Han officials

Chapter 161: Fight between Dragon and Tiger [2/2]

The next day, Wei army camp.

As the sun rose, Wei Zhe climbed up the high platform with his sword in hand, and the armor leaves made a clanging sound.

More than 10,000 Liaodong infantry and cavalry stood in the center below the stage, while more than 10,000 volunteers stood on the left and right, each occupying one side.

Looking at the soldiers below, Wei Zhe said nothing, pointing his sword angrily in the direction of Luoyang:

"A hundred miles from here lies a den of demons. For every bandit you kill, a hundred, even a thousand, will be saved. Do you dare to follow me and save this nation from this disaster?"

As soon as these words came out, the soldiers in the audience roared in unison without hesitation:

"kill!"

"kill!"

"kill!"

The sound of the three armies' swords and axes hitting the ground instantly stopped the moving clouds and shook the whole area.

Especially those young and strong volunteers from Henan Yin, their faces were full of murderous intent, and they couldn't wait to go into battle and kill the enemy.

To the people outside the seven counties of Sili, Dong Zhuo might just be a political symbol, but to them he was a real nightmare.

For the past six months, the Liangzhou and Bingzhou troops, as well as the Northern and Southern armies recruited by Dong Zhuo, had been causing numerous disasters to Henan Yin under Dong Zhuo's unbridled influence. Dong Zhuo had managed to rally the troops, but the people had suffered utter destruction. Few households in the small Henan Yin counties escaped the devastation wrought by Dong Zhuo's forces.

They plundered the powerful and the nobles, and did not spare the ordinary people either, and were even more unscrupulous. After all, Dong Zhuo's army was a mixture of Hu and Han people, and military discipline was out of the question. Rape and looting were even regular rewards given by Dong Zhuo's army to his men.

Seeing the high morale of the audience, Wei Zhe nodded.

Then Wei Zhe ordered his left and right to unfold a large banner with the words "Feng Yi Jing Nan" written on it.

Yes, Wei Zhe is going to present the flag today.

After all, as more and more volunteers join the army, it is no longer appropriate to continue with extensive management.

However, setting up a new military unit would be too conspicuous, so forming a "Jingnan Yicong" unit would be just the right choice.

What is "Jingnan"? It means to quell national crisis!
With the banner of "Feng Yi Jing Nan" in place, who in Sili would dare to say that he is not the king's army?
In fact, this was indeed the case. As the flag was raised, the eyes of the volunteers on the left and right armies suddenly lit up.

They already shared the same hatred for the enemy, and their eyes became even more determined.

Yes, they are not only avenging their own families, but also quelling the national crisis and promoting loyalty and righteousness!

Having undergone a wave of passive sublimation, they were no longer afraid of Dong Jun's brutality, and only had the desire to fight in their eyes.

Seeing this, Xi Zhicai, who was not far away, was filled with admiration in his eyes.

Apart from anything else, he really admired Wei Zhe's method of controlling the army.

If Cao Cao had this method before, he would not have escaped alone.

Of course, this is not surprising, because Cao Cao's starting point was too high and he never really understood the bottom line.

Having never built an army from scratch, Cao Cao's understanding of military tactics will always be a little lacking.

Since Xi Zhicai was like this, Shi Han and other scholars who joined the army were even more impressed by Wei Zhe.

In the past, I only heard about Wei Zhe’s good news, but now I realize what kind of talent this represents!
……

Regardless of how Xi Zhicai and others felt, Wei Zhe was not idle at all.

After presenting the flag, he divided the "Jingnan Yicong" into the left army and the right army, with 7,000 people each.

Zhong Hu led the left army, Taishi Ci led the right army, and Wei Zhe led the Liaodong army.

As a reward for Zhao Yun, Wei Zhe directly handed over the more than one hundred volunteer cavalrymen who had joined the army to him for command.

Don't underestimate these people, you have to know that the Three Rivers Knights came from Henan Yin, Henei Commandery, and Hedong Commandery. Zhao Yun's promotion speed was unprecedented, as he was promoted to military marquis and commanded 200 cavalrymen in less than half a year.

As for the capable official Ren Jun, Wei Zhe directly recruited him as a staff member of the shogunate to temporarily assist in military affairs.

"Also, transfer a group of officers who participated in the winter training at the Military Academy." Wei Zhe frowned slightly as he spoke from within the tent. "The morale of the righteous followers during the Jingnan Rebellion is commendable, but they still need more training!"

"Yes!" Upon hearing this, Shi Yi quickly drafted the document.

It is said that since Wei Zhe started teaching at the Military Academy, more than a thousand soldiers have participated in winter training over the years. Most of these people are still just grassroots military officers such as sergeants and squad leaders.

It’s not that they are not capable enough to be promoted, but that there are only so many military positions in Liaodong.

It was precisely because of this group of experienced grassroots military officers that Wei Zhe dared to expand his army on a large scale.

In this respect, Wei Zhe was different from the princes of Guandong. He cared more about the quality of the army rather than the quantity.

The first battle after the formation of the "Jingnan Yicong" army was the attack on Ao Cang!

……

At the same time, in Bigui Garden in Luoyang, the huge city of Luoyang had become a ruin, with broken walls and broken walls everywhere.

After Dong Zhuo burned Luoyang, Biguiyuan can be said to be the only surviving building complex around Luoyang.

