Before arriving in the territory of Xuanwu Town, the Hedong Army first passed through Luoyang and went east out of Wujiao Pass, the eastern gate of the eastern capital. Wugao Pass is also known as Bishui Pass, Tiger Prison Pass, Tang avoided the name of Li Hu, the grandfather of Gaozu Li Yuan, and changed his name to Wugao. This legend is that King Mu raised tigers here this week and got its name from the dangerous pass, which is the east gate of Luoyang, and is as important to Luoyang as Tongguan is to Chang'an. It is connected to Songyue in the south, the Yellow River in the north, and the mountains are staggered, which is a natural danger. There is a trend of "one husband is the pass, ten thousand people are not open", and it is a place for soldiers of all dynasties.

Before leaving the customs, Yang Fuguang, the military envoy of the Tianxia Soldiers and Horses and the defense envoy of the Eastern Capital of Qidu, secretly met with Li Keyong again. To the north of Wugao Pass is the Yellow River, to the west is Niukou and Luokou, and to the east is Biankou. East out of Wujiao, through Biankou is Zhengzhou controlled by Xuanwu Town. At this time, Yang Fuguang controlled Luoyang City, Henan Prefecture, and Luoyang's defenses had been strengthened much more than when Li Keyong and others went south and recovered Luoyang three years ago last year. Yang Fuguang had 80,000 soldiers and horses in Luoyang. The important pass between Luoyang and Zhengzhou, Wujiaoguan, is secretly stationed a group of elites, at this time, Wujiaoguan City, there are 30,000 soldiers and horses.

Yang Fuguang had already begun to prepare when he had already arranged for Li Keyong to deal with Zhu Wen. As long as Li Keyong takes Zhu Wen, the Eastern Capital soldiers will immediately take over Zhengzhou.

In the Wujiao Pass, Li Keyong wore a crown, which was not the original Shatuo crown. The crown of the Shatuo clan, which has been inherited for hundreds of years, has already fallen into the hands of Li Jing, not only the real one has fallen into Li Jing's hands, but even the imitation has fallen into Li Jing's hands. This crown was re-ordered by craftsmen after Li Keyong became the owner of Taiyuan, and the style was exactly the same as the original, but it was worn on the head. Only Li Keyong understands the difference.

Li Keyong wore the crown. Ordered Ahn Jinquan and Ahn Jinjun. Li Kexiu and Li Kening rode forward with him. Wang Xian, who used to be a young general under the command of Huang Chao, descended to Shatuo in the Battle of Chang'an a few years ago, and was accepted as a righteous son by Li Keyong, is now named Li Cunxian, he serves as the flag officer, and the snow-covered flag is flying with the tiger of the Shatuo clan.

The re-strengthened Wujiao Pass emerged in the slanting wind and drizzle, and the mountains and rivers were like a tiger blocking the road. Since the Western Zhou Dynasty was closed here. Historically, feudal dynasties have always set up closed cities here and guarded them with heavy troops. Historically, there have been two famous battles here, namely the battle of Chenggao between Liu Bang and Xiang Yu when Chu and Han fought for hegemony, Liu Bang and Xiang Yu fought against Xingyang and fought for the mouth of Chenggao, with 70 big battles and 40 small battles. In the end, it was won by Liu Bang, who had a deeper understanding of the importance of Cheng Gao. Cheng Gao's gains and losses became a turning point in the Chu-Han War, and Liu Bang finally forced Xiang Yu Wujiang to commit suicide.

There is also a major war, which is Li Shimin's battle against Tiger Prison during the founding battle of the Tang Dynasty.

At that time, Li Shimin led an army to attack Wang Shichong in Luoyang. Wang Shichong asked for help from Dou Jiande, the Xia emperor who occupied Hebei, and Dou Jiande led an army of 300,000 all the way south. Advance to the vicinity of the Tiger Prison. It was a decisive battle, a collision of the three super-forces that occupied Guanlong and Henan, as well as Hebei. As a result, Li Shimin only led 3,500 men to occupy the Tiger Pass first, cutting off Dou Jiande's westward route and cutting off the connection between Henan and Hebei armies. Li Shimin fought a war of attrition with Dou Jiande according to the danger of the Tiger Prison, and secretly sent troops to cut off the grain and grass of the Hebei Army, and finally the two sides fought a decisive battle under the Tiger Prison, and the Tang Army broke 300,000 Xia troops, winning a key battle for the decisive battle of the Central Plains.

