Chapter 1009 Fight or flee?
In fact, Feng Governor Mingzhu told Liu Hun that he was not in a hurry to cross the river, but he was only telling half the truth.
The complete sentence should be, when the Wei thieves were determined to hold on, they moved to fight the Liangzhou army thousands of miles away, so they would not attack unless absolutely necessary.
Otherwise, when Guan Ji was rushing to cross the river, she wouldn't have used gunpowder blasting to reduce dimensionality at the ferry crossing.
Because at this time, the Liangzhou Army had no baggage troops at all and only had improvised and crude siege equipment, so it lacked the ability to attack fortresses.
When ants attack a city, it means taking the lives of the soldiers.
However, the elite soldiers of the Liangzhou Army are relatively expensive, and it is a waste to use them in such a place.
Of course, what Feng Governor said to Liu Hun was not just a compliment.
At least the arrangements for the five Xiongnu tribes in Bingzhou were basically told the truth.
Bingzhou and Hedong became Shanxi in later generations.
Who doesn’t know that Shanxi is the hometown of coal and iron?
But Feng Yong’s main purpose is not all about coal and iron.
Of course, coal and iron are also one of the main purposes.
His other main purpose is the associated mineral of coal mines, pyrite.
As we all know, although China has large coal reserves, it will still import a considerable amount of high-quality thermal coal every year.
In addition to the need to use sea transportation to reduce costs in coastal areas, most domestic coal is of low quality and contains too many impurities, which is also an important reason.
Among these so-called impurities, sulfur is a substance with a relatively high content.
At least since the Han Dynasty, the ancients have discovered that places where coal is produced are often also places where sulfur is produced.
According to Feng Yong’s understanding from many sources, who has been in the Three Kingdoms for more than ten years, sulfur in this era basically has only two uses, one is used as medicine, and the other is used to make elixirs.
The problem is that China has never been a country that produces natural sulfur—even in the industrial era, it has never been able to discover large enough reserves of natural sulfur.
According to the knowledge of Feng Tubol, an amateur history buff, he only knew that even in the Ming Dynasty, when gunpowder was widely used, China still had to import a large amount of sulfur from the island country that had a good life since childhood.
So during the Three Kingdoms period, there was very little sulfur, very little.
So where do these small amounts of sulfur come from?
Most of them are the products of ancient people's failure to refine alumite.
The question comes again, what is alumite?
It is actually a mordant, something used to fix clothes dye.
Without a mordant, the dye on the clothes will fade easily once washed with water.
So it was a very important daily necessities in ancient times.
The raw material for refining alumite in ancient times was pyrite.
Feng Yongneng knew that the original origin of these things was a small piece of ice cheese, made for Zhang Xiaoluoli.
This thing requires saltpeter.
Then Zhao Guang found some remaining saltpeter for Feng Yong from the alchemy room left by Zhuge Jun, the brother of the old demon Zhuge who went to practice immortality.
There is still some unused sulfur in the alchemy room.
Then there were the fireworks during the Southern Expedition, and at the same time Feng Tubou learned by the way how the sulfur in this era came from.
Why did he go to Nanxiang, Hanzhong, to open a textile workshop?
Because there is coal there, and textile workshops require a large amount of dyes and mordants.
The pyrite associated with coal is used to extract mordants - this is the superficial reason.
The deeper reason is that Governor Feng can use this to try to improve the process of refining alumite and transform it into a process of refining sulfur.
Then Governor Feng discovered that this thing actually involved a series of projects such as fire control, temperature, materials, etc.
So we can only refine the coke first, improve the blower, and improve the water drainage...
The paper records of improvements in the process of refining alumite alone fill a room full of paper.
These tasks cannot be completed by Feng Jishi alone. It requires a lot of manpower and material resources, as well as sufficient power.
So we have to establish the Xinghan Society, personally train Amei, establish a school, and become a powerful figure in the Han Dynasty...
It took nearly ten years of Governor Feng's time to improve the standard process based on the semi-finished product process so that it could extract high-purity sulfur that could be used.
So Governor Feng concluded that those guys who immediately produced gunpowder as soon as they traveled through time, and could promote and use it in unlimited quantities, they must have a system!
With a "ding" sound, you can redeem your points and get high-explosive gunpowder out of thin air.
For losers like Feng Tubao, they can only explore everything by themselves.
After reading countless books and collecting countless information, we can determine that there are three places where the greatest number of sulfur deposits have been discovered by previous people.
One is Hanzhong, the other is Hexi Corridor, and the other is Bingzhou.
Even though Liangzhou is now able to produce qualified black powder, sulfur production is still a bottleneck until now.
The reason is also very simple.
The refining efficiency is too slow.
It takes at least ten days to refine and condense five hundred kilograms of ore, because the process is too primitive and the sulfur obtained is pitiful.
In any case, according to Feng Jishi, who had seen industrialization, it was really pitiful.
How much was five hundred kilograms of ore in the Han Dynasty? Less than half a ton.
How much can be extracted from half a ton of ore?
