The Most Romantic of the Three Kingdoms

Huayin County borders Zhengxian County, out of Huayin County, about 60 miles westward, is the county seat of Zhengxian County.

Zhengxian County is located in the south of Weishui River and north of Zhongling Mountain. From this county, going southwest for about a hundred miles is Baling. After crossing Bashui from Baling, and going southwest for about tens of miles, is Baling. Chang'an.

The name of Zheng County is that this place was the fief of Zheng State during the Western Zhou Dynasty—Zheng State later moved to Yindijie in Henan, but it was not its first land, so its new capital was named after it. Xinzheng, that is, today's Henan Yin, and Xinzheng in later generations, needless to say.

Here in Zhengxian County, it is based on Huayue in the former, and Linjing and Wei in the back. It controls the fortress of Taolin on the left and the pass of Lantian on the right. It has been the mouthpiece of Guanzhong since the past. quite important.

It can be said that after obtaining Huayin, Zheng County is the only place that can stop Xun Zhen's troops from coming to Chang'an.

For Li Jue, Guo Si, etc., if after the loss of Huayin, Zhengxian loses again, then in the east of Chang'an, except for Bashui and Baling in Kinki, there is no place to defend.

On this day in the late March of the intercalary month, Xu Rong, Liu Bei, and Chen Wu led the troops to the east of Zheng County.

The scout reported that the guard of Zheng County had already received the military report, and the city gate of Zheng County was now closed and the defense was strictly prepared.

When the troops and horses first arrived, it was impossible to attack the city immediately, so Xu Rong chose a suitable place in the east of the city and sent the order to build a camp first.

Half of the soldiers and most of the B soldiers, that is to say, the people who accompanied the army and the people who transported baggage and provisions, under the command of special military officials, were responsible for the specific operations of the camp, such as the planning of the camp area, the leveling of the roads in the camp, and the camp walls. Some soldiers and some civilians are scattered around the selected camping area to clear shrubs, weeds, etc., to clear these things, one is to broaden the field of vision and prevent the enemy from attacking, and the other is also In order to avoid the enemy's fire attack, after the clearing, this part of the soldiers and civilians are also responsible for digging trenches, setting up deer villages, etc. in these places to do peripheral defense construction; the rest of the soldiers are not far from the selected camping area. They were lined up on guard, and some of them, along with the rest of the people, guarded the grain and other goods in the rear.

Because Zheng County is not very far from Huayin, the main force will arrive soon after. In addition, the combat objective of coming to Zheng County this time is to arrive before the enemy reinforcements arrive, and the marching speed needs to be fast, so Xu Rong and others brought There was not much food, but because of the plan to siege the city, all kinds of siege equipment had to be brought along. Therefore, there were 2,000 civilians who joined the army, plus three generals of Xu Rong's headquarters, the total was about 6,000 or 7,000.

On the flat and open field, most of the soldiers and civilians were busy in full swing.

Leaving Chen Wu to control the situation, Xu Rong and Liu Bei led the personal soldiers from the cavalry to the vicinity of Zheng County to observe the garrison in the city.

The guards in Zheng County were on alert, and when they saw Xu Rong and others galloping, they shot arrows down the city.

Xu Rong was like a stone away, circled the city, and carefully observed the defense situation in the city. Xu Rong pointed to the flag of "Zhonglang's generals and grandsons" on the head of Dongcheng, and said to Liu Bei: "Xuande, the army The report is not bad, and the defending general is Sun Cong. I know this general, and he is also a native of Li Jue's hometown, and has a reputation for being brave." When he wanted to come to the strong bow, he personally shot an arrow at the city.

This arrow is not an ordinary arrow. Xu Rong's handwriting is tied to the handle of the arrow, but it is an arrow book.

Xu Rong's handwriting was of course written to Sun Cong.

When Xu Rongxi was under Dong Zhuo's account, he was the only general who was not from Liangzhou. His relationship with Li Jue and other generals from Liangzhou and the school was not unusual, and his relationship with this Sun Cong was not close, but he still I want to give it a try and see if I can recruit Sun Cong to surrender. Even if I can't, I will pass Xun Zhen's surprise attack on Hongnong County, Duan Xun's sacrifice of the city and other achievements in this battle, as well as exaggerating Xun Zhen's soldiers and horses. The powerful words may also have the effect of shaking Sun Cong's will to defend the city.

But after waiting outside the city for a while, no arrows were shot back in the city.

Xu Rongxiao said to Liu Bei, "It seems that this old acquaintance of mine doesn't want to hit the shadow wall or look back, so he doesn't want to come down to us."

Liu Bei said, "I should follow the generals around the city to watch, and see that the city is quite strong, and I don't think Sun Cong will surrender willingly if we don't fight a battle."

Xu Rong said: "The general ordered me to wait. The reinforcements from Li Jue and Guo Si may arrive in Zheng County soon. It is best for me to capture the city before that. Since he does not surrender, you and I will Now go back, seize the time, and discuss with the left army about the strategy for the battle."

Liu Bei agreed.

The two led the cavalry to return to the camp building, and called Chen Wu. The three also called the competent military officials from the Sima, Duwei, Qu Junhou and above, such as Zhuo Ying under Liu Bei's tent, and so on. , a total of more than ten people, gathered in a relatively quiet open space.

Liu Bei, on behalf of Xu Rong, told everyone about the firmness of Zhengxian County and the alertness of the defenders that he had just observed.

Then, Xu Rong spoke up and said, "That's how the enemy is. How should we fight this battle? What are your opinions? Just let me know."

Before the war, many military officials were called together, and the big guys discussed the strategy of the war together. ——People don’t know that in the era when Xun Zhen came, there was a name for this kind of meeting called “Zhuge Liang Meeting”, but since this is Xun Zhen’s habit, then it will be effective, and Xu Rong and others will take Xun Zhen’s meeting. I copied and learned from it.

