Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 144: Defeat the Bandits, Wen Hu Hou

"Your Majesty!"

The chief clerk Yu Yi walked into the big tent and reported: "The various tribes pursued the Gepi bandits, and the bandits fled in all directions. According to the integration of the troops of various tribes, in the two battles combined, more than 2,300 heads were beheaded, and more than 8,500 old and weak surrendered. There was a lot of money and food, which has not yet been counted."

The achievement of killing the Gepi bandits would be worthy of boasting for an ordinary Han general, but in front of Zhang Yu, who had the record of defeating the Xiongnu Chanyu, it did not seem worthy of praise.

After all, at that time, Zhang Yu was in charge of a defeated army, and the morale of the soldiers was low. But now he was in command of 4,000 infantry and cavalry, including 1,000 armored soldiers, and it was only right for him to defeat the bandits in Gepi.

Two days ago, in order to turn the tide of the battle, the Gepi bandits led their elite troops to attack Zhang Yu's camp at night, starting with a night raid and then a violent assault. The Han army went from defense to counterattack in just one hour.

After Huang Shao was killed and his army was defeated, although Liu Pi and He Man achieved some results, they had to lead their troops to withdraw when faced with the aggressive cavalry.

After the two men withdrew their troops, they were charged by the cavalry who came to support them, as well as the counterattack by the county soldiers led by Lu and Xu. Their troops were also defeated.

The three elite troops fled for more than 20 miles, and the Han army pursued them all the way to Lai Township. The bandits suffered heavy casualties, and nearly a thousand were killed or captured.

That night, the Gepi bandits in Laixiang realized that they were no match for the Han army. Torn between surrender and fighting, the bandit leaders took advantage of the darkness of the night, leaving behind the old and weak, and fled in several groups.

After dawn, Zhang Yu heard the news and ordered the Han army to disperse and pursue the fleeing bandits. The bandits were killed in pieces, and a large number of the elderly, weak, women and children surrendered. The results of the Han army's pursuit were presented to Zhang Yu through Yu Yi.

At this point, most of the Gepi bandits had been defeated by Zhang Yu, and the remaining remnants needed to be conquered or appeased by Yuzhou's troops. It can be said that Zhang Yu had completed his mission of conquering the bandits.

Zhang Yu glanced at the battle report and said to his men, "We have killed more than 10,000 prisoners, and the rebel general Huang Shao has surrendered. Most of the rebel troops have been wiped out, and the rest have escaped. It is beyond our army's ability to conquer them all, so the counties in Yuzhou need to pacify them themselves."

Zhong Yao smiled and said, "Congratulations to Ji'an for his new achievements and his promotion to a higher rank."

Zhang Yu smiled and said, "We are able to defeat the bandits today thanks to Yuan Chang's advice and Zi Heng's guidance of the army."

Zhong Yao waved his hand to humbly decline the offer, saying, "It was just a small plan. I didn't expect the enemy to attack at night. Yao An dares to say that he has made a contribution."

After a pause, Zhong Yao looked at Lu Fan and said, "It was Lu Jun who showed us the way and made great contributions to our army in defeating the bandits!"

"Don't dare!"

Lu Fan bowed to Zhang Yu and said, "Your Excellency, a strong army is the key to victory."

Zhang Yu smiled slightly and said in a gentle tone: "I think Ziheng is quite talented. It is a pity that he is now a county official. I want to recruit him as your military secretary and let him manage the military finances with Yuanzhi. What do you think?"

Hearing this, Lu Fan was overjoyed. He stood up and bowed, saying, "I am honored to be recognized by the Captain. How dare I refuse!"

Although Lü Fan was proud of his talent, he was convinced when he saw Zhang Yu easily defeat the Gepi bandits. Moreover, being promoted from a county official to a lieutenant of the imperial army was a big leap for Lü Fan, so how could he be so arrogant as to refuse?

In addition, Lü Fan was eager to succeed. He came from a poor family, but his wife Liu admired him and persuaded her mother, otherwise he would not have been able to marry her. Therefore, whether for himself or to be worthy of his wife, he must seize the opportunity to leap forward.

