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Outside Jin County, when Qin Mu defeated Bailutuhu's army, a bloody battle also broke out in Lintao Prefecture in the southwest.
Gao Yigong, Hao Yaoqi, Dongfang Sheng and others have received the emperor's death order. If they fail to annihilate Na Risong's troops within ten days, they will be executed!
The loss of Lanzhou at that time made the battle situation very passive all of a sudden, and the Qin army was forced into a dead end. In order to avoid a chain reaction and collapse of the Qin army in Longyou, Hexi and Hetao, Qin Mu issued this death order.
Gao Yigong and others had no way to retreat. The emperor did not hide behind and let the soldiers fight in the front, but he himself fought first. From Gao Yigong to every ordinary soldier, they had no choice but to obey.
The emperor's behavior aroused the bravery of all the Qin troops. Generals such as Gao Yigong and Hao Yaoqi led the charge. In the north of Lintao city, the fierce fighting continued into the night, with flames like the sea and shouts like thunder.
Taohe Pass had been captured by Li Jiu, cutting off the way back for Risong's army. Moreover, the great victory in Lanzhou also boosted their morale. The two armies fought fiercely, and were evenly matched for a while, slaughtering each other in a heroic manner.
To the west of the Tao River is Hezhou. There is a group of people that cannot be forgotten, and that is Qin Zuoming's one thousand elite troops who quietly entered Hezhou.
Hezhou has been a political, economic and cultural link between the Central Plains and the Western Regions since ancient times, and a battleground for military strategists. It was once a place where "tea-horse trade" and merchants gathered on the Silk Road. Therefore, Hezhou also enjoys the reputation of the "dry wharf" in the west.
At the same time, the customs here are extremely complicated, with Han, Tibetan, Mongolian, Hui, Qiang, Dongxiang, Baoan, Salar and other ethnic groups living together.
In terms of topography, Hezhou is located at the junction of the Loess Plateau and the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. It is very complex, with both the undulating loess hills of the Loess Plateau and the vast mountains and ancient forests.
The Khoshut had not captured Hezhou City for long, and their control over the entire Hezhou region was still weak. Qin Zuoming led a thousand men and horses to disguise themselves as Tibetans. Under the leadership of the guide Qiu Yang, they took a shortcut and rushed all the way;
After being discovered at Jiangmen Pass, Qin Zuoming launched a fierce attack with rockets and quickly broke through the pass. He then sent his deputy general Li Xianghe with two hundred troops, pretending to be the main force, and turned northeast with great fanfare, pretending to attack Hezhou.
At the same time, the general Xie Baicai was sent with 50 riders, disguised as Qiang people, to rush to Jishi Pass in batches at full speed. His main responsibility was to catch up with all those who went to Jishi Pass to report the news.
There is only one passage from Jiangmen to Jishi Pass, which is the ancient Tang-Tibet Road. As long as the scouts in front intercept all the horses heading to Jishi Pass, they can prevent the enemy from going to Jishi to report the news. Of course, their most important task is to infiltrate Jishi Pass as an insider.
Qin Zuoming patiently hid in the mountains for a long time, and only rushed out suddenly after the enemy believed that he was really going to Hezhou. He rushed to Jishi Pass in the northwest. At this time, the key to fighting was speed.
As long as they were fast enough, even if someone discovered them along the way, they would not have time to report to Jishi Pass. All the horses had their hooves wrapped with cloth. Large swathes of fire shone like stars in the mountains, and the peaks looked like the sea. The sky and the earth were gloomy.
Jishi Pass was built on the south bank of the Yellow River. It is a natural place with steep terrain, with the towering Jishi Mountain to the south and the turbulent Yellow River to the north. With the mountain behind and the water in front, it is a place where one man can block the passage of ten thousand men. Legend has it that Dayu started to control floods by cutting through the mountain from here and diverting water into the sea.
This pass is not only a military stronghold, but also the location for tea and horse trade between the Central Plains and Qinghai-Tibet. There is Dahe Town under the pass, which is usually crowded with merchants.
When Qin Zuoming's 800 troops rushed to Jishi Pass overnight, the lights on the towering city wall were dim and there were enemy troops patrolling back and forth, looking quite vigilant. Apparently the news from Jiangmen Pass had reached here. Li Xianghe's high-profile attack on Hezhou might have made them unsure whether the Qin army was coming to Jishi Pass, but it was normal for them to be on high alert.
The cold wind blew over the high peaks on both sides, rustling and rustling, then suddenly rushing and surging, like waves startled at night, a storm coming suddenly. The sound of clanging and clanging, the sound of metal and iron ringing; or like soldiers rushing to the enemy, holding their mouths and rushing, whistling without hearing any orders.
In short, in such a dangerous place, the whistling and changing sound of the wind alone is enough to make people's hearts palpitate and terrified.
Lu Wang, who was disguised as a Qiang and stayed outside the pass to meet the follow-up army, said to Qin Zuoming: "General, Captain Xie and his men have already sneaked into the pass, but the enemy's inspection is very strict. Captain Xie and his men can only bring short swords, and other weapons are not allowed to enter the pass."
In the dark night, Qin Zuoming rubbed his cold hands, frowned and asked: "Has any news come out after Xie Baicai went in? What is the situation inside the pass?"
"General, Captain Xie only sent out a message once, saying that there were a hundred enemies inside the pass and that there were also ten enemies guarding the north side of the floating bridge outside the pass. There was no other news."
