Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 335 We should join forces!

"I've already said it before, that Huang Fa Chu and the like are not worth mentioning!"

"Back then, I was near Liyang, and I defeated a large force with a small force, beheaded Fan Yi, and frightened Huang Fachu so much that he didn't dare to leave the city for three days!"

Changsun Honglue was riding a big horse, proudly boasting about his bravery to the knights behind him.

Along the bumpy country road, a group of knights were marching at full speed.

On both sides of the road are villages that have long since become ruins.

The cultivated land could not be seen as cultivated land, and the village could not be seen as a village. Occasionally, dark shadows flashed in the village. Looking closely, one could see a few wild dogs drooling. Seeing so many knights, they whimpered, turned around and fled, hiding in the dense forest in the distance.

There were lonely corpses rotting on the side of the road, and the insects were having a party.

The more than a thousand cavalrymen formed a long snake formation and passed quickly along the road.

Their destination was Dongguan.

After the news of Liu Taozi's victory over Wu Mingche spread, Lu Qian and others immediately decided to send troops to retake Dongguan, and it would be best if they could besiege Liyang together with Liu Taozi.

Zhangsun Honglue volunteered to be the vanguard and lead the way.

The two knights listened to Changsun Honglue bragging about his military exploits, looked at each other, and just nodded in agreement.

General Changsun likes this kind of food.

I've rarely won a battle, but I've rarely lost a battle by bragging.

This General Changsun was from Jinyang and was a genuine nobleman of the country. However, he was not the first generation and did not have much combat experience.

Of course, if you put it south of the river, what he has is enough.

When Wang Lin was taken away by Liu Taozi, Lu Qian was very worried about it, but General Chang Sun directly humiliated Wang Lin and Liu Taozi, thinking that they were not worth mentioning.

Now that Huang Fachi was preparing to retreat because he was afraid of Liu Taozi, this man began to think that Huang Fachi was not worth mentioning.

In fact, Huang Fachi had already been mentioned once before, that was the last time he led his troops to attack, he had volunteered to attack.

As a result, they were beaten dizzy and the garrison deployed by the temple around Hefei was almost wiped out.

If Liu Taozi had not provided timely support, Hefei would have surrendered.

The two knights also knew General Changsun's character and only believed 10% of what he said.

Changsun Honglue was indeed extremely excited at this moment. He had underestimated Huang Fachi before and was almost wiped out by the other party.

But the situation is different now. The general defeated Wu Mingche severely at Guabu and wiped out the enemy army. The Chen people were terrified and had no will to fight anymore. According to reliable intelligence, a mutiny broke out in Huang Fachi's army. They abandoned a lot of baggage and fled back to Liyang overnight, preparing to withdraw to the country.

Chang Sun Honglue once again quickly sensed the opportunity.

In this state, can't Huang Fachu be beaten at will?

Lu Qian was still somewhat worried about Huang Fachi, so he asked Changsun Honglue to lead the way and ensure safety. However, Changsun Honglue only wanted to recapture the city as soon as possible and take back the stolen supplies.

The crisp sound of horse hooves lasted for a long time.

Until Changsun Honglue led the knights through here.

In the dense forest in the west, Chen Bing lay among the bushes, with tall trees providing cover for them.

They just stood there motionlessly watching Changsun Honglue and his army pass by them. When the two sides were closest, they could even hear those people talking.

They hid well enough, and the other side had no intention of exploring the dense forest, so the two sides avoided each other.

Huang Fate calmly looked at the advancing cavalry.

Sure enough, as he expected, the enemy rushed to recapture the city. Lu Qian probably didn't want Xu Du to join forces with him easily?
Huang Fachu looked at the generals on his left and right, "Tell the soldiers from all places not to act rashly. Listen to my orders. Without my order, you are not allowed to attack even if you see Lu Qian passing by!"

"only!!"

Huang Fachi set up a huge ambush circle on the road that the enemy had to take. His troops were hidden in the dense forests on the west, the hills on the east, and even in the ruins and the farmland in the distance.

After the enemy's vanguard passed, another army took a longer route and prepared to attack their rear.

Huang Fachi was extremely serious in his work, he even considered whether Liu Taozi would come to support him.

