As Chen Sangliang expected, Dou's army's ant-attached siege was not as violent as last time. Knowing that the main force of the Sui army in the Eastern Expedition had withdrawn to Hulao Pass, the soldiers of Dou's army intentionally or unintentionally left a certain amount of leeway before charging and fighting. The momentum was not as good as in the last battle, and Dou Jiande did not dare to join the battle with 50,000 troops successively like last time, and he also restrained himself in investing troops, so Li Keshi also successfully completed the task that Chen Sangliang gave before the war. From the beginning to the end, they did not ask the main field force of the Sui army to go to the city to join the battle. The last time the defending army alone blocked the Dou army's attack again.
But even so, the battle was still quite fierce. It lasted four hours from morning to night, excluding infantry with long-range shields, archers, and trebuchets, and the Dou Army still invested more than 20,000 people At one time, more than 30 people gathered on the city wall to occupy a position, forcing Li Keshi to lead his own soldiers to join the battle. It was hard to close the loophole again. The total casualties of the army officers and soldiers were close to 5,000, which was far more tragic than ordinary city offensive and defensive battles.
In the end, it was because Dou Jiande was repeatedly dissuaded by his subordinates and took the initiative to withdraw the ant-attached troops. Chen Sangliang also saw that there was nothing more to squeeze out, so the generals of the Sui Army hung a human head outside the city, claiming that it was Shi Wanbao At the first level, Shi Wanbao's plot to dedicate the city has also been defeated by the Sui army. Dou Jiande had no choice but to order the withdrawal of troops, and returned to the camp of his own army dejectedly.
After returning to the camp, the face-saving Dou Jiande felt ashamed, hurriedly arranged the night duty, ordered the tent to be disbanded, and hurried back to the dormitory to regret and worry. It's a pity that even if he fled back to his dormitory, he couldn't escape his wife Cao who was firmly opposed to storming the fortified city before. Although the virtuous Cao didn't scold and laugh at Dou Jiande's unfaithful advice, he took the opportunity to persuade Dou Jiande to give up his plan to take Luoyang directly. , suggested that Dou Jiande reconsider Song Zhengben and Ling Jing's previous proposal, and go straight to Shangdang via Fukou, go straight to Chen Sangliang's currently very empty Hedong grain production area, encircle Wei and save Zhao, and force Chen Sangliang to retreat.
Hearing this, Dou Jiande was obviously a little moved, but he still hesitated to say anything. Cao could see her husband's thoughts, and knew that Dou Jiande had killed Song Zhengben for this matter. Cao then tactfully persuaded: "If your majesty is unwilling to go to Dangshan Road, then your majesty may wish to discuss with the officials to go west through Hanoi to see what the civil and military officials mean. If they think it is possible to enter Hanoi, then your majesty can adopt it." , if they still feel that they should enter the party aggressively, His Majesty might as well think about it again..."
After another long silence, Dou Jiande finally nodded, agreeing to discuss with the officials the next day the plan to divert the army and march in the army. Mrs. Cao breathed a sigh of relief, hurriedly served Marquis Dou Jiande to sleep, and then quietly sent someone to get close to a few I contacted the civil and military officials of the government and asked them to make more steps for Dou Jiande in the next morning, trying to bring Dou Jiande back to the right path.
On the morning of the next day, Dou Jiande pretended to discuss with the ministers to divert to Hanoi to save Luoyang with his wife’s suggestion. As a result, he was immediately opposed by everyone, because the Sui army had already set up strict defenses in the area of Linqing Pass early on. The main force of the army can also immediately cross the river to help defend Linqingguan, and diverting to Hanoi will only make it look like Hulaoguan. Then, Qi Shanxing, who had secretly communicated with the Cao family, also took the opportunity to speak, persuading Dou Jiande to pretend to retreat to Linming, and then go east to Hedong via Shangdang, encircle Wei and save Zhao, forcing Chen Sangliang to give up attacking Luoyang.
With Song Zhengben's mistakes ahead, many Dou Junwen and Wu were shocked by Qi Shanxing, and Dou Jiande also pretended to be angry and asked: "I said before that this plan is not feasible, so I killed Song Zhengben , you Qi Shanxing came to persuade me to send troops to the party again, do you want to make a second original copy of the Song Dynasty?"
"Your Majesty misunderstood, of course I dare not imitate Song Zhengben." Qi Shanxing, who had confidence in his heart, was not afraid, and said convincingly: "When I was still in Linming, Song Zhengben suggested that Your Majesty directly enter the Shangdang. At that time, the Chen bandits' army was still on the Xin'an line in the west of Luoyang, and they could cross the Yellow River north to help Hedong at any time, so it was too risky for us to send troops directly to Hedong. But now it's different, our army has successfully lured Chen bandits to Hulao Pass The front line is far away from Hedong, and Chen's bandit army is exhausted from fighting one after another, and it is difficult to fight again. Even if it is transferred back to Hedong immediately, it will be the end of its strength and it will be difficult to break through. Therefore, I believe that sending troops to Shangdang Hedong now is far more harmful to our army than Song Zhengben was. favorable."
