Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 440 Good words are hard to persuade
Xiangyang.

Wei Xiaokuan led his army and fled back to Xiangyang in a panic.

Huang Fachi, Wei Xiaokuan and Liu Taozi fought a great battle in the Nanyang area.

Huang Fachi surrounded Nanyang, and Wei Xiaokuan came to rescue. The two sides fought a fierce battle outside Nanyang. Huang Fachi believed that Wei Xiaokuan was eager to defeat him and was unwilling to let him meet with Liu Taozi, so he occupied the advantageous terrain on the north and east sides of Nanyang, formed a square formation and went on the defensive.

Wei Xiaokuan sent several of his trusted aides to the battlefield to insult and curse Huang Fachi, hoping to force him to fight. Huang Fachi remained unmoved, but this move made the Chen soldiers indignant and extremely angry.

Wei Xiaokuan's fierce attack failed, and Liu Taozi appeared afterwards. Huang Fachi saw the opportunity and let Xiao Mohe be the vanguard to lead the army to attack fiercely.

Wei Xiaokuan was badly defeated and quickly fled the battlefield with his remaining troops, heading straight for Xiangyang.

Wei Xiaokuan could be considered as one of the best players in the world, but unfortunately, he encountered two opponents of the same level at the same time. Not to mention Wei Xiaokuan, even Duan Shao could not say that he could fight against Hulugu and Gao Changgong at the same time.

When Wei Xiaokuan fled back to Xiangyang, the generals in the city came to greet him in person.

At this moment, the commander of Xiangyang was Yang Jian.

After the previous war, Yang Jian was once again exiled, still serving as the governor of Suizhou and the general, in charge of both military and political affairs.

And this Suizhou is right next to Nanyang which was captured by the Chen people, and is very close to Nanyang.

Yang Jian looked at Wei Xiaokuan, whose face was full of fatigue, with great concern. He hurriedly invited him into the city and arranged for his men to resettle the rest of Wei Xiaokuan's followers.

The two men rode side by side on horseback, entered the city, and quickly headed towards the government office.

"Uncle, you'd better write to His Majesty right now and ask for punishment. His Majesty is very angry and has summoned many generals and stockpiled heavy troops. He is also worried about internal strife like before, so he personally took charge. The army has already left Chang'an, and the vanguard army is almost reaching Nanxiang."

When Wei Xiaokuan heard this, he subconsciously wanted to advise him, but he was powerless to speak at this moment.

He just shook his head.

"I am defeated, a defeated general, and I will leave it to your majesty to deal with."

Wei Xiaokuan exuded a strong aura of decadence from the inside out. He was already disheartened, and after experiencing such a defeat, he became even more decadent and almost gave up.

Yang Jian hurriedly said, "Uncle, how can a man do this?"

"When I was young, I followed my father to learn swordsmanship, but I was never a match for my peers. I went to my father and cried, wanting to give up sword training. My father told me: A real man is not undefeated, but unyielding!"

"Our national strength is growing day by day. Although my uncle was defeated this time, he still has his best troops. How can we just give up? As long as we are still alive, there is hope of victory!"

Wei Xiaokuan didn't say anything.

Yang Jian did not say any more. He arranged for Wei Xiaokuan to rest first, and took the rest of the people to reinforce the city defenses. They also built a camp in the distance to prepare for the attacking army.

Originally, Cui Qian should have been in charge of the overall situation here, but Cui Qian was seriously ill and was not conscious for long, so Yang Jian, who had the highest title, had to take charge of the surrounding defense.

Yang Jian did it very seriously. He gathered the defeated soldiers everywhere and set up several crude defense lines with Xiangyang as the center and connected to Liang State.

Yang Jian's military ability was really limited, but fortunately, he was good at winning over people. Both his colleagues and subordinates trusted him very much. People who really had experience in this area were also willing to give him advice. Yang Jian was good at listening to their suggestions and could select the parts that could really be implemented.

At the same time, he visited Wei Xiaokuan again and again. At his request, Wei Xiaokuan reluctantly wrote a memorial of apology. His words were very sincere and self-blaming, and he hoped that the emperor would punish him.

Nanyang.

Outside the city gate.

