Late Tang Dynasty Floating Life

Chapter 567

On the xiáo water, a stone bridge spans the two banks.

This bridge was built by Li Chun in the Sui Dynasty. It is similar to the Lishui Stone Bridge in the 16th year of Kaihuang. It is a stone arch bridge named "Dashi Bridge".

At this time, near the big stone bridge, soldiers and horses were like clouds, and the warriors carried swords and bows, with solemn faces.

The sergeants in the three towns of Hebei, if you let them fight other people and capture the land outside the town, they are really weak, and they must be rewarded generously.But when defending his own kennel, his morale was high, which formed a stark contrast.

But no matter how brave the guard is, there is a limit.

Facing the wolves and tigers of the Hedong sergeants, they were defeated again and again, and they really couldn't beat them.The tens of thousands of cavalry that they were proud of became a joke, and they couldn't beat Li Ke's infantry at all.However, if they were harassed day and night, the sergeants in Hedong remained calm and took turns to rest, and they would not collapse for at least ten days.

However, Hebei is densely populated and there are many towns. It will not take ten days at all. It only takes three days to find a town to rest and seize food and grass.In the end, the cavalry was exhausted and their physical strength was not as good as that of the infantry. What the hell could I do?Can only live by sneak attack.

At this time, the sergeants gathered outside Zhaozhou City were mainly from Zhuifengdu and Jiankoudu, led by Duan Liang and Ma Ke respectively.The former is cavalry with more than 6000 cavalry, and the latter is infantry with [-] people.

There is also a foreign army who fled, Liu Rengong's Department in Youzhou, with more than [-] soldiers on foot and cavalry, and is currently attached to Chengde Town.

Duan Liang and Ma Ke were discussing something in a low voice, while Liu Rengong looked outside with serious thoughts.

There are people coming and going on the big stone bridge, but they are not afraid of these scary warriors at all.

It's actually normal.

The three towns in Hebei have always been very stable. Wei Bo implements the military election system, and Chengde's Wang family has been hereditary for several generations. It is the upper class, and the foundation of the three towns is actually the same, that is, the military group rules everything.

After more than a hundred years of separatism, there are not many people who have been soldiers, and there are very few people who dare to say that they have nothing to do with soldiers.That is, no one in your family is a soldier, and you always have relatives who are soldiers. No one in your generation is a soldier, and maybe someone in the next generation will be a soldier.Those who do business cannot do without soldiers, and those who are officials cannot do without military positions-a large number of civilian positions in states and counties are occupied by warriors.

For merchants or landlords with a little spare money at home, the first choice of their nephews is always to practice martial arts.On this point, Henan and Hebei are the same.It is ordinary people from ordinary families whose physical condition does not allow them to practice martial arts all year round, but they will learn a little bit of cropping, touch bows and arrows, play with long spears a few times, and practice military formations and drums during the slack.Once a war breaks out, these Tutuan peasants are an excellent source of reserve soldiers, and they are also the main source of confidence for the feudal town to fight against the imperial court for a long time——

When Tian Chengsi was in Weibo, when his territory was the smallest, there were only more than 20 counties, but he raised [-] troops, and when necessary, he could pull out all the males to fight with the court.

"What's the benefit of beating An Jinjun?" There was a heated argument in the distance, Liu Rengong's expression changed, and he listened attentively.

"The soldiers of Jin were fierce, and Ke Yong was trapped deep in Youzhou. He pacified Zhuozhou and defeated the army behind the mountain once. It may take a few years to finish the affairs of Youzhou."

"After the cooking of Youzhou, isn't it time to plan to suppress Hebei and Cangjing?"

"Yan people are not easy to deal with, how can this be so easy?"

"The elite of the Yan people were lost in Xin and Gui. Now the army behind the mountain is capable of fighting and has been defeated by Li Keyong. Although Ying and Mo's soldiers opposed Li, if they promise to benefit, they are nothing."