In the magnificent lobby, Dong Zhuo was seen occupying a high position like a black bear.

"Reporting to the Prime Minister, Wei Zhe's army has arrived at Ao Cang." The only thing heard in the hall was the report from the Chief Secretary Liu Ai: "Scouts report that this person has recently gathered over ten thousand rebellious people from Henan and called himself 'Jingnan Yicong'. He falsely claims to be supporting the righteous cause of the rebellion and has ordered Yuanwu Ling Yang Yuan to usurp the power of Henan Yin. Many counties in Henan have already joined the bandits!"

Upon hearing this, a few more wrinkles appeared on Dong Zhuo's face, which was filled with excessive indulgence.

Although there was no movement in Luoyang, Dong Zhuo was always paying attention to Wei Zhe's movements.

It was only because Wei Zhe had been making steady progress since leaving Suanzao that Dong Zhuo remained indecisive.

He wanted to take the initiative and annihilate Wei Zhe's troops in one fell swoop, but he was also afraid of being defeated by Wei Zhe.

After all this, Dong Zhuo was really conflicted.

He stroked his desk and sighed, "I'm not afraid of any of the bandits in Guandong. Only Wei Zhe is fierce and fierce, so I'm really worried!"

Upon hearing this, Chief Secretary Liu Ai immediately flattered him, "When the Prime Minister marched across the Central Plains to quell the Yellow Turbans, Duke Wei of Wei wasn't even qualified to hold a halberd outside your tent. Why should you worry?"

However, when Liu Ai said this, Dong Zhuo frowned unhappily.

Although Liu Ai was the chief secretary of Dong Zhuo's prime minister's office, he was a court official who had only recently attached himself to Dong Zhuo.

Since he was a member of the royal family of the dynasty and had a good reputation, Dong Zhuo valued him very much.

Although he did not value him as much as he did Wang Yun, he no longer hid many things from him.

However, Liu Ai joined too late after all, and he did not know that Wei Zhe had no subordinate relationship with Dong Zhuo.

His words reminded Dong Zhuo of the unpleasant experience of being imprisoned during the Yellow Turban Rebellion.

In comparison, Niu Fu, the son-in-law, is more talkative.

He immediately gave a rough smile and said, "Sir, the Guandong army has already suffered several defeats. What good is the bravery of Duke Wei? He is only tying his own hands and feet. He is blind and will be a prisoner sooner or later. If this man is truly knowledgeable, he should come to the pass and pay his respects to him sooner rather than later. This way, he might even gain wealth and status."

After hearing what Niu Fu said, Dong Zhuo stroked his beard and smiled with relief.

No matter how heroic he was in the past, Dong Zhuo is old now.

Of course, Old Hu is still strong and has not lost his judgment.

While being happy, Dong Zhuo did not forget to warn his generals.

"Wei Zhe is different from the other bandits in Guandong. He comes from a nearby county and is feared by the Dongyi people. Just based on the fact that he destroyed a country and captured a king, I have to respect him. If you encounter such a powerful general in the future, do not underestimate him!"

However, when Dong Zhuoyue said this, Hu Zhen in the hall became even more dissatisfied.

It's not that he was dissatisfied with Dong Zhuo, but he was dissatisfied with Wei Zhe, a native of Liaodong.

Especially after completely annihilating Wang Kuang's Han army in Henei, Hu Zhen became complacent.

Don’t think that Hu Zhen is smart just because his courtesy name is Wencai. In fact, he is just a fool.

Known as "Lord of Liangzhou", he is good at fighting but has no other skills.

So after Dong Zhuo finished speaking, he immediately stepped forward and asked for battle, saying: "I am not a talented general, but I am willing to help the Prime Minister relieve his worries!"

As soon as these words were spoken, many people in the hall couldn't help but change their expressions slightly.

Seeing this, Lü Bu, Dong Zhuo's adopted son, was moved and immediately stepped forward, saying, "Although I am not talented, I am willing to help my father eliminate this evil!"

As soon as Lu Bu said this, before Dong Zhuo could say anything, Hu Zhen on the side became annoyed.

In his opinion, Lu Bu was trying to steal his job and was really disrespectful to him.

If Hu Zhen had not been afraid of Dong Zhuo's presence, he would have thought to himself that he would teach Lu Bu a lesson.

Dong Zhuo in the hall had no idea what Hu Zhen was thinking.

After Hu Zhen and Lu Bu successively requested to fight, he first looked at Niu Fu and Xu Rong. Seeing that neither of them had any intention of fighting, Dong Zhuo thought for a moment and nodded.

"Alright, I'll leave Xuanmenguan to you. Be good!"

Dong Zhuo then appointed Hu Zhen as the Grand Protector and Lü Bu as the Cavalry Commander, and dispatched 3,000 elite cavalry from Liang Province, 2,000 soldiers from Bing Province, and 5,000 Han troops from Luoyang who were incorporated after entering Luoyang, to accompany Hu Zhen and Lü Bu to the expedition.

After all, with a strong pass like Xuanmen Pass, ten thousand infantry and cavalry are definitely more than enough to guard the pass.

Just from Dong Zhuo's caution this time, we can tell that he really takes Wei Zhe seriously.

However, Wei Zhe, who was currently standing in Ao Cang City, was completely unaware of all this...

(End of this chapter)