dtnovels Chapter 213
Chapter 213
Chapter 213
Chapter 213
Dongjun, Dong'e County.
Dong'a County is almost empty.
The Black Mountain Army in Jizhou besieged Julu and fought for several months, and the battle spread to the neighboring Yanzhou.
Faced with thousands of bandits coming from the west, the magistrate of Dong'a County simply abandoned the city and fled, taking with him countless county officials and noble families, leaving the city like an empty and undefended city.
The only ones left were Cavalry Commandant Cheng Yu and Captain Huangfu Jian who happened to be 'working' here.
In an ordinary house, under the eaves of the central courtyard, Huangfu Jian was looking towards the direction of Yanzhou, anxiously waiting for news.
Behind him stood Shi A and more than twenty guards from the Imperial City, glancing at each other from time to time.
The rebels outside the city could attack at any time, but their captain didn't seem worried at all.
Shi A waited for a while and said, "It will be too late if we don't leave now."
Huangfu Jian came back to his senses and said to himself, "I don't know what the old man is thinking. He really doesn't send reinforcements... Which one, Cheng Yu, what is he doing?"
A guard stepped forward and said, "He's packing up his belongings. He's probably going to run away too."
Huangfu Jian raised his eyebrows, looked at him strangely, and said to himself: "This shouldn't be the case..."
He immediately turned around and walked out, saying, "Let's leave the city first and see what happens. If he really abandons the city, remove him from the list."
"Yes." The guard replied.
A group of people left the city. Although they were wearing casual clothes, so many people traveling in groups were still quite eye-catching.
Shi A held the sword and followed behind Huangfu Jianchang, saying, "Aren't you going to defend the city?"
Huangfu Jianchang jumped onto his horse and looked down at Shi Adao with a puzzled look on his face: "What city am I guarding?"
Shi Ada frowned, followed him on his horse, and asked, "Then what are you doing in Dong'e County?"
Huangfu Jian sighed and said, "I have to keep an eye on the salt administration in Julu, right? I also have to keep an eye on Yanzhou, right? I can't relax in Qingzhou either, right? Besides, Yuzhou is not too far away, I have to keep an eye on it, right?"
Shi A ignored the nonsense of Huangfu Jianzhang. Seeing that the city gate was approaching, he said, "If Dong'a is lost, Dongjun will be in trouble. Aren't you afraid that the court will find out and impeach you?"
Huangfu Jian sneered and said, "So what if I know? Can I still lead more than 20 people to defend the city?"
Shi A was too lazy to say anything more, and he and Huangfu Jianchang walked out of the city gate one after the other.
On the other side, Cavalry Commandant Cheng Yu was also packing up his things and hurried out with a group of people.
Next to him was the head of the household department. Seeing that Cheng Yu still had a gloomy face, he said, "Brother Cheng, don't worry about the county magistrate. Wang Du is a traitor and the situation is critical. The county magistrate is withdrawing people to save the situation. Dong'e County has only two or three hundred soldiers and can't hold on at all."
Cheng Yu was tall and strong, but he had a sparse beard, small eyes and a big nose, giving people a shifty feeling.
He snorted coldly while riding his horse, saying, "If he is determined to defend the city, together with the wealthy families in the county, he can easily raise 2,000 people. It would be easy to defend the city, so why would he run away?! Now Dong'e County has become an empty city, and the bandits are arrogant. I don't know how many people have suffered. When the situation eases, I will impeach them in the court!"
The head of the household department sighed and said nothing more.
Cheng Yu left the city but did not go far. He stopped five or six miles away, gathered officials and civilians, and observed the movements of the rebels.
Cheng Yu patrolled back and forth, recruited young and strong men, and even couldn't wait to train them.
Xue Fang, a prominent family in the city, saw him like this, came over and whispered, "Captain Cheng, the county magistrate has run away, so why are you still here?"
Cheng Yu snorted coldly and said, "It's ridiculous that a mere two thousand people scared him to death!"
Xue Fang knew what Cheng Yu was going to do. He glanced around and said, "You can only gather three to five hundred people at most. You can't fight at all. It's better to retreat and wait for the government troops to come."
Cheng Yu looked at him and said, "It will take at least four or five days for the government troops to get the news and send troops here. In four or five days, who knows how many lives the bandits will kill!? How can I just sit there and watch!"
Xue Fang shook his head and said nothing more.
Cheng Yu didn't care about him. He selected young and strong men, kept an eye on the county town, and sent people to look for the county magistrate everywhere.
At night, a fast rider came and reported, "Captain of the Cavalry, the rebellious Wang Du has brought bandits into the city."
Cheng Yu remained calm and said, "It's just an empty city. If they can't find anything, they will definitely leave. Keep an eye on them!"
"Yes!" the soldier responded and rode away on his horse.
Cheng Yu followed the officials and the people and sent people to villages everywhere at night, hoping to win over more young and strong people.
By noon of the next day, Cheng Yu had obtained 800 young and strong men and trained them into soldiers. At the same time, he also learned more about the situation of the rebels in Dong'e County.
He made a careful plan and gathered the officials of all ranks and the wealthy Xue Fang together. He looked at them and said solemnly, "Everyone, Wang Du brought thousands of rebels just to rob money and food. Now the city is empty, they will not stay for long. As long as we take the opportunity to return, we have money, food, people, and high walls. With them, it will be difficult for only two thousand people to break through! When the county magistrate comes back, we will unite as one and defeat the rebels. It's just around the corner!"
When everyone heard this, they were stunned.
They were fleeing, why are they fighting back?
