SWDnovel Chapter 1416: Hurrying or Not Hurrying
Chapter 1416: Hurrying or Not Hurrying
Chapter 1416: Hurrying or Not Hurrying
Behind the inner city gate of Yuyang Ancient Pass, there was a sharp sound of a wooden capstan breaking, and the thick city gate burst open.
A bald man with a head full of braids stood there, holding a long knife that was still dripping with blood in his right hand and a head high in his left hand, and ran out of the doorway.
He came before General Zhendong, placed his sword in front of him, knelt on one knee, and said in a loud voice:
"I have accomplished my mission, and here is the head of the thief."
As he spoke, he raised the bloody trophy high above his head.
General Zhendong nodded slightly, but did not reach out to take the head. He just glanced at it calmly and said:
"Okay, I'll remember your achievement."
Tufa Tianli showed a delighted expression and said respectfully:
"Thank you, General."
"You deserve a reward for your merits. You don't need to thank me."
Both the inner and outer cities of the ancient pass fell into the hands of the Han army. General Zhendong did not enter the inner city immediately, but stood there steadily, raised his head and looked towards the hill next to the pass.
In fact, one hour before she led the army to set out in the early morning, she had secretly sent out a special force of 500 people, who, under the guidance of a guide, quietly went around the mountain behind the pass.
When the army appeared in front of the pass, the Wei army on the mountain was the first to be attracted.
After all, their vision is wider than that of the defenders of the city.
However, it was at this time that the special force began to climb along the mountain path known only to the herbalists.
Although it is called a mountain path, it is very steep and difficult for ordinary people to walk on. Even ghosts would be worried when seeing it.
Guide Ji Yang climbed in the front, tightening the hemp rope around his waist from time to time. The moss on the cliff was squeezed out of dark green juice under his iron wrist guards.
Behind him, Liu Hun led five hundred death warriors and crawled along the steep rocks.
After walking for half an hour, the team was blocked by a natural rift forty feet deep.
"I heard that there was no ditch here originally. Later, during the Yongchu period, a dragon turned over the ground, and it became like this."
Ji Yang, the guide walking in front, turned around and whispered to Liu Hun.
Liu Hun looked around and saw that the cliffs on both sides of the rift valley were as sharp as if they were cut by knives or axes. No wonder the Wei army did not set up sentries in the back mountain. This was a natural line of defense.
However, this natural barrier may be difficult to overcome for people from the north, especially those from Hebei.
After all, Hebei is all plains.
But for the Han army, it was not insurmountable.
Today's Han army was once contemptuously called the "Shu army."
Everyone knows that the road to Shu is difficult.
But the Shu Road is still called the Road after all.
Before the Shu Road was built, how did the Shu people build a road through the mountains and hills?
"Build a ladder!"
Liu Hun shouted in a low voice, and two strong men behind him unfolded a soft ladder made of hemp rope and pine wood. When the ladder was unfolded, it could twist with the terrain of the mountain, like a giant centipede clinging to the rock wall.
The vanguard squad leader stuck the iron centipede beak into the crevice of the rock, and ten soldiers slowly lowered the ladder by pulling a hemp rope soaked in tung oil.
When the floodwater from the mountain rushed towards the city gate, the five fingers of Liu Hun's right hand finally grabbed the grass on the top of the cliff. Behind him, five hundred death warriors clung to the rock wall like geckos.
Although the Wei army on the mountain did not have to face the flood like the defenders in the city, almost everyone's attention was attracted by the sudden changes at the foot of the mountain. They were completely unaware that a Han army was quietly approaching.
"There is a beacon in the northeast!" a scout reminded in a low voice.
"There's also one on the east side!" another added.
"This is the mother and son beacon, responding to each other."
Liu Hun raised the telescope, observed for a while, and said slowly:
"These are the mother and child beacons, supporting each other. The mother beacon on the east side has crossbows and thunder chariots, which are obviously using the commanding height advantage to support the city at the foot of the mountain."
