It took only half a day for Chen Sangliang to take down Huoyijian City. Duan Lun, who was sent by Li Jiancheng to help Li Er, did not dare to continue going south. As soon as he arrived at Lingshi, he hurriedly stopped and repaired various fortifications to block the sparrows. Gu, Chen Sangliang, who was still unable to attack Taiyuan, ignored him, and appointed Liu Heikai as the general manager of the Jinnan March, and asked him to lead the army to Linfen County, and continue to be in charge of confronting the old Li family. As a result, the Daxing Sui Army's conquest of Li Er came to an end.
From the expedition to the final breakthrough of Huoyi City, basically annihilating the main force of the Second Li Army, it only took more than 20 days for the Sui Army to revive the Sui Army. He fought back, and he couldn't even defend the city. He finally escaped to Huoyi to get a chance to breathe. He spent countless efforts to strengthen Huoyi city. In the end, the Daxing Sui army took the city in just over half a day. The 30,000 main force that had managed to get together through the dismal management disappeared in smoke, and a large number of local soldiers were also recruited.
The strong posture of the Daxing Sui Army shocked the world, greatly stabilized the interior of Guanzhong, and made those civil and military officials who were dissatisfied with Chen Sangliang's forced support of Yang Xingji to succeed him no longer dare to have any thoughts of resistance. At the same time, the gains in land and cities are also quite huge. Jiangjun and Linfen, two major counties in southern Shanxi, were restored in one go. The most important grain-producing areas in southern Shanxi were all embraced by Chen Sangliang. Li Gui, the prefect of Changping in the east of the county, couldn't wait to send his eldest son Li Qing quickly to meet Chen Sangliang. He respectfully invited Chen Sangliang to send troops to take over Changping, and Chen Sangliang picked him up a county.
Zheng Zeng, the prefect of Wencheng in Zhengdong, Linfen County, refused to surrender, but in a small Wencheng county, there were only a few thousand local soldiers who lacked equipment and training. At the same time, Longquan County in the north of Wencheng also accepted Chen Sangliang's emissary to surrender, and Yi Zhi accepted Chen Sangliang's command order, which made Zheng Zeng hopeless even if he wanted to contact Li Jiancheng through mountain trails. Sangliang also paid little attention to Wencheng, and only ordered Wang Xingben to go north from Fenyin to attack Zheng Zeng, and sent a son of the Pei family to lead 3,000 troops to help Wang Xingben, and to train newcomers by the way.
After adjusting the personnel arrangements of the counties in southern Shanxi, adding some troops to Liu Heita and redeploying the southern Jin army, Chen Sangliang returned to Guanzhong with 40,000 main forces before Xueluo. As a result, the main force had just returned to Hedong and had not had time to cross the Yellow River. Wang Shichong's second son, Wang Xuanshu, had already brought a letter and gift to Chen Sangliang, congratulated Chen Sangliang on behalf of his father, and praised Chen Sangliang's extermination As a result, he also took the opportunity to directly ask Chen Sangliang for an alliance.
Chen Sangliang didn't mind signing a covenant with his father-in-law that could be torn up at any time, and took the opportunity to ask Wang Xuanshu about the battle in the Central Plains and the latest situation between Yu Wenhua and Li Mijun. However, what puzzled Chen Sangliang was that, Wang Xuanshu actually introduced that after Yu Wenhuaji took Liyang Cang, he just forced to land in Ji County where Li Yang Cang was located and Dong County next to it, and then made no new moves. At the same time, Li Mi only concentrated on defending Hulao Pass and Luokou Cangcheng, and did not attack Yu Wenhuaji or Wang Shichong.
Li Mi's reaction was within Chen Sangliang's expectation. Li Mi's army, who was seriously injured, had some difficulties in protecting themselves, let alone counterattacking Li Yangcang or Huo Merge Wang Shichong. Chen Sangliang couldn't understand Yu Wenhuaji's actions. Although the Liyang warehouse is the largest granary north of the Yellow River, its grain storage is far less than that of Luokou warehouse, and it has been occupied by Li Mijun for a long time. Even if there is still some food, it is definitely not much. At the same time, several counties around Liyangcang have been destroyed by various thieves, and it is impossible to use it for a foothold. You have to choose your next goal quickly, to seize a decent land and city to gain a foothold, or to seize the granary supplies and open the way back to the west.
Suspiciously, Chen Sangliang asked Wang Xuanshu again: "Brother Xuanshu, then, have you found out about Yu Wenhuaji's plans for the next step? Or did Yu Wenhuaji concentrate on scouting and focus on the investigation?" Which attack target?"