Seeing that Lü Fan agreed, Zhang Yu smiled with satisfaction and said, "I am happy for two things now. One is that I defeated the enemy troops, and the other is that I got Ziheng."

"Congratulations, Your Excellency, for having another talented person!" Yu Yi said with a bow.

Zhang Yu smiled and said, "Please Shao Ran, take good care of Zi Heng!"

Lü Fan said modestly, "I'll be grateful for your guidance in the future, Master Yu!"

"Tongmian!"

Seeing that someone was able to join the army to share the military affairs with him, Yu Yi was very happy and returned the gift to Lu Fan.

Zhong Yao hesitated for a moment and asked, "Now that our army has defeated the bandits, what are Ji'an's plans?"

Zhang Yu said: "The governor of Yuzhou is now in Qiao County, the capital of the state. I want to go to Qiao County first to meet with Huang Yuzhou. If nothing unexpected happens, Yu should lead his troops back to the capital and report to the court."

Now it was the sixth year of Zhongping, and Zhang Yu did not dare to stay outside for too long, so he prepared to return to Beijing as soon as possible. The reason why Zhang Yu wanted to return to Beijing as soon as possible was because something unexpected had happened in Luoyang.

The day before yesterday, Gai Xun sent someone to deliver a letter. In the letter, Gai Xun's tone was full of worry, saying that he was expelled from Luoyang by the eunuchs and now he was in Jingzhao to serve as Yin Shou. Fortunately, although he was in Beijing, Liu Hong still valued him and wrote to him every day to consult on state affairs.

However, Gai Xun was not particularly worried about just leaving Luoyang. Instead, he learned that Liu Hong had unfortunately caught a cold during the winter, and now because of his illness, he was taken to Jiafu Palace by Empress Dowager Dong for care. Therefore, Gai Xun was deeply worried that something might happen in Luoyang.

Zhang Yu knew very well that Liu Hong's death was the countdown to the demise of the Eastern Han Dynasty. So he did not want to be too far away from the capital, lest he miss out on the pie of Luoyang's turmoil.

Zhong Yao naturally didn't know what Zhang Yu was thinking about. He hummed softly, as if thinking of something, and asked, "Does Ji'an remember Yuan Yongning?"

"You and I worked together in the Shangshutai, how could I not remember it?" Zhang Yu asked, "Why did Yuan Chang suddenly talk about Yongning?"

Yongning was the pen name of Yuan Mi, a friend Zhang Yu had met several years ago. He was from the Yuan family of Runan, and his father was the famous scholar Yuan Zhong.

Zhong Yao smiled and said, "Ji'an doesn't know that Yongning is now the prime minister of Pei State. If Ji'an goes to Qiao County, you and I may be able to meet Yongning!"

Zhang Yu was surprised to hear that Yuan Mi was promoted to the position of Prime Minister of Pei State. He had climbed to the rank of 2,000-stone official by relying on his military merits. But now Yuan Mi was promoted so quickly in just a few years just by serving in the local government. It was really amazing.

But thinking of Yuan Mi's family background, Zhang Yu felt relieved. With a famous scholar as his father and the support of the four generations of three officials, coupled with his own outstanding talents, it is not impossible for him to be promoted to the prime minister of Pei. Zhang Yu nodded slightly and said with a smile: "Since it is on the way, Yu will pay a good visit to Yongning."

As he spoke, Zhang Yu ordered his men, "Come here, gather the scattered troops and horses, and march to Qiao County to hand over the old and weak surrendered civilians to Huang Yuzhou."

"promise!"

Although Zhang Yu intended to relocate the old and weak surrendered civilians to the sparsely populated border, due to distance, supply along the way, and jurisdiction, he could only hand over nearly 10,000 surrendered civilians to Huang Wan, the governor of Yuzhou.

After all, the governor of Yuzhou has all the supervisory power within his jurisdiction. If Zhang Yu handles the matter privately, Huang Wan will send a letter of impeachment to Luoyang, considering his upright character. It is better to have less trouble than more.

