With the voluntary abandonment of Zhai and Li's allied forces, the Hulaoguan battle, which lasted for nearly five months, finally came to an end. The Wagang army was even more exhausted, self-protection was a problem, and they had no spare power to intercept and block. They watched the Zhai-Li coalition army escape from under their noses. After taking the Hulao Pass that Xu Shiji voluntarily gave up, it was too late, and he couldn't catch up, so he simply didn't waste his energy. The magnificent Hulao Pass battle ended in a rather comical anticlimactic way.
The ending is funny, but the process of losing all is cruel and abnormal. In this continuous battle that sees and saws repeatedly, Zhai and Li's bandit army, the Eastern Capital Sui army, and the Pengcheng Sui army who arrived later all paid a heavy price for this. During the period when Chen Sangliang was in charge of the army alone, more than 15,000 Sui soldiers closed their eyes forever in the bloody battle, and more than 3,000 were disabled, including both the Invincible Battalion who purely made up numbers, and Chen Sang Sangliang's direct lineage of Qiao Peng, the elite of Qi County left by Zhang Xutuo, many new soldiers and old soldiers of Youwuwei, and the rebel soldiers recruited by Chen Sangliang on the battlefield. Casualties, the casualties of the Sui Army in the Eastern Capital actually reached nearly 26,000 people.
Wang Shichong's loss was equally great. Although the Pengcheng Sui army joined the battlefield for a short time, it was because there was no strong camp to defend, and because they were basically fighting against the main force of the bandit army, and because Wang Shichong was accidentally tricked in the last battle and was forced to surrender. Forced to fight a decisive battle outside the camp that could have been avoided, there were more than 32,000 soldiers from Pengcheng when they set off, and less than 13,000 soldiers survived to join the Sui army in the Eastern Capital, including more than 1,000 soldiers. A seriously injured person who could not be cured. Although such a result proves that Wang Shichong is indeed capable of commanding his troops, and that he did not collapse and flee after more than half of the battle damage, it also made Wang Shichong so distressed that he could not sleep for several nights, and he could not shed tears anymore—most of these were his soldiers when he started his family. what.
However, compared with Zhai and Li's bandit army, the Eastern Capital Sui Army and Pengcheng Sui Army were much luckier. The Zhai and Li allied army, whose strength once exceeded 150,000 in its heyday, was jointly attacked by Chen Sangliang and Wang Shichong, and finally passed through Tongji alive. Qu's was less than 70,000, and the rest were either wiped out on the battlefield or captured and surrendered. Among them, Li Mi, who had the most cannon fodder under his command, suffered the worst losses, especially in the battles at Hao Xiaode's camp, only 7,000 or 8,000 of the 30,000 Li Mi's rebel army returned. In the East Gate Camp, there is a strong city to defend the Wagang Army, which suffered less losses, but also suffered nearly 20,000 casualties. Although most of them were cannon fodder, there were also many elite Wagang soldiers who had followed Zhai Rang for many years. .
The mountain of blood and the sea of corpses, the real mountain of blood and blood, from Luokou Cang to Hulao Pass, and then from Hulao Pass to Niuzhukou to the ruins of the Banzhu Li Palace, there are corpses everywhere, and corpses are everywhere. There were so many corpses that most of the wounded soldiers of the Sui Army couldn't deal with them, so Chen Sangliang had to spend money and food to organize the civilian husbands to clean up the battlefield. He also promised that except for the armor and weapons, all the money and clothes on the corpses would belong to the civilian husbands. It took five days to barely clean up the dead bodies on the huge battlefield.
The heavy loss is still worth it. Taking back the strategically important Hulao Pass is tantamount to reversing the situation of being passively beaten on the Eastern Capital battlefield. Chen Sangliang does not need to stay in Luokou Cang as a warehouse for a long time At the same time, it was also at this time that Chen Sangliang dared to set up a mourning hall in Hulaoguan to pay homage to his old Bole Fan Zigai who had been so kind to him, and to wear hemp and mourning for him, and burst into tears. And it was also at this time that the soldiers of the Sui Army in the Eastern Capital finally knew the news of Fan Zigai's death, and the fact that Li Yuan raised the flag to rebel in Taiyuan.
