"No, after receiving the order of the imperial court, I hurriedly marched, and there were less than 4,000 left of the 5,000 people in the whole army."

Hou Shilu replied truthfully.

"In that case, then please quickly garrison the three rivers."

Yuan Chonghuan said with a serious expression: "Sanhe is the gateway of the Jingshi, and there must be a fierce general to guard it. ”

On 12 February, Huang Taiji was still heading towards Jizhou.

Yuan Chonghuan thought that he was going to attack Jizhou, but he was still worried about the safety of the Jingshi, so he sent Hou Shilu to guard Sanhe.

When Hou Shilu heard this, it seemed that not only he had been transferred, but also other generals had also been transferred, so he asked:

"In addition to the last general, what other reinforcements have been dispatched by Inspector Yuan. Inspector Yuan said, and the last general also knows it. ”

"I sent You Shiwei under my command to guard Changping."

Yuan Chonghuan said: "Man Gui is also coming to Jizhou, and I have asked the imperial court to let Man Gui assist in the defense of Beijing." ”

Hou Shilu nodded, knowing in his heart.

Changping is the location of the mausoleum of the emperors of the Ming Dynasty, if it is broken by the slave soldiers, the consequences are unimaginable.

Jingshi is the top priority, he is in Sanhe, and Mangui is in Beijing. Even if something happens to him, there is still Man Gui in time.

Yuan Inspector's dispatch of troops is really very orderly.

Hou Shilu felt a lot more at ease.

"Hey! I dispatched troops in this way, in fact, against the will of the imperial court. ”

Yuan Chonghuan said: "The military department gathered all the reinforcements in Jizhou, in fact, it is implying that I will fight a decisive battle with the slave soldiers, General Hou has also been in Liaodong before, do you think the decisive victory is a big deal?" ”

"This ...... This is not something that a general can say. ”

Hou Shilu was a little embarrassed and uneasy, "But the last general also gave a clue to Inspector Yuan, and the combat strength of these soldiers brought by the last general is really worrying." ”

It turned out that due to Lin Dan Khan's long-term nonsense, many Mongolian refugees fled to Xuanfu in order to survive and not dislike the arrears.

It was by relying on these family members that Hou Shilu frightened Lin Dan Khan.

"General Man has just arrived in Datong, and his command lacks real elites."

Hou Shilu sighed and said: "If you really want a decisive battle, our Xuanda and two elites will not be useful." ”

Yuan Chonghuan was even more determined to stick to the city: "The slave soldiers came from afar, and the supply of grain and grass became a problem. As long as we hold the city, we will be able to overcome the enemy. ”

Speaking of food, a trace of uneasiness flashed in Hou Shilu's eyes, but after thinking about it, Xuanda and Jiliao are different systems, and Inspector Yuan is just a temporary dispatch, and it seems inappropriate to ask them for rations.

"What is General Hou thinking?"

Yuan Chonghuan saw that Hou Shilu was unexpectedly distracted, so he asked curiously.

"Well, the last general is thinking, since the imperial court intends to let Inspector Yuan fight a decisive battle with the slave soldiers, why don't you transfer the Jinzhou army to help?"

Hou Shilu said casually: "I have heard that the Jinzhou Army has won a hundred battles and has pushed the defense line to Gaizhouwei. ”

"The passage on the Jinzhou military road is cut off, and we must go by sea."

Yuan Chonghuan didn't know that Guangning had been defeated at this time, "After landing on the shore and then rushing from Denglai, the march is far away, and the combat effectiveness will inevitably be greatly reduced." ”

"Oh, that's right."

Hou Shilu said this, but he was thinking in his heart, when he went to Sanhe, he would buy food nearby.

After the two sides exchanged information, Hou Shilu was about to get up and leave.

Yuan Chonghuan suddenly thought of a decisive battle with Huang Taiji under the city of Jizhou, so he asked Hou Shilu if he had brought artillery.

Of course, the cannon here does not refer to the Hongyi cannon, but to the general cannon or something.

Hou Shilu nodded and said yes.