As for the sparse population in Bingzhou and the northern border, they can only rely on the turbulent Hebei. After all, if Hebei is in flames and Bingzhou is peaceful at that time, a large number of people will settle there.

Not to mention that Zhang Yu's subordinates cleaned up the battlefield and gathered towards the central army, preparing to go to Qiao County.

At this time, Liu Pi arrived at the border of Qiao County earlier than Zhang Yu. He was followed by only a few hundred remnants of soldiers, and had to plunder the villagers for food.

Liu Pi sat in the woods to rest. Looking at the dejected Yellow Turban soldiers under the tent, he sighed helplessly.

A few years ago, he was defeated by Zhang Yu and fled, but fortunately he was able to live in peace in Gepi. Now he and his men raised an army in Gepi, but unexpectedly they met Zhang Yu again, and Zhang Yu defeated him again, just like last time.

"Angel, will our army surrender to the government now?" asked the attendant.

Liu Pi kicked his feet lightly and said in a muffled voice: "If I surrender to the government, I can only have peace for one night. For a long time, you and I will still be oppressed by evil officials and tyrants. How can I surrender to the government now?"

If Liu Pi was not on the list of bandit leaders, he might have considered surrendering, but now he was wanted by the government. If he surrendered to the government, wouldn't he be seeking his own death?

"What should I do?"

The attendant looked confused and said, "The Han army is chasing us now, and the troops have been scattered. I don't know where to go now?"

Liu Pi pondered for a moment and said, "There are many rivers and ponds in Runan County, and the area is vast. There are many righteous men among them, such as Gong Du, who is my good friend. He is indifferent to money and loves righteousness. We can go to Runan County to find him now."

Seeing that Liu Pi had a safe place to go, everyone could only obey his orders.

After chatting for a while, Liu Pi suddenly felt hungry and asked, "Have the brothers who went out to look for food not returned yet?"

The attendant glanced at the sky and said, "He should be back soon!"

Before he finished speaking, a bandit was seen fleeing in panic in the woods. He only calmed down when he saw Liu Pi and the others.

Seeing that the man who was looking for food was coming back alone, Liu Pi asked in confusion: "Why are you coming back alone today?"

The thin bandit soldier panted and said in panic, "Angel, I just went to the village with others to look for food, but unexpectedly I met several people. The leader was burly and powerful. When he saw us, he and his men attacked us with knives. If I hadn't run fast, I would have been chopped to death by that man."

Liu Pi frowned and asked, "Is that person a member of the Han army, or a member of the surrounding powerful army?"

"I only know his last name is Xu!" said the thief.

"Surname Xu?"

The attendant reacted and said, "Could it be that they are the powerful men of the Xu family that we captured earlier? Their followers are brave and their son Xu Chu is even more powerful and invincible."

"Xu Chu?"

Hearing the name of Xu Chu, Liu Pi got a headache. Thinking about the last time when more than 10,000 people could not do anything to Xu, and considering how to avoid the pursuit of the Han army, he gritted his teeth.

"Let's leave this place now and head south to temporarily avoid Xu's attack and the Han army's pursuit!" Liu Pi ordered.

"promise!"

The remaining soldiers complained when they saw they had to flee again, but in order to survive, they had to set off again.

At this time, Xu Chu, mentioned by the Gepi bandits, learned from the bandits they captured that the Gepi bandits were defeated by the Han army.

"Zhongkang, the Han army captain Zhang Yu has defeated the Gepi bandits. Many of the Gepi bandits have been captured, and now many of the remnants have fled." Xu Ding said, "The bandit leader Liu Pi is not far from us!"

Xu Chu grinned and said, "Zhang Yu is indeed very capable. He deserves the reputation of killing the Xiongnu Chanyu."

Xu Ding pointed at the two captured bandits and asked, "What should we do now?"

Xu Chu looked at the bandits coldly and said, "Brother, considering the information they provided, I will spare their lives for now. Now you and I need to return to the fort, take the clan secrets, and hunt down the remaining bandits in Gepi to prevent the rebellious soldiers from harming the villagers."

"it is good!"

(End of this chapter)