Chapter 911 Can’t Afford to Lose

The general headquarters of the Six Nations Allied Forces was located in Linjin City, which was originally the capital of Dali Rong Kingdom. After Dali was destroyed by Qin, Linjin was developed into an important town in the eastern part of Guanzhong and the thoroughfare to Hedong.

In the past hundred years, the Qin army went eastward to wipe out the troops of Yan and Zhao. The Dali people, who had long been assimilated by the Qin people, were a brave force that could not be ignored in the Qin army. When they returned home, they also brought back A large amount of trophies, including silks from Liang and Chu, lacquerware from Zhao and Wei, and even cattle and sheep from Yan, decorated their simple home with exquisite utensils from the Six Kingdoms.

It can't be said to be very prosperous here, but there are also many small estates of military and landowners dotted on the plains.

But since last year, many men had been recruited by Hu Hai to go to the south to "quell the rebellion", or to Hedong and Hangu Pass to increase the defense of the east. They did not expect that Hedong Lieutenant Zhao Cheng actually surrendered to the enemy.

The Sixth Army crossed Hedong without encountering any resistance and invaded Xihe. Linjin was the first to bear the brunt.

Faced with the group of bandits from the Six Nations who suddenly came to attack, the county magistrates and lieutenants of Linjin subconsciously gave orders to resist. However, it was difficult to defeat the tens of thousands of enemy troops, and the city was defeated in three days.

Now, everything has been reversed. In the eyes of the people of Linjin, those Chu thieves who were short in stature and spoke with barbaric voices were filled with a kind of terrifying madness.

The madness called revenge.

Since starting the army more than a year ago, the Xiang family has instilled in the Chu people the centuries-old shame of the Chu State: from Zhang Yi's deception, King Huai of Chu entered the pass and never returned, to the more than 100,000 dead in Yanying, the death of the previous king The mausoleum was burned arbitrarily by the Qin people, and three generations of the Xiang family died on the battlefield. In the Shouchunying Palace, Princess Ji Mi of Chu would rather jump off the high platform than be humiliated by the Qin people...

Even the most indifferent Chu people, who have no deep feelings about the hatred of the country's subjugation, can still feel resentment towards the Qin Dynasty after hearing and seeing it over and over again. What's more, in the past ten years or so, the Chu people had to leave their hometown to work hard in Xianyang and Lingnan. The humiliation and whippings from the old Qin people are all scars left in their memories and even their bodies.

So from the time the Chu people entered Linjin, there was no military discipline at all.

They barked like vicious dogs, swarmed like crows, plundered the treasury, trampled on the Xun Temple, threw the spiritual tablets of Bai Qi and Sima Cuo to the ground, and stepped on them with ten thousand feet.

He also uttered evil words towards the common people, massacred boys, snatched children from their mothers, took their mothers from children, and humiliated young girls wantonly. He no longer feared the punishment of military regulations or the revenge of Qin Law.

The Chu army severely beat all the Qin officials who were wearing black clothes, fighting with fists and kicks, whipping their bodies fiercely, taking off the miters to make urinals, and then chopped off their heads and stuck them high on the tips of spears. Rivers of blood flowed on the streets of Linjin. Many were dragged like sheep to the slaughter.

For some unknown reason, although Xiang Yu believed that Zhongfu's alliance with the Xiongnu was ridiculous and that he was in league with the beasts, he acquiesced to the real atrocities committed by the beasts in Linjin City, and even thought that this was legitimate revenge.

"How the Qin Dynasty treated the Six Kingdoms in the past, the Six Kingdoms will treat the Qin Dynasty today!"

"Repay hatred in the same way as a tiger or a wolf!"

The atrocities continued for half a month in Linjin, Zhengxian, Dali and other cities that had fiercely resisted the Six Nations Allied Forces:

No matter on the wide avenues or crowded lanes, no Qin people could escape this disaster. There were cries, tears, wailing and begging everywhere, men groaned in pain, women screamed, and the victims were Chopped into pieces, obscene acts, commoners sold as vassals, families separated from each other, nobles and respected elders were shamefully mistreated, people cried together, and the rich were robbed.

Compared with hundreds of miles away, when the Northern Expeditionary Army entered Xianyang, the military discipline was strict and almost inoffensive, the two sides of Luoshui were really a paradise on one side and a hell on the other.

It was not until Fan Zeng arrived and tried his best to dissuade Xiang Yu that these atrocities were restrained. But the entire Linjin had been turned into an empty city by tens of thousands of frantic Chu soldiers. The residents were either killed or desperately fled across the Luoshui River towards the west.

People in Xihe began to vote with their feet.

For a while, the Six Nations Allied Forces could not even find the locals who helped deliver grain.

It was under this circumstance that the war meeting of the coalition forces was held at the Linjin County Temple:

The supreme commander of the Chu army, Xiang Ji, is sitting at the top. He is young and brave, and his red armor is shining.

His middle father, Lord Wu Xin, Xiang Liang, and his second father, Fan Zeng, are on the left and right. Xiang Liang wears a big crown to cover his missing ears, while Fan Zeng simply puts on a hairpin and looks thoughtful.

