On the occasion of rebirth Zhou Sui

Chapter 588 The troops march to Nanyang

Emperor Dayan led the southern expedition away until no one could be seen anymore, and the officials dispersed.

In the carriage returning home, Pei Xingyan asked his father Pei Yuanji in a low voice:

"Is Cui Che's move a temporary move, or has it been planned for a long time?"

When the Pei family father and son were alone, they often called for Cui Che's life and were not respectful to Emperor Dayan.

Pei Renji said without thinking:

"Cui Che is always cautious and never fights an uncertain battle. What happened today was probably planned for a long time."

Pei Xingyan said in confusion:

"What is his purpose?"

Pei Renji muttered:

"In the Battle of Changping, the Qin State changed its generals before the battle, secretly appointing Bai Qi as its commander, and taking the enemy by surprise. Zhao Kuo took it lightly and was defeated.

"Now the kings and ministers in Jiangnan think that Cui Yanqing is in charge, not Cui Che himself.

"Even with the help of Liu Fang and Li Jing, how can their prestige be compared with Cui Che's?"

When Pei Xingyan heard this, he was worried, but he couldn't do anything.

Although the father and son were in the Yan camp and had their hearts set on the Sui Dynasty, they were not internally responsible.

After all, Cui Che's wariness against them has been made clear.

The father and son were famous for their bravery and had the reputation of being the enemy of thousands of people. However, before Cui Che founded the country, they were kicked out of the army and transferred to civilian jobs.

Cui Che's move also means that the father and son are the key targets of surveillance by the Observation Department.

Even if the Pei family and his son wanted to send news to Jiangnan, no one would dare to contact them.

Seeing his son's sad face, Pei Renji explained:

"Cui Che is a king, not a minister. If he disappears for a period of time, the court and even the entire north will fall into chaos.

"Therefore, he is destined not to go to the front line secretly like Bai Qi, so he announced in public today that he will personally conquer the country.

"With so many pairs of eyes watching, the news of Cui Che's personal expedition will spread throughout Luoyang in a short time.

"By the time the southern expedition army arrived in Xuzhou, Xi Zuo had already spread the news to the south.

"The incident happened suddenly, and perhaps the emperor (Yang Guang) had no time to adjust his arrangements in Huainan.

"But when facing Cui Che's personal expedition, the Huainan defender will not underestimate the enemy and make the same mistake as Zhao Kuo."

As Pei Renji said, the Sui Dynasty spies lurking in Luoyang attached great importance to the intelligence of Cui Che's personal expedition, and immediately sent people and horses to send messages to the south.

At this time, the southern expedition army did not appear at Hulao Pass, the only way out from the east.

After Cui Che led the army to leave Luoyang, he pretended to march eastward, but on the way he suddenly ordered to change the route, cross the Luoshui River south, follow the Yishui River, and approach Yique Pass.

The two mountains here face each other and the Yishui River flows, making it the natural gateway to the south of Luoyang.

Cui Che spent the night at Yique Pass, and the soldiers camped outside the pass. It was only then that the officers and soldiers suddenly realized that they were not going to Xuzhou, but had another destination.

Cui Che no longer concealed anything, and informed the entire army through his generals that they would capture Jingzhou on this trip.

To these soldiers, there was not much difference between Jingzhou and Xuzhou. It was just that wherever Cui Che's command flag pointed, they followed it obediently.

After crossing Yique Pass, Cui Che followed the Yiluo River Valley, crossed the Funiu Mountains, and arrived at the Nanyang Basin.

Cheng Yaojin, the governor of Luzhou, led a hundred cavalry out of the city to greet him.

"I am here to pay my respects to Your Majesty."

Cheng Yaojin hurried to the front of the carriage, dismounted and paid his respects.
"Plain body."

Cui Che led Cui Youzhi out of the carriage. He didn't have time to ask him about his daughter Cui Wenjun's current situation, but instead asked for information about Xiangyang.

Cheng Yaojin highlighted Zhang Xutuo, the Prime Minister of Xiangyang County, and reminded him:

"Although this man is a civilian, he is capable of leading troops and is brave and good at fighting. In the past few years, I have fought with him several times, and both sides have won and lost."