"The sub-beacon has few people, so it should be used for vigilance. The main beacon has many people, so it is where the main force of the enemy army is. Crossbow snipers, load the crossbows!"
"Click..."
The crossbow sniper at the back received the order and began to assemble crossbows for hunting.
Although this detachable crossbow is not as powerful as the heavy crossbow usually used for sniping, it is easy to carry.
When it is not in use, it can be disassembled into several parts and quickly assembled when needed.
It is a sharp weapon used for assassination when lurking close to the enemy.
After the fifteen hunting crossbows were assembled and strung, the crossbow snipers began to encircle the cracks in the rocks, killing the sentries who were staring at the bottom one by one.
It was not until the firewood pile on the Wei army's beacon tower began to burn that the defenders of the main beacon tower suddenly discovered that the Han army had climbed onto the eaves of the arrow tower.
At the same time, the dull sound of flesh being torn rang in their ears.
"The Han army is here!"
"kill!"
……
The sound of the raging flood below the mountain drowned out the fighting on the mountain.
When General Zhendong stood at the gate of the inner city and looked up at the mountain, he could no longer hear any shouting or killing.
No one noticed that half of the broken Wei army flag was slowly falling from the top of the mountain and finally fell into the water of Baoqiu. The gold-painted "ghost" character was floating up and down and finally disappeared into the water.
A whistling arrow was shot down from the top of the mountain, making a sharp sound.
General Zhendong heard the voice he wanted to hear, and then he led his troops into the inner city.
The next step was to count the usable supplies in the city, recruit the surrendered soldiers, and drive them to the outer city to clean up the silt, corpses, and various debris.
Although it is already July, the heat has not yet dissipated. If the things are not cleaned up in time - especially the corpses - an epidemic is likely to break out.
However, these trivial matters were handled by the staff and generals, so she did not need to worry about them personally.
Stepping onto the city wall of the inner city, General Zhendong looked quietly toward the mountains to the east with a deep expression, as if he was thinking about something.
"General, do you want me to take some men to take down that mountain?"
In this battle, only Liu Hun and Tuoba Tianli stood out, while General Zhao just felt itchy all over.
"No need."
General Zhendong rejected Zhao Guang's request outright:
"The situation has been decided. If the bandits on the mountain know what's happening and surrender, then that's fine. If they don't surrender, that's fine too."
"I have sent Yang Qianwan to lead 300 people to guard the roads below the mountain, and with Ji Hui as a guide, the bandits on the mountain cannot come down, and they cannot send messengers to Yuyang."
In addition to Dongshan, she also blocked all the main roads from Guancheng to Yuyang, and sent scouts and rangers to search the area around Guancheng, strictly prohibiting anyone from approaching or leaving.
There is only one purpose, to strictly seal off the current situation in the city.
It doesn't need to be too long, just two days is enough.
"But General," Zhao Guang reminded, "have you forgotten something?"
Hearing this, General Zhendong seemed to have not expected that Zhao Guang could think of something that he had not thought of. He turned his head slightly in surprise and asked, "What's the matter?"
"Wolf smoke!" Zhao Guang said anxiously, "General, there are beacons on the mountain. They can light the wolf smoke to warn Yuyang."
As if to confirm Zhao Guang's words, as soon as he finished speaking, three thick black smoke beams began to rise simultaneously from the top of Dongshan Mountain.
The thick black smoke column cut a hideous crack in the sky - this was a special wolf smoke made from a mixture of horse manure and thin willow twigs, and its color was darker than ordinary beacon smoke.
This is the highest level of warning, indicating that the checkpoint is in great danger.
The Wei army on the East Mountain naturally did not have a telescope or other magical weapon, but after the Han army covered the mountains and fields in front of the city, and then the city was flooded, they could not turn a blind eye.
