On the tenth day of the army's departure, the Xuanzhi imperial envoy rushed to Yongzhou after many obstacles. Along the way, the local officials were so enthusiastic that it was unbearable. They stopped the team, and if they didn't stay for a meal and a glass of wine, it would be difficult for anyone at the door. Not only that, when crossing the bridge, the bridge breaks. Cross the river without a boat. So much so that he arrived nearly a month later than the scheduled time, and it was no accident that he did not see Luo Yao.
The imperial decree to transfer 100,000 troops could not just be kept in his hands. The imperial envoy thought for a while, but he simply didn't stay in Yongzhou, and led the team to chase north in one breath.
At this moment, he just wanted to issue the decree and let it go.
There is only one river between Huangyang Road and Shandong Road, the southernmost of the three Northwest Roads occupied by the rebels. Although this river is a branch of Yishui, its channel is extremely wide. The local people call it Huangniu River, and the official name in the Sui pictures and records is Huishui. The origin of the name of the Yellow Niu River is a myth. It is said that there was a yellow ox who became a spirit and harmed one party. A sword fairy came down from the mortal world and fought a battle with the yellow ox spirit by the river.
The sword fairy injured the scalper, and the scalper jumped into the river in a hurry and refused to come out again. The sword fairy set up a talisman and sealed the ox spirit in the river.
Then there was a year of severe drought, and the water level dropped a lot. Many people swore that they saw the scalper and it turned into a big rock.
Luo Yao's vanguard army did not move slowly, the three armies headed by Xiong Weilang Jiang Wen Xiaodao traveled day and night to clear the way for the army. It took only one month to rush from Yongzhou to the south bank of the Huangniu River. The governor of Huangyangdao greeted him personally, but Wen Xiaodao declined the banquet. Although Huangyang Road is far away from Yongzhou, it does not belong to the Four Southwest Roads. But Yang Yanye, governor of Huangyang Road, is also very familiar with Zuo Qianwei's behavior style, and knows that this is a group of military masters with lofty eyes.
After Wen Xiaodao arrived at the south bank of the Yellow Niu River, he sent people to choose a location to build a barracks. The camp for nearly 400,000 troops cannot be built in a short while. Wen Xiaodao asked Yang Yanye for help, and recruited a group of craftsmen to assist. Of course, don't expect the left avant-garde to pay for the wages.
Not only that, the first thing Wen Xiaodao did when he arrived here was to inform Yang Yanye to prepare food and grass for the 400,000 army for a month, and his attitude was taken for granted.
With an army of 400,000, plus horses and livestock, the number of food and grass used for a day is enough to make people speechless. But Yang Yanye could only cooperate. After all, Zuo Qianwei came to suppress the rebellion. If someone reported that he did not provide food and grass for the army, the emperor probably would not even listen to the explanation.
The north bank of the Huangniu River is the camp of the rebels, which can be seen with clairvoyance. It seems that the rebels have long known the news of the left front guard going north. I heard that the number of troops on the north bank has continued to increase recently, and the number of troops has exceeded 200,000. The rebels took control of the granaries in Northwest Sandao, and the common people could only join the rebels if they couldn't survive. In just one year, the strength of the rebels snowballed.
According to Yang Yanye's analysis, the total strength of the rebel army may exceed 1.5 million people.
But Wen Xiaodao scoffed at this.
It's not that you can call a soldier a soldier just by giving them a knife. What about 1.5 million people? In his opinion, most of them are local chickens and dogs with grass bids waiting to be sold.
Luo Yao's army arrived on the third day after Wen Xiaodao built the camp, and walked for more than two months on the road. After the imperial envoy who announced the decree caught up with the team, he returned to Chang'an immediately after issuing the decree and did not stay for another day. After finishing this errand, he knew that he would never have the chance to pass the decree again in his life. If you are lucky, the emperor will just reprimand you and settle the matter. If you are not lucky, losing your official position is a trivial matter, and you may have to move your head.
