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Chapter 1147: Guarding against friendly troops is better than guarding against thieves

In the area of ​​​​Shuipoji opposite Zhuxian Town, on the defense line of the Ming Dynasty official army camp, only the Zuoying troops of the thief general Zuo Liangyu were responsible for sixty-seven-tenths of the entire defense line, and they faced the thief army Zhu Xian. The main force of the town camp.

Under this situation, the officers and soldiers of Zuo Liangyu's department were under the greatest pressure. Supervisor Ding Qirui and Baodu Yang Wenyue had almost turned Zuo Liangyu's army into a "Great Wall".

However, this also triggered another strange phenomenon, that is, due to Zuo Liangyu's important position, there was a situation in the army where "the general is superior to the commander and the commander is inferior".

As a result, Zuo Liangyu became even more contemptuous and disrespectful of Ding Qirui and Yang Wenyue!

…………

Taking into account that the current situation was becoming increasingly serious, Supervisor Ding Qirui, after inspecting the rebel army's northwest defense line of Shuipoji, immediately invited Zuo Liangyu to Yang Wenyue's old camp outside the west gate of Shuipoji to discuss military matters overnight.

Yang Wenyue chatted with Ding Qirui and Zuo Liangyu for a while, and soon after receiving the letter, Ding Qirui's staff and a few officials came galloping over.

Seeing that all the officers and generals had almost arrived, Superintendent Ding Qirui briefly introduced the current changes in the situation to everyone, and at the same time asked everyone to propose strategies to save the crisis.

All the generals and staff participating in the discussion, you look at me, I look at you, you do not dare to express your attitude without permission, they are all waiting silently for the Governor Ding Qirui, the Protector Yang Wenyue, and the general Zuo Liangyu. Wait for the three to speak first.

Yang Wenyue, the governor of Baoding, escaped because of the burning of his shop, which resulted in the death of Fu Zonglong, the governor of Shaanxi Province. At this moment, he felt regretful and ashamed. Although he had been severely punished by the court and made him take credit for his crime, he was still worried about being taken to the capital and imprisoned. .

Therefore, in this battle to rescue Kaifeng, he had to verbally advocate an attack. And at dusk today, he discovered a very suspicious and terrifying new situation.

Now, he just wanted to take this opportunity to test the tone of the traitor general Zuo Liangyu, so he first broke the silence in the big tent and said: "The traitor army is currently strong and they have seized Zhuxian Town. They have gained the advantage of the location." Therefore, the Jialu River is cut off now, putting our nearly 200,000 troops in a difficult situation. Now it seems that there are three strategies in front of our army, and we must choose one of them now.

The first is to immediately engage in a decisive battle with the rebels, without any hesitation. Taking advantage of the fact that the morale of our army has not yet completely declined, we launch a fierce attack on the rebels. The officers and soldiers of each battalion go all out. At the same time, we must also agree that the Kaifeng garrison will coordinate with me and attack the rebels from both sides. , Shu can almost turn the situation around.

If we can use this to retake Zhuxian Town, it will not be difficult to get in touch with the Kaifeng defenders. This will be a victory in the first battle. When our army continues its efforts, it will not be difficult to save the Kaifeng army and may even defeat the rebel army. .

Therefore, I advocate a decisive battle with the thief... I wonder if you... think so? "

In fact, Yang Wenyue was extremely timid in his heart and did not want everyone to agree with his proposal for a decisive battle. However, his voice and expression were very determined, which made everyone present unable to guess his true meaning for a while. Everyone in the big tent looked at him with confused eyes, wondering why he would so resolutely advocate a decisive battle with the thief?

Only Zuo Liangyu, the thief general, glanced at him disdainfully from the corner of his eye, with a faint smile of disdain on his lips.

After Yang Wenyue finished speaking, his eyes kept scanning the faces of the officers and generals. When he saw that everyone had a look of panic, even Superintendent Ding Qirui was no exception, and they all showed timidity. He couldn't help but feel deeply satisfy.

But when he saw Zuo Liangyu's expression, his heart skipped a beat. He had been worried that Zuo Liangyu would be arrogant and act on his own in the face of danger, leaving him and Ding Qirui to the "bandits."

Now, he glanced over inadvertently and saw Zuo Pair's cold expression and contemptuous eyes. He couldn't help but think of the secret he discovered at dusk, and he felt even more frightened...

However, at this moment, he had other small thoughts, so he could only put aside the secret for the time being. In order to use Ding Qirui, who was always afraid of intruders, to dispel the decisive battle suggestion he had just made, he couldn't help but ask Ding Qirui softly. : "The Superintendent thinks... is it possible to fight the thief as soon as possible?"

