Chapter 1006
: Taiping Sect Retreats South
Chapter 1006: Taiping Sect Retreats South
The long beam of light,
It burst out from the clouds, emitting thousands of golden rays, illuminating the earth.
In Weizhou City,
In the main hall of the government office, the leader of the Taiping Sect, Chu, sat in the main seat, silent for a long time, thinking that he had already purged the remaining Taiping Sect guards in the city, but unfortunately, after repeated withdrawals, there were no soldiers left in the city. Only the 10,000 guards who fled south followed. At present, in the entire southern part of the capital, only the 20,000 elite soldiers of the Lin Yue Mansion remained unmoved, and there were no other reinforcements available.
Looking at the people in the inner hall, a hoarse voice rang out,
"At present, there has been no news from the left protector of the county city. I have been feeling uneasy. In addition, a scout reported that the White Lotus Sect's Linzhou suddenly sent 50,000 soldiers from the north and have entered Linzhou City. I am a little suspicious. Is the White Lotus Sect starting to retreat southward?"
He frowned and took out the geomancy map of southern Beijing. The 50,000 elite White Lotus soldiers coming from the north were here to defend against the imperial army, or to defend against them.
As soon as the words fell, the hall immediately started to discuss, especially the left commander who was sitting in the first seat in the east. He was wearing a brand new robe, as if the wound on his body had healed.
"Master Chu, we don't know what the White Lotus Sect means, but the master's reply has arrived. The leader of your sect also sent a message back, saying that they will no longer send troops to the south of Beijing, and even received an order to retreat. I still have 3,000 personal soldiers under my command. After receiving the master's letter, it is inconvenient for me to stay any longer. I have to say goodbye today. I wonder what Master Chu is planning?"
The good situation is gone forever. I sent an urgent report and specifically explained the war in the north. Who knew that His Highness did not agree to lend me troops, but instead urged me to go south. I don't know why.
However, Commander Zuo's words aroused dissatisfaction among the Taiping Sect members, who began to criticize him.
Right Guardian Du Shaoqing snorted coldly and said;
"Commander-in-Chief Zuo, my sect still has its main force in the county city to stop the imperial army. You just lost a battle and are going to flee back in disgrace after losing 100,000 new soldiers. You are such a coward, and you still dare to speak of rebelling against the imperial court. What a joke."
"Yes, Commander Zuo, our two families have an alliance here. If we cannot gather a large army and fight back again, the imperial court only needs to capture Linshan County City, and there will be no soldiers left to defend the entire southern part of Beijing!"
The former guardian Wei Siyuan also had a grim expression. Now that the main force of the Taiping Sect was still there, why couldn't they fight to the death? Although most of them had retreated to the south, they might be able to go north again. If they could destroy Luo Yunhou's army in one battle, the world would be at their fingertips.
"yes."
It was a mess, and the whole hall was filled with the sound of angry discussions. However, the surviving generals behind Zuo Feng were all glaring at him. They wanted to refute, but were stopped by General Zuo, who said with a sneer on his face;
"Everyone, I am not discussing this with you, but informing you. Since the master has already made the decision, how can a subordinate disobey his orders? Besides, it is not that I am heartless. First, Master Chu no longer has elite troops under his command. It is still unknown whether your master will mobilize troops to the north. Second, the attitude of the White Lotus Sect. If the White Lotus Sect mobilizes all its troops to attend the alliance, I will definitely not retreat."
He suddenly sat up, and a solemn aura came over him, startling everyone in the hall. They thought to themselves, this Commander Zuo is also a top-notch expert, not someone who can be easily defeated.
Chu Yiyue's eyes were gloomy, and his somewhat withered hands tightly grasped the handle of the chair, but suddenly loosened it, and then laughed and said;
"Commander-in-Chief Zuo is right. Our sect has no reinforcements. How could we hide anything from each other? After all, our base is in the south. The army should not advance north. As for the White Lotus Sect you mentioned, the leader is not an easy man to deal with. He has already thought of a way out. It's too late to hold a meeting, but there is still a way out. If the three of us gather all the troops in the south of Beijing and gather in Weizhou, we may be able to fight."
Chu Yiyue did not give up. Although the armies in the south of Beijing had retreated south, they could still fight if they gathered the strength of the three sects. The Taiping Sect could still gather 50,000 troops from various places, and the White Lotus Sect was the same. In Weizhou, there were still 20,000 elite troops of the prince, so they could fight. He looked at the left commander in the east with a sharp look, as if he had some questions.