"What benefits can you promise? The three brothers of the Gao family have been staring at the position of the Jiedushi in Youzhou. It has been several months, and Li Keyong has not made up his mind. It's just that no one knows who he will give to after staying with him. If it continues, Brothers from the Gao family will also be disappointed."

"Sooner or later, Jin soldiers will go back to Hedong to reunite with their families, and Li Keyong will not be able to stop them. I think Gao Siji will probably become a Jiedu envoy. At that time, the situation will change drastically. Our town will face them head-on. Soldiers and horses from the three towns of Zhouzhou are coming, and there are still three states of Xingmingci in the south, what should we do?"

"Then we have to capture Xingzhou first, and get rid of the threats along the way first."

"Wei Bo's bastards have retreated, how can we fight alone?"

The debate is never ending.

Liu Rengong was tired of hearing it, it was all cliché and nothing new.

Now he is very interested in the ongoing Xia and Bian wars.No way, looking at Wang Rong like this, he doesn't look like someone who is willing to fight Li Keyong without external help. Relying on these 2000 people to fight back to Youzhou is tantamount to daydreaming.

Now it's time to think of another way out.

According to Liu Rengong's own judgment, the war between Xia and Bian could not end at all.

He specially found a map yesterday to look at it. If Shao Shude wins in Heyang and occupies most of the land in Mengzhou and Huaizhou, he will face off with the Bian army across the river.

What next?He judged that it was likely to cooperate with other battlefields to capture Luozhou and Ruzhou.It is also possible to cross the south of the river, but the risk is relatively high. If it fails in Henan, it may be difficult to return to Hebei, and that will be the end of the annihilation of the entire army.

Shao Shude's influence really spread too fast, and he jumped to Hebei in one fell swoop—the two prefectures of Meng and Huai belong to Hebei Road.

Next he will border on Wei Boluo Hongxin, it will be very interesting where things will go.

The overlord of the Northwest wants to intervene in the affairs of Henan and Hebei. What will Li Keyong think?
"Let's not talk about it." Duan Liang walked over with a sullen expression on his face, and said, "Let's go when you have enough rest. The commander-in-chief didn't order the troops to retreat, so we have to go to Xingzhou."

Ma Ke stomped her feet and let out a long sigh.

Why is the vision of the great union of the three towns in Hebei so difficult?

In the last ten years, Le Yanzhen, the ex-Wei Bo Jiedu envoy, mentioned it once, but Wang Shuai was unwilling. Li Quanzhong, the Youzhou Jiedu envoy, was in poor health and passed away later, but he did not respond.

The first joint effort by the three towns failed.

Later, Li Kuangwei mentioned it once, and Wang Shuai agreed this time, but Wei Boluo Hongxin disagreed.

A second joint three-town effort failed.

This time it was Wang Shuai who proposed it on his own initiative, and Luo Hongxin was a little moved, but Youzhou was once again occupied by Li Keyong.

A third joint effort by the three towns is about to fail.

Each has its own plans, each has its own thoughts, and each has its own difficulties. The three towns in Hebei are increasingly affected by external forces.

An and Shi Ersheng unfortunately passed away, and the reason why the three towns in Hebei were able to resist the imperial court relied on their unanimity at the critical moment.The tradition of cooperation is very deep. Although there are conflicts among soldiers, they will not particularly reject this kind of alliance.

The three towns are united, the six prefectures of Weibo have a population of 400 million, the four prefectures of Chengde have a population of 200 million, and Youzhou has a population of 200 million, adding up to more than 700 million.The degree of affluence also far exceeds that of Henan, Guanzhong, and Hedong. How can the money and food produced by a household in Hebei be comparable to other places?

Why can't we unite?Obviously, they have successfully united many times in the past hundred years.

The sergeants packed up their luggage slowly, and were about to leave as a whole group, when suddenly a messenger came galloping.

"The commander-in-chief has an order to suspend the dispatch of troops and return to Zhenzhou." After the messenger dismounted, he dictated the order to the two leading generals, and then handed over the ultimatum.

Duan Liang and Ma Ke looked at each other after reading it, and asked almost in tandem, "Why aren't you sending troops?"