Ding Qirui didn't want to have a decisive battle with the intruders so soon. Even this time to rescue Kaifeng, he had to come reluctantly under the continuous pressure of Emperor Chongzhen and the court.

However, although he was very afraid of rashly fighting the thief, he did not dare to speak out what was in his heart, because he was afraid that if he really spoke out against the decisive battle, he would most likely become the current Emperor Chongzhen's target for him in the future. A handle for punishment.

After a moment of silence, he twirled his gray beard and asked Yang Wenyue: "Governor Yang, you just said that you have three strategies at the moment. What about the other two strategies? Why not tell them all so that everyone can consider them together. Think about it?”

Seeing that Ding Qirui did not accept the move, but kicked the ball back to him, Yang Wenyue sighed secretly, forced a smile and pretended to be calm and said: "Right now, if our army fights the thief with all its strength, we still have two or three points of victory. Hope, as for the other two strategies, I’m afraid... let’s not talk about it!”

Seeing his hesitant words, Sun Maolin, the eunuch of Ding Qirui's army, couldn't help but urged: "What are the other two strategies? Governor Yang might as well say it clearly, so that we can consider it together."

Yang Wenyue did not dare to show any slightness to Gui Yu, the envoy from the palace, and said quickly: "This second strategy... is to hold on as hard as possible, with deep ditches and high bases, trying to avoid a decisive battle with the bandit army, but with In order to separate the two thieves from Cao Cao, they should first distract each other and separate their virtues, and then wait for an opportunity to move and defeat them.

It just takes a lot of time...it lasts a long time, and I'm afraid that the plan of alienation has not been successful, and our army has lost morale, and the people's hearts have been shattered, and it is beyond control..."

After hearing his second strategy, everyone shook their heads, and so did Ding Qirui, who had to ask again: "What about the third strategy?"

Yang Wenyue hesitated for a moment, then spoke with some reluctance: "This third strategy is really a last resort... Our military supplies are gathered here in Shuipo. If we still can't attack for a few more days, we can only lead the army." Slowly retreat to Qixian and Suizhou temporarily, so there is no need to be trapped here.

If the rebel army raises troops to pursue them, they will fight decisively in the Qi and Sui areas. The water source will not be cut off like today. If the rebel army does not dare to pursue them, our army will be able to overcome the dilemma of water shortage and regain some morale. You can turn back at any time and march to Chenliu to garrison, so that the rebels dare not attack Kaifeng Fucheng with all their strength. "

After listening to Yang Wenyue's "Three Strategies", Ding Qirui's heart suddenly became enlightened. He cursed secretly: "You Yang Douwang, you are digging a hole for me here!" However, in front of everyone, he had a straight face. He said righteously: "This third strategy is absolutely unfeasible. As soon as our army moves, the bandit army will be ready to seize the opportunity to attack fiercely, and it is easy to panic and collapse. What's more... our army will retreat without a hard fight. If the emperor sees it, Sin, so what?"

When he said this, his face darkened again, and he said in a deep voice: "The student was ordered to supervise the master, and his crime is unforgivable. Rather than die in the West City, it would be better to die on the battlefield today!"

Yang Wenyue narrowed his eyes and asked him: "But...will we fight a decisive battle with the thief?"

Ding Qirui did not answer him directly, but turned to look at Zuo Liangyu and said: "Yesterday I sent someone with a secret message to the provincial capital and told Yufu Gao Mingheng to make preparations quickly, and within three days , but only saw flames all around Zhuxian Town, he ordered the general Chen Yongfu to lead the soldiers in the city to bravely go out of the city, beat the backs of the bandits, and join our army in a pincer attack.

Therefore, from the students' point of view, our army should continue to hold on here for a few more days. Once the contact with Kaifeng is ready, we can fight the decisive battle with the thieves. General Kunshan...what do you think? "

From the beginning of the discussion to the present, Zuo Liangyu said not a word, leaving the attendees unable to guess what he was thinking.

In fact, Zuo Liangyu was also full of complaints and doubts, and he also looked down upon the two governors, Ding Qirui and Yang Wenyue.

When he and Ding Qirui joined forces with Yang Wenyue in Runing, they suggested that the army go through Qixian and Chenliu, go straight to Kaifeng City, and then set up camp in the area of ​​Yuwangtai and Fanta Temple, with their backs against the strong city. First establish an invincible position, and then occupy the south bank of the Yellow River, so that the north road of Kaifeng Fucheng can be unobstructed, and food can be continuously supplied from the Yellow River.

However, his suggestion was not adopted by Ding Qirui and Yang Wenyue. The two governors mistakenly took the occupation of Zhuxian Town as their first goal, which led to today's dilemma of having a strong enemy in front and no strong city behind. Zuo Liangyu It is estimated that the army has no danger to defend here, and the water source has been cut off. It will collapse without a fight in three to five days.