Zuo Feng did not answer in a hurry, but thought quickly in his heart. He understood what Master Chu meant. Although Linshan County was under siege, the Left Protector was leading more than 100,000 troops to garrison. Even if the imperial court was brave, it would not be able to take it down in a short period of time.
In this way, he could not only consume the imperial court's soldiers, but also resist the imperial court's army. This might be feasible, but his master might not agree. But it was not impossible. After all, he still had the elite troops behind the Weizhou Palace.
After thinking for a while, the figure on horseback suddenly appeared in his mind again. Luo Yunhou had never been defeated. His face turned pale, and he looked at the expectant eyes of the crowd and spoke with difficulty.
"Every word that Master Chu said makes sense. The various places in southern Beijing may be able to hold an alliance here and form a large army, but if we lose again, we will no longer have mobile forces. Even if we return to Lingnan, we will be defeated. Of course, we don't care about reputation, but have you ever thought that Marquis Luo Yun has never been defeated, and his army has the reputation of being the best in the world. It's not groundless, right?"
"Cough cough,"
After he finished speaking, he coughed twice, with some fear in his eyes. On that day, 100,000 new troops could not stop them for a moment. Luo Yunhou's martial arts was unmatched, and he was only twenty years old. Perhaps, after a few more years, no one in the world could defeat him. There was only one way, to force him to return to the outside of the Great Wall. However, these political intrigues needed to be discussed with the master.
Zuo Feng's words silenced everyone in the room. The originally angry and noisy atmosphere immediately disappeared. Sect Leader Chu's face turned even paler. He moved his mouth and gave a bitter smile.
"What the commander-in-chief said is true. Marquis Luo Yun is indeed a famous general of the time. If we had fewer people, the three of us would have formed an alliance and used all our troops to surround and kill him. Unfortunately, he has all the best troops in the world. Who can defeat him? Alas,"
He sighed heavily. All his plans were flawless, but they were no match for Luo Yunhou alone. Is this really the way of heaven?
"What does Master Chu mean?"
Zuo Feng hesitated and looked at Chu Yiyue in doubt. This man was very determined and would not give up just because of his words. After all, there were still hundreds of thousands of elite soldiers guarding the county city. If there were no reinforcements, those elite soldiers would probably be wiped out in one day.
Just when everyone was silent, suddenly, a group of messengers ran in from outside, their faces were panicked, and they fell down several times after walking a few steps. Everyone in the hall couldn't help but feel a chill in their hearts, and a feeling of uneasiness swept over them.
"What's the matter? Why are you so flustered?"
Chu Yiyue's hoarse voice sounded again, which shocked everyone in the hall. The messenger quickly ran into the hall, knelt down, and shouted with a trembling mouth;
"Master Chu, something has happened in the county city. Scouts have reported that a large number of imperial soldiers are heading south from the direction of Linshan County City. The scouts who have gone out said that the county city has been captured by the soldiers, and they heard shouting that Marquis Luo Yun led his troops to massacre the city."
The extremely frightening voice was heard throughout the house, even the falling leaves could be heard.
"How is it possible? How is it possible? It's only been a few days. Even if Luo Yunhou has great ability, he can't fly into the city."
The former Dharma Protector Wei Siyuan was horrified and replied incoherently, thinking back to the character of the Left Dharma Protector, he would never abandon the county town and flee until the last moment. Could it be that Marquis Luo Yun knew some magic?
Chu Yiyue's expression changed even more, and he asked in a deep voice;
"Don't panic, ask clearly, I'm asking you, the scouts can see clearly,"
"Reporting to Master Chu, I have seen clearly that the imperial army has been divided into three groups. The main force of Marquis Luo Yun is heading for Weizhou. The other two groups heading east should be heading for the White Lotus Sect. The people in my scout camp should pass on the message with fast horses. I am sure it will not be wrong."
He had sent people out to check this more than twice before he was sure that it was correct. However, this revelation made everyone in the hall seem to have lost their spirit. Even Zuo Feng, who had been determined to make progress, was really a little unbelievable at this moment. Could it be that Marquis Luo Yun really couldn't fly? With hundreds of thousands of defenders in the city, why was it captured in just a few days? Did the left protector defect to the enemy? He thought about it and shook his head. It was impossible.