The official in the clerk's office hesitated and said, "Captain of the Cavalry, there are two thousand rebels, and Wang Du knows us inside and out. If we are not careful, we will be dead."
The head of the barracks said, "We have no more than 800 men at most, and the bandits have more than 2,000. Cavalry Captain, we can't take this risk."
Others also started talking at once, all opposing Cheng Yu's plan.
Cheng Yu looked more serious and said, "The bandits have no roots or bases. As long as we take back the county and defend it, we will defeat the rebels within three days! Everyone, Cheng Yu is willing to share this credit with you."
Everyone looked at Cheng Yu, turned their heads and whispered, but no one responded.
Xue Fang stared at Cheng Yu and thought his plan was feasible. He said, "The bandits have no food and it's almost winter. As long as we hold on, they will surely be defeated!"
The officials and people of Dong'e County looked hesitant and struggling, and did not say a word.
Seeing this, Cheng Yu's face turned pale, he stood up suddenly and shouted: "Fools cannot discuss important matters!"
Immediately, he waved his hand and strode away.
"We are fools. Who would dare to follow your risk?"
"Yeah, it's an obvious dead end. You're looking for death, but we don't want to die."
"This Cheng Yu is obviously a reckless man. Who would be willing to die with him?"
"Yes, we managed to escape with our lives..."
Xue Fang was still sitting there, listening to what the group of people were saying. He shook his head secretly, stood up calmly, found Cheng Yu, and said solemnly: "Cavalry Commander, I think we can give it a try!"
Cheng Yu had a gloomy face and immediately asked, "Sir, are you willing to help me?"
Xue Fang is a wealthy family in Dong'a and controls the crucial grain!
Xue Fang raised his hand and said, "Dong'a is our hometown. How can we give it up so easily? What if we risk our lives?"
Cheng Yu was greatly moved and said, "Sir, you are so righteous. Once this happens, I will report the truth to the court!"
Xue Fang didn't care, instead he said: "Captain of the Cavalry, there is no time to lose, no delay, or else something bad will happen!"
Cheng Yu nodded, glanced around, pulled Xue Fang aside, and whispered a few words.
Xue Fang listened, nodded heavily, and said: "Okay, Xue will act according to your plan!"
Seeing that he agreed, Cheng Yu called a few people over and said, "You ride on horses and follow me to the highest point of the mountain!"
"We obey your orders!" the six soldiers responded without hesitation.
Cheng Yu took a deep breath, nodded to Xue Fang, jumped on his horse, and strode away.
Xue Fang looked at his back, called over other people, gathered the eight hundred young men, and prepared for battle.
Cheng Yu rode his horse at full speed without disguising himself, heading straight for the highest peak of the mountain.
Dong'e County immediately discovered them, and Wang Du led his troops to chase them, saying anxiously: "They are carrying thousands of officials and civilians, with a lot of money and food. If we find them, we won't have to worry about surviving the winter!"
When the bandits heard this, they ran faster than Wang Du, like night cats smelling blood.
Cheng Yu looked back, reached the foot of the mountain, abandoned his horse and climbed up the mountain.
"Don't worry, I'm familiar with this mountain, and there's a small path down!" Cheng Yu said as he quickly climbed up the mountain.
The six soldiers responded and followed him up the mountain quickly.
Wang Du and his companions believed that the escaped officials and civilians were hiding in this mountain, so they chased them desperately and poured into the mountaintops to look for those officials and civilians and the money and food they brought with them.
Cheng Yu was familiar with the route and quickly came to the top, looking in the direction of Xue Fang and waving a big flag.
Xue Fang, who had been waiting, saw this and immediately mounted his horse, saying urgently, "Quick, go back to the city!"
Xue Fang led the way without any fear, and led eight hundred young and strong men straight to Dong'a City.
At this moment, the bandits were still flooding up the mountain. They didn't care even if they were discovered, as they were all looking for the money and food they coveted.
Seeing this, Cheng Yu immediately turned around and went down the mountain.
When Wang Du realized something was wrong and turned back, not only Xue Fang had entered the city, but Cheng Yu had also returned.
The four gates were tightly closed, and eight hundred young men were on full alert.
Wang Du gritted his teeth. He never expected that Cheng Yu would dare to turn back and go back to Dong'e County!
"Attack the city! They must have money and food!" Wang Du shouted.
He has colluded with the bandits and has no way to retreat. If he can't find money and food, these bandits will eat him alive.
More than two thousand people swarmed towards the east gate.
They had no siege equipment, no formation, no order, they just rushed forward all at once.
As for Cheng Yu and his eight hundred men on the city gate, they were also not well prepared. They had no bows and arrows, their swords were all cobbled together, and they had very few pieces of armor.
The two sides were like this, one attacking the city and the other defending it.
Wang Du shouted loudly from below, urging them to attack the city.
On the city gate, Cheng Yu showed no fear and said calmly: "Eight hundred people are enough. In the end, we will win!"
Xue Fang was also very calm. More than 2,000 bandits might seem like a lot, but they were far from enough to attack the city!
"Wang Du is so anxious that he has lost his mind!" Xue Fang said.
Cheng Yu nodded, raised his hand and said to Xue Fang: "Sir, you are righteous, Cheng Yu admires you!"
Xue Fang smiled and said, "Defending the city is the duty of the Han people. Why should we talk about other things?"
Cheng Yu sighed and said, "If they all knew their duty, why would Dong'e City be in such a state?"
Xue Fang shook his head and looked at the bandits who were madly attacking the city.
It's the end of the month, please give me a monthly ticket~~