"This... yes." Wang Xuanshu's answer was a little hesitant, hesitatingly said: "Our army carefully found out Yu Wenhua and the news in the army, saying that Yu Wenhua and he are going to attack Hulao Pass first, capture Luokou Cang, and then march east. Capital, or bypass Dongdu and go directly to Guanzhong. But..., but this is just a rumor, and it has not been confirmed yet."
Staring at Wang Xuanshu sharply, Chen Sangliang finally said: "To tell you the truth, you and Xueji are brothers and sisters born of the same mother. For the sake of your sister and your nephew, It also looks at the situation when Brother Xuanying quietly helped Wuji and Zixiao and their mother and son, I don't care about you, I will give you a chance to tell the truth again, if you dare to lie to me again and deliberately hide important military information from me, everything You are responsible for the consequences."
Wang Xuanshu hesitated for a moment, and then said: "Don't blame my brother, I didn't tell the truth just now. In fact, our detailed work has found accurate information. Yu Wenhuaji has decided to attack Hanoi first, and has sent envoys to force Li Mi's rebel army The Hanoi defender Zheng Qianxiang surrendered, and if Yu Wenhuaji hadn't lost time, he might have been attacking Hanoi by now."
After all, Wang Xuanshu quickly added: "Brother-in-law, don't get me wrong, it's not that my father deliberately lied to you, but the court officials in the Eastern Capital were worried that you would take advantage of the fire and force us to surrender to you, so they urged my father to hide it from you for the time being." This news."
"Wang Renze's idiot idea?" Chen Sangliang asked bluntly: "Yu Wenhuaji is going to attack Hanoi. I heard that I have already captured Jinnan. If you continue westward to the east of the river, you will definitely have the idea of going south from Heyang. At that time, you will bear the brunt, and you can’t do it without asking me. If you want me to help you, you are afraid that I will take the opportunity to force you to surrender, or take the opportunity to blackmail your land and city. You want to hide it from me, so that I can stab Li Mi's traitor from the back, first trick me into forming an alliance with you, and after I lead the main force eastward to Luoyang, I will find it too late to be fooled, right?"
Wang Xuanshu didn't dare to say anything, but Chen Sangliang was full of hatred, and said, "Why is father-in-law so confused? Wang Renze, an idiot, doesn't even think about it. Even if I'm fooled for a while, don't tell me my scouts are all worthless?" , won’t you send me news about Yu Wenhuaji? Even if it’s a little later, I can still return to the teacher before the battle. What’s the use of what he’s doing besides making me angry?”
Wang Xuanshu's character is barely honest compared to the members of the Wang family. After being scolded by Chen Sangliang, his face turned red, he could only tell the truth: "Brother-in-law is wise, yes, it was myna's idea, but he asked me to do this in private." I did it, my father didn't know about it, my father just asked me to tell you the truth, please send troops to help us as soon as possible. After all, we are not only relatives, but also have a reason."
Silently remembering Wang Shichong's ability to love his nephew Wang Renze's short-sightedness, Chen Sangliang didn't continue to attack, but thought about it and said: "Yes, if Yu Wenhuaji enters Hanoi and goes south from Heyang, your situation will be very dangerous. , I really can't just stand by. However, I can neither openly form an alliance with you now, nor can I directly send troops to help you."
When Wang Xuanshu heard this, he became anxious, and said that Chen Sangliang blamed him for the crime of deliberate deception, and hurriedly apologized to Chen Sangliang, bowing and bowing, and begged Chen Sangliang to give his father-in-law a hand because of his relatives. . Chen Sangliang waved his hand, and said angrily: "Listen to me, I didn't do this because I blamed you for not telling the truth, but for other reasons."
Stopping his wife and brother, Chen Sangliang said again: "I can't form an alliance with you directly. It's morally unreasonable. I support Emperor Yining, and you support Emperor Huangtai. There are no two days in the sky, and there are no two masters in the people." , if we form an open and direct alliance, wouldn’t there be two emperors in the Great Sui Dynasty? How will my father-in-law and I explain to the world? How will we explain to the courts of the two capitals under our respective command?”
"This is also the reason for directly sending troops to help." Chen Sangliang said casually: "Although I sent troops to attack Yu Wenhuaji, there is a legitimate reason for avenging the former emperor, but I still cannot directly form an alliance with you and live in the same camp. Eat with the same spoon! So I can send troops, but I can only fight with you separately, secretly communicate with each other, and help each other, but I cannot openly form an alliance!"
