Chapter 268: Forward
Chapter 268: Forward
Liu Cong's camp was set up outside Guangmo Gate in the north of the city.
With 40,000 cavalrymen, plus various miscellaneous troops recruited along the way, the scale of the camp was extremely large.
The larger ones can house thousands or even tens of thousands of soldiers, while the smaller ones may only have a few thousand.
There were intervals between the camps to prevent the collapse of one camp from affecting other camps, or the fire from spreading and burning down all the camps.
Of course, the Luoyang Basin is spacious enough to accommodate such camping. If the terrain is complex, it will be difficult to deal with. More than 80 years ago, a man was burned to death by a fire.
The camps of tens of thousands of Han troops stretched from the north to the west of the city, and even to the east of the city, stretching for more than ten miles, with layer upon layer, creating a spectacular sight.
It was a standard tactic of surrounding three sides and leaving one side open, leaving only the south side of the city with the Luo River. The sinister intention was evident.
But thinking about it, it seems a little strange. There are nearly 60,000 infantry and cavalry inside and outside Luoyang City, which are comparable to Liu Cong's troops. This kind of encirclement always makes people feel outrageous.
"Is Shao Xun in Yi Yang? Where is Yuan Yan?" Outside the camp in the north of the city, Liu Cong did not forget to care about his two "old lovers" while patrolling the camp.
"He should be in Yiyang as well." General Huyan Hao replied.
Liu Cong nodded and said nothing.
General Longxiang Liu Yao followed closely behind.
This man was Liu Yuan's nephew, but he lost his father at a young age and was raised by Liu Yuan, so he was considered half a son to him.
He looked strong and majestic, half a head taller than Liu Cong. He was good at both literature and martial arts, skilled in cursive and official scripts, and was known for his archery. He could even draw a strong bow that most people could not draw, and once shot an arrow through an inch-thick iron plate.
He likes reading and reads everything, covering a wide range of subjects, but his favorite is military books.
When he was 20 years old, he traveled to Luoyang. After committing a crime, he escaped and later lived in seclusion in Bingzhou for many years.
After Liu Yuan started the rebellion, he joined in and made many military achievements. At this time, he was already the King of Shi'an and General Longxiang.
Hearing that Liu Cong was still obsessed with Shao and Yuan, he could not help but advise: "General, the emperor only wants to seize Luoyang."
Liu Cong was a little unhappy after hearing this. He was about to reprimand him, but suddenly he remembered his reflections a few days ago, so he swallowed back the words that were about to come out and said, "Yongming is right. I shouldn't sacrifice public interests for personal interests. Do you have any strategy for attacking Luoyang?"
Liu Yao glanced at him, unsure whether he should tell the truth.
"Just tell me what you want to say." Liu Cong looked very humble, as if he would listen to whatever you say with an open mind.
Liu Yao pondered for a moment and said, "In fact, the Grand Commander's current strategy is not bad. Divide the troops to plunder in all directions to help with military supplies, and it can also disappoint the people of Jin and make them alienated. Even if we fail to take it this time, it will be much easier to come back next year."
Cavalry cannot attack a city.
Forty thousand cavalrymen rushed to the city of Luoyang, and the Jin army decided to retreat and defend. They had no place to use their military force, but they could not just sit there and eat without doing anything.
So Liu Cong sent half of them out, forming a group of two to three thousand cavalry, assisted by infantry led by Zhao Gu and others, to plunder everywhere.
Any forts and barriers they encountered along the way would be taken down if possible, and would be used to scare them if they couldn't. If they couldn't even scare them, they wouldn't waste time and would go straight to the next one.
All in all, food is the biggest problem.
The Han Dynasty was not wealthy and had been preparing for this expedition for a long time, but there was still not enough food. What could it do?
It is not realistic to expect food and grass to be transported from the rear.
We got a lot in Hanoi, but it was not enough for the people and horses. After crossing the river and heading south, we looted another batch, but it was still tight - there were too many people and horses, and the mountains of food and hay were eaten up in a few days.
At the military meeting yesterday, someone seriously put forward an opinion that in the absence of infantry, it would be impossible to easily capture Luoyang, and it would be better to divide the troops and plunder the area in all directions. Liu Cong adopted the opinion.