He looked up at Master Chu and saw that he had aged a lot in an instant. He no longer had the energy and spirit he once had. It was obvious that gathering troops here to rescue the left protector was just empty talk.
"Master Chu, no matter what, Luo Yunhou is indeed a genius. He has never been well-known outside the Great Wall. If the Jurchens had not been defeated by him, no one in the world would know how powerful he is. Even we underestimated him, which led to our repeated defeats.
Just now, what Master Chu said was all reasonable, but if Linshan County City is lost, there is no place to defend. We cannot fight with only Linyue Prefecture City. How about you and I preserve our strength and retreat to Lingnan?"
It was just a superficial politeness to say that he was exhorting. Zuo Feng had already made up his mind and would not wait any longer today. After the discussion, he would withdraw his troops and return to Dingzhou to see the situation from a distance. If that didn't work, he would have to return to Xiangzhou in the west of the mountains.
"Oh, it seems that Commander Zuo has made up his mind. There is nothing wrong with returning to the south, but the main force of the White Lotus Sect is still there. I wonder if Commander Zuo has any ideas?"
Chu Yiyue smiled softly. Although he was a little shocked just now, he was not depressed now. Instead, his eyes were bright, as if he had a countermeasure. Zuo Feng pondered for a moment and asked;
"I wonder what else Master Chu thinks?"
"I do have an idea, but it is useless now. I still need to inform the White Lotus Sect so that they can have a response plan. Now, I have two good plans. One is to withdraw all of them, including the White Lotus Sect, and publicize it to the world that Marquis Luo Yun has won a great victory. As the saying goes, it is easy to dodge an open attack but difficult to guard against an arrow from the dark. The capital is so big, there is more than just Marquis Luo Yun."
The smile on his face never faded. The more Chu spoke, the brighter his eyes became. "Another option is to immediately gather the army, withdraw from Weizhou, and go to Linyue Mansion. We can still be careful with Luo Yunhou, but the imperial court has many cavalrymen, so there is not much room for maneuver."
This is a fatal flaw. The imperial court has a large number of cavalry that can be quickly mobilized, but they have no cavalry to deal with and cannot defeat them. However, if Marquis Luo Yun insists on attacking the city, they will not be able to defend Linshan County City without knowing how Marquis Luo Yun attacks it.
"Master Chu, if you really want to praise and kill Luo Yunhou, it will not be done in a short time. The forces in the capital are complicated, and various princes have entered the capital. Even if Luo Yunhou pacified the south of the capital and became famous, the Prince of Beijing Shui Rong and the Prince of the East Mu Shi are not mediocre people. The main force of the White Lotus Sect has not turned back, which means that they have encountered trouble. Therefore, the opportunity has passed and they can only lie dormant. If the princes in the heartland of the Central Plains are in chaos, that will be an opportunity."
Zuo Feng suddenly stood up and laughed, then bowed to Master Chu and said;
"Master Chu, this opportunity is also a blessing for you and me. Since it is impossible to do anything, why not take a step back? The world is in chaos, not just in the south of Beijing. Fortunately, the three counties of Lingnan are located between mountains and forests. Even if the court knows about it, it will not waste too much troops to come here. The mountain clan is also a trouble. Therefore, it is better to preserve your strength. Master Chu, see you later."
Without waiting for the Taiping Sect to say anything, he led the generals behind him and left. Not long after, a sad horn sounded in the city. Zuo Feng led the army to slowly leave. After he left, the Weizhou City was almost deserted.
"Master Chu, this is impossible, let's retreat."
"Yes, Master Chu, let's take away everything we can in the city. Luo Yunhou is good at fighting, but he can't stay in the pass forever. There may be many opportunities in the future."
Wei Siyuan and the others also knew that the current situation was irreversible. If they did not leave, when the imperial cavalry arrived first, it would be difficult for them to escape even if they wanted to.
"Okay, since you all have this plan, let's go. Send someone to Linzhou and Linyue Mansion to pass on an order that the entire army retreat to Zhaozhou, and the rest of the believers go back and hide. If a large army from the court comes, go back to Lingnan directly and burn down this place, including Linzhou and Linyue Mansion. We can't let the brothers in the church die in vain."
Chu Yiyue's eyes flashed with pain. He had trained hundreds of thousands of elite members of the sect, and now they were all wiped out. Who wouldn't feel pain?