A separate army was also specially arranged. They did not participate in the ambush but were only responsible for guarding against Liu Taozi.

But his enemies were obviously not so well prepared.

After Changsun Honglue passed by, about another hour passed before the enemy army gradually appeared on the road.

Qi actually had a large army stationed south of the river, but most of these troops were forcibly recruited from local areas and had no support from the military headquarters of the Pseudo-Zhou State. This resulted in the combat effectiveness of these troops being generally low. Compared with the army in Hebei, one was in the sky and the other was on the ground.

The same was true during the previous battle between Zhou and Qi. Zhou had basically never suffered any losses south of the river. Only Heluo could give them a slight headache.

Although Lu Qian did not get along with Wang Lin, his presence in Yangzhou did cause some trouble to the southerners. He had a certain ability to integrate the various states and counties for his own use.

Qi Bing lowered his head and slowly walked along the road.

The soldiers' eyes kept glancing left and right, not searching for the enemy, but searching for prey.

The Pseudo-Qi had its own traditions. Whenever the army went out to war, they would leave no grass behind, whether in their own territory or in the enemy's territory. They would also cause destruction, kill people, and plunder along the way, sometimes even with generals leading the way.

It’s a pity that the ruins on both sides don’t look like there are any prey.

They can only keep moving forward.

The front army passed smoothly, and the central army appeared afterwards.

From their attire, it could be seen that this group of Qi soldiers was a coalition of forces from different regions. They did not have much tacit understanding with each other and their formation was messy.

Lu Qian was in charge of the central army.

At this moment, he was riding a tall horse, looking into the distance with a serious face.

He didn't like Liu Taozi. Not only him, but most of the officials south of the river didn't like Liu Taozi.

Although Liu Taozi came to support and saved their lives this time, Lu Qian believed that Liu Taozi had other intentions in doing so. He ordered his men not to call Liu Taozi the general, and he often wrote letters to Jinyang to impeach Liu Taozi's behavior, regardless of whether Jinyang could receive his letters.

Now that Huang Fachi was about to retreat, Lu Qian also felt that this was a good opportunity.

He really needed a victory to retain the army that he had forcibly gathered. As long as he could keep these people, he might be able to leave hope for the Great Qi south of the river in the future. One day he would be able to bring the emperor from Jinyang, drive Liu Taozi to the outside of the Great Wall, and revive the Great Qi.

Lu Qian raised his head, thinking about the affairs of family and country.

Just as he was passing through the dense forest, the sound of Chen people's war drums suddenly rang out in the forest.

The war drums of the Chen people were smaller than those of the Qi people, but had a faster tempo.

The rapid drumbeats were like raindrops.

The sound of war drums suddenly sounded, and the army was in an uproar. The soldiers were terrified and took up their weapons one after another, and the generals began to put on armor.

"kill!!!"

Huang Fachi roared angrily and led the charge out of the dense forest.

The ambushes from various locations rushed out together, and troops of different sizes appeared on the left, right, front and back.

The Qi army was in chaos. Although Lu Qian had been well-respected, his experience in fighting was far from enough. Looking at the enemies pouring in from all directions, he became confused and had no idea how to command them. He just ordered his personal soldiers to form a battle array, raise flags and order the troops to counterattack.

Without specific orders, the generals could only fight on their own, and there was no order in their counterattacks.

The two sides fought, and the Qi army was attacked during the march. The army was in chaos and could not find the enemy, the commander, or themselves.

On Chen Bing's side, the tactics were clear, and their most elite soldiers launched a fierce attack towards the central army where Lu Qian's flag was located.

There was no one to protect Lu Qian except his personal soldiers.

When these southern soldiers appeared on his left and right, Lu Qian no longer had the heart to command them. He drew his sharp sword and prepared to break out.

However, Lu Qian was not a fierce general.

Although the soldiers resisted fiercely, they could not stop the enemy's advance. When several soldiers rushed over from both sides, pulled Lu Qian off his horse and pushed down the flag, the outcome was already decided.

The Qi army fled in all directions, abandoning their weapons and armor. Huang Fachu ordered his soldiers to continue chasing and killing them, and the road was in a mess.

