Chapter 465 Breaking In

Chapter 465 Breaking In

Chapter 465 Breaking In (Additional chapter for the leader of the alliance, Saint Lord Yang Guang)

Several ox carts stopped by the creek.

More than ten soldiers got off the car, holding knives and axes, and began to cut down dead trees and pick up branches.

The leading sergeant came to the river, wiped his face with the river water, and was immediately refreshed.

In the past few days, Wang Mi has been invited to fight, and the entire army has been lined up from time to time, even the auxiliary soldiers like them have to go, which is really tiring.

"Sergeant, when will you return to Nanyang?" A soldier picked up a bundle of firewood and tied it up neatly with vines. When he passed by the sergeant, he asked casually.

"You asked yesterday, you asked again today, and you will ask again tomorrow. You ask, ask, and ask. Even if you ask every day, can you ever get home with any of your questions?" the captain cursed irritably.

The sergeant left in disgrace.

Another soldier was cutting bamboo and wood by the river. Hearing this, he sighed, "I've been in Luoyang for a long time, but I haven't caught anything. It's already the end of August, and I don't know how the autumn harvest will go at home."

"The Fan family in Shunyang is considered a big family, with thousands of farmhands. They can just take a few people and collect the grain from your fields." The captain said, "But you are right about one thing. Luoyang is really uninhabited. We don't know where to rob."

"It's not that there are no people in Luoyang, they are just hiding in the city." The soldier swung his axe with all his might, then stepped down hard, kicking the bowl-thick dead wood to the ground, and said, "If we can enter the city and plunder it, I would be willing to live ten years less."

The captain laughed and said, "Are you going to shorten your life by ten years just for a little money?"

"Money is nothing." The soldier waved and called a man over, asking him to pick up the dead wood and put it back on the ox cart. Then he sat down next to the sergeant and said with a smile, "You can play with women when you go into the city to plunder. Aren't the fair and tender women of Luoyang much better than the dark and stupid women of the farmers?"

The sergeant was also somewhat tempted, but then he shook his head and sighed, "I'm afraid it will be difficult this time. Lord Chen is a ruthless man, even General Yang doesn't dare to confront him. Just be honest and hold it in."

The sergeant was silent.

Perhaps he was angry, so he turned around and looked at the soldier who was being carried firewood by him, and cursed: "You are so clumsy, are all the people in Luoyang so stupid?"

The man nodded in agreement and quickened his pace, moving the dead wood back to the ox cart.

He was enlisted by Latin near Luoyang.

The head of the family was originally a nobleman in Luoyang. Due to frequent wars, he took hundreds of his clansmen and followers and crossed the river to Jiangzhou to seek refuge with his in-laws. Before leaving, he dismissed the servants in the house, gave them a small amount of money, and let them go.

It was a pity that he had been a servant for half his life and had never farmed, so he didn't know how to make a living. When he was at a loss, he met the army from Nanyang. They looted all his severance pay and conscripted him into the army to do rough work.

He didn't really resent these Nanyang soldiers, because in the barracks, he could eat and survive, which was not much different from being a servant before.

Maybe it will be more tiring and more difficult, but in troubled times, people just have to live one day at a time.

He was forty years old, without a wife, children or money. He would die one day - and that was it.

His only wish was not to be left exposed in the wilderness after his death. He would be satisfied even if there was only a straw mat to wrap his body and bury it in the ground.

It's quite sad to think about it. I used to feel sad when I tossed and turned at night. But in this world, who is not miserable?
His comrades in the army saw that he was honest and once joked with him, saying that they would take him to taste the taste of women during the next looting.

This thought has taken root in his mind and has become his only hope in life in recent times. When can he be happy?

"Swoosh!" An arrow, with a sharp sound of breaking through the air, pierced directly into his chest.

A sharp pain came over him, as if a huge hole had been opened in his body, and all the strength in his limbs and bones rapidly flowed out.

He collapsed to the ground unconsciously, and his last thought was: I will die without ever tasting a woman.

"Swoosh! Whoosh!" Arrows flew one after another, and the soldiers who were collecting firewood suffered heavy casualties and were in chaos.

Several enemy soldiers emerged from the woods, holding horn bows and leading war horses.

Several others mounted their horses, holding sharp sabers, and rushed towards them.

Without any hesitation, the captain jumped into the river and disappeared without a trace.

The killing on the shore continued, but not for long.

Although the dozen or so soldiers who were collecting wood were logistical support troops, they were also quite fierce. They were holding knives, axes and even wooden sticks, and shouting loudly.

However, the enemy cavalry did not engage in close combat with them at all. After putting away their sabers and drawing their horse bows, they only made a circle and pinned them to the ground.

The captain had already swam to the other side, quietly disappeared into the grass, and looked towards the opposite side.

On the post road not far away, smoke and dust filled the sky, and a large group of cavalry rushed over.

One hundred, two hundred, five hundred...

It’s hard to count, probably several thousand riders passed by and headed towards Luoyang.

Hun cavalry! He already understood.

I just don't know where they came from. Looking at their high noses and deep eyes, could they be the legendary Jie people?

Who brought the Jie people here? The sergeant seemed to have heard someone say this, but he couldn't remember it for a moment.

We can’t go back to the camp. If we are surrounded by the Hun cavalry, we will have nowhere to escape.

He reached into his arms and touched half a dry biscuit that had been soaked in water and was almost mushy. He immediately made up his mind to hide outside for two days and wait and see.

******
A surging wave of cavalry swept past Yang Dan's camp and headed towards Luoyang in the shocked eyes of the Nanyang soldiers.

