Chapter 229 Chapter One

The residents of Liangdu, men, women and children, all mobilized to fight for the protection of their homes. Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling are now famous heroes all over the world. Not only are they brilliant and "invincible", but because they were born in the low-level market, their image is compared to the old officials and generals of the Sui Dynasty who came from high-ranking families. The hero who started his career won the hearts of the people even more, so the martial arts figures in the vicinity, the ambitious young men, came to join him one after another. Inadvertently, Kou Zhong's first public gathering on the road to hegemony happened so suddenly.

Under any other circumstances, Xu Ziling would not be directly involved in Kou Zhong's "private business".But this time, because of his kindness towards the citizens of the city, he dealt with Yu Wenhuaji even more. Kou Zhong relied on the heavenly scriptures handed down by Lu Miaozi with one hand, and copied the administrative structure of Liangdu's entire governance with the other hand, trying to make the best use of limited resources. Yu Wenhua and the about 20,000 troops from the south moved slowly, and because they had to plunder food and grass along the way and forcefully conscript the strong men, the places they passed by like locusts suddenly became disaster areas, forcing the people along the way to hide in Liangdu. Kou Zhong's burden was overwhelmed.

On this day, the two finally got together to have lunch in a side hall of Zhongfu Sheng Restaurant on Nanbei Street, which runs through the north and south city gates, to discuss matters of offense and defense. The other guests in the restaurant are used to it, for example, the two of them are approachable, they don't like to hide in the general manager's mansion, they only like to go to common people's places to have a big bowl of wine and a big piece of meat, and occasionally swear a few obscenities. Kou Zhong said in a low voice: "Now the 14 towns and more than 200 villages near Liangdu have all surrendered to us with all they have, so we can get more food and grass, and alleviate the suffering of food shortage."

Xu Ziling frowned and asked, "Where did the food in Liangdu come from?" Kou Zhongdao: "It is these towns and villages. I only hate the Khitan thieves to kill and set fires everywhere. The farmland is abandoned and cannot be supplied as usual. Do you want to buy grain? Upstream is Wang Shichong fighting Li Mi, and downstream is Daddy and Shen Faxing fighting Li Zitong, water transport Cut off. Alas! My young master Ling, I never imagined that we would have to worry about firewood and rice for nearly 100,000 people in the whole city! You advised me not to compete with others before, you really had the foresight.”

Xu Ziling wasn't even in the mood to laugh, and asked, "How many days can the grain last?" Kou Zhongdao: "According to Chen Jiafeng's estimation, if that bastard of Yu Wenhua is going to besiege the city in three days and cut off all water and land transportation at the current marching speed, even if we tighten our pants, we won't be able to last ten days." Xu Ziling changed his face and said: "Isn't that bad? Yuhuahua is a jackal by nature, so he will still take the opportunity to loot everywhere, so that he will not be short of food, and we will end up starving to death in an isolated city."

Kou Zhong smiled wryly and said: "Now we seem to have thousands of people, but there are no more than 20 people who can really send out to deal with people, and only a thousand or so people who can prepare their own leather horse weapons. It’s only about a hundred horses. People say that soldiers are more expensive than elite soldiers, but they are really elite soldiers. I’m afraid you and I are the only two fools left. This time it’s not bad, it’s terrible.” Xu Ziling resolutely said: "Defending the city is just a dead end. It's better to ambush Yuwenhua bones on the way, than to wait here to die."

Kou Zhong shook his head and said: "The reason why Yuhua's bones marched so slowly, and they came from land instead of the fast waterway, is to prevent us from ambushing on the way, so this plan will never work, tell me, there are thousands of people Going out to fight mightily, can we hide from the Yuwen faction's master spies? Now we can only look at Li Zitong's side." At this time, Xie Jiao, who was promoted to the head of Kou Zhong's personal guard, came to report: "A man who called himself Xuan Yong asked to see the two uncles." The two were overjoyed and hurriedly thanked Jiao for inviting him in.

After a while, Xuan Yong, who was dressed in dust and dust, came, and the three of them met, and they talked about their separation. Kou Zhongdao: "You came at the right time." Xuan Yong said happily: "The story of you defeating the Khitan horse bandits with a few hard soldiers in an empty city has spread throughout the northern cities." Xu Ziling asked in surprise, "It's only seven or eight days, how could the news spread so quickly?" Xuan Yongdao: "Everything that happened near the north-south waterway is particularly easy to spread because of the developed water transportation. When I knew that Yuhuahua sent troops to advance to Liangdu, I knew it was not good, so I came here immediately."