It's just that the city gate was lost too quickly, and the defenders on the mountain didn't wait for the messenger sent by the city gate commander to convey the military order, so there was no movement before.
Now that they saw the Han army entering the city and the Wei flag on the opposite mountain was gone, they probably hurriedly lit the wolf smoke.
When Zhao Guang saw the wolf smoke rising, he was stunned and wanted to slap himself.
He secretly glanced at General Zhendong and was relieved to see that General Zhendong had no intention of hitting him.
General Zhendong looked at the signal smoke with a strange light in his eyes. His expression relaxed and he gave the order:
"Send the order, rest inside the pass today, and set off again at dawn tomorrow, heading for Yuyang County."
Yuyang County is the county seat of Yuyang County.
It is also an important military town in the northeast of Youzhou. Since the Yan State in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, it has been responsible for guarding against the Hu people outside the Great Wall.
Until the Tang Dynasty, its military status remained extremely important.
That’s why there is the famous line “The drums of Yuyang shook the earth, startling the dancers in their colorful costumes and feathered robes.”
Taking over the pass only means getting the key to enter Youzhou.
Only by taking Yuyang can the door to Youzhou be opened.
However, how to capture this important military town became an urgent issue for General Zhendong.
-
At the same time, in Yuyang City.
"Master, something terrible has happened. Close the city and sound the alarm!"
The wolf smoke shot up into the sky like three twisted pythons, causing a chain reaction along the hundred-mile stretch between Guankou and Yuyang County.
There is a beacon tower every thirty miles.
Each beacon tower lit up the same signal smoke as the one at the pass at the fastest speed.
In less than half an hour, Zhao Kai, the prefect of Yuyang, who was a hundred miles away, learned that there was a serious enemy situation in the city pass, even an enemy situation that put the pass in an extremely dangerous environment.
"What's going on? How is this possible?!"
Zhao Kai almost crawled to the top of the city wall and looked towards the northeast.
The billowing smoke rose into the sky. Although it was silent, it pressed down on the chests of everyone in Yuyang like a heavy hammer.
"How is it possible...how is it possible..."
Zhao Kai stared at the wolf smoke intently, his fingernails digging into the cracks in the parapet, and he kept muttering these words neurotically.
There hadn't been any signal smoke at Yuyang Pass for many years - even during this Han army invasion, signal smoke was heard at various western passes, but Yuyang remained peaceful.
There was no other reason. The Han army was in the west and Yuyang was in the east, separated by Daijun and Shanggu.
Over the years, Envoy Wang's efforts to win over the Hu people have been quite effective, and Yuyang has become an important trading center between Youzhou and the Hu people outside the Great Wall.
After Bingzhou was captured by the Han State, the Han army often harassed the northwest of Youzhou, and the Hu people were also attracted by the huge profits and went to Pingcheng one after another.
Yuyang became the best place for Wei to obtain horses because it had two passages leading to the outside of the Great Wall, the Guguan Tudao and the Pinggangdao.
This is especially true of the ancient pass road, which has been the best way to go out of the northeast of Youzhou since ancient times.
Now that Guguan has encountered a serious danger, could it be that the Hu people saw that Youzhou was in trouble and wanted to take advantage of the chaos to march south to plunder?
It's not impossible, after all, the Hu people are not righteous...
Just when Zhao Kai was in a state of panic, he heard the sound of hurried footsteps behind him. County Commandant Qin Rui almost ran over:
"Master? Over at the Guancheng..."
Zhao Kai took a deep breath and tried to appear calm:
"I already know. Don't panic. I have sent a fast horse to Ji County to report to Envoy Wang. I believe Envoy Wang will send reinforcements soon."
Zhao Kai turned around, looked at Qin Rui with sharp eyes, and emphasized his tone:
"But before that, the success or failure of the city gate still depends on you, Captain Qin."
"But my lord," Qin Rui frowned and said, "In the past few months, most of the soldiers and civilians in the county have been transferred away. Now there are only 3,000 soldiers in Yuyang County."