On the day Luo Yao arrived, Yang Yanye invited him to the Governor's Mansion and treated him warmly. Luo Yao praised Yang Yanye's achievements in governing Huangyang Dao in the past few years, as if two old friends met each other, and the atmosphere at the banquet was extremely harmonious. After Yang Yanye sent Luo Yao away, his heart was still not at ease, and Luo Yao sent someone to remind him the next day.
Regarding this, Yang Yanye could only swallow his anger.
In a fit of rage, he withdrew all the soldiers and civilians who had been stationed on the south bank of the Huangniu River by Huang Yangdao, in the name of giving up the camp to the left avant-garde. These days, the rebel army has crossed the river frequently to harass them. If the county soldiers and civilians from Huangyang Road hadn't fought back sharply and bravely, the rebel army might have rushed into Huangyang Road and wreaked havoc.
For this, Huang Yangdao's soldiers naturally had resentment.
In the past two years, they have fought against the rebels almost every day. He even organized a raid to go to the opposite side of the Yellow Niu River. How many people were killed and how many people were injured? The county soldiers are better. After all, they are troops within the local establishment, and their salaries can barely be paid. Those Minyongs all joined the battle with enthusiasm, and now they withdraw as soon as they say it, without giving an explanation or comfort.
Huangyang Road can be regarded as a transitional area between the Northwest and Southwest regions, unlike the land of fish and rice in the Southwest where it is so rich. Adjacent to the northwest, food was allocated every year to help the people on the north side of the Huangniu River. In the past two years, the governor's office has almost emptied the treasury in order to prepare for the establishment of the people's courage. Yang Yanye would hand in the memorial requesting for the reduction or exemption of money and food almost once a month, but for some unknown reason, there was no decree for a long time.
Later, he was really helpless, and took the lead to contact some officials and squires of Huangyang Road, collected a large sum of money and sent someone to send it to the capital, and secretly sent it to Pei Yan's mansion, the servant of Huangmen. On the third day, His Majesty's approval for Huang Yangdao's reduction of money and food came down. They even allocated a batch of weapons and armors from the treasury of the Ministry of War. After they arrived, everyone looked at the supplies of the court and had nothing to do but smile wryly.
Yang Yanye withdrew all the county soldiers and civilians in a rage, in fact, he didn't mean to let these men who had served the country for two years rest. The rebels could unscrupulously occupy the granaries and rob the treasury on the north bank, but Yang Yanye couldn't. If he wanted to keep Huangyang Dao, he had to raise soldiers. If the court didn't order him, he tightened his belt and had to pay the full amount of money and food every year. Sometimes he even thought of opening the Xinkou warehouse, but unfortunately, he still didn't have the courage in the end.
He knew that the Minyongs were angry, but what could they do
In desperation, he had no choice but to borrow food from the local rich households and gentry again.
This governor, who does not seek merit but seeks no faults, has obviously aged in the past two years. Everyone said that sitting in the position of governor is already an extremely human minister, how many people are envious of the robe of a second-rank official. But only I know the depression, and I have nowhere to vent it.
…
…
Standing on the south bank of the Yellow Niu River, Luo Yao looked to the opposite side with clairvoyance. The rebels on the opposite bank are laying stakes along the river to prevent ships from the south bank from approaching. On the high slope, the archery wooden village has been built. You can see the patrolling soldiers on the wooden village passing by, and there are quite a few of them.
The people driven by the rebels stood in the river and drove down the wooden stakes one by one. Ropes were tied around their waists to prevent them from being washed away by the river. But even so, it is the summer flood season, and this year's rain is more abundant than in previous years. The river widens and the river water rises. Every day, people are swept away and can no longer be seen.
Standing in the water for a long time, many people's legs began to rot and maggots.
Many small boats patrolled the river, and the rebel soldiers on the boats stared at the common people with whips. If anyone moved a little slower, they would immediately whip them down without mercy.
"It is said that thousands of people on the North Shore have been tortured to death in the past month."