Zhuo Ying waited for a long discussion.

Xu Rong sat aside, no longer speaking, just listening to them.

Chen Wu doesn't like to talk or speak.

Liu Bei had no pretense at all, and could mingle with these mid-level officers, sometimes praising someone's idea, and sometimes wagging his finger to express his disapproval of a certain officer's suggestion. He has a friendly attitude, has an approachable style, and occasionally makes jokes, because even those military officials who were not in agreement with his advice were not angry when they saw his objection.

While everyone was discussing, a scout suddenly came back from the west.

In the chaotic but orderly camping area, the scout quickly found Xu Rong and the others, jumped off the horse, ran forward, and reported to Xu Rong, "General, there is a thief in the west of Zhengxian County. , from the direction of Chang'an!"

The discussion came to an abrupt end.

Xu Rong asked the scout and said, "How many troops are there for the thieves?"

The scout replied: "Judging from the number of flags, the dust rolled up, and the length of the formation, etc., there should be three or four thousand thieves, but less than 5,000 soldiers, half-infantry, and about three cavalry. Four hundred."

The enemy reinforcements discovered by the scouts were the same troops that Li Jue and Guo Si sent to reinforce Zheng County. This support soldier is here to help defend the city. When attacking the city, the cavalry is not very useful, and the same is true for defending the city, so it is mainly infantry.

"There should be three or four thousand", these words reached the ears of the generals, and some people such as Zhuo Ying suddenly changed their faces.

However, Xu Rong, Liu Bei, and Chen Wu joined forces with only 5,000 cavalry. According to previous information, the guards of Zheng County had about 2,000 people. The 5,000 soldiers and horses that Xu Rong and the three were under were In an emergency, the civilians who can be temporarily mobilized into battle are not easy to attack. Now that there are reinforcements from the enemy with a similar number of troops as the headquarters, this battle is probably even more difficult to fight.

Liu Bei was also slightly moved, and murmured: "The thief aided three or four thousand people?" He asked, "How far is the thief aid from Zheng County?"

The scout replied, "Forty miles up and down."

Liu Bei's face changed again, and then he suppressed it, and everyone around could hear the unconcealed surprise in his words. He said, "It's forty miles to Zhengdong? Why so fast!"

But it was said that the reinforcements sent by Li Jue and Guo Si were still 40 miles away from Zheng County, and Xu Rong and the others had just arrived outside Zheng County, so why did this scout suddenly run 40 miles away? , and after discovering the enemy's aid, he ran back forty miles and rushed back to report to Xun Zhen and others? How did he do this in such a short period of time?

It turned out that the scout was not dispatched by Xu Rong after arriving in Zheng County, but had already been dispatched.

Since Xun Zhen had already predicted that Li Jue and Guo Si would reinforce Zheng County, how could Xu Rong not pay more attention to whether Chang'an had dispatched reinforcements when advancing troops to Zheng County? Therefore, Xu Rong dispatched several scouts early to inquire about the situation in Chang'an. The scout who came back to report was the first one sent.

Xu Rongan sat on the ground with his face unchanged, nodded and said, "Okay, I understand, you go down to rest first."

The scout was sweating profusely, his armor was covered with dust, and his eyes were bloodshot. Last night, he stayed up all night, and he was indeed very tired. tent to rest.

After the scout left, Liu Bei, Chen Wu, Zhuo Ying and other generals were all silent, and they all set their sights on Xu Rong.

Xu Rong stroked his beard, pondered for a moment, looked at the generals, and said, "The thieves have come very quickly, and it is only forty miles away from Zheng County. They will be able to arrive here before night tomorrow at the latest. You think, What should I do now?"

After a short silence, Zhuo Ying and others will start talking again.

Unlike just now when all of them were focused on discussing siege, the generals at this time had different opinions.

Some say that it is better to start the siege quickly; some say that since the aid of the thieves has already arrived, it may be difficult for Zheng County to reach the city in a hurry, so it is better to give up the plan of siege for now and implement the backup plan in the military order issued by Xun Zhen. , that is: first block the enemy's reinforcements.

Although Chen Wu doesn't like to talk, but when it's time to talk, he never hesitates. While listening to Zhuo Ying and others discussing, he is also thinking about it himself. When the thoughts are settled, he coughs lightly.

Zhuo Ying and others will continue to listen.

Chen Wu, Xu Rong, and Liu Bei said: "Two generals, the last general in my humble opinion~www.wuxiamtl.com~ should attack the city immediately."

Liu Bei pointed to Zhuo Ying and the others, and said, "Some of the lords in the past said that if the city is still being attacked at this moment, we will only have to wait for more than a day before the thieves arrive, and I'm afraid that the city will be difficult to attack, so why is the captain of the school? It is recommended to attack the city immediately? I would like to hear the details."

Chen Wu said: "The county seat of Zheng County is indeed quite strong, and there are not too many guards in the city. However, the reinforcements from the thieves have not arrived yet, and my troops and horses are like falling from the sky. The army is in chaos. If our army is at this time, with the soldiers of various divisions, plus the available civilians, we can roughly calculate more than 6,000 soldiers to attack the city. The city has been conquered, and the thieves' aid will arrive tomorrow, so what's the use?" After speaking, he stood up, salutes Xu Rong, and said, "The last general is willing to be the first!"

"Your strategy..."

Chen Wu asked, "What do you dare to ask the general?"

Xu Rong sat on the ground and said, "I thought it was unavailable and inappropriate."

"At the end of the day, if this discussion is inappropriate, dare to ask the general what's the meaning of it?" Chen Wu's face was iron-like when he asked this, and he couldn't see any expression.