Chapter 946 The Painful March

Chapter 946 The Painful March

Chapter 946 The Painful March

If Jiangnan was like an undercurrent, then Guanxi was like wildfires everywhere. But the fires were not big and were quickly put out.

By mid-October, after Jiuquan King Shi Wu surrendered, most of Qinzhou had been pacified.

However, after learning that his troops would be relocated to Xingyang, Shi Wu hesitated.

On October 20th, he ordered the release of Shi Le and his gang and raised the banner of rebellion again.

Jin Zhengsui led a large army to besiege the city. In addition to the Silver Spear Right Camp, the Left Flying Dragon Guard, and a camp of the Yellow Head Army, there were also Lu Zezhen's light cavalry, Youzhou's cavalry commander, Hedong's miscellaneous Hu cavalry, and the Xiongnu Jin Kang's troops. They were defeated in a field battle.

Shi Le, Shi Wu and others led the remaining troops to flee westward, and Jin Zheng sent cavalry to pursue them.

The leaders of the Qiuchi Di people, Yang Nandi and Yang Jiantou, surrendered and rebelled repeatedly and were defeated by the Xiongnu several years ago. But that year there happened to be a great epidemic and the Xiongnu did not want to fight anymore, so they accepted their surrender and named Yang Nandi the King of Wudu. At the same time, they divided and disintegrated the Qiuchi Di forces and won over some tribal chieftains who truly surrendered.

Later, Chen An rebelled again, was defeated and killed. Yang Nandi and his brothers were worried about being killed because they were colluding with Chen An, so they led a group of people to flee south and surrendered to Cheng Han, and were settled in Jinshou (now south of Guangyuan, Sichuan).

However, the Xiongnu had no ruling foundation in Wudu, Yinping, Longxi and other places, and it was impossible for them to station a large army there for a long time.

After the main force withdrew, the remaining troops stayed for a while and finally left. Before leaving, they also relocated some tribes that they thought were unreliable.

As the pressure on Liu Han in the east grew and he became increasingly unable to control Qinzhou, the brothers Yang Nandi and Yang Jiantou felt that their opportunity had come, so they headed north to Hanzhong and then to Wudu. Wherever they went, they received a hundred responses and thus they defended the city.

A large number of Di, Qiang and Miscellaneous Hu people in Yinping and other places also responded and submitted to the brothers Yang Nandi.

To this day, Yang Nandi is in charge of Wudu and Yang Jian is in charge of Yinping. The two of them have also fought off the furious pursuing troops of Li Xiong of Cheng Han.

The situation was so good that the two brothers became arrogant again and even wanted to negotiate terms with Shao Xun.

When Shao Xun received the news, he just sneered.

He knew that he could not directly rule the two counties of Wudu and Yinping, but he was just unhappy with Yang Nandi and had to kill his prestige.

Therefore, he told Jin Ming, who was still waiting for the recovery of Qinzhou before heading west, not to wait any longer and immediately led 20,000 troops to join the Qinzhou battlefield.

At the same time, Nangan prefect Yao Yi Zhong first went to Longxi, wiped out the few local Di and Qiang who responded to the brothers Yang Nandi, and then outflanked Yinping.

After issuing these orders, he did not intend to delay any longer and left Chang'an on October 25th, returning to Luoyang via Tongguan.

That’s right, it’s Luoyang.

Shao Xun has decided to spend the New Year in Luoyang this year. The reason is very simple: it makes it more convenient to get things done.

Therefore, the relocation in Pingyang began in mid-October.

Officials, soldiers and their families went to Luoyang in batches.

******
Pu Hong's troops also set out in mid-October. They also needed to go to Luoyang first, but their final destination was Ji County.

Along the way, with the sound of rumbling carts and neighing horses, the people, carrying the elderly and children, moved forward hesitantly and finally arrived at Zheng County, the easternmost part of Jingzhao County, on October 24th.

While resting in a dilapidated city, the county sent a batch of hay, bran, and beans.

The number is definitely not enough. Pu Hong sighed as he looked at the cattle, sheep and horses that had lost a lot of weight.

The Di people were half pastoral and half farming, and livestock were a very important part of their lives. After a long journey, the losses would certainly be severe, but the imperial court would not provide them with livestock replenishment, only some silk.

What's the use?

But there was nothing he could do, the truth was this. If he was not satisfied, he should not have agreed to go on the journey, but should have rushed back to his hometown in Lueyang and seized the city to rebel.

To be honest, Pu Hong felt a little regretful when he heard the news of Yang Nandi's rebellion. But he had been on the road for several days, and there were thousands of people from Shao Shen's Zuo Xiaoqiwei who were also returning east to monitor him.

They were all veterans, while he himself had his families with him, young and strong men mixed with women and children. There was no chance of winning, so he could only suppress all the emotions in his heart and head east.

