Chapter 286 The war begins
While Liu Xuanji and Zhao Yi were competing in Hebei, the originally stalemate situation on the Yingchuan battlefield in the Central Plains began to gradually escalate into a tense situation.

In August, two reinforcements from Western Yan arrived one after another.

Yuwen She and Chai Rong led 40,000 troops from Guanzhong and more than 10,000 generals from Wagang and arrived in Yingchuan one after another.

The situation on the battlefield in the Central Plains also changed. After Wagang openly submitted its surrender and made a clear change of course, Li Yaoshi, who was originally stationed in Liang County, abandoned Liang County and led his troops to retreat to Chenliu and Xingyang areas in order to avoid being attacked from both sides.

The two sides are basically balanced in terms of military strength.

It started in June and lasted for more than two months.

Faced with the constant urging from Luoyang and the changes in their own military morale, Lou Jushi and Duan Yihong felt that they could not go on like this and must have a decisive battle with the Western Army as soon as possible, because after the autumn harvest, Guanzhong would be able to send out large-scale troops, and the situation would then be dangerous.

As for Western Yan, originally, it was not in a hurry to respond to the challenge, but the changing situation in Hebei also made the Li brothers feel more urgency.

If Liu Xuanji could take control of You and Ji states, then after Tuoba Yuqing's death, it would be very likely that Bing state would be taken over by Liu Xuanji.

After discussion, the Li brothers felt that they could not continue to waste time.

Zhai Sixun led his troops from the Eastern Army, passed Liangjun and Chenjun along the way and arrived at the Yingchuan battlefield. After settling the troops in Zhaoling, he, Murong Sanzang and a group of more than ten generals went to Yancheng to meet the Li brothers.

Along the way, seeing that the Western Yan camp was well-arranged and the soldiers were in neat formation, he couldn't help but sigh at the strict military discipline and harmonious marching of the Li family's sons.

Before arriving in Yancheng, we saw the welcoming team at the city gate.

Zhai Sixun and Murong Sanzang were in the front, and on their left and right were Cheng Zhijie, Xu Maogong, Qin Bogui, Qin Zhongyu and Chen Dengyun.

Cui Xiaotong, Qi Biao, Yang Xianguo, Jia Xiong, Huang Junhan.

There were twelve of them in total, and they all bowed down before dismounting from their horses at the city gate.

"We are here to greet the three generals."

"No need to be so polite, no need to be so polite." Li Er and Li Si hurried forward to convince Zhai Sixun and Murong Sanzang, and said with a smile, "You all came here to submit to us, which is a move of abandoning darkness and joining the light, just like Zhang Liang returning to the Han Dynasty. Great things can be expected, hahahahaha."

Murong Sanzang said, "We are the generals of a defeated army. We are very grateful for your hospitality. From now on, we will go through fire and water without hesitation."

Li Yuanhui said, "I am old friends with many of you. I came here today to reminisce about our old friendship. Tonight, I will not leave until we are drunk."

"Thank you for your kindness, General. We are so lucky to be taken in by you. We will serve you as scouts and horses, and will let you drive us wherever you want."

The Li brothers went out of the city to welcome them, and the reception was very high. Naturally, they were moved to tears and expressed their loyalty.

As for how to divide the Wagang group, the Li brothers had discussed in advance.

Li Er proposed to have several powerful generals join his army to prepare for the war. As for the rest, whether it was territories or troops, they were temporarily under the jurisdiction of Li Yuanhui.

After all, the area controlled by Wagang borders the Jianghuai area controlled by Li Yuanhui. Even if Li Er and Li San had ideas, they would not cross their brothers' territory to take action at this time.

Li Yuanhui naturally had no objection, so at the banquet when the Wagang people arrived in Yancheng, Li Er directly told Zhai Sixun and Murong Sanzang that he had heard of Qin Bogui, Qin Zhongyu, Cheng Zhijie and other brave generals, and wanted them to join his black armor cavalry.

Upon hearing this, Zhai Sixun said directly, "I have heard of Li Erfeng's great reputation. If there is a chance to fight alongside you, you must take me with you."

