Number of People

Chapter 2158 The Gui Zi Juan emphasizes the guest over the host and turns against the guest.

"There is no need to overestimate those rebels. I think as long as they maintain high mobility, they can play a big role." A look of perseverance appeared on Man Gui's face. "We have no way to escape now, so we can only hold on. I count on what you say." The Tongguan guards can arrive, but if we want to hold on for seven or eight days, if we don't take some measures to attack the rebels who threaten Si Yancheng, weaken them, and prevent them from organizing an attack for a while, it will be difficult for us. Stay until then."

Duan Xipeng glanced at Man Gui. He didn't expect that this man really had unyielding confidence and fighting spirit. Did he really think he could hold out for seven or eight days?

But this is a good thing anyway. After thinking about it, Duan Xipeng said again: "Anyi City is only a few miles away from Siyan City. According to what you said, there are only more than a thousand strong people. It is definitely impossible to hold it. It is better to persuade them to give up and concentrate on Wouldn't it be better to hold on in Si Yancheng?"

Man Gui hesitated and said: "I'm afraid it's difficult. Everyone has their own responsibilities, and how can the Anyi County magistrate listen to me?"

Duan Xipeng thought for a moment and said, "How about this? You send someone to Anyi and inform the magistrate of Anyi. If you feel that Anyi City cannot be defended, ask him to quickly bring people to Si Yancheng. We will work together to defend the city. This salt class money Needless to say, he should understand the importance of Hecang Salt. In addition, you can also go to the county to show off, mainly for those big households. As long as one family can provide thirty or fifty soldiers for our use, We, Si Yancheng, will accept these gentry, gather our strength, and fight together..."

Man Gui glanced at the other party in surprise. This guy had an idea in the blink of an eye, but this made him a little tempted. One more person would give him more strength, and maybe he would be able to delay the arrival of the so-called Tongguan Guards. Opportunity, now it can only be used as a living doctor.

"Okay, I'll arrange for someone to give it a try." Mangui gritted his teeth and said, "I'm afraid that as soon as this news spreads in the city, Anyi City's defenses will collapse."

"Then it is not our responsibility. Who can say that we spread this news? Maybe the rebels deliberately spread it to disturb the morale of the army so that they could capture Anyi City?" Duan Xipeng shrugged.

Man Gui could only admit that he was not as shameless as this guy, but he also had to admit that this was the only way to protect himself.

Just as Man Gui and Duan Xipeng and others were thinking hard about how to hold Si Yancheng for as long as possible for a few days, Zhao Qianshan and Wang Wenyan over there had led more than 2,000 Tongguan Guards to cross Fenglingdu.

Fenglingdu is one of the three major crossings of the Yellow River and the choke point of the three provinces. Therefore, the crossing is very large and there are many ferries. Although there were more than 2,000 soldiers, they all crossed into Shanxi in just one day.

From this point of view, the rebel army has not yet penetrated into this area, which makes Zhao Qianshan and Wang Wenyan feel at ease. If the rebel army has really advanced to the bank of the Yellow River, once Pujin Ferry, Fengling Ferry and even the whole country are blocked, Yudu, it would be really difficult to cross the river.

Watching the army crossing Fenglingdu, the merchants on both sides of Fenglingdu felt a little relieved and started talking at the edge of the ferry.

Although the purpose of this army's crossing north was not clear, the news of the chaos in Hedong could not be concealed from these well-informed merchants.

There is a key to Tongguan in Shaanxi. Although the eastern part of Xi'an Prefecture was also in chaos and never spread to Henan, the Shaanxi rebel army crossed the river from Longmendu and Fenyindu and captured most of Pingyang Prefecture in one fell swoop. Many of these merchants who crossed the river realized that the situation was wrong, so they began to flee south from the prefectures and counties of Pingyang Prefecture, either crossing the river from Pujin, or going south from Fenglingdu.

After crossing the river, the army rushed straight to Puzhou.

What Wang Wenyan and Zhao Qianshan are most worried about is the fall of Puzhou. It can be said that Pingyang Prefecture is over, and Shanshan and Shaanxi can be easily connected into one, and even affect the entire Henan Province, the three prefectures north of the Yellow River, and the Central Plains. There's going to be trouble.

 Judging from the current situation, Puzhou seems to be still under the control of the government, which means that Pujin Ferry is also still under the control of the government. This is the best news.

Fenglingdu arrived at the 70th mile of Puzhou. The army was heading north. Along the way, many business travelers and refugees heading south could already be seen, which made Wang Wenyan feel more and more nervous.

 Shanxi also began to be in chaos.

In the past, Shanxi was like a window paper with a layer of paper on the surface. Before it was pierced, everyone could barely live. After all, the situation in Shanxi was slightly better than that in Shaanxi, and the power of the government was still high. Even if there were some hungry and disaster victims causing trouble, they could suppress it without causing too much trouble. But when the Shaanxi rebels suddenly crossed the Yellow River and came in, everything changed.

With the fall of Hejin and Ronghe counties, the majesty of the Shanxi government was completely exposed. In addition, the long-simmering famine of the victims completely broke out, and they were quickly entangled with the Shaanxi rebels. Together, they formed a powerful torrent, sweeping towards the east and south. Jishan, Wanquan, Jiangzhou, Linjin, and Yishi fell one after another under this background.

