Chapter 26 But Follow Me
Chapter 26 But Follow Me
In September of the second year of Tai'an in the Jin Dynasty (303), the emperor was very busy.
On September 13, the emperor and empress went to Mangshan surrounded by their ministers.
On the 16th, we arrived at Yanshi.
On the 22nd, the army returned to the east of Luoyang. The empress and officials returned to the city, but the emperor was held by Sima Yi and could not leave. It was also on this day that Yang Xuanzhi, the Shangshu You Pushe, who had worked very happily with Sima Yi, "died of worry and fear."
But this cannot stop the offensive of the army in Yecheng and Chang'an. They have a combined force of 300,000 and are coming with great momentum. Would the death of Yang Xuanzhi be of any use?
On the 25th, the emperor was taken to Gaoshi County again.
From the emperor's itinerary, we can basically see the location where Sima Yi fought with the Hebei army.
The emperor almost became a "model worker". Wherever there was a battle, he would go there to "boost morale". The most recent time was when he went to Gaoshi County and stood in front of the battle with his imperial chariot. The soldiers shouted "Long live the emperor". The champion general Qian Xiu from Yecheng was defeated and led his troops away. The king's army took advantage of the situation to pursue him and beheaded thousands of people.
The situation in the east seemed to be okay - although it was only temporary, and things would change once the main forces from Yecheng arrived - but the situation in the west deteriorated rapidly.
After Zhang Fang defeated Huangfu Shang's army of more than 10,000 people in Yiyang, Luoyang gathered thousands of soldiers and horses, plus conscripted slaves from wealthy families, servants, and Luoyang citizens, more than 10,000 people marched west and fought with Zhang Fang many times. Both sides won and lost, but with heavy casualties. In the end, they fled, and the Guanzhong soldiers suddenly rushed to the inner city of Luoyang.
On September 27, a large number of people poured out of Kaiyangmen Street and hurried south in a noisy manner.
In the afternoon, hundreds of soldiers from Guanzhong rushed over and knocked on doors every day.
There were actually not many people in this area. The wealthy families were even more informed than Shao Xun, and they had fled southwards to the mountains ten days ago. But they couldn't take all their property with them, and these were what the Guanzhong soldiers valued.
Shao Xun was lying on the wall at this time, carefully observing the thief's movements.
To be honest, I feel a little disappointed, or perhaps relieved?
The soldiers from Guanzhong marched all the way to Luoyang, which made him subconsciously think that the enemy was very powerful. But when he observed, he was greatly disappointed.
This is not what a strong and elite soldier looks like at all.
Nearly forty years had passed since the pacification of Shu, and the Guanzhong hereditary soldiers had only been replaced for two generations, but they were no longer able to do anything.
Of course, they are still much better than ordinary people, but how to say it, Shao Xun is too picky and just thinks these people are not good enough.
Mi Huang had just sent off a messenger, and was now looking up at the sky, silent.
After a while, he looked towards the wall and asked, "What does Shao Dubo think of the enemy?"
Shao Xun went down the ladder to the courtyard and said, "The army is in disarray, and has been robbed and loaded with loot. They have no desire to fight."
"Does this mean - we can win?" Mi Huang asked, his eyes lighting up.
"We have hundreds of soldiers. It's easy to kill the enemy soldiers running around, but it's impossible to drive away all the enemy troops."
"It doesn't say that we have to drive away all the thieves. Can we clear out the thieves on Kaiyangmen Street?"
"Supervisor, it would be best if we contacted our friendly forces stationed in Lingtai and other places and act together."
"Well, that makes sense, but it's difficult."
The two of them asked and answered each other, and after a while, there was no sound.
Mi Huang said nothing, while Shao Xun waited quietly.
"The messenger who just left was sent by Wang Ju." Mi Huang walked into the courtyard and looked at the soldiers who were dressed neatly, sitting on the ground, and ready to go to war. He said, "He is the left attendant of Changsha State. He has set up camp outside Kaiyang Gate. There are several thousand of them. We are all under his command. In fact, he had already sent a servant to send a secret message to us before, ordering us to march north to search and kill the bandits, but I pushed him back. I didn't tell you about this. Do you know what it means?"
