Chapter 703: Chaos in the Central Plains

In the study room of the Qi County Mansion, Meng Rang sat with his back to the door, his back was safe, as if he didn't feel the sound of violent explosions in the city at all. Read with me H-U-N Mix * H-U-N Mix * Small - Say - Net, please keep it in mind

Meng Cheng shouted several times in succession, but he didn't hear his father's response, so he hurriedly sped up and ran in front of his father.

"Father, go quickly, if you don't leave, it'll be too late." Meng Cheng went to help his father, but was pulled by Meng Rang.

"Cheng'er, listen to me." As soon as Meng Rang spoke, red blood flowed from the corners of his mouth.

"Father, what's wrong with you?" Meng Cheng shouted in horror.

"Cheng'er, listen to me." Meng Rang took his son's hand and said with some difficulty, and with every word he said, more blood flowed out of his mouth. "Cheng'er, my father can't go, and he doesn't want to go anymore. It's been nine years, and since the incident, my father hasn't slept a single peaceful sleep, and we've been running away like lost dogs. Now, my father doesn't want to run away. Cheng'er, Chen Kefu is a hero, now he is the strongest, and he is likely to win the world in the future. Cheng'er, you go to him, but you can live a stable life in the future. ”

"Father, since Chen Kefu will win the world, wouldn't it be better for us to surrender to him together?" Meng Cheng watched his father's face become more and more pale, and couldn't help choking.

"No, no." Meng Rang coughed a few times, "Chen Kefu will not let me go, even if he lets me go now, he will be liquidated in the future." Only now that I am dead, you go and surrender to him to live. Moreover, it must be that our 30,000 horses are gone, and you are truly safe. ”

Meng Rang looked at his son with some pity, his son was only in his twenties, he had followed him since he was a teenager, he had seven children at the beginning, but now, only this one son is still alive. Wang Bo's death made Meng Rang angry and disheartened. But he hopes that this son can survive well, which is the only thing he is not worried about. It's a pity that my son hasn't studied, and he still can't understand many things.

He didn't know that even if he was willing to surrender, with his reputation in the righteous army, and the 30,000 horses in his hands, a tyrant like Chen Kefu would liquidate him sooner or later. The Hebei Army also surrendered to Chen Kefu that year, but Xue Shixiong died, and most of the generals of the Hebei Army died. Even those generals of the imperial court could not escape, how could he, a notorious leader of the rebel army, escape?

As soon as he dies today, the 30,000 soldiers and horses under him will be scattered again, and his son will surrender again at this time, it is estimated that Chen Pojun will not always be wary of his son. As long as his son can be honest and peaceful, it will not be a problem to spend the rest of his life in peace. Read with me H-U-N Mix * H-U-N Mix * Small - Say - Net, please keep it in mind

"Cheng'er, you have to remember that after surrendering to Chen Pojun, find a suitable opportunity to return to your hometown and farm steadily. Don't have any other thoughts, there is a big chaos, although the world is still in chaos now, it won't be long before it will be reunited. You have to remember to be an ordinary person. ”

"Father, I promise you." Meng Cheng felt that the hands of his father and son were gradually weakening, and his body was gradually cold.

"I'd rather be a peace dog than a troubled world. It is better to be a peace dog than to be a peaceful dog for troubled times, not to be a peace dog in troubled times. Meng Rang's eyes were already dilated, and he fell weakly on the couch, muttering freely in his mouth, until he finally stopped, and there was no more sound.

"Father! Father! ”

The great cause of seven years of the army, across Shandong, Huaibei nine years without falling, life several ups and downs, big ups and downs, see all the ups and downs of the Central Plains, strong winds and waves. Finally, nine years later, in the management of Xingyang, he saw through everything and committed suicide. One side is in turmoil and strong, and it comes to an abrupt end.

After Meng Rang's death, Meng Cheng rushed to Ximen with a battalion of veterans from Meng Rang to ask for surrender. …,

During the day, most of the people in charge of the city had fled, and at night, when the water gate was broken, the people of the city and many of the defenders opened the north gate and the east gate to flee. By the time Meng Cheng surrendered, there were not many people left in Guancheng, a large city that once had hundreds of thousands of people.

The west gate of Guancheng was wide open, and under the light of hunting torches, the engineer battalion of the Hebei Army had built a simple pontoon bridge on Zhengshui.

The siege at night, in fact, the real battle did not last long. The Hebei army used the gunpowder weapons in its hands to sneak into the water gate along Zheng Shui in the dark night, and blew open the water gate with explosives bags in one fell swoop, and then the special combat team used strong firepower to open the gap, and then the vanguard troops of Hebei rushed into the city in one fell swoop.

After a brief exchange of fire, the Hebei army immediately killed the rebels who came to besiege them. Subsequently, the Hebei army tended to enter the city, and the sound was loud, but in fact, there were not many soldiers entering the city.

The rebels were in disarray, broke down and fled, and many of the defenders were not killed by the Hebei army, but trampled to death by their own people when they scrambled out of the city. The Hebei army that entered the city was like a shepherd dog, driving away the panicked rebels and civilians in the dark with grenades, bombs, and explosives bags in their hands.

The rebels were so unbearable, in fact, because it was not an army at all. Except for the thousands of old battalions that Meng Rang took with him when he fled from Shandong, the remaining 20,000 people were all newly recruited by him in Guancheng, although there were 30,000 in number. But in reality, most of them are hungry people, young and old. What's even worse is that this army has not even fought a single battle in nearly a year since it was recruited. Coupled with Meng Rang's deliberate inaction, this rabble was already doomed to defeat from the moment the Hebei army arrived.

