"The army has retreated!"

"The army has retreated!

”

The city of Hung Yen resounded with the sound of a tsunami of cheers.

Just above the field outside the city, the last horse team that broke into the palace also disappeared from the eyes of everyone on the city wall.

The cheers from the city walls soon reached the city of Hung Yen.

At first, the people of the city were still wondering what was going on, and the cheers were so loud that they only heard the cheers but did not know what was happening.

Even some of the people thought that the army had broken through the city, and all the people in the city were terrified.

The officials in charge of maintaining order in the streets drew their swords from their waists, and the remaining people in the market also gathered.

Some of them were armed with wooden sticks, some with kitchen knives, some with farm tools, and they held all the weapons they could find, and they stood behind the market.

However, when the "thieves retreated" came from outside the workshop with the sound of hurried horses' hooves, they all finally put down their weapons.

"Whew-"

Crying was heard in many places in the streets and alleys of the city.

After more than two months of siege, all normal activities in Hung Yen City were almost suspended, and all activities revolved around the defense of the city.

Every day and every night, they were afraid that the city would be breached, and they were afraid that when they opened their eyes, they would see the rogues enter the city.

Now that the gloom above his head has dissipated, many people are crying with joy.

They survived......

……

In the tower of the eastern city of Xing'an City, Chen Wang sat on the side of the hall, and did not sit on the first seat.

Chen Wang is now a general in Hanzhong, and he is the commander of the fourth grade.

There are not many people in the entire Hung Yen Prefecture who can let him sit in the next position.

And the person who is now sitting in the first seat is one of them.

Xu Xiuye, the governor of Xing'an Prefecture, wore a black veil on his head, a silk collared right green robe, tied with a plain silver belt, and the front of the robe was decorated with a five-grade white pheasant complement to show his identity.

Although Chen Wang's official rank is higher than that of Xu Xiuye, the pattern of emphasizing literature over military force in the late Ming Dynasty has been formed.

Although Xu Xiuye did not have the power to govern Chen Wang, Chen Wang still let Xu Xiuye sit in the first seat.

Xu Xiuye has a square face with a long beard and a majestic appearance.

In terms of the aesthetics of Ming officialdom, he can be regarded as a beautiful man, and at the age of nearly forty, he has become a Zhizhou from the fifth grade, which may have something to do with his appearance.

At this time, Xu Xiuye's eyebrows were frowned, his face was embarrassed, he turned his head to look at Chen Wang, who was sitting below, and sighed.

"What General Chen means is that the thieves will go and return, and at the moment the city of Xing'an can only temporarily relax its vigilance, and still can't open the city gate and let the people return to their hometowns?"

"Although the thieves retreated to the land of Xunxiang this time, I am afraid that they will return soon."

Chen Wang withdrew his gaze from observing Xu Xiuye, lowered his head, and replied.

"Lu Dufu has mobilized heavy troops in Xunxiang and Xiang, and has blocked the way for thieves to advance eastward."

"The thieves will inevitably hit a wall in Xunxiang this eastward march, and I am afraid that they will re-enter Hanzhong ...... then."

Xu Xiuye looked sad and asked again.

"After two months of siege, why haven't you seen any reinforcements?"

Chen Wang didn't answer Xu Xiuye's question immediately, and after thinking for a while, he thought about it before he thought about it.

"Nowadays, there are gangsters in all directions, and many places really don't have time to take care of them."

"I have already reported the situation in Hanzhong to the Hongjun Gate, and there is only a group of rogues left under Li Zicheng in northern Shaanxi, waiting until they are exterminated."

"Hong Junmen can free up his hands to send troops to help Hanzhong."

Xu Xiuye didn't know anything about military affairs, but he wasn't ignorant of the Liukou, who rarely besieged the city for more than a month.

Chen Wang swore so much that Xu Xiuye already believed most of it in his heart.

"During this time, many people in various cities have been taken captive into the thieves' camps, but there should still be people hiding between the mountains and valleys, and now that the thieves have retreated, I am afraid that these people will return to their hometowns."

Xu Xiuye's gaze first fell on the outside of the city, and then shifted to Chen Wang's body.

"If the thief comes again, I'm afraid it will be difficult to escape his poisonous hands, and now that the thief has withdrawn, can General Chen send a few troops and horses to bring him into the city."

Xu Xiuye stood up, faced Chen Wang, leaned slightly, and solemnly pleaded.

"The food in Xing'an City is quite sufficient, and it can last for more than two months."

"Some time ago, I have contacted the rich families in the city to raise a lot of food, and more people in the city will not cause a shortage of food."