After Ding Qirui asked him to speak, Zuo Liangyu furrowed his thick black brows and remained silent for a moment. He thought about it in his mind before saying, "I think the third strategy mentioned by Yang Duchen just now is very feasible."

Zuo Liangyu didn't care what the reaction of the people in front of him was, and continued: "Not only must we retreat, but we must retreat quickly. Of course, we don't have to retreat too far, as the thieves will take advantage of us. For the current plan, Indeed, the best option is to temporarily retreat to the southeast.

As for where to evacuate? In my opinion, we can withdraw to the Chenliu area. In this way, our army will no longer be besieged by bandits, and our troops and horses will not have to worry about cutting off the water supply. Then we can plan to advance to Kaifeng City.

At this moment...it is the hot summer day, and our soldiers and horses have neither water to drink nor firewood, so how can we stay here with the thieves for a long time? "

When Ding Qirui heard Zuo Liangyu's words of "withdrawal", he couldn't help but feel a thump in his heart. He immediately thought that the emperor would arrest him and imprison him in the capital, and that the officials of the court would criticize him. , I suddenly broke out in a cold sweat, and even the corners of my eyes began to beat non-stop.

He looked at Zuo Liangyu coldly and said hurriedly: "Withdraw the troops? No way... no way. The army must not retreat now."

Ding Qirui was obviously worried. He gasped and said urgently: "Now the soldiers of our division are in panic and full of suspicions. Once the army retreats, it will easily collapse. If the rebel army takes the opportunity to launch a large army to pursue our division, and use If the Jingqi clashes and ravages us, the outcome will be unimaginable!”

Most of the generals and staff who could participate in the military discussion in the big tent were under the command of Governor Ding and Governor Yang. Naturally, they all supported their opinions and strongly opposed Chen Liuzhi's idea of ​​withdrawing the troops. Everyone agreed that the army was retreating at this time. Moving is an extremely dangerous thing and should never be taken lightly...

When Zuo Liangyu saw this, he was so angry that he cursed secretly in his heart: "What a bunch of mediocre people. They are making me unable to do anything. If I wait with you for a long time, I will be dragged down sooner or later. Damn it!"

He glanced at the people who were speaking righteously, and couldn't help but show a look of anger on his face. He smiled coldly before saying, "Since the supervisor and you all think that we should fight the thief here, then I have no other choice. You can say that, as for the outcome of this battle, we have to leave it to fate!"

Ding Qirui hurriedly added: "You can't say that, General Kunshan. As long as we can communicate with the Kaifeng defenders and agree on a date, we can then fight the bandits decisively and launch a fierce attack on the bandits from the north and south at the same time. , under attack from both sides, victory is still somewhat certain.”

Zuo Liangyu saw that Supervisor Ding Qirui thought so, and that Supervisor Yang Wenyue also meant the same thing, and all the officers and generals present agreed with him. He didn't want to say anything more. Instead of working here, he would rather It's better to go back to your own camp and take care of the military affairs.

The military meeting ended with the departure of General Zuo Liangyu, the general who suppressed the bandits. Apart from the "three strategies" proposed by Yang Wenyue, the governor of Baoding, and Zuo Liangyu's proposal to "withdraw troops", there were no other proposals that seemed useful. It can be said that it was a fruitless military meeting.

…………

When Zuo Liangyu returned to his military camp, it was already late at night. However, he was not sleepy at all, so he sent a military order to summon his trusted generals and staff to the military camp for discussion.

He unhesitatingly mentioned Ding Qirui and Yang Wenyue to his subordinates, saying that they were both civil servants and knew nothing about military matters. Fu Zonglong, the governor of Shaanxi Province, escaped alone.

When Zuo Liangyu said this, there was obvious disdain on his face, and he said in a mocking tone: "This battle is extraordinary than usual. The bandits have more troops and they have the advantage of the location.

The key point now is that we need to be careful not to let other camps abandon us and flee first. Leaving our left camp alone for them to break up the rear is even more important than guarding against sneak attacks by thieves! "

All the generals and staff in Zuoying also laughed at Ding and Yang, saying that they were just nerds. Not only did they not know how to fight, but they were as timid as mice. They were afraid of being killed by the traitors in front of the formation. His escape was punished by the current emperor.

Some people also mentioned that since the water source was cut off, rumors in the military camp have gradually increased. They all said that the officers and soldiers have been surrounded by bandits, and that the bandits will come to attack tomorrow. They also said that the camps of Ding Qirui and Yang Wenyue are currently During the war, the morale of the military was already unstable, and there were even occasional desertions. All in all, the situation was not optimistic.