Qin Zuoming couldn't help cursing after hearing this. This little bit of information was equivalent to nothing. The battalion commander Wan Qingliu said anxiously: "General Qin, we can't wait any longer. With so many troops coming here, if we don't act immediately, we will be discovered by the enemy sooner or later."
The greater the expectation, the more nervous one will be when the time comes. Qin Zuoming took a few deep breaths and said, "Using rockets to attack, it is not a problem to quickly break through the two gates. The most important thing is how to seize the Yellow River floating bridge behind the gate.
If we allow the enemy to destroy the pontoon bridge, we won't know how long it will take to build a new one. In addition, there may be another enemy in the north. By then, it will be extremely difficult for us to cross the river.
Now we don't know whether Xie Baicai can control the floating bridge in the first place, so Wan Qingliu, listen, once you break through the barrier, you take two hundred people, don't worry about anything, and immediately rush over to seize control of the floating bridge. Don't let the enemy destroy the floating bridge."
“Yes!”
"Okay, let's do it."
Without any delay, thirty people led by Captain Li Laifu, carrying ten rocket launchers and twenty rockets, ran towards the city gate in the dark.
Wan Qingliu, with two hundred men and rifles loaded with bullets, followed closely behind.
Jishi Pass is worthy of the title of "One man guards the pass against ten thousand men". There are many high peaks on both sides of the pass, and the dangerous rocks and cliffs stretch out to the horizon. When the wind blows at night, it makes a sharp whistle. The dangerous road under the peak can only accommodate two horses running side by side, and it slopes down outwards. The steepness is so great that if traditional cold weapons are used to attack the pass, it would be in vain even if 800 people, or even 10,000 people, came.
Li Laifu and his thirty men took advantage of the night to sneak to the gate thirty steps below. There were nearly ten torches on the city wall. At this distance, they could even see the faces of the enemies on the gate clearly.
Under Li Laifu's hand gestures, the two men in front half-knelt to bombard the city gate, while the three men behind were responsible for bombarding the tower. The moment the fire starter lit up, shouts came from the top of the city wall, and the enemy quickly rushed out from the tower.
At this moment, there were a series of chirping sounds, and suddenly there was a dazzling light under the city wall. Seven rockets whizzed away with comet-like tail flames. Two hit the city gate, one hit the gate tower, one flew into the city wall, and one hit the right side of the gate tower.
Boom! Boom boom boom... ... ... .
There were several loud bangs in succession, and a violent fireball exploded. The city gate, which was hit by two rockets at the same time, was instantly blown into countless pieces of wood. The city gate tower that was hit collapsed with a loud bang, and bricks and tiles flew everywhere. The enemy troops near the tower had no time to react and were blown away by the violent shock wave.
The power of the five rockets filled with yellow explosives was incredible. Fortunately, the city wall was built with huge stones, otherwise it would have been completely blown down.
"rush!"
As soon as the bombing sounded, Li Lai Fu roared, and thirty people ran wildly with rockets, rushing towards the city gate. This was only the first gate. Inside the city gate, there was also a moon gate, which was the concave city gate.
Wan Qingliu and others behind him immediately lit torches and ran over with guns.
Li Laifu and his men rushed to the gate of the city that had been blown open. With the help of the blazing fire on the tower, they could see the city gate within 20 feet. "Li Yi, Wang Tao, blow open the city gate quickly! Quick!"
Chirp! Chirp! Two more tail flames spurted out. At such a close distance, the two rockets hit the city gate accurately. Boom! Boom! The violent explosion shook the entire Jishi Pass again.
The city wall was crumbling, rubble was falling, and the city gate inside also collapsed. Li Laifu and his companions could see clearly that the city gate was actually a huge stone gate. If it were not for the powerful rocket, it would take a year of hammering to break it open.
Wan Qingliu's 20,000-man cavalry arrived first, with torches everywhere. The Qin soldiers leaped over with guns in hand and rushed into Jieshi Pass. At this time, except for a few scattered enemies running and howling, they did not encounter any decent resistance.
Qin Zuoming's army then rushed into Jishi Pass.
Wan Qingliu in the front remembered Qin Zuoming's order. After entering Jishi Pass, he didn't even bother to see what was happening on both sides. He led his men and horses to run desperately towards the north. If there was anyone blocking him, he would just shoot bullets at them.
When they rushed to the Yellow River ferry out of breath, they saw flames on both sides of the floating bridge. They became more anxious and were about to shoot. At this time, a loud shout came from the bridge head: "Don't shoot, don't shoot, I am Xie Baicai, we have controlled both sides of the floating bridge."
When Wan Qingliu and the Qin army running wildly behind him heard the shout, many soldiers could not help but fall to the ground, gasping for breath like dying fish. Some of them were in better condition and could not help but cheer.
Wan Qingliu rushed forward, kicking and shouting at the soldiers who were slumped on the ground: "Get up, cross the river first, a hundred people, and guard the opposite bridgehead, just in case, quick!"
All hopes rest on this pontoon bridge. Xie Baicai has few men and is unable to bring in rifles. To be on the safe side, it would be better for him to send a hundred spearmen to guard the opposite end of the bridge first.
Although Qin Zuoming didn't know that Qin Mu had captured Gushri Khan alive, even if he knew, it was still of great significance to cut off the enemy's retreat route. Gushri Khan still had a son and several troops, and he couldn't let them run back to Qinghai-Tibet.
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ps: 2014 is almost over. Well, there will be another chapter updated in the evening. Please check your ticket folders. If you still have monthly tickets, please vote quickly, otherwise they will expire and become invalid.
Finally, I wish you all a safe, happy and prosperous 2015. (To be continued...)
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