On the teacher’s table were representatives of Zhao, Wei and Han: the Zhao army commanders were Li Zuoche, Lord Guangwu, Chen Yu, Lord Kuxing, and Kuaiche, the guest minister; the Wei ones were Zhang Er and his son Zhang Ao; the South Koreans were only Han Xin (Gongsun Xin) followed Xiang Yu to attack Hangu Pass.

Kuai Che originally proposed that Zhao Gao, who knew the truth in Guanzhong, also wanted to attend the meeting, but was rudely rejected by Xiang Ji and locked out.

Today, the main controversy among the coalition forces is that only one of the three envoys sent to Heifu came back. Xiang Yu was even more angry because he didn't know until Wu She returned that Fan Zeng, who was in charge of Chu's diplomatic power, had done something without telling him.

"It's just to test Hei Fu, not to make a contract with him."

Fan Zeng explained this: "Now his intention is clear. It is clear that he wants to continue the tyranny of Qin Shihuang. He regards us as a group of thieves instead of princes. We have no interest in peace talks to share the world. Instead, we want to destroy them and then hurry up!"

Zhang Ershen thought so: "The black thieves are still determined to destroy us. It's time for the six countries to put aside their prejudices and unite against the enemy. Although Hu Hai is dead, the violent Qin is not destroyed, but is stronger than before!"

"Of course."

Kuai Che, the guest minister of the State of Zhao, seconded the proposal: "Han, Wei, Qi, Chu, Yan, and Zhao will be close to each other and border Qin. Let the generals of the world meet on the Huan River, communicate with each other, ride on white horses, and form an alliance, otherwise , Heifu has taken the position of regent. When he clears the pass, he will follow the example of the former King of Qin and go out to Han Valley to harm Shandong."

The identity of a strategist is inherently changeable. Whether he is horizontal or vertical, it all depends on the strength of the world situation. The person Kuai Che will play now is Su Qin, who advocates the combination of vertical and vertical.

But Li Zuoche demolished his guest minister's position: "The six countries have united again to fight against the enemy and strengthen Qin. It's okay, but if you want to lure the Xiongnu into the fortress, forgive the Zhao people for being ashamed to associate with the Hulu!"

At that time, in the seventh year of the Warring States Period, the three kingdoms of Yan, Zhao and Qin were bordered by the Xiongnu. The people on the border often suffered from them and were all enemies of them. No country had ever led the Xiongnu into invaders in order to attack neighboring countries. This It had become a tacit understanding until the end of the Yan Dynasty, when it was broken by Ju Wu, the desperate Taifu of the Yan Kingdom.

Li Zuoche is the direct grandson of Li Mu. His eldest father became famous when he fought against the Xiongnu in Yanmen. Li Zuoche was hiding in Daibei. When Qinbei expelled the Xiongnu, he was also very brave and admired Heifu. The act of setting up a shrine to commemorate the great father Li Mu.

How is it possible for Li Zuoche to form an alliance with the Huns now? If the Huns become powerful again, the Zhao people will be the first to suffer!

But the Wei people in the south of the country were a little hard to understand, and they said brazenly: "We invite the Xiongnu to fight against the Qin Dynasty together. How is this different from Zhao Xiongzhong Zhenglou annoying people to ride on?"

He saw that in Li Zuoche's army, there were many Lou Fan knights wearing fur hats and strange looks. They were all barbarians. Since Lou Fan could be used, why not the Huns?

Li Zuoche was polite and courteous, but he did not hesitate at all: "May I ask Prime Minister Wei, can domestic dogs and wolves in the wild be compared in the same way?"

In short, the opinions of the people of Zhao are here: it is okay to join forces, but they absolutely do not agree to bring the Xiongnu in.

Zhang Er wanted to persuade, but as the backbone of everyone present, Xiang Ji's voice rang out.

"I deeply believe what Mr. Guangwu said!"

"The hatred of the Six Kingdoms does not need to be caused by the power of the Xiongnu, making the world laugh at us, but we should repay it ourselves!"

Since the most powerful Chu and Zhao commanders in the coalition did not agree to form an alliance with the Huns, the matter was settled. Anyway, the Huns seemed to have little sincerity. They are still wandering around the edge of Shangjun and have no plans to move south as a whole. .

Xiang Liang sighed in his heart. He understood that the opportunity to strangle the powerful New Qin State was lost in this way. The Huns only wanted to take advantage of the fire and plunder. Since the six countries were unwilling to make an alliance, Maodun would not give their full help.

"Then the question now is, should the princes stay in Xihe to face the enemy, or should they retreat?"

What followed was an ongoing debate. Before the principals of the Three Kingdoms spoke, the various commanders, captains, military advisors and strategists under them expressed their opinions. They also seized the opportunity and used all their strength...some yelled, or cursed loudly, Some are rational, some are joking.

The intelligence that Chu, Zhao, and Wei each had was shared.

