest among Wuhuan's five tribes. His one man and horse can be comparable to the entire central Xianbei. Therefore, there are 30,000 cavalry, and Pufulu is the most powerful.
The difference is much different, there are only 10,000 people, and Gongsun Zan only has 20,000 people.
There was a huge disparity in military strength, but there was no way around it. Historically, Gongsun Zan not only had a large number of cavalry, but also 70,000 or 80,000 infantry. However, these 780,000 Qingzhou infantry were intercepted by Liu Bei, so he had to recruit other troops on his own.
Over the past few years, he has recruited tens of thousands of infantry, plus a certain number of cavalry, and his own troops still number between 50,000 and 60,000.
Unfortunately, Gongsun Zan did not expect that Yuan Shao would suddenly attack him. The Battle of Nanpi, the Battle of Fuyang, the Battle of Hutuo River, three battles and the rebellion of his subordinates caused Gongsun Zan to seriously reduce his number. In addition, this time he encountered Yuan Shao's army in Laishui.
The Hu people besieged and defeated Laishui, and the infantry suffered heavy casualties again.
Most of the men and horses left in Jizhou were lost. After several battles and defeats, Gongsun Zan's own men and horses were very few. Even including the cavalry troops and the soldiers left by Gongsun Yue Zou Dan to guard Youzhou, there were only a few left.
More than 20,000 people.
Today, there are about 17,800 infantry and more than 4,000 cavalry in Yijing City. Nanlou and Pufulu's soldiers and horses cannot be stationed in the city. The two are twenty miles south of Yijing, away from Fan Yang.
Camped by the Juma River not far away.
This means that there are only more than 10,000 infantry in the entire city. Even if there are some cavalry, the number is very small. They can basically only be used for raids and can hardly be used to defend the city.
A few days later, dark clouds covered the entire sky, thunder roared, and a storm seemed to be quietly approaching.
Spring has come to an end and the scorching heat of summer is approaching.
No one would have thought that this would be the first rain in the summer of the first year of Yonghan, and also the last rain.
In the second year of Jian'an in history, which is now the first year of Yonghan, a catastrophic drought and famine occurred throughout Guandong. From May to December, there was no harvest in Henan and Hebei, and it affected Sili, Luoyang, Yuzhou,
The situation in Yanzhou, Jizhou, Xuzhou and Huainan, Youzhou and Jingzhou is slightly better, but not much better.
Including Cao Cao's execution of the grain transport officer, it happened at this time. Due to drought, Cao Cao's army failed to collect grain and grass in time, and it happened to be in a confrontation with Yuan Shu's army. Food and grass became increasingly scarce, and the sergeants complained. This is why Cao Cao said the sentence that has been passed down through the ages.
"Your wife, I will raise her, and you will be green."
The crackling raindrops were hitting the city tower. Gongsun Zan was watching on the city tower and saw that countless black figures were densely packed in the rain and had arrived outside Yijing City. The rain came suddenly, and so did the enemy. In the hazy rain, there were no shadows.
Do you know how many people are still hiding there?
Gongsun Zan's men gathered together, including his two younger brothers Gongsun Yue and Gongsun Fan, the chief secretary Tian Yu, the chief official Guan Jing, the generals Tian Kai, Shan Jing, Zou Dan, Wen Ze and others, and his son Gongsun Xuze served as the Nanlou Department.
contact person.
Everyone else was arranging their troops and horses in the city and each had their own military duties. Gongsun Zan and Tian Yu and Guan Jing looked at the countless soldiers and horses coming outside the city, and their hearts sank to the bottom.
"There are still some equipment in the city that have not been completed. The enemy is coming fiercely, so I am afraid we must not fail to do our best."
Guan Jing couldn't help but say something.
Gongsun Zan muttered: "It doesn't matter. This heavy rain will hinder their offensive. They don't dare attack on rainy days. Just let the soldiers be careful on the towers. We also need to step up preparations for defenses."
