Han Dang is stronger

Chapter 421 Self-defeating Xiang Kang

To make up for it, even though he knew that the hope was slim, Liu Laosan made a quick calculation and arranged for another messenger to go northward overnight to Yangcheng to contact the guard Conggong there, and ask Conggong to grant permission to the ordinary people in Yangcheng. The people and local soldiers went out of the city to collect food, tried their best to restore the hearts of the people, left hope that they could defend Yangcheng for a long time, and also gave the defenders of Yangcheng more hope when they were forced to break through, and it was also convenient for the Nanyang Army to counterattack and regain Yangcheng in the future .

Han Xin did not stop Liu Laosan's dying struggle. It was only after Liu Laosan sent the messenger away, and after more than [-] Ye County defeated soldiers resigned, Han Xin said, "I'm afraid there is no hope. Even if our messenger goes well When we arrived at Yangcheng, Yangcheng has not yet been breached by the Han thieves, and the Han thieves will definitely use the excuse of Lord Cong to kill the envoy, take back their previous promise, and continue to pin the urinals of disregarding people's livelihood on us."

"Take a dead horse as a living horse doctor. Anyway, Yangcheng will definitely not be able to hold on. Let's try our luck and see if that idiot Mr. Cong can buy us a little more time."

Liu Laosan's tone was very helpless, and it was obvious that he had no confidence in his act of mending the past. Then Liu Laosan sighed very rarely, and asked Han Xin: "General, what should we do next? Is it a decision?" Determined to retreat to the front line of the Han River and trade our Wancheng capital and Nanyang hinterland for time? Or stick to Wancheng with all our strength, relying on the city defense to delay the time, and wait for Xiang Yu to bring the main force of the Western Chu army to rescue us? Where do we go? General, how do you think you should choose?"

For the first time, Han Xin, the god of war, hesitated on a tactical issue. After hesitating for a long time, Han Xin replied: "Forgive me, the matter is related to the future and destiny of our Nanyang country. I need to think carefully before I can give the king an answer." .”

"The sooner you can give me an answer, the better." Liu Laosan replied blankly: "We don't have much time left, if we can't make up our minds for a long time, we just want to retreat to Hanshui to build a strong defense line first." Disaster."

Han Xin agreed, and during the resignation with a lot of thoughts, Han Xin even forgot to show courtesy to Liu Laosan. Liu Laosan didn't mind such small details, but just sat on the throne in a daze, tossing and turning in his heart, thinking hard all the time, " Is it a gamble to concentrate the troops to defend Wancheng with all their strength? Or to be on the safe side, make up your mind to abandon Wancheng and the hinterland of Nanyang, and withdraw to the front line of Hanshui for defense first?"

On that day, both Han Xin and Liu Laosan stayed up all night, sitting alone in their bedroom in draped clothes. Han Xin did not move for almost the whole night. Apart from thinking hard about the same problem, he kept analyzing the tactics of the Han army. Possibly, is it because of Xiang Kang's bad habit of cheating to capture the two cities of Ye County and Yangcheng by tricks, or is Xiang Kang deliberately preserving his strength to lure his own army to gather troops in Wancheng to take the opportunity to make a quick decision?He also kept deducing all kinds of difficulties that may be faced in sticking to Wancheng. After racking his brains, Han Xin turned out to have a lot of gray hair in one night...

Finally, when the sky was fully bright, Han Xinxin basically made up his mind. He quickly made preparations, entered the Nanyang Palace with a pair of dark circles on his face, and said to Liu Laosan who also had dark circles: "My lord, my servant After thinking hard all night, I feel that for the sake of prudence, we'd better choose to retreat to the front line of Hanshui, which is the safest for us."

"Tell me the reason." Liu Laosan replied without raising his head.

"There are three reasons." Han Xin replied: "First, although we can't know the damage to the city wall by the Han thieves' trebuchets, Puyang and Julu were indeed quickly attacked by the Han thieves. Since the Han thieves can quickly take down Puyang and Julu with the help of trebuchets, they may also take down Wancheng quickly."

"But you also said that when you captured the Han thief prisoner, the Han thief broke through Puyang mainly by smashing into the city gate." Liu Laosan said: "There is also Julu, and it is also because of Zhao Guo's rebellious offering. Only then did the Han thieves enter Julu City."