At least he was appointed as General Weiyuan (fourth rank) by King Liang, and the Pu family of Lueyang also changed their registered permanent residence to Ji County, with the surname Yi of the barbarians. He should just endure this benefit for now.

The city where they rested was the ancient city of Shenyang in the Han Dynasty. More than 40 miles to the east was Huayin County of Hongnong County. Forty miles east of Huayin County was Tongguan - Tongguan was less than 300 miles away from Chang'an.

When dinner was ready, the sound of horse hooves could be heard in the distance.

The old, weak, women and children cried out in surprise, and the strong men immediately gathered together. The tribal commanders and clan leaders distributed weapons with sweat on their foreheads. Those who received the weapons began to form a battle array, and the cavalry brought their horses and looked at the tent where Pu Hong was from a distance, waiting for the next order.

Lueyang is not a good place. If you are not alert, you will be killed by others. They have practiced this kind of scene many times in actual combat.

Fortunately, the sound of horse hooves gradually stopped. A moment later, dozens of riders crossed the river from a wooden bridge and arrived at the south bank of the Wei River.

After Pu Hong received the report, he immediately went to greet him.

"Why are the leaders of Xuchu here?" Pu Hong, who had already put on his armor, withdrew his gaze from the more than a thousand cavalrymen on the north bank of the Wei River, and asked with a smile.

Xu Chuquanqu hesitated for a moment, then bowed and said, "Greetings, General Weiyuan."

Pu Hong was secretly pleased and said, "No need to be polite."

I don't know what happened, but Xu Ci only got the post of Dali magistrate and Fengyi commandery commander. The prefect was You Ziyuan of Jincheng You family, and he must have been very angry.

"King Liang has given the order, so I have to do it." Xuchu Quanqu said with a gloomy face, "Before leaving, I joined forces with Diaoyin Governor Lu Zhuqian, Shangjun Governor Shan Zhi, and Fenyin Xue to attack and kill Penjuchu. We captured more than 20,000 people and escorted them eastward by my army."

"It's really hard to work in this freezing cold weather. Why don't you come to my tent and have a glass of freshly warmed wine?" Pu Hong invited.

"No." Xuchu Quanqu was in a bad mood and refused directly, saying only: "I also saw this camp several miles away from the other side of the river. I was a little surprised, so I came to take a look."

Pu Hong did not force it, and asked again: "I heard that there is a four-horned king Bo Quda in Fengyi, how is he?"

"Just like your family, forced relocation." Xuchu Quanqu said.

"Where are we going?" Pu Hong asked.

"It was probably Ruyin or Runan. I heard that there were wars every other day and the countryside was in great decline, so I moved there." Xuchu Quanqu said, "Bo Quda was unwilling to leave, so he went to Chang'an in person. I heard that he was crying loudly, but King Liang refused to allow him to leave."

Pu Hong felt a little depressed after hearing this.

Bo Juda called himself "Four-horned King" and was very famous among the Qiang people in Fengyi and Shangjun. He was cruel and had outstanding martial arts skills. However, such a powerful man cried like a woman.

But King Liang didn't take him seriously at all, so crying to death was useless.

From this perspective, King Liang was more brutal than Bo Juda.

If you meet such a vicious person, you can only wish you good luck.

"After the Northern Qiang King and the Four-horned King are gone, Fengyi and Shangjun - uh, it should be called Diaoyin County now, there should be a lot of vacant land, right?" Pu Hong glanced at Xuchu Quanqu's face when he said this.

As expected, Xuchu Quanqu could not hide his true feelings and said angrily, "The Four-horned King's land was given to me, but I also gave up a piece of land." "Where?"

"You will know after Chaoyi, Shenyang, and Hanyuan Longxiang Prefectures are established." Xuchu Quanqu sighed and said, "It's really a cunning robbery."

Pu Hong was shocked when he heard this.

He has some knowledge of the geography of Guanzhong.

Let’s not talk about Shenyang, which is where they are now. It belongs to Zheng County, Jingzhao County, not far from Hongnong and Fengyi counties.

Chaoyi is an ancient city located in the east of Dali County, Fengyi Prefecture, not far from the Yellow River.

Hanyuan is also an ancient place name, located in the north of Xiayang County, Fengyi County (now Hancheng).

The three Longxiang Prefectures were composed of 3,600 soldiers, who were lined up along the ferry crossings on the west bank of the Yellow River and Tongguan.

If they are there, you can protect the ferry crossing. If there is unrest in Guanzhong in the future, and the expeditionary army surges in, you will no longer be able to rely on the Yellow River and Tongguan to cede land to defend yourself.

The most important thing is that it cut off the Pu family’s future route back to Guanzhong.