Li Er said that you are the general of Wagang and need to lead the army. It would be a waste of your talent to join my black armor cavalry. Zhai Sixun said that it is my honor. The army of Wagang can be led by Xu Maogong and Murong Sanzang. I, Zhai Sixun, am very honored to join your core combat unit.

Therefore, Zhai Rang's son Zhai Sixun, admiring Li Erfeng's reputation, achievements and personal charm, strongly recommended himself and led his personal guards to join the Xuanjia Army.

The remaining Wagang troops were led by Xu Maogong, Murong Sanzang and others.

Later, Cui Xiaotong was appointed as a military officer by Li Yuanhui.

In general, although all the people in Wagang were appointed separately, they were all in important positions and they all had the tendency to be reused.
With the arrival of the Wagang generals, the Western Yan army also began to integrate its troops and prepare for the upcoming war.

After Li Er arrived in Yingchuan, the three brothers began to reconcile their accounts, that is, to disclose all the generals and troops under their command, so as to know each other first.

After all, in this battle, the three brothers were nominally leading the troops together, but when it came to the battlefield, it was basically assumed that Li Er was the one commanding the operations.

First, as the elder brother, he follows the order of seniority and it is natural for him to command his brothers.

The second is past performance.

Li San led his troops all the way from Shuzhong to join forces with Li Er in Weibei. He led his army alone to defeat Yuwen She, and his achievements along the way were remarkable.

Needless to say, Li Si almost managed the situation in Jianghuai alone, but in terms of combat, he mainly fought on the defensive and used his troops steadily. There were very few examples of defeating a larger force with a smaller one or a strong force with a weak one.

Li Er, who has never been defeated since his debut and can win battles against both the elite troops of Liangzhou and the Turkish cavalry, is undoubtedly the best choice to make the decision.

After constant adjustment and preparation, as well as repeated provocations from the Eastern Army, the day for dispatching troops is getting closer.

August 15th, Mid-Autumn Festival.

In the festival hall, the three brothers sat side by side.

Although their clothes are different, they are all outstanding people at a glance.

Li Er sitting in the middle is a handsome man with the appearance of a dragon and a phoenix. Li Sanlang on the left has a majestic appearance and a handsome face. Li Yuanhui on the right is handsome as a brocade with sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes.

All three of them had impressive demeanor and sat like crouching tigers, giving people a sense of dignity when they looked at them.

All the people in the hall were brave generals, heroes of the time. When all were counted, they actually included half of the world's talented people.

Li Yuanhui, the highest-ranking official and one of the Three Dukes, stood up first. He looked at everyone and said loudly, "The world is in chaos now. You must have seen the smoke of war everywhere, refugees leaving their homes, bandits everywhere, and even piles of bones. Murong Yang, the false emperor of Luoyang, killed his brother to seize the throne. His crimes are extremely heinous, and he also stubbornly resisted the heavenly soldiers. The three of us brothers, under the order of the emperor and the King of Tang, led the army to fight against the unjust. We have been occupying Yingchuan for more than two months. The bandits are getting more rampant, and our army has been recuperating for a long time. As the saying goes, you should raise troops for a thousand days and use them for a day. Tomorrow is the day when our army will fight the enemy!"

"All of you generals come from all over the world, including Guanzhong, Longyou, Bashu, Hexi, Jianghuai, Qingyan, and Zhongyuan. But no matter whose generals you are, you will be commanded by my brothers on the battlefield tomorrow. The three of us are one! My brother's orders are my orders! And my orders are also my brother's orders!"

Then Li Er also stood up, glanced at everyone and said: "Everyone, this battle is of great importance. If we win this battle, Luoyang can be secured. If Luoyang is secured, the Central Plains can be safe. If the Central Plains are safe, the day of unification of the world is not far away. In order to prevent the people from suffering from war, you must respect our military orders, act according to orders, work together, and not make mistakes."

Everyone responded in unison, "We will follow the general's orders."

After the first phase of attacking the camp and the second phase of stalemate, the battle of Yingchuan finally entered the third phase.

All-out confrontation.

(End of this chapter)