Lu Qian was tied up and kneeling on the side, with his hair disheveled and his armor stripped off.

In the distance, there were more captives, but their fates were much more miserable than Lu Qian's. Chen Bing vented all his anger on them, beating them from time to time. These people were tied up together and dared not move, just wailing.

Lu Qian had a dazed look on his face. Two armored soldiers stood behind him, holding his shoulders tightly and forcing him to kneel down to the Chen people.

A group of knights came galloping over. Huang Fatic jumped off his horse nimbly. His whole body was covered in blood. After getting off the horse, he wiped his face slightly and walked quickly towards this place.

When he came in front of Lu Qian, he immediately frowned and scolded: "Mr. Lu is a famous scholar, who allowed you to humiliate him like this?! Let go!"

The two soldiers quickly let go.

Huang Fate looked into the distance again and angrily shouted, "Since the enemy has surrendered, why are you beating and humiliating them?! Order the three armies not to humiliate the prisoners!"

The soldiers in the distance quickly withdrew their attacks, and the captives looked towards Huang Fachi with gratitude.

Huang Fatic helped Lu Qian up with a smile, and then directly untied the ropes on his body.

"Mr. Lu, your presence in Yangzhou has made us extremely worried. We have never dared to go north easily. I wanted to meet you very much since then, and today I finally got the chance."

Lu Qian looked at the person in front of him. Huang Fachi had an easy-going and elegant appearance, more like a Confucian scholar, not a rough and rude man.

"Since we have been defeated, we will leave it to the general to deal with. No need to say more."

Huang Fate looked at Lu Qian, sighed, and then shook his head. "How could a general, a famous scholar, who came from a prominent family, want to die for the Northern Hu?"

Lu Qian raised his head and said, "General, you said that I rule the Northern Barbarians, but we say that your rule is the Southern Barbarians. You are also a famous scholar and come from a great family. Why do you serve the Southern Barbarians?"

"I am loyal to the emperor, and there is no point in saying more!"

Huang Fachu said calmly: "My master is now in Jiankang, waiting for the news of my victory. Where is your master?"

"Liu Taozi is causing chaos in the country, undermining the emperor, and intending to usurp the throne. Everyone in the world knows this. Why doesn't Lord Lu go and attack Liu Taozi to show his loyalty to the emperor?"

Lu Qian's face changed drastically, but Huang Fachu hurriedly explained: "I don't mean to humiliate Lord Lu, so that Lord Lu knows that the Lord of Qi sent an envoy to us and agreed that we would not fight each other anymore and would join forces to deal with the Zhou people."

"We had already accepted it, but Liu Taozi in the north is really a traitor in your country. He has already seized the land north of the river, and Qi is in name only. We have no choice but to send troops to prevent Liu Taozi from reaching out to Henan."

"Liu Taozi is cruel and vicious. If he were allowed to take over Henan, he would surely bring disaster to the people and make their lives miserable. My lord is merciful and does not want to see the tragic situation on the other side, so he sent troops to fight."

Lu Qian laughed and said, "You all have come up with a good excuse."

"Are you trying to persuade me to surrender?"

Huang Fate shook his head. "I know what kind of person Lord Lu is. His words are not meant to persuade him to surrender, but to join forces with Da Qi."

"What do you mean?"

"I know that Lord Lu has received great favor from Emperor Wenxiang of Qi and is determined to help the world. As for us, we also hope to maintain a harmonious relationship with Qi and do not want Liu Taozi, a brutal Hu man, to gain power."

"My Majesty wanted to send an envoy to contact the Lord of Qi, but unfortunately, the envoy was unable to reach Jinyang."

"If Lord Lu is willing, we are willing to join forces with Da Qi to defeat Liu Taozi together."

Lu Qian was stunned, and a hint of hesitation flashed in his eyes.

Huang Fate accurately caught this subtle change in expression. He chuckled and did not allow Lu Qian to answer. "This is not the place to discuss important matters. Let's leave first!"

He ordered a withdrawal, and everyone began to leave the battlefield.

Huang Faticai helped Lu Qian onto the horse and walked side by side with him.