Chen Wang raised his head, and a trace of astonishment flashed in his eyes.

When he came to this era, he did not have much contact with civil officials.

In addition to Wang Zhaolan, the magistrate of Chunhua County and Hong Chengchou at the beginning, there is only the current Xu Xiuye.

Chen Wang didn't quite understand the rules of officialdom, so most of the things that were ushered in and sent were handed over to Zhao Huailiang to do.

Coupled with all aspects of consideration, it was the matter of recruiting people to assist in the defense of the people, and it was also handed over to Zhou Yumao to contact the magistrates of various places.

To be honest, Chen Wang didn't want to entangle too much with these local government officials.

He held military power in his hands, and if he had too close contacts with local officials, he could easily cause unnecessary trouble.

As a battalion general, he was directly responsible to the governors appointed by the emperor.

"This matter is not difficult, I have a cavalry under my command, and when the thieves have almost retreated in a few days, I can send them to the surrounding towns to bring these people back to the city."

Chen Wang did not refuse Xu Xiuye's request, but stood up and answered.

"However, the refugees are often mixed with the refugees, and many cities are to accept the refugees into the city and the city is breached, and after the refugees enter the city, I hope that Xu Zhizhou can properly resettle them."

"It is better to be placed away from the city gates, and at the same time disarm it from all its armament."

Because of the influence of later generations, he did not have any good impression of these civil officials in the late Ming Dynasty.

But now, his concept has also changed slightly because of Xu Xiuye's request.

After Chen Wang agreed to Xu Xiuye's request, Xu Xiuye did not stay in the city tower any longer.

Tens of thousands of people were stranded in the city, and various affairs were piled up, although as the governor, he did not remove all the responsibilities, but took a lot of things on himself.

The government affairs that need to be handled by Xu Xiuye every day are not small.

"Although the thieves have retreated from Xing'an City, they are not too safe now, and there are ...... in Hanyin."

After Chen Wang sent Xu Xiuye away, Chen Gong also walked to his front.

He heard everything Xu Xiuye and Chen Wang said before on the side.

Chen Wang's promise to Xu Xiuye is still very risky.

Although the invasion army has almost evacuated now, I am afraid that some soldiers and horses will be left behind, and if they encounter it, it will inevitably be an encounter.

At present, there are only more than 900 cavalry troops under his command, and the cavalry is not infantry, and the cavalry is difficult to cultivate.

"I know ......"

Chen Wang slowly walked out of the city tower, and Xu Xiuye's distant back came into front of him.

"After five days, every once in a while, you can take your cavalry out of the city and make a few laps around the suburbs."

Chen Wang looked at Xu Xiuye's back and said calmly.

"Don't go out of town until the end of the month."

Although he agreed to Xu Xiuye's request, he didn't really want to do these things.

The army came in a mighty way, and many people received the news and hid between the mountains and valleys in advance, and they were indeed able to escape.

But this kind of thing is not only clear to Xu Xiuye, but also to the army.

Gao Yingxiang went to Xunxiang this time because of his plan to attack the west, he just wanted to attract the attention of the Ming army in Xunxiang and further confuse Lu Xiangsheng and Hong Chengchou.

Gao Yingxiang is destined to return to Hanzhong Mansion, he has left a lot of cavalry around Hanyin, how can he not leave a back hand in other places.

The cavalry sent out to bring those people into the city was bound to encounter danger, and it would also bring danger to the defense of the city.

The lives of those people are fate, but so are the lives of the cavalry under his command......

Chen Gong's eyes moved slightly, and he lowered his head, he understood what Chen Wang meant.

Facts have also proved that Chen Wang's calculation is indeed good.

Gao Yingxiang did not only leave a lot of fine cavalry and horse troops in Hanyin, but also left a lot of horse troops in Pingli, Ziyang, and Xunyang.

After waiting for a few days, Chen Gong led the cavalry out of the city and did not go far before he encountered some intruding rangers.

When he encountered a small group of cavalry Chen Gong, he ate it, and when he encountered a large group of elite cavalry and a large group of rangers, Chen Gong led his cavalry to withdraw immediately, and never left Xing'an too far.

After more than 20 days of hard work, most of the cavalry left by Gao Yingxiang withdrew from the periphery of Xing'an, and Chen Gong also won more than 300 heads, and only a dozen people under his command were slightly injured.

But that's nothing for the sake of capture.

Although he did not go to Pingli, Ziyang, Xunyang and other places, Chen Gong still picked up more than 1,000 people.

Xu Xiuye's explanation was there, anyway, he didn't know the specific situation outside the city.

The time when the Chuang army returned to Hanzhong was estimated later by Chen Wang.