Wang Xuanshu finally turned his worries into joy, and hurriedly asked Chen Sangliang when and how many troops he would send to help Wang Shichong. When I arrived at Hangu Pass, I had more than 25,000 soldiers and horses. As long as my father-in-law needed it, my forwards could rush to Dongdu to help in up to five days. As for how many follow-up main forces will be dispatched, this matter can be discussed later. We have determined whether Yu Wenhua and the bandit army have really crossed the south to invade Luoyang, and how many soldiers and horses there are, and then I can decide how many main reinforcements to send out in time."
Wang Xuanshu was overjoyed, and hurriedly thanked Chen Sangliang for his kindness, calling each brother-in-law very affectionately, and quickly took out the letter written by Wang Xueji to Chen Sangliang. He casually asked: "How is the relationship between father-in-law and Li Mi's traitor? Are there any messengers or letters in communication with each other now?"
"No." Wang Xuanshu shook his head, and replied truthfully: "Ever since his father was forced to Qing Dynasty, Li Mi has never sent anyone to the court to see him, and he has not sent any official documents back to the Eastern Capital. He completely severed the connection with the Eastern Capital. Later, after he was defeated and fled back to Hulao Pass, his father sent an envoy to contact Li Mi with an edict, considering the fact that his lips were dead and his teeth were cold. As a result, the envoy was driven back without seeing Li Mi. The answer given by Li Mi's rebel army was that his father His Majesty can't control the authority, so they don't listen to the edict issued by the father in the name of the emperor."
Chen Sangliang nodded unsurprisingly, and suddenly asked a strange question, "Is there so much cloth in the Eastern Capital that you can't run out of it?"
"How does my brother-in-law know?" Wang Xuanshu was stunned for a while, and then remembered that his eldest grandson Wuji escaped from the Eastern Capital not long ago with the secret help of his elder brother Wang Xuanying. Then Wang Xuanshu nodded and said, "That's right, there is only food shortage in the Eastern Capital. There is no shortage of cloth, there is so much silk and satin that it can be used as a rope to draw water, and when the firewood is insufficient, the cloth is directly burned for cooking."
Speaking of this, Wang Xuanshu suddenly misunderstood what Chen Sangliang meant, and hurriedly said: "Brother-in-law, is there a shortage of cloth and silk in Guanzhong? If so, just ask, brother Yu will definitely ask father to provide it as much as possible."
"There is some shortage of cloth in Guanzhong, but it is barely enough." Chen Sangliang said casually, "Send a fast horse back to report to your father-in-law, and ask him to send an envoy to contact Li Mi's army as soon as possible, and ask for cloth to be sent to Li Mi's army. The army is exchanging food, and winter is coming soon. Li Mi's bandit army lacks cloth to make clothes for the winter, and will never refuse this request. In this way, you can not only alleviate some urgent food shortages, but also clear up the contact with Li Mi's bandit army , will be very beneficial to the next battle against Yuhua Culture."
Wang Xuanshu was overjoyed when he heard that, while beating his chest and complaining why he didn't come up with such a good idea before, he hurriedly wrote a book, and prepared to send someone back to report the matter to Wang Shichong. However, what Wang Xuanshu did not expect in his dreams was that Chen Sangliang said casually: "The two thieves, Yu Wenhuaji and Li Mi, have a lot of soldiers, and the father-in-law is trapped in a lonely city, and the situation is difficult. Well, I am filial to my father-in-law. After a while, I will give you a sketch of the artillery, and you will ask the envoy to take it back with you, so that your father-in-law can imitate it according to the picture, and use it to resist the bandits."
With a bang, Wang Xuanshu directly fell to the ground, and after a moment of tongue-tied, Wang Xuanshu jumped up again suddenly, rushed up and grabbed Chen Sangliang's hand, he was so excited that he even stuttered and trembled when he spoke. Said: "Brother-in-law, you are really Brother Yu's good brother-in-law and father's good son-in-law. It is really a blessing for our royal family to have Sister Xueji marry you!"
Chen Sangliang smiled modestly and urged Wang Xuanshu to quickly write a letter and arrange a messenger. After Wang Xuanshu made some calculations, he said, "No, I don't trust anyone with such an important thing as the artillery sketch. Brother Yu will go back in person, and brother Yu will bring the artillery with him." I plan to go back and report the great news to my father in person!"