Kou Zhong suddenly stood up, clasped his fists to the diners in the shop, and said, "Dear brothers and sisters, because I have some important matters to discuss, can you big brothers and uncles hurry up and leave after eating?" All the guests left willingly after hearing the words. When Kou Zhong sat down, there were only the three of them left in the shop, even the shop owner and his buddies hid in the kitchen. Xu Ziling said: "Brother Xuan, do you know what's wrong with us?" Xuan Yong took his time and said: "One is the lack of food, the other is that there are no soldiers to use, and the third is that there is no help. Am I wrong?"

Kou Zhong was very surprised: "Looking at your appearance, it seems that you can solve these three problems for us. Don't coax me." Xuan Yongdao: "Food is tight everywhere, and there is nothing anyone can do about it. But these three problems are all caused by Yu Wenhua, as long as he is driven back to his hometown, all problems can be easily solved." Kou Zhong said with a smile: "The words of Director Xuan are very insightful, and I immediately feel that the only problem left in the final analysis is the bones of Yuhua." Xuan Yong said in astonishment: "What is Director Xuan?"

Xu Ziling laughed dumbfounded. Kou Zhongdao: "Of course it's the chief managers of Liangdu and Pengcheng. Even if we kill the bones of Yuhua, this stall still needs to be managed by someone like Chief Xuan who has experience in commanding troops and defending cities and is talented. Now that Li Zitong is unable to go north, and Lin Shihong, Li Mi and others are too busy to take care of themselves, I will rely on you to build an unbreakable strong formation for me here, and cut off the northward and southward routes of the Central Plains pass. Ha! This is really a godsend arrangement." Xuan Yong stayed for a long while, then said: "You must ask Miss for instructions on this matter." Kou Zhong patted his chest and said, "As for the eldest lady, I will take care of it. Why doesn't she come?" Xuan Yongdao: "We have called back a group of Wagang generals, numbering up to 2,000. But there is no place to stay. Miss heard that you have taken Liangdu, so she ordered me to lead them to seek refuge. Now they are stationed in the north of the city. Thirty miles away in a dense forest." Kou Zhong was overjoyed and said, "This trip is really a rescue." As Yu Wenhua and the army continued to approach, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling were very busy, making preparations to defend the city. Early in the morning, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling rode out of the city, inspected the fortifications built outside the city, and arrived at a hill overlooking the northern plain. Tongji Canal is rolling on the left, but no boats are seen. Kou Zhong said as if reciting aloud: "The battle must attack the city, because the city is not only a strategic point related to the overall situation or a certain area, but also plays a role in controlling the traffic and economy of a large area. It is the support point and lifeblood of the entire war situation. It's... hey... wait a minute." Xu Ziling stared in astonishment, only to see Kou Zhong take out Lu Miaozi's Tianshu from his pocket with a lightning technique, flipped to a certain page, and then continued: "Hey! A city is a battleground for military strategists. A strategic city, whoever owns it will gain control of the Tongji Canal. Ha! Do these words make sense?" Xu Ziling laughed dumbly and said, "You don't need to convince me, I will try my best to deal with Yuwenhuagu to the end." Kou Zhong said solemnly: "I borrowed you as an exercise. If you want to convince others, you must first enrich yourself. When I read Lu Miaozi's chapter called 'The Battle Must Siege the City', for some reason I kept thinking of another city. It may be a key to whether I can stand firm, try to guess which city I am thinking of?" Xu Ziling looked towards the rising red sun in the east, and said calmly, "Is it Xiangyang?" Kou Zhong was startled and said, "How did you guess it?" Xu Ziling said: "It's hard to guess. If you want to march into Luoyang and Guanzhong, you have Jiangdu and Liangdu in the east; Jingling and Xiangyang in the west. Among the latter two, Xiangyang has more strategic significance, otherwise Li Mi would not have to personally It's so hard to find money alone." Kou Zhong nodded and said, "That's right, there is a chapter in Lu Miaozi's "Terrain" that discusses the most contested places in the world, and Xiangyang is on the list." Xu Ziling asked, "What did Mr. Lu say?" Kou Zhongru recited like a few treasures: "Xiangyang is