Shao Xun nodded.
"We can't shirk this time. A nobleman came to the Grand Commander's camp to cry and complain about the rampage of the rebels. Moreover, Zhang Fang sent people to cut off the canal and to dig up the Qianjin Dam to drain the excess water. Now the water mills in the city are dry and even rice cannot be pounded." Mi Huang said, "So the Grand Commander has to return to Luoyang to personally deploy troops to defeat Zhang Fang."
Chaotic strategy! This is what Shao Xun thinks at the moment.
It's like treating the symptoms without addressing the root cause.
Previously, there was only one Huangfu Shang who led more than 10,000 miscellaneous soldiers to deal with Zhang Fang. After the disastrous defeat, he realized that something was wrong, so he searched for soldiers everywhere and fought Zhang Fang with the tactic of adding fuel to the fire. Now he was defeated again, and he finally became anxious, so he decided to return to deal with the Guanzhong army personally.
"General, how is the battle in the east?" Shao Xun asked.
"Not bad." Mi Huang's expression relaxed a little, and he said, "In fact, I don't know much more than you do. I only vaguely heard that the royal army won more than it lost, and the army in Yecheng was in disgrace, so the commander-in-chief had time to return to his army."
"Now that the Grand Commander has returned, it is indeed inappropriate to shirk responsibility." Shao Xun said, "We are neither the central army nor the direct descendants of the King of Changsha. If we are held accountable for our crimes and punished, almost no one will speak for us."
"That's right." Mi Huang nodded and said, "So, let me ask you again, are you sure you can win?"
"In battle, no one can guarantee victory." Shao Xun replied, "I only have one thing to say. I am willing to lead the elite troops to clear the way, and the governor will follow closely behind to take charge of the overall situation."
"Okay." Mi Huang became excited. He took a step forward, grabbed Shao Xun's hand, and said, "If we win the battle, I will drink with you."
In Mi Huang's heart, birth and family background are no longer important at this moment.
On the battlefield, only comrades who can fight side by side are real, and only warriors who can save his life are valuable.
If you have lost your life, what’s the point of talking about family background!
The brutal battle of Luoyang has changed everyone who has experienced it to varying degrees.
Mi Huang has changed. At least at this moment, he feels that the farm, shops, fields, and troops in his hometown in Donghai can't help him at all. Here, real swords and guns are needed to speak. No matter how high the family background is, in Zhang Fang's eyes, it is just a few pieces of meat floating in the cauldron.
After Shao Xun received the order, he stopped talking nonsense.
Mi Huang summoned all the officers above the rank of sergeant on the spot and gave him full authority.
Shao Xun grabbed the still confused Du Bo Yang Bao and told him to get back into the formation.
"Everyone, I won't say anything more." Shao Xun looked at the hundreds of people lined up neatly and said calmly, "Serving as a soldier, eating food, and fighting for one's life have always been the duty of a warrior."
"You all join the army for many reasons. Some just want to make a living, that's true. But in the current situation, the city is getting poorer and poorer, and sooner or later you won't have enough to eat."
"Some people want to gain wealth. That's great. Have you seen the Westerners looting like crazy? They have big bags and small bags, bulging with stuff. If we take them away and give them to the whole army, wouldn't that be wonderful?"
"Some people have nowhere to go, so they come to this tower to serve as soldiers. What I want to say is that after this battle, when you get the reward, you can go wherever you want. I will never make it difficult for you, and I will keep my word." "Some people think that I am a good fighter and I am fair, and they can survive by following me. I don't want to go against my conscience and say that everyone will survive, but I can guarantee that if we die, we will die together, and we will have a companion on the road to the underworld, so we won't be alone."
"Chen Yougen!" Shao Xun shouted loudly.
"Here!" Chen Yougen responded loudly.
His face was a little flushed, obviously he was very emotional.
