Chapter 81: Combined Forces

Guan Shengyun, who was still on the road to Xin'an in Mianchi, heard that the official army had been waiting in Hangu Pass, and glanced at Luo Yong, who was walking side by side, and said at a glance: "The dog official army is coming so fast." ”

Luo Yonghao responded: "Listen to Ma Wensheng, this Qi Governor of Luoyang does have two sons, much stronger than Xiao Changhua and others. Let's be careful. ”

Guan Shengyun nodded and ordered: "Order." The baggage of the old battalion immediately stopped and stood by, and the two battalions of You Futian left behind for protection. Let Zhang Ding be optimistic about the back road of Shaanzhou, and he will never let it be lost, and wait for the commander's order. Let Guoqing Lin quickly send 5,000 auxiliaries to help in the battle. The rest of the war battalions assembled outside the West Gate of Xin'an and lined up in armor to prepare for battle. Revisit. The pro-battalion followed me, and entered the city first. With a slight grip on his legs, he trotted up.

How could Guan Yehuo and other twenty or so horse guards let the handsome run at the forefront? Hearing the order, he whistled and rode his horse to Xin'an.

Luo Yonghao opened his mouth to stop, but when he saw that Guan Shengyun had galloped four or five feet away, he shook his head and sighed lightly - Gu Baisong's horse team was pressing behind the palace, and even if the herald was transferred to protect Guan Shengyun, it would be too late. The not wide mountain road was crowded with unarmored soldiers with only weapons, and each team of soldiers was followed by a cart transporting their armor, banners, and golden drums. It seems that if you have the opportunity to persuade the marshal, now you are not the king of the mountain, and you will take risks on impulse. Fortunately, the officers and men have already occupied the Hangu Pass, which can be defended by danger, and they should not risk abandoning the pass...... So, he also patted his mount, shook the reins, and went east behind Guan Shengyun with the running Xiaoxiao Camp.

In the prefect's yamen, Qi Xiaoguang, Ding Shichang and other officials were discussing city defense.

Qi Xiaoguang said to the officials: "My lords, King Shou is a thousand years old and virtuous, and he generously allocated 10,000 stone of grain and 20,000 taels of silver to the official to defend the city; He also sent the palace to protect the army, and General Sun led the elite to guard the letter to Gu Xiongguan. In the name of His Royal Highness Chitose, the Imperial Court has asked the Prince to use the Golden Seal of the Prince to report the military situation of the thieves in a hurry of 600 li. Kaifeng, the provincial capital, is estimated to receive a warning signal this evening. We only need to hold on to the city for a while, and strong reinforcements can be expected. How to defend it, please also ask all adults to work together for good strategies."

Ding Shichang bowed his hand to Qi Xiaoguang, and then added to everyone: "Your Highness is wise, and Lord Qi is talented. Xia Guan thought that there was no thirst for the imperial court, and the distance was two thousand miles (there was no tunnel through the mountains in the Ming Dynasty, so it was necessary to detour), and it took seven or eight days for six hundred miles of post horses to come and go, not to mention reinforcements - it would take five or six days for the army to cross the Yellow River alone, and it would definitely not be possible to count on it for a while. The one who can hope, the nearest, is the royal palace guard army commanded by Sun, who blocked the thieves in Hangu Pass for as long as possible; Far away, it is the provincial capital Kaifeng Bu that can mobilize troops and horses from the province as soon as possible to mobilize troops and horses from the province to help. If Shandong Huguang can also send reinforcements, it would be even better. Especially in Shaanxi, if we can go out of Tongguan to take Shaanzhou and defend it, we will block the way of the thieves, and when the reinforcements arrive, the thieves will be the turtles in the urn. ”

The general judge Mei Tingfang (Zi Yingxue) snorted heavily: "Lord Qi, Lord Ding, what the two adults have seen is very true. However, I think that Shaanxi Province can't be counted on! Judging from the thief's route, no need to ask, it is from Shaanxi Province! Otherwise, if the thieves went south from Jin Province, how could they cross the river from the Shaanzhou Waterfall? Could it be that the thieves have grown wings? Misfortune leads to the east, blame the neighbors, hum, it's really vicious! ”

Daming used literature to protect the military, and Luoyang's deputy general Kou Zhizhang had no one to see on weekdays, but because of the war, he was called to sit down at this moment. Hearing this, he scolded with a sense of existence: "Straight lady thief, release such a large group of thieves in one breath, and still pretend to be dumb like no one, it's just a fucking pockmark knocking on the door - the pit man has arrived home!" The end will not rest with it! As he spoke, he slapped the arm of the chair heavily, and quickly glanced at Qi and Ding who were heading up.

Qi Xiao replied casually without raising his head: "General Kou, don't worry, don't say that this mansion will definitely show this matter to the Holy Lord, and Shouwang Chitose will definitely have something to say." However, the top priority is how to resist the enemy, and General Kou has a good strategy? ”

Kou Zhizhang was able to rise from deputy general to deputy general all the way to deputy general in more than ten years, not by accumulating merit, but by the way of Wei Buqun, the procurator of Henan Province: Wei Zhentai's wife is Kou Zhizhang's sister!

