Standalone Northern and Southern Dynasties

Chapter 398 Racing

The deputy general standing next to Li Shengui was the follower arranged for him by Su Ze.

[The Rigorous Tongwan City Defenders]

Name: Su Shouzheng;

Grade: Orange;
Effect 1: Rigorous, able to discover loopholes in city defense when arranging city defense.

Effect 2: Hold on to the bitter end, and be able to defend the city until the last moment before morale collapses.

Comment: "The city was destroyed and everyone died!"

Price: 800 wen tai and 100 baht coins, and a maintenance fee of wen tai and baht coins is required every month.

Not only Su Shouzheng, among the 3,000 defenders of Beizhong City by Li Shengui, 2,000 were the original garrison soldiers of Beizhong City, and the other 300 were arranged for Li Shengui by Su Ze.

After Li Shengui took office as the General of Beizhong, accompanied by Su Shouzheng, he vigorously strengthened the defense of Beizhong City and trained the garrison soldiers in the city.

Seeing that Erzhu Rong's army was about to arrive in Heyang, Li Shengui had no choice but to bite the bullet and prepare to fight.
-
In Heyang, Erzhu Rong's army welcomed the second imperial envoy.

The last time, the envoy sent by Empress Dowager Hu was humiliated by Erzhu Rong and said that he only respected the emperor's edict. This time, the eunuch brought the emperor's handwritten edict, asking Erzhu Rong to stop his advance and return to Jinyang.

This time it was the emperor's edict. Erzhu Rong was not rude as last time. Instead, he gathered all his generals and respectfully accepted the imperial edict.

Seeing that Erzhu Rong had received the imperial edict, the eunuch became bolder and said in a stern voice:
"General Erzhu, why don't you withdraw your troops?"

Erzhu Rong put away the imperial edict and said:
"This general wishes to go to Luoyang and pay homage to His Majesty in person before returning to Jinyang."

The eunuch said quickly:

"Didn't your majesty ask General Erzhu to return to Jinyang? Are you really planning a rebellion?"

Erzhu Rong said:
"Although it is an imperial decree from His Majesty, how do we know that it was not issued by the bandits under duress? Someone, please go down and have a rest."

The ferocious servants rushed forward and dragged the eunuch away.

Erzhu Rong handed the imperial edict to the guards around him with contempt, then turned around and returned to the general's tent.

After sitting down, Erzhu Rong first asked Yuan Tianmu beside him:

"Brother, how is the situation in Luoyang?"

"Replying to the general, I have already contacted the nobles and ministers of Luoyang, and they still have differences of opinion."

Erzhu Rong stopped his army in Heyang not because of an edict from the young emperor, but because he was waiting for the result in Luoyang.

Luoyang is one of the most populous cities in the world today. Erzhu Rong brought only 3,000 troops with him. No matter how good he was at fighting, it would be impossible for him to control the city of Luoyang with these troops.

Even if they attack Luoyang City, all the officials in the court can hide in Jinyong City.

When Erzhu Rong was in Heyang, he had already received the news that his good brother Su Ze had received the imperial edict and had also left Tongguan and rushed to Luoyang.

As sworn brothers, Erzhu Rong understood Su Ze's thoughts very well.

In that case, I would really become a traitor.

So Erzhu Rong had sent Yuan Tianmu to cross the Yellow River first and secretly contact the authorities in Luoyang. He needed a Luoyang city to welcome him.

Erzhu Rong looked at Gao Huan again and asked:

"How's North Central City?"

Gao Huan was also dressed in military uniform. He stepped out and said:
"Northern Army General Li Shengui refused to surrender and even killed our envoy."

Erzhu Rong was not angry, but just said jokingly:
"I once saw this Northern Army General behind his father. Has he grown a backbone after not seeing him for a few years?"

All the officers and soldiers burst into laughter. Li Shengui had no ability to lead troops in battle. He relied on being the lover of Empress Dowager Hu to rise to power. The generals under Erzhu Rong basically knew his background and naturally did not take him seriously.

In addition to Li Shengui, the Luoyang Imperial Guards in Beizhong City were all weak in the eyes of the fierce army brought by Erzhu Rong. They would surrender as soon as they were frightened, because all the defenders Erzhu Rong encountered along the way were like this.

Erzhu Rong thought for a moment and said:

"Attack Beizhong City first. When the army reaches the gate of Luoyang, the kings will know what to choose!"

"only!"

When Erzhu Rong walked out of the tent, he did not look towards Luoyang City, but looked towards the west.

When Erzhu Rong made friends with Su Ze in Luoyang, he never expected to meet Su Ze again in this state.

But the fight for the dragon has always been a life-and-death battle, and once you start, there is no turning back.

When Erzhu Rong heard that Su Ze was also participating in the dragon chess game, he felt a strong desire to win and was more excited than ever!

Now that Qin has lost its power, it’s up to everyone to figure it out!
-
Su Ze marched all the way eastward from Tongguan. Like Erzhu Rong, he marched day and night and was invincible along the way.

Just when Erzhu Rong arrived in Heyang, Su Ze also led his troops into Hongnong.

The one who opened Hongnong City was Yang Yin of the Hongnong Yang family.

Yang Yin was the son of the late Dingzhou governor Yang Jin.

At that time, Yang Jin condoned the powerful families in Dingzhou to oppress the remnants of the Six Garrisons, which eventually led to the Second Rebellion of the Six Garrisons. He himself died in the war, and his son Yang Yin was captured by Xianyu Xiuli and became a slave in the army.

Later, when Xianyu Xiuli was killed by Ge Rong, Yang Yin took the opportunity to escape back to his hometown Hongnong.

