On the occasion of rebirth Zhou Sui

Chapter 423: Connected

The news of the fall of Sishui County also caused Yu Zhongwen to recall reinforcements and prepare to hold on to Luoyang. At the same time, he summoned Yang Yichen, Yu Wenshu, Duan Wenzhen and others to lead the army to reinforce Luoyang.

After Cui Che occupied Hulao Pass, he took advantage of the situation and dispatched various troops to attack various counties in Zhengzhou.

Under the jurisdiction of Zhengzhou were Xingyang (today's Xingyang, Henan Province), Putian (Yang Jian changed Zhongmou to Neimou to avoid the name taboo of his father Yang Zhong, and in the 18th year of Kaihuang's reign, it was changed to Putian (today's Zhongmou, Henan Province)), Mi County (today's Xinmu County, Henan Province).

Mi), Xinzheng (today's Xinzheng, Henan), Guancheng (divided into Neimou County in the 16th year of Kaihuang's reign, now Guancheng District, Zhengzhou, Henan) and other counties have joined.

Cui Che was also able to obtain a stronghold on the south bank of the middle section of the Yellow River.

Naturally, he would not allocate his precious troops to defend the city.

In fact, Cui Che's so-called 300,000-strong army did not come out of his mouth. After all, the 140,000-strong army that followed him south did not include the soldiers from the southern states in the Hedong region who would be used to take over the prefectures and counties and defend the counties and cities in Henan.

.

Yu Zhongwen mobilized troops and generals in Luoyang, but Cui Che was not in a hurry to advance westward. After taking full control of Zhengzhou, Cui Che secretly sent an envoy to the neighboring Bianzhou (governing Junyi County, today's Kaifeng, Henan), where is

The Zheng family in Xingyang was located in Kaifeng County (now Xiangfu District, Kaifeng, Henan).

Although the Zheng family in Xingyang is named Xingyang, it refers to Xingyang County, not Xingyang County.

During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, Xingyang County was established, and Kaifeng County was a subordinate county of Xingyang County, so it was called Xingyang Zhengshi.

Nowadays, the administrative division has changed, and Kaifeng belongs to Bianzhou, but the world is still accustomed to the old name that has been used for hundreds of years.

The Eastern Sui Dynasty claimed that an army of 300,000 soldiers marched south and swept through Zhengzhou. Bianzhou, which is adjacent to it, has not been affected by the military disaster for the time being, but its awareness is also overwhelming.

After the Cui family in Boling, the Lu family in Fanyang, the Cui family in Qinghe, the Li family in Zhaojun, and the Wang family in Taiyuan successively surrendered to Cui Che, the Eastern Sui army is now moving south, only a short distance away from Kaifeng County.

The Zheng family in Xingyang secretly received Cui Che's envoy, Fang Yanzao.

Fang Yanzao faced the elders of the Zheng family and talked eloquently:

"In the battle of Xiangzhou, Li Jing took the lead; he came to protect his son across the river, abandoned the army and fled; Yang Su was defeated in the east of the river, and was too frightened to go eastward; how could Yu Zhongwen, a mere man of Hao, be able to withstand King Yan's 300,000 tigers!

"Fang is coming in the morning, and the army is arriving in the evening. Where will the Zheng family go? Please think twice."

The people surnamed Zheng present were whispering to each other, and the buzz of discussion resounded throughout the spacious hall.

In fact, by treating Fang Yanzao as a guest, they had already shown their attitude.

Fang Yanzao was not making false threats. There was indeed an army behind him heading towards Bianzhou.

Cui Che divided 35,000 infantry and cavalry as a partial division, with Li Jing as the commander-in-chief, leading the troops to march eastward.

Both Junyi County, where Bianzhou was governed, and Kaifeng County, which is adjacent to it, are now just small towns.

To really become a great city in the Central Plains, we had to wait until the second year of Emperor Dezong's founding in the Tang Dynasty (781), when Li Mian, the military governor of Jiedu, built an additional 22 miles of prefectural city.

Now that the army was pressing down on the territory and the small city was difficult to defend, when Li Jing crossed the state boundary and advanced into Bianzhou, the Zheng family of Xingyang finally persuaded the governor of Bianzhou, and the governor surrendered the state.

Li Jing captured Bianzhou without firing a single shot. But he did not stop there. Li Jing sent someone to report to Cui Che, requesting that Hedong soldiers be sent to take over the defense. At the same time, he continued to march eastward, aiming directly at Yanzhou.

The governor of Yanzhou was shocked when he heard that Bianzhou had changed its flag.

You must know that before, Lai Hu'er was defeated in Hebei and was forced by Cui Qiji's 100,000 infantry and cavalry soldiers to go south and asked for help in Yanzhou.