Zhang Xutuo is not well-known in this time and space, but as a time traveler, Cui Che will not ignore him no matter what.

However, in the face of Cheng Yaojin’s kind reminder, Cui Che still nodded helpfully and said with a smile:

"If he can compete with Yi Zhen, he is a good general."

Cheng Yaojin blushed when he heard this, but his face was so dark that he couldn't tell.

It is said that there was victory and defeat for each other, but during the four years of guarding Luzhou, when he fought against Zhang Xutuo, he lost more than he won, so he was obviously at a disadvantage.

Of course, he did not deceive the king. If he loses more and wins less, isn't it considered a victory and defeat for each other?

Leading the way through Cheng Yaojin, Cui Che came to Lushan County. The soldiers camped outside the city, and he stayed in Cheng Yaojin's mansion.

Cui Che's fourth daughter Cui Wenjuan and Cui Che's grandson were waiting at home for a long time.

More than 100,000 troops arrived in Lushan County. It was impossible to hide this news from anyone. When the agents lurking in the north desperately tried to send the information to Xiangyang, Zhang Xutuo was worried about it.

Zhang Xutuo came from the Zhang family in Nanyang, and his ancestors moved to Hongnong. He served as a subordinate of King Yang Xiu of Shu and followed Shi Wansui to quell the rebellion in the southwest. He also followed Yang Su and defeated Yang Liang who entered Guanzhong.

It was precisely because of these experiences that the governor of Xiangyang entrusted him with military affairs and allowed him to lead the army as a county magistrate.

In the past few years, Zhang Xutuo has been giving lectures on martial arts training in Xiangyang and actively preparing for war. The combat effectiveness of his soldiers cannot be underestimated.

Otherwise, Cheng Yaojin would not have been at a disadvantage in the border conflict with him.

But Zhang Xutuo was able to bully and bully Cheng Yaojin's imperial soldiers. Now that he heard that Cui Che was marching in person, and the camp was more than ten miles outside Lushan City, how could Zhang Xutuo not feel worried?

Of course, Xiangyang Governor Xiao Jue also had trouble sleeping and eating because of this.

Xiao Jue is the son of Emperor Xiao Kui of Liang Ming Dynasty and the younger brother of Empress Xiao of Yang Guang.

After the fall of Xiliang, Xiao Jue was moved to the north and was raised by Yang Guang and his wife since he was a child.

Today's Empress of Dayan, Yang Awu, would have almost married Xiao Jue if Xiao Jue hadn't been mourning her father.

It is precisely because of this that Xiao Jian has always been resentful towards Cui Che for his ruthless behavior of stealing love.

Now that Cui Che has raised troops to attack, and there are other governors, others may be frightened and offer the city to surrender.

But with Xiao Jue's close relationship with Yang Guang and his old grudge with Cui Che, how could he bow to Cui Che.

After sending envoys to ask for help from surrounding counties, Xiao Jue found Zhang Xutuo and asked:

"Now that Yan thieves are invading the country, the imperial court has deployed heavy troops in Huainan and is unable to support Xiangyang. Does Zhang Juncheng have a way to defeat the thieves?"

Xiao Jue had confidence in Zhang Xutuo. He entrusted Zhang Xutuo with military affairs out of trust because he knew his abilities.

However, Zhang Xutuo had no clue at this time and could only say:

"Although the Yan rebels have strong troops and horses, water warfare is not what the northerners are good at. There is the Han River in the north of Xiangyang as a barrier, and the navy is all over the place. No enemy dares to attack them, or they can rely on the Han River to set up defenses."

After Cui Che founded the country, he split the Xuzhou navy and transferred one part to Luzhou.

In name, it was to defend the capital and prevent the Sui army from crossing the Han River and marching north from the Nanyang Basin to threaten Luoyang.

But in fact, it was to become familiar with the Han River, and at the same time to practice in battle during the conflict with the Xiangyang Navy.

It is precisely because of the repeated defeats of the Yan army's navy that Zhang Xutuo boldly said that the navy was in command and control, and no enemy dared to take it seriously.

(End of chapter)