connected to Bashu in the west, Hunan and Chu in the south, and Heluo in the north. Therefore, every time there is a war, there must be a beacon of fire. During the Three Kingdoms, Wei, Shu, and Wu fought for this city conveniently. Guan Yu died here. Afterwards, the Western Jin Dynasty conquered Wu, and the Eastern Jin Dynasty conquered Huanwen and the North, all of which took Xiangyang as the base. Therefore, Mr. Lu concluded that "the reason why the Six Dynasties were able to protect the left side of the river was due to the presence of strong soldiers in Huainan, Jing Xiang between'." Xu Ziling couldn't help thinking of Zhu Yuyan's praise for Lu Miaozi's "talent".His exposition on Xiangyang is really insightful. Although Xiangyang is not a large city like Luoyang, it is located in the upper reaches of the Han River and is a communication hub for the four provinces of Hubei, Henan, Sichuan, and Shaanxi.If you want to go south from the Central Plains, or enter the Jianghan Plain from Guanzhong, you have to take Xiangyang first. Kou Zhongzhi was in Xiangyang, and he secretly had the heart of a decisive battle with Li Shimin in the future.Even if Li Shimin captures Luoyang, he still has to pass Xiangyang. Both Xiangyang and Liangdu are not the center of political economy, but strategically they are related to the success or failure of the whole situation. Xu Ziling said: "If you want to take Xiangyang, you must first take Jingling. That's not easy." Kou Zhong said happily: "The most interesting part of this game is the high degree of difficulty." Xu Ziling said displeased: "Do you actually regard the brutal city attack and defense battle that kills Yingye as a game?" Kou Zhong smiled bitterly and said, "Don't put on a straight face and speak sternly, okay? I beg you! For me, life is nothing more than a game. My responsibility is to try to make this game more meaningful and interesting. This is purely from a detached perspective. Just like Shi Feixuan believes that everything in the world is illusory and has no eternal meaning." After a pause, he continued excitedly: "Sir Ling, just think about it, in our vast land of the Central Plains, there are countless cities, large and small, which have different importance and meanings depending on their geographical situation. Isn't it correct? It is like a grid on a chessboard, and the people and the army are the pieces. Looking at it this way, what does war look like like a game? All battles are centered on breaking and defending the city.” Xu Ziling pondered for a while, nodded and said, "Your views on fighting for the world are indeed much deeper than before." Kou Zhong looked back at Liangdu, he let out a long breath and said, "I have lost Jingling, I can never lose Liangdu again! If we have enough food and grass, we can use the method of fortifying the walls and clearing the fields, dragging the enemy army out of the city for a long time , until the moment when his food is exhausted and retreats, and then annihilate them in one fell swoop. Of course we can’t use this strategy now, so we can only use tricks, take advantage of the weakness of Yuwen’s bones and dare not fight for a long time, and severely defeat them.” Xu Ziling shook his head and said, "Now everyone knows that Liangdu is in short supply of food, and Yuhuagu deliberately marched slowly in order to chase the residents along the way to Liangdu, making us even more embarrassed by the lack of food. God has no patience." Kou Zhong was startled and said: "You are right! So the first strategy is to use deception. We not only want to deceive the bones of Yuwenhua, but also the entire city's soldiers and civilians." Xu Ziling said emotionally: "It's a lie anyway, why not lie that Li Zitong is willing to borrow not only food, but also troops; both will come to help within a few days. As soon as the news reaches Yu Wenhua's ears, I guarantee that he will march at full speed immediately, We must attack the city in the most violent way, then we will have a chance." Kou Zhong clamped his horse's belly, turned around, and said: "We must immediately send someone to intercept Ren Meimei who will return to the north at any time, and she should tell lies!" In the evening of that day, Ren Meimei returned to Liangdu by boat, and there were more than ten carts of grain and grass with the boat.It was reported that it was the first batch of grain borrowed after forming an alliance with Li Zitong. On the way to the granary of the general manager's mansion, one of them "accidentally" overturned and dumped rice and wheat. Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling greeted him personally at the gate of the city, and they entered the city next to the "hero". After entering the high wall of the General Manager's Mansion, Ren Meimei's flowery smiling face immediately became expressionless, and she gritted her teeth and cursed: "Li Zitong, that bastard really deserves to be wiped out by Du Fuwei. Cutting off the downstream water transport, what you say is even more unbearable, really maddening!" Kou Zhong said with a smile: "Sister Ren, why bother with this kind of villain, after we clean up Yu Wenhua later, he will be attractive." Turning to Xu Ziling, he said, "Isn't the food transport performance just now realistic enough?" Xu Ziling said with satisfaction: "If I didn't know the inside story, I would have been deceived." The three sat down in the lobby. Ren Meimei cursed furiously, "Not only did that bastard put on airs, he forced me to wait for three days for nothing, and in the end he only sent a eunuch to tell me that he is not free, unless he has time to see me after another ten days. What do you say?" How annoying." Kou Zhongqi said: "Didn't Elder Sister Ren just say that what he said was disgusting, since you can't even see him, how can you hear what he said?" Ren Meimei puffed up her cheeks and said: "Although I can't see him, the eunuch passed a message on his behalf, saying that if I am willing to serve the bed, I will be called into the palace to accompany him in five days." Murderous intent flashed across Kou Zhong's eyes, but his expression was surprisingly calm. He nodded slowly and said, "Li Zitong deliberately humiliated us. Alright! Since he is going to make trouble, don't blame me for being ruthless." Xu Ziling remained silent. Ren Meimei then reported the situation in Jiangdu, saying: "Now Du Fuwei stationed his army in the east of Danyang, only 20 miles away from Jiangdu, echoing with Shen Faxing's son Shen Lun's army stationed in the north of Piling. Three raids were launched, causing casualties on both sides, but Li Zitong was slightly disadvantaged. Piling originally belonged to Li Zitong, but it was captured by Shen Lun a month ago, and Li Zitong lost all the counties south of Jiangdu." Kou Zhong asked: "Then what leverage does Li Zitong have left? How dare you look down on us like this." Ren Meimei replied: "It's just more than ten cities and counties north of Jiangdu. Among them, Donghai County near the sea in the northeast and Zhongli County in Huai River are the most important. The former is the hometown and defense base of this bastard, and the latter is His transportation hub leading to the inland, the fall of any place will deal a fatal blow to him." Kou Zhong laughed and said, "I thought he was invulnerable and invulnerable? So many flaws and weaknesses, I'll settle the score with him later. I've had a hard time this trip, Eldest Sister! Please go to the inner hall and have a good rest." After Ren Meimei left, Kou Zhong frowned and said, "Is this a bit strange? I thought that due to Song Jingang's relationship, we helped him stand up against Yu Wenhuaji, and that guy Li Zitong should be so grateful that he burst into tears. To treat our envoys like this." Xu Ziling said: "What could be more beneficial to him than us and Yu Wenhua's bone fight? At that time, he only needs to send thousands of generals, and Liang can get them at his fingertips." Kou Zhong showed a thoughtful expression, and he said after a while: "In my opinion, the matter is not so simple. Now his most urgent thing is to untie the siege of Jiangdu, so any action is to achieve this military goal. Just think about it." So, assuming that Yu Wenwen finally wins Liangdu after a tough battle, what are the benefits for him?" Xu Ziling changed his expression and said: "I understand, he wants to transfer the troops originally stationed in the cities north of Jiangdu to Jiangdu to deal with the coalition forces of old father and Shen Lun, while Yuwenhuagu is unable to expand due to the threat of Dou Jiande. Invasion. At that time, as long as he can repel Lao Di and Shen Lun's army, he can go up Hebei and take Liang Du back from Yu Wenhua's hands." Kou Zhong smiled, nodded and said: "It must be so, that's why I hope that both of us and Yu Wenhua will be wounded, and we will recover from the wounds! Should this be called a person who is poor and ambitious? rise." Xu Ziling smiled and said, "Aren't you the same?" Kou Zhonghuo stood up, and said proudly: "How can I be the same? Victory has come to my hands. What I need now is to sharpen Jing Zhongyue so that I can cut off the dog's head of Yu Wenhua's bone and bring it to my mother's grave to pay homage to. .For so many years. Isn't this the day we've been waiting for?"