Yuan Chonghuan opened his mouth to borrow someone to borrow a gun.

Since people are barely considered superiors now, Hou Shilu does not dare not borrow.

As a result, Hou Shilu left Yuan Chonghuan with more than 200 gunners and 83 cannons.

Hou Shilu led the hungry elite of Xuanfu and rushed to Sanhe. I plan to buy grain in Sanhe and rest by the way.

However, the Sanhe guards were stunned and did not let Hou Shilu enter the city.

"Please forgive Master Hou, Sanhe City can't accommodate such a big Buddha as you."

The guard stood at the head of the city, clasped his fists and shouted to Hou Shilu, who was staying under the city.

Hou Shilu was depressed and shouted: "Even if you don't recognize me, the chief soldier of the outer town, you should always listen to Inspector Yuan!" His Majesty issued an order a few days ago that the reinforcement army should be dispatched by Inspector Yuan. ”

"I did receive an order, and the reinforcements were indeed dispatched by Inspector Yuan."

The defender changed his words: "But Sanhe City does not belong to the reinforcements, and Inspector Yuan can't manage Sanhe." ”

Grunt......

Hou Shilu gritted his teeth, pressed his empty stomach with his hand, and shouted: "Our army has run out of supplies, you let me enter Sanhe City, give my soldiers a meal first, I have money in my hands......"

Before he could finish speaking, he felt dizzy, and a fine sweat broke out on his forehead.

Hou Shilu secretly thought, damn it, I drank too much water, and there was nothing but sweat.

Hearing the money, the eyes of the soldiers standing guard at the head of the city lit up.

The guards took a look at it and quickly asked people to take them all down.

"Master Hou, it's not that I refuse to let you into the city, it's true that Sanhe City has been in arrears for many years, and when I heard the word silver, it was shining."

The guard general said with a look of embarrassment: "Besides, not only do we not dare to sell grain, but even if these soldiers hear about it, we will also take the opportunity to make trouble." Brother, it is not easy for me to guard the three rivers, please forgive Master Hou. ”

When Hou Shilu heard this, he knew that there was no hope of entering the city, and there was no hope of buying grain, so he had to lead the army to change places.

The closest to Sanhe is Tongzhou.

Tongzhou is a major transportation artery, and an important place for transportation and warehousing. Since the Ming Dynasty moved the capital to Beijing, it belongs to the jurisdiction of Shuntianfu, due to the economic and trade prosperity, enjoy the "one Beijing, two guards, three states" said.

Hou Shilu thought that he could buy food here, but he didn't expect that the governor of Baoding, who was sitting in Tongzhou, would not let Hou Shilu enter Tongzhou.

The reason given is that there are too many Mongolian Yiding under Hou Shilu, which will make the people of Tongzhou panic.

The real reason is that Tongzhou is prosperous, and it has nothing to do with the stinky soldiers.

According to the commentary, there was no silver to buy food to feed Hou Shilu's army.

He didn't dare to let Hou Shilu buy grain, for fear of provoking the soldiers in the city to make trouble and plunder Tongzhou.

Hou Shilu really couldn't walk, so he stayed under the horse, so he could talk badly, and begged to explain the scriptures and pass it on to his subordinates to take care of a meal.

Even if it's a meal!

The exegesis did not agree, but seeing that Hou Shilu was pitiful, he agreed to leave two thousand soldiers.

"I'm willing to lend you 2,000 soldiers."

Hou Shilu had no choice but to play a scoundrel: "Can you give me some food, just one meal, just one meal." ”

"General Hou, it's not that I refuse to lend you food, it's really difficult."

The interpreter said: "But don't worry, these two thousand soldiers, even if I smash the pot and sell iron, I will make up the money and let them eat." ”

"Well, it's always okay to buy some food."

"In the past few days, Gyeonggi has been under martial law, ready for war at any time, and the grain and grass in the city can only support the defenders. And even if I want to sell, I have to have grain to sell to you. ”

The interpreter also gave him an idea: "General Hou might as well go to the surrounding area and buy grain from the people." ”

Rough!

Hou Shilu was speechless.