Pretending to listen carefully to Qi Shanxing's nonsense, and pretending to think about it for a long time, Dou Jiande, who had long regretted not adopting Song Zhengben's loyal advice, took the opportunity to nod and said: "It makes sense. Sending troops to Shangdang Hedong now is a more serious attack on our army. favorable."
After watching the double play jointly performed by Dou Jiande and Qi Shanxing, Dou Jun's civil and military minds were all convinced, and they quickly stood up to echo Qi Shanxing's shameless sophistry, urging Dou Jiande to withdraw the main force to Linming first, and then enter the army Shangdang and Hedong. Although those generals of Dou Jun who received Zheng Jun's benefits did not support it for the sake of money, they did not stand up to oppose it-all of them were frightened by the toughness of Hulao Pass. But Dou Jiande saw that the heat had come, so he also took the opportunity to go down the steps, nodded and said: "Okay, since all the lovers think..."
"Report!"
A guard who came rushing in suddenly interrupted Dou Jiande's final decision, and said to Dou Jiande Jishou: "Your Majesty, a man from Hulao Pass who claimed to be the deputy governor of the inner straight body, Zhang Yongtong, came here with the letter of the traitor Chen, and asked Greet Your Majesty and present your credentials."
"Certificate of state?" Dou Jiande frowned—the country bumpkin Dou Jiande has really heard of this term, and knows that this thing is very solemn and serious, and it is impossible to play it around. So even though Dou Junwen and Wu suggested that Dou Jiande drive away the Sui army envoys and refused to accept Chen Sangliang's Yining Guoshu, Dou Jiande still ordered: "Bring him in, I want to see what he can do with Chen thief pattern."
So, soon, Zhang Yongtong, the most fearless emissary under Chen Sangliang's command, was led to Dou Jiande's imperial tent. Chen Sangliang had explained beforehand that Zhang Yongtong saluted Dou Jiande according to the etiquette of meeting the king of a foreign vassal. Then he held up the letter placed on the silk plate with both hands, and said loudly: "His Majesty the Emperor Xia, this is the letter of credence handed over to you by His Royal Highness King Sui and Tang Dynasty on behalf of the Emperor Sui. Please accept it."
Zhang Yongtong's standard etiquette and respectful appellation greatly satisfied the arrogance of the upstart Dou Jiande, so Dou Jiande didn't make things difficult for Zhang Yongtong, and asked the guard to forward the letter to Dou Jiande as soon as he pouted. The exquisite Shengxin silk plate and The same exquisite envelope also made Dou Jiande feel that he had been respected enough. When he secretly took out the letter and took a closer look, Dou Jiande suddenly became a little bit happy-because Chen Sangliang came to fulfill his promise in the letter of credence, and asked Dou Jiande three times. Tianhou will fight to the death in the eastern suburbs of Hulao Pass, regardless of the outcome, she will never withdraw her troops!
Looking at Dou Jiande's face, Zhang Yongtong took the opportunity to say respectfully, "Your Majesty Xia, you sent an envoy to send a letter to invite our army to fight a decisive battle. His Royal Highness Tang Wang was ordered to be regent, and he promised to fight you ten days later on behalf of the emperor of the Sui Dynasty." , Today is the seventh day, and the decisive battle will be held in three days. His Royal Highness Tang kept his word, so he sent an envoy here just to confirm this matter with His Majesty in person. May I ask Your Majesty, after three days, I will Will the decisive battle between the army and your army start as scheduled?"
Hearing Zhang Yongtong's words, some Dou Junwen and Wu immediately changed their faces, and hurriedly begged Dou Jiande to consider this matter carefully with winks, but unfortunately Dou Jiande didn't even blink his eyelids, and immediately shouted: "Fight! Of course the decisive battle is on schedule! Go back Tell Thief Chen, three days later, outside the east gate of Hulao Pass, you and I will fight to the death, regardless of the outcome, and we will never withdraw our troops!"
Zhang Yongtong, who had successfully completed the task, was overjoyed and thanked Dou Jiande quickly, and then offered to leave. Dou Jiande, who was in urgent need of showing off his prestige, shouted to stop Zhang Yongtong, and asked Liu Bin to write a letter of reply to Chen Sangliang on his behalf. Reiterate the date of the battle, sign and use the seal personally, and then give it to Zhang Yongtong to take it back to Chen Sangliang. Many Dou Junwen and Wu complained in their hearts, but there was nothing they could do.
