Red Mansion: Seizing Jiangdong, starting with pirates

Chapter 166, Crossing the Yellow River

However, it is said that after Gao Zhi broke through the Badaling city wall, he made great contributions to the grassland.

Kah Khan had to reward his meritorious ministers, but Chen Zhengdu also made great contributions by defeating Daxi's 30,000 reinforcements with only a hundred cavalrymen.

These two people happened to have a grudge against each other, which made Kah Khan very embarrassed.

Chen Zhengdu even privately requested Kah Khan that he should not give up the reward and just want to kill Gao Zhi as soon as possible.

Faced with such a situation, Kah Khan was really unable to make a decision.

Although Gao Zhi is afraid of death and has no ability, if he is killed, it will definitely affect his subsequent ambition to rule the Central Plains.

But if we maintain high aspirations, it will discourage the heroes who have made great contributions.

Moreover, Chen Zhengdu is extremely capable, and he will inevitably have to rely on him to fight in the future.

After thinking for a long time, Kah Khan came up with a solution that seemed to have the best of both worlds.

Gao Zhi was rewarded and then assigned to work under Chen Zhengdu.

This not only gave Gao Zhi a reward, but also gave Chen Zhengdu a chance to take revenge.

After the appointment was issued, Gao Zhi was in a state of panic all day long.

He knew that since he was working under Chen Zhengdu, the other party would find a way to kill him sooner or later.

And Chen Zhengdu indeed thought so.

At this time, the grassland army was heading towards Juyongguan.

Along the way, Chen Zheng made things difficult for Gao Zhi, sometimes whipping him for being late, sometimes forcing him to hurry, sometimes replacing his meals with stale rice, and sometimes confiscating his medicines!

You know, Gao Zhi was still seriously injured at this time!

After this, even a normal person would be tortured beyond recognition, not to mention Gao Zhi who was already seriously injured.

Fortunately, there was a man named Bazan among the grassland army who had a good relationship with Gao Zhi.

Bazin was originally the nephew of Kah Khan.

However, there are many sons and nephews of the grassland people, and Bazan is not taken seriously among them.

However, since he had fought together with Chen Zheng before and made considerable contributions in capturing the Badaling city, he was now promoted to a captain of a thousand households due to his merits.

Because Bazin's achievements were thanks to Gao Zhi, he and Gao Zhi had many interactions. Gao Zhi was also good at building relationships with people, and the two of them developed some friendship through their interactions.

Seeing Gao Zhi's pitiful situation, Bazin often helped Gao Zhi, which allowed Gao Zhi to survive and reach Juyongguan.

Once we reached Juyongguan, it was impossible to trick the city into opening like we did at Badaling.

Qi Jianhui had already fled back to Juyong Pass, where he gathered 20,000 defeated soldiers. Together with the 6,000 to 7,000 people who originally lived at Juyong Pass, the total of nearly 30,000 people defended Juyong Pass tightly without any loopholes.

The grassland army had no choice but to storm the city.

On the other side, Huaizhou.

The attack on Zhejiang has been stopped.

Fang Yong mobilized the generals, Zhai Xun, Ma Laohei, Niu Jin, Li Sheng, Zhang Yuan, Wei Xing, and Gao Li, to lead the troops north. Wu Yuan followed the army to offer advice, Xue Dacuizi was in charge of logistics, Jia Yucun was in charge of Huaizhou, and Gan Ba led the troops to guard the home.

At that time, Caoyuan had just broken through Badaling.

At the same time, Fang Yong said goodbye to Daiyu and all the concubines at home, put on his armor, assembled his troops, and ordered them to go to war!
A total of 250,000 troops were mobilized for this expedition, including 150,000 Huaiyin troops, 30,000 naval troops, 20,000 Zhuxin troops, and 50,000 Shandong troops, totaling 250,000 troops. They were divided into three armies: front, middle, and rear. There were also countless militia and auxiliary troops followed by the former Shandong disaster victims. Externally, they claimed that there were 600,000 troops, held high the banner of serving the king, and marched into Shandong under the name of going north to fight against the alien races.

The front army of Huaiyin consisted of 50,000 soldiers, with Ma Laohei as the vanguard general and 3,000 heavy cavalry. They marched all the way with red flags flashing and murderous intent. They cut a path through the mountains and built bridges over the rivers. They marched in an orderly manner, and the dust raised by their horses' hooves covered the ground and the sky.

