Chapter 238: The Old Man

Wei Li used to be the military commander of the Yue Cavalry Battalion, and followed Chen Cheng to participate in the Battle of Luoyang and made some military achievements. But after he was the Wei family, when the victory and defeat were divided, he couldn't take the risk of his family being beaten as a rebel, so like many people, he chose to stay in Luoyang.

Although the Yue Cavalry Battalion once beat He Jin very embarrassed, which made him angry, it also showed strong combat effectiveness. After the war, He Jin collected the remaining soldiers and horses of the Vietnamese cavalry battalion, and transferred some officers and soldiers into it to rebuild the Vietnamese cavalry battalion of the Northern Army. The Fifth Battalion of the Northern Army defeated Sun Jian's troops and horses in the two battles of Yangcheng and Yangzhai last year, and the Yue Cavalry Battalion also participated.

Although the Northern Army is strong, its numbers are too small. In the field battle, Yuan Shu's army could be defeated neatly, but when the Kwantung princes made up their minds to stick to it, even the northern army was helpless against the strong city. The army under He Jin advanced along Yingshui and Rushui, but was soon blocked by several fortified cities.

The imperial army besieged the city for more than 30 days, and organized several strong attacks, but was beaten back by the defenders. It turned out that after Yuan Shu retreated to Runan, he recruited several Yellow Turban troops nearby, and won more than 100,000 soldiers. These people were placed in the two important positions of Zhaoling and Xihua by Yuan Shu, and they resisted the attack of He Jin's soldiers and horses with difficulty.

During this period, the infantry battalion and the shooting battalion of the Northern Army also participated in the siege of the city, killing and wounding many Yellow Turban remnants, but their own casualties were not small. In addition, Yuan Shu's main force was assembled in Shangcai and Xiangcheng, and could join the battlefield at any time, He Jinjun could not put all his troops into the siege, and surrounded it for more than 30 days, and the epidemic in the army was very serious, so he could only retreat helplessly.

After attacking Runan, He Jin turned around and attacked Yuan Shao's group, and successively recovered Chenggao and Xingyang, but the army's sharp energy had been exhausted, and finally the troops were under the sealed hill and could no longer continue to advance. In this way, He Jin's army of more than 100,000 was distributed on a thousand-mile defense line from east to west.

He Jin Group still has the strongest army in the world, but it is surrounded by enemies from all sides. It still looks strong, but it's in a situation where it's surrounded by enemies on all sides. In order to fight with the Kwantung princes, he transferred the soldiers and horses under the command of Huangfu Song and Ding Yuan several times in a row, and recruited more soldiers from Guanzhong and Henan.

This situation lasted until the beginning of autumn, and He Jinjun finally couldn't hold it anymore. The two consecutive years of war have exhausted the vitality of the imperial court, and although Henan, Yingchuan, Hongnong and other places have not yet reached the point of ten rooms and nine emptiness, they are not far behind. A large number of civilians fled to the mountains and forests, and many of the soldiers joined the ranks of the rebels and bandits with their blades.

In particular, those people who were forcibly conscripted, on the one hand, they had to go hungry to fight the Kwantung coalition army, and on the other hand, they were worried that their wives and children at home would take advantage of the night to disappear at the slightest opportunity. Later, there were even whole groups of soldiers who took the opportunity to slip away when they went out to collect grain and grass, including the infantry and cavalry of the Northern Army.

It was under such circumstances that He Jin finally admitted that he was no longer capable of extinguishing the rebellion in the world. Looking around, there are rebels in all directions. Xi Liangjun, Dong Zhuo, Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu....... Although much territory was recovered, those places became the source of rebellion.

Because of the tyrannical expropriation, the people in various places rose up one after another, occupied the county seat and passes, and attacked the troops of the imperial court transporting grain and grass everywhere. When you are hungry, even rabbits can bite. The remnants of the Yellow Turban Army, which had been dispersed, began to sink again, and after the original officers and soldiers joined, they became even more powerful. As a result, after occupying many cities, the imperial court not only failed to obtain manpower and food and grass, but also had to invest more troops in the suppression of the rebellion.

In order to break this strategic deadlock, He Jin changed his previous strategy, put down his figure, and began to recruit soldiers and horses from all walks of life in the name of the Son of Heaven, not only sent envoys to canonize Chen Cheng as the pastor of Liangzhou, but also sent envoys to Dong Zhuo, Baibo Army, Black Mountain Army, Qingzhou Soldiers, Taishan Soldiers and other places.

Some princes and powerful factions are like Chen Cheng, and they accept the rewards of the imperial court, but they can't just want them to do things. Like Chen Cheng, who accepted the edict of the Son of Heaven and gave a promise to send troops, Dong Zhuo, Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu and others did not accept the edict at all, and they no longer recognized the legitimacy of the imperial court.

He Jin sent Wei Li to Xiliang, in addition to coming to send the edict of the Son of Heaven, he also had other plans. After the formal meeting, the two continued to talk at Chen Cheng's home. This time, the atmosphere between the two was not as serious as before

Wei Li said: "The general heard that when the envoy attacked Chencang, he used a thunderbolt cart that could throw stones out, so he specially sent me to ask the envoy for the method of making the thunderbolt cart. ”

In the Battle of Chencang, the catapults of the Western Liang army were so powerful that they almost collapsed the strong city walls. After the war, the Han army also imitated it, but the imitation catapult was far inferior in terms of power and range. In the battle of besieging Zhaoling, He Jinjun used it, but the effect was very unsatisfactory.

Chen Chengxin said: At that time, I had people disassemble the key parts and set fire to the catapult, just because I didn't want this weapon to fall into the hands of the enemy. Now although he has given the name of a Liangzhou pastor, he will give the secret hands of the weapon because of this? It's impossible!