There is no need to say much about the influence of the Hongnong Yang family in Hongnong County. Yang Yin fled back to his family, and said that he was farming at home, but in fact he saw the turmoil in the world and secretly connected with other powerful people.

Hongnong belongs to Hedong County in a narrow sense. The Hedong County area has been an important military location since ancient times. The Hongnong Yang family has been able to be active from the Wuhua Rebellion period to the present, and their sense of smell for troubled times is also top-notch.

Su Ze and Yang Yin had no intersection, but Yang Yin's wife, Wei, was from the Jingzhao Wei family, which was the family of Wei Xiaokuan. The Wei family had already fully sided with Su Ze, and Yang Yin's army to seize and surrender the city was the credit of Wei Xiaokuan's uncle Wei Sui.

Su Ze did not rush into Hongnong City, but accepted the yellow book sent by Yang Yin outside the city. All the officials and nobles in Hongnong City knelt on the roadside, waiting for Su Ze to take over.

Seeing such a scene, Su Ze couldn't help but sigh, this is the power of the aristocratic families in this era.

They are closely related and form a huge network through marriage.

As long as the local nobles unite as one, they can easily rebel and seize the city.

Although Su Ze did not like these nobles, he also understood that this era could not do without them.

Of course, these noble families and powerful people were indecisive and fence-sitters. Su Ze did not trust them, so he sent his own army to control Hongnong City before he led his troops into the city.

Just when Su Ze occupied Hongnong City, the imperial envoys had already arrived at the foot of Hongnong City.

"Your Majesty wants me to withdraw my troops?"

The eunuch immediately said:

"My Lord, can you please excuse me for a moment?"

Su Que ([Daxia Dragon Bird Guard]) behind Su Ze followed closely behind Su Ze, holding his sword in front of Su Ze and said:

"My Lord, this guy is sneaky. I think he is not an envoy from the court, but an assassin!"

The eunuch was so frightened that he begged for mercy:

"Please spare my life, Lord! When I was in the palace, Her Royal Highness Princess Chenliu took great care of me. This time, I specifically asked for an assignment just to repay her kindness!"

When Su Ze heard the other party call out his wife's name, he didn't completely believe it, but his attitude improved a lot.

He stopped Su Bei and said:
"Empress, there is nothing that cannot be said. If you have something to say, just speak directly."

The eunuch made up his mind and said:
"Mr. County! The Queen Mother forced Your Majesty to write this imperial edict!"

After hearing this, Su Ze smiled.

As expected, when Huangmen revealed the inside story, the generals behind Su Ze were filled with indignation.

Su Ze was very satisfied with the performance of this eunuch. He said to the guards around him:

"Send this eunuch a good rest."

After Huangmen left, Su Ze drew his sword and said:

"The evil queen forged an imperial edict to order this duke to withdraw his troops. Is she preparing to attack Your Majesty?"

"Our army has already reached Hongnong. We must not follow Wang Dun's example and fail to accomplish our mission!"

Su Ze was talking about the second Wang Dun Rebellion in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Wang Dun was almost able to reach Jiankang, but hesitated and did not dare to advance. In the end, he fell seriously ill and was defeated, leaving behind an infamy that will be passed down through the ages.

The generals and soldiers also understood Su Ze's meaning. There was no turning back on the issue of purging the imperial court. Returning to Guanzhong now would be tantamount to admitting that they were rebels.

Su Ze looked towards the northeast. The imperial edict from the Luoyang court was not important. What he was most concerned about was the speed of his sworn brother's advance.

Erzhu Rong had already reached Heyang. As long as he crossed the Yellow River through Beizhong City, he could enter Luoyang.

It still took him two days to travel from Hongnong to Luoyang, which meant that Li Shengui had to defend Beizhong City for two days before he could catch up with Erzhu Rong's speed.

Jinyang’s geographical location is still too good, Su Ze sighed secretly in his heart.

I can only hope that Li Shengui doesn't perform too badly. As long as I can arrive at the city of Luoyang at the same time as Erzhu Rong, there will still be a chance.

Even if we cannot occupy Luoyang City, we must at least bring the emperor to Guanzhong.
-
In the backyard of Gaoping County Duke's residence, Su Suan saluted to an ordinary-looking middle-aged man:
"Dean Su."

The person who came was Su Bai, who was in charge of the Xuan Jing Office. Before Su Ze raised his army, he had already set out and arrived in Luoyang City.

Su Bai said to Su Suan:

"How many people can we mobilize in Luoyang?"

Su Suan counted on his fingers and said:

"The old subordinates that the Lord left behind in the Imperial Guards, the heroes that he made friends with over the years, plus those that he secretly sent to Luoyang, there are probably about 300 people."

Of course, the three hundred people were not all followers summoned by Su Ze. They were the result of many years of management in the backyard.

The fact that Sima Shi secretly raised 3,000 loyal soldiers was the result of the Sima family's great influence in the army and more than ten years of hard work.

During the few years that Su Ze was away from Luoyang, if it were not for the system's organizational capabilities, it would have been difficult to support these three hundred death warriors.

Su Bai nodded and said:
"That's enough. There are still fifty people in the palace. The master has handed me the list and the token. We will start the movement tomorrow morning."

Su Suan was surprised:

"So urgent?"

Su Bai sighed and said:

"We have to be impatient. Erzhu Rong will attack Beizhong City tomorrow. I don't know how long the Beizhong Langjiang can hold out."

Su Suan didn't know much about military affairs. He said:
"Beizhong City is so strategic, we can at least hold on until the lord arrives in Luoyang, right?"

"Hard to say."

(End of this chapter)