On the last day of August, 3,000 Jie cavalry arrived outside Ximing Gate. Since the Xiongnu cavalry besieged the city last year, some imperial guards have been stationed in this area to the west of the city. However, as the three cities of Heyang were completed, they gradually withdrew, and now there are only 300 soldiers in the Imperial Princess Terrace.

They drew their bows and arrows, nervously looked at the enemy cavalry herding their horses in the distance, and immediately sent people into the city to report.

Wang Yan, the governor of Luoyang city defense, was informed immediately.

"The Huns are stationed outside the Ximing Gate and captured and killed the family of Prince Liang Xi who were out of the city for fun." In the study, Wang Yan, who had just finished his duty, sighed and was worried.

Not only the King of Liang and his son were killed, but also the King of Liang's biological father, the King of Wuling Sima Dan.

Although the killing of princes was not uncommon, the emperor was inevitably furious when he knew about it.

"Prince Liang is a man who does not seek to contend with the world." Wang Yan's wife, Guo, also sighed, recalling the old times when she had interacted with Prince Liang's family.

When you get older, you tend to miss your old friends.

Wuling Wang's wife Guo was of the same clan as her and they had frequent contacts. Although she looked down on Wuling Wang Dan, she had a good impression of Sima Xi who was adopted by Liang Wang.

"Grandpa, will this matter implicate Mr. Chen?" asked Wang Huifeng who was making tea nearby.

The tea has boiled twice, it's almost done.

She took a spoon, scooped away the tea foam, and poured tea for her parents and sister.

Wang Yan and Guo looked at their daughter at the same time, then quickly glanced at each other.

Wang Huifeng seemed unaware. After pouring tea for his parents, he poured another bowl for his sister Wang Jingfeng.

"Thank you, sister." Wang Jingfeng took it happily and did not participate in the conversation between the other three people at all.

"Mr. Chen is the commander of the military forces of Si and Yu provinces, and also the commander of Heyang. Logically, he has the responsibility." Wang Yan said, "But who can really stop the Xiongnu from invading Luoyang over the years? The light cavalry can come and go like the wind, which is difficult."

"I'm worried that the emperor will take advantage of this issue." Wang Huifeng reminded.

"Sister, what does this have to do with you? Mr. Chen is not your husband." Wang Jingfeng asked curiously.

Faced with such a direct question, Wang Huifeng was unable to resist and turned away, not wanting to say anything more.

Wang Yan sipped his tea, thought for a while, and said, "This year, the grain transported from Jiangdong is much less, less than half of previous years. The amount of abandoned farmland around Luoyang is increasing year by year. Luoyang may suffer from famine."

When Guo heard this, she stamped her feet and said, "Yi Fu, this is still your fault!"

Wang Yan was puzzled and asked, "Why are you blaming me for this?"

"Didn't you say that after the construction of the three cities of Heyang is completed, Luoyang will be worry-free?" Guo asked.

"So what?" Wang Yan was puzzled. "Besides, I don't really understand the matter of battle formations. I just said it casually."

"What you said is a big loss!" Guo lamented, "I wanted to ask the gardeners to grow wheat instead, but when I heard that Luoyang was fine, I let them continue to grow vegetables."

Wang Yan was speechless. Like Wang Huifeng, he turned his head away, not wanting to pay attention to his old wife who was obsessed with money.

"Grandpa, recently a prince accused Lord Chen of occupying land and expelling government officials. Another foreign minister impeached Lord Chen for arbitrarily deploying soldiers, which led to the failure of the campaign to suppress Du Tao." Wang Huifeng added: "Now that the family of Lord Liang has been killed, the emperor..."

Wang Yan stood up and paced gently in the study.

The Huns should not be allowed to come to Luoyang so easily.

First of all, the millet and wheat in the wild had not been completely harvested, and the millet and wheat left in the fields became supplies for the Huns.

Secondly, many nobles’ villas and properties would be destroyed, and their servants might be abducted.

Finally, the canal transportation may be blocked again.

These three points would change the attitudes of court officials and make them dissatisfied with Lord Chen, thus giving the emperor an opportunity to divide and win over them.

In addition, Lord Chen did occupy a lot of land from the Sima clan princes, so it was normal for them to be dissatisfied, and their influence was still considerable.

As for the foreign officials who impeached Mr. Chen...

Wang Yan was a little embarrassed, because that was his cousin Chu Zhong.

After all these years, Wang Yan felt more and more that Chu Zhong and Mao Hong had become alienated from him.

This is also normal, each serving their own master and each working for their own family business. But he was still a little sad, because before this, he was wholeheartedly devoted to these cousins ​​and never treated them unfairly.

Some people from Wancheng, Xiangyang, Jiangxia and other places also submitted memorials to accuse Mr. Chen, but no one knew who instructed them to do so.

Wang Yan guessed that it was Liang Fen and Xun Song, but then he thought it was not right.

Liang Fen was a person who was forced to do something he was not prepared for.

Because of the war in Guanzhong, there were constant streams of Hu and Jin refugees entering Nanyang via the Wugu Pass Road. He was so busy gathering and settling these people that how could he have the mood to stir up trouble?
"Actually, these are all minor matters." Wang Yan suddenly turned around and said, "The Xiongnu must have more than one group of troops. The one that attacked Luoyang was only 3,000 cavalry. The Xiongnu must have another large group of cavalry heading to Henan. Yu and Yan will not be at peace."

Wang Huifeng nodded gently and said, "Mr. Chen will take care of Henan, so it's better for you to help stabilize the court. The war is at a critical juncture, and the court must not be in chaos."

Wang Yan sighed when he heard this, "How ridiculous! The nobles and the rich are so short-sighted that they can only see what is in front of them. They are not as far-sighted as my daughter."

(End of this chapter)