Afraid of exposing the situation of their own army, when Zhang Yongtong was around, Dou Junwen and Wu did not dare to obstruct the opposition publicly. However, after Zhang Yongtong was sent away by the guards, Qi Shanxing, Feng Shixian and other civil officials immediately came out and complained: "Your Majesty, what are you doing?" Don’t discuss and discuss, and agree to a decisive battle with Chen Thief? Is this too impulsive?”
"What's the need for discussion?" Dou Jiande shouted loudly: "Before, the traitor Chen Yingliang hid himself in a tiger prison and locked him up in the city. I had nothing to do with him, but since this traitor dared to go out of the city for a decisive battle, why should I be afraid of him? It's still useful. What are you discussing?"
"But Your Majesty, our situation is not very good now." Qi Shanxing complained: "In the two siege battles, our army was killed and injured more than 10,000 people. Although there are still nearly 100,000 troops, the main force is nearly half strong. Wounded, tired soldiers, and low morale, launching a decisive battle at this time is not good for our army?"
"In the two siege battles, my army suffered some damage, but the situation is better than Chen's army!" Dou Jiande sneered loudly: "In less than two months, Chen's main force Fighting five consecutive battles, the soldiers suffered far more injuries than our army, and their fatigue was far higher than that of our army. The number of troops and the number of horses are also absolutely superior to our army. How can I be willing to miss such a good opportunity for a decisive battle? "
Qi Shanxing and others still wanted to dissuade them, but Dou Jiande waved his big hand and shouted: "No need to say more, I have made up my mind. After three days, I will fight to the death with Chen's army! Anyone who dissuades me will be killed immediately!"
Qi Shanxing, Feng Shixian and others had no choice but to shut up. Dou Jiande loudly issued an order to inform the whole army of the date of the decisive battle, ordering the whole army to step up their preparations and send troops to fight Chen Sangliang three days later. At the same time, Dou Jiande couldn't wait to promulgate a huge reward, and shouted loudly: "Moreover, tell the soldiers of the army that on the day of the decisive battle, whoever can win the first rank of Chen Bandit will be rewarded with a thousand taels of gold, three hundred pearls, and be granted the title of king!"
…
After Zhang Yongtong returned to Hulao Pass, he learned of Dou Jiande's reply and read the Xia Guoguo book brought back by Zhang Yongtong. Of course, Chen Sangliang laughed more and more happily, and said repeatedly: "Okay, okay, as long as Dou Jiande is fine." , After the decisive battle in three days, we no longer have to worry about his threat to us."
"Your Highness, I'm sorry to remind you, it's better to beware of Dou Thief's dishonesty." Zhang Yongtong said cautiously: "Today in Dou Thief's tent, I noticed that several officials under Dou Thief's tent looked nervous, as if If you want to persuade Dou Thief not to accept the appointment, although Dou Jiande promised to fight in three days, these officials may say that Dou Jiande will give up the decisive battle within these three days, and then our army's previous efforts will be in vain."
"It's okay, don't be afraid." Chen Sangliang waved his hand in a grand manner, and said with a smile: "There are three reasons. First, Dou Jiande is a straight man. He values his reputation and saves face. He will not break his promise and make the world laugh at him. Second, if Dou Jiande wants to open the door in advance Slip, first of all, you have to cross the natural danger of the Yellow River. He will never be able to hide it from our army. Third, I have said before that Niuzhukou is Dou Jiande's desperate place. The terrain is too narrow for a huge army. It's very inconvenient, even if he hides in the camp three days later and won't come out, he won't be able to get rid of our army's entanglement, as long as he makes any moves, we can immediately take the opportunity to attack and force him to a decisive battle!"
Zhang Yongtong nodded and echoed: "What your highness said is very true. In fact, when I came into contact with Dou Jiande, I also found that this person is a straight-hearted person. His mind is far less than that of Wang Shichong and Li Mi. Dealing with him is much easier than negotiating with Li Mi and Wang Shichong." It's easy. This time the envoy to his camp, Xiaguan didn't expect it to be so smooth beforehand."
"Normal." Chen Sangliang sneered, and said in a very sarcastic tone: "I have carefully studied the history of Dou Jiande's start-up, and found that the reason why this man has come to this day is entirely because of his good luck, and he has never met a decent person. There are no tigers in the mountains of Hebei, which makes him the overlord of the monkey. If he had gone south to fight for hegemony in the Central Plains a year or two earlier, and met Li Mi and Wang Shichong in their heyday, he would have never known how much he would have been crushed to death by Li Mi and Wang Shichong. It's time. This king is really invincible for using tricks and tricks against such an opponent!"