The only advantage is that there is condensation in the refining process, and the purity of the sulfur obtained is very high.
So I can only save slowly, secretly get a pack of explosives from time to time and blast it to show off, and I can barely cope with it.
But if you want to use it freely and blast it with some kind of red cannon, you have to continue to improve the refining process.
For this, we can only hope that the main person in charge, Amei, will have another burst of IQ.
In any case, Governor Feng was ready to wait another ten years.
At the same time, we must find ways to continue to increase steel production, and more importantly, quality.
Otherwise, when the cannon explodes, it will not be your opponent who is crying, but you.
Furthermore, it is not possible to say that all the sulfur currently produced can be used in actual combat.
First of all, the soldiers must be tested to make them familiar with this thing. The amount of sulfur used in this process alone is enough.
What’s more, some of the signal flares in the military must also be taken away.
Things that are commonplace in later generations are thought to be just a piece of cake.
But in fact, if you don’t have a relevant industrial system, you can only get what you want in your dreams.
No matter how rudimentary or crude the industrial system is, it is still an industrial system.
As long as it can continue to develop, let alone wait another ten years, even fifty or sixty years, it will be worth it.
Standing by the river, Governor Feng was already qualified to think about the future of the Han Dynasty.
The person who can really decide the fate of the big man is standing on the edge of the martial arts water, frowning, his face as ugly as if he had eaten shit.
It has been raining for more than ten days in a row. The Wugong River has a habit of rising sharply, roaring towards the Weishui River.
Not to mention that the ground was so soft and muddy from the rain.
In this case, not to mention the war horses, even the soldiers could not stand firm.
The Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty had been paying attention to the Han Dynasty on the other side. As soon as the rain stopped, he immediately sent an envoy, intending to re-schedule the date for the decisive battle.
In fact, it is also a temptation.
Unexpectedly, this time, the Han envoys could not enter the camp at all, let alone see Sima Yi.
The reason given by Wei Jun was that the decisive battle was imminent, and the layout of the camp was a military secret, and outsiders were not allowed to enter.
Although the etiquette is not quite right, the attitude is good.
In response to the Han envoy's proposal to reschedule the date, the Wei envoy in charge of reception agreed.
Things seemed to be going well, but it was precisely because it was so smooth that the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty immediately felt that something was wrong.
“Come here!”
“Go and ask General Wei to come and see me.”
When Wei Yan learned of the Prime Minister’s summons, he didn’t waste a moment and hurriedly came over to pay his respects:
“Prime Minister, did you call me?”
“You immediately lead a battalion and prepare to cross the water.”
When Wei Yan heard this, he was surprised and happy: "Then Sima Yi has agreed to a decisive battle?"
Zhuge Liang turned his head suddenly and stared at him. Under his seemingly calm expression, there was raging anger:
“Don’t ask so many questions, go quickly!”
Wei Yan felt bored and did not dare to ask any more questions, so he had no choice but to go down.
Leading the army to the water's edge, he was still hesitant. The current was so fast that it was difficult to build a pontoon bridge. Would Sima Yi really let him go?
Isn't it possible to be deceived?
With this in mind, Wei Yan watched helplessly as the people from the engineering camp drove their boats to the other side.
On the other side, no one came out to stop him.
Before Wei Yan could react, the prime minister on Wuzhangyuan had already sent a messenger over with great urgency:
“General Wei, the Prime Minister has ordered us to cross the water on a bamboo raft immediately without waiting for the pontoon bridge to be built!”
As an old man in the army, if Wei Yan still couldn't see that there was a problem on the other side at this time, then he would have lived in vain for so many years.
“Cross the water, cross the water immediately!”
Wei Yan was the first to jump on the raft and rowed towards the other side.
The rushing martial arts water made the raft stagger, but because there was no arrow rain from the other side, it was much easier to cross than before.
Arrived at the east bank, Wei Yan jumped out before the raft could stop.
Hurryly gathering hundreds of soldiers, he led his people and rushed toward the Wei army camp.
The muddy water underfoot was sticky, and a group of people stepped on it, making a creaking sound, which made me feel very uncomfortable.
While running, soldiers fell out from time to time, but this did not make Wei Yan have any intention of slowing down.
His eyes were just staring ahead, staring at the camp where the Wei army had set up in advance to prepare for a decisive battle.
Until he rushed to the front of the Wei Jun camp, the gate of the Wei Jun camp was already wide open. There was already an old soldier standing in front of the gate with a bow and a white flag, nodding and bowing:
"General, we surrender, we are willing to surrender..."
Wei Yan stared blankly at the Wei camp in front of him with the village gate wide open. It took him a while before he came back to his senses.
He then looked at the old soldier in front of him who seemed to be knocked down by a gust of wind. His face gradually became distorted and he said sternly:
“Where are the people? Where are your people?”
“Go back to the general and run away. He ran away a long time ago. He ran away in the heavy rain ten days ago.”
What the Han envoys saw outside the camp were just a hundred people who were just showing off.
After they saw the Han army beginning to cross the water, they also ran away.