He laughed twice and said, "Where did you hear this from?" ”

Wei Li said: "It was said by the two generals, Huangfu Song, the left general, and Ding Yuan, the general of Zhengxi. ”

"Well, since they said it, then I'll admit it, there is indeed such a weapon." Chen Cheng ignored the joy on Wei Li's face, spread his hand and said, "But it's impossible for me to give it to He Jin." ”

"Why?" Wei Li hurriedly said: "The general has already said that he is not to blame for the past, so why should the monarch continue to fight against the imperial court?" ”

When Chen Cheng was in Luoyang, he was the military commander. Two years later, his colleagues in the army had been promoted to higher positions, and he was still a military commander. But Wei Li didn't dare to complain, who let him stand on the wrong team before? He Jin didn't clean them up, so it was good.

On this mission, Wei Li thought that it was a great turning point in his life, and He Jin had promised him in advance that as long as he could successfully complete the mission and bring back the secret of the Thunderbolt, he would appoint him as the captain of the Yue Cavalry. Although Yi Weili knew that this task was not easy to complete, he was still trying his best to persuade Chen Cheng.

Chen Cheng smiled and said, "It's not that I'm against the court, but the whole world is against the court!" ”

Wei Li's voice suddenly became louder, "Those are all chaotic ministers and thieves!" ”

The fangs on the side looked over and pressed their hands on the hilt. Chen Cheng waved his hand and said, "It's okay." ”

He felt a little emotion in his heart, and said to Wei Li: "Wei Sima, now that the imperial court is going against the grain, it seems that the building is about to collapse, why not jump out of the fire pit in Luoyang as soon as possible?" Although Liangzhou is remote, there are tens of thousands of iron horsemen, which is enough to ensure the safety of one party. If you come to Liangzhou......"

Wei Li shouted categorically: "Shut up! How can I be a traitor after I am a dignified man? ”

The smile on Chen Cheng's face suddenly froze, he snorted, and said, "It turns out that the imperial court still regards us as rebellious. ”

"It's not....... That was not what I meant! ”

Chen Cheng sneered: "But you are not mistaken, we Xiliang people are indeed rebellious. It's not a matter of a year or two for the people of Liangzhou to disobey Wang Hua, and they want me to hand over the militaristic weapon with the name of Liangzhou Mu? He Jin is too naïve! ”

Wei Li's face twitched, and his voice lowered, "Actually, the imperial court is already imitating catapults, and it has been very effective. Sanfu and the Central Plains have far more skilled craftsmen than Liangzhou, Xiliang can make thunderbolts, and the imperial court will definitely be able to make them. It only takes a little more time and you'll be a big success. The general now gives the method of making the thunderbolt to the imperial court first, which is a matter of benefit and no expense, so why not do it? ”

Chen Cheng smiled and said, "So that's the case." ”

The atmosphere between the two of them was stiff just now, and now it seems to have eased a little, but they both know that the little bit of affection before is gone. Wei Li was very uncomfortable in his heart, two years ago he was already the military Sima of the Yue Cavalry Battalion, at that time Lu Fang was just a cavalry captain, Yan Zhong was just a frustrated literati wandering in Beijing, and Xu Rong was just a small tun chief.

But two years have passed, he is still standing still, but Yan Zhong has soared into the sky and become the second person in Liangzhou, and Chen Cheng is almost obedient to him. Among the two former colleagues, Lu Fang did the Hanyang Taishou, and Xu Rong sat in Manbo, but in fact, he commanded all the soldiers and civilians of Wuyuan County and Shang County, and left him far behind.

Although he is a traitor to Xiliang, he is also a county Taishou and Zhendong general!

On the way from Fufeng to Yinchuan, passing through Hanyang, Lu Fang was very enthusiastic about him, and his words were full of the feelings of his old comrades. But the more enthusiastic Lu Fang was about him, the more he felt bad in his heart. When they were in the Yue Cavalry Battalion, both of them were middle- and lower-level officers who were not very ambitious, and this kind of promotion basically had nothing to do with them.

However, the different choices of the two have led to a huge gap in the status of the two sides. Wei Li clenched his fists tightly, and secretly hated in his heart: It's just a thought!

When Chen Cheng wanted to recruit him, on the one hand, he was not angry in his heart, and on the other hand, he was holding his breath, which is why he reacted so much. Wei Li said secretly: As long as I can bring back the production method of the thunderbolt car, I will be the captain of the Yue cavalry of the imperial court, and how can I be compared to the rebel Hanyang Taishou?

However, no matter how he persuaded or pleaded, Chen Cheng was always pushing, five or six, and his attitude was kind, but he would never agree to things. Wei Li persuaded several times in a row, but still didn't get the answer he wanted, and couldn't help but get angry, and said, "Doesn't the general care about a little old friend?" ”

Chen Cheng raised his eyebrows, the expression on his face seemed to be surprised, and it seemed to be contempt, "Public is public, private is private, how can it be mixed?" If the angel is shy in his pocket, I still have some savings, and I can give 10,000 dollars for the journey. ”

Wei Li said hatefully: "Am I the one who is short of this ten thousand dollars?" ”

10,000 dollars sounds like a lot, but when you convert it, it's only ten.

Chen Cheng said regretfully: "Then I just can't help." By the way, I have other things to attend to today, so I won't leave you to eat. When you go back to Luoyang one day, I will ask someone to prepare dry food and coils for you. ”

He turned to the tooth soldier next to him and said, "Send the angel to the post station to rest." ”

The two tooth soldiers walked up with expressionless faces, stopped in front of Wei Li, and said, "Please!" ”

"Okay, good you Chen Wenzheng!" Wei Li shouted out a little out of shape, and said loudly: "You treated me like this today, and you will definitely regret it in the future!" ”