Tian Yu smacked his lips, shook his head and sighed: "It's a pity. If it hadn't been for this heavy rain, we could have made some Molotov cocktails ourselves to ease the enemy's offensive."
"Hmph, even without the Molotov cocktail, it would definitely not be that easy for Yuan Shao to kill me."
Gongsun Zan snorted coldly: "There is enough food and grass in the city for two or three years. This period of time is enough for Xuande to find a way to help me. Even if he cannot come here, he will declare war with Yuan Shao and distract Yuan Shao's troops."
"That's true...it's just..."
Tian Yu hesitated slightly.
"Just what?"
"What about the Nanlou and Pufulu tribes? They are outside the city and don't have much food and grass. They can't last long."
Tian Yu smiled bitterly and said: "Besides, the Xianbei, Wuhuan, and Huns are not good people. Maybe Yuan Shao will provide them with food and grass, but no one can say whether they will choose to plunder during the confrontation stage. Once they are allowed to
They have destroyed the entire Youzhou, and even if we repel them by then, we will still suffer the most losses."
Unless the disparity in power is extremely large, it is bound to be difficult to resolve a siege war quickly. Historically, Cao Cao and Lu Bu faced off for hundreds of days, and they stopped fighting when they ran out of food and grass. Cao Cao's attacks on Xuzhou were also interrupted several times due to food shortages.
Go, the same goes for the war with Yuan Shu.
Food and grass have always been a big problem that warlords have to solve. Jizhou and Qingzhou are not short of food because they belong to the North China Plain and have countless cultivated lands. In addition, since the end of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the two places have been
is in a stable stage.
Wang Fen, the governor of Jizhou, and Chen Mu, the governor of Qingzhou, managed the two places in an orderly manner. The state was peaceful and the people were prosperous. Even though the politics, economy, and climate had not changed much for more than ten years, the accumulated grain must have piled up like mountains.
According to historical records, at its peak, Jizhou had millions of troops and enough food and grass to last ten years. Sitting on the North China Plain, Jizhou and Qingzhou naturally had no worries about food and grass.
But it was different for other princes.
Fortunately, Jingzhou and Yizhou are relatively stable. In Guanzhong, Yanzhou, Yuzhou, Xuzhou, Youzhou, Yangzhou and other places, the wars have almost never stopped. The princes from all walks of life are about to lose their minds, and the people in these places are naturally unable to resume production.
, leading to widespread food shortages in various places.
People everywhere fled. Those who joined the army joined the army, and those who fell grass fell. Especially in places such as Yuzhou, Xuzhou, and Huainan, what should have been endless rice fields have now turned into barren wasteland covered with weeds. Even the original cultivated land is uncultivated.
Not to mention there is still a lot of land that has not been reclaimed.
It can be said that it is not that this large land cannot support so many people, but that the princes themselves are doing it. Otherwise, even if they do not cut down trees to open up wasteland and build fields around lakes, with the existing land in the Han Dynasty, it would be possible to support them under normal circumstances.
Hundreds of millions of people still have no problem.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! The Han people themselves were short of food, and the same was true for the Xianbei and Huns who came from afar.
At that time, it will inevitably bring disaster to the people of Youzhou. Even if the enemy is repelled in the future, what will be left behind will become a mess, and restoring governance will become a troublesome matter.
Even if he takes ten thousand steps back, Gongsun Zan doesn't care about the life or death of his people, nor does he care about the stability of his rule.
Then the situation we are facing now should be managed.
Gongsun Zan actually didn't have much grain himself, but he could buy it from Qingzhou, so he stored a lot of grain in Yijing.
But what should we do with so many cavalrymen from Nanlou and Pfulu tribes outside the city?
In order to transport their food and grass from the tribe, they have to transport food from the direction of Kamiyadai County in the north. But the enemy is not stupid, and they will never let their food and grass pass easily. Once the food and grass cannot come through, and the army is short of food, they will
People will have to retreat and go back.
At that time, it will no longer be an army of more than 100,000 against 50,000 or 60,000, but an army of more than 100,000 that will surround the 20,000 Gongsun Zan lone army in the city, completely falling into an isolated and helpless situation.