Han Xin didn't answer this question, but said again: "Secondly, when we were in Kunyang, the Han thieves had already played tricks. They deliberately didn't use their catapults to attack the city, and kept their strength until they arrived in Ye County. The thieves still don't rely on strong attacks, and just want to use fraud to take down Ye County and Yangcheng. Although this may also be because the Han thieves want to save time and reduce the loss of their soldiers, we absolutely cannot rule out that the Xiangkang traitor is still in the army. Deliberately preserve strength, think of Wancheng and then use their catapults to attack the city with all their strength, and then kill us by surprise."

Liu Laosan didn't say a word, and didn't dare to deny that there was no such possibility. After thinking for a while, he asked again: "Then what about the third one?"

"The third is of course that we withdrew to the front line of the Han River, so we have more options." Han Xin said: "If we can hold the Han River defense line, we will defend it. If we can't hold it, we can retreat south quickly, leaving behind the hope of a comeback. It is almost impossible to be wiped out by the Han thieves. But if we choose Wancheng, and we are not sure about defending Wancheng, and then want to break through and escape, the hope must be very small."

Liu Laosan still remained silent, and after a long time, Liu Laosan raised his head and said with a mournful face, "This king also thinks so, but I am really unwilling to give up the capital of Wancheng and the hinterland of Nanyang like this. It’s really a pity.”

"Your Majesty, if you keep the green hills, you are not afraid that there will be no firewood." Han Xin said with the same painful expression, "Only by saving our lives and our last army can we hope to make a comeback with the help of the King of Western Chu. Lives are gone, and we're all done."

Liu Laosan sighed again, and was considering whether he should make this difficult decision, but a guard suddenly came in from outside the hall and reported to Liu Laosan that Li Ji from the Southern Front Corps of the Western Chu Army had come to visit , He also said that he wanted to discuss important matters with Liu Laosan. Liu Laosan did not dare to offend the Western Chu Army at this time, of course he could only order to be summoned immediately, and after a short time, Liji was invited to the hall.

"The foreign minister has met the King of Nanyang, hey, what a coincidence, you are here, the General? But what's wrong with you? Why are your eyes so dark? Didn't sleep well last night?"

"It's true that I didn't sleep well. General Li, please take a seat. Come and set up a seat for General Li."

After a few words of politeness, Li Ji was invited to sit down by Liu Laosan, and when Liu Laosan asked about Li Ji's intentions, Li Ji didn't give a shit, and said straight to the point: "Nanyang King, how do you deal with the foreign ministers? The attack of the Han bandits came. The foreign officials heard the news outside the city, saying that the Han bandits had captured Ye County and reached the city of Yangcheng. Yangcheng is only 120 miles away from Wancheng, and there are no natural dangers along the way. But keep, as long as the Han thieves take down Yangcheng, they will definitely hit Wancheng soon, and we have to make up our minds as soon as possible about what to do next."

Liu Laosan and Han Xin quickly glanced at each other, then Liu Laosan remained calm and asked directly: "General Li, in your opinion, how should we respond?"

"King of Nanyang, I'm sorry for my foreign minister's blunt words. I'm afraid Wancheng will be difficult to defend. The best way is to ask you to make up your mind as soon as possible, and quickly lead the army to retreat to the Han River with our Western Chu army."

Li Ji spoke convincingly, and said: "As for the reasons, firstly, although Wancheng is a big city, after your southern expedition army has withdrawn to Wancheng, you and I still can't all enter the city to garrison. There must be an army stationed in the city. Outside the city, what kind of situation is it like to be stationed outside the city? Presumably you, Nanyang King, are also very clear, it is destined to only give the Han thieves a chance to defeat us, which is very bad for us."

"Second." Liji said again: "The trebuchets of the Han thieves are so powerful that even the walls of Wancheng cannot stop them. Catapult, hold on until our King of Western Chu personally leads an army to help, so we'd better put all our hopes on the protection of the city wall of Wancheng."

"As for the third one." Liji continued: "If we retreat to Hanshui, we have much more room for loopbacks. It is of course best to use the natural danger of Hanshui to block the Han thieves for a long time. If we can't stop it, we are sure to withdraw quickly. In the hinterland of Nanjun, continue to buy time. But if we stick to Wancheng with all our strength, it will be difficult for us to retreat once the city is not secured. Therefore, the foreign minister thinks, Nanyang King, you'd better make up your mind as soon as possible and retreat to the front line of Hanshui."

Liu Laosan pondered and calculated for a long time before smiling and said: "Thank you, General Li, for your guidance. Xiao Wang will seriously consider your proposal and make up his mind as soon as possible."

