Chapter 1176: Be Prepared for War

"The second plan is that we will attack Jingxiang with all our strength, and ask the Jiedushi to solve our worries. As compensation, we are willing to provide 30,000 shi of grain and 20,000 guan of money to support the Jiedushi."

Wang Zhongsheng waved his hand, "I don't want the money and grain. I hope that the two families will get married and marry your daughter, the prince of the county, to my third son."

Zhang Luanzi laughed and said, "My master has this intention. I will be the matchmaker. The two sides will first make a marriage contract, and then prepare the wedding dowry. When the autumn is clear and cool, I will escort the bride to Songcheng to get married!"

In order to make Wang Zhongsheng send troops to attack Zhang Boyi, Li Xilie did not hesitate to use his own daughter as bait to lure Wang Zhongsheng into the trap.

Of course, Li Xilie did not want to really sacrifice his daughter, so he used the excuse of preparing the wedding and dowry to drag it out until autumn, when Wang Zhongsheng had already been destroyed.

Although Wang Zhongsheng was cunning and treacherous, he was still blinded by greed. He wanted to eat alone and swallow up Zhang Boyi's 20,000 troops, as well as Bozhou and Yingzhou.

Both parties had their own ulterior motives and signed a marriage agreement. Wang Zhongsheng promised that in order to allow Li Xilie to attack Jingxiang without worries, he would send troops to attack Zhang Boyi's army within ten days.

Under the command of Xi Wanli, 30,000 cavalry set out from Shanzhou and rushed eastward. Two days later, they passed through Luoyang. After a short supply rest, they continued to march southeast and entered Xuzhou two days later. On the fifth day of the expedition, they arrived at Wanqiu County, Chenzhou.

This place is only 150 miles away from Qiao County, Bozhou. The 30,000 cavalry rested and waited in Wanqiu County. Xi Wanli immediately sent someone to Qiao County to inform Zhang Boyi.

Zhang Boyi was Li Guangbi's deputy general. He was cautious and careful. When the eunuch party seized power, he did not express any position, but supported the three kings to fight against rebellion.

The 20,000 troops under Zhang Boyi were also left by Li Guangbi. Since Wang Zhongsheng sent troops to seize Bianzhou and Songzhou, Zhang Boyi was very nervous. He knew that Wang Zhongsheng would definitely attack him. After Li Ye captured Luoyang, he sent people to Luoyang to send a letter, expressing his willingness to be loyal to the court, and at the same time sent his wife and children to Luoyang.

Zhang Boyi's military camp was east of Qiao County, which was very close to Songzhou. Once Wang Zhongsheng led his army to attack, Qiao County would be the first to bear the brunt, so he also sent his men to Songcheng County to closely monitor Wang Zhongsheng's army.

That afternoon, Zhang Boyi received the news from Xi Wanli, and he was overjoyed. He immediately summoned several trusted generals to come for emergency discussions.

Soon, four trusted generals Lun Weizhen, Liu Chang, Zhang Xianfu and Sun Zhen arrived at the big tent. These four generals were also Li Guangbi's generals. They always followed Zhang Boyi during the many times of the army splitting, and became Zhang Boyi's trusted generals. Each of them was promoted to the commander-in-chief, commanding 5,000 people each.

"I have good news for everyone. The general who supervised the country sent General Xi Wanli to help us. Once Wang Zhongsheng's army goes south, we will retreat to the east. Thirty thousand cavalry will be waiting in Luyi County. At that time, it will be the time for us to counterattack across the board."

Everyone was overjoyed. The regent did not forget them. This was the most important thing. They were not abandoned by the court.

Lun Weizhen hurriedly said, "Jiedushi, there are some unusual movements in Songcheng now. Wang Zhongsheng is gathering troops. Why don't we transport the food first and distribute the money to the brothers to boost morale."

Zhang Boyi shook his head, "It's not that I don't want to give money. The 100,000 strings of money in our hands are distributed to the soldiers, with an average of 5 strings per person, which is 30 kilograms. Running with 30 kilograms of heavy objects will seriously hinder the retreat!"

Liu Chang smiled and said, "You can make a promise first, explain it clearly to the soldiers, and then transport the money and food away. After the war, distribute it to the soldiers!"

