The water that had cracked the ice was already stained red with blood. More than two dozen corpses lay on the snow by the river. Buckets and weapons were also scattered on the ground.

Fu Sheng shouted to his subordinates: "Move quickly, pick up the weapon and leave!" ”

When Zhang Xianzhong's more than 100,000 troops first entered Runan, because the army was too big, the local militia groups, village guards, and road guards were also cowering in the county seat and the two Zhuangzi as fortresses, and they did not dare to go out of the city at will.

However, on the night of 10 July, a deputy commander of the militia regiment led three companies of soldiers to attack the camp of the peasant rebels at night, breaking up more than 2,000 peasant rebels at once. Although many of those who had fled had returned during the day, the peasant rebels had lost more than 300 men after the count.

And this night attack suddenly boosted the morale of the Runan militia. Regular field warfare is certainly impossible, but it is possible to use one's familiarity with the terrain and use guerrilla warfare to repeatedly strike at the peasant rebels.

Fu Sheng was a company commander in the militia group, and today he led his company to ambush the peasant rebels who were fetching water from the river. At this time, Fu Sheng saw that the cavalry of the peasant rebel army in the distance had discovered the movement here, so he immediately beckoned his soldiers to evacuate quickly.

As he was leaving, he glanced at a fifteen or sixteen-year-old peasant rebel soldier lying on the ground. He had been killed by Fu Sheng himself just now, and the young man was skinny, staring at the sky with distracted eyes.

There was no time to make any sighs, and as soon as the soldiers were closed, Fu Sheng led them to run. Soon, more than 20 cavalry peasant rebels chased after Fu Sheng and the others on the road where they had fled.

But when they passed a bend, the cavalry was ambushed by the militia gunners who were in ambush here. Caught off guard, more than a dozen peasant rebels were knocked down under their horses, and the rest of them turned their horses and ran away when they saw the ambush. Taking advantage of the fact that the brigade of the peasant rebel army did not come. Fu Sheng and the others led the captured horses through the trail and returned to their Zhuangzi.

"Eight kings! It's not going to go on like this! In just these two days, more than a thousand of my people have dispersed. There was no one on the way, no food was needed, and apart from the big cities, there was not a single living creature in the wilderness. If we continue like this, I'm afraid our team will break up on its own! The sweeping king complained to Zhang Xianzhong.

"That's right!" The Taiping King on the side said, "I have never been to such a place." You said that those official dogs should hate us, but the people of this place also regard us as a thorn in their side. They are all a group of bitter haha, and they attack us during the day, what is the deep hatred and hatred? ”

It is now the thirteenth day of the first lunar month. The peasant rebels had been in Runan for three days. But the main force that got together was okay, but the scattered small troops had been repeatedly guerrilla attacks by the local troops of the Runing Army, which harassed Zhang Xianzhong and them quite a headache. Before I knew it, more than 3,000 of the undisciplined people who had just been collected had dispersed.

"This place is weird!" Zhang Xianzhong also shook his head, "It's no wonder that there will be a demon like Butcher Wu." Let's not stay here. Put the troops together. Tell everyone not to be left alone, and rush through Runing Mansion in a hurry. Let's go to Fengyang! Otherwise. When Butcher Wu comes back, we won't be able to get a good one! ”

So thirteen days later, the peasant rebels gathered together and crossed Runing Province, heading from west to east towards the hinterland of Runing Province.

"How?" Seeing Yang Goudan and Yang coming in, Deng Qifan, who was anxiously wandering back and forth in the hall, asked.

"Mrs. Li, they refused to leave. I didn't even want to enter the city. "Yang said to Deng Qifan." They said that the camp here is the inheritance of the adults, and if the adults are not there, they will also stay here! ”

"What nonsense! When is this all about? Deng Qifan immediately became angry.

When the peasant rebel army entered Runan, the Runing Army, which remained in the headquarters, immediately mobilized the whole army. Deng Qifan presided over the overall work. The military aspect is completely relied on Xue Yongli.

And Deng Qifan is of course most concerned about the safety of Wu Shigong's family now, in his opinion: The safest thing is, of course, to send the family to the army of the Runing Army. In order to retreat, the family should also be sent to the capital city.

