Establishing a thousand-year family from the nobles of the Western Han Dynasty

Chapter 27: Division and Blockade

"Zhou'er, what...what did you say!?"

Hearing this heavy news, Xu Zhao was stunned. He had never thought that Liu Ruyi would rebel! If this was true, it would be bad.

The King of Zhao is not on the same level as other princes. Since the big countries such as Huainan and Qi were split up, the strongest prince is Zhao!

Liu Heng respected and valued Liu Ruyi very much, and divided a large number of cities from Qi to Zhao, which made its strength expand rapidly. The domestic military force already had a total of 150,000, the largest among the princes.

When the Donghu invaded, the imperial court ordered Liu Ruyi to recruit soldiers from various vassal states and form an army of 120,000 to go to the State of Yan for rescue. It can be said that the number of troops in the hands of King Zhao at that time was difficult to estimate.

The worst thing is that most of the central army went to the border to resist the Donghu. Now Chang'an has only more than 10,000 troops, which can be said to be an empty city. If Liu Ruyi, who has his own troops, takes the opportunity to launch a sneak attack at this time, Chang'an may not be able to be defended at all.

By then, an unimaginable catastrophe will break out. Emperor Wen still has a large number of troops and is in a righteous position. How could he possibly submit to a traitor? So he will inevitably fight with him.

With such a huge scale, the only ones who will suffer in the end are the common people!
Xu Zhou endured the pain of his wound and said with despair on his face: "After the Zhao army reached the capital of Qi, they suddenly turned against us and captured Qi, Jiaodong, Jibei and several other countries. Now the entire Qi and Zhao land should be in their hands."

"The King of Zhao intended to usurp the throne. My father was very angry and wanted to go to Taiyuan to report to His Majesty, but he stopped him and put him under house arrest. He persuaded my father to join their team."

"My father vowed to never surrender, and eventually... committed suicide. Before he died, he sent someone to escort me out."

Speaking of this, Xu Zhou's voice suddenly choked up. In fact, his father could have escaped at that time.

However, Xu Zhong felt that he had failed to live up to the emperor's trust and had not properly advised Zhao Wang Liu Ruyi. He had no face to live any longer, so he chose to commit suicide to atone for his sins.

"Zhongdi, why are you doing this? Death can't solve the problem."

Xu Zhao could no longer be sad. The sudden rebellion of King Zhao Liu Ruyi directly shattered his plan. The Han Dynasty was now on the verge of collapse, with the Donghu outside and rebels inside.

If we fail to handle this properly, the Han Dynasty’s foundation will be destroyed!
"Zhou'er, go down and have a rest. Your uncle will take care of everything."

"Yes, uncle. If you need me, you can use my life as you like." Xu Zhou also knew that he was injured.

"Come here, call all the generals."

Xu Zhao calmed down and planned to gather everyone together to discuss countermeasures. The rebellion of King Zhao must be treated with caution. He didn't even know how many troops the other party had or how many vassal states had been taken over by it. The situation was very passive.

However, the most urgent task is to report to His Majesty as soon as possible! Let the troops from Taiyuan return to provide support. Even if Yandi is lost, it is better than losing Chang'an.

"Alas, father, what should I do now? If you were still here, perhaps the problem would have been solved long ago."

Watching the messenger soldier leave, Xu Zhao couldn't help feeling extremely melancholy. His mind was blank and he had no idea how to deal with the two major events of the Donghu invasion and the rebellion of King Zhao. Now these 50,000 people were far from enough.

Soon, all the generals arrived one after another, and Xu Zhao told them everything about Liu Ruyi's previous rebellion.

"What? King Zhao rebelled!"

"This...what should I do? It has to be at this moment!"

When everyone heard this, they were shocked at first, and then they were overwhelmed by a strong sense of powerlessness. Now they only have more than 50,000 troops and they also need to defend against the Donghu. What else can they do?

Without reinforcements, I'm afraid I won't be able to protect myself.

"Silence!" Xu Zhao cleared the area and said solemnly, "It's useless to keep complaining. Instead of sitting here and waiting to die, we might as well take the initiative!"

"Right now, Liu Ruyi's rebels may not know that we have received the news. If we send troops to attack their rear at this time, we may still be able to save them. Then, we can coordinate with His Majesty in Taiyuan and suppress the rebellion with lightning speed!"

"But we are running out of time. We must stop the rebels before they break through Chang'an, and we must also ensure that the Hu people do not occupy Jicheng."

"I will personally go to stop the rebels, but Yan State is still short of a general to guard it."

"With the country in crisis, who is willing to take on this important task?"

It was terribly quiet around.

No one spoke. This was not an easy task. Everyone knew that it was impossible to defend the State of Yan without reinforcements. If they failed, they would have to take responsibility. Who would dare to take over this mess?

"I am willing to share the general's worries!"

A firm and courageous voice was heard, and everyone looked over unconsciously, as if they wanted to see who was so bold.

He actually dared to accept this military order that almost guaranteed his death.

Xu Zhao's tense mood finally relaxed, and a look of relief appeared in his eyes: "Okay, you are worthy of being a descendant of the Xu family. Xu Zheng, you will temporarily take over my position from now on. Remember to defend Yandi to the death! Don't let the Hu people set foot in the city!"

"As long as people are in the city, the city will still exist even if people die!"

This person was none other than the fourth son of the old Grand Tutor Xu Zhen. Xu Zheng showed no fear at all and said with a firm gaze, "General, rest assured. I will not let the Hu people occupy even an inch of our Han territory!"

Although the generals were not optimistic, their strong sense of family and country still supported them to fight silently until the last moment.

Yes, if you give up because of this little setback, then why join the army? Just go home and farm.

"Well... I believe in you. Father said you are a stubborn person. Let's see how stubborn you are today." Xu Zhao stroked his brother's head, then took out the military token and handed it to Xu Zheng solemnly.

Xu Zheng was also a general who had experienced many battles. At least thousands of Hu people died at his hands directly or indirectly. He was awarded a title of nobility for his military achievements.

Then, he thought for a moment and looked at Xu Zheng, saying seriously: "I will take 8,000 soldiers with me, and leave the rest to you. Liu Ruyi has not run out of food, which means he still has some humanity. You don't have to worry about supplies in the short term."

"I obey your command!" Xu Zheng gave a standard military salute.

"I'll go first, I'll rely on you guys here."

Xu Zhao put on his helmet, picked up his sword, walked out of the tent quickly and began to mobilize the soldiers. After five thousand soldiers and three thousand cavalrymen were gathered, he climbed onto his horse.

He was now in a very tight time frame. It would take time to deliver the letter to Taiyuan, and it would also take time for Liu Heng to mobilize troops. He had to delay the other side first. If the rebels broke through Chang'an, everything would be over.

As night fell, the army lit torches and rushed towards Guanzhong day and night. Xu Zhao estimated that the Zhao army should have advanced towards Xingyang by now, and planned to take advantage of the lack of troops in Chang'an to fight.

This is indeed the case. Liu Ruyi has completely pacified the northern princes by using both soft and hard tactics, and is now leading an army of 260,000 to Guanzhong.

(End of this chapter)