Chapter 1355: Boats and Cavalry Arrive Together

Chapter 1355: Boats and Cavalry Arrive Together

Soon a young man in his early twenties was introduced into the tent. This young man did not have an outstanding appearance, and he looked even more inconspicuous due to the long journey. Especially compared to Han Zi who introduced him into the tent. In comparison, it is like rubble and pearls.

The young man's name was Liu Zhenchen, and he was the son of Liu Yi, the governor of Dongyang. Dongyang County is located in the western Zhejiang area on the upper reaches of the Qiantang River. During the Hou Jing Rebellion, powerful foreigners in this area took advantage of the situation and took advantage of the situation to separatize the hometown.

When the Chen Dynasty was established, Chen Baxian matched Chen Qian's daughter with Liu Yi's son in order to win over Liu Yi. Chen Qian himself was slightly dissatisfied with this. He didn't like Liu Yi's family background or Liu Zhenchen himself.

However, when Chen Baxian died, Chen Qian still chose to fulfill this marriage contract in order to take charge of the power in the country. When he was expelled from the court, this in-law family became even more important to him. With foreign aid, he could strengthen his own momentum. , so that the court dared not act rashly against him.

Now that the Tang army is coming south, their relationship has transformed into an alliance to resist the Tang army's invasion. Chen Qian had previously threatened Hou An, saying that he would leave Kuaiji and recruit troops elsewhere, including Dongyang County in western Zhejiang where Liu Yi was entrenched.

"My son-in-law meets my father-in-law!"

After Liu Zhenchen entered the account, he quickly bowed to Chen Qian and bowed with great respect.

Although Chen Qian didn't like her son-in-law very much, she still maintained the basic etiquette. When she saw him bowing, she waved her hands and said, "You don't have to be polite to stay here. If you don't stay in the country to assist your father in guarding the country, why are you here?" ?”

"My son-in-law is here. He is being sent by his father to ask for help from the Duke of Kuaiji. General Tian Hong of the Tang Dynasty suddenly led his troops to invade this county from Nanchuan. His army and troops came with great force. Many places in the countryside were raided. The soldiers in this county may not be able to resist, so my father sent his son-in-law here to ask for help, hoping that Duke Hou could send an envoy upstream to rescue me. Since I know that my father-in-law is currently living here, I came to see him first."

Liu Zhenchen felt a lot of pressure when facing her father-in-law, and when she heard the question, she quickly and meticulously answered.

"The Tang army has actually invaded Dongyang County?"

When Chen Qian heard this, she couldn't help but gasp. He had just heard that Liu Zhenchen was here for a visit, and he had already vaguely guessed that something might be going on in western Zhejiang. Now it sounds like the situation is indeed the case, and it seems to be more serious than he imagined.

Liuyi is a local snake that has been based in Dongyang for many years. It has deep roots in the territory and considerable power. Even Wang Sengbian and Chen Baxian have to win over and restrain it. Of course, they have not eradicated it because they don't want to. Now that the Tang army has come to fight with foreign troops from afar, if it is only a small group, it will naturally not pose much of a threat to Liu Yi. Now that all of them have been forced to send their sons to Kuaiji to ask for help, it can be seen that the number of invading Tang troops must be quite large.

Tang general Tian Hong had previously led his army south to Lingbiao Guizhou to conquer Chun Yuliang, the governor of Guizhou. Now he led a large group of troops to invade Dongyang County in western Zhejiang. It can be seen that Chun Yuliang did not cause much trouble to the Tang army and ended the Lingbiao war. Afterwards, the Tang army turned around and fought again in time.

Chen Qian briefly sketched the current situation in Jiangdong in her mind, and she couldn't help but gasp, and felt a sense of panic in her heart that the situation was over.

Dongyang and Kuaiji are located on the upper and lower reaches of the Qiantang River. They are closely interdependent. Once Dongyang cannot withstand the offensive pressure of the Tang army, Kuaiji will naturally not be spared. The Qiantang River defense line carefully managed by Hou Andu is in front of the Tang army coming from the west. That is in name only, and it is difficult to form any obstruction at all.

Precisely because the two places are so close geographically, Liuyi has to ask for help from Kuaiji after encountering danger. If he does not get help, Kuaiji will definitely not be well.

But the problem is that with the fall of Qiantang City, the Qiantang River defense line is also in danger. Hou Andu is currently struggling to deal with the enemy from the north, and naturally has no spare energy to take into account the threat from western Zhejiang.

Although he has collected a large number of disciples in Kuaiji and seems to be quite powerful, a considerable number of these people lack even basic armor and are unable to form any effective combat effectiveness. But it is of little use. And with the fall of Qiantang City, a considerable number of sergeants were abandoned on the north bank of the Qiantang River, and now they may not even be able to show off.

Therefore, telling Hou Andu about this situation at the moment will only deepen the other party's worries. In fact, it is difficult to make any effective response. On the contrary, it may shake his stubborn heart.

After thinking silently, Chen Qian looked at Liu Zhenchen and said, "When you were on your way, did you send someone in advance to inform Mr. Hou about this?"

After hearing this, Liu Zhenchen quickly shook his head and said, "Before leaving, my father once told me that Mr. Hou is arrogant and has a high self-esteem. This visit is to ask for something from others, and he should be respectful and courteous to please him." I'm pregnant, so I didn't dare to send a slave to deliver the message. I wanted to see my father-in-law in person and beg him. If I could be introduced, I'd like to be able to gain some respect."

Hou Andu was previously in Dongyangzhou, and had dealt with all the powerful forces nearby, so Liu Zhenchen was also in awe of him. He came to visit his father-in-law Chen Qian first. In addition to respecting his elders, he also wanted to be with Chen Qian. With the introduction, Hou An could treat him better.