But when the Yang family went to the inner house to persuade him, Li Xin was unwilling to live or die. Her reason is also very simple, the Runing Army is not only Wu Shigong's, but also all members of the Runing Army. If other people's families don't evacuate, then Li Xin and the others can't evacuate either. Otherwise, even Wu Shigong would not spare them after he came back.

And at this time, Xue Yongli was not in the Runing Army camp. After receiving an urgent report from Ye County on the evening of the ninth day of the first month, Xue Yongli immediately sent a rush horse to send a letter to Wu Shigong in Xuzhou, asking him to return to the reinforcements as soon as possible with the main force. At the same time, Xue Yongli also transferred a militia group in the Rubei Mountains back to its headquarters.

Because there were more than 100,000 peasant rebels who entered Runan, and more than 300,000 peasant rebels were entrenched in Nanyang Mansion. Therefore, Deng Qifan and Xue Yongli could not judge the next move of the peasant rebel army in Nanyang Mansion. So I can only prepare for the worst first.

According to the soldiers and horses arranged by the Runing Army in the headquarters, there is no problem in resisting the peasant rebels entering Runan, and keeping the Runing Army camp and Runing Mansion City. But what I am most afraid of is that the more than 300,000 horses in Nanyang Mansion also come in, so the defense of this line is also very dangerous.

So on the 11th, Xue Yongli took more than 300 personal soldiers left behind, a militia regiment, 2,000 newly formed soldiers, a new artillery team with 10 artillery pieces and 1,000 people from the boy boy battalion, advanced to the area of the Shenshui River, and set up a camp to prevent the peasant rebels from crossing the river.

Although the surface of the Shenshui River is very narrow, the surface of the river is frozen. But as long as artillery bombarded the ice, the peasant rebels of the brigade could not easily cross the river.

In addition, Xue Yongli's army is delaying time, as long as it drags on for one or two days, and then holds it here in Runing Mansion City and Runing Army Camp for four or five days, then the main force of the Runing Army led by Wu Shigong will rush back to Runing Mansion to relieve this crisis.

So at this time, the supreme commander who remained in the Runing Army camp, except for Yang Goudan, who temporarily commanded those craftsmen who turned into the militia, was only Chi Ming, the commander of the boy battalion.

At this time, Chi Ming, who was on the side, suddenly interjected: "Mr. Deng, Director Yang! In fact, since the ladies, sons, and ladies refused to leave, it was safer for them to stay in the camp than in the city! ”

"Oh?" Looking at Chi Ming, who had just grown fluff on his lips, Deng Qifan asked suspiciously, "Why is this so?" ”

"Although the city is large, it is also a traffic artery, and it is flat on all sides, so the Shaanxi bandits can launch an attack on all sides. And our big camp was originally built as a military fortress, and the degree of solidity is not smaller than that of Fucheng. On the contrary, because the city is small and easy to defend. Moreover, the location of our camp is very good, with mountains behind it and a river in the north, and if the Shaanxi bandits want to attack, they can only attack from both sides, so the adults chose this place with great thought at that time. Chi Ming replied with a head and a head.

"Isn't that so?" Deng Qifan still couldn't fully believe the young man's words, so he asked a company commander in the hall. This company commander is the highest officer left in the camp in the active Runing Army, so at this time, Deng Qifan also called him over to discuss it together.

The company commander clasped his fist at Deng Qifan and said, "That's right." Mr. Deng! Don't look at the young age of Commander Chi, but their first batch of boy battalions have already received four or five years of training, and this military jishu and vision are no worse than some veterans, so all the legions of our Runing Army are rushing to ask for their batch of people. ”

Deng Qifan only relaxed a little at this time, and then asked, "How long will it take for the adults to return here?" ”

"Three days!" Chi Ming replied immediately.

"That's good!" Deng Qifan immediately decided, "Today is the thirteenth, go and tell Xue Shoubei in front of you that you have to drag the Shaanxi thieves in the Shenshui River for three days, and try not to let the Shaanxi thieves get close to the Runing Army camp and harass the lady, son, and young lady!" Also, urge the adults to hurry back! Chi Ming, you will select two hundred strong and let them leave everything else alone, just to protect the safety of the adults' families! ”

"No!" (To be continued......)