Chapter 157 Please Come Back
Fires broke out in countless areas of Hebei, and waves of troops moved in, all holding the banner of "Recovering Yan". The strong ones had thousands of armored soldiers, thousands of young and strong men, and tens of thousands of refugees seeking to survive. They were a force that could be called a large army.

These days, urgent reports have been flying in from the outside world, most of which are news of the fall of states and towns. It is said that the Yan army has a large number of troops, and several troops calling themselves "marshals" are attacking states, counties, and forts everywhere, with a scale of 20,000 to 30,000 at most, and at least a team of nearly 10,000 refugees.

According to a rough estimate, the Yan army had at least 200,000 soldiers. Although many of them were refugees without weapons, it was still enough to scare people. It was winter, and ordinary households did not have much food. After a year of fighting, countless people had no food. It was scary to hear that Li Zhen, the chief official of the Liang people in Youzhou, planned to levy taxes in the spring because the Liang Dynasty's treasury was not well-funded.

Therefore, in this predicament of hunger and cold, everyone could not avoid joining the Yan army to rebel, so that at least they could survive this winter.

As for the future? Who the hell cares!
The army was in chaos and the Bianliang Imperial Guards, who had been bullying the city of Youzhou for more than half a month, finally became alert from their lazy state, put on armor and armed with sharp weapons, and stood guard on the city walls day and night.

Not only did they have to guard against the Yan army, whose whereabouts were unknown, they also had to be careful of the two large camps of Dingbadu and Yichang near the city.

Winter came especially early this year. The baggage and treasures dispatched from the Central Plains have never arrived due to the long distance and heavy snow that blocked the roads. When the diplomatic envoys arrived in Youzhou, they only brought a small part of the goods, which were mainly used to reward some generals and officials.

According to the court's plan at that time, the money and goods used to reward the troops were also included in the Youzhou treasury. But when Li Zhen arrived, he found that Xiao Yan had privately opened up the Youzhou treasury without authorization, which almost pissed him off to death. That's why he complained that he would no longer reward the troops.

But in this era, not rewarding these warriors is a taboo. Li Zhen is not stupid enough to do this. Before he completely reorganizes the army, he naturally has to stabilize the surrendered soldiers in Hebei. Although Xiao Yan has already rewarded them once, he has always promised Ding Badu and other surrendered soldiers that he will make up for it later. In short, he just postponed it and owed it first.

However, Li Zhen didn't know how the rumor spread and turned into "the troops have already received money from General Xiao, and the court doesn't plan to give out more rewards." Although he was angry, he could only send people to the camp to appease them. Even the money and property presented to him by some nobles and officials in Yan area were taken to the military camp and distributed together. There was no choice. The money brought had already been distributed to Wang Yanzhang and other generals. The bulk of it was even Xiao Yan's boxes of gold and silver. Although it was a drop in the bucket, it could at least quench the anger of the surrendered troops.

It was no wonder that Li Zhen was so cautious. It was because the surrendered troops in Youzhou were so well-organized that they still had considerable strength after several battles. The two or three thousand imperial guards from Bianliang could not pose a threat to them, let alone suppress them. This was also the reason why Li Zhen, or Zhu Wen, was eager to reorganize and disperse the surrendered troops in Hebei.

That was why he was in a hurry to drive Xiao Yan away, and then in a hurry to let Kang Huaiying send troops to quell the rebellion, in order to prevent Xiao Yan from having the time and opportunity to harbor the enemy.

On the contrary, Li Zhen was extremely smart and steady. He thought that this group of rebels rising from Danzhou was a good opportunity. As long as he drove Xiao Yan away and let Kang Huaiying quell the rebels with lightning speed, he would be able to take advantage of the situation to reorganize the surrendered troops such as Dingbadu and Yichang Army, and also greatly increase his own prestige, making it easier for him to govern Hebei.

