Chapter 747 The traitor will never die

Chapter 747 The traitor will never die

In the Wei army's camp outside Chengdu, the soldiers all knew that the Shu people were about to surrender, so the atmosphere in the camp became more relaxed. Some of the rangers even left the camp to go hunting after reporting to the general. stand up.

They set out from Guanzhong in late spring, and it was now the Mid-Autumn Festival. Although they did not experience too fierce fighting, the months-long camp life was also very depressing. Now that the enemy has finally surrendered and is about to win, of course he needs to relax.

In the months-long battle to defeat Shu, although the Wei army always had the advantage and initiative, the consumption of supplies was inevitable. Because the road to Shu was difficult, they did not carry much luggage when they entered Shu. Especially during the period when the troops were besieging Chengdu, they had to raise supplies locally in central Shu.

Since Chengdu had not yet been conquered, the commander-in-chief Yu Chijiong was also worried that excessive exploitation would further arouse the resistance of the people in the occupied areas, so the army was restrained in recruiting reinforcements and did not gather troops wantonly. Although good military discipline was maintained, the price was the suppression of the soldiers' true nature.

Although Yuchijiong had explained to the generals the necessity of accepting the surrender of the Shu people and peacefully taking over Chengdu, although the generals did not dare to refute on the surface, they were somewhat disapproving in their hearts.

Before leaving, the junior high school officials said that the mountains in central Sichuan were rugged and easy to defend and difficult to attack, but they encountered little stubborn resistance along the way.

Even during the siege of Chengdu, their military configuration was more suitable for field battles rather than fortification. In order to avoid unnecessary casualties with twice the result, they did not attack the city with all their strength. As for the enemy's breakout counterattacks, they were defeated without exception. , during the battle, I did not feel how brave and formidable these Shu soldiers were.

Therefore, these soldiers somewhat despised the Shu soldiers in their minds, and some even felt that the commander-in-chief Yu Chijiong was making a fuss out of a molehill by being so cautious.

But now that they are out on an expedition and there are many military orders, even if they have some thoughts in their hearts, the soldiers dare not reveal them in the camp. But once you leave the military camp, the binding force of military law will be reduced.

The scouts and rangers who left the camp went hunting while grazing their horses and observing the surrounding situation. If they could hunt some wild beasts in the countryside, they could also hunt for tusks.

However, when they detoured to the countryside south of Chengdu, they found that many city residents were dragging their families and belongings, and even driving cattle, horses and trucks to quietly leave the city, taking advantage of the Wei army's retreat to the camp in the north of the city to cross before they could evacuate. The long circle of people fled towards the mountains, rivers and wilderness to the south or west.

"These Shu people are really treacherous. It turns out they took advantage of the peace talks to buy time to escape!"

Those scouts and rangers were ordered not to launch attacks without authorization, and they were feeling depressed. At this time, they saw the Shu people fleeing again, especially when they seemed to be carrying a lot of valuables and seemed to be worth a lot of money. Naturally, they felt even more irritable and even rode their horses. They rushed to these people who were fleeing from the city, plundered and looted them.

If this is just an accidental phenomenon, then that's fine. However, it is human instinct to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages. As for how to judge the advantages and disadvantages, everyone has their own opinions. For example, Xiao Ji felt that leaving him to run a business for ten years The long-standing foundation in Shuzhong and breaking out of the gorge will be in his favor.

Now that the Wei soldiers outside the city have withdrawn to their main camp, it seems to be an extremely rare opportunity for many soldiers and people in the city to take this opportunity to escape Chengdu. Therefore, there are many soldiers and people in the city who bribed the defenders and then fled Chengdu with their families and property.

When those Wei army rangers brought the looted materials back to the camp, they naturally attracted the attention of interested people.

After a battle, the most anticipated opportunity to enter the city to search for loot was deprived. You can imagine how the soldiers felt. When they saw a profit, they naturally attacked enthusiastically.

The people in the city were not fools. Although they could not see the tragic situation of people who left the city being slaughtered, they noticed that more and more Wei army rangers were patrolling the city. They were frightened and naturally did not dare to leave the city casually.

But even if they don't leave the city, the ferocity and greed inspired by the Wei army's rangers by those who left the city before will not be quelled. People don't worry about scarcity but inequality. Some of the rangers who came after hearing the news were naturally upset when they saw that others had gained a lot but they themselves had nothing.

More and more people like this gathered, and their courage gradually grew stronger. So in the evening, thousands of Wei army officers gathered and rushed straight to Cheguancheng, a small city southwest of Chengdu. Since the upper echelons of both parties were already negotiating about the surrender covenant, and there were not many defenders in Cheguan Town, they were easily attacked without any precautions.

These soldiers of the Western Wei Dynasty were like hungry wolves. After entering the city, they looted a lot, and then quickly left the city carrying the loot on their war horses, leaving the city full of wailing people and a devastated scene.

In the camp, Yuchi Jiong learned that this had happened only after more than two hours had passed and it was already dark. An envoy from Chengdu City came to inquire.

He was naturally very angry, and immediately ordered to investigate the matter to the end, not only to give an explanation to the other party, but also to severely punish the soldiers who dared to disobey his orders.