During the Huangchao Rebellion, Wugao Pass did play a dangerous role in the city. Huang Chao marched into Luoyang, from the south of Luoyang, breaking through the Tang army's Lishui defense line to the north, and finally forcing the Tang army to abandon Luoyang on its own initiative. After that, the tiger prison fell into the hands of Huang Chao. When Zhu Wen occupied Xuanwu, he once wanted to expand his forces to the east, and later successfully captured Zhengzhou. However, for Luoyang, it has always been unable to penetrate because there is a military prison that cannot be opened by one husband and ten thousand people.

Today, the pass is once again full of troops.

Although the Central Plains is a land of plains, in fact, the vast area east of Wugao Pass, all the way to the hilly areas of Shandong, is indeed a plain of Pingchuan. However, the land of Luoyang, west of Zhengzhou, is a relatively independent terrain, and in professional terms, the Luoyang area is actually the Sanchuan River Valley. The Henan region east of Luoyang can be divided into the Hanoi region close to the Yellow River, the upper reaches of the Huai River, and the Nanyang Basin south of Luoyang.

The Sanchuan River Valley lowland, where Luoyang is located, is located in the northwest of Henan, between Zhongtiao Mountain, Kunshan Mountain, Xiong'er Mountain, Funiu Mountain and Song Mountain, and is formed by the alluvium of the three main rivers of the Yellow River, the Yihe River and the Luohe River. Luoyang City, Henan Province, is located in it. The Sanchuan River Valley is blocked by mountains on three sides, only the north side is slightly open, but there is the Yellow River in the north, which is also an open barrier. Therefore, historically, although the geographical location of Luoyang is not as dangerous as that of Guanzhong, it can also be regarded as a mountain and river.

With this unique topography, Luoyang can not only form a dangerous obstacle surrounded by mountain ranges, but also have rivers flowing up and down the perimeter, as a channel to connect with the outside world. Most of the connections around Luoyang are based on these dangers, Tongguan rejects its west, and chokes the danger of the letter; The tiger firmly blocked its east, choking the passage between the northern foot of Song Mountain and the Yellow River; Yique blocks its south, and the Yihe River valley passage between Cho Song Mountain and Bear's Ear Mountain; Mengjin blocked its north and choked the Yellow River crossing; In addition, Guangcheng Pass controls the passage from the direction of the Ru River, and Yuyuan Pass controls the passage from the direction of the Yinghe River. These passes are controlled by the dangers around the Sanchuan River Valley.

It is the use of the mountains and rivers of the Sanchuan River Valley to build passes around Luoyang, and it is known as the guard of the eight passes.

For Zhu Wen, although his territory is in Henan, but the territory of the three towns is very divided, Shaanxi Zhen Zhuzhou is located in the northwest of the Sanchuan River Valley, close to Tongguan and the Yellow River. However, Jinshang Town Zhuzhou is already in the Nanyang Basin, and Xuanwu Town is in the upper reaches of the Huai River, although they all surround Luoyang. However, from the perspective of military geography, it has been divided into several major parts. As long as Zhu Wen failed to control Luoyang, his territory became unstable. In particular, the Wugao Pass between Bianzheng and Luoyang makes Xuanwu Town seem to be very close to Luoyang, but if it can't take Wujiao, if it wants to attack Luoyang, it must first go south to the upper reaches of the Huai River, enter the Nanyang Basin, and then go to the south of Luoyang. Go around in a huge circle.

Through the wind and rain, Li Keyong found that the heavy troops in the Wujiao Pass were assembled. Not only was there a heavy build-up in the city. That is, many estuaries outside the city, such as Luokou, Niukou, and Biankou, are heavily armed. Foreign. Yang Fuguang's reason was, of course, to prevent the Qin army's sailors from going up the river, but in fact, Li Ke was like a mirror in his heart, and Yang Fuguang was really ready to swallow Zhu Wen in one fell swoop.

