The Most Romantic of the Three Kingdoms

After being appointed as a soldier Cao rafter, Xun Zhen dispatched people out of the city, cut down the trees near the city, dug out the frozen moat, and prepared to defend the city; while going down to the military camp, it took a few days to get familiar with the situation of the county soldiers. The Art of War says: "Know yourself and know your enemy." A big battle is about to take place. Soldiers can be ignorant of generals, but generals can't be ignorant of soldiers.

There are more than 3,000 soldiers in this county. Because they are located in the interior of the plain, they are not facing the northern border or the sea, and there is no large river in the county. Therefore, there are no cavalry or building boats.

Generally speaking, "material officials" are divided into three categories. One is the "armored soldier", that is, the heavy infantry. The soldiers are mostly strong and brave, with complete armor and heavy sharp weapons such as halberds, daggers, and spears. The first category is light infantry, without armor, using spears, swords, shields and other light weapons with short handles. One type is the "Jianzhangshi", that is, the bow and crossbow soldiers, who use bows and crossbows.

Among the more than 3,000 soldiers in Yingchuan County, the most are light infantry, accounting for more than half of them, 1,780 people. The bowmen were next, about seven or eight hundred. There were at least four or five hundred soldiers.

Armored soldiers and light infantry were mixed together, and more than 2,000 people were compiled into a "department". According to convention, the bowmen were compiled independently and compiled into two "songs".

Xun Zhen personally went down to each department and song, one by one, to check the number of soldiers and equipment, and at the same time, carefully inquired about the training situation on weekdays.

After verification, the number is quite good. The soldiers of various ministries and Qujun added together, a total of more than 3,100 people, but not every one of these more than 3,110 people can go into battle to kill the enemy. Xun Zhen found a lot of white-haired old soldiers in each song and team. When asked about their age, the old ones were in their sixties, and the younger ones were in their fifties. , how do you go into battle to kill the enemy?

In the Han generation, especially since the current dynasty, "recruitment" is divided into two categories: one is temporary recruitment and is disbanded after the war; the other is professional soldiers who have been in service for a long time. The Yuefu poem sings: "When you join the army at 15, you will be able to return at 80." This is the latter type of recruitment, and the 50 or 60 veterans in Yingchuan County belong to the latter.

However, there are differences between the two. The Yuefu poem sings a story of an old soldier who went on an expedition with the army, couldn't help himself, and wanted to go home but couldn't return. However, these veterans in Yingchuan County stayed in the army because their families were poor and to eat. Those who “recruit” to pay money are called “hiring value”. It is not easy to make a living. Rather than being hungry and full, it is better to stay in the army and have food and clothing.

There are such veterans in every song. According to statistics, there are more than 100 people. At this juncture, it is not appropriate to dismiss him. In case of injustice among them, it will not be beautiful. Xun Zhen simply organized them into a colony to be responsible for logistical supplies.

Yingchuan is close to the capital, with convenient transportation, good economy, and a large population. It is a rich county. The soldiers of the county are well equipped, so the training situation is not optimistic.

Since Emperor Guangwu dismissed the "Du Shi" of the county and state, most of the soldiers of the county and state in the mainland have been slack in training. The so-called "all trials" are annual military exercises. This is naturally conducive to the court's control of the area in normal times, but in times of chaos, it will show disadvantages. After understanding, Xun Zhen found that the training intensity and density of the soldiers in this county were not even as good as those of the more than 100 li people trained in Fanyangting. The more than 100 li people exercise every three days, and these county soldiers only train once every ten days and a half.

…

After settling down the old soldiers and investigating the situation, Xun Zhen called together the officers above the colony chief and held a small meeting.

There are two purposes for the meeting, one is to get acquainted with the officers, and the other is that the war is approaching.

Among the officers, only a few knew that Taipingdao was going to rebel, and most of them only heard some rumors.

Xun Zhen was secretly worried, the general is the courage of an army, and now even these officers are "disturbed", can they still expect the soldiers under them to fight bravely?

However, after thinking about it and thinking about the chaotic performance of Bo Cai and Po Lian's guests and Taoists during the previous "Xue Ye attack on the village", he thought: "Although the county soldiers have little training, they have never experienced any wars. , However, whether they are 'jun soldiers', whether they are military literacy or armored weapons, they are much stronger than the believers of Taiping Dao. As long as I arrange them properly and find a way to mobilize their morale, it may not be enough to take the initiative to leave the city. Destroy the enemy, but if you only defend the city, you should still be able to."

After the meeting, he told Xun You and Xi Zhicai of his thoughts.

During the few days that he went to the military camp, Xun You and Xi Zhicai followed him all the time.

Xun You thought a little further, and said, "The worry now is not only for the soldiers of the county, but also for the common people. The night before, Zhong Gong Cao and Du Cao Rong led the officials to cleanse and kill the demon thieves and gangsters in the city, and the people in the city were panicked. Since the rejuvenation of the county, our county has been under peace for more than a hundred years. The people have been ignorant of military affairs for a long time. , Yang Zhai is in danger."

"Gongda's words are very true, can there be a clever way to deal with it?"

"It's fine if there is chaos. If there is chaos, you can ask the prefect to come forward and tell the people in the city, saying: I was ordered to defend the city, and reinforcements from Luoyang will come soon."

It is conceivable to imagine that the city is besieged, and everyone outside the city is surrounded by enemies, cut off from the outside world, and I don’t know what the situation is outside. But if at this time, the chief officer tells you: Don't worry, I am instructed to defend the city, and the reinforcements from the capital will arrive soon. "Outside there is a teacher who will save you", and the people's heart will be assured.

