Chapter 315: The Rough Road
After tossing to the middle of the night, the Huns' offensive slowed down. Their plan was to pretend to be messengers and take advantage of the emptiness. After this trick was revealed, it seemed that there was a split inside. Some people continued to attack the city, while others besieged the northern army outside the city. The results were not entirely successful.
Jincheng was still in the hands of the Chu army, and three gaps in the city wall were blocked overnight, but people were panicked and no one could fill it in a short time.
The 3,000 Front Army of the Northern Army suffered heavy losses. Only over 1,200 people returned safely to the city, nearly half of whom were wounded. The others were either surrounded by enemy troops or scattered at night. There will be a whistling sound, which usually means that another Union soldier is being chased and killed.
Han Ruzi could not be without fear in his heart, but more of anger.
He rallied his entourage of officials under the city walls.
A chief of the Ministry of Military Affairs replied with a trembling voice: "The twenty-three cities in Liaodong County have 23,000 troops. To the west are Yan Kingdom, which has more than 30,000 troops, and Zhongshan County, which has 34,000 troops. …”
"Most of these garrison guard the checkpoints and towns outside the Great Wall. How many people are there?" Han Ruzi interrupted, he desperately needed the available numbers.
"Two counties and three kingdoms, maybe less than... less than 7,000 people." The head of the Ministry of War was so frightened by the numbers he reported that his face changed, which meant that the Huns were hardly hindered after entering the customs.
"Map." Han Ruzi said.
The Minister of War turned around and called his subordinates to bring a simple map and spread it on the ground.
The situation is not optimistic. After entering the customs, the Huns can go all the way south to join the Linzi rebels, or they can drive the horses westward, surround Jincheng, and capture the Emperor of Chu alive.
Han Ruzi ordered the northern army forward general to temporarily take over the responsibility of defending the city, and he only brought a few people back to the palace.
King Donghai greeted him from inside, glanced at the emperor, did not dare to ask more, quietly followed behind, Cui Teng whispered contemptuously, "Just woke up?"
The King of the East Sea snorted, but still did not speak.
Han Ruzi went straight to the door of Meng E's room and said to Liu Jie, "Open the door."
There were many enemy soldiers outside the city. In this case, every word of the emperor was more powerful. Liu Jie opened his mouth and did not insist on his own opinion as usual, and obediently took out the key to open the door.
Han Ruzi motioned for the others to stay outside and walked in by himself.
Aside from not being able to go out, Meng E's life is not bad, she has no worries about food and clothing, and there is someone to take care of her when she washes and washes.
"The Huns have attacked," said Han Ruzi.
"Well, I heard someone yelling."
"It's not Mayi City, but Liaodong, with the help of Fuyu Kingdom, the specific situation is not clear."
"Sorry, I only know that the Huns are allied with the Fuyu Kingdom, and I don't know their specific plans."
"It's not your fault." Han Ruzi paused for a moment, "It should be me who apologized, and I should trust you."
"Your Majesty already believes in me, but the emperor is the emperor, and he has to accept the opinions of his ministers. In their eyes, my suspicion is obvious."
"I should trust you more, but—" Han Ruzi would rather clarify his words now, "I have to find out, how on earth did you escape from Linzi City?"
Meng E entrusted the Bao Xi to the ugly king and handed it over to the emperor in Luoyang. Her actions will definitely anger the people on the righteous island, and it is really suspicious that she can escape easily.
Meng E's eyes were calmer than usual. After waiting for a while, she said, "It was my brother who helped me escape from Linzi City. We agreed to go our separate ways. He joined the rebel army, and I followed Your Majesty."
"Do you still hope that Da Chu will send troops to help you capture a country?" After this incident, Han Ruzi could not provide any help to the descendants of Chen Qi.
Meng E shook her head, "It's better to beg for yourself. I don't want His Majesty's soldiers and soldiers, I just want to learn His Majesty's imperial techniques."
Han Ruzi was stunned, the answer was completely unexpected, "I'm still learning myself."
"Because of this, I can learn a lot from His Majesty. The Queen Mother's methods are not suitable for me." Meng E paused, "I saw His Majesty walk out of a desperate situation step by step, and I believe His Majesty's way will not work. end here."
Han Ruzi was speechless.
Liu Jie said outside, "Your Majesty, the general defending the city has sent someone to deliver the letter."
"Well, I see." Han Ruzi replied, without moving his feet, staring at Meng E's eyes for a long time, "Come with me."
"Let me change clothes."
Han Ruzi nodded, turned and walked out of the room, and said to Liu Jie, "From now on, Meng E will restore her status as a guard in the palace, and she will give her everything she needs."
"According to the order, Your Majesty." Liu Jie replied.
Han Ruzi walked out of the courtyard, all the surprises, fears, and anger in his heart were gone. That's right, from the moment he became emperor, he had never walked a smooth road. He could have chosen to stay in the capital and be a happy person with peace of mind. The emperor, handing over all the big and small matters to the minister, but he insisted on driving himself, and he insisted on approaching the enemy regardless of the danger.
This is his own choice, he thought, since the road is a mountain, why complain about the rough road? All he had to do was conquer mountain after mountain.
The officer who came to deliver the letter was not particularly nervous. He clasped his fist to the emperor and said, "Your Majesty, another Hun army has arrived outside the city."
Han Ruzi snorted and took the lead to walk out. He wanted to go to the city to take a look, and the eunuchs and guards would all follow. Staying in the mansion at this time would be too cowardly and suspected of being unfaithful.