This is an extremely dangerous situation.
Gongsun Zan was silent for a long time and said, "Let's find a way to report a message to Xuande."
"Um......"
Tian Yu nodded, looked at the pouring rain outside, and sighed: "This is the only way."
It rained heavily for several days.
Just as Gongsun Zan predicted, this sudden rain did cause a lot of trouble to the enemy.
Yuan Shao's army had just arrived and had not yet begun to set up camp. He was caught off guard by the rain and had to temporarily retreat ten miles away and find a safe place to quickly set up camp in the rain.
But Yuan Shaojun encountered trouble, and so did the Nanlou and Pufulu tribes. They were nomadic people and were not good at setting up camps for long periods of time. Moreover, they did not have much food and grass. Rainy days delayed their time and kept them inactive, which would accelerate the consumption of food and grass.
.
Some people may ask, why didn't Gongsun Zan give them food and grass?
the reason is simple.
Because they have no infantry.
No infantry means no baggage troops.
The cavalry originally relied on mobility. Nanlou and Pfulu were not far from their tribes and could gallop back at any time. There were too many baggage troops, which slowed down the pace.
Therefore, in fact, the Nanlou and Pufulu tribes only had more than ten days of dry food with them and did not have any long-term plans.
On the other hand, the Xianbei and Huns were different. Although they came from the north of Bingzhou and traveled 300 to 400 kilometers, they had the support of the wealthy Yuan Shao and could plunder the people of Youzhou everywhere. They could delay it longer than Nanlou and Nanlou.
Pufulu longer.
So at this point, Gongsun Zan will suffer a big loss.
Obviously Gao Lan also knew this clearly, so he was not in a hurry to attack at all. While helping the Hu people to set up camp, he continued to transfer grain and grass from Jizhou. An army of more than 100,000 people established dozens of densely packed camps.
A swarm of stars surrounded Yi Jing, making it suffocating.
Time passed by, the weather slowly improved, the summer sun shone on the ground, and the remnants of the heavy rain a few days ago almost disappeared. The temperature was rising every day. If you don't attack outside the city, you can't fight out inside the city. This is how the two sides are.
Staying in a stalemate, continuing to delay.
A few days later, it was already mid-April, and the average temperature in Youzhou had already reached over 25 degrees. Gao Lan simply built a canal on the bank of Yishui River, leading directly to their camp to ensure water supply.
There is no shortage of water in Yijing City, because Gu'an City is built on the edge of Yishui River, and there is a moat outside the city. Through the water gates extending in all directions and the complex water flow structure, the Yishui River will pass through the entire city, forming a
Several inner city rivers provide domestic water for people in the city.
Gao Lan once thought of blocking the water canal to put the city into a dilemma of water shortage. But unfortunately the city was too close to Yishui, just forty or fifty steps away from the south gate. Once they got close to the canal, a large number of arrows would be like
Raindrops fall normally, and it is impossible to carry out construction work under the rain of arrows, so this plan has to be abandoned.
However, Gao Lan still succeeded in consuming Nanlou and Pufulu. After more than ten days, they wasted food in vain. They had almost used up the dry food they had brought from the tribe for more than a month. If they did not evacuate, Nanlou and Pufulu would be in vain.
All the soldiers of the Fulu tribe had to starve to death.
On the day when the order was given to retreat, tens of thousands of cavalry passed by two or three miles away from the east city of Yijing. Dust and smoke billowed. Nanlou ordered people to wave flags on a hill in the distance and send warning messages to the city.
The most worrying problem still appeared. Gongsun Zan stood at the east city gate and remained silent.
Tian Yu showed a worried look on his face: "Nanlou and the others retreated because of lack of food. By the time he returns to the army to replenish food and grass, it will probably be half a month later. During this time, the enemy will definitely attack the city.
.”
Gongsun Zan turned to look south and murmured to himself: "What is Xuande doing? Has he received my letter? Will he come to save me? He will definitely...definitely will!"