However, Chen Qian had her own ideas. After listening to Liu Zhenchen's words, he frowned and sighed: "It's not a coincidence that you are here today. The Tang army in the north of Qiantang River attacked very fiercely and just captured Qiantang City today. Duke Hou is currently We are deploying troops to retake the city, and we have no spare time to take care of other parties. It is only a temporary visit, but it may offend Duke Hou. You can stay with me until the time improves. I will introduce you to Duke Hou and ask him to reinforce Dongyang."

"But, but now the situation in the countryside is critical. Without strong support, the villagers may not be able to withstand the Tang army's strong attack..."

When Liu Zhenchen heard this, he immediately said anxiously.

In order to stabilize the other party, Chen Qian pondered for a moment and then said: "Right now, Kuaiji has no spare time to use for other purposes, so I will send my elite troops to the west to comfort them, boost their morale, and let them stick to the countryside and settle down." Awaiting reinforcements."

When Liu Zhenchen heard what Chen Qian said about the critical situation in Kuaiji, he had no idea, so he could only nod his head and agree.

After comforting Liu Zhenchen, Chen Qian took him and his entourage to other tents to settle down. She also summoned the general Qian Daoji and ordered: "Lingbiao Dongyang, the great bandit of the Tang army, Liu Yi It may be difficult for a local tycoon to resist this strong attack. You should lead your troops to the upper reaches of Qiantang and Xiahuai to observe the situation. If you see that Dongyang is unable to defend, send troops back immediately!"

When Qian Daoji led his troops to leave the camp and headed west, someone soon informed Hou Andu of the news. Hou Andu did not doubt his presence after receiving the letter, but said that Chen Qian had sent someone west when he saw that the situation was not good. Contact Dongyang Prefect Liu Yi. Naturally, he would not object to this. The current Qiantang River defense situation is critical. Once Kuaiji fails, the situation in neighboring Dongyang and other places will not be better. It is necessary to concentrate on consolidating the river defense so that everyone can hope for a good life.

Therefore, Hou Andu only concentrated on arranging the counterattack, hoping to recapture Qiantang City in one go and restore the previous offensive and defensive situation.

However, he was just wishful thinking. When the Tang army was kept out of the city before, it was true that the defenders were helpless with the defensive arrangement, but now that Qiantang City has been captured, how could it be easily lost again. Not to mention that Xiao Maha and a group of descendants made various suggestions and warnings to make the city's defense more comprehensive.

Therefore, the counterattack organized by Hou Andu was destined to be in vain. The Watergate Pier in the south of Qiantang City was demolished, and trebuchets and other equipment were installed near the Ship Market Harbor, which was relatively close to the city. As soon as the enemy ships approached, the trebuchets would Throw fire bombs directly into the ship.

When the small boats that rushed to land on the beach were approaching the shore, they were intercepted by the water fences that were densely spread up and down the water. Some of the airships rushed too hard and hit the water fences with people and boats, and they fell instantly. The fate of the boat capsized and people died.

After a night of exhaustion, Qiantang City still did not suffer any damage, but the Kuaiji Navy participating in the counterattack was exhausted and suffered heavy casualties. There was even a large ship that ran aground due to the inconvenience of navigation at night, and was then captured by the Tang army. Therefore, the battle in the second half of the night was no longer about attacking the city, but about trying to recapture or damage the large ship to avoid being used by the Tang army to launch an attack to the south the next day.

This latter task was completed well. After a lot of trouble, the stranded ship was severely damaged. Not only the pole-shooting facilities on the ship were destroyed, but the hull also suffered huge damage. If Without some emergency repairs, it will be difficult to put it into combat use again.

Hou Andu was supervising the battle at Jingye on the pier, but he only got such a result. He was very unhappy in his heart, but seeing that the soldiers were all exhausted, and it was obviously difficult to continue fighting, he could only order the battle. The ship returns for now.

After a night of fierce fighting, although the situation has not improved, it has not worsened too much. At least for now, the Tang army on the other side still does not have the ability to cross the Yangtze River in a large scale, and there is still room to save the situation. Therefore, Hou Andu steeled himself and patrolled along the south bank defense line for a week, ordering his men to be careful and vigilant, and then dragged his tired body back to the tent to rest for a while.

After returning to the tent, Hou Andu had a simple meal, and then slept with his clothes on. He slept until the evening, and was awakened by the sound of the sergeant's report outside the tent: "Reporting to the Lord, Lord." , Something bad is happening! A large naval vessel suddenly entered the Qiantang River Estuary and will arrive at the battlefield soon!"

"What?"

After Hou Andu heard this, his sleepiness disappeared immediately, and he jumped up from the couch. Immediately, he felt a blackening in front of his eyes and was dizzy. He fell back to the couch, and then said in a trembling voice: "Tang Jun Zhoushi has already Come on, the situation is very bad. Hurry up and invite King Linchuan here to discuss the plan!"

"The king of Linchuan came to visit the lord at noon. He said that he missed his relatives and wanted to go back to Shanyin to visit. When he saw that the lord was sleeping, he told him that there was no need to disturb him and went to Shanyin."

After the sergeant heard this, he quickly lowered his head and replied. King Linchuan and their lord are close allies, and they can come and go freely on this front line. Naturally, they have no power to stop them. Moreover, the Shanyin they are going to is also under their control. When they came to say goodbye, no such changes had happened. So I didn't take it seriously.

Hearing his subordinate's answer, Hou Andu's expression suddenly changed again, and he shouted angrily: "Wu'er has always been short-sighted and timid. Could it be that he saw that the situation was not good and was going to abandon me again? Send an order to Shanyin quickly and decide. King Linchuan is not allowed to leave the city privately!"