By then, the three great achievements of suppressing the rebellion, reorganizing the army, and achieving political achievements will fall firmly on his head. Li Zhen has no doubt that his position in Zhu Wen will be as high as Jing Xiang. Not to mention in the Dark Emperor, he can even turn the tables on Tian Gang and make the Dark Emperor dependent on him. By then, a hundred years after Zhu Wen, he, Li Zhen, may not be able to be a powerful official.

Li Zhen's plan can be regarded as a hundred-year plan. He has always had a long-term vision. Whether it is offending Xiao Yan or using the merit of suppressing the rebellion to win over Kang Huaiying, these are just his plans.

Not to mention that he was fully confident that the Luoyang turmoil a year ago was instigated by Xiao Yan. With the right time, right place, and right people, God was planning to let Li Zhen rise to prominence!
But soon, reality slapped him hard in the face.

First, the Yan army's momentum increased greatly, and its troops and horses increased sharply from the initial 20,000 to 30,000 to nearly 100,000. However, Li Zhen at that time only thought that the more the number of rebel troops, the greater the merit, so he was just anxious to urge Kang Huaiying to send troops.

As expected, Kang Huaiying won a great victory and recaptured Hengshan City in Danzhou. However, the Yan army soon returned and surrounded Hengshan City on three sides. There were not many supplies in the city. Kang Huaiying adhered to a steady style of play, leaving the imperial army to garrison Hengshan City and led the Lulong army out of the city to fight in the field. Three battles and three victories, Li Zhen was so happy that he cheered after seeing the victory report.

But soon, fortune began to change.

The Lulong army rebelled in front of the battle, and Kang Huaiying escaped alone and fled back to Hengshan City. Although Li Zhen was at a loss, he believed that there were still two troops, Dingbadu and Yichang Army, in Youzhou City, and it would not be difficult to support Kang Huaiying, so he did not panic and remained calm.

But bad luck came again. A messenger came from the south, saying that the Mobei Army had raided the grain route and robbed the baggage and rewards from the Central Plains...

At this moment, Dingba and the Yichang army were instantly in an uproar when they heard the news, and a mutiny almost occurred. Li Zhen was so frightened that he had to go into the camp in person to persuade the generals, and only after making some free promises did he barely appease the two armies.

Then, several states and towns in the north of Yan territory were incorporated into the Great Yan, and Youzhou could no longer receive any news from the north. Even messengers sent to the south had to avoid the elusive Mobei Army.

Youzhou became half an isolated city, but Li Zhen had no other options except relying on the imperial guards brought from Bianliang. There were nearly 3,000 troops brought from Bianliang, and Kang Huaiying took half of them, leaving the rest to Zhu Hanbin.

As for the Dingbadu armies, although the Dingbadu infantry captain named 'Yu Zhong' looked quite upright and was a talent worth using, Li Zhen still did not dare to move these two surrendered troops lightly, for fear of following the same rebellion as the Lulong army. Even at this time, he did not dare to let the two surrendered troops enter the city.

It was because the aftereffects of the mutiny frightened him so much that he had to be on guard...

……

At the Jiedushi Mansion, Zhu Hanbin was urgently summoned, but he was also stunned by the news that "the vanguard of the Yan army has arrived near the city."

To be honest, although he knew Xiao Yan's ability, he also thought the same as Li Zhen, that the so-called "Yan Army" was just a trick directed and performed by Xiao Yan himself, and it was impossible for them to be that strong. But this chaos was beyond everyone's expectations, it exploded like thunder in a plain, and it was as fierce as the water from a broken dam, shocking people as if they couldn't breathe.

"General Zhu..."

Li Zhen seemed to have aged a lot in just a few days. Although he was in his forties, his temples were already covered with white hair and wrinkles appeared overnight. He weakly let go of the letter for help from Hengshan City, pinched his nose and slowly sat behind the desk, looking like he had a headache.

"Mr. Li, please take care of yourself." Zhu Hanbin walked forward and said something of concern in a nonchalant manner.