But they also pointed out that the number of defenders in Luoyang was too large, and even if all the Han infantry were present, they might not be able to capture the city. It would be better to retreat after looting. Liu Cong did not accept this idea.
He knew very well that his subordinates were not very interested in whether or not Luoyang could be taken.
Everyone knows that Luoyang City is full of wealth and beauties, but there is nothing you can do if you can't conquer it. It's better to rob some of the money, food, livestock and other goods from the county town and the fortress, so that everyone can get some benefits, and then go home - this is the mentality of the people below.
But Liu Cong couldn't accept this.
He values honor, status, reputation - and perhaps beauty - more, but ordinary wealth does not interest him much.
He only wants Luoyang.
"When will the Grand Marshal's infantry arrive?" Liu Cong stopped and asked softly.
Thousands of infantry and cavalry returned from outside the camp gate.
Leading the way were several hundred cavalrymen, followed by endless horse-drawn and ox-drawn carts, and behind them more than two thousand infantry and cavalrymen.
The carriages were loaded with all kinds of valuables, including grain, money, gold and silver utensils, leather, and even hundreds of women.
Obviously, this was a woman who was captured and brought back as treasure.
As the women saw themselves getting closer and closer to the Hun camp, they began to cry out of fear.
When the Hun cavalry saw this, they burst into laughter.
Liu Cong pretended not to see it.
The emperor often emphasized treating the people well, but he was really powerless.
The soldiers going to the war want money, can we not give them?
If a man wants to snatch a woman away to enjoy her, can you not give her to him?
When you work hard for a living, all you think about are two things: money and women.
This is the eternal pursuit of soldiers. If you are not satisfied with this, what is the point of fighting for you?
Even the emperor cannot violate these two rules, unless you distribute money and food to everyone on a daily basis so that everyone has money and food to support their families and money to marry wives, otherwise, stop talking nonsense!
"Having a bunch of women in the army can easily cause trouble, so transport them back as soon as possible. Whoever grabs them owns them. Ask the generals and leaders of each unit to remember this and distribute them after transporting them back to Pingyang." Liu Cong ordered after the group of people left.
"The transportation started yesterday." This matter was under the charge of Anyang King Liu Li. He immediately stepped forward to report: "Another batch was transported away today. It's just right. After unloading the grain, we can use the grain carts to transport these valuables and women away." Liu Cong nodded, still with some lingering anxiety in his heart.
How do we fight this battle?
The soldiers were enjoying the looting, but Luoyang City remained unmoved. What should they do?
"You all should go back to your camps." Liu Cong sighed and said, "Try to attack Luoyang tomorrow, and choose Ximing Gate. If that doesn't work, transfer Wang Mi here, his troops are always stronger than Zhao Gu's."
"Yes, sir." General Hu Yanhao replied.
He stationed his troops outside Ximing Gate. The King of Chu said this, obviously wanting him to lead his troops to attack.
It just so happened that he also wanted to test the strength of the Jin State's imperial guards.
******
In the Luoshui River Valley, the boring mountain battle could no longer go on.
Of the 4,200 Zhongwu soldiers, only about 3,000 are left.
Wang Mi's side was not much better, with slightly more casualties. Especially after the Silver Spear Army suddenly joined the battle on the 25th, they directly lost nearly a thousand people, abandoned two camps in succession, and retreated more than five miles to cut wood and set up fences.
Shao Xun ordered Yunzhong and Tanshan to each dispatch 500 men, and Kinmen to dispatch 1,000 men, for a total of 2,000 men, who would be led by Zheng Long, the owner of Kinmen, as the backup for the Zhongwu Army.
He then withdrew, heading east with the Silver Spear Army, the Cavalry Army and auxiliary troops, totaling nearly 10,000 people. Two days later, he arrived at Yiyang County and met up with Li Chong.
As for returning to this damn place called Xiban, just leave it to the able-bodied militia.
Chen Jing, Du Yin, and Yuan Xi worked together, and Zheng Long followed. There were a total of 5,000 infantrymen, whose main task was to defend the route. They would be credited with keeping this route intact.
His focus now is mainly on the east.