The Zhao State said that a unit of Heifu's Army with 20,000 to 30,000 men was detected heading north along the Luoshui River. It seemed that they were Han Xin's troops, and they seemed to be going to Shangjun. However, the Zhao Army was busy attacking Taiyuan, and here they even had Shaoliangshan. The remnants of the Qin army who resisted stubbornly were unable to deal with it.

The Wei State also reported that the scouts on the other side of Fenglingdu discovered that there was also an army of thirty or forty thousand men marching eastward along the Chi Road and entering the Taolin Fortress, which the Wei army had been unable to capture for a long time. The Qin people guarding Taolin Fortress. After hesitating for a while, the soldiers opened the city to welcome the Dongmen Leopard. It was only a matter of time before they arrived at Hangu Pass and threatened Sanchuan County...

The Chu State admitted frankly that Heifu's main force of more than 100,000 troops had left Gaoling and marched eastward to the Yueyang area, and his troops were getting closer to Xihe.

Finally, we came to the conclusion that it seemed that Heifu wanted to launch a three-party pincer attack and have a decisive battle with the Six Nations in Xihe!

Faced with this situation, most people hope to retreat temporarily. After all, Xihe has been devastated by the Six Kingdoms, especially the Chu army. The locals have continued to resist, and the army has lost harmony here, so it is not a good place for a decisive battle.

Chen Yu saw that there was no hope of uniting with the Xiongnu, so he advocated a temporary withdrawal of troops. He also pointed out: The coalition forces are now in Xihe. In addition to fighting to support the war, food and drink are all provided by Hedong County. It is no longer sustainable. They might as well retreat temporarily to let the tired army rest and recuperate. Heifu is eager to clear the pass and will not advance eastward for the time being. He will wait for the countries to rest for a winter, and then mobilize the entire country's troops again, gathering hundreds of thousands of troops, and then join forces to attack Qin.

This person's proposal was approved by most people, but Xiang Ji responded:

"If we don't fight against Qin, how can we let Heifu's army descend on the capitals of the princes and then fight to the death in a hurry?"

He stood up and glanced at everyone: "The generals tried their best to attack Qin, but they heard that Hei Fu had entered the pass, so they stayed in Xihe for a long time. The territory of Xun, the king of Zhao and Wei, belongs exclusively to you. The safety of the country is at stake. Why not fight here with us?" Hei Fu fights to the death!?”

Zhang Er reminded Xiang Ji: "Shangzhu Kingdom, the decisive battle at Xihe, we cannot afford to lose..."

Especially the Chu army, which is the farthest away from home, has almost no possibility of returning once it is defeated.

But it was this kind of courage that forced Xiang Yu to win the battle of the chasm!

He solemnly said: "Fighting requires courage. Once we retreat, our courage will be lost. With Heifu's army and the soldiers in Guanzhong, in less than a year, the number of soldiers will be twice that of the six countries. By then, the Qin people will When our troops approach Handan, Puyang, and Pengcheng, we are the ones who really cannot afford to lose!"

"But if we fight in Xihe, Hei Fu can't afford to lose either!"

"Once he loses, he will lose Xianyang and Guanzhong!"

Although it was out of a simple thought of not admitting defeat and unwilling to retreat, Xiang Yu hit the mark on the current situation of the six countries in one sentence: The Battle of Xihe is probably the last war that neither side can afford to lose...

He pointed out: "Heifu's division of troops was a mistake. Although there are a large number of surrendered soldiers and Lishan disciples, they cannot be trusted wholeheartedly. They can only act as partial troops. Their main force is only more than 100,000 people, which is comparable to me."

"Then what do you think of Zhuguo..."

Xiang Ji waved his hand: "Burn the bridges, burn the grain and fodder, destroy the cauldrons and boats, kill the cattle and sheep, and fight to the death with the Qin people on the Xihe River!"

"One battle will determine the power of the world. If we win, we can enter Xianyang and burn Qin Sheji to avenge the humiliation of a hundred years. If we lose..."

Xiang Ji shouted angrily: "Then you deserve to die!"

These words sounded domineering, but they frightened everyone. Everyone present, including Li Zuoche, Zhang Er, and Kuai Che, shook their heads. They felt that Xiang Ji was too ambitious. They did not use the three armies to gamble. consciousness.

Even Fan Zeng and Xiang Liang of Chu State, both mature and prudent men, did not comment.

The military discussion reached a deadlock, and at this moment, a piece of news arrived, which completely shattered the Chu people's determination to fight Heifu to the death in Xihe.

Xiao Gongjiao of Chu State came to the hall. He wore a high crown, bypassed the noisy venue, came to Fan Zeng, handed a silk letter to Ya's father, and stepped back in small steps.

Fan Zeng opened his eyes, which were a little dim. After opening them, his pupils became slightly larger, but he still stuffed the silk book into his sleeves, moved quietly, came to Xiang Ji, and said in his ear:

"Shangzhu Kingdom, there is an urgent report of Shouchun. Heifu ordered the boat master to cross the river from the east of the Yangtze River to attack me in Huainan. Jiujiang and the East China Sea are in urgent need!"

…

ps: There is only one chapter today. I have been on the road these days and my work efficiency is low. The update is not stable. Please forgive me.