Seeing that Liu Laosan did not categorically refuse, Liji was of course overjoyed, and hurriedly listed to Liu Laosan all the advantages of choosing to retreat to the Hanshui line of defense, and tried to persuade Liu Laosan with the reasoning of keeping the green hills without fear of running out of firewood. Make up your mind as soon as possible, and pat your chest to guarantee that as long as Xiang Yu brings the main force of the Western Chu army to defeat the main force of the Han army, he will definitely help Liu Laosan regain all the lost city land, and will never let Liu Laosan This loyal ally of the Western Chu Army suffered a loss and was deceived.

During this period, of course, Liu Laosan nodded repeatedly with a smile on his face, and kept promising that he would seriously consider Liji's suggestion, but he never gave an accurate answer and agreed to accept Liji's "kind" suggestion.In the end, taking advantage of Xiao He's performance in the hall, Liu Laosan dismissed the chattering Liji away with a smile on his face, and personally sent Liji out of the hall.

After dismissing Liji and returning to the hall, Liu Laosan of course ignored Xiao He who came to report the autumn harvest, but asked Han Xin directly: "What do you think?"

"Liji's words are all right." Han Xin replied in a deep voice, and then said with doubts: "But it's a little strange, why is this poor man so kind, and spend so much time persuading the king that you personally lead the army to retreat to Hanshui with him? It is not necessary for him? If he insists on retreating to the Hanshui line for safety, we neither dare to stop him nor need to stop him, and we will definitely not short him for food, grass and military supplies. Why does he still want to To make too much of a fuss, you want to pull the king and you personally lead the army to retreat with him to the front line of the Han River?"

"It's not just strange?" Liu Laosan sneered, and suddenly said surprisingly: "These words may be what that little traitor Xiang Kang asked him to say!"

Han Xin and Xiao He stared at each other, and Liu Laosan also said: "The king has received accurate information. On the way from Yangcheng to Shiwancheng, there is a very suspicious person who once pretended to be a fellow of Lijifu. , met him in a hurry on the way, and brought him things and letters, and then Richard sent his cronies to send the man away."

"Is there such a thing?!"

Han Xin was taken aback. Seeing Liu Laosan solemnly nodding his head, Han Xin couldn't help shivering, and said, "In this way, the little traitor Xiang Kang really asked him to say this."

When Liu Laosan nodded, Xiao He who was next to him opened his mouth and said, "Your Majesty, I am not good at military affairs, but Li Ji persuaded you to retreat to Hanshui in person, and I firmly opposed it. Nanyang is our homeland, not only the land There is a large population of fertile money and food, and the autumn harvest has already begun. If you personally lead the army to retreat to Hanshui and leave only a part of the army to guard Wancheng, it is equivalent to giving up our Nanyang land and the grain that has already begun to be harvested into the warehouse to the Han thieves , this is not only a pity, but also tantamount to destroying our foundation!"

Reluctance to give up the rich land of Nanyang is the main reason why Liu Laosan hesitated to make up his mind. Hearing what Xiao He said, and seeing Liji who has a suspicious position repeatedly persuaded him to go south as soon as possible, he was already very inclined to accept it. Liu Laosan suggested by Han Xin also changed his mind. After thinking about it for a long time, Liu Laosan made up his mind and said, "Concentrate your strength and stick to Wancheng! Wait for Xiang Yu to save us!"

"My lord!" Han Xin was startled, and hurriedly asked, "My lord, have you made up your mind to take risks?"

"You have to take risks, otherwise it would be a pity to lose Wancheng and the hinterland of Nanyang." Liu Laosan said coldly: "I don't believe it, the trebuchets of the Han thieves are really so powerful, they can knock down the walls of our Wancheng." They were all smashed down. As long as our city walls don’t collapse, it’s just a dream for the Han thieves to take down Wancheng by ramming the city and ants attaching to it!”

Still constrained by the limitations of the times, although he still felt that it was too risky, Han Xin did not insist on his proposition with all his strength. After hesitating for a while, Han Xin said: "Since the king's decision has been made, I will fully support the king's decision. The minister still It can be guaranteed that as long as we can hold the city until the morale of the veterans of the Han Bandit Division is exhausted, we will definitely be able to find a way to retreat from the enemy!"