Chen Sangliang smiled and agreed to let Wang Xuanshu rest in the guest room temporarily, waiting for himself to prepare letters and artillery blueprints. As a result, after Wang Xuanshu, who had previously mentioned that he did not dare to take the initiative to mention artillery, left, the new staff member Sun Fujiama He jumped up and asked with disbelief: "Prime Minister, do you really want to give the cannon pattern to Wang Shichong? That is our magic weapon, are you so willing?"
"I can't bear it." Chen Sangliang said with a smile: "Father-in-law's situation is too difficult, and Li Mi alone is enough for him. It will be even more difficult to parry, if we don't hurry up to strengthen him, if something happens to Dongdu, we will be implicated even if he is unlucky."
"Of course I understand this truth." Sun Fujia nodded quickly, and said anxiously: "But Wang Shichong is not only your father-in-law, the prime minister, but also an enemy of our own. Now he helped Wang Shichong with artillery, and he will use it again in the future." What if the artillery comes against us?"
Chen Sangliang laughed loudly, and said: "Fu Jia, you are really a kind person, why don't you think about it, no matter how stupid I am, I won't fail to guard against this point, right?"
After laughing, Chen Sangliang beckoned Sun Fujia to his face out of the need to cultivate cronies, and whispered in his ear: "What I am going to give to Wang Shichong is a much less powerful pine tree cannon, which can also It kills people, but its power and range are much smaller. If he gets it in his hand, he will definitely play a big role in defending the city. It can help him defend the Eastern Capital and consume Yu Wenhua and Li Mi for us. The strength of the traitor. It can also make Yu Wenhuaji, Li Mi and father-in-law think that the artillery is not too powerful, and when we personally attack and suddenly deploy real artillery, tell me, what will happen?"
Sun Fujia suddenly realized, and after expressing his admiration to Chen Sangliang, he asked curiously: "Prime Minister, if Yu Wenhuaji really went south from Heyang to attack the Eastern Capital, should our army follow the promise and send troops to help, or should we guard Hangu?" Guan Xiaohan said, watch the fire from the other side and reap the benefits?"
"If Yu Wenhuaji really goes south from Heyang to attack Dongdu." Chen Sangliang replied decisively: "Then I will not only send troops to Dongdu immediately to help Wang Shichong, but also lead the army there myself!"
Sun Fujia's eyes widened again, and he asked cautiously: "Prime Minister, can I ask the reason?"
"Do you want to hear the truth or a lie?" Chen Sangliang asked back with a smile, and said, "The lie is that I am a filial son-in-law. I can't just sit and watch my father-in-law fall into crisis and refuse to save him. I am determined to help him at all costs."
"What about the truth?" Sun Fujia asked curiously again.
"There are three reasons for the truth." Chen Sangliang replied: "First, Wang Shichong is my father-in-law. Although we have had a lot of quarrels with me, generally speaking, he is barely good to me. I also have a little I'm sorry for him, so I have to repay his kindness no matter what."
"Secondly, the late emperor's kindness to me was as great as a mountain. Yu Wenhuaji killed him. Of course, I must try my best to avenge him and repay the late emperor's kindness to me."
The high-sounding words were spoken, and the reason for the lack of propriety, righteousness and honesty was found, and Chen Sangliang finally showed his fangs, and said with a smile: "Thirdly, Yu Wenhua and the Guanzhong soldiers under his command are good at fighting, elite and brave, good at riding I snatched most of the war horses from the Turkic people in Yanmen County, so why am I willing to let them take advantage of others?"
At the same time as Sun Fujia, who had gradually been brought down by Chen Sangliang, Chen Sangliang frowned and said: "But it is not so easy to destroy Yu Wenhuaji. There is another variable in this matter. Li Mi, Yu Wenhua Ji captured the Liyang Warehouse as he wished, and must have captured many family members of Li Mi’s bandit generals. Maybe Li Mi’s only son was also captured by Yu Wenhuaji. If Yu Wenhuaji took a gentle strategy towards him, Li Mi would see me again. Send troops eastward to help Wang Shichong, maybe they will stand on Yu Wenhuaji's side, and suddenly give us a knife."
"Then how to deal with it?" Sun Fujia asked quickly.
Chen Sangliang was silent, and after thinking for a while, Chen Sangliang said: "Two points, first, I have to strive to form an alliance with Li Mi, and join forces to attack Yu Wenhuaji; second, I need someone to pretend to be Li Erlang The envoy, on behalf of Li Erlang, went to Yu Wenhua and the bandit army."