Shanxi Town's army was slow to move south, and after experiencing the great defeat after the First World War in Shandong, Shanxi Town's energy and energy seemed to have been suddenly wiped out, and it was still unable to recover to its original situation.

Although Chai Guozhu has been doing his best to recover after being transferred to Shanxi Town's commander-in-chief, it has to be said that Su Shengdu's failure has shaken the morale of the entire Shanxi Town's military. In addition, the Shanxi Dusi's guard training is also unsatisfactory. After being admitted to Shanxi Town, There was something obviously out of rhythm, which was also reflected in the constant delays and obstructions on the way south.

The faltering march of the army from Shanxi Town to the south directly caused the morale of the local guards stationed in Zapingyang Prefecture to be low, and they did not dare to take the initiative to send troops to quell the Shaanxi rebels who appeared in several counties in the west. This also made the unrest in the west intensify.

The fall of Jiangzhou is the most obvious result. If the Linfen city guard battalion can decisively attack for reinforcements, the rebel army may not be able to break through Jiangzhou, which has a high city wall and thick walls. Without foreign aid, the Jiangzhou guard battalion Still persisted for half a month before falling.

The closer you get to Puzhou, the more people and business travelers are running around on the roads and fields. Not everyone is willing to join the rebel army, but if they have a little hope, they will not let themselves become rebels. Bandits, so they would rather become refugees than easily become rebels.

However, when you become a refugee and can't find anything to eat, becoming a rioter and looting is the only way to survive.

 Before that, they will still go through a difficult period of suffering.

Zhao Qianshan and Wang Wenyan both understood the truth behind this. The refugees and disaster victims who were fleeing in front of them still had a glimmer of hope for the government. They were running around, hoping to find a place where they could stay and feed themselves, as long as the local porridge sheds could provide them with food. They are not willing to join the rebel army for a bowl of survival gruel, but this hope will gradually turn into extravagant hope and then be shattered.

Watching Wang Wenyan sigh and remain silent, Zhao Qianshan felt funny in his heart, but he still had some respect for the governor's staff.

People who can at least have some compassion for the common people are worthy of respect. Even if his compassion has long been worn away by so many years in the officialdom and the military, this does not mean that he does not recognize it in his heart. This also seems to indicate that the governor seems to have some kindness towards these ants-like people.

Night fell, but the army still did not dare to stop and rest. The earlier you arrived at this time, the more hope you had. As long as you control Puzhou before its fall, you can have a foothold in southwest Shanxi. , to avoid the complete fall of the entire southwestern Shanxi.

The scouts sent to Puzhou brought back good news. Puzhou is still in the hands of the guards, but the situation is indeed in danger. The rebels have begun to besiege Jiezhou and Anyi, and have also appeared around Wenxi and Xia counties. The situation of the rebel army in Puzhou was slightly better, but there were also scouts of the rebel army appearing.

It was already nine o'clock when the army arrived at Puzhou City. The soldiers who had been walking for a day and night were already exhausted. Fortunately, they finally arrived at Puzhou.

When Wang Wenyan saw the guards at Puzhou, he was not polite and asked for enough hot water, porridge and steamed cakes to be provided immediately.

The guard surnamed Zhu was pleasantly surprised when the Tongguan guards came across the river to help. It was not until he heard that Wang Wenyan came to contact him on behalf of the right minister of the Ministry of War, Feng Keng, the governor of Shaanxi Province, that his attitude changed again and became particularly respectful and kind. Be flattering.

  After a series of orders, his subordinates hurriedly prepared hot water porridge, soup, and steamed cakes. At the same time, he also invited Wang Wenyan and Zhao Qianshan to rest in his specially prepared mansion.

“Okay, Mr. Zhu, I’m afraid we don’t have much time to rest. Theoretically, Puzhou Institute should be responsible for the security and defense of the entire south of Pingyang, right?”

Wang Wenyan knew that this guy in front of him was a slippery character who could act according to the circumstances. If he didn't surrender this guy, there would be a lot of trouble in the future, especially since the Tongguan Guards' army was a guest army with only more than 2,000 people. Under the circumstances, the strength is obviously insufficient, and he must be firmly grasped to complete the task assigned by the governor.

Zhu's face changed slightly, but this is a fact and cannot be denied: "What does Mr. Wang mean by this?"

"Puzhou, Linjin, Jiezhou, Yishi, Ronghe, Wanquan, Ruicheng, Anyi, Xiaxian, Hejin, Wenxi, Yuanqu, if I remember correctly, these twelve states in the south of Pingyang The county is the defense area of ​​​​Puzhou. Apart from these twelve counties, it is the defense area of ​​Pingyang Guard. However, now Linjin, Yishi, Hejin, Ronghe, and Wanquan have fallen. If nothing unexpected happens, Wen Xi , Anyi, and Xia County will also be lost, which means that eight of the twelve counties in the southern part of Pingyang Prefecture will fall into the hands of the rebels..."

 Just one word made Guard Zhu sweat so much that he looked pale.

 (End of this chapter)