“How could he run away? How could he run away?”
Wei Yan rushed into the camp, looked at everything empty, and muttered to himself.
Where is the promised decisive battle?
Actually ran away in the rain?
He was like a wounded beast, circling around the empty village a few times, with red eyes and growled:
“How could Sima Yi run? How dare he run?”
In front of the two armies, they agreed to a decisive battle, and he just ran away. Wasn't he afraid of the ridicule of the world?
Not to mention Wei Yan, even the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty was stunned for a long time when he heard Wei Yan's report that Sima Yi had run away.
"A man cannot stand without trust. Sima Yi betrayed his trust and righteousness in front of hundreds of thousands of soldiers, and lost the basic principles of being a human being. Even if he fled back, how could he have the dignity to stand in the world?"
Although the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty had long seen that something was wrong on the other side, he just thought that Sima Yi was trying to pull some tricks during the decisive battle.
He never thought that Sima Yi would escape quietly.
Being from a noble family, it represents the reputation of the Guandong noble family. To do such a thing is already shocking.
More importantly, there were originally 20,000 Wei troops in Qian County to the west of Wuzhangyuan, and Qin Lang brought another 50,000 people there.
Sima Yi actually abandoned these 70,000 troops as soon as he said he would abandon them, and he abandoned them maliciously.
Qin Lang’s 50,000 horses are Cao Rui’s imperial guards!
How could the face of the pretended emperor of the Cao family be so insignificant in front of Sima Yi?
As a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty, the prime minister simply cannot imagine:
Someone, with a superior force and still able to fight, deliberately let the Royal Guards come to die in order to cover his escape.
“Prime Minister, what should we do? Do we want to pursue him?”
Wei Yan asked hurriedly, obviously frustrated.
Zhuge Liang stood in front of the sand table, staring closely at the shapes of mountains, rivers and rivers on the sand table. When he heard Wei Yan's words, he shook his head solemnly:
“I can’t catch up. If Sima Yi really wants to run away, I’m afraid he’s already in Wuguan by now.”
“In addition, the road is muddy and the ground is slippery. How can we pursue him? The most we can do now is to send out scouts to see if Sima Yi retreats to Chang’an or heads to Wuguan or even Tongguan...”
Before he finished speaking, Zhuge Liang didn’t know what he was thinking of. He suddenly turned around and said loudly:
“Come here!”
“What is the Prime Minister’s order?”
“Immediately send someone to inform General Wu to send out manpower to check the bandits’ camp and see if the thieves in the west have also escaped in the rain!”
)
If Qin Lang also ran away, then Sima Yi was determined to escape from Guanzhong.
However, the 70,000 horses in the west need to make a big circle to get to Wuguan, so they may not be able to escape.
“If Qin Lang didn’t run away, then Sima Yi might not have run away.”
Zhuge Liang's face became increasingly gloomy, "He may have gone to Hexi."
“Hexi?”
"That's right, it's Hexi." Zhuge Liang held a long whip and pointed it at the area between the river and Luoshui. "If Feng Mingwen has crossed the river at this time, he will most likely run into Sima Yi's army."
The more the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty said, the deeper his voice became: "Or, where will Sima Yi ambush the Liangzhou army led by Feng Mingwen..."
No matter what the facts are, Sima Yi is obviously better in this fight.
This person has been in Guanzhong for a long time and is familiar with the climate of Guanzhong. He made perfect use of this autumn rain.
If Feng Mingwen had really entered Hexi, facing the sudden appearance of Sima Yi's army, the river behind him would have become a fatal noose.
There is a large army in front, a large river behind, and a tired army that has fought for thousands of miles...
Zhuge Liang's face was so gloomy that it was about to drip with water.
Wu Ban's camp is only a few dozen miles away from Wuzhangyuan. Normally, it would not seem that far away. However, at this moment, the Han Prime Minister felt that his days were like years, and his heart was already on fire.
Just when he was about to lose control and was about to send out more troops, Wu Ban finally sent back the news: Qin Lang's army was still stationed where it was.
This news, instead of making the prime minister happy, made him even more worried.
In this case, unless Sima Yi completely abandoned the 70,000 troops in the west.
Otherwise, it will only be more likely that the main force of the Wei army will go to Hexi.
“Feng Mingwen is good at counterattacks and is not afraid of back-and-forth battles. This is the case with Jieting, Jincheng, and Xiaoguan. I believe he will not disappoint this time!”
If we catch up at this time, not only will we not be able to save Feng Mingwen, but I am afraid that all the thieves in the west will run away.
Zhuge Liang gritted his teeth and said, "Chang Wen, please lead 20,000 troops quickly, cross the Wei River, capture the high plateau of Weibei, and prevent Qin Lang from escaping from Weibei."
Since Sima Yi’s army has retreated, the defenders of Gaoyuan in Weibei have probably also withdrawn.
Otherwise, it will become a lonely army. In this case, it is just to let one more man die.
Because of the Wei Imperial Guards led by Qin Lang, the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty will definitely eat it!
(End of this chapter)