"Your Majesty!!"

Huang Fatic walked quickly forward on foot, came to the front of the long formation of cavalry outside the city, and bowed to Liu Taozi, who was in the lead.

Xiao Mohe followed behind him and saluted Liu Taozi together.

"Your Majesty!"

Liu Taozi rode on a warhorse, his eyes swept over the two of them and fell on the people in the distance.

Even from a distance, Liu Taozi could see the people in the distance were wary of him, that deep fear
Liu Taozi suddenly asked, "You two walked out of the city to see me without any guards following you. Aren't you afraid that I will detain you?"

Huang Fate straightened up and said seriously, "Don't be afraid."

"If it weren't for the king, how could we enter Nanyang City?"

"Besides, your Majesty is a benevolent man and will never break his word."

As Huang Fachu was speaking, Xiao Mohe suddenly added, "If the king wanted to arrest us, why would he wait for us to come alone?"

Liu Taozi pointed at the people in the distance with his whip, "I won't, but I'm afraid those people will say bad things. General Huang is a kind general, and Maha is a brave general. If they are harmed by villains, it will be too worthless. Let's go back."

"I will be stationed here. Once the camp is set up, you can bring your people over and we will discuss what to do next."

Huang Fachi then agreed and hurried back.

Although the two sides formed an alliance, the armies certainly could not be arranged in one place. Huang Fachi did not even dare to invite Liu Taozi into the city, for fear of any accidents.

However, Huang Fachi was not a heartless person. After returning to the city, he dispatched many soldiers and civilians to help Liu Taozi build a temporary camp and sent a lot of meat. He also wanted to send wine, but the Han Kingdom had a strict prohibition on alcohol, so it was not easy to send wine.

After Liu Taozi had settled his troops, Huang Fatic came to pay a visit with many of his generals.

Liu Taozi was very famous, and many generals of the Southern Kingdom expressed their desire to go with Huang Fachi.

I'm just simply curious and want to see what kind of person this is.

Even those sons of noble families who usually commented on Liu Taozi and came here to gild themselves and participate in the war to annihilate the country were quite excited at this moment and wanted to follow Huang Fachi.

Xiao Mohe looked at the crowd and whispered, "General, if General Xu Jingcheng and the others want to follow us, that's fine, but if those little beasts follow us, and if they are rude to the king again..."

Huang Fachi snorted coldly, with some disdain in his eyes.

“They have to dare too.”

"These people only know how to bully the weak in front of the king, haha."

"No problem. If they want to go, take them with you. If you don't take them with you, who knows what they might say in front of Your Majesty."

Xiao Mohe gave up.

Xiao Mohe had originally followed Chunyu Liang to participate in the war, but now, his relationship with Huang Fachi is getting better and better. This is also the reason why Chunyu Liang is not very willing to stand out. For example, this time, everyone was vying to see Liu Taozi, but Chunyu Liang stayed on the grounds that Nanyang could not be left unguarded. Chunyu Liang had no curiosity, and he was old and had no pursuits. He just wanted to spend his old age in peace and not cause any major trouble.

Huang Fachi led everyone to Liu Taozi's camp.

The knights were stationed in various places, looking majestic and awe-inspiring.

Not to mention their physique and the rate of armor they wear, just looking at their aura, they are completely different from the soldiers of the Southern Kingdom.

They all looked extremely confident, and even when facing the gaze of a powerful general like Xiao Mohe, they dared to look him in the face without fear.

Those nobles who saw the Han knights for the first time were talking in low voices.

Huang Fatic led them all the way inside, but the soldiers stayed outside.

This made many people feel uneasy, but having reached this point, they could no longer resist Huang Fachi's orders.

Inside the general's tent, Liu Taozi was in a high position, with an intimidating aura.

Huang Fachi and others were already used to it, and hurriedly bowed to greet him.

However, the newcomers were trembling with fear at this moment, and they didn't dare to look at Liu Taozi who was sitting in the upper seat. Huang Fachi was right. When facing someone stronger than themselves, these people didn't dare to show any of their usual arrogance.

After everyone was seated, Huang Fatic introduced several generals under his command to Liu Taozi.