"Keyong, you have to be careful!" Yang Fuguang reminded Li Keyong, "Zhu Wen has a thick skin, a sharp tongue, and a deep scheming. Don't be careless. Take down Zhu Wen as soon as possible, in order to avoid a long night of dreams, it is best to kill on the spot. ”

"I know Zhu Asan's temperament, my lord, but Zhu Asan is just a villain who seeks glory by betraying his master, so why be afraid. If I say, it is enough to shoot Zhu Asan directly, and it is just as easy to take down Zhu Asan. ”

"No, this time things must be nine out of ten, and there can be no mistakes. Zhu Quanzhong took in many remnants of the Yellow Nest. Now the territory is huge, and there are many soldiers and horses. If you fight a snake, you won't die. There is going to be hell to pay. What's even more terrifying is that if this wall-top grass is startled, if he directly takes refuge in Li Jing at that time, the Central Plains will really be uncontrollable. In any case, this time you will be a little aggrieved, according to the plan, use the name of reinforcing Zhu Wen to go to Bianliang, and then when Zhu Wen is not paying attention, directly take his head, if necessary, you can get rid of some of the military leaders of the Liang Domain by the way. Don't worry, you have 20,000 Hedong elites, it will be fine, and I will lead the army to follow later, and then sweep the Liang Domain, and all the gains will be given to you according to what was said in advance. ”

If it weren't for Li Jing's urgency, Zhu Wen's strength swelling too fast, and his brother's covetousness of Liang Fan, Yang Fuguang didn't want to deal with Zhu Wen with such drastic means. But there is no turning back from the bow, and if things go well, it will also be of great benefit to the imperial court.

"When you arrive in Bianzhou, it is estimated that Zhu Wen will propose to entertain the food and set up a banquet for the labor army, this is an excellent opportunity, don't hesitate. It's best to start at the banquet, during the banquet, Zhu Wen will definitely bring the general of the Liang Fan to appear, and he won't be too guarded. At that time, Zhu Wen was caught off guard. Kill Zhu Wen, control the generals of the Liang Domain, and then announce the imperial edict to control Bianzhou City in one fell swoop, and great things can be accomplished. ”

Li Keyong seemed to feel that Yang Fuguang was a little too careful, and he smiled: "This time I brought a full 20,000 soldiers and horses south, including 10,000 cavalry. Zhu Wen and Liang Fan are just remnants of grass thieves, why wait for Bianzhou, I plan to wait until Wang Mandu on the Bianhe River, the middle gateway of Zheng Bian, and directly take down Zhu Wen who came to greet him. ”

"Keyong, listen to me carefully, killing Zhu Wen is just one of the tasks this time. The most important thing is to get rid of Zhu Wen and take control of Xuanwu Town. If Wang Mandu attacked, even if Zhu Wen was killed, the army would still be outside Bianzhou, and then the Liang army in Bianzhou might make a mess, which would be inappropriate. ”

"Then follow the wishes of the adults, do not enter Bianzhou City, and never attack Zhu Asan. Don't worry, my lord, this time Li not only wants to cut off Zhu Asan's head, but also take Zheng Bian's second state in one fell swoop and dedicate it to adults. ”

"So good, very good!" Yang Fuguang nodded with satisfaction.

The 20,000 men of the Hedong Army left the Wugao Pass, passed through Biankou and Guangwu Mountain, and left Heyin City, and entered Xingze in Zhengzhou, which was regarded as truly entering Zhu Wen's territory. On the south bank of the Bianhe River in Xingze, a cavalry team of 1,000 people was paying respect. Li Keyong recognized the Liang general led by Li Tangbin, who had met under Zhu Wen in the Battle of Chang'an. Now, on the orders of Zhu Wen, he led a thousand light cavalry to the Xuanwu border to welcome Li Keyong and his Hedong army.

An Jinjun chuckled on the side and said to Li Keyong, "This is the elite horse of the Liang Domain? Isn't it good, I think they should ride mules, and I always worry that they will fall off on war horses. A group of Shatuo people laughed at one sentence, and even Li Cunzhang said on the side: "Otherwise, let's just charge and destroy them." Destroy them, and then kill all the way to Bianzhou City, then cut off Zhu Wen's head, and seize Xuanwu Town, how simple and direct. ”

Li Ke stopped his horse and waited for Li Tangbin and others to catch up. He snorted, "Don't talk nonsense. However, although he reprimanded his subordinates, in fact, he was not very angry at what he said just now, but agreed with it. If it weren't for Yang Fuguang's repeated confessions and not messing around, he really didn't take Liang Fan seriously. (To be continued......)