Zhang Xianfu and Sun Zhen also agreed to this plan. Zhang Boyi agreed, "Can you notify the brothers and let everyone be prepared and ready to retreat at any time?"

Lun Weizhen was a little worried and said, "What if Wang Zhongsheng doesn't chase us?"

Zhang Boyi sneered, "Why wouldn't he want to annex us? He has been salivating over our 20,000 troops!"

Zhang Boyi immediately ordered the money and food to be transported away first with carts, and the army was also waiting to evacuate at any time.

Two days later, Wang Zhongsheng led 40,000 troops from Songcheng County and attacked Qiao County, 200 miles away. Zhang Boyi's subordinates, who had been monitoring the enemy, immediately rushed to Qiao County to inform them.

Zhang Boyi got the news when Wang Zhongsheng's 40,000 troops had just entered Bozhou and were still 60 miles away from Qiao County.

He then led 20,000 troops to retreat eastward, and sent people to Luyi County, 80 miles away, to inform Xi Wanli.

At noon, Wang Zhongsheng led 40,000 troops to Qiao County. The governor of Bozhou and the magistrate of Qiao County and other officials went out of the city to welcome Wang Zhongsheng's arrival.

Wang Zhongsheng had received the news that the military camp was empty and Zhang Boyi had led his army to retreat. He was furious and pointed his whip at the governor Luo Lin, "When did Zhang Boyi's army leave? Where did they go?"

"Reporting to the governor, General Zhang led his troops to leave two hours ago and went west along the official road."

Wang Zhongsheng was determined to capture Zhang Boyi's 20,000 troops. The other party had only been gone for two hours, so he must have brought food and supplies, and it was completely possible to catch up.

Wang Zhongsheng immediately ordered: "The whole army chased westward and must catch up with Zhang Boyi's army before dark!"

The 40,000 troops did not care about seizing Qiao County. These territories could not be escaped, so the army immediately turned around and ran, chasing them in a mighty manner.

Xi Wanli had led 30,000 cavalry to Luyi County, like a cheetah looking for food, his sharp eyes locked on Wang Zhongsheng's 40,000 troops.

Xi Wanli is about 30 years old, with a strong body and courage that no one can match. He is the eldest son of Xi Yuanqing, a famous general in Anxi. At the age of 16, he followed his father to fight in Bolor. During the Battle of Talas, he was a young lieutenant under Li Ye. When the Anshi Rebellion broke out, he followed Li Siye to support the court. The court was defeated in Xiangzhou. Xi Wanli also saw through the corruption of the court and resolutely defected to Li Ye. He followed Li Ye to fight in the south and the north and made great achievements.

At present, Xi Wanli is the leader of the young generation of generals in Guanlong Army. He was named Yunhui General, Dingyuan County Duke, and served as the General of the Third Guard of Guanlong.

Here is a brief explanation. Guanlong Army has the difference between border army and guard army. Border army is the level of garrison commander, town general, military envoy, deputy governor, governor, etc. The governor also has direct generals such as lieutenant generals and tooth generals.

The guard army is the central army, which is currently divided into ten armies, each with about 30,000 people. The ranks are from brigade commander, lieutenant, general, lieutenant general, general, general, but each rank is further subdivided, for example, general is divided into general of eagle attack, general of eagle and general of hubeng, and general is divided into general of command, general of control and general of general of control.

Among Xi Wanli's official positions, general of cloud banner is a casual official, which is his official rank, county duke is a title, and general of the third army is his military position.

The highest military position of Guanlong Army is general, that is, Li Ye.

At present, Guanlong Army does not have the military position of general, but it will have it after merging with the court.

The military position of general belongs to the nominal position of the twelve guards, and there is no real position in the army. After the merger, the highest military position of the court except general Li Ye is general of control.

The question is, Xi Wanli's military position has reached the top at the age of 30, so what should he do in the future?

Of course, there are ways to do it in the future. Either he will be appointed as the commander of the frontier army, or he will be appointed as the general of the Twelve Guards Army, or he will be changed to a civil official. The end of a military general is a civil official. This is inevitable. For example, Guo Ziyi, Li Ye decided to appoint him as the envoy of Henan Province.

At this time, Xi Wanli had received the news from Zhang Boyi that Wang Zhongsheng's 40,000 troops had entered Bozhou. He immediately ordered the entire army to be ready for battle and be ready to fight.