There were generals Zhang Zhaoda, Ouyang He, Xu Jingcheng, Lu Guangda and others.

In order to fight the war of annihilation, the Southern Kingdom mobilized armies from all over the country, and mobilized the troops originally used to guard various places to launch the attack. This also shows that the Chen Kingdom has gained the strategic initiative to attack.

With Jingbei, they no longer need to garrison everywhere, which would be so passive.

However, these generals of the State of Chen are very interesting.

That Zhang Zhaoda looked like a romantic general, exuding a strong smell of alcohol and fragrance.

As for Ouyang He, he always looked worried and absent-minded. As for Xu Jingcheng and Lu Guangda, he could sense the slight hostility from them.

Various and all different.

There are not many people Liu Taozi can introduce, only Shi Wansui and Gao Yanzong.

After both sides sat down, there was no more small talk and they went straight to the point, discussing the next war.

"Your Majesty, we have already taken Nanyang, but the surrounding states and counties are unwilling to surrender. The enemy has set up a defense line with Xiangyang as the core. Scouts have seen them building trenches on various important roads to prevent our attack."

"The reinforcements from Liang State have also arrived at the front line and are plugging the gap in Mianyang."

"What should we do next?"

"I know you have gathered together to seize the opportunity to destroy Liang State, but I think it is not the time to destroy Liang State yet."

Liu Taozi was blunt and straightforward. "The enemy is mobilizing a large army. Yuwen Yong is personally on the march, and his generals are all out. After Yuwen Yong came to power, he suffered repeated military defeats. He needs a big victory to consolidate his position and boost morale at home. This time, he will surely fight to the death and will never back down."

"The Zhou Kingdom actually has quite a few generals. The oldest one is Yuchi Jiong, the youngest one is Yuwen Xian, and the rest are numerous dukes and generals. Many of them are good at fighting. Most of the government troops in Guanzhong and Longxi are elite, brave and good at fighting."

"The State of Chen has just started to trade with us. Even if the treasury is full, I don't think it will last long."

"Therefore, my suggestion is to hold on to the current achievements, let Liang State go first, and wait for a better opportunity."

Huang Fate frowned.

"Your Majesty, you don't know that right now, not only the Zhou Kingdom needs a big victory, we need it even more."

"Jingbei is extremely important to Dachen. If we can't take it down, it will be like a sharp blade hanging over our heads. We can't let down our guard at any time."

"Your Majesty attaches great importance to this matter and has dispatched so many troops. This..."

Liu Taozi and Huang Fatic discussed the next strategy in great detail.

The generals listened very seriously, but some of them felt restless.

They talked for a long time, with only one break in between.

Gao Yanzong stayed for a long time. When he heard the topic turned to Chen State's future offensive strategy, he felt a little bored. He had no interest in how Chen State would attack in the future, so he sneaked out to eat something while his brother was busy.

Gao Yanzong had a big appetite and ate several times a day.

Just as he slipped out and was about to head west back to his camp, someone suddenly bumped into him.

Gao Yanzong was stunned!

In this day and age, is there anyone who dares to bump into me?
He raised his head suddenly and saw that the person who bumped into him was a general of the State of Chen.

The general looked at Gao Yanzong, pointed to a corner not far away, and then walked quickly towards it.

Gao Yanzong was stunned for a moment, ordered his soldiers to guard the place, and then followed.

When the two of them walked into a corner together and there was no one around, the man hurriedly saluted to Gao Yanzong and said, "I was rude to you just now, I hope you won't blame me!"

Gao Yanzong stared at him and thought for a long time, "You mean..."

"I am Ouyang He!"

"Duke of Shanyang, Grand Commander, Governor of Guangzhou, General of Light Chariots"

Ouyang He began to report his official title, and it was a long list.

Gao Yanzong nodded, "Well, what do you want?"

Ouyang He frowned and said helplessly: "General, I intend to submit to the Han Kingdom and to join the Heavenly King. I wonder if you can help me introduce them?"

Gao Yanzong looked confused.

You just read out such a long name, why are you saying you want to surrender to the Han Kingdom now?

Gao Yanzong said: "I can ask the Heavenly King for you, but why do you want to defect to the Han Kingdom? Do you know that the two countries are allies now?"