It stands to reason that the Ming Dynasty respected the martial arts, and civil officials rarely intermarried with martial artists, and this one was no exception - the old man of the Kou family was a person, of course, he was a scholar. The eldest young master of the Kou family, Kou Zhili, and Wei Buqun are not only fellow villagers and fellow jinshi, but also friends, so their sister naturally married Xiao Wei. Unfortunately, maybe the old man Kou has made his name bad, and the god of God has heard the "Zhizhang" in the name of the young master Kou as "intellectual & retarded" - although this young master has been a rotten wood since elementary school, he is outstanding in causing trouble. Let's put it this way, Mr. Kou has invited five gentlemen in succession in the past few years, and the one who is known as the best temper has not been in the Kou family for three months - either half of his beard is burned off, or he puts on his shoes and steps on his feet after getting up...... At first, Old Man Kou was reluctant to fight, but then he really couldn't fight. Later, the little young master caused a disaster of injury and disability in his hometown, and the old man was ruthless, so he should not have given birth to this little ancestor, and begged his grandfather to sue his grandmother to change his military status - cheap status, at least he can leave a life.

Wei Buqun's second uncle, Wei Shixun, Baidu Chayuan, Zuodu Yushi, and his uncle is Shuntianfu Yin, with this kind of background, of course, his career is as prosperous as he is hanging all the way, but there are also troubles: he can't refute the face of his friend, and he can't stand the tears of his wife's sacrifice every other day...... At this moment, Deputy General Kou was anxious to show his loyalty, and Qi Futai asked, where should I resist the enemy? In a hurry, he stammered back, "That, that...... The last general will listen to the orders of the adults......"

Mei Tingfang ignored him, and whispered to Qi Xiaoguang: "It's also fortunate that the domain of Shouwang Chitose is in this mansion, whether it is the provincial government or the imperial court, it will be treated as a first-class matter of urgency - after losing the crime of exterminating the clan of the former emperor's family, no one in the military department or the provincial government can afford it, and it will not be like other things." ”

Qi Xiaoguang sighed: "Having said that, Lin Mao (Ding Shichang) is also right, far water does not quench the thirst of the near." ”

The general judgment (there is no fixed number of people for the position of general judgment, there are two in Luoyang Mansion) Xie Yuanbin (the word Jiacai) echoed: "That's right. What the lords said was extremely true, and the lower officials also thought that there was no hope in Shaanxi Province. This group of guys colluded up and down, secretly opened Tongguan and set up thieves to enter Yu, and at this moment they must close the door and pretend to be deaf and dumb. It is absolutely impossible for them to attack Shaanzhou and cut off the back road of thieves. We still have to find a way to stick to it. ”

Lower-level officials such as pushers and experienced officials also cautiously participated in the topic one by one.

Henan Province is located in the Central Plains, has been peaceful for a long time, due to the financial burden is getting heavier and heavier, the original grandfather set up the guard has been abolished to seventy-seven eighty-eight, the remaining few have become vain decorations, whether it is the palace guard or the preparation of the palace, the soldiers are no different from the peasants - oh, well, different - they are serfs, poorer than ordinary peasants, and there is no personal freedom. The so-called Governor's Office of the Five Armies is even more in name only, the real power is in the hands of the Imperial Military Department, and the prefectures and counties have inspection departments responsible for protecting the territory and the people, however, it can be known from its administrative level from the nine products: these people bully the common people, deal with petty theft and reluctantly, and when they encounter bandits, they are likely to turn around and run, and they fight with real knives and guns? Hehe, the guys whose heads have to be crushed by the door will let them go to war!

Luoyang Mansion really has more than 2,000 miscellaneous soldiers in name, Qi Xiaoguang's official style is good, he is not very greedy, but the officials from all walks of life have eaten some necessary empty salaries - when the water is clear, there is no fish, this truth Qi Xiaoguang understands, so he turns a blind eye to it, plus Luofu is the prince's domain, and the local officials have some scruples, so there are still almost 1,23 teams in Kou Zhizhang's hands. Of course, these people have no combat experience - that's much better than having no soldiers, isn't it?

In the end, everyone agreed: first use King Shou's money and food to recruit homeless people to help defend the city, which is a top priority.

I heard that Shangqiang Station can eat two meals a day, and many people have come to Fucheng and the surrounding ten miles and eight towns. After some selection, more than 5,000 Ding Zhuang were singled out, and the arsenal was opened and swords and guns were issued. Everyone carried the guy in their hands, stepped on the high wall under their feet, and then filled their stomachs, and suddenly became much bolder. Kou Zhizhang suddenly saw that there were so many horses out of thin air in his hand, and he began to come alive.

Those who were not selected to defend the city were all sent out to cut down trees and dig ditches, and also take care of food.

In the suburbs of Luoyang, all the trees were cut down, those that could be transported back were brought back, those that could not be transported back were burned on the spot, and the people were moved to the city...... This is called Clearing the Field, and it will greatly hinder the difficulty of the enemy's stationing, supply, and attack. The plum blossom pile is too late to be buried, so let's do it together, dig the field outside the city wall into a trench and vertical and horizontal, especially the official road leading to the city gate, which is dug up to a large pit everywhere, and temporarily lay a wooden plank to facilitate passage with Hangu Pass, and then withdraw the board when the enemy is approaching - if they are not all filled, the siege weapons of the thieves will be difficult to move an inch, and the city will dig a ditch along the wall, and the city will dig a well in the city, and the wall will be filled with water, and the city gate tower will be covered with mud...... These are the regular tasks of defending the city.

The government of the Ming Dynasty was similar to today's prefecture-level cities, however, the staffing was much smaller, except for the Shuntian Mansion of the Beijing Division, which had more than 200 people, and the total number of people in the other prefectures and cities was more than 100. At this time, no matter how idle the guy is on weekdays, he is also very busy, and for a while, Luoyang City is like a huge machine monster that has been awakened, rumbling and roaring.

Hastily arranged these, Qi Xiaoguang temporarily handed over the city defense work to Ding Shichang, brought dozens of family guards, and ordered thousands of nomads to serve as auxiliaries, and hurried to Hangu Pass, and joined forces with Sun Fugui, who was one step ahead, to Yuguan Shengyun outside the pass.