Chen Kefu, who had just crossed Zhengshui from the improvised pontoon bridge, saw Meng Cheng who asked for surrender, and heard that Meng Rang was dead, so he didn't embarrass him much. If Meng Rang came to surrender, he also had to consider the prestige of a predecessor of Meng Rang's righteous army. But now that Meng Rang is dead and his subordinates are all scattered, there is only such a young man left, and he doesn't care much. He immediately accepted the surrender of Meng Cheng and his subordinates, and also gave him the rank of lieutenant.

Most of the defenders in the city had broken up and fled out of the city, and Chen Kefu immediately ordered Cheng Yanjin to send light cavalry to rectify the order in the city. He also ordered Meng Cheng to take his surrender notice to surrender the defenders in the city who had not yet arrived and fled. He also sent two cavalry captains with 1,000 light horsemen out of the north and east gates to pursue the routers, and let them capture the routers as much as possible.

Chen Kefu also has some worries about the rout. It's not that I'm worried that they'll fight back, but I'm worried that these scattered soldiers will occupy the mountains and become bandits in the forest. For Chen Kefu, after this attack, he will include Xingyang and other six counties into his territory. Since he had already taken these territories as his rule, how could he still be willing to give those defeated soldiers the opportunity to enter the mountains and forests again as bandits.

In particular, the more than 20,000 defeated soldiers were armed, and even thousands of them had horses. Wherever these people go, they are immediately a scourge.

The Hebei army fought from Liaodong to Hebei, from Hebei to Shandong, from Shandong to Huaibei, and even to the Yangtze River. He is extremely proficient in attacking cities and grabbing land, and even a whole set of procedures after capturing a city is also quite proficient.

There is a set of ready-made procedures for taking over the city defense, rectifying the order in the city, interrogating the prisoners, pacifying the people, and even suppressing the hooligans and ruffians who take advantage of the situation.

However, soon, the officers and men of the military police department responsible for supervising military discipline discovered the problem, and the officers and soldiers of Hebei observed military discipline very well. However, the defenders of the Tiger Prison who had just surrendered and reorganized were a little different, these people were all from the peasant army, and after the peasant army broke the city, looting was a normal thing. Even if the siege casualties are too large, the generals who command the army will also connive at their subordinates to burn, kill and loot in the city. …,

For the rebels, this is a good way to maintain the morale of the soldiers, everything is in order. But in the Hebei Army, all this is a violation of military orders.

The gendarmes who supervise military discipline have inspected many violations of discipline along the way. They quickly reported to Chen Kefu, and after receiving these reports, Chen Kefu gave instructions after a little consideration, and then issued instructions to release the newly surrendered soldiers who had been arrested, and then let the gendarmes go around the city to declare military discipline. Then, those who violated the rules before the proclamation of military discipline were not to blame in the past, but those who violated the orders after that were all arrested and put in the camp to wait for their fate.

The long night has finally ended, and order has been restored to the city. Because the city was broken too quickly, and the Hebei army attacked from the water gate, the city as a whole was not damaged for long. Even in the city, there were no fires or the like.

By daybreak, the Water Gate had been restored, and the four cities were intact. The order in the city is also very orderly, and the shops and markets have reopened. Even Chen Kefu ordered that the lieutenant general in the army should distribute all kinds of civilian materials that could not be taken away that Meng Rang had originally hoarded in the city to the people. Some valuables are also sold at low prices in the market.

"Your Highness, I have something to say to Your Highness in the end."

Chen Kefu was eating breakfast when there was a commotion outside the door.

"Chen Lei, bring people in."

Chen Lei went out and brought people in for a while, but it was Niu Jinda, Yang Qian'an and other five people, as well as dozens of battalion-level lieutenant officers. Everyone's face was full of indignation, and there seemed to be a stomach full of grievances.

"You're going to see me early in the morning, what's the matter?" Chen Kefu asked knowingly.

"Your Highness, after the capture of Guancheng last night, many of our brothers were taken away and locked up by the Gendarmerie Division, and we refused to release them when we went, and they have been locked up all night, and the last general has come to ask His Highness to order the release of people from the Gendarmerie Division." Niu Jinda Road.

"Do you know why they were arrested?" Chen Kefu said lightly.

"Let's go and ask for someone, and the people of the gendarmerie department will say that our brothers have violated military orders and plundered without permission." Yang Qian'an hurriedly replied.

Chen Kefu sneered and said, "Discipline in the army, seventeen prohibitions and fifty-four beheadings, and those who violate the order will be punished according to discipline." If the army has no discipline, how can the three armies be ordered without military discipline? Last night, the king deliberately had the city go around to proclaim military discipline, and I have ordered the release of the newly subordinated sergeants who have offended before. As for those who knowingly commit crimes after the military discipline is announced, that is the crime of one more degree. Since you have arrived early in the morning, it is just in time that the king is about to send men to deal with those who have violated military discipline. Now the king declares that all those who knowingly offended military discipline last night shall be recited as a first offense, and all shall be punished with twenty rods, and you officers shall be punished by yourselves. ”

"Go, this king will send a surveillance gendarme, and if you disobey the order, then you will also be punished twice!"

"Chen Lei, immediately notify the whole army to watch the execution outside the north gate, and after the execution is completed, the whole army will immediately open and send troops to Xingze City!"