As if to compete with Chen Sangliang for time, on the same day that Chen Sangliang set up a spiritual memorial service for Fan Zigai at Hulao Pass, the Eastern Capital transferred Chen Sangliang's military situation in Taiyuan, Xihe County Prime Minister Gao Deru was loyal to Sui Yang The emperor refused to accept Li Yuan's order. Li Yuan sent Li Jiancheng and Li's two brothers to send troops to crusade. As a result, it took only nine days for the Li brothers to go back and forth, they broke through the city of Xihe County, captured and beheaded Gao Deru alive; Liu Wuzhou's Yanmen prefect Chen Xiaoyi and Wang Zhibian withdrew their troops. Liu Wuzhou took the opportunity to counterattack and defeated the Yanmen Sui army. Then there were unconfirmed rumors that Li Yuan reached an agreement with Liu Wuzhou. Also in charge of Yanmen County - to be precise, he used Liu Wuzhou's hands to deal with the Yanmen Sui Army, and Li Yuan took the opportunity to gain peace in the north.
Along with the battle situation in Taiyuan, there was also the situation in Daxing. In view of the critical situation in Taiyuan, the acting king Yang You sent General Pang Yu of the Zuojianmen and Hu Benlang to lead Huo Shiju and Song Laosheng before he could ask Emperor Yang of Sui for instructions. The 60,000 troops marched north to Xihe to rescue Gao Deru who had never surrendered. So the envoy sent by Yang Tong sent Yang Tong's message again, asking Chen Sangliang to take care of the aftermath of the Hulaoguan War with peace of mind, and there is no need for Chen Sangliang to worry about Taiyuan for the time being.
There was another incident that surprised Chen Sangliang, but it was not surprising. The envoy of Dongdu told Chen Sangliang that after receiving the news of Li Yuan's rebellion, Daxing immediately sent people to arrest Li Yuan's son-in-law Chai Shao and daughter Li Xiuning. Thinking that Chai Shao and his wife had left the paralyzed Chai Shen and Chai Qian missing, the Daxing government wanted to arrest the couple, but so far they have not been found. Chen Sangliang smiled bitterly when he heard the words, and said with a wry smile: "I really want revenge and want to go crazy. I have pity on my Uncle Chai. I really don't know if he can survive this time."
Shaking his head and sighing, putting the matter of the Chai family aside, Chen Sangliang hurriedly asked about the situation of his cousin Li Jing. After learning that Li Jing had not heard from him, Chen Sangliang was unavoidably worried, but he had no choice but to It is to continue to send people to visit and look for Li Jing, and then concentrate on dealing with the aftermath of the Hulaoguan War, and arrange the preparations for retreating back to the Eastern Capital; Li's army left and returned; He Lanyi decided to stay in Luokoucang and continue to strengthen the newly built Luokoucang city defense.
Chen Sangliang's request for the memorial was quickly approved, and after all the affairs were arranged, on the tenth day of the seventh lunar month, Chen Sangliang formally led his army in triumph, and returned to the city of Dongdu smoothly two days later. Yang Tong personally led the army. All civil and military officials came out of the city to greet him, Chen Sangliang hurriedly got off his horse and kowtowed to plead guilty, asking Yang Tong to punish himself for the crime of not being able to retake Hulao Pass after a long battle and not annihilating Zhai and Li's bandit army. Yang Tong helped Chen Sangliang himself, and comforted Chen Sangliang, saying that Chen Sangliang had done nothing wrong in this battle, and that the protracted battle was all because the bandit army was too strong, the terrain was unfavorable, and the weather was different from Chen Sangliang. Sangliang has nothing to do with it, and at the same time, Chen Sangliang must be rewarded with some jewels, silks, satins and beauties.
Yang Tong's reward reminded Chen Sangliang of one thing. On the second day after returning to Dongdu, Chen Sangliang, who was busy with official duties, took the time to go to the prison to visit Pei Cuiyun and her mother who were being imprisoned in the women's prison. Dear, even though Pei Cuiyun's mother and daughter were abused in prison, when they reunited in prison after a long absence, Pei Cuiyun couldn't help crying in Chen Sangliang's arms. Trying to rescue Pei Cuiyun and her mother out of prison, at worst, he asked Yang Tong to reward Pei Cuiyun, who was about to be demoted to slavery according to the law.
It was also at night that Chen Sangliang was able to sit down and have a private conversation with Fang Xuanling, the think tank who had been staying behind before, to discuss the specific plan for the next step. It was Fang Xuanling who took the initiative to raise this question and asked Chen Sangliang: "My dear brother, at least Hulao Pass has been brought back. Although Wang Shichong is a humble man, he is still reliable in war, as long as he can stay in Hulao Pass for a long time. , at least it can ensure that Luoyang's east front is worry-free, so that you can free up your hands to deal with other changes, my brother, what is your next plan?"
"Of course I really want to raise my troops to the north as soon as possible, and kill my enemy Li Yuan in the cradle." Chen Sangliang spread his hands with a wry smile, and said, "But there is no way, the loss of my elite soldiers is too great in this Hulaoguan battle. Big, the rest are too tired, and most of them are wounded, and they can’t even send troops, so we can only rest and reorganize the army first, restore their fighting strength, and then make a long-term plan.”