In this way, when there was still plenty of time to retreat to the Hanshui defense line, out of various considerations, Liu Laosan still chose to stick to Wancheng with all his strength, and as expected by Liu Laosan and Han Xin, only two days passed After a long time, an urgent report came from Yangcheng, saying that the Han army had just launched an attack on Yangcheng. Not long after, the people of Yangcheng who were eager to go out of the city to harvest autumn grain spontaneously organized to meet the Han army's attack on the city. Soldiers of the Nanyang Army who were originally from Yangcheng also participated. The garrison of Yangcheng led by Duke Zong was already weak, and was attacked by the rebels and the Han army inside and outside. He broke open the city gate with ease, entered the city and captured Yangcheng. Most of the defenders of Yangcheng who resisted in the corner were wiped out, and Duke Cong himself disappeared in the chaos.Regarding this, Liu Laosan, Han Xin and others were of course gnashing their teeth, but there was nothing they could do.

Fortunately, on the same day, the last main force of the Nanyang Army led by Cao Shen and Lu Wan, with more than [-] people, also returned to the battlefield of Wancheng smoothly, and immediately entered the city, providing sufficient defense for Liu Laosan. City troops.At the same time, during this period, the soldiers and civilians of Wancheng naturally had to step up harvesting food and grass outside the city.

To the surprise of Liu Laosan, Han Xin and others, after more than a day, the guard of Yangcheng, Cong Gong, fled back to Wancheng with injuries. Liu Laosan was both happy and suspicious when he heard the news, so he hurriedly interviewed him and came back with injuries Cong Gong asked him face to face about Wancheng where he had fled back. Cong Gong did not hide anything, and honestly confessed that he was actually captured alive by the Han army after the city was broken, and he flatly rejected Xiang Kang's personal surrender. Because of the lax guard of the army, he stole a horse and fled back to Wancheng.

After being captured by the Han army, he was able to escape by stealing a horse. Of course, Liu Laosan would not easily believe that there is such a good thing in the world, and naturally he had to carefully interrogate him for details. Mr. Cong responded fluently, not only did he have no flaws in his words, but also there was no trace of forgery in his expression. Liu Laosan, who knew Mr. Cong very well, gradually felt relieved, and finally believed that Mr. Cong really escaped loyally.

Before the matter was over, when Liu Laosan asked Duke Cong to go down to take a rest, Duke Cong hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, your injury is nothing serious. There is another important matter, which is very urgent. I must report it to you immediately."

"What's the big deal?" Liu Laosan asked.

"Jibei Kingdom rebelled against the King of Western Chu, and even joined forces with the Han bandits in Zhao's army to attack Qi!" Duke Cong said loudly, "Qi was unable to withstand the enemy and was forced to ask the King of Western Chu for help. The King of Western Chu They have already dispatched troops to Qidi, and there is no way to free up our hands to rescue our Nanyang for the time being!"

"How do you know?" Liu Laosan's surprise was no small matter, and Han Xin who was next to him was also shocked.

"I heard it from the traitor Xiang Kang!" Gong Cong replied truthfully: "When the minister was escorted in front of the traitor Xiang Kang, it happened that the general of the Han Dynasty, Uncle Zhou, sent someone to deliver the news to the traitor Xiang Kang. Hearing this, the little traitor Xiang Kang applauded happily, saying that now he no longer has to worry about the King of Western Chu sending troops to rescue us in Nanyang, and he can have enough time to attack our capital Wancheng! He also said Let his bandits rest in Yangcheng for a few days without worrying about going south!"

The Jinbei Army suddenly rebelled, and Xiang Yu was forced to send troops to rescue Qidi, and he could no longer help the Nanyang Army!Hearing such bad news, not only did Liu Laosan and Han Xin feel no panic or tension, on the contrary, they both breathed a sigh of relief together, and then Liu Laosan smiled and said: "No wonder, no wonder you escaped smoothly, So that's the reason."

"Your Majesty, what do you mean by that?" Conggong was puzzled and said in confusion, "Why can't I understand?"

"If you understand, the little traitor Xiang Kang won't let you escape by such a fluke." Liu Laosan smiled even more happily, and ordered: "Okay, no matter what, you are also loyal to this king." Come on, go down and heal your wounds, and quickly recover your body, this king will continue to use you in the future."

Conggong was overjoyed when he heard that, and quickly thanked Liu Laosan, and then went back to rest and heal his injuries under the guidance of the guards. Liu Laosan also turned to Han Xin, smiled and said: "General, is there any problem? The Chinese thief is so right. We are not sure about winning Wancheng, so we can defend the city with peace of mind, right?"

"What the king said is very true." Han Xin replied with a smile: "The Chinese thieves have no confidence, which is our greatest confidence! Fortunately, the king is wise and made the right decision, otherwise, we will regret it now!"

(End of this chapter)