There were many participants in this matter, and the soldiers who participated in the siege and robbery did not deliberately conceal it. They directly brought all the looted property back to the camp. After an investigation, the truth soon came to light.

Soon a general in his thirties was twisted into the big tent. It was the Wei general who led his troops to attack the small town without authorization. He was from the Yitong Third Division under Kaifu Yuanzhen, named Changsun Si.

The Changsun family is the first noble clan in the Northern Wei Dynasty, and most of its descendants are Rigelwei. When Emperor Xiaowu ran westward, Sun Zhi, the eldest king of Shangdang, also led his clan members to accompany him. Therefore, there were many children of the Sun clan in the Chang'an Liufang Forbidden Army.

The eldest grandson Si in front of him was the grandson of eldest grandson Zhi and the son of eldest grandson Yu. He was also incorporated into the army that conquered Shu as a general of the Imperial Guard.

When Yuchijiong saw the culprit, he was very angry. He pointed his halberd at the prostrate grandson and said angrily: "Do you know my military order? If you treat my sword as if it is nothing, what crime should you do?"

Changsun Si was drooping his head at this moment. He did not have the bravery he had when he led his troops to attack the city in the afternoon. He just lowered his head and said in a solemn voice: "The general knows he has committed a serious crime, but the army has been stationed here for a long time. The soldiers are physically exhausted and mentally hungry." Thirst and stagnation have accumulated for a long time. If it is not channeled, I am afraid it will be even worse..."

There are few so-called benevolent teachers in this world. They pick up bows and swords just to kill people. It is not good to have low morale and be cowardly and war-weary, but it is also very risky to blindly suppress people with high morale. It should be noted that these are not slave farmers, but more than 10,000 tigers and wolves!

After hearing what Zhang Sunsi said, Yuchijiong also realized that he only focused on recruiting the garrison in the city and somewhat ignored the feelings of the middle and lower-level soldiers. But now that the army is away, he, as the commander-in-chief of the army, does not have any humility to accept advice or have any sense of responsibility. Correct mistakes, but require absolute and unquestionable authority.

Therefore, although many generals made suggestions and interceded for Changsun Si, Yuchijiong still did not bypass him. He first killed more than a dozen soldiers who entered the city first and killed many people, and then added Changsun Si and several other generals to the army. They were punished with sticks, and finally they were dragged by trailers to the severely injured governors and sent to the city for Xiao Ju and others to be punished.

Naturally, Xiao Ju and others in the city did not dare to severely punish these people. They even had their injuries properly treated and then sent back to the camp overnight.

But even so, the generals of the Wei army felt ashamed and annoyed. They worked hard on an expedition, and as the victorious side, they should have entered the city proudly and majesticly, but now they needed the mercy of the defeated side to survive. This is really infuriating.

After Yuchi was reminded, he did not continue to ignore the demands of the soldiers. He knew that the reason why the soldiers were dissatisfied was simply that the final benefits of the battle were not guaranteed. As long as this was resolved, the morale of the soldiers could be stabilized again.

So he then ordered Xiao Ju and others in the city to report the status of the treasury reserves as soon as possible, and arranged for elite soldiers to enter the city to control these treasury warehouses first, so as to reward the soldiers with the contents of the treasury.

Xiao Ru didn't dare to neglect this, and was busy taking inventory and sorting it out. The city was besieged for many days, and although the grain and rice supplies were exhausted, there was still no shortage of other property savings. In particular, there were many officials, slaves, and soldiers, which were also a very precious resource.

They had already gone through the surrender process, but it was only delayed for two days because Xiao Yuansu, the youngest son of Xiao Ji, did not dare to go out of the city to ask for surrender in person. Originally, Xiao Yuansu planned to let his second brother Xiao Yuanzheng, who was detained in the mansion, take his place, but Xiao Yuanzheng took advantage of the panic in the mansion and ran away.

Now that the surrender was imminent, the government officials naturally did not have the energy to search the whole city for Xiao Yuanzheng. After the accident in which the small town was defeated, Xiao Ru was worried about the consequences of further delay. After some persuasion, he finally persuaded Xiao Yuansu to go out of the city with him and ask for surrender.

After deciding this matter, they did not dare to neglect any more. After sending envoys to notify the camp outside the city and receiving approval, Xiao Ju and Xiao Yuansu led the civil and military forces in the city to the Wei army camp to request surrender. At the same time, the defenders in the city also gave up resistance and abandoned their weapons.

While the surrender ceremony was being held outside the city, Xiao Yuanzheng, who had been hiding in the city for two days, appeared again near the palace, followed by hundreds of strong party members. These are all the tribesmen he has summoned and won over, and there are also desperadoes in prison.

Looking at the increasingly empty palace, Xiao Yuanzheng said bitterly: "The evil son in the household cannot keep his business, but the loyal people are unwilling to live! After entering the palace, they quickly searched for the king's tokens and treasures. Only in this way can he command the disciples. , turn defeat into victory!”

After hearing the words, everyone immediately agreed and followed Xiao Yuanzheng into the palace together. At this time, most of the people in the palace had followed Xiao Yuansu and others out of the city to ask for surrender. Only a hundred people were left to guard the inside and outside. When they saw Xiao Yuanzheng leading hundreds of murderers to charge towards them, they were all panicked. If you dare to resist, they will disperse in a hurry.