"In this critical moment, I can only rely on General Zhu." Li Zhen smiled bitterly and opened his bloodshot eyes.

His usual calm demeanor had long gone, and now he sighed and stared at Zhu Hanbin: "The situation is urgent, so I'll be frank. With the ability of Zhu Junshi, plus the 1,500 imperial guards in the city, can they balance the Yichang Army?"

Zhu Hanbin was stunned when he heard this. The imperial army that was heading north this time was the right wing of the Dragon and Tiger Army under his command. Most of them were infantrymen and had rich experience in battle formations. To be fair, if he was allowed to go out of the city to fight in the field, he was fully confident that he could rely on these 1,500 Dragon and Tiger Army to fight against the Yan Army that was five or ten times his size. Most of the other side were refugees, and their soldiers and horses must be mixed. It would not be difficult to win a big victory with just one victory.

However, it is not easy to counterbalance the Yichang Army with nearly 15,000 soldiers and horses with only a thousand infantrymen, and the other side still has resentment. In addition, many people in the Yichang Army have fought with him in Cangzhou. Neither side is submissive to the other, which may make it even more difficult to control.

As for why Li Zhen didn't let him check and balance Dingbadu, who only had 6,000 soldiers, it was easy to understand. Dingbadu was the elite of Yan, and most of the soldiers and generals were domineering. Sending 1,500 imperial guards into the camp would easily cause friction. They were already resentful, and it was a great honor for them to be willing to be quiet now. If Zhu Hanbin was allowed to hold them hostage, it might be a mutiny, and they would kidnap you, Lord Li, and take you to Tanzhou. Zhu Hanbin thought about it, and finally shook his head under Li Zhen's expectant eyes. His tone was no longer respectful as before, but just indifferent.

"Lord Li, this is a difficult move. I led the Dragon and Tiger Army northwards, originally just to escort the envoys to Youzhou, and never thought of fighting a tough battle. I only brought some weapons with me, whether it was bows and arrows, crossbows, arrows, armor or weapons, all of which were left in Cangzhou. Without these things, it's okay to disrupt the army, but how can we suppress the Yichang Army, which is also a battle-hardened army?"

"I will complete all of them for you!" Li Zhen's face darkened, and he waved his hand: "All the weapons in Youzhou City are at your disposal. As long as the Yichang Army can smoothly go to Hengshan City to meet Kang Taibao, anything is fine!"

After that, the staff member standing by said, "General Zhu, your reputation has spread to all the towns in Henan. Even in Hebei, who doesn't know your name 'Luoyan'? You are just a Yichang Army. With your reputation as a general, how dare you not know the general situation? After receiving this mission, when you return to the court in the future, as long as Lord Li recommends you one or two, your reputation may not be less than that of Xiao Yan!"

Return to the court?

Zhu Hanbin sneered secretly and waited until Li Zhen could return to Bianliang safely.

This turmoil was not big at first, and it was hard to say whether it was caused by Xiao Yan, but once Xiao Yan was forced to leave, earth-shaking changes occurred. This turmoil almost swept the entire Yan area. I am afraid that no one would believe that Xiao Yan was raising the enemy for his own benefit, because the scale was really too large. How could Xiao Yan control an army of more than 200,000?

Zhu Hanbin himself was actually somewhat suspicious. This Yan army might have nothing to do with Xiao Yan. It seemed that Liu Rengong and the Lulong army saw that the people who could suppress the Yan army had left, so they took advantage of the situation and rose up this winter.

But no matter what, as long as this turmoil is big enough and lasts long enough, Li Zhen will be more unlucky and die more miserably. Even Zhu Hanbin and Kang Huaiying will inevitably have a big lawsuit, but the first person to be executed must be Li Zhen!
Everyone knows that Xiao Yan can suppress the surrendered troops such as Dingbadu, but you insist on forcing him to leave. If all the arrangements such as reorganizing the army were completed, it would be fine, Zhu Wen would definitely reward Li Zhen heavily. But the key is that it has become like this, and on such a snowy day, even if the troops of Bianliang marched day and night, it would be too late for them to rush over.