A deputy general came over in a hurry and asked, "General! The enemy's army has been defeated by us, and Hefei is right in front of us. It is undoubtedly an empty city. Why don't you take Hefei instead of evacuating?"

Huang Fate pointed at Lu Qian standing aside and said solemnly, "I attacked Hefei just to meet this man. Now that I have met him, why should I attack Hefei? It's just an empty city. How can it compare to such a talented person?"

The deputy general stopped talking and turned away.

Lu Qian sat on the horse and didn't know what to say for a moment.

Everyone walked leisurely on the road. Huang Fachi stopped talking about important matters with Lu Qian and started chatting about daily life.

"Speaking of which, our ancestors did have a relationship."

"During the Later Han Dynasty, your ancestor Lu Zhigong and my ancestor Huang Wangong were both wise officials who devoted themselves to the country. At that time, the country still belonged to the Han people."

Although Huang Fachi did not say it directly, his words imply that Lu Qian assisted the Hu emperor and failed to live up to the reputation of his ancestors.

Lu Qian didn't care much about this. If they had to debate about orthodoxy, the two could debate all day long.

Before dark, they arrived at the East Gate. Changsun Honglue had occupied the East Gate, but when he learned that the central army in the rear was attacked, he fled with his troops.

Everyone was stationed here. Huang Fachi personally sent Lu Qian to rest, and then returned to his study.

Inside the study, someone was already waiting for him.

This person was none other than the military advisor and general Pei Ji.

"how?"

"I think Lu Qian is also a little shaken."

Huang Fate sat down beside him and stroked his beard gently. "However, the Northern Expedition is difficult to carry out. I am afraid that His Majesty's edict is on the way, asking us to return."

Pei Ji was somewhat helpless. "Wu Mingche is too arrogant. He always underestimates his enemies and won't wake up until he fails. This has happened several times in the past. With his personality, even if he doesn't fail this time, he will definitely be defeated in the future."

"It's a pity that his defeat has delayed his Northern Expedition."

Huang Fate said seriously: "Liu Taozi."

"Ok?"

"We must get rid of Liu Taozi as soon as possible, using any means necessary. If the land south of the river also belongs to him, then no one in the world will be able to compete with him."

Huang Fate said: "The big families, nobles, and powerful people south of the river will not easily accept Liu Taozi's southward march. If we can get Lu Qian's help, we can join forces with these people to deal with Liu Taozi together."

"I even want to join forces with the Zhou people. They have the help of the Turks. If possible, send our ships all the way north to contact the Xi people and Khitan people outside the Great Wall."

Pei Ji was stunned. He looked Huang Fachu up and down. "General Huang? You want to join forces with the Zhou people?"

"Liu Taozi is more terrible than the Zhou people."

"Why do you say that, General?"

"Liu Taozi only occupied the land of Hebei. Whether in terms of population, land, or army, he was far inferior to the Zhou people and their emperor Yuwen Yong."

Huang Fate interrupted Pei Ji rudely, "General Pei, you don't know that when I was in Jiangnan, I sent people to inquire about the other side and the situation of the officials here. I know why these officials are so opposed to Liu Taozi, so I also know why Liu Taozi is our biggest enemy."

"He has just occupied Hebei. At this moment, we must spare no effort and bring together Qi, Zhou, Turks, Xi, Khitan, and everyone else to deal with him. We cannot give him a chance to recover and develop. Otherwise, no one can stop him alone."

Pei Ji still felt that what Huang Fachi said was a bit exaggerated.

Liu Taozi is strong, but in terms of comprehensive national strength, Zhou Ren is a strong enemy.

Pei Ji said slowly: "But have you ever thought that if all parties join forces to eliminate Liu Taozi as you said, the Zhou people will definitely be the ones who benefit in the end. When the Zhou people unify the north, what should we do then?"

"Divide up Qi."

"We still have the strength to fight."

Huang Fate looked at Pei Ji and said, "General Pei, are you willing to join me in writing to the emperor?"

Pei Ji suddenly hesitated. "Whether it's Zhou, Qi, or Liu Taozi, none of them can be trusted. Everything depends on how the situation changes."

Huang Fate did not ask any more questions, but just picked up the document beside him.

He lowered his head and began to write.

(End of this chapter)