The governor of Yanzhou then recruited elite soldiers from the state to rush to help protect his son.

Now Yanzhou's elite soldiers were scattered in Cao and Yizhou. Facing Li Jing's menacing attack, he hurriedly asked Lai Hu'er for help. However, before the Yanzhou soldiers could return for reinforcements, Li Jing's Eastern Expedition army took the lead in approaching Hua Tai (today's Hua Tai, Henan Province).

county).

After a slight resistance, the governor of Yanzhou fled to Caozhou and came to protect his son. Li Jing was able to occupy Yanzhou.

Now I have too much time to take care of my children.

After the Zheng family in Xingyang defected to Cui Che, Yizhou governor Zheng Shanguo rebelled in the state, and most of Caozhou's local soldiers were left in Hebei and reorganized by Cui Che.

Now that Yanzhou soldiers heard about the fall of the rear, they were all worried about their families, and they even lost their fighting spirit.

Yang Guang once ordered the soldiers from the two Huaihe Rivers to go north to recover Qingqi and other places under the control of Laihuer. However, the order was transmitted from Guanxi to the two Huaihe Rivers, and then soldiers were recruited from the two Huaihe Rivers. How could it be done so quickly?

Now the troops from the two Huai Prefectures have not yet moved north, Yizhou has rebelled, and people in Caozhou City are even more panic-stricken.

It rained continuously all night, and when Li Jing left Yanzhou east, Cui Qiji also led Qing Qi's troops to the west, planning to meet Li Jing at the foot of Caozhou City.

When Lai Huer saw this, he knew that Caozhou could not hold on.

After discussing with the generals, they decided to lead their own cavalry south to Huaibei to command the troops of the two Huaihe Prefectures, and then compete with Li Jing and Cui Qiji for victory.

Lai Hu'er abandoned the city again. After he left, Caozhou's garrison dispersed. Cui Qiji occupied the city and reported the victory to Cui Che.

From then on, Qingzhou, Mi, Ju, Lai, Qi, Ji, Zi, Yi and Cao Jiuzhou were all owned by the Eastern Sui Dynasty. Cui Qiji, the Qingzhou Governor, finally lived up to his name.

In fact, this outcome was already doomed as early as when Lai Huer was defeated in Hebei and all Qingqi's troops were absorbed by Cui Che.

It was just that Cui Che wanted to rush to the east of Hedong, but was worried about changes in the rear, so he told Cui Qiji not to send troops rashly and adopt a strategy of attacking from the west and defending from the east.

As Yang Su withdrew from Hedong, Cui Che completely integrated Yang Liang's forces, and then allowed Cui Qiji to plot Caozhou and other places.

However, Cui Che ignored Luoyang, who was just around the corner, and insisted on sending Li Jing to lead a partial army to march eastward. Cui Che also knew that Zheng Shanguo, the governor of Yizhou, was from the Zheng family in Xingyang. Once Bianzhou was invaded and the Zheng family surrendered, it was logical that Zheng Shanguo would rebel in the state.

things.

Now Cui Che has completely occupied the states along the lower reaches of the Yellow River. He petitioned the Jinyang court and appointed Cui Qiji as the Daxingtai of Henan Province to guard Qing, Mi, Ju, Lai, Qi, Ji, Zi, Yi, Cao, Yan, Bian, etc.

Eleven states.

At the same time, Cui Che mobilized Li Jing and led his troops back to Zhengzhou, because Yu Zhongwen's reinforcements had gathered in Luoyang.

Yang Yichen led the troops from Shaanzhou (governing Shaanxi County, now Sanmenxia, ​​Henan Province) to go eastward.

Duan Wenzhen took control of Yizhou (governing Fuliucheng, northeast of today's Song County, Henan Province), and the soldiers of Luzhou (governing Lu County, today's Lushan County, Henan Province) went north.

While Cui Che was seizing the states along the lower reaches of the Yellow River, Yu Zhongwen gathered more than 200,000 troops around Luoyang and assumed a posture of holding on to Luoyang.

As for Zhengzhou, Songzhou (Songcheng County, now Suiyang District, Shangqiu, Henan), Caizhou (governing Caiyang County, now Zaoyang, Hubei), and Xuzhou (governing Changshe County, now Weidu District, Xuchang, Henan) in the south of Bianzhou

), Chenzhou (governing Wanqiu County, present-day Huaiyang, Henan) and other places also under the leadership of Yuwenshu, prepared to regain lost territory.

The back of my hand hurts a lot. I'll put some ice on it first. I'll post the remaining two chapters in the early morning.

(End of chapter)