"The day before yesterday and yesterday, Xiongnu cavalry appeared, but they only circled around the valley entrance and did not go deep into it." On the top of Yiyang City, Li Chong reported: "This morning, several hundred cavalry approached Yiyang. I led the Yamen Army out of the city and formed a battle array. The enemy cavalry watched for a while and then retreated."
"What tricks do you think the Huns are playing?" Shao Xun asked.
It was already late October, and the Luoyang River Valley was filled with withered, malnourished weeds and gray, monotonous fields.
Houses, fort walls, woods, hills and rivers are dotted around, adding a little more life to the land.
The good news is that winter wheat has been widely planted in Zhuwubao this year, so there will be a supply of food for next year - if it is not eaten up by locusts.
"Commander-in-chief, I feel that we can no longer stand by and watch like this." Li Zhong couldn't help but say.
"What do you think?" Shao Xun asked.
He knew that the current situation on the battlefield was quite difficult.
The reason why it is so frustrating is the lack of transparency in information.
The overwhelming force of the Xiongnu cavalry greatly restricted the range of activities of the Jin army's scouts and made it very difficult for messengers to deliver messages back and forth. If they were not careful, the message would not be delivered but would be intercepted by the enemy, thus leaking their own internal information.
Luoyang is now a huge information black hole.
Since the main force of the Xiongnu arrived, Shao Xun has been unable to understand the specific situation in Luoyang.
It is true that the Huns did not station troops in the south of the city, but you must not assume that messengers, scouts, and cavalry can move freely in and out from the south.
In fact, in the vast area from the south of Luoyang City to the three passes of Luonan, the activities of the Xiongnu cavalry were very rampant, and the probability of scouts and messengers being captured and killed was very high.
On the few occasions when messages were delivered, they would be sent out at night, with several groups of people dispatched at the same time, taking huge risks to deliver the messages, and there was no guarantee that all the messengers would return.
When the number of cavalry on one side is ten or even twenty times that of the other side, the battlefield becomes one-way transparent.
Sometimes Shao Xun even had to torture prisoners to get news from Luoyang, and it was not always accurate.
What can be confirmed at present is: 1. The main force of the Xiongnu has surrounded three parts and left one behind, but their infantry is small in number and cannot fight, so they will not be able to take Luoyang for a while; 2. Their food and grass are insufficient, and they are dividing their troops into four parts to plunder, but this can only alleviate the dilemma of food shortage and cannot fully meet military needs. After all, more cavalry also means greater consumption; 3. They will launch a siege in the near future.
"I beg the commander-in-chief to order us to set up camp and observe the enemy's situation," Li Zhong pleaded.
Shao Xun thought silently for a while.
The Hun cavalry had so many soldiers that even if they plundered everywhere, their food and grass consumption would still be huge, so they would not be able to sustain long.
Perhaps, it won’t be long before they will be forced to retreat like Wang Mi did back then.
Leaving Yiyang and moving forward towards Luoyang really has little significance from a military perspective.
But from a political point of view, it is of great significance.
Is it necessary to seize this political benefit?
Shao Xun thought for a long time, and just when Li Chong wanted to speak again, he stretched out his hand to stop him.
"You stay and help me watch over the way back to Xiban, and don't let anyone stab us in the back." Shao Xun said, "I will lead the army forward myself."
"Where does the commander-in-chief want to go?" Li Zhong asked subconsciously.
"Nine Bends." Shao Xun said.
The Luo River Notes in the Water Classic says: "The Luo River flows eastwards through the south of Jiuqu, and there are nine bends in the area of ten miles."
In the tenth year of Wei Datong (544), Hou Jing built Jiuqu City here.
It is roughly located five miles northwest of today's Yi Yang County and fifty miles away from the Wei and Jin Yi Yang City (the old city of Han Yi Yang).
During the Sui Dynasty, Shou'an County was established here, and the Tang Dynasty followed suit. During the Tang Dynasty, three counties, Changshui, Fuchang and Shou'an, were established in the Luoshui River Valley. The level of development in the Wei and Jin Dynasties was not enough, and there was only one county, Yi Yang.
"We will set out today, carrying a month's worth of food and equipment." After making the decision, Shao Xun felt much more relaxed, and said to Li Zhong seriously, "I will leave the way for you."
(End of this chapter)