Wen Xiaodao stood beside Luo Yao and said in a low voice, "The rebels have been forcing the common people to work since a few months ago, treating human life like nothing."
"Who is the general of the rebel army?"
"It is said that it is Yin Poshan, one of Li Yuanshan's generals. He was named a champion by Li Yuanshan and became a general. He is very beautiful. Most of the soldiers under this man are young and strong people who were taken captive. The exact number is unknown. I don't know how many soldiers there are, but the total number of troops should not be less than 200,000."
"Um."
Luo Yao hummed: "Aren't there many boats nearby?"
"yes."
Wen Xiaodao leaned over and said: "A few months ago, the rebel army kept going south, the target was the fishing boats on the south bank, and there were no soldiers stationed in Huangyang Road, and the county soldiers and civilians resisted bravely. Although they were brave, they still damaged most of the ships. .Yang Yanye later ordered that all the remaining fishing boats be dragged ashore, but the number is limited, and it is impossible to support the army to cross the river."
"There's no need to hurry across the river."
Luo Yao looked at the enslaved people on the other side, his face remained calm as usual.
"The embankment on the north bank is higher than that on the south bank. The rebel army has been laying it out for several months. Even a group of mobs should not be underestimated. Recently, more people have been sent to survey the terrain along both sides of the river."
"Here."
Wen Xiaodao responded.
"Forty miles to the west is the camp of the county soldiers and civilians on Huangyang Road. Now everyone has withdrawn, and the camp is empty... General, do you want to send people to garrison? The subordinates think that the stockade is still well built. , and the rebels may not dare to cross the river rashly, so there is no need to send heavy troops."
"Let Liu Kuo lead an army to station..."
Luo Yao paused for a moment and then ordered: "Let Fang Jie's Shanzi Camp go too."
Wen Xiaodao was startled, not understanding Luo Yao's meaning.
Luo Yao didn't mention it after he finished his order, but looked at the north bank and said: "Although the battle is not in a hurry, but we must know the enemy at all. Select elite scouts, cross the river to find out the rebel's troop deployment, and any information about The news of the rebels must be inquired into every detail. It is best to bring back a few tongues, and you arrange someone to do this."
"Why not?"
Wen Xiaodao suddenly understood the meaning of Luo Yao's previous words: "Why don't you send General Xiaofang to do this? The soldiers in the Shanzi Battalion under his command are well-trained, and Master Xiaofang also has a team of guards from the Great Internal Guard under his command. Most suitable for inquiring about intelligence."
"good."
Luo Yao responded lightly, but did not continue.
Wen Xiaodao sighed in his heart, and couldn't help thinking, could it be that Fang Jie is really the son of the great general? Otherwise, how could the general be so partial
First, he was asked to lead the army to live in the camp before Huangyangdao County soldiers, because the camp was run by Huangyangdao soldiers and civilians for two years. attack. There are ready-made things, and the soldiers of the Shanzi Battalion in the province built them themselves. Liu Kuo is a prudent and mature man, so if Fang Jie and him are stationed at the same time, there will never be conflicts. And the general immediately mentioned the matter of crossing the river to search for news. This matter is not difficult. Most of the rebels are civilians. It is extremely simple to capture a few people and select elite soldiers to go there. However, this is a credit, the first credit for the left midfielder going north!
General, this is to assign credit to Fang Jie.
He secretly glanced at Luo Yao, the turmoil in his heart was hard to calm down.
At this time, Fang Jie was taking Shan Ziying to find a place to rest. Along the way north, Fang Jie was always worried that Shi Yuan would find him. But Shi Yuan still didn't come here, he really couldn't figure out what the old monk's purpose was.
"General!"
A messenger came quickly on horseback, pointed to the west and said: "The general ordered the Shanzi camp to enter the camp 40 miles to the west! In addition, General Wen asked the general to send people across the river to investigate the enemy's situation."
Fang Jie frowned slightly, cupped his fists and said, "Decree!"