"I know, but I heard that the Heavenly King is extremely courageous and has always been tolerant of others. Besides, I don't want the Heavenly King to take me away with great fanfare. I just want him to accept me and my family. I have no complaints even if I have to hide my identity and serve as a chief official under his command!"

"I know that the Heavenly King has many cavalry generals under his command. I have been in the south for many years and am good at water battles and mountain treks. If I were to serve under the Heavenly King, I would definitely have the opportunity to display my talents!"

The man spoke faster and faster, and it was obvious that he was really anxious.

Gao Yanzong waved his hand and said, "I didn't ask you what you can do. I just asked you why you wanted to surrender!"

Ouyang He was silent for a moment, and then whispered: "Hua Jiao and I worked together for Emperor Wen. I was highly valued by Emperor Wen, and we had a good relationship. When Hua Jiao rebelled, I just felt a little uneasy. Then the war started, and the emperor ordered me to lead the army. I was very confused. There were obviously many troops around, so why did he mobilize me, who was the farthest away, to support them?"

"But I didn't dare to disobey. After I arrived, my good friend told me that His Majesty was planning to detain me here after the war and bring me back to the court. He was probably going to kill me."

"General, I have never done anything to offend the country. I don't deserve to be treated like this. I started to fight with the army when I was 20 years old and have made countless contributions. My son was just born."

The more Ouyang He spoke, the more frightened he became.

Gao Yanzong suddenly realized.

He nodded, "Okay, I understand. Please don't tell anyone. I will tell the king about this matter. It depends on what he decides."

"I hope the general can say a few good words for me. I will be very grateful!"

"It doesn't have to be this way."

Gao Yanzong still felt a little sympathy for this guy. If it was true as he said, then the Emperor of Chen was a little too petty. There were so many people following his brother. Could it be that this guy wanted to kill all of them?
With such a narrow mind, how can one accomplish great things?

Gao Yanzong gave him a few instructions, and then returned to the general's tent without even bothering to eat.

The discussion in the general's tent was not going well.

Liu Taozi still insisted on his own idea. It was enough for the Chen people to obtain Mianzhou, Anzhou and other places this time. They had already opened a gap in northern Jing. Next, they just needed to defend against the enemy's fierce attack and firmly occupy this place, and the Zhou people would be helpless.

Huang Fachi himself did not have much opinion, but the generals around him had different ideas.

They were determined to swallow up the two countries, capture Jiangling, and completely eliminate the biggest threat to the State of Chen.

It seemed that in their opinion, as long as their army reached the outskirts of Jiangling City, the enemy would definitely surrender.

They talked for such a long time but still couldn't reach a consensus. Huang Fachi could only say that they would discuss it after dinner. Liu Taozi asked someone to place them somewhere else.

As soon as Huang Fachi and others walked out, the generals couldn't help but speak.

"Isn't it possible that the King of Han is afraid that if we take Jiangling, our national strength will be too strong, so he is opposing us to take Liang? He opposed us sending troops before, but now he is doing this again. What is he thinking?"

"That's not true. Jiangling is indeed not easy to capture. Moreover, if Yuwen Yong comes in person, the enemy's morale will be greatly boosted. He has so many powerful generals under his command that it will be difficult to deal with them."

"Oh, what kind of brave generals can the Zhou people have?"

Everyone was talking about it.

In the inner room, Shi Wansui also expressed his dissatisfaction with the Chen people. "These people are short-sighted. There are really few who can be called famous generals. They keep talking about destroying Liang, as if the gates of Jiangling are wide open and they are welcome to come in at any time!"

At this moment, Gao Yanzong hurriedly sat next to Liu Taozi and told Liu Taozi everything about who had just come to see him.

“There is such a thing”

"He said he was an expert in naval warfare and knew how to fight in the mountains. He said he would not even care about his position as long as he and his family were protected. He was sincere."

"Um"

Liu Taozi said softly: "If they are willing to listen to me, we can unite and resist Yuwen Yong together."

"If they are unwilling to obey and continue to take Jiang Ling, then we should take this person away secretly."

ps: I'm going to meet some relatives, so I'll update one less chapter.

(End of this chapter)