Du Bo's pre-war mobilization was very much to his liking.
Some officers just talk empty words about loyalty to the emperor and patriotism, but that's all bullshit and not true at all.
Du Bo was able to prescribe the right medicine, speak to the heart of people's hearts, and try his best to boost everyone's morale.
"I'll give you two squads of people to supervise the battle behind the formation. If anyone hesitates to advance, he will be killed immediately," Shao Xun ordered.
"Yes!" Chen Yougen glanced at everyone murderously.
Shao Xun quickly selected twenty older boys from teams one, two and three, and joined them with Chen Yougen's team to serve as the supervisory team.
"There are some things I will only say once." Shao Xun stroked the hilt of his sword and shouted, "If the soldiers don't advance, the sergeant will kill them. If the sergeant doesn't advance, the squad leader will kill him. If the squad leader doesn't advance, the team leader will kill him. If I don't advance, you can cut off my head!"
Mi Huang watched quietly from the side and swallowed subconsciously.
The army is really cruel and ruthless.
He had seen General He Lun of the East Sea State commanding his troops before, but he was not so strict.
After the pre-war mobilization, the officers immediately went down to the camp, drove the soldiers out and lined them up in order.
Shao Xun walked calmly in front of the formation, ordering the soldiers to string their bows and check their armor and equipment.
Soon, the sound of a sword being drawn back into its sheath was heard.
After the inspection, Shao Xun, with the help of Chen Yougen, put on the tube-sleeved armor, the bow and the ring-handled sword, and tied a red headband on his forehead.
He didn't know why he did this, as if it was a habit or an important thing in his life.
Wu Qian found Wang Que'er, handed him a heavy sword, and whispered a few words in his ear.
The fourteen-year-old boy nodded heavily, carrying the heavy sword with difficulty, and stood beside Shao Xun.
Seven teams of infantry, totaling 350 men, were silent and looked at him quietly.
Shao Xun slightly adjusted the well-strung bow, held it in his hand, glanced at the troops, and waved his hand: "Just follow me!"
Having said that, he walked ahead.
"Just follow me!" Huang Biao's body trembled slightly, perhaps because of fear, or perhaps because of excitement. He couldn't figure it out. At this moment, there was only one thought in his mind: follow Du Bo.
Fifty armored soldiers stood out from the crowd and followed Huang Biao.
The second team, the third team, the fourth team...
Team after team filed out and formed their battle formation again on Kaiyangmen Street.
A light drizzle began to fall from the sky, and the Western soldiers in the distance were still looting wantonly.
They laughed heartily, with occasional curses, and faintly the screams of men before death and the women's hoarse cries.
"Swoosh!" An arrow flew out lightly, specifying a direction.
"Kill!" Shao Xun roared and stepped forward.
"Kill!" The soldiers struck the ground with their spears and moved forward at an angle.
The armor plates clanged and the sound of military boots was breathtaking.
Hundreds of people went upstream like a torrent and headed straight for Kaiyang Gate.
The children and teenagers who stayed behind in Biyong rushed to the gate, all their eyes fixed on "Master Shao" who was walking ahead.
At this moment, he is the hero in the hearts of all young people.
He was fearless, brave and courageous, carrying all the burdens on his shoulders.
Some of the younger children even cried.
The older boy pursed his lips tightly and gripped the knife handle so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
Teacher Shao taught them to read and write.
Master Shao made them understand the principles of how to behave in society.
Master Shao tried his best to get them delicious food to help them grow.
When Master Shao patrolled the military camp at night, he would tuck in the corners of the quilts for the naughty children.
Master Shao even tells stories to the most tearful children to relieve their inner distress and anxiety.
He was like a ray of sunshine, shining into the hearts of all the children away from home and becoming one of the most important people in their hearts.
What the hell does the imperial court have to do with me? If I had to choose between the imperial court and Master Shao, the result would be a foregone conclusion.
The rain gradually got heavier, and on Kaiyangmen Street, several unexpected exclamations and screams were heard.
The battle begins.
(End of this chapter)