The Hebei province that was in his hands was gone. Given Zhu Wen's rageful temper, even if Li Zhen had been favored in the past, the lightest fate he would face was exile three thousand miles away. But the most likely outcome would be the extermination of all his clans...

In this case, the more you do, the more mistakes you make. Zhu Hanbin has no reason to touch this mess. If the Yichang Army rebels out of control, he might become the main culprit. At least for now, it is safer to hold on to Youzhou than to fight in the field.

He thought about it carefully, and finally shook his head: "To be honest with Lord Li, I really don't have such great ability. It is not difficult to urge the Yichang Army to go north to Hengshan City, but who can guarantee that the Yichang Army will not turn against them in the face of the battle? As far as I know, Liu Rengong has also colluded with Mobei. If the wealth in the south is used by Liu Rengong to lure the Yichang Army to surrender, I am afraid I will be unable to stop it..."

Li Zhen stood up immediately, suppressed his anger, and shouted in a deep voice: "If that's the case, does Zhu Junshi want me to sit back and watch Kang Taibao do nothing? Or does Zhu Junshi no longer recognize my title of 'Dao Tian Xun Shou' as the holder of the imperial seal?"

Zhu Hanbin was secretly annoyed, but he could only smile bitterly: "It's not that I have this intention, but I really can't take risks. It's easy to go to war, but if something really goes wrong, Kang Taibao can't come to the rescue, and I and the remaining thousand imperial guards will also be caught in the chaos. Is Lord Li sure that he can hold Dingbadu hostage? I think it's impossible, right?"

"As long as we rescue Kang Taibao, everything will be fine! As a warrior, why are you so timid?!"

Li Zhen slammed his fist on the table and pointed his halberd at Zhu Hanbin: "General Zhu, no matter what the situation is, as long as I am the 'Patrol Envoy', I can command the generals of Hebei!"

After that, he sneered again and said, "Also, General Zhu, don't think that I don't know what you are thinking. When the nest is overturned, how can the eggs remain intact? This time we went north, I, you, and Kang Taibao are all one. Kang Taibao suffered and Hebei was lost. Can General Zhu escape this fate?"
Also, if the Dark Emperor knew that Envoy Zhu was shirking his responsibilities today, hmph..."

"Mr. Li, please don't go too far!"

Zhu Hanbin couldn't hide his anger and stared at Li Zhen.

But the latter just sneered, his expression did not change at all, and then he flicked his sleeves and said coldly: "If General Zhu is unwilling to send troops to Hengshan City, you have to come up with a solution."

"Method?"

Zhu Hanbin was too lazy to hide his hypocrisy, and said with anger and disdain: "So what if I send troops? If Hengshan City is trapped, Lord Li will not lose Youzhou!"

After saying that, he strode back, and after taking two steps, he suddenly turned back and sneered: "There are only a thousand imperial guards in the city, but there are tens of thousands of Yichang troops outside the city. Lord Li should first think about whether he will be tied up by the Yichang troops and presented to Danzhou!"

He left immediately, leaving only Li Zhen, with an extremely ugly face, alone in the hall with his anxious staff.

"Lord Li, if Youzhou is not protected, we will lose everything..." the aide said cautiously.

"I know!"

Li Zhen rarely lost his composure. He kicked over the table and paced back and forth. His expression changed again and again. But in the next moment, he was suddenly stunned and looked at his staff.

"Where is Xiao Yanxing?"

"I don't know..."

"Send someone! Send someone to look for it!"

Li Zhen's face suddenly turned red and glowed, as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw. He strode forward and said anxiously: "It's only been a few days, he must not have crossed the Yellow River yet. Send someone to find him. No, no, no..."

He paced back and forth, slapping his fists hard.

"Take my private seal and go invite him! Only he can resolve Hebei's crisis!"

(End of this chapter)