Fang Xuanling nodded, and asked again: "My dear brother, His Royal Highness sent Pang Jianmen and the others to lead an army of 50,000 north to Taiyuan to conquer Li Yuan. "
"It's hard to say." Chen Sangliang replied truthfully: "Although Li Yuan raised his army not long ago, his soldiers lacked training, and their foundation was not deep enough, but I know the virtues of the Daxing army very well. The last time Yang Xuangan rebelled, he behaved better than the second line of Youwuwei." The army is still poor. Even if we add some elites from Liaodong now, the combat power is still not as good as the current Dongdu army. More importantly, His Royal Highness ordered the conquest of Li Yuan instead of letting them defend Li Yuan from going south. If they take On the offensive, the grasp is even less.”
Fang Xuanling nodded again, hesitated for a while, and then said: "My dear brother, don't you realize that you are too restrained now? Although you are staying behind in the Eastern Capital, you have to ask His Highness the King of Yue for instructions on everything. Shan was unable to recruit soldiers on his own, Miss Pei had saved your life, but you couldn't even get rid of her guilt after being in trouble, His Royal Highness King Yue is getting older, and gradually showing boldness and assertiveness, If things go on like this, your future is unpredictable."
Chen Sangliang smiled, and asked with a smile: "Brother, don't you want to persuade me to follow Li Yuan's example?"
"My dear brother, you are joking, brother Yu has such courage?" Fang Xuanling smiled, and said suddenly: "My dear brother, do you know what I am trying to persuade you to do? Wang Shichong has come to Dongdu, and someone can take over for you to guard Dongdu." You are all safe, and His Majesty and His Highness will not refuse your volunteering if you want to come, Taiyuan is a good place, and it is far away from Jiangdu, Daxing, and Luoyang, where you can really flex your muscles."
Of course Chen Sangliang knew that Fang Xuanling wanted to persuade him to ask for an order to reinforce the Taiyuan battlefield, and then took the opportunity to seek the post of staying behind in Taiyuan, so as to get rid of the shackles and flex his muscles, but due to various considerations and reasons, Chen Sangliang could not accept Fang Xuanling Ling's suggestion could only be shaken his head and said: "Brother, of course I understand what you mean, but I can't help it. I lost too much in this Hulaoguan battle. The army's vitality has not recovered, so I will send troops to conquer now. , to be honest, I’m not sure either.”
Thinking of the battalion full of wounded soldiers when Chen Sangliang returned from his triumphant return yesterday, Fang Xuanling couldn't say anything more, so he could only change his words and say: "Since my virtuous brother has this concern, we can only let the army rest and recuperate first, and do our best The vitality of the Dongdu army has been restored, I hope Pang Zhige and the others can support it for a while longer, and give you some time to rest and recuperate."
Chen Sangliang smiled, and thought to himself: "Brother Qiao Song, do you think I really want to go to Taiyuan? Not to mention that I really can't go now, even if I can, I won't go. If I go, There will never be a way to fulfill the promise made four years ago."
Thinking of the promise he made to the girl in his arms four years ago, Chen Sangliang's heart skipped a beat, and he couldn't help but whispered in his heart: "Li Yuan, you have to live up to your expectations, and Yu'er, wait for me. "
In the early morning of the next day, Chen Sangliang excused that the Dongdu army had suffered heavy losses in the battle at Hulaoguan. The prelude asking Emperor Yang of Sui to allow Dongdu to expand the army again was also approved. Yang Tong, who had no shortage of food, weapons and silk, nodded his head and immediately agreed to expand the Dongdu army to more than 160,000. Chen Sangliang was overjoyed, and immediately started recruiting troops. In order to quickly improve combat effectiveness, he recruited a large number of prisoners captured on the Hulao Pass battlefield, and immediately concentrated his energy on army training.
History is so complicated and changeable. In history, Wang Yangyou sent Song Laoshan to the north to fight against Li Yuan, because Li Yuan had threatened to capture Daxing at that time, and because Yang You sent Pang Yu and Huo Shiju to lead the army eastward to Dongdu to help Dongdu defend against what was already at that time. Li Mizhai, who successfully captured the Luokou warehouse, dispersed Daxing's forces, so Yang You's order to Song Laosheng was to defend Huoyi and resist Li Yuan's southward movement. But now, because of the demon moth Chen Sangliang in Dongdu, although he was slightly at a disadvantage, he did not show his defeat. All the mobile forces in Yang You's hands were able to go northward. As a result, because he felt that he was strong enough, Yang You decided to An order contrary to the historical details was issued-ordering Pang Yujun to attack Taiyuan and crusade against Li Yuan.