Xun Zhen was overjoyed and said, "Gongda has a good plan." Immediately, Xun You and Xi Zhicai rushed to the prefect's residence to offer a plan.

Arriving at the county mansion, entering the front yard, before entering the main hall, I heard someone shouting angrily: "The ruler of the mansion is the minister of dissecting the talisman, the emperor entrusts him with one county, and millions of county people look forward to him. How can there be such a reason for the wind to escape? Besides, Luoyang is less than two hundred miles away from our county, and it is close to the armpit. Can't go! Besides, the demon thieves haven't started a rebellion yet? Fei Cheng, you forced the ruler to abandon the city and leave, but do you want to trap the ruler in disloyalty and injustice, and make the ruler be scorned and reviled by the world?"

Xun Zhen looked up at the door of the hall, and it was Zhong Yao who was talking.

Zhong Yao knelt down on the couch, stepped forward, pressed one hand on the table, clenched the other into a fist, placed it in front of his chest, and glared at the opposite. Judging from his appearance, it seemed as if he was about to step forward to fight if he disagreed.

Sitting across from him is the county minister Fei Chang.

Fei Chang probably knew that he was right, his eyes flashed, his face flushed, he didn't dare to face Zhong Yao's anger, but he refused to shut up and muttered: "Xun Zhen failed to take down Bo Cai, so he told him to run away. , the search has yet to find any trace of him, and I don't know where he hid. Gong Cao rafter is always in the county government, and he doesn't know about the countryside. There are many fools and fools in the countryside who believe in demons. Congregation, how can I resist with only my three thousand soldiers?" As he spoke, he glanced at Prefect Wen's expression.

Prefect Wen is already old, and he can't sleep well these days. In the past, he always held his chest up in the hall. Although he was thin and short, he seemed very hardworking. Today, he is sluggish, his face is black, and his eyes are bloodshot. . He coughed, glanced at Zhong Yao, and then at Fei Chang, just as he was about to speak, he heard someone at the entrance of the hall shouting sharply: "Crash is about to happen, I don't want to protect the county, but I want to abandon the city and flee. Please behead the county chief of Mingfu!"

Everyone turned to the hall to see that it was Guo Tu.

These days, the officials in the county have their respective positions.

Xun Zhen was familiar with the situation of the soldiers in the county, and prepared for battle. Zhong Yao recruited Wu Yong to enrich the city defense. Du You supervises the counties to search for Bo Cai. Guo Tu and Cang Cao and Hu Cao counted the grain storage in the county government. He had just counted the amount of grain in storage and came back to report. He happened to encounter Zhong Yao angrily scolding Fei Chang. After all, Xun Zhen and the others, who had come a moment earlier, took off their shoes outside the threshold and stepped inside.

Xun Zhen, Xun You and Xi Zhicai looked at each other and followed him into the hall one after another.

The relationship between Fei Chang and Guo Tu was pretty good, but he didn't expect him to turn his face and not recognize the person, and the exit was "please the Mingfu to kill the county chief". He was ashamed and angry, and said: "Bo Cai is together, there will be many followers, and now I There are only 3,000 county soldiers in the city, and I don’t know if the capital will rush to help my county, Yang Zhai may not be able to complete it.

Guo Tu said loudly: "The Yangzhai Valley is deep and high, and the city walls are strong. Although there are only three thousand soldiers in the county, there are many large households in the city. Together with their guests, disciples, and slaves, there can be thousands of people. In addition, the people in the city are There are tens of thousands of young men and women who can help prevent and kill thieves. There are strong cities and walls outside, and there are 20,000 soldiers and civilians who can fight. The soldiers have more than enough food. .What is there to worry about?"

Guo Tu was from Yangzhai, and his clan and family were all in Yangzhai. Therefore, UU reading www. uukanshu.com He was firmly opposed to Fei Chang, and he would not abandon the city even if he died.

Although Prefect Wen was stubborn, and although he was frightened after knowing that Taiping Dao was about to rebel, after all, unlike Fei Chang, he was a scholar after all. It is impossible to escape without a fight.

He said in a hoarse voice, "Gongze is right. Although there are not many soldiers in my city, the parents of Zhang, Huang, Chunyu, Xin, and Zhao, as well as the parents of Gongze's family, I They are willing to organize clansmen, guests, disciples, and slaves to assist in defending the city. Gong Cao Rong recruited brave men in the city in the past two days, and also attracted many warriors. Not to mention that the demon thieves have not yet caused chaos, they have just started Now, with the current strength and manpower, the city can still be defended, so Fei Cheng has more to worry about.”

He paused and asked Guo Tu, "Gongze, you said 'there is more than enough food for the soldiers', how much food is there in the city?"

"Enough for 10,000 people to eat for half a year."

This is good news. Prefect Wen's frown slightly loosened, and he called Guo Tu, Xun Zhen and the others into their seats, and asked Xun Zhen, "How are the army soldiers?"

Xun Zhen gave a brief report, and finally said: "Bo Cai has not yet been seen, and the chaos may be soon. The city is afraid that the chaos will be violent. In order to reassure the people, Gongda has a plan to dedicate to the Ming Palace."

"Oh? What?"

Xun Zhen motioned to Xun You and said. Xun You said: "Please tell the Ming government to declare the city at that time, which means that the government is instructed to guard the city, and that reinforcements from Luoyang will arrive soon."

"Good, good. That's how it should be."

From Prefect Wen's point of view, Xun You's plan was a good one, but it was far from a top priority, after all, the chaos had not yet started. However, he never imagined that Xun You's strategy would be used after only one night.

On the third day after Xue Ye attacked the village, Bo Cai besieged the city.

Looking around the city, there is no limit, all Taiping Taoists with yellow turbans on their foreheads.