Zhang Yongtong, who also likes flattering, quickly echoed, saying that if Dou Jiande had met His Highness Tang Wang a year or two earlier, there would definitely be no bones and dregs left. It is entirely because Dou Jiande was lucky that he did not meet Chen Sangliang. A shameless opponent as fierce as tigers and leopards, as cunning as wolves. However, Feng Deyi, who has always been known for flattering horses, was blunt this time, admonishing Chen Sangliang: "Your Highness, it is better to be careful, after all, the strength of Dou Jiande's bandit army is more than three times that of ours, and his cavalry and The elite Chinese army has not suffered any damage, and still maintains the strongest combat power."
"Of course." Chen Sangliang smiled, and said, "This king just despises Dou Jiande, but he doesn't despise him. In the final battle three days later, this king will put up all his energy and be careful to deal with this ordinary man."
After all, Chen Sangliang ordered the generals to be summoned to discuss matters in the Shuaitang. After the generals of the Sui army arrived, Chen Sangliang first announced that he had agreed with Dou Jiande to fight to the death outside the east gate of Hulao Pass in three days, and then ordered Sui The army will seize the time to prepare for this decisive battle with fewer enemies and more enemies, let the soldiers prepare their weapons and build up their physical strength, and strive to meet the decisive battle in the best condition. As for the city defense in these three days, Chen Sangliang still handed it over to Li Keshi and others who did not need to send troops to participate in the decisive battle three days later.
The generals of the Sui army sang promises to take orders, and then Yuchi Jingde, who had been completely led by Chen Sangliang, offered a rare strategy and suggested to Chen Sangliang: "Your Highness, since our army has already made an agreement with the enemy During the war, the bandit army will definitely prepare for the battle within these three days. The general thinks that our army might as well send a small amount of troops to harass outside the bandit camp every night during these three days, making a loud noise and making the bandits The soldiers could not rest in peace, and fought decisively with our army when their physical strength was insufficient, so as to gain more chances for our army to win."
"Jingde, when did you become so full of bad water?"
Chen Sangliang asked with surprise on his face, and the generals of the Sui Army burst into laughter, while Yuchi Jingde scratched his head embarrassingly and said, "It's not that the last general has bad water in his stomach, it's that he has been with Your Highness for a long time. It got a little bit broken."
The generals of the Sui Army laughed again, and Chen Sangliang also laughed loudly, saying: "That's right, those who are close to ink are black, and you became like this because I led you to ruin it. But, your idea is not bad. , but if you go to harass every night, the enemy will inevitably be prepared and form a habit, so if you want to harass the enemy, you can only create chaos for the enemy on the eve of the decisive battle, the night before the decisive battle, so that you can kill one enemy Catch them off guard and make them defenseless."
"It's still the bad water in His Highness' stomach."
Yuchi Jingde's heartfelt truth made Sui Jun Wenwu laugh for the third time, while Chen Sangliang smiled modestly, saying that he was far behind Li Mi, Wang Shichong and others, and at the same time couldn't wait in his heart Thinking, "Is there any other way to influence the morale of the Dou bandits and their fighting spirit, so as to win more chances for our army?"
On the first night of the day, at dusk, the Yellow River Navy of the Sui Army, which was transformed from more than 80 civilian ships, was led by General He Yanyu of the Sui Army and He Er, the head of the Yellow River Navy, and went down the Yellow River to Hulao Pass. The West Bank Wharf added more than 2,000 troops to the Sui Army on the Eastern Expedition, and also provided water combat power for the Sui Army on the Eastern Expedition to intercept the main force of the Dou Army from crossing the Yellow River north. In addition, the four generals Qin Qiong, Luo Shixin, Mulan and He Yanyu finally reunited for the first time after the Battle of Dahai Temple.
On the second night, General Zhang Qingte of the Dou Army sent supplies from Linming to the south, but unexpectedly, he was betrayed by Cheng Mingzhen, the magistrate of Yecheng County of the Dou Army. General Fan Wenchao's troops attacked the Dou army's supply team, defeated Zhang Qingte with the help of Cheng Mingzhen, and burned a large amount of Dou's supply and supplies.
On the third night, the last night before the decisive battle, at the second watch, several soldiers of the Sui army lit a gunpowder box near the camp of the Dou army. The soldiers, the soldiers made noise, the horses were alarmed, and almost bombed the camp. After Dou Jiande and Dou Jun Wenwu managed to quell the riot, halfway through the third watch, He Er, the little water thief of Tongji Canal, led the Sui Army's Yellow River Navy to attack Dou Jun's Niukou Wharf, burning a large number of defenseless Dou Jun. The military ferry, beating gongs and drums and blowing horns, disturbed Dou Jiande's entire army again.
This was done twice by the Sui army. Of course, none of Dou Jun could sleep well on the eve of the decisive battle. Dou Jiande himself did not close his eyes all night, looking at the gradually whitening eastern sky and gritted his teeth, "It's finally dawn! It's finally possible The decisive battle is here! Bandit Chen, wait, I'm coming!"