Yang You’s order contrary to history made the Daxing Sui army suffer. When the Daxing Sui army had just crossed Huoyi and entered the territory of Xihe County, and was just about to attack the throat of Jiahubao, where Li Yuan’s rebels were entrenched, the hinterland of Shanxi suddenly stretched The rain continued (historical facts), the land was muddy, the roads were slippery, and the army was unable to fight. Duan Zhixuan, the guard of Jiahu Fort, followed Li Shimin's secret plan, and ordered the soldiers to insult Pang Yu and Song Laosheng every day at the top of the city. Sure enough, Pang Yu and Song Laoshan fell for the trick, and refused to retreat back to Huoyi to avoid the rain regardless of the exhaustion of the soldiers. The army was very tired because of this.
At the same time, Li Yuan also took the opportunity to personally lead the main force of the rebel army to Fort Jiahu for reinforcements. Taking advantage of the Daxing Sui army's eagerness to fight, he lured Song Laosheng into the depths of the precipitous Queshu Valley. Cutting off Song Laoshan's retreat, Pang Yu urgently ordered Huo Shiju to send troops to respond, and happened to be hit by Li Yuan's strategy of encircling the spot to fight for aid. Li Yuan's rebels, who were familiar with the terrain, were haunted and haunted in the more than 100-mile-long Queshu Valley, frequently attacking and fighting hard. The Daxing Sui army, who was familiar with the terrain, complained terribly. In the end, not only was Song Laosheng unable to be rescued, but he also paid a lot of money.
As a result of the fierce battle in Queshu Valley, the Sui army suffered a disastrous defeat. Song Laoshan’s army ran out of food and grass. The soldiers surrendered one after another in order to survive. Pang Yu and Huo Shiju had no choice but to give up attacking Fort Jiahu and retreat to Huoyi. Li Yuan's rebels took the opportunity to pursue and kill them, and Duan Zhixuan also took the opportunity to counterattack. The Sui army was exhausted and demoralized, and failed again. It was not a small price to return to Huoyi to defend the city. Li Yuan sent his troops south to attack Huoyi.
On the same day that Dongdu received the news, Li Jing, who had been missing for a long time, finally appeared in front of Chen Sangliang. At that time, Chen Sangliang was personally supervising and training recruits in the army. When he was blocked and asked to meet Chen Sangliang, the guards at the gate of the camp asked Li Jing about his identity, and Li Jing replied with a wry smile: "Please report to Chen Liushou that his cousin is here, and he will meet naturally."
After the skeptical camp official sent someone to send the news to Chen Sangliang, he was very surprised to see that Chen Sangliang, who was covered in armor, ran three points faster than a rabbit, almost like flying After rushing to the gate of the camp, the soldiers behind couldn't keep up. Then, the camp gate officer was very surprised to see that Chen Sangliang, who was the honored lord left behind in the Eastern Capital, immediately saw Li Jing. He knelt down to Li Jing Jishou, hugged Li Jing's legs and yelled loudly. After Li Jing helped Chen Sangliang up again, Chen Sangliang hugged Li Jing again like a child and cried loudly.
The uncle and nephew cried for a long time, and after finding a place to sit down again, Chen Sangliang remembered to ask Li Jing how he escaped from Mayi and how he came here? Li Jing replied with a wry smile, saying that when Liu Wuzhou rebelled, he was lucky enough not to be affected by Shenwu. He wanted to organize troops to participate in the conquest of Liu Wuzhou. , had no choice but to enter Yanmen County through the remaining veins of Dongyue Taihang, and then took the road of Lingqiu Feihu to enter Hebei, traveled thousands of miles, and came to Luoyang, the eastern capital after suffering a lot. A thief turned into a citizen, and almost lost his life several times.
After roughly introducing his escape, Li Jing said with a wry smile: "Nephew, my uncle is here to implicate you. As Mayi Juncheng, I lost my city and land and left my post. If the court pursues it, it may be serious. Decapitation, if it is light, you will be demoted to a commoner, and the lightest thing is to demote you from a position, whether I can survive this time depends on you."
"Don't worry, uncle, I'll take care of my nephew." Chen Sangliang patted his chest and said, "In order to maintain the court code, it's impossible for you to be completely exonerated for uncle, but it's absolutely fine to get a demotion. I have already prepared for you the new official position after the resignation."
"You have already prepared for me?" Li Jing asked with dumbfounded eyes, "What official position?"
"You will know when the time comes." Chen Sangliang laughed, and couldn't wait to pull Li Jing up and said, "Cousin, hurry up, go to the city to see your nephew and grandson, I will ask them to kowtow to you."