"Yes, Master Chu, I will obey your orders."
Everyone shouted, clasped their fists and left, leaving only the cold house behind.
An hour later, thick black smoke floated out from the sky above Weizhou City. After the Taiping Cult army left the city, raging fire swept through the city, like the fire of the underworld, which was terrifying.
This burning,
It burned for a whole day and night. Although the fire had diminished, it was still not extinguished. Thick smoke and dust floated in the air. Even the imperial army a hundred miles away could see it clearly.
The King of Jin's carriage was at the center of the army, and scouts had already reported that
"Report, Lord, the scouts have reported that Weizhou City has become a sea of fire. The entire city has been burned beyond recognition. There is also thick smoke and dust drifting from Linzhou and Lin Yue Mansion. I think that several cities should have been burned to ashes by the enemy army like Weizhou City."
The scout captain was outside the car, reporting quickly. Inside the car, Zhang Jinyu had just dozed off for a while before slowly waking up. Not to mention, the bedding in the car was filled up a bit, so he could lie on it directly. Although the car was still a little shaky, it was indeed much more comfortable than sitting.
I heard the report outside the window,
Zhang Jinyu rubbed his lazy eyelids, then stood up, lifted the curtain and looked outside. The sun was setting in the west. It seemed that he had been walking for almost a day. Then, right in front of him, there was a thick black smoke that rushed straight into the sky and spread into the sky.
The smoke spread out like a black cloud, extremely dazzling. I remembered what the scout captain beside me said, that this was caused by the Taiping sect bandits venting their anger.
"You mean, the Taiping rebels have burned down the city?"
"My Lord, yes, my subordinates have come back on horseback, saying that Weizhou City has been engulfed in flames. When they came back to report, thick smoke was also rising from the direction of Linyuefu City and Linzhou City. I suspect that the Taiping Sect and the White Lotus Sect may have withdrawn their troops and set fire to the city."
The scout captain did not dare to hide anything and told the information his men had found out, which made Zhang Jinyu sigh. It was really a tit-for-tat situation. It looked like the cities in the south would be doomed to fail, leaving behind a mess, regardless of whether there were civilians living there or not. Even if the court was rich, it could not build Linzhou City like this?
"Well, that's not right. Linzhou City is occupied by the White Lotus rebels. How could they burn the city and retreat to the south? In this case, the main force of the White Lotus is still in Xihe County, and the retreat route is cut off. Isn't this cutting off their own retreat?"
"My Lord, I don't know. The situation in Linzhou is still unclear. I have sent out scouts to check. In the direction of Qinzhou, the White Lotus defenders have long disappeared. General Yin reported that the vanguard has occupied Qinzhou."
In just a few days, the situation changed so much that the scouts were overwhelmed. It seemed that the White Lotus Sect was avoiding the attack.
"Continue to explore. Tell General Hu to immediately send cavalry to Linyuefu, Weizhou, Linzhou and other places to verify whether the bandit army has really left. If they have, there is no need to stay and they can lead the army back."
"Yes, Lord Marquis,"
The captain clasped his fists and left. Zhang Jinyu thought for a moment and suddenly gave an order:
"Ningbian, tell the army to temporarily move south, find an open area, set up camp there, and wait for accurate news from the front to come in, then discuss again, and have Gu Ping's troops turn back immediately."
"Yes, sir, but, sir,"
Ning Bian clasped his fists in response, with some hesitation on his face. The enemy army's movement this time was obviously well prepared. If they really retreated to the south, what should they do?
"explain,"
Zhang Jinyu turned to look at Ning Bian, who nodded and leaned over to whisper;
"My Lord, what if all the cities in the south have been burned down?"
"What do you think? It has become like that. Whether you want it or not, it is a burden. In this case, I will not go. Send the order."
"Yes, Lord Marquis,"
Zhang Jinyu turned back to the car, lowered the curtain, and sat down on the couch. He sighed, glanced at King Jin who looked inquiring, and said;
"Your Highness, we don't need to go to the south. I am going to turn the army around and head north to the important town of Runan. If everything goes well, we can bring the troops back to the court before the birthday banquet of the Emperor Emeritus."
This decision was made because they did not want to delay any longer. Since the remnants of the Taiping Sect had already retreated south, they would definitely not leave behind a large army. As for where they would retreat south, it would be Dingzhou and Zhaozhou. However, these two places...
(End of this chapter)