"I really don't know." The messenger was a civil servant, who shook his head and said, "Maybe it has something to do with Keyong going back to Jinyang. The commander-in-chief seems to want to take this opportunity to see if he can make peace with Li Keyong. As long as we refrain from invading the south, everything will be fine."

It turned out to be the case.

It's not short time for the Hedong army to go out.It is by indulging in military discipline to dilute the homesickness of the sergeants, but it is only a temporary solution, not a root cause.I will go back sooner or later, and it has been a long time since I persisted.

When Liu Rengong heard this, his heart moved slightly.

The sergeants in Hedong looted a lot of goods in Youzhou, and now they are eager to return home, and they are eager to go back to Jinyang to buy a lot, and have fun with their families.However, the Youzhou army has not been completely wiped out. If only a small number of soldiers and horses are left, it may not help anything. Then it is necessary to compromise with the local military forces in Youzhou, or temporarily compromise.

Looking at his previous methods, he appointed his adopted son Li Cunxiao as the training envoy of Xinyi Guidu regiment, and recently appointed Li Cunxin, who had the second highest military exploits, as the governor of Zhuozhou.

Xinyi GUI is close to the grassland, or has a large grassland itself. Li Cunxiao is extremely brave, and the soldiers are good at fighting. There are many benefits for him to control this area.

However, Li Keyong also seemed to be on the defensive. Many generals and soldiers under Li Cunxiao's tent were drawn back to Jinyang, and only some of the elite backbones were retained. Those who were supplemented were soldiers from Youzhou, or Li Cunxiao's new recruits on the grassland. The Khitan, Xi, Shiwei and Fan people.

Most of the soldiers and horses under Li Cunxin's account were also taken away, and the soldiers from Youzhou were added.Zhuozhou is right under the eyes of Youzhou, and it is also connected to Keyong's in-law and ally, King Yiding Chucun, who was trusted by Li Cun as the governor, which shows the key to this place.

Li Cunxiao and Li Cunxin, the two generals, in a few years, the soldiers and horses will be gradually localized, right?
Liu Rengong smiled and thought to himself, if he defected to Li Keyong at this time, would he be able to become the governor of a state?
Li Keyong was in a state of desperation, and he must have looked at the people of Youzhou who were willing to surrender to him.He is worried about the brothers of the Gao family. If I make some gestures, maybe I will have a chance.

After the messenger's order was conveyed, more than ten thousand soldiers and horses left Zhaozhou and rushed to Zhenzhou.

While on the road, they received news that Li Keyong appointed Gao Siji as the heir to Youzhou, and at the same time recruited Lu Wenjin, who was stationed in Mozhou, and appointed him as the governor of Mozhou. The fierce general Shan Keqi was the governor of Yingzhou.

Shunzhou was also set up to lead a county in Huairou, and Li Siyuan, the righteous son, was appointed as the governor of Shunzhou. The food and salaries needed by Li Siyuan's department were all provided by Youzhou.

Liu Rengong became anxious when he heard this.

The good Youzhou Town has not only changed from eleven states to twelve states, but also has a lot of military leaders.

Gao Siji, Lu Wenjin, Shan Keji, Li Cunxiao, Li Cunxin, Li Siyuan, etc., the army behind the mountain is more complicated, and they are also connected with Khitan.Although he was defeated once a while ago, and the Khitan was also beheaded by Li Ke for more than a thousand levels, but sooner or later something will happen. Can the Gao brothers really hold on?
still have a chance!

Liu Rengong said silently in his heart.

The idea of ​​combining the three towns in Hebei, with Hedong Town as a barrier, is doomed to be unrealized.Big fish eat small fish is a trend, and no one can change it.

Li Keyong didn't dare to offend the public, so he was forced to take the Jin soldiers home.But after the rest, maybe he will come again, unless something bad happens between him and Shao Shude.

It was time to seize the opportunity, Liu Rengong's eyes rolled wildly, thinking about the next strategy.

(End of this chapter)