Cui Teng finally wanted to understand what he had done last night, and couldn't help being very proud, he whispered to the King of the East Sea: "Last night when you were still sleeping, I had a flash of inspiration and had a premonition that the Huns were going to attack the city. , I couldn't sleep, so I went to see Your Majesty. Your Majesty believed my hunch, what happened? The Huns really came, this is because God wants to help His Majesty, and he specially used the most loyal people to issue a warning."
"God, why didn't you tell His Majesty directly?" Donghai King said coldly, he didn't sleep well, he was woken up not long after he lay down, and he was frightened for most of the night.
"God...it makes sense, I didn't choose you anyway." Cui Teng said proudly.
"How can you be happy after the city is broken?" This sentence revolved in Donghai Wang's heart, but he didn't say it. If the city was broken, he would also be unlucky.
The streets were full of people, and when they saw the emperor's banner, they all knelt by the side of the road.
The general of the Yiwei camp wanted to expel the people, but Han Ruzi stopped him and rode forward under the watchful eyes of the people.
At the edge of the city, Meng E and Liu Jie caught up. Meng E changed into a male guard's outfit. She didn't disguise herself. People with sharp eyes could still see that she was a woman, but no one cared. The army outside the city had become all Man's only worry.
The city gate tower was full of civil servants and generals, most of whom were far away from the city wall, and they all moved away when they saw the emperor.
Several guards first went to the wall to observe for a while, and then nodded to the emperor, indicating safety.
It was already dawn, and the Huns outside the city had already stopped attacking the city. They camped more than ten miles away, and galloped in groups. The number of newly arrived troops was even greater. They were all Huns and cavalry. I didn't see the flag of Da Chanyu.
The Huns' camps did not seek to be tidy, with one in the east and one in the west, with a large gap in the middle to facilitate the movement of horses. It is difficult to estimate the number of people based on this. The front-line general of the Northern Army stepped forward and said: "Roughly, there are about 20,000 Huns. , the main force of the Northern Army has 30,000 people and can arrive around noon."
The northern army marched in the pass, and the connection between the front and back was not very tight. There were 3,000 people in the front, 30,000 in the middle, and more than 10,000 in the rear, and they rushed to Jincheng in batches.
"The enemy is likely to attack the city again before noon, so be careful."
"Yes, Your Majesty." The forward general was very grateful to the emperor. If the emperor hadn't ordered it in time, he and all the forward soldiers would have died outside the city.
In the face of an absolutely unexpected nighttime sneak attack, and the number of enemy troops is twice as large, no matter how strong the army is, it is impossible to retreat completely.
"Why did the Huns collect corpses?" Han Ruzi asked.
The vanguard general also saw that the Huns were running back and forth on the battlefield, collecting corpses, those belonging to the Chu army were piled up, and those belonging to the Huns were brought to the rear.
"I'm afraid... I'm afraid that the Huns are going to pile their corpses and burn them. This is a way for them to intimidate the enemy. It has not been used for many years." The forward general replied.
The Great Chu frontier has not been breached for many years.
Han Ruzi's heart sank.
A roar suddenly sounded behind him, "Your Majesty, let me go out of the city and fight the Huns to the death!"
Fan Zangshan's bravery has long been known throughout the city. The blood on his armor has not been wiped off. Although he does not have a long axe in his hand, he is still majestic standing there, and a glance can make people feel at ease.
Han Ruzi would never let him take the risk again, "General Fan, wait a bit, and it won't be too late to leave the city after the main force of the Northern Army arrives."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I just can't stand it..." Fan Zangshan was tall, and standing behind he could see the Huns stacking corpses outside the city.
"The Huns are using their generals, so don't be fooled. After burning the corpse, the enemy will attack the city, and the generals will work hard."
"Yes, Your Majesty." The generals responded.
Han Ruzi arranged for the defense of the city on the top of the city gate. After taking orders, the generals left one after another, freeing up a lot of space. The civil servants on the second floor came up one by one according to their grades. Although it was useless, they had to stand with the emperor.
After Han Ruzi finished the arrangement, he glanced at the piles of corpses outside the city, and a trace of anger flashed in his heart.
"Your Majesty." The head of the Ministry of War stepped forward. He was the highest official of the Ministry of Military Affairs and had to do something.
"What's the matter?"
"Isn't Mr. Xiao, the censor of Zuocha, and Zhuo Ruhe, the governor of Hongnong County, in Liaodong?"
Xiao Sheng and Zhuo Ruhe were ordered to patrol the various counties, supervising the administration of officials and the release of grain. They set off earlier than the emperor and happened to be in Liaodong.
Han Ruzi didn't say anything. The two imperial envoys were both civil servants, and it was common sense that they could not stop the Huns.
"Maybe the two adults have another trick..."
Han Ruzi raised his hand to signal the head of the Ministry of War to shut up. Now he is only looking forward to the main force of the Northern Army, and is not interested in "strange tricks".
The Huns set fire, but the fire was not very big at first, and Han Ruzi forced himself to watch.
A small group of Xiongnu cavalry came and stopped on the other side of the moat, facing the fire and facing the gate tower.
"Let the Emperor of Chu come out and meet the ministers of Chu!" a voice shouted.
The head of the Ministry of War glanced outside the wall, his expression suddenly changed, "Isn't that Mr. Xiao?"
Xiao Sheng, the censor of Zuo Cha, was riding on a horse without ropes.