"That's why I said I need to rely on you, Captain Qin!" Zhao Kai said solemnly, "According to the smoke signals, the enemy is strong, but Yuyang Pass is also a strategic pass. A few thousand people can stop a hundred thousand elite soldiers."
"You only need to take these three thousand troops to provide support. The reinforcements sent by Envoy Wang will surely arrive in five days at most."
Qin Rui wanted to nod and agree. After all, the county commander was in charge of public security, defense, and commanding troops, and leading the troops was his job.
But he always felt something was not right, and couldn't help but remind him:
"My Lord, the smoke signal is extremely urgent. The messengers at the pass haven't arrived yet, and we don't know what happened. If we mobilize all the soldiers in the city to go there, there will be no soldiers guarding the city. What if..."
"No chance of a contingency!" Zhao Kai did not wait for Qin Rui to finish, his face turned red and he said sternly:
"Yuyang Pass is a strategic pass. A few thousand men can stop tens of thousands of troops. Now that the war has just begun, it is only right to go and provide support as soon as possible."
"You are making excuses and making all sorts of excuses. Do you think the fortress has been breached? This is ridiculous! You are afraid of the enemy!"
No one can break through the pass within two days after the smoke of war rises!
nobody!
What the checkpoint needs most now is support.
Qin Rui was spitted in the face by Zhao Kai, but she didn't dare to say anything more.
There is no other way. This kind of smoke signal can only be used in life-and-death situations.
If he had to wait for the messenger from the city gate to come, he would have to wait at least another day.
Under such military circumstances, one day is enough time for a lot of things to happen.
Of course, in his subconscious, he also thought it was ridiculous to lose the pass after seeing the thieves raising the signal smoke.
If this is true, the pass will never be the key to Youzhou.
With this thought in mind, he hurried down the city wall.
Soon, the sound of drums shook the entire Yuyang City.
In the afternoon, Yuyang City was like a smashed ant nest, and the county soldiers rushed to the city gate in a disorderly manner.
One of the new soldiers even had the word "prisoner" tattooed on his face. He was originally a criminal, but now he was conscripted into the death camp of the army.
Yuyang was originally located in the rear of the Hebei campaign, and there were not many defenders there.
In addition, the military preparations of the entire Youzhou have been lax in recent years, and the soldiers in various camps are generally insufficient.
When a war breaks out, it is not uncommon to force people to make up the numbers in order to make up for the empty salaries.
It is one hundred li from Yuyang County to the pass. According to normal marching, it would take two and a half days at the fastest and three days at the slowest.
The first day was fine because it was already past noon when we set out, so we only walked for half a day.
But the military situation was urgent, and Qin Rui did not care about the soldiers' fatigue. Before dawn the next day, he began urging the soldiers to set off.
By noon, Qin Rui, who was riding a horse, was already sweating through his heavy shirt. When he raised his water bag for the seventh time, he found that it was empty.
Not to mention the three thousand tired soldiers, who were walking on the rocky beach, taking one deep step and one shallow step.
After walking under the scorching sun for half a day without any rest, they were already thirsty and tired, and many of them were dizzy.
They were marching along the Baoqiu River, but were not allowed even a sip of water, which made everyone feel resentful.
The saddle of Qin Rui's horse was also heated by the scorching sun. He moved his butt left and right, but finally he could not sit still any longer:
"Come here, pass the order down, find a place to rest by the water ahead."
Upon hearing this, the soldiers all breathed a sigh of relief, and some even cheered.
Perhaps knowing that they could rest ahead, some people began to walk quickly in small steps, but unexpectedly they accidentally tripped over something and fell to the ground.
The spear in his hand almost stabbed the sergeant's back. The sergeant turned around and was about to draw his sword, but Qin Rui whipped his wrist with a whip: "Arm your troops! Anyone who interferes with the military plan will be executed!"