When the army reappeared under the city of Hung Yen, it was already the morning of June 15.

When the vanguard cavalry of the invading army arrived outside the city of Xing'an, someone had already informed Chen Wang.

When Chen Wang put on his armor and climbed the tower of Xing'an City, the cavalry of the brigade was roaring past the official road.

Tens of thousands of cavalry marched for nearly four hours before the intruding infantry appeared from the horizon near dusk.

They came in a mighty way, and their queues covered the entire official road, and even lined up outside the official road.

This time, the army did not stop under the city of Xing'an, neither asceticing the city with an attitude of attacking the city, nor besieging the city on a large scale.

The Chuang army only left a few battalions of soldiers and horses to guard the city of Xing'an to prevent the Ming army in the city from suddenly attacking.

The rest of the intrusive army all advanced along the official road, and their purpose was clear, all the way to the northwest, towards Hanyin.

A large number of wagons and horses rolled westward, and behind them were a continuous stream of infantry and hungry soldiers.

The drought in north-central Shaanxi also seems to have had an impact on Hanzhong, where it has not rained for more than a month, and the waterline of the Han River has dropped considerably.

It's June, the heat is getting thicker, and the temperature is rising in various places, which also makes the environment drier and drier.

On the official road, a large amount of smoke and dust slowly rose with the movement of cars and horses and the footsteps of people, making the entire Xing'an City seem to have a haze.

Chen Gong, Tang Shiping, Hu Zhiyi and others all gathered next to Chen Wang.

Chen Wang looked at the marching brigade of rogues outside the city, the last time he saw more than 200,000 rogues, but most of them were from a distance.

But this time, instead of camping outside the city, the Chuang army swept directly from the side of Hung Yen City.

Chen Wang can now understand why Zuo Liangyu and Zu Kuan led nearly 10,000 soldiers and horses, but they didn't dare to attack.

The queue of the intruding army was as wide as a mile, and it was endless, rushing through the city like a river.

The dense intruders were like swarms of locusts, and they covered the entire official road outside Xing'an City in black pressure, and the carriages and horses stretched endlessly.

As far as the eye could see, there were soldiers wrapped in gray turbans, dense spears obscuring the sky above their heads, and countless banners hunting and moving in the strong wind.

Chen Gong and Tang Shiping both had solemn faces, paying attention to the intrusive army outside the city.

Hu Zhiyi frowned slightly, he found something wrong, and said in a deep voice.

"The rogues marching outside the city don't seem to be the only troops under Gao Yingxiang's command."

Chen Wang's eyes narrowed slightly, his eyes moved slightly, and he looked in the direction of Hu Zhiyi's finger.

His previous attention was attracted by the momentum of the intruding army, but he did not notice the details.

In the direction that Hu Zhiyi pointed, he saw a lot of rogue horse troops, and their ranks were much more chaotic than the cavalry team of the Chuang army under Gao Yingxiang.

Chen Wang glanced at the intruding troops who were passing by on the official road, and carefully observed the soldiers in the team.

At this glance, I found a lot of things wrong.

There are indeed not only the Chuang army outside the city, but also other rogues, and Chen Wang has a new discovery.

"Have you seen the old camp of the intruders?"

The old battalion in Chen Wang's mouth refers to the old and weak women and children in the army, and the officers and soldiers generally refer to the old and weak women and children among the rogues.

Tang Shiping, Chen Gong and others, who were standing in Chen Wang, heard Chen Wang's inquiry, and they all looked at the rogue who was marching outside the city and observed.

"I don't seem to have seen it all along."

Tang Shiping retracted his gaze, he observed a circle, only saw the horsemen and infantry of the brigade, and immediately replied in a deep voice.

Chen Gong's eyes moved slightly, and he added.

"There don't seem to be many hungry soldiers in the queue."

Chen Wang's eyes condensed slightly, and the hand that pressed the knife subconsciously tightened a few points again.

Although there is very little information, something is already certain.

Gao Yingxiang's plan has not changed.

This time.

He still wants Hanzhong, troops out of the Meridian Valley, and attack Xi'an!

……

"Ming History Chronicle, Volume 75":

"The Qin thief and other subordinates are 200,000, and the king of heaven is 170,000, and he is guilty of Ruxiang and Lingbao from Tongguan."

"The brigade is going east, the dust is rising to the sky, forty miles wide, hundreds of miles, the old and weak are in the middle, and the elite riders are outside."

"Zuo Liangyu and the general soldier Zu Kuan are separated by two armies, seventy miles from east to west, looking at the mountain from afar, and dare not invite an attack."