The central army consists of 50,000 Huaiyin troops and 50,000 Shandong troops, with Zhai Xun as the general. He has good command and is calm and composed. The shields are rolling, the short swords are shining, the red tassels are waving, and the air is cold and stern.

The rear army Huaiyin army has 50,000 soldiers, Zhuxin army has 20,000 soldiers, Li Sheng led the troops, and the wheel artillery, moving back and forth, heavy as a thousand pounds, as powerful as thunder! In addition, there are Zhang Yuan and Qi Jin on the water, as well as baggage convoys, and countless civilians and militiamen.

Poetry:

The murderous aura rises and the dust rolls, while the faint red clouds reflect the green moss.

Ten miles away, only the sound of spears and armor could be heard, and a mountain of soldiers emerged from the ground.

This event was so grand that it attracted worldwide attention.

Some people praised Fang Yong for going north to fight against foreign races, calling him a hero who serves the nation, the country and the people!

Some people also said that Fang Yongwu went north, although in the name of fighting against foreign races, but in fact he had evil intentions and intended to covet the Jiuzhou artifact.

Faced with such a scene, the Kong family, as the academic leader of the world, took the lead in setting an example.

When Fang Yong led his army through Jeju, the Kong family prepared food and drink to welcome the royal army.

Wang Chixiu, a disciple of Confucius and a well-known Confucian scholar in Shandong, personally argued for Fang Yong, published articles, quoted scriptures and classics, and proved the rationality of Fang Yong's journey to the north.

At the same time, Fang Yong was also invited by Kong Jifan to the Yanshenggong Mansion, and the two had a very pleasant conversation.

Of course, Fang Yong himself also had to make promises such as guaranteeing the prosperity of the Kong family and recognizing the status of Yansheng Duke.

For the Kong family, they never thought that Fang Yong would go back on his word, and Fang Yong had no reason to go back on his word.

Throughout the dynasties, whether it was the Hu people, the Han people, or any other ethnic group, who did not respect the Confucius family?

This is not because of how powerful the Kong family itself is, but because the Kong family’s ideas are the most suitable to help rulers rule the people!

No matter who it was, as long as he became emperor, he would definitely need the Kong family to help him stabilize his rule. This is an undeniable fact. Emperor Taizu of Daxi hated the Kong family so much, but in the end, didn't he still have to respect Confucianism? Is there any emperor who doesn't like his rule to be stable?

Moreover, during the conversation with Fang Yong, Kong Jifan found that the other party had a gentle attitude, without any of the brutality of a bandit, and was very respectful of the Kong family's culture. This was much better than the Daxi Taizu recorded in the records.

If the other party can really take charge of China in the future, then the Kong family will definitely become more prosperous!
I heard that the other party is lustful. Maybe after the situation becomes clear, I can choose a woman...

Fang Yong stayed briefly at the Confucius Mansion, pretended to be nice to the place, and then left.

All direct descendants of the Kong family went thirty miles out of the city to see off the Huaiyin army.

After the army entered Shandong, they had a smooth journey. With the previous preparations and the support of the people, they basically encountered no obstacles.

Jeju and Yizhou both surrendered, and when they arrived in Jinan, they encountered some resistance.

However, Zhou Shuan's troops had already been stationed in Mount Tai. The two sides cooperated and took Jinan by surprise.

Due to concerns about the situation in the capital, Fang Yong did not stay in Shandong for long, and did not even implement military settlements. He simply dispatched generals to garrison in various important cities and then quickly led his troops north.

The army crossed the Yellow River and rushed to Dezhou!

Beijing,

Gao Zhi surrendered, and news came back that the grassland army was approaching Juyongguan.

At the same time, news came that Fang Yong went north, raised the banner of defending the king and fighting against foreign races.

Emperor Longqing was shocked and angry.

Let’s not talk about the fact that Fang Yong’s army is still in Shandong for now.

Let’s just talk about the foreign invaders in the north. Once Juyong Pass is breached, the capital city will become their trap!

Although Juyongguan has been a strategic pass since ancient times and should not be breached so quickly, Badaling is not bad either. However, it was breached after only four days. If Juyongguan is also breached by foreign invaders, Emperor Longqing cannot afford the gamble!

(End of this chapter)