If they could not return to Guanzhong, could they succeed in the rebellion with only the tens of thousands of Di people they had taken to Ji County? Obviously not.

A dragon can only exert its power when it enters the sea. Guanzhong, where there are many Di and Qiang people, is their "sea". If they go to Jijun, they will be like a dragon trapped in a shallow shoal, unable to grow.

It is said that King Liang has a kind face but a black heart. I didn’t believe it before, but now I do.

Pu Hong sighed and didn't want to say anything more.

******
On the fifth day of November, tens of thousands of Puhong's troops arrived in Hu County, Hongnong Commandery, and set up camp in the wild near Longxiang Prefecture in Yanxiang.

On this day, they were caught up by the army returning eastward from Chang'an.

A huge group of people and horses passed by here, heading eastward, without stopping all night long.

The hills on both sides of the post road were filled with soldiers from the Right Imperial Guard.

Pu Hong was also standing on a plateau and could even see the King of Liang's banner from afar.

Evil thoughts arose in my mind, and I even had the urge to attack at night.

But a closer look at the terrain makes it seem almost impossible.

This place is very similar to Diaoyin and Shangjun, with many hills and plateaus and complex terrain.

The less than 50,000 soldiers and civilians under his command were divided into three groups and blocked in several valleys. The valley entrances were guarded by the Right Yulin Guard and the Left Xiaoqi Guard, and there were also Jie cavalry patrolling outside the valleys, leaving him no chance.

On the morning of the sixth day, after burying some of the people who died suddenly amid crying, Pu Hong's troops continued their journey eastward.

Along the way, not only did the livestock lose weight and die, but humans did too, with people dying every day.

This was a difficult march and also a journey of elimination. The strong and healthy could not hold on, but the old, weak, women and children might not. I really don't know how many people will be left when we reach Fangtou?
Before leaving Longxiang Prefecture in Yanxiang, Pu Hong took a special look at this military prefecture.

The overall living situation is relatively scattered, covering a vast area, with hillside forests and grasses interspersed among the fields, and residential houses dotted among them.

Early in the morning, children drove cattle and sheep out to graze.

The older boys went out to collect firewood.

The old man and his men clean the ditches day after day so that this irrigation network can benefit as many farmlands as possible.

The soldiers were dressed in neat uniforms and seemed to have slept on the plateau last night. They were holding bows and swords, staring at them intently.

Pu Hong spat and didn't want to look at it any more.

Back then, he had also gone out of Tongguan to rescue Wang Mi. At that time, there were not so many government soldiers in the countryside of Hongnong County.

Shao Xun armed the entire county.

With such a winding terrain and such a narrow post road, the government soldiers only need to occupy the hills on both sides of the road first, and they can annihilate all the soldiers and horses in the post road at the bottom of the valley.

Kansai is really getting further and further away from them.

After leaving Yanxiang, we passed Hu County, Yujian Longxiang Prefecture, Chousangyuan, and Hongnong County, and arrived in Shan County ten days later.

While stationed along the way, Pu Hong even met several former colonels in Wang Mi's army.

After they surrendered, they still lived in the county, but they all became farmers. Some of them even went west as laborers to transport food and military supplies.

Many people died during the battle between Liu Can and Hou Feihu, making the countryside even more desolate.

The old thief Mi Bing actually gave up and didn't want to struggle anymore, which made Pu Hong feel cold in his heart.

It's strange to say, when I first left Guanzhong, I was full of resentment, and the idea of ​​rebellion came to my mind from time to time, but after walking along the way, I saw a lot of things, talked with many people, and the desire to rebel became less and less.

Shao Zei is really a magical person.

He puts everything on display for you to see, and you decide for yourself what to choose.

He doesn't care whether he rebels or is submissive.

Just like even if a vicious man like Four-horned King Bo Juda knelt down and cried, he couldn't change his mind, could the rebellion of the Pu Di people really scare him?

No, at least all the Hu people in Guanzhong would have to rebel together before he would feel in trouble.

It is easy to suppress just these two families.

On November 27, Pu Hong's troops arrived in Xin'an County.

Five days later, the unit arrived at the western suburbs of Luoyang and camped outside Jingu Garden.

At this time, Pu Hong was also a little surprised.

It seems like a lot of people have come, not only the chieftains of the Western Hu people, but even the Tuoba Xianbei have sent thousands of cavalry south.

I heard that tens of thousands of people including the Silver Spear Left Camp, the Left and Right Jinwu Guards, and the Xuchang Hereditary Soldiers had arrived from the east of Luoyang City.

After secretly taking a look, he put away his last bit of rebelliousness.

He should just be a good and loyal minister of the new dynasty. Anyway, he has already